Beg, Steal or Borrow – [Freedom] Interrogation - Part 1
by Commander Isha t'Vaurek & Klingon Ambassador Toran of the House of Moqrhat & Lieutenant T'Pal
Post Details
OOC: It occurred to me that some people on DS5 might be interested in what Nniol has said on the Freedom, so I have a few additional cross-posts here.
OLD:
"Agreed. You can threaten a mind meld. However, I doubt he will be intimidated by it. As a meld would be a violation of his rights, but if he has no memory of the incident...." He added trailing off. Turning to his exec. "I will leave it in your hands then. If I'm needed I will be in sick bay. I want to see how bad we were hurt." With that Da`nal left the assembled officer to handle the matter.
NEW:
T'Pal understood what Da'nal implied, but would only perform a meld when instructed to do so. In addition, she would have to remove the memory of the incident from his mind, with considerable risk, but it could be done. This would not be the first time she would have done anything like this and she knew the consequences, too, but her face revealed nothing of her own thoughts. It was the XO's call.
Mari hesitated, "If the threat will not be beneficial, will the risks that come with the actual meld be worth the information that is gained?" This was her first command. She only knew how to handle textbook situations and this most certainly was NOT textbook.
The brig doors opened and Elek exited. He waited for the doors to close before he spoke.
"I've advised ... him ... of his rights," Elek said, and the tone of his voice indicated that he had thought to say something stronger, but restrained himself, given the company he was in. He sighed. "He can't say he doesn't know what they are now." He turned to Mari. "I worry about what will happen if this gets to a trial. Will there be anything else, Lieutenant?"
"What do you think the odds are of him responding to a mind meld...or the threat of a mind meld?" Mari asked, "Your professional opinion, por favor."
Elek was thoughtful for a moment. "I don't know if he'd believe us, if we threatened him with a mind-mind. Even before I'd read him his rights, I think he knew most of them anyway. He'd know that, under interstellar law, a mind-mind would be inadmissible." His eyebrows knitted together. "The only way round it is if he didn't remember the meld, and then you were able to find some way of corroborating whatever information you retrieved another way - so you didn't have to ... admit to the meld. That's going into all sorts of murky grey areas, though, Lieutenant, that I wouldn't even like to speculate what the JAG office or the admiralty would say if they found out." He quirked an eyebrow. "If they found out, of course."
Mari felt that she was nearly able to read his mind as she slowly nodded, turning to T'Pal, "What are our options, Lieutenant? How do we keep them from finding out...?"
Informing them that she had done this before would reveal too much of her past. "If I can get a good enough 'hold' on his mind, I should be able to get the information and wipe the memory from his mind. I could leave suggestions in his mind that he did spill his guts," she said coldly. "He will not remember the meld, but only giving the answers. There is considerable risk as I have mentioned," the Klingon hybrid said with indifference. "He could perish," she informed them. She refrained from saying that she could kill him during the meld.
Looking at Termin with an expression that said she wasn't sure she was liking the sound of things, Mari asked, "And what are you risks to yourself, Lieutenant?"
"Severe headaches, a coma due to synaptic disruption and if widespread enough, death as well. I could interrupt it before it gets to that point, though. However, it is better to do a forced meld under medical supervision or at least have a cortical stabilizer ready," she said.
"What are our alternatives?" Mari asked, not liking the sound of that.
"There will always be risk, Lieutenant. An alternative is interrogation and it has the risk that we might not get the information," T'Pal said. "And it could take time, depending on his training." This would not be easy for T'Pal, but she was willing to go through with it.
Silonez chimed in, "We could use a Sodium Pentathol derivative, we'd get better results and minimalize the risk."
Hesitating, Mari looked to Termin and asked quietly, "What do you suggest?"
"Desperate times ..." he said quietly back. "If this happens, it stays here, between us, and we accept the burden of what we're about to do." He looked Mari squarely in the eye. "If ... you gave the order for a mind-meld, I would support you."
Slowly, Mari nodded, her eyes not leaving Elek's, "Let's start with the Sodium Pentathol. If that is unsuccessful, move to the mind meld."
"I'll do it, I have more experience with it. I'll need a bioscan of him so I can get the right concentrations." Silonez interjected.
Elek suspected it had taken a lot for her to give that order. He held her gaze, and inclined his head ever so slightly. The exec had just gone up in his estimation, for making the hard decision. He would remain here, with his shipmates, and witness whatever occurred - after all, he felt it the right thing to do.
Mari had not had a good experience with Silonez thus far and she turned her gaze to him, shaking her head and stating with authority, "Negative, Lieutenant. Our chief of security will take the lead. You may observe if you'd like." Turning to T'Pal, Mari said coldly, "If you do not feel that the Sodium Pentathol will be effective, do what you must."
"Fine then, Commander. I will not be held accountable for any consequences, including fatalities. Since it is clear I'm not needed anymore, I'll be leaving." Silonez stood and left.
Elek opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it again. He had heard the tightness in the XO's voice, and knew better than to argue. He stepped back and stood silently.
Silonez had not been dismissed but Mari didn't care. She didn't want him there, anyway. Turning to T'Pal, now avoiding Elek's gaze, she said with a nod, "Begin when you are ready."
T"Pal raised an eyebrow at Silonez's reaction. He was the one who sugggested the forced mind meld in the first place. Surely, he must have known the risks to her and the prisoner before suggesting it. It was common knowledge. "I have not used the chemical on Romulans yet, Lieutenant, " she said to Mari. "I know that Vulcans are resistant to Sodium panthenol derivatives and I believe Klingons too, so I would suspect Romulans would be too,." Even if she was going to ask Silonez for his expertise, he was gone. "I will perform the mind meld then," she said. "I will need some time to prepare, perhaps someone could make the prisoner sweat so long. It s a pity that the CIO had left, his techniques might have softened his mind," she said as an afterthought.
Silonez was furious, he'd had enough crap from the other senior officers. He was going to tell the CO that he was taking the assignment with Captain Kellenger, ~this has to be the shortest assignment in starfleet.~ he mused.
Elek looked at Mari. "I'm not as experienced in intelligence techniques, but I would be willing to sit with Nniol until T'Pal is ready."
Nodding with a look of appreciation in her dark eyes, she said, "Si, por favor. I would greatly appreciate that."
T'Pal nodded in Elek's direction and turned to leave the room. Her eyes rested on the Diplomat once more and a smile tugged at her lips. He might be very successful, seeing he would not use recognisable interrogation techniques. A fresh approach might just get the truth revealed and a meld might not be neseccary.
Elek nodded and turned to the door. He drew in a breath, and entered the brig.
There was a spare chair by the entrance, which he picked up and put directly facing the cell. Sitting, he nodded at Nniol.
"I shall be remaining with you for a while, Nniol," he said, his face and tone perfectly neutral. "I am curious, though ... I find you an interesting character." Elek wasn't lying either when he said that - he always wondered why people had made the decisions they had. "I'm not an interrogator - just a counselor and a diplomat, and I assure you, I don't intend to counsel you." He smiled slightly, then regained his composure. "What will you tell me about yourself?"
Sitting on the bench as he was with his shoulders against the cell wall and his head tilted upwards apparently examining the ceiling, Nniol listened as Elek returned and rearranged the furniture.
"What will I tell you?" Nniol mused without changing his position. "That depends on what you ask. Lieutenant Elek, wasn't it? Is that your given name or your family name?"
"My family name," Elek replied. "My given name is Termin."
As Nniol brushed his fingertip along the three silver crescents at his throat and over the single lozenge he dropped his head and stared through dark brown eyes at Elek, "Why then do you think it appropriate to address me by my given name rather than by my title? We'll get along much better if you address me as Ael'Riov, that's Wing Commander in your standard tongue."
Elek held his gaze and refused to look away. "Very well, Ael'Riov. And you will address me as Lieutenant. Now we have the formalities established ..." He crossed his legs and leaned back in his chair, still maintaining eye contact. "Suppose you just tell us absolutely everything you know, including your mother's birthday. It would save us all a lot of time, you know."
Nniol smirked. Very slowly he linked his fingers together then dropped them into his lap. "My mother was born in 2207, any more than that would be pointless unless you plan to send her a posthumous birthday greeting. Really, Lieutenant Elek, I think you are interrogating this situation from the wrong perspective ... why do you immediately assume that I was one of the aggressors in that unfortunate attack?"
Elek was intrigued. "And my mother was born in the Earth year 1790. At least now we're equal on the mothers front. So, Ael'Riov, this interests me ... do you merely *perceive* yourself as one of the innocents, or were you genuinely not involved in the attack. If that's the case, then you're perfectly correct - I am indeed looking at this whole thing from the wrong angle. Explain it to me, as you see the situation."
As he performed the mental calculation Nniol raised an eyebrow, "You're not human then?" he said mildly. "What would you say if I were to tell you that the ambassador to DS5, the one who calls herself Isha t'Khellian had the opportunity to prevent the attack from happening but allowed it to go ahead anyway?"
Elek's face was perfectly still, as befitted a diplomat, but inside, his mind was racing. Was this possible? Now that the accusation had been made, he knew it needed to be investigated, even if had been made by this Romulan officer.
"No, I'm not Human. I'm part-El-Aurian. I would need more proof, Ael'Riov," Elek said. He was finding it difficult to read the Romulan's emotions. Like Vulcans, his Betazoid telepathy carried with it a great deal of ethical paths, and he couldn't just go diving into a person's mind without permission. He felt supreme confidence, and a certain amount of arrogance, coming from the man's mind ... and possibly a small degree of curiosity as well, as if to see how Elek would react. He decided as well to keep quiet about his Betazoid lineage for the moment. "The ambassador is an accredited representative of her government to the Federation. You ..." he smiled, and then continued "... are not."
Elek rose and began pacing the brig. "You are a member of the Romulan military - surely more inclined to be involved in such an attack than a diplomatic appointee?" He didn't add that, as a diplomat himself, he knew that that wasn't quite always the case.
The lieutenant had crossed the floor four times before Nniol spoke again. "I follow orders," he said quite plainly, "and my orders were to stop her. As I'm sure you will find out I employed someone to attempt to achieve this end, but he appears to have had little success in getting close to the ambassador. I had no choice but to wait until her plans manifested themselves and then ... well I removed her from the station. Analyse the attack. The only involvement of the Vrelnec was to target and take out the shield generators, remove the ambassador and then to pull back. Of course we waited to check that she was on board and then ... well, you know the rest," he shrugged. "Why would I involve myself in a hopeless attack on a well defended installation?"
Elek paused in his pacing. "Because you're a loyal member of the Romulan military?" he said sharply. "Wing Commander, isn't it? I'm sure you didn't rise to that rank without doing something which might have an impact on the Empire?"
For the first time Nniol's lips curled into a smile and he began to chuckle. "I am also a very high ranking member of a very influential House, I am not obliged to embark on suicide missions because some fool commands me to. But yes," he conceded, "my rank is my own, unlike that ambassador who by virtue of her husband's death and the rank she inherited can name herself an admiral should she wish to do so."
Elek sat back down, cross-legged. "And I could name myself King of Transylvania, should I so wish. It wouldn't change my innate loyalty ... to my people, and to the Federation, and my willingness to do what was necessary to defend those ideals. It's an interesting point, though, Ael'Riov, I'll concede. But, tell me this ... why should I trust you?"
"The difference, Lieutenant, is that you would not be King of Transylvania, whereas she is entitled to that rank by a genuine if somewhat archaic clause of the statutes of the House. The ships we sponsor are co-governed by the House and by the Galae and a person powerful in their own rigtht and supported by equally powerful freinds who chose to invoke that right would find themselves in command of a ready made and devoted army who by tradition hold the House in higher status than the Empire. Lieutenant Elek," Nniol continued in his soft yet passionate tone, "I've watched her influence grow over the years and since my brother, her husband's death her desire for power has become insatiable - she'll destabilise the entire empire in her quest for the Praetorate, I cannot let that happen. I'm not asking you to trust me, I am asking you to trust the evidence."
Elek sighed. He could feel the passions coming from him, and felt ill at ease. "You've presented me with suspicions, which I'll need to pass on for investigation. We can't just ignore a statement like that. But I still feel that you're keeping something from us, Ael'Riov. I struggle to comprehend how you wouldn't find a way to turn this situation to your advantage. Forgive me, but my race are typically known as a race of Listeners ... your race are typically known as one who can plot and scheme with the best of them."
He offered an ironic smile, which he doubted would be returned. "I know that's sterotyping somewhat, but it's proved an accurate character thermometer over the years. If our situations were reversed, you and me, would you believe me?"
"Of course it is to my advantage, Lieutenant, why should I try to hide that? I was my brother's heir until she persuaded him to change his will in her favour. It is I who should assume the responsibility of holding the House until my brother's children are ready to inherit, not a woman who is so absorbed in her own ambitions that she cannot see the way she is causing its unity to disintegrate. I wish to preserve an institution, she wishes to destroy it. I ask you only to examine the evidence and draw your own conclusions - it is a curious fact that if one scratches the skin of an ambassador one can never be entirely sure what colour they will bleed."
Elek chose not to comment that he had been El-Aurian ambassador for many years - he had had suspicions of a few fellow ambassadors himself over the years, but that wasn't the point. He wondered if Nniol's ambitions to lead his brother's House hadn't made him more ruthless ... and he noticed that the Romulan hadn't answered his last question. He wondered if that was deliberate.
"I will examine the evidence, Ael'Riov, but I assure you, there are still suspicions that need to be allayed. Your people were involved in an attack on a Federation space station and starship, and you represent your people ... or at least a part of them."
Elek was not convinced - Nniol was either a very good liar or telling the truth. He seemed to have a certain degree of control over his emotions, at least the ones that Elek was picking up. When Mari and T'Pal arrived, he would have to notify them of the accusations. However, the more time he spent with the Romulan, the more time he became convinced that a mind-meld was the only way to get to the heart and definite truth of the matter. He eyed Nniol carefully, wondering where to go next. He decided to stay silent for a moment, and see if he volunteered anything.
"I have not denied my part in the attack. I repeat that the only involvement of the Vrelnec was to target and take out the shield generators, remove the ambassador and then to pull back ... I merely co-operated with the other ships long enough to carry out my own mission. One thing is certain, and that is that their orders came from a different source, one with malign ambitions - perhaps you should ask the ambassador about that."
Elek nodded, and leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. He decided to try a different tack. "Rest assured, we wll do. So are you sayin that your ambitions were not malign towards the Federation? That you had no part in ordering the attack? In our culture, Wing Commander is an important rank - certainly one that would order an attack. Perhaps the rank structure is different in Romulan society?"
Nniol shifted, his position mirroring Elek's own, "Your understanding of our rank structure is correct," he confirmed, "I could have ordered the attack, but I did not. I am motivated by preserving the future of my House, not by provoking a conflict that could ignite half of the quadrant. You can imagine my surprise and chagrin when I found a task force already in place! What could I do but appear to co-operate? I couldn't attack my own people, even if their orders did conflict with my own - I'm no rebel. I was confident that the Federation installation would be able to deal with them and restricted the involvement of the ship under my command to doing what was necessary to extract the ambassador."
Elek was fascinated - the story could easily be plausible. That reason alone concerned him. The implications, were it true, were frightening, and he did not want to believe the Romulan for that reason alone. However, Nniol's story was fascinating in its own right, and he wondered what the truth actually was.
He sighed again, more audibly this time so that Nniol must have heard. "I don't know what to believe, Wing Commander. Do I believe the word of an ambassador, or a decorated military officer? If you were sat here, and it was me in there, what would you do, to find out the truth, if you had any means at your disposal?"
Elek had asked the question for one reason alone - to try and find out how much Nniol did actually know about interstellar law, and if there were any loopholes he could exploit. But he wondered how much the Romulan would buy into that, and give a prevaricating answer.
Nniol chuckled softly, "I'm not a member of the Tal'Shiar, Lieutenant Elek. I have neither the means nor the skill to make a man talk under duress, nor, I imagine do I have the stomach. I am serious in what I say, my brother's wife is a dangerous woman and she will contest what I say in the highest courts." Nniol paused and exhaled almost as loudly as Elek had sighed as he linked his fingers behind his head and leaned back once again, "I am being frank with you, Lieutenant, and every word I tell you will count as admissable evidence," he continued as he closed his eyes.
"Admissible evidence," Elek repeated. "That's what I thought."
*He knows exactly what he's doing,* Elek thought. Watching the Romulan, with his eyes closed and deliberately ignoring him, the El-Aurian hybrid knew that he would get nothing else from him now. He rose and strode slowly out of the brig, where T'Pal and Rodriguez were waiting for him. He nodded to them, and recounted the interrogation.
"Not that I'd call it much of an interrogation," Elek concluded. "If poker exists in the Empire, the ael'riov could well be the richest man within it." He looked at Mari. "He knows exactly what he's doing. If we bring this to a court of law, we have to bring up the content of his discussion with me, which looks very bad to the ambassador. In any event, we have to investigate it. Nniol knows that." He paused, thought for a moment, then carried on. "We should do a mind-meld, regardless of the legality involved. I could use my telepathy, but it's probably no more powerful than T'Pal's. We should it covertly, try and erase the memories as best we can, then work out another way we could have found out the information afterwards."
He hesitated. "Perhaps the ambassador herself?" he suggested. "It certainly sounds like there's no love lost between the former in-laws ..."
T'Pal had been meditating and was now prepared for the mind meld. With her arms crossed and her void of emotional expression, she had stood in the observation room, studying the Romulan prisoner with cold and indifferent eyes. She was impressed with how Elek handled it, but she had expected that. "Perhaps you should go and see her, Mister Elek. You might just gain her trust. It would be very interesting to see what that conversation would reveal," T"Pal suggested, her eyes still studying Nniol. What kind of mind would she find?
Elek nodded. "Agreed," he said. He had a great deal of respect both the Klingon and Vulcan species, and knew they appreciated brevity in their speech. "Thank you, Lieutenant, I will take take up that suggestion. I will keep you updated."
He turned and swiftly left.
"Thank you," T'Pal said to Elek and turned her eyes to the XO. "I am ready for the mind meld," she informed her. She would have to be careful not to let on that she had experience in conducting forced mind melds, no one on this ship knew anything about her background as an agent and who she worked for. And she preferred it that way.
To be continued ...
OFF:
Ael'Riov Nniol tr'Illialhlae NPC'd by Louise
Lt. Cmdr Da`nal
CO
Lt T'Pal
Chief Sec/Tac
Lt. Silonez Ericson
CIO
Lt (JG) Termin Elk
CDO / Counselor
by Commander Isha t'Vaurek & Klingon Ambassador Toran of the House of Moqrhat & Lieutenant T'Pal
Post Details
| Title | [Freedom] Interrogation - Part 1 | |
| Mission | Beg, Steal or Borrow | |
| Author(s) | Commander Isha t'Vaurek & Klingon Ambassador Toran of the House of Moqrhat & Lieutenant T'Pal | |
| Posted | Sun May 17, 2009 @ 7:23am | |
| Location | USS Freedom - Brig | |
| Timeline | On the way back to DS5 |
OLD:
"Agreed. You can threaten a mind meld. However, I doubt he will be intimidated by it. As a meld would be a violation of his rights, but if he has no memory of the incident...." He added trailing off. Turning to his exec. "I will leave it in your hands then. If I'm needed I will be in sick bay. I want to see how bad we were hurt." With that Da`nal left the assembled officer to handle the matter.
NEW:
T'Pal understood what Da'nal implied, but would only perform a meld when instructed to do so. In addition, she would have to remove the memory of the incident from his mind, with considerable risk, but it could be done. This would not be the first time she would have done anything like this and she knew the consequences, too, but her face revealed nothing of her own thoughts. It was the XO's call.
Mari hesitated, "If the threat will not be beneficial, will the risks that come with the actual meld be worth the information that is gained?" This was her first command. She only knew how to handle textbook situations and this most certainly was NOT textbook.
The brig doors opened and Elek exited. He waited for the doors to close before he spoke.
"I've advised ... him ... of his rights," Elek said, and the tone of his voice indicated that he had thought to say something stronger, but restrained himself, given the company he was in. He sighed. "He can't say he doesn't know what they are now." He turned to Mari. "I worry about what will happen if this gets to a trial. Will there be anything else, Lieutenant?"
"What do you think the odds are of him responding to a mind meld...or the threat of a mind meld?" Mari asked, "Your professional opinion, por favor."
Elek was thoughtful for a moment. "I don't know if he'd believe us, if we threatened him with a mind-mind. Even before I'd read him his rights, I think he knew most of them anyway. He'd know that, under interstellar law, a mind-mind would be inadmissible." His eyebrows knitted together. "The only way round it is if he didn't remember the meld, and then you were able to find some way of corroborating whatever information you retrieved another way - so you didn't have to ... admit to the meld. That's going into all sorts of murky grey areas, though, Lieutenant, that I wouldn't even like to speculate what the JAG office or the admiralty would say if they found out." He quirked an eyebrow. "If they found out, of course."
Mari felt that she was nearly able to read his mind as she slowly nodded, turning to T'Pal, "What are our options, Lieutenant? How do we keep them from finding out...?"
Informing them that she had done this before would reveal too much of her past. "If I can get a good enough 'hold' on his mind, I should be able to get the information and wipe the memory from his mind. I could leave suggestions in his mind that he did spill his guts," she said coldly. "He will not remember the meld, but only giving the answers. There is considerable risk as I have mentioned," the Klingon hybrid said with indifference. "He could perish," she informed them. She refrained from saying that she could kill him during the meld.
Looking at Termin with an expression that said she wasn't sure she was liking the sound of things, Mari asked, "And what are you risks to yourself, Lieutenant?"
"Severe headaches, a coma due to synaptic disruption and if widespread enough, death as well. I could interrupt it before it gets to that point, though. However, it is better to do a forced meld under medical supervision or at least have a cortical stabilizer ready," she said.
"What are our alternatives?" Mari asked, not liking the sound of that.
"There will always be risk, Lieutenant. An alternative is interrogation and it has the risk that we might not get the information," T'Pal said. "And it could take time, depending on his training." This would not be easy for T'Pal, but she was willing to go through with it.
Silonez chimed in, "We could use a Sodium Pentathol derivative, we'd get better results and minimalize the risk."
Hesitating, Mari looked to Termin and asked quietly, "What do you suggest?"
"Desperate times ..." he said quietly back. "If this happens, it stays here, between us, and we accept the burden of what we're about to do." He looked Mari squarely in the eye. "If ... you gave the order for a mind-meld, I would support you."
Slowly, Mari nodded, her eyes not leaving Elek's, "Let's start with the Sodium Pentathol. If that is unsuccessful, move to the mind meld."
"I'll do it, I have more experience with it. I'll need a bioscan of him so I can get the right concentrations." Silonez interjected.
Elek suspected it had taken a lot for her to give that order. He held her gaze, and inclined his head ever so slightly. The exec had just gone up in his estimation, for making the hard decision. He would remain here, with his shipmates, and witness whatever occurred - after all, he felt it the right thing to do.
Mari had not had a good experience with Silonez thus far and she turned her gaze to him, shaking her head and stating with authority, "Negative, Lieutenant. Our chief of security will take the lead. You may observe if you'd like." Turning to T'Pal, Mari said coldly, "If you do not feel that the Sodium Pentathol will be effective, do what you must."
"Fine then, Commander. I will not be held accountable for any consequences, including fatalities. Since it is clear I'm not needed anymore, I'll be leaving." Silonez stood and left.
Elek opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it again. He had heard the tightness in the XO's voice, and knew better than to argue. He stepped back and stood silently.
Silonez had not been dismissed but Mari didn't care. She didn't want him there, anyway. Turning to T'Pal, now avoiding Elek's gaze, she said with a nod, "Begin when you are ready."
T"Pal raised an eyebrow at Silonez's reaction. He was the one who sugggested the forced mind meld in the first place. Surely, he must have known the risks to her and the prisoner before suggesting it. It was common knowledge. "I have not used the chemical on Romulans yet, Lieutenant, " she said to Mari. "I know that Vulcans are resistant to Sodium panthenol derivatives and I believe Klingons too, so I would suspect Romulans would be too,." Even if she was going to ask Silonez for his expertise, he was gone. "I will perform the mind meld then," she said. "I will need some time to prepare, perhaps someone could make the prisoner sweat so long. It s a pity that the CIO had left, his techniques might have softened his mind," she said as an afterthought.
Silonez was furious, he'd had enough crap from the other senior officers. He was going to tell the CO that he was taking the assignment with Captain Kellenger, ~this has to be the shortest assignment in starfleet.~ he mused.
Elek looked at Mari. "I'm not as experienced in intelligence techniques, but I would be willing to sit with Nniol until T'Pal is ready."
Nodding with a look of appreciation in her dark eyes, she said, "Si, por favor. I would greatly appreciate that."
T'Pal nodded in Elek's direction and turned to leave the room. Her eyes rested on the Diplomat once more and a smile tugged at her lips. He might be very successful, seeing he would not use recognisable interrogation techniques. A fresh approach might just get the truth revealed and a meld might not be neseccary.
Elek nodded and turned to the door. He drew in a breath, and entered the brig.
There was a spare chair by the entrance, which he picked up and put directly facing the cell. Sitting, he nodded at Nniol.
"I shall be remaining with you for a while, Nniol," he said, his face and tone perfectly neutral. "I am curious, though ... I find you an interesting character." Elek wasn't lying either when he said that - he always wondered why people had made the decisions they had. "I'm not an interrogator - just a counselor and a diplomat, and I assure you, I don't intend to counsel you." He smiled slightly, then regained his composure. "What will you tell me about yourself?"
Sitting on the bench as he was with his shoulders against the cell wall and his head tilted upwards apparently examining the ceiling, Nniol listened as Elek returned and rearranged the furniture.
"What will I tell you?" Nniol mused without changing his position. "That depends on what you ask. Lieutenant Elek, wasn't it? Is that your given name or your family name?"
"My family name," Elek replied. "My given name is Termin."
As Nniol brushed his fingertip along the three silver crescents at his throat and over the single lozenge he dropped his head and stared through dark brown eyes at Elek, "Why then do you think it appropriate to address me by my given name rather than by my title? We'll get along much better if you address me as Ael'Riov, that's Wing Commander in your standard tongue."
Elek held his gaze and refused to look away. "Very well, Ael'Riov. And you will address me as Lieutenant. Now we have the formalities established ..." He crossed his legs and leaned back in his chair, still maintaining eye contact. "Suppose you just tell us absolutely everything you know, including your mother's birthday. It would save us all a lot of time, you know."
Nniol smirked. Very slowly he linked his fingers together then dropped them into his lap. "My mother was born in 2207, any more than that would be pointless unless you plan to send her a posthumous birthday greeting. Really, Lieutenant Elek, I think you are interrogating this situation from the wrong perspective ... why do you immediately assume that I was one of the aggressors in that unfortunate attack?"
Elek was intrigued. "And my mother was born in the Earth year 1790. At least now we're equal on the mothers front. So, Ael'Riov, this interests me ... do you merely *perceive* yourself as one of the innocents, or were you genuinely not involved in the attack. If that's the case, then you're perfectly correct - I am indeed looking at this whole thing from the wrong angle. Explain it to me, as you see the situation."
As he performed the mental calculation Nniol raised an eyebrow, "You're not human then?" he said mildly. "What would you say if I were to tell you that the ambassador to DS5, the one who calls herself Isha t'Khellian had the opportunity to prevent the attack from happening but allowed it to go ahead anyway?"
Elek's face was perfectly still, as befitted a diplomat, but inside, his mind was racing. Was this possible? Now that the accusation had been made, he knew it needed to be investigated, even if had been made by this Romulan officer.
"No, I'm not Human. I'm part-El-Aurian. I would need more proof, Ael'Riov," Elek said. He was finding it difficult to read the Romulan's emotions. Like Vulcans, his Betazoid telepathy carried with it a great deal of ethical paths, and he couldn't just go diving into a person's mind without permission. He felt supreme confidence, and a certain amount of arrogance, coming from the man's mind ... and possibly a small degree of curiosity as well, as if to see how Elek would react. He decided as well to keep quiet about his Betazoid lineage for the moment. "The ambassador is an accredited representative of her government to the Federation. You ..." he smiled, and then continued "... are not."
Elek rose and began pacing the brig. "You are a member of the Romulan military - surely more inclined to be involved in such an attack than a diplomatic appointee?" He didn't add that, as a diplomat himself, he knew that that wasn't quite always the case.
The lieutenant had crossed the floor four times before Nniol spoke again. "I follow orders," he said quite plainly, "and my orders were to stop her. As I'm sure you will find out I employed someone to attempt to achieve this end, but he appears to have had little success in getting close to the ambassador. I had no choice but to wait until her plans manifested themselves and then ... well I removed her from the station. Analyse the attack. The only involvement of the Vrelnec was to target and take out the shield generators, remove the ambassador and then to pull back. Of course we waited to check that she was on board and then ... well, you know the rest," he shrugged. "Why would I involve myself in a hopeless attack on a well defended installation?"
Elek paused in his pacing. "Because you're a loyal member of the Romulan military?" he said sharply. "Wing Commander, isn't it? I'm sure you didn't rise to that rank without doing something which might have an impact on the Empire?"
For the first time Nniol's lips curled into a smile and he began to chuckle. "I am also a very high ranking member of a very influential House, I am not obliged to embark on suicide missions because some fool commands me to. But yes," he conceded, "my rank is my own, unlike that ambassador who by virtue of her husband's death and the rank she inherited can name herself an admiral should she wish to do so."
Elek sat back down, cross-legged. "And I could name myself King of Transylvania, should I so wish. It wouldn't change my innate loyalty ... to my people, and to the Federation, and my willingness to do what was necessary to defend those ideals. It's an interesting point, though, Ael'Riov, I'll concede. But, tell me this ... why should I trust you?"
"The difference, Lieutenant, is that you would not be King of Transylvania, whereas she is entitled to that rank by a genuine if somewhat archaic clause of the statutes of the House. The ships we sponsor are co-governed by the House and by the Galae and a person powerful in their own rigtht and supported by equally powerful freinds who chose to invoke that right would find themselves in command of a ready made and devoted army who by tradition hold the House in higher status than the Empire. Lieutenant Elek," Nniol continued in his soft yet passionate tone, "I've watched her influence grow over the years and since my brother, her husband's death her desire for power has become insatiable - she'll destabilise the entire empire in her quest for the Praetorate, I cannot let that happen. I'm not asking you to trust me, I am asking you to trust the evidence."
Elek sighed. He could feel the passions coming from him, and felt ill at ease. "You've presented me with suspicions, which I'll need to pass on for investigation. We can't just ignore a statement like that. But I still feel that you're keeping something from us, Ael'Riov. I struggle to comprehend how you wouldn't find a way to turn this situation to your advantage. Forgive me, but my race are typically known as a race of Listeners ... your race are typically known as one who can plot and scheme with the best of them."
He offered an ironic smile, which he doubted would be returned. "I know that's sterotyping somewhat, but it's proved an accurate character thermometer over the years. If our situations were reversed, you and me, would you believe me?"
"Of course it is to my advantage, Lieutenant, why should I try to hide that? I was my brother's heir until she persuaded him to change his will in her favour. It is I who should assume the responsibility of holding the House until my brother's children are ready to inherit, not a woman who is so absorbed in her own ambitions that she cannot see the way she is causing its unity to disintegrate. I wish to preserve an institution, she wishes to destroy it. I ask you only to examine the evidence and draw your own conclusions - it is a curious fact that if one scratches the skin of an ambassador one can never be entirely sure what colour they will bleed."
Elek chose not to comment that he had been El-Aurian ambassador for many years - he had had suspicions of a few fellow ambassadors himself over the years, but that wasn't the point. He wondered if Nniol's ambitions to lead his brother's House hadn't made him more ruthless ... and he noticed that the Romulan hadn't answered his last question. He wondered if that was deliberate.
"I will examine the evidence, Ael'Riov, but I assure you, there are still suspicions that need to be allayed. Your people were involved in an attack on a Federation space station and starship, and you represent your people ... or at least a part of them."
Elek was not convinced - Nniol was either a very good liar or telling the truth. He seemed to have a certain degree of control over his emotions, at least the ones that Elek was picking up. When Mari and T'Pal arrived, he would have to notify them of the accusations. However, the more time he spent with the Romulan, the more time he became convinced that a mind-meld was the only way to get to the heart and definite truth of the matter. He eyed Nniol carefully, wondering where to go next. He decided to stay silent for a moment, and see if he volunteered anything.
"I have not denied my part in the attack. I repeat that the only involvement of the Vrelnec was to target and take out the shield generators, remove the ambassador and then to pull back ... I merely co-operated with the other ships long enough to carry out my own mission. One thing is certain, and that is that their orders came from a different source, one with malign ambitions - perhaps you should ask the ambassador about that."
Elek nodded, and leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. He decided to try a different tack. "Rest assured, we wll do. So are you sayin that your ambitions were not malign towards the Federation? That you had no part in ordering the attack? In our culture, Wing Commander is an important rank - certainly one that would order an attack. Perhaps the rank structure is different in Romulan society?"
Nniol shifted, his position mirroring Elek's own, "Your understanding of our rank structure is correct," he confirmed, "I could have ordered the attack, but I did not. I am motivated by preserving the future of my House, not by provoking a conflict that could ignite half of the quadrant. You can imagine my surprise and chagrin when I found a task force already in place! What could I do but appear to co-operate? I couldn't attack my own people, even if their orders did conflict with my own - I'm no rebel. I was confident that the Federation installation would be able to deal with them and restricted the involvement of the ship under my command to doing what was necessary to extract the ambassador."
Elek was fascinated - the story could easily be plausible. That reason alone concerned him. The implications, were it true, were frightening, and he did not want to believe the Romulan for that reason alone. However, Nniol's story was fascinating in its own right, and he wondered what the truth actually was.
He sighed again, more audibly this time so that Nniol must have heard. "I don't know what to believe, Wing Commander. Do I believe the word of an ambassador, or a decorated military officer? If you were sat here, and it was me in there, what would you do, to find out the truth, if you had any means at your disposal?"
Elek had asked the question for one reason alone - to try and find out how much Nniol did actually know about interstellar law, and if there were any loopholes he could exploit. But he wondered how much the Romulan would buy into that, and give a prevaricating answer.
Nniol chuckled softly, "I'm not a member of the Tal'Shiar, Lieutenant Elek. I have neither the means nor the skill to make a man talk under duress, nor, I imagine do I have the stomach. I am serious in what I say, my brother's wife is a dangerous woman and she will contest what I say in the highest courts." Nniol paused and exhaled almost as loudly as Elek had sighed as he linked his fingers behind his head and leaned back once again, "I am being frank with you, Lieutenant, and every word I tell you will count as admissable evidence," he continued as he closed his eyes.
"Admissible evidence," Elek repeated. "That's what I thought."
*He knows exactly what he's doing,* Elek thought. Watching the Romulan, with his eyes closed and deliberately ignoring him, the El-Aurian hybrid knew that he would get nothing else from him now. He rose and strode slowly out of the brig, where T'Pal and Rodriguez were waiting for him. He nodded to them, and recounted the interrogation.
"Not that I'd call it much of an interrogation," Elek concluded. "If poker exists in the Empire, the ael'riov could well be the richest man within it." He looked at Mari. "He knows exactly what he's doing. If we bring this to a court of law, we have to bring up the content of his discussion with me, which looks very bad to the ambassador. In any event, we have to investigate it. Nniol knows that." He paused, thought for a moment, then carried on. "We should do a mind-meld, regardless of the legality involved. I could use my telepathy, but it's probably no more powerful than T'Pal's. We should it covertly, try and erase the memories as best we can, then work out another way we could have found out the information afterwards."
He hesitated. "Perhaps the ambassador herself?" he suggested. "It certainly sounds like there's no love lost between the former in-laws ..."
T'Pal had been meditating and was now prepared for the mind meld. With her arms crossed and her void of emotional expression, she had stood in the observation room, studying the Romulan prisoner with cold and indifferent eyes. She was impressed with how Elek handled it, but she had expected that. "Perhaps you should go and see her, Mister Elek. You might just gain her trust. It would be very interesting to see what that conversation would reveal," T"Pal suggested, her eyes still studying Nniol. What kind of mind would she find?
Elek nodded. "Agreed," he said. He had a great deal of respect both the Klingon and Vulcan species, and knew they appreciated brevity in their speech. "Thank you, Lieutenant, I will take take up that suggestion. I will keep you updated."
He turned and swiftly left.
"Thank you," T'Pal said to Elek and turned her eyes to the XO. "I am ready for the mind meld," she informed her. She would have to be careful not to let on that she had experience in conducting forced mind melds, no one on this ship knew anything about her background as an agent and who she worked for. And she preferred it that way.
To be continued ...
OFF:
Ael'Riov Nniol tr'Illialhlae NPC'd by Louise
Lt. Cmdr Da`nal
CO
Lt T'Pal
Chief Sec/Tac
Lt. Silonez Ericson
CIO
Lt (JG) Termin Elk
CDO / Counselor