Judgement – Don't write the obituary until you see the body
by Lieutenant Commander Jarred Wallace & Alderman Yolanthe Ibalin & Commander Richard Dunham & Citizen Min Zhao
Post Details
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In what could be considered a rare event, Chief Ayers went to one of the larger bars on the station. He didn't want to be a visible face in a small room; he wanted to be alone. His friend and Commanding officer was missing, possibly dead, and the collection of kids that were supposed to be doing something about it were chasing their tails. He downed his fourth drink, and signalled the waitress for another. He figured three more, and he might be able to tell Jarred's' spouse that her husband wasn't coming home. He hated that duty; he'd done it too many times before, during the dominion war, and now he had to do it again. And he didn't want to do it.
He chose this location for two reasons: it was so big, if anyone saw him they'd think he was waiting for someone; and if they didn't think that, they'd see the empties and think he needed to be alone. That was his theory. The intelligence messenger had found him; but Craig couldn't be bothered to look at the report and its contents.
Rick, hands shoved in pockets, crossed the threshold into the Box Of Delights. He had a little mosey around, then walked up to the bar, found the first member of staff he could find, and asked for a drink. "Fruit juice please?" he asked politely.
Min looked up from the counter, where she was mentally counting another patron's tab. "Evening, Commander. I've about a half dozen Terran varieties, and some off-world stuff. What's your fancy?"
"Urrmmm, blimey," said Rick in reflective thought, as he considered his options. "Hmmm, may I please have....a....Earth....urrmmmm....tropical mix fruit juice please? Thank you." He smiled.
Min nodded, and tapped the order into a padd before moving off to prepare the drink. A minute or so later, she came back and placed the glass down beside the commander.
The Chief looked up as he staggered in an attempt to leave. "Oh, Commander!" Realizing this didn't look good, he tried to straighten himself up.
"Whoa there, Chief, are you all right, fella?" asked Rick in a concerned manner.
"The Lieutenant is missing, almost seventy hours now." Craig stammered out. "The bastards got him, and now he's dead!" he finished with a sob.
"What? What Lieutenant?" Rick looked the man up and down to appraise any more information from him. He spotted the grey collar of intel around the man's neck. He put two and two together. "Wallace is missing?"
"Bingo flyboy, His orders from Janeway got compromised, and the bastards got him," Craig said as he struggled to sit at the bar.
"Ok, whoa, whoa, whoa, back up a bit mate, Janeway? as in Admiral Janeway? And who are these 'bastards' anyway?" Rick scratched his hair trying to make sense out of the man's story. He didn't even know Wallace had gone missing. That's what you get for having such a huge crew.
"Yeah, Admiral Janeway," Craig paused as he slammed back something, thinking it was another shot. "She ordered Jarred to investigate some kind of magnetic discharges that had knocked out some science ship. When Jarred left aboard the Phobos, he figured it was just going to be a search and rescue. When he missed his check in, all hell broke loose."
"So what are they doing about it now?" asked Rick, looking mournfully at his now-empty glass of fruit juice, that the Chief had just downed.
"They're doing nothing. Darson is resisting any interrogation of the three marines who are suspects, and Dorian's puppet won't let Rhiana near his minions, who are involved, either." The Chief paused, "What the hell was that?" looking at the rather young waitress.
Min smiled sweetly. "That would be the Commander's fruit cocktail you just finished for him, Chief." She glanced over at Commander. Dunham. "Can I get either of you a refill?"
Rick smiled at the bartender and asked politely, "Yes please, I will have the mixed tropical fruit juice again, thank you."
"Bumblebee," Craig ordered, referring to the mixture of Jaggermeister and mead. "I think this is the time he finally bites it, no one is that indestructible, even with everything he's' done. There's no way in hell he's going to escape this one alive." Craig made an effort to prop himself up against the bar and to hide the overwhelming sorrow inside.
Rick had more questions, as it seemed he had some catching up to do. "What about the Captain and the command staff, what are they doing about it?"
Craig pondered part of the question. "Unless they can get the prisoners to talk, and find the other two involved, there's not a lot that can be done."
Rick propped himself up against the bar, and looked the man up and down. "So in conclusion, you have decided to give up and get drunk?"
Min made her way back to the bar with both drinks. "Fruit Juice and Bumblebee."
"Thank you," said Rick politely, and toasting the barmaid with a proffering of his glass.
Craig looked at the dark brown liquid in the shot glass, "Son-of-a-...." He saw the two men that had eluded security for nearly 36 hours just casually walk in! "Commander, those two goons over there are the ones we are looking for."
"Goons?" asked Rick, looking around very obviously. "I thought you said they were marines?" Rick frowned, then took another sip of his drink. "Give the MP's a call, have 'em detained."
"No, the two civvies that followed them in." Craig pointed.
Two men, one heavy set and squat, the other more average in build, looked human - or near human, it was hard to tell. They moved to the bar, and signaled the Bajoran barman. At the same time, they looked around the bar, each taking a side, trying to be casual about it, but to a trained observer it was clear: listing threats and noting exits.
The Chief pulled a padd from his pocket. "That's them." Craig, despite being loaded, his mind started to work. "I think we need a reason to grab these guys." To the Bajoran he said, "Darlin' when you come back with their order, maybe you need to have a bad day. Rick, you and I can grab them when they cause a scene."
The men in question had given their order, and gone in search of a table, choosing one of the open tables between the door and the bar, rather than the more secluded and private booths at the back where the Chief had been sitting.
A moment later, Pelin put two glasses of Andorian Ale on a tray on the counter, beckoning to Min, then point at the drinks then the suspects, a gesture that said: Drinks for table twelve.
Min nodded her understanding and made her way back to the bar to pickup the drinks.
"Uh-uh, no way, not going to get involved," said Rick to the Chief. He turned on his bar stool to face the bar, and took a sip of his drink. "I'm getting married in few days., he mumbled to himself. "Get security to do it."
"Sorry to hear that, Commander," Craig said as he reached into his pocket. "When the Lieutenant's kids are old enough, you can tell them how you ran for cover, letting their dad die in the process." Craig could see the duo.
"Sorry about the mess, in advance," Craig said to Pelin as he pulled out a type-one phaser.
Rick took anther thoughtful sip of his drink. He had read Mr. Wallace's file, well as much as he could with his low security clearance; he was sure that in it, there wasn't a mention of any children.
Min made her way over to the table of marines with their drink order in hand. Deftly avoiding several patrons, she came over to the table. Placing the drinks down, she smiled at the two marines. She reached for her ordering padd. "Anything else I can get you gentleman?"
They gave her appreciative smiles. "Can you book us some time in a holosuite, darling?" said the heavier one. "As soon as there's one free?"
Min nodded. "You just need to talk with the bartender and he'll set you up."
Craig was in earshot of the duo when he heard the request. That gave him an idea. He raced back to the bar. "When those two go to the holosuite, is there a way of getting in?" Realizing he'd have to offer something up, he said, "I'll come back when this is over with, and personally install new security, if you help us out."
The young barman looked a bit bewildered, but nodded and said, "Okay. There's an override key in the office up in the Spa."
The two men got up and headed up to the holospa on the third floor.
"Thanks," Craig said, as he stood to head to the office. "Rick, this is our only chance - lets go."
Rick didn't even turn around on his bar chair to face the man when he replied. He felt a little ashamed, but this whole thing did not sit right with him. "You're on your own." He took a swig of his drink.
"Check with your wife before you get behind the stick again, she might think that uniform is for show." Craig looked over at the barman. "Thanks for the key."
Rick reflected on that a moment; was that what bothered him? Yes, but only in part. What really bothered him was that this intelligence officer was about to go and arrest two people from off the street, without the presence of any station security. Rick was a pilot, he had no powers of arrest, did he? Why would an intel officer? This whole situation didn't seem fully legal.
The Chief climbed up through the back access to the holosuites. He made a mental note to bring more than a small, type-1 phaser to jobs like this. As he exited out of the crawl space, across from where he had been told they would be, he pocketed his phaser and pulled out the almost comical little tool kit. As he reached to pop open the locking mechanism, things went from bad to worse.
The two men came out of the holosuite earlier than the Chief thought. Craig punched the closer of the two in the knee, knocking him over. His partner dove at the Chief, hammering him to the ground. In a moment of desperation, the Chief drove his knee into the man's sternum, winding him long enough to reach for his phaser. He managed to get one shot off, on the higher stun setting, but the other assailant struck the Chief from behind, dazing him. He then proceeded to kick and stomp away at the Chief. The audible snap of a bone breaking echoed everywhere.
The large man grabbed the fallen phaser and aimed at the Chief, but then remembered that the discharge of a phaser would likely have security here in a matter of moments. Instead, he settled for a kick to the ribs that rolled the stricken intelligence officer two meters across the spa floor, and turned back to his companion.
The giant man reached down, and brushed at the back of his hand. Through the pain, Ayers was able to see a long, slender probe slither out from under a flap of skin, and slide into the other's neck.
Nothing appeared to happen, because the one still standing swore in frustration, then withdrew the probe, and headed for the stairs at a brisk walk, abandoning his companion.
Craig struggled to his knees. Blood was streaming from his mouth; his left arm was completely dislocated. in a futile attempt, he tried three times to use his comm badge, before he finally double tapped it and just hoped that security would reply. He just propped himself against the wall and waited.
The sound of a phaser discharge could be heard from the main floor, and those who knew what it was, all looked up in surprise. Then the heavy set man, large and bald, appeared on the stairs leading from the holospa and hurried down them.
Several people moved to intercept, including the broad-shouldered Gorn that acted as a doorman. As they did so, he started to charge.
Min instinctively turned towards the sound of the commotion, nearly dropping her plate of glasses. Recovering she placed them down on a nearby table and smiled sheepishly at the patron. "Sorry 'bout that." She'd recognized the man at the center of the commotion as the one who'd requested time in a holosuite. His partner however wasn't with him, which was odd to say the least.
Making her way back to the bartender she motioned for him to come over. "I'm going to check the holosuites. That gentleman's partner isn't with him, and something smells fishy."
As she turned, the giant accelerated hard, slamming into the gorn, lifting him off the ground a good half meter and dumping him down on the nearest table that collapsed under the weight. He didn't hesitate to check on his opponent, just barrelled through before any of the other people in the bar could halt his exit, bowling through marines and a group of security officers alike, brushing off physical attacks and light phaser blasts alike.
Up in the holospa, the downed human sat up. He didn't come around groggily, but sat straight up, as if suddenly switched on, and turned to face Craig. The intelligence officer found himself looking at something that was more than just a man. Patches of a metallic-looking substance had erupted from his skin, forming a crust around his eye sockets, and another on his cheek - fixing points for Borg enhancements.
He was now a lot paler, the colour of a corpse. Even awake, the stun should have left him a gibbering wreck. Instead, he got to his feet - precisely, mechanically, and stepped towards the wounded man.
"Looks like things are alot more complicated." Craig said followed by a coughing fit.
But the enemy ignored him, stepping across him to get to the control panel of the holosuite they had just vacated, rapidly tapping in commands with frantic speed.
Min, attempting to remain as quiet and discreet as possible, made her way up the stairs to the holosuites. As she reached the top of the landing she saw what looked like a pale human standing over a starfleet crewman. The standing man looked liked the second man from the bar downstairs, and yet somehow he looked paler. The man crumpled on the floor she recognized as the Chief who'd drank his fellow patron's fruit juice.
Seeing the errant phaser tossed in a corner near the edge of the landing, Min snatched it up. It had been a while since she'd used a starfleet phaser but the things were easy enough to handle. Already at heavy stun, she aimed it at the standing man. Mustering up courage she wasn't sure she had she announced her presence. "Step away from the panel or I'll shoot."
TO BE CONTINUED....
Tags then?
CAG Squadron Leader
Lieutenant Commander
Richard Dunham
&
Min Zhao
Phaser wielding Civilian Waitress
&
Two Wanted Men, and the population of the Box of Delights
NPCs by Notty/Yolanthe
Craig Ayers
Encriptions Specialist and wannabe hero
by Lieutenant Commander Jarred Wallace & Alderman Yolanthe Ibalin & Commander Richard Dunham & Citizen Min Zhao
Post Details
| Title | Don't write the obituary until you see the body | |
| Mission | Judgement | |
| Author(s) | Lieutenant Commander Jarred Wallace & Alderman Yolanthe Ibalin & Commander Richard Dunham & Citizen Min Zhao | |
| Posted | Wed Feb 16, 2011 @ 8:45am | |
| Location | Box of delights | |
| Timeline | SD36 1800 |
In what could be considered a rare event, Chief Ayers went to one of the larger bars on the station. He didn't want to be a visible face in a small room; he wanted to be alone. His friend and Commanding officer was missing, possibly dead, and the collection of kids that were supposed to be doing something about it were chasing their tails. He downed his fourth drink, and signalled the waitress for another. He figured three more, and he might be able to tell Jarred's' spouse that her husband wasn't coming home. He hated that duty; he'd done it too many times before, during the dominion war, and now he had to do it again. And he didn't want to do it.
He chose this location for two reasons: it was so big, if anyone saw him they'd think he was waiting for someone; and if they didn't think that, they'd see the empties and think he needed to be alone. That was his theory. The intelligence messenger had found him; but Craig couldn't be bothered to look at the report and its contents.
Rick, hands shoved in pockets, crossed the threshold into the Box Of Delights. He had a little mosey around, then walked up to the bar, found the first member of staff he could find, and asked for a drink. "Fruit juice please?" he asked politely.
Min looked up from the counter, where she was mentally counting another patron's tab. "Evening, Commander. I've about a half dozen Terran varieties, and some off-world stuff. What's your fancy?"
"Urrmmm, blimey," said Rick in reflective thought, as he considered his options. "Hmmm, may I please have....a....Earth....urrmmmm....tropical mix fruit juice please? Thank you." He smiled.
Min nodded, and tapped the order into a padd before moving off to prepare the drink. A minute or so later, she came back and placed the glass down beside the commander.
The Chief looked up as he staggered in an attempt to leave. "Oh, Commander!" Realizing this didn't look good, he tried to straighten himself up.
"Whoa there, Chief, are you all right, fella?" asked Rick in a concerned manner.
"The Lieutenant is missing, almost seventy hours now." Craig stammered out. "The bastards got him, and now he's dead!" he finished with a sob.
"What? What Lieutenant?" Rick looked the man up and down to appraise any more information from him. He spotted the grey collar of intel around the man's neck. He put two and two together. "Wallace is missing?"
"Bingo flyboy, His orders from Janeway got compromised, and the bastards got him," Craig said as he struggled to sit at the bar.
"Ok, whoa, whoa, whoa, back up a bit mate, Janeway? as in Admiral Janeway? And who are these 'bastards' anyway?" Rick scratched his hair trying to make sense out of the man's story. He didn't even know Wallace had gone missing. That's what you get for having such a huge crew.
"Yeah, Admiral Janeway," Craig paused as he slammed back something, thinking it was another shot. "She ordered Jarred to investigate some kind of magnetic discharges that had knocked out some science ship. When Jarred left aboard the Phobos, he figured it was just going to be a search and rescue. When he missed his check in, all hell broke loose."
"So what are they doing about it now?" asked Rick, looking mournfully at his now-empty glass of fruit juice, that the Chief had just downed.
"They're doing nothing. Darson is resisting any interrogation of the three marines who are suspects, and Dorian's puppet won't let Rhiana near his minions, who are involved, either." The Chief paused, "What the hell was that?" looking at the rather young waitress.
Min smiled sweetly. "That would be the Commander's fruit cocktail you just finished for him, Chief." She glanced over at Commander. Dunham. "Can I get either of you a refill?"
Rick smiled at the bartender and asked politely, "Yes please, I will have the mixed tropical fruit juice again, thank you."
"Bumblebee," Craig ordered, referring to the mixture of Jaggermeister and mead. "I think this is the time he finally bites it, no one is that indestructible, even with everything he's' done. There's no way in hell he's going to escape this one alive." Craig made an effort to prop himself up against the bar and to hide the overwhelming sorrow inside.
Rick had more questions, as it seemed he had some catching up to do. "What about the Captain and the command staff, what are they doing about it?"
Craig pondered part of the question. "Unless they can get the prisoners to talk, and find the other two involved, there's not a lot that can be done."
Rick propped himself up against the bar, and looked the man up and down. "So in conclusion, you have decided to give up and get drunk?"
Min made her way back to the bar with both drinks. "Fruit Juice and Bumblebee."
"Thank you," said Rick politely, and toasting the barmaid with a proffering of his glass.
Craig looked at the dark brown liquid in the shot glass, "Son-of-a-...." He saw the two men that had eluded security for nearly 36 hours just casually walk in! "Commander, those two goons over there are the ones we are looking for."
"Goons?" asked Rick, looking around very obviously. "I thought you said they were marines?" Rick frowned, then took another sip of his drink. "Give the MP's a call, have 'em detained."
"No, the two civvies that followed them in." Craig pointed.
Two men, one heavy set and squat, the other more average in build, looked human - or near human, it was hard to tell. They moved to the bar, and signaled the Bajoran barman. At the same time, they looked around the bar, each taking a side, trying to be casual about it, but to a trained observer it was clear: listing threats and noting exits.
The Chief pulled a padd from his pocket. "That's them." Craig, despite being loaded, his mind started to work. "I think we need a reason to grab these guys." To the Bajoran he said, "Darlin' when you come back with their order, maybe you need to have a bad day. Rick, you and I can grab them when they cause a scene."
The men in question had given their order, and gone in search of a table, choosing one of the open tables between the door and the bar, rather than the more secluded and private booths at the back where the Chief had been sitting.
A moment later, Pelin put two glasses of Andorian Ale on a tray on the counter, beckoning to Min, then point at the drinks then the suspects, a gesture that said: Drinks for table twelve.
Min nodded her understanding and made her way back to the bar to pickup the drinks.
"Uh-uh, no way, not going to get involved," said Rick to the Chief. He turned on his bar stool to face the bar, and took a sip of his drink. "I'm getting married in few days., he mumbled to himself. "Get security to do it."
"Sorry to hear that, Commander," Craig said as he reached into his pocket. "When the Lieutenant's kids are old enough, you can tell them how you ran for cover, letting their dad die in the process." Craig could see the duo.
"Sorry about the mess, in advance," Craig said to Pelin as he pulled out a type-one phaser.
Rick took anther thoughtful sip of his drink. He had read Mr. Wallace's file, well as much as he could with his low security clearance; he was sure that in it, there wasn't a mention of any children.
Min made her way over to the table of marines with their drink order in hand. Deftly avoiding several patrons, she came over to the table. Placing the drinks down, she smiled at the two marines. She reached for her ordering padd. "Anything else I can get you gentleman?"
They gave her appreciative smiles. "Can you book us some time in a holosuite, darling?" said the heavier one. "As soon as there's one free?"
Min nodded. "You just need to talk with the bartender and he'll set you up."
Craig was in earshot of the duo when he heard the request. That gave him an idea. He raced back to the bar. "When those two go to the holosuite, is there a way of getting in?" Realizing he'd have to offer something up, he said, "I'll come back when this is over with, and personally install new security, if you help us out."
The young barman looked a bit bewildered, but nodded and said, "Okay. There's an override key in the office up in the Spa."
The two men got up and headed up to the holospa on the third floor.
"Thanks," Craig said, as he stood to head to the office. "Rick, this is our only chance - lets go."
Rick didn't even turn around on his bar chair to face the man when he replied. He felt a little ashamed, but this whole thing did not sit right with him. "You're on your own." He took a swig of his drink.
"Check with your wife before you get behind the stick again, she might think that uniform is for show." Craig looked over at the barman. "Thanks for the key."
Rick reflected on that a moment; was that what bothered him? Yes, but only in part. What really bothered him was that this intelligence officer was about to go and arrest two people from off the street, without the presence of any station security. Rick was a pilot, he had no powers of arrest, did he? Why would an intel officer? This whole situation didn't seem fully legal.
The Chief climbed up through the back access to the holosuites. He made a mental note to bring more than a small, type-1 phaser to jobs like this. As he exited out of the crawl space, across from where he had been told they would be, he pocketed his phaser and pulled out the almost comical little tool kit. As he reached to pop open the locking mechanism, things went from bad to worse.
The two men came out of the holosuite earlier than the Chief thought. Craig punched the closer of the two in the knee, knocking him over. His partner dove at the Chief, hammering him to the ground. In a moment of desperation, the Chief drove his knee into the man's sternum, winding him long enough to reach for his phaser. He managed to get one shot off, on the higher stun setting, but the other assailant struck the Chief from behind, dazing him. He then proceeded to kick and stomp away at the Chief. The audible snap of a bone breaking echoed everywhere.
The large man grabbed the fallen phaser and aimed at the Chief, but then remembered that the discharge of a phaser would likely have security here in a matter of moments. Instead, he settled for a kick to the ribs that rolled the stricken intelligence officer two meters across the spa floor, and turned back to his companion.
The giant man reached down, and brushed at the back of his hand. Through the pain, Ayers was able to see a long, slender probe slither out from under a flap of skin, and slide into the other's neck.
Nothing appeared to happen, because the one still standing swore in frustration, then withdrew the probe, and headed for the stairs at a brisk walk, abandoning his companion.
Craig struggled to his knees. Blood was streaming from his mouth; his left arm was completely dislocated. in a futile attempt, he tried three times to use his comm badge, before he finally double tapped it and just hoped that security would reply. He just propped himself against the wall and waited.
The sound of a phaser discharge could be heard from the main floor, and those who knew what it was, all looked up in surprise. Then the heavy set man, large and bald, appeared on the stairs leading from the holospa and hurried down them.
Several people moved to intercept, including the broad-shouldered Gorn that acted as a doorman. As they did so, he started to charge.
Min instinctively turned towards the sound of the commotion, nearly dropping her plate of glasses. Recovering she placed them down on a nearby table and smiled sheepishly at the patron. "Sorry 'bout that." She'd recognized the man at the center of the commotion as the one who'd requested time in a holosuite. His partner however wasn't with him, which was odd to say the least.
Making her way back to the bartender she motioned for him to come over. "I'm going to check the holosuites. That gentleman's partner isn't with him, and something smells fishy."
As she turned, the giant accelerated hard, slamming into the gorn, lifting him off the ground a good half meter and dumping him down on the nearest table that collapsed under the weight. He didn't hesitate to check on his opponent, just barrelled through before any of the other people in the bar could halt his exit, bowling through marines and a group of security officers alike, brushing off physical attacks and light phaser blasts alike.
Up in the holospa, the downed human sat up. He didn't come around groggily, but sat straight up, as if suddenly switched on, and turned to face Craig. The intelligence officer found himself looking at something that was more than just a man. Patches of a metallic-looking substance had erupted from his skin, forming a crust around his eye sockets, and another on his cheek - fixing points for Borg enhancements.
He was now a lot paler, the colour of a corpse. Even awake, the stun should have left him a gibbering wreck. Instead, he got to his feet - precisely, mechanically, and stepped towards the wounded man.
"Looks like things are alot more complicated." Craig said followed by a coughing fit.
But the enemy ignored him, stepping across him to get to the control panel of the holosuite they had just vacated, rapidly tapping in commands with frantic speed.
Min, attempting to remain as quiet and discreet as possible, made her way up the stairs to the holosuites. As she reached the top of the landing she saw what looked like a pale human standing over a starfleet crewman. The standing man looked liked the second man from the bar downstairs, and yet somehow he looked paler. The man crumpled on the floor she recognized as the Chief who'd drank his fellow patron's fruit juice.
Seeing the errant phaser tossed in a corner near the edge of the landing, Min snatched it up. It had been a while since she'd used a starfleet phaser but the things were easy enough to handle. Already at heavy stun, she aimed it at the standing man. Mustering up courage she wasn't sure she had she announced her presence. "Step away from the panel or I'll shoot."
TO BE CONTINUED....
Tags then?
CAG Squadron Leader
Lieutenant Commander
Richard Dunham
&
Min Zhao
Phaser wielding Civilian Waitress
&
Two Wanted Men, and the population of the Box of Delights
NPCs by Notty/Yolanthe
Craig Ayers
Encriptions Specialist and wannabe hero