The Slow Approach
Posted on Fri Jun 14th, 2019 @ 11:31am by Commodore Tyler Malbrooke & Captain Larta Daughter of Shog
Edited on on Fri Jun 14th, 2019 @ 12:23pm
1,652 words; about a 8 minute read
Mission:
Episode 7 - Home Again
Location: Somewhere in Breen space
Timeline: MD003 1015 hrs
The Ram Cha’ Par eased through space at three quarters speed and cloaked, slowly approaching the Breen station Foq’sha, an old listening post, resupply station that they outgrew twenty years ago.
Larta’s informants seemed to think it a likely place for her mother to be and there had been round about evidence in that traitor Porviks quarters. Larta intended to speak to him with an especially sharpened knife when she found him.
Larta hated this kind of thing. the Ram Cha’ Part had been cruising at this speed because she didn’t trust that their sensor’s wouldn’t pick up a sensor track off the warp signature.
So they were being cautious. And for four days, the station had been growing marginally larger in the bird of prey’s view screens. They had been passively monitoring comm traffic off the station. So far, they’d only been able to determine that there was an inordinate amount of communications and power emanating from a defunct station.
So far, only one of the crew had been killed in a drunken brawl and she had dealt with the matter harshly. The crew was getting tired of being cooped up, but they would have to cope.
There was work to do.
Typhon was safe for now, and he knew that the run in with the Pioneer was a bit too close for comfort. The faithful Breen they have never abandoned Cardassia even with the rise of the silly council. He sat at the desk and read over the latest coded communique from his beloved daughter. She had killed a member of Malbrooke's crew and escaped. She would be with him again within the next couple of days. Typhon Prenar may have lost the battle with the Pioneer and in turn lost Cardassia. However, he fully intended to with the war. For that to happen his greatest triumph would need to be planned meticulously. Empok Nor would be his.
Pacing through her small cell, Larisa was starting to think that idiot Typhon had forgotten her. The food was on auto-delivery and she hadn’t seen a soul for, by her best recollection, two weeks. Which kept the damned Caradassians from mocking her, but she was starting to lose track of time.
And she was only guessing, but it was close. She’d applied an inhibitor to her nails a month ago and the last time she’d been sure of what day it was was two weeks ago. She’d noticed a few hours ago that her nails were growing, so….
Being left alone with her thoughts was going to be a bad thing if she didn’t get a distraction soon. She knew that. She’d trained as a medic, then an agricultural specialist for her colony. She’d volunteered for her colonial militia and learned to pilot a shuttle more than just enough to keep it from crashing and taken explosives training as part of her agricultural specialist training.
Then the peace treaty had come and her home had been one of the first on the chopping block. She’d seen neighbors, friends and family all die as the Cardassians rained fire down on them, obliterating the colony in one of their first cleansing operations.
She’d barely survived that and it had planted a seed of resentment and hatred that had burned bright over the past few years. She’d also studied warfare and been looked to as a leader. And, like had happened many times through many cultures the Maquis had split..idealists versus those hell bent for revenge.
And through all of that, she’d ended up here. Unsure of what would come next.
Rakuul had his orders the woman would talk or she would die Typhon did not mince words nor does he beat around the bush. The short and stout Cardassian reached the woman's cell, he thought that perhaps he would win her over with kindness. "On you feet Klingon-lover, it's feeding time. This time we have something special, gaght. I am told it is a delicacy on that piece of space rock your child calls a world." He held out a bowl of the still moving worms.
Larisa took the proffered bowl; sniffed it, then picked up a portion in her fingers and pushed them into her mouth. "Kind of old, you whores-son. And they need hot sauce."
Rakuul was taken a little off guard it seemed that their intelligence on the woman was wrong. He changed his approach and tactic. "Well we have Lamok sauce, which is a Cardassian hot sauce if you wish. I am also in a position to provide much for you and your comfort should you wish. All we ask is in return some information, about Starfleet, our mutual enemy." He decided that perhaps playing the nice guy would illicit a response. The question was would she spill what she knew about the mutual enemy.
"Lamok Sauce will work," Larisa stared at the Cardassian and smirked. "I'm not sure what you're looking for in Starfleet. All of my information would be older than I care to think about. What are you after, Cardassian."
Without saying a word Rakuul retrieved a bottle of lamok sauce from the replicator and slid it through the field. "Well there is a link to a Federation Starship that you have and we need information on this ship. It seems that your daughter is betrothed to a Human, one Cornelius Tremble currently serving on the USS Pioneer..." As he spoke the images of Tremble falling into his trap swept through Rakuul's mind. He almost had him, and Rakuul will have him again. "...We need to know what you can tell about the Pioneer and her crew. That would be a good start to showing some good will, and earning your release."
Larta strafed the bowl of gah with the sauce, then picked out a few of the wrigglers with her tongue, chewing slowly. Finally, she said "I don't know Tremble and my daughter and I haven't spoken in years, though I hear she's hunting me. I'm not sure any good would come from that meeting."
Shrugging, she said, "The Pioneer? You must have more updated information than I do. It's always been considered a tough ship, but one that's easier to bust from the inside out. In the past there have been sensor voids where boarders could operate for minutes."
Smiling then at the Cardassian, she said "If you didn't want her, then I would think high yield explosives beamed to those coordinates would do just as well. They're weakness can be Empok Nor. Getting their shield harmonic frequencies and judicial use of explosives would deal nicely with them."
Rakuul squinted at her, as he thought whether or not she was lying. Within a moment thought he knew she was lying about one thing at least. "You lie Klingon... The Pioneer's sensors are controlled by Romulan and he is unscrupulous. Any perceived holes in their sensor grid is a Romulan trap." There was a beat of quiet as he changed tact, the station Rakuul knew the Gul wanted the station. "Tell me what you know of Empok Nor and I will consider getting you better accommodations."
Larisa took another tongue full of Gah and then looked contemptuously at Rakuul until she finished chewing. "And you're so afraid of a Romulan? The variable geometry pylons on the Intrepid class cause sensor shadows and blind spots in the Engineering sections. It's a flaw.
Leaning against the door she smiled again, "Empok Nor? My my. Aren't we feeling ambitious. The whole station is flawed. It's Cardassian built after all. Worse yet, unlike DS9, there are still Cardassian's there and last I checked, they weren't letting the Federation fix those problems. With the Marines there, if they arrived, any invasion with intent to take the place will make it a tough nut."
Tasting more of the Gah, Larisa spit a few of the more crunchy bits onto the floor and said, "I'd go for the environmental controls. That will clear out a majority, but they train for that. You'd have to make them want to leave. Venting it to space will only give them the upper hand and I doubt you have the sheer number of troops it would take to overwhelm the place."
Grinning then, she said, "Not if you want many of them left alive. So, that leaves us to simple solution. I would infiltrate teams in, barricade the emergency transporter stations and start beaming anything alive into space, whole sale. In the scramble, they'll be too focused on trying to save them and you can lock them out."
"Well my dear you have just earned yourself some real quarters." Rakuul smiled broadly and snapped his fingers. Three guards appeared. "Take the prisoner to quarters and send word to the Gul that I wish to speak with him." The guards nodded their agreement to the order and opened the cell. "This way Klingon lover..." They jibed at Larisa.
Larisa finished the gah and dropped the dish as she stepped out of the cell. "Don't knock it until you've tried it Cardassian," she retorted. "Though if you try it, you'll likely get a blade across the throat to match that spoon on your head."
A Joint Post By
Captain Larta Daughter of Shog
Commanding Officer, Ram Cha' Par
House H'rell Bird of Prey
Gil Rakuul
Grand Inquisitor, Obsidian Order
(NPC Malbrooke)
Larisa Daughter of Mica
Cell Leader, New Maquis
(NPC Larta)
Gul Typhon Prenar
Commanding Officer, Obsidian Order
(NPC Malbrooke)
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