003 : Three Hundred m/s

[Elena de Luca]

Looking at the canisters, her mind racing, she realized that no-one was working, they had stopped in their tracks when John had vaporized Akahi ans were now eyeing her with open resentment ... She turned to face them, looking at each in turn then approached the one she deemed their leader, or rather the one most likely to risk speaking. She looked him up and down as if weighing up her chances in an all-out fight:

"You seem to have a problem with me. Would you mind telling me what that problem might be ?" she asked casually.

The man looked around, obviously trying to solicit support from the others around him. They all simultaneously took a step forward hard expressions forming. Apparently if this was meant to un-nerve or frighten Elena it wasn't working ... She repeated the question and stood, eyebrows raised as if not willing to take silence as a reply for a second time.

"Akahi was a devoted followed of our Master." the man said, building courage by the second.

"Yes ... He was indeed." she said, nodding to herself as if recollecting fond memories of their former second in command, then eyes hardening, she looked directly at the man ignoring the others around her. It was a given that finding the hardest member of a group and flooring him in front of his clan always got the desired reaction, and this wasn't going to be an exception. Her arm reached out and she grasped the man's throat in her hand. Fingers around one side of his larynx, thumb pushing into the other side as she squeezed. The man dropped to his knees instantly, and Elena leaned forward to retain her hold. This grip incapacitated the person being attacked instantly, and any movement was met with the grip tightening. Eyes already bulging her glared at his captor, "I believe John explained my new position. Regardless of your feeling about your former second, I would hope you would embrace change and be willing to follow my lead if it is the will of our Leader. Am I to believe you are not willing to do so ?"

The man was trying hard to nod, but the minutest movement cut the air to his lungs off and he was already loosing consciousness. Elena released him and stood up ignoring the fallen man.

"Do not force me to make a further example. The next person to question our Leader in my presence will die. Do I make myself clear ?" Everyone slowly capitulated and turned away to continue their work while two lifted the sore man off the deck and quickly removed him from the mad woman's presence. Elena entered the rear of the shuttle and looked at the release mechanism set into the top of each casket .....

~~~~~~~~~~

"Where are we ?" she asked after entering the Bridge.

"This my child, is Kuutess Three ...." John said as Markham came from the captain's ready room and sat in the recently vacated command seat, "This is where we will be running our final and most substantial test."

"Prepare the shuttle." she told Ren, who almost shot out of his seat at Operations and exited the Bridge. She looked at the planetoid below wondering if she had missed something, "This is where you want to test the gas, forgive me my Lord, but it looks like a barren rock. Are we going to send people down to the surface for the test ?"

John almost smiled. Obviously Vyri had not been privy to the information the Admiral had briefed out to him, but she was now his trusted deputy and needed to know everything, well, not 'quite' everything he corrected himself before turning to her.

"The surface is airless. Not so the interior my child. Wait a moment ........" he said, looking at the screen, then, "....... There, can you see it ?"

She too looked at the massive view-screen and at first didn't see what he was pointing out, but as the ship continued it's orbit she could see something coming over the horizon. It was enormous, almost a thousand meters in diameter ... Around it she could see six similar constructions, all the same gunmetal grey, all circled by what she decided was navigation lighting .... Then she realized what she was looking at .... They were AIR-LOCKS !

"When the tour has finished." Admiral Markham said, obviously impatient to be on with the task at hand, "Contact the Central Council and request access. We are traders in fine clothing and wines, we are to attend the markets looking for opportunities for trade."

Moments later Ren confirmed they would be allowed to come to the surface and enter one of the minor portal's. they should contact Central on approach and they will be assigned landing co-ordinates.

"Take Ran, and two other's. You will transfer the casks to the market place and find some excuse to return to the ship."

"But won't they get suspicious if we decide to leave all our wares there for anyone to take and just leave My Lord." Ren asked, suddenly worried.

"You and Vyri shall return to the ship." John said, not expanding on the obvious. Then without another word he waved them away and sat in the seat next to the Admiral. As they entered the turbo-lift John and Markham were deep in conversation. Five minutes later the shuttle was falling towards the surface of Kuutess III ... They were assigned to Portal Five, which suddenly illuminated as they reached five thousand meters. Ren piloted the shuttle closer and a massive iris-type door began to open for them and moments later they dropped below the surface of the barren planetoid and the roof closed behind them. As the shuttle landed, a man and woman approached and waited patiently for them to shut down all power and open the rear door. They introduced themselves as Customs Officer's assigned to check and authorize visitors ... They looked at the manifest and gave a cursory check of the cannisters before handing all four of the visitors a small pin badge.

"Place this on your tunic. You must under NO circumstances remove the pin whilst below the surface. Failure to comply will mean immediate and irreversible exit from our world. You will not be given any second chance." the man was saying as the woman scanned each of the visitors in turn, obviously some sort of digital record or passport stamp. Either way it would make little difference in the scheme of things Vyri decided as the woman began to speak, "You have been allocated rooms where you can refresh yourselves and rest for the morning market call. An auto-transit is at your disposal and is at the lock entrance. Enjoy your stay."

"Wait ... " Ren said, a little too quickly and receiving al look from Elena, "Rooms ?"

"Yes, our markets run from the first morning quarter to the second evening quarter of our daily rotation. As you can see, you have arrived at the third evening quarter and the markets have closed for the rotation. Do not worry ..." the woman said reassuringly, obviously mistaking Ren's concern as worry that they had actually lost their place, "Your position has been secured, you may retrieve your wares from your craft in the first morning quarter, all in good time for the first customers." she said, smiling, then she bade them a good evening and the two departed.

"Hell !" Ren said.

"Contact John. He is expecting our return within the hour." Elena ordered, walking away from the shuttle as Ren went to the cockpit area to inform the ship of their situation ..........

[Elena de Luca]

Leaving Ren and the guard to speak to John, she followed their host to the rooms assigned for them. They were pleasant enough, with a view of the market square below, the artificial lighting dimmed now as the city moved into it's night cycle ... She almost envied the people their freedom, their total non-reliance on anything off-world, their independence. She knew she could allow the genocide John was planning, but the failure of the devices 'most' be seen as a failure of the equipment and not something done by one of his disciples. Then it came to her how she could do it !

Leaving the rooms she made her way through the warm streets until she reached the portal where they had entered. She could see Ren in the cockpit talking and the guard stood close to the door as if guarding ... Finding a place where she would not be seen, she continued to watch the shuttle and eventually Ren exited, the guard falling into step one pace behind as the hatch closed behind them. She had timed her walk to the shuttle, and knew that if Ren chose to return on not finding her at their rooms, she would have approximately forty minutes ... Once the two were out of sight she emerged and headed for the shuttle .......

~~~~~

"Where is she ?" Ren asked as he looked into each of the rooms in turn failing to find Vyri. The guard stood in silence, he knew he wasn't being asked a question, "Go and look for her. I will wait here for her return." the guard nodded and left Ren alone .... He paced the rooms like a caged animal, hardly able to control his anger at the woman John had placed at his side. The death of Akahi had affected him more than he cared to admit. They had both joined John at the start and had risen through the ranks until reaching their present, or in Akahi's case, former, positions, and now he was convinced that his time was short should the woman remain alive. John had ordered both he and Vryi return to the shuttle and leave the planet before the devices detonated, but he would fashion something so that it would be her rather than the seemingly sacrificial guard that would remain, and perish in the resulting explosion. It was almost thirty minutes before the guard returned and reported that he could not find Vyri. Ren stood and strode out of the rooms, guard close behind

~~~~~

The lighting activated as she entered the shuttle, she activated the plexi-glass panels and darkened them to almost black so from outside the shuttle would seem in darkness. Entering the rear she looked at the six metallic containers, each containing enough of the gas to decimate most of the population. Six cannisters was, in her opinion, overkill, but John and that lunatic Admiral Markham wanted to be sure of the results, and fully intended to come back down to view their 'handy-work' before departing the system ..... She approached the first canister and looked closely at the sophisticated release mechanism fitted into the metal, the timer could be activated both manually and by remote, to operate immediately, or on a delay, whichever suited the situation. She knew the valves were essentially tamper-proof, but that didn't mean they couldn't be 'fixed' with a little ingenuity. The trick would be ensuring no-one else discovered the tamper before she was able to get off the planet, because she already knew that Ren was going to attempt to kill her at some point, he had promised as much on Akahi's death !

The timing mechanism and secondary valve system were housed directly above a manually opened valve, this was accessed through a vacuum calliper so once opened the secondary valve then became the primary without risking any leakage from the cannister. She took a magnetic decoupler and slowly removed the four fasteners securing the valve timer block and tentatively lifted it away, breathing a sigh of relief as she stepped back safely. She had spent two hours devising a program that would replace the original set of instructions to the valve release, and retrieving the hidden tricorder had hidden before leaving the ship, she connected the valve to it and accessed the programming. She stopped suddenly, looking at the airlock hatch, sure she had heard something, but it could only have been her imagination. relaxing a little, she took the coupled tricorder / valve combination to the table and placed it down. It was imperative that nothing interfere with the transfer otherwise the device could revert to original programming, and that wouldn't be good, for anyone.

From her bag she took a small disk, sixty millimetres in diameter and four in height. Once the re-programming was complete she detached the valve and returned to the cannister. Carefully placing the disk in the housing that held the valve timer, she slowly lowered the mechanism back into place. It seated two millimetres higher than before, but this wouldn't be noticed unless the device was inspected close-up, or so she hoped. On activation, the valve would trigger a thermo-neuclaic reaction in the disk and it would seal permanently the opening within a thousandth of a second, preventing any discharge from the cannister unless physically removed ...... She replaced the four retaining bolts and wiped the neck of the device with a cloth. Standing she looked at her handy-work, then satisfied her meddling couldn't be detected by a casual glance, she turned to the second container. She had completed the work on four of the cannisters and had moved to the fifth when:

"What are you doing ?"

Her heart skipped a beat as she heard Ren behind her. She reprimanded herself for not hearing him entering the shuttle, so engrossed was she. Keeping her bag in front of her she placed it on the container and turned slowly, phaser in hand ......

"What business is it of yours. Do you presume to spy on me, even though our master has explained my position to you, or would you prefer he elaborate as he did with Akahi ?"

"I ask again. What are you doing here ?" Ren asked, his own phaser aimed steadily at her midriff. She idly wondered where he had got the weapon, given none were allowed inside the planetoid, and she was sure he hadn't carried it aboard himself, then she realized, the guard. He had brought the weapon on board secretly, so at least she knew where the man's loyalties lay. She took several steps forward, pleased to see Ren duplicate her steps in reverse to keep their distance constant, it showed her he was unsure of his abilities, and was therefore relying on the weapon rather than his own skills ... Slowly, she lowered her phaser until it was aiming at the mid point between them and raised her eyebrows in question, "Do not give me cause to kill you Vyri, at least not here. I want to savour my moment and relieve you of your life by my own hand, but if pushed, I will forego that pleasure and vaporize you where you stand if you do not answer my question."

"And you would explain my, untimely demise to John, how, may I ask ?"

"Oh, I am sure I can come up with something inventive that our leader will accept, especially as the guard sent with us will verify my testament thoroughly." he said, pleased with himself and the prospect of his imminent promotion. Elena smiled:

"Then you had better fire then ....... Hadn't you." she said calmly, "But just before you sign your own death warrant, you might want to ask yourself, would she be doing anything untoward while everything is being recorded by our Lady ? ..... She doesn't trust me, but I'm sure you are not aware of that, and why would you be. But when I came to check the containers before we left the ship, I scanned the interior ... There are six recording devices concealed throughout the shuttle, all for my benefit I assume, unless John is worrying about your one devotion to our cause. So, explaining my death away may not be as simple as first thought ...... But don't beat yourself around Ren, not everyone had the ability to plan and execute the perfect crime, that's why I'm here."

She could see the hesitation building in him, his eyes flicking left and right in some forlorn hope that he may actually spot one of the recorders. She took a quarter step towards him as his eyes were on the roof panelling, then half a step as he scanned the bulkhead to his right, peering at the joints between panels for any tell-tale object. She waited patiently, and took another quarter step as he looked to his left, then he turned his head upward to look at the roof panelling, that was when she moved !

Stepping close, she used her right hand to deflect the phaser while slamming the open palm of her left hand upwards to connect with the septal cartilage and nasal bone, pushing both upwards and underneath the cranial cavity and into his cerebrum. Blood exploded from the ruptured septum and Ren fell back against the bulkhead, all thoughts of his dropped weapon vanishing as he began to loose consciousness. She almost regretted her actions for a second, but then it was him or her ... Wiping the blood from her hands she pulled the body to one side and returned to sabotaging the cannisters. Once she had completed her task she returned the tricorder to concealment and then went to Ren. A quick check of his pulse confirmed he was dead. Moving forward, she sat in the pilots seat and composed herself for the coming ordeal, then contacted John ......

=^= Ren is dead =^= she said simply, watching John and Markham closely to gauge their reactions.

=^= How did this happen ! =^= Markham demanded.

=^= He attacked me .. I had no option but to defend myself against that attack =^=

=^= Where is the guard ? =^= John asked.

=^= I assume he is at the rooms provided for us .. Ren had remained at the shuttle when we left and I was concerned .. On his return I decided to come back to check everything was in readiness .. Ren had followed and told me he was going to carry out his threat to revenge Akahi's death .. Which he blamed on me .. He told me that the guard would fully corroborate his story that I was tampering with the cannisters and he killed me for betraying you and our Lady =^=

=^= Yet here you stand =^= Markham said, not hiding her belief that Vyri was lying through her teeth.

=^= He was .... Too engrossed in telling me how he and the guard had planned to leave me here while they returned to the ship .. He was pleased that he was able to remove me and take his rightful position at your side .. His flare for the dramatic caused him to hesitate too long before acting on his threat and when the opportunity arose .. I killed him =^= Elena said, making it a simple fact, not a plea for forgiveness.

=^= Are the cannisters still safe ? =^=

=^= Yes My Lord =^=

=^= Good .. You will remove them to the market at their dawn and ensure you leave the surface .. Bring the guard back with you .. I want to talk to him myself .. Contact me when you are leaving =^= John said, closing the comm before Elena could reply. She took a cloth and wiped the blood from her hands and face before rolling Ren against the bulkhead. setting her phaser to maximum, she fired. Twenty minutes later she entered the rooms provided for them. The guard sat in silence as she poured a drink and sat opposite. he stared from her to the door then back.

"Ren won't be joining us ...... He took it upon himself to extract revenge for the death of his friend, or at least, he tried." she said, eyeing the man over the rim of her glass.

"That is ..... Unfortunate for him, My Lady." the guard said, visually shaken as he lifted his own glass.

"Isn't it though ..." she said ..........

[Elena de Luca]

Laying awake, she could hear the guard pacing in the next room, his constant roaming was driving her mad and hindering what she needed to do next ... Eventually, she heard his door close and she climbed off the bed and approached the door. Listening intently, she decided the outer room was clear and she slowly opened the door. Moving quietly she went to the outer door and left the rooms. Fifteen minutes later she was at the shuttle. A few moments preparation and she was ready, then stepping onto the transporter pad she vanished from sight, reappearing on the USS Hiniori .......

Cautiously she moved through the ship. She needed to get to the communications array control systems quickly, she would set up a sub-space transceiver cascade that would look like static to anyone not investigating too closely. hopefully, it would be picked up by Admiral Tetsutaro or one of his staff. Once that was set up she could return to the surface and prepare for the morning, but as with most plans, things never seemed to work out ideally, and this was no exception. For some reason, John, or more likely, Admiral Markland, had locked out communications and the chances of her breaking the encryption without being discovered was impossible. She needed another plan, and quickly !

But nothing came to her, and the risk of her being discovered was growing with every minute that passed ... She could attempt to disable the ship, but that wouldn't help, John would simply acquire a replacement from the myriad in orbit, She had to work out how to get word of her location and situation to Star Fleet Intelligence, but again, without the array it was impossible. She pondered the idea of a distress call, realizing that would be blocked and easily explained away by anyone replying. There was the chance it would get reported to Star Fleet Command, but not in time to do her any good, so that was another option discarded. Then it occurred to her ... The shuttle ... Quickly retracing her steps she reached cargo bay two and stepped onto the transporter pad, reappearing on the shuttle seconds later ... She invisibly patched into the city's communications and waited to get a confirmation signal that her meddling had been successful, then she encrypted a message that would repeat every time the portals contacted one of the vessels in orbit, and from there it would be sent via sub-space to Earth ... Locking the computer so the guard could not detect her tampering, she returned to the rooms and sat on her bed awaiting the morning .....

=^= Good .. You will remove them to the market at their dawn and ensure you leave the surface .. Bring the guard back with you .. I want to talk to him myself .. Contact me when you are leaving =^= John said, closing the comm before Elena could reply.

"What checks did you carry out on that woman John ?"

"I did everything correctly My Lady, I assure you of that, and she has been nothing but totally loyal, both to our cause, and to myself throughout. I do not think you have any need for concern. I can vouch for her." John replied, a shiver of cold running along his spine.

"Well, I think it time we did a little more looking into your prodigy, don't you." Markham said, accessing the ships computer with a code supplied by one of her disciples on Earth itself, "We know her name, and where she says she originated from, and that should be enough to start with." she said, inputting instructions manually then remaining silent as she read the results. John stood close by, confident in his trust of Vyri, bur at the same time not wanting to be proved wrong by the woman that would kill him where he stood were that to happen ... She glanced at John once or twice throughout her investigation, seemingly deciding if he were worthy of remaining with the living, but eventually she was satisfied, at least with what she could read in the Federation records, but she had other means at her disposal, and would utilize them now. yes, it may be a waste of their time, but if nothing else it would ensure her operatives were kept on their collective toes, so to speak ... By morning she would know everything there was to know about this Vyri ..........

As the artificial dawn broke over the city, Elena was ready in the living area and eating a breakfast of nutrient cubes and fresh fruit. The guard appeared from his room, eyeing the fare as if it were something he would normally discard without a second thought. She watched him help himself to a drink 'At least that was palatable then' she thought as he drank then put the cup down.

"We should leave and prepare." he said, looking down on her as if waiting to be challenged. She didn't disappoint him:

"We will leave when I am good and ready ..... You keep forgetting your place, guard, it would be wise to re-evaluate where your loyalties lay. I would hate to think you were still misguided about your position in the scheme of things. Besides, if you feel you cannot follow my orders, you are of course free to choose to avoid being in my company ... Now !" she finished, turning her attention to the plate before her and ignoring the man's glare. Finally, he backed down, as she knew he would.

"I shall go to the shuttle and ......"

"No .... You won't ...." Elena said, locking eyes with the man as she stood up slowly, both palms on the table, "Go to the market square, enquire where our stall is located then go check it out. I need to know if we need anything else from the shuttle to ensure maximum dispersion of the gas, and we need to know how easily we can make our excuses to leave the stall unattended for a short time without raising suspicion." she said, not moving on iota, and as expected, the guard backed down and left her alone with her breakfast ... The last thing she needed was him snooping around the canisters and coming across her, modifications, and she was well aware that her goading of the guard would eventually come to a head and he would act on his hatred. She moved to the small balcony and watched the guard as he left, he turned right toward the square. Satisfied he was following her instructions, for the time being at least, she returned to the table ..........

[Elena de Luca]

She didn't rush her breakfast, there was no need to, the guard, who's name she nether knew or cared to know, given he would be dead before the day was out if he tried anything against her, should be setting up their stalls and waiting, no doubt impatiently, for her to arrive with the caskets. Frankly, the longer she made him wait the more frustrated and likely to do something stupid he would be ... 'As long as he didn't interfere with the task at hand, he'll remain among the living' she thought wryly .....

An hour late, she arrived in the market square, two porters had been assigned to help her move her wares to the market, and they waited for further instructions. The guard, obviously trying to assert his authority dismissed the men and turned to her:

"You risk discovery using local help."

"I wasn't aware I had asked your opinion. Open the three casket's containing the oils and try to put on a face that will draw people in, not scare them away." she said, dismissing him with a wave of her and as she turned to the two caskets that would remain sealed. The four opened casket's had been modified so the goods they were selling were clearly visible. Patrons could purchase almost three quarters of each of the caskets before they reached the partition containing the gas, and she very much doubted they would be so successful in their selling as to worry. The remaining two caskets were full to the brim of the poisonous concoction ... She checked the seals, and the additions she had made, happy no-one could discover her modifications. Once happy she moved to where the guard had placed the four lids and checked them. There had been a moment when the guard had looked at the timer release on one of the lids, frowning as if something was amiss, but he continued on to the next one without voicing his concerns. Hopefully, that would remain the case.

By mid morning they were selling the oils at a steady rate and began to think about the time they would need to leave the market but first she needed to make a small trip ...... She told the guard to continue selling and instructed him not to touch the two sealed canisters, then she left the market.

~~~~~

Entering the Customs Center she made her way to the departure desk and made enquiries about going up to their ship for supplies later, and confirming departure time for taking their leave the next day. She had no need to do this of course, but was using it as an excuse to enter the building with a legitimate enquiry. Thanking the woman she made to leave then moved down one of the corridors off the main reception area. She had obtained the schematics of the building the night before from a mercenary she had arranged to meet, and now made her way to the auxiliary power center four levels below. Hopefully she wouldn't be challenged, but if she was, the maintenance pass she had acquired along with the plans should get her past all but the most stringent scrutiny. She stepped onto a moving walkway that was spiralling downwards, the up ramp moving beside this one. She was in what looked like a large air vent, almost one hundred meters across with corridors branching off at intervals. She stood watching ahead as her corridor came up then stepped neatly off the walkway ... She had been told that the area was not normally accessed so she shouldn't have any trouble getting to where she needed to be, thankfully the mercenary's information was correct and she was the sole occupant of the corridor.

Entering the room she needed, she quickly moved to the consoles indicated on the plans and began to work ... Thirty minutes later she was done ... Once she activated the timers on the caskets, a signal would be sent to this complex and all external communications would be blocked, all power, save for life support and minimal lighting would also fail, leaving the city in semi-darkness and with no power to affect repairs. If the mercenary had done his job well, there would be no back-up power to restore and the city would be effectively dead for a minimum of twelve hours ... Just one more task, then she could return to the market ......

~~~~~

Arriving back at the market, she was annoyed to see the guard sat at the back of the stall, patrons were looking at the expensive oils but he was doing nothing to assist, or sell the goods. His obvious disinterest in his own wares had attracted the attention of the market superintendent, who was stood off to one side eyeing proceedings with interest ... She stepped onto the stall and leaned in to speak to the guard without being overheard. His face hardened and a look of defiance appeared, but he stood and began speaking to the women enquiring about the oils they were selling, bartering on price as was their way. Elena approached the superintendent, a look of exasperation on her face as if saying 'what can you do' .....

"You're, assistant does not seem inclined to see your good Madam, is there a reason for his attitude maybe ?"

"To be honest Superintendent, he is not my usual assistant. We had an accident prior to leaving and he was unable to accompany me, this, is his lass than enthusiastic brother-in-law, married to my colleagues unfortunate sister ... Lazy, lackadaisical, he chooses to sit around living off his brother rather than go out and better himself. He is hoping I can instil some sort of personal pride in the man while he is with me, but I fear I am unable to accomplish the impossible."

"Your assistant and his sister should be rid of this person, he is not worthy of a family name."

"I must agree Superintendent, and I have been asked to, encourage his not returning to the family home should I be unsuccessful in my endeavour ... Do not worry, I am not about to leave him in your generous hands."

"That ...." the superintendent said, raising his eyebrows, "Is much appreciated ... I trust now you have returned you're business will improve, you already seem to be attracting numerous customers. I have enjoyed our conversation, and would enjoy sharing an evening quarter meal together, if you are agreeable of course, I shall no doubt pass this way later and await your answer ..... Good day to you Madam."

She watched the man move further into the market, commenting to stall-holders and moving children along, given his dinner invitation, she was satisfied he was happy with her explanation and she returned to the stall. A chime sounded throughout the market square signifying the second mid quarter of trading. As sales lulled she took the guard to the back of the stall and told him she was about to set the timers on the two sealed containers, once done he was to seal the remaining four and put up the break pendant, signifying the owners were eating and would return shortly ... After one last morning sale the guard began sealing the canisters as instructed. As he placed the third cover he looked at the seal closely, running a finger along the raised rim where she had placed her device.

"We will be leaving in a moment. But please feel free to take your time won't you !" she said, sarcasm oozing from every word. The guard continued to seal the cannisters then stood waiting for her, eyes boring into her spine as if willing it to snap. She grinned at his expression and straightened the pennant before wiping her hands on her tunic. The Superintendent was approaching and she put a welcoming smile on her face, the guard remaining motionless beside her.

"You are taking you're meal break. Could I persuade you to answer my previous invitation before you go ?"

"I would be most honoured to join you, Superintendent." she said, almost coyly.

"Le'nl ... Madam, please." Elena smiled and introduced herself, pointedly ignoring the fidgeting guard beside her.

Ten minutes later they entered the shuttle and prepared to depart. The guard checked the timing on the cannisters and satisfied she locked the program ... Even if someone were to get a little inquisitive and begin tampering, the caskets would remain sealed until the timer activated the release valves, and by then it would be too late. he grinned in anticipation of the massacre to come. Lifting the shuttle off the landing pad, she easily obtained permission to take it through the portal into orbit where she could supposedly obtain further supplies from the ship waiting ....... Watching as the Hinoiri grew in size she glanced at the countdown timer resisting the urge to bite her bottom lip. Everything from here on depended on the mercenary's information. If he had made any error, her subterfuge would be discovered immediately, and she estimated her death would follow very quickly indeed.

As they reached high orbit and alignment with the Hinoiri, the guard confirmed the timer had reached zero. All external communications with the planet suddenly ceased ... He confirmed that the caskets had delivered their poisonous contents to the underground city ..........


Aboard the IKS Vot'nr (cloaked approximately one thousand meters behind the USS Hinoiri) ::


"Commander, we have received the message from the Federation Operative."

"Is everything in readiness ?" Jur asked.

"Yes Commander." his Lieutenant assured him, "All power has been lost to the underground settlements, all portals have automatically sealed."

"Open a channel to the Raven." Jur ordered, then waited to see Admiral Tetsutaro on the view-screen.

=^= The city below is dead Admiral .. You're operative has returned to your Star Ship .. They have made no attempt to leave orbit and are currently scanning the planetoid .. No doubt for signs of life =^=

=^= Good .. We shall begin our approach .. No doubt they will see us and may decide to flee .. If so you will follow and update us .. Once in range we shall put a stop to their little game .. Tetsutaro out =^=

Jur watched the massive Excelsior Class ship ahead of them, musing at how much damage he could do before Tetsutaro became annoyed ..........

[Elena de Luca]

As they reached high orbit and alignment with the Hinoiri, the guard confirmed the timer had reached zero. All external communications with the planet suddenly ceased ... He confirmed that the caskets had delivered their poisonous contents to the underground city ... She looked down towards the surface of the planetoid, knowing full well that there would be nothing to see from her position. As they traversed their orbit, closing on the Hinoiri she could see the navigation lights surrounding the portals still blinking. Externally nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but inside .....

"Contact the ship, tell them we are en-route." she said to the guard, without looking away from the plexi-glass window. She fell silent as they docked and disembarked the shuttle, within minutes they were on the Bridge ...

" ..... You are sure there are no life-signs ?" John was asking as she entered.

"We cannot scan to the deeper levels Lord, but all signs of life at the portals has ceased."

"You did well child." Admiral Markham said as she approached John, "Now ... Once we have confirmed we are not going to be joined unexpectedly, you will return to the city and report your findings. Only then can we move to our real target."

"Go back ?" Elena said, a little too quickly.

"You are concerned the poison did not work, or may be lingering child ?" Markham said, eyes narrowing in suspicion, "Would you have us leave here without confirmation of our success ?"

"No ... Apologies my Lady ... I meant no disrespect, I was more concerned with our being discovered before we could continue our task. vessel's approach this world regularly and if we are seen departing ......" Elena said, bowing her head deeply.

"No. There will be time for us to confirm our success. We shall allow another hour then return to the city. Once we see our work we shall move away from this morgue." John said, dismissing Vyri with a wave of his hand. She looked at the Admiral then at the guard, who seemed eager to be heard, but he too was dismissed. She left the Bridge and went to her quarters. If they were to attempt to go to the surface her treachery would be discover as they approached the closest portal, and she could not allow that to happen ... Risking detection, she opened her satchel and took out the tricorder before entering a sequence of commands. satisfied, she replaced the device and sat on the bed ... There was nothing more she could do for the moment.

ooooo

She was dozing when she heard her door open ...... Climbing off the bed she approached the living area, to be confronted by the guard from the surface, he was grinning, and holding a phaser:

"You're presence is required." he said, with the hint of a snigger.

"What is the meaning of this !"

"Shut your mouth." the guard ordered, waving the weapon towards the door and seeing no other option, she did as instructed. The guard didn't speak again, just looked at her as if waiting his chance ... As they entered the Bridge Markham and John were waiting.

"Accusations have been made against you child. What do you know about this ?"

"My Lady ?" Elena asked, a puzzled look forming as she looked from her questioner to John and back.

"Our guard here has informed us of your, behaviour while inside the city. It has caused us some concern. You will answer my questions or you will not leave this Bridge, do you understand me child ?" Markham said.

"I have shown nothing but loyalty to John since coming among the group and being accepted. I have done nothing to warrant this interogat ......" the phaser held by the guard slammed into her mouth almost knocking her off her feet. Steadying herself, she glared at the man before returning her gaze to Markham, "My Lady, please ..... May I speak ?" she asked eyeing the weapon once more.

"You would do well to speak the truth child."

"My Lady. I had occasion to reprimand the guard, who along with Ren, I felt were attempting to usurp my position. I found Ren meddling with the containers and when questioned he could not provide adequate explanation. Instead he attempted to kill me, alas he was lacking in that area too. The guard was bitter at this outcome and had made it plain that he would have his revenge. On numerous occasions I felt he was more liability than aid. If truth be known, I would have removed him along with Ren, but he was needed to ensure the success of our task. Now though, I am not reliant on his loyalty, and given the opportunity I will act accordingly. He is using this as a means to ascend in stature and responsibility and will I am sure say anything, incriminate anyone, to achieve that goal ... If you doubt my word ask him about the surface, his 'disappearances' allowing him time to act on his own behalf."

"My LORD ! .... There is a ship approaching."

John and Markham spun to face the screen. there, on the edge of sensor range was a vessel. John told the man to scan for identification:

"My Lord, it is a Star Ship ..... The USS Raven !"

"WHAT !" Markham said, turning to face Elena, "Do you know anything about this ?"

"Nothing My Lady." she replied, flicking her eyes in the guards direction before returning them to the deck between her and the Admiral.

"We have no time to return to the city. Move us out of orbit, slowly, do not give that ship any cause to contact us." John ordered, glaring at the guard.

"You fool ! ... The Raven will have identified us by now. We have no option but to remain here until they close on us, then we will destroy the Raven from under them." Markham said.

"My Lady, the Raven has not scanned the planet or the vessels currently in orbit." the man at the Helm said quietly.

"Move us around the far side." Markham ordered instantly, "Ensure you keep the planetoid between us and that ship ... Bring weapons on-line and ensure they remain so. If we have to fight our way out of this I want to be assured of success .... You, guard, Place this woman in the detention cells and ensure she remain's there."

Elena watched the Admiral, then turned as the guard jammed the phaser into her ribs ..........

[Elena de Luca]

Aboard IKS Vot'nr:


Jur monitored the two Human's beaming back to the USS Hiniori and rubbed his chin in contemplation. It was obvious that whoever held Command on that vessel would know the Raven was in the system and they would need to run while they were under the misguided impression that still had the advantage, but they were remaining in orbit ... This was what was puzzling the Klingon Commander ..... He pondered the idea of attacking the ship and disabling it before the Raven could get near, but he had his instructions, and even as a Klingon Officer, he wasn't about to anger the Japanese Admiral, who had 'friends' on the High Council and could cause problems for Jur, and his family, so he sat, waiting ....

Patience never being one of his virtues, he slammed a fist into his armrest and jumped from his seat. He was about to leave the Bridge when his Helm Officer spoke:

"Commander ... The Earth ship is moving."

Jur spun, hoping it was going to attempt to depart the system, at least then he could legitimately fire on it, but as he watched the ship expanded the gap between them by moving further ahead in their current orbit. They were going to hide behind the planet and what, attach the Raven while it was unprotected, deploy mines, who knew the tactics of desperate people. Klingon's would simply turn and face their opponent, not play 'hide and seek' with them. He ordered his Help Officer to move them into a position where they could monitor both Earth vessels once they were in orbit. If nothing else he could warn Admiral Tetsutaro if his ship decided to make any overt move. 'Qumwl' he hissed under his breath ... Forty minutes later the US Raven achieved orbit, unaware that the Hiniori was a mere half an orbit of the planetoid ahead of them. Jur ordered a communication link to the Federation vessel:

=^= Admiral Tetsutaro .. I have news .. Readings show that all power has been lost to the city below the surface .. All portals are now inoperative .. We detect zero life-signs =^=

=^= Good .. We detected a ship in orbit .. Was it the Hiniori ? =^=

=^= Yes .. It is currently hiding on the other side of this husk of rock =^=

=^= We are going to signal our operative aboard their ship then contact the city as arranged .. They will remain dark until we are out of the system .. Move into position I want to spook the Hiniori into moving out .. We are going to extend our orbit and increase speed hopefully they will detect us and run .. At that point we will put our precautions into place and disable the ship =^=

The communication closed before Jur could offer any opinion. He ordered a new position for the Vok'nr then sat glaring at the pristine Star Ship ahead of him ........


Aboard USS Raven-B:


"Admiral ..." Sato said to Carl who was sat in the Command seat.

"Helm. Extend our orbit but keep the planet between us and the Hinoiri ... Once we are ready I want to increase speed so we eventually begin to catch the other ship. They will see us at some point so be ready to leave orbit and pursue. I will leave that to you."

"You think they will attempt to fight their way out of this Carl ?" Sato asked quietly.

"Well, if Elena and your personnel have done their job, they won't get the chance to ...." Torek replied, hoping he was right .......


Aboard USS Hinoiri:


Admiral Markham was stood behind the Tactical Officer looking at the readings from the planetoid below. If vyri and the guard had carried out their assignment there should be no life in the underground city, but unfortunately, even with the technology at hand it was impossible to scan below the natural protective shielding the rock configuration afforded the city. She would have liked to have sent people into the city itself to confirm the gas had worked, but the arrival of the other Federation Star Ship had put paid to those plans, and she would have to rely on the word of the two operatives. Unfortunately, for them at lease, she wasn't one to simply 'rely' on the word of others. She ordered the guard to the Bridge ... On his arrival she told him to hold out one arm, confused, the man hesitated and two people snatched him, quickly extending his left arm. Markham glared at John who had been about to object to the treatment, then placed a hypo-spray against the guards' skin and activated it:

"The poison I have injected will begin to take affect in a moment ..... I want your complete honesty to my questions. If I am satisfied you tell the truth then I will administer the antidote. If not, you will die !"

The man began to shake uncontrollably as he watched the Admiral smiling down at him.

"Can you be certain that the devices set up on the canisters all activated when Vyri sent the signal ?"

"Yes ..... YES ! ....." the man said quickly, eyeing the hypo-spray Markham was holding, "I had my doubts, but I checked the cannisters myself and found .... Found nothing .... They should all have activ ......."

"ADMIRAL ! .... The other ship is coming out from behind the planet, they will have weapons lock in twenty seconds !" Markham spun to face the view-screen, the forgotten guard reaching out desperately for the hypo-spray, but the woman stepped out of reach and panic ran through every fibre of his mind. He made one last attempt to reach out, before dying, "Shall we leave orbit ?"

"I would have thought that obvious." Markham said, watching the gleaming form of the Galaxy Class Star Ship as it came from around the planet below, "NOW !" she said, almost casually.

The planetoid fell away as the Hinoiri turned away and began to increase her speed. The Raven followed, keeping pace but not attempting to close the distance between them. She watched the ship, wondering vaguely why they were waiting, but it didn't matter, the Excelsior Class Hinoiri was a match for her pursuer and once they had room to move she would prove that by turning on the other ship and attacking it. There would be no need to expend too much effort, as all she needed to do was delay their chase until the Hinoiri could go to warp. they would be tracked of course, but with a little luck on her side, they would eventually pass out of range of the Raven's sensors and then they would change course ....

Little did she know that the cloaked Klingon Warship was only meters from her hull ... In her cell, the trans-dermal implant behind Elena's right ear began to emit a signal only she could detect ..........

[Elena de Luca]

Sitting on the bed she eyed the guard speculatively, wondering how she could get him to lower the force-field blocking her exit from the cell. She sensed that the ship was moving and increasing speed. Inertial dampers prevented the sudden changes in velocity and direction change being noticed, but she had always 'felt' the changes and this wasn't any different.

"We're moving." she said casually, showing no outward sign of the sub-dermal signal she was receiving, but the guard ignored her, "HEY ! ... Don't you think you should find out what's happening ?"

"Shut your mouth." the guard spat, worry showing in his expression.

"They 'NEED' someone who can fly this thing. I'm pretty certain whoever is at the Helm isn't anywhere near qualified to be there ..... Let me the hell out of here. I can help ... Contact Admiral Markham and tell her I'm aski ......." she realized her mistake the second it came out of her mouth, but it was too late to rectify as the guard suddenly spun to face her, suspicion evident in his expression.

"Why do you address our Lady as Admiral ? ..... She is not one of those Star Fleet puppets, she is our leader !" he asked, approaching the force-field, "Answer me or I will come in there and beat the answer out of you."

"Oh, I don't think you have the guts to come in here. besides, it is blatently obvious that you know next to nothing about who runs this outfit. So do yourself a favour and step back, I wouldn't want you hurting yourself on that force field." Elena said, grinning. but before she could goad the guard into entering her cell, the ship-wide Comm sprang to life:

* All crew to stations ... All crew to stations *

The guard turned away, beginning to leave the Brig. Elena had to think fast or any chance of her getting out of here would be lost:

"I'll tell you what I know about our Lady .... But only if you promise to inform John yourself." she said as the guard continued to walk away, "Her real name ... There is no way you could possibly know that, but I do, and believe me, if John was to learn that the woman giving the order's was a member of the Federation he has sworn to defeat, but you refused to inform him of the fact, how do you think he would react ?"

The guard stopped walking away and turned to face her.

"You are making this up to get me to allow you to leave. I don't believe a word from your mouth. You are in here for a reason, and it isn't my place to question the actions of out leaders."

"Really ... Well, given the information I can give you, and the fact that it was Admiral Markham who ordered me detained, isn't it obvious why she would need me out of the way ? ... But regardless of that, you need to inform John of my accusations."

He took his time, working through everything that had been said, and his obvious options. But finally he decided .... He deactivated the force field and stepped into the cell. He grasped Vyri by the arm and pulled her out of the cell and into the Brig. From there he forced her into the turbo-lift, his phaser still jabbed into her ribs. As he stepped onto the Bridge both Markham and John looked at them both.

"What is 'SHE' doing here ?"

"My Lady ....." the guard said, trying not to crumble under his conviction, "This woman has information I feel you should hear. It may be nothing but she insis ........."

"YOU !" Markham said to one of the crew, "Shoot these people NOW !"

"John. You trusted me ... If you allow my death you will regret that decision." Elena said, looking directly at John and ignoring Markham completely. But the Admiral again ordered their deaths.

"NO !" John ordered, "With due respect My Lady. Given our situation I feel we should listen to what she has to say."

"Very well !" Markham said, looking at the view screen and the USS Raven still shadowing them, "Go ahead Vyri. Tell us your information. I am eager to hear what you have to say ... In the mean time, turn this ship around and come to a complete stop. we shall face the ship coming for us and destroy it. then and only then will you realize our power and dedication to our cause ... Bring shields and weapons on-line ... Target the vessel following us. once in range open fire !"

Elena watched as the Hinoiri began a steep turn to face the on-coming Raven. The two Star Ship's were every inch the match for each other, she had wanted to get John and Markham alone, where she would have a chance of winning in a fight, but circumstances had changed. She knew she needed to act, now .... She reached up and placed a finger on her carotid artery just below her ear, then applied pressure ....

The Bridge of the Hinoiri fell into complete darkness as all power was shut off ....... Emergency lighting activated, and the Bridge consoles began rebooting. All ship's power was now reduced to life support and artificial gravity. The massive Star Ship began a gentle roll to Starboard as her inertial dampers and alignment systems failed. The former Star Fleet Admiral Markham knew instantly what had occurred and attempted to access the main computer with her override codes, but nothing worked and she couldn't understand why ... The access codes she had acquired should have overridden everything unless the main computer core was destroyed, and that wasn't the case. So someone had sabotaged her ship !

She looked at the view screen and watched the Raven slowly rotating as it approached the Hinoiri. She glared at everyone on the Bridge as if looking for someone to blame, then her eyes fell on Elena .....

"YOU ! ....."

John looked in the direction of his superiors anger and he saw Vyri ... She was looking directly at the woman, defiance in her glare. He suddenly wondered if this woman and her information held validity. But before he could ask the Comms chirped to life.

=^= I am Admiral Sato Tetsutaro to the personnel currently aboard the USS Hinoiri .. You will surrender immediately .. Failure to do so will result in an unfortunate outcome .. You have sixty seconds to reply or I will be forced to take matters further =^=

"How could this have happened ?" John asked, realizing his precarious position was now defunct, "You, you led us to this, and now we're captured ... I will not allow the Federation to take me." he said, raising his phaser and pointing it at Markham."

"You dare ..... You 'DARE' to question me !"

"I have no intentions of surrendering to the Federation My Lady." John said quietly, "But I also will not take responsibility for your actions. You chose to move too quickly and now we are paying the price. I cannot allow that to go unpunished." he said. firing the phaser he held directly into the face of the woman.

Everyone on the Bridge was dumbfounded at what had happened, but John remained calm:

"I don't care what you have to sacrifice. Get our drive systems on-line ... We will ram the Raven !" ..........

[Elena de Luca]

With only life support and artificial gravity functioning, the Hiniori began a lazy roll to port. On screen it looked as if the Raven was the ship moving but everyone knew the situation ..... Elena remained totally still, eyes locked onto the view-screenl. Every fibre of her body itched to inform John of her real identity, but she knew doing so would likely get her killed. She would have to find a way to incapacitate the man without suffering the wrath of John in the process.

"Where are my drive systems !" John shouted.

Everyone was rushing around like proverbial headless chickens trying to get something, anything, working. Each and every one of them knew their fate should their Lord decide to take his temper out of one of them. But they could work and work, it would be to no avail. The virus Tetsutaro had had implanted into the computer core was self-replicating, and would continue to grow as long as there was a single ohm of power to be had. Only a specific de-activation protocol would stop it, and only Tetsutaro had that ! ..... John walked around the Bridge, glaring everyone into working faster until he stood in from of Elena. He looked her up and down as if weighing up an item for purchase, then leaned in to whisper in her ear:

"I know one of my followers has something to do with this, Vyri ... Once I can prove it I will execute them right where they stand as a warning to anyone else who thinks it wise to anger me."

Elena remained silent, inwardly she smiled, knowing he was loosing his composure, and in doing so making her task hopefully easier ... Suddenly the Bridge lighting returned to normal, and one of John's men turned grinning with satisfaction. It was short-lived as the lighting failed, once plunging the Bridge into total darkness. John screamed in frustration and stepped in front of the man slapping him hard across the face, then again, and a third time ... With only the emergency lighting to see by, everyone doubled their efforts to rectify the problems at hand before he attacked them too. But he simply told everyone to remain silent as they worked.

"My Lord !" one of John's men said after five more minutes of frantic experimentation, "I have got the manoeuvring thrusters on-line."

"Congratulations." he said, sarcasm oozing from every syllable, "Perhaps we can work on something that would actually 'ALLOW' us to escape from that ship out there." he spat, dropping into the Command seat eyes locked on Elena as the Comm managed to chirp to life despite almost everything else being powerless:

=^= USS Hiniori .. Your efforts to repair the damage to your computer cores will be in vane .. Signal your willingness to surrender and we shall make arrangements for your transport off that ship .. Before the life-support systems fail and you begin to suffercate =^=

"How could he possib ....." John almost jumped out of the Command seat and spun on the other's ... He knew now without any doubt that someone was working in league with the Federation vessel, "Close the Comm !" he reached out and took a phaser from the nearest man then pointing at him, fired. The man vaporized into nothingness and he waved the weapon around, encompassing the others on the Bridge before resting it on Elena herself.

"Are you are going to make an example of me too My Lord ?"

"I will not allow them to take me off this vessel alive Vyri .... I have worked long and hard to achieve what I have thus far, and no aged Admiral is going to stand in the way of my work. I suggest you put all that Engineering knowledge of yours to good use. I need those weapons and I NEED the warp core on-line. You have thirty minutes." he said, dismissing her with a wave of his hand.

She knew there was nothing she could do to get either weapons or engines back, so the thirty minutes was just thirty minutes she had left to live if she allowed John to remain in control. Her concern was obvious. To attack or kill John would see her killed in retribution, so she needed to find a way of stopping him while ensuring her own safety. The Comm chirped to life once again:

=^= Hiniori .. I would much rather this end peacefully but I fear that is not going to happen .. We can see you have the manoeuvring thrusters on-line .. I would suggest you use them to stabilize your erratic rotational issues rather than trying to approach us .. Given we are backing away to maintain the distance between us .. It may interest you to know that at this distance this ship will suffer no damage should I decide to fire on you .. Given that is is in fact 'MY' vessel you chose to acquire I am obviously reluctant to fire but do not doubt my word when I say that despite my 'fondness' for the Hiniori I will open fire if you fail to cede to my orders =^=

On the Bridge of the Raven, Sato shook his head. These people were not going to give up, he had known that from the start, but it hadn't stopped him from trying everything possible to prevent a fire-fight.

"Tactical Officer ...." Sato said, looking up from the Command seat at Admiral Torek before continuing, "Arm phasers .... Target their life support systems only and stand by for my order. Helm ... I want a pass to port of the Hiniori then I require you to return to this position and await further orders."

"Yes Admiral." the Duty Navigation Officer confirmed.

He stood up and moved to the front of the Bridge, dwarfed by the massive view-screen and the USS Hiniori directly ahead of them. Carl stood beside him and asked if he wanted to do what he was contemplating, but Sato reiterated that he had no other option than to force their hand before they did something everyone could regret.

"Helm. Begin your pass." Tetsutaro said quietly ...........

[Elena de Luca]

"Take your time Commander." Torek said as the Raven began to close the distance on the Hinoiri ...

On the bridge of the Excelsior Class Hinoiri, John stood from the Command seat and stepped closer to the view-screen. The remainder of his people watched in silence as the massive vessel approached them almost leisurely. One or two began to wonder if they were going to get out of this situation when their leader spoke:

"There is no way he will fire on his own vessel, No Star Ship Captain would do so, regardless of the circumstances."

seconds seemed to stretch into minutes as the Galaxy Class Raven moved ever closer to them, then one of John's men spoke, panic in every word !

"My lord .. They are arming their weapons !"

"It is a bluff." John said, unable to take his gaze from the on-coming vessel, "raise shields just to be on the sa ....."

"Nothing is operating !"

"Helm, move us away. Maximum thrust !" John said, knowing it was too late, then he changed his mind, "NO .... Set a collision course for the Raven. We'll scare them into disengaging." The man at the Helm looked at his leader as if he had heard wrong. He looked at the screen then down at his panel. Red indicator's confirmed phaser lock on the Hinoiri, "DO IT NOW !" John shouted.

"I wouldn't do that." Elena said quietly, forcing John to turn to face her, and the phaser she was holding steadily on his position, "You three. Up against the view-screen ... NOW !" she ordered the other's her eyes never leaving John, who seemed to be struggling to comprehend the situation he suddenly found himself in. John's people looked from Vyri to their Lord, then back, hesitant to comply, but Elena fired the phaser at the feet of the man stood at the Tactical station and he moved quickly, the other's following suit. John took several steps forward until she trained the phaser on him once more.

"You ... You would betray me !" he asked, almost spitting the words from his mouth, "I had hopes of you replacing me one day. I killed my life-long friend defending you, and you do THIS ... TO ME !"

Elena shrugged, as if offering any explanation would fall of deaf ears. She stepped forward and opened a Comm link before stepping back, well out of the reach of John, who was inching forward by the second. She lowed the weapon and fired, scorching the rubberised deck only inches from his feet. He looked down, his mind trying hard to process the situation fully. She waved the phaser and he took three paces back until he too was stood with his people.

=^= USS Hinoiri to USS Raven .. We surrender =^= she said, eyes locked on John's ...

The massive Raven passed over the top of the Hinoiri and made a slow turn.

=^= USS Hinoiri .. Prepare to be boarded .. Do not make any attempt to move the vessel or activate any disabled systems .. Any non-compliance will result in our immediate reaction =^=

The Raven closed the distance between them and came to a halt alongside and only one hundred meters away, her weapons still locked onto the Bridge. A second later they heard the tell-tale hum of a transport in progress ... Four Security personnel materialized, along with two Star Fleet Flag Officers. Security stepped up to John's people and secured them quickly. John stood in silence, eyes burning into Elena as if trying to extinguish her life by will-power alone. One of the Security team took him by the arm and moved him away from the screen.

"Colonel." Admiral Tetsutaro said, a short bow following his address, "It is good to see you are in good health and you managed not to damage my ship." Carl too voiced his approval that she was well. As the four disciples of John were led off the Bridge, John suddenly stepped forward and grasped Vyri, spinning her away from the two Admirals and making sure her was using her to shield himself from the now fully alert Security Officer's, who had all lowered their charges to their knees and were training their phasers on the pair. John looked at them and ordered they lower their weapons, Torek ordered them to comply, watching Elena closely.

"I want a shuttle ... Me and my, companion here, are going to take a little trip." His gaze was drawn to the view-screen as a Klingon Bird of Prey de-cloaked, then he turned back to the Flag Officers, "That makes no difference to my plans to leave."

Elena was slowly relaxing her posture, listening to John's breathing ... Suddenly, she spun in his grip and placed a concealed knife against his carotid artery, seeing the tiniest trickle of blood beginning to run towards his tunic.

"If that phaser moves in any direction other than directly to the deck, I will insert this blade in your neck ... It will take approximately three hundred milliseconds for your brain to register that you are dying, and by that time there will be no chance at all of stemming the blood loss ... I'll make sure of that." Elena said casually. John tested her resolve and moved his arm a fraction of an inch, feeling the blade pushing harder against his throat, knowing that the cold fluid running down his neck was his own blood. He lowered his arm and slowly released his grip on the phaser.

"I will kill you Vyri." John said, more an oath than a statement, but again Elena shrugged.

"Colonel." Tetsutaro said, raising his eyebrows. Elena slowly removed the stiletto type blade from John's throat and wiped it carefully on his chest, leaving two red trails of blood in the process.

"Medic." she said, stepping away from the fanatic ......


Aboard the USS Hinoiri - One hour later ::


With the USS Raven and the IKS Vok'nr in formation, the three vessels were en-route to Star Base Forty Seven .....

In the Observation Lounge, Admiral Torek, Admiral Tetsutaro, Commander Jur, and Elena were sat talking:

"Where will they send him ?" Jur asked, referring to John as he downed another goblet of blood wine before helping himself to a refill, "I am sure the Klingon Empire will be able to 'extract' any relevant information he may hold !"

"I'm sure they will." Elena said, a wry grin forming as the Klingon Commander feigned offence at her comment before waving it away.

"He will be held in a secure facility and be questioned thoroughly. We shall get what we need from him I am confident in our abilities in this field Commander. But thank you for your offer." Sato said, raising his glass in salute.

"I would like to oversee the interrogation Admiral." Elena said, standing to refill her own glass.

"Unfortunately my child. Your 'talents' are required elsewhere ... Following our de-brief at the Star base you will transfer to the Raven. Admiral Torek has agreed to transport you to the Proxa Tangelii System."

"No rest for the wicked." Carl said, raising his glass as Elena sighed ..........

~ Mission Concluded ~