Re: THE SONS OF LIBERTY

Wed Oct 01, 2014 7:11 pm

Turson smiles and rubs his hands together eagerly.

"Permission to personally accompany you when you use those suits," he says. "And I shall contact our...friends...as soon as possible; in fact, as soon as this meeting is over."

Thu Oct 02, 2014 1:28 pm

"I think we can conclude now." Johnnyred says. "We'll let our friends from Daragon Incorporated and PhoeniX Engineering decide whether or not they wish to continue with us while we make our preparations."

Thu Oct 02, 2014 3:14 pm

*Candirith, looking thoughtful during the meeting, now stands up*

"Daragon, Incorporated agreed to assist the Sons of Liberty for the duration of the conflict at Rator III. That battle is over, and DI will not continue to maintain its presence here. Additionally, we cannot risk the blow to our company reputation and integrity that might result from entangling ourselves with such...distasteful demographics." Candirith sighs, looking regretful, but continues. "If you do, in fact, begin working with Section 31, I cannot promise that DI will continue to support the Sons of Liberty. While this movement is honorable, it is far from pivotal on the galactic scale, and we will not hesitate to renounce this relationship if our consumer base becomes unhappy. Please know, however, that many of us in the upper echelons of Daragon, Incorporated support your overall endeavor, even if we cannot support the way you go about your goal. Best of luck to you, gentlemen."

*Candirith tips his cap and strides from the room, a single bodyguard fading out of the back of the room to follow him*

Fri Oct 03, 2014 12:54 am

"Thank you, Captain." Johnnyred replies to Candirith as he reaches out his hand to shake the DI captain's. "We appreciate your assistance during the assault. Send Siriondil my thanks as well."

Fri Oct 03, 2014 1:44 pm

OOC Wait, couldn't DI just sell the PCG some ships that they crew themselves and then look the other way? END OOC

Fri Oct 03, 2014 4:48 pm

Onboard the Arondite

The decoy of Axal entered a private channel with the real Axal, who remained emotionless as he received the (almost*) live feed from the soldiers onboard the Arondite. Responding to the decoy’s question, he ordered, “We need to know how much more we will get rewarded. Ask the captain and continue transmitting.” After several seconds of silence, the PXE representative responded, “Before answering your question, we would like to know how much money will be rewarded to us if we continue, captain.” He retreated back to the corner, near the exit, next to Gkal’s decoy and the two MI-3B units.

Onboard the PXS Capricorn: Primary Bridge

Both Captain Axal and Major General Gkal were now standing on the bridge, gauging the possible outcomes of the negotiations. However, Axal remained more focused on the dozens of reports that flashed on his retina, emanating from both the visor on his helmet as well as the NINC inside his skull**. Most of the reports yielded information of little to no importance: casualty reports, clean-up in both Quadrant I and II, the reconstruction of several power facilities and reparation of orbital shipyards, and dozens of miscellaneous intelligence. Additionally, the information he was receiving now was mostly fourteen hours old, due to the massive time lag caused by sending information, even at the speed of light via laser-grids. So far, there had been no word about the impending assassination of Ro Niko’s family, which meant the operation was most likely stalled.

However, several intel reports, all of them coming from Port Omaha, caught his eye. Scrolling through the massive heap of information, all written in Lingua Prima, or less formally, Prim***, he glanced at a particularly interesting piece of intel. According to the report, the development of both the Deneb and Sagittarius had been postponed, and were scheduled to be terminated within several rotations. However, both maneuvering singularity technology and “instantaneous" communication technology development were being accelerated.

Recalling from his memory banks, Axal remembered several brief debates about the development of drive singularity technology, several rotations before the dawn of the Second Mukara War****. Discussions had been brief, and, according to both 2I and FI*****, stalled.

Finally, the massive cascade of reports ended, and he returned to staring at the star chart reflecting off his visor. Axal deactivated the NINC, and gazed at the three-dimensional projection. It now displayed the PCG ships, each highlighted by a faint red halo, as well as the fleet positions of the PXE’s Navy, surrounded by an equally faint blue corona. On another part of the visor, he viewed as the discussions between the PCG and other participants of the Sons of Liberty task force continued, waiting for a response from the captain.

Spoiler:

[OOC] Sorry it took so long to get this up. I’ve been flooded with school work and simply haven’t had much time for the forum or SoL. Really sorry for holding everybody up. Embarassed

Anyway, before the plot escalates anymore ( Razz

), I would like to tell everyone that if I hold up the RP for 2-3 days or longer, please resume immediately and assume that PXE has to return or something. If I can return to activity, I’ll have the fleet somehow rejoin you guys. Wink

Also, I probably should do a major character review as well, and a fleet review…sometime later...[End OOC]

Fri Oct 03, 2014 5:39 pm

OOC Several thousand to million kilometers distant between ships seems pretty standard; I always just assume ships in deep space are shown to be much closer than they are because showing the real distance would make viewing the fleet in one shot nigh-on impossible, unless the ships were ludicrously huge.

As for comms, Starfleet (and by extension, most ST races/factions) have been using subspace radios (or whatever they're called) for centuries now, which makes communication between ships even thousands of lightyears apart virtually instantaneous; Voyager, which was stuck in another flipping quadrant of the galaxy, was able to receive real-time two-way communications with Starfleet on a regular basis. No biggie, it just annoys me when two factions are at such different levels of tech, even though their ships are shown to be equally powerful. Razz

END POINTLESS OOC RANT

Fri Oct 03, 2014 5:41 pm

OOC @Tetra: How does it work? Is it scientifically plausible? I was thinking of using tachyon grids or ansible-like technology, but according to the quantum theory or something, it's impossible. I refuse to use something that has no scientific basis! Razz

End OOC

Fri Oct 03, 2014 5:42 pm

[OOC]
I'm BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!! I'd hoped to get a couple chapters up today, but at least this is something, right? Smile

RIGHT?

[End OOC]

R.R.W. Alth'Indor Mess Hall 23:40 Day 2

Vardok, who was now calm thanks to deep breathing and medication, motioned for the security team, his first officer, and doctor T'nai, to follow him as he walked for the mess hall door.
"Let's get down to sickbay. Our Reman 'friend' might have the answers we need. Nurse S'Teveirr, you too; I still want to know your part in all this." On the bright side, I'm running out of living suspects. We've still got to get this ship up and running. We need to make it to Rator III in time for the assault. Stay focused. One thing at a time. 'Centurion' D'Avek held up his hand.
"Actually, Vardok, I was hoping that T'nai and I could stay here for a bit and examine the bodies for further evidence?" S'ren turned and shook his head.
"We saw it all, D'Avek. Nora'dex was unarmed, on the ground, and begging for mercy, the Reman shot him in cold blood. What more could there be? There's no need to look for more evidence. Come on, we can get more information from the other Reman in sickbay. We've got a long night ahead of us, let's use our time wisely." Doctor T'nai spoke up next.
"Vardok is right, Centurion. There's nothing to be learned here since you both saw it all." D'Avek wasn't giving up so easily though.
"Please, Vardok? It will just take five minutes." Commander S'ren shrugged.
"If you insist. Five minutes, and please keep me posted on what you find. Doctor, would you please join me in sickbay as soon as your done up here?" The doctor looked at D'Avek with a confused expression.
"I don't know what you except to find, but we might as well look while we're up here, I suppose. I'll be right down, Vardok."
The Commander, the Republic security team, and the Imperial nurse all walked out the door.
"Okay D'Avek. What are we looking for? Please keep this brief, I have a living patient to attend to." T'nai said, kneeling down beside the two bodies. The first officer remained standing, silent for a minute as he listened to the footsteps fade in the hall.
"Actually, Doctor, I wanted to talk to you." T'nai raised an eyebrow.
"Couldn't you do that in sickbay? Or even on the way to sickbay?" D'Avek shook his head no.
"This is about the Commander. I'm really worried about him, Doctor." T'nai smiled.
"I know you are. You're a good friend to him, D'Avek. But I can't talk to you about any medical issues he has; doctor patient confidentiality and all that." The young officer frowned at this latter part.
"You don't understand, Doctor. This isn't just a casual inquiry by a concerned friend. I'm asking you as the first officer of this ship, who just saw his Commander lose it; he mentioned Station Alpha. I know that that was a dark time for him. I'm concerned that he's not mentally stable. He wasn't himself back there. And don't tell me that he was 'just tired.' I know him when he's tired. That wasn't tired, and that wasn't Vardok. I need to know if he can handle this mission." The doctor stood, raising himself slowly to his feet.
"I can't discuss this with you, I'm sorry." At this, D'Avek raised his voice a little.
"I need to know, Doctor. Is he stable enough to handle this mission? What's going on with him?" T'nai looked concerned.
"I know you're worried about him. I am too. He's been through a lot. I wish I could tell you more, but I can't." The young Romulan rubbed his face in exasperation before continuing.
"Listen to me, Doctor T'nai. Commander S'ren is leading a Republic task-force into Imperial space, to join in an assault on the Imperial capital. Millions of lives depend on what happens in the next forty-eight hours. I need to know if Vardok can handle this amount of pressure. He is not well; I can see that for myself. I need your help. Please understand the severity of the situation. Can he mentally handle this?" The doctor was growing nearly as frustrated as D'Avek.
"I do grasp the severity of the situation. I don't think that you understand how serious a thing you are asking me to do. I would be betraying my patient to reveal his medical history to you."
"What about the lives of everyone else on this ship, Doctor? On all the ships in this fleet? Of everyone in the Republic and the Star Empire? They're you're patients too; and what he does affects all of those people too. It's as if he had a contagious disease. Don't make me order you to tell me. Please, T'nai, help me help everyone, and him." The Alth'Indor's chief medical officer sighed.
"This stays entirely between you and me, understood?" D'Avek nodded.
"Good. I believe that Commander S'ren has Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder, and possibly Depression as well. I'm not a psychologist, but I know enough to know that he's been through decades of war, and that that has hurt him deep inside.
We've been managing his symptoms with medication for years. I strongly advised him to seek help from a councilor, but he refused. He felt too vulnerable about it; felt that he'd lose his command. Because his symptoms were mild, well controlled with medication, and never interfered with his ability to command, I did not push him on it. I thought that when he was ready, he would seek help. I didn't realize how serious it was. He's a good Commander. He has always been able to pass psychological evaluations. I've always believed that he could handle commanding this ship. But he hasn't fought other Romulans for years. He hasn't seen Romulans kill each other for years. With medication, he was able to get through life. Until now.
I believe I miscalculated how severe his condition is. I fear that he has a lot of suppressed emotions that he has never dealt with. He's a strong person; he's hid it well, even from himself. I think that fighting his brothers was the most harmful thing to his soul, and now he has to do it again.
If only I ordered him to see a councilor years ago! I thought that he was alright. Mending bodies is my strong point, not the mind." D'Avek had relaxed his posture and tone now, he hadn't realized any of this.
"I'm sorry, Doctor. We'll get him help, if we live through this. But right now, I need to know, can he handle command? Do I need to take over; relieve him of command?" Doctor T'nai slumped into a chair.
"I really don't know. I haven't seen enough evidence for it yet. It's a very tricky situation. If you relieve him of command, and he passes the mandatory psychological test back at HQ, if we survive to get back to HQ that is, it could mean you're career. And it will certainly mean your friendship. But if he doesn't pass, then it will mean his career, and probably your friendship too.... And either way, pass or fail, Vardok's friendship with me will go too of course in the hearing process when I have to testify. But if he can't handle this mission, then, as you say, millions of lives could be at stake on both sides. Pick your poison."

Fri Oct 03, 2014 7:33 pm

[OOC] I believe that instantaneous communication can be possible through the same technology that will eventually allow teleportation. Quantum entanglement will open a whole new realm of possibilities in technology; I think instantaneous, or perhaps just slightly lagged, communications are a mundane enough tech that we can sort of assume that everyone has them. We could always use the Star Wars method, the Hypernet, which simply sends subspace signals through hyperspace, which is technically possible, we just don't know how to do it yet. It's no less plausible than ST's warp drives, which rely on negative energy, which we know next to nothing about, so I think it's safe to take things like comms and FLT for granted, unless you want to design your own tech for it. [/OOC]

Fri Oct 03, 2014 10:29 pm

OOC to Dino:
*Very loud applause*
I've been waiting for your work to come back! Very Happy

And it sounds like you're back in the groove! Great literary technique of leaving the reader hanging with the tough choice D'Avek is faced with. I look forward to more!
End OOC

OOC to All:
I will post some more RPG stuff after I work some plot stuff out with Supe, and after a couple posts from J-red. For those of you who have PMed me, please know I am thinking about your PMs and how to work things out with the plot. Glad to see that things are rolling along again!
End OOC

Sun Oct 05, 2014 6:18 pm

Johnnyred turns to Axal. "I'm not entirely sure Captain, that's something we'll have to discuss. We don't know exactly what we're dealing with, so we don't know a fair price. Perhaps we could come to an agreement for a daily usage fee or something. What do you think, Turson?"

Sun Oct 05, 2014 9:41 pm

"Well, Captain," Turson replies. "I think a daily usage fee is a good idea...at least until we know what we're going to do and what we're up against. If we decide in the end that we need the PXE like we originally intended, then perhaps we can agree to give them a 30% share in any monies we receive from the Empire when it is defeated? That is...IF it is defeated." Turson smiles a bit after his last comment, but his mannerisms clearly indicate he's not too sure about victory.

Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:02 pm

"That sounds like a pretty decent cut to me." Johnnyred replies. "What do you think, Captain?"

Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:06 pm

"Sir," Turson turns to J-red. "Permission to return to the Liberty. I want to send a message to Captain Vardok S'ren before he and his fellow Romulan Republicans warp right into Imperial space...only to find that we're not there to aid them!"

Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:10 pm

"Permission granted." Johnnyred replies. "I'll finish up here."

Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:16 pm

OOC I'm pretty sure Dino is a day or two behind us... just sayin'... END OOC

Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:24 pm

OOC
Yeah, he is, but so far there has been no communication between his Romulan Republic forces and our SoL taskforce, and I've already talked with Dino about the communication thing. Wink

End OOC

Sun Oct 05, 2014 10:31 pm

OOC OK, I gotcha. Razz

END OOC

Wed Oct 08, 2014 12:54 pm

[OOC] Bump. Hello? Anyone here? Razz

[/End OOC]

Wed Oct 08, 2014 1:40 pm

"Vengeance" Moyter muttered. When the others turned to look at the unexpected utterance, he quickly apologized, ensuring them it was nothing. Sighing and looking around the conference room, he said "Well, everything seems to be accounted for. With permission, I'd like to return to my ship as well- the AC isn't gonna like this, but there's not gonna be a better time. If anything more comes up that I need to know about, give the Vindex a ring- I should be on call for a bit longer." With that, he marched out the room and down a hall to a transporter pad.

Thu Oct 09, 2014 2:09 pm

Turson arrives back on board the Liberty, and heads toward the bridge. Once he arrives and the military courtesies exchanged, he slides into his chair.

"Lieutenant," he says to the communications officer. "I want you to send an urgent message to the Alth'Indor at once."

"Aye, aye, sir," she responds. "What is the message?"

"It is this: 'URGENT, to Captain Vardok S'ren of the R.R.W. Alth'Indor, from Commander Gresham Turson of the P.C.S. Liberty: do NOT rendezvous at Rator III. Danger. Overwhelmingly outnumbered by Imperial 12fth Fleet and her allies. Forced to retreat, regroup, and reconsider our plans. Repeat: do NOT rendezvous at Rator III! Please meet us at...' Then include our present coordinates."

"Yes, sir," says the Lieutenant.

"I surely hope they get the message in time," mutters Turson. "It would be horrible if they arrived at Rator III...only to be insanely outnumbered..."

Thu Oct 09, 2014 8:19 pm

The Axal decoy responds, "Very well, captain," after a moment's pause. That few seconds was enough to get a direct, live transmission to the Capricorn and a response back. The representative takes his place next to the MI units and Gkal decoy.

[OOC] Sorry for taking so long. I really am sorry for holding this back. It's just that life's been pretty busy lately, and I haven't had much time to get on too much. Anyway, sorry this was so brief; hopefully I can get a PM to Scare and get a longer post up sometime this weekend...[End OOC]

Sun Oct 12, 2014 5:17 pm

R.R.W. Alth'Indor Sickbay Corridor 23:49 Day 2

The two Republic guards standing outside the entrance to sickbay came to attention with a smart salute as Vardok, the two security team members, and nurse S'Teveirr approached, visible only because of the light of the security members tac-lights, and the glare of the flashing red alert displays. Vardok returned the salute.
"At ease. What's the status of the prisoner? I've been preoccupied elsewhere. All I know is that we have a stunned Reman in there. What happened? How'd you capture him?" The senior guard replied.
"Sir, Centurion Veri was in cargo hold bee-three, she said she was taking some time to think." Vardok waved his hand from left to right to get the young officer's attention.
"Just get to what happened involving the prisoner, please." The guard continued, trying to update his Commander quickly.
"The Centurion heard the Reman in the cargo hold. She called for security. The Reman held her hostage, but she was able to get free. Security stunned him. His energy-dampening armor took a lot of the fire, but he was still hit pretty hard sir. When we took him here, he was out cold." Vardok was more confused at this than ever.
"What in Areinnye*1 was he doing down in the cargo bay?" If only I had time to sleep. I've got to get this ship up and running again. I need to get ready for the battle... 'battle' bah. It will be a slaughter. We don't stand a chance! Focus, Vardok! I need to finish this investigation... besides, I couldn't sleep not knowing. I need to know who did this. If any of our 'guests' is innocent, then I don't want to put them through more than I have to. But I will have justice for the murder of that old man. The guard broke into the exhausted Commander's thoughts.
"He was building an improvised explosive device, sir. Centurion Veri said that she believed that the Remans were planning together to assassinate someone. We have the bomb, deactivated and disarmed, sir. That's everything I know, sir.
Any word on if Subcommander Nala's ship-wide search has caught the other one yet, sir?" BLAST IT! I forgot that Nala was searching the entire ship! I'd better comm her. Where is my gemaen*2 lately?
"We got him. If you'll excuse me, I have to comm someone. Keep her here." He said, gesturing to nurse S'Teveirr. The guards nodded as Vardok walked a little ways down the corridor.
"Subcommander Nala Telth'aven." He waited a beat for the comm to go through. I sure hope we don't lose the comm, or life support, or the cloak. We need all of those. Badly. I hope no one finds us here. We're just seven ships, one of which is in no position for a fight right now. Nala answered, sounding almost as tired and stressed as Vardok felt.
"Here, Vardok. We're not a fifth of the way done yet. This is going to take a while without internal sensors. But we'll find him.
Anything on your end yet? Did Nora'dex tell you anything useful?" Blast it! Vardok thought to himself. I've had most of my crew manually searching the ship for the last hour when they didn't need to be doing it for half of that time. How do I avoid sounding like the fool I am? Get it together, Vardok! Don't be so hard on yourself. And why not? Why go easy on myself? I've never gotten it right. At least this time no one died because of me... yet. And it's going to stay that way! Now what to say....
"Nora'dex is dead. The escaped Reman shot him half an hour ago. That Reman is dead now. I'm about to question the one that Veri found in the cargo hold." The line was silent for a painfully long moment. Nala finally responded.
"So, we can call off the search, then?" Forgive me, Nala.... I'm such a feanna*3! Stop it, Vardok! Keep on the mission! Too much depends on this. If there was some sort of plot involving a powerful family, ANYTHING that we could use to our advantage, then I NEED to know about it.
"Yes, Nala. Tell the crew to get some rest. While you're at it, you'd better get some rest yourself. You've been working hard lately." It was Nala's turn for painful thought. Not hard enough. I'm a liability. I need to make up for last night. This isn't over yet.
"I'll tell them, Vardok. I don't have time to sleep just yet. There's too much to do. Where do you need me most right now?" Vardok almost felt like smiling at this.
"Honestly, Nala, I need the computer systems back up and running. If you could see if there's anything you could do for the tech department, that would be very helpful." Now back to talking to our Reman prisoner.
"I'll get to tech as soon as I tell the crew that they don't have to search any more rooms. They'll be thrilled. I don't know too much about computers, but I'll see what I can do. Subcommander, Nala out."
Vardok walked back to the sickbay doors. He nodded to the guards, who commed the security team inside sickbay to let them know friendlies where coming in, and then lowered the forcefield and pried open the doors. At least they've learned. If we live through this... what a joke... I'll need to drill my crew more. They've not been up to par as the Humans say. Now to see if the prisoner is awake yet.
Vardok stepped through the sickbay doors, followed by Eviess S'Teveirr and the two security officers. The forcefield hummed to life, and the door slammed shut behind them as the guards outside removed the pry-bar.
General S'Teveirr's body had been removed to the morgue; his blood cleaned from the intensive care area.
The Reman lay still and restrained, his eyes open, on a biobed. Nurse Vreenak sat in a chair next to him, observing the Reman patient/prisoner. Three armed security team members stood around sickbay, ensuring that nothing else went wrong. They saluted Commander S'ren as he entered the room.
"At ease, men." He said, returning the salute.
"You, Sublieutenant, Ath'yus, is it?" The Sublieutenant nodded.
Yes-sir?" Vardok motioned to Nurse S'Teveirr.
"Please take her into the doctor's office while I question the prisoner." The guard gently took her arm and pointed at the office.
"This way, ma'am." Vardok interrupted the polite young officer.
"Remember, she's a prisoner, Sublieutenant. Watch her carefully." As soon as the office doors closed behind Eviess and the security officer, Vardok turned to face nurse Vreenak.
"Is he conscious, nurse? Can he answer my questions?" The nurse protested.
"Sir, although he is conscious, and his wounds are not that severe, he only received moderate disruptor burns thanks to his energy-dampening armor, I think that it would be wise to let him rest. He was hit with multiple high level stun blasts. That can cause serious neurological injuries. Why don't you talk to him tomorrow, sir?" This can't wait. I need answers now. If this is part of some kind of political coup, then it could work to our advantage, and we need every advantage we can come by. Romulan Fleets do not cross the Neutral Zone and attack everyday, nor are Generals from powerful families murdered everyday. The Phoenix Command Group may be powerful, but they talk about attacking Rator III like it will be a walk in the park, as if they will be able to just dance in and take whatever they want. They don't know what they're dealing with. I do. And we're going to need every possible advantage.
"Nurse, I just need him to be able to move his mouth and make intelligent, clear-headed sounds come out. Can he do that now?" Nurse Vreenak looked unsure about this, but responded.
"Yes sir, he should be able to talk to you. The painkillers may have him rather out of it, though." Vardok sighed.
"Then take him off of the painkillers. I want him to squirm a little. And besides, it will help him to think" Wow. That was... cold. That sounded a lot like.... Easy, Vardok, play the part. Stay focused. Remember, the lives of everyone in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants are more important than this one criminal's comfort. The Nurse looked shocked, but wisely obeyed her commanding officer. After she took the Reman off of the pain meds, she stepped aside, looking very displeased, to let the interrogation begin.
Vardok turned his full attention to his Reman prisoner.
"What is your name, Reman?" He said, taking his tac-light off of his belt, tossing it in the air, catching it, and turning it on and off, on and off, finally leaving it off. Vardok knew that Remans were very sensitive to bright lights. And although sickbay had backup systems to provide it with some emergency lighting, the tac-light still made the area around the biobed much brighter. The Reman's pupils shrank, but to his credit, he didn't blink or close his eyes. He's strong. If only we could have been allies. I've fought alongside many of his people. But he is a murder. Remember that. The Reman spoke in his unnervingly deep, rasping, gravelly voice.
"Klevak." Commander S'ren walked around the biobed, slowly, meticulously, placing his feet so that each step gave a loud click. I've got to give this everything I've got. I wish that his people knew and respected kindness, or anyone in the Empire for that matter, but they've been slaves on the dilithium mines of Remus for so long, that kindness is completely foreign to them. I need him to fear me, much as a loath trying to achieve that. Republic methods won't work on him. So I'm just going to have to play the part. Imperial Commander. The Commander continued his line of questioning.
"Mr, Klevak, why did you kill General S'Teveirr? And attempt to kill Commander Nora'dex? Tell me everything." The more cards he thinks I'm holding, the better. I need him to believe that my little charade is real. Now it's time to hear more lies most likely... I need a method to get what I want out of him. And as much as I want justice for those slain, I really need to get the kill-codes for that virus. Everything depends on the mission tomorrow. Millions of lives are at stake. And seven ships might just be able to make a difference. If they can get there in time. Klevak replied, the painkillers already starting to where-off.
"My brother and I are both deleth*4 and hfehan*5 to the Family S'Teveirr. We are trusted elite warriors, dedicated to protecting the General. We killed him because he ordered us to to save his Mnhei'sahe*6 We went into battle across the Neutral Zone at the orders of that urhoiinen*7 and veruul*8 Nora'dex; may his soul never enter the Halls of Erebus*9 He had the command as it was the night-shift. Out of greed for glory he foolishly lead us into battle before our reinforcements could arrive. He ultimately caused the death of our alha*10, and the destruction and dishonor of our galae*11 at the hands of the Lloann'mhrahel*12 galae*11. For that, we tried to kill him too. We failed. We uploaded the virus to your ship as we knew that we could not succeed in killing both Romulans if your ship's internal systems were functioning normally. That is everything." Vardok stopped pacing and leaned over his prisoner.
"Who is 'we'? Who all was involved in this plot?" The Reman was clearly in pain now.
"Only... my brother, myself, and the General. Nora'dex didn't have the spine for it, or the... brains. Ms. S'Teveirr is a healer, not a killer. It is not in her nature. She was not involved either. Only... my brother... and I." S'ren continued to pace around the biobed. It may be true, and it may be a lie. Mnhei'sahe*6 is so complicated. Maybe they are loyal to nurse S'Teveirr? Maybe she is a target for being a disgrace to the family? Maybe Nora'dex was in on it, but the deal went south? I can continue this investigation later; right now, I need to get this ship to the rendezvous point and prepare to attack the capital of the Romulan Empire. This is crazy. Who's crazy idea was it to attack the Star Empire on their front doorstep? Focus, Vardok! The kill-code. Yes, that's next. Now to try and get it.
"What of the virus, Mr. Klevak? Do you have a kill-code for it?" Like he's going to just tell me if he does. The Reman struggled through the pain of his seared skin and replied.
"No. I don't have one. Only the Tal Shiar have kill-codes for top-tier viruses like that. Not even a General... has that kind of... power." I could offer him pain meds for intel, No, that would be too... cheap. Too compassionate. He would know that I'm not what I seem to be. I can't risk that. I've got to have answers, no matter the cost, because millions of lives are worth more then his. Keep questioning. Make him want to cooperate.
"I think you're lying." The Republic Commander said, turning on his tac-light again as he paced.
"I don't have a kill-code, Commander." S'ren stopped pacing, and pointed his flashlight directly at Klevak's hypersensitive eyes. The Reman shook his now clenched fists as much as the tight restraints would allow. He did close his eyes now. Come on, tell me what you know! Don't make me hurt you more.
"Liar! Give me the codes!" This is pointless. Shining a light in his eyes isn't a high enough set of stakes for him. He's a bodyguard to a General, from a very powerful family, in the Romulan Star Empire, he's trained to resist much more than this. I need real leverage. But the blindingly bright light was more painful to a Reman than Vardok realized.
"I don't have the blasted codes! I don't have them!" This is a joke. He's grown up under the shadow of the Tal Shiar. I need to become more like them for this to work. I need a solid plan.... I think I've got it! I'll only have one shot at this. But if I can pull it off, I think I can learn a lot more about his loyalties, and if he has that kill-code I so desperately need. Not that anyone back on New Romulan would like it. I don't like it for that matter. But I need to get this ship moving again. Vardok walked over to the office doors and pried them open with his bare hands.
"Bring her out." He ordered. As Eviess S'Teveirr was walking through the entrance, he roughly grabbed her arm with his left hand, while he drew his disruptor pistol with his right, simultaneously turning off the safety and making sure it was set to kill. Become like them. I can do that. Just be careful with this, I have to make it look real; he's a soldier, he knows if the safety is on or not. But I don't want to kill her. He roughly turned her to face his Reman prisoner and leveled his sidearm at her head. She was very tense, every muscle tight. He needed her to believe that he was ready to pull the trigger. She did.
Vardok could see that if he somehow hadn't had his prisoner's absolute full attention before, he had it now. Nurse Vreenak looked on horrified, helpless to do anything. The security detail was very concerned and prepared to act, but unsure what to do.
Vardok spoke, putting his plan into effect.
"Security, comm Subcommander Telth'aven." He waited for them to do so. Her tired voice came across the line.
"Nala here, what now?" S'ren hoped that she'd pick up on his plan, he was counting on the fact that she would get the gist of it early on.
"Subcommander Telth'aven, are you still interrogating the second Reman prisoner? Has he cracked yet? I do hope you haven't beaten him senseless?" Please figure it out faster than I did last night, Nala. I need you on this; you're the best person I know at this kind of thing.
"Vardok? What are you-" But he didn't let her finish.
"Don't tell me you shot him already! I told you that I need him alive... for now. I'm working on the other one." She was silent for a moment, working out what was expected of her. She finally picked up on the game.
"No, he's still alive and conscious. He's provided some intel, but nothing we didn't already suspect. Did you want me to switch to more aggressive methods?" Thank you, Nala. I knew you'd get it.
"I want you to prepare to shoot him, on kill. If I give the word, not before." Vardok felt the young Imperial nurse tense even more. Nala replied, she sounded almost cheerful.
"Copy that, Commander. Just give the word and he's dead." Vardok gave his best cruel smirk. It was a look that had been etched into his mind decades ago fighting the Tal Shiar.
"Mute comm." He said to security. He turned back to his Reman prisoner.
"This is how it's going to work, Mr. Klevak. You are going to give me the kill-codes to the virus that you uploaded into my ship. If you comply, all three prisoners will live to face ueshae*13. If you fail to provide me with the codes, however, then you will select one of the two other prisoners to die. Either the Reman, or nurse S'Teveirr. If you do not choose either, than I will choose one for you. If, after that, you still refuse to provide the kill-code, than I will kill the remaining prisoner; after which, you will be transferred to the Tal Shiar for a proper interrogation.
You have one minute to decide if you will provide me with the codes.
Start the chronometer now." He said, gesturing to one of the security team with his chin. The entire security detail looked very disturbed by their Commander's actions. They didn't know that there was no other Reman prisoner. I hope they don't decide to do something crazily heroic. Come on, trust me. There was silence for one Romulan minute. Then the chronometer beeped. Vardok pushed his hostage a step closer to the biobed.
"Time's up Mr. Klevak. What is the kill-code?" He pressed his disruptor more firmly against her head for effect. Klevak looked at him with hatred in his eyes.
"I told you, I don't know it. I can't tell you what I don't know!" Vardok clicked his tongue disapprovingly and shook his head.
"Wrong answer. Decide which one dies, or tell me the code and you all live." Klevak clenched his fists as he yelled his answer.
"I don't know the blasted codes!" Vardok just sighed, frustrated.
"Temper, temper, Mr. Klevak.
So who dies? Her? Or the Reman?" Vardok was desperately hoping that Klevak would flinch; give in. Does he even know the codes? Or is he stalling? What is there to gain? Maybe he sees it as 'what is there to lose?' The Reman closed his eyes for several moments before replying in a very quiet, resolved voice.
"My brother. Let her live." Now this is interesting. He chooses to protect Eviess S'Teveirr. I already know that the other Reman is a conspirator, and direct family to him. Is he protecting her out of a sense of duty to the family? Or because she was in on it? Or both? Or does he want to kill her as an embarrassment to the Family S'Teveirr's face? He could sure have had her killed right now if he wanted to though. Face is so complicated. Maybe he feels that he has to do it himself? At any rate, I now know that he places a higher value on her life than on his own brother's. His brother! I have convinced him that I am going to murder his brother! I can't believe I'm doing this! How is this the justice and liberty that we've fought for all these years? Is our freedom worth it at the cost of everything we hold dear? Every moral that we claim matters? Now is not the time for a debate on deceptive tactics. Now is the time to finish what I started. No matter how despicable it is.
Vardok turned his head to face the Sublieutenant.
"Restore volume.
Subcommander?" The comm-line was quiet for a second before Nala replied.
"Here, sir." Vardok turned to face his restrained prisoner.
"I will count to five and then give the order to fire. If at any time you hear the word 'stop' then you will pause and wait for further orders. I want to give our friend time to change his mind.
Remember, Mr. Klevak, you can put a stop to this at any time. It's just a computer virus. Is it really worth all this death?" The Reman was silent, his body tense, malice in his glare.
"One...
two...
three...
four...
last chance, Mr. Klevak...
five...
fire!" They could all here the "BEEJEOW!!!" of a disruptor blast, and the thud of a body hitting the deck. Good sound effect Nala, I wonder what you used for that. Klevak writhed on his biobed, straining against his restraints with all of his rage and pain. And then he went limp in the knowledge that he was powerless. It made Vardok sick to his stomach. What am I doing?
In spite of the fact that she was terrified, Eviess S'Teveirr wasn't going to stand by while others were shot in cold blood.
"Monster! You're all alike! All you know is power and pain, death and suffering! Go ahead and shoot me! Someone is bound to kill me someday for standing up to all the evil in this universe! Why shouldn't it be you! Today! So shoot me! Go on! Shoot me!" Klevak spoke through all of his sorrow and pain to her. His tone was one that Vardok had never heard a Reman male use before. It was soothing, gentle, and kind.
"Ms. Eviess. Please... quiet. He might just oblige you. I know you are angry. Please. Please, be calm." Vardok was stunned at this. Imperial Reman bodyguards didn't talk like this.
Maybe I AM a monster? Am I really this cruel? Holding a disruptor to a young woman's head, pretending to kill an unarmed prisoner... I'm acting a lot like the Tal Shiar! But this isn't me, right? This isn't the real me? This is all just part of the disguise, right? I'm not really like this, am I? Why does this Imperial Commander's uniform make me act like this? It is just a uniform, it can't MAKE me act like anything! But I'm just acting. And giving up everything that I've fought for more than ninety years for 'just acting.' But I'm working to preserve the liberty of the Republic, and the Federation. At what cost? My soul? The soul of the Republic? So this 'dark me,' is it just a mask? Or is my entire life a mask, and is this the real me? Why am I even thinking about this now! This is ridiculous! Come on Vardok, stick to the mission! Play the part, no matter how much you hate it. Worry about what a great Tal Shiar Agent you'd make later. Vardok shook his head and refocused.
"So, Mr. Klevak, are you going to give me those codes now, or am I going to have to kill her too?" He said with a sneer, shaking Nurse S'Teveirr with his left arm; while he held his weapon even more tightly to her temple. Only then did he realize that the forcefield had just dropped, the doors were open, and D'Avek Fvara was standing in the doorway. D'Avek was a man of action, and he saw a need for action here. His Commander, who he had just learned suffered from several mental illnesses, was holding a disruptor with the safety off, set to kill no less, at an unarmed nurse's head. And he was using her as a hostage to threaten a restrained prisoner. Centurion D'Avek screamed at Vardok.
"WHAT are you doing! Put the disruptor down and let her go! Now Vardok!" This is going to ruin the charade. I need to continue to be the Imperial Commander; in control of my ship. I can still get those codes. He's going to ruin everything. Can't he learn to use a little discretion? Vardok cleared his throat, and lowered his weapon.
"I have everything under control, Centurion. I am conducting an interrogation here." D'Avek was only getting more upset, and the Security team seemed to agree with him. They were used to their Commander being reasonable, and as far as they knew, he'd just had an unarmed prisoner murdered. Doctor T'nai's face appeared behind D'Avek's. He remained silent, having gotten to the door later than his young friend. He quietly accessed the situation, trying not to escalate matters any further. D'Avek's tirade continued.
"Interrogation! This isn't how we do things Vardok! You're out of line! Drop that disruptor, now! You don't know what you're doing!" S'ren felt that his ability to command was being questioned, in front of the enemy, and his own men. This did not sit well with him. Who does he think he is, giving me orders! I was commanding ships before he was born! How DARE he question my competency, in front of my crew.
"You're out of line Centurion Fvara." D'Avek could be very stubborn, and he had decided to be stubborn about this.
"Vardok, stand down. Please. Drop the disruptor, and let her go. Please, Vardok!" S'ren was passed wanting to explain himself to his insubordinate officer. He had carefully formulated what he considered to be the perfect plan, and in his eyes, D'Avek had stumbled in and was ruining it. Now Vardok just wanted to be in control of the situation again.
"Security, escort Centurion Fvara out of sickbay." But the security team had already sided with the young officer. They weren't backing down. They were certain that their Commander had lost his mind. Maybe I played my part too well for my own good. S'ren glared at them as they refused to obey his order.
"So you're going to disobey a direct order from your Commander?" Sublieutenant Ath'yus spoke up.
"I guess so sir, begging your forgiveness, sir." Doctor T'nai spoke up for the first time, trying to calm the situation. He looked directly into Vardok's eyes.
"Commander, please, put the disruptor down. Please, just let her go. We'll work this out." Vardok's adrenaline was making most of the decisions for him now; and they were all the wrong ones.
"Let me handle this, Doctor. Stay out of my way."
T'nai spoke again, this time he looked at Centurion D'Avek the entire time.
"Remember what we discussed earlier? I've seen enough evidence now. I recommend that you do it. I'm sorry, but I don't think he can handle it anymore. You can count on me to testify at the hearing." Hearing? Testify? Discussed? So now my crew is talking about me behind my back? About hearings? This can't be good. D'Avek sighed. Whatever he was about to say was not easy for him.
"Commander Vardok S'ren, I, Subcommander D'Avek Fvara, hereby relieve you of command of the Alth'Indor, with the recommendation and approval of the ship's chief medical officer." Vardok sighed, too tired to fight this now. He knew that things would never be the same on this ship. And that he'd lost one battle that was too close to home for comfort, and entered another, much, much closer.
D'Avek spoke again, more quietly than before.
"Security, please disarm the Commander." The Republic guards raised their disruptor carbines at Vardok. He had the good sense to let go of Eviess S'Teveirr and drop his weapon. They lowered their disruptors when they saw that it was clear, obviously glad that they didn't have to exchange fire with their Commander. One of them picked up his disruptor from the floor. The other two stepped next to him, watching him intently for any signs of further aggression.
Nurse Vreenak spoke; now that no one was pointing a disruptor at anyone else.
"Doctor, thank the Elements you're back! The Commander came in and threatened both the patient and nurse Neral! No one provoked him! He held a disruptor to her head! He isn't himself, sir! He was shining a flashlight in the patients eyes while demanding that he answer questions! He even made me take the patient off of his pain medications to 'make him squirm'!" T'nai stood bolt upright at this, His soft hands clenched in rage. He spoke, deathly quiet, but with an anger that Vardok had never heard him use before.
"Vardok. Is. This. True?" The Republic Commander dropped his gaze to the floor, ashamed of the answer he knew he must give. I actually did this. I actually did this.
"Yes. It was part of my investigation." Doctor T'nai spoke to nurse Vreenak first, his voice shaking with emotion that he was trying to contain.
"Nurse. Please get the patient on pain medication again, and ensure that he is well taken care of. When you are done with that, please check and make sure that nurse Neral was not injured by Commander S'ren." He turned back to Vardok, his voice taking on a new level of painfully quiet rage.
"That is not how you conduct an investigation, Vardok! That is torture!"
He turned to the security forces guarding their former Commander.
"Please get him into a biobed and restrain him." The Sublieutenant gently lead Commander S'ren to one of the beds across the room; and offered to help him get in. Vardok refused, getting in on his own. He did not struggle as the guards strapped him down. Nor did he complain as they closed the curtain behind him; presumably to prevent the other patient from having to see him. What have I done? Did I just give up everything that mattered most to me? Why were they talking about me behind my back before? Do they want control of my ship? Or am I really unfit for command? His thoughts were interrupted as Doctor T'nai came through the curtain with his medical tricorder.

OOC
*1 Areinnye = Hades, death, the underworld.
*2 gemaen = mind
*3 feanna = idiot
*4 deleth = bodyguard (singular, I was unable to find the plural version)
*5 hfehan = bond-servants
*6 Mnhei'sahe = essentially honor, face, pride, duty, loyalty, appearances, manners, a form of Romulan chivalry of sorts, the dignified way of doing things.
*7 urhoiinen = braggart
*8 veruul = fool
*9 Halls of Erebus = paradise, the afterlife
*10 alha = master
*11 galae = fleet
*12 Lloann'mhrahel = Federation
*13 ueshae = court-martial
Note. Reman's eyes are FAR more sensitive to light than most humanoids. They can see in very dark conditions, and normal ambient lighting levels that are comfortable to see by for the average human is painfully bright to them. Thus a tactical light that is meant to be (temporarily) blindingly bright to a normal humanoid, would be excruciatingly bright for them.
End OOC

Sun Oct 19, 2014 6:22 pm

Turson enters his cabin and walks over to his desk.

"Computer," he says. "Any new messages on my personal code?"

"No, sir," the machine replies.

"Very well. I wish to reply to the last message that was sent...the one that offered us...assistance...against the Empress."

"The sender of that message is unknown," says the machine. "Your reply may not go through."

"I know, I know," grumbles Turson. "But if the sender is a member of a certain organization I am suspecting, then the message will most likely go through indeed."

"Awaiting your reply, sir."

"'To whom it may concern: Your offer for aid against the Empress...has been accepted. However, in order for us to be sure that you are what we think you are...we need positive identification. Undoubtedly you have an agent within our ranks. Command that agent to reveal himself to Captain Johnnyred, and then we can talk...business.' That's all, computer."

"Message sending.................message sent."