Log 8

SD: 1026.02

Life on the Freedom really sucks!:

Did I tell you my life on the Freedom sucks? Yea, well it does. And the sucking just got worse.

I made some calls and talked to a few of the guys from my days in Black Opps earlier this evening. All of them that I talked to were as shocked to find that I was still alive and young as I was to see how old they had gotten. The twenty years I lost were painfully obvious to me in their faces. Some are dead, a few MIA, and some have just dropped off the scanner all together. Of the survivors, some are still in Starfleet, but most have retired to civilian life. Two of the retirees seem to me possibles.

Dominique Maboule is now married to a fellow that runs a small import export business that runs a few small freighters. She is working security for his company. When I asked a few questions, I was told that they could provide a few of the luxuries of life. This was a term we used for black market goods back when we were in the Academy. She is one I really need to talk to when we can tall privately.

Second is old Dorma Singh. He apparently has retired to running a shop in The Swarm. He tried to hire me on as a procurer of unique items. I told him that I would consider it when I could, but that I have some time to go before I can legally bail out of Starfleet. He seemed disappointed, but said to call him.

After this, I was feeling pretty good and called it a night, but I hadn't been asleep more than an hour when I got a call. Scared the crap out of me when I found out that it was Admiral Ironbottem himself that was calling. Not an aid, but the Admiral.

He said he wanted me to come in to talk, and I could only guess that he was going to go over what had happened on the Kzin border. If it had been about the rats, it would have been the SP that had come knocking at my door, not a call to report.

I got dressed and tried to get the Commander to meet with me before I went, but she never made it to the rendezvous. I wish I had been able to find out what the Captain had told the Admiral before the meeting, but I went into it flying blind. If I find out that she just blew me off, I am going to be very pissed.

I told the Admiral everything that happened from my prospective from the attack on the Freedom, to the point that we had returned to the Starbase. He then shocked me by telling me that he thought the same things about the Kzin and K'Lynxyl as I did. He also told me of his suspicions of Captain Lee.

Lee had seemed a bit odd to me from the start, but no more so than most of the simple people that see the universe in black and white. To think that he is a spy or a plant seems not only frightening, but unlikely because of the inept handling that it would indicate. Would anyone put a man in as a sleeper that was as inclined to make himself as visible as Captain Lee? I don't think so, but the papers told a tale that looked just like a sleeper agent. With that I don't know what to think, unless Lera is his handler. If that is so, then I can understand it. She seems totally inept herself!

The Admiral then dropped another bombshell on me. He ordered me to watch K'Lynxyl and get close to her to uncover anything that she was doing, "by any means necessary"! I thought I was going to puke. Get close to that walking pile of hairballs and claws? Ugh!

In return he said he would take care of my back pay problems. But if I have to touch that cat, I may up the price!

I got back to the ship after the meeting, and went to the bar. One of the few things that I can say for the Freedom is that it has real alcohol for those times you need it. Can't do any drinking on the Starbase with out money and I may have had a lucky stoke on the timing.

I'd just sat down to my drink and to mull over my problem, when to my surprise she came into the room. She got a drink of some sort, and then crawled under a table looking both frightened and alone. It really wasn't that hard for me to go over and ask if she was OK. I was curious, and she looked less frightening than I had ever seen her. Almost like a person. I think what I'd read in her files may have given me a bit of a lift too. Seeing her in my minds eye up on a stage with people tossing credit chits at her while she danced helped me not fear her as well.

I got her to come out from under the table and we talked for a bit. She said Demian was doing well, but that the Captain wasn't doing all that good. She also told me a little about her kittens. Hard to think of old Randy as a grandmother!

Talking to her brought back some good memories, but also dredged up some bad ones too. I think I'm going to need to work through some of my problems to do this job. That is if I can.

Anyway she got called away to the sickbay, and I went back to the bar and had a few more in quick succession. I didn't want the dreams to come back tonight, and what I was going through was pulling the scabs off of some deep wounds.

I'd no more than staggered back to my cabin and dropped off into a drunken sleep, when I was wakened by my communicator. Someone was calling me to the sickbay, and I could hear phaser fire and screaming in the background!