1.4 INFECTION
T'Val was in her quarters
when a message came through from Starbase Assaillant. One of her patients had
come back in in critical condition and they wanted her to resume his treatment,
because she knew the patient best. Since Tedak had been beamed away to the
secret meeting, she had not seen him again and neither Sev nor Nut knew where
he had gone.
"I want you to give him a message when he gets back," T'Val told
them, peering each in the eye intently, "I have gone back home to
Assaillant to care for my patient. I am taking his official shuttle as it is
the fastest way of getting there. I will be back as soon as I can,
understand?" The two firelizards chirped and settled again on their perch,
watching her as she packed her things.
Not long after, a white Romulan shuttle left the station, a mysterious black
figure hiding away in the cargohold of the shuttle.
No one had noticed the fine, verdant mist as it floated into the cargohold of
the shuttle. From that cargohold, Tepes could hear the exchange of voices just
outside the vessel.:
"The flight plan has been filed, Healer T'Val. You're ready for departure.
Have a pleasant trip."
"The trip should be neither pleasant nor unpleasant, lieutenant. I am
simply going from Bellicose to Assailant."
Tepes could hear an exasperated sigh from the lieutenant. Moments later, the
shuttle was enroute to Starbase Assailant.
~~ later ~~
"Starbase assaillant, this is Healer T'Val. I was summoned back to care
for a patient. Requesting permission to dock."
"This is assaillant control, you are cleared for docking Healer T'Val.
Your patient is in ward three."
"Thank you assaillant. T'Val out."
From the ventilation the
mist that had entered the cargohold now found its way into the passenger
compartment of the shuttle.
As T'Val brought her craft down to the docks, behind her the verdant fog again
reformed into Tepes, and the dark figure stood silently behind her until the
docking procedures had been completed.
Suddenly, unexpectedly, T'Val heard a deep, hypnotic voice behind her.
"T'Val..."
She turned, and for the first time caught sight of Tepes. Their eyes locked,
and she found it difficult to look away. From deep within her, ancient fears
slowly began to bubble and rise to the surface. Her curiosity outweighed her
nervousness, however, and she spoke the question uppermost in her mind.
"Who are you and how did you get aboard this vessel?"
"That does not matter, T'Val," he answered cryptically as his tongue
glided hungrily over his lips. "I am here for you. Come!"
T'Val found it difficult
to break her attention from the figure, but she just had the presence of mind
to get the shuttle on autopilot for docking, and signal her husband's friend,
Saarok, for her arrival. Yet, the stare of this fascinating stranger was more
than she could resist, and she found herself moving towards him.
She saw him stretch out his arms to her, the black cloak willowing away
>that the right expresion?< from his arms as he took her into his
embrace. She tried to resist, thinking it would be unfair to her husband to
embrace another man, but then she knew he was not embracing her. She felt
something sharp pierce through the skin in her neck and the pressure of blood
being sucked out of her vein.
Panic flashed through her, and unbeknownst to her, miles away she set the
firelizards aloft, shrieking in an echo of her panic. T'Val felt her legs
buckle under her, and felt herself sink to the deck of the shuttle, the black
figure lowering himself with her, as he fed on her. Blackness was starting to
dance on the edge of her vision, and just when she thought ~is this the end?~
and unconsciousness started to wash over her, did the figure release her.
Last she saw of the figure, was his penetrating eyes, as he stood over her, as
if expecting something else. T'Val sighed and slumped to the deck when he
released her, unconsciousness taking her into oblivion.
Somewhere, on the station, an alert light flashed in Saarok's quarters
Saarok was in his quarters
discussing an action plan with his associate, or his chief of security as
everyone else knew him as, Cmdr. Jackson. When he received a message, T'Val
wife of ambassador Tedak had just returned to the station. It was illogical for
her to leave her husband Saarok thought but since she was here he thought that
he would go and welcome her.
"Tell Jason and T'Pau to meet me outside my door right away", Saarok
said to Jackson
"Yes sir", Jackson answered as he sent a signal to the two mentioned
above
After doing that Saarok rose from his seat and headed for the door.
"I will return soon then we can decide how to take care of the
situation", Saarok said
"Understood sir, i will have a plan ready just in case",
Saarok saw his firelizard preparing to go with him but he looked at them and
they returned to their sleep. As soon as he exited his quarters he saw Jason
and T'Pau waiting for him.
"We are going to docking bay 5", he said and the trio proceeded to
the personnel transport situated not far down the hallway.
After a few minutes Saarok, Jason and T'Pau arrived to the docking bay and saw
that T'Val's transport ship was still closed down.
=/\=Saarok to T'Val=/\=
No response came to his hail
=/\=Saarok to T'Val=/\=
And yet again no response came
=/\=Computer locate healer T'Val=/\=
=/\=Healer T'Val is onboard transport serial number #45....=/\=
=/\=That would be enough computer=/\=
"Prepare your phaser’s", he said to Jason and T'Pau
And they approached the airlock leading to T’Val’s ship. Saarok went to the
console and typed a few keys after which the airlock opened and they entered.
The door to the ship was still closed. This meant T’Val had to be inside.
"Breaking into a Romulan shuttle, that was something i have not expected
to be doing so soon again", Saarok said
Jason smiled and T'Pau just raised an eyebrow.
He took a device Jason handed him and attached it to the door. Afterwards he
pressed a few keys and shortly after the door opened. Jason and T'Pau went in
first and found no one except T'Val unconscious on the floor.
"Its safe sir you may enter", Jason said to Saarok
When Saarok saw T'Val on the floor he went to her and kneeled next to her and
was trying to wake her but while doing that he noticed two small marks on the
skin of her neck that vanished shortly after he saw them. Strange he thought.
=/\=Saarok to sickbay, medical emergency one wounded and 4 to beam directly to
sickbay from my location=/\=
Shortly after he said that the group dematerialized and materialized in
sickbay. Shortly after that occurred the emergency medical hologram went on
line and told the 2 officers to get the female on the bio bed after Jason and
T'Pau placed her on the bed the EMH took his tricoder and started scanning
T'Val.
Saarok and his two officers stepped away from the biobed and began to talk.
"Jason notify D.D. Jackson of what has occurred and that i will be delayed
after that send Gibson and Defoe to go and examine the shuttle.", he said
"Yes sir, Jason said as he parted from the group and went to a console on
the wall and began doing what Saarok ordered him to do."
T'Val stirred, as she felt
the cool tip of a hypospray against her throat. She opened her eyes but
instantly squeezed them shut again. Then she bolted upright, and nearly
collided with her physician, who stood bent over her to examine her. "My
patient!" she exclaimed.
"Your patient is fine healer," the medic said, "but you must
rest. You seem to have lost a lot of blood but the ambassador testified that no
blood was found where he discovered you."
Then T'Val remembered the sinister figure that had boarded the shuttle and had
attacked her, but said nothing about him. She felt the urge to protect the
figure at all cost. "Please," she said, "I need sleep, I am
tired and I feel weak. Is the ambassador still about?"
"Yes ma'am," the medic said, "I shall call him for you." He
walked back towards the waiting Vulcan, and beckoned him. "She wishes to
see you Mr Ambassador," he said, "but she is very tired and needs
rest. I beg you not to distress her."
"Wait for me
here", Saarok said to T'Pau
And he went in to see T'Val. He approached the bio bed on which she was lying.
She looked somehow strange he thought there was something different about her
but he couldn’t decide what it was.
"Saarok, thank you for taking me to sickbay. Who knows how long i would
have been lying there if you had not found me", she said
"It is my duty to keep an eye on my friend’s wife when he is not
here", he said
"That would be enough", the EMH said
"We will speak again when you are rested.", Saarok said as he left
sickbay
"T'Pau we are going to my quarters. ", he said
And the two went out of sickbay and headed towards the lift. Saarok thought
about everything that has happened there was something strange going on and he
needed to do something about it , and the only thing left was the only logical
thing if he started to act strange or if something happened to him he had to
execute plan beta 5. It was the only way to protect the federation.
After they arrived to the embassy he saw that Jason and Jackson were waiting
for him.
"Has the search of the vessel which T'Val used to arrive here revealed
anything?", he asked
"There were some strange molecules in the air, i .... we have not been
able to identify them, but it doesn’t look good sir", they said
"I have noticed strange puncture wounds on the neck of T'Val which healed
right after i saw them", he said
"Only thing related to that i can think of are vampire stories from Earth,
but that was never scientifically proven.", Jason said
"But we must be careful", Saarok said
"Is the ship still there?", yes sir
"It is time to execute plan beta 5", he said
"But we have not tested it yet.", Jackson said
=/\=Saarok to USS Hobes=/\=
=/\=Go ahead sir=/\=
=/\=Initialize plan beta 5=/\=
=/\=But sir....=/\=
=/\=Do it authorization Saarok alpha 4 1 9=/\=
=/\=Yes sir=/\=
=/\=Initializing transport=/\=
A few moments later it was all over an Saarok stood in his office surrounded by
Jason and Jackson.
=/\=Saarok out=/\=
"Sir did it work",
"It has been a complete success", he said
"
"Yes sir", he answered
A moment later he dematerialized from the room. And Jason stepped out of the
office and joined T'Pau guarding the ambassador’s office.
After Saarok had left
sickbay, and the EMH turned his back on her, T'Val slid out of bed, gathering
the skirts of the womens sickbay garb around her and tiptoed on bare feet out
of sickbay. She snuck her way around the station, ducking away in a dark corner
just in time before Admiral Magellan, who was crossing the corridor, saw her.
She did see him stop and look around for a few seconds, then shrug and continue
his way.
<response Magellan please>
T'Val sighed, and continued her way to the Vulcan ambassador's quarters. When
he proved not to be home, she reasoned that he would be in his office. Keeping
to the shadowed side of the corridors, she made it to Saarok's office unseen.
Before the doors, she found two huge guards, but she knew that they were no
match for her. Stepping up to them, she glared at each of them, then downed
them with an unexpected nerve pinch.
Then she stepped into the office, squinting against the bright light.
"Saarok," she whispered, "please do not leave me alone in
sickbay. I cannot be alone now." She walked up to the surprised Vulcan (as
surprised as they get) and held out her arms to him. "Please, will you
hold me for a few minutes? I am scared to be alone." She was speaking truth,
for when she closed her eyes, she kept seeing Tepes' demanding stare and his
eyes frightened her.
Saarok nodded in quiet ascention and held her. She sighed with relief in his
comforting embrace, and listened to his heartbeat, feeling his blood pulse
through his veins. At last, her hunger overcame her fears and she reached up,
setting her now developed fangs at the base of his throat. She felt her friend
stiffen, and try to push her off but she was determined.
After T'Pau came to her
senses she got up from the floor , looks like Saarok was correct about her ,
but they were not to interfere , she woke up Jason and he got up too.
"Saarok was right that there was something strange happening to her",
Jason said
"He was indeed", T'Pau said as she walked over to a panel on the wall
she typed a few keys and the image change to display the interior of Saarok's
office and the image they saw was quite unbelievable , T'Val had bitten him
=/\=Jason to USS Hobes=/\=
=/\=Go ahead=/\=
=/\=That holodeck program you showed me , i couldn't pass it i fell into a trap
with spikes=/\=
=/\=Well , i told you to remain lying down when it occurs , the holo characters
are smart and if you get up ill have to reset the program=/\=
=/\=Understood , Jason out=/\=
After that Jason and T'Pau returned to their posts and lied down on the floor
like they were before.
--Meanwhile inside--
T'Val had bitten him, Saarok was right. He tried to push her away but he was
not able to do it. She was sucking on his blood he could feel the virus
entering his system. He had no choice , he had to do it while he can , he was
starting to feel weak the firelizards were flying around the room , he tried to
send them a message but was unable.
He pulled out a knife and stabbed it in T'Val's stomach, and she let go of him
she was not at her full strength yet , and she collapsed to the floor. He
couldn’t stay like this much longer , it was taking over him , he went to the
door while he feel to his knees and collapsed to the floor. The firelizards
calmed down they received the message and they went to the Vulcans body and
lied down next to him.
Jason and T'Pau heard something bump to the floor and they got up and opened the
door , they saw the 2 lying on the floor. And the two firelizards. Jason pulled
the knife out of T'Val and T'Pau was attempting to send a message to the
firelizards. Finally they understood her and one landed on her shoulder and the
other on Jason’s.
"We must go now, they will come around soon."
And the two went out of Saarok’s office and sent a message to Gibson and Defoe
to stand guard in front of Saarok’s office and to do everything he orders them
to do.
T'Val grunted as she
regained consciousness, but regained her strength at remarkable speed. She
licked the remaining droplets of blood from her lips as she got to her feet,
watching as the stabwound in her stomach healed itself. She glanced down at
Saarok, horrified at what she had done. Kneeling next to him, she inspected him
and fought the urge to continue what she had started. Yet, she knew that in the
brief time she'd had him, the damage had been done, he was infected.
"Saarok," she said, shaking him, "Saarok wake up." When he
did not react, she shook him harder. "Saarok!" she said, somewhat
louder, slapping his cheeks. Above her, the firelizards shrieked in protest, so
she sent them a message to calm down. Instantly, they quieted down and settled
on the desk, keeping their eyes on her constantly.
T'Val knew the guards were outside the door again, and she also knew that she
could not remain in this office. Soon, the EMH would notice that she was gone
and would raise the alarm. She looked about herself, and noticed an airvent,
knowing that eventually, it would lead to a Jeffries tube. She got inside and
crawled her way back into sickbay. She had just crawled back into her bed, when
the EMH returned to check on her.
"I feel fine," she protested, when the EMH told her that the
ambassadors visit seemed to have excited her after all. The EMH nodded but said
nothing, his eyes scanning her as if he knew something. Finally, he shrugged
and walked off. T'Val sighed in relief, guessing that the EMH had not noticed
that for a brief time, she had disappeared on him.
Saarok was slowly waking
up. He felt, how could he feel he could not feel what has T'Val done to him. He
sensed someone like him but far stronger on the station, but this was not good
no one could be stronger than him that was illogical. A moment later security
guard entered his office.
"Are you fine sir?", he asked
Saarok slowly got up and went towards the guard.
"I am fine", he said
As he locked his eyes with the guard and the guard was slowly coming towards
him. Once the guard was there he felt a strong feeling to bite the neck of the
guard and he did so.
As soon as he did so the door of his office swooshed open revealing one tall
Vulcan dressed fully in black and two humans dressed in the same fashion. They
raised their weapons and fired.
But the stun setting had no effect on him he picked up the guard and threw him
at them. He was looking for a place to hide when the other Vulcan stepped
forward and fired. Once the beam made contact with Saarok's body. He could
sense the links between the cells ripping apart , he could sense his body
vaporizing.
"No!!!!!!!", he yelled before he turned into dust
As soon as the weapon was fired the station alarm sounded. The Vulcan quickly
shot the guard that Saarok threw across the room. Vaporizing it.
"We are leaving", the Vulcan said to the guards
And a moment later they dematerialized. And materialized aboard a federation
ship.
"Cloak us now", the Vulcan said
And the ship vanished from sensors.
"I will be in my office", he said as he left the bridge of the ship,
he will remain there until the situation cleared , and then he would make his
appearance.
Back aboard Assailant T’Val
moved silently down a corridor. She entered a room near the computer core. Then
using some stolen codes began to access the main memory. She searched quickly
and found what she wanted, a report:
From: Commander Alex
Dixon, Chief Science Officer, USS Raven
To: Admiral Magellan Lin, Commander Starbase Assailant
Re: Medical Emergency: Virus Outbreak
Admiral,
It has recently come to light aboard the USS Raven that Captain Gus Weill and
Chief Engineer Dan Trek are infected with a contagious virus. Although it has
been shown that Dan Trek was infected by Captain Weill, I believe that Captain
Weill was infected aboard Starbase Assailant.
The virus is transmitted by bite. Symptoms include heightened aggression and
hostility. Increased strength, stamina and agility are also indicated, along
with an increase in size of the canine teeth for virus delivery. The virus is
capable of infecting different species.
I am attaching all available data regarding the virus, along with logs of the
actions of Captain Weill and Commander Trek. Please consider taking action
aboard Starbase Assailant, as this virus could easily have a toehold.
We are enroute to Starbase, and should arrive in several hours.
Commander Alex Dixon
USS Raven
After reading quickly she
moved her hand over the delete button and pressed.
Commander Harrias Jira and
Admiral Lin left Interview Room One and proceeded towards Ops. Magellan was
sullen and Harrias thought it best not to test the waters of his superior
officer's mood.
The corridor down which the two were travelling was, for the moment, hosting no
other persons than the two Starfleet officers. This was good. Had Tepes planned
the setting, it could not have been better, save for the intensity of the
lighting – Tepes preferred shadows.
At the turn of a corner, near the junction of the wall and the ceiling, a dull,
verdant mist entered through a ventilator shaft, lowering itself to the floor.
As it did so, the sound of two pairs of boots on metal increased in volume,
and, as if in answer, the mist vibrated, stretched vertically, and coalesced
into a dark humanoid form.
The man that now stood among the last swirls of the mist stepped forward toward
the sound of the approaching persons. He was tall and aristocratic in bearing,
dressed in black with a dark cape. With a deep, calming voice, he greeted the
two.
"Good evening, gentlemen," he began in a central European accent.
"I wonder if I could ask your indulgence for a few moments. Not long, I
assure you."
Against their better judgment, Magellan and Harrias stopped, turning their
attention as one to the dark stranger.
"We haven’t much time," Magellan answered. "Make it
quickly."
"Of course, Admiral," Tepes intoned. "It will take but a
moment." Then, without warning, the tenor of his gaze instantly changed.
The dark stranger's gaze
took on a mesmerizing quality, and his voice changed to a commanding, yet
soporific, tone. He turned his attention to Harrias.
"You," Tepes said. "You will proceed on your way. As far
as you are concerned, the Admiral is still with you. Go!"
Harrias attempted to shake off the effects of Tepes’ commands, but found
himself unable to do so. Within the moment, he was again walking towards Ops.
"And you, Admiral," Tepes continued, "we have business to
attend to, you and I. I have something I want to give to you. Something of
great value." Magellan wondered what that thing of value might be. He
tried to form words, but found it difficult to speak; the words seemed to choke
in the pit of his stomach.
"It is time," Tepes said, slowly raising his hand to Magellan’s eye
level to join with his intensified gaze. "Come!"
Only a few seconds passed before a struggling Magellan found his body moving
slowly toward the stranger. He could see Tepes’ lips part as he moistened them,
revealing glistening teeth with canines slightly larger than twice the size of
the normal human.
The two were within arm’s length of each other as Admiral Lin continued to
walk. Taking his cape in hand, Tepes laid hold on Magellan, directing him into
position, as his fangs came slowly closer to the Admiral’s neck.
"Your blood to my blood, Admiral," Tepes whispered, and his fangs
closed on Magellan’s jugular.
Uninterrupted, Tepes fed.
Magellan was frozen,
rooted to the spot.
He could feel his life blood ebb, he could sense the rising panic in his own
mind twinned with that of Lins.
The symbiont thrashed within him aware that something bad, very bad was
happening.
Suddenly his mind was invaded, he could feel an essence, something dark,
something daemonic, evil, corrupt, entering. It brushed past his feeble mental
attempts at resistance, overwhelming him completely. It pushed and pushed. It
asserted itself throughout his brain and there was nothing Magellan could do,
quickly he reached the brink and was toppled over the edge to plummit to
infinity.
"It is done" the Stranger noted.
"Indeed" Magellan replied, "What now?"
"You were the last. Now we can move more freely. You must return to your
post. Begin calling back your ships. Sire only the Captain or FO of each, allow
them to take control of their ships."
"Understood."
"Good. Now spread the faith and the word. Spread it in the dark places
where people fear to tread. Spread it far and wide, give us the means to
control this place and feast on more."
"It will be done. I should go to Ops before Captain Jira realises I am
missing"
Magellan appeared at Ops and wandered up to his office past his aide Commander
Zoilip. The bolian barely looked up and failed to notice the strangely
malevolent look in his commanding officers eyes.
"I do not want to be disturbed" Magellan said as he entered his
office.
"Aye Sir"
Magellan crossed to his desk and keyed in access to his terminal.
"Computer display tactical information concerning fleet disposition in the
Qualinost Sector."
As Magellan sat and plotted in body, his spirit resided in an entirely new
locale. He had felt his essence being forced and pummelled into a tiny box
created by the overwhelming malevolence that had entered his mind at the
strangers bite. Just as he had begun to feel that box close, to be trapped,
able to watch but not act, he had fallen. No. Not fallen, had been pulled. With
sudden clarity Magellan realised that all that he was, was now no longer split
between neural clusters, he was now one, one with Lin. His symbiont had
snatched his soul at the last moment, and together, more as one than they had
ever been, they sat in the dark watching the imposter, powerless and alone
T'val roamed the station,
lost and confused. Since her encounter with Tepes, she knew she had changed,
but into what? She had yet again eluded the EMH, and now she would not return
to sickbay. Noting the hall lights were considerably dimmer than before, she
also knew that someone else was infected.
She noted Captain Jira walking alone through the corridors towards OPS, and she
considered following him but something (or someone?) held her back. Instead,
she was drawn elsewhere and she had no choice but to follow. She looked up as
she heard a screeching above her. Squinting, she saw Saaroks blue firelizard.
"Shoo," she said, waving the little blue away. She was not entirely
sure if Saarok was infected, and she did not really care if he was. He had
trusted her and she had betrayed that trust, she could not face him.
Before she realized it, she stopped walking and found herself face to face with
Magellan. Panic spread across her features when she looked up at him. Was she
supposed to do something now? Then she saw him smile down at her, and she took
note of the canine teeth. Still unsure, and still panicked, she smilled back
feebly.
"Admiral," she whispered, looking at her feet. She knew Tepes was
about, somehow she knew but she did not understand. This one, however, was a
powerful one and she had to mind him. Perhaps she was to guard him from anyone
who wished him harm? T'Val was not sure. "How may I please the
admiral?" she continued in low voice
Alex walked toward the
nearest turbolift to his ship and pulled his comm link off of his belt.
"Computer, location of Admiral Magellan?"
"Admiral Magellan is in Operations."
Richard nodded and boarded a turbolift. A few minutes later, he stepped onto
Deck 2 and walked to Operations. Showing his diplomatic ID to the guard,
Richard walked in and looked around. The roome was filled with the low murmurs
typical of a Starfleet operations area. He looked up at the operations board,
which showed ships passing through the area. Richard thought that there were an
unusually large number of Starfleet ships heading towards Assailant, but
shrugged it off. Fleet disposition wasn't his area of expertise.
After some searching, Richard found Admiral Magellan whispering in a corner
with T'Val. Richard stopped and then quietly walked back around the corner so
that he could not be seen by the two furtive people. Richard cautiously peeked
back around the corner and spent a few seconds observing the two of them. He
couldn't tell what they were talking about, but they seemed very intent on the
conversation. Watching the two of them somehow made Richard uncomfortable, so
he decided to interrupt.
Richard strode around the corner and broke in on their conversation.
"Excuse me, Admiral, but may I have a moment of your time?"
The two of them jumped in surprise. T'Val seemed to be about to take flight.
Richard stopped, still uncomfortable for some reason and spoke from a distance.
"Sorry Admiral, but I was wondering if you could remove the guard from my
ship. The station problems seem to be over, and I am sure that a better use
could be found for the man."
Magellan appeared to think for a second, then said "Of course, Mr. Jibb.
If you think that security is no longer required, I will have him
removed."
"Thank you, Admiral. I guess that I'll be going." Nodding at the both
of them, Richard beat a hasty retreat out of Ops.
Magellan and T'Val shared a look as they watched Richard hurry out of Operations
Richard quickly moved
through Starbase Assailant on his way back to the Wanderer. His heart was still
beating a bit fast after his encounter with Magellan and T'Val.
Richard tried to figure why he was feeling this way. He had spoken to Magellan
on a number of occasions and had never had this kind of a reaction. He couldn't
recall actually talking to T'Val before, but she was just a Vulcan. No reason
for this type of negative reaction.
Shaking his head to try to get rid of his feeling of dread, Richard stepped off
of the turbolift and finished the walk to the Wanderer. He noted that the guard
that he had been assigned was no longer present, and Richard was surprised to
find that he was unhappy about this development.
Richard entered the complicated code that disarmed the security safeguards on
his ship, opened the airlock and stepped aboard, making sure to securely close
the door and reactivate security. Virtually running, Richard reached the bridge
and activated the full range of automated security that his shuttle had to
offer. Sitting back in his chair, he attempted to breathe a sigh of relief but
couldn't.
The problem was, he didn't feel any safer...
"That may just have
solved our problem" Magellan said to T'Val as Richard left.
"Our problem?"
"Indeed, the Master wishes to infect the
"And how does Mr Jibb help us?"
"That ship of his, The Wanderer, its a Diplomatic Courier vessel.
Incredibly fast and well outfitted. It could reach the
"Excellent" T'Val smiled,
"You must make him one of us, or at least ensure we get full access to
that ship. Knowing Mr Jibb he has all sorts of security measures. Better that
he is... available to disarm them. In fact deliver this message to him.
"Magellan tapped on a PADD "It will inform him that I am seconding
his vessel for a passenger. I will inform the Master that we have transport for
him."
"Consider it done" T'Val nodded a cruel twist to her lips
T'Val accepted the PADD
and bowed to Magellan, then walked away graciously, as befitted a healer. She
walked leasurly, taking the shortest route to the Wanderer, while keeping to
the somewhat darker side of the corridors. It surprised her that the lightning
did not bother her as much at it seemed to bother Magellan. This would work
towards her advantage.
At last, she reached the airlock to the Wanderer. "Mr Jibb, I have a
message for you from the Admiral," she called. When he did not answer, she
banged the airlock door unceremoniously. "Richard Jibb, open the
door!" she shouted, "you do not keep a messenger waiting, that is
rude."
Richard was sitting on the
bridge of the Wanderer, trying to figure out a legitimate reason to leave
Starbase Assailant right now. He had been assigned to the Starfleet Diplomatic
Corps here, and was required to stay and complete any assigned duties asked of
him. However, he really wanted to leave. He was considering the likelihood of
Ambassador Saarok giving him some leave time when the proximity alarm went off.
Richard activated the sensors which detected a Vulcan female walking towards
his ship. Richard knew who it was. T'Val walked to the Wanderer's hatch and
started banging at it, while shouting something. Richard activated the exterior
pickups.
"...have a message for you from the Admiral," she called. She paused
briefly "Richard Jibb, open the door!" she shouted, "you do not
keep a messenger waiting, that is rude." She was staring up into the
monitor over the airlock, a feral gleam in her eyes. Richard's hand shook as he
activated the intercom.
"What's the message, T'Val?" Richard asked quietly.
"I am to deliver it to you in person Mr. Jibb" T'Val insisted.
"I'm afraid this is a diplomatic vessel, T'Val. You're a civilian, it's
against regulations for me to allow you to board. Perhaps you could have it
sent to me." Richard desperately wanted her away from his ship.
"I must deliver this message, Mr. Jibb. You will allow me to board and
speak to you, NOW!" T'Val thundered with finality.
"I am the master of this vessel, T'Val. I decide who boards, and you
definitely do not have my permission" Richard announced across the comm.
T'Val smiled triumphantly and waved a PADD, a gesture that Richard could not
see. "You are no longer master of this vessel, Mr. Jibb. Please
listen." T'Val activated the PADD and began to read.
"By order of Admiral Magellan, Commander Starbase Assailant:
The Diplomatic Shuttle Wanderer and Crew are hearby ordered seconded to
Starbase Assailant until further notice.
Seconded Diplomatic Shuttle Wanderer and Crew are hearby ordered to take aboard
and transport Starfleet representative to be named later to USS El Salvador B
(Registry Number NCC-750029-B).
Seconded Diplomatic Shuttle Wanderer and Crew are hearby ordered to follow all
orders of Starfleet representative until further notice.
Admiral Magellan
Stabase Assailant
Richard was stunned by this announcement, but his mind worked quickly. "I
will be happy to oblige, T'Val. Seeing as there is no emergency I am aware of,
if Ambassador Magellan wishes my vessel to transport someone, he will have to
go through official channels. Have him contact Ambassador Saarok with an
official request, which will then go to the Federation Council, as per
regulations. Jibb out."
Richard closed the channel. Then he opened one to Ambassador Saarok
--Meanwhile aboard another
ship--
"Sir , diplomatic courier Jibb is attempting to hail ambassador
Saarok", a man said
"Reroute it to my console i will take over."
A few moments later the face of Richard Jibb appeared on the console.
=/\=Mr. Jibb , how can i be of assistance?=/\=
=/\=Admiral Magellan is attempting to take over my ship ,to transport someone,
but i have also noticed a strange behavior of him and T'Val.=/\=
=/\=I understand, now listen carefully to me, you are to transport whoever they
need you to transport , because if you do not they will suspect , i can not go
into details now , but play along their plan. It is of vital importance to the
security of the federation Mr. Jibb=/\=
<tag Jibb>
After he convinced Jibb to accept the transport of a person. He closed the
channel. He looked at the man who informed him of the transmission.
"You have done well, prepare to follow the diplomatic vessel once it heads
out , remain cloaked at all times"
"Sir , if i may , why didn’t you tell him the truth"
"You should have learned by now that only those who need to know will know
, others will not know", the Vulcan said as he turned his attention to
something on the computer screen and away from the man standing there
From the green mists again
rose the figure of a man, dark and foreboding. As the final mists disappated,
Tepes stepped forward to Admiral Lin, who had seen the mist appear; he somehow
knew of its purpose, and so was not surprised at the appearance of the
aristrocratic figure.
"I have been watching proceedings, Admiral, and am pleased," Tepes
said. "All that I will require is a uniform of your Starfleet be available
for my use, if needed."
"It will be done," answered Magellan.
"Good. Good! See to it they place it in my quarters in the
diplomatic shuttle Wanderer," Tepes intoned. "You have done
well."
Tepes, again taking his cape into his hands, raised his arms, and from
somewhere around his body, the mist sprang, gaining in volume, until the figure
of Tepes blended into and became the mist, which then rose and vanished
into a ventilator shaft.
T'Val stood annoyed before
the still locked airlock, bright light from the corridors shining on her.
"I am the wife of a diplomat," she ranted, "and I came
here with a diplomatic vessel. But suit yourself..." She shrugged and
walked off, back to ops.
"He would not let me aboard," she told Magellan indifferently,
"I read the message to him and he went silent." She grinned up at
him, baring her teeth. "He seemed....stunned. I am sure Master will have
fun during the journey."
Richard sat with his head
in his hands, trying to figure out what to do. He had just gotten off of the
comm with Ambassador Saarok, who had told him to give in to the demands of
Magellan and T'Val, without any explanation except to say that it was for the
good of the Federation. "Computer, access Assailant main database and find
the location of Ambassador Saarok."
"Ambassador Saarok is not aboard Starbase Assailant" replied the
computer.
Richard slammed his fist down on the console in anger. He was feeling
completely isolated, which meant that he may as well act completely on his own.
It was time to find out what was going on. "Computer, when did Saarok
leave Assailant?"
"Saarok was no longer aboard Assailant as of Stardate 900705.6"
Richard reactivated the audio pickups and could hear T'Val shouting. "I am
the wife of a diplomat," she ranted, "and I came here with a
diplomatic vessel. But suit yourself..." T'Val stomped off.
Richard nodded. Came here aboard a diplomatic vessel eh? That was something he
could exploit. "Computer, how did the Romulan T'Val arrive at Assailant
and why did she come?"
"T'Val arrived at Starbase Assailant aboard Romulan Diplomatic shuttle
D'Pol from Starbase Bellicose on Stardate 900623.7. The reason for the trip was
listed as a medical emergency."
"Computer, list any unusual occurrences associated with T'Val's trip from
Bellicose or arrivaly at Assailant" Richard said tersely.
"There was an override of diplomatic security on the Romulan shuttle
D'Pol"
"Reason for security override."
"There was a medical emergency aboard the shuttle."
"Describe nature of medical emergency."
"Security lists discovery of T'Val in an unconscious state. T'Val was
beamed to medical and a security sweep completed of the vessel."
"Computer, list results of security sweep."
"Results of security sweep are not available due to security
lockout."
Richard shook his head "Computer, override security lockout, authorization
Jibb Omega Beta 4 and list results of security sweep."
"Unknown molecules were found inside the Romulan vessel. T'Val was noted
as having two puncture wounds on her neck."
Richard's forehead furrowed with puzzlement. "Computer, list cause of
injuries to T'Val."
"There is no official cause listed."
"Were there any other injuries to T'Val?"
"Unknown. T'Val left Sickbay without authorization." Richard's
eyebrows shot up as a result of that. The Vulcan doctor snuck out of Sickbay.
Interesting.
"Computer, list any other security issues that involved either T'Val or
Saarok."
"There was a security alert in Saarok's office on Stardate 900705.6."
"Computer, describe nature of security alert."
"There was an unauthorized phaser discharge."
"This time coincides with the moment that Saarok is listed as no longer
being on Assailant. Was the Ambassador killed?" Richard asked, holding his
breath.
"Negative, Ambassador Saarok was no longer aboard the station several
seconds after the phaser discharge."
Richard let his breath back out. "And where did Ambassador Saarok
go?"
"That information is not available."
Richard stopped interrogating the computer for a moment while he thought about
what he had just learned. Now he knew that something was wrong with T'Val,it
happened on the shuttle and had something to do with the mysterious molecules
that the security sweep had picked up. It also seemed clear that Saarok was
involved, although Richard doubted the same thing was wrong with him that was
wrong with T'Val. The phaser fire in Saarok's office would indicate that
perhaps someone had tried to attack him there and he had fled, possibly to some
hidden location on the Starbase or a cloaked ship.
It was also obvious that Admiral Magellan had the same problem that T'Val did.
So, the problem was contagious. That led Richard to his memory of Operations. A
number of Starfleet ships were headed back to Assailant, and he was being
ordered to the El Salvador. Whatever it was was trying to spread through
Starfleet, and if it had access to Starfleet ships, it would be able to go
anywhere in the Alpha quadrant.
Richard decided on what his course of action would be. He spent several minutes
programming the computers on the ship to carry out some unusual actions. Then
he opened the airlock of the Wanderer and waited for his passenger
After T'Val had left
Magellan, she felt a presence suddenly behind her. Somehow, deep within her,
she knew the thing she sensed was not human, and turned cautiously. Before her
stood Tepes.
"Good evening, T'Val," his deep voice said. "I have come to tell
you I'm pleased with the arrangements you've made for my departure from
Assailant. I require knowledge concerning what I, as a representative of your
Starfleet, would be expected by the pilot of the Wanderer to know."
T'Val bowed graciously.
"Master," she whispered, then looked up cautiously as she heard his
request. "You would require knowledge of the federation, its species. I
would suggest you carry yourself as a gentleman, a distinguished ambassador.
Perhaps you can take on the form of one of the most wellknown human
ambasadors?" She looked him over, afraid he might punish her for her
boldness. "But you are a gentleman already," she said soflty,
"all you require is the knowledge. I can offer that..." She raised
her hand to his face and touched him briefly.
Very good," the dark
figure answered.
"Because you and the Admiral have done so well, I have a gift for you.
Give me your hand."
Slowly, cautiously, the Vulcan healer extended her hand, and Tepes enveloped it
in his own. His hold was strong, and somewhat cold. As he took her hand in his,
his eyes flashed, deeply piercing into the depths of her being, and she could
feel a tremendous surge of power entering her body.
T'Val shuddered with fear,
and resisted the urge to scream. Suddenly it felt more pleasant, becoming part
of her.
"I
have just given to you sufficient power for both you and the Admiral. When I
have left, you will report to him, take his hand in yours, as I've just done
with you, and he will also find new abilities," Tepes explained. "The
flow of energy you've just felt will give you the capability to tranform
yourselves into animalistic forms."
T'Val nodded, and walked
off to find the Trill admiral. She found him where she had left him before, and
walked up to him, holding out her hand. "Give me your hand," she
said, her voice commanding, but soft
Magellan stood alongside
T'Val,
"Give me your hand," she said, her voice commanding, but soft.
Magellan despite himself he did so.
T'Val took his hand, and felt part of the power pass on. After she was done,
she explained what they were now capable of.
It was miraculous the fact that he could now be nearly any animal he wanted. It
was certainly a power. A reward. They had indeed pleased the Master.
T'Val and Magellan remained in his office to go offer the Infection plans.
So far a few members of staff had been sired on Assailant and they were now in
the process of siring the Scientific staff on the planet. There was after all a
Terraforming Conference on Betazed in 2 weeks time.
Perfect feeding grounds.
Suddenly he felt the pull of the transporter and both he and T'Val were re
materialised on the Wanderer.
They seemed to be on the bridge, Tepes and Richard were both there.
He began to feel a little strange, more... compassionate!
Magellan himself deep with in Lin felt the change. Felt the subtle way in which
Lin asserted itself. He knew Lin always pushed hardest when technology was
employed, ever since the near disassociation at the wrong end of a romulan
disruptor Lin was skittish and instead of the symbiosis being a blend it was
more disjointed. They were united and yet... it was hard to explain, exactly
why he had never told the symbiosis commission.
In this unique state, his soul wholly within Lin, they were arguable the
closest they had ever been. He could understand Lins fear of technology, he
could almost feel what it was like to be the 6 inch slug like creature.
Pushing these thoughts aside he concentrated on the promising feeling that what
ever it was that had taken over his body had weakened slightly.
He pushed and found suddenly he was back in control, if only partially, of his
arms. He struggled with the powerfully 'other' mind his hand trying to reach
the phaser at his waist.
The fleeting window was lost however and Magellan was thrown back, Lin quickly
grasping the soul once more and protecting him. Still it was a chance.
He would have to bide his time, watch through eyes that were no longer his own
and wait for a new opportunity.
Richard's proxmity alarm
went off again. Activating the sensors, he ran them over the dock area. One
life form was heading toward the Wanderer. And so it begins, he thought to
himself. "Computer, locate specified targets and lock."
"Targets locked."
Richard examined the readout of the approaching life form. It was odd to say
the least. It was reading as human, but with a very odd peculiarities. Body
heat was extremely low, heartbeat and respiration low, metabolism low. If it
wasn't walking around, Richard was convinced that the being should be in a
hospital. Richard had one thing to check. "Computer, run a complete scan
on that being and run a comparison against the unknown molecules found on
T'Vals shuttle."
"Working. Analysis complete. Being is emitting identical molecules."
Richard sighed and closed his eyes. That was enough proof for him.
"Permission to come aboard, Mr. Jibb."
The voice of the stranger resonated through the Wanderer, and it filled Richard
with unease. Steeling his resolve, Richard stood up from the command chair and
walked through his shuttle and arrived at the airlock. Standing at the base of
the gangway was a pale man, dressed in black and with a pleasant smile on his
face.
"Permission granted. Please come aboard, Mr...?" Richard let the
question hang.
Tepes stepped up the gangplank and into the Wanderer. Smiling, he greeted the
suspicious pilot. His manner was suave and compelling.
"Tepes will do. Good evening, captain. My thanks for permitting me passage
on your vessel to the
Turning, Richard was shocked to see Tepes standing right behind him, an amused
smile on his face. Richard could have sworn he heard his passenger proceed into
the ship. "Are we prepared to leave, Mr. Jibb? I am quite anxious to begin
my mission aboard the
"Yes, we are prepared to leave. If you would like to accompany me to the
bridge, we can be on our way." Richard waited as Tepes seemed to consider
whether or not to move, then relented and preceeded Richard to the bridge.
Richard sensed amusement from his passenger as they walked forward.
Richard took his position in the command chair, while Tepes stood behind him.
The man seemed to have an overpowering urge to try to dominate those around
him. Richard made sure to maintain the attitude he had adopted. "Oh, Mr.
Jibb. I would appreciate it if you would shut down all security aboard your
ship for the duration of my trip. I would be far more comfortable." The
power of the command moved his hands immediately and Richard shut down what he
could.
Hands shaking, Richard opened a channel and said "Shuttle Wanderer to
Assailant Flight Control. Request permission to exit dock."
After a second, Flight Control answered. "Flight Control to Wanderer.
Admiral Magellan has put a priority on your ship. You are free to leave at your
convenience. Do you require a vector?"
Of course he has, Richard thought to himself. "Negative flight!"
Richard snapped, then continued in a more controlled tone. "I do not
require a vector. Please open the doors now. Wanderer out."
Richard heard Tepes chuckling deeply behind him, and the sound put his soul on
edge.
The Wanderer quickly navigated it's way out of the Dock and into space with
Tepes standing over Richard and watching his every move. Richard did nothing
more than pilot the ship, knowing that the computer was going to be the real
culprit.
The Wanderer's computer was not impressed by Tepes at all. It carefully
monitored how far the Wanderer was from Starbase Assailant. Once a distance of
35 kilometers was reached, the next phase of the program kicked in. The ships
transporter initialized and the the two locked targets, T'Val and Admiral
Magellan, materialized on the bridge of the Wanderer. Once the transporter was
finished cycling, the Wanderer flashed into warp speed like a frightened bird.
Surprised for the first time, Tepes looked over at T'Val and Magellan, who
looked equally shocked to be there. Rage crossed Tepes' face and he turned,
grabbed Richard by the shoulders, lifted with inhuman strength and sank his
fangs into Richard's neck. After drinking deeply, Tepes flung him to the deck.
Eyes aflame, Tepes thundered "You will return these two to the Starbase
and pilot this ship to the
Head ringing, Richard covered his head with his hands and cringed at Tepes'
feet. "I can't Master."
"Why not?" Tepes screamed, towering over the cowering human.
"I have passed all command codes of this ship to Ambassador Saarok.
Nothing now works unless he does it, and the ship will plunge into the star
Beta Epsilon in less than two hours unless he stops us. This ship is emitting a
message to him right now." Richard whined.
Tepes' eyes widened. He was trapped.
At the mention of
Ambassador Saarok's name, however, Tepes' eyes narrowed and a smile curled his
lips. It would require nothing more than a simple summons to the Ambassador to
release the Wanderer from its suicide flight.
"You had planned this well, captain," said Tepes in a slightly
mocking voice, "but you cannot kill what is already ... dead."
Tepes prepared to summon Ambassador Saarok, but before he could complete the
connection, the image of the ambassador appeared on the bridge of the Wanderer.
=/\=Having
problems, [Saarok] asked?=/\=
"I have been
instructed, Ambassador, that this shuttle is locked on course into the center
of star Beta Epsilon, and that you have been given the override codes to enable
the alteration of our present course," Tepes said. "I require you to
unlock the control of this ship so that we may resume our course to the
=/\=Do
not worry, master; everything is under control=/\=
"Excellent,"
answered Tepes. "I am ... most anxious to begin my ... duties
aboard the
=/\=Transmitting
command codes to the main computer ... Lockout disengaged.
I will remain near by=/\=, Saarok said as he closed the channel
When the connection with
Ambassador Saarok had been terminated, Tepes turned his attention to Captain
Jibb.
"I trust," he scowled, his eyes terrifying to behold, "that
there will be no further incidents. Be certain that I can not only reward those
who faithfully serve my cause, but I also have power to punish."
Richard shrunk into
himself as Tepes' eyes focussed on him, ordering that there be no more
surprises on their way to the
"No, that was the only one" Richard's voice quavered.
Inside of his head, Richard desperately tried to hold onto some part of
himself. It seemed that his will to resist Tepes was quickly being eroded away,
and what was worse was that it was a pleasureable feeling. It seemed far easier
to give in to Tepes than it was to fight on. Richard thought desperately and
silently, until deciding on his course. For now, he would do nothing but what
Tepes wanted and continue his internal struggle to hang on, harbouring his
strength until an opportunity arose to strike back.
No matter what the cost.
T'Val watched Magellan as
they both materialised into the shuttle. She felt strangely odd for a moment
and knew that the transporters bio filters had possibly retained a fraction of
the virus ingrained into their systems. She noticed a glint of hope in the
admirals eyes, but he had gone quite pale from some other sensation. Knowing
the admiral was joined, T'Val knew that the sensation was the symbiont reacting
to the transportation.
Since she had taken it upon herself to make sure the admiral was met with all
his needs, she gently shoved him into a vacant chair, idly swatting away the
PADDs that were scattered in it.
"Hey," Jibb objected from the pilot seat, but fell silent when he met
her cold glare.
"Sit," she told Magellan gently, then looked him over. His pallor was
not passing, even though she knew the symbiont had settled down. "Have you
fed?" she asked bluntly, looking once more in Jibb's direction.
Then Tepes stepped in "He will not be touched, we need a pilot. Soon my
children..." His voice boomed and T'Val cringed.
"Yes Master," she whispered and turned her attention back to her
charge. "You must feed, stay strong, or the El-Salvador crew will suspect
something," she whispered, fussing over his comfort. She leaned close and
kissed him lightly, oblivious to the tiny voice in the back of her mind
whispering that she was a married woman.
She felt his eyes lock onto hers, and knew instantly what must be done. She
knelt down beside his chair, and offered her bare throat to him. "You must
feed," she pressed, "I am of no importance." ~but what of your
husband?~ the voice whispered, growing louder. ~this is more important, leave
me alone~ T'Val thought, while keeping her eyes on the admiral
Magellan stared at T'Val.
He wanted it more than anything, he could smell the blood, see it pulsing
through her veins. So close, so strong, so vibrant, so full of taste and glory.
He bared his mouth, the twin fangs glinting in the dull light of the shuttle.
He bent slowly towards her, seizing her shoulders roughly and drawing her
closer.
His teeth grazed the soft pale flesh and T'Val gasped. She braced herself for
the bite, but it did not come.
Magellan had pulled back.
"No." He said uncertainly "We still need you. I will rest and
feed once we arrive at the
"But its is my job to serve"
Magellan turned away catching Tepes' eye and then looking away.
"Then serve me by remaining strong. Your blood is too disimilar from mine,
we have no idea what effect it may have. Better that I feast on my own
kind."
T'Val rose and took a seat.
"As you wish"
Back at Assailant:
~~ incoming message ~~
"Starbase assaillant, this is runabout Bellicose ONE. I have a medical
emergency. Please locate healer T'Val instantly, her husband is having a
seizure. I fear that we cannot help him."
The shuttle pilot turned and shrugged. "Now we wait ma'am."
The two firelizards screeched and crooned in distress, flying up and down,
wings flapping in the poor woman's face as they tried to get a reaction out of
their friend.
Tedak didn't move so much as a muscle, and he was unaware of the two little
dragons' distress. His face and arms were covered in scratches, where the two
had tried to get his attention and wake him up. His sleeves were torn, where
the two had tugged it in an attempt to get him to sit up, but nothing had
helped.
At last, they had been beamed into the runabout, and sent with urgence towards
Assaillant, the romulan ambassador's home.
--In Saarok's office on
Assailant--
Just then his eye caught a message from a runabout carrying Ambassador Tedak.
"Starbase assailant, this is runabout Bellicose ONE. I have a medical
emergency. Please locate healer T'Val instantly, her husband is having a
seizure. I fear that we cannot help him."
This looked important enough to inform Saarok about it.
=/\=Computer establish communication with station gamma 4 , outpost 45
subchanel 56 , authorization deputy director
=/\=Channel opened=/\=
As Saarok’s face appeared on the screen.
=/\=I hope this is important=/\=
=/\=Yes sir , i believe you should hear this message=/\=
=/\="Starbase assailant, this is runabout Bellicose ONE. I have a medical
emergency. Please locate healer T'Val instantly, her husband is having a
seizure. I fear that we cannot help him."=/\=
=/\=Yes , there was a chance that this might happen , i am returning to SB
Assailant=/\=
=/\=But sir .....=/\=
=/\=Not but's
He went out of his room and to the bridge of the ship.
"Prepare the captain's Yacht."
"Sir?"
"You will continue to follow the shuttle and inform me of the situation i
need to return to Assailant"
"Yes sir"
After some preparations the ship slowed down from warp and decloaked. After
that a captain's yacht flew out of the shuttle bay and proceeded at maximum
speed to Assailant. And the ship cloaked again and resumed to follow the ship
enroute to the
After he took of he opened a chanel to runabout Bellicose ONE.
=/\=Ambassador Saarok to runabout Bellicose ONE=/\=
=/\=Belicose ONE here go ahead sir=/\=
=/\=Dock at SB Assailant i am on my way and i belive i will be able to help
ambassador Tedak.=/\=
=/\=Understood , Stephens out=/\=
Jessica Stephens had the
pilot dock the shuttle at the designated dockingbay, and waited for the Vulcan
ambassador to arrive. When the two firelizards spotted the Vulcan, they hissed
at him.
After they hissed Saarok looked at them and they sensed he was himself indeed
after which they calmed down. After dealing with them he turned his attention
to Tedak , the romulans was destructed with the thought that his wife was dead,
and Saarok knew that , the virus probably blocked their telepathic link.
He knew what he had to do. He placed his hands on Tedak’s face and started
speaking:
"Your mind to my mind , your thoughts to my thoughts , your mind to my
mind...."
After a few moments he sensed that he was in Tedak’s mind, he looked around and
saw that his mind looked like Tal Shiar HQ, not that he ever seen them well at
least officially not. He was walking through the HQ looking for Tedak, after a
while he came to a door protected by guards, Saarok knew they were only a
representation of the blockade blocking Tedak from regaining conciseness.
He approached the door and was immediately attacked by the guards but his mind
was much stronger then they and he was able to defeat them. And he entered. He
saw Tedak mourning over the body of T’Val, he approached him.
"Tedak", he said
"Saarok, look what has happened what evil dead faith has placed upon
me.", Tedak started
"She is not dead my friend ", he said
"But she is i can no longer sense her presence", Tedak replied
Saarok place his hands on the face of the Tedak inside Tedak's mind, and
transferred him what he had seen since the execution of plan beta 5 and what he
knew, leaving out a few delicate things like how he was able to telepathically
link to his double and become one with him , which was bitten by T'Val and
later vaporized by Saarok and his guards. How Richard Jibb planed a trap for
Tepes, T’Val and Magellan, everything Saarok was able to find about Tepes
including where T’Val, Magellan and Tepes were going.
After he was done a flash of light blinded them and they both returned to
reality, and Tedak was waking up.
Nut and Sev settled down, but kept a close guard on him, and kept him away from
Jessica. They knew that Saarok would not harm their friend, but they sensed
something was terribly wrong. They got no images from his queen or blue, who
had kept away from the shuttle.
After Saarok quickly examined Tedak, he ordered for them all to be beamed to
sickbay.
"What happened?"
tedak asked, as both firelizards landed on his shoulder and started nuzzling
him with delight.
"You were in a coma," Saarok said softly, "come, we have work to
do."
Tedak thought for a second, and remembered the information transferred to him
in the reviving meld. "Yes, we do. Is there a way to alert the destination
of the Wanderer?"
T'Val sat back down, only
slightly disappointed. Impatient at the long travel, she got back to her feet
and walked to the front, tapping Jibb on the shoulder. She felt his muscles
tense under her hand, and she smiled. She looked up at Tepes, almost begging
for permission.
When he shook his head almost undetectably, her smile vanished. "How much
longer until the El-Salvador," she asked, leaning forward to have a look
at the displays - of which she could make heads nor tails-.
Richard's mind cowered in a corner as the rest carried out the orders of Tepes.
He could really do nothing else. Much of his mind was an automaton to the dark
man's wishes, and the rest was saving itself for what resistance it could
manage when the time came.
As he sat piloting the Wanderer, Richard could feel Magellan staring at him,
with the white cat curled peacefully up on his lap, seemingly asleep. However,
it's ears twitched every once in a while, indicating that T'Val was aware of
what was going on. Richard had watched as the Vulcan transformed, knowing that
it was a gift that Tepes could bestow on his followers and knew that he would
never get it. His attempt to capture Tepes and his confederates had failed due
to his failure to predict Saarok's downfall. Now, he was one of them as well,
but not favoured. He would be lucky to survive an hour after the Wanderer
docked with the El Salavdor. However, he couldn't shake Tepes' will.
He saw Tepes looking at the monitor, tracking the Wanderer's progress. The
vampire's gaze slowly shifted towards him, and the menace and dislike in his
eyes was acute. Richard could feel the masters' question forming in his head.
"It will be several more hours before we rendezvous with the
Disdainfully, Tepes attention wandered away from Richard, and the pilot
breathed a sigh of relief.
Richard glanced down at his console as a unexpected blip appeared on the
sensors. A large ship appeared briefly, launched a small shuttle, and both then
cloaked. The manuever was extremely brief.
Richard was nearly overwhelmed by the desire to tell Tepes what he had seen,
but the tiny part of him that retained his independence destroyed that desire
mercilessly. Instead, Richard quickly deleted the sensor entry and continued to
fly on.
His strange passengers never noticed...
T'Val nodded and walked back to Magellan, and then informed him of their ETA.
"I have made my offer, which will stand until we reach the ship," she
added, as she say back down, "I will take a nap now. Please wake me if you
have need of me."
She followed the example Tepes had given earlier and transformed herself in a
white cat. She jumped on the admirals lap, turned a few times and lay herself
down. While napping, she was alert to any danger that might befall her charge
As Captain Jibb piloted
his shuttle ever closer to the
For a few moments, he seemed distracted, aware of what was going on aboard the
Wanderer, but with attention focused elsewhere...
Tepes looked at T'Val and Magellan, then to the shuttle's monitor. He wondered
how much longer before they would arrive at the
Tepes could not dismiss
the image of Richard Jibb's attempt to destroy the Wanderer from his mind.
Further, he could sense an anxiousness – an anxiousness that could only come
from planned betrayal – in the mind of the captain of the shuttle.
"What he has attempted once, he will likely attempt again," thought
Tepes. "This time, however, we will be prepared for his
treachery."
Moving to where Magellan sat, Tepes stepped behind him, and, slowly placing
both hands on his shoulders, concentrated. As he did so, the very air about the
three – T'Val, Magellan, and Tepes – crackeled and sparked, then, when it
stopped, the dark figure returned to where he had stood previously.
"Admiral ... T'Val ... " Tepes made no sound as he called to
them, transferring his thoughts for silent communication to keep their content
from Mr. Jibb's awareness. "I have just given to you – both of you –
the ability to use the mists. Since the captain has shown himself
untrustworthy, it may become necessary for you to make use of that capability
in the very near future. Here is how it is done ..."
T'Val twitched her ears
-she's still in cat-form- and lashed her ttail as she hear Master's thoughts.
She meowed softly in response, raising her head from her paws, her green eyes
peering at Jibb intensely. She sat up for a moment to preen her fur, then
returned to her previous position.
She kept her watch on Jibb, peering at him through not quite closed eyes,
lashing the tip of her tail on occasion, and ready to pounce when the need
arose.
Richard glanced up from
his instruments and looked at the reflection in the main viewscreen of the
command deck. Tepes, T'Val and Magellan had been standing in a circle, eyes
closed for some time now. He had now idea what they were doing, but doubted
that it was anything good for him.
Richard had been casting about, trying to figure out something to do, but had
come up empty. The command codes that he had transferred to Saarok had been
given to Tepes, so Richard could do little besides pilot the ship. Even if he
could, most of what little resistance he had left had been taken up by hiding
the fact that there was a cloaked ship following them. Even now, he could feel
the urge to tell Tepes about it, and knew that eventually he would. All he could
hope for now was that they would arrive at the
At last, the three of them came out of their trance. "Do you see now? Tepes
asked. Magellan and T'Val nodded reverently, as if the dark man had shown them
the secrets of the universe. Deep down, Richard wished that he could share in
whatever it was that had just been passed on, that he could please Tepes as
well. Again, that tiny part of Richard that was still there held on, hoping for
...something.
A light flashed on the console. They had arrived at Sector 984 and the location
of the
"Bring us to impulse, Mr. Jibb and scan for the ship" Tepes said, his
eagerness to find the
Richard brought the Wanderer out of warp and watched as Sector 984 came into
view. It was unlike anything he had seen before, with massive swirling nebulae,
neutron stars and lightning flashing unexpectedly. Richard activated the
scanners, but no sign of the
Magellan walked over and took control of the scanners. "They must be
here!" he insisted. "They are conducting a search for the USS Roanoak
with the
Frowning, Richard entered the sector. Piloting through the area was a
nightmare. There were odd, string like areas that were barely detectable on the
sensors but seemed threatening somehow. Richard avoided them carefully while
looking for the two ships.
After some time, the sensors picked up faint signals ahead. Richard moved the
Wanderer towards them. Magellan was still handling the sensors. "We have
found them, Master" he sighed.
"Put them on the main screen." Tepes ordered.
Richard entered the correct commands, and the three ships appeared onscreen.
The readouts showed the ships as the
"Get me aboard!" Tepes hissed.
Frightened, Richard turned and opened a channel. "Federation Diplomatic
Shuttle Wanderer to USS El Salvador. We are monitoring your ship adrift. Please
respond."
The four of them waited for a reply
T'Val, still in feline
form, hopped down from the admiral's lap and elegantly dribbled forward,
meowing up at Jibb. When he did not react, she hopped onto his lap, and sat
down, continuing her suspiscious stare at him. Her pupils narrowed, green eyes
becoming even more distinct as she scrutinized him.
After staring at him for several minutes, without so much as moving an ear or
the tip of her tail, she blinked and lay down, resting her head on her front
paws.
Richard felt extremely
uncomfortable as he awaited along with his three passengers for some response
from the
Unfortunately, Richard had more urgent problems. Tepes was becoming
increasingly impatient as they awaited a response from the
Richard gestured at the scans of the
Tepes turned to Admiral Magellan. "These ships are part of your fleet,
Admiral. How long can they last?"
Magellan considered the problem. "Assuming they don't get life support
back, the crews on both ships will be dead within five hours" he said with
some indifference.
Tepes steped over to Magellan so quickly that Richard eyes never saw him move.
The darkly clad man grasped Magellan by his lapels and lifted him off of the
deck. "Those ships and their crews are a part of my plan. You will help me
control them, or die in the attempt!"
Magellan quailed under the menace of Tepes' eyes, while T'Val's feline formed
seemed quietly pleased. Richard's eyes narrowed briefly. It seemed that there
may be some rivalry between Tepes underlings. Something that he might be able
to use to his advantage. The cat's head slowly swivelled until it was looking
at Richard steadily and he had to look away. If he survived long enough to use
it, he thought to himself.
"What are your recommendations, Mr. Jibb?" Tepes asked. Richard
couldn't mention his true feelings, so he gave the question some honest
thought.
"Master, I would say that you, Magellan and T'Val should transport to the
USS Jefferson. It's the larger, more powerful and more senior vessel of the
two. Taking command of it would be a powerful advantage" Richard said.
Tepes seemed amused. "And what of you, Mr. Jibb? You would remain here on
the Wanderer, ready to save us if we should be in danger?"
Richard went cold. "I will go anywhere you wish, Master."
"What of the two of you? Do either of you have an opinion as to what our
course of action would be?" Tepes asked.
"What
are your recommendations, Mr. Jibb?" Tepes asked. Richard couldn't mention
his true feelings, so he gave the question some honest thought.
"Master, I would say that you, Magellan and T'Val should transport to the
USS Jefferson. It's the larger, more powerful and more senior vessel of the
two. Taking command of it would be a powerful advantage" Richard said.
Tepes seemed amused. "And what of you, Mr. Jibb? You would remain here on
the Wanderer, ready to save us if we should be in danger?"
Richard went cold. "I will go anywhere you wish, Master."
"What of the two of you? Do either of you have an opinion as to what our
course of action would be?" Tepes asked.
"Master, with both ships non-responding, might I suggest we use the mists?
With your skill, you can provide us with air. Both ships are disabled, their
shields down...we could transport through the hull. Also, if we want Mr Jibb
here to stay and wait for us, perhaps you could give this ship a command
lock-out? Or I can give it a medical override..."
Tepes
thought for a moment, then made his decision. Turning himself to Magellan, he
said, "Admiral, we're going to speak to the Jefferson and the El Salvador
both. In each instance, you are to command them to follow my instructions to
the letter. Understood?"
"Understood."
"Open a frequency to the Jefferson, Mr. Jibb." In a moment, the
forward screen's veiw of the two starships was replaced with the bridge of the
larger of the two ships, and the Admiral spoke.
"Greetings, Commodore. The gentleman standing here is Ambassador Tepes
R'shalech. You will follow his instructions to the letter."
"Acknowledged," answered Loskene.
"Commodore," Tepes began, "I expect to find your presence useful
in the immediate future. I request you maintain your current position in
relation to the El Salvador. Do your current orders permit that?"
"Very well,"
Tepes responded. "R'shalech out."
As the image faded back to the two ships outside the Wanderer, Tepes spoke
again to Captain Jibb.
"And now, open a channel to the El Salvador."
When Captain Smith's visage appeared on the monitor, Tepes smiled, half in
anticipation, half to mask his true intent, as Admiral Magellan instructed him
to comply with Tepes' orders.
"Good evening, Captain Smith. Ambassador Tepes R'shalech requesting
permission to board the El Salvador." Purposely, he left off comment concerning
systems being down shipwide. What he would do with Captain Jibb would be
determined by Captain Smith's next words.
Steve
stayed seated in his chair, as getting up was NOT an option. Who was the
Ambassador, and why wasnt he informed of his arrival?
Steve tried to smile, but in spite of all the pain, he just couldnt.
"I am sorry Ambassador, but that will not be possible. Every system on the
entire ship is down, and nothing works. But how you managed to contact us is
beyond me. I am about to hold a staff meeting in order to discuss our plans to
get up and running again."
Steve didnt exactly want anyone on his ship anyway. The fact that they couldnt
physically get to the ship was also another factor.
Tepes hesitated only an
instant, then responded. "Understood, Captain. I wish you the best of luck
in breathing life back into your systems.
"We will remain here until you can respond with transporter. Tepes
out."
The viewscreen once again showed both ships.
"He
is not lying," T'Val said, once more in her normal form. Both she and
Magellan had 'heard' and 'seen' the conversation between Master and Captain
Smith, "their transporters are down, we cannot make use of them.
"Again, I would suggest using the mists. I will override this shuttle, so
that Mr Jibb cannot go anywhere, sneaking off."
Do it," ordered
Tepes. And while you are at it, make it so Mr. Jibb cannot warn either ship of
what we're doing. I want communications unavailable to him until we have
control of the feeding grounds."
Excellent! Now, T'Val ...
Admiral. Shall we prepare ... to feed?"
An anticipation of culinary pleasures sparkled in the eyes of Magellan and
T'Val as they stood and walked towards Tepes.
"I taught you how to use the mists to transport moments ago. Alter those
instructions only by making your destination where you now stand," the
dark figure intoned. "I will supply the destination.
"Children ... let us feed!"
Richard Jibb watched in horror as Admiral Lin and T'Val transformed to red
mists, and Tepes raised his cape toward them, enveloping them within its folds.
As he did so, a green fog began enshrouding the red mist, and as one, the
creatures rose. Richard, feeling this was his one opportunity to stop them,
drew and fired, but the phaser beam went through the mists harmlessly.
Tepes did not coalesce to punish, but simply continued on, taking note of Mr.
Jibb's attempt at stopping them. The triune creatures found their way to the
hull, and passed through it.
Richard could only watch as he saw the mists approach the unsuspecting El
Salvador
Richard watched as Tepes,
Magellan and T'Val changed into mist and slowly evaporated out of the control
cabin. Rushing over to the nearest window, he looked out. He thought that he
saw the mists slowly passing through the void of space and put his hand slowly
to the cold glass.
He slowly turned away and looked around. His master wasn't coming back for him.
Turning back to the window, he ran his fingernails across it, and then again,
harder this time. Shortly, Richard found that he was trying to claw his way
through the transparent aluminum. When that didn't work, he began striking it
with his fist, harder and harder. But the material would not break. Hoping that
Tepes would hear, Richard said "Master, come back."
After a minute, Richard found that he was screaming that phrase while pounding
on the window, but he knew that Tepes wouldn't be coming back. He was alone.
Richard collapsed onto the floor beneath the window and curled into a ball with
his hands over his head. He remained there for several minutes, until he
suddenly sprang to his feet with joy shining in his eyes.
Turning back to the viewport, Richard opened his mouth and yelled "Master,
there's a cloaked ship following us!" He knew that he would be punished
for concealing this, but being punished was better than being abandoned.
Richard continued yelling the phrase while pounding at the glass with his open
palm. He continued until the gentle starlight was obscured by his bloody palm
prints on the glass.
Giving up, Richard collapsed to the deck again and wished his master was here
so hard that a lonely tear trickled down his cheek. He wiped it off and looked
at it in amazement. Richard hadn't shed a tear in a long, long time. He closed
his eyes and spent some time trying to scrape together the broken shards of
what was left of Richard Jibb, former smuggler and Federation Diplomatic
Courier.
Opening his eyes, Richard stood up unsteadily and left the bridge. It seemed
like a long walk, but he eventually made it to Sickbay. "Activate
EMH" Richard croaked hoarsely.
"Please state the nature of the medical emergency. Don't tell me that you
need more makeup..." the EMH's chatter came to a sudden halt as he looked
into Richard's haunted eyes and saw the blood slowly dripping off of his hands.
Immediately, the doctor helped Jibb onto the biobed.
"You must restrain me, doctor. I won't be able to stay here long"
Richard muttered.
"Restrain you, why would I need to do that?" the EMH asked. The
doctor watched with surprise as Richard slowly and wordlessly started to rise
off of the bed. "Activate restraining field" the doctor ordered, but
was shocked to hear the computer answer "You do not have access to that
system."
Reacting quickly, the doctor grabbed a hypospray and jabbed it into the back of
Richard's neck, who collapsed as if a ton of bricks had just fallen on him. The
doctor moved his patient's inert body back to the bed. "Excuse me, that
was a neuro-muscular inhibitor." It will cause you to lose the use of your
arms and legs for a short time." The doctor pulled out a tricorder and
scanned Richard. "Your system is infected with a virus that I have never
seen or heard of before. It's bonding to and altering your DNA, and has already
caused some profound changes." All Richard could do was stare at the
doctor. "Excuse me."
The doctor left Richard and walked to the nearest computer console to access
the Federation Medical Database. The doctor compared the virus data to what was
in the database and quickly found a match. A Doctor Lise of the USS Raven had
found the virus in the Captain and Chief Engineer of the ship and had already
discovered a cure. The doctor uploaded the information and quickly synthesized
the serum.
Returning to the biobed, the doctor administered the cure for the virus and
ceased the action of the neuro-muscular inhibitor. Shaking his patient gently,
the doctor murmurred "Richard?" and then jumped back with surprise as
his patient's eyes sprang open.
The doctor had known Richard for a long time, ever since he had first been
activated aboard the Wanderer. At the time, the EMH had been a technology
restricted to the Federation but Richard had gotten ahold of him somehow. That
had been years ago, but a sort of friendship had formed between them. Richard
would come back to Sickbay on long voyages and they would discuss various
subjects. Richard would go out of his way to provide the doctor with access to
the latest medical records and astronomical reports, subjects the doctor found
very interesting. It was the doctor's thought that he was the only friend
Richard had.
The doctor had seen Richard in many moods, but the look in his eyes right now
could make even a hologram uneasy. For the first time the doctor could think
of, Richard looked ready to go to war.
~~ Romulan Diplomatic
Shuttle ~~
Tedak paced around restlessly while Saarok sat at the controls of his shuttle.
Right now, he was in no condition to pilot his shuttle safely, but they had to
get to the Wanderer to rescue Richard Jibb and cured his wife and Magellan. The
two of them had pulled up several methods to cure humans and vulcans from the
Federation medical databanks, but so far there was no way to cure a Trill. They
would need the help of the symbiont, if they could get to it. Unfortunately,
neither Saarok nor himself were skilled in the medical field, but T'Val was.
"Approaching the Wanderer," Saarok suddenly said, pointing at the
main viewscreen.
Tedak walked over to the co-pilot seat and stared at one of the consoles.
"They are not aboard the Wanderer," he commented, "however Iam
reading one human life-sign and a hologram. Sensors are detecting a cloaked
vessel of the Wanderer's port bow." He frowned. "One of yours?"
Saarok looked at Tedak when he asked about the cloaked weapon , seems the
Romulan tech was still able to see through their cloak , how predictable , he
will mentioned that to the research team once he returns and point out that he
was right.
"It is of a friend", he said
"They will assist us", he said as he tapped a few buttons to send a
signal to the cloaked vessel to prepare a team of 4 and when they detect Tedak
and Saarok transporting to the Wanderer to transport with them
Nut and Sev squeeked at him, still sitting where they were told to remain.
Tedak's frown deepened. "They are on the El-Salvador," he scowled,
"sensors read a Trill and a Vulcan signature matching Admiral Magellan and
T'Val, though very faint. Hang on, Vulcan signature is gone." Panic rose
as he spoke the words, then grabbed Saarok's arm tightly. "We must save
them." He took a deep breath. "Life-signs on the Wanderer are weak,
and not quite human anymore. Same went for the Trill and Vulcan readings."
"We are first going to visit mr. Jibb , and see if we can help him and get
him to help us", Saarok said
As both of them went to the transporter located on the rear of Tedak's ship.
Tedak pressed a few controls and the transporter engaged beaming them over to
the Wanderer where a few moments later a team of people with black uniforms
materialized.
~~aboard the El-Sal~~
T'Val felt oddly strange when she was in mist form, especially after Master
enveloped her and Magellan and transported them all through space, through the
hull and finally aboard the El-Salvador. She concentrated on coalescing in her
natural form, then gazed at Tepes and Magellan, then concentrated again and
seconds later, where she had stood before, stood now a white cat.
The cat meowed softly, and sprinted away. She knew exactly where she had to go
to divert attention from both Master Tepes and Admiral Magellan
"We are first going
to visit mr. Jibb , and see if we can help him and get him to help us",
Saarok said
As both of them went to the transporter located on the rear of Tedak's ship.
Tedak pressed a few controls and the transporter engaged beaming them over to
the Wanderer where a few moments later a team of people with black uniforms
materialized.
After Tedak was done speaking Saarok, Tedak and the team ran towards the ships
sickbay and hopefully Jibb. They burst in sickbay pointing weapons at Jibb.
After everything was sorted out and they realized Jibb was cured, it was time
to set a trap for the vampires.
"Mr. Jibb am i correct if i say that you are not the one who locked out
the command functions on your ship?", Saarok asked
"No , T'Val used a medical override", he said
"It should not prove a too hard challenge to crack", he said as he
went to a console on the bridge of the ship
He started pressing the keys on the console, and saw that T'Val had used a
medical quarantine to secure the command interface.
"Mr. Jones, please hand me the core analyzer", Saarok said
Then he attached the small device to the console and tapped a few keys , a few
moments later a link established light went on the device. Then Saarok started
to punch in a series of command codes and several minutes later he stopped. He
removed the device and spoke to the computer.
"Computer, remove medical lockout and restore control authorization Saarok
alpha gamma 4 jota omega 5", he said
"Command functions restored."
Richard sat up slowly, but
the doctor noted that the murderous gleam in his eyes did not fade, shining
like rock hard diamonds.
"Thank you doctor, and no, I don't need makeup. I need weapons. I think
that you mentioned not long ago that you wanted to utilize your skills as a
physician. This may be the time"Richard growled, and slid off of the
biobed.
Wordlessly, the doctor turned and pulled a phaser from it's concealed place in
one of the medical cabinets and handed it to Jibb. The doctor saw that Richard
only glanced at the weapon long enough to put it to it's maximum setting, then
stuck it into his belt and left Sickbay.
Richard stomped to the bridge, stopping for a second at the weapons locker and
pulling out a phaser rifle and decided his next course of action, which was
obviously to regain control of the Wanderer. A medical lockout would be
difficult for him to over ride, but this was his ship. He had participated in
every aspect of it's construction, installed the majority of components
himself, done all of the maintenance and upgrades. There was little he could
not make the ship do.
Sitting at the command chair, he began the process of regaining control.
Knowing the code T'Val used to lock up the ship was a bonus. Alex examined the
lockout. It was based partially on the code, and partially on the presence
aboard ship of T'Val. Richard thought that he could use that to his advantage.
If he could convince the computer that T'Val was aboard, then he could use her
code to unlock the command functions. The other lucky thing was that he had
beamed T'Val to the Wanderer at Starbase Assailant. Her bioreadings would still
be in the computer.
Unfortunately, the computer was being quite stubborn about giving him access.
After several minutes of trying, Richard decided to try another approach and
headed back to Sickbay, activating the EMH when he walked in the door.
"Please state the nature of the medical emergency." This time,
Richard had no witty banter for the EMH.
"Doctor, I need you to use your medical access to get into the
transporters biofilters. Once you get in, pull up the records for T'Val."
The doctor turned to the medical console as Richard leaned the rifle against
the wall while he accessed the main computer. He was decided to attempt to
introduce a computer virus to his system, carefully designed to go after the
security control software.
As he was working, Richard heard an odd sound coming from outside of Sickbay.
He quickly grabbed the phaser rifle and pointed it at the door as some
strangers in black outfits kicked open the door and took cover. Richard fired
his rifle through the open door, while the EMH dropped out of sight under the
biobed. Several hand phasers edged around the door and fired in, but Richard
had already moved, keeping up fire through the door.
"Mr. Jibb, it's Ambassador Saarok. Please stop your attack! We're here to
help you a voice called through the door. Richard's surprise caused the muzzle
of his weapon to fall, and the commando's thought that he had decided to
surrender and cautiously came around the corner. However, Richard, thinking
that Saarok was under the control of Tepes, screamed fanatically and jumped the
biobed, swinging the rifle powerfully. The first commando was so surprised by
the unconventional attack that he failed to react, was caught in the side of
the head by the rifle and fell in a heap to the floor, partially entangling
Jibb.
The second commando charged in in an attempt to subdue Jibb, but also fell to
the floor, without Richard having to touch him once. Chuckling to himself, the
EMH pulled the hypospray away from the ankle of the second commando and waited
for another opportunity to help his beleaguered friend.
Attacking wildly, Jibb managed to take out two more commandoes before finally
being subdued. The EMH was deactivated and Richard was dragged out into the
command area, emanating hatred for Saarok and all other confederates of Tepes.
After some time, Saarok managed to get Richard to understand that he was not
under the control of Tepes. Richard then helped to get the Wanderer out from
T'Val's control
"Well Mr Jibb, you
put up quite a fight," Tedak said dryly, "now we need to get to T'Val
and Magellan, and save them from this Tepes creature. What can you tell us
about this creature, apart from what Saarok has figured out already?"
"That does sound like an awful person. And you say T'Val and Magellan are
like this too?" He frowned, jaw set and his eyes showing the worry he felt
to every extend. "But from what you told us, the admiral seems to be
fighting the infection. Perhaps we can use that to our advantage. But we need a
medic, and we do not wish to create a panic among the crews of the
Saarok was looking over
the casualties which the security team he brought with him suffered, 2 of them
were no good to him anymore. But he could not do anything about that here he
tapped his badge and said a few words to it and the 2 security officers were
transported off. Still leaving three on board with them.
Then he heard Tedak asking him a question and diverted his attention to him.
"Yes there is a way to cure Vulcans", he said while he was walking
over to a computer terminal
"I presume you won't mind if i use your computer mr. Jibb", he asked
and without waiting for an answer accessed the Starfleet medical database
"A cure for Romulans which should work on Vulcans as well was devised by
Dr. Salek CMO of the USS Hanson. However we will slightly alter it, the first
part recommends using a nanobot to remove the virus from the system however ,
we will use the transporter for that. ", he said
"Mr. Jibb i trust that you are more than able to configure your
transporter bio filters to isolate this foreign bodies", he said giving
Jibb a pad
"After we modify that, we will need to figure a way to lock on her biosign
on the El Salvador, and after that transport her here.", he said
"From what we know, they can only bite while in their normal form, we will
need to run a constant scan of the El Sal and as soon as we get her life sign
energize the transporter and get her to your ships sickbay , because we are
going to remove the virus from her body she will be weak enough , and your EMH
will have no problem putting her to sleep , after which we will administer her
with the retrovirus and cure her" , Saarok finished
"Mr. Tedak you can keep an eye on the sensors, while Mr. Jibb sets his
transporters, and i will synthesize the retrovirus with the help of your EMH."
I lost her signal,"
Tedak said, "readjusting now....I have found a feline life-form somewhat
matching T'Val her DNA. How can she be a cat?" He looked up, staring at
his two companions questioningly. "Mr Jibb, prepare to beam her aboard,
once I have established a transporter lock. On my mark.....now!"
~~aboard El-Salvador~~
Before beaming aboard the El-Salvador, T'Val had 'overheard' the conversation
between Master and Captain Smith. She knew that, to keep this crew distracted
and to keep attention from being drawn to Tepes and Magellan, she had to
attract attention to herself. Prior scans had shown that there were no felines
aboard the ship. She also knew now, that the captain had called a conference,
so logically, the crew would be in a conference room.
Roaming through the ship, she finally found the crew. Sensors reacted to her
presence, and the doors to the conference room opened. Gracefully, she hopped
in, looked around and then spotted the table. Mind made up, and determined, she
set off and jumped on the conference table. There, she sat down and began
preening her fur, all the while keeping her eyes fixed on the captain.
Richard sat in his command
chair and tried to ignore the aches in his body. The commandoes that he hadn't
managed to take out had worked him over pretty good, and his EMH couldn't give
him any more painkillers without knocking him out.
He also tried to ignore his desire to shoot Saarok with a phaser once or twice.
It had become clear that Saarok had never been infected by Tepes, and had
allowed Richard to be infected for reasons of his own. Richard was mystified as
to why the Ambassador would have allowed the Wanderer to continue to this point
rather than stopping the shuttle when he had the opportunity. Now their problem
was worse as Tepes, T'Val and Magellan were all aboard the
Now they wanted to try to transport Magellan and T'Val back, but were having
trouble due to their new found shape shifting ability. Richard explained the
concept to them as well as he could.
Richard attempted to lock onto T'Val with the sensors, but couldn't seem to get
a lock due to some unknown interference. Frowning, he scanned the area of space
around them and found that the interference was due to a problem surrounding
them. Some kind of space anomaly similar to a cosmic string was approaching the
little group of ships, making it impossible to transport.
"Excuse me, everyone, but it seems that we are unable to transport right
now. There is a large amount of subspace interference. Does anyone have any
other suggestions?" Richard asked.
T'Val snuck out of the
conference room, Captain Smith had obviously not noticed her, seeming as he was
otherwise occupied at the time. She relocated Tepes and Magellan, and let them
know that she was going to find other feeding grounds. As she walked by a set
of windows, she noticed her husband's shuttle and she smiled, teeth showing.
~how convenient~ she thought, and used the mists to get herself over to the
diplomatic craft.
Seeing it deserted, she used her own command codes to lock out Tedak as well as
Saarok, cloaked the vessel and set course randomly, first towards, then away
from both vessels. "Computer, show nearest Federation vessel, excluding
=^= nearest vessel is USS Scavenger, last direction known is towards Trocana
prime =^=
T'Val worked the navigational console, setting course for Trocana Prime.
Richard was sitting back in his command chair, vaguely thinking about how
enjoyable it would be to eject Saarok into space. He couldn't get over the fact
that Saarok had been willing to sacrifice his safety and the safety of the
Federation for an unknown purpose. The possibility that Saarok was still in
league with Tepes of his own accord had entered his mind. Richard spent several
minutes re-engaging the Wanderer's security systems, locked to himself only,
and readied his panic button.
This little security concept had been dreamed up by an Orion he had met on
Delvan 2. If Richard was feeling threatened, he activated the panic button and
the ship immediately beamed him into the pattern buffer. Then, the computer
opened all internal doors, external hatches and shut down the main computer.
Anyone still inside the Wanderer was blown out into space. The computer
maintained the vacuum for 10 minutes, then closed the external doors,
repressurized the ship and beamed him back.
Richard made sure his hands were together, as the button itself was actually in
a ring on his right hand. Behind him, Saarok, Tedak and the few commandos who
were left were trying to find the infected ones aboard the El Salvador. Richard
was staring out the main windows when he saw the Romulan shuttle suddenly
cloak. Richard slapped the alert button, which activated the Wanderer's shields
and weapons systems. Then he looked over his shoulder and said "Tedak, I
don't suppose that you activated the command over rides aboard your ship?"
Tedak looked back. "Of course I did."
Richard looked puzzled for a second, then said "Did you lock out
T'Val?" The Romulan ambassador opened his mouth then closed it again.
"That's great" Richard growled, and activated the Wanderer's sensors.
They showed little, just a few subspace anomalies, any of which could be the
Romulan shuttle.
"We have to find my wife!" Tedak insisted as he rushed to the bridge
of the Wanderer. Richard agreed, in his way. T'Val had made it clear that she considered
Richard expendable, and Richard thought the same of her. Tedak had a greater
desire to capture her than he did, and Richard had bigger fish to fry.
"Then I suggest you go find her, Tedak. The vessel that Saarok came in is
probably far better suited than mine to track her down. In fact, as far as I'm
concerned, your invitation to be aboard my vessel is revoked. Richard
manuevered the Wanderer close to Saarok's ship and unceremoniously ordered his
computer to beam everyone except himself over to her.
Richard blessed the sudden silence as the transporter moved everyone off his
ship, then moved to the next stage of his plan. He programmed the computer to
fly the Wanderer through random course changes at full impulse until he ordered
it to stop, to keep it safe from the mist form of Tepes. Then, he grabbed a
tricorder and downloaded the bio readings of Tepes that he had gotten when the
thing had boarded. As an afterthought, he entered Magellan's as well so that he
would be able to find both of them. Then, Richard picked up his phaser rifle
and hand phaser, made sure they were set to maximum and beamed to the El
Salvador.
He had a score to settle...
Zimmerman was making his
way down to Engineering when a large mist seemed to drift towards him.
"Why arn't the vents claring out that stuff?" Kevin wondered. He
reached down at his tricorder when he looked up again, a man was finishing materializing.
Kevin: "Excuse me, sir... may I ask where you came from? Do you require
medical attention?"
The civilian, wearing a dark cloak, grinned and advanced on him.
Tepes: "It matters not from whence I came. What matters is, I am here for
you."
Kevin: "I do not comprehend your statement, sir."
The unknown figure was very close to Kevin now. Zimmerman begain to back away,
first at a slow walk, and then increasing to a run. Kevin almost tapped his
combadge, but remembered communications were out, along with the rest of the
ship. Kevin reached the end of the corridor, and a turbolift. He had put a fair
amount of space between him and the intruder. Kevin oppend the turbolift with
some effort, and then oppened the top of the turbolift. (OFF: In case of an
emergency, turbolifts have tops which can be oppend. Watch TNG: Disaster for
details) Kevin then begain climbing up the ladder (OFF: again, watch Disaster
if you don't know what I'm talking about) with the caped entity close behind.
Kevin was begining to run out of stamina, but the odd figure, while slower, had
not slowed his velocity. Kevin reached a door two floors above where he'd first
encountered the intruder and ran out into the hall, panting. Zimmerman slowed
down, and pried open the nearest door, which contained an unused room. He then
closed the door behind him. He heard the odd man walking closer, then stop...
and pry open the door. Kevin slammed into the man, thinking, "How did he
know I was in here?" But the man was not dislogged from the doorway. He
swiftly walked over to Kevin, who was now trapped and tired
You
have seen running will get you nowhere," the dark-clad figure said to
Kevin. "Further, you are limited in where you can run. You are tired, and
yet you continue to flee. But from what? I have brought … a gift for you,
Kevin."
Kevin’s expression was clearly one of being startled. How could this … thing …
know who he was? As if in answer to his unspoken question, Tepes’ deep,
resonant voice sounded again.
"How I know you is of no consequence, young man. What matters is, I know
you."
Something about the mysterious man’s eyes …. His entire expression – all at
once – changed, as he moved toward Zimmerman. When he had come about three
meters from him, Tepes stopped, and the strange look intensified to a
mesmerizing gaze.
Slowly, the dark figure’s hand raised, palm down, in a hypnotic movement, and
Kevin’s attention was centered on one word. Surrounding sounds faded, even as
the voice of the dark monster summoned him, and within seconds, the summons was
the only thing the Starfleet officer heard.
"Come!"
With all his remaining strength, Kevin tried to resist the command to approach,
certain of the dark creature’s evil intent. Though he struggled, he found
himself rising to face this powerful figure.
"Come, Kevin!"
Still attempting to resist, Kevin was horrified to see his muscles would not
respond to his commands to avoid the monster before him. It seemed, as he
slowly moved nearer and nearer Tepes, that his legs would only respond to the
dark figure’s commands. Nor would Kevin's voice respond to his primal urge to
scream as ancient fears sprang to the surface in the Science Officer.
"Come!"
When Kevin had approached nearly two-thirds of a meter from the dark-clad
figure, Tepes’ lips parted hungrily, showing his elongated canines, and he
reached out to take Kevin’s arm, guiding him into position.
Slowly, anticipating the taste of fresh blood, Tepes’ fangs encompassed Kevin’s
jugular like ancient armies squeezing the life from a city under siege. An evil
smile of satisfaction sprang to the lips of the dark monster as it began to
drink. …
Kevin rose up after Tepes
had finished feeding. An odd look came into Kevin's eyes.
"What would you have me do master?"
"Of course, sir"
...The science officer could not understand what was going on. He had blacked
out for a few minutes, and then woken into a semi-councious state. His motar
and vocal functions were acting without any direction from Kevin's brain. Kevin
recalled a conference he had attended before he came to Section 47. Someone had
theorized that a person had two personalities; the prevailing, concious one,
and a darker, "hidden" one, that might be brought out through a
pshyological technique as a weapon of war. The man had stated that it was
imperitive that Starfleet create methods to cure someone who had been thus
afflicted, but no one quite believed his theory would hold true. Now, Kevin
wondered if that was what was going on...
Zimmerman left the room and walked down the hall. He saw a could of mist, just
like the one that had yielded the odd man who had attacked him. The CScO smiled
and continued down the corridor, focusing on his assignment.
After feasting on T'Mar,
T'Val made sure that she got back to her shuttle unseen by anyone on the senior
staff. As soon as she boarded her shuttle, and left the hangarbay - after
coercing the hangarbay chief into co-operation - she cloaked her vessel and set
course back for the El-Salvador. Master would be pleased, she had gotten to the
Beta squadron commander, and without trouble too.
Just off the bow of the El-Salvador did she uncloak her vessel, and again used the
mists to get aboard. She sought out Master Tepes, and found him feasting on a
young man. She waited patiently at a respectful distance, so Master would not
be disturbed. She had no idea where Magellan was, but she was fairly sure that
he was having his own bit of fun.
Richard materialized in
the darkness at the third junction of Jeffries Tube 7. Immediately, he took
cover between two support struts and looked around through the sight of his
phaser rifle. As his sensors had told him, there were no crew members nearby.
He pulled out his tricorder and established a data link with the Wanderer. It
was still flying it's random flight path in the area. It was also detecting the
shuttle that T'Val had left in. She was obviously back aboard the
Richard shook his head in irritation and verified that his proximity detector
and personal dispersion were working. The detector was programmed to get the Wanderer's
transporter to beam him back to his shuttle if anyone infected with the virus
got within a meter of him. He hoped it would work. The dispersion field would
keep anything but the Wanderer from beaming him off of the
Richard then set his tricorder to scan the interior of the ship for instances
of the vampire virus. The
From a tactical standpoint, Richard should go after Magellan first, seeing as
he was alone. However, tactics were the last thing on his mind.
Hefting his rifle, Richard started carefully making his way towards Engineering.
It was generally not in
Tepes' nature to grin, but this statement from one of his new children brought
just such a grin to his face, an anticipatory smile blended with malevolent
intent.
"There are many on this ship that are available, child. More than enough
for me before I proceed to greater feeding grounds within their Federation.
"You will soon be feeling the thirst; quench it. But, for the moment,
until I determine if you should be worthy of empowering, you should be careful
– careful they do not discover your newfound ... taste."
Tepes' thoughts returned with distaste to Richard Jibb. "Later, if you
prove worthy, I will grant you more power. But for now — go and feast,
my son."
Kevin resumed his path to
the computer core. Tepes had been right - he WAS thirsting.... But there would
be plenty of possibilities. A deck before he reached the computer core, he met
a single crewmember.
Crewmember: "Sir? We were dispatched by Commander Jira to check on the
computer core. I was going to give him my report. Do you -"
Kevin: "Quiet."
The science officer descended on the crewmember swiftly. By the time the
crewmember had started to flee, Kevin had bitten him. Once finished feeding,
Zimmerman was satisfied... until a few moments later. But he could wait. The
science officer continued on to the computer core
Kevin finally got to the
computer core. Once there, he realized they would have to take all the chips
out, imput new chips, and then jumpstart the computer. The fastest this could
be done in was about 38 hours. But if another ships computer happend to be
close at hand, then the jumpstarting could be done much quicker. In fact, the
Crewmember A: "Sir, we've been sent from the bridge. An ambassador has
come with his ship to-"
Kevin: "His ship? You're sure?"
Crewmember B: "Yes, sir. He requested that we remain in our current
position. An Admiral gave the orders."
Kevin: "Well, I don't particuarly care what orders he gave. Ask the
Admiral if we can borrow his computer core."
Crewmember A: "Sir, we cannot reach him."
Kevin: "I...::smiles:: never mind. I'll take care of it."
Crewmember B: "Sir?"
Kevin: "Return to the bridge and tell Captain Smith that I can have life
support restored in time."
Crewmember B: "Yes sir."
Kevin had realized that the ambassador must be Tepes. Of course, Tepes was no
ambassador. But since he had a ship, if he alllowed Starfleet to use it and in
doing so save a ship, then Tepes and his...followers... would be able to move
around more easily with the Federation's trust. Kevin gave orders for the
crewmembers at the computer core to remove the old chips and replace them with
new ones, then headed off to find his master.
Tedak gazed at the sensors
and suddenly he jumped. "Got her!" he shouted, and looked up, only to
find only himself and Saarok present on the Wanderer. "Where did Richard
go?" he asked, but Saarok shrugged and did not answer. "Well, I got
T'Val on sensors, beaming her back here now. Prepare to drug her for she may
not be very happy about it."
Tedak worked the controls of the Wanderer and seconds later he stood eye to eye
with his bondmate, who did not look very pleased, but she also did not look
healthy. To him, she looked sickly pale green, but he knew she was infected.
T'Val growled, anger flashing in her eyes as she lunged at her husband.
Fortunately, Saarok reacted just in time and pressed the hypospray against her
throat. She went limp midlunge and was caught by Tedak. "Now what?"
he asked, gazing at Saarok questioningly.
Tedak looked upon his wife after she emerged from Wanderer's sickbay. She
looked a lot better, even though her expression was still very pale. "Are
you all right?" he asked her, as he drew her into an embrace.
T'Val did not brush him off with her usual 'not in public' excuse, instead, she
heartily returned the embrace. "I am now my husband," she whispered,
"I am so sorry for giving you a fright. Saarok told me what had happened
and in what state you arrived at Assaillant. I had no knowledge of that. When I
was infected, I forgot who I was, and turned into someone else."
She held him at armslength and gazed at him. "I requested the Wanderer CMO
to leave my expression pale and my readings confused. I have to go back to the
El-Salvador, and find admiral Magellan." She blushed as she remembered one
very embarassing moment. "I...appear to have flirted with him, and I
believe that if I try again, I might be able to lure him back here. You will
all need to mask your signals, save for Mr Jibb. If I can lure him back here,
we may be able to help him, cure him. But we are going to need his symbiont for
that."
Tedak frowned at his wife's confession but found that he felt no blame fall
upon her, she had been ill and unaware of her actions. He sensed there was more
going on. "What else?" he asked.
"I infected the captain of the USS Scavenger," she admitted, "as
soon as we have cured Magellan, we need to go over there and cure her."
Tedak nodded. "Be careful my love," he whispered, "I will not be
able to bear losing you again."
T'Val nodded and prepared to beam back to the El-Salvador. Seconds later, she
materialized and was able to locate the admiral in no time.
"Admiral," she said, her voice husky, as she approached him,
"admiral, I have a surprise for you on the Wanderer, will you come with me
and see?" She ran her hand past his jaw, feeling his cool skin. Would she
be able to get through to Lin, without alerting the host? She had to try...she
held on to his face and closed her eyes for a moment.
~Lin hear me, the host MUST come back with me. The cure lies on Wanderer, I am
cured. Assist me if you can, he must get back to Wanderer~
Richard quickly forced
open a jammed door and closed it behind him. His tricorder had picked up a trio
of crew members from the
Luckily, the team passed his room by. Richard went back to the door and
listened carefully. The sounds of the three faded slowly to silence and he was
alone again. He took another look at his tricorder for beings infected with the
virus. There were now four aboard the
Richard moved carefully down the corridor, rifle at the ready.
Magellan stared back at
T'Val, something didnt seem quite right.
"Where have you been?"
"The master had an errand for me."
Magellan regarded her a moment and then nodded.
"Is something wrong?" She asked
"No...No. I just worry when the master is away. The plan is still
vulnerable."
"Have no fear, we shall turn this vessel and with it spread further."
Magellan nodded a cruel smile playing across his lips.
Deep down in the recesses of Magellans body, Lin felt and heard T'Vals plea. If
there were ever to be a resoultion, a way to free this body from the alien and
horrific entity that had consumed Magellan and very nearly Lin itself, this was
it.
Summoning every ounce of strength Lin began to probe the consciousness that now
controlled the body, he drew out Magellans soul and used to fuel the attempt.
Magellan acknowledged agreement through the connection but Lin could feel the
terror his host felt for fighting the entity once more, he had already been
lost twice already, how many more times could Lin catch him.
They pushed together, not at any one point but subtly across the creatures
mind, slowly at certian key points defences weakened and the true Magellan
managed to reassert some control. The strain on Lin was incredible, and it was
all the symbiont could do to not thrash itself around within the symbiosis
cavity.
T'Val watched Magellans face with caution looking for any sign of change. The
faint telepathic link she had managed with Lin had been severed and she was
unsure if this was due to Lin or the Vampire.
"The Master wishes us to return to the Wanderer"
"He does?" Magellan queried in puzzlement "He still has work for
me to do."
Lin sensed this was the opportunity T'val had communicated to him. Now he urged
magellans soul. It acknowledged and leapt from the shadows.
Magellans face flickered in surprise and then concentration.
"No" T'Val asserted "He wants you aboard the Wanderer"
"I have too much to do" he began to protest but found he was already
walking towards the shuttlebay.
"WHAT IS THIS" he shouted in confusion "You seek to trick me,
you are turned. I must warn the master"
Despite his protestations he continued to walk leadenly towards the Wanderer.
T'Val walked alongside "everything is fine" she reassured.
"It is not. I can feel him returning, you ll not have him back, this flesh
is mine"
This was the last word Magellan uttered, his gaze went glassy and his movements
jerky, nevertheless he kept walking.
Suddenly T'Val paused half bending in agony.
"Have... control, it is fighting" The words echoed in her skull. Lin!
It must be Lin re-establishing that fragile link.
"We can't hold him... he is strong. Do what you need to do... hurry. very
tiring very streng......."
T'Val shook her head free of the painful interaction and grasped the Admiral by
the arm and ignoring the odd looks from passing crewman hurried the senior
Starfleet officer towards the Wanderer
Walk, or be carried,"
she insisted, as she hurried him along, "T'Val to wanderer, I have
him....have the EMH ready. Two to beam to Wanderer." The two of them
instantly disappeared from the El-Salvador, and re-appeared on the Wanderer,
where the EMH was waiting for them.
T'Val glanced at Magellan, and saw the hidden fury of the vampire in his eyes,
but she also felt the fragile link with the symbiont. "Please
admiral," she pleaded, "let us help you. Think of Lin, he will die if
we do not help you."
She carefully placed her hand on the cool skin of his temple again, trying to
re-instate the link with the symbiont, attempting to give it strength and
assurance. But before doing so, she instructed the EMH on what she was trying
to do. "If we do not try to keep him under control, we may lose
Magellan," she said, "I am a healer, this is what I am trained for. I
trust him, and I hope he trusts me enough for what we are about to attempt."
Understood", the EMH
responded as he was preparing the shot of the cure for Magellan it was going to
be a bit more difficult to cure him as they could not remove the virus from his
system using the transporter because of Lin
While they were working on that Saarok was on the bridge of the ship speaking
to Tedak , who was glad they were able to cure T'Val.
"I do not understand one thing", Tedak said
"If you were able to avoid being infected, why didn’t you prevent the
vampire from biting Richard Jibb", he asked
Saarok stood in silence for a moment, and then he responded
"I could not risk the lives of T'Val and Magellan by preventing
that", he said
After their conversation Saarok went down to the sickbay.
--Meanwhile back in the sickbay--
T'Val was able to establish a stable link with Lin and the EMH could now work
his magic. He first injected him with a solution he and T'Val were able to
manufacture and which was meant to neutralize the virus from his system. Just
then Saarok showed up and saw that T'Val was sweating from maintaining the link
with the symbiont because of the vampire-Magellan. He went over to them.
"I will attempt to strengthen T'Val", he said to the EMH as he took a
moment to settle the thoughts he did not intend to share to the back of his
mind , then he put his hands on T'Val and transferred his mental power over to
her giving her more then enough strength to maintain the link.
Meanwhile the EMH was reading that the solution was able to neutralize the
virus from Magellan, and then he injected Magellan with a modified version of
the cure Dr. Salek created. It was to have effect only on Magellan and it would
not damage Lin
Kevin could not locate
Tepes. He must have been off on his own buissness. But Kevin WAS able to raid
Sickbay. It wasn't really a problem, with most of the lights off and all.
Besides, no one was particularly interested in what happend to the emergency
blood supplies... After staying at the computer core for another half an hour,
Kevin was hungry again. He intercepted the next runner on Deck 5. Kevin pulled
him out of the Jefferis Tube and bit him. Uncounciousness was immenent, and
after feeding, Kevin was momentarily satisfied.
Richard had been wending
his way through the inky blackness of the El Salvador for some time, making his
way to the Engineering area while monitoring the movement of various beings
infected with the virus. There were only four on the ship right now, and it
appeared that Tepes was the only one who was stationary. Magellan was moving,
and the two
Richard continued to watch his tricorder. It was getting more difficult to
avoid the crew as he approached engineering. But he was getting quite close to
where Tepes was. He stopped and took a careful look through the scope on his
rifle. Tepes was very close, but Richard couldn't see him. Staring through the
sight didn't seem to be doing much good. What was that? Richard saw a tiny
movement adjacent to a large equipment cabinet.
Squinting, Richard could barely see the outline of the shadowy figure of Tepes.
He seemed to be staring downward, eyes closed and concentrating. Richard was
undecided as to what to do, and lowered his rifle. He had come all this way to
kill Tepes, but now he had a tiny voice inside saying that perhaps it was
better to leave him alive, that Tepes was just trying to survive, that he was a
good man.
Richard shook his head. It was like the virus that he had been infected with
was still talking to him, trying to convince him to leave Tepes unharmed. That
wasn't going to happen.
He raised his phaser rifle again and looked through the scope. In it, he could
see the form of Tepes, along with the rifle's power setting. It was up as high
as it would go. Quietly, Richard wished that it could go higher still.
Releasing the safety, he verified his target again and moved his finger to the
trigger. The crosshairs were lined up in the middle of Tepes' motionless chest.
Richard held himself in absolute stillness and slowly squeezed the trigger.
The burst of energy overwhelmed the sight and Richard blinked and could no
longer see Tepes, but knew in his heart that the shot hit the dark man
perfectly.
Peering through the scope again, he searched the floor for the fallen figure of
Tepes. All he saw was a pair of feet.
Dread slowly filled him like water into a cup as Richard slowly panned the
sight along Tepes' body, until he finally reached the man's face. Outlined in
the sight, Richard could see Tepes' eyes burning with a red fire, and that fire
lit his face and reflected off of his white teeth, turning them blood red.
Those eyes were staring right through him, and Richard prepared to die.
As the blast from
Richard’s phaser rifle struck Tepes dead center on the chest, Richard had
expected the dark figure to be vaporized, or at least to be supine on El
Salvador’s deck. Instead, the Stygian-friendly eyes of the monster opened,
looked up, and saw Jibb clearly.
"Who is this commoner – this mortal – who so foolishly attacks?" Tepes
thought with disbelief.
"I am … disappointed in you, Richard. You assured me you were through with
perfidy." The visage of Tepes changed as fury erupted in him. His face
took on a hellish glow, and, fangs bared, he moved slowly toward the man who
had dared fire upon him. "You could have had such power, such …
immortality … had you but been honest with me."
Richard’s feet would not respond to his order to flee, to gain distance for
time to formulate another – and, hopefully, more successful – attack on the
monster. He stood rooted to the deck before the advancing Tepes, as if prepared
to die for his heroism.
There was no deep, oily quality in Tepes voice now. No booming resonance. In a
voice halfway between that of a man’s and the roar of a large jungle cat,
Tepes’ arms lifted his black cape, and his body transformed to that of a huge
dark panther; he sprung at the waiting man.
The force of the lunge sent Jibb sailing backwards, and he came to rest face up
on the deck, facing the glowing, red eyes of the black panther that held him to
the deck. He prepared for the agony of the huge fangs tearing into his flesh –
agony that did not come. Instead, the cat leapt off the captain of the
Wanderer, and through narrowed eyes, glared at his victim.
As Jibb cautiously rose to his feet, keeping his eyes on the great cat,
weaponless now, as the phaser rifle had been thrown out of reach by the cat’s
lunge, the animal paced back and forth, waiting for Richard to rise to near a
full stand.
By the time Richard had gotten again to his feet, confused, dazed, and
wondering why he was not already dead, the cat again became the dark monster.
"You’ve given such annoyance since I’ve first met you, Richard,"
Tepes explained with an evil grin that tore at Jibbs’ stomach nearly as
horribly as he had expected from the cat’s fangs. "It’s time you provide
me with a little … amusement … before you meet your end."
Tepes’ hand went up, palm toward the horrified and angered Richard Jibb. His
transport device to the Wanderer flew from him to Tepes’ waiting hand, and
disappeared into Tepes’ pockets.
"Now there will be no outside help, and no way of escape from the El
Salvador.
"I crave, not only blood, but the hunt for my prey as well. You have sixty
seconds before I come for you. Go!"
"I crave, not only
blood, but the hunt for my prey as well. You have sixty seconds before I come
for you. Go!"
Richard's eyes bulged as his abused mind reached an understanding of what Tepes
had just said. He was going to be hunted, pursued and killed like a rabbit
against a wolf. His feet were locked in place with terror.
"GO!!" Tepes screamed, but the smile never left his face. "You
now have 50 seconds."
Richard turned and ran blindly up the corridor. Turning the corner, he flew
past a startled engineering team. He couldn't even stop long enough to warn
them, although he did grab a emergency lantern that had been sitting atop a
stack of crates. Their protests followed his heels as he ran into the inky
blackness of uncertainty and fear.
As his distance from Tepes increased, Richard started to regain some his his
wits. Checking, he was still carrying his tricorder, a small tool kit and a
hand phaser that had been tucked into his belt. He knew the phaser would be
useless if the rifle couldn't affect Tepes, but perhaps setting it to overload
could kill the beast following him. He pulled out the tricorder and tried to
figure out where he was as he ran. He was still on the engineering deck and
stopped at the intersection of corridor 5 and 7 and looked around, trying to
come up with a plan. The only useful thing he saw was a pile of debris that
looked to be a result of whatever the ship had been through. In it's midst was
a thick bar of duranium. Richard slid it out of the debris. Looking up, he could
see that there was a hole in the ceiling, and more debris piled up behind a
mesh of wiring and duranium support bars.
He looked up the corridor and was preparing to move when a violent blow stuck
him in the middle of his back. Richard flew up the corridor and into a
bulkhead, denting the duranium sheeting and spilling to the floor. When he
opened his eyes, he could see Tepes standing at the corridor junction, a cruel
smile playing across his lips.
"To survive you must run, Richard Jibb. This game is not amusing if I
can't hunt. And when you cease to be amusing, you will die." Tepes stared
incredulously as his prey pulled out a small phaser and pointed it his way. "Your
toys cannot affect a Vampire Richard Jibb. Did you not learn from your last
mistake? Well, if you insist." Tepes spread his arms to make him the
easiest target possible. Richard aimed carefully and fired. The brilliant beam
lit the corridor as it lanced into the ceiling. The plasma melted the
precariously balanced support, and the pile collapsed onto Tepes, driving him
into the floor as the avalanche continued. The collapse ended and silence
reigned in the darkness.
Painfully using the duranium bar, Richard pulled himself to his feet. His back
chest were on fire, and he was certain that he had several broken ribs. Slowly
walking towards the pile, he could see a section of Tepes's back under the
debris. Raising the bar, Richard smashed it into the exposed body, driving it
in with all of his strength and was rewarded with a howl of agony. Encouraged,
he raised the bar again and swung it downward, but this time a disembodied arm
flew out of the pile, grabbed the bar and ripped it out of his hands with
inhuman strength.
Richard turned and fled down the corridor, trying to ignore the sound of
cascading metal. He hoped it would take Tepes' some time to free himself from
the mess
Kevin, on his way back to
the computer core from the bridge where he had briefed Captain Smith on the
status of the computer core, decided to hunt for his next victem. But before he
could locate anyone, a light appeared down the hall. Someone was running at
him. Kevin heard the person's panting, as if they had just ran a marathon. The
officer came closer, and Kevin saw he had been bruised, and was bleeding in
several places. From far down the hall, he located Tepes' presence. Decideing
to leave his master and his prey alone, Kevin ran off down the hall before the
officer, if he had a tricorder, could scan him. The officer called for help,
but Kevin was already far away
Searing agony welled up
between Lin and Magellan. It throbbed and pulsed with every onslaught that
passed between the alien mind and the true body.
A greater strength was yielded them as Saarok and T'Vals combined meld contriubted
to the fight.
The antidote to the infection was working now and the alien influence had begun
to fight for its very existence. Tepes had summoned it from the twilight realm
through the siring process, but this, this didnt just get rid of him, it
completely erased him. His dark soul would be gone forever. Such fear of death
forced even greater conflict, but instead of one mind on one as most host prey
reactions were, his host had a second mind some kind of symbiont and now that
symbiont had been joined by 2 external minds. The combined force was too much
and second by second he lost more and more ground before with a scream of
anguish he was shoved into oblivion.
Magellan shook and then coughed. Tedak crossed to stand beside the admiral.
"Magellan?"
T'Val and Saarok both emerged from the meld and shakily nodded their heads.
"He is free" T'Val noted,
Magellan lifted his head,
"Thankyou" he said weakly, "Thankyou, I m back, but so very
tired."
"Excellent" Tedak smiled
"We need to stop Tepes, hes... hes evil, pure evil, the plans he has. The
others... you must cure the El Sal"
"In time"T Val soothed you need rest.
"Assasilant I must secure Assailant, we must get back now."
"We cant leave yet, Mr Jibb is not back"
"Beam him aboard, tell the El Sal CMO what to do and get me back to
Assa...."
Tedak looked at T'Val, she glanced at her tricorder
"He has passed out, he is too tired, Lin will heal him but I seriously
think we need to get him checked over at a facility familiar with trill
physiology and Assailant is the closest"
"We cant leave until we have sorted out Tepes and liberated the others who
are infected" Saarok noted grimly
T'Val nodded as she helped
Saarok, who had caught Magellan just before he fainted, lift the admiral onto
one of the biobeds. During his 'speech' the admiral had gotten up, and T'Val
had not kept him from doing so. She herself still felt somewhat dizzy from the
exhausting mind-meld. Next she slowly walked over to the sensor-board and gazed
at it for a while. "Richard's signature has disappeared from
scanners," she stated calmly, "but we are still picking up the anomalous
signature of Tepes. I would not be surprised if Jibb is fairly close to
him...." She looks up at Tedak and Saarok expectantly. "Well, what
are you waiting for, go get him!" she exclaims impatiently, "I will
stay here, watch over the admiral and make sure he gets his much needed rest.
Also, I wish to talk to him in private..." Her voice trails off.
Tedak nods. "Yes, we must get Jibb," he agreed and turned to Saarok,
"our two firelizards can work to our advantage, we can send two to find
Tepes and two to find Jibb. They also can keep the corridors clear of crew, if
Tepes is around, plus they can look out for infected crewmembers."
From under the debris
issued a strange, mocking chuckle that intensified into ridiculing laughter.
The metal that covered Tepes began vibrating, progressed to shaking, and
finally flew outwards, smashing into the bulkheads. Seemingly unharmed, the
dark monster rose to its feet in the midst of what was left of the pile of
rubble.
"You are disappointing me, Richard," Tepes called after the fleeing
mortal.
Stepping from the pile, he moved again in the direction of the fleeing captain
of the Wanderer, a smile of anticipation on his lips.
A group of Starfleet officers, who had only a moment before been hurling their
protests in Richard Jibb's direction, took note of the figure chasing the man,
and realizing in an instant the implications of this ominous figure, moved to
discourage him.
Tepes had neither time nor interest in dealing with them on a mortal level, and
so waved them back with his arm, and the men were slammed backwards into the
bulkhead as Tepes continued, still tracking his prey.
In a matter of moments, he would feast again...
Kevin went out hunting
again. He saw another crewmmeber, but she turned out to be another vampire.
Kevin smiled slightly at her, but went on. A few decks later, Kevin found what
he was looking for. As Kevin feeded, he wondered how much longer it would be
before the El Salv was completely overrun
Saarok stood and thought
over Tedak’s plan, it had merit and they needed to get out of here and back to
the starbase. However he suspected that phasers are not going to be effective
against Tepesh.
"Very well, we will use our firelizards to find Tepesh and mr. Jibb",
he said
As both him and Tedak went to their firelizards and send them what they should
do once they are on the EL Sal.
"We will send one of yours and one of mine to find Tepesh and the other 2
to find Jibb alto i believe that they are very close to one another.",
Saarok said
After that they each took a phasor but they did not think it was going to help
them much, but perhaps as a diversion. The stepped on the pad with their firelizards
flying next to them.
"Energize"
And the dematerialized and appeared in a corridor on the El Sal. As soon as the
appeared there their firelizards flew away to look for Jibb and Tepesh.
Richard scrambled down the corridor as quickly as his injuries would let him.
His chest and back were on fire, and each breath inward was a new experience in
pain. Still, he staggered on, not knowing where to go or what to do, just
trying to survive for a few more minutes despite the malevolence of Tepes. On
and on he ran into the darkness.
As he fled, he thought about the words that he had heard Tepes say. "Your
toys cannot affect a Vampire Richard Jibb. Did you not learn from your last
mistake?" A vampire? What was a Vampire. Slowing himself to a limping
walk, he pulled out his tricorder and reestablished the data link to the
Wanderer. Accessing the library files, he looked up the word. He read the
result. A vampire was a mythical creature, not real at all. Something made up
to frighten children at bed time. Useless.
His feet ground to a halt and he fell to his knees as despair threatened to
overwhelm him. How could he kill a myth? He continued to read. How to kill a
myth. Cut off it's head or stab it through the heart with a piece of wood,
apparently. Wonderful. Where was he going to find a piece of wood on a
Federation starship? The ship was made of duranium. He couldn't even replicate
one here as the El Salvador's systems were out. Couldn't get one from the
Wanderer. Hoever, the information was a life jacket of hope in a sea of
desolation, and Richard clung to it as he had nothing else to grasp.
From behind him, Richard heard the malevolent, mocking laughter pursuing him up
the corridor, and he knew that he was running out of time. Dragging himself to
his feet, Richard opened and examined the layout of the ship. He couldn't think
of any place to find wood on ship and there was nothing on the ship that might
offer it. Suddenly, Richard saw a room to decks below that might help him and
turned towards the nearest access ladder.
Forcing open the hatch, Richard entered the confined space and began to climb
down. However, before he went all the way, he dragged the doors closed over him
and then used his phaser to fuse them together. He needed some time.
That done, he started to climb down the ladder. Suddenly, an uncontrollable
urge to cough over came him and he had to let it go. The spasms wracked him
violently and he nearly lost his grip on the rungs before they ceased. Opening
his eyes, Richard could see the wall ahead of him illuminated by his light. It
was spattered with blood, and he could feel it drip down his face.
It seemed his time was less than it appeared.
He continued down the ladder for the two decks and stepped off, again forcing
open the door and closing it behind him. The effort made him dizzy and spots
like fireflies danced before his eyes. Unsteadily, he again used his phaser to
seal the door and headed down the corridor to his destination, stumbling into
it drunkenly.
Looking up, he could see the sign in the light. Arboretum. Forcing the door, he
walked in. There was no other exit. It was time for the last stand of Richard
Jibb.
He searched the room for the things he needed.
Nut appeared above Jibb,
twittering softly at him, his eyes whirling orange in alarm when he noted the
man's appearance. The man was stumbling, and clearly in search for something.
Hovering before his face, Nut twittered his querry, unknowing if the man could
understand.
Nut flapped his wings, flew around Jibb and grabbed the back of his shirt,
holding him upright with his talons, while he kept twittering at the man,
trying to find out what he wanted.
Shortly after that, another firelizard zipped in. Saarok's blue chirped
questioningly at Nut, who replied and the blue zipped out again, back to his
owner, relaying Nut's message to him.
~~elsewhere~~
Sev followed Aeris, Saarok's queen firelizard, in the search for Tepes. They
twittered in excitement as they zipped in and out several rooms, and in the end
locating the supernatural being in one of the Jeffries tubes. Sev had been
given some sort of firestone to chew, Aeris had been offered too but she had steadfastly
refused the stones. Instinctively, she had known that that would render her
infertile.
It was little trouble to
follow Jibb as he descended through the Jeffries tubes. When he had sealed the
hatchway, he had neglected to inspect his work – understandable, considering
the race in which he found himself – and had left a few small openings that
Tepes knew he could use.
A malevolent smile crossed the vampire's face as his body vibrated, then
transformed into the swirling, verdant mist, finding its way through the
blockage, then resolidifying again within the Jeffries Tube. Down, down, down
climbed the dark figure.
As he neared the end of the tubes, he heard a chirping noise in the corridor,
and, not concerned about its source, stepped out of the tube to continue his
stalking of the captain of the Wanderer.
Sev beated his wings frantically to keep up with the larger queen, and then
with effort put himself before her, and expelled his hot flame at the creature.
The two winked out and re-appeared on the other side, repeating the effort.
Every time after Sev flamed, Aeris sped forward and used her talons to mark the
creature's face.
Sev and Aeris were minor
annoyances to the dark figure. He had grown hungry again, and was anxious to
feed. "What are these ... things ... that dare to try their hand at
stopping Tepes?" he thought.
It was enough! The gaze of the dark figure changed, as it had so many times
before ...
As his eyes caught those
of Aeris, the flying reptile froze in place, lowering with a thud to the deck
of the El Salvador. Turning to Sev, he said maliciously, "I am amazed you
think flame can stop me. Do you not realize I was born to fire?"
Falling victim to the same mesmerizing stare, Sev slept on the deck of the
disabled ship.
"Pleasant dreams, my pets," mocked the monster that was Tepes.
"By the time you will have awakened, Tepes will have fed!"
The dark pursuer could hear movement – movement such as a man injured might
make – from within a chamber ahead marked "ARBORETUM" over the
hatchway. On the deck were droplets of blood leading to his next feeding.
Tepes eyes intensified in anticipation and hatred as he moved toward the
doorway.
It was time to feast!
Richard staggered around
the Arboretum, looking for some wood. And surprisingly found it easily. There
were several larger trees here. Richard pulled out his phaser and was preparing
to fire when a fluttering sound startled him. Leaping to his left and rolling,
he came up with his phaser ready to fire and saw a small bat shaped creature.
Totally unnerved, he fired several times before he recognized the flying
shapes. He had only seen them a few times, and the only instance he rememberer
was aboard Assailant. They belonged to one of the Amabassadors, but he couldn't
remember which one. They didn't matter. Turning, he used his phaser to chop up
two of the trees into two spears one meter long each and sharpened the ends of
both. Then he grabbed a shorter branch, pointed one end and stuffed it into his
right sleeve. One of the creatures was grasping the back of his shirt with it's
talons, and he waved it away distractedly as he set his light into a corner of
the room away from the door to provide as much illumination as possible.
As he turned, he heard heavy footfalls in front of the Arboretum door. He moved
to the middle of the room, hands tight on his two wooden spears and faced his
death, feeling much like a caveman facing a mammoth. Two sets of fingers forced
their way into the seam of the doors and forced them apart, revealing the face
of Tepes, glowing with it's own dark light
For a moment, the dark
creature stood, barring the exit from the arboretum – the death-chamber.
Looking about the room, and seeing there was no egress, a diabolical smile
stretched the lips of the monster.
"Well, Richard," Tepes intoned. "We have reached the end of the
chase. My feeding ground." Tepes' sinister smile intensified.
"This is not a sufficient chase. I would rather you had continued, but
obviously you now are ready to battle. But not THAT way!"
Tepes' hand raised again, and the spears Mr. Jibb had made, along with the dart
under his right sleeve, were wrenched from him and flew to Tepes. One by one,
the dark monster broke the wood at the points, laid them in his hand, and the
points of wood burst into flame.
Shaking the ashes from his palm, Tepes cast the broken remnants of the spears
and the dart aside, then advanced on Mr. Jibb
Nut squealed as the
vampire entered the arboretum. He winked between, followed by the blue,
but they re-appeared a few meters away behind a tree. The two remained utterly
quiet and watched Tepes. Then the blue winked out to return to his master,
while Nut remained behind, keeping an eye on his charge.
He saw Jibb move about, and watched as Tepes forced his way into the arboretum.
Then he caught sight of a heavy log, left behind when someone had cut down a
tree that had been ill. Using his talons, he lifted the heavy log, then beat
his wings frantically to get above the vampire. He let go and chirped as it
landed heavily on the vampire's head. That done, he returned to Jibb and
attempted to land on the man's shoulder.
The log landed full-force
on Tepes' head and fell to the deck, but Tepes remained standing.
"A good try, little creature. But against my kind, ineffective."
As in the corridor with Aeris and Sev, the visage of the dark figure changed as
he caught Nut's eye.
The
firelizard missed his goal of Mr. Jibb's shoulder, and fell asleep on the deck
of the arboretum.
"Since you are prepared to struggle, Richard, then fight well. Fight to
make up for the poor chase. And if you fight well enough, I might make
your end swift."
Tepes' open palm flew forward, and though it never came in contact with him,
Jibb felt a tremendous force strike him, sending him flying into the wall of
the arboretum.
"Come, now, Richard. You are not surrendering so easily, are you?"
smiled Tepes.
<Jibb>
With this, the vampire moved again towards the captain of the Wanderer.
With the wounds he had received, Richard Jibb now had to hobble where he
elected to go, and in order to gain more time, he made an attempt to get
through the now-unattended door.
Suddenly, in response to Tepes' gesture, the door slid shut and would not open
again. Beating on the door, hoping without critical thought it would by this be
persuaded to grant him egress, Richard could hear the mocking laughter of the
creature of the night drawing ever closer.
Finally, turning to face his end, Richard's foot landed on one of the broken
spears he had made just prior to Tepes' entrance to this chamber of death. His
foot rolled on the stick and he fell.
Tepes was now no more than three or four meters from him. As Richard looked up
to the dark figure, he saw the lips open and fangs glisten in the dim lighting
of the room. There was no smile on the face of Tepes; nothing shown from his
eyes except intense hatred.
Instantly, with a bestial scream of rage, Tepes leapt toward his victim, fangs
bared.
Summoning the strength
from that well deep within him that allowed him to resist Tepes for so long,
Richard raised his feet and caught Tepes in the stomach as the being leaped at
him, catapulting the enraged creature over him and into the far wall. As he
passed over, Richard stared deeply into Tepes eyes, which seemed to be tunnels
into the heart of a volcano. There was a loud crash as Tepes smashed into the
wall and then the deck.
Richard scrambled back to his feet and turned to face his tormentor, but Tepes
was already on him, moving faster than anything he had ever seen before. "Good
Richard Jibb, good. You are proving amusing. I shall extend your life. Just a
bit longer." Gripping him with inhuman strength, Tepes picked Richard up
and effortlessly tossed him onto a table, and flowers and greenery flew
everywhere and he fell to the floor.
Smiling calmly, Tepes walked over to where Richard was trying to get to his
feet. Given the extra time, Richard managed it and was moving away from Tepes
as quickly as he could, limping and gasping breath in and out of his lungs.
Suddenly, he was grabbed from behind, lifted off the ground and turned. Tepes
stood several meters away, frowning. "Unfortunately, I am no longer
amused. I have many things to do, and so little time. I hope you
understand." Richard was flung bodily across the room again, slamming face
down into the deck, and he felt something else inside of him give. Opening his
eyes, he saw the remains of one of the spears he had made within his reach, and
could hear the rush of Tepes feet'behind him. Grasping the spear, Richard
rolled over and held the spear point first over him. He could see Tepes eyes
flashing towards him and changing from anticipation to fear.
Tepes body collided with Richards, and left his face right in Tepes'. Those
eyes were wide, and continued to widen as small cracks formed in the face. The
cracks opened, but only darkness was in them. They sped along and a cold wind
blew around the room. Tepes let out a feral scream of pain, fear and hatred.
Tepes' body collapsed into dust, and covered Richard.
He had not believed it
possible. It COULD NOT have happened! A mortal creature bringing
the closing curtain on his Symphony of Horror. As he felt the ragged end of the
spear, the point of which he had destroyed only moments before, enter his
chest, the pain was intensified to the limitation of perception by wild,
surging rage.
Tepes could feel his form breaking, opening ...
To the side, on the deck of the Arboretum, Richard heard a weak chirping as Nut
struggled out of his slumber.
Elsewhere on the decks of the El Salvador, Aeris and Sev also stirred, and
within moments, though groggy, were once again awake.
Throughout the Quadrant, all who had direct connection with Tepes, to whom he
had bestowed his gift and upon whom he had fed, though not as yet cured, since
the toxins were yet in their systems, felt a shudder, as their ties with him
were severed. Though still in Tepes' prison, their cell doors were now
unlocked.
That dark monster, which for nearly a millennium had played his symphony of
horror, terrifying the quadrant, was no more.
Kevin had just finished
jumstarting the core. He was getting thirsty again, and decided to hunt once
more. As he begain to climb into the nearest Jefferis Tube, looking for an
unsuspecting crewmember, he shuddered. Then Kevin lurched forward, knocking off
his commbadge as he fell into of the Jefferis Tube. The CScO grew dizzy, then
lost conciousness
A few minutes later, Kevin
awoke. He felt somewhat different, but it seemed he was almost more thirsty
than he had been before. If that was possible. Kevin crawled through the
Jefferis Tube, looking for his prey.
As he exited the Jefferis Tube, he saw two crew members walking towards him.
One was a Vulcan, the other human. Kevin hit the Vulcan first. Hard. As the
Vulcan, with a newly broken nose, sank to the ground, Kevin grabbed the human
and bit into her neck. After finishing, he turned to the Vulcan, who was
moaning. Zimmerman was almost finished with him when he heard footsteps. He
jumped into a nearby turbolift.
Kevin: "Emergency close. Deck 4."
He detected a few startled cries outside the door before the turbolift took him
away from the scene of the crime.
Tedak was peering at his
tricorder for a long moment and only looked up when one of his firelizards
zipped in out of nowhere, chattering angily and in alarm. "Shht,"
Tedak told him quietly, and held up his arm for the little creature to land on.
He closed the tricorder with the other hand and tucked it away, then stroked
his little friend gently. "What is wrong?" he asked, and seconds
later his mind was overwhelmed with images. "Tepes is dead?" he
asked, and the creature chirped in confirmation, "very well done my
friend, very well done. Go back to Jibb and see if he is all right. Get him to
T'Val, with whatever means you deem necessary. Do not harm him!"
He knew his litle friends sometimes took him a little too literally. He
retrieved his tricorder and continued scanning. Soon he found an infected
officer, and tracked him down. He confronted the human young man, holding him
standing as he emerged from a turbolift. "Kevin Zimmerman?" he asked,
holding his hand on his Honor Blade, another at his phaser, "please come
with me. I need to get you to sickbay immediately. If you do not come with me
peacefully, I will be forced to stun you. Do not tempt me, for I will
fire." He set the phaser on heavy stun and pointed it at Zimmerman
Zimmerman grinned
wickedly.
Kevin: "All right. As you wish. We can go to Sickbay."
Tedak: "Stay in front of-"
As Kevin neared Tedak, his arm shot out and grabbed Tedak's arm that was
holding the phaser. Tedak gave a cry of alarm. Kevin had broken his arm. Tedak
dropped the phaser. As Tedak pulled out his Honor Blade, Kevin kicked him in
the chest, sending him flying against the wall. Zimmerman picked up the phaser
and shot Tedak. Then he ran as fast as he could towards Sickbay - if he could
control Sickbay, he would be able to stop Tedak's allies from destoying him. As
Kevin neared Sickbay, he heard Commander Savot talking to two security
personnel.
Savot: "The CScO, Lt. Zimmerman, has stoled a few blood packs from
Sickbay. It may be that he has merely used them in some sort of research, but
he hasn't answered any of my hails."
Kevin looked down to find his comm badge missing. Then he remembered it had
fallen off as he climbed into a Jefferis Tube.
Savot: "Lt. Lucas and Captain Smith are on their way down to Sickbay right
now. Find them and have Lt. Lucas track Mr. Zimmerman down."
Crewmember: "Yes, sir."
Kevin pressed his back against the wall. If those two security guards made it
to the Jefferis Tube where Remeti Lucas was, Kevin would be in trouble. He took
an alternate rout and stopped the guards as they neared a turbolift.
Crewmember: "Sir, Commander Savot requested your assistance."
Kevin didn't bother talking to them. He shot one while the other was still
talking, and hit the other one soon after. Then he dragged them into a nearby
room and left them there. Kevin headed back to Sickbay
Back on the Wanderer,
T'Val felt Tedak had become unconcious. Using infra-red scanning, she located
Kevin, then got a phaser and beamed over to the El Salv a few meters from the
infected officer. Kevin heard the slight hum of the transporter and turned. But
he was too late. T'Val shot Kevin in the chest and he fell to the ground. T'Val
beamed both of them back to the Wanderer, and then beamed back Tedak. After
waking Tedak and tending to his injuries, she went to Sickbay where Kevin had
been beamed to and began to cure him.
*******************************************
Half an hour later, Kevin woke up. There was no more craving. He looked around,
expecting to see Commander Savot or Lt. Lucas standing behind a forcefield,
with him, Kevin, in the brig, but instead he saw the man he'd stunned and
Vulcan standing a few meters away.
Tedak: "Hello, Mr. Zimmerman."
Kevin blushed. He had nevrtattacked anyone physically before, and having broken
this man's arm, well,...he was a tad bit uncomfortable.
T'Val: "You have been cured. We will return you to the El Salvador. I
believe you are needed there."
Kevin: "Of course. Um... thanks, I guess."
Tedak: 'You guess?"
Kevin smiled as Tedak transported him back to the El Salv