From: Shawn _ (alamo_nate_at_yahoo.com)
Date: Sat Jul 12 2008 - 02:26:20 PDT
=Helping Hand, Part 2=
(cont'd from "Helping Hand, Part 1")
LOCATION: USS COMMENDATION
SCENE: Brig
STARDATE: [2.8]0712.0225
TIME INDEX: Before Taylor's "132" post
Crichton laid on the cot, his eyes closed, doing his best to sleep. Captain Byrne's constant pacing and cursing was keeping him awake, however, and eventually he gave up and moved to a sitting position on the end of his cot, regarding the blonde woman with his one eye.
"If I might observe, your captainyness," he said, "Your current plan of 'pace back and forth and whine loudly' doesn't appear to be working."
"Don't start with me, Crichton," Daisy said, staring daggers at him through the forcefield.
"Why not?" Crichton snorted. "It's not as though you can do anything about it."
"We won't be in these cages forever," Daisy said. "And when I get out, you will know levels of pain beyond human endurance."
"As long as we're getting melodramatic, why don't you throw in an 'if it's the last thing I do'?" Crichton asked, examining his fingernails with a disinterested look on his face.
Daisy was about to reply when the door to the brig swished open. It was Captain Anaqueen Spankryz, who strode purposefully into the room, deliberately avoiding a glance at her double, seated in Daisy's cell across the row from Crichton. She came to a stop in front of Crichton's cell and regarded the young, cyclopean engineer.
"We need to talk," she said.
"It's going to be a boring conversation," Crichton shrugged. "I can't think of anything I could possibly have to say to you."
"Commander Daisy Byrne of GATEWAY Station has asked that I speak with you on her behalf," Ana said.
"Hmph," the mirror-Daisy grumbled from her cell. "She doesn't want to face me."
"It looks like her Chief Engineer and Flight Squadron Commander are in trouble," Ana said, ignoring the grumbling behind her. "They were examining your vessel when they-"
"They set off the trap," he finished for her, his voice sounding bored.
"Yes, it would seem so," Ana nodded. "The Chief Engineer is unable to fix the problem on his own, and has requested your help specifically."
This seemed to get Crichton's attention. He looked at Anaqueen with his one eye and stroked his chin thoughtfully. "This Chief Engineer," he said finally. "What's his name?"
"Jacob Crichton," Anaqueen said.
Crichton was intrigued now, as a smile widened slowly on his face. He thought about it for another moment, but then a wary look came over his face.
"What's in this for me?" he asked.
"As of now, your whole crew is scheduled to be debriefed by Starfleet Command," Anaqueen explained. "After that, you will all be brought up on charges for crimes against the Federation, including kidnapping, torture, and attempted murder."
"That was all her," Crichton said, pointing across the row at Daisy. "I just fix stuff."
"*If* you agree to help," Anaqueen continued, "the charges against you will be reduced to a simple aiding and abetting charge. You will still serve time, but significantly less than your associates."
"If I agree to help your version of me," Crichton mused. He thought about it some more, and realized it was the best deal he was likely to get. Besides, anything that got him away from Daisy Byrne couldn't be all bad.
"Alright," he said finally. "Where do I sign?"
----------------------------------------------------------
LOCATION: KING MIDAS, currently docked with GATEWAY Station
SCENE: Budo's Office
Raxl was met in the docking bay by a huge, surly looking Nausicaan. He started to explain that he'd been ask to come, but the Nausicaan seemed to expect him and grumbled "Come with me," in a low, gravely voice. They moved through the ship, which Raxl noticed was extremely well decorated. The walls were covered with fine silk hangings and artwork from a hundred worlds. The crew of the ship seemed to go about the work oblivious to Raxl and his Nausicaan guide, and Raxl noted the speed and efficiency with which they completed their tasks.
Budo Pumbular was a name that Raxl had heard more than once. Supposedly a merchant, it was no secret that Budo made the majority of his money moving illegal merchandise for several criminal organizations. He also had a reputation as an information broker, as well a man who could be trusted with "acquiring" items from all over the galaxy if one had the credits to pay for it. Of course, none of this could be *proven*, but Raxl knew enough to keep on his guard as he moved through Budo's ship.
They finally came to a large door with armed guards standing on either side. One of the guards turned and entered a code on a keypad, and a moment later the door slid noiselessly apart. The Nausicaan led Raxl into a large office, with a fancy looking desk at its center. Behind the desk, in a large, velvet-lined chair with a gold frame that looked more like a throne than a chair, sat a fat, bald man with piercing green eyes and an icy smile on his lips.
"Have a seat," Budo Pumbular said quietly, gesturing at the somewhat less plush (but still impressive) chair in front of his desk. Raxl took a seat, noting that the Nausicaan remained by the door, probably in case Raxl tried to make a sudden escape. With no weapon (they'd searched him before letting him come aboard), Raxl wasn't sure he could take the Nausicaan down if it came to it, and so resolved to keep a *very* open mind about whatever it was Budo Pumbular had to offer.
"Refreshments?" Budo asked, tapping a button on a console built into one of the arms of his chair. On cue, a panel in the desktop opened, and a bowl of Anjuu berries rose into view. The fat man picked one of the tiny purple berries out of the bowl and popped it into his mouth, closing his eyes and sighing softly as he savored its rich flavor.
"No thanks," Raxl said. "You go ahead, though."
Budo, who had clearly meant to go ahead with or without Raxl's approval, enjoyed several more of the berries before pressing another button and withdrawing the bowl. He then turned his full attention towards Raxl.
"Let me start by saying that I've heard good things about you, Mr. Dreyton," Budo said, his fat lips stained purple by berry-juice. "You have a reputation for bravery and dedication to your job."
"Do I also have a reputation for being paid?" Raxl asked. "Lately, I seem to be having trouble with *that* part of my job."
"If you're referring to your problem with the T'hr'zzians, put it out of your mind," Budo said. "The bounty I wish to discuss today is far larger than the paltry sum those insects planned to give you."
"Before we start, you *do* know I don't accept private contracts?" Raxl asked.
"Of course," Budo nodded. "You wish to remain legitimate. As an honest businessman myself, I understand completely."
"So we're clear, I'm not hunting down anyone who hasn't actually broken the law?"
"Yes, yes," Budo said, waving this off. He tapped another button, and the lights in the room darkened as a holodisplay appeared over his desk. A man's face appeared, next to a list of biographical information which scrolled by too rapidly for Raxl to read. The scrolling stopped suddenly, and the highlighted text began flashing red.
"As you can see," Budo continued, "several months ago, Mr. Martin Anders was implicated in the attempted murder of a Ferengi barkeep in the Jokarin System. He escaped capture, and local Ferengi law-enforcement have placed a legitimate bounty on his head."
Raxl studied the information, and it all looked to be accurate. The offered bounty on Martin Anders was high, but not so high that it explained why Budo was so sure he'd accept it.
"So why are you bringing this bounty to my attention?" Raxl asked. "Who is Martin Anders to you?"
"He is a former employee of mine," Budo said simply. "There were some... disagreements between us, and he left my service. That was over a year ago."
"And you're ratting him out to a bounty hunter because...?"
"Let us just say that I feel a sense of responsibility for the men in my employ," Budo said, his face impassive. "When I hear that a former employee has turned to such brutish criminal behavior, I feel it is my duty to aid in his capture."
"Well, I'm afraid I'm not interested," Raxl said, glancing warily back at the Nausicaan behind him. "The Jokarin System is too close to Dominion space, and I'm not risking running into a Dominion patrol for the kind of money the Ferengi are offering."
"Of course not," Budo said. "But along with the amount *I* am willing to pay, I'm sure you can be persuaded to risk it."
This made Raxl wary. Budo Pumbular obviously wanted Martin Anders out of the picture, and Raxl felt that this offer by the rotund merchant was in return for making sure Anders didn't reach any authorities alive. Raxl had no illusions about his choice of profession- a lot of the people he captured faced sentences of death (or worse!) on the worlds they had fled, and by capturing them and bringing them back, Raxl essentially assured their fate. But it was a point of pride for Raxl that he never killed them himself, except in self-defense (which, thankfully, had only happened twice in his career as a bounty hunter). Raxl was not an executioner, and it was against his (admittedly flexible) moral code to kill for money. He would kill to protect himself, his ship, or the ones he cared about, but he would not kill just to pad his bank account.
"I'm not exactly sure what you're asking," Raxl said carefully, not wanting to offend Budo if he'd misunderstood the fat man's offer, "..but I think I should make something else clear as well: when I capture a bounty, I consider their life to be under my protection until I turn them in to the authorities."
"I see," Budo Pumbular said. His expression did not change- the only sign of his displeasure was a slight twinkle in his eye. "That is quite commendable, Mr. Dreyton."
"My mother thinks so too," Raxl said with a smile.
"Still, that's no reason why we can't do business," Budo said. He gave the bounty hunter a polite smile that turned Raxl's blood to ice. "My conscience simply cannot bear the thought of Martin Anders running loose for another minute. I would consider a personal favor if you were to aid in his apprehension."
Raxl mulled the offer over. He knew Budo was up to something, but it was also difficult to turn down the kind of money he'd stand to make if Budo was true to his word. Raxl might draw the line at murder, but that didn't mean he wasn't greedy, and he was almost salivating thinking about what he could do with Budo Pumbular's credits. But his greed had gotten him into trouble in the past, and all his instincts were telling him to walk away from this deal now, while he still had the chance.
But instead of being sensible and refusing the fat man's offer, Raxl instead found himself saying, "I want your money in advance."
At this, Budo Pumbular smiled like a spider who'd just caught Raxl in his web. "Of course, Mr. Dreyton. I'm sure we can work something out."
--------------------------------------------------------
LOCATION: GATEWAY Station
SCENE: Operations
Eishnala sh'Kor led Jacob Crichton into Operations at phaserpoint. The pair stepped out of the turbolift, and Kor led Crichton over to the engineering console. Commander Daisy Byrne was standing there, as well as Lt. Ganesh. Crichton gave them a friendly smile as he approached.
"Daisy Byrne!" he said with enthusiasm. "In my dimension, everyone hates you!"
"That's... nice," Daisy said, raising an eyebrow. "I actually go by 'Davidson' in this dimension."
"My bad," Crichton said. He took a seat and cracked his knuckles. "So, what seems to be the trouble?"
"You tell us," Daisy said. "I sent my CEO... our own Mr. Crichton... over to *your* ship, and something has gone wrong."
"Don't tell me," Crichton said with a smirk, "..they tried to fix the fusebox, and wound up in one of those pesky, 'we're all about to die' kind of situations."
"Something like that," Daisy frowned. "Now, my own Jacob Crichton seems to think that *you* are the only one who can help."
"He's right," Crichton said with a nod. "By the way, we're going to have to hail them. I'm sure the SHIV has lost outgoing communications by now."
"They've figured that one out already," Daisy said, a little pride in her voice at the opportunity to show up the arrogant Crichton. "We've kept the channel open. He's probably already heard everything you've said."
Crichton decided to test it. "Jake? Jacob Crichton?"
[[Crichton here,]] came the voice of the *real* Jake Crichton over the comm. [[I heard a rumor that you were the second smartest 'Jake Crichton' in this dimension. Thought you might be able to lend a hand.]]
"I'm happy to oblige the second-prettiest Jake Crichton in this dimension," the cyclopean Crichton said with a grin. "That was you in the nebula before, wasn't it?"
[[I'll be happy to go over our game of space-chess another time,]] Crichton replied. [[Right now, I think we've got more important things to talk about.]]
"Certainly," the mirror-Crichton nodded. "Right now, you're wondering if I know some secret way to deactivate the countermeasures-program."
[[That would be a big help,]] the GATEWAY's CEO replied.
"Bad news, Jake," Crichton said. "I'm too good for that."
[[I take it that means there's no way to shut this thing off?]]
"No way that I *know* of," Crichton shrugged. "But here's the thing- I'm clever. And if you're a mirror for me, that means you must be clever too. And I'm betting that, between the two of us, we can out-clever anyone, even ourselves."
[[I bet that would be comforting in the universe where that makes any kind of sense.]]
"Me too," Crichton chuckled. "Okay, how about this- together, we're going to try and come up with whatever it is I missed. If we can't, and you die... I call dibs on all your stuff."
[[Is it bad that, on some level, that sounds perfectly reasonable to me?]]
"Just go with it," Crichton said, his grin widening. "That's what I usually do."
============================================================================
NRPG: Part 3 should be out soon!
LEIGH: Sorry if it seems like I've hijacked your character. Feel free to post before I do if you want to mix things up a bit.
Shawn Putnam
a.k.a.
Jake Crichton, Lieutenant
Chief of Engineering
GATEWAY Station, GS-2
From HyperNews_at_youth.net
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Wed Nov 19 2008 - 03:10:54 PST