From: Ranjani Sabarinathan (rantrek_at_yahoo.com)
Date: Sun Feb 17 2008 - 16:25:28 PST
Tragic Voyage
An FRPG novella
By Ranjani Sabarinathan
The entire novella takes place before the reappearance
of the Celestial Temple.
Chapter 1
********
Location: Paris, France, EARTH
SD: 2.71224.1349
Scene: Starfleet Medical Hospital Ward 5
TI: December, 2422
Christmas was approaching, where the traditions varied
amongst the different cultures that celebrated it. In
France, children placed their shoes by the fireplace
for Pere Noel to fill them with small gifts. Sweets,
fruits, nuts and small toys were found hung on the
Christmas tree. At nearly every French home, one could
spot displays of a nativity scene or crèche, which was
often occupied by miniature clay figures known as
little saints.
Starfleet Medical was bustling with the usual activity
and time of day did not matter for the stress level of
the brave doctors and nurses working there. It could
be a warm summer day or a cold winter night and one
would still have to deal with fixing bruises or
performing complicated surgeries. It was a
particularly tiring day for Dr. Agnes Thomas, a human
woman of African American origin. Eight hours of her
day was spent in the ER and that was extremely trying
for the young doctor. She was walking along the
corridor, looking quite haggard. Agnes sighed in
dismay, when coming upon a short Trill man in his
fifties, dressed in civilian clothes yelling at a
Cardassian/Vulcan hybrid cadet.
Agnes inquired, folding her arms. “What seems to be
the problem here?”
Before the cadet could open her mouth, the Trill
jumped in, whining. “I demand to know why the
specialist I specifically did not want is performing
the surgery on Ms. Orkov.”
Cadet Platok handed the PADD to her superior,
explaining quickly. “Ma’am, here are the patient’s
medical details and the surgery information.” The
third year cadet watched Thomas skim the contents of
the PADD.
“Everything here is in order,” Agnes announced,
lifting her head up to meet the Trill’s gaze. “So I
don’t understand the problem here, Dr. Udlak.”
Dr. Gaiu Udlak boiled inside, his face turning a deep
shade of red. “The problem is the surgeon assigned to
Ms. Orkov’s case.”
The African American doctor groaned inwardly. “Dr.
Terenia is one of the best in this facility.” **Even
if she’s damn arrogant. **
“Ms. Orkov finds her annoying,” Gaiu smirked. “And my
madam will always get what she wants.”
Agnes was tempted to roll her eyes, clearing finding
the civilian doctor irritating. “Well, Dr. Udlak,
apparently she doesn’t this time.”
Gaiu yelled. “Then I demand to speak to your superior
and get Dr. Terenia removed at once.”
She’s had enough. Dr. Thomas decided at that moment to
put her foot down. “Listen, doctor,” she commanded,
placing her hands by the hips. “Ms. Orkov’s next of
kin has already consented to having Dr. Terenia on her
case and there’s absolutely nothing any of us can do
about it.”
Udlak was steaming, hardly believing what the younger
doctor told him. Unwilling to give up without a fight,
he rasped, glowering at the African American. “Mark my
words; I will always get what I want.” He stormed off,
leaving Agnes shaking her head.
--------------------
Scene: Ward 13
Anaqueen Spankryz was pacing in the silent waiting
room of Ward 13, waiting to see a patient who was a
very important person in her life. The Trill Captain
glanced over at her sister-in-law, Ermila T’ahone, who
looked very still and morose. Dark circles were
visible around Ermila’s eyes, making everyone conclude
the Trill woman had not slept in a long time.
Ana felt a burning pain inside her as well as a deep
rooted anger. The last few days were tough for
everyone involved in the incident. But seeing him in
his current condition was unbearable. Ward 13 was home
to medical cases involving comatose patients, where it
would take a long time to come up with a treatment for
their conditions.
----------------------
Location: USS COMMENDATION
Scene: CO’s Ready Room
TI: One month ago
Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Haley stated, entering the CO’s
Ready Room in the century class cruiser. “So I hear
the ship will be sent back to the shipyards for an
inspection.” He stopped before his wife’s desk and
placed a PADD down between two neatly arranged stacks.
Ana was well-known to possess excellent organizational
skills, which made one to never expect seeing any
cluttering on her desk.
Anaqueen confirmed, sighing. “That’s right. Starfleet
Engineering thinks the problems we’ve been having with
some of the primary systems that appeared during the
shakedown cruise are too critical to be ignored and so
they need the ship back in MARS for further
investigation.”
“That makes sense,” the Sec/Tac nodded before
questioning. “So what is going to happen to us?”
“The crew will be on shore leave for the duration of
the inspection,” Ana mentioned, looking up at her
husband.
“Splendid idea,” Matthew said with a smile. “How do
you think we should spend shore leave?” He inquired, a
minute later.
The Trill CO suggested. “I was thinking of going to
TRILL to see how Tomney and his family are doing.”
Haley agreed enthusiastically. “Sounds good to me.”
The half-El Aurian added with a sly grin. “And maybe
save the last few days for a getaway in our new villa,
my dad acquired for us in Southern France.”
“We’ll see.” Spankryz nodded, returning his grin.
-------------------
Location: TRILL
Scene: Hotel room
TI: Three weeks ago
“So let me get this straight,” Anaqueen sighed with
exasperation. “You requested my presence to make
inquiries on my family’s connection to Valyris
Xersax.” The Trill Captain was seated in an economy
style hotel room where the brightness was dimmed to
thirty percent illumination. Matthew and another
officer, all in plain clothes, were in the room with
her. Last night, she received a message from Lt.
Telara, wanting to meet her. Telara was the ILO on the
USS EARTHSEA under Anaqueen’s command around two years
ago.
The Romulan/Andorian hybrid nodded. “That’s right,
Captain. We’re conducting an investigation into the
activities of an aristocratic Trill named Valyris
Xersax and his associates whom we suspect have
committed crimes against the Federation.”
Ana asked a bit of tension in her voice. “These
associates of Valyris. Who are they?”
“We don’t know,” Telara answered. “My partner is
working on digging up information on Valyris’ profile
and his activities, both legally and illegally. We
found information on some dealings between him and
your family.”
“Well, the Xersaxes and the Orkovs have been fierce
rivals for centuries.” Ana shrugged and was not
thrilled over discussing her family history, which she
felt was filled with all kinds of nonsense.
The half-Andorian questioned. “Business or personal?”
“I’d say both,” the Trill Captain stated dryly.
“Did the rivalries involve treasonous activities?”
“I know my mother isn’t,” Ana responded confidently.
Telara mentally noted her former CO’s answer. “What
about Valyris Xersax?”
“My knowledge on the man’s business dealings is
limited,” the Trill replied, nodding, when an idea
clicked in her mind. “Lieutenant, I can however
volunteer information about him that would shed some
light on his character,” she offered, suddenly feeling
apprehensive. If Valyris was involved in illegal
activities against the Federation, then she was going
to do everything possible to help Telara’s
investigation succeed. Spankryz trusted her former ILO
and decided to reveal the old man’s relentless
obsession over protecting the Xersax’s cover up of
Mira and the great lengths he went to keep his
family’s deep, dark secret hidden forever.
Valyris Xersax, patriarch of a very old aristocratic
family with connections to high ranking officials in
the Symbiosis Commission was a thorn in Ana’s life.
Many years ago, a member of the Xersax family was
involved in the murder of Mira Spankryz, the
symbiont’s third host and had somehow covered up the
crime. Officially, Mira’s death was deemed as an
accident. Valyris, in order to prevent his family’s
secret from being exposed, made it his goal to erase
Spankryz’s memories of Mira. As for those lost
memories of Mira, Ana still had no luck in recovering
them aside from vague dreams.
*/~/*
Chapter 2
********
Location: Starfleet Medical
Scene: Ward 13 corridor
TI: Present
“Captain Spankryz?” A human woman at the rank of
Ensign addressed the Trill woman, who was following
her sister in law to another corridor.
Ana responded, stopping midway. “What is it, Ensign
Lauzon?”
Lauzon informed, speaking rather quickly. “Dr. Pomodo
wants to see you right away. It’s regarding your
mother.”
“Something wrong with her surgery?” The brunette
inquired, looking very bewildered.
The Ensign shrugged. “Didn’t say. Just wanted to see
you, right now.”
Ermila asked, watching Ana sigh. “What’s the matter,
Ana?”
The Trill shrugged. “I have to go deal with some
issues regarding mother’s surgery.” She assured,
gently touching her sister in law’s arm. “It shouldn’t
take long.”
--------
Scene: Surgical hallway
TI: A few minutes later
Anaqueen entered the ward, which housed most of the
hospital’s operating rooms. She headed in the
direction of a middle-aged Bolian attempting to fend
off arguments from Dr. Udluk, her mother’s personal
physician. Ana groaned at the sight of the short Trill
and wondered if the dispute had nothing to do with her
mother’s medical problem and more to do with his pride
taking a hit. The captain had known the doctor for
over twenty years and she had felt nothing but
contempt for the bald man.
Pomodo greeted upon spotting Spankryz. “Captain
Spankryz, thanks for coming.”
“What is the problem here?” Anaqueen questioned,
jumping straight to the point and glared at Udluk.
Before the Bolian opened his mouth, the petit Trill
argued. “Dr. Terenia Helenei should not be doing the
surgery. Starfleet has gone too far in violating a
civilian’s rights and Ms. Orkov, before becoming
unconscious, had explicitly told me she did not want
Dr. Terenia to be her surgeon.” He lifted his chest up
to bolster his argument and huffed.
Annoyance quickly enveloped the Trill Captain and Ana
just could not stand the physician’s arrogant
posturing and senseless ramblings. “Dr. Udluk,” she
began coldly. “Legally, once the person has been
incapacitated, then the next of kin has the right to
make medical decisions on behalf of that individual.”
Sounding even harsher, the highly ranked officer
continued. “Seeing as my mother has been unconscious a
few hours after her arrival here and that I am her
next of kin, then I *decide* who performs her
surgery.”
Gaiu seethed with anger as his cheeks burned red.
“Then change your mind, Anaqueen…if you have any sort
of love and respect for your mother. Let a surgeon of
my choice take over.”
“No,” Ana simply replied and was about to leave when
the Trill doctor hissed, angrily.
“Madam should have never placed you as next of kin.
She only did it in the futile hope of you leaving
Starfleet and returning to her.” He puffed up again,
wagging his finger. “And trust me if I had my way, she
would immediately assign me as her power of attorney
after all only I have her best interests at heart.”
Ana rolled her eyes at his statement, knowing fully
well he never cared for Ms. Orkov aside from her
wealth. “You really are a piece of work.”
“Don’t act like you’re so much better than me just
because you’re joined and I’m not,” Udluk remarked,
venom dripping out of his voice and with a hint of
jealousy.
Ignoring the statement, Spankryz addressed the Bolian
chief of staff. “Dr. Pomodo, I’m done here and Dr.
Terenia will perform the surgery.”
“Right, Captain,” Pomodo nodded with agreement.
Ana quickly left the scene, eager to return to Ermila
and the man she cared for. Under normal circumstances,
she would have just let Udluk make the medical
decisions for her mother. But such was not the case
that time around as Elina was suffering from a clogged
artery, resulting from remnants of a dart that hit her
a few days ago. The projectile was removed from
Elina’s body a few days earlier. It was not until
recently when the matriarch suffered a cardiac arrest
that the doctors had discovered pieces of the dart
blocking her artery. SFI wanted to keep any details
regarding information about the projectile’s origins,
which were unknown, confidential. Dr. Terenia had
already concluded the surgery was not complicated and
that her mother would come out of it alive.
--------------
Location: TRILL
Scene: Aristocratic country club
TI: Two weeks ago
Elina Orkov was cackling in glee, her voice resonating
through the well-decorated walls in the private dining
room. The wealthy socialite’s green eyes gleamed with
a hint of wickedness. She was joined by two of her
underlings and an undercover SFI agent posing as an
employee. The intel officer, a young human woman, was
fighting against the temptation to roll her eyes and
desired to rearrange Ms. Orkov’s face. She wondered
about the unfairness of getting tasked to the
ridiculous assignment of acting as one of Elina’s
contracted workers. It did not take long for the agent
to reach the conclusion that all of the Trill woman’s
employees were a bunch of fools. Then again, only an
idiot would be willing to work for Elina Orkov.
Plorus boomed. “That cruise liner is a thing of
beauty! Madam, you’ve struck gold.” The short, pudgy
Trill man gave out a belly aching laugh that grated on
the intel officer’s nerves. Swinging his arm around
the lone human in the room, the hiring manager for
underhanded, dirty jobs chuckled. “Isn’t that right,
sweetie?”
The undercover officer with short, strawberry blonde
hair that curled inwards at the bottom became ill with
disgust at the man’s smelly body pressed against her.
She tilted her face away to avoid Plorus’ foul breath.
**If I am going to be stuck with someone, can’t it be
a person with good looks. **
“Plorus, you idiot!” Elina roared. “Get your hands off
Miss Sparrow.” At the roar, similar to a Terran
lioness, Plorus immediately released his grip on the
human woman, though he did not leave her side.
Smi’gh Talos, a middle aged curly haired Trill man,
suggested proudly. “Let’s name the ship the ‘Titanic’,
a vessel that had endured greatness in Terran
history.”
“What a moron. I bet he hasn’t read how the Titanic’s
voyage ended,” the SFI officer remarked sardonically
to herself. “Unless one wants to end up having the
ship go on a voyage of the damned, naming the liner
‘Titanic’ is a bad idea.”
Ms. Orkov disagreed vehemently. “Absolutely not,
Smi’gh.” Pondering for a moment, the wealthy Trill
announced, eyes glittering with pride. “I’m going to
name her ‘Queen Elina’.” She cackled again.
‘Sara Sparrow’ sighed exasperatedly and hoped the
matriarch would dismiss her soon. She listened quietly
to more of Elina’s annoying boasting of successfully
buying the luxury cruise ship. The agent’s real name
was Nicole Townsend and held the rank of full
Lieutenant. She was a member of Telara’s intelligence
group involved in the investigation of Valyris’
illegal activities. The team suspected a Xersax spy
floating amidst Orkov Enterprises workforce. Townsend
took up the job as one of Plorus’ agents, sent to do
dirty work for the company including industrial
espionage. Her task was to root out the spy or spies
and find out what Xersax was planning and obtain the
identity of his associates.
Elina continued, producing a cheeky grin. “The look on
Valyris’ face will be priceless when he discovered it
was I who out bided him for the liner, knowing how
desperately he had tried for months to acquire it.”
“And as usual you just had to one up Xersax,” a brown
haired Trill woman remarked sarcastically as the
double doors slid apart to let her enter the plush
room.
Elina inquired feeling pleasantly surprised at the
arrival of her daughter. “Ana, what are you doing
here?”
Ana informed bluntly, her voice filled with unabashed
irritation. “I’m here to discuss with you on an
important matter…” Glancing at the underlings, the
brunette ordered sternly. “You two, get out.” Plorus
and the other man blinked at each other. “Now!” The
Trill Captain commanded with a fixed stare.
Plorus, before leaving, attempted to grab Nicole’s
hand. “Come on, darling. I have a lovely motel room
reserved just for us.” He smiled seductively at her
revealing his yellowed teeth with a few missing.
“In your dreams, jerk,” the agent snapped, suddenly
removing a hair pin, which had a sharp point at one
end and hurled it in the short man’s direction. The
projectile went over Plorus’ greasy head and hit the
wall. “If it had dropped just a few inches, you would
have been dead, Plorus,” Nicole remarked coldly. The
underlings gaped in disbelief and ran away from the
dining room.
Elina glared at the intel officer, unimpressed with
her actions and thinking she was only bluffing about
the hair pin. “You too, commoner!”
“Understood.” The short haired woman replied, briskly
and scowled at the matriarch. “Pretending to act like
a clueless bimbo is a lot tougher than I had
expected,” Townsend muttered as she departed from the
room.
The matriarch inquired, raising her eyebrow. “What did
you want to discuss? Decided to finally tire of your
Starfleet life and join me at the company?” Elina’s
long, well-manicured fingers caressed the glass
containing light blue liquid, accented with purple
colouring.
“No.” Ana replied curtly. The Trill Captain took in a
deep breath before beginning. “I’m here in regards to
Valyris Xersax and your recent acquisition of the
Ferengi cruise liner.”
Elina questioned, sounding puzzled. “What is this,
Ana? Why this sudden interest in my acquisition of the
cruise ship?”
Spankryz, instead of answering her mother’s question,
went on. “The only reason, mother, you had managed to
acquire the ‘Hail Nagus’ was because Valyris let you
have it.”
“Nonsense,” her mother disputed. “Valyris is not the
man to just let a competitor win.”
Ana argued. “Not if he’s setting the family for
failure and…this time he’s expecting a huge downfall
of Orkov Enterprises.” On the previous night, Telara
had met with Spankryz revealing new information
brought by one of her teammates working undercover in
Xersax’s household and wanted the Captain to
discreetly get her mother to call off the cruise
ship’s grand opening until the investigation was over.
The agent overheard a conversation between the
patriarch and an unknown person, where the former
seemed pleased over duping Elina into making a very
expensive purchase of the liner. Valyris boasted to
the other person about how the matriarch had fallen
into his trap and that he looked forward to becoming
Orkov Enterprises’ new owner.
Elina burst out laughing. “Oh Ana, you’re being
ridiculous. I won and he lost. Our family is
completely secure.” She then corrected haughtily. “And
by the way the liner’s now named *Queen Elina*.”
“Whatever,” Ana muttered, rolling her eyes at Elina’s
well-known vanity in naming many of her transports,
usually yachts after her. “Believe what you want,
mother,” the Trill Captain warned, giving out a
frustrated sigh. “Unlike you, Xersax worked with those
who are extremely shady characters.” She paced about
the room before further informing. “He had business
dealings with criminals like Juleri Mai, Zane Rixx
and…Harol Orkov. And Rixx used to own the liner before
selling it off to the Ferengi.”
Her mother scoffed. “Harol and my father dealt with
the wrong people and nearly ruined the family. But
they’re far more cunning and stronger than that
weakling, Valyris. Father had the Xersax family eating
out of his palm.” Ana groaned inwardly and dreaded
approaching her mother regarding the threat Valyris
Xersax and his associates posed not only to them, but
to others in the Federation. She listened to the
blonde arrogantly declaring. “If I could beat Harol,
then Valyris would be a piece of cake.” She chuckled,
dryly. Harol Orkov, Elina’s elder brother, had died in
a mental institution in 2399. He was sent there
through a scheme perpetrated by Elina with her husband
reluctantly helping to declare him mentally insane in
order for her to become head of the Orkov dynasty.
“Fine mother, suit yourself,” Ana concluded, feeling
defeated and decided there needed to be another way to
convinceher mother to halt the liner from opening.
Elina informed sweetly behind her. “You’re invited to
join me on the Queen Elina’s maiden voyage.”
*/~/*
Chapter 3
********
Location: Starfleet Medical, EARTH
Scene: Hospital Patio
TI: Present
Ana stood at the patio and was watching the sun set
behind the Eiffel Tower. Street lights were turned on;
evening was approaching the city. The Parisian
nightlife was slowly coming to life. She watched a
large number of the hospital staff leaving the
building and another group arriving for their evening
and night shifts. The Trill woman just returned from
spending time with him who was lying comatose in ward
13. The medical officers assigned to the case were
still nowhere near finding a way to reverse his
condition. Starfleet Medical had placed the medical
investigations department in charge of dealing with
three patients including him, who were victims of the
tragedy that took place on the cruise ship over a week
ago.
“How is he doing?” Chrystoph Tebro, her father,
inquired as he appeared out of the doorway.
Ana shrugged, not looking at the formally dressed
Trill. “No improvements.” There was tension forming in
the air. Spankryz still had some trouble forgiving her
father over his role nearly a year ago in going along
with Valyris’ plan to erase the symbiont’s memories of
Mira, all in the name of protecting her. Tebro only
had a change of heart after discovering the lengths
Xersax went to attaining his goals.
The former politician inquired. “Where’s Ermila?”
“She’s already returned back to her apartment to be
with the children,” Anaqueen answered. She was silent
for a moment before turning to face Chrystoph. “Why
did you help Valyris, knowing you never trusted him?”
Tebro looked bewildered, when replying. “It’s for your
protection. I was assured by him that a chemical block
placed in the symbiont was the only way to save your
life.”
Ana pointed out angrily. “Valyris Xersax is not a
medical professional, which makes him unqualified to
give such an opinion. Dr. Tzekrai felt it was wrong
and you knew that.”
“True,” the elder Trill admitted. “But you must
understand, Valyris was breathing down Tzekrai’s neck
heavily and got the commission to seriously consider
removing the symbiont from you as soon as the
isoboromine levels dropped below 40 percent. He
threatened both me and Dr. Tzekrai that if a block
wasn’t placed in you to make Mira’s memories
disappear, then he would have found a way to remove
Spankryz from you.”
The young woman sighed. “But Dr. Tzekrai didn’t place
the block in Spankryz and ended up faking a report to
show otherwise. She assessed placing the block would
endanger our lives further because the memories will
not be hidden forever and would have resurfaced either
in me again or in a future host.” She paused to take a
breath before continuing. “Recovering those memories
is the only way Spankryz would feel at peace.”
“What if that kills you?” Chrystoph questioned in a
slightly edgy tone.
Ana shrugged. “We’ll just have to deal with it then.”
Sighing, the Trill informed. “I need to leave.
Matthew’s family is expecting me at their home, not
far from here”
“I understand,” her father nodded before inquiring.
“Is your mother out of surgery?”
The Trill Captain answered. “Yes. Dr. Terenia informed
me the surgery was successful.”
--------------------
Location: TRILL
Scene: Botanical Gardens
TI: Two weeks ago
Commander Hansel Tomel sighed, looking sympathetic.
“I’m sorry your mother didn’t take the hint of the
danger Valyris poses to her business.” The officer
from Starfleet Sciences walked with Anaqueen on the
path that cut through the flora of Trill University’s
botanical gardens. The Trill man was an old friend of
Anaqueen’s brother, Tomney and a scientific analyst
for Telara’s intelligence team. Any clue obtained from
the investigation that required scientific or medical
analysis was given to Tomel.
“Don’t be,” the Trill Captain remarked, sounding
irate. “Mother doesn’t understand how much Valyris and
his associates could gain from the downfall of her
company. Orkov Enterprises could go bankrupt, making
it ripe for Xersax to take over and I shiver to think
what he and his associates will do with the funding
and resources the acquisition of the family business
would bring.”
The tall man with short, brown hair assured. “We’ll
find a way to stop it, no matter how vain Ms. Orkov is
about herself.”
“Valyris’main interest is not just profiting from
ruining Orkov Enterprises,” Ana stated cryptically.
“He wants Spankryz.” They came upon an opening under a
large tree and to their dismay, Tomney and Ermila were
frantically running around the place. The Trill
Captain inquired, addressing her brother with concern.
“Tomney, what’s wrong?”
The blond man explained, panic filling his voice. “The
children. They’re gone.”
“Gone. Where?” Ana questioned, becoming worried.
Ermila answered, her voice shaking. “We don’t know,
Ana. I turn away for a second and they just
disappeared in thin air.” Tears welled up in the
auburn haired woman’s eyes. “Where could they have
gone? Who could have taken them? And why?”
Anaqueen turned pale knowing her brother and sister in
law suffered from every parent’s worst nightmare.
Missing children were always a tragedy. The fear of
what happened to them was tremendous. Were they
harmed? Or worse dead? Or would the kidnappers keep
them for themselves or sell them off somewhere? There
were societies that still sold children for slavery, a
crime that brought a chill down one’s spine. She
glanced around the area and something puzzled her.
“Where’s Matthew?”
Ermila replied, feeling guilty. “Arlis wanted ice
cream and we sent Matthew away to get it for him.”
“Now I believe we shouldn’t have,” Tomney bemoaned.
His wife argued, trying to alleviate her guilt. “But
how would we have known the children would be taken.”
“We don’t!” The blond Trill snapped, feeling agonized.
“We don’t know, my dear. Who would want to hurt us
enough to go after innocent children?”
Anaqueen sighed. “Tomney, it isn’t because of you and
Ermila….It might be because of me.”
“How?” Tomney questioned and assured, his voice
quivering. “Don’t blame yourself, Ana. You had nothing
to do with this.”
Ana was prevented from responding by the sight of
Matthew approaching them with two ice cream cones in
his hands. The human/El Aurian inquired, becoming
confused at the seriousness in everyone’s faces.
“What’s going on?”
“Arlis and Nelia have been abducted,” Spankryz
informed.
Matthew gasped at the news. “This is terrible.” The
security officer suddenly began to feel very sad and
guilty. “But how?” He asked.
Ermila shrugged, wiping away her tears. “We don’t
know. I turned away for a second and they just
vanished.”
“A transporter beam could have been used to take
them,” Hansel suggested.
Haley agreed as he began surveying the area. “Makes
perfect sense.”
“I’ll investigate the site for any traces of a
transporter residue,” Tomel decided. “We’ll make a
clean sweep of the grounds.”
Tomney slowly asked turning to his sister as he
suddenly realized something was amiss. “Ana, what do
you mean by it could be because of you the children
got kidnapped?”
“I’ll explain back in my apartment,” Ana sighed.
---------------------
Scene: Apartment
TI: 1 hour later
Tomney and Ermila were in a state of shock, their
features becoming paler. Anaqueen had quickly
explained how Valyris Xersax’s obsession in covering
up a part of Spankryz’s history involving the Xersax
family could pose a threat to Tomney, Ermila and their
children making the patriarch a possible suspect. She
watched the blond Trill clench his fists in anger.
“So Valyris could have possibly kidnapped my babies
because he might want to use them as leverage against
Ana,” the redhead spoke up in a low voice filled with
burning rage.
Haley nodded. “Yeah I guess so.” The security trained
officer felt remorse and guilt over his niece and
nephew’s abduction.
Ana stated calmly though deep down she was boiling.
“Valyris would do anything to make sure I don’t
remember those events surrounding Mira’s death and is
only using the children to get to me… assuming he was
responsible for the kidnapping.”
A look of horror appeared in her brother’s eyes.
“Would he go as far as killing them?”
Matthew assuaged Tomney’s fears. “Let’s not think that
way.” His tone showed sudden determination. “We will
get those kids back. You have my word.”
“I very much want to believe you, Matthew,” Ermila
lamented. “But how are we going to get them? Do we
know where they’ve been taken?”
Spankryz answered. “We’re still waiting for Tomel to
find any evidence of a transporter residue. Once a
residue is found, we should be able to pinpoint the
location of their transport.”
“Captain Spankryz,” Lt. Telara announced, upon
entering the room with Lt. Townsend.
Ana inquired. “What is it, Telara?” Matthew quickly
explained to Tomney and Ermila that Telara and Nicole
were just his friends, who were in TRILL on Starfleet
business.
The Romulan/Andorian informed, handing over a data
crystal to her superior. “This was dropped at your
doorstep. I checked it out and it contains a message
for you.”
“What does it say?” Spankryz questioned, quickly
studying the tiny crystal hoping it contained the key
to finding the missing toddlers.
The intel agent replied. “Rid the symbiont of
unpleasant memories of prestigious family in exchange
for the little ones. Failure to comply and you will
never see them again. You need to give your answer in
two hours.”
“So it is Valyris after all,” Matthew deduced,
frowning.
Ermila protested. “No! This is not right! Valyris is a
monster.” She buried her face in Tomney’s chest and
held him tightly, sobbing.
Ana sighed and then asked. “Did the message say
anything else?”
“Yes,” the hybrid nodded. “Captain, you are
specifically asked to head to your mother’s newly
acquired cruise ship and meet Valyris or his
representatives there in one week.”
“Did it say the children will be there?” The highly
ranked Trill officer inquired, bristling.
Telara shook her head. “Negative. You will know after
you get there.”
Anaqueen turned to face her husband and looked grimly
into his eyes. In that moment, the half-El Aurian
sadly understood what she was going to do. He did not
like it but knew there was no other way. Spankryz
looked away and addressed the intel agent. “I need to
formulate a rescue plan to save those children.”
Sighing, she quickly asked, whispering in the blue
woman’s ear. “Can you spare some of you team for the
operation?”
“I will see what I can do,” the half-Andorian replied,
mentally deciding to contact SFI of the latest
development and consult with them over what to do
next.
-------------
Location: Starfleet Medical
Scene: Chief of Staff’s office
TI: Present
“So what you’re telling me was a minuscule piece of
the projectile getting stuck to the artery wall was
responsible for the surgery complications?” Dr. Pomodo
questioned, studying the details of a PADD in front of
him. The Bolian raised his eyebrow at a female doctor
seated opposite him.
Terenia Helenei nodded, looking annoyed. “Absolutely,”
and then argued. “But despite the complications, the
surgery ended up a success and the patient is being
discharged today.”
“Dr. Terenia, no one is complaining here,” Pomodo
assured the Bajoran/El Aurian hybrid. “In fact, if it
wasn’t for your exceptional surgical skills and
in-depth knowledge of cardiology, the complications
would have made things worse for Ms. Orkov.”
Terenia sighed exasperatedly. “I suppose
investigations are looking closely into finding more
information about the projectile and where it came
from.”
“I believe intel knows the source of our mysterious
object,” the hospital’s chief of staff speculated,
rubbing his chin.
“Typical SFI.” The half-Bajoran rolled her eyes. “It’s
quite obvious to even a fool how much cover up is
going on here. I mean from what I hear, there were 20
others hit by that same type of dart as my patient
was.” She pursed her lips together in a thin line.
Ever since Pomodo assigned her to Elina Orkov’s
surgery, Helenei had been in a very dour mood over the
entire case. Firstly, there was the protest by the
patient’s personal physician over having the resident
cardiologist as surgeon for his madam’s case. Frankly,
if it wasn’t for the secretive nature of the case, the
half-El Aurian would have gladly allowed another
doctor to deal with the surgery after all the
procedure was too simple for someone of her esteemed
caliber. But on SFI’s insistence, she was under orders
to perform Elina’s surgery.
Pomodo sighed. “Well as much as I dislike intel’s
interference in the operation of this hospital,
Commodore Linzer personally gave strict orders to let
them dictate matters for this particular case.”
“Albeit a lot of pressure from Starfleet Intel,”
Helenei quipped sarcastically. “What really is funny
is that Captain Spankryz, incidentally the patient’s
own daughter didn’t seem to show any concern for Ms.
Orkov.”
The Bolian doctor chuckled dryly. “Perhaps the Captain
had great confidence in your surgical skills.”
“She hasn’t been around to visit her,” the hybrid
brought up, uncaringly. “In fact, from what I hear
neither has any member of her family.”
Pomodo inquired, changing the topic. “What’re you
going to tell Dr. Udluk?”
“I will provide him a brief report, explaining the
dart was a well-known projectile used by Bajoran
assassins during the Cardassian occupation,” the
Cardiologist replied coolly.
----------
Location: TRILL
Scene: Apartment
TI: One week earlier
“Ana,” Tomney began, upon entering the living room,
where only the two siblings were the occupants. Lt.
Telara and Lt. Townsend were busy setting up
intelligence surveillance equipment for the operation.
Telara informed her former Captain SFI approved of
permitting herself, Tomel and Townsend to take part in
the children’s rescue, while the rest of the team
worked on uncovering Valyris’ sinister plans for the
Queen Elina and the identities of his associates.
Matthew was getting something to eat from the kitchen.
Earlier Hansel reported his team discovered traces of
transporter residue in the vicinity, which confirmed
the children were beamed to an unknown location. “You
need to let me come with you,” he pleaded.
Anaqueen sighed before refusing. “No, you can’t. It’s
too dangerous.”
“Well I can’t just sit around feeling helpless while
my children’s lives are in danger!” The tall man
argued.
Ana countered, frustration filling her voice. “And I
can’t allow you to run around with your emotions all
over the place and getting yourself killed!”
Tomney, becoming furious, hissed. “You think I’m a
liability for this rescue operation. That…I will only
be in the way.” Noticing that his sister did not
respond to his comment, the blond Trill continued.
“How can I just sit around, while you and everyone
else put yourselves at risk?”
Spankryz pointed out, bluntly. “The rest of us signed
up to deal with these risks on a daily basis. You and
Ermila are civilians and have no idea of the danger
involved in this rescue mission.”
“Don’t try to patronize us,” Tomney snapped. “Ermila
and I were taking care of Arlis and Nelia for their
entire lives.”
Ana had enough of her brother’s emotional tirade. She
understood deeply the pain he and his wife were going
through with the kidnapping. The Trill felt guilty
over the abduction despite logic dictating it was
Valyris’obsession of maintaining the prestige of his
family that was responsible for the whole incident. At
the same time, she was filled with immense fury. Ana
already hated the old patriarch for his attempts to
place a block on the symbiont in order to prevent her
from remembering those memories forever, without her
knowledge. But the kidnapping of two innocent toddlers
only made her anger burn stronger.
“Tomney,” Ana slowly began, making eye contact with
her brother. “The chances of you getting killed in the
process of rescuing those children are very high,
considering your inexperience.”
The elder Trill declared, his voice trembling. “I’m
willing to take that chance. I would die for my little
ones…”
“Except you haven’t thought of one important detail,”
Ana cut him off brusquely. Raising her voice, the 31
year old woman frowned at him. “In this willingness to
jump into the fire and ending up dead, have you ever
once thought about what your death would do to Ermila
and the children? Do you know what’s it’s like to be a
widow or an orphan?” Tomney said nothing, letting his
younger sibling continue. “Well, it will be horrible
for them. Ermila will be left alone to raise the
children and have a rough time coping with the grief.
Arlis and Nelia will miss out on getting to know their
father. You will never be able to see your children
grow. Do you want to see all that happen?”
After five minutes of silence, Tomney let out a huge
sigh. “No, of course not.”
“Then you’re going to wait with Ermila and let us go
on with the operation of bringing those children
back,” Ana decided firmly.
Tomney grudgingly conceded. “Alright, I will stay with
Ermila.” He quickly glanced away from her and stomped
out of the room, nearly pushing Matthew to the side.
The half-El Aurian immediately turned to his wife and
inquired out of concern. “Is everything okay?” He
moved to her side.
Ana shrugged as Matthew gently touched her shoulder.
“No.”
“It will be alright,” her husband assured. “He will
understand, eventually.”
*/~/*
Chapter 4
********
Location: SS QUEEN ELINA
Scene: VIP Boarding Dock
TI: Few hours after the previous scene
The luxury liner, when it was still called the ‘Hail
Nagus’, had no class distinctions. The owners, a
Ferengi corporate group, did charge a very high price
for their customers, who wanted a pleasure voyage on
the route from Ferenginar to Risa. The Hail Nagus was
also rife with wealthy criminals who ran amok with
their activities on the ship, with the Ferengi turning
their ears the other way. Smuggling, gambling, slave
trade and all kinds of naughty things happened under
the Ferengi proprietors’ noses and they themselves
made huge profits out of the criminal activities of
others.
However things became different a month ago, when
ownership of the large cruise ship changed hands from
the Ferengi group to an extremely wealthy and powerful
Trill Corporation. The owner, a very arrogant and vain
woman, prided herself to be a legitimate businesswoman
and above all whom she considered as ‘commoners’.
Unlike the previous owners, Elina Orkov did not
tolerate any sort of rif raf on her property and
immediately called Trill Security to remove all seedy
establishments from the ship. Gambling, which the
socialite indulged heavily in, was the only activity
popular among crime lords, allowed to remain but
restricted to the high-class sort. The minimum cost to
play at the various gambling tables was very high,
preventing even a decently wealthy person to
participate.
Anaqueen arrived at the reception, where two Trill
women and one human man stood behind. Unlike most
aristocratic families, the Orkovs and Xersaxs were not
averse to hiring non-Trill employees in their service.
It was no wonder the two families were wealthier than
the majority of the traditional aristocracy base. One
of the Trill women attended Spankryz.
The receptionist verified, glancing at the details on
her screen. “Elite class and suite assignment is…”
Ever since ownership passed onto Orkov Enterprises,
the liner was divided into five classes based on
price: Elite, VIP, First, Economy and Peasant. The VIP
boarding entrance was restricted to only the elite,
VIP and first class passengers. Economy and peasant
class passengers entered via the regular civilian
boarding docks. Prior to getting aboard the liner, Ana
discovered her mother placed an order to restrict
Matthew to only the peasant class if the half-El
Aurian decided to take a trip on the Queen Elina. The
Trill thought of her husband who would be embarking
the ship with Lt. Townsend. Telara was stationed in
one of the economy class cabins with her surveillance
equipment and was responsible for tracking the other
officers’ positions on aboard the vessel. The intel
agent had also managed to hack into the liner’s
computer mainframe in order to access all of the
ship’s systems. Hansel and his wife, Kalaia Weron who
were standing four or five patrons down the line,
pretended to be on a romantic getaway.
“Everything checks out fine,” the Trill receptionist
informed Spankryz. “A concierge will escort you to
your room. Your luggage will be sent there shortly.”
Ana nodded. “Thank you.”
-----------------
Scene: First class deck
TI: Few minutes later
Kalaia sighed, adjusting her mousy brown hair with
blonde highlights. “The snobbishness of the patrons is
the biggest reason why I despise luxury liners.” The
blue skinned woman, which marked her Bolian heritage,
followed her Trill husband to their suite. Brown
markings that formed a band along her hairline were
due to her being part Trill. She was also an empath
because of her Betazoid heritage. To summarize, Kalaia
was a 41 year old Betazoid/Bolian/Trill hybrid.
Hansel comforted with a tiny smile. “Just ignore them
and everything will be okay.” The thirty six year old
man studied each door, searching for their right room
number.
“I just don’t think its fair the other rich guests are
mocking us because they paid to come here and we
didn’t,” Weron complained. “I suppose winning a cruise
for two on first class because of participation in a
contest is beneath them.” The temperaments of Hansel
and Kalaia were as similar as day and night. Both were
exceptional scientists who took pleasure in the
thrills of making a new discovery or expanding the
Federation’s knowledge in science. While Hansel
approached his work with a pragmatic mindset filled
with logic and practicality, Kalaia was passionate,
enthusiastic and driven, sometimes prone to fiery
tempers. In a way the two complimented each other
nicely.
Tomel chuckled good-naturedly. “Even I would laugh at
winning a silly competition, where all we need to do
is guessing the winner of Federation idol correctly.”
“I guess you’re right,” Weron conceded, sighing.
Changing subject, the hybrid brought up. “Tomney and
Ermila are going through hell right now.”
Hansel nodded, when he stopped in front of their
suite. “I can imagine. I know I would be if it were
our children.”
“I just hope we find Arlis and Nelia,” the blue woman
stated grimly. The couple was assigned to investigate
the higher class decks for signs of the children as
well as to stand by to rescue Anaqueen in case her
meeting with Valyris fell through.
-----------
Scene: Peasant Deck
TI: Occurring simultaneously as the previous scene
Townsend questioned, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
“So, how badly did you manage to offend your mother in
law?”
Matthew replied dryly as the two officers pushed past
the crowded hallway to their assigned room. “I married
her daughter. That was all it took for Elina to hate
me.” They halted in front of grey double doors. Nicole
entered some codes on the side panel and the doors
slid apart. The intel officer stepped in the room,
followed by her partner. The pair was met with a bare
and Spartan room, filled with five sets of bunk beds
and just one bathroom. The area was already packed
with eight other occupants.
Nicole groaned. “They weren’t kidding about the
*peasant* class description.” They walked to two empty
beds and laid their stuff there. “This room could fit
ten people.”
“Not exactly what one would call a pleasure cruise
here,” the half-El Aurian grumbled. At the corner of
his eye, he spotted two Naussicans glowering at him as
they guarded their belongings, comprising mostly of
dead animals. **I just hope the children are not on
this deck, ** the blond haired man dreaded.
Townsend explained, pulling a strand of hair behind
her. “Well, the passengers in the peasant class can
enjoy two bars and the mess hall, where they eat their
meals with the engineering crew from the deck below.”
The two peasant class decks were built closer to the
bowels of the cruise ship. All the rooms in the
cheapest class were shared with the number of
occupants ranging from six to ten. All servants of
elite and VIP class patrons occupied either the
peasant or economy class sections. They were provided
special passes to go back and forth from their deck to
their employer’s.
“At least we peasants can get drunk,” Matthew jested.
He settled down on the bottom bunk and studied his
surroundings. Two humanoid men of age 18 or 19 were
busy arm wrestling, while a lone, Bajoran elderly man
sat on his bed, meditating, likely calling for the
prophets to return. Three women were huddled at one
corner of the room, dressed in very daring and trendy
leather clothing. The human/El Aurian hybrid wondered
if any of their roommates worked for Xersax.
Nicole pouted. “I prefer the economy class over this
place. At least we can get a cabin of our own.” The
economy class, which was costlier than the peasant,
comprised of a number of single, double and triple
occupancy cabins, allowing for more privacy. Guests
from that class had access to better facilities such
as a pool, gym, sauna and unlimited access to the
lower promenade deck. The Promenade was divided into
two levels and comprised of a variety of shops,
restaurants, clubs and holosuites. The upper level was
only restricted to patrons belonging to first class
and above and contained upscale restaurants and some
of the most expensive boutiques in the quadrant.
“Look,” Matthew pointed out. “The brochure says
peasant class guests have a two hour per day access to
the lower promenade for the duration of this cruise.”
“Yay! We get to visit the promenade,” the intel agent
said sarcastically as she hauled her stuff up onto the
top bunk bed.
----------
Scene: Elite class suite
Extravagant. Opulent. Gaudy. Either of those words was
suitable for describing one of the most expensive
suites on the liner. The suites in the elite class
were all three room units. The living room was huge,
spacious and lavishly decorated. In the master bedroom
of every VIP and elite class suite, a gigantic
portrait of Elina Orkov stood above the bed, hovering
like a vulture ready to pounce on the dead. Only a
brave person would be able to stare long into those
green eyes without breaking a sweat.
To a superstitious human, the visual of the rich
socialite would resemble that of a wicked witch about
to cast a spell on her victims. It was a mystery as to
what Elina’s motives were behind placing a very
uncomplimentary picture of herself. Rumors spread
amongst her employees about how their mistress placed
portraits of herself in her children’s rooms to strike
fear into their hearts. Most specifically, it was to
remind Anaqueen during her childhood to respect Elina
enough to become like her when she grew up.
When Ana entered the suite, she spotted a bottle of
purple wine on a table, made of wood, belonging to a
rare type of tree on TRILL. Picking up the note lying
next to it, Ana frowned as she mentally read. **Please
enjoy the wine. One of my men will come to your suite
soon with further instructions. ** The Trill crumpled
the piece of paper and threw it across the room.
Fuming, the Starfleet captain grabbed the wine bottle
and headed to the garbage dispenser. The door chime
rang as soon as she got rid of Valyris’ gift. “Enter,”
Ana quickly commanded.
The door opened and to the young woman’s dismay, Elina
Orkov waltzed into the room like an uninvited guest.
Ana felt like she was beginning to get a headache. The
situation was heightened as it was and her mother
barging into the suite rudely only made matters worse.
The matriarch of the Orkov family was dressed in a
form fitting turquoise gown, made from the finest silk
in TRILL and laden with silver glitters. A white shawl
was draped around her shoulders. Emerald earrings
dangled from her pale ears. “Ana,” Elina began in her
irritating lyrical voice. “I am so delighted to see
you’ve accepted my invitation to embark on my liner’s
maiden voyage.” The route of the cruiser’s first
voyage involved a round trip to the Sol system and
back with an eight hour stopover on EARTH and two
hours on MARS.
It was sheer luck her mother’s invitation had provided
the excuse for the Trill officer to board the Queen
Elina. Ana hoped by the time they reached EARTH, Arlis
and Nelia would be found unharmed. She had taken into
account that things could go wrong in an already
delicate operation. The Captain tapped her silver
bracelet, which hid a tracking device. In fact, every
member of the rescue team had tracking devices that
Telara used to trace their locations.
“I just wanted to see this cruise ship you bragged so
much about,” Ana stated coolly.
Elina informed, a wicked gleam in her eyes. “I invited
Valyris Xersax just to rub it in his face over how I
bested him by snatching this liner.”
**If Telara’s mission fails, it will be Xersax who
will be laughing in the end, ** Ana thought ruefully.
Her mother suggested, grabbing hold of the younger
Trill’s hand. “Let’s head to this finest boutique in
the upper promenade and get you a suitable outfit for
the celebrations this evening.”
Ana snatched her hand out of the older woman’s grasp
and snapped. “I don’t plan on leaving my room right
now, mother.”
Elina sneered. “Please, get over your commoner
husband’s banishment to the peasant class.” Her
comment only received a fierce look from the younger
Trill.
-----------------
Scene: Ballroom
TI: Eight hours later
The SS QUEEN ELINA had already departed with not much
fanfare from the Trill homeworld. Evening had
commenced according to the ship’s chronometer. Elina
was hosting a ball in order to celebrate the cruise
ship’s maiden voyage. The owner of one of Trill’s
biggest corporate empires promised to make the event
very lavish. Unfortunately the rich socialite only
invited patrons belonging to first class, VIP and
elite.
Hansel and Kalaia entered the enormous room, which was
divided into two levels. The top level could be
reached by climbing a wide, purple carpeted,
elliptical staircase, whose golden railings made for
an ornate showing. In front of the railings, there
stood two golden statues resembling that of the
present grand nagus of the Ferengi. At the top of the
staircase, a giant white marble statue of the crime
lord, Zane Rixx was found. Rixx, used to be the owner
of the Queen Elina, prior to selling it to the Ferengi
group. The smug expression on the Bolian statue’s
face made one eager to scratch his beady eyes out.
Elina Orkov was spotted near the Rixx statue berating
someone over her comm. device. Her shrill voice was
reverberating along the walls, causing discomfort for
those nearby. “What is this monstrosity still doing
here?” Elina yelled, pointing at the Bolian crime
lord’s replica. “I told you to get rid of it over two
weeks ago, you idiot!”
Weron commented, rolling her eyes at the sight of the
matriarch. “She can be hit by the wings of Design for
all I care.” The couple was approaching the bottom of
the staircase, when Tomel halted to look up.
“This doesn’t look good,” the Trill announced
nervously.
Kalaia became bewildered and tilted her head upwards,
only to share Hansel’s shock. “What in the name of 88
hells are they doing here?” The blue woman referred to
the presence of Tomney and Ermila standing beside
Chrystoph and Elina.
“Ana’s not going to like this at all,” Hansel dreaded.
“I’m not going to like what,” Anaqueen inquired as she
crept up right behind the two science officers. “Is
something wrong?” She then asked with a worried tone,
fiddling with a silver earring, which encased a
communications device. Ana kept her channel open with
Telara to allow the Romulan/Andorian agent to listen
in on the conversation.
Tomel informed quickly. “Tomney and Ermila are here.”
He gulped, hearing the other Trill sigh in
exasperation.
His Betazoid/Trill/Bolian hybrid wife asked, watching
Spankryz glance up at her brother. “Do you want to get
them to a safe place and keep them there till this
whole operation is over?”
The Trill Captain nodded, her blue eyes turning cold.
“No. Let them stay here till the celebrations are
completed.” Turning her attention towards the two
Commanders, Ana ordered. “Don’t let Tomney and Ermila
out of your sight at all.”
“Understood,” the couple complied in unison.
Kalaia inquired. “Ana, where will you be headed?”
“Valyris will send someone here to take me to him,”
Ana replied. “Though I will need to find a way to
avoid mother,” The Captain muttered, a tinge of
annoyance in her voice as she watched Elina taunting
Chrystoph. .
Elina sniggered, whispering in her husband’s ear. “You
know it must be torturing for you to see Zarina in the
arms of your brother this evening.”
“Zarina would be in my arms if it wasn’t for your
seduction thirty seven years ago,” Chrystoph growled,
staring longingly at his sister in law, who was
sharing a laugh with two of her daughters. Zarina
Cebel, the wife of his younger brother, had three
daughters, Sarena Nilanti, Tara Lores and Rimni
Deimor.
The blonde woman hissed angrily. “You know very well
we both were drunk that night. You’re the last person
in the world I would ever want to touch.” She took a
deep breath before adding in disdain. “It was
agonizing for me to marry you because father and Harol
threatened my life if I didn’t.” Elina recalled that
fateful night with intense fury, when she was barely
twenty at the time. Oh she was no naïve little girl.
She was spoilt and ambitious with a desire for power.
After the one night stand with Tebro, Elina became
cold and ruthless with a thirst for revenge against
Harol and her father, Dustinian.
“Funny,” her husband remarked bitterly. “You did
eventually get everything you’ve wanted. You gained
control of your family. As for me, I lost my
inheritance and the love of my life.” It was true, no
matter how angry Tebro felt towards his wife, deep
down he knew she was the victim of Dustinian and
Harol’s manipulations and he did have a little too
much wine that night. But the emotional and bitter
part of him blames only Elina for the loss of Zarina,
a woman he loved since childhood. Not to mention Elina
made his life miserable with her demands and
manipulations during the early stages of their
marriage.
Tomney bristled upon overhearing his parents’
conversations. “I’m always this so called mistake they
made. Ana and I were tools for them to play around.”
The 36 year old Trill man was the product of his
parents’ illicit one night activity. His mother
resented him from day one and treated the boy like he
was worth nothing to her. His father was an
interesting situation. Tebro pushed Tomney to excel in
his studies in order to bolster his chances of getting
joined. The young man felt betrayed over a deal
Chrystoph made with his mother, Marin Letos, once a
chief justice of the Trill judiciary and matriarch of
the Deimors. Marin promised to restore Chrystoph’s
inheritance on the condition his son was successfully
joined. But Tomney failed to get accepted into the
program and from then on the relationship with his
father became sour.
“Tomney, don’t say that,” Ermila chided. “I know there
are many of us who are happy that you’re here.”
Spotting Tomel and Weron heading their way, the red
haired Trill woman greeted. “Hansel, Kalaia, nice of
you to join us.”
Tomel warned softly. “Ana knows you both are here and
she’s not thrilled.”
“She’s not making me leave not without seeing the
children back with us,” the blond man replied,
sounding defiant.
Weron inquired. “How did you both get here?”
Tomney explained, holding his wife’s hand. “Father
invited us to accompany him on the Queen Elina’s first
cruise.”
“Look,” Ermila pleaded. “As long as I and my husband
promise to stay out of your way, Ana shouldn’t have to
worry about our safety.”
Hansel pointed out, running a hand through his
well-combed hair. “Ana will always worry about the
both of you.” His blue eyes were filled with deep
concern. “And so will I, old friend,” he whispered
gently, patting the other Trill man’s shoulder.
Tomney questioned, scratching his head. “Where’s
Matthew? I don’t see him with Ana.”
“Thanks to your mother, the dragon queen,” the
Betazoid hybrid began deprecatingly. “Your brother in
law is not allowed out of the peasant class.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Ermila sighed as she watched
with anxiety at her sister in law walking discreetly
with a strange Ferengi woman towards one of the
private dining rooms.
*/~/*
Ranjani Sabarinathan
Speaking for...
[/\]o..
Lieutenant Commander Kathryn MacNeil, MD
Chief Operations Officer
GATEWAY STATION- 2
and
[/\]....
Captain Anaqueen Spankryz
Commanding Officer
USS COMMENDATION, NCC-10021 (Non RP ship)
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Wed Nov 19 2008 - 03:11:29 PST