What shall we do with the drunken sailor?

Posted on Mon Jan 9, 2017 @ 7:00am by Lieutenant Arashi Tanaka Mr. & Senior Chief Petty Officer Samantha Summers

1,876 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Silence
Location: Brig

Arashi had been pouring over alot of files pertaining to the current investigation into the SCPO's dealings with the ship. He couldn't be sure that there wasn't anything else compromised and/or destroyed since this was not his area of expertise. He stretched out and sighed. He would let the investigators do their work but as of yet he had found nothing. "Samantha, I want to ask you a few things." He said and looked toward the SCPO. He didn't feel like using her rank considering what she did but he didn't feel the need to be totally disrespectful to her either.

'Summers' shook her head for a second to see whom he was talking to, then looked at him and smiled. " Ask away. Why not come in here and get comfortable? "

"No thanks." He said. "I just want to know, why you did it...What was your reason that you did what you did?" Arashi asked. He wasn't angry per se, but he was upset that someone who worked for Starfleet would do such a thing. He was careful to not let his anger show but the very fact that she was able to get as far as she did in what he thought was her plan made him think that she could see the fact that he was trying to control his anger.

' Summers ' looked straight at Arashi. "Hmmm. *Why I did it.* I don't know; everything was and is 'hush-hush.' I tried, I failed, that's it. Oh and by the way - there is no 'Summers,' least wise I know of. You are speaking to Centurion Karee of the Tal Shiar, and I have failed my mission." 'Summers' smiled a wicked smile. " Or have I? " And sat back down.

"So the Tal Shiar decided that we had stuck our noses in their bussiness or did they not want us to find something out here? It seems suspicious to me that they would go through all of this trouble to destroy or sabotage unless they figured that we got close to something that they wanted hidden." Arashi said. "You could have sabotaged the ship through covert means instead of making it obvious that you were sabotaging the ship. I mean a Romulan Centurion should have known better right? Did they want you to fail or did you fail because you just weren't prepared? If you didn't fail, did you plan contingencies?"

'Summers' looked sideways at Arashi. " There are always 'contingencies.'" She replied.

"I'll have to get someone to look for those. Another question then. Why did you join the Tal Shiar? I always thought the Imperial Navy and The Tal Shiar never really got along. Did you have family that joined the Tal Shiar or did they recruit you? I would think that you wouldn't want to join an organization that is at odds with those they supposedly are gathering intel for, am I right?"

" You ask to many questions, my friend. " Replied Karee. " If I were you, I'd be looking under floorboards. By the way, what happens when two 'negatives' meet?"

"I may do that." Arashi said "As for the negatives meeting I guess that there would be...issues. Why does the Romulan Navy hate the Tal Shiar so much then?" Arashi asked.

Karee just groaned and looked at the ceiling. She suddenly began to shake, then turned around to face Arashi. " What..what am I doing here?!?!? Arashi, let me out..I need to talk with..someone..anyone..please!!! I know what's happening..."

"You know I can't do that. Talk to me, tell me what is going on and I can tell the captain whatever it is you tell me." Arashi said, concerned but not willing to budge, considering the risk to the ship.

'Summers' looked around her cell. "Arashi....it's fuzzy..but..." Summers shook her head like trying to clear cobwebs. " The polarity of the circuits in our ship...reversed..to negative....the base..someone *there* is doing same.thing.when contact is made..... minus + minus = 'poof!' " Summers staggered to her bunk. Then looked at Arashi.." She's wrong!!! I didn't do that!" Karee sat on her bunk, arms folded, hands clenched.

"But how...Ok Karee...There is only one person that can solve this and you need to tell me how to fix this. You have all these lives at stake and if they die, you die. You need to tell me now!" Arashi said angrily "Do you not want to live and tell the tale of how you survived this ordeal? Do you not have anyone you want to protect? I don't know if you did whatever it is that people are saying you did or not but you can help stop this!" He was trying hard to convince Karee to do something, anything to save his home away from home.

Karee sunk on her bunk. " Right now I don't know if what was done here on this ship has been 'fixed,' . However, if all has gone as intended, an 'operative' on the base they plan to dock with will by now have 'changed' their current to an 'negative polarity' to match this ships. When the two 'connect,' both 'negative polarities' will 'cancel each other out,' and take the ship and base with them to 'what ever.' That's all I know, and all I can tell you."

Arashi thought about what she said. "All you can tell me or will tell me....Never mind. What happens if we make one of the connections positive? Will that damage the ship or make it explode or something? I need to know more so I can at least tell the captain of the ship how to stop this." He said to Karee. "I want to save the ship and I believe that you do too but I need more information to do that with. I am trying to save all of us including you."

Karee looked at him. " Save the ship...yes..if both connections are corrected, then nothing will happen..If the correction has been made on *this* ship, but *not* on the base, even then all should be well. "
Suddenly, Karee 's eyes blinked. " Arashi...help it's me, Samantha...the Tal Shire..there's a split...they want..." Her eyes closed and Karee shook her head. " That *fool!*" She shouted, then turned her eyes on Arashi.

"Karee, I need to know what the split is about, right now! Why do they want to destroy the Victory or whatever it is they want to do? Tell me or by god I will let the captain interrogate you and we all know how much you don't want that."Arashi said angrily. "Then you can tell me what to fix so that I can tell the captain about what you did to save the ship and try to put in a good word for you." He had said the last part with a more calm and rational voice rather than an angry one.

Summers/Karee shook her head in disgust. " They - the Tal Shiar, *don't* want what the Romulan Senate and Praetor want, which is an 'agreement in principle' with the Federation. The Tal Shire believe it would be a sign that 'we,' - Romulans, are weakening, and growing weaker in that we should have to join with the Federation in order to continue to survive. I was sent her to sabotage the Victory's docking with the station, in that the electrical circuits of the Victory would be reversed, while the same time so would this happen on the base. So.., when the Victory docked, an negative circuit meeting another negative circuit, would literally, 'cancel' each other out,aka 'poof!' away goes the Victory, and away goes the station. But, apparently, the Operative on the base didn't accomplish what they needed to do. Why, I don't know. But I *do* know why it didn't happen here on the Victory. Part of the Captain and crew working on their ship. The other part having to do with me - I finally realized I was more Romulan than Tal Shiar....I didn't finish the work. I think the trauma of knowing what I was doing, even when I was 'Summers,' caused my brain to...as you sometimes say, ' go on the fritz,' which caused me, Karee, to 'come out' earlier than I was supposed to. I can't go back to Romulus..and 'Summers' exists only through massive manipulation of Federation records and plastic surgury."

"All right then we need to tell the captain about this. Maybe we can fix this situation." Arashi said to the Romulan. "We can still fix this. In case there is another operative do you have a code word to abort your current mission. If not we need to tell the captain what to do fix the ship. I mean there can be something done if we can get a sign of good will going here. We still need to find the operative that is on the station and if we do that we can arrange asylum or something I guess."

Karee shook her head. " I am not privy to any abort code words. In regards to this situation, Victory's crew may have already fixed the problem and notified the station's personnel on what to do. As to asylum, that would be worth asking for, *if* they's let me stay, that is."

"I am not so sure but you may be right. We need to be prepared in case the operative has a backup plan." Arashi said. "I doubt that the Tal Shiar is willing to let this slide even if this operation failed. Do you know the name of the operative by any chance or were you given seperate orders."

Karee looked directly at Arashi. " I don't have an name. This person would have been working on separate orders - right now I wish I *did* have his or her name to give you."

"Karee, you did enough for me to save my home here. I have come to consider my ship my home and my friends are like family to me. If what information you gave me can save both, then you have at least earned my trust. Now I am going to talk to the captain and try to put in a good word for you but as you know I cannot gurantee anything other than the fact that I will talk to the captain. Thank you, Karee. If you need me to put in a request for political asylum then tell me now."

Karee nodded in the affirmative. " I would officially like to ask for political asylum; what happens to me next I do bit know. I can't go home, and I can't go to an Federation Base. There is only one *real* home for me, which like you, is this ship."

Arashi smiled and turned to leave. "I'll see what I can do. Thanks again for the help. I will try my best for you." He wrote everything down on a PADD and prepared a report for the captain. He was sure that at least he could request political asylum for Karee.

 

RSS Feed