Thank You

Posted on Tue Sep 1st, 2020 @ 6:45am by Captain Bethsabée Leroux & Ensign Michael Sloan

Mission: Mission 3 - 100
Location: Deck E - Officers Quarters
Timeline: Day 35, Month 2, Year 0 03:00
2476 words - 5 OF Standard Post Measure

Beth stirred slowly. She was sleeping deeper than normal when she finally got to sleep and it showed as the intruder alert went off. She was still living and sleeping in the Executive Officers quarters and at that moment it was a blessing and a curse as she found her quarters illuminated by just emergency lighting as the ship shook violently and then stopped. She knew the room that well that she could at least grab on her flight suit and shove her feet into her boots but it meant she was so far from the bridge and had many obstacles in her way.

The corridor was deadly quiet as she ventured out wishing for anything right then that she had a weapon but the best she had in her quarters was a book and that was not deadly enough for a species that had projectiles. She kept to the shadows and slowly but determinedly moved down the corridor. What she did not see was the figure behind her who recognized her from the negotiations and knew who she was following her. The second Beth knew was when she was grabbed but a sickening noise made the grip loosen from around neck.

As the Vrav body crumpled tot he floor, a figure barely recognizable as Michael stood in front of Beth. The next thing that would be seen was a Vrav projectile pistol aimed squarely at the head of the Commander. "Get down," the man stated with a certain severe tone to his voice that gave every indication of being serious and not in the mood to argue. His eyes betrayed no sense of his purpose or his emotion. The Romulan man had his entire focus on where his pistol was aiming, "Now."

Beth looked a the man unable to believe it was him at all. Was this really how she was going to die? Not at the hands of the dispatched Vrav at the man who had been in the Brig as a traitor for the last few weeks. She moved to kneel down pretty sure she was not going to plead and cry for her life at all. She would not go that way at all.

As soon as the woman's head moved from the center of the barrel, Michael pulled the trigger. The weapon gave an odd sound as a small piece of metal was sent flying at a fraction of the speed of light. The next sound was a sickening smack as the projectile hit flesh followed by a short groan and the sound of a body hitting the floor. Sloan had killed another Vrav soldier who had been sneaking up to Beth, no doubt ready to take out the one responsible for their current predicament. As soon as the threat was eliminated, Sloan immediately dropped to a knee and presented his new weapon to the Commander, barrel facing himself. "I am sorry for breaking out of confinement, but you needed the help."

Beth had barely moved to kneel when the projectile had gone across her head into another Vrac who was determined to sneak up on her. "Keep it. I think we are both going to need weapons, Michael." Beth said shaken a little by the whole event. How had they gotten onboard? "How did you escape? And how did you know I would need help?" She demanded turning to the second body relieving it of its weapon.

"Are you sure?" Micahel asked, looking down at the weapon in his hand. "I used the PADD to short out the lock on the cell door," he admitted. "Once emergency power came on when we went to Tactical Alert, it made the power relays more vulnerable." Looking to the Commander, Michael added, "I heard boots on the plating outside the Brig, phase rifle fire, and screaming. How could you have not needed an extra pair of hands trained in fighting?"

Beth rolled her eyes. There would be a time and place later on where they discussed his escape attempt and figure out a better way to hold him long term. He obviously had been waiting for a time to be able to escape. "Was this a planned attempt or luck?" Beth asked looking at the weapon in his hand. He could have left the Vrav to kill her, could have left her to her fate as she would have been dead but he had not. She just had to hope that whatever was underneath Michael would stay dormant for now.

"I only planned it when I heard the klaxons and signs of battle," Michael replied. He hoped that admitting his abilities would help her trust him, "Though I could have done it at any time. Given the right power fluctuation, and there have been opportunities." He kept the pistol lowered as he spoke, this was not an argument that he wanted to have, nor did he want to kill any of his crew. However, Sloan understood the reasoning behind it. He would have the same feelings.

Beth frowned but shrugged. "We will discuss this more later," Beth said simply as she started to head towards the door. "We do not have this time for this tension and mistrust. You want to prove yourself fine." Beth kept her weapon pointed at the ground, she had been lucky so far but who knew how long this luck would hold out for.

"The mistrust and tension is only on one side, but I understand why you feel the way you do," Sloan answered. "I know the way to the Bridge," he added as he took point. If they ran into any more Vrav, his species was more adept at handling the threat. "We can't lose two Captains in one trip," he finished as they began their journey.

"Munity." Beth coughed out throwing a sly look in his direction. "Qui, not exactly anyone primed to take over from me right now," Beth said following the man. This would be the perfect time to talk and try and process all the emotions they had for for the other but the Vrav were sneaky and could sneak up on them at any point. And despite how much she hated saying it, he was right the crew could not lose her right then and there.

"I can hear better than Humans," Michael replied. "Apparently, my other people share lineage with the Vulcans, I don't think anyone will be sneaking up on us. This wasn't a large boarding party, I would bet that there were only a few, three or four but no more than six." He paused for a moment, his face showing something akin to regret. "I don't know who I am, I mean who I started as. But, I didn't ask for this. My loyalty is to the crew."

"Let's hope then." Beth said walking a few compartments in silence before she turned back to the man as the corridor was deathly silent. "We cannot change what has happened Michael but we need to look to the future and work out who you are. We are not getting home any time soon and if we do, it will not be pretty for you at all." Beth had been having nightmares for a week since she had stumbled on that minefield of a thought.

"I know," Michael replied. It was all he had been thinking about in the weeks he had been in confinement. "I'm a sleeper agent spy who threatened my commanding officer, but no one was hurt," he added. It was something he had said to himself countless times since the incident. Only occasionally did it ever do anything to make him feel better about himself. "I can't apologize any more. I don't know the man who crashed in the shuttle training incident just like I don't know the man who grew up in a far away empire. I don't know what was done to whichever one of them the real me was... is. I don't even know everything that was put in my head. All I know is that I am dedicated to getting everyone home and that you are the Captain, no matter how much you try to hide that from yourself."

"Because some Vulcan's put you to sleep." Beth countered knowing that would bruise his ego just a little bit. "I am sure given a little bit of time you will figure it all out and come to some resolution with who or what you are Michael." They had, had no time to recover or try and figure stuff out. "I think we all need to find who or what we are in this new no..." She stopped as she saw shadows in front of her and grabbed the man's hand pulling him into the open alcove covering his mouth to stop anything else coming out of his mouth.

Seeing the shadow before his mouth was covered like a child, Michael held the Vrav weapon in a ready position. His eyes locked with Beth's as if to tell her to let go of him. The former Chief Armory Officer motioned with his hand for her to stay back as he crept a few baby steps toward the shadow. His pistol rising slightly to fire at whatever was making the shadow. Careful, Careful, he thought to himself as he prepared his mind for a fight.

The woman took the hint and slowly moved back seeing the shadow getting closer and closer to them on the corridor. She shook her motioning for Michael to just let the thing pass on by but she was pretty sure that if it was a Vrav they were already done for.

Before he could react, Michael saw the shadow turn into one of the boarding Vrav. As he pulled the pistol into firing position, the intruder already had the man where it wanted him. With a noise that could have only been made by the vrav pistol, Michael was struck just below the left shoulder and went down. A reptilian arm grabbed at the down man and tossed him to the side. "You are Captain leader," the Vrav spoke as it began to close the gap toward Beth.

"I am these people's leader." Beth started looking around the room for something she could use as a weapon or defensive but there was nothing. If she had time to laugh at the situation she would that he has saved her for her to die minutes later. "Is that really why you came onboard this ship to kill me and leave all of us starving and dying?" Beth challenged.

Just as the warrior was about to pull the trigger on its device, a sound came from behind the Vrav. It was Michael grunting in pain as he used his Romulan strength to grab the Vrav intruder. He then proceeded to ram it into the bulkhead, a projectile was fired in the confusion that just missed the target the Vrav was aiming to hit. "Are you okay?" Michael asked.

Beth had ducked as the shot had fired off and had felt it move past her ear but she was none worse for wear just feeling a bit foolish for being so weak. She nodded standing up taking him in and the wound on his collarbone. "Let me patch you up a bit." She said moving over pressing her hand to his wound that did not seem to be effecting him as much as it should be.

Wincing a bit, Micahel stayed silent. He really did not want to start another argument with the Captain. It was already pretty clear that he'd be spending the majority of the journey back in his cell. Probably without access to another PADD, considering what he had told her about his escape. "We need to get you to the Bridge," he said, "that's where you belong."

"Sure is but cannot go without my bodyguard being at least patched up enough to get me there." She pointed out pushing him towards an upturned chair. "Sit and shh." She instructed. It would take moments to at least cover his wound and allow him to actually have a chance at healing properly. "You were lucky. Couple more inches either side and it would have been dire." She muttered moving over the vrav to retrieve a first aid kit from a panel.

"Lucky," Michael replied, not sounding very convinced. "I suppose it allows me a few more minutes outside my cell," he accidentally thought aloud. Hoping she did not hear it, he looked back at Beth before looking down. "Thank you for patching me up." He did not know what to say outside of that. He was a man without a people and a danger to everyone. What could he say? If he apologized again, what could he apologize for, being forcibly turned into someone else?

Beth had heard but chose to ignore it. She knew the cell was no good for him but there was not much else she could do right there and then. She needed time to think and time and thinking about things that were not about patching him up or getting to bridge was not a grand idea at all. Beth smiled and put his tee back in place as she finished with the gauze. "It was the least I could do." She replied. "Thank you for saving me twice." She replied back to him. It meant a lot to her and it would be something to add to the growing list they needed to discuss.

"You're the best hope the crew has to get home," Michael replied. He did not necessarily like the Commander. In fact, part of him resented the fact that she had thrown how her mistrust in his face almost every time they had spoken since they had arrived wherever they were. But, she did have the makings of a good leader. If she would have had a regular Starfleet career, she probably would have earned a shot at the Captain's chair of one of Earth's vessels. Giving his arm a good test movement, he nodded toward the nearest access hatch, "The Bridge needs you."

Beth squeezed his opposite shoulder and nodded at him. She was stunned by his words and if they had been anywhere else the blush on her cheeks would have been showing and she would have stumbled through some words that thanked him but it would have to wait. "Let us go then." She whispered offering his hand pulling him back to his feet. "We do this together," She told him firmly. They had to be the leaders the ship needed.

Grabbing her hand, Michael nodded his agreement. Though given his current situation, he was not sure exactly how far together would bring them and the crew.