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"Payment" - Part Nine
Rating: R (Violence, Strong Language, Adult Situations, Brutality) Note: Vulcan terms used in this story were taken from the online Vulcan Language Dictionary, the Vulcan Language Institute, or I made them up myself. Part Nine: T’Pol sat on the floor with her back against the end of Tucker’s desk. The ankle chain she wore was easily long enough to reach either of the chairs, but she preferred to spend her time in meditation position. In the days since they had set out for Vulcan she had spent all day, every day in the same spot. She responded to Tucker’s direct commands. Otherwise she ignored the rest of the universe. Her time had run out. She had failed her people. Defiant was on its way to Vulcan and there was nothing she could do to stop it. She was as helpless as the innocent victims who were about to die because of her failure. She could not even take her own life in atonement. The only method available to her would involve the death trance, and as soon as her life signs began to fail she would be rushed to sickbay and placed on Defiant's incredible life support equipment. If necessary, they could keep her alive for the rest of her natural span. So she sat and waited. There was nothing else for her to do.
Tucker heard the main doors open and sensed, rather than heard, the hiss of indrawn breaths all over Engineering. He waited a moment, and made a point of raising his head casually from the panel he was inspecting. Travis was strolling languidly across the deck. His two bodyguards flanked him, one pace to each side and two paces back, with phaser rifles ready. Tucker straightened and saluted carefully. Respectful, but not groveling. “Welcome to Engineering, Fleet Admiral. What can we do for you?” Travis scanned the area, missing nothing at all. His eyes gave nothing, took in everything. From the location of each crewman, to the position of each container, to the stance of every guard, Tucker was sure that the entire room was imprinted on his brain in full color and three dimensions with the first glance. The royal consort swung his eyes back and Tucker had to grab hard at his control. He tightly demanded his body to stand still, no flinching allowed. “We are approaching Eridani, Commander,” Travis said smoothly. “Her Imperial Majesty commands that Defiant be made ready for battle at a moment's notice.” Tucker's face tightened. “She is already prepared, Sir,” he said grimly. “All systems read nominal. Phasers have been checked and double checked with every diagnostic we have. Torpedoes have been prepared and loaded. Shields are at optimum. Hull plating is at optimum. Both warp and impulse engines are operating within standard tolerances according to all readouts.” Travis smiled faintly. “What about the personnel, Commander? Is the Engineering staff prepared for battle as well?” His eyes narrowed. Tucker felt his scalp tighten even more. “Of course, Sir. We are Starfleet. We are always ready.” He mouthed the moth-eaten propaganda glibly as he tried to figure out what Travis was after. His thoughts were interrupted when Travis slammed him backward against the console and jabbed a dagger under his chin. Tucker grabbed for the wrist of the hand holding the dagger, and with his other hand snatched at Travis's throat. The MACO easily intercepted his attempt and pinned his arm. Leaving the two of them frozen in time, with Tucker bent backward over the console. Two short, sharp bursts of sound snapped out - followed by silence. Travis's eyes widened, then narrowed to slits. “Don't even think about mocking me, Tucker,” he whispered. Strangely, there was no sign of anger in his voice. Evenly, Tucker told him, “I wasn't mocking you, Sir. We are ready.” Blue eyes met brown and held them for a long interval. Slowly and carefully, Travis backed up and disengaged to put some distance between himself and Tucker. Only then did the two of them notice the corpses of the two bodyguards. Both were missing the tops of their respective skulls, having been neatly sliced off with welding lasers. Travis stared at the bodies. Then he nodded slowly and looked back up at Tucker. “Don't ever stop being ready.” Then he turned and stalked out. When the doors shut behind him, Tucker felt his knees start to buckle. He grabbed the console behind him and held on for dear life.
T'Pol stood rigid with shock. This was impossible. This could not be true. What had happened in front of her eyes defied everything that she positively knew to be proven fact about Humans. She looked at her mate. She could feel his own shock and relief through the bond. He was surprised also. But not as much as she was. The emotions pouring through their connection were a tangled mass of chaotic confusion. But she could identify joy, and relief, and gratitude. Also fear, and anger, and worry. T'Pol closed her eyes and tried to clear her mind. It didn't help. When she closed her eyes the memory of those laser shots returned. Hess, she understood. Having observed their interactions, T'Pol had drawn the conclusion that Hess desired to take Tucker for her own mate. From the Human's viewpoint, it would be a logical and advantageous move. Of course, it would require killing T'Pol. But Hess would consider that a minor impediment. So it was not incredible that Hess would be willing to attack the Imperial consort's bodyguard on Tucker's behalf. But why would Crewman Meyer be willing to do so? He was a recent transfer, only having been transported over from Farragut one day into their voyage to Vulcan. What possible motivation would he have for risking his life, and his family's lives, in defense of Commander Tucker? There was something happening here. Not just on this ship, but here in Engineering. Her mate was involved in planning something much larger than personal advancement. She had to find out what was happening. It might make all the difference to her people. What could she possibly do to penetrate his defenses?
Tucker pushed off and stood up on wobbly legs. Hess and Rostov came over with carefully blank looks. “Boss,” Rostov asked casually, “What do you want done with the meat?” He rolled his eyes at Hess, then jerked a thumb at the bodies. Tucker glanced down. “Sack 'em and ship 'em to sickbay,” he ordered. “Let them figure out what to do with the scraps.” Rostov nodded with a twisted mouth and turned to shout a command. Tucker looked at Hess and found her fighting back tears. He sighed. “That was the stupidest thing you ever did in your life, Anna,” he scolded her in a soft whisper. “What were you thinking?” Hess bit her lip and swallowed. “Th- They were moving in on you.” She sniffled and rubbed her nose on her sleeve, discreetly. “Both of them started closing in when Mayweather jumped you.” She hesitated, then burst out in suppressed fury, “I couldn't just stand there.” Tucker closed his eyes. “Kid. If Travis had wanted me dead, I would have died about 0.5 seconds after he put his hand on that knife. They wouldn't have dared to scratch me without his express order. They were just doing their job.” “I'm sorry,” she told him forlornly, hanging her head. Tucker didn't know whether to laugh, or cry, or spank her. So he picked her up in a bear hug and squeezed the breath out of her. “Sorry?” He laughed. “For being willing to back me up come hell or high water? I guess I will have to forgive you for that.” He grinned and saw the light come back into her eyes. “Thanks, Anna. I owe you big time. I won't forget this.” “Meyers was in on it too,” she told him. “You remember, Drew's cousin.” Tucker nodded. “Put him on day shift,” he said. “Accelerated training schedule.” Hess smiled knowingly. “Already gave the orders, Commander.” Tucker snorted. “I don't know why I even bothering showing up for work. You and Rostov run the place. I just sit around and look pretty.”
“Any sign of enemy ships, Arvon?” Sato demanded. “No, Ma'am,” the science officer responded. “There are three unarmed cargo ships in orbit. No life signs on any of them. None of the orbital stations are currently showing power consumption of any kind. Their spacedock is also shut down cold. The entire area around Vulcan is clear of any activity of any kind.” “Maintain battle readiness,” Sato ordered. “Helm, assume geosynchronous orbit over the city of Shi'Kahr. Communications, get me the Vulcan High Command.” The screen cleared almost immediately to reveal Chief Minister V'Lar. The old woman looked serenely tired. “Imperial Majesty,” she inclined her head. “The High Command awaits your judgment.” Sato sat back in the central chair and pinched her lower lip thoughtfully. She shook her head faintly. The turbolift doors hissed behind her left shoulder, and a quick glance revealed that Travis had finally returned. She would give him a tongue lashing for his tardiness later. How long could it possibly take to run down to Engineering and back? Hoshi abruptly said, “V'Lar. Gather yourself and the five senior members of the High Command. Report to your meeting chamber and stand in the center to await transport to Defiant. You will be tried and sentenced aboard my flagship.” “Understood,” V'Lar replied. “We will comply.” Sato said, “Good. I will expect you to be ready within ten minutes. Until then.” She looked at the Communications officer and gestured for her to kill the connection. “Where were you?” she demanded furiously of Travis, in a voice that was barely short of shrill. Travis shrugged, unimpressed. “Ordering funereal arrangements for my bodyguards,” he told her. Sato froze in her seat. “What happened?” she asked, subdued. He looked at her. “Later,” he told her. She subsided and nodded. Travis went on, “Where do you want our guests to be deposited?” “The shuttlecraft hanger,” she replied. “Easy to clean out.” He nodded. Sato went on, “Have Reed, Tucker, and his doggie report there right away. We will give the Vulcans fifteen minutes to stew and then stroll down to greet them.” “Sounds good,” Travis nodded approvingly.
Reed was fidgeting. Tucker saw T'Pol shoot him frequent hooded glances, like she expected him to strike out at random sooner or later. She might be right at that. Malcolm Reed wasn't anything near stable at the best of times. During periods like this, when waiting for his prey to arrive, he started resembling a starving pit bulldog. Tucker casually brushed his hand over the lump at his side. The tiny phaser from Defiant's armory was still in place. Naturally. What did he think, was it going to stand up and march away? Fascinating, the way they had designed these weapons in modular form. A basic phaser the size of a pack of cards, which could be inserted into a pistol bracket, which could in turn be inserted into a rifle bracket. With each increment providing a corresponding increase in power and range. According to the classified files that he had eventually managed to hack open, the adjustments he had made should make it invisible to even this ship's internal sensors. That was assuming that no one else had found the same classified files. As soon as he realized what they were, Tucker had downloaded them onto separate data cartridges and wiped the main computer clean. Even if someone else had seen them, it was a fair bet that not even Sato could have broken Defiant’s Control Codes. Tucker was only able to manage it because the Control Codes were physically embedded in the central computer’s memory core. Even then, he had discovered them by pure chance. With the Control Codes, he had been able to access the main algorithms for the central computer’s most secure systems, including all command codes and classified files all the way up to Top Secret - Eyes Only. There was some illuminating stuff in there too. A lot of assuming going on. Tucker sighed in exasperation, drawing looks from both of the other two. Fortunately, they were too involved in their own thoughts to spend any energy analyzing his state of mind. “Hoshi must like it in here,” he mused, looking around the hanger. “Maybe because it is so big. Like a vast cathedral or something. It suits her grand fantasies about being a great, all powerful empress.” Tucker had fought to keep a straight face when Sato made her grandiose pronouncement at the confirmation ceremony. Made herself empress? Not hardly. Travis had made her empress. Travis had gotten her the poison that she fed to Archer. When she strolled out onto the bridge afterward and announced that she had taken command of Defiant, it was only dread of her consort’s rattlesnake-quick reflexes that kept every phase pistol in its holster. She might pretend that she had Reed under control, but only fear of Travis held him back from her throat. Without Travis, Hoshi would not be able to survive two days. Tucker wondered if she had sense enough to realize it. For the sake of the empire, he sincerely hoped so. At least until he had time to finish his work. He did NOT want to be forced into taking command of Defiant himself. That would almost require him to proclaim himself emperor, and Tucker did not want the throne. He had plans, important plans. But ruling the Terran empire was not part of them. Not if he could avoid it. Now there was this crap with Vulcan to handle. He looked at T'Pol, wondering what she was thinking. He did his best to block what was coming through the bond, but what did make it through was sickening. She honestly wanted to die, he could tell that much. The intercom activated. “Stand by for beam in.” The guards readied their weapons and waited. Tucker settled the controller for T'Pol's collar in his left hand and rested his right hand near his concealed phaser. He flicked a glance at Reed and felt contempt. The man was almost drooling with anticipation. He was the one that should be on a collar. And a leash. A building whine announced the formation of six columns of light. The Vulcans remained motionless, looking around carefully. Each registered acknowledgment of T'Pol's presence, and her chained condition. Tucker met their assessing looks with bland indifference. T'Pol radiated shame, and kept her eyes on the floor. Reed couldn't stop smiling.
Hoshi led the way into the turbolift with a stiff back. The two guards flanking the doors stiffened and kept their faces immobile. Her imperial majesty was obviously not in a good mood. Even if she were not there, neither of them would have dared to offer Travis a glance of sympathy. He would have cut them down in a heartbeat for such a breach of discipline. But they felt it, he could see it in their eyes. A flicker of cold amusement crossed his features. Travis barely got inside before Hoshi snapped, “Hanger deck.” The car started moving and Hoshi started ranting. She pushed her way up Travis and shouted, “How dare you make me look foolish on the bridge! You should have reported in as soon as something happened! What do you mean sauntering in like that and casually announcing that your bodyguards were dead? You caught me by surprise! The empress is Never caught by surprise!” She stopped to catch her breath and gather her forces for a new assault. So Travis grabbed her and kissed her. She tried to knee him in the belly and, when that failed, made a sincere effort to rip both of his ears off. He let her go, laughing. “That is the sweetest thing you have ever said to me, Darling,” he told her sardonically. “I love you too. It warms my heart to know you worry about me.” Hoshi clenched both fists and let out a screech. Then she snarled, “All stop!” The turbolift jerked to a halt. She glared at Travis with glittering eyes. “I meant what I said. Don’t EVER do something like that again. Do you understand me?” “Of course, Majesty,” Travis bowed. “I understand and obey.” He laughed almost inaudibly. “Resume.” The turbolift started moving again. Hoshi fumed in silence for a few moments until the reached the hanger deck. The doors parted to reveal a line of MACOs covering both bulkheads. The two of them stepped out and their honor guard fell in before and behind. “Now, are you going to tell me what happened or not?” Hoshi demanded. Travis shrugged. “My bodyguards got into a dispute about the limits of authority with a couple of Tucker’s people,” he explained. “What?!” Hoshi stopped instantly. She stared at him furiously. “Is Tucker-” He held up a hand to stop her. “Tucker didn’t cause it,” Travis assured her calmly. “I am sure he is raking his people over the coals right now. It was my people’s fault, and they paid the price for their own stupidity.” He looked around at their escort and raised his voice. His words were still addressed to Hoshi, but they were obviously meant to be heard by everyone present. “The one thing I will not tolerate from my people is stupidity. My guards got cocky and turned their backs on those technicians. They didn’t think they had the guts to touch them. Now they are in body bags waiting to be launched out a torpedo tube.” He looked back down at Hoshi and motioned for them to continue. Hoshi wore a look of intense thought. “How did Tucker react?’ She asked, recovering her aplomb. “He was upset,” Travis smiled. “He is far from stupid, unlike my guards. We were talking about making sure Defiant was battle ready when we heard two welding lasers go off. By the time we turned around, the guards were down and his techs had faded into the woodwork.” He laughed. “I thought Tucker was going to start flattening every tech in Engineering with his bare hands.” “I will expect to see two bodies in payment for your guards,” Hoshi said grimly. Travis stopped and looked at her. “No.” Her face flashed crimson and her lips thinned across her teeth. Quick glances in both directions at the guards revealed her opinion of discussing this in front of the guards. Travis ignored her expression. “We can’t spare any people from Engineering right now. Tucker is shorthanded as it is. And I told you, my people were at fault.” Hoshi hissed her rage. “Need I remind you who is the empress here?” Travis took her face between his hands. Firmly. VERY firmly. “I remember, Your Imperial Majesty,” he told her emotionlessly, with no more expression in his eyes than a snake. “How much do you remember?” Hoshi flinched. Just a little, and with her face concealed in his big hands, only Travis was aware if it. But they both knew exactly what he was talking about. With everyone on the ship bowing to her, it was easy to get carried away. Travis didn’t hold it against her, he was a realist. But it was still important to make sure that she didn’t start believing her own propaganda. Hoshi swallowed and reached up to touch his hands. She dissembled her nervousness and started caressing the backs of his hands with her palms. “All right then, if you are so determined about it,” she crooned with a coy smile. “They were your guards after all.” “Thank you, Majesty,” Travis told her graciously. He offered her his arm and they proceeded along the corridor toward the shuttlecraft bay.
The doors whisked open a full two minutes before Tucker had estimated they would. “Travis must have gotten tired of waiting,” he thought sardonically. The royal couple sauntered arrogantly, arm in arm, down along the carpeted walkway toward the waiting prisoners. Tucker felt rage begin to boil up in T’Pol and touched the pain lever. Just a twitch, to remind her. She looked at him and settled back into a kneeling position. But her glower remained. V’Lar stepped forward one pace and bowed. “Empress. We have come, as ordered.” Hoshi looked them over. None of them were under a hundred and forty, and some were pushing two hundred. She sneered. “Six worn out old bags of bones. Six walking corpses to pay for the lives of hundreds of young Starfleet warriors, with their entire lives ahead of them.” V’Lar’s face changed. She actually looked saddened. “We are but the first, Empress. It is true that nothing can truly repay the loss of such promise. But all we can offer is what we have.” She spread out her hands. Hoshi gave a ladylike snort and crossed her arms. She raised one hand and started rubbing a single forefinger along her cheek thoughtfully. “Reed, come up here. You too Tucker, and bring your little pet.” Reed’s teeth shone as he marched smartly forward to stand at attention beside the royal couple. His eyes glittered hatefully. The Vulcans returned his look calmly, but none of them missed his raking stare. He measured each of them individually, as if estimating their endurance time in the booth. Tucker turned his head and said, “Up.” T’Pol tightened her muscles and considered disobeying. But it would serve no purpose now. If she failed to stand and walk, she would be dragged. And the other Vulcans would be punished for her insolence. She rose to her feet in stony silence and preceded her mate to the designated spot. Hoshi smiled quite pleasantly. “Now, isn’t this a pleasant reunion all around? V’Lar, I believe you are acquainted with T’Pol? You knew her mother, did you not?” T’Pol sent her eyes roving across the upper support struts while V’Lar inspected her. She heard the old woman say, gravely, “I did. I grieve to see her condition.” “Well, I suppose you might,” Hoshi tittered. “But not as much as she does, I am sure. But then, murder is a very serious charge you see.” V’Lar closed her eyes in pain. “Indeed.” She opened them again. “Would it be permissible, imperial highness, for me to inquire as to who she killed?” “Why certainly, V’Lar,” Hoshi said sweetly. She glanced up at her consort's alertly unperturbed features. “Dear, sweet T’Pol was the ringleader and instigator of the mutiny aboard Enterprise. The one that caused the destruction of Enterprise, and the death of all non-Human members of the crew, as well as more than a third of the Humans.” She smiled gently and reached over to twirl a lock of T’Pol’s hair. The Vulcan stood rigidly and endured it. A hiss of breath betrayed V’Lar’s shock. Several of the listening members of the High Command bowed their heads. “Can this be true child?” V’Lar’s voice held an undeniable emotional tone. “You were a sworn officer of the Empire. How could you have betrayed your oath and your people this way?” “The EMPIRE!” T’Pol exploded suddenly. “What did I owe the Empire? The Empire killed my family! The Empire took my world and turned it into an armed camp. The Empire steals the best of our young people from each generation and sends them out to be butchered in its endless wars of expansion. The Empire taxes our people into poverty, enslaves our best minds for its own use. The Empire takes and takes and takes!” V’Lar shook her head. “You are a fool T’Pol. A young and ignorant fool. I realize that you are too young to remember the old days, but have you never read the history books? Or did you simply choose to ignore them?” “Those days could not have been as bad as the Empire!” T’Pol seethed back, careless now of any consequences. Her Vulcan anger had taken her, and she no longer cared if she lived or died. Or if anyone else did either. “I remember those days, child,” Minister Kuvak said. The old man’s wrinkled face looked tired beyond words. “I remember them far too well. Sometimes, they still disturb my sleep, no matter how deeply I meditate.” He looked her in the eye. “Whatever can be said of the Empire, and I grant that the Terran Empire is deeply flawed, it is still much preferable to the chaos that ruled this quadrant in the generations before it came to be.” The Humans watched and listened with interest. Reed started to step forward and Hoshi held up her hand sharply, stopping him on a pin. She shook her head and gave each of the Humans a direct look. V’Lar spoke again. “You railed against the lives lost in the Empire’s wars. Did you think to count the lives lost in our last war against Andoria? Or our war against the Orion Syndicate? Or our war against the Romulans? Or our war against the Klingons? Or our war against the Nausicans? Or our war against the Tellarites? Did you count the lives lost to piracy, T’Pol?,” she asked quietly. “There was a time,” V’Lar continued, “That a cargo ship could not travel anywhere in this quadrant unless it was heavily armed, and heavily escorted. Nausican and Orion pirates plundered with impunity, killed and enslaved at will. No one will ever know how many of our people ended their lives toiling in a Nausican dilithium mine, or chained down in an Orion brothel.” T’Pol drew back horror. “You see?,” V’Lar told her. “After the Empire rose, for a brief time an unarmed ship could travel from the Syndicate all the way to Andoria and back again in perfect safety. True, the Empire patrols demanded their tolls. But nothing they demanded came close to the depredations of the pirates.” V’Lar turned her head away and sighed. “And now, because of you and foolish young people like you, the Empire is tied down fighting this insurrection. Once again pirates are roaming at will along the outer fringes of the Empire. Once again, slaves are being taken. Once again, young men and women are screaming as they watch their children being killed, because they are too small to be economically useful.” T’Pol choked. She started shivering. “No.” She shook her head continually. She could not stop. “I see that they are making an example of you,” V’Lar said sadly. “Do you know what your fate is planned to be?” “Unfortunately,” Hoshi broke in pensively, “we are not making an example of her. We can’t. It’s most vexing, really.” V’Lar blinked several times and looked mightily puzzled. “Empress? I... do not understand...” Hoshi shrugged and smiled nastily. “Well, I really would prefer not to lose my Chief Engineer you see. And him being her bonded mate and all, if I kill her he will die. So I was reluctantly forced to let her live.” Six heads snapped around as if mounted on a single swivel to stare at Tucker. He grimaced and looked at Hoshi, who hid her mouth behind her hand. “Oh, it caught us by surprise too,” she told them. “Commander Tucker was the most astonished of us all when he found out about it. Especially since T’Pol did her best to get him killed in the mutiny.” Astonished silence suddenly became something else. The Vulcans stopped looking at Tucker and turned to look at T’Pol. She shrank down, trembling. Then she collapsed on the floor, whimpering. Tucker grabbed his forehead and fell to his knees, gasping. “Holy shit! Stop!” He dimly heard a phaser go off and the pressure disappeared. Voices were fading in and out. “We had no idea that it would affect him, Empress,” a voice insisted. “No doubt it is due to his lack of natural shields. We did nothing that would harm him, however. He will recover fully in a few minutes.” “He had better,” Hoshi’s voice warned. “Or it will be several days before I permit you to die.” TBC |
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