When Fear Came to The Fearless
Posted on Tue May 28th, 2019 @ 11:25pm by Captain Winfield Hood & Lieutenant Rachele Lamberti & Brigadier General Francis 'Judge' Sobel & Major Cadama Roi & Glinn Kalim
Edited on on Tue May 28th, 2019 @ 11:27pm
2,639 words; about a 13 minute read
Mission:
Episode 6 - Old Habits Die Hard
Location: Conference Room A Empok Nor
Timeline: MD005 1500 hrs
The support staff had everything set up in advance. By the spread of food and beverages laid out one might have thought that this was diplomatic function. Captain Hood had requested it as he figured they would be there a while. The two Intelligence officers Lieutenant Lamberti and Major Roi were already sitting and comparing notes. Glinn Kalim stood and stared out at the stars as he waited all that had happened and will happen weighed heavy on his mind. They waited now for the General and the Lieutenant herself.
Frank glanced at his aide as they neared the conference room, "I want you listening in on this Ir'dama, but there's no sense in making the Lieutenant more overwhelmed than she may already be. No disturbances on our end. The usual sort of thing." The Vulcan nodded readily as Sobel stepped through the doorway and entered the conference room.
Nodding to those assembled, Frank found his seat near Winfield and waited expectantly.
Roi took a seat near Sobel, while Lamberti took one near Hood, but close enough to each other so they could converse.
The doors parted for the last time and in walked Ingrid, her head held high, her stride both strong and casual. She had gotten very good at embodying that which she did not feel, so this was no different. She was surprised to see so many people waiting for her and she showed it with a pause. She looked around the room and paused on each face, giving a frown at the presence of the Cardassian from earlier. It seemed she'd never be free of the spoon-heads. She pursed her full red lips and stepped closer to the assembly.
"I see you people have gathered an audience to hear my account. And plenty of marines too." her statement, while it would have usually been full of ironic humor, was cold and unflinching. She didn't like this and she wasn't going to pretend like she did.
Winfield decided that it would be best for him to take the lead here for the moment. "Lieutenant I want you to know that this is not an official inquiry. We all want to hear your story as we all have a stake in learning what happened. I cam Captain Winfield Hood and this is my station. I believe you have already met my XO Glinn Kalim and General Sobel. Joining us now is Lieutenant Lamberti and Major Roi of the Intelligence divisions. It will be their job to piece your information with what we already know. Now if you would like to get some refreshments before we begin help yourself."
Ingrid watched the man while he spoke, her large hazel eyes following his every movement. Her face remain cold and she didn't move when he prompted her toward the refreshments. She'd had to get very good at reading the behaviors of powerful men in her life, so she read. He seemed observant and heavily detail oriented. She imagined that was why he'd included so many people in this briefing, wanting to involve everyone who might have a vested interest in what she had to say. She was not in the mood to be a vested interest, but she cut right to the issue. She lifted her hand and pointed directly at the station's XO.
"I have no interest in revisiting my story with him in the room." she said, a look of unbridled hatred on her face.
Frank had seen the Cardassian's hackles go up at her words and he leaned forward, looking Ingrid in the eyes, "Be that as it may, Lieutenant, the station's executive officer has a vested interest in hearing your story. Despite the discourse you viewed earlier, understand we are working with the legitimate Cardassian authority in this and our differences are open and honest. I have to believe that and I wish you would to.
Looking to Hood, Frank said "Forgive me for throwing my Latnum slivers in here."
Hood nodded in the General's direction as Kalim began to speak. "Not only that but I represent the CDF and the Detapa Council here. You arrived in a Cardassian escape pod, obviously there is a connection. We have a right to know..." The Cardassian had just gotten started when Hood raised a hand to calm him.
"Lieutenant I have seen your service record, it seems you have had your ups and downs in the fleet. Also your run ins with the Cardassians. However, as I said you are no being put on charges this merely an inquiry to find out what happened. The information you have can prevent a war. I give you my word that the Glinn will say nothing until you are done telling your story." Hood spoke evenly and impassioned, he was a people person. That was most likely what got him the job at Empok Nor.
Kalim was about to speak up again as his mouth opened, however, it quickly closed and he sat down in a harumph.
Ingrid looked at them with an unflinching displeasure. She hated the situation she was being put into and she thought that it was extremely unfair, but she was actually quite used to feeling exploited the last her. She offered a shrug and sauntered up to the table, her hips moving back and forth hypnotically. She lowered herself into the seat and folded one leg over the other; a physical barrier.
"Okay, fine." she said. "What do you want to know, exactly?"
Brigadier General Frank N.M.I. Sobel blinked.
"What do we want to know? Lieutenant, you arrived here via Cardassian escape pod after your last duty station, namely the USS Fearless was listed as missing." Frank had to remind himself that this young woman had obviously been through an ordeal.
After a few beats, he continued. "How about start with what happened to Fearless and work your way forward until you arrived on Empok Nor, Lieutenant."
She looked at Sobel, noticing his frustration in his blinking expression. He was clearly a stubborn man, accustomed to command. She looked at him for a long moment without responding, her large hazel eyes glittering in the light of the room. She held eye contact for several seconds before an attractive smile crossed her face; it wasn't genuine.
"Right. They say the beginning is a very good place to start." she said, then looking down for just a moment, the beginning of the requested memory coming back to her. "It was a normal day on the Fearless. I rolled out of bed and took a jog, went to the head and took a shower, and then started my duty shift on the bridge. We were on our way to disrupt a New Maquis operation and find out who their leaders were, and we were almost there. I sat at the helm, I read reports, I made conversation, I twitted my thumbs.."
She looked around the room again as she remembered the moment her life had changed for the worse, again. "When we dropped out of warp at the designated coordinates, we were immediately attacked. Apparently the New Maquis had an ambush waiting for us. Despite some...masterful flying from me..." she began, offering General Sobel a seductive wink, "they knocked down our shields, blew out our impulse drive, and boarded us."
Frank held his tongue. At least she was talking. But he was more concerned for her mind frame. Her telling them that here ship was ambushed and fell...and she's flirting? He made a note to have Ir'dama flag Hollister's file for counseling and evaluation.
"They started slaughtering people left and right. It was the most brutal mistreatment I had..ever seen." she said, lying. In her former life, she had done just as bad herself. "Men were vaporized, women disappeared.." she looked up at Captain Hood. "you know what I mean, Captain?"
Hood cocked an eyebrow, if he did not know any better she was either making this up or intentionally getting their ire up. "I know precisely what you mean. Now please continue Lieutenant." He kept his response short in a effort to keep her on topic. However, he wanted tell her to spit it out already.
"Anyway," Ingrid continued, "I put up a good fight, but I wasn't armed. I broke a few arms, jammed a few noses into brains, but eventually, I was overwhelmed. I saw how brutal they were and knew there was only one way I was going to survive.."
She looked up at those gathered around the table, keeping a calm demeanor, though the memory was painful. She had quite a lot of anger because she had loved the Fearless' crew. It seemed, no matter what was given to her, it was always taken away, and a Cardassian was always there to do the taking.
"We all have gifts and talents. Some people are smart, some people are strong. Me? I can fly, I can talk, and I know what men want. I did what I had to do, I got out of my handcuffs, I killed some Cardassians, and I got to an escape pod."
Hood leaped on her comment. "Lieutenant you just said you killed some Cardassians. However, it is my understanding that the Fearless was attacked by the New Maquis. Why would the Maquis and Cardassians be working together."
"The idiot who took my handcuffs off managed to answer a few questions before I snapped his neck." she said, coldly. "He was forthcoming, but not highly ranked. According to him, the Obsidian Order had a vested interest in getting the Federation out of the area. I'm not sure how disappearing one of our ships and slaughtering it's crew would achieve that objective but...the Order is known for getting things right."
Kalim smiled, the kind of smile that Ingrid was all too familiar with. "Lieutenant either you or your informant is mistaken. The Obsidian Order is no more, all the members were either killed or killed themselves. So there is no way that the Order could be doing anything."
"Shut up." she said, looking straight at the Glinn. "And stop smiling; there's nothing to smile about. You people..."
She trailed off, her anger rising. She looked away for a moment and then looked back at Kalim with renewed anger. She knew the promise that he wouldn't talk was no good. She silently praised herself for not trusting them. "It's funny how the only other Cardassian in Starfleet escaped the Fearless without being harmed, isn't it. I'm assuming Gul Prenar arranged for Commander Prenar's save exit, Obsidian Order or not."
"Whether it is the Obsidian Order or not, our intel includes several reports of Cardassians working with the New Maquis." Lamberti said.
Kalim was flabbergasted, Prenar was a name he had not heard in some time. A name that haunted the past of all Cardassians. He was going to interject again, however, he knew the best way to get more information from the Lieutenant was to keep quiet for the time being.
It was Hood standing at the small table of refreshments that responded after his Intelligence Chief spoke up. "Lieutenant Hollister that is a serious accusation that you make of Commander Prenar. However, it is a coincidence that we cannot over look. Lieutenant Lamberti, Major Roi take note of that and look into it. As to Gul Prenar we have a preliminary report from Captain Malbrooke on the Pioneer that the Gul is indeed behind what is going on. The Pioneer is en route back to this station and he will be debriefed when he returns. Lieutenant please calm down, would you like a refreshment? I would like you to continue with your tale. What happened after you were captured, and if possible why were you spared?"
"The Cardassian's busiest failing is their arrogance," she said, continuing with her story, "so it was no big surprise when they didn't immediately kill me upon finding my escape pod. They thought I couldn't possibly escape from their operation and that there was no reason to let me go to waste. That took me to their labor colony and I got lost in the shuffle. For six months I worked in the kitchens making the slop they call food; that is, until the Glinn in charge of the colony caught sight of me. After that, I lived with him and my work was..alot less agreeable to my tastes."
At this point, Frank was only half listening as he considered the implications of Hollister's story. If there were Cardassian's mixed with the Maquis, working together somehow things were more dangerous than suspected.
Ingrid gave a sigh, continuing evenly. "I gradually built trust with the man who brought the Glinn's food and got him to give me information about the facility. We hatched a plan to escape in a pod, but he was killed while we made our exit."
The tale had finished and the room for the most part was in shock. The two Intelligence Officers were a twitter in close discussion. Glinn Kalim sat in a typical Cardassian huff with his arms folded. His body language spoke volumes. He leaned back in his chair and stared at Hollister. The Cardassian was unsure of all that she had said. It was possible that Gul Prenar escaped, and if he did he would certainly seek to bring the Order back. However, he found it hard to believe that the new government would lie so blatantly.
Captain Hood sipped some coffee and turned toward Hollister. "Lieutenant thank you for your time. Starfleet Command has placed you on temporary assignment to this starbase. As your Commanding Officer I am granting you shore leave. This is not an option. Take a few days and relax, we can talk more in a few days about what is next." He turned from the group and stared out of the large window at the ships in dock and space beyond. The implications of all that the Lieutenant had said would be far reaching. The first step was indeed contacting one Commander Prenar. Winfield Hood found it hard to believe that Starfleet could be gripped by another conspiracy.
Roi and Lamberti definitely had their work cut out for them. They decided to split the work, Lamberti would contact her contacts on Cardassia Prime and Union Space, while Roi would contact hers within and without Starfleet.
Sobel gathered his thoughts and stood, turning to Hood. "I'd highly recommend we send out a reconnaissance flight and see what can be seen from where the Lieutenant was held. Perhaps we'll be able to formulate a raid, grab someone that can give us more answers. I'll have our S3 set up a preliminary plan while you think about it and we can get together later and discuss it."
Hood hated the implications of what the General meant. However, he knew that Sobel was correct. Hood nodded in agreement and exhaled heavily through his nose. The Cardassians were not going to like this.
A Joint Post By:
Lieutenant Ingrid Hollister
Chief Flight Control Officer, USS Pioneer
Captain Winfield Hood
Commanding Officer, Empok Nor
Glinn Kalim
Executive Officer, Empok Nor
Lieutenant Rachele Lamberti
Chief Intelligence Officer, Empok Nor
Major Cadama Roi
Intelligence & Security Officer, 258th Starfleet Marine Expeditionary Brigade
Empok Nor
Brigadier General Francis Sobel
Commanding Officer, 258th Starfleet Marine Expeditionary Brigade
Empok Nor
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