Lost Time (Why Are You Here?)

Posted on Wed 24th Jul, 2019 @ 6:58pm by Commander Paul Graves PsyD & Lieutenant Commander Dallas Briggs

1,152 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: A Diplomatic Affair
Location: Shuttlecraft; Somewhere in Cardassian Space
Timeline: A year before the current mission.

"Interesting," Graves said to Lt. Briggs, "so it isn't just the words...."

---

Dallas sat in the front chair of the shuttle as it zipped through space. He had wished the Typhoon was closer to Bajor so his trip wasn’t so long. He missed his wife. “Personal log.” He began, “Star-date 65887.51. I’m returning to the Typhoon after a lengthy Security conference on Bajor. The guest speaker, Kur’an Norte was without a doubt the most boring speaker I have ever heard. His voice never changed tones so it was putting everyone to sleep. I even heard this Bolian snoring in the back of the room. Who knew that Bolians snore? I didn’t.”

Dallas was interrupted by the computer, “Warning, ion storm approaching at coordinates 121 mark 10 extreme damage possible to shuttle, recommend course change to 221 mark 12.”

Dallas looked at the panel in front of him, “Yeah, but that will take us really close to the Cardassian border, but I see your point.”

“Please rephrase the question..” came the computer voice.

“Never mind, just make the course change so we can go around the storm,” Dallas said. The shuttle altered course to avoid the ion storm and we get dangerously close to Cardassian space.

Dallas sat back and relaxed in the seat. With a combination of being relaxed and being on this long boring trip, Dallas drifted off to sleep.

Sometime later Dallas was awakened by a rough jolt and nearly knocked out of his seat. The power for the shuttle seemed to be off since it was dark. “Computer, what’s going on?” Dallas asked, but there was no reply.

Sounds came from the rear of the shuttle just outside like they were trying to get the hatch open. Then a loud click and the hatch did start to open. Dallas grabbed a phaser from under the console and spun in his seat to face the intruder or intruders with his phaser leveled right at them.

Dallas heard something small and metallic hit the floor then roll to a stop. Then it erupted into a blinding flash and a deafening explosive force with a body numbing concussion. Dallas dropped his phaser and rolled out of his seat and onto the floor with the natural impulse to cover his ears. A lot of it was confusion from the device. His ears rang loud, loud enough that he could hear nothing, but his racing heartbeat. He could see hardly anything, the flash nearly blinded him. Then he saw and felt nothing, but darkness as it consumed him....

* * *

"The prisoner is regaining consciousness, Dalin Duvas," Gil Narot said.

"Took him long enough," Lokhe Duvas said. Again he skimmed over the sparse information they had gathered regarding the captured human male: He was tall and powerfully built. In no way was the man not a soldier of some sort. He traveled in what the Federation called a type 18 shuttlecraft, which was warp-capable. The current mission log they had downloaded was utterly prosaic--too prosaic, to Lokhe's way of thinking. He reviewed the log's contents swiftly once more and hoped the translation software had rendered everything correctly.

I have no doubt that this human attended the security conference on Bajor; it is what I would do to establish an alibi if I were a spy Lokhe thought. The mention of Kur'an Norte--a throwaway detail to confirm that he had attended. Any Cardassian child of moderate intelligence could figure that out.

A moment later a female Cardassian's face appeared in the light of the dimly lit room. Tajia Penra, a very tall, athletic female Cardassian from the Obsidian Order had come to oversee the interrogation of the Federation spy. "Have you learned anything from the spy?" she demanded as she grabbed his face roughly with one hand and studied it.

Lokhe arched an eyebrow at her. "As he has been unconscious up to this time--no. I've sent you the report describing the contents of his shuttlecraft and the conclusions we have drawn from them. All appears normal and consistent with a Federation shuttle changing course to avoid an ion storm and straying into our space because the fool relied on automatic controls. Just a Starfleet security officer returning to his ship after a professional conference on Bajor. Nothing to see here; move along, move along. I have my doubts; nothing is that straightforward." He leaned his head to one side. "It would help if I had some idea of the Order's interest in this man."

Tajia did a facepalm then said mockingly, “You’re absolutely right, we should let him get his beauty sleep and just let him go, he’s innocent!” She shook her head, “You’re the fool, any rookie federation spy could make it look exactly the same hence the interrogation that you haven’t even started because he’s asleep. No wonder they sent me here to oversee the interrogation.” Tajia paused for a moment, “Well, get started, if I have to do it, you’ll be looking for a new job.”

Standards at the Obsidian Order have plummeted, if this is the quality of officer they now produce, Lokhe thought. She had completely missed the point of his sarcasm and hadn't answered his question. Without dignifying the woman's comment with a reply, Lokhe filled a tumbler from the bottle of water on his desk and then walked over to the large human secured to the chair and splashed the water into his face. "I suggest you wake up, Human, or you'll get worse where that came from."

"I'm awake, I'm awake.." Dallas mumbled as he tried to open his eyes. "What do you Jerks want?" he asked as he began to regain his senses.

"Your shuttlecraft crossed into Cardassian space about an hour ago without clearance. We are understandably concerned," Lokhe said dryly. "What are you doing here?"

"What?" Dallas shook his head, "No it didn't, I didn't. We were close, but I kept an eye on the flight path and the sensors."

The female pushed the male Cardassian out of the way and punched Dallas in the face. "Why are you here?" she demanded.

Dallas spat blood from his mouth but said nothing.

"Why are you here?" she demanded again but didn't hit him.

"There was an ion stor...." His sentence was cut off by another punch.

"This is ridiculous," Lokhe snapped. He stalked toward the Obsidian Order agent, seized her by the back of her uniform, and jerked her backward. "If you don't know how to conduct an interrogation properly, get out, so I can do it!"

It was the wrong thing to say. Tajia Penra twisted in Duvas' grasp only long enough to deliver a roundhouse punch under his jaw that snapped his head backward, and then she returned her attention to the human and continued pummeling.

 

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