Knowing is half the Battle

Posted on Tue 3rd Aug, 2021 @ 3:52am by Lieutenant Commander Dallas Briggs & Krell House of Mer'uk & Lieutenant Commander Kiara Lena
Edited on on Tue 3rd Aug, 2021 @ 3:55am

1,055 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Waging Peace
Location: About 18 hours away from the Negotiations
Timeline: MD:1 1930 Hours

They'd been at warp for a week and a half and Kiara had spent most of that time with Dallas, either going over the data she had on Helicon III or making sure he ate and slowly increased his physical activity. At first, she helped him walk around her quarters, then down the corridor and back. A more comfortable bed had been put in his quarters, but with him in her bed, she could sleep on the couch and be close to him if he needed her. But now they were close to Helicon III and she was growing more concerned about who had hired the assassin and if the others would be at risk.

It was early in the morning and Dallas was sleeping well. He had insisted that he go back to his quarters so she could use her own bed and get real rest. The sofa looked uncomfortable and Dallas was pretty sure that she hadn't been getting the rest that she needed. He woke to a loud knock on the door. "Come in!" He called out. The door opened and light from the corridor flooded his quarters. A large, intimidating figure stood in the doorway, "Commander Briggs, we have decrypted the Assassin's computer and I think you need to get Commander Lena to see it."

Dallas sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Okay, I'll get her down there. How far out are we from the Helicon system?"

"We can be in orbit of Helicon 3 in about 6.5 hours," Krell replied.

Dallas sat up and draped his legs over the side of the bed and nodded.

Krell turned to walk away, but stopped and turned back towards Dallas, "Nice bed." Then he left.

A few minutes later, Dallas appeared in front of Kiara's quarters and tapped on the door.

"Just a minute," a voice called. Kiara sat up and stretched. "Who is it?" she asked. She got up and made her bed, then reached for her clothes.

"It's me, Dallas. Krell's people have decrypted the Assassin's computer and they have something that they want you to see." Dallas believed that if the Klingons had something that they wanted her to see then it would affect the diplomatic mission.

"Come in. I just need to get dressed," she said, changing into a comfortable pair of pants and a long-sleeved blouse. She ran a brush through her hair, slipped on her shoes, and went to greet Dallas with a hug. "I was hoping we'd have something before we arrived."

Dallas was glad to see her. They had been spending a lot of time together lately. He hugged her back and inhaled deeply taking in the smell of her hair. "I hope that there is some good information there for you."

She sighed. "So do I. At this point, though, any information may help." She stepped back and smiled. "Although it won't be as important as learning you survived."

"I survived?" Dallas looked at her innocently. "You're the one that crashed on the planet. Even though the Assassin mentioned as much, it was hard to trust him when he said that you were alive. Of course, I would have done anything to ensure your survival." Dallas was so happy when she showed up on the Klingon ship. He wanted to go down to the planet with the Klingons, but was in the Med Bay having his wounds tended to. He could have died if they weren't treated in time.

"I was marooned. You were almost killed. Even the pirates weren't as scary as the assassin," she said. Although that creature that stalked them came close. She hadn't told him about that.

He nodded, "I would have died, but I had Krell to back me up. I had a plan. You didn't; you crashed on a planet and you could have been killed just as easily. By some miracle, you weren't and I am very thankful." Dallas gave her a reassuring smile, "Now, let's go recover some information, shall we?" She had no idea how close Dallas came to dying for her. He would certainly do it again no matter the outcome.

"Telepathic," Kiara reminded him, taking his hand. "No dying for me. I need you to live." She may not know how close he came to dying, but it was too close for her comfort. "I'm hopeful about this."

Dallas smiled, "Let's go see what the Klingons have found for us."

She nodded, letting him lead her to Krell. She'd seen very little of the Klingon since arriving on the ship as most of her time was spent tending to Dallas or going over the material she'd brought for her interrupted trip. If the information proved of value it would almost make up for being shipwrecked.

The IKS Amar was commanded by Captain Koor even though Krell was the higher ranking officer aboard and had the right to relieve him for this mission. Koor sat in his seat on the Bridge elevated above all others. In front of him in almost a half-circle sat his Bridge Officers. Standing to one side of the Bridge Officers stood Krell and the First Officer of the Amar, Commander Bun'eth. They leaned over a console reviewing the information when Dallas and Kiara entered the Bridge. Dallas nodded to Koor before leading Kiara over to Krell. Krell looked up from his console when he saw the two approached. "You're just in time."

Kiara nodded to the Captain before going over to the Ambassador. "What have you found?" she asked, trying to hide her eagerness

"My Computer Specialist was able to crack the encryption on the computer and we have found detailed ledgers accounting for the activities of the Assassin and the people that he had dealings with. One of those dealings was to prevent you from reaching the negotiations." Krell explained.

That surprised Kiara. "To what purpose?" she asked. "I was under the impression I was just a lure to get Dallas to meet him."

Krell shook his head, "No, that was just something the assassin came up with after he found out who you were. At least that is what he wrote in his journal."

"Then who did hire him to stop me?" she asked. "Does the journal say, or give any information about who it was?"

To Be Continued......

 

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