Intersection Eight

Posted on Apr 12, 2015 @ 10:02pm by Lieutenant Eve Dalziel
Edited on on Apr 12, 2015 @ 10:02pm

Mission: Limbo

=/\=

“Intersection Eight”
(Continued from “Purpose”)


=/\=


Surrounded, in the thick of it
Nowhere to run away, not today
Outnumbered, that's the trick of it
No more to lose, and so here we go now
Don't turn around, we wanna show
Time has run out, don't let us down

-I Fight Dragons, “Save World, Get Girl”


=/\=


Location: LIMBO
SD: 2.150409.2130
Scene: Outside the Sanctum

“Thissis absolutely brilliant of you… ladies,” Willis Baker slurred as they tried to take the Sanctum party on the road to the Pits. “Ahh, ha, ah... a right proper way to end an evening.” The two women, the dog, and the banker of questionable moral fiber but obvious wealth were moving in tandem, but it was a tandem of sedated snails. It had been easy enough to convince the man that the fight was something they should all attend, but clearly his mouth had written checks his ass couldn’t cash. His walk was as plodding and feeble as someone who had been in a fight, rather than someone going to see one.

Xana sighed as Baker flopped on a grimy bench like a sick manatee. “All my respect for you is gone,” she said under her breath.

Eve couldn’t resist smiling. “I have tin cups with holes in them that could hold their liquor better,” she mused.

“I hate to say ‘I told you so’...”

“And I hate to say he’s trashed and can barely move, but I just did.”

“My timing was a little off, though,” Xana admitted.

Their banter was punctuated by the Limbo resident suddenly heaving and retching into a small planter near the bench. Angus retreated slightly, heeled at his mistress’ side, knowing instinctively to stay out of the inebriated man’s way.

“The Shadow Market’s not going to come to us,” Eve pleaded with the shell of a man who looked near unconscious. She wasn’t even sure why she was bothering to say it out loud.

The former Secretary of Starfleet cast a valuably critical eye on the Ship’s Counsellor, Angus, and the prostrate man who was going to be their key to Limbo, except that he had gone soft. He had the nerve to get completely shit-faced before they had been able to squeeze one bit of intel out of him. All they knew was where the action was supposed to be tonight, in more ways than one. “You should go ahead,” Xana said rationally.

Eve’s face went slack. “Are you sure?”

“I am. Actually, I could go back to the ship. I imagine it’s rather peaceful right now.”

“I’m sure your quarters are just the personification of sibling love, right at this very moment.”

Ms Bonviva shrugged with nonchalance but her eyes twinkled. “That’s my version of peace.”

Eve leaned over Willis Baker, snapping her fingers. “I’ll be damned. He’s out cold.” She wasted no time rummaging through his pockets, finding a few bills of latinum and quickly taking it for her own. “You need anything while I’m out?”

“Loaf of bread?” Xana ventured. “But I’d settle for everyone in one piece and the mission objective met.” *But then what*, she thought.

Eve tucked the currency in an inner chest pocket in the form-fitting jumpsuit she was wearing. “Don’t wait up,” she said lightly, then headed in the direction of the lower decks.

=/\=

Scene: The Pits
Time Index: During “Yelling Timber”

Eve’s brow wrinkled as her senses were assaulted with the smells of the unwashed assemblage and questionable concession food. It was pretty much standing room only for the promise of seeing the ‘Butcher of Barbossa’ brought to an unfair justice at the hands of Kalenda the Black. She stood on the fringes, realizing she was slouching trying to stay out of view, but reasoning prevailed and she straightened up. One tall, pale, female spectator blended with the rest of the freakshow just fine.

The Major was fighting a Romulan as some sort of prelude to the main event. Leave it to Dalheel to stack the deck in the home team’s favor. She watched Kass and her opponent in the movements of the dance of kicking ass. Attack and counter. Orchestrate and execute. But, something seemed off. This was a woman who had spectacularly broken Cade Foster’s nose with barely a second thought. And she couldn’t trample this obviously inferior mark? Maybe the fight was fixed. Maybe the redhead was trying to conserve energy. Eve tried to examine her for any pre-fight injuries, but nothing was obviously visible.

The crowd jeered, cheered, and caterwauled at the event. It was like each of them was watching a different display. The Romulan finally suffered a nasty concussion, bringing the prelude to a close.

Despite the protests of the peanut gallery, they appeared to allow Thytos the opportunity to regroup and ready herself for the next battle. Eve was not acquainted with the metallic rods that were the chosen weaponry of the Marine. She was ready to watch and learn.

=/\=

Scene: The Pits, adjacent to the ring

The slender woman weaved in and out of the audience exceptionally well, as if she were performing an elegant dance. The only reason Rawyvin Seth was not with her was that he had a ‘more pressing matter’, or at least that was how he put it. He made sure to admonish her properly before he sent her on the errand. So, even though she was alone at the moment, she was not free by any stretch of the imagination.

Aerdan was near the ring, watching the Marine (from a discreet distance) prepare for the main event. Ms Thytos was carefully pacing herself, using all the knowledge she had about fighting to ensure she emerged victorious. The reserved ExO couldn’t help but feel that many others had a hand in this to make it a quite different outcome. If Kass considered this, she offered it up with a heaping helping of false bravado and a refusal to accept anything less than success.

“Aerdan?” Sedna said with the lowest, sweetest tone she could, her breath warm on his ear and antennae.

He bristled at first, then caught his surprise and held it, responding calmly. “It’s been too long.” The French countryside was still clear in his mind, as well as her sadness. Her darting eyes signifying there was far more to her presence that to comfort an old friend.

He regarded her now, hoping to see a change for the better. But that was a foolish hope. It was a hope that Arjan would have bought into. He could hear Arjan’s voice in his mind, filled with the possibility that he could save this woman and bring her back into the fold.

Montoya’s eyes were glittering, but sunken. She looked gaunt. “Doesn’t he feed you?”

“Yes… I just don’t have much of an appetite. Can we talk?”

=/\=

Scene: Corridor

The curved hall which led from the ring to the locker rooms and training area was just as filthy as everything else on the station, but the noise was muffled somewhat and gave the appearance of some measure of privacy.

“You look strange out of uniform,” she said, running her hands on the plain navy civilian jacket, pressing up against him.

“Technically it doesn’t matter if we wear the uniforms any more,” Aerdan blurted out.

The irony wasn’t lost on either of them. “How does it feel to be labelled a criminal?”

If she had meant it as a dig against him, he didn’t take it as such. “I’ve been too busy performing my duties to notice,” he responded dryly. “And shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” He tried to stay on alert, knowing Rawyvin Seth could be lurking at any turn.

“Technically it doesn’t matter if I break the law or not, everyone believes I have anyway.”

“Spare me,” Jos said, crossing his arms.

The woman’s lips pursed in a gasp. It was a little tired. “A friend would have thought better of me.”

“You should think better of yourself. I’ve offered my help before, and you chose not to take it. And there’s not been one word now of ‘save me’ or ‘help me’ from you, only hints at memory lane. Tell me Sedna, just *why* are you here?”

“Why can’t you accept it?”

“Accept what?”

“There is no safe haven. No escape. I know you would promise me this, but it’s a hollow promise. As long as Rawyvin is alive-”

“He’s just a man, Sedna. A very evil man. Eventually his luck will run out. He’s not immortal.”

“How many people will he kill before his reign is over?”

Aerdan Jos sighed. “We can agree any number is too many.”

“He’s looking for her too, you know,” she said in a singsong voice as she leaned against the wall and slid down to a seated position. She had grown weary, in so many ways.

“Who?” Jos feigned ignorance.

“Oh, cut the crap. The woman half the galaxy is looking for, the Phoenix crew included. The woman who holds so much Intel in her brain it should be insured.”

Aerdan paused. Sedna’s voice was laced with pain, with depression. It was touched with the opinion of someone that the situation at hand wouldn’t get any better. But it was also bourne of- “You’re jealous, aren’t you?”

Montoya laughed a brittle laugh. “Of what? Rawyvin wants her dead, too.”

“So many people aware of her existence and her circumstances. She has valuable information which would help anyone she chose to. The name Selyara Chen is mentioned in hushed, revered whispers from here to the Delta Quadrant. But what of Evangeline Montoya? Who gives you a second thought?”

“Whatever you’re trying to do isn’t working,” she huffed, tears running down her face. “I have friends.”

“Yes, you do. But the best friend you have that you’re overlooking is yourself. You can choose to leave.”

Montoya shook her head and held it against the grimy wall, the tears still falling. She’d tried. But it was too late for her. “He killed your Science officer, you know. It’s only a matter of time before he gets to the rest of you.”

“Solomon!?”

“I th-think so. He was a trill.”

“Why would he do that?”

“Rawyvin was alerted to the fact that he had some kind of scanner that could be used to find Selyara.”

“*Who*?” He pulled the slight woman up, shaking her shoulders. “Who was it?”

“Their voice was disguised. It could have been anyone.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because I have to tell someone.”

“Where’s Seth now?”

Sedna grinned in a deranged way. “Closer than you think.”

=/\=

Scene: The Pits

[[And now, the main event you have all been waiting for! Kalenda the Black, versus The Butcher! Ladies, gentlemen, others of indeterminate gender, please finish making any last minute bets now, and may luck be on your side!]] Alket Daheel’s voice echoed around the pit.

Noise once again rose in the air like so much clutter, as the haze in the air from the gritty arena hung as well, almost suspended. The women addressed themselves and the audience, then began.

Even though Kalenda outsized the scrappy fugitive officer, the two were much more evenly matched than first assumed. It was tit for tat, with the Bat’leth and its brawny owner matching the compact woman with her curious sticks and sensor nets. Eve’s assertion that something had been amiss with the first fight was well placed. Kassandra had come alive against Kalenda, but they were coming to a stalemate. There was little question that Kass could out-fight her, but wasn’t succeeding at out-fatiguing her.

The noise of weapons fire both punctuated and interrupted the bloodshed. The sound came from somewhere across the arena, but Lieutenant Dalziel’s first instinct was to look behind her for chance to gracefully retreat. She jerked her head around quickly, a silken curtain of almost black hair cascading over her shoulder. The nearest entrance (or exit depending on which way you were looking at it) was draped with Black Stars, the elite and ubiquitous fighting force of Tella Yavin. The front line was armed, and it didn’t look like they were content to use the weapons for pure intimidation. But why?

*Damnit*. Eve mentally shrugged, scanning the crowd for the source, but here merely biological eyes did not detect all of her cohorts or all the of the players that were present for the fight of the millennium. She turned her attention to points a little higher than the base of the stands, where Tella’s henchmen had unfortunately gained perimeter access. Finally, she did see the unmistakable outline of a pair of- wings? And the apprehensive face of Jake Crichton. There was a third man nearby who looked vaguely familiar to the Cns. What was his name? Bastian? Bashir? In any event, she knew they belonged to the Phoenix.

“Hey… HEY!” she yelled at them, but it didn’t carry much farther than her lips in the overwhelming din.

As the fight continued, Eve no longer paid attention to anything except making ground on the shortest route between herself and the three men. She bolted, pushing and shoving where appropriate. Inevitable questions distracted the woman slightly as she moved her broad-shouldered frame with economy. Why would the Queen of Limbo massacre her subjects? How many exits were there? They couldn’t have possibly blocked every one…

They hadn’t heard Eve’s voice, but luckily they hadn’t moved since she noticed them. She knew the winged man was the significant other of one of the Engineering officers.

“...What's going on?" Varn asked.

"I think we need to find somewhere to hide," Russ said, with Jake agreeing.

“Hey! Anyone got a plan?” She stopped short when she saw the blood on Varn, but realized it had to be someone else’s, judging by his demeanor.

“Where’s Xana?” Jake asked with concern.

“If she’s smart, she’s on her way back to the ship like she told me,” Eve answered.

“You had to go sightseeing, didn’t you?” Thomas said cryptically.

“Is there really a place to hide around here?” she asked, looking at the sea of people and Black Stars, slowly converging into a messy, violent stew.

“Won’t know until we start moving,” Jake offered. Varn’s head dipped slightly. “I know we didn’t find her yet, buddy,” Jake consoled the befeathered man. “But we can’t keep looking for her if we die here.”

Thomas Varn’s face looked reluctantly agreeing. “Up, down, or to the side, just pick one.” It was turmoil in every direction.

Eve reasoned in a split second. “Up. We know the Black Stars have the bottom covered. Maybe there will be less resistance moving upward.”

That was good enough for Jake. “You’re the spook.” The four of them began moving up the rows of seats in a bastardized formation of sorts. The walkways between the bleachers were far too crowded to navigate easily, so even with the task of climbing over the seats (and the people still seated) they were making better headway than otherwise. It didn’t hurt that they were in a grand state of disrepair and easy to trample upon.

They made it to a midpoint and aroused the attention of a couple of Tella’s guards. Luckily, they were not armed.

“I got this,” Thomas said, placing his arm in front of Eve as he dove into a graceless altercation. While his head had cooled a little, there was still plenty of rage left against the atrocities performed on Solomon to give him an advantage. He had the first one’s arm behind him, trying with all his might to snap it like a twig. The other one was doing his best to make it hard for him.

“Oh no- you don’t get to have all the fun,” Eve said as she leapt forward against the second hench. He tried to hit her face but her arm blocked the blow sufficiently. She pivoted and hit his sternum with her elbow, knocking some of the wind out of him and distracting him from his attack on Thomas.

Varn could feel the ligaments and tendons give in the arm of his sparring partner, and pushed his ragged body into the waiting path of Crichton and BaShen. They took turns punching him several times, until he lost consciousness.

“Not all Counsellors are pacifists,” she uttered with a grunt, whacking her Black Star officer on the back of the left shoulder with all the leverage she had. While it didn’t kill him, there was the encouraging sound of a cracking clavicle as he hit the ground.

“I’m starting to think none of them are,” Russ said with a smirk.

“Wait- you’re the *Counsellor*?” Varn asked.

Eve had begun climbing the next set of bleachers and turned around. “Formal introductions will have to wait, my feathered friend. I’m guessing those things can’t carry us all,” she said wistfully at Thomas’ appendages.

The man’s eyes were alight with unexpressed emotions. “Even if they could, I wouldn’t. It would be like a duck hunt with all the firepower.”

“Oh crap,” Russ said, looking down at the lower decks of arena. “It’s Kass. She’s left the ring, and she’s talking to Rawyvin Seth.”

They all looked, close enough to see, but too far away to have an effect. In horrifyingly slow motion, the heated exchange was interrupted by a vengeful Kalenda, who brutally stabbed the Marine in the back. Seth stood, lording over Kass and delivering his own damage with Kalenda’s dagger before leaving. Rawyvin Seth began to disappear into the throng of people. But he was conspicuously alone.

“Where’s Sedna?” Thomas growled.


=/\=

NRPG: Thanks to Justin, Shawn, and Jerome for their help!

Susan Ledbetter
Lieutenant Eve Dalziel
Cns
USS PHOENIX