Third Mission, Part VII

Posted on Jan 04, 2019 @ 9:35pm by Chloe Nielsen
Edited on on Jan 04, 2019 @ 9:36pm

Mission: Section 31

“Third Mission, Part VII”

Location: Ciris, NUMINO
SD: [2.19] 0102.2321
Scene: Meeting Hall – Government Building

Kate MacNeil watched in stunned silence at the scene unfolding before her. While two Nuimon officers arrived to take the assassin away, the Jem’Hadar soldier pointed his weapon at Cato, the hybrid slowly stepping away from the Vorta. She heard Glina order the soldier to stand down, adding that the officer did after all prevent her death. The Jem’Hadar reluctantly complied, maintaining his gaze on the security officer.

Turning to a dark skinned human woman, she inquired, “Naomi, what do you mean the weapon was one of the artifacts in the lab?” MacNeil’s beagle, William Wallace circled around them.

Dr. Adeyami inhaled deeply. “Well, the artifact isn’t a weapon but a memory storage device…to store a person’s memories and then replay them for later viewing.”

“Yet somehow, it has been converted to a weapon that melts things.” Kate’s voice trailed. “How can that be possible?” She eyed the tense exchange between the Camelot’s CO and the Dominion Ambassador. William Wallace whimpered, sticking close to his mistress.

“Well, Captain,” Glina said tersely, turning to Anaqueen. “I guess I owe your officer gratitude for saving my life.”

Ana nodded. “It doesn’t do any of us good to see you dead, Ambassador.”

“Indeed it doesn’t and the Nuimons are fortunate with the presence of Starfleet.” Glina’s eyes narrowed to thin slits. Kate sighed with dread, knowing the Dominion wasn’t going to just let this assassination attempt slide.

“Well, you can rest assure our police force will get to the bottom of this,” Hollande spoke, approaching the group – a weak smile gracing her features. Although the Chief Consul tried her best to reassure the Vorta, the latter’s cold stare indicated she wasn’t exactly successful.

Ana shared a brief glance with her security chief before informing Hollande and Glina. “Consul, Ambassador. There is something else you need to know.”

Hollande blinked. “What is it, Captain?”

“Just before that Nuimon made his attempt, I received information that there was another assassin present.” Both Hollande’s and Glina’s eyes widened.

“There was another target?” The Nuimon asked.

The Trill nodded. “I was the other target.”

There was a look of skepticism in Glina’s eyes. “I didn’t see the other assassin and how did you come by this information?”

As Ana began talking, the Scottish woman glanced behind at the sound of footsteps, a faint smile creasing her lips. Dahlis and Raemona surrounded her, the two women offering comforting looks, though her half-sister’s expression soon soured at the sight of Hollande.

Dahlis laid a gentle hand on the Scot’s shoulder. “Are you okay, Kate?”

“I’m fine.” The doctor shrugged, when William Wallace trotted beside her. “Though it could have been worse. We were lucky to have received the warning.”

Raemona raised an eyebrow. “Warning?”

“Well…” Kate bit her lip. “Funny story, except it’s not funny. But someone – a guardian angel – attached a PADD containing a warning for Anaqueen, on Crumpet.” The auburn haired woman gave a sidelong glance at her cat, sitting comfortably on the floor and licking her paws – the only one not bothered by the commotion.

“Guardian angel?” The younger Nuimon blinked in confusion.

“A human expression.” Kate gave her sibling a sheepish grin. “What I meant was whoever this person was, just averted a diplomatic crisis between the Dominion and Numino…at least I hope.”

Dahlis sighed, closing her eyes for a brief moment. “I shudder to think how the Dominion would have reacted if the Ambassador was assassinated.”

“Mother, are you saying, they will attack us?” Raemona’s whisper was harsh.

But Kate answered, “No, Raemona. Since Vorta are clones, the Ambassador would have just been replaced with a newer version. “

“Well,” Dahlis added. “It would give them the excuse to continue exploiting our people for their gains.” She let out an exasperated sigh. The trio of women were quiet for the next few minutes until a meow broke the tense silence.

Kate glanced at Crumpet, now standing up on all four legs and meowing at the Nuimon aids taking away all the food trays. She sighed, realizing unlike everyone else in the room, the feline was most concerned with its appetite. “Crumpet, I suppose you can tell us who gave you that PADD?” Her response was a meow and a fixed stare. “Oh you’re no help at all.” Kate sighed again.

An older Nuimon male with grey hair marched up to them and then promptly spat on the floor, a few inches from their feet. Kate froze on spot, while Raemona and Dahlis gave him looks of indifference. “All your fault, Alenvin,” the man ranted, sending Dahlis a baleful glance. “You allowed Starfleet on our planet and now we are paying dearly for it. You and that bitch Hollande will be the death of us all.” He turned around and stomped off.

“What is his problem?” Kate’s voice filled with anger. “You didn’t do anything wrong, mother.”

Dahlis sighed, shrugging. “Kate, I’m used to this.”

“Well, you shouldn’t have to.” Kate gazed downwards, spotting Crumpet leaning against her legs and purring for attention.

“It’s okay, Kate.” The older Nuimon gave her daughter a weak smile. “Although it has been close to a decade since I left politics, there are still those who blame me for all the problems on our world.”

Raemona placed her hand on her mother’s shoulder. “You know, mother. I disagree with you in politics but even I believe it’s unfair to blame you for our current problems, when the shoulder of responsibility falls on Anuita Hollande.”

Kate turned around upon hearing Cato’s voice, noticing him and Ana heading their way.

“Captain,” the Trill/Bajoran hybrid urged, “You need to return to the ship, considering you were targeted by the Free Nuimon group for assassination and it is highly probable they will try again.”

“I will.” Ana nodded. “Commander, you and Lt. Hex will remain behind to cooperate with the relevant authorities, regarding the investigation.”

Cato acknowledged. “Understood, Captain. I will make a request to the police to see if I and Hex can observe the interrogation and I know the Dominion will do the same.”

“Good. Keep me updated with your progress,” the Trill said before she tapped on her comm.badge. “Spankryz to Camelot. One to beam up.” At that moment, Adeyami came up to the security chief and counselor.

“Commander Cato,” the black woman spoke. “I’d like a word in private before you head to the police station.”

“Sure.” The tall man nodded.

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Scene: Rear Foyer -> Tunnels

Chloe stopped, noticing Lord Percy waving at her but there was no sign of Gaven. She wore a perplexed expression, wondering where the Trill went. She had just thwarted assassination attempts on Captain Spankryz and Ambassador Glina, thereby averting a major political crisis between Numino, Federation and the Dominion. She expected Anaqueen would share the warning given to her by the agent via MacNeil’s cat. Since the PADD was manufactured by a civilian entity and a disposable – meaning it wasn’t reusable, Chloe was confident the device wouldn’t be traced to her.

“What’s all this excitement?” Percy asked, grinning. “I saw so many people rushing out of the reception in panic and police enforcers escorting a guard out.”

“A Free Nuimon member tried to assassinate the Dominion Ambassador but failed due to Starfleet running interference.”

“Wow.” The Deltan chuckled, scratching his bald head. “Ballsy for an amateur. So the Free Nuimons were aiming high, it seems. Though why target the Ambassador and not the Starfleet Captain.”

Chloe sighed, knowing the police would have already found the other assassin by now, lying unconscious in the storage closet, courtesy of the information provided to Anaqueen. So it wouldn’t be secret for much longer that Spankryz was also targeted. “How did the meeting go?”

“Splendid!” His reply was unnervingly cheerful. “The informant will talk, provided we meet his terms.” His grin widened. “By the way, if you are wondering where Gaven went, well, sorry love, but he was called away on an urgent meeting with the boss and has flown back to Tirithi. So it’s just you and me.”

“When will he return?”

“Not sure.” Percy shrugged. “Likely tonight or tomorrow. Who knows?” They began moving, making their way past the exit to the tunnels that would lead them out to the city. “There is something I need you to do for me,” he mentioned a few minutes later, while they turned around a corner, entering another tunnel.

“Yes?” Chloe felt a sense of apprehension.

Percy explained, “See, it’s about the informant. He wants to get off this planet and I’d like you to escort him to Tirithi, where a shuttle will be waiting at a private hangar. Once he’s safely off-world, he will send us the information we need. Those are his terms.”

The blonde’s eyes widened in mild surprise. “But I thought Mwangi prohibited telling me anything about this mission as I’m not yet inducted into the Syndicate.”

“True.” The Deltan smiled, giving her a look of assurance. “Don’t worry, love. I’ll deal with Mwangi and tell him it was all my idea. Besides, since I am the big boss, Klars’ favorite, Eric wouldn’t dare punish me.”

The agent blanched a little, suddenly feeling ill at ease at the man’s arrogance. She had a bad feeling about Percy asking her to help him, wondering if he was luring her into a trap. But then this was her chance for a breakthrough in the mission. If the informant’s claim proved true and really knew Mirror Kate’s location, then she had to take the risk. Besides, it wasn’t like she could refuse anyway without blowing her cover.

“Well, look who’s here,” Percy suddenly called out, directing the agent’s gaze forward, where a tall humanoid woman, sporting a rather stoic expression, was approaching them. “How lovely to see you, Elena!” He leaned in for a kiss but she brushed him aside, the latter’s blue-green eyes fixed on Nielsen.

Chloe couldn’t help feeling a little amused that the Deltan’s way of greeting was just coldly brushed aside by this mysterious woman, whose long, reddish-brown hair had a rather unusual up do. A folded lump, shaped as if a small furry animal was sitting inside it. She watched with curiosity, when the new arrival, wearing a thin, cold smile, extended her hand to the Canadian.

“Elena Djiktra,” the woman spoke as they shook hands. “So you’re the new recruit brought in by Mwangi.”

“Yes…” Chloe raised an eyebrow, wondering if this Djiktra person was part of the Syndicate.

Percy explained, grinning at the blonde, “See, Elena is a high ranking boss in our organization, equal to Mwangi’s status but reports to Klars. She is in charge of expanding our operations into this quadrant. To the rest of the universe, she is a successful business woman who runs an interstellar enterprise.”

Chloe gave Elena a similar cold smile. “It’s a pleasure meeting you, Ms. Djiktra.”

“You too and Elena is fine.” The human woman nodded. “I look forward to you joining us, one day.”

The Deltan asked, “So, Elena, what brings you here to Numino. Rumor has it you have become Hollande’s whisperer.”

Djiktra chuckled. “I’m merely offering some advice. Nothing more.”

“Well, you did what Eric couldn’t.” Percy grinned. “For some odd reason, he and Anuita didn’t gel well so he rarely ever leaves Tirithi and leaves me to deal with the council…although, Hollande never took a liking to me.”

Oh one could see why. Chloe nearly rolled her eyes. Lord Percy was rather smarmy and apparently made a lot of people uncomfortable with his eccentric and lecherous behaviour. Even Elena’s attention seemed more on her than him.

Elena remarked in a casual tone, “Well, Hollande might not be the only one who has a foreigner whispering in her ear. I hear the Free Nuimons have recently attained the services of a consultant…an off-worlder in fact.”

“You don’t say,” Percy said, his eyes twinkling with delight. “An alien consultant for a xenophobic group. Oh the irony.”

Irony, indeed. Chloe bit her lip at the information, knowing it wasn’t the first time a conservative Nuimon group had solicited the help of outsiders to get rid of or not permit…outsiders. Oh the hypocrisy didn’t seem to amaze her.

Elena continued, “I heard a rumour that this consultant goes by the alias, ‘Anna Quinn’ or ‘Queen Anne’.” She gave Chloe a quick glance.

The agent smiled, masking her annoyance. If Elena was right, then Anaqueen had gotten herself into some trouble. She decided to check on the Trill after returning to her apartment.

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Scene: Hotel Suite

Mirror Anaqueen gulped down a shot of local alcoholic beverage and slammed the tiny glass on the table, growling. That ragtag bunch had aimed big and failed miserably by targeting the Dominion Ambassador and a Starfleet Captain, also her alternate. She heard from Sela – the girl who scouted her out in Tirithi and brought her into the fold – that Starfleet got tipped off by an unknown person and prevented the assassinations. Ana was curious as to the individual who foiled the Free Nuimons’ plans. She was betting it was Nielsen, which made a lot of sense – of course the agent was going to ambush one of the assassins and discreetly warn Spankryz without blowing her own cover. But those bumbling idiots or wannabe freedom fighters believe there to be a traitor in their midst and were shouting at each other in the other room.

The door parted, making a loud whoosh and Hubon, a tall, burly Nuimon man, adorned in a wood brown uniform, burst into the room, his boyish face flushed red with anger and his nostrils flared. The man was young, in his twenties – heck they were like over a decade or two younger than the Trill. Hubon marched across the room until he thrust his ugly face at her, his left hand clenched into a fist, while the other rested on the arm of the sofa, she was sitting on.

Ana, for the most part, was unfazed, rolling her eyes. “Found who to blame?”

Hubon raged, “It’s all your fault!” Ana knew from the uniform that the man was a junior officer of the city police force. In fact, from what she observed, the Free Nuimons included some members from the Planetary Police.

“And how is it exactly my fault, Hubris?” The Trill shoved him off her. She couldn’t stand the meathead, apparently put in charge of this operation. To put it bluntly, he was a bleeping idiot who hulked around, barking orders…well barking more like a Terran mutt than an actual leader.

“My name’s Hubon, bitch,” he yelled. “And yes, it’s your fault, woman because it was your strategy we implemented for this operation and it failed.” Ana’s dry chuckling only made him angrier. “Hey, what’s so funny? You screwed us.”

“Well, Hubris,” Ana said in a condescending tone. “It isn’t my fault you are all a bunch of amateurs, unable to follow a simple plan.” A plan she and her fellow freedom fighters back in the mirror universe, successfully implemented, many times. Unlike this bunch – children playing adults – the Free Trills back in her home dimension were pros and executed their various operations without a fuss, though the majority of them failed. But considering what the Trill freedom fighters were up against – a powerful, centuries old regime, it wasn’t unexpected as they did have an uphill battle to overthrow the parasites. In that respect, the Free Nuimons seemed rather childish to her as it was a movement borne out of fear and hatred of beings different from them. To be honest, it was frustrating to the Trill as she believed those Nuimons didn’t seem to appreciate the freedom they were given.

Hubon warned, “Watch your tongue and remember we are paying you.”

“The Lady is paying me, not you,” Ana reminded firmly. “And you and I both know that if it weren’t for the Lady’s support, you’d have gone nowhere.” She pointed at the cartons of weapons and other equipment. “I mean, look at all these fancy weapons, you get to use because of the Lady – an off-worlder if I might add.”

Sela came forward, speaking to her comrade in a calm voice, “Hubon, the plan was solid. We failed because someone betrayed us to Starfleet. That’s the only explanation I can think of.”

No sweetie, there wasn’t a traitor, Ana thought with amusement. They were just unlucky Chloe Nielsen was on the planet and the Trill liked that theory so much she decided to stick with it. She refilled her glass with more wine and gulped down the purple liquid in one go. “So have any of you met our backer?”

Sela shrugged. “None of us have met her.”

“A pity.” Ana sighed. “I really wanted to thank her for giving me this gig.” She felt a brush against her arm as the Nuimon girl plopped down beside her. “So why is the Lady helping you?”

“I don’t know.” Sela shrugged, letting out a sigh. “All I know is our leaders secretly communicate with a messenger of the Lady – another off-worlder apparently.”

“Well, it’d be interesting to know what the Lady’s motives in helping you are.”

The Nuimon stood up. “I don’t really care so long as she provides us the means to expel the off-worlders.”

Well, the Trill did. Ana heard a chirping sound, which also caught Sela’s attention and the Trill grinned, standing up. “I must take this in my room.”

“Who is it?” Sela’s eyes narrowed.

The Trill replied nonchalantly, heading towards the door, feeling the other woman’s eyes bore down on her back. “I have other clients. After all, I’m quite in high demand.”

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Location: Unknown, NUMINO
Scene: Underwater Lab

The Siberian husky puppy let out a soft howl, his snow white fur wet and wagged his tail in delight. “Awww, lad, you like your bath,” Kate MacNeil cooed, gently rubbing soap over the dog’s body. The puppy whimpered, sitting comfortably in a small wash bowl, filled with cold water, which huskies generally preferred. “You’re such a good lad.” The doctor from the Mirror Universe spoke to the pup in a soft, soothing voice, filled with affection – rarely ever shown towards sentient beings.

“You and I, along with the other creatures, are the only enlightened ones in the room. Everyone else just doesn’t understand that I am a healer. Yet, here and back in my own reality, I’m called a murderer, genocidal maniac, psychopath, mentally deranged lunatic. But all I want to do is make the universe a better place – heal the rot growing there.” She picked up a wash cloth and squeezed out the water. “They accuse me of committing murder with my experiments but what their small minds don’t grasp is that my subjects sacrifice their lives for the common good – the quest to find a cure to the plagues infesting the universe. I’m not murdering them. I am offering them the chance to make a worthwhile sacrifice.”

She let out a sigh of frustration. “And wee one, you know what else gets my blood boiling.” The puppy yapped, shaking its body to splash water around. “These worthless, pathetic beings in charge of their empires or alliances solicit my help in creating a weapon to kill their enemies and yet…” She paused, gently removing the puppy from the bowl and placing him on the table. “They call me a murderer when they should be thanking me after all it was my exceptional intelligence that made their mundane causes successful.” What she meant by mundane causes were the political conflicts in the Mirror Universe – a big deal to others but for the Scottish woman, power grabs, wars, insurgencies were inconsequential to her. Cardassians, Terrans, Bajorans, Klingons and others like them – all a bunch of barbarian hordes who only used her as a pawn in their petty squabbles. Well, her home reality was lost to barbarians but in this reality, there was still hope to bring about enlightenment but it would be a painful process with so many sacrifices to be made.

“Doctor,” came a male voice from behind. “Test failed and the subjects melted.”

Kate exhaled, her gaze on the puppy, shaking to dry himself. “Unfortunate. Alright, let’s take a short break and then after fifteen minutes, bring in the next batch.”

“Yes, doctor.”

MacNeil announced, “I have an idea.” She turned to the window, watching the variety of the sea creatures passing them, their forms glowing brightly in a myriad of pretty colours. Such beauty, Kate thought, admiring the scene before her. What enlightened creatures. While the doctor didn’t care for sentient beings, she always had a fondness for the fauna and never intentionally harmed them.

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Location: Scottish Highlands, EARTH (Mirror Universe)
Scene: Room
TI: 31 years ago

It was a cold, dark and stormy night. Thunder roared. Lightning struck. The wind howled like a screaming banshee, thrashing everything in its path. However inside a building – a centuries old castle – a little girl with auburn curls, wasn’t bothered by the storm outside. She was sitting on a cold, stone floor in a dimly lit room located high up the castle. The castle stood upon a small hill with gentle slopes, offering its inhabitants a splendid view of the glen.

The little girl, Kate, a name given to her by the Lady of the castle – a place where abandoned or unwanted Terran children and hybrids were sent, not to be seen or heard by the rest of the civilized society. The child was left at the castle gates when she was a baby. She had no knowledge of her parentage and was told she was a ‘half-breed’, a derogatory term for hybrids, though she didn’t understand what it meant until a few years later. She hadn’t really discovered her true heritage and the identity of her birth parents until her early twenties.

“We’ll be best friends forever.” The girl was speaking to a puppy with soft, tanned coloured fur, black muzzled face and curled tail. The tiny pug, only a few weeks old, was found, abandoned by the giant tree behind the castle and Kate, upon gazing into its big brown eyes, fell in love with the animal. She then brought the puppy to her room and took care of it in secret as the children weren’t permitted to have pets.

Kate had named her ‘Lily’ and believed the pug to be a special gift from the faeries in the forest. She was fortunate no one in the castle paid any attention to her, except for mocking her at meal times and during school. The pure blooded Terran children refused to sit near the hybrid and teased her. Even the other hybrids wanted nothing to do with her – apparently they found her odd, especially when she spoke of having conversations with faeries in her room and how they protected her from evil. The isolation from others enabled her to keep Lily in secret – the pug being her only friend.

The pug whimpered, learning to walk. Kate smiled. “Don’t worry, lassie. The faeries promised to come take us away from this horrible place and live in the forest with them.” Lily yapped as she was picked up and held in the girl’s arms. “I love you, Lily.”

Then the door slammed open and Kate looked up with horror in her hazel eyes. They found out. She felt her body shaking and Lily in response to her distress, whimpered.

Two men stood at the doorway, their large forms menacing to the small girl. One of them, a young freckled faced man with burgundy hair chuckled derisively. “Well, what’ve we here?”

Kate pulled the pug closer to her chest and held her tight. She began withdrawing towards the wall as the men came closer. She heard the other man, shorter and older than his companion and with a clean shaven face and jet black hair. They were the castle guardians, charged with enforcing the rules.

“You aren’t supposed to have pets, lassie.” He made clucking sounds with his tongue, wagging his finger at her.

Kate’s heart raced, her breathing increased and her eyes welling up with tears. They were going to take her. No, she thought with anguish, they couldn’t take her. Not her only friend. “Please,” she begged, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Don’t take Lily away. She’s my only friend. Please…”

The freckled man burst out laughing. “Half-breeds have no friends.” He reached out and snatched the pug out of her hands with ease and Kate was unable to put up a fight because he was too strong.

Kate screamed, watching as they made their way towards the window. The freckled man tapped on the wall, deactivating the forcefield and suddenly the room grew cold with the winds rushing inside with vengeance. The girl got up and ran towards the window in a last ditch effort to save Lily but was pushed back, causing her to tumble to the floor.

Then the men to punish her, forced the little girl to watch through the window as her beloved Lily, placed on the ledge, froze to death that night.

For the next five years at the castle, Kate brought in no more strays from outside and kept her head down. Because of that night, she also stopped believing in the faeries, realizing they weren’t real. However, she did swear that no creature would ever come to harm and would severely punish anyone who dared raise a hand on a bird, animal or any other creature.

At around age thirteen, she was adopted by a prominent Terran scientist, a widow at the time, who claimed to have seen her potential for greatness. Kate never questioned how she found out about her and why she took her in. She was just desperate to leave the castle.

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Location: Unknown, NUMINO
Scene: Underwater Lab
TI: Present

Due to her mistreatment at the castle, Kate ended up not caring for Terrans or every other sentient being. She bore no hatred for them. She just didn’t care and her heart slowly turned cold, except when it came to fauna.

The Terran scientist gave her a comfortable life and provided her the finest education the planet could offer. While she didn’t mistreat the girl, she also showed her no love, merely using her as a tool for her research projects. Kate was a fast learner and took a keen interest in the scientific field, particularly medicine. Unfortunately, after observing how the scientist and her colleagues behaved towards her and others, the half-Nuimon never understood the meaning of love, compassion and only knew cruelty, lack of caring and other negative attributes, commonly associated with the Mirror Universe.

The husky puppy howled as Kate picked him up and made her way towards the window. Stroking his fur, she observed the sea creatures outside.

*************************************************************************************
NRPG: Here’s Part VII. Part VIII coming up next.



~*~
Ranjani S.
Writing for

Chloe Nielsen
Section 31 Agent

And

Special Appearances by

Captain Anaqueen Spankryz
Commander/Dr. Kate MacNeil