round 19 Captain Renos, "Playing a Dangerous Game"

[+ Salkath]

((USS Darwin, Deck 1, Bridge))

:: As suspected the warship began to turn. Renos was willing to give Mister Jellico a chance. Ne’d had great advice and support from all of the bridge and ne believed in their ability to win this. So far they were managing to stick to the relative shelter of the tail. How could they lure the ship back to the planet without having to take the brunt of those forward weapons? ::

:: Ne got up and quickly scuttled over to the science console where no took over. The J’naii Captain had enough of a scientific background to be able to confidently and proficiently take care of this task. No doubt Mister Valdivia would have been able to take care of this much better than nem but he was occupied helping with important matters elsewhere and having him report to the bridge would cost precious time. No… this was something ne needed to take care of personally. It would give nem great satisfaction to see this work. Fingers flew over the console to make sure everything was set up. ::

Renos: I’m ready. Let’s do this.

::Unfortunately ne did not hear the responses because at that moment ne was engulfed by the familiar sensation and glow of a transporter beam. When the dark haired J’naii rematerialised blinking, on a comparatively dull bridge full of hostile faces.

((Unknown Warship - Orbit Around Zakdorn))

:: A tight knot of anxiety immediately formed in the pit of nir stomach but ne stood tall, proud and defiant in the face of nir captors. Renos was afraid but determined not to give them the satisfaction of seeing it. Standing in an aggressive posture ne cast nir eyes around the room and knew that if ne tried to do anything ne would be shot, possibly killed. Even if ne did nothing to provoke ‘Raikenoff’ ne may very well meet the same fate. The Captain remained frozen, barely daring to breathe. ::

:: Renos had been chased all nir life. As someone who was genderfluid ne’d been chased by the J’naii government and deviant hunters who thought nit identification with a gender was some terrible illness, something shameful that needed to be corrected by terrifying, intolerable mind altering ‘treatments’. Ne’d escaped J’naii and decided to enrol in Starfleet to give back to the Federation after they gave nem back nir life. So Renos was not afraid to die and could easily imagine the government sponsored deviant hunters giving this guy a fat paycheck and pat on the back. If this was to be nir last moment ne would face it with courage. ::

Renos: oO Death comes to us all but at least I have lived a good life in service to those who gave me freedom. Oo

Tor'kath: Captain. Remember what I said about my patience?

:: Renos tensed up. His tone, his body language and his words all painted the picture of bad things to come. The disruptor the captain carried was unholstered in what seemed slow motion. In a smooth motion ne saw if being aimed and moments after seeing the green light burst forth - there was nothing. Nir body crumpled and dropped heavily to the floor. ::

:: When ne snapped back to consciousness it was to blinding pain that made nem cry out through gritted teeth in agony, while every muscle tightened uncomfortably. When the speckled white dots that clouded nir vision cleared ne found nemself in a small dark room. Looking around ne saw two individuals - only one of which was familiar - the captain. The other held what was recognisable as a Klingon pain stick. Nir mouth dried up as ne realised the ordeal ne was set to face. ::

Renos: You’re digging a bigger and bigger hole for yourself and your crew, captain! ::Maliciously::

:: Starfleet did not look kindly upon those who attacked their vessels and kidnapped their commanding officers. The list of charges was lengthening by the minute. Whether ne lived or died ne knew that nir crew would do everything in their power to bring these people to justice for their actions. ::

Tor'kath: Ah, Captain Renos! You're awake! That's good to see, you and I need to have a bit of a chat.

:: Of course he did and whatever it was he wanted Renos wasn’t going to give him it. Instead ne narrowed nir eyes and glowered at him, projecting concentrated hatred at him. If it could only manifest itself into a physical form it would be a corrosive acid so strong as to dissolve the man before nem. ::

Renos: I’m afraid I don’t feel particularly chatty today. Sorry!

:: Ne gave him a false cheeriness despite knowing that no smart mouthed quip ever went unpunished. Unfortunately if the commanding officer was at all angered or annoyed he did a remarkable job to hiding it and it annoyed Renos considerably because ne was normally so good at reading people. It would have given nem great satisfaction to get under his skin because it would have taken some of the control back. ::

Tor'kath: A Starfleet officer for over a dozen years... served on Starbase 118 and the USS Apollo-A before gaining command of the Darwin... ::looking up with mock surprise:: You are a doctor? How fortuitous! It appears you've suffered a bit of a contusion there. ::pointing at Reno's midsection::

:: Renos couldn’t help but glance down and grimaced a little to see it. That had come up quickly… or had it? How long had ne been out?! So… nir opponent had done his homework - bravo for him. That information wasn’t supposed to be easy to come by and ne wanted to know how he got it. For the briefest of moments ne entertained the idea of trying to trick him into thinking he’d picked up Iy, but it didn’t seem likely to wash. Maybe if ne’d been in civvies instead it might have stood a chance. What would it accomplish in any case? Ne sighed internally. ::

Renos: oO It looks worse than it is. Oo

:: Ne took little comfort in the thought because if it had felt bad before ne’d looked it felt even worse now. The worry of imminent death outweighed worry over the wound.::

Renos: oO ::Defiantly:: I’ll live! Oo

Renos: oO Or will I? Oo

:: Ne bit back nir first response because rather than hurry along the inevitable it was more likely to make them want to draw it out for spite. Ne had too much experience and was far too stubborn to play ball with this guy. ::

Renos: So you can read… congrats. ::Sarcastically::

:: The captain appeared to be ignoring nir retorts and playing a similar nicey nicey game. Any moment now that limited patience of his would once again crack and perhaps Renos wouldn’t wake up a second time. Would it matter? Who would miss nem? The J’naii had a distinct feeling of loneliness was over nem. Ne’d been long separated from family and had only just started making friends with people on the Darwin crew. Other than that there was only nir contact in the underground and most of them had become numb to loss having seen so many comrades die. ::

Renos: oO I’ll miss Traneor most of all. Well, not really… ::Ne realised how stupid a notion that was suddenly:: I’ll be too busy being dead to miss anything. Oo

Tor'kath: As much as I'd love to sit with you and offer you tea, I've pressing matters to attend to. However, I'd like to ask you a few questions first. How you answer them will decide how quickly our conversation goes.

Renos: You mean how long you draw out my death, yes?

:: The answer came in the form of pain! Despite nir best efforts and determination not to let it show - it really was just too much. Ne howled in agony and strained against the restraints. Ne knew ne’d had that coming but still didn’t feel any more inclined to help. This could only end in death or if ne was particularly fortunate - rescue. The Darwin crew would try to get nem back. Ne needed to buy time. Not make nemself completely expendable by giving them everything they wanted straight away. ::

Tor'kath: I haven't even asked the questions yet, and you've already answered incorrectly. Let's try again. Where are my operatives, and did you remove anything from my shuttle?

:: Renos had no idea if the question about the operatives was a trap. Having transported nem from the bridge ne’d thought he would also have managed to collect all of his operatives. Was this a sign he was invested in both his people and the shuttle. Honestly Renos had no idea if Thomas or a member of his team had taken anything so whatever way you cut it he wasn’t going to like the answer. ::

Renos: Someone-thing missing?

:: Ne pulled a mock sad face as if someone had just told nem the last of some critically endangered species had just died. It was of course just a ploy to buy a little more time. One that was most likely to result in pain. Interestingly - or perhaps worryingly, the J’naii had been fortunate enough not to end up in situations this desperate in nir long career. Ne’d faced pain and peril - just, not like this. The anxious captain feared ne was about to learn the limits of nir pain tolerance all over again. ::

Tor'kath: I want to ensure that all four operatives and everything that was on that shuttle have been returned to my ship. I don't want anything left behind that is none of the Federation's business. Do you understand?

Renos: Shall we deal with one thing at a time?

Tor'kath: Okay. Where are my two missing operatives? Are they still on your ship?

Renos: I’m not sure I understand. Can you repeat the question again in Spanish?

:: Renos didn’t even know Spanish and didn’t care. If he actually played into nir ridiculous games then that was the next thing he was about to learn. Maybe there was more to nem than what could be gleaned from a personnel file. Ne snorted, just stifling a snicker and knowing full well this was the most inappropriate time for it. Truth was, ne was pretty close to tears. With nir emotions in disarray and the overwhelming fear of torture till execution nir brain seemed to be trying to cope with dangerous results. ::

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Captain Renos - Commanding Officer, USS Darwin NCC-99312-A

Also simming: Lt JG Tarna, Medical Officer, USS Victory NCC-362447

FWPA Co-Facilitator | Publicity Team Facilitator
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