Lt. J.G. Nestira Aristren - [SIDEPLOT] - Life's Little Dramas

[Sal Taybrim]

I love that @Trovek and Sydin took a chance on this sim and I think it really paid off and hit a home run!

To explain - there is a normal scene going on during on there (with standard tags and narration) where two undercover characters are eavesdropping on the conversations in this sim.  So the two active characters are simming the reactions, but this is a marvelous set up for the information coming in.  It's a great bit of foreshadowing for our next mission while we're in the thick of our current mission and I love that kind of story building!

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((OOC: This is the convo between the four humans. I put them all into one sim as to not spam the list, hope this works out!))

((Miranda VII, Unused Observation Deck))

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Samuel still wasn't sure that any of this was a good idea, but he knew that the others would be upset with him if he chickened out, and he didn't want to be excluded. With a sigh he hid his clammy hands in the pockets of his worn jacket and scaled the staircase that led to what had once been one of his favourite places. He had met Kayla here, and even if Kayla was no longer with him, he had treasured the memory. 

Then those Terra Prime assholes had raided the place and had the owner killed. Now the observation deck was just a sad reminder of what things had been like before Terra Prime had taken root.

"Hello...?", he called out into the darkness, then realised that he was being far too loud. He formed his hands into fists to keep them from shaking, and walked over to the large windows. Minutes passed in which his anxiety built up, and he nearly jumped out of his skin as someone else spoke up.

"Got you!" 

Sam let out an involuntary and somewhat feminine shriek, which was muffled a split second later as the attacker covered his mouth. After a moment of panic and upon recognition of who the other individual was, terror turned into annoyance. At Lauri for being a jerk, and at himself for being so easily scared. 

"Are you insane? People will hear us!", Lauri hissed and withdrew his hand. "You decided to scare me. Jerk.", retorted Sam, only for Lauri to grin and shrug. Then again, what had he expected, an apology? 
"Where are the others? Not here yet?"

Sam shook his head. "No... But they are coming, right?"

Lauri nodded and turned his attention to the door, which allowed Sam to regain his composure. And not a second too late. Despite the less than idea situation they were in, his heart leapt as he saw Kayla step into the room. She was followed by Liz, a young woman they had known for ages but only recently added to their friend group, and smiled as she noticed Sam and Lauri. Kayla approached .... walked past Samuel... and embraced Lauri instead. 

Despite all that had happened between their short romance and now, it made Sam jealous. Because everyone always liked Lauri. 

Liz was the one who spoke up first. Sam got the sense that she didn't do smalltalk. "The others aren't coming. They're scared. They caught someone just last night and let's say he won't have to worry about rations any more." 

Samuel froze. How could she just say it like that? He looked at Kayla for help, noticed her still in a close embrace with Lauri, and quickly looked away again. 

"Nothing we can do about it.", replied Lauri with some regret in his voice. Kayla nodded in agreement. "It doesn't change anything. We need to get away."

Everyone agreed with that, but waited for Liz to take charge of the conversation again. "We have the explosives. It won't be a big thing, but enough to buy us time to get out of here." She glanced at Sam, then added "If the shuttle is ready." Which sounded like 'it better be ready'.

Samuel nodded, but lowered his gaze. He was running behind on his schedule. His father, an Engineer, had him help while he carried out repairs on whatever vessel Terra Prime could get their hands on, and the plan was to steal one of them. But repairs were taking longer than planned...

"That's good.", nodded Kayla. "If Starfleet hasn't come by then-.." 
Liz cut her off. "Starfleet isn't coming. They don't give a damn about Miranda VII, let's face it, it has always been a dodgy place. They didn't do anything for the last year, I highly doubt that will change now." 

Sam wanted to believe in Starfleet. He had wanted to be a Starfleet officer. But Liz ... knew things. He knew that she knew things. And he believed that she spoke the truth, as crushing as it was. 

Kayla nodded slowly and eventually pulled away from Lauri. "I have the plan for the ventilation system. I still think the medical lab is the best way to do this." 

Sam agreed, mostly because it was Kayla who had said it. Lauri seemed amenable, and Liz nodded. "Let's get the map out and plan specifics." 

"Yeah...", Sam nodded, feeling a sudden wave of excitement about their plan finally moving towards the execution stage. 


__________________________________________

Lauri didn’t want to be here. He didn’t need to be here. But his friends didn’t know that, and he had no idea how to tell them that he did like their little rebel games, but was never in any real danger. Even now, if they were discovered, the worst that would happen to him was a slap on the wrist. 

He took a deep breath he squeezed himself through the opening of the non-functional door, steeling himself against the musty smell that lingered within the former restaurant. He spotted Sam by the window and his lips spread in a smirk as he quietly approached. 

Sam was a good guy, but messing with him was all too easy, and took the edge off. 

"Got you!" 

Sam shrieked, something Lauri had not expected, and he quickly covered the other teens mouth with his hand. "Are you insane? People will hear us!" 
He withdrew his hand once he was confident that Sam wouldn’t scream again. He didn't, but he did complain. "YOU decided to scare me. Jerk." 

Lauri gave a sly grin and a shrug, and decided to redirect the conversation. "Where are the others? Not here yet?" Sam shook his head. "No... But they are coming, right?"
He wasn't so sure, but he also didn't want to say anything. His parents, both part of Naystrim's inner circle, had told him that some idiots had tried to escape, and were caught. The news had spread like wildfire with a clear intention: A warning. 

Lauri nodded and turned his attention to the door, just on time to see two girls enter. One of them was Kayla, and Lauri was … well, intimately familiar with her. The other was some friend of hers, whose name he hadn't bothered to learn. Lisa. Liz. Something like that. He didn't like her much - far too bossy for his taste - but she was part of their group and that meant something. Kayla approached and embraced him, and Lauri was satisfied at the envy in Sam's eyes. 

He would have loved to gloat, but Lisa-Liz had other plans. "The others aren't coming. They're scared. They caught someone just last night and let's say he won't have to worry about rations any more" 

That was one way to put it. 

"Nothing we can do about it.", he replied, but didn't quite manage to banish the regret from his voice. Kayla nodded in agreement. "It doesn't change anything. We need to get away."

Correction, Lauri thought, they needed to get away. Naystrim had guaranteed his family a place on her vessel once they left Miranda VII, so he would be fine. But he also wanted his friends to be okay. 

"We have the explosives. It won't be a big thing, but enough to buy us time to get out of here.", Liz continued and glanced at Sam, then added "If the shuttle is ready." 

Samuel nodded. 

"That's good.", nodded Kayla. "If Starfleet hasn't come by then-.."  Liz cut her off. "Starfleet isn't coming. They don't give a damn about Miranda VII, let's face it, it has always been a dodgy place. They didn't do anything for the last year, I highly doubt that will change now." 

Lauri had gotten a sense that Liz had grown up here, and there were rumours that her family had friends in high places. He had always considered said 'high places' to be Starfleet, but now he wasn't so sure. 

Kayla pulled away from Lauri. "I have the plan for the ventilation system. The medical lab is a good place to do this, I think." 
Liz nodded. "Let's get the map out and plan specifics." 

The assessment was met with agreement, but inwardly, Lauri started to panic a little. Meeting up in the middle of the night would get him a slap on the wrist, but blowing up a medical facility... well. 

He was starting to wonder if it was better to tell his family about this...

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Kayla had taken an immediate liking to Liz upon meeting her, because Liz was everything Kayla was not. Smart, resourceful, opinionated. She highly doubted that Liz would find herself in a situation similarly dire as hers - pregnant with a hybrid child. 

Not that she had told anyone. She hadn't been entirely opposed to Terra Prime's ideals and would have liked the cushy life Naystrim had promised them, but she doubted that anyone would take kindly to her current condition. 

Someone like Liz would have gotten rid of it. Or she would have claimed some kind of assault. But today, Liz seemed distracted. 

"Are you okay?", Kayla asked quietly as they moved through the darkness. "Yeah.", Liz nodded. "Are you?" 

Sometimes Kayla was sure that Liz knew about the pregnancy. There was something in the way she looked at her, but Kayla was't quite sure what exactly that was. Pity? 
Realizing that she hadn't answered, she nodded quickly, and remained quiet until they arrived at their destination. 

"Go first.", said Liz quietly and jutted her chin towards the door, and Kayla nodded. The observation deck was mostly dark, but she could make out Sam's lanky, and Lauri's bulky frame by the window. Kayla approached and embraced Lauri - not because she particularly wanted to, but because that was the... clever choice, as Liz had called it. 

"The others aren't coming. They're scared. They caught someone just last night and let's say he won't have to worry about rations any more", Liz said, not attaching any tangible emotion to the statement. Kayla bit her lip. She had heard rumours, but nothing more. She didn't want to know what happened to them. 

"Nothing we can do about it.", he replied, but didn't quite manage to banish the regret from his voice. Kayla nodded in agreement. "It doesn't change anything. We need to get away." 

"We have the explosives. It won't be a big thing, but enough to buy us time to get out of here.", Liz continued and glanced at Sam, then added "If the shuttle is ready." 

Samuel nodded, but Kayla noticed how he lowered his gaze. An alarming sight considering that Sam was taking care of their escape plan. He would tell them if there were any delays... right? 

"That's good.", nodded Kayla, encouragingly. Maybe if she could buy him some time... "If Starfleet hasn't come by then-.."  
Liz cut her off. "Starfleet isn't coming. They don't give a damn about Miranda VII, let's face it, it has always been a dodgy place. They didn't do anything for the last year, I highly doubt that will change now." 

Which was a crushing idea, but supported what Naystrim was saying about them. 

Kayla pulled away from Lauri. "I have the plan for the ventilation system. The medical lab is a good place to do this, I think." 

Perhaps Kayla didn't have Liz' street smarts, but she was good at anything to do with computers. Getting the plans had been relatively easy, and making adjustments to the ventilation system wouldn't be too difficult. It wouldn't kill anyone and was merely a distraction, but it would be enough to allow them to leave here. 

Liz nodded. "Let's get the map out and plan specifics." 

She looked up at Lauri and wrapped her arms around him. Maybe they could get married and raise the child together. Or perhaps she wouldn't need him any longer. Once she was out of here, there was no place she couldn't go. 

__________________________________________

Liz hated what Miranda VII had become. She had grown up here, and while it certainly wasn't the most prestigious place to call home, it was her home. Good relations with the Syndicate and whatever self-absorbed idiot was in power at the time, had allowed her family a life in relative wealth. Wealth that was well-earned by selling information and moving assets. 

But Terra Prime was an entirely different breed, and Liz hated them. Enough to step out of the shadows and actually do something. 

"Are you okay?", Kayla asked quietly as they moved through the darkness. "Yeah.", Liz nodded. "Are you?" 

Liz knew of Kayla's... condition, and when she had found out, it had been almost enough to end their friendship. Because Liz didn't like stupid people. She was a survivor, and stupid people were detrimental to that. But Kayla was smart, and Liz liked smart. 

"Go first.", said she quietly and jutted her chin towards the door, and Kayla nodded. With a somewhat pleased smile, Liz watched Kayla approached and embraced Lauri. It was the clever choice, and one of the few things Liz had bothered to teach her. Lauri's family was close to that Naystrim woman, and his rations were better than what the rest of this hellhole was getting, be it food or medical care. 

That said, watching those two lovebirds made her want to throw up. 

"The others aren't coming. They're scared. They caught someone just last night and let's say he won't have to worry about rations any more", Liz said, satisfies that this alone would ruin their romantic mood. 

She knew exactly what had happened to those who were caught, and it disgusted her. For her own survival, Liz would usually stay out of the picture until things settled on their own. But Terra Prime had murdered several of her close friends, and she was pissed. 

"Nothing we can do about it.", Lauri replied, and Kayla nodded in agreement. "It doesn't change anything. We need to get away." 

Would she miss her family? Absolutely, but they would understand. Probably. They'd probably be less angry about her leaving than the fact that she had stolen a bunch of high yield explosives that had been meant for... for something. She didn't know. She didn't care. 

"We have the explosives. It won't be a big thing, but enough to buy us time to get out of here.", Liz said, even if at least one of these facts wasn't entirely truthful. She and glanced at Samuel, then added "If the shuttle is ready." 

She didn't trust him, but she knew that he adored Kayla and wouldn't endanger her. So he would tell them if there were any issues. 

"That's good.", nodded Kayla, encouragingly. "If Starfleet hasn't come by then-.."  

Starfleet. Ugh. 

Liz hated Starfleet with a passion. Self-important individuals with a hero complex who never did anything useful. Starfleet Officers sitting there in their cushy Starbase with beaches and forests, like its whole frikken city. 

"Starfleet isn't coming. They don't give a damn about Miranda VII, let's face it, it has always been a dodgy place. They didn't do anything for the last year, I highly doubt that will change now." , Liz replied, perhaps a little more harshly than she had meant to. 

And once more it wasn't entirely truthful. Starfleet had sent someone, but unfortunately that someone had been caught more than a week ago. Liz' father had mentioned how the man was being tortured for information, and Liz doubted that he was still alive. And even if he was, he wasn't even in a position to help himself, let alone others. 

Kayla pulled away from Lauri. "I have the plan for the ventilation system. The medical lab is a good place to do this, I think." 

Good. Very good. 

"Let's get the map out and plan specifics.", Liz decided, and made her way towards one of the tables, simply expecting the others to follow her. 


[End Scene]

Nyra Altman
aka
Lt. J.G. Nestira Aristren
Starbase 118 Ops
J239809TA4