A/N: I saw the movie about a month ago and just couldn't get it out of my head. THERE WILL BE BLOOD. THERE WILL BE MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED; PROCEED WITH CAUTION.
One minute we were on the bridge, the next… the entire senior staff (minus the Doctor) had been transported down into some sort of parlor. They all looked to me, as if I had any idea what we were doing there. I was only minutes after we'd entered orbit around an occupied planet and had tried unsuccessfully to make contact with the warp-capable inhabitants. To us this seemed like a rude gesture, but perhaps it was just their customary way of saying hello. No need to get alarmed just yet.
"Welcome, guests." An invisible voice, over some sort of communication system. "Your host will be with you shortly. Please make yourselves comfortable in the meantime." No apologies for bringing us here. No further explanation on what the hell was going on.
"Well…" Tom finally broke the silence, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to have a drink." I hadn't even noticed the well-stocked bar positioned carefully in the corner. Was it even safe to be drinking alien chemicals? Nobody said anything as he marched over and mixed himself a drink like he'd done it a hundred times before. "Could be a bit stronger, but not bad." After a moment, Harry followed Tom's lead and did the same. We spread out then, searching the room for clues as to who our 'host' was or perhaps a means of getting back to the ship. As our COMM badges had mysteriously vanished during the transport process, it was clear that there was going to be no simple solution. Perhaps it would be best just to follow along with whatever the 'hosts' wanted and hope everything would turn out for the better.
We didn't get much of a chance to think about it, because soon a door opened up and a tall, bulky humanoid dressed in something that looked very much like a suit stepped out. He didn't speak, simply gesturing us to follow him through the doorway. We all hesitantly complied (some a little more hesitant than others) and were led to what looked like a grand dining room lit by the glow of an ornate chandelier that dangled from the vaulted ceiling. Another man of the same species rose from his chair at the end of a long wooden table with nine chairs. Just the right amount, how convenient.
"Welcome, come in!" He smiled, putting few of my doubts at ease. It didn't look like there was any imminent danger, but one could never be too sure. What if they were just trying to draw us in before the strike? We knew nothing about this culture. Some great first contact. "I understand that you want to make a trade with us." Since we'd never actually established any sort of communication, I was surprised that he knew this. But then again, most of the travelers who came this way most likely had the same goal in mind. Fair enough; it would save us some explaining.
"That's right." I stepped away from the group, slowly approaching this mysterious alien. "I'm Captain Kathryn Janeway and these are my high-ranking officers, though I suspect you already know that. Who are you?"
"I'll be your host tonight. You may address me as such, although I prefer that you do not address me at all. Please, take a seat so we can have our full introductions." Harry sat the closest on my side of the table to the host, Chakotay between us. To my right was Tom and across him sat Seven. Following to her right: B'Elanna, Neelix, and then Tuvok. We had just finished introducing ourselves and where we'd come from right as a wait staff brought in what I assumed was to be our dinner. It looked like some sort of meat and cooked plant-life, accompanied by a burgundy liquid in crystal glassware. Nobody made any kind of movement to pick up the silverware or even to place his or her napkin in their lap.
"Beats replicated food." B'Elanna finally reasoned, deciding just to have at the meal. Nobody had said it wasn't replicated, but there was only one way to find out. I was a little less receptive to the idea of eating the mysterious foreign meal, but the host was eating it too… so it really couldn't be so bad… could it? I didn't want to look like a poor guest, so I ended up picking up the utensils and cut into the meat, which was surprisingly tender. As it turned out, it tasted kind of like a medium-rare steak. Replicated food couldn't even come near the quality of this.
"It's delicious." I complimented, causing the host to beam proudly.
"Yes, it's a delica-" The host cut himself off sharply when his eyes fell on my security officer's plate. "Why Mr. Tuvok, you haven't even touched your j'Karr."
"As a Vulcan, I am vegetarian." The security officer patiently explained. There was no doubt in my mind that he'd been through this plenty of times before.
"Oh." The host nodded, "I understand. I really do. But how much would it cost for you to eat it?"
"I would not eat it." Tuvok replied, voice unwavering.
"What about enough energy to boost your replicators… say 300% for three months?" The math didn't immediately register in my mind, but I knew offhand that it was quite a lot. When the host had offered compensation I had expected a form of credit, but this was much, much more valuable.
"Are you being serious?" Tom asked from the other side of the table.
"Completely." The host scoffed, as if it had been a stupid question. "I can transfer it over right now."
"What's the catch?" I cut in, not wanting to be caught in some sort of bargain we couldn't fulfill.
"Catch? There is no catch. All he has to do is eat an entire j'Karr roast." The man pulled out an electronic device I couldn't identify.
"I will not eat the j'Karr." Tuvok stubbornly continued with the vegetables.
"Good man, I knew you were no fool." The host grinned, "Here's my second and final offer; 3,000% for the next three months?" That didn't even make sense. But it did sound like a hell of a lot of power. We might even be able to convert it and channel it into something more useful. Tuvok looked once at his plate, once at me, and then back at the alien. "What do you say, Tuvok? You could have all the veggies you wanted for three whole months." The Vulcan frowned then, but then silently picked up his knife and began to cut into the meat. I couldn't believe it!
"You don't have to do it." Chakotay attempted to dissuade the Vulcan, but the decision had already been made. If Tuvok was human, I'm sure he would have grimaced. I felt bad for him, but proud at the same time. The power would ease our lives greatly in the months to come, and would help advance our progress back to the Alpha Quadrant.
"You see, that wasn't so hard." The man at the end of the table pushed a few buttons on his device. "Already done. That was fun, wasn't it!" I wouldn't go that far. Useful, sure. Fun though? "You there, down at the end. Seven of Nine, was it? You haven't tasted your wine! It goes very well with the j'Karr, I suggest you try it."
"I do not drink." The ex-Borg stiffened, most likely remembering times when she'd had a little too much. It didn't mix well with her implants.
"Are you sure about that?" Uh oh. We all had a good idea where this was going. "If you drink that entire glass, I'll match the amount I just paid to your ship." Seven was looking to me now for help. I wasn't sure what she wanted me to do; the choice was up to her. It wouldn't kill her to just do it, really one glass of wine most likely wouldn't even do anything to get her buzzed.
"It's not so bad." Harry encouraged, "You'll like it." I nodded a little at Harry's words, which prompted her to pick up the glass, stare at it for a moment, and then begin taking long swallows from it. Even Seven had to know it wasn't the kind of drink that was meant to be chugged. But I could see why she wanted to get it over with.
"Good! Very good! See, there's nothing you wouldn't do with a little incentive." The host laughed, signaling for the wait staff to take away our mostly-empty dishes. "Dessert is going to have to wait; I'd like to play a little game. Tonight is all about choices, like the ones some of you just had to make. It's not always going to be easy, but I promise you'll receive a huge reward at the end."
"What do we have to do?" I asked, wanting to hear some of the rules before we agreed to anything.
"I'll ask you a question with two choices, and you'll have to choose. That's all there is to it." That didn't sound horrific. I used to play a variant of this 'would you rather' kind of thing with Phoebe as a kid. Harmless fun, very insightful when getting to know somebody. This was probably all it was; a test to see what kind of morals and codes our society valued over others. There were nods of agreement around the table.
"We'll play."
"Excellent! I'll go tell my assistants to prepare the instruments." Instruments? Maybe it was a little more involved than I'd thought. My fears were confirmed when a big machine was rolled out, two headsets attached by flimsy wires. One helmet was placed on Tom, the other on Seven. "This one's simple. That machine charges and delivers volts of electricity to the headsets, which will be transmitted to the wearer. We'll go around the table: you can choose to either shock yourself or the person to your right."
"That's barbaric!" I burst out, before I could help myself. We hadn't agreed to torture!
"And quite painful." The host nodded. "So choose carefully." He opened his mouth to continue, but Neelix quickly jumped to his feet, pushing back his chair with such force that it fell over on its side.
"I won't participate in this!" The Talaxian cried out, very upset. I was a little surprised in the urgency in his voice; none of us wanted to do it, but surely there was a more diplomatic solution than just shouting at the host. "Take me back to the ship!"
"Please, Mr. Neelix, sit down-" The man at the end of the table tried, but he was drowned out by more shouts of protest by Neelix, who was now at the door we'd all entered and was trying to push it open. "If you insist." Before any of us could react, the host stood and drew a handgun, firing from across the room at the Talaxian. The aim had been true, blasting right through Neelix's head and into the wooden door, where the bullet lodged itself into the intricate carving. All of us sat in absolute shock, unable to believe what we saw. Blood had sprayed everywhere, oh god, it was everywhere. On the walls, the floor, the ceiling… Neelix, that was Neelix. Holy fuck. He'd just shot Neelix! The thought didn't even register in my mind until two elegantly-clad men opened the door and quickly dragged the mostly-headless body out of the dining room. What had we gotten ourselves into this time?
A/N: and so it begins...