Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek
Chapter Five:
One Fell Swoop
"Aye, I must warn you again, that uniform will only warrant unwanted attention," the bartender said, his eyes shifting over to the man Brax was concerned about.
Elli glanced over her shoulder, eying the man in the corner once again. He removed the cigar from his mouth and put it out on the table, smoke rising around him. He then stood, as though he took her glance as an invitation. He made his way over to them with four men following close behind him. Elli quickly assessed them before turning around in her chair to greet them.
"Don't worry, pet, my business is with your friend there," he gestured towards Brax. Elli felt her muscles tense, and she turned to look over at Brax. He put his glass down and slipped off the stool and adjusted the bottom of his uniform as he stepped forward to face the man.
"What business do you have with me?" Brax asked wryly.
The man's calculating eyes raked over Brax, "I'd recognize Tal Shiar filth anywhere."
There was an alarming shift in Brax's stance, and the look in his eyes morphed from annoyed to livid.
"What do you know of the Tal Shiar?" Brax asked, giving the man a once over as he sized him up. Who was this person and what knowledge did he have of Romulan intelligence?
"I know from experience," the man spat, his eyes holding Brax with disdain, "Thus, looking at you leaves a sour taste in my mouth." He sucked in a breath before spitting at Brax's feet, a smug smile unfolding from his lips.
Elli studied the man warily but made sure to keep a close eye on his goons as well. He was a middle-aged man with vibrant red hair and a receding hairline. He and his men were no doubt humanoid, but they were not human. Their eyes were cat-like and neon green, and the shape much larger than Romulan and human eyes.
"Who are you anyway?" Elli queried, crossing her arms casually over her chest. Despite her question, her body language indicated that she held no interest in the man.
"Don't patronize me, girl," he pointed at Elli before taking another step towards Brax.
"I'm not part of the Tal Shiar, I'm a Sub-Commander," Brax said through gritted teeth, backing up as the man further invaded his space.
"Perhaps you are, but I know that uniform," He gestured towards Brax's uniform, which Elli noticed was considerably different than his Romulan cohorts.
"Do you know what happened to the last member of the Tal Shiar that I laid eyes upon?"
"I suppose you didn't take them out for dinner?" Brax offered, his hand moving close to the disruptor on his belt.
The man chuckled, his unit laughing along with him, "You have a sense of humor, I can appreciate that in a person, but unfortunately for you, our meeting was a little more intimate—"
"What happened to them then?" Brax dared to ask, his eyes narrowing as he watched the man with a wary gaze.
The man reached Brax now, his hand moving to capture his neck. His thumb pressed against Brax's throat and he smiled up at him with wild eyes, "I held him close just like this," he began, "except with my blade pressed against his throat," the man's thumbnail grazed Brax's jugular, "It took days to wash the green from my clothing after I cut his throat."
Brax's eyes narrowed, yet a tinge of fear emitted from his bottomless pools. With that, Elli felt her ire rise, and she hopped off the stool and grabbed the man's shoulder, pulling him back, "Coming over here and talking shit is one thing, but threatening is another," Elli was surprisingly calm, but she made sure to keep her cool for Brax's sake. She planted herself between the man and Brax and glowered up at him with flaming eyes.
"Who is this?" He pointed to Elli, even so, his gaze remained fixated on Brax, "your bodyguard?"
"No, but I wouldn't antagonize her if I were you," Brax said, looking at the man from over Elli's head.
The man moved out of the way and motioned towards his men to take care of her, "Knock her lights out or kill her, but I want the Romulan alive," he ordered before moving to sit on a stool to watch.
Elli glared at him before dodging a punch that was thrown her way. She lifted the stool in front of her and tossed it at one fighter and swung around to kick another one in the stomach. She turned to see Brax taking on the other two. She gave him a quick nod before engaging with the same man she threw the stool at. He grabbed her from behind, lifting her up to toss her into the side of the bar.
Elli twisted in his grasp, lifting his arms up and biting his hand. He let go of her and she turned to kick him hard in the gut before the other one grabbed her by the neck from behind. She wriggled out of his grasp and pulled him against her and flipped onto her back, slamming him hard against the ground before popping up and throwing a punch at the other man. They were relentless, but so was she.
She tossed herself around one of the fighter's shoulders, wrapping her legs around him before flipping him over and landing on her feet. She took a sharp turn, elbowing the other one in the face and watching as both of them hit the ground and unable to stand up. Brax rendered one of his components unconscious but was struggling with the other. Elli sprinted to his aid, grabbing the man by the scruff and dragging him away from Brax. She elbowed him hard behind his head, watching as he fell unconscious. She looked at Brax, proffering her hand to him and pulling him to his feet.
The leader stood from his stool, his eyes wide as he assessed his men before pulling a dagger from his belt. Elli watched him warily before she turned to the bartender, who was crouched low behind the bar, "Tell me, what are the laws for killing on this planet?"
"Killing someone in a fight like this is considered justified," the man responded, with a curious glint in his eyes.
Elli pulled her dagger from her boot and gave him a sharp nod before she jumped up, pushing her foot against the edge of the bar and thrusting herself up in the air. She flipped backward and grabbed the leader's hair as she flipped over him, exposing his throat. The blade pressed against his throat and the moment her feet hit the ground behind him, she flicked her wrist, listening as he choked on his own blood.
Brax watched in horror as Elli sliced the man's throat open, blood poured from his throat, over his clothes, and onto the ground. Elli let go of his hair, watching as he fell limp onto the ground in a puddle of his own blood. Gasps were heard around the bar, and everything went silent.
She nudged him with her foot before squatting down to wipe her blade clean on his clothes. She flipped the knife back into her boot and stood, letting go of the breath she was holding. She stepped over his body before she moved to sit at the bar again. Brax ran his fingers through his hair and tore his gaze from the man's lifeless body before sitting next to her.
The bartender smirked at Elli, his eyes glimmering, "That was impressive, those men have been terrorizing my bar forever now," he handed them two more drinks, "Your drinks are on the house tonight."
Elli grinned taking a big swig of her drink before placing it down. She beckoned the bartender to come closer by wriggling her finger at him. He leaned in, craning his neck and turned his head slightly so she could speak in his ear.
"Good, because we don't have any money," she chortled. He pulled back and rolled his eyes before walking away from her to help someone else.
Elli watched as the man's body was carried away, and his blood being mopped from the floor. The other men were also carried out probably to be tossed in the ally until they woke.
Elli smiled and turned to look at Brax, "I'm glad that's—" she paused taking in his expression. His lips were taut as he stared her down and his body tense. He fingered the glass next to him but never picked it up.
"Brax, what's wrong?"
"You fight well, I've told you that already. But what I haven't told you was my concern regarding your display of Klingon technique," he gave her a once over before capturing her eyes with his.
Elli stared into his pools of brown that were swirling like a festering storm. He straightened, forcing her gaze to follow him, "You noticed that?" She asked.
"I notice a lot of things, Elli. I'm observant. It's all part of my training. Klingon's are one of our greatest enemies, their fighting style has many tells, and you demonstrated some of them."
Elli sighed, and her shoulders sunk as she positioned her elbow on the bar top, flexing her arm so her chin could rest against her fist, "Lieutenant Worf taught me that. He's a Klingon tactical officer aboard the Enterprise," she said, "He's a friend."
"You're friends with a Klingon?" For a brief moment a look of disgust passed over his face.
"Of course I am. Worf is one of the first people I grew close to on the Enterprise. He enjoyed my bold personality," she beamed at him, obviously proud of herself.
Brax rolled his eyes, "If you don't say so yourself," he lifted the glass and took a sip of his drink, ending the topic conversation, "Although, I should probably thank you for what you did."
She waved him off, "Nah, don't mention it. I enjoy a good fight every once in a while."
"You're quite chaotic, Elli," he informed her, shaking his head.
"I thrive on chaos, unfortunately growing up in the middle of a war does that to a person."
"That's not necessarily a bad thing. One can go very far if they know how to maneuver through chaos."
Elli chuckled, "We sound like a couple of sociopaths," she brought her glass to her lips all while keeping her eyes fixed on Brax. He was doing the same with a ghost of a smile playing on his lips.
"We need to find a way to earn currency; it won't hurt to have that in hand in case we need it." She suggested.
"I agree, I also suggest we learn more about this planet and the laws surrounding it."
She turned, waving down the bartender yet again and watched as he trudged over to her with an annoyed scowl, "What is it now?" He asked.
"Is that how you talk to your hero?" Elli beamed up at him, flexing her fingers.
He sighed, sinking onto the counter so that they could speak, "What is it?"
"Speaking of money, how does one earn such a thing on this planet?"
"Many ways, you can get a job. But that may take a while and you probably won't earn much in the beginning. If it's fast cash, and a lot of it, I suggest the underground fighting rings."
"Fighting rings?" she queried.
"Yes, with skills like yours, I think you can do it. Fighting rings aren't illegal, but they're controlled and rather boring. People here like to be entertained so the underground fighting rings bring in a bigger audience with more money to gamble on. If you win a fight, the amount of money you earn is enough to get you by for a while."
"What is the difference between an underground fighting ring, and a regular one?"
"As I said, an ordinary fighting ring is controlled, it's safe and monitored, and you have to sign up and audition to earn a spot which may take days or even weeks. While the underground is a little more unethical and anyone can enter at any time. But if you win, your chances of earning a spot in the regular fighting ring becomes higher."
"How is the underground unethical?" she asked, taking in every word he said.
He glanced around before leaning closer to her, "because you fight to the death."
"Yeah, we'll find a different way of earning currency," Brax cut in, his gaze on Elli hardening as her wheels began to turn. He knew she was considering it and he wasn't going to stand by and let her kill herself.
"You'll need the cash if you want to survive. You'll need a place to stay I'm sure, and food."
"We have all that. Our runabout landed in the forest not far from here." Brax said.
The bartender let out a short laugh, "Your runabout? Well, I have news for you. That runabout won't be there very long. I give it until tomorrow evening before the scout bots locate it and it's retrieved and taken to the junkyard like every other ship or shuttle that lands here.
"Junkyard? They have ships there?" She asked.
"None of them work so don't get your hopes up or any ideas," He shook his finger in her direction before standing up straight, "Your best option is the underground fighting rings. You're a skilled fighter, one of the best I've seen in a while. I think you'll do well down there."
"Where can we find them?"
"Elli, no—" Elli held her hand out, silencing Brax before giving the bartender a hard stare, "Tell me where."
The bartender took a quick glance at Brax before looking at Elli. He quickly pulled out a paper and wrote something down before handing it to her. "There you go, and be careful." He turned to walk away, and Elli grabbed the paper to look at it. She turned to Brax who was looking at with a disbelieving stare.
"Elli, I don't think this is a good idea. I know you're an excellent fighter. I can fight, basic combat really but your skills are more complex, your training is uncanny, and like nothing I've ever seen. It's like you were trained to kill but—"
"That's because I was trained to kill, Brax. I was an assassin on Teegan. It was part of my job as a rebel. The rebel leader, Cal. He was Teegan intelligence before the war began," she said, "Therefore the things he could do, you wouldn't believe. He trained me day and night until I was just as good as him if not better. As you said, I was trained to kill. Let me do this. It'll be fine, you'll see."
He studied her for a moment, watching as her pale eyes pleaded with him, "All right. We'll go but I need to change first."
Her eyes moved to his grey uniform with the black turtleneck, "Very well, let's go back to the runabout, but then after that, we're going here," she waved the paper at him before shoving it in her coat pocket.
Brax followed her out of the bar and back to the runabout. The walk back was quiet, both of them contemplating the fight ahead. Once they were back in the runabout, Elli generated something for Brax and handed it to him folded nicely. He glanced down at the bundle of clothes before going to a washroom to change.
He came out a moment later, bending his knees some to loosen up the pants. They were black, with a pattern of lines around the knees and tucked in calf-length black boots. His top was a crewneck, long-sleeved, dark grey shirt that fit his toned physique rather well. Elli smiled and held open an olive colored leather jacket with solid black straps on each sleeve. Brax turned and let her slip the jacket on him. She moved around him, facing him so that she could adjust it around his chest, "There, you blend in," she smiled up at him, giving the jacket one last tug before taking a step back to give him a once over.
"You look great, now let's go," she motioned with her entire arm before grabbing a few more weapons, this time without Brax shoving his disruptor in her face.
"Elli?" He asked as they left the runabout and headed back towards the fence.
"Yeah?"
"When did you put that knife in your boot?"
She smirked, looking at him with a mischievous glint in eyes, "Wouldn't you like to know?"
He sighed, understanding he may never know. He watched as she walked ahead of him with a light bounce in her steps, humming to herself. He couldn't understand how she could be so content when she was possibly walking to her end. He didn't know what he would do if Elli died. He didn't think he would be heartbroken but there would a feeling of loss. She had been his companion for a couple of weeks now, even if she was his prisoner and there was a part of him that would miss her cheeky and sometimes hotheaded behavior.
The stars glimmered above them, lighting up the sky and reflecting on her flaxen colored hair. Romulan did not believe in luck, but at this moment he wished her all the luck in the world.