Author's note: apologies for the delay in updating, RL has been hell these past few weeks and I've had no muse at all Hoping the scene with Jerem will clear up a few lingering questions :)

10. Escape and Evasion

First Minister Jerem sat stiffly behind his desk, his eyes hard as he looked at his second in command. He took several deep breaths, trying to reign in the anger that was boiling under the surface and threatening to explode.

"What do you mean, they've escaped?" he asked, his voice deadly quiet.

"Someone detonated explosives at the prison, targeting specific cells," the younger man replied, his voice wavering slightly in fear. "Both Elianne and the human were seen leaving the compound with a group of rebels."

"Tell me, Karem, how is it that the rebels managed to break into a highly secure facility and break people out if it?" he demanded, his voice steely.

"I'm sorry, Sir, I don't know," Karem confessed. "We believe they had someone on the inside."

"Were the humans involved?"

"No sir, the weapons and explosives were nothing like theirs," the Second Minister confirmed. "What are we going to tell them?"

"I don't know, Karem, I don't know," Jerem said, shaking his head. "The plan was never to execute the human, as you know. A few more days of more intensive torture and he would have broken and given us everything." His fist slammed into the solid wooden desk in front of him, knocking over several small metal sculptures that sat on the smooth surface.

"And then we'd have decided to be lenient, showing him compassion and allow him to leave with his ship," the younger man finished, sighing at the loss of opportunity. "With him out of our control, we'll have no choice now but to kill him when we find him."

"And that's going to be a major problem," the older man concluded. "We needed to stay on good terms with the humans, at least until our allies had used the information we were to get from Lieutenant Reed to make the necessary modifications to their ships."

"Will our allies punish us for our failure?" Karem asked, his voice showing signs of fear.

"Most likely they will," Jerem confirmed with a sigh. "It was supposed to be an easy plan. Set up the bombing, frame the human, arrest him, interrogate him for the information about Enterprise's weapons and then release him. We would have appeared to be a civilised and peaceful society. That's why we never made any accusations against the rest of the crew, assuring their Captain that we 'knew his crew mate was working alone'. And then, when our allies were ready, they would have shared their weapons technology with us and we would have dealt with the rebels once and for all!"

"And now we will have to kill the human and have no information to share with our allies," the younger man said. "But what I don't understand is why they took the whore with them?"

"Because she is much more than a simple lower caste whore," the older man replied, shaking his head and dismissing the Second Minister with a wave of his hand. He needed a few moments quiet before he made the call to Enterprise to tell them about the unfortunate death of their crew mate.

###

Malcolm Reed had decided that this was probably the worst mission he had ever had the misfortune of being involved in. Accused of a crime he didn't commit, tortured and sentenced to death, it ranked up there with a few of the worst missions he had endured in Section. And to add to the confusion of the situation, he had allowed himself to become intimately involved with an alien woman he barely knew. While outwardly he appeared reserved to his colleagues, he was a red blooded male with physical needs that couldn't be satisfied on board Enterprise. The freedom of no strings attached sex was something he missed when he left section and joined Enterprise, but he indulged whenever they were near Risa. What he hadn't done since his time in Section was have unprotected sex, and the guilt of that action was weighing heavily on his mind.

"Malcolm," Eli repeated, touching his arm and pulling him from his thoughts. "We need to stop and rest for a few minutes." He nodded his agreement and dropped to the ground, grateful for the break from the arduous task of hiking into the mountains.

"Thanks," he murmured, taking the proffered water bottle from the exhausted woman beside him and taking a long drink from it. Their rescuers had supplied them with several bottles, which they would refill from the streams in the mountains when they became empty. "Do you think the others have evaded capture?" he asked quietly.

"Almost certainly," she answered, her voice little more than a whisper. "They are well trained and know the area far better than the city dwellers do."

"As do you?" he asked, turning to look at her.

"I grew up in these hills," she replied softly. "Lesan, our caste master, was a kind man who treated us all as if we were his equals. He worked alongside my father every late season, helping to gather the fruits and cull the herds."

"What happened to him?" Malcolm asked, an idea beginning to form in his mind.

"When Jerem became First Minister, he had Lesan brought before the council, accused of treason," she told him, tears welling up in her eyes. "They stripped him of his rank and lands, then hung him in the main plaza. It wasn't long after Lesan's death that Jerem took a shine to me."

"And because you had been treated like an equal, you weren't prepared to be anyone's slave?" he guessed, knowing he had hit the mark as her eyes widened. "So what happened? How did you become involved with the rebels?"

"Involved with them?" she laughed quietly, her eyes dancing with amusement. "My dear Malcolm, I lead the rebels in the area!"

"What?" he exclaimed, slapping his hand over his mouth when he realised he had spoken louder than he had intended. "You lead the rebels?"

"Yes, as difficult as that may seem to you," she said. "My father was murdered by Jerem's guards for not ordering me to accompany them, and our friends hid me away. While I was in hiding, I shared my knowledge of explosives and tactics with them, all things Lesan had shared with me. I organised them into a focused group, a cohesive unit that is trained and equipped to fight against our corrupt government."

"You're a rebel commander and you just happen to be in the same cell as me?" he demanded suspiciously.

"Yes, Malcolm, because Jerem wanted something from you," she confirmed, holding up her hand to forestall any argument. "He not only wanted the information about your ship's weapons. I think he also hoped that I would open up to you and give you details of the whereabouts of my people."

"So..." he began, stopping when she shook her head.

"No, I wasn't put there to get information out of you," she advised him with a wry grin. "Although I was convinced at first that you were a plant, until the first time they carried you back to the cell. After that, I was told by my contact who you were and why you were there. I admit, you becoming my lover wasn't intentional."

"I don't regret that it happened," he told her, pulling her onto his lap. "Although I don't know how compatible our species' are, if you know what I mean?"

"Interspecies pregnancies are incredibly rare," she assured him. "I wouldn't worry about it. If I was able to have children, I would have fallen pregnant to one of my abusers."

"True," he conceded, pushing himself to his feet and gently placing her back onto the dirt path they were following. "We should get going. Lead on." He gestured towards the route ahead with a flourish, grinning widely at his companion. She took to the path ahead of him, leading him deeper into the unfamiliar but remote mountains and away from the threats of the city.