164

Daggit ran, trailed by the hulking forms of Ayrck and Khimar, in hot pursuit of a platoon of Tal Shiar sentries. In the first two previous encounters between the insertion team and the Romulan defenders, they had devolved into a pitched battle each time. On this third brush between forces, Daggit had tried a new tactic.

When confronted by the approaching Tal Shiar troops, Daggit had fired several times into their midst and charged them. So used to simply intimidating their opponents by their mere presence, the Tal Shiar guards had no idea of how to respond to this new situation and began a rapid retreat down the corridor by which they'd come. As Daggit and the Remans mounted a pursuit the retreat became a full-fledged rout.

Nearly half of the Romulan squad had been slain in the ongoing pursuit. Each death just spurred the survivors on further and faster. As they careened around corners and down by-ways, Daggit wondered where this was leading them. More to the point, could the Remans lead him back out?

Despite seeing the Remans in action during the war, he was still taken aback by their casual ruthlessness. Still, there were motivating factors to be sure. He remembered how badly he and his super-soldier comrades wanted to lash out at the Angosian government upon escaping their lunar imprisonment. The Romulans had oppressed the Remans for hundreds of years. That was a lot of hate to suddenly tap into.

Daggit's moment of reflection ended as the Romulans filed as quickly as they could through a doorway. Daggit slowed and came to a halt in front of the door. Ayrck and Khimar came up beside him and flanked the other side of the doorway. Khimar shot the access controls and the door slid aside, revealing a large, two-story exercise/training area... and two dozen more Romulan guards.


"Left at the next junction." P'ris ordered.

"No. Right." T'Kir tossed her hands in the air, "Ah, frinx it, we're lost."

"Ladies," Macen said with a wry smile, "is there any hope of a consensus being reached before Ayrck and Khimar complete their mission and take off in the shuttlepod?"

T'Kir cocked her head to one side, "Is that why you sent Daggit off with the Brothers Grim?"

"Mostly." Macen admitted, I'm also concerned with their ability to complete their task and I want to know why they were sent here."

"They will never reveal that." P'ris warned, "Remans are amongst the more secretive beings ever conceived."

"And coming from a Romulan, that's saying a lot." T'Kir jabbed.

P'ris ignored the jibe, "The Remans are taught secrecy from birth. They are immersed in it; it permeates their very beings. They see their secrets as an act of rebellion against my people. We allow them their petty confidences knowing that they will never lead to revolution."

"How can you be so certain?" Macen quietly asked.

"Despite the centuries of genetic manipulation and cultural drift, at their heart the Remans are still Romulans. They crave order and the stability that stems from obedience." P'ris asserted.

"Don't be so certain." Macen warned, "Commandant Shinzon seems far more comfortable with the role of planetary leader than of puppet for the Senate."

"Shinzon serves at the leisure of the Senate." P'ris rejoined, "He knows this."

"I wouldn't bet the agricultural colony on it." Macen chuckled darkly, "Shinzon isn't one to surrender power once he's tasted it. Neither he nor his Attaché are to be trusted."

"They will be watched." P'ris assured him, "As all potential enemies of the Empire are."

Macen knew where he fell under that classification and decided to avoid the provocation, "So back to the original question, which way do we go?"

'Left." P'ris asserted.

T'Kir swore under her breath, "Listen tribble brain, that's the long way around. If we go right we can reach the turbolift sooner and proceed to the twentieth level where we'll find Admiral Valrik's private office."

"But we'll pass by a security checkpoint that way." P'ris protested.

"It's a two-man checkpoint and we have three people." T'Kir was trying hard not to shout, "Who d'you think will win?"

P'ris studied the expectant gazes bearing down on her from Macen and T'Kir and finally admitted defeat. With a heavy sigh, she shrugged; "To the right then."

Macen and T'Kir's eyes danced with glee. T'Kir proudly wore a triumphant grin as she began to explain her thoughts on how to proceed next, "Now, here's what I've been thinking. P'ris, that Tal Shiar uniform of yours is going to run interference for us again by causing the guards to hesitate before firing. Macen and I will..."


Life had taken on a familiar rhythm for Rab Daggit. Disrupter bolts filled the air, as did the stench of charred flesh. He would fire several aimed shots into the Romulan mob in the training room then duck behind the doorframe. A volley of return fire would add the smell of molten metal to the fray.

The Remans had pretty much fallen into the same staccato pattern of fire and counter-fire. Although the insertion team was slowly whittling away at the opposition forces, their numbers weren't dropping fast enough or soon enough. The team was exceptionally vulnerable and in danger of being flanked at any moment.

"How many are there left?" Daggit shouted over to the Remans.

Khimar pulled a photon grenade from a recess in his armour and smiled nastily, "There will be a lot fewer in a moment." He depressed the activation stud and threw it into the room. Its three-second timer counted down and it detonated. The miniature antimatter/matter reaction levelled one of the guards' key defensive points, killing or wounding all who were behind it.

"Now how many are left?" Daggit asked.

Ayrck fired a few shots but was forced to retreat by the weight of the return fire,

"Too many I'd venture."

"This is ridiculous." Daggit said through clenched teeth, "It's time to take action."

Daggit rose from the crouch he was in and ejected the powerpack on his disrupter rifle. Slapping in a fresh pack, he also drew his pistol and held it in his left hand. He sighted down both weapons and neared the edge of the doorframe. He addressed both Ayrck and Khimar before making another move.

"Whatever happens next, capitalise on the confusion and try to end this deadlock." Daggit said then stepped out from behind the doorframe. He began walking into the middle of the training room. He began firing as he walked. He also began a seemingly erratic spinning, zigzag. He fired into the second floor as well as the first. The Romulans, stunned by this undreamt of tactic, failed to rally a defence before nearly half their number were cut down.

Ayrck and Khimar opted to join Daggit's whirling swathe of destruction. They came charging in, shooting at every Romulan that dared move. Overmatched and overawed, the surviving dozen or so guards surrendered. Despite the Remans' desire to the contrary, the prisoners were merely secured in the training room's equipment locker.

Their way now freed of obstacles, the trio set forth again on the Remans' mysterious mission.


The security checkpoint outside of the computer nexus node was manned not by the specified two troopers but by five guards. P'ris, prodding along two Federation "prisoners" at disrupter point was less than pleased. Fortunately, none of the guards had noted that although the prisoners had their hands up in surrender, they were still armed.

"I knew this would not work." P'ris hissed through clenched teeth.

"Quit your bitching!" T'Kir snapped back in a whisper, "Just follow the plan. What're three more bodies anyway?"

"You are insane." P'ris complained.

"You betcha." T'Kir gloated, "It's one of my more redeemable traits."

"Ladies," Macen interrupted, "the moment is upon us. I suggest you refrain from further bickering or the opposition might get suspicious."

"Yes, dad." T'Kir retorted then fell silent. All of the guards were shifting position now that the "prisoners" were nearly in their midst. One stayed behind the computer console that comprised this station. She was flanked by a guard to either side of her. The remaining two guards took up a position across the corridor. The female trooper rose and addressed P'ris.

"Commander, I was unaware of the intruders having been captured."

"They were captured mere moments ago on this level." P'ris lied.

The trooper, knowing that Daggit and the Remans had last been encountered on Level Thirty-three, not here on Level 2, caught wind of the ruse being perpetrated. Her eyes flicked to the waists of the "prisoners" and she saw they were still wearing weapons belts. She began to cry out in protest as she reached for her disrupter but P'ris had already had her weapon out and shot her squarely in the heart. P'ris pivoted slightly and shot the guard to the dead trooper's right. Macen drew his disrupter, beating the superior reflexes of the last sentry at the station. The final two, caught by surprise, were no match for T'Kir.

P'ris sighed heavily, "What a waste."

"Death is always a waste." Macen replied, "But sometimes waste is necessary for survival."

"Pithy." P'ris growled sarcastically.

"And here I was going for 'trite'." Macen shot back.

"Now children," T'Kir suddenly smiled with all innocence, "Do I need to separate you?"

"We just need to reach the frinxing twentieth level and be done with this accursed place." With that said, P'ris stalked off for the turbolifts.

"Y'know, I think I'm starting to like her." T'Kir beamed like a proud parent.

Macen put his arm around her waist to usher her along as he rolled his eyes, "You would now that she's starting to act like you."

"Exactly."


Daggit leaned back behind the protective cover of the "+" junction outlet he was standing at. At the other end of the "L" curve of the junction stood what could only be described as a bunker. Gun slits were visible in the walls and there was a guard detachment walking post. The Remans had brought Romulan military-issue tricorders and were taking passive scans.

"No sensors are currently active." Ayrck reported.

"That'll change as soon as we start trouble." Daggit observed, "What we need is a way to distract them while we get closer. Can we pose as guards and prisoner?"

Khimar shook his head, "No. If you hadn't noticed, this is not a lockdown facility."

"I assumed as much." Daggit nodded, "I'm also assuming that the guards inside have been instructed to fight to the last man rather than let this position get taken."

Ayrck wore a carefully neutral expression, "That would be my guess as well."

The Reman's carefully phrased reply answered Daggit's question as effectively as a direct response, "How many guards are there then?"

"Four walking post and an unknown number within the vault." Khimar answered.

Vault? Now that's revealing. Daggit thought before offering a new solution, "Shall we try the direct approach? It scares the hell out of them and seems to work every time."

"Agreed." Ayrck flashed his teeth in a predatory grin, "Let us herald them into the halls of Erebus."

Khimar nodded his agreement and the three of them raised their disrupter rifles to their shoulders. Khimar led the charge this time. He spun around the corner the insertion team had secreted themselves behind and fired. His shot was true and the first Romulan fell.

Ayrck followed suit and also dispatched a Romulan guard. Daggit felled a third. All three shot the last roving Romulan. They rushed the vault entrance arriving just as the gunslits opened. Ayrck took hold of one of the sweeping rifles and yanked it out of the guard's hands. The slit promptly closed. Khimar merely sliced off the hands of another guard with his disrupter and his slit also closed.

Daggit was left to deal with the access terminal mounted alongside the door. He cursed as he activated the system and began staring at the unfamiliar symbols. Lost in the complexities of Romulan, he stepped aside and put Ayrck in his place.

"Just type in what I say." Were Daggit's instructions to Ayrck.


Bodies littered the deck outside of Admiral Valrik's office. Inside, T'Kir was seated at the admiral's aide's desk. The aide's body lay crumpled alongside the desk, her neck twisted at an unnatural angle. P'ris and Macen stood to either side of an interior door with their disrupters drawn and aimed at it.

"What's the status on the door?" Macen asked tersely.

"Workin' on it." T'Kir replied, tapping away at the aide's computer.

"He could be erasing all of his files." P'ris fretted, "We need access to this room."

"Workin' on it." T'Kir was starting to get a little brusque herself. The data interface device she'd liberated from the first computer terminal she'd accessed began to beep. She pulled it from her pocket and studied it. She smiled broadly as she glanced back over at her shoulder at Macen.

"Daggit and the Remans have reached their goal." She announced, "He figured out that I'd be monitoring the network. They need my help to by-pass a security lockout."

"Hon?" Macen said as gently as he could manage, "We need this door opened now. The whole mission may depend on it. Think you could work on that first and help out Rab and the boys in a minute?"

T'Kir's mouth started to open but P'ris cut her off, "Damn it woman! Open this accursed door or I will shoot you in Valrik's stead."

T'Kir harumphed and stabbed at a control at her terminal's controls. The door to Valrik's inner office slid aside with a hiss. P'ris entered in high while Macen followed behind low. Valrik stood at his desk hunched over a case sized computer. P'ris fired, catching Valrik's right shoulder while Macen fired, catching Valrik's left leg. The Admiral collapsed to the ground with a cry of pain.

Valrik struggled on his back to rise. His efforts ceased when P'ris placed her booted foot squarely in his chest and aimed her disrupter at his skull. Her eyes were hard and unforgiving. Macen inspected the portable computer.

"T'Kir, get in here!" he shouted.

"I'm busy." Came her tart reply.

"This thing's bleeding data like a gutted whale." Macen described, "We need you to save what's left of the evidence."

"Okay." T'Kir sighed, "I'm almost done here."

"Sooner would be better than later." Macen urged, trying not to lose his temper.

T'Kir appeared in the doorway, "So, is anyone planning on shooting me?"

"You know I've only planned on it." Macen retorted.

T'Kir stuck out her tongue at him and fixed her gaze upon P'ris, "Well? I'm waiting and your data is slipping away."

P'ris visibly reined herself in and pressed her foot down harder into the Admiral's chest, "I apologise. If I shoot anyone, it shall be this treacherous viper."

Mollified, T'Kir sat down in front of the computer and began entering commands. Valrik sputtered indignantly and spoke while gasping for air, "Traitor? You call me a traitor? You've brought the Federation to one of our most secure and secret installations and you call me a traitor?"

"It seems I am a part of a fleeting minority." P'ris replied, her venomous rage never abating; "I learned something during this last war. We were stronger because of our alliances rather than weakened by them. That flies in the face of the wisdom of a thousand years but it is true. We need to learn from this lesson and grow. The Federation has offered other joint ventures such as this one, ones that shall benefit both our societies. We should take them up on their offers. The Klingons are offering terms of reproachment, signalling a desire to end decades of conflict between us. That would free us to rebuild our fleets and our infrastructure. And all of this would only cost us a measure of our pride."

P'ris forced the air out his lungs as she stomped down, "What is more sane, Admiral? Giving proscribed weapons to unreliable allies or co-operating with known entities?"

"You treacherous bitch." Valrik hissed through clenched teeth, "For all your highborn pretensions and mannerisms, you're still that gullible little gutter snipe that Koval found and moulded into a Tal Shiar agent. Only now, your loyalty is divided isn't it? You're having to choose between the Tal Shiar and your new-found alien masters."

P'ris thumbed up the intensity setting of her disrupter and aimed it at Valrik. The Admiral showed no fear. He merely leered, victoriously, at her. Her finger began to depress the firing stud on her weapon when Macen's voice intervened with a warning.

"You do this Commander and you won't find justice."

"But it is the Romulan way." She said icily.

"Maybe." Macen allowed, "But I just heard a very stirring speech on how and why the Romulans need to re-evaluate some of their traditions. Maybe this is one of those?"

Valrik cackled as P'ris lowered the intensity of her disrupter and the killing intensity within her ebbed. Macen came to kneel next to the prostrated admiral.

"I'd be a lot more cautious if I were you." Macen warned in menacingly steel tones, "The Commander wants you alive for her case. My personal opinion is that we can get by just as easily with your private database. This makes you expendable. She may have dreams of a better tomorrow but I have to deal with today. And for today, the reality is that you're my enemy. I don't have many enemies that are still capable of breathing."

Macen patted Valrik on the top of his head, "Consider yourself warned."

P'ris shot Macen a quizzical glance as he rose. Macen ignored her and proceeded to the Admiral's desk, where T'Kir sat furiously tapping away at the portable computer's controls. Her brow was furrowed in concentration and she was chewing on her lower lip. Macen found the image irresistibly adorable.

"Any progress?" he asked, leaning over her.

"I've stopped the deletion process and have already recovered most of the lost files." She announced proudly, her eyes bright; "Am I good or what?"

"The best." Macen concurred and kissed her on the top of her head.

"You should see some of the stuff in here." T'Kir told him, "He's got files on everything and everybody."

"Excuse me," P'ris interrupted, "but you have stopped the tapeworm program from destroying the data files we require and have already reacquired the bulk of the 'lost' files?"

"Yeah," T'Kir answered, slightly confused; "I just said that."

"Can a Tal Shiar technician proceed from this point onward?"

"You could proceed from this point onward." T'Kir unsuccessfully tried to keep the edge out of her voice.

"Then suspend your work."

"Why?" T'Kir demanded.

"Now!" P'ris commanded, "Prepare the unit for transport and let us be away from here before we are discovered."

Although a sound argument, Macen sensed the lie behind her words. Even without her telepathy, T'Kir did as well. The computer's files held secrets more precious to the Tal Shiar than even the existence of this fortress. Macen felt the light touch of T'Kir's mind on his and he instructed her to accede to P'ris' demands.

Disgruntled as she was, T'Kir secured the computer and closed it into its case-like configuration for easy transport. P'ris removed her foot from Valrik's chest and Macen helped the wounded man to his feet. Once up, Valrik made a grab for Macen's holstered disrupter. Macen sidestepped the Admiral's reach and cold-cocked Valrik in the nose.

The admiral spiralled backwards, arms pinwheeling and he landed on his posterior.

Macen rubbed the knuckles of his right hand and watched Valrik gently probe his smashed nose, "Y'know, one in awhile it can be strangely satisfying to just beat up the deserving."

T'Kir patted him on the shoulder, "Aren't you gonna have one helluva a karmic debt to pay when your turn comes?"

"I, for one, am righteous and pure." Macen preened for effect.

"As if." T'Kir guffawed.

"Get up you worthless piece of trash." P'ris waved her disrupter at Valrik, "On your own this time." P'ris spared a heartbeat to glance back towards Macen and T'Kir, "Is the system ready for transport?"

"Damn skippy." T'Kir reported happily.

P'ris sighed, "I'll take that as a yes."

Macen drew his disrupter from his holster, "Back the same way we came?"

"No additional alerts have been raised." P'ris observed, "I would say we have avoided detection thus far."

"Let me check." T'Kir consulted her information access device, "Yup. We're clear. They're busy mustering everything they have left to throw at Daggit, Ayrck and Khimar."

"Can we warn them?"

"Look who you're talking to."

"And then we depart." P'ris urged.

"Yah, yah." T'Kir waved and got to work.