"Spies R us" © 2004 Kara Anne Kalel.

Please see chapter 1 for copyright and disclaimer notices.

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Riker entered my quarters, and asked me, "The _Cunningham_? Where and when did you make the switch?"

I grinned at him and said, "I thought that would get your attention. Changing the flagship of the fleet to a mothballed destroyer made my point." I sat my coffee down, and added, "Pardon my manners. Can I get you anything to drink?"

"No thanks. I'm thinking of putting an interior guard on you. You still haven't told me when you made the switch."

"If you want to, I'll understand." I held up my hand, and said, "Scout's honor, though, I'm not planning anything else. As far as when, after Troi dropped me off and between the poker game."

"Ah." He regarded me, then the room. He looked at me again, and said, "The ventilation shaft. How did you fool the sensors?"

I smiled, and crossed to the dresser. I pulled out a bit of cloth that shimmered blackly, and tossed it to him. "A special ops bio-suit. It hides my biosignature from internal sensors." I picked up a small bag made of the same material, and added, "Toolkit. The problem with the suit is that there can't be anything between you and the suit, and between the sensors and the suit, which means the bag goes over it. Its also rather lightweight, so personal modesty must be … um … sacrificed."

"Interesting." He tossed it back to me, then said "What about your commbadge?"

"Tricorder gave it a false signal." I shrugged, then said, "Now that my adventures have been discussed, what can I do for you?"

"I'm here to escort you to the hearing. Ready?"

I took a deep breath, checked myself in the mirror one last time, then picked up my PADD, and said, "As ready as could be expected. Let's go."

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"All rise!" the bailiff called. "This Admiral's Mast concerning Commander Alina Scott is now in session."

"Please be seated," Admiral Moore said. I smoothed my skirt, and sat next to Will. "Prosecution, are you ready to proceed?" she asked.

"I am, Admiral," Jellico said.

"Defense, are you ready to proceed?"

"We are, Admiral," Riker replied.

"This matter deals with Intelligence operations," Admiral Moore said. "As such, these proceedings are secured as Federation operations, classification Beta-10. All participants are reminded that they are not to discuss this matter without proper clearance and appropriate security precautions in place. Witnesses are cleared to discuss this matter only, and only while this Mast is in session, or with appropriate counsel."

We nodded. Admiral Moore continued, "As the direct superior of the defendant, I will now recuse myself, and turn command of this Mast over to Captain Picard, who has the greatest seniority, and time-in-grade. Captain?" She stood and handed the gavel to Picard.

Riker whispered to me, "That lets us call her as a witness." I watched Alyssa exit the room, as Picard took her place.

Picard cleared his throat, then asked, "Captain Jellico, would you proceed?"

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I sat in Ten-Forward, nursing a glass of whiskey, staring at the stars. My security escort sat a few meters away, watching me. I looked up when I heard Riker, asking, "Mind if I join you?"

"Be my guest." I stood as Will took a seat, then turned on the privacy screen. I said, "Jellico was effective today. He almost had me believing I should be hung from a yardarm. What he said about Qon, I thought he wanted to marry him, err, her."

"We took some damage today, but I'm not worried. Jellico's problem has always been that he's never believed in deviating from regulations. Intelligence people, because of the nature of their business, don't hew to every dot and comma. They couldn't do their jobs, otherwise." He sipped at his drink. "Personally, I would have just shot that bastard Qon, but I wasn't there."

"No, I couldn't kill him in cold blood. I couldn't lock him in a cell, either. We were going to steal his computer core, and if his environmental plant failed, it would be murder. We had to take him with us, even though it was Birta's idea to change him to a female. She was under my command, and I could have written a message telling her not to. I wanted him out of business, though, and collaring him as a female slave seemed a good way to do it."

"The dance lessons were a little too much, though."

"She wasn't even that good. Maybe it's the Ferengi brain structure." I mused. "What about the Klingons? I didn't do anything except rescue them. Qon changed them, and trained them as dancers."

"We'll probably repatriate them and their property back to Qo'noS." Riker replied. "They are citizens of the Empire, and haven't broken any Klingon laws. Their slaving occurred outside Federation space."

"Wait a minute. Does that mean that they get both their ship AND their slaves back?"

"Unless a slave was illegally enslaved under Klingon law, yes, it does. We'll check the Federation species, but aside from that, yes, they go back." He looked at my face, and said, "It's the treaty with the Klingons. We'll try to negotiate for them, but there's not much I can do."

"That … that … " I sputtered.

"Alina. Don't try anything," Will warned. "You're in enough trouble already. I managed to get the Bajoran warrant on you dropped, and gave a very unofficial apology to Sisko for you. Don't destroy your career over this."

"My career?" I snorted. "You have no idea what kind of hell those girls are being taken back into. All because some byte-pusher at the Foreign Affairs ministry wants no troubles with the Klingons. I don't give a damn about their ship. I don't care about those Klingons, either. I DO care about those girls!"

"Alina. Leave it be. That's an order, and I still rank you. Understand?" Riker said.

"I understand. SIR." I spat, then switched off the privacy field, stood at attention, and asked, "May I be dismissed, SIR?"

"Commander, wait until after the Mast is over. We are trying to gain their freedom, and it won't help matters to have you go off on some half-cocked rescue mission." Riker stood, and I did, too.

I saluted, then said, "Yes, SIR!" Riker nodded, and with a nod to my escort, I stalked out.

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"Good morning, Commander. Are you ready?" Riker asked.

I smiled at him, and picked up my PADD. "Ready and eager, Commander." I preceded him, and noticed the second security guard. "What's with the second guard, Commander? Am I that much of a threat?"

"No, it's a security measure. All of the Mast's participants have one, Captain Picard's orders. Jellico was not pleased, but he couldn't say anything when Admiral Moore went along with it."

I nodded. "I see. My status is changed, then?"

"It is. You did give me your word that you didn't have anything else planned. 'Scout's honor', I believe you said."

I smiled, and entered the lift.

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"I call Admiral Alyssa Moore to the stand," Jellico said. He waited until she was identified and sworn in, then asked, "Admiral, please state your current duty assignment."

"I am currently assigned by Starfleet to the Federation Intelligence Agency, in charge of foreign operations," she replied.

"I see. Could you expand on that, please?"

"Certainly. FIA, as part of its normal operations, has different sections; each assigned to a different threat source. You therefore have one section that is working on the Borg, another the Cardassians, the Klingons, and so forth. Organizations like the Orion Syndicate are worked in conjunction with the Federation Investigative Service, which deals with primarily criminal matters."

"Where does Commander Scott enter this picture?"

"Commander Scott is a courier. Her duties are to move articles and data from point A to point B."

"Her duties therefore do not include chasing off after slavers, or stealing property."

"Her duties as a Starfleet officer DO include safeguarding the lives and property of the Federation and it's citizens. When she observes such an event, she is obligated to do her utmost to rescue the affected citizens," Alyssa said, unruffled.

"Why not simply call in Starfleet?" Jellico asked.

"Several reasons. Firstly, she was already on-site. Secondly, she was a Starfleet officer, and we train them to think on their feet. Third, the arrival of a ship like the _Enterprise_, with enough firepower to disable two stolen Constitution class ships, would not have been in time to rescue the crew of the _Revere_, or of the relay station. Fourth, Commander Scott was under orders to remain covert, and would not have been able to call in Starfleet unless specific situations occurred. Given her available resources, getting the location of the pirates was the best option available."

"Creating a sector-wide alert for a Borg cube is not what I would call covert," Jellico sneered.

Riker called, "Objection - statement instead of a question."

Picard said, "Sustained."

Jellico paused, then said, "Admiral, would you call what Commander Scott did covert?"

Alyssa said, "That alert was an automated sensor that transmitted after a ship arrived to investigate why the relay went off-line. Given that the ruse employed was a false sensor signal intended to drive off the pirates, who outgunned Commander Scott's ship, I'd say it was successful. She was also able to rescue two persons, who provided her with valuable intelligence about these pirates."

"Where did she get the equipment to simulate a Borg cube, Admiral?"

"Objection! Her equipment is not relevant to the case," Riker said.

The panel conferred, then Picard said, "While I would also like to know that, I sustain the objection. Question is not relevant. Please do not pursue this line of questioning, unless you can prove a connection. Continue."

Jellico scrolled through his PADD, then asked, "If Commander Scott's duties were as a simple courier, why did she abandon her mission in order to chase pirates?"

"Commander Scott was provided with a list of contacts, identification and cargo for each of her meetings. The nature of intelligence work is that sometimes things don't always go according to plan. In this case, she was provided intelligence by a contact that her mission had been compromised by persons unknown."

"What form did this intelligence take, Admiral?" Jellico asked.

"Commander Scott reported to me by alternative, secure communications. Her report stated that her cover identity had been exposed, and that her contact knew her crew composition, the type of ship she was using, and her mission details. Clearly, a security breach of this type is a severe problem. She reported to me that she planned to complete as much of the mission as possible, but would do it UNODIR. She also informed me of the type of alternative communications she planned to use, since the possibility existed of compromised communications."

"What do you mean, 'UNODIR', Admiral, and why would she continue instead of simply returning to base?"

"UNODIR refers to special operations, 'Unless Otherwise Directed'. I try not to stage manage field operations, Captain. It's a good way to ruin them, and get good personnel killed. Also, some of the mission's contacts were time-critical. Other missions would have failed if Commander Scott had returned to base. It was her decision to make." She looked at Jellico, and asked, "You've never supported a Special Operations team, have you, Captain?"

Picard banged his gavel, and said, "Please don't make comments, Admiral."

Alyssa said, "Sorry, Captain."

Jellico looked up, and said, "No more questions."

"We will then recess for lunch, and reconvene at 14:00." Picard said. "Admiral, you are still sworn as a witness. Defense will be able to cross-examine you when we reconvene. Everyone please recall the security restrictions, and do not discuss this case with anyone." He banged his gavel, and said, "Dismissed."

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I sat in the _Enterprise_ mess, my soup cooling before me, doodling on my PADD, when a voice said, "How you doing, Skipper?"

I looked up and smiled. "Jason. How are things with you?"

She sat, and told me, "Pretty good. All the slaves are deprogrammed, given an orientation, and sent down to Risa." She smiled. "It's a nice place, I've been there." She steepled her fingers, then added, "You ought to go, get a little leave. It's a little resort down around a lake. Besides, that yellow uniform just isn't you, Skipper."

"You've suddenly become a fashion expert?"

"Nope, one of my roomies, an Orion girl, pointed out some things." She sighed, and said, "We've gotten really close, and she's helped me work through, well, this." She motioned to her chest, then added, "Not in a sexual way. I've been helping her to adjust to freedom. She belonged to a real bastard. You should see her scars." She regarded me, then added, "The Klingons I know, like K'Chel, I don't think would mistreat their slaves, but this guy …." She studied me, then asked, "What's going to happen to her, and the others, Skipper?"

"I … I can't say." An idea came to me. "Have you had a chance to call your sister Christine?"

"No, not yet. I've been, well, I've been procrastinating."

"The winter hols are coming up, you know. My family is just a few hundred kilometers away from yours, up in Glasgow. It would be nice if we could get together. Spirit of the hols and all that." I glanced at my PADD as it buzzed. "I've got to get back to court. I'll give you a shout afterward." I stood, and started to grab my bowl, when Jason said, "I'll get it, Skipper. Good luck."

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"All rise! Court is now in session." The bailiff called.

"Please be seated." Picard said. "Commander Riker, do you wish to recall the current witness, Admiral Moore?"

"Not at this time, Captain. I'd like to call Dr. Birta to the stand."

I tuned out Riker's qualification of Birta, and why she had left Ferenginar. Riker's idea was to illustrate the logic behind changing Qon to a female, then collaring her as a slave. This would show the difficulties Qon would have in resuming her former occupation. While it wasn't as certain as simply shooting her, Qon would have to get around three major barriers in Ferengi society: the slave collar on her neck, being female, and being penniless.

I looked up at Riker's first question. "Now, then Doctor, could you tell us about the drawbacks of being a female Ferengi?"

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The bailiff called, "All rise!"

I stood, along with Riker and Jellico. The panel entered, and was seated. Picard said, "Thank you. Please be seated." I did so, and Picard added, "Commander Scott." I stood again, and he continued, "The panel was divided on your situation. While you have violated regulations, it was for a noble purpose, and to safeguard the lives of Federation citizens. It is therefore the decision of this board that you not be bound over for court martial." I sighed in relief.

"However, it is also the consensus, given your past history, that you need to receive command training." He held up a hand, and added, "This is not to denigrate you, but to fill in deficiencies in your training. You are therefore ordered to command training at the Academy, starting this next academic term."

"Yes, sir," I said.

"One other thing, Commander. Make sure that you return all the Klingon's property to them," Picard added.

"All of it, sir?"

"Including the slaves, Commander."

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# 21 Masts and witnesses.