Kiss of the Raptor

by David Falkayn

A Romulan warbird finds itself in the ME Universe as Subcommander V'lana Avesti discovers that both universes face a common menace. Story begins at beginning of ME2 and will continue through to ME3. Events will diverge from canon-they have to in a story like this. I'm rating this story M because V'lana has a potty mouth and adult situations. Better safe than sorry.

34. Chapter 34: Starjammin' 2

Starjammin' 2

Starbase 80

"Starbase 80." Nelia, sitting at the center chair, grumbled as the Federation starbase grew larger on the Princess's viewscreen, "The left armpit of the quadrant."

"So what's the right armpit?" Ashley chuckled from her position at tactical.

"Starbase 114." Twesata quipped from her station. "Our next stop."

"I thought that was the shithole." Ashley bantered back.

"It pulls double duty." The lovely Betazoid chuckled, "Mostly because it's commander has his head up his ass."

"Other than dropping off our prisoners and the Romulans…" Rana inquired, "What are we doing here?"

"Starbase 80 might be a dump." Nelia replied with a crooked grin, "But it's got Club Starlighter."

"And if you're looking for smuggling gigs or merc work, that's where the jobs are." Shelana interjected, adding, "We've got clearance to enter standard orbit."

"Bring us in." Nelia requested as she turned in her chair towards the Ferengi jack of all trades standing at the engineering console. "Ready to make some profit, Belen?"

"Always, my dear." The Ferengi bantered back. "Come with me to the Club? I can unload our stuff while you line up a gig or two."

"Twes…Rana?" Nelia called out, "Can I get you two to see our Romulan guests safely off?"

"Sure thing, Nel." Twesata replied as she grabbed her asari lover by the hand, "Come on, Rana."

"We'll take care of the Nausicaans." Ashley announced as she and Shelana made their way to the turbolift door.

"Thanks, loves." The roguish Orion responded as she again addressed her Ferengi companion, "C'mon, Bel. Let's get to work."

Twesata and Rana

Gesturing in the direction of a Romulan official, accompanied by a pair of Starfleet officers, Twesata spoke encouragingly to the dignified Romulan Maiori standing next to her. "That's the Republic consul assigned here, Maiori. He'll be sure that you and your people are properly looked after."

The Maiori inclined his head in gratitude, "For what you have done for me and those under my care…I thank you and am in your debt. If there is anything I can do to repay that debt…"

"Like I said earlier, just…take care of yourselves and live good lives." Rana replied with a smile.

"We will." The Lorekeeper answered back with a bow, "Thank you again."

"So…where to now?" Rana asked her lover as the pair watched their passengers depart with the consul and his escort.

"Shopping…got a contact who says he's got something for me." Twesata responded as she took her girlfriend by the hand, "Then the bar."

"Sounds like a plan."

Ashley and Shelana

"They're all yours, LT." Ashley declared to the Bolian Starfleet chief of station security as he and his team took custody of the Nausicaan pirates.

"Thanks." The Starfleet lieutenant replied as he motioned for his people to take custody of the Nausicaan pirates who had remained silent and sullen under Shelana's watchful gaze. "We've been after Ghor and his gang for some time. In case you didn't know…" The Bolian officer declared with a toothy grin, "There's a 100 hundred GPL slip reward for each member of the gang and 500 slips on Ghor. Come by my office later to collect." His grin widening, he further tempted, "I might have a few more bounties available for you if you're interested."

"We'll be up in a few." Shelana promised as the security officers took control over the pirates. "I want to show my friend around the station first."

"Come on up when you're ready, Shels." The Bolian answered back, "We'll reminisce about old times on the Shoshone over katheka and tonic water." Inclining his head at his old shipmate's human companion, the Bolian security chief grinned, "I'm told that our replicator also brews a mean cup of coffee."

"We'll take you up on that, Lieutenant." Ashley grinned back as the Bolian officer approached his new prisoners.

"Hello, Ghor." The Starfleet lieutenant grinned coldly as he spoke to the pirate captain, "There's a nice room with a view waiting for you in Penal Facility 47." Motioning to his men as the pirate captain spat at his feet, the security chief commanded, 'Take this asshole and his friends to the brig." His smile returning as he regarded the two mercenaries who had just made his day, the Bolian repeated his invitation, "Come on up when you're ready. I'll have your pay, the new bounties, and your katheka and coffee ready for you."

"We'll be up soon, Daman." Shelena promised as she nudged her friend, "Come on, Ash. I've got to run a quick errand and then we'll head up to security and collect our pay and shoot the bull."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Ashley responded with a chuckle, "Lead on."

Nelia and Belen—Club Starlighter

"There's Gorin." Belen announced, inclining his head in the direction of a richly garbed overweight Ferengi sitting at a table flanked by a pair of Nausicaan bodyguards. "The best fence in the sector."

"I know." Nelia replied with a smirk as she glanced briefly in the direction of a Lurian sitting at the bar nursing his drink. "Why don't you go over and see what we can get for the stuff we picked up, while I go on over to the bar. I see a familiar face."

At once recognizing the Lurian, Belen grinned, "Go ahead. I could be awhile. Gorin loves to haggle."

"Have fun." Nelia laughed as the pair split up, she heading towards the bar as her Ferengi companion, a predatory grin on his face, made his way to the fence's table.

Pausing before drawing too close to his fellow Ferengi's table, Belen patiently waited until Gorin waved his hand in a beckoning gesture. "Come, Belen. Have a seat." The portly Ferengi insisted, holding out a snuff box. "Here…try some."

Taking a pinch of beetle snuff and inhaling, Belen let out a loud sneeze, "That is good. Drizzlbit Gold, I believe."

"You have a good nose." Gorin replied with a fat grin on his face as his client took a seat at the table. "Try some of these grubworms. Fresh from Ferenginar."

"Thank you." Belen responded politely as lovely Troyan woman handed him a plate and filled his goblet. "I see that your reputation for good hospitality is well earned. I trust business has been good?"

"Quite profitable." The Ferengi fence answered back. "Rule of Acquisition, 34: War is good for business. So…" Gorin's face now an expressionless mask, he inquired, "…what can I do for you today?"

"My associates and I have some merchandise we want to unload and we figured we'd give you first crack at it." Belen replied with a poker face as the two Ferengi merchants settled down to a long and mutually satisfactory session of haggling and negotiation complete with threats, bribes, tears and laughter, cajoling and badgering, until finally a deal had been reached.

His lips turning up in a sly grin, Gorin declared, "I see that you've still got your lobes, Belen."

"You too, Gorin." Belen smiled back as he rose from his seat. "You can pick up your merchandise in the cargo area…after the gold pressed latinum has been transferred and verified."

Laughing, Gorin recited, "Rule 99: Trust is the biggest liability of all. The GPL will be transferred into your account by the time Draz and his boys arrive to pick up the goods. As always…a pleasure doing business with you."

"Hey, Morn." Nelia smiled as she took the bar stool beside that of the Lurian's. "How goes?"

Sipping the antarean sunrise that she had ordered, the lovely green Orion listened patiently as Morn filled her in on his doings since departing Deep Space Nine for a job.

"Really?" Nelia exclaimed with a crooked grin, "Three Klingon birds of prey? Fuck your cargo. You're should count yourself lucky that you got out of that trap in one piece. So…what happened to the Klinks?"

Laughing as Morn related a hilarious tale of cat and mouse with the Klingons involving a Ferengi freighter, a Miranda-class Federation frigate, and a cargo hold full of tribbles, Nelia bought the next round of drinks for her and her drinking partner. "What are you going to do now that you've lost your cargo?" Nodding her head as she listened, the roguish Orion quipped, "Yeah…stem bolts are always good to sell at DS-9." Ordering another drink, the lovely Orion inquired, "So…you know of anyone who needs some merchandise moved discreetly? You do? Great. Thanks, Morn." Leaning over, she kissed the Lurian on his cheek, "Don't worry…you'll get your usual cut. Glancing over at her Ferengi friend who had just finished his negotiations, Nelia said her goodbyes. "I have to go now. Thanks for the drink and the tip. I'll see you at DS-9. Sure thing…I'll let 'em know. Later!"

Meeting up with her partner, Nelia queried with a smirk, "Everything settled?"

A big smile appearing on his face, the Ferengi bartender answered back, "Of course. It took some negotiating, but I got us a good profit. Enough so that we can kick back and take some time off."

"Not a bad idea." Nelia replied as the pair exited the bar. "But first, we need to swing by Starbase 114. I'm concerned about that slave trading ring operating from there."

"Not like you to stick your neck out like this." Belen noted, "Where's the profit?"

Her lips turning up in an evil grin, the roguish Orion replied, "Oh…don't worry…there'll be plenty of profit for all of us once we clean those slavers out. That…and we'll be doing ourselves a favor by getting rid of them. Not only do those scum give freebooters like us a bad name, they're cutting into our profits…"

"Now, you're making sense." Belen exclaimed approvingly. "Slavers mean more patrols which means more goods confiscated which means lesser profits. Speaking of which…" The Ferengi merchant glanced in the direction of the Lurian still seated at the bar, "Did Morn cut you in on anything juicy."

"Sure did." Nelia quipped, "Walk with me to the concourse and I'll tell you all about it."

Twesata and Rana

"Who's he?" Rana asked as she and her lover entered a small café on the station's shopping concourse.

"An old friend." Twesata replied with a crooked grin. "I asked him to find me a little something something. Might not pan out…" the lovely Betazoid shrugged her shoulders, "…but if it does, it might make busting up that slaver ring a little easier."

Approaching the table, Twes smiled at the Ktarian seated at the table idly munching on a salad, taking the seat opposite him. "Hey Lexi. What you got for me?" Noticing the cautious look on her contact's face as her asari lover joined them, Twesata remarked in a friendly tone, "It's okay. You can talk in front of Rana."

"All right." The Ktarian replied as he took an object out from his coat and placed it on the table. "Holographic emitter. Good enough to fool whoever you wanna fool so long as they don't get too close."

"What's too close?" Twesata asked as she picked up the device and examined it.

"Within two…three…meters." Lexi responded. "Enough to give you a nice distraction…or an edge in a fight."

"How much?" The leggy Betazoid inquired.

"For you, babe…" Lexi grinned, "A hundred slips of GPL. It's worth at least three times as much on the black market."

"I'll take it." Twesata replied as she took the device and pocketed it. Taking out her padd, she handed it to the Ktarian. "Enter where you want the GPL transferred."

"Done." Lexi answered back as he typed a numerical sequence on the padd and handed it back to its owner.

"And done." The Betazoid acknowledged, pressing a button on the padd. "Funds transferred."

"As always…a pleasure doing business with you." Lexi exclaimed as he rose to his feet. "Give my regards to Nelia and…" turning to Twesata's companion, he bowed, "…a pleasure meeting you too, Rana. Try the Elasian greens with Karro sauce and the uttaberry crepes for dessert. They're the house specialties."

"We'll do just that." Twesata grinned, "Catch you later, Lexi."

"Take care, Twes…Rana."

Ashley and Shelana

"Come in…" Lieutenant Daman urged as he escorted his guest into his office. "Have a seat and I'll get your drinks. Your usual in your katheka?" The Bolian lieutenant asked his Andorian guest.

"Yeah." Shelana replied with a nod of her head, "A shot of Andorian milk, please."

"What about you, Ms. Williams?" The lieutenant inquired, "Anything in your coffee?"

"No thanks." Ashley smiled back, "I like it black. And…the name's Ashley."

"Right, here you go Ashley…Shels." The Bolian Starfleet officer said as he handed his two guests their drinks before pouring for himself a glass of Bolian tonic water. "Thanks again for bringing in Ghor and his pirates. There's one thing that has me concerned…"

"What, Daman?" Shelana asked as she took a sip of her katheka.

"It's not that Ghor is involved in trafficking sentient beings…that's nothing new. We've been after him for that for a long time now." The security chief mused, "It's that he normally doesn't do business with middlemen like Mok. And he definitely doesn't like conducting business at a Starbase…even one messed up as Starbase 114."

"Other than the slaver ring…" Ashley inquired, "What's been going on at 114? And if it's as fucked up as you say, why hasn't Starfleet lowered the boom on it?"

"Same reason shit goes on here." Daman replied with a shake of his head. "We're in the backwoods."

"Daman got assigned here because he stuck up for me on the Shoshone." Shelana interjected, "Actually…" her lips turned up in a warm smile as she mildly chided her Bolian friend, "…he stuck his neck out for me when I expressly told him not to—that I had the situation under control."

"Which she didn't." Daman chuckled, mildly admonishing his old friend and former shipmate as he explained, "The captain was getting ready to call for a general court-martial for knocking out Commander Devon."

"Bastard had it coming." Shelana grumbled, "He got half our landing party killed because of that asshole stunt he pulled."

"I know." The Bolian lieutenant replied with a calming gesture, "We all knew that Devon was an ass—that he only got that third pip because of connections. Even the captain knew. The only reason he was getting ready to call for a full court-martial was because he had at least two admirals breathing down his neck."

"What did happen?" Ashley inquired, "I get that your landing party CO fucked up—but how?"

"He led us into an ambush." Shelana recalled, "After I and several others warned him against it." Taking another sip of her drink the Andorian woman further explained, "It was a basic recon of a pre-warp culture—its tech level was approximately that of Earth during the later 19th—early 20th centuries. He wanted to get a closer look at one of their military installations. We warned him against it—cautioned him about not underestimating the locals or their capabilities. But he ignored us. Sure enough…the locals had trained detectives and one of them must have eyeballed the commander during one of his scouting trips."

"What about the Prime Directive?" Ashley inquired, "Wasn't he guilty of violating it?"

"Yes and no." Daman interjected, answering the former marine's question. "While the Prime Directive bans active intervention in pre-warp cultures, it does not forbid passive surveillance. Other than Shels and one other, the commander and the rest of the landing party were surgically altered to appear as locals."

"I couldn't be altered for obvious reasons." Shelana explained,

"Neither could I." Daman interrupted, "And Ensign Davvol was Lissepian…"

"So he couldn't be disguised either." Ashley nodded her head in understanding.

"Right. We kept in the background and wore hoods and robes that concealed our appearance." Shelana affirmed. "On our approach, I and Daman noticed the lack of civilian traffic—normally at that hour, you had carriages and carts carrying goods and people to and from the base. But, that morning there was very little of that on the road. Too little for my liking."

"You sensed a trap." Ashley concluded, her friend inclining her head in acknowledgement.

"Right. So, I clued Ensign Carroll, the other security officer, in on it and he told me he noticed the same thing." Shelana took a deep breath and exhaled dejectedly. "We tried to warn Devon…told him that something was off…but he wouldn't listen. They were waiting for us. Demanded that we surrender."

"Devon panicked." Daman interjected, "Drew his phaser and fired."

"That started the shitshow." Shelana groaned. "They had snipers prepositioned—only their weapons didn't have stun settings. Lost three of our people including Davvol and Carroll in the first seconds. It took some hard fighting for the rest of us to get out of that trap. Thankfully, we were able to take our casualties out with us so they didn't have anyone to do a postmortem on. After that, Devon ordered an emergency beam out and after we rematerialized on the ship I…"

"Broke his jaw with a right cross." Daman interrupted with a sardonic grin. "Knocked out two of his teeth, not to mention busting his jaw. Shelana was immediately arrested and charged with striking a superior officer. Once Devon got out of sickbay, he immediately began pressing for a court-martial and contacted a pair of admirals—one an old buddy from his Academy days and another who owed him a favor."

"Daman spoke…really yelled…at the preliminary hearing and said that he was ready to take it up all the way to Admiral Quinn if he had to. So…it was decided that instead of a general court-martial and the mess that would cause, that I would face a Captain's mast and was demoted and transferred to the Merlin."

"And I was sent here both as punishment and to keep me quiet." Daman declared, "Funny thing is…the starbase got a new commander almost at the same time I arrived and Commander Ellison knows his shit. He quickly promoted me to security chief and between the two of usd, we've been slowly, but surely, cleaning things up. Got rid of a bunch of deadwood and replaced them with good officers and I've quietly spread the word to some freighter captains I know like Danna…Danna Brott…she's the owner/operator of a freighter, the Azura…that things were getting better here, and convinced her and some of her friends to make 80 a regular stop on their routes. Commerce has picked up and we're getting businesses moving to the Concourse."

"So, Daman…" Shelana inquired with a wicked grin as she changed the subject, "About those bounties…"

"Oh yeah." The Bolian security chief smiled back as he handed a padd to his old friend. "They're listed here. I've noted a couple of them that we'd really like to see brought in…be careful with them though…there's a reason why their bounties are as big as they are."

"Thanks." Shelana replied, taking the padd as she and Ashley rose to their feet, "We'll pass it on to Nelia. Take care of yourself, old friend." The lovely Andorian smiled as she took her old shipmate's hand.

"Thanks for the coffee and conversation." Ashley echoed as she also shook the security chief's hand. "It was a pleasure meeting you."

"Likewise." Daman smiled back, "Oh…one other thing before you go. If you make your way to Starbase 114 and need a hand, contact Lieutenant Bradley Jenkins…the number two security officer on the station. Brad's a good man and he'll help you out. Just tell him I sent you. And if you two are ever looking for more work…you know where I am."

Spoiled Princess—en route to Starbase 114

"We've got an incoming subspace comm." Twesata announced from her console. "It's on the special channel…encrypted and scrambled."

"It looks like our employers have read our report." Nelia quipped from her place at the center chair, "Let's hear what they have to say. Put 'em on the viewscreen, Twes."

"We're live." The lovely Betazoid announced as the starry field on the viewscreen faded away to be replaced by images of three individuals: a human male with a scar on his face, close cropped greying hair, and wearing a non-descript slate-hued suit; a dark-haired Romulan female, her short hair styled in a commonly worn fashion; and a battle-scarred Klingon male with long hair.

"We've read your reports concerning the Nausicaan corsairs that you've been taking. Before we go further…" Tal 'Mara, the Romulan Republic intelligence station chief declared in a sincere tone of voice, "Proconsul D'Tan has asked me to convey his gratitude for freeing and repatriating our brothers and sisters." After a momentary pause as the Romulan woman seemed to be collecting herself, she continued, once again speaking from the heart. "Also, please allow me to express my personal thanks for your efforts. I won't forget what you've done. We have sent a warbird to Starbase 80 to pick our people up and take them home to New Romulus where they can start their lives anew. Again…thank you."

"You're welcome." Ashley responded before asking, "Do you have any more information on those slavers?"

"I have received Melani Di'an's personal assurances that she has not sanctioned any such activities in the Celes Sector." The Klingon council representative, Ramir of House Pegh declared.

"We all know how much Melani Di'an's word is worth." Nelia replied with a derisive snort.

"In this case she is telling the truth." The human on the Council, Franklin Drake, firmly asserted. "Abductions of Romulans and humans by Nausicaan and rogue Orion pirates has increased markedly in both the Celes and Japori sectors. Even the Gorn have reported increased pirate activity on their shipping."

"Messing with the lizards…" Shelana shook her head, "Not very bright."

"My colleague is correct." Ramir collaborated, "The Empire has increased its patrols as have Starfleet and the Republic Navy. However, we can't be everywhere…the pirates hit where we're not."

"So you want us to do some digging and find out what's going on." Nelia concluded, the three spymasters nodding their heads in confirmation.

"Correct." Tal 'Mara replied. "Admiral Kererek has informed me that he has instructed Commander Kaval and his warbird to provide assistance should you need it. I believe you are already familiar with the Commander."

"We've met." Nelia affirmed with a slight grin.

"The Belladonna is also patrolling these sectors. Her captain, Zsuzsanna Rosza will be available if you require further aid." Drake declaredwith a smirk, "I've worked with Captain Rosza in the past. Her and her ship are reliable…if a little unorthodox in their approach to problems at times."

"Putting two starships at our disposal…sounds like you're expecting us to run into big trouble." Her lips turning up in an evil grin, Nelia quipped, "You know the fee for this job's gonna be a big one—right?"

"Don't worry about that." Drake answered back with a sarcastic grin of his own, "You'll be paid appropriately. Although…I'd wager my Capellan kleegat that you're doing this for more than just latinum."

"Maybe you're right…maybe not." Nelia replied, shifting in her seat, "I told you I don't like slavers on principle, but I also really…really…love latinum. Screw diamonds…latinum is really a girl's best friend."

"Fair enough." Drake acknowledged, returning to business. "You've already met one of Starfleet Intelligence's assets in this sector…"

"Daman." Shelana at once concluded.

"Correct." Drake confirmed, "He should have given you the name of a contact on Starbase 114 for you to touch base with."

"Yeah." The Andorian helmswoman replied with a single nod of her head, "A Lieutenant Bradley Jenkins. Daman me to drop his name if we needed help."

"Good." Drake answered back, further elaborating, "Jenkins is another asset of ours. When you mention Daman's name to him, Jenkins will know that you're acting under the authority of Starfleet Intelligence."

"That's why you wanted to keep our commissions still active and on file after our little trip through time." Twesata remarked with a snort.

"One of the reasons. You're already familiar with at least one other." Drake affirmed as the subspace conference drew to an end. "If there are no other questions?"

"No…I think we've covered about everything." Nelia replied then gave her teammates a questioning glance, receiving in return silent agreement.

"Excellent." Ramir exclaimed before cutting off the transmission, "Qapla'!"

"Okay…open to suggestions." Nelia queried as the starry field again appeared on the viewscreen. "Any ideas?"

"Forget about getting any help from either Cleveland or Thiral." Twesata advised. "Cleveland's an incompetent ass and most likely on the take—when he's actually on the station—which is as seldom as possible."

"Thiral's not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer either, and I wouldn't bet money on him not being crooked." Shelana commented sourly.

"Yeah, Thiral's a lifer who hasn't had an original thought in his life." Twesata grumbled. "He's just sitting out his time until he can retire and go back to his bondmate."

"I've served under a few of those." Ashley bitterly complained. "They put 'em on a safe, secure, minor colony where they can't do any damage until they're ready to retire or take their discharge. My CO in the 212 was like that." She further explained, "Eden Prime was supposed to be a nice, safe farming world where nothing bad happened. The perfect place to send fuckups, slackers, short-timers, and embarrassments like myself that the military wanted to just go away. Of course all that got fucked up once they found that beacon and then Saren and the geth attacked."

Twesata remarked, her lips turning up in an evil grin. "One of the nurses, Lara, is alright—we partied some together and she keeps her ear to the ground and her mouth shut, but…if you know the right buttons to push…and I do…then you can get some valuable info out of her."

"Okay…" Nelia nodded her head, "Anyone else in case she doesn't work out?"

"A couple of crewmen in cargo handling might help—in exchange for either latinum or the right mind controlling substance…" The leggy Betazoid quipped with a crooked grin. "Luckily, I stocked up on Starbase 80. My connection might still be around, but he's not going to talk to anyone but me."

"All right, Twes. You work your contacts." Nelia requested as she handed out assignments, "Shels? Ash? You two work security—make contact with this Jenkins guy and see what he's got. I'm going to do some digging on my own. I know a few people in the syndicate who owe me a favor or two. I think I'll cash them in."

"Sounds good to us." Shelana and Ashley both acknowledged.

"Come on, Ran…" Twesata declared, gesturing for her lover to join her at the turbolift door. "I'll fill you in on everyone."

"Looks like we're all set." Nelia nodded in satisfaction. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm going to soak in my tub for an hour or so before we get there."

"I'm expecting a subspace call from Soren." Ashley declared, blushing as her friends teased her. "What can I say?" The ex-Alliance marine joked, "I like 'em tall, handsome, muscular, and Scandinavian. Seeya later!"

Spoiled Princess on approach to Starbase 114

"Have a good chat with Soren?" Nelia quipped as Ashley took her position at the weapons console.

"Yeah." The ex-Alliance marine replied with a smirk as she saw the looks of anticipation on the faces of her friends, "I promise…I'll tell you all about it later." Changing the subject she glanced at the starbase on her viewscreen, growing larger as the Princess approached their destination. "How soon 'til we dock?"

"Not much longer." Shelana replied from the helm. "We're just waiting for final clearance to be granted."

"Catch sight of our Ferengi?" Nelia inquired as she studied the screen, paying close attention to the vessels orbiting the station.

"Not yet." Twesata responded from the sensor station.

"He might not have arrived yet." Rana opined as she doublechecked her readings.

"Or he smelled a vole and slipped out." Belen cautioned. "Mok didn't reach Daimon rank by being stupid. Competition is often literally cutthroat. There are a lot of wannabes vying for a limited number of lucrative trade routes. You don't bring in the profits…" The Ferengi made a throat cutting gesture to drive home his point.

"We've got clearance." Shelana announced.

"Bring us in." Nelia requested as she rose from the center chair and addressed her team. "Everyone know what they're supposed to do?" Smiling as she saw the nods and heard the murmurs of acknowledgement from the rest of her group, the roguish Orion quipped, "Let's get to work then. The sooner we find what we're looking for…"

"The sooner we can get off this shithole." Twesata finished with a grimace as she beckoned her asari lover to join her, "C'mon Rana…I got a meet set up with Lara at a little bar we used to hang out at."

"We're on course to dock." The Andorian helmswoman declared. "We should be there in fifteen minutes."

Starbase 114—Shelana and Ashley

As they entered station security, Ashley and Shelana were addressed by a man sitting behind a desk.

"Can I help you?"

"Lieutenant Jenkins?" Shelana queried.

"That's right." The security officer affirmed, "Lieutenant Bradley Jenkins. And you are?"

"Lieutenants Shelana Zh'vilass and Ashley Williams." The Andorian woman replied, revealing their ranks. "Lieutenant Daman at Starbase 80 told us we should look you up should we ever visit your station."

"You know Daman?" Bradley grinned as he signaled the two women to walk with him, "How's that crazy Bolian doing?"

"He's doing well, Lieutenant and sends his regards." Shelana answered back.

"You know I haven't seen him since I got posted here." Jenkins remarked conversationally, subtly gesturing at the two females to play along.

"He said you were old Academy buddies." Ashley said, maintaining the small talk as the pair entered a small room.

Once the door had closed behind them, Jenkins entered in a code on the access panel beside the door. After that, he took out his tricorder and performed a scan. Finally, he took a small device out from his pocket and, setting it on the table, activated it. "We can talk safely now. This blocks any efforts to eavesdrop from a distance. As you probably figured out, the main office is bugged…"

"By the Syndicate?" Ashley inquired.

"Right." The lieutenant responded with a grimace, "I let the bug stay where it is because if I remove it, they'll just put in another that would be even more difficult to find. Besides…" his lips turned up in a wicked grin, "I've used it a time or two to throw the bad guys off. I assume you're here because of the Syndicate. How can I help?"

"We're looking for a Ferengi merchant who comes by here." Shelana explained, "Daimon Mok."

"Mok's a slippery one." Jenkins declared, "Agents from Starfleet, the Romulan Republic, and Klingon Empire are all looking for him—as are any number of bounty hunters."

"So why isn't he either in a cell somewhere or dead?" Ashley queried.

"Besides being as slippery as an eel, that Ferengi's also loaded with latinum. That's allowed him to purchase a small army of Nausicaan mercenaries. He's managed to pay off or eliminate anyone who either has or might consider putting out a bounty on him; and our agents haven't even been able to get close. My intel tells me that he's got a telepath working for him. Hope you do."

"We've got that angle more than covered." Shelana assured, "So…where do we start to look for him?"

"Like I said, he's slippery. He owns a dive on the lower decks where he traffics in drugs…and not just the stuff used for recreational purposes that we usually look the other way on. I'm talking the really bad stuff…Corallin acid…trellium-D…felicium…you get the idea. There have also been some odd disappearances we think he's been tied into."

"Why haven't you busted him or raided his joint?" Ashley inquired.

Shaking his head dejectedly, Jenkins replied with a mournful sigh, "I've yelled until I'm blue in the face that we need to shut that place down and haul Mok in by his ears, but every time I bring the subject up, Cleveland and Thiral shoot me down. Problem is…the bastard bribed or blackmailed someone in the Ferengi Commerce Commission to grant him a consular title and make his bar the Ferengi Consulate…"

"So the bar's legally Ferengi territory and he's got diplomatic immunity." Ashley concluded, shaking her head in dismay. "That sucks."

"We also know that the Syndicate has at least one mole here and I'm betting there are more and that they're high up in the command structure…"

"You mean Cleveland and or Thiral." Shelana interjected with a scowl.

"Correct." Jenkins affirmed, "Problem is that I don't have any proof and Cleveland's too connected. It's also awfully convenient that our CO just happens to be off station when bad shit goes down."

"Maybe we can help you get that proof?" Ashley suggested, "We could pass as recent transferees…"

"That could work." Jenkins nodded his head in thought as he considered the former Alliance marine's suggestion. "And it just so happens that I have an open case that you could help me with."

"What's the situation?" Shelana asked.

"Multiple acts of sabotage." Jenkins replied, "First, a load of cargo crates fell on Ensign Searfoss. A couple of days later, an EPS conduit blew and four engineers were injured. Three days after that, there was a 'mistake' in sickbay…"

"What sort of mistake?" Ashley interrupted.

"Our station counselor, Lieutenant Janan, got a transfusion of Bolian blood."

"She still alive?" Shelana inquired, elaborating for the benefit of her extra-universal companion, "Bolian blood is toxic to all but non-Bolians."

"Yeah." Jenkins nodded his head in reply, "But she almost didn't make it."

"Thiral puts it down to simple coincidence…a run of bad luck…"

"That's bullshit." Ashley snorted, "One time…yeah…I'll buy that as bad luck. Two incidents in two days and in the same area…that's stretching it. Three times…that's enemy action."

"Exactly." The station security officer affirmed. "Problem is…I don't have the personnel to properly investigate these 'coincidences.' Most of my people have been reassigned to maintenance to help with ship repairs—we're shorthanded at the current time so I don't have the people to spare. I keep asking Thiral and the Commander for more people, but they say they can't do anything. You ask me…that's a load of bullshit."

"Any leads?" Shelana asked.

"Only four people have access to all of those areas." Jenkins explained, "Me…Commander Cleveland…Lieutenant Commander Thiral…and Lieutenant Syfir. At the time all of the incidents were reported, I was on duty here. You're welcome to check the logs and speak to the people here to verify my alibi. Commander Cleveland was off station—no surprise there. That leaves Thiral and Syfir as the most likely suspects."

"Probably be best to speak to Lieutenant Syfir before we speak to the acting XO." Shelana suggested. "If Thiral is the mole, we don't want to tip him off. Right now he's the senior ranking officer on the station. He can make life hard for us if he wants."

"You're right." Ashley agreed as the meeting came to an end. Speaking to Jenkins, she promised, "We'll get to the bottom of this."

"Thanks." Jenkins replied as he ushered the two women to the door. "Let me know what you turn up and good luck."

Twesata and Rana

Entering the bar, Twesata, with her asari lover by her side, waved at old acquaintances as the pair approached a blonde human woman seated at a booth, her lips purple from the petals of the Rynsome flower which, when ingested, produced a euphoric high.

"Bad girl…Lara…" the lovely Betazoid playfully chided, "…starting the party without us."

"Hey, Twes…" The obviously high woman seated at the booth replied as she motioned at the bench opposite hers and held out some of the crushed flowers, "You and your friend park your asses over here and have some…" As Twesata and her companion did as they were told, Lara queried, "So what brings you back? Cleveland's still steamed at the way you said goodbye."

"What did you do?" Rana asked playfully as she ingested some of the flowers, feeling the high hitting her almost immediately.

Chewing a small pinch of petals, Twesata replied with a laugh, "I was gonna piss on his desk, but changed my mind…"

"So she pulled up her skirt where everyone could see and told him to kiss her ass." Lara giggled as she joked with her old friend, "You should have gone ahead and pissed on his desk and took holoimages of his reaction." Lara giggled.

"My bladder was empty." Twesata quipped back before questioning, "What about you?" Shouldn't you be in sickbay?"

"Resigned my commission a few weeks ago. Doc also quit about the same time when Thiral issued orders transferring him to the mining colony on Corvan II."

"Corvan II?" Twesata shook her head as she reached for more flower petals to chew. "That world's a dump. No wonder he resigned."

"Yeah." The blonde human responded, lowering her voice, "Something weird…weirder than usual…is going on up in the command area. My partying wasn't anything new…you know that. You also know I'm like you—I only play on my own time…never when I'm working. And Doc takes his patients very seriously. It's weird they would have gotten rid of both of us like they did and at nearly the same time."

"Yeah, that is odd." Twesata remarked with a frown. "Can we talk to Doc?"

"Sure." Lara shrugged, "He's at the clinic. Give me a moment or two to come down off my high and I'll take you to him."

"Works for me." The lovely Betazoid agreed, "Me and Rana need to come down too."

Giving the asari maiden seated next to her old friend a leer, Lara inquired in a seductive voice, "So…who's your friend?"

"Rana." The asari answered back with a lascivious grin of her own.

"That's a pretty name." The blonde human coyly responded before speaking to Twesata and Rana, "After you're done with your business, why don't the two of you comm me and we'll party. Some of the old gang's still here. I can get them together and we can all fuck and get stoned in my quarters."

"Definitely orgy later." Twesata promised as she laid her hands on both of the other women's thighs, gently caressing them.

"Promise." Lara teased as she returned the Betazoid's caresses

"Promise." Rana replied with a coy grin as her hands and fingers also wandered.

"Okay…" Lara sighed seductively, "I'm off my high now. If you girls have come down, let's go see Doc."

"Sounds good." Twesata agreed as the three women all rose to their feet, "Sooner we get this taken care of, sooner we can party."

Nelia and Belen

"I want you to know I'm taking a big chance just being seen with you…much less talking to you." A Cardassian male wearing a non-descript brown suit whispered as he conversed with the roguish green Orion and her Ferengi companion in a small apartment.

"We know and we appreciate it, Khial." Nelia replied reassuringly, "The room's been swept and we made sure no one followed us. Do you have the information I asked you about earlier?"

"I got it." The Cardassian inclined his head. "There's a cloaked satellite in orbit. It's used for communication and control by the Syndicate. I bet you'll find some of what you're looking for there."

"Thanks." Nelia replied with a grin. "We're even now."

"Bet your green ass we are." Khial replied, "I've got a bad feeling about all this. I'm going off station for a while until the heat dies down. Don't go looking for me."

Waiting until her contact had left the room before speaking, Nelia smiled at her Ferengi friend. "Let's return to the ship, Belen. We've got some scanning to do."

Ashley and Shelana

"I gotta admit…" Ashley grinned as she walked down the corridor with her Andorian friend, the pair having first changed into Odyssey pattern uniforms, "….I like these uniforms better than the miniskirt I wore when we went time tripping."

"Yeah." Shelana bantered back, "I prefer pants too. The dresses are a little too breezy for me to wear on a regular basis. I mean…once in a while's okay…it breaks things up, but on a regular basis…" The Andorian security officer shook her head.

"Tell me about it." The ex-Alliance marine laughed, "My sister Abby loves them though. Long dresses and corsets you have to tie up with lace and frills and all that other stuff."

"I'm guessing she's the girly-girl in your family." Shelana chuckled.

"Yeah. Her and Sarah to an extent. Lynn kinda did her own thing. I grew up something of a tomboy." Ashley reminisced, "I guess it was always because I was Daddy's Little Girl while Sarah and Abby kinda gravitated towards Mom. As for Lynn…well…like I said, she was always something of an island unto herself." Pausing at the entrance to the cargo area, Ashley turned her gaze to the open bay. "I guess this is our first stop. What do you wanna check out first? EPS conduits or cargo lift?"

"Let's check out the EPS conduit first." Shelana replied as the pair made their way to the disabled machinery.

"Good idea." Ashley agreed, "A quick scan should tell us what we need to know."

Her scan completed, Shelana murmured to her friend as she read out the results. "Definitely signs of tampering and the access panel has signs of Syfir's DNA on it."

"Hmmm…working on the conduit isn't part of his normal work schedule, is it?"

"No." Shelana replied with a shake of her head.

"That's strike one." Ashley declared, "Wanna check the cargo lift now?"

"Yeah." The Andorian tactical officer replied. Entering the next cargo bay, Shelana held her hand up, motioning for her friend as she took out her tricorder and scanned the area. "Look…I'm picking up traces of thoron radiation."

"Should that be there?" Ashley inquired.

"Depends on what was being stored here and why." Shelana answered back. "Thoron energy is most commonly used for counter measures—it blocks sensors and transporter beam ins and outs and can also be used to counter force fields. It's also used for weapons—it provides a little extra kick, but has the drawback of making the weapon more unstable so it's not used that way as often. Finally, it's used quite often for medical purposes."

"Kind of an all-purpose thing then." Ashley concluded, "So it wouldn't be that unusual to pick up on it here."

"Right. Depending on its level…and I'm picking up some pretty high residual readings. Enough to have me worried…especially if we find what I'm hoping I don't find." Shelana affirmed as she pointed to a nearby container. "Let's take a look at these cargo containers." Her scan completed, she growled with a grimace on her face. "Fuck. I hate it when I'm right. I'm picking up traces of kemocite on and around the container."

"Kemocite?" Ashley inquired, then, seeing the worried frown on her friend's face, remarked, "I get the feeling that's the thing you were hoping not to find. Is it bad?"

"Depends…" Shelana replied, "Like thoron radiation, it's how pure it is and how you use it. Depending on its level of refinement, it can be used for a lot of different stuff like research and development of new and existing technologies. In its purest form…it can be used for weapons…very destructive weapons."

"I'm betting the kemocite you're picking up is the very pure kind." Ashley growled as she looked at her friend's scans.

"Weapons grade." Shelana confirmed, "Combine that with the thoron traces we found nearby…"

"Someone's doing something very naughty." Ashley concluded, her friend nodding in agreement.

"Right." The Andorian woman affirmed as she opened the container and peered at its contents. "Take a look, Ash."

"Uniforms?" The former Alliance marine exclaimed, "Looks like someone pulled a switch. Think it might be Syfir?"

"Don't know." Shelana replied with a frown as she pointed at the cargo lift. "Let's check some more of the containers."

"More kemocite. Pure. I checked out the containers—all of them packing either uniforms or non-essential stuff. Nothing that even looks like contraband." Ashley called out, "What about you?"

"The same." Shelana replied with a frown, "Weapons grade kemocite too. Shit. That cinches it. Someone's manufacturing kemocite laced weapons."

"Gotta be the Syndicate." Ashley concluded, "It's not looking good for Syfir."

The Andorian security specialist answered back, "Let's check out the cargo lift and see what we find there before rushing to judgment."

"Good idea." Ashley agreed as the pair made their way to the disabled machinery.

"The safety locks were disabled." Shelana reported as she completed her scan. "Someone would have to be very familiar with the systems here to do that."

"What about Syfir?" Ashley asked, "Is he qualified?"

"Yeah." Shelana confirmed, further qualifying, "Him and at least four other technicians." Shaking her head, the Andorian security officer concluded "Fuck. We don't have the evidence to finger him or anyone else."

"So…Ball One." Ashley bantered as the pair exited the cargo bay.

"More like a foul ball." Shelana joked back, "Hopefully, we'll find out more when we check out the sickbay logs."

"Nothing odd about the logs." Ashley reported as she perused the entries that she had downloaded on to her padd, "But take a look at Janan's file."

"Hmmm…it's been altered." Shelana remarked, "Not just once…but twice. Whoever did it knew what they were doing too. Take a look…" she directed, pointing to the counselor's medical history, "…they hacked into the sickbay system and EMH so that the records would be altered automatically whenever the EMH cross-referenced it to give her a transfusion. Then, the virus erases everything and purges the data from the EMH's log." Continuing her exam of the logs, the Andorian security officer shook her head, "Another strike for Syfir."

"Looks like his access code." Ashley replied as she examined the log entry. "Apparently he logged into the system the day of the accident. Doesn't prove he did it though." The ex-marine shook her head. "What surprises me is that a doctor or nurse didn't pick up on this. Where were they? The only medic on duty was the EMH. Is it standard operating procedure to trust everything to an EMH?"

"No." Shelana shook her head, "Although there's a tendency at times for people to forget that the 'E' in EMH stands for 'Emergency' and rely too heavily on them. Of course…there is the matter of Voyager's Doctor—but he was and still is very much the exception to the rule because of that ship's unusual circumstances at the time."

"Yeah." Ashley nodded her head, "I've been reading up on Starfleet history in a course I'm taking as part of the Academy extension training. I read all about how the Voyager EMH had developed full independence as a result of being activated for such an extended period."

"Yeah." Shelana affirmed, "I took the same course way back when—it's required for all cadets. He's become something of a leader of the photonic rights movement and played a major role in amending the Federation Charter to include photonic and sapient AI life as having the same rights as any other intelligent species."

Shaking her head, Ashley commented in a wry voice, "I got a feeling he wouldn't be very popular in Alliance or Citadel space."

"That's right." Shelana exclaimed, "The governments in your universe outlaw artificial intelligence, don't they?"

"We've had bad experiences with rogue AIs and VIs." Ashley answered back, remembering her own experiences while part of Shepard's team on the Normandy. "But we can talk about that later over beers. Let's get back to our current case."

"Good idea." Shelana agreed. "The nurse that got discharged is Twesata's friend. She was charged with conduct unbecoming and discharged a couple of weeks ago." Shelana replied as she examined the personnel logs.

"No surprise there if she was Twesata's friend." Ashley laughed, "What about the doctor?"

"Resigned his commission after receiving transfer orders off station at nearly the same time that Twes's friend was let go." Shelana mused, "Interesting…take a look at who ordered the transfer and arranged for the nurse's discharge."

"Lieutenant Commander Thiral quickly approved by Commander Cleveland." The former Alliance marine read aloud. "Look at the commander's justification for the transfer."

"Insubordination and refusal to follow orders." Shelana answered back, "They're both still on the station, but working a clinic on the lower residential and commercial decks."

"Wanna talk to 'em?" Ashley inquired.

Shaking her head, Shelana responded, "Nah…Twes and Rana are probably already on top of that. What do we have on Syfir? I want to make sure we have all our…as you humans phrase it…geese…in a row before we talk to him."

"It's ducks…ducks in a row." Ashley chuckled, "But yeah…good idea on reviewing Syfir's record." Manipulating her padd, the former Alliance marine announced, "Got it. Take a look and see if you spot anything unusual."

"Hmmm…" The Andorian security officer mused, "His record's spotless…not even a reprimand for loafing."

Chuckling, Ashley quipped as she reminisced, "Gunny Ellison…my DI when I went through basic training on Titan Station…used to call it goldbricking."

"Yeah." Shelana chuckled, "I've heard humans here use that term too." Returning to their suspects service record, she summarized, "Besides a clean record, his mechanical and computer aptitude scores are through the roof. Way higher than the rest of the technicians in this dump."

"It looks like he's one of the competent ones on this station." Ashley noted, "You think he's being set up as a fall guy by the real saboteur?"

"My gut tells me yes." Shelana replied as she closed the file and handed the padd back to her friend, "I think it's time we talked to Syfir—find out what's really going on here."

Twesata and Rana

"Hey, Doc! Look who the sehlat dragged in!" Lara called out as she introduced Twesata and Rana to a middle aged doctor, his craggy, weather-beaten face revealing his years of hard work on starships and frontier installations.

"Twes?" The doctor's lips turned up in a wide grin on recognizing the raven-haired Betazoid woman, "Is that really you?"

"Yeah…it's me." Twesata replied as she rushed up to the doctor and gave him a hug, "Good to see you again Doc Mikal."

"Good to see you too." The doctor replied, returning the younger woman's hug. "Have you been behaving yourself?" Seeing the crooked grin on his old friend's face, the doctor chuckled, "No…of course not." Noticing the alien woman standing near, he inquired, "Who's your friend?"

"Doc Mikal…meet Rana. Rana…Doc Mikal." Twesata introduced, "Doc's probably the best field doctor I know and has a surefire cure for the worst of hangovers."

"Old family recipe." The doctor grinned, "It involves habanero and chili peppers, tomato juice, powdered ginseng root, and a dose of my secret ingredient. So…" the doctor queried as he ushered his guests into his office, "…what brings you here?"

"We're looking for a Ferengi merchant…Mok…know how we can get hold of him?" Twesata asked as she accepted a cup of tea from the doctor.

"He runs a dive on the lower levels." Mikal replied with a grimace, "I don't recommend you going there unarmed—if that's what you're thinking. Bad stuff happens…people disappear…if you know what I mean."

"People have been disappearing from the station?" Rana prompted.

Somberly nodding his head, the doctor answered the asari's question. "Every now and then a dancer, waiter, or hooker will come here all beaten and bruised or I'll hear that they didn't show up for work. Funny thing…it's always while or after working at Mok's club."

"Why hasn't station security clamped down?" Twesata asked.

"Starfleet security's so stretched it can barely keep its own people in line—much less effectively patrol the lower levels." Lara laughed, joining the conversation. "Besides…you know Cleveland and Thiral…one of 'em's never here and the other one has his antennae stuck so far up his ass that he can't tell you what day it is."

"Added to that, the club is technically Ferengi territory." Doc interjected, "Mok purchased a consular appointment a while back, so legally station security can't touch him or his club. Watch yourselves if you go there." The doctor advised with a grave look on his face. "I know you, Twes. Don't get high or stoned, and don't go into the private rooms for any orgies. One last thing…be careful. One of Mok's bodyguards is a telepath…Lethian."

"Yeah." Lara interjected with a frown, "I heard stories about how he likes to play with his food…if you get my drift. Promise me you'll take care of yourselves if you go down there. Don't forget, we got some heavy-duty partying to do."

Heaving a melodramatic sigh, Doc Mikal joked, "I better stock up on stims, coffee and make another batch of my hangover cure."

"You better…" Twesata smirked as she gave Rana and Lara flirtatious winks. "Cause we're gonna fuck each other's brains out and get so high they'll have to fetch us from orbit." Rising to her feet, the lovely Betazoid, now with a grave look on her face, cautioned her old friends, "Take care of yourselves, okay…if Mok finds out you were talking with us…"

"Don't worry." Doc Mikel replied as Lara nodded her head in agreement, "We're going to camp out in the clinic until you give the all clear. No one…not even the Syndicate…starts trouble here. They know that if they fuck with us then they don't get patched up. Good luck…hope you take that fucker and his friends down."

Nelia and Belen on the Spoiled Princess

"We're at the coordinates." Belen declared as his partner reduced speed to a crawl.

"Give us a tachyon scan." Nelia requested, "Let's see if we can find our prize."

"Scanning." The Ferengi jack-of-all trades acknowledged before exclaiming in a triumphant tone as the satellite became visible. "Got him."

"All right." Nelia purred as she pressed a series of buttons on her console. "Commencing download. Let's see what we've got." Scanning the files after the download was completed, the roguish Orion mused, "Hmmm…they're using the station to smuggle kemocite, but the coordinates for where they're smuggling it to are encrypted. We're going to need a means of breaking the code." Tapping her comm, Nelia announced, "Landing parties…we need to talk. What's your status?"

Shelana replied, "I think we're on to something hot. Looks like someone's been smuggling kemocite on to the station and we're thinking that the man who's been sabotaging stuff around the station might give us a lead."

"Okay, that tracks with what we just discovered." Nelia acknowledged as she revealed her and Belen's recent discovery, "Go ahead and follow up your lead. Comm me when you've got something."

"Will do. Shelana out."

"We're on to something too." Twesata reported, "I don't know if it's tied into this kemocite thing or not, but Lara and Doc told us that people are disappearing from the station. Me and Rana got a lead we're gonna follow, but we're gonna have to go down to the lower levels—it's in Mok's club."

"Look for something else if you get the chance." Nelia responded, further explaining, "We downloaded some heavily encrypted files. Can you check to see if Mok might have a key of some sort we can use to unlock those files?"

"Yeah. Sure. We get the chance, we'll take a look."

"Thanks." Nelia cautioned, "But don't take any chances. If it looks dicey, pull out and we'll check it out together once Shels and Ash are done with their thing."

"Right, Nel." Twesata acknowledged, "We'll let you know what we turn up. Talk to you later."

"So…what now, Nel?" Belen asked as his friend maneuvered their ship back to its original orbit around the station.

Nelia answered back with a smirk, "Not much we can do except go to the lounge and do some drinking until they call back."

"Sounds like a plan to me. Let's go."

Shelana and Ashley

Approaching their suspect, Ashley whispered to her friend, "What race is he? I haven't encountered his species in my readings yet."

"Don't know." Shelana whispered back, shrugging her shoulders as she gazed at the grey-skinned humanoid, bald, with ridges that began on his forehead and extended back, connecting with a ridged lateral line and pointed ears that flared outward. "He's most likely from a recently contacted race and gained admission to the Academy—probably as part of an exchange program. He's probably the only one of his race in service."

"Well…" Ashley sighed, "Let's hear what he has to say."

"Lieutenant Syfir?" Shelana called out, gaining the technician's attention. "We're Lieutenants Shelana and Williams…aiding station security in an investigation. We'd like to talk to you about the sabotage that's been happening recently on the station."

Syfir replied with a note of alarm in his voice, "You don't think I'm the saboteur do you?"

"That's what we're trying to find out." Ashley bluntly replied, gazing into the alien's eyes.

"I'll be glad to answer any questions you have, Lieutenants." The technician earnestly declared, "I've got nothing to hide."

"Then you've got nothing to worry about." Shelana responded in a flat tone of voice.

"Okay…" Ashley queried, "First question: What do you know about the incident involving the cargo lift?"

"Not much." Syfir answered back, further elaborating. "I got a call to check out the lift a few days ago before the accident took place. It was broken and I fixed it. I checked and noticed that it was due for its standard maintenance and went on ahead and took care of it. I then doublechecked all the safeties and made sure they were working before I recertified the lift as fit for service—and that's the truth—I swear by Jilaal…my people's god of justice."

"Did you have a reason to access the EPS conduit?" Shelana inquired, continuing the interrogation.

"No." Syfir shook his head, "I don't remember being in that section of the base recently. However, one of my team found one of my tools there a few days ago." Shrugging his shoulders, he rationalized, "I guess one of my engineers borrowed my hyperspanner and forgot to return it. That happens all the time on this station."

"If he's telling the truth, that's sloppy." Ashley whispered to her friend. "Chief Adams would have hit the ceiling if one of his crew had done that."

"Yeah." Shelana whispered back, "Most Starfleet chief engineers would have given that crewman a good ass chewing for borrowing one of his tools without permission and an even worse one for not returning it." Speaking to their suspect, the Andorian security officer pressed, "Do you make it a habit of permitting your people to borrow your tools without your permission?"

"This is a very busy station." Syfir explained, "I want my team to be able to take what they need when they need it so I don't lock up my tools to give everyone access to them."

"Something's fishy here." Ashley whispered. "No Alliance chief engineer—even on the busiest ship or station—would do that."

"Same here." Shelana agreed, "I can't see the Chief Engineer on a station like DS-9 or ESD ever allowing that."

"So…what do you think?" Ashley whispered, "Incompetence or intentional?"

"Jury's still out." The Andorian responded in a low voice, "Let's continue our interrogation."

"How well do you know Counselor Janan?" Ashley questioned.

"We're close friends." Syfir responded sincerely. "We spend a lot of off duty time together and I'm taking care of her pet cat, Cambridge, while she's recuperating. I was worried about her for a while because it looked really bad. I spent the first couple of nights in sickbay until she regained consciousness." His lips turning up in a wry grin, he remarked, "She chased me out, telling me to stop mothering her and get back to work." His expression taking on an angry look, the lieutenant snapped, "If you're thinking I had anything to do with what happened to her, then your fucking crazy. I'd never hurt her…ever!"

"We're not saying you did." Shelana replied placatingly before adding in a cautionary tone, "But we're not saying you didn't either. All we're after is the truth."

"Like you said…" Ashley interjected, "You've got nothing to hide."

"All right." Syfir grumbled, "What else do you want to know?"

"How long have you been on Alpha Shift?" Shelana inquired.

"For about a month." Syfir replied. "I was assigned to Gamma shift for eight months prior."

"Is the station on a three or four shift rotation?" Ashley queried.

"Three shift." The engineering lieutenant responded. "We don't have the people for a four shift rotation. To be honest, I'd have preferred remaining on Gamma shift. The station's quieter because most people are asleep so I can get a lot more work done."

"I know when I had to change shifts it took some time for me to adapt." Ashley remarked conversationally.

"Same here." Syfir agreed, relaxing slightly as the tension level decreased. "It took me a few weeks to adjust and I still have to drink raktajino to stay awake. A couple of times…" he confessed with a shy grin, "…I've gone to sleep for a short time while I'm on breaks, but it's nothing to worry about. I'll get used to the new schedule in time."

"Okay…" Shelana nodded her head, "Summarize for us a normal day for you."

"Sure. I'm afraid it's not very thrilling though." The engineering officer answered, "After waking up, I eat a light breakfast and go over my team's daily assignments. After that, I report in for duty and begin my daily rounds checking up on my people and give them their daily assignments. Around midshift, I grab a cup of raktajino from the replicator and take a short break in Cargo Bay 4. I like going there because it's hardly ever used, so usually no one's there to disturb me. I drink my raktajino and do a little light reading until my break is over, then I go back to work and check in on my team to make sure everything's going smoothly and they don't need anything."

"Thank you, Lieutenant." Shelana replied, ending the interview, "I think we're done for now, but continue checking in with station security in case we have further questions."

"I will, Lieutenant." Syfir responded, "Can I return to duty now?"

"Yeah." The Andorian tactical officer nodded her head in assent, "Go on ahead. If we need to get in touch with you, we will."

Waiting until their suspect was safely out of earshot, Ashley inquired, "So what do you think? Is he the saboteur?"

"Hmmm…" Shelana pondered her friend's question for several moments before responding. "All of our incidents take place towards the latter part of Alpha shift and Syfir takes his raktajino break at about the same time every day. Let's check the times for the incidents against his break times and see what we get."

"Good idea." Ashley agreed as she took out her padd and called up the information. "Hmmm…that's curious. Take a look…" she requested, handing the padd to her friend, "See how all of the incidents occur a few hours after Syfir used the replicator."

"Could be someone's tampered with the replicator." Shelana hypothesized. "Let's run a diagnostic on it and see what we turn up."

"Bingo!" Ashley exclaimed as she showed her friend the results of her diagnostic. "Someone altered the program's pattern for the raktajino."

"And this new pattern only occurs when Syfir puts in an order." Shelana mused as a sly grin appeared on her face. "Take a look, Ash. Whoever altered the pattern put in impredrezene. I've never run into it being used, but we're taught in security training how it can be utilized to suppress higher cognitive functions."

"So…someone under the influence of that stuff could effectively black out and not remember what they did while the drug was in their system." Ashley concluded.

"Partly correct." Shelana replied, further explaining, "Alone, all it does is renders the user more or less mind numb for a brief period of time—kinda like Twes when she's really zooming on something." Both women chuckled for several moments before the Andorian officer continued her reasoning. "But when you combine the impredrezene with a stimulant such as raktajino that would result in making the user highly susceptible to suggestions. After the drug wears off, the user wouldn't remember anything they did while under the influence."

"Take another look at the diagnostic." Ashley requested, "I'm picking up something odd."

"Looks like whoever altered the program also slipped in a small transmitter beacon that's set to send a message every time the replicator creates the special raktajino. No clues as to who sent that message." Shelana said with a frown, "But I'll bet that whoever did is our real saboteur. Looks like Syfir was set up to be the fall guy after all."

"Yeah." Ashley agreed, nodding her head, "I'm glad we were able to clear him, he seems like a nice guy." Her lips turning up in a sly grin, the ex-marine quipped, "Are you thinking the same thing I'm thinking?"

"If you're thinking about setting a trap to catch the person receiving that message, then I'm thinking that's a good idea. But we're gonna need Nelia and Belen to help out. I'll comm them while you alert Jenkins. He should be in on the kill too."

"Right." Ashley grinned, "Let's catch us a saboteur."

Twesata and Rana

"I thought Chora's Den was a dive, but this is even worse." Rana commented as she and her Betazoid companion entered Mok's Palace, a seedy night club located on the station's lower levels. "I'm surprised Starfleet permits it."

"Remember, Mok's hiding under diplomatic immunity." Twesata pointed out, adding, "It also depends on the starbase and the CO. Remember what Nelia said, these dumps also have their uses." Twesata replied as the pair made their way to the bar. "Still, a lot of Starfleet COs would have shut this place down as soon as it opened—there are any number of ways around consular and diplomatic immunity if you're willing to go through the trouble. Thing is…Starfleet officers are just like anyone else. They can be bribed or blackmailed. Fifty-fifty on which one or both Mok used to get Cleveland and Thiral to turn the other way."

"So what are we looking for?" Rana inquired as Twesata ordered drinks for the two of them.

"We need find out where Mok keeps his encryption program." Twesata replied as she took a cautious sip of her drink. That's where my old connection comes in. He works out of here so I'm hoping that he can give us a lead."

"He's going to want something for it." Rana warned, her loving nodding her head in agreement.

"Oh yeah. We're talking a few hundred strips of latinum…easy." Twesata acknowledged, "But if he delivers, it'll be worth it." Carrying out a visual and passive surface telepathic scan of her surroundings, the lovely Betazoid cautioned her asari lover, "Gotta be careful doing anything active telepathically. I don't want to alert that Lethian to us so I've got my psi shields up and I'm not doing any probing deeper than surface thoughts. You better do the same. You might not be strictly telepathic, but you are empathic with some telepathic abilities, not to mention some other tricks because of your biotics that a skilled teep can pick up on. Remember our lessons in shielding?"

"Yeah." The asari scientist replied, "I've got my barriers up."

"Good." Spotting a Saurian male entering the bar, Twesata's lips turned up in a wicked grin. "Right on time."

"Is that your connection?"

"Yeah. That's our man." Twesata acknowledged, "Let's go over and say hello." Sauntering up to the booth the Saurian had taken for himself, Twesata cooed in a playful voice, "Hello, Plasa. Miss me?"

"Twesata." The Saurian grinned, "Who's your friend?"

"Rana." The asari scientist replied as she and her girlfriend sat down on the opposite bench.

"Last I heard, you were doing high end consulting and merc work." Plasa commented as he took a sip of saurian brandy. "Still operating as an independent contractor or are you working for one of the big boys now?"

"You could say I'm working for some pretty big fish right now." Twesata admitted, knowing that her connection either already knew or had a good idea as to the truth.

Nodding his head, Twesata's old connection replied, "That's what I heard through the grapevine. Also heard that you and your friends knocked over some Nausicaan pirates—their friends are pissed at you by the way—they've put out a nice bounty. Don't worry…" he held up his hands in a supplicating gesture, "…I've got no intention of trying to collect. Besides you always being a good customer, I know better than to piss you and your friends off."

"I knew there was a reason why I liked you." Twesata grinned, "And as for the bounty hunters…they can stand in line with the Tal'Shiar and the rest."

"So…why are you here?" Plasa queried, getting straight to the point.

"We need an encryption code Mok has." Twesata replied, also cutting to the chase. "Can you help us get it?"

Shaking his head, the Betazoid's old connection replied, "He doesn't keep it here. Doesn't want to run the risk of Starfleet running a cleanup operation and getting their hands on it."

Chuckling, Twesata quipped, "Cleveland and Thiral ordering a raid? Best laugh I've had all day. Cleveland's never here and/or on the take, and Thiral's either on the take or clueless or, more likely, both."

"He's not worried about them." Plasa affirmed. "It's Starfleet or Romulan Republic Intelligence he's scared of. Starfleet and the local authorities took down one of his casinos on Deneva and the Rommies have seized some of his assets that he kept in what he thought was a secure bank account. Apparently RI has a Ferengi or two working for them. Because of that, he's gotten paranoid…thinks there's a mole in his organization—which there probably is. That's why he hired the Lethian."

"Tell us more about this Lethian." Rana prompted.

"He's a bad one." The Saurian dealer cautioned. "I heard he took down a Vulcan SI agent and a Betazoid merc—both of whom were supposed to have ranked pretty high on their psi scores. Avoid him, or if you do have to take him on, bring along a Ferengi or someone like that who's immune to telepathic assaults to deal with him."

"Good idea." Twesata agreed, "Can you give us anything at all, Plasa?"

"Yeah…" The Saurian replied with a smirk, "If the price is right."

"What do you want?" Twesata asked as they began the business of haggling.

"Five hundred strips of GPL." Plasa replied, the grin still on his face.

"C'mon, Plasa…" Twesata pleaded, "I'm a long-time customer who's always paid on time. Can't you cut me a discount?"

Heaving a sigh, the Saurian conceded, "All right. Because you are one of my best customers, I'll knock two hundred and fifty off the price…but that's as low as I can go. If Mok finds out I leaked this to you…"

Nodding her head as she took out her padd, Twesata agreed to her old dealer's terms, "Okay…I've transferred the funds to your usual account."

Checking his padd and seeing that the transfer had gone through, Plasa nodded his head in satisfaction, "He keeps the codes on his ship…the Nandi. The ship maintains an orbit at these coordinates…" The Saurian typed in a sequence of numbers on Twesata's padd. He has a fortified base on a rogue asteroid in the nebula near the station. Be careful…" Plasa warned, "He's contracted with the same Nausicaan pirate clan whose ships you've been hitting. Expect that base to be swarming with ships and it to be armed to the teeth. Better bring your 'A' game and some friends with you. You're gonna have one helluva fight on your hands."

"When's he leaving for his base?" Rana asked as she finished her drink.

"I don't know when…but it'll probably be soon. I hear he's got a full cargo hold, so he's going to want to unload it soon. Best advice I can give is to keep your eyes and ears open and pay attention to your scanners. Now…" the dealer grinned, "…is there anything else I can get for you?"

"Yes…" Twesata purred, typing on her padd as she gave Rana a seductive leer, "…I'd like some of these…and oh, yeah…" she made another entry, "…a few of these too. There's gonna be at least one…maybe two or three…others at the party I'm having after we wrap this up, so I'm gonna need plenty of party favors and toys and these babies can't be easily replicated—if they can be replicated at all."

The Saurian's lips turning up in a leer, he quickly filled his customer's order. "That's what I like about you, Twes…you know how to take care of your lovers and how to party. It hasn't been the same without you. Most of the Feddies here have giant sticks up their asses—some of them are downright puritanical. I've missed you. Give me twenty four hours or so to put it all together. You can pick up the items in your storage bay on the station then."

"Cool." Twesata replied with a grin as she and Rana rose to their feet, "Take care of yourself, Plasa, and…as always…it's a pleasure doing business with you."

"Likewise Twes." The Saurian answered back with a smile on his face. Glancing at the blue-skinned alien standing next to his old friend, Plasa grinned, "Pleasure meeting you too, Rana." His smile turning into a worried frown, he cautioned, "Be careful, Twes. I don't like losing customers—especially good ones like you. Watch your backs and come back soon. Get out of this in one piece and I'll kick in a little something extra for your party—no charge."

After exiting the bar, Twesata tapped her communicator. "Nelia…we got what we came for. Not a good idea to talk about it now. I'll fill you in on the Princess."

"Belen and I have to help Shels and Ashley on a little surprise party they've got cooked up that's probably tied into what you've been doing." Nelia explained, " Once we wrap that up, we'll meet up and figure out our next moves."

Twesata cautioned, "Take care of your business as quickly as you can. My source tells me that we've probably only got a brief window to act."

"Should have everything wrapped up in an hour or two." Nelia replied, "Will that give us enough time?"

"It should." The lovely Betazoid responded, "I doubt he'll be ready to make his move for a couple of hours at least. We'll keep our eyes and scanners peeled and comm you if we have to act fast."

"Sounds good. See you back at the ship. Nelia out."

"Let's get back to the ship, Rana." Twesata suggested, "I got a feeling our work's just getting started."

Starbase 114-Busted!

"Thanks for coming to our little party." Ashley, with her teammate Shelana, standing in the middle of Cargo Bay 4, joked as the other participants in the trap entered.

"Thank you for inviting us." Jenkins replied with a chuckle. Gesturing at the Vulcan and Tellarite security officers on either side of him, he declared, "Don't worry…Ensigns S'ten and Jalish are clean. We also brought in transporter buffers." He announced as his officers set up the devices. "We don't want our fish getting away."

"So…when's the guest of honor supposed to arrive?" Nelia replied as she and her Ferengi partner and friend joined their teammates.

"Should be pretty soon." Ashley replied, "It's almost Syfir's break time. Odds are our saboteur will hightail it here because this is where Syfir likes to hang out during his downtime."

"Belen…" Shelana requested, "We need you to trigger the beacon from the replicator when I give the word."

"Right." Jenkins nodded his head, "We better take cover. After all…we don't want to ruin the surprise."

After everyone had taken their stations, Shelana commed her Ferengi teammate. "Now, Belen."

"Signal sent." The Ferengi merchant replied as he activated the beacon's trigger.

"Trigger the buffers!" Jenkins ordered as Shelana, her phaser leveled at her Thiral who had just beamed in scowled.

"I was right. It was you. Please…" The lovely Andorian sneered, "Give me an excuse to stun you."

"Lieutenant Commander Thiral…" Jenkins declared as his officers closed in on either side of their former superior and relieved him of his phaser. "You are under arrest for suspicion of carrying out acts of sabotage. I must advise you that, under the Starfleet Code of Justice and the Federation Charter, you have the right to remain silent and be represented by counsel."

"I waive my rights." The haggard looking Andorian replied submissively. "Yes, I am guilty of the sabotage."

"So…you tried to put the blame on Lieutenant Syfir to cover your tracks." Ashley growled.

"Correct." Thiral confessed, "I was about to transfer him off the station, but you got to him first."

"Why did you do it?" Nelia inquired, joining in the interrogation.

"My bondmate was in debt to the Syndicate…he has a gambling problem." The disgraced Starfleet officer explained. "I agreed to help the Syndicate in exchange for them letting him go free. It wasn't bad at first." Thiral said in a tired voice, "Just small bits of information like freighter schedules and watch rotations. I didn't ask what they did with the information."

"That partly explains the increased pirate attacks in this sector." Jenkins observed, "And the increase in crime. Once it got hold of the rotations, the Syndicate could rig it where they would get the guards who they paid off to get the rotation whenever it wanted to smuggle something or someone in or off the station."

"You stupid dumbass." Nelia cursed, shaking her head, "Once it gets its hooks into you, the Syndicate never lets go. You should have known that."

Thiral sighed, "What could I do? I was trapped. They began to demand more and more. If I didn't cooperate, they said they'd hurt my bondmate and family, so…I gave them what they wanted. I transferred security officers who gave them trouble off the station…put the people they wanted in charge of shifts." The disgraced XO confessed, "You were next on the list to be transferred off, Lieutenant."

"Was one of those favors assisting in the smuggling of weapons grade kemocite and thoron gas?" Shelana demanded.

"Yes." Thiral admitted, "They didn't tell me why they wanted the kemocite and thoron gas or where it was being shipped. I was just told to make sure it wasn't disturbed. Lieutenant Syfir was a convenient scapegoat, so I set him up to take the blame and draw attention off me. He's completely innocent."

"Take him to the brig." Jenkins ordered his officers before turning his attention back to Nelia and her team. Smiling, the new security chief remarked, "Thank you for your help. I hope you found what you're looking for."

"I think we did." Nelia replied, "We've got to get back to our ship and plan out our next moves. I hope things work out okay for you here."

"I'll inform Admiral T'Nae about what happened." Jenkins replied. "If all goes well, the station will get a new CO too. The Admiral's been looking for a good excuse to relieve Cleveland. Thanks again for your help and come back anytime."

"We will." The roguish green Orion smiled back as she tapped her comm badge, "Twes…beam us up. We're done here."