"I won't let this happen!"
The indignant cry rang throughout the high-ceilinged casino and out into the noisy Promenade. Security chief Odo sighed once, trying to control his patience, then planted his hands firmly on the bar. Across from him was an exasperated Quark. "I know my rights, Constable! You can't send your men in here without a warrant. And seeing as you don't have one, I suggest you keep away from my storage rooms." Burning protest flickered in the Ferengi's eyes. Odo shook his head a little. "I don't need a warrant, Quark, because I've got this." He waved a Bajoran padd in front of Quark's nose. "These are the engineering staff's latest scans of the power grid. Maybe you could tell me why there is an anomalous energy usage spike in your bar before I send my people into the storage bays." A small smile of satisfaction crossed his partly-formed lips.
"We've had a busy week," Quark fumed, pulling himself up to his full unimpressive height. "Now, seeing as that little misunderstanding is taken care of, don't let the door hit you on the way out." His protest was ignored as two burly Bajorans and a Starfleet woman moved towards the shadowy entrance to Quark's stores. "Stop! Stop right there, or…"
Odo glared at the Ferengi. "Or what? You'll call security?"
"This is corruption! I'll get Captain Sisko onto you!"
"Captain Sisko is occupied with far more important matters right now," Odo said rationally. "And even if he weren't, your usual illegal activities would not rank highly on his list of priorities. But, of course, they are at the top of mine."
The security people returned from the back rooms. One of the Bajoran men, an officer by the name of Garrel Rem, was carrying a medium-sized black metal box. "We found this attached to a power grid step-down, sir," he said, placing the device on the bar for inspection. "There was a contraband energy shunt acting as a buffer, but it didn't seem to be functioning properly, so we left it in there."
"Well, well, well," Odo said. "A piggyback junction box. Let me guess: this was connected to the security net?"
Garrel looked somewhat surprised. "Uh…yes, sir."
"So, you're planning on subverting the station's security sensors. Might I ask why?"
Quark backed off a step or two, almost running into the replicators behind him. "This isn't what you think, gentlemen," he said smoothly. "That isn't a junction box — it's a storage capacitor. I was charging it up so it could be used as a stand-alone generator for the emergency lights." He explained it as a little child might explain something to a parent.
Odo drilled the Ferengi with a stare. "Then why was it hooked up to an illegal power shunt and our own sensor net? Please, Quark, you're going to have to do better than that. Garrel, take everything you found down to the offices. We'll sort it out back there. As for you, Quark, I think you'll find that there is a hefty fine waiting for you. Improper use of the power grid, disturbing the station's sensor network, interfering with station security, and bringing contraband equipment on-board. This may be my lucky day."
His triumph was interrupted by the chirp of his comm badge. "Kira to Odo."
The shapeshifter fired a last glance at Quark before tapping the badge on his uniform. "This is Odo. Go ahead, Colonel."
"We've been getting some strange readings from sections twelve and thirteen of the habitat ring. The security net is fluctuating in that area; are you free to check it out?"
"Very soon, Colonel. I just have a snoop to deal with first. Odo out." He figured that the irregular readings would probably be from Quark's little machine. He would go down in an hour or two with one of the station's engineers and examine the systems, find no problems, and come back up to his office. "I'll deal with you later," he snapped at Quark, waving a hand at Garrel to finish up. The young Bajoran could certainly take care of the situation and organise for the appropriate fines to be handed out. Meanwhile, he would tie up some data reports (which Sisko referred to as 'paperwork' — an archaic phrase that Odo didn't understand, seeing as no paper was involved), then check out the habitat ring.
