***
Harry was brusquely awakened by five men storming in.
He was in Ecbel's bed and his foot did no longer hurt.
But around him were the five men, and Ecbel, gathered. Armed to their teeth.
'He sold us out!' Flew through Harry's now wide awake brain and body. 'He sold me, Tom
and B'Elanna out!'
"You're going to see Scrich!" One of them around him announced with a deep voice.
The next thing Harry knew they dragged him out of the warm, but very hard, bed.
***
Harry found himself staring into the orange/green pair of eyes belonging to Scrich.
Beside her sat a short Sprai-koo male, probably expected to immortalize Harry's exact words
onto a PADD or some paper.
"Who are you?" Scrich asked softly.
"Who are 'you'?" Harry shot back, hostile.
"I'm Scrich and right now I want useful information, or life, from you."
"What do you mean with 'life'?" Harry swallowed.
"Give me information, your life or give me a child. You choose."
Harry swallowed again. He hadn't got good choices.
And she looked like she meant what she said, the six people behind him did not encourage him
to think otherwise.
Inside he worked febrile to come up with something that could buy him some more time.
Suddenly, after he'd felt several waves or cold fear come crawling, he remembered something.
He had gone through every little bit of information about the Sprai-koo he had in his head,
when Tom's words came to his mind.
'The Sprai-koo people have got a very hard time remembering names, you can really confuse
them.'
Harry almost smiled, but restrained himself in time.
Lucky for him, he didn't think slow, the time that had passed from when Scrich asked and he
began to talk couldn't have been more than a minute. To Harry's panicking mind and body if
felt like a year. A cold, hostile, settling year of his life. Settling if he could continue to live, or if
it was his time to die. Only time could show.
"I'm Harry," he finally said, making pause for effect like B'Elanna.
"Harry Kim, of the United Federation of Planets, also known as Starfleet. I'm from the ship
U.S.S. Voyager, a United federation of Planets ship.
I'm a human, but you might prefer hunan 'cause that's what everyone else here says. But you
can also say Terran, that's the same. And wait, there's a third option: earthling.
So I'm a human, a Terran or an earthling, or al three, but since they're the same - just choose
one. It's everyone's own choice completely.
Tom, or Tim, is also a human. Or Terran, or earthling. And he's been in the Maquis for three
weeks, and I can assure you that that's longer than I have!
Before than he served on a ship called the Exeter, I can't remember it's registration number ,
so just let it pass, okay?
And B'Elanna, she's been in the Maquis for several years!
Her mother is called Miral, but that's nothing important. Oh, wait! It is! Miral, her mother, is
Klingon, and B'Elanna's father, John Torres, is human, earthling or Terran.
That makes B'Elanna half Klingon and half Terran, earthling or human. And then it's--"
"STOP!!" Scrich roared.
The person expected to write had stopped trying long ago, and was now massaging his
temples, looking somewhat agonized.
Harry's mouth was dry, and his throat soared. He couldn't remember the last time he spilled
that much.
"Take him to jail!" Scrich stood up and pointed towards the door.
When Ecbel and the five guards lead Harry away, they all could hear Scrich mumble something
about what Ecbel had given Harry to grease his glib tongue.
Back out in the hallway, Harry smiled to himself. One of the guards saw it and pushed his
elbow into Harry's abdomen.
"What's that?" Someone asked, and everybody stopped.
Harry thought it sounded amazingly like a Klingon war call, he wasn't sure it was but at least
he hoped so.
***
Harry was brusquely awakened by five men storming in.
He was in Ecbel's bed and his foot did no longer hurt.
But around him were the five men, and Ecbel, gathered. Armed to their teeth.
'He sold us out!' Flew through Harry's now wide awake brain and body. 'He sold me, Tom
and B'Elanna out!'
"You're going to see Scrich!" One of them around him announced with a deep voice.
The next thing Harry knew they dragged him out of the warm, but very hard, bed.
***
Harry found himself staring into the orange/green pair of eyes belonging to Scrich.
Beside her sat a short Sprai-koo male, probably expected to immortalize Harry's exact words
onto a PADD or some paper.
"Who are you?" Scrich asked softly.
"Who are 'you'?" Harry shot back, hostile.
"I'm Scrich and right now I want useful information, or life, from you."
"What do you mean with 'life'?" Harry swallowed.
"Give me information, your life or give me a child. You choose."
Harry swallowed again. He hadn't got good choices.
And she looked like she meant what she said, the six people behind him did not encourage him
to think otherwise.
Inside he worked febrile to come up with something that could buy him some more time.
Suddenly, after he'd felt several waves or cold fear come crawling, he remembered something.
He had gone through every little bit of information about the Sprai-koo he had in his head,
when Tom's words came to his mind.
'The Sprai-koo people have got a very hard time remembering names, you can really confuse
them.'
Harry almost smiled, but restrained himself in time.
Lucky for him, he didn't think slow, the time that had passed from when Scrich asked and he
began to talk couldn't have been more than a minute. To Harry's panicking mind and body if
felt like a year. A cold, hostile, settling year of his life. Settling if he could continue to live, or if
it was his time to die. Only time could show.
"I'm Harry," he finally said, making pause for effect like B'Elanna.
"Harry Kim, of the United Federation of Planets, also known as Starfleet. I'm from the ship
U.S.S. Voyager, a United federation of Planets ship.
I'm a human, but you might prefer hunan 'cause that's what everyone else here says. But you
can also say Terran, that's the same. And wait, there's a third option: earthling.
So I'm a human, a Terran or an earthling, or al three, but since they're the same - just choose
one. It's everyone's own choice completely.
Tom, or Tim, is also a human. Or Terran, or earthling. And he's been in the Maquis for three
weeks, and I can assure you that that's longer than I have!
Before than he served on a ship called the Exeter, I can't remember it's registration number ,
so just let it pass, okay?
And B'Elanna, she's been in the Maquis for several years!
Her mother is called Miral, but that's nothing important. Oh, wait! It is! Miral, her mother, is
Klingon, and B'Elanna's father, John Torres, is human, earthling or Terran.
That makes B'Elanna half Klingon and half Terran, earthling or human. And then it's--"
"STOP!!" Scrich roared.
The person expected to write had stopped trying long ago, and was now massaging his
temples, looking somewhat agonized.
Harry's mouth was dry, and his throat soared. He couldn't remember the last time he spilled
that much.
"Take him to jail!" Scrich stood up and pointed towards the door.
When Ecbel and the five guards lead Harry away, they all could hear Scrich mumble something
about what Ecbel had given Harry to grease his glib tongue.
Back out in the hallway, Harry smiled to himself. One of the guards saw it and pushed his
elbow into Harry's abdomen.
"What's that?" Someone asked, and everybody stopped.
Harry thought it sounded amazingly like a Klingon war call, he wasn't sure it was but at least
he hoped so.
***