In Sunshine or In Shadow - Part 10
Creek Johnson & Nance Hurt
Disclaimer: Paramount owns what it owns. We own what we own. No infringement intended - hopefully, none taken.
Kira ran her fingers through her still damp hair and ordered a cup of coffee from the replicator. It was going to be one of those days. To make matters worse, she had dreamt vividly last night, and although she could not remember any of the details, she was left with a lingering sense of loss.
Crossing to the console, she ordered the computer to display her messages. In a way, she longed for the days when, as first officer, the only messages she received were status reports and the very rare message from friends. Since assuming control of the Station, it seemed as though everyone was vying for her attention, and what was once a trickle of reports and requests had now turned into a flood.
"You have fifty seven messages of an official nature," replied the calm voice of the computer. "And one personal message."
One personal message, she thought, maybe the day wasn't going to be that bad after all. She settled herself in front of the terminal and ordered the computer to display the personal message.
Her hand froze, leaving the cup of coffee suspended half way to her lips, as the screen display resolved into a picture of Odo. He was clearly in the Infirmary, standing, or rather leaning, against the table top, his face pale, his voice weak. The message was short, and to the point.
"I'm sorry, Nerys," he said. "I have to do this. It has to end."
He turned away from the console briefly before turning back. Placing his hand against the screen, he said softly. "No matter what happens, I love you." Then the screen went blank.
In an instant, she was up and out the door, her fifty seven official messages and her quickly cooling cup of coffee forgotten without a second thought.
"Don't you even want to know where we are going?" asked Quark.
They sat in what passed for passenger quarters on Ginyu's ship. It was obvious that Ginyu did not have many passengers, as the cabin smelled of old sheets and flight suits worn too long between washings.
"Does it matter?" asked Odo, his voice weak.
This had been going on for hours. In all the years Quark had known Odo, he had never seen him this subdued. Nor, if truth be told, had never seen the Changeling look this bad.
Pale, Odo lay upon the lower berth, clutching the power cell, wires tangled around him. Obviously in pain, it appeared to Quark that Odo would just begin to relax, when an energy charge would cause his body to jerk involuntarily. Quark was worn out just from watching.
"What I don't understand," said Quark "Is how can you be so calm, when I'm about to make a fortune."
"And how can you be so happy knowing you most likely won't live long enough to spend it?"
"Ah, but I'll die a rich man."
Getting no response, he glanced at Odo, only to find him feebly attempting to disentangle himself from the mess of wires belonging to the device Julian had devised.
"Give me that," Quark said, wrenching the power cell away from his companion. "Look at yourself, Odo. You're all tangled up in the wires."
"What's the matter, Quark," Odo growled in reply. "Afraid I'm going to embarrass you in front of your criminal acquaintances?"
"You have always been an embarrassment, why should that change now?" He attempted to straighten out the wires. "What do you suppose would happen if I were to disconnect the wires for a little while?"
"Define a little while."
"Oh, say an hour," replied Quark reaching for a pair of pliers. "Just long enough for me to rig up a shorter version. Say something you could wear around your waist like a belt."
Odo made a sound somewhere between a laugh and a cough. "You?"
"I'll have you know, Rom and Nog aren't the only members of the family handy with tools."
"Picking a lock so you can break into the Infirmary isn't exactly the same as working with sensitive medical instruments."
"Just answer the question will you?" said Quark snapping the jaws of the pliers in rapid succession. "What will happen if I disconnect the wires?"
"Does it matter?"
"Of course it matters. Do you think I want to be stuck with a drooling idiot? This isn't a joy ride, Odo. What happens?"
"I don't know."
"You don't know, or you don't remember?"
"I don't know," said Odo loudly. He jerked the power cell out of Quark's hands and lay back on the bunk. "Now leave me alone."
Quark stood and reached for the hypospray he had rescued from the Infirmary. "Listen, Odo," he said softly. "I did not ask you to come along, you volunteered, and I am not going to let you mess up my plan."
"Don't worry, Quark. Believe me, you won't need my assistance in messing up your selfish little plan."
"Selfish?" said Quark sharply. "You're a fine one to call me selfish! Look, I don't personally give a damn if you die on us or not, but I'm not the selfish one here. It's always been about you hasn't it? You had everything you ever wanted. You wanted to know who you were and where you came from, and you found out. You wanted to be accepted, and you were. You wanted respect, and you got it. You wanted the Colonel to love you as you loved her and, I don't know why, but she does. And what did you do when all your dreams were realized? Without even a thought as to who you were hurting, you walked away from everyone and everything. And you have the nerve to call me selfish? As far as I'm concerned whatever happens to you Odo, you deserve it. But if you think for one moment, I'm not going to let you and the never ending misery you call a life get in the way of realizing my dreams, you're crazy. You see the difference between us is that I know that very few people ever get what they want, and on those very rare occasions when you are lucky enough to have even the smallest of dreams come true, I, unlike you, am not stupid enough or ungrateful enough, or selfish enough to walk away from it."
Much to his surprise, Quark found himself slightly embarrassed by the outburst. He could see his words had stung, it was clearly reflected in the Changelings eyes. They stared at each other in silence. Odo, was the first to look away. "I only did what I felt I had to do," he said in a small voice.
"And I'm only doing what I have to do," replied Quark softly. "Look, I'm only supposed to hand over one dead Changeling. Two would raise suspicions and I'm not about to get myself and Ginyu killed because of you. Now are you going to hand over that thing or not?"
After a moments hesitation, Odo complied. Quark offered him the hypospray.
"No," replied Odo. "Once the energy charge is stopped, I will not need it."
Quark examined the power cell. "I wonder how long this will hold a charge?" he asked.
"About as long as the pain killers last."
"And how long will that be?"
"Let's hope long enough," replied Odo.
There was a small crowd gathered in the Intensive Care Ward of the Infirmary. It did not take long after Julian discovered his patient was missing for word to spread among the Senior Officers of DS9. They were all dreading having to break the news to Kira, and were somewhat relieved when she appeared to have all ready heard.
"It appears," volunteered Marshall. "That what we have here is a rather clear cut case of kidnapping. However, the question remains, who kidnapped who?"
"Kidnapping?" asked Julian.
"Quark and Odo disappear in the night, Doctor," replied Marshall. "Quark is many things, but he has not shown a propensity for extortion on this grand a scale. In which case, we may have to consider, that the Odo in our possession may not be the real Odo, as we had earlier assumed, and for some reason he left the Station, taking Quark with him…."
"Of course he's the real Odo," insisted Julian. "How many Changelings do you suppose suffer from the exact same condition as the Odo Gevrik brought with him from the Gamma Quadrant?"
"Exactly, Doctor. We have all been assuming that the Changeling Gevrik brought with him was…."
"This is pointless," interrupted Kira. "I received a message from Odo this morning. He offered no explanation of where he was going but it was clear he was acting on his own."
"If that were true," said Julian. "Then why take Quark along with him, and why take the ashes of the other Changeling as well?"
The assembled offices looked at each other in silence.
"Nigel Dunlap," said Ezri suddenly.
"Not you too?" replied Marshall.
"Wait," said Flato. "Quark was going on yesterday about Nigel Dunlap. Some information he had picked up through his network."
"Ginyu," volunteered Kira.
"Ginyu's ship did depart late last night," replied Bryan Landis.
"And Quark was rather upset that no one seemed to take him seriously," said Julian.
"And he told me he was prepared to do something about it," said Ezri. "His plan was to prove to Nigel Dunlap that Odo had been killed."
"What better way to provide proof," remarked Julian. "Than to provide the ashes."
"That explains the theft of the ashes," said Marshall. "But it does not explain the disappearance of your patient."
"But it does explain the message I received," replied Kira. She took a moment to pull herself together. "In the message, he said he was sorry and that it had to end."
"So, if he knew Quark was planning to meet this Nigel Dunlap," said Landis. "Then he could what? Confront him?"
"Would he be in any condition to do so?" asked Marshall. "The last time I saw our Mr. Odo, he was hardly in any condition to…."
"Julian?" asked Kira.
"Well," replied Bashir, clearing his throat. "If he were to continue to receive the energy charge therapy we had designed for him, then yes, I would suppose so. However, as we have no idea where they were going, or how long the trip could take, if the power cell loses power…"
"Ginyu filed a flight plan," volunteered Landis. "However, under the circumstances…."
"Ginyu's flight plans are less that reliable even under the best of circumstances," said Marshall. "And how do we know that the underlying plan is not to deliver Odo to Mr. Dunlap along with the ashes?"
"Even Quark wouldn't stoop that low," protested Ezri.
"Perhaps," replied Marshall. "But can we vouch for Ginyu?"
They considered this in silence.
"Let's hope that isn't the case," said Kira eventually. "In the meantime, Mr. Landis, alert all Starfleet vessels in the area to be on the lookout for Ginyu and have one of the ships here on standby, just in case."
"I don't understand," said Quark, stepping back and looking at Odo with irritation. "If my sources are correct, and they always are, you not only could form a human face, but specific faces. Marshall, Sisko, Bariel."
"I've never been able to form a proper human face and you know it," growled Odo is reply. "This is my face, the only face I've ever had."
"Just how much do you remember?" asked Quark, suspicion in his voice. "About your time on the Station? Before you were in the Infirmary, I mean?"
"Is there a point to this?"
I guess not, thought Quark. He looked at Odo. "Can you at least look like you're not wearing a uniform?"
"Quark!"
"Just do it."
With a waive of his arms, Odo's uniform rippled and then solidified. "How's that?" he asked, clearly irritated.
"It's still your uniform, only a different color," declared Quark. "Something else, please?"
"Fine," replied Odo. He made a small gesture, his uniform rippling. "Happy now?"
Quark gazed at him in silence. The uniform remained, the only difference being it had changed back to the original color. He took a quick glance at the power cell, the charge light glowing dimly, and cursed to himself. There wasn't time to either charge the cell or find a replacement. They had run out of pain killers that morning and were resolved to having to put up with Odo's periodic spasms for as long as they lasted. And please, thought Quark, let them last long enough for them to get safely away.
"Well?" demanded Odo.
"Never mind," said Quark softly. He reached for a discarded flight suit. "Here, just put this on. The smell at least will keep anyone from taking too close a look at you."
Odo took the suit, looking at it with suspicion. "Is there anything else you would like?" he asked with ill grace.
"Here." Quark handed him a helmet and pair of goggles. "And remember, only speak when spoken to."
"Ready?" asked Ginyu's voice over the comm.
Quark looked at Odo, his borrowed flight suit two sizes too small, the helmet perched on the back of his head, the goggles askew.
"Ready," he announced to the comm. system. Handing the container of ashes to Odo, he added softly to himself. "We're all going to die."
Kira Nerys sat in her office, the pile of paperwork unnoticed and wished she were anywhere but on the Station. She allowed her gaze to wander to the window. He was out there somewhere, she thought, and she was unable to help him. Frustration welled up inside her.
She looked up as the door to her office slid open. Bryan Landis stood on the threshold, in his hand a padd.
"Not another report I hope," she said waiving her hands at the piles of padds littering her desk. "I'm behind enough as it is."
"I thought you would want to see this one as soon as it came in," replied Landis. "Captain Jonas of the Reliant reports he spotted a ship like Ginyu's while on a routine patrol. It looked as though Ginyu was headed for the Thelos System."
"Thelos?" asked Kira. "What's near Thelos?"
"Well it is on a direct course tp the Orion System. And Starfleet Intelligence indicates that it has been the center of a lot of illegal activity. The moons around Thelos IV in particular appear to be a favorite place for smugglers to store illegal goods."
"I see. How well do you know Captain Jonas?"
"I know him to speak to," replied Landis, "Why?"
"I was wondering if he could be persuaded to hang around the Thelos System for awhile, just in case Ginyu makes another appearance."
"Understood. I'll see what I can do."
Well, thought Kira, that was something. With a Starfleet ship in the area, she felt a little better. But not by much.
The hanger doors slid open allowing Quark and Odo enter. Around the perimeter of the hanger were storage boxes, piled seven containers high. There was no sign of any other occupants.
"What do you think you are doing?" asked Odo, as Quark took a quick walk around the hanger.
"Trying to make sure we aren't walking into an ambush."
"Forgive me if I'm wrong, but isn't that the point of an ambush? That you don't see it coming?"
"Didn't I tell you not to speak until spoken to?" asked Quark. "And try to look a little more intimidating will you?"
Before Odo could reply a small door at the far end of the hanger slid open and a man entered. He was of medium height with an intimidating build. He approached the pair with a slow and steady stride.
"Mr. Dunlap?" asked Quark stepping forward. He signaled for Odo to follow.
"You must be Mr. Addams," said the man, coming to a halt in the center of the hanger. "You didn't say anything about bringing a friend?"
"Not a friend. My…ah…my bodyguard. This is Lurch." Quark had chosen names based on a book of drawing someone had left in the bar.
Odo bared his teeth and growled, which would have been impressive, had the power cell not chosen that moment to send a jolt of energy throughout Odo's body causing him to jerk violently.
"Is your…bodyguard…well?" asked the man.
"Perfectly," said Quark with as much dignity as he could muster. "He twitches from time to time."
"Twitches?"
"Twitches," confirmed Quark.
"I twitch," said Odo with finality.
"I see," said the man. "Well, Mr. Addams, as you are well aware, it is a great deal of money we are talking about. I assume you brought proof you carried out the contract?"
"Of course," Quark indicated the box. "We have all the proof anyone could wish for."
"Then you won't mind if I take a look?"
"Of course not," said Quark stepping in front of the man to block his way. "I won't mind, but will Mr. Dunlap?"
"And what makes you think I'm not Mr. Dunlap?"
"We weren't born yesterday, my friend. If we were we wouldn't have been able to take down a Changeling, now would we?" Odo growled again for good measure and Quark gave him an appreciative glance. "Now, you've seen us," he continued. "You know we aren't armed. You know we have the goods. Be a good little man and tell your boss we are here to collect the money."
"But I haven't seen the goods," asserted the man.
"Very well," agreed Quark signaling to Odo to bring the container forward.
The man stepped forward, his hand brushing Odo's as he opened the container and looked at the ashes within. Apparently satisfied, he took a step back and nodded. Without a further word, he turned and left the hanger.
"Just have to know how to talk to these people," muttered Quark. "Now, if Ginyu's done his job, all we have to do is collect the money and transport out of here. Do you have any idea how rich I'm going to be?"
"Do you have any idea how little I care?"
The door slid open again and a small group entered. Four men of varying species and a woman. As they drew closer, Quark felt the room grow suddenly cold. The woman as a Founder. Not the Female Founder, he realized as she was still in prison, but a female Founder none the less. Fighting panic, he casually crossed his arms, reaching for the communications badge hidden in his suit pocket. Once Ginyu read the signal, they would be beamed to safety. Should be beamed to safety. Why weren't they being beamed to safety?
"Mr. Addams," said the Founder. "Trying to signal your ship? I'm afraid, Captain Ginyu is no longer within communications range. His ship left shortly after you arrived."
"It did?" asked Quark wishing his voice did not squeak so much under pressure. "Never mind, I'll buy a ship of my own, once the terms of the contract are satisfied."
"Ah yes, the contract. I am told you have proof?"
Quark turned and took the container from Odo. "Here," he said offering it to her. "All that remains of the target."
"So it would appear," she said looking, but making no effort to touch the container. "And how do I know this is the right Changeling?"
"Well, of course it is," blustered Quark, handing the container back to Odo. "Who else would it be?"
"Who indeed. And how may I ask did you kill him?"
"Ah, I didn't," confessed Quark, taking a step back. "My associate did. With his bare hands actually. He looks simple, but he's really quite dangerous." Odo bared his teeth and growled, which would have been impressive, had the power cell not chosen that moment to send a jolt of energy throughout Odo's body causing him to jerk violently. "He twitches," Quark said, the words sounding lame even to himself.
"Poor Odo," she said pushing past Quark as though he did not exist. She gently removed the goggles and helmet from Odo's head. "What have they done to you?"
"They," said Odo. "Have done nothing but try to help me. They question is, what have you done to me?"
"Why only try to help you, of course."
"Help me? By driving me insane? How would that help me?"
"Sanity is purely subjective, Odo, you know that. By our standards, you are insane. We are only trying to restore your mental health. To give you peace."
He laughed. "If by peace, you mean placid obedience to the will of the Link, then I'd rather be insane."
"That's the pain talking Odo, not you. You cannot really believe what you are saying."
"No.," he said. "It's you that cannot accept what I am saying. Here," he offered her the container of ashes. "Take this and return him to the Link. I won't be returning with you."
"Then you will die."
"Then I'll die," he said. "But I'll die among people who understand the concept of an individual. I'll die along with thousands of others who died in the cause of freedom of thought." He reached a hand out to Quark. "Give me your weapon."
Quark glanced nervously around him. The Founder nodded and the man closest to Odo offered him his phaser. Taking the weapon, Odo offered it to the Founder. "If you want me dead," he said harshly. "Then have the decency to kill me yourself!"
"As you know Odo," she said, never looking at the weapon. "No Changeling has ever harmed another. But then you are the exception to the rule, aren't you?"
"No Changeling has ever harmed another," he scoffed. "No, they just hire others to do it for them. Don't they Mr. Dunlap?"
"You are damaged, Odo, from spending too much time among the Solids. You mind clouded….."
"Clouded? I do not believe so. I believe I can think more clearly now than I've ever thought before. Here," he dropped the container on the deck between them and tossed the phaser after it. "I think I've been set up from the beginning. I think you wanted your Agent to be killed. I think you probably intended him to be the one to die in the first place. I think you will report to the Link that I, under the influence of the barbaric Solids, killed your agent. I've killed before, it would not take much to convince them I could do it again. I think you will take me back and hold another trial. Only, I don't think you will be happy with just turning me into a solid. I think you'll terminate me this time, as a warning to other Founders who think too much for themselves. Who show too much sympathy for the Solids. Am I right so far?"
"You always did think too much..."
"Ah, but the beauty of it is that this is not the end of your plan is it?" he asked with a bitter laugh. "No. As no Founder is ever totally to blame for anything, you will say it's all the fault of the Solids. Those evil, undisciplined, disorderly Solids, they did this to me, drove me to murder. And in the blink of an eye, you'll have Jem'Hadar troops coming through the wormhole and you'll start the killing all over again. Only, this time it won't just be a war, it will be a reckoning."
She looked at Odo in silence.
"Very well reasoned," she said eventually. "Your years as an investigator served you well. You only missed one detail."
"And what would that be?"
"It is not necessary for you to return to the Link. We can kill you now." She raised her hand.
"Wait!" shouted Quark. "I have just one question."
"Very well," said the Founder, never taking her eyes off Odo. "Let us hear your one question."
"Where's the profit in killing us?
"Profit?" she seemed puzzled. "Of course, you are a Ferengi."
"Yes, yes I am," declared Quark. "I am a proud member of one of the most despised races in the Alpha Quadrant. Only the Founders are more despised than we are."
"Quark!" warned Odo.
"You know," said Quark ignoring the warning. "It never occurred to me before, but we have a lot in common, the Ferengi and the Dominion. We both are interested in order and we both deal in revenge."
"Revenge?" asked the Founder. "We are not interested in revenge."
"Aren't you? Aren't you motivated to bring order into the Universe based on what Solids have done to you in the past? Sounds like revenge to me!"
Receiving no reply, Quark continued. "You see, in our past, we were also persecuted, driven from place to place. And like your Jem'Hadar we were fearsome warriors. However, as time passed, we found imposing economic order upon our enemies to be more beneficial than simply killing them. You can only kill your enemy once, but you can place him in bankruptcy again and again."
"Most instructive," replied the Founder. "However, I fail to see what this has to do with your present situation."
"Ah," said Quark. "This is where revenge comes in. If you really want to punish Odo and seek revenge against the Alpha Quadrant, then leave Odo to us."
"Leave Odo to you? To use your own words, what profit is there in that?"
"Did I not say that your people were more despised than mine? Think of what would happen if the Alpha Quadrant were faced with a constant reminder of the War and of their loss. Leave Odo here, and he would become the embodiment of everything we despise about you. And what better punishment for Odo, than to be vilified by the very people he has always defended? You can only kill him once, but pain and humiliation can last forever."
"Our agents were under the impression Odo was viewed as a hero?"
"Your agents are wrong. Oh, there a few people around the Station who think he's wonderful, but they represent a very small percentage of the population. Believe me, I can think of thousands of people who would like nothing better than to see Odo suffer. I can think of one, who would like nothing better than to see his miserable, selfish bottom behind bars."
"You make an interesting argument," said the Founder. "I will take it under advisement."
"Can we go then?" asked Quark.
"No." she turned to her escorts. "You know what you have to do. When you are done, report to my ship." Without a backwards glance, she turned and left.
"Well," said Quark, taking his place beside Odo. "I tried."
"I think it was the fearsome warrior line that she found unconvincing," replied Odo.
"Go to hell, Odo."
"I believe we both are about to do just that."
"I hate to interrupt, gentlemen," said the man Quark recognized as Dunlap's representative. "But we have work to do."
At his signal, his four companions pulled their weapons and started to fire.