"Retribution and revenge cuts both ways." - Gene Roddenberry (1921 - 1991)

"Our prime obligation to ourselves is to make the unknown known. We are on a journey to keep an appointment with whatever we are." - Gene Roddenberry

Two days ago.
Passing the 5th planet in the Trill system

Yeoman's log. I'm afraid trouble is brewing on this short voyage. Emzio doesn't appreciate the attention that the Admiral is giving his lady love, Nei.

Emzio walked up to Nei, who is by Gi Jip Koda at the helm. In an unheard dialogue, he gestured as if bowing. She responded with an attitude of exaggeratedly flattered shyness. Emzio watched suspiciously. Emzio drew his hand in a horizontal line at neck level.

That was the final straw, Emzio stormed forward and decked Admiral Harkness. That was two days ago. Luckily he is a civilian, and technically the Admiral did go looking for trouble.

-/\-

Planet: Risa

On a typical warm day, 30 Celcius with the wind blowing kept the local environment comfortable.

Liz Archer, Mike Anderson, Alice and Stryker rematerialized in a moderate sized city on the North shore.

Stryker wore black swimming trunks, red vest with no sleeves, while Alice were dressed in a jade coloured swimsuit.

Two hours later

Stryker, Liz Archer, Mike Anderson and Alice were surrounded by nine other jumpers, about an hour before take off. They were about to get into their silver dropsuits.

Two female instructors, both of them, Andorians, looked at their class of students. The taller spoke first, "Listen up. I want everyone to have a good time. I just ask that everyone of you follow one very important rule. Just one simple rule."

The students all looked at her, she held their full attention now. The short one addressed them, "If you feel the need to vomit," She raised her voice for emphasis, "DON'T!"

Eleven people stared at her.

The tall one walked among the students. She looked at Alice, her bulging stomach. "Ma'am, you are pregnant. We cannot allow you to jump."

Alice argued with the Andorian, but the blue skinned woman stood her ground. Stryker and Alice told Liz and Mike you enjoy their jump and walked out of the training room, heading to the beach.

-/\-

Angel stared out from her balcony suite at the sunny beach. The place wasn't too crowded yet, but it was still early. Her penthouse (rented under a false name) was luxurious, but she didn't care that much. With her new organization taking shape (and the useless individuals weeded out) she was ready to begin her assignment. Frankly, when this job materialized, she had doubts. But with a little investigation, Angel was convinced this would be her finest work yet.

One of her lieutenants was standing by and she waived him over. He wore a nice suit, as she instructed. Angel refused to have her people looking like slobs. She said, "Any word yet?"
"No ma'am," said the human. "The Admiral should be arriving shortly. I have people watching the hotel and monitoring all incoming space traffic."
"Very well."
"There is one thing though. A Starfleet vessel has arrived," he said.

"Oh?" asked Angel.

"But it doesn't appear to be transporting the Admiral. Must be some regular duty ship on shore leave."

"Have them watched anyway," she commanded. "And have my ship standing by. I anticipate a hasty departure."

"Yes ma'am," he said and hurried off.

Her newest captured ship was her favorite. The Klingons weren't too happy about having to part with a Vor'Cha class battle cruiser, but Angel simply had to have it. They put up quite a fight, though. But in the end, Klingons were more brutish thugs, and easily fooled.

Cain had entered the room and reported, "I've just received word. All our facilities are ready for action, as are the personnel."

"Good," she said. "It seems that the Admiral is running a little late, though."
Her thoughts turned to her current task, taking care of Admiral Harkness. Her contractors had been quite specific about his fate. Elimination. Nothing fancy; just the standard termination. "Remember Cain, I want our very best people to capture him."

"Look," said Cain. "I know I'm going to regret asking, but I understood the job to be termination. So why exactly are we kidnapping him?"

"I hate the term 'kidnapping,'" she said. "It's so juvenile. 'Abduction' will work fine."

"Well whatever you call it, Starfleet's going to go nuts looking for him," warned Cain.

"They'll never pay ransom anyway."

Angel smiled. "I'm not to worried about Starfleet. Anyway, we're going to disguise the abduction. Harkness has information I want. Valuable information. You're human, Cain. Are you familiar with the works of Carl Jung?"

Cain sighed and looked bored. "No, Angel. I'm not."

She said, "A great thinker. For a human, anyway. Quite rational. And yet at times, he proposed the most preposterous theories," she said. "The notion of synchronicity for example. Totally illogical. Jung believed in a series of coincidences that all point in one direction. Take into accounts current events. A plague drives me off planet here to the Federation, and this job comes along, with the specific target being one Admiral Harkness." Angel looked as if deep in thought. "And the knowledge he carries could mean everything to me. All of these events, happening in sequence…mere coincidence? Or is there something more too it?"

Cain shrugged. "You know, I really don't have a clue Angel."

Angel gave him a smile. "Of course you don't. Such notions as fate and destiny are silly.

And yet, I would be quite foolish not to pursue them."

"Ok, so what does he know that's…"
Angel interrupted. "Never you mind about that. Your concern is getting him to me, understand?"
"Yes, that I understand," said Cain. "But what happens when you-know-who finds out he's not dead as instructed, but kidnap…I mean, abducted?"

Angel shook her head condescendingly. "They're not GOING to know, you colossal genius. Because, we're going to fake his assassination. To everyone else, he'll appear to be dead. Meanwhile, we'll abscond with Harkness to our secret base."
She giggled. "Oh, doesn't that just sound DELICIOUS?"

-/\-

Mike Anderson and Liz Archer Sky diving

"I am really going to regret this !" Mike thought.

Dressed in a silverdrop suit, Mike was staring out the gaping jump-off port at the huge blue and white orb hanging in space before him -- and was frozen to the spot. His knees wouldn't work. "I hate heights. I really really hate heights."

Liz jumped out. Mike untensed near the jump port in preparation to back away from it. But the instructor, Maxine had other ideas. She waited for just the right moment, then put her foot on his behind and shoved him out of the shuttlecraft. He panicked, arms cart wheeling as he tried to grab something, anything to halt his descent.

After the initial shock and near 'heart attack', he had to admit that the experience is a blast. There he and Liz were, hanging over the planet in their own personal orbit. After nine minutes, his instruments informed him that his orbit was decaying.

They started their descent. Liz skimmed the atmosphere, sparks literally flying out from under her feet. She shrieked in delight from the thrill of it. Mike winced at the shriek, "Ouch, my head."

Liz was having fun, "Hey!" she said through the communicator. "There's really nothing to this!"

They fell, and fell, and fell for more than twenty minutes. Liz attempted to etch her name in the sky, using the smoke created from the friction before she'd drop below the safety zone.

The friction from his sheer falling speed created smoke as well. What followed turned a joyful ride into a frightening plunge. Somehow, his feet whipped out from under him, putting him into a backward tumble.

He remembered what to do from the simulation. He was able to halt the tumble, but did not have the strength to reposition his feet under himself. He was falling, backside first, towards the grassy plains below. Fortunately, the safety chute automatically deployed with a satisfying yank to his entire person. He knew now that he was going to be all right.

Liz's chute opened too, moments later. Little did she know, is that her suit had come dangerously close to failure, measured by the degree of charring on her 'backside.'

"How do you feel?" she asked him when he safely landed next to her on the grass prairie. The feet of their dropsuits were blackened, charred by the heat as they entered the atmosphere. His body-suit is charred, scorched, wisps of smoke still curling off it.

Mike shrugged as he pulled off his helmet, "I cannot feel my legs. In fact, I cannot feel anything. I am completely numb all around."

Their hands flew to their ears as a pair of sound shockwaves come from above. "Sonic boom!" Liz whooped. Mike simply slumped, content to sit on the ground where it is safe. No more damn falling.

He looked up at her, "And worst of all is, I think I am still scared of heights."

Hours later..

Lying on the beach sunbathing, Liz and Mike are taking it easy. Mike leans over Liz smiling and looks at her.

"Now this is something I like, Sunbathing, an activity that doesn't mean heights!"

Liz cries out and tries to push him away from her view of the sun. "Mike, you are blocking the sun!" When he is out of her way she takes her sunglasses down and looks at him amused and teases with him. "Are you sure that you don't want to try the skydiving again?"

"No, I am sure…This is much better.." he replies without hesitating. She puts the sunglasses on and takes her place on the sun chair and says. "To bad. It is your lost.."

Liz suddenly feels that something is wrong with Mike. She immediately ask. "What's wrong?"

Mike who had a, as she thought, a forced smile gave her a huge bear hug. He whispered. "We are being watched." Liz immediately froze as she looked into his eyes.

"Where?" She asked. He pretended to laugh as she had said something funny and then said quietly. "At six a clock. The woman in red."

Liz released her from his arms and took the sun cream in her hand. She says out loud. "I believe your back are in need of some sun cream." She sprays some sun cream on his back and looks at the direction where Mike told. He was right. At sic a clock she could see a red dressed woman suspicious watching them closely. When she saw that Liz was watching her she immediately looked down and pretended to read something. "Amateur!" Liz thought. She whispers to Mike. "Should we notify Stryker?" Mike replies as he gives her a smile. "You bet!"

-/\-

McKinley Station – Sector 001

"Attention please. This is the final boarding call for flight 477, nonstop service to Olympia, Mars. All passengers please report to Gate 3A at this time. Final boarding, flight 477."

Faceless in the crowd, sitting in one of the concourse's coffee shops with a raktajino and a plate of chocolate chip cookies, a woman wearing the uniform of a Starfleet medical officer sipped at her drink and watched the people go by. Near her elbow sat a PADD, this one carrying a travel authorization: "COLERIDGE/KAREN.LT SF1899 MCK / SFO 05-A."

On a busy Friday evening, McKinley Station resembled nothing so much as an old Earth airport. You couldn't step more than a meter in any direction without running into either a Starfleeter on business or a gaggle of vacationing civilians, the food was mediocre, the air stale and the noise level deafening. However, Karen preferred the bustle down here to the carefully manicured environment of the O-Club on the fourth level, which to her looked like a cross between a hotel bar and an attorney's waiting room.

"Attention please. Would passenger Takeo Sakai, please answer a courtesy page at one of the green communications terminals. Passenger Sakai, you have a courtesy page at the green communications terminals."

"Mommy, they have cookies! Want cookies!" a little boy shouted as his harried parents practically dragged their offspring toward the boarding gates.

The mother never broke stride. "No honey, we're going to be late, and then you won't get to see Aunt Shena and all your cousins..."

"Don't care! Want cookies! COOKIES, MOMMY!"

"Attention please. This is flight 1899, nonstop service to San Francisco, Earth. We'd like to begin boarding with flag officers, Elite travelers and any other passengers who may need extra time boarding the shuttle. Flight 1899, now boarding at Gate 17."

Karen looked at the chrono, hastily wrapped the two uneaten cookies in a napkin and ran after the family with the little cookie monster. "Excuse me, ma'am, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation, and I won't be finishing my snack before my flight leaves. Your son is welcome to my cookies, if that's okay."

"Absolutely n--" the mother started to snap, but the man standing with them - father? uncle? in-law? cut her off. "Lady, you're a lifesaver. Thanks."

"See, isn't that nice, the Starfleet lady gave you her cookies. You say thank you," the mother ground out through clenched teeth, and the little boy responded with a mumble of "Thank you."

"Glad I could help," Karen said with a lopsided smile. "You three have a nice day."

As she walked back toward Gate 17, she could still hear the woman, now shrilly arguing with her companion. "David, what is the matter with you! You know he's not allowed to eat that junk! I swear to God, you're no better than a three-year-old yourself! If you didn't let him get his way all the time, we'd--"

Karen was still laughing when she got to the gate five minutes later.

-/\-

Risa

Gi Jip Koda jumped, startled, when he heard Admiral Harkness's voice. Then he looked around. "By the code! Mister Gi Jip Koda!" Harkness hollowed in his thick Scottish accent.

Gi Jip Koda appeared beside Harkness. "It appears, m'lad, that we've reached Risa."

"Yes sir."

"Relax lad. Get my gear ready and rest up. At first light, we're going for a hike in the Hydra Mashes."

-/\-

25 kilometers off shore

As he gently swam through the pure blue water. His wide yellow and black eyes scanning his surroundings. Wider then those of humans, for Edenians need to see in complete darkness, and the wider the eyes, the more light he could take in. There was no need to blink. His arms stretched out in front of him, his rubbery skin, the texture like that of a dolphin, allowed the water to smoothly pass over him. Less friction and more speed.

He looked up, Alice was swimming, wearing scuba gear. "Mmm, nice tail !" Stryker joked.

Alice scowled, "I heard that." she grinned. "Thank you."

Nearby, Stryker was talking to her earlier, a young elfin-looking girl with blue hair was swimming as well.

A few hours later….

Alice sat on the front steps of the beach house, enjoying the night air. Everyone had gone to bed hours before, but she had been unable to sleep so she had come outside.

She found this place enchanting. She had enjoyed being here, with her friends, far away from Starfleet. Everyone having a wonderful time together. Alice found herself wishing she could spend the rest of her time here, maybe not even return to the Pretoria.

"Penny," Rakurai Stryker said, stealing one of her lines.

Alice jumped, surprised at the touch, she looked, finding Stryker standing behind her. Alice was shocked, she realized that she forgot that he was creep around without making the slight sound.

"I was thinking how beautiful it is here. And that I wish I had more time to spend here, it's so peaceful." Alice told him.

He smiled, "Let's go for a walk."

A few minutes later ...
The pair walked side by side on the white beach, fingers interlaced with each other, as lazy waves crashed against their bare feet.

Alice wore a casual, sleeveless, white dress, that fell down to her ankles. It was made of a soft, thin fabric, something he had never seen or felt before. The dress wrapped around her body, hugging her hips, very pregnant belly, and the curves of her breasts, it was held together by a single clasp at her left hip, the fabric flowing down the rest of her body. As she walked her legs would come out of hiding.

Alice had a sly grin on her face, Stryker wasn't wearing anything but dark grey pants that conformed to his body's every muscle and body part.

The sky began to grow a vague pink as the last day light started to fade, the warm air smelled sensuous as it blew around the couple. It had been a beautiful day, perfect for a relaxing stroll along the water's edge

"It looks like it may rain."

Alice smiled, "Let it rain, I always loved to play in the rain as a child. As long as the rain doesn't become to heavy, if you don't mind, I would like to continue our walk. I'll enjoy it, the warm air and the rain will feel wonderful."

"You look positively radiant." Stryker said.

Alice bowled Stryker over and kissed him. He devoured her mouth with an urgent hunger. Alice responded in full force, arms wrapped around his neck, fingers dancing over the back of his head, his body responding to her caresses. Pulling her closer, he kissed Alice's soft lips until he was dizzy, then kissed her some more.

Alice gave him a look, direct and feral. They did not notice Liz Archer and Mike approaching.

-/\-

Risa

As the day wore on, Angel decided to walk about on Risa and kill some time before her target arrived. It was more to get the feel for the area, but nonetheless, she left her room and made her way to a causal outdoor café. A few of her people took up discreet guardian positions, but otherwise left her alone. Angel watched people come and go, logging every one to memory and categorizing possible threats. A vast majority were none at all.
A waiter took her order (ice water, just to blend in) and then went back to scanning.
She heard a large person come up behind her. "Finally!" said the accented heavy voice. "After all this time, I have found you?"

Angel slowly turned and saw a heavyset Orion man standing there wearing a waiter's uniform. Quickly, the man sat down at her table and smiled. "Don't move. You are being covered." He was holding some kind of weapon under the table.

Angel was curious. "And you are?"
"Klev. Klev Kavak. And you killed my brother. I am of course, here for vengeance."
"Klev? Hmm," thought Angel. Naturally, she made the connection, but wasn't going to make this any easier for him. "Oh, Klev! Ah yes. Akin to the deceased Zev Kavak, I presume," she said in a friendly tone.

Klev chuckled. "How nice of you to remember. I wanted you to know first who it was who had killed you. Tracking you was no small task, I can assure. But finally! Here I sit!"

"Yes, there you sit," she said. "I must compliment you on your finding me, Klev. I make it a point to blend in to the background. That must have been quite some task indeed."

"It was worth it, cursed woman!" spat Klev. "But blood honor demanded it. I have devoted the last two years of my life for this one moment in time."

Angel shook her head. "I don't see why. I can promise you that Zev deserved to die."
"Lies!" said Klev.
"But he was a criminal," offered Angel.
"He was my brother," said Klev.

"Yes I know that, dear. You mention that already. Listen, it was either me or him. It was a total survival situation. I only did what anyone else would do."
"You planted a neutrino-dilithium bomb on his private yacht!" Klev said through a twisted face.

"Well I meant 'survival' in more of the long term sense," said Angel with a tiny grin. "But enough of that. Tell you what, Klev. I have other business here and have absolutely no time whatsoever to have a long drawn out war with you and your syndicate. So, why don't you just trot off and we can do this at another time? Honestly, any other time but now, and I'd be happy to oblige. But these days," she shrugged, "I'm simply swamped, all right dear heart?"

"Don't mock me," said Klev. "I have a dozen of my men here, all watching us. You have no chance. And don't even think about offering me money or anything else."

Angel saw his men. They were obvious. Actually, they resembled her own, but in cheaper suits that didn't fit well. Klev was a fashion-idiot. Had he no pride?
"I offered you life, for now, and another chance later on. I can see you predictably chose to fight."
"There will be no fight." Klev straightend. "No more talking. Time to die!"

"You stupid Orion slob," said Angel pitifully. "All this time, and you never even noticed that I deactivated your weapon."

She didn't, but of course Klev moved his hand under the table. Quickly, Angel grabbed his gun-toting wrist and snapped it back, breaking several bones. His hand, and weapon, were now pointing at his own fat belly. Klev yelled out in pain.
"Oh don't make a scene!" she scolded him. "Now let go of the weapon," she prompted as she would a child.

Klev shouted, "Kill her! Kill her you idiots!" His men started to move in on them, and Angel's did as well. Her patience for Klev diminished, and she pulled the trigger for him. An orange beam pierced through him, and hit one of his men. Her men fired back, and a very large phaser battle ensued. What was once a quiet café on an average Risa street had now turned into a very violent criminal shoot-out. Angel was aware of the situation, and quickly withdrew. Her men were better shots, and the battle was soon over. Only the screams of shocked bystanders was heard, and the smoking bodies of Klev's gang lay in the café.

In an unmarked aircar, Angel was furious. "Stupid, miserable, worthless Orion!" she said through clenched teeth. In a mirror, she checked her face to make sure there was no blood on it. "Of all the unfortunate timing! That fat swine had to make his move!"
Cain was on a scrambled communicator and said, "All you all right?"
"Of course I am!" she said. "But now the Federation will be all over the place. Ooh, if I could only kill him again I would!"
"Should we cancel the op?" said Cain.

"No. It still goes. But move everyone," ordered Angel. Composing herself, she added, "We'll wait and see how this affects the Admiral's schedule. Then we'll alter the plan accordingly." A bit more annoyed, she said, "Has he even arrived yet?"
"Actually, he has," said Cain.
"About time. All right then. Keep a watch on him at all times. I'll meet up with you shortly."