Chapter 50: Spies

A/N: Hi Alaya, Narek certainly seems to have plans of his own. It's also interesting to see Romulans with different hairstyles and even beards. It would seem they have radically changed their fashion sense :-D

Lilou and the Romulan statue was another of those scenes that just popped into my head while writing. Lilou has got her very own personality and a keen sense of mischief, encouraged by especially Asha.

I have a few ideas about giving Letant his separate fanfic and a Human companion he'll adore with all his Romulan heart :-)

Hi romulanlover, as you, too, pointed out, the Tal Shiar agents are a nasty obstacle. They're lurking in the background, and things are not as easy-breezy as they look... I'm also so glad you find the Tosha and Vreesha relationships mature and well written. Thank you so much!

Romulan vocab lesson: "Fvai" means "worm". As for the Borg...They most certainly don't belong to me!


Asha was lying in Vreenak's arms on his chaise longue. There was something about this habit which possessed an intensity which testified to their closeness as deeply as their love-making, though in a different manner. One month had passed since she had sat her citizenship exams, interest in her book had soared since Senator Cretak had mentioned it to the public, and she was basking in the love of her husband and Vreenak. She felt thoroughly spoilt and wondered at how good life was being to her on Romulus.

"A'rhea," Vreenak said to her, and she smiled at him and ran her finger along the tip of his pointed ear. She had figured out very easily, and not only because of her reading, that Romulans were as sensitive around the tips of their ears as Ferengi about their so-called lobes.

"I will be touring the planet for a month. I leave next week for my campaign. I hope to be appointed as Proconsul next year."

She nodded, unsurprised. "Will it be possible for me to keep in touch with you, e'lev?"

"Encrypted messages, used sparingly. It's best if you message when I message you."

"All right."

When they left with an embrace, he said, "I'll miss you." It was not something a proud Romulan could say easily.

"I'll miss you, too," she replied, taking his hands in hers. "Please look after yourself."

"I'll make sure to check every corner for rathakir," he said dryly.

She smiled, her dimples easing the pain in his heart. He gave her a long kiss on the forehead and a lingering one on her mouth, which she thoroughly enjoyed and responded to. They stepped apart reluctantly and looked at each other earnestly. The unspoken fear that someone or something unfriendly might discover their relationship, an underflow of doubt, were always part of their parting. As if they feared never seeing each other again afterwards.

"Be well, Merken. Jolan'tru."

"You, too, Asha Sen t'Darak. Jolan'tru."

He slid his hands out of hers and left the room quickly. Asha got into the flitter with Lilou, who had been napping in the hall, her coat glossy from her recent trip to the set'leth groomer's and Asha's disciplined brushing. Asha stroked the fluffy ears thoughtfully on the way home. She had known that a relationship with Vreenak would not be easy given his schedule and the secrecy of their bond. She had always been more of a person who thought of the future rather than living in the moment. She liked to make plans to prepare for the future, and it was difficult for her to map out a concrete vision of life with Vreenak. It simply wasn't possible, given the paranoia in Romulan society and mutterings about the Tal Shiar.

Only a few days ago, one of Vekal and Christine's neighbours had been arrested for public protests against the Tal Shiar. "They were good, decent people," Vekal told Asha. He was upset and angry. Christine showed Asha a photograph she had taken of their neighbour's door after the arrest.

It showed a plaque hammered into the door. It read: "This building is the property of the Tal Shiar. Any attempts to trespass will result in your arrest."

"We have seen their thugs transport their possessions from the house," Christine said. "They're not going to come back."

"They are going to be executed," Vekal said bluntly. "And it also means that if they have been keeping an eye on our neighbours, then they are surveilling me and my wife." He put his arm protectively around Christine. "And they are most definitely spying on you."

Asha and Thorek looked at each other. "It would hardly surprise us," Thorek said.

"Maybe it is even the doing of one of your Senator friends," Vekal said bitterly.

"No, they would never do that!" Asha protested.

"You do not strike me as naïve, paenhe, but I think you are being very stubborn in this case. Politicians are among those who will look out for their own skin first," Vekal countered.

"If that is so, why would Vreenak suffer me to visit him when it could severely damage his career?" Asha reminded him.

"She has a point," Thorek said. Christine remained silent. She had learnt her lesson and refused to get involved in Asha's personal life.

Vekal sighed. "On your head be it to fling caution to the winds," he remarked coolly and changed the topic.


When Vreenak returned from his campaign tour and Asha visited him, she told him about what had happened to Vekal and Christine's neighbours.

"How come the Tal Shiar have such power, even more than the Senate and Praetor?" she asked him.

"It's something I am not at liberty to speak of, in accordance with my senatorial position. Even if you were officially my mate, I would not be able to do so. My duties to the Empire seal my lips. But I am in a quandary. "

She traced said lips softly with the pads of her fingers.

"Then don't speak of it," she said. "But I think I can guess. Does your quandary also involve me because I'm Human and the Praetor is...wary...where the Federation is concerned?"

Merken smiled. "You would make an outstanding politician, a'rhea, with your acumen. Yes, it does. I have to advise my superiors on how to keep the Federation at arm's length."

Asha played gently with his fingers, smiling a little sadly. "I know, Merken, and you warned me about the struggle when it comes to standing in the crossfire between your duties towards the Empire and your feelings for a representative of a despised minority group. You are married to politics first."

Merken held her close. "A'rhea, my concern is not so much about myself as it is about you. I fear putting you in danger, despite your popularity with the public and possession of full Romulan rights."

"If Praetor Neral found out, what would he do?"

"A Senator and Praetor's advisor courting a popular married Human with her husband's agreement? My political career would be over. And you…" he broke off and clenched his jaw.

"My rights as a Romulan citizen can be revoked as quickly as they were bestowed, can they not?"

His eyes hardened. "Not without a formal inquiry and a decision in court. But yes, they could be taken away."

"Would I be thrown in prison, sentenced to the Reman mines or even to death?" she inquired calmly.

"Permanent arrest is quite likely, though I would take steps to prevent that." He refrained from telling her that he had in fact given his word to her husband when Thorek had asked him for an audience. He also didn't tell her that some prisoners, male and female, were made to work in brothels catering to what was regarded as the lowest class of Romulan society.

"You would?" Asha said.

"I would."

"I wouldn't want you to risk your life for me."

"You are my mate."

"But politicians are devoted to their career first," she said softly. "The Empire is your mate, too."

"Yes, for the Praetor is the voice of the Empire and the Proconsul the voice of the Senate, and I serve them. But under no circumstance will I serve them if they threaten you."

"Merken, you said the higher you climb as a politician, the more dangerous it gets. And now that we are mates, I hardly think that danger is going to cease."

"Danger is not so much a risk as it is an opportunity," he observed.

She smiled a little. "When I think how you visited me in disguise to return my anklet, I daresay you know how to keep your eyes and ears peeled. You don't seem too averse to risk."

"I was delighted that you lost your anklet."

"Really? Why am I not surprised?" she said cheerfully.

"Indeed, as this mishap allowed me the opportunity to see you in person. A Romulan in love, Asha, is an ardent suitor."

"Something I never would have guessed," she teased him. He pulled her close to him and they began to kiss. Her hand settled down in his lap as she played with his erection through his clothes. They soon went to his bedroom, leaving Lilou to gnaw her toys in the hall and exercise her muscles in the garden.

Vreenak and Asha undressed each other and got into bed. They were ravenous for each other, and he entered her in a smooth thrust. She wrapped her legs around his waist and shivered at his heat in her. Romulans' body temperature shot up when they were excited, to the extent that the warmth of their skin increased noticeably. Asha enjoyed the sensation, and while she had never had a Human partner before, she rather agreed with Thorek and Vreenak that technically speaking, Romulan men possessed certain bonuses Human men didn't. She asked Vreenak to move more slowly.

"I want to feel every ridge of yours," she whispered. Vreenak obeyed. "Woe to your Human men," he murmured. Asha glared at him. "Don't even think of using this to your advantage should you ever have to negotiate with the Federation," she managed to gasp out between heavy breaths.

"I won't, a'rhea."

Unconvinced, Asha punished him by flipping them over, which he allowed most willingly. She bounced up and down on him until it was over, then lay down next to him with his seed, hot and thick, sliding down her inner thighs.

When she left for home, it was the weekend, and Thorek was at home. She greeted him with an enthusiastic hug, which turned into kissing and caressing.

"Let me guess," Thorek whispered to her. "You mated only a few hours ago."

"Just because I spent the night with him doesn't mean I automatically mated with him," she teased him.

"You did. I can smell it on you."

"Really? You can?" she asked.

"Yes, even after you have taken a bath. You always smell different when you have mated. It is quite intoxicating. If you have enough energy to indulge me…?"

Asha did have enough energy, and she was becoming used to sharing her life with two Romulan men. While it had ultimately been Thorek's idea, it had been her choice, and her lovers had agreed. She closed her eyes with pleasure as her husband spoilt her.

She imagined telling her family and friends back on Earth about her life on Romulus. They would have all been surprised that she had built a new life on a place like Romulus. She had never been considered a go-getter back on Earth. As for having two lovers, she supposed only André's reaction would be quite unimpressed.

During the afternoon, she was discussing politics with Thorek in their hall when she suddenly broke off in mid-sentence and touched his hand. Thorek's eyebrows creased as he saw her staring at the vase of lagga blooms Vice-Pronconsul Hiren had given her on voting in favour of her full citizenship. The flowers were still doing very well and showing no signs of withering. But a small insect was clinging to the side of the vase. Three other insects were walking around the table.

"Oh dear. I think we've got an infestation of rathakir," she said. "Thorek, let's go downstairs and see if we've got that spray to get rid of plant pests."

There was no spray of any sort around the whole house, but Thorek caught on. He nodded and they went downstairs. They went into the room, and Asha closed the door behind them. It was a storeroom, with cupboards, shelves and boxes. She studied the walls, ceiling and floor carefully to ensure no insects were crawling about.

"E'lev," she said softly, "I don't think those are normal rathakir."

She had told Thorek about the infestation which had attacked Letant's house, and what those insects had actually turned out to be.

"Engineered spies," Thorek whispered.

"We'd have to catch one and have it analysed. Delon told me that whenever he tried to catch them, they'd launch a program with evasive tactics. I'll have to ask him for his aid," Asha said.

"Yes, that's an excellent idea. We'll also have to be careful what we talk about. It could prove to be detrimental to us and our friends," he said. "That veruul of a Vice-Proconsul! I will at least be able to swear in my own house."

They sat down on the floor and quickly discussed how to behave when they emerged from the cellar without the spray.

"What a nuisance," Asha sighed, as she returned to the hall, "I'll have to send Kihika for more spray."

She touched one of the lagga blooms with her finger. "They're so beautiful, and I really want to keep them for as long as possible."

She stooped and studied them closely. "Those pests don't seem to have inflicted damage as yet, but it's only a matter of time. I've heard they've got huge appetites."

"The rathak may be small, but it is a nuisance," Thorek agreed. He reached out and tried to smash one with the flat of his hand. The insect immediately veered away. Asha, too, tried to smack another one, but without success.

"Oh dear…Well, I guess we'll just have to get that spray soon. They're probably like Terran fungus gnats. It starts with two or three, and then they multiply like there's no tomorrow. I'll tell Kihika."


Letant, who was lounging about in his chair, lazily going over some Senate bill or the other, sat up bolt upright as he scrolled through a PADD. He blinked incredulously and lowered it, staring straight ahead, his relaxed face becoming grim. A few minutes later, he was distracted by a signal. He picked up his own work PADD and read Asha's message. This time, he jumped out of his chair and whisked out of his office in quest of his best friend's whereabouts.

He arrived and pressed the buzzer outside Vreenak's office door.

"Merken, it's Delon," he said. The doors hissed open, and Vreenak rose to receive him. Letant wordlessly pressed the PADD into his hand.

The expression on Vreenak's face became outraged as he read it. "That fvai! That…" he ground out some of the foulest Romulan curse words in existence, and clenched his fists. "He is in the hands of the Tal Shiar."

"No doubt, my friend. We have always had our suspicions, and now…" Letant gestured at the PADD. "Chairman Koval's health is deteriorating. Our dearest Vice-Pronconsul is no doubt making his plans, seeing how many are contending for Pronconsul Terik's position, including yourself. He probably thinks it will put him out of the running. The next best position, or even better position, is with the Tal Shiar."

Vreenak turned away with an irritated jerk of his head. "He suspects."

Who suspects what?"

"That fvai suspects, and correctly so, that I love a Human." He paced up and down for a few moments.

Letant had rarely seen Vreenak lose his cool and succumb to nerves. Finally, he said: "But we can aid her. I will send her the device to wipe out the rathakir and have one analysed to confirm this foul play of Hiren's."

"Trust even his generous gestures to be laced with ill intentions," Vreenak muttered.

"If she were not your beloved, you would think differently," Letant pointed out.

Vreenak was silent, and a green flush rose to his sharp cheekbones. Then he slapped his desk with such force that the piece of furniture skidded a few inches across the floor.

"Should anyone threaten her, I will have them thrown into the Reman mines!" he growled. "She is my mate, and I am hers."

"Merken, are you aware of the rumours about the Tal Shiar trying to capture those known as the Borg?"

"I have heard those rumours. There has been no proof, nor did I come across any evidence while I served with the Tal Shiar. Why?"

"Those rathakir contain unknown technology. It might very well be Borg technology." Letant handed him another PADD. "I spared three of the rathakir, had them modified and sent them to forage around our fellow-Senators' offices."

Vreenak glared at him. "If I discover even one of them over here, I'll be angrier than I already am, Delon," he barked. Letant waved the threat aside.

"I made sure to exclude your quarters. Now, this is the information one of them gathered and if this is true, then it concerns every Romulan citizen and possibly every citizen on every other planet."