Captain on the Brig

Posted on Tue Apr 19th, 2011 @ 11:08pm by Lieutenant Cedric Shepherd & Captain T'mpest Michaels

1,404 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: The Ties That Bind
Location: USS Ranger, Deck 9, Brig
Timeline: Just before Shoreleave

Adalyn Mailloux stood waiting for the turbolift. It had been requested that she be present in the brig, where their current guest was being housed. She was pleased; while speaking with a prisoner with the second officer was fairly mild when it came to most of the duties she could be expected to perform as the CDO, at least it got her out of her office.

At that moment T'mpest Michaels approached the turbolift.

"Commander," Adalyn said with a nod.

"Greetings," T'mpest said with a friendly nod.

The turbolift doors opened momentarily and the two women stepped in.

The ride was short and uneventful. When they stepped out, T'mpest looked around, taking stock of the area and its occupants.

They could hear music as soon as the turbolift opened on deck 9, and faint lyrics that after a half-dozen steps down the corridor could be heard more clearly:

"There's a girl, in this harbor town / and she works, layin' whiskey down / They say 'Brandy, fetch another round' / She serves them whiskey and wine."

"The sailors say 'Brandy, you're a fine girl / what a good wife, you would be. / Yeah your eyes could steal a sailor from the sea'."

A bit of guitar strumming followed, punctuated by another string. Something a little sharper, a counterpoint to the guitar chords.

"Now Brandy, wears a braided chain / made of finest silver from the north of Spain / and a locket, that bears the name / of the man that Brandi loves."

There were six officers in the Brig, all known to the two women, the main door open. In the cell sat the Zibalian pirate captain, looking sad and small without his spectacular coat, and trying not to listen while he stared glumly at the wall, separated from the main brig bay by the typical forcefield. Seated in the middle of the room, playing with and to each other, sat a man and woman, both in gold collars. The woman, Crewman Gregory, had long rich honey-wheat hair and handled her guitar with an air of practiced comfort. The man accompanying her was Ensign Acklin, thin and wiry, with a shock of black hair and an attempt at a mustache. He plucked at a stringed instrument that was round-bodied rather than a guitar hourglass, which had a tinnier but not unpleasant sound.

"He came, on a summer's day / bringin' gifts, from far away / but he made it clear, he couldn't stay / no harbor was his home."

Humming and generally harmonizing with Acklin and Gregory were Crewman Joyce and Adelson, from operations. Both were fairly ordinary-looking men, though Adelson was quite dark-complected. Still, they sang well together, and seemed to blend nicely beneath Gregory's simple alto.

PO Rodriguez, older and hound-faced, was stretched out in his chair behind the duty console, either listening intently or half-asleep, his fingers laced together across his abdomen. The final occupant of the room, remarkable for his red collar amid all the gold, was Ensign Thompson from flight, who had probably eased down the corridor from his duty station in the shuttlebay control centre, and was now listening raptly to Gregory and Acklin play while Gregory swung into the chorus again, harmonizing with Joyce and Adelson.

"The sailor said 'Brandy, you're a fine girl / what a good wife, you would be. / but my life my love and my lady, is the sea'."

"Nice, but Brandy transferred last week," T'mpest said dryly. "Do you know a proper Scottish ballad?"

Thompson was the first to notice the entry of the two women, and was on his feet before Michaels had started her sentence. It took the others another few bars of strumming to realize something was going on, and then there was a confused few seconds following the comment and request while nearly everyone shot clumsily to their feet. Then came a long moment of awkward silence, broken by Rodriguez, who simply sat forward in his chair.

"Hello, Commander," he said calmly. "Lieutenant," he nodded to Mailloux as well. "Can, um," he glanced at the nervous assembly standing to one side, "can we help you?"

"Well, if you don't know a proper Scottish ballad, perhaps you'll be kind enough to let us talk to the Captain?" T'mpest asked only half teasing. She had a fondness for Scottish ballads.

"Certainly," Rodriguez was polite, and knew better than to call her Sir. "I also have his effects cataloged whenever you're ready."

"Okay, let's clear out," Acklin said to the rest of the gathering. Joyce and Adelson eased toward the door while Gregory and Acklin opened instrument cases.

"I know Wild Mountain Thyme," Gregory offered to Michaels as she slung her guitar case. "I can do the guitar on Anachie Gordon, but can't ever remember all the words."

"Och, a fine pair of ballads," T'mpest said, her Scottish accent getting thicker. "We'll have to get together some day and sing," she said.

"We're down here alot," Gregory replied conversationally, even as she stepped backward into the corridor with the rest of the musicians. "The acoustics in the brig space are actually really good. And," she shrugged, "usually nobody comes by."

"Valid points," T'mpest replied before she turned to the QAR Captain. "Greetings."

"Greetings, Captain," he corrected, brightening visibly at the attention.

"Considering the fact that your ship belonged to the Trangera Alliance before it was taken as tribute by the QAR and your title is an honorific you gave yourself after you looted the Kalanna Outpost, I think calling you Oklan would be more appropriate, don't you think?" she asked him quietly.

"Only my most intimate friends call me Oklan," he smiled a tired but oily smile, appearing largely unsurprised that she knew so much already. "If we're being intimate, what shall I call you?"

"Commander Michaels," she replied coolly. "But if you can tell me who you work for, I might consider being a little friendlier."

"I can't say," Oklan said casually. "Which is to say, I honestly can't say. I correspond with a codename. The voice is modulated, and the transmission encrypted and heavily routed. I don't even get a schedule; I'm told in one transmission when to be ready for the next, and there's no pattern. See how forthcoming I am?" he smirked. "Now what shall I call you?"

"I think we can move on to ma'am," she replied. "If you can give me the codename, the times and locations of your transmissions, I can probably find your friend. You simply need to have the right equipment -- and the right resources. If you cooperate, I'll make sure Starfleet has a full report."

Oklan sighed, "My contact's codename is Cormorant. Times and locations are in the computer core of my ship, which at this stage has likely been destroyed." He pitched up the back end of the sentence, forming a slight question. When no response was immediate, he shrugged and continued. "Suffice it to say at this stage that I couldn't find him, and I tried. As much as I'm sure you have absolute faith in your Federation equipment, the Queen Anne's Revenge knows it as well as you do, and keeps things compartmentalized for just this reason." He waved a hand airily at the surrounding cell to emphasize the final point.

"I don't rely on Federation equipment," T'mpest assured him. "I rely on... other things." Her own experience and her connections among them. "Your help has been most appreciated. I will give Starfleet a glowing recommendation on your behalf."

"Now now," Oklan wagged a finger theatrically, "recommendations are fine, but what I asked for was your name."

Her smile turned mischievous. "T'mpest."

"T'mpest," he sighed, turning the name long as though savoring its taste. "So, what else shall we talk about?"

"I must admit, I find the whole setup and operation of the QAR to be quite fascinating," T'mpest said, pulling up a chair and sitting down outside the force field. As long as he asked, she would love to learn more. "You can always tell me more about your business."

Oklan settled in for his tale.

OFF

Commander T'mpest Michaels
Chief Science Officer
USS Ranger

Lieutenant JG Adalyn Mailloux
Chief Diplomatic Officer
USS Ranger

Supporting Cast:

Captain Oklan Jasta, Queen Anne's Revenge
Ensign Felix Acklin, Security
Ensign Daniel Thompson, Flight
Petty Officer 1st Class Augustin Rodriguez, Security
Crewman Joseph Adelson, Operations
Crewman Rhiannon Gregory, Security
Crewman James Joyce, Operations

 

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