The Abduction - Log 6

[John Randall 0]

OFFICIAL LOG

LIEUTENANT JOHN RANDALL

USS CHALLENGER

 

(Personal Log Stardate 11608.22)

 

The next morning, Aiel and two Romulan guards entered the room where John was being held. "Now, Lieutenant Randall, it is time for you to meet our Praetor," she said. "He is not in the best of health, and has a very short temper as a result. If I were you, I would be very careful in answering if he should deign to actually talk to you."

 

John scowled at her. "I'm not afraid of your Praetor, or any being on this planet," he snapped at her. "I will say what I damned well please, and I don't give a rip who does or doesn't like it."

 

Aiel narrowed her eyes at him, then shook her head. "Still you are defiant," she said, wonder in her voice. "You realize that, with one gesture, he could have you killed for saying the wrong thing, or showing disrespect."

 

John smiled then, and it was not in amusement or humor, and Aiel actually took a step back from him as she saw it. "Then, as I told you earlier, I will take as many as I can of you with me," he gritted, and his eyes were pieces of ice as he glared at her.

 

Aiel looked back at him for a moment, then dropped her eyes. She rapped out a command in Romulan, and the guards took John by each arm. As the Romulan subcommander turned to exit the room, the guard on the right of John nudged him, and Randall turned to see the Romulan staring intently at him. The guard then gave a slight nod, and John realized this man was one of the people T'Mira had been telling him about.

 

He held the Romulan's eyes for a long moment, then looked straight ahead as they left the room. The foursome walked down the corridor, turning left twice, then made a right turn a few seconds later. They came to a pair of immense double doors, and Aiel approached the guard standing there.

 

They had a brief conversation in Romulan, then the guard nodded and swung open the doors. The four walked into a giant antechamber filled with Romulans, and John recognized the room from the image he had seen on his computer monitor yesterday. He was marched up to stand before two long tables where a total of twelve Romulans were seated, six to each table.

 

The man occupying a seat on a raised dais in the center of the two tables looked down on the four with slight disdain, and John knew instinctively he was gazing at a rare sight; the Praetor of the Romulan Empire.

 

The Romulan was old and not in the best of health, as John had been told. His eyes were old and faded, and his left arm continually trembled. His head was adorned with a shock of pure white hair, and his face was deeply lined with wrinkles. The face was trying its best to register haughtiness, but it was a struggle to do so, and it was obvious to anyone looking at him.

 

Aiel stepped forward, and bowed to the old Romulan. "Your Majesty, I have brought to you an operative of Starfleet Intelligence, working as the chief engineer of the Federation battlecruiser Challenger, Lieutenant John Randall."

 

The Praetor stared at John for a few moments, and Randall stared right back at him. Aiel turned to John and hissed, "You will bow before His Majesty." John turned and looked at her. "I bow to no one, lady," he answered angrily, and the subcommander's face lit up with rage. She gave a hand signal to the guard on John's left, who immediately struck Randall behind his knees with the ceremonial spear he was carrying.

 

John's knees buckled, but he did not go down. The guard was about to deliver another blow when the voice from the old Romulan rang out. "Hold!" it commanded, and the guard stopped immediately. Aiel looked up in shock at the Praetor, who had a slight smile on his face.

 

"Unhand the Starfleet man," he commanded, and the guards immediately stepped away. The old Romulan stared at Randall. "It has been a while since I have encountered defiance such as you show, Starfleet man," he said. "I could have you punished for such insolence, but something tells me you would resist even more strongly.

 

"I will tolerate this behavior from you for the time being," the Praetor continued. "In time, you will learn to show respect." John's eyes went ice-blue as he glared at the old man. "Then you'll be waiting a long time, old man," he rasped, and gasps filled the antechamber.

 

A look of pure rage came over the Praetor's face for a few seconds, but, much to John's astonishment, it was replaced by a smile, then actual laughter from the old man. He shook a trembling finger at the chief engineer of the Challenger. "That was well played, young man," he said. "You are deliberately trying to antagonize me, but I have seen through your game, and I will not succumb.

 

"I see by the reaction of the subcommander there, however, that she is furious with you, so I shall leave it to her to teach you some respect. When next you come before me, I think your behavior will have been sufficiently modified."

 

John glared at him. "If it makes you feel better, old man, you keep on thinking that," he growled, and again there were gasps of astonishment. "I will never bow before you, and I will defy you and your people to my last breath!"

 

The Praetor chuckled. "That may come sooner than you think, Starfleet man. Take him away." The guards took John by each arm and turned him to leave the antechamber. "We will speak again, Starfleet man," came the voice of the old man, and John smiled savagely. A few of the Romulans in attendance saw the smile, and looked at each other in disbelief.

 

Aiel caught up to the trio as they left the antechamber, and moved in front of John, speaking over her shoulder. "You will pay dearly for your actions, Lieutenant, I promise you," she hissed, and Randall replied, "Your threats do not scare me, lady," he growled right back. Aiel spun suddenly and backhanded him across the right cheek, her face flushed with anger.

 

John ignored the pain of the blow and glared at her, then slowly smiled savagely. "You'll have to do better than that," he gritted, and Aiel turned away from him. She still could not believe the resilience the Starfleet Intelligence operative was showing. She admitted to herself she was beginning to feel the first pangs of desperation; what was it going to take to break this man?

 

They arrived back at the room where John was being held, and took him inside. Aiel snapped out a command in Romulan, and the guards left the room. The Romulan who had previously nodded to Randall, however, managed to slip him a small nod undetected as he left, and John responded in kind. He walked over to the chair in the room and sat down, wondering when the movement was going to make their move.

 

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Around three hours later, John was still sitting in the chair, his head bowed. In reality, he was almost asleep. Then, suddenly, there was a loud explosion which sounded like it was just outside his door. Plaster fell from the ceiling and there was dust in the room.

 

John had been thrown to the floor by the concussion of the explosion, and a huge piece of plaster narrowly missed him as he laid there. The door slid open, and a female form came into the room. John rolled over and got to his feet swiftly, crouching to do battle when he suddenly recognized the female. It was T'Mira, and she froze as he crouched, then grinned at him as recognition blossomed in his eyes.

 

She tossed him a pistol, and he was startled to see it was a Starfleet phaser pistol. "Set it to kill, John," she said. "We have to get you out of here. The attack has begun, and a lot of blood will be shed today. Stay with me closely."

 

She then rushed over to him and kissed him soundly on the lips for a full five seconds. "Stay with me, Lieutenant," she said huskily, and smiled at him. John nodded. "Lead the way, lady," he said, and T'Mira spun, heading for the open door.

 

The couple ran out of the room and into a scene of utter chaos. Disruptor bolts filled the air as a terrific battle was taking place. T'Mira and John dodged bolts as they wound their way through the chaos. Both of them dropped several Romulans who fired on them, and John kept his hand on T'Mira's back as they ran.

 

But then the inevitable happened: a disruptor bolt struck John in his left side just above the hip, and the Starfleet officer went down with a yell. T'Mira spun and blasted the Romulan who had hit Randall, and she quickly ran to him, tears in her eyes.

 

"How bad is it, John?" she panted fearfully, and John, pain etched on his face, nodded to her. "It's-It's not that bad," he said through clenched teeth. T'Mira heard the pain in his voice, however, and pulled a rag from her pocket. She wound it around John's waist, covering the wound.

 

"Can you run?" she asked, and John nodded, anger showing in his eyes now. "Let's go," he gritted, and T'Mira pulled him to his feet. Randall immediately shot a Romulan who was aiming for her back, and she smiled at him, kissing him on the cheek.

 

"Thanks," she breathed, and kissed him quickly on the lips. John smiled. "Thanks for staying with me," he breathed, and she smiled even wider. "Wait until we're on the ship I have secured," she said. "Then I'll give you a proper thank you." She stared directly into his eyes, and they both knew what she meant.

 

They began their wild dash again, a little more slowly this time because of John's wound. What seemed like hours later, but in reality was only a few minutes, the pair burst out of the building. They stared in amazement for a few seconds at the scene before them; disruptor bolts were everywhere as Romulan was fighting Romulan. Bodies lay everywhere, and the stench of copper-based blood filled the air.

 

T'Mira nudged him, and they struck off to the left, twisting their way through the carnage and disruptor bolts. After a few moments, they came to a high fenced-in area, the fence stretching over their heads. "This is the main shipyard," T'Mira whispered into his left ear. "The vessel secured by myself and Ambassador Spock is here. It's a two person pod capable of doing warp 8. All we have to do is get to it."

 

John smiled at her. " 'All we have to do'," he parroted, and T'Mira smiled back at him. "I never said it would be easy, John," she replied, and Randall laughed. "No, you didn't," he agreed. "So what's the plan?"

 

"We need to work our way around to the right," she answered. "The pod is about a kilometer from here, on the outer edge of the yard. Are you up to it?" John grinned savagely. "I've never been more ready in my life," he growled, and T'Mira kissed him. "Stay with me, Lieutenant," she said, and he nodded.

 

The couple began their trek, shooting Romulans who fired at them, and dodging explosions and disruptor bolts along the way. Around an hour later, they stopped behind a corner of a building, and T'Mira pointed out a small pod around thirty yards away.

 

"That's our ride, Lieutenant," she whispered, and John nodded. "Let's go," he replied, and she kissed him. They ran from building to building, using the natural cover. Finally, they were only a few feet from the pod. T'Mira cautiously peeked around the corner of the building they were hidden behind, then nodded. She had taken only a few steps when a disruptor bolt struck her from the left side.

 

John watched in horror as T'Mira's body hit the ground. She rolled over and lay as if dead. Then a triumphant laugh filled the air, and Randall stepped out from behind the building to see Aiel with a disruptor trained on him.

 

"Well, there you are, Lieutenant," she said mockingly. "I wondered where you had gotten off to. Sorry about your little friend there," and she smiled wickedly. "That bolt was meant for you; it's a pity she stepped out first. But, none's the harm, this next one will rid me of you forever."

 

John scowled and pointed his phaser at her. "I've already taken some of your countrymen down," he growled. "Now I have you, and I intend to keep my promise." Aiel grinned. "I wouldn't have it any other way, Lieutenant John Randall," she replied. "As you humans would say, 'May you burn in hell!' " and she raised her disruptor.

 

John never hesitated, he pulled the trigger of the phaser, and then was shocked as a second phaser bolt filled the air next to his. He felt a violent blow to his left shoulder, then a scream filled the air as Aiel's body suddenly glowed brightly, then winked out.

 

The blow knocked Randall to the ground, and he rolled over to see T'Mira grinning at him. "My body armor absorbed much of that," she whispered. Then her eyes widened as blood began to pour from John's left shoulder. She moaned and got to her knees, then ripped what was left of John's tunic from his body. She wrapped his shoulder with the rag, and the blood slowed to a trickle, but not before turning the tunic bright red.

 

"John, stay with me," she said as Randall's eyes began to droop. "Stay with me," she pleaded as she struggled to get him to his feet. John let out a loud moan, then put his good arm around her shoulders. "Lead on, lady," he whispered, and then dropped his head.

 

T'Mira's eyes began to water, and she shook him. "Stay with me, Lieutenant," she said in an authoritative voice, and John's head came back up. "Yes, ma'am," he whispered, and she smiled in relief, tears running down her cheeks.

 

The couple staggered their way to the pod, and T'Mira manhandled John into the passenger seat after she opened the hatch. She then popped into the pilot's seat, and prepared the pod for liftoff. A few moments later, the pod rose into the air, and banked sharply to the left.

 

The pod rose above the atmosphere of ch'Havran, and T'Mira instantly engaged the warp drive. The pod rocketed into hyperspace. John sat unconscious in the passenger seat, and T'Mira worried constantly about him as the pod made its way toward the Neutral Zone.

 

Around twelve hours later, the computer told her that they were in Federation space, and T'Mira typed in the coordinates of Starbase 179 into the helm. The pod made a right turn, and hurtled toward its destination. Six hours later, T'Mira sent a communication to the starbase, alerting them that there was a Romulan shuttlepod approaching the station, and to hold their fire, there were Starfleet officers onboard.

 

The communications officer asked her for her code, and T'Mira rattled it off. She was then asked who her companion was, and T'Mira replied it was the chief engineer of the Challenger, Lieutenant John Randall. Then a different voice came over the 'comm.

 

"Commander T'Mira, this is Admiral Jason Baldwin," said the voice, and the Vulcan/Romulan officer closed her eyes. "Aye, sir," she replied tiredly, and the voice softened. "Are you all right?" it asked, and she said, "I've been better, sir. Ready the medical facilities for Lieutenant Randall, he's badly hurt."

 

The voice sharpened. "What is the nature of his injuries, Commander?" it asked, and T'Mira filled him in. The voice of the communications officer then came back over the 'comm, directing her to the dock where she would park the pod. T'Mira acknowledged, and a few minutes later, eased the pod into the bay.

 

A medical team was there to lift John's body out of the pod. They placed him onto an anti-grav cart, and took him away. T'Mira climbed out of the pod and staggered as her feet touched the floor of the bay. She was immediately grabbed by a man in a Starfleet uniform, and she looked up into the eyes of Admiral Jason Baldwin.

 

"Thank the stars you're safe, Commander," he said, and T'Mira managed a small smile. "Thank you, sir," she whispered, then collapsed in his arms. Baldwin picked her up and placed her onto the second anti-grav cart, and the orderlies of the starbase hospital carried her into the station.

 

The medical personnel got the two officers into their respective rooms, and went to work on both of them. Randall was scheduled for emergency surgery to repair the wounds in his side and shoulder. T'Mira was medicated and placed under observation.

 

The operation on John's body lasted three hours, then he was taken into recovery. Twelve hours later, he was taken back to his room and placed under observation. Admiral Baldwin sent a subspace message to Starfleet Command informing them of the rescue of Lieutenant Randall, and requested the status of the Challenger.

 

The reply came after a six hour wait, and Baldwin learned the ship was due to report in to Starbase 179 very shortly. He settled back into his chair in his office aboard the base, and waited for the Challenger to come into communications range.

 

END LOG