The Turning - Part II

[Victria 0]

- Set between the decommissioning of the Excalibur-B and the commissioning of the Excalibur-C

- Month One

 

 

“From what I hear, your android friend has been creating quite a stir with the admiralty.” Ethan threw the data padd into Victria’s lap as he sat down. “I suppose you knew this would happen? Is that why you asked us to contact her?”

 

“Something like that,” she smirked, picking up the report to read it. “She’s well versed in Federation law and the basic rights the Federation upholds. I’m surprised you did contact her. I’d think you’d want to stop this sort of thing before it ever got started.”

 

“We didn’t contact her,” Ethan snorted. “She somehow got wind of the situation on her own and took it as far as the Federation courts. It has been all we can do to contain her. We’ve put one of our best on it, though.”

 

“She is quite the formidable android.”

 

“As are all the Mudd constructs.”

 

“What is her argument, exactly?”

 

“She’s under the impression that you are being held against your will and that we’ve taken away your freedom of choice.”

 

“Isn’t that the truth?” She gazed at him pointedly.

 

“Do you honestly think you are a prisoner here?”

 

“You’ve already told me that I’m not allowed to leave the system and return to my home quadrant. None of your other citizens are restricted in such a way.”

 

“Untrue. There are others in precarious situations similar to yours.”

 

“And you deny them their rights as well?”

 

“This is only a temporary situation. Just stop fighting it and you might actually enjoy yourself.”

 

“Unlikely.” Victria frowned as she glanced back to the report. She blinked, reading one particular section over again. “This says I was requested to be in court… two weeks ago?”

 

“Yes, but we took care of it.”

 

“No one told me?” Her anger rising, she flung the padd across the room.

 

To his credit, Ethan didn’t even wince. “It wasn’t necessary. We couldn’t risk you leaving… not because of any possibility of flight, but because of what you might have said in court. Even in a private session, there exists the possibility of information leaks. Your wrongly biased testimony could be quite damaging.”

 

“So you simply excused me from the proceedings? Is your government now a dictatorship like so many believe it to be?” She dug her nails into the arms of her chair, very much wanting to rip something to shreds.

 

“Of course not, but we do have several Council members that are friendly to the intelligence branch and know how important we are to the Federation as a whole. We also have good representation. Joy was not pleased – if in fact an android can feel such emotion -- when her arguments were countered, re-countered, and finally dismissed altogether.”

 

“I find it hard to believe that her arguments were fallible in any manner.”

 

“No, they were perfectly sound. They were simply dismissed.”

 

“And she accepted that? Without protest? I also find that hard to believe.”

 

“You know her better than you think.” Ethan smiled benevolently. “She was ready to lodge a public complaint with some extremely nasty accusations. Yet again the type of incident we like to avoid.”

 

“So what stopped her?”

 

“You did.”

 

“What do you mean?” Her gaze narrowed, not liking the smugness in his tone.

 

“You wrote her a very brief letter asking her not to proceed with any further action. I believe you also went on to tell her how you were angry at first, but you now understand our reasons and are complying with our requests.”

 

“I never wrote anything of the sort!” Victria was on her feet, fangs bared in anger.

 

“No. We did. But Joy doesn’t know that. Even if she suspects, she’ll have nothing to go on. We have the letter on file, signed with your genetic signature.”

 

“You go too far!”

 

Hissing, Victria used the low table between them as a springboard to launch herself at him. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do once she got her hands on him, but it would undoubtedly involve bloodshed. She and Ethan were alone in her newly assigned living quarters. Though her rooms were being monitored, she knew she could draw blood before the security team arrived.

 

The blast to her stomach caught her completely off guard, however. Ethan fired the phaser again as she staggered backward. Catching herself on one of the chairs, she clutched her stomach and glared at him. Then the opportunity passed as a troop of security crewmen filed in, weapons trained on her.

 

“Do not think that just because I am a doctor I will not hesitate to defend myself. I am your liaison. I’m here to help you, no matter what you might think. We did what was necessary to put an end to the ridiculous charade, and you should thank us for it. No matter how much you thought Joy might have helped you, rest assured that she has her own agenda in mind and it probably includes you as some political pawn.”

 

“You still had no right!” She growled, her fists clenched.

 

“WE HAD EVERY RIGHT!” He matched her glare for several long moments before he regained his composure. After a few long moments, he gestured to the security team, waving them off. “You may go. I am in no danger.”

 

Victria watched them leave until the doors closed at last then swung her attention back to Ethan. He’d retreated to the eating area where he was replicating something to drink. Unmoving, she waited. When he returned, he wore a slightly guilty expression.

 

“I apologize for that. I don’t often lose my temper.” Resuming his seat on the couch, he waved her to hers. “Please… sit… I know you are angry, but you really need to learn to control your emotions. Lashing out only proves to others that you are the wild animal they think you to be.”

 

“Victria. Please. Sit,” he repeated when she made no move to comply. “I do not wish us to fight. Let me explain why we do the things we do.”

 

“I’m listening,” she said coldly, finally unclenching her fists and reclaiming her former seat.

 

“Starfleet Intelligence operates for the benefit of Starfleet and the Federation. Without our information gathering techniques, countless lives would be lost. We would also lose valuable technology and resources to those that wish to see the Federation fall. Sometimes our methods are unorthodox, or perhaps what others would consider to be immoral, but they are necessary.”

 

“Forging my identity was necessary?”

 

“Do you know what would happen if this organization was brought under the Federation Council’s microscope? Most of the Council members are well aware of the measures we take, but politely ignore what we do as a necessary evil because we do not draw attention to ourselves. If we’re noticed, people start asking uncomfortable questions and delving into places they have no business being.”

 

“Pulling you into the public eye is not an option. There have already been too many reports about the incidents that happened in the Gamma Quadrant and your involvement there. Only a select few outside of the Excalibur crew know that you are on Earth. We need to keep it that way.”

 

Despite her resolve, Victria felt her anger waning. She could not fault his reasoning, but as a victim of one of those aforementioned “immoral methods”, she was not pleased. Frustration writhed inside of her. For the second time in her life she felt utterly helpless and she did not like it.

 

“What do you expect of me,” she said through gritted teeth.

 

“A little patience, Victria. Just a little patience.” He sighed. “And the opportunity to let us help you.”

 

“Help me with what, exactly?” She asked, more than a little skeptical.

 

“Finding your humanity.”

[LeftEar JoNs 0]

Go Fangs!

 

Don't we all love organizations that officially un-officially exist? I tell ya, they are a bunch of laughs.

[Joy 0]

Go Fangs!

 

Don't we all love organizations that officially un-officially exist? I tell ya, they are a bunch of laughs.

 

Well, not everybody... :D :blink:

 

We are going into a conflict of shadows against shadows. I have a problem in that when Joy sees a shadow, she reaches for her floodlight. Floodlights would be problematic at this point. Thus, there is a need to prevent Joy from reaching her floodlight if we are going to get that bunch of laughs. (If a Joy were on Excalibur C, for example, and learned that the letter from Victria was forged...)

 

Thus, I'll be playing Tia on Excalibur, at least for the duration of the current plotline. It seems for the best that Joy be placed firmly off stage for the duration.