"Escape!"

[Kansas_Jones 0]

12.08.07

ISS Agincourt ICC-81762

“Escape!”

 

Lt. Commander JoNs frog marched former Imperial Lieutenant Kairi Kassem from the holding cell area back to the Booth torture area. The feline had a disruptor dug into the woman’s back, and a paw clamped firmly on her arm; the rebel officer was decidedly going nowhere. Kairi simply kept her head down as she was marched towards the chamber. She knew only too well what was going to happen, since she had helped maintain the booths onboard the Agincourt.

 

Two guards obediently waited in the secondary holding area, one operating the Booth controls, the other waiting patiently on guard duty outside the entrance way. Once they cleared the entrance way, JoNs barked out her orders. "Seal the room. Have the Booth set at forty percent power only."

 

Both guards scrambled to obey as Kansas started to shove Kairi in the device. Kairi tried to struggle at first, but she was already weak from her previous interrogation. Quickly, to forestall any more recalcitrant behavior, the Caitian grabbed the Human/Rihan woman’s chin in a firm grip. The more you struggle, the worse this will be. I have this damnable device set at its lowest setting, and you know that it can go much...."

 

The prisoner soon gave in to the stronger Caitian.

 

JoNs abruptly broke off whatever she had been planning to say and instead finished sealing the rebel within the clear confines of the device. Her leonine features were set in a grim mask, but her eyes betrayed sadness. With a flick of her tail, she walked over to where the operator stood at the power control console. "Begin."

 

With a manic look in his eyes that almost made Kansas cringe, Seltman warmed up the Booth and sent the first jolt through the hapless rebel prisoner. He looked up from the control panel, an evil grin on his face as he watched the traitor shrieking in the tube.

 

”Mind your bloodlust. It won't do to incapacitate her too soon." JoNs's tone was tight; she really had no use for a device as crude as the Booth.

 

Seltman looked up warily at the cat. "Yes ma'am." He ended the first jolt, leaving Kairi to slump against the glass of the Booth.

 

"Again." The cat's gaze fixated at a spot on the floor, her paws on her hips.

 

Kairi gasped for air as there was a break in the jolts. The pain was horrible, and the Cait said this was the lowest setting? Seltman hit the button again, this time turning the power up by 5 percent.

The rebel screamed out in terrible agony as the energy surged through her weakened body.

 

Kansas swiftly cut a paw through the air, indicating that the power be cut again. To Kassem, she spoke harshly. "What area of the quadrant do you work in! Answer me!"

 

Kairi stared at her interrogator, obvious pain in her eyes. A tear fell from her face before she turned away from Kansas, ignoring the question that had been asked

 

"...give her another jolt, and move the power indicator back down to forty before I break your hand Seltman..."

 

The security ensign muttered under his breath, and changed his settings. Before he could initiate the next round of jolts, however, the power blew.

 

"What in Hades!?" The feline’s purred voice was annoyed. "Get the godsdang power back up now!"

 

Seltman turned to walk out the door, but a heavy thumping outside the room stopped him. The door whooshed open, and he was hit in the chest with a rather heavy stun; around the corner of the door came Prell, his phaser drawn, pointed right at Kansas. JoNs dropped to all fours, a growl emanating from deep in her chest as her baleful green eyes bored right into Prell.

 

"Well, well," Prell snickered as he walked into the outer control area. "Look who we have here...Did I break into the Agincourt Reunion Party instead of the Booth room?"

 

"Frag off." The feline was not pleased.

 

"I'm sorry Kansas, but I can't do that." He motioned for her to stand up on two legs. "Slowly open the Booth."

 

The golden furred Cait slowly stood, keeping her paws where the rebel Trill could see them. There was no way she could draw a weapon, not with a phaser already on her; she abruptly dove behind the control console.

 

Javin turned and fired at the console, arching away slightly at the minor explosion from the components inside. A second later, he crossed the few steps to the Booth, and opened the chamber. His left hand aimed the phaser at the rubble of the console, as his right reached in and pulled Kairi out. He dragged her behind the Booth and another console, and he crouched down, watching for signs of movement.

 

A pained growl emanated from the wreckage of the original control console; Kansas crawled out from behind the shattered equipment, bleeding and disheveled. "Okay...that did not go well or as planned..."

 

Kairi looked up at her rescuer, a tear of pain turning into joy. She slowly reached up, touching him. "Javin? I...I thought you were...dead..."

 

The feline slumped into a sitting position, her back against the bulkhead, watching in the distance as the two rebels reunited and came out from behind their cover. They really do not pay me enough to deal with this crap...her paw slowly reached for her sawed off shot gun.

 

Javin smiled, but kept his eye on Kansas. "I'm sorry Kairi, it was part of my cover...." He called out to Kansas. "Don't even think about it..."

 

JoNs, who was bleeding from about four wounds, panted and let her paw drop back down to the tiled flooring.

 

Javin stood up, holding his free hand out to Kairi to help her up, and slowly the battered woman stood, keeping her body close to her companion. Her head was slightly spinning. They both walked to the exploded console, with Javin reaching down and taking Seltman's disruptor from where it had fallen; the semi-conscious ensign moaned softly. He gave it to Kairi, looking at her. "Is this the bastard who was torturing you before too?"

 

Kansas spared a glance at the entry way leading into the Booth processing room. Oh, heads were so going to roll; one of the star base response teams should have been here by now.

 

Kairi took the disruptor in her hands, and glanced over at the wounded Caitian, and then back down at Seltman. She tapped the setting control on the weapon, and without blinking aimed and fired. A flash followed by a sizzling sound erupted as bolt of plasma struck Seltman square in the chest. "You should have thought about this before you decided to hurt me," said Kairi, following it with a kick to the now dead guard.

 

Javin looked at her, pleasantly surprised, and grinned. "We have to get going babe, the perimeter and response teams will only follow those ghost sounds and systems failures for so long." He walked over to Kansas, looking down at her.

 

The feline lieutenant commander carefully schooled her features into a haughty gaze directed at Prell.

 

Kairi tugged on Javin's arm. "Leave her and let's go..."

 

He nodded. "We're going to leave her all right... Command wants to send Harper a message, and I guess this is the best way to do it..." He spun the phaser around in his hand, and jammed the butt end of it into the nerves between Kansas' neck and shoulder, rendering her unconscious. He turned around to Kairi. "C'mon, we have lots to talk about."

 

"Wait..." Kairi stopped Javin, pulling him closer. She gently ran her hands along his face and neck, looking over every spot and facial feature. "Is it really you?"

 

Javin nodded and smiled. He whispered something into her ear and then pulled back, kissing her.

 

Kairi slowly returned the kiss. Satisfied, the rebel woman broke away. "That will have to do for now," a grin emerged from her worn face.