The Signal

[Crash Calestorm 0]

"I aim to misbehave." – Captain Malcolm 'Mal' Reynolds, Serenity (2005)

 

****

It was end game, and Operation: Whiteout would be completed one way or the other. Either they extradited Litasha to Federation space or they didn't. There was also the very real possibility that the Orion cartel leader would end up dead, but Calestorm hadn't fully decided on that outcome as her conscience was bothering her. She had sent word out among the crew that she herself would handle Litasha; it was petty, but the captain had a score to settle with the cartel leader.

 

So, a commanding officer intent on extracting blood payment from someones hide, and an executive officer in the throes of passion and blood lust, going after her kidnapped lover – how's that for upstanding examples of Starfleet officers, eh? As the Earth saying went, it would all come out in the wash. Or, Scooter and Crash would both get shot and killed and Commander JoNs would take field command of the mission.

 

Crash never let others do her job and didn't intend to start now; like her officers, she was working a section of the Maze complex. Slightly slouched with her hands jammed in her pockets, she sauntered into 'Dukes Place'.

 

Duke's overlooked the urban section of The Maze. A glass-less observation port took up one entire wall of the establishment, allowing patrons to watch the hunts. She took a moment to visually track the patrol swooping lazily past the opening. Guards policed the upper and lower levels of the complex using hover flitters, and any problems in the bars and nightclubs surrounding the sections or attempted escapes from the Maze were taken care of with extreme prejudice.

 

The bartender, a burly Tellarite by the name of 'Dash' gave the scruffy mercenary captain an amused glance when she ambled up to the bar.

 

"Rough night there Captain...Lightwind, was it?"

 

Crash scowled at the porcine male.

 

"...I'll take that as a yes."

 

She spoke around the cigarette held between her lips. "Personnel problems. Gotta replace crew that bolted."

 

"In other words you're getting too old for this scree. You look like you stepped through a mirror and landed in an alternate version of yourself. You ever hear those rumors of a universe where everything is the complete opposite as here?"

 

"Just give me some coffee."

 

As the captain sipped at her beverage, the little comm device in Cale's ear beeped. The soft purring voice of a feline spoke. "We're here. The Sheep Farm has been contacted and the Shepherds are inbound. Complex extraction teams all report ready. Exterior teams in position."

 

She glanced over her shoulder to see that Commander JoNs, the speaker, and her cousin Ensign Honor-Scar had entered the bar and were walking towards one of the gaming rooms.

 

Crash went with her instincts (and her heart), and decided to trust the bartender. "Hey, you got any family Dash?"

 

"My wife. Kids are all grown and out on their own. You?"

 

"Not married. Family is back on Earth."

 

She gestured for a refill. As he leaned in to pour the coffee, she spoke quietly. "Dash, listen to me carefully. Something is going to happen. If you're a leader, I suggest you come out firing that buckshot cannon that's hidden under the bar. If you're a follower, I suggest you find a safe place to duck into when it all goes down."

 

A few seconds of silence ensued. He began to wipe the bar down, though his inset pig eyes started to glance furtively from side to side. "What's your game?"

 

"I'm here for Litasha, and I don't give a damn about the bounty out on her. My teams and I are going to rescue as many Maze captives and take out as many Black Kris operatives as we can."

 

The Tellar made a snuffling sound with his snout. "I've been here for fifteen years, seen a lot. The Old Man died. Mareena took full control over the Black Kris, and then the leadership shifted over to the daughter. The parents? Different stripe then that daughter of theirs, old school honor…she's more dangerous."

 

"If it's all the same to you Lightwind, I'll stick around and see what happens." He snorted at her. "You ain't gonna blow the place, right?"

 

Calestorm grinned around a slurp of her coffee. "Implosion too melodramatic. Stun grenades. Sleepy gas in the air system. The usual. No worries. There's going to be a Starfleet ship in orbit in about thirty minutes - the USS Comanche Creek."

 

Dash's porcine mouth spread slowly in a big grin, wiggling his snout. "Glad I kept my business legal."

 

"Spread the word to anyone you trust."

 

"When do you make your move?"

 

The captain turned and looked over her shoulder; a second scout vehicle was coming into view. She then spared a glance at a wall mounted security cam, knowing her bridge officers had tapped into the complex feeds.

 

With a grin, she turned back to Dash and said, "Misbehavin'. Now."

 

Crash turned and bolted away from the bar at a full tilt run, straight at the window.

 

****

Sailing bodily across open air, Crash landed firmly with combat boots slapping on the back platform. The hover flitter veered slightly with the new weight, shifting everyone sideways.

 

With a yell, a green skinned vehicle guard leveled his energy spear; before he got the shot off, Cale dropped him with a shot from her Colt. The second guard, a furred Kzinti felinoid, took a swing with his spear and she ducked; Crash avoided the initial blow but was caught on the shoulder with the upswing. The middle aged officer landed on the deck with an 'oomph' and her weapon went flying out of her grip.

 

JoNs and Honor-Scar had moved into position and took pot shots, causing the driver to swerve away.

 

Disoriented, Crash couldn't move; the felinoid picked her up by the front of her flight jacket and drew his free paw back to claw at her. A shot from one of her cats caught him in the back and he dropped her.

 

Maze guards stationed on the lower nightclub levels began to fire upward, attempting to get a bead on the troublemaker with their rifles. An errant shot caught the left pontoon and the hover car listed further towards the ground.

 

Calestorm managed to launch a roundhouse kick and caught the Orion guard, disabling him. A shot hit the driver and she flew backwards out of the open air control cab, clearing a twenty foot drop to land in a heap; several of the contestants who had cowered from the brawl started to move towards the downed Maze guard.

 

"Move! Don't waste your time with her! Go now! Get out of here!" Cale called out to the people, her command tone bellowed at full force. The rag tag stragglers reacted to her orders, taking off at a run across the 'neighborhood' and cutting through front yards and side streets.

 

She ripped an EM charge from her utility belt, tossing it at the main turbine engine and then took a flying leap off the guard vehicle. The flitter scraped the ground before the EM burst crashed it the rest of the way as the captain hit pavement.

 

The alert klaxons for the facility began blaring.

[Crash Calestorm 0]

That's a captain from the TOS/New TOS era for you - they are such a subtle bunch, ya know? Gotta love 'em. =P