The Sound and the Fury

[Chirakis 1]

The Sound and The Fury
Ragor Tal & Company

 

T’jen eased his way through the sequestered planetoid’s cavern until the entrance closed and locked and the sound of wind and rain subsided.  He was exhausted.  Overwhelmingly exhausted.  

He sat in the Corsair for a while to rest and allow the mud, slush, and rain drip off before he flipped open the hatch and stepped out, forgetting that the cavern wasn’t more than a deep mud puddle this time of year.  

“Aw crap,” he muttered trying to pull his boots out of the mud without losing them. Holding tight to a pylon, he wormed his way toward the entrance, entered the code, and fell in as the door opened and closed behind him.

The door’s clunk jolted the engineer Maven to a stand.  “Hey, man,” he shouted on approach, “you okay?” 

His only answer sounded like, “Yep,” then a moan.

“Johnson,” shouted Maven across the room.  “Throw me a blanket and grab the chief ASAP.  We got a problem!”

“I’m good, Mav,” T’jen mumbled, rolling over then rocking forward to a kneel.  “Just nasty dirty.  And tired.”

Powerful muscular arms caught him from behind and pulled T’jen to a stand just as he was about to fall.

“Lean on me,” Ragor Tal whispered. “Easy. Relax. Take a deep breath and let your mind and body settle before you try to stand.  Got it?”

“Got it... Chief.”

An hour later, T’jen had relaxed enough to take a shower, slip on clean clothes, and relax in  Ragor Tal’s office.  

“Feel better?” asked Tal, his hands folded as he relaxed in his office chair.

“Yeah, I do Chief.  Thanks.”

“Could have died?”

‘Jen gave a sheepish snort.  “Yeah, I had that thought once or twice.”

“Ready to talk?” asked Tal, then waited patiently while his second officer thought through a few things.

“You want the short story or the long one?” 

“Whatever you prefer,” he said, reaching for a bottle of Romulan ale for T’Jen.

“Okay…” he began with a weary sigh.  “Short story is the Alien Alliance attacked Aegis. Aegis’ ships counteracted with Border Patrol, mainly Missouri and Iowa. Alien Alliance pushed through toward Aegis.  Aegis personnel evacuated leaving Chirakis alone...."  He took a good swig of the ale, then put it aside. 

T'jen's expression changed suddenly as he sipped the ale and leaned forward to listen. 

"And…?"

"Then she blew it up.”

"She what?" asked Tal, not exactly understanding what T’jen meant, but fairly certain he understood. “Who blew what up?”

“Chirakis blew up the station.”

Tal’s eyes narrowed in incredulity.  “She... blew up... the station,” he muttered, pushing away from his desk.  “Was there anything left of the station?”

“No, sir.  Nothing.  It exploded, but….”

“But what?”

“There was absolutely nothing left, not even a piece.  It just… vanished.”

“It vanished,” Tal muttered, thinking as he paced around his office. “Did the Alliance leave?”

“Yes, sir.”

“But you stayed for a while?”

“I did.  To see what the Allied Powers would do. Border Patrol stayed in the area, and I believe that the only one who was killed was their captain.” He shrugged.  “Maybe a few Starfleet personnel were injured or killed.  I stayed to watch for three hours, then left.”

Ragor Tal found himself deep in thought, not noticing that T’Jen was beginning to fall asleep. He thought of his nemesis, Chirakis Kirel, vanishing into oblivion along with Sky Harbor Aegis, leaving the Alien Alliance without a station of operations. 

It was time for a joint meeting.