Now you see me, now you don’t

Posted on Thu Dec 30th, 2021 @ 10:24am by Lieutenant Commander Deanna Celes & Lieutenant Ayana Hillis & Commander Jonathan Grayson & Lieutenant Commander Callie Raven-Grayson & Lieutenant Commander Shoniara T’ghann-Travis Dr & Ensign James Phoenix & Ensign Zack Ravencroft & Petty Officer 1st Class Amethyst Reece

Mission: Sinister Intentions
Location: Planetside

{ON}

The morning had arrived all too soon, or at least the early hours had. A knock at the door had awoken both Callie and T’Vall, the news that something had gone wrong during a slave transport was not what T’Vall had needed to hear.

Now he faced a risky trip out in the open to sort out the calamity, and retrieve lost merchandise. “T’Vall wait!” Callie stood in the bedroom doorway dressed to accompany him. “I’m not staying here alone, I’m going with you! And before you say it...I’m not taking no for an answer!”

T’Vall grabbed her and pulled her into the transport shuttle. He knew how to fly well although this was not a well appointed StarFleet shuttle it would have to do. He was furious as once out in the open he would be visible to scans. He was also furious that Callie had come with him. Now he knew she loved him he wanted to protect her, he also did not want her to see just what sort of business he was in because for the first time he was ashamed.

“Sit down and strap yourself in, this might be dangerous so here is a phaser, I know you have used one before. If anyone tries to grab you stun them okay.”

Callie nodded. “I will, T’Vall you don’t have to be concerned about me, I can take care of myself.” She set her phaser to stun. “Let’s get this done, then we can leave this place.”

~ Approx 1 km from the slavers base~

T’Vall guided the craft down in the middle of a small valley. The anti grav transport had failed whilst carrying the next batch of slaves up to the viewing market in the city of Romav. Because the Orions would not assume orbit around the planet due to the presence of the Washington they had however managed to send representatives down. They never missed bidding for T’Valls slaves. They were nearly all pregnant and more than anything docile and ready to be used in whatever way the buyers wanted. It sometimes happened that the slaves would die and if so T’Valls syndicate would supply a new one free of charge.

He jumped out phaser in hand and looked around. “His driver came up, “bloody Romulan crap!” He exclaimed, kicked the transport and spat on the rump of a slave he had sent under the carrier to replace a part.

T’Vall looked at him, “that is valuable cargo you sent under there.”

The man laughed, “I’m not going under that death trap, let the cow do it, if she dies I’ll pay for her.”

T’Vall nodded, “and I will make sure you will.” He looked around again he didn’t like this. “Get on your way as soon as you can then?” The driver nodded and kicked out at the woman under the grav. “Just as soon as the cow does her work.”

T’Vall grabbed Callie, “ Something is happening, Callie back into the shuttle NOW.” He shouted at the men, “Get this thing going we are under attack.”

Callie did as her husband told her, their shared bond only served to increase her own awareness. “I sense them!” She looked at T’Vall. “They’re close T’Vall...” T’Vall reached for his phaser presuming the away team from the Washington had not yet noticed their presence. They made it as far as a large rock a hundred yards from the shuttle.

He pulled her down beside him. “They are trying to kill us Callie, use your phaser.” He opened his mind and could feel Dex searching for him using her own senses and her tricorder looking for Vulcan life signs. His anger began to grow.

Jon and the away team had beamed down and were encountering heavy resistance but were making progress. Then he felt Callie's mind. *Callie!* He called to her mentally. *It's me Jon! Callie please it's Jon your husband!*

Callie cringed, she could hear a voice in her mind calling to her, somehow it felt familiar yet this..Jon claimed to be her husband. *You are NOT my husband! You have been sent to kill us! You will not take us.*

T’Vall shouted into his communicator, “we are under attack, launch the photo weapons at that Starship in orbit, NOW” he screamed. They could feel the ground rumble as the silos opened and they weapons began their journey towards the Washington.

Dex shouted over the chaos. “COMMANDER” she pointed to a large rock approximately 400 hearts away with a small craft a little way from it. She had found Callie’s life signs along with a Vulcans.

Jon nodded at Dex and the pair headed that way. Taking out enemy troops as they drew closer. *Callie! Please sweetheart, it's Jon. I'm your husband. Open your mind and remember our first date to Fisherman's Wharf. We ate at Joe D's. Please Callie don't run from me!*

Callie sat at T’Vall’s feet cradling her head, the voice was familiar but she couldn’t remember it hurt to even think. She moved to stand up, she needed to see for herself who was in pursuit. Her eyes fell on their pursuers, a brief glimpse of a man looking desperately in he direction, alongside a Vulcan woman.

T’Vall stood behind Callie phaser to her back, pulling her slowly backwards whispering. “Come my wife before they kill us, that man was your rapist and the woman a killer. I must save you my love.” When I say run, run.”

Dex shouted “Callie its Dex, Jon your husband is here. Try to remember who you really are, resist his mind.” TVall fired wildly towards them and they dived for cover.

“RUN CALLIE” T’Vall screamed as they fell through the doors of the shuttle.

"Callie run to Dex and myself. Don't go with T'vall. He's controlling you! Sweetheart you have to believe us! " Jon begged his wife, his eyes locking on hers. "Callie open your heart you know I'm right."

Callie ran, but not towards the away team, or in the direction T’Vall had wanted. Instead she ran away from them both, as fast as her legs could carry her. She didn’t know where she was going until the ground slid away beneath her and she disappeared from view as she tumbled down a steep slope.

"CALLIE!!!!!!!!!" Jon screamed and took off after his wife. "Take out that shuttle prevent it from leaving! Leave T'vall to Dex." He shouted to Ayana, Deanna and the others even as he scrambled after Callie. "Callie? It's Jon, darling please listen to me, hear the love in my voice for you. I'm not going to loose you again Callie."

T’Vall threw himself into the shuttle and took off weaving to avoid the weapons fire. He knew he could beat Jon as he flew over him. He could see Callie seemingly unconscious on the Valley floor. He set the shuttle down with its back to Jon and pulled her in taking off again weaving, yawing and pitching down the Valley until the shuttle disappeared into the mountain range.

All he cared about now was Callie, he’d leave the Orions and StarFleet to fight it out. He set the heading for a small escarpment and a large cave approximately 10km away. He pulled the unconscious and bleeding Callie to him blotting the blood from her head. “I love you my wife, do not leave me.”

Dex swore in Vulcan and Klingon and in just about every language she knew as she saw the shuttle disappearing up the Valley she looked for Jon. “Commander are you hurt?” She called.

Jon's head hung and he cried desperately. "Callie! Pleeeaase sweetheart. Come back to me." He looked at Dex, "She's gone Dex." And the tears started again, streaming down his face like twin rivers.

Dex pulled her to him her hand calming his hair and rocking him. “Shush Jon, Callie has not gone, we just need to find her again. The good news is she ran from him so something must have got through. T’Vall, whatever we think of him loves her and will see no harm comes to her. We have to think how we can follow that shuttle, but we also have to make sure the slaves and the away team are okay.” She pushed him away from her. “Ready Commander?”

"I can't go through this again." Jon cried. "She was within my grasp and I failed her Dex. I failed the woman I love with all my heart and soul. He was inconsolable. "I failed Callie." He repeated.

Dex shook him, “Commander, COMMANDER you have an away team to direct and people to protect.” She shook him again.”I swear on my Vulcan life we will get her back safely, now get up and do your job.”

Jon's eyes regained their focus as he looked at Dex. Anger simmering below the surface. He stood up and overlooked the situation. "Get the slaves together and back to the Washington. Round up the slavers and send them to the brig." He ordered all while his heart was breaking into tiny little pieces. "Tell the Captain, we, no I failed to recover Callie, see if they can track the shuttle. It looked like it was venting plasma."

Dex nodded, “yes Commander.” She moved away looking for Ayana to relay the messages she had been given. On her way she stunned a couple of likely slavers and nerve pinched another. She found Ayana behind the transport her fighting several Orions.

“Lieutenant, message from Commander Grayson, any slaves to be sent to sickbay, any prisoners to the brig. We lost Callie but they escaped in a shuttle that looked to be venting plasma, the Commander asks if the ship can track the plasma leak. Acknowledge?”

Ayana was hip deep in a firefight with the Orions and a few other unsavory types as the message came over the comm. She wanted to acknowledge but simply wasn't able to at the moment. She did the only thing you could, and looked in the direction of Celes.

Deanna picked up on the sudden need coming from Ayana and looked in her direction, opening her mind and collecting her thoughts. She attempted to contact the ship but with no luck. Quickly she ducked down and activated her tricorder. She detected the vessel in question and began tracking it. She was glad she had synched it up to the planetary sensor network, allowing her practically unlimited range. She hit her comm badge, =^=Commander, I am tracking the vessel in question. The Washington is out of communication range it would seem. If you want to go after it, I suggest appropriating one of those skimmers.=^=

Zack had moved with mechanical precision, he wasn't the best in class at the academy, but he had excellent situational awareness. He used the environment to great effect, everything from shattering windows above covering hostiles when they were either distracted or moved out from cover from the falling glass, he took them out. The away team was excellent and he quickly felt he could leave part of the path to them as he focused on his side. One Orion managed to get a grazing shot on Zack, burning away a small section of the uniform on his upper left arm and giving him burns.

Zack dodged to the side behind a pile of debris that had been resulted from the fighting. Peeking over the side, he saw that a large sign was hanging of thick chains above the man who had shot him. Without a word, he moved some of the debris to give him a hole to place the rifle. Taking a steady aim, he shot once, the strike only partially hit the chain, he could see the glowing part where the chain had been hit.

The Orions laughed, saying something that Zack's aim was shit. The second shot hit true and the sign swung down with such force that when it struck the target in the face, it easily caved it in and sent the body flying. The laughing instantly stopped and they focused on Zack now.

A group of about 10 females lay beside the debris, crying and half naked some of them obviously pregnant looked at him with fear in their eyes. “Please do not kill us.” One said to him.

Zack aimed his weapon at them at first, this was the middle of a battlefield and he was skeptical about 'sleepers' he called them. Hostiles who hid in groups of innocent people. He narrowed his eyes, observing their body language. He was of course not a human lie detector, but hints could give clues. "Stay there and stay quiet," he said as he shot at the hostiles again, he made sure to pay attention to any sounds that were out of place, the rocks and smaller debris on the ground would give him a heads up if they tried to sneak upon him.

Three men from the slavers group had begun to encircle Zack, quietly and swiftly they took positions behind the debris. Only one of them had a blaster, the others wicked curved blades.

Dex crept up silently to the nearest one seeing the immediate danger for Zack and pinched his neck, she let him down silently.

James was crouched behind a barrier when he saw that Zack was surrounded. He then saw Dex nerve pinch one of them and ran up quietly to the Orion closest to himself. He quickly and quietly put the Orion into an arm lock around his neck. The Orion tried to fight, but Phoenix knocked his weapon down with his free hand. He knelt to the ground with the Orion until the Orion was fully subdued.

Dex looked at James and nodded her thanks.

Having realized that he had backup, Zack noticed that the last hostile aimed his weapon at Dex, ready to shoot her, this was the distraction he needed. Rushing around the debris, he slammed his elbow on the side of the head of the Orion and he went down like a sack of potatoes. The ensign went down to one knee, tossed the weapon to the side as he made sure the area was secure.

Dex rushed over to him and took out her medkit. “Let me have a look at those burns Ensign?”

Zack held up his hand. "Doctor, this is still an active battlefield. It can wait until we have secured the area." his arm was in pain from the burn, but he wouldn't let it stop him. "Check on the women back there instead." he suggested, walking towards one of the buildings to the right to make sure there weren't any more surprises.

Dex was pissed, she was there to treat everyone but her job was also to keep the team as active as possible and that meant treating them when they were injured. She also ranked him and made the decision to speak to him when they were back on board. She saw nurse Reece and asked her to check the women over and prepare them for transport back to the ship.

Amethyst had been kept well out of the way by security until the fighting was over, after a talk with Dex she made her way to the women checking them over ready for transport. She had to admit it was shocking to see just how these poor women had been treated.

Ayana began to make her way through the slaves and then saw a cage with a pair of female Orions. They were quite beautiful, and Ayana knew they'd be trouble. Only one option available in her mind, she raised her phaser and fired, stunning both. "Medic!" she called out ironically.

Dex arrived to Ayana’s call. She saw the downed Orion women and saw how truly beautiful they were. She smiled and checked they were only stunned. She moved them so they were not tangled up with each other. For a moment she wanted to stay with them, to be with them…she shook her head, stood and moved away.

“Ayana why have these people not been beamed aboard?”

"Where would you like me to transport them to doctor? The Washington isn't responding to hails currently. I suspect the captain is dealing with whatever caused the red alert before we transported down. For now, everyone will have to remain where they are. You'll simply have to perform any medical tasks here for the time being." She turned to walk away, "If you'll excuse me doctor, I need to secure those launchers, make sure nobody tries firing off any more shots at the Washington from the surface here."

Okay, Dex thought, no ship, what the hell is going on?. She began to look for Grayson so they could go find Callie. She was not looking forward to a showdown with T’Vall, his mind control was much bigger and better than hers but she and a trick up her sleeve, literally.