100% proof, and we don't mean drink...Pt 4

Posted on Fri Apr 8th, 2022 @ 12:43am by Lieutenant Niali Korial MD & Commander Finchley Kerr & Lieutenant Shr'Nesh Karadis

Mission: *CD*
Location: Shuttle craft/Gamma Quadrant/USS Patterson
Timeline: Current.

[Approaching 6 hours flight time into the Gamma Quadrant]

The shuttlecraft carrying Niali, Finchley, Karadis and Joran slowed to impulse power. In the pilots seat, Finchley opened a pre-set secure communications channel and said "This is Ironhorse to USS Patterson, we're at coordinates specified, awaiting pickup."

A few moments later, the reply came back "Ironhorse, this is the Patterson, rendezvous in ten minutes...mark."

Finchley had deliberately not put the shuttles scanners on, he didn't want there to be a chance a trace could be piggybacked.

[10 minutes later]

The USS Patterson was now in full view, so Finchley sent the code for their arrival and it was accepted so they could dock. He guided their shuttle onboard and once they'd touched down he shut the engines down and turned to the others.

"Right, we're here" he began "Nilai, you and Karadis take Joran and put him in the brig. They already know he's with us, and they've set a cell aside for him. Once he's there, Niali, I'd like you to stay with him, I need you to question him on who the others were who were altered when he was, and what their assignments were. We already know at least two were on DS9 and a third was altered to look like Captain Kira Nerys. If we know where they were going, we can try to extrapolate what they're missions were and where they were carrying them out."

Niali nodded stood and pulled Joran up, He still seemed to be somewhat affected by the drug cocktail and could not stand. “Lieutenant Karadis can you help please?” She asked.

"Oh, most certainly I can" Karadis replied, walking over and helping to get Joran on his feet "Ok, ups adaisy you" she said.

Finchley watched as they got the drugged Joran up. As they steadied him, he said "Once he's settled where you need him, Niali, you carry on as I asked you to, Karadis I want you up on the bridge with me."

Joran lay in his cell Niali sitting down beside him.

“You’re a mess you know Joran, you should have answered his questions, there was no way you were going to escape pain, so you must like it.

Joran looked at her with hate in his eyes and spat at her.

“Look I have to get more Information from you and, believe you me I will but first let me offer you a compromise. If you answer each question to my satisfaction I will reset each finger and give you pain medication how about that?”

“Trill bitch you haven’t got the balls to hurt me.”

She sighed, so, you don’t want those fingers saving? What a pity. My first question is, your friends who began this with you…well let’s start with just one name and their mission?”

He lay there his eyes mocking her.

“Very well then let’s sit you up, make you a little more uncomfortable.” She took a shattered finger and pulled him up by it.”

He roared as she grasped but didn’t say anything. She took his whole hand in hers and bent it from the wrist, the swelling in his fingers was so great they burst. “Toral Dev,” he screamed. “He was with me.”

“And?” She said, “his assignment was?”

He began to cry but said nothing.

“I am truly sorry but I need to know much more.” She put more pressure on his wrist and it snapped.” He passed out. Niali injected him with a stimulant and as he returned to consciousness she grasped his wrist. “This can all stop Joran, with few answers.”

“Toral Dev, explosive decompression mines in cargo holds of any Federation ship leaving the station for Earth. Pleaseee stop!”

“Names, I need the name of those ships?”

“I swearI didn’t know he was just told any ships he could.”

His hand was bleeding badly now and the swelling in his wrist began to turn black.

“If I don’t reset that wrist soon you’re going to loose that hand Joran. More names now…you know I am beginning to enjoy this.
Stated simply Joran I need four names now or I will begin on your elbow.”

Vilaris Esdo, she was altered to look like a crew member on one of your ships.”

“What ship?” Niali asked. He did not reply so she sighed and in one swift movement dislocated his elbow.

He roared again.”Crazy Horse, it was the Crazy Horse….” This time he offered up the Information without her asking. “She was supposed to sabotage as much as she could, breach the core she was happy to die for the cause.”

“Are you happy to die? she relocated his elbow as he screamed again. “You know that hand won’t last much longer. It will burst soon gangrene and infection will set in. I would say you have an hour at most left. Tell me about Kira Nerys?”

She could see he was near passing out again “TELL ME!” She shouted in his face and then dislocated his shoulder. The sound he made hurt her ears it was so high. The pain he was in was intense and she had to administer another stimulant. She tapped her comm =/\= Korial to Finchley can you come down here =/\=

Finchley tapped his COMM badge and replied “On my way.”

Shortly he was with Niali and Joran and asked “Do you have anything Niali?”

She felt drained and white and longed to go somewhere quiet and just vomit. “It’s going slowly…… I could do more but I don’t want to kill him. He gave me some names Toral Dev explosive decompression mines in any Starfleet vessel he could, leaving the station. Vilaris Esdo altered to look like like a Starfleet officer on the Crazy Horse, her brief is roving, culminating in a warp core breach. I was just about to question him about Captain Kira but, to wait any longer might kill him his heart rate is already 100% above normal.”

"Good work Niali, I mean it, really good work" Finchley said. He paused a moment, then said "Sentinel One has asked us, for the time being, to hand over Joran and our information to Captain Anderson, they'll carry on the search for Nerad and Durot, they'll also go to Henron, see what, if anything, they can find. It's doubtful they'll find much, both Anderson and myself think they'll have abandoned the base after the surgery, but it may yield clues to where they've gone. In the meantime, you, Karadis and myself will return to normal duty on the Sunfire, though we may get recalled if Captain Anderson believes we can be of help to him in his search. Gather your things, we leave in one hour."

Niali looked at The mess that was once Joran. Quickly she opened her bag and injected him with a hypo of strong analgesia. She made sure his fractured fingers were all re set and placed web splints around them. She gave him a shot of broad spectrum antibiotics and dressed his hand making sure he had adequate circulation. Once he was sleeping she collected her few things and went to meet the shuttle that was taking them back to DS9.

The shuttle was quiet as they sped back. Finchley and Karadis were talking softly. All Niali wanted to do was go to sleep and forget what she had done to obtain information. She knew much more now about her Korial symbiont and wondered what more was to be discovered. She laid her head back against the bulkhead and fell into dreamless sleep.