No Saluting
Posted on Wed Jul 12th, 2017 @ 11:36am by Lieutenant Commander Jordan Gunning & Lieutenant Commander Izize sh'Ekesariss & Dahleya
Mission:
The Band (Episode 1)
Location: Mira
Jordan Gunning nudged his companion as they watched their target cross the main bartering hall of Mira station. Among the Ferengi and shifty looking humans she stood out like a whacked thumb. The Denobulan woman seemed to be following someone but from where they were standing neither Gunning nor his new first officer could see who it was.
"We'd better follow her." He said quietly. "Before she does something illegal."
Ize fell in as Gunning started to follow their target. She drew level with him and leaned in close as they maneuvered through the hall. "We use people like this all the time back at SFI, but we never made them part of the team," she said, unable to completely let it go. A bounty hunter! "Why bring her aboard?"
Gunning thought about it for a moment. "Tenacity." He watched the Andorian's antennae twitch with irritation. "Dahleya can get things that we're not able to get and once she has her teeth into a target, she won't stop. She might not be Starfleet but she'll be an asset to a job like this." His voice dropped a little. "I hope."
The Andorian gritted her teeth, but decided this wasn't the best time to keep pressing her point. Besides, there was no guarantee this Dahleya would accept.
Her target looked around shiftily, trying to locate signs of any of the local authorities. He was careful, which meant that he would be harder to catch. She'd have to be quick on her feet. Dahleya laid a couple slips of latinum on the bar as a tip, finished her drink, and got to work. It was too early for him to have completed his business already, so something must have tripped him up and caused him to leave. The two Starfleet officers entering the bartering hall certainly didn't help. The human looked familiar, but fairly non-descript. But that andorian woman didn't know how to not stick out. She was a splash of blue in a sea of pink and brown. It was enough to make Kalen Elso change his plans, and that was enough for Dahleya to already hate her.
She slipped through the crowd, keeping her distance from Elso, but conscious of the fact that she was being followed. She was on the trail of something big, and it was just like Starfleet to get in her way going after the small fry to deny her the big prize. For the past six months she had been tracking a regional mob boss, a rigelian named Armik Yorn. Elso was just one of his associates, and although he was worth a few credits, it paled in comparison to the price on Yorn. Dahleya stepped up her pace. She wasn't going to let Starfleet beat her to another lead. Not when she was getting this close.
Elso stepped away from the more heavily populated areas and down one of the side corridors. The bustle of the crowd was starting to die down, and quick glances behind him revealed that he must have lost his tail. But Elso was a nervous fellow. You had to be in his line of work. He knew that denobulan woman had to be coming after him. But what about those Starfleet officers? They were new here, and an unstable element. He couldn't take the chance, and willed his feet to move a little faster as he came up on the next intersection. He took another quick glance behind him to see if he had been spotted, but when he turned back he was greeted by a leather clad forearm striking him in the chest. Elso fell backward, landing hard on his tail bone. The denobulan woman reached down and grabbed him by the collar, pulling him up to his feet and slammed him against the bulkhead.
"Hold on now, Kalen. Why are you in such a hurry?" Dahleya asked, knowing full well why he was running. "It's almost the twenty-fifth century. You don't need to be so afraid of a beautiful woman."
Elso had no interest in being coy. "I don't know who you are, but you have nothing on me!" he replied in a bit of a panic, the octave of his voice growing higher.
"Oh, you and I both know that's not true. The entire Galactic South has something on you." Dahleya shook her head, but kept a tight grip on him. "But let's be honest with each other. You know you're not the one I really want. Where is he, Kalen?"
The smuggler squirmed, but the woman's grip was too strong. "Where... where is who?"
"James Kirk," she answered sarcastically. Dahleya rolled her eyes. "Where is who? Who do you think I'm talking about? I can cut you a deal, you know. You tell me where to find Yorn and this will be the last you hear from me. Of course, if I find out that you double-crossed me, next time I won't be so gentle." Dahleya pulled him closer before slamming him back against the bulkhead. "So, what will it be? The Federation has enough on you to put you away for a long time. Are you willing to go to jail to protect Yorn?"
"And if I give him up, do you think he won't send his goons after me? I'm not as stupid as you think I am," Elso retorted.
"I don't think you're stupid, Kalen. I think you're smart enough to make the right choice. Besides, if you tell me where to find Yorn, I'll make sure he won't have the opportunity to come after you." Dahleya was getting impatient. If she didn't get something out of him before those Starfleet officers got to her, then she might end up leaving empty handed. She lowered the man down, shifting the balance further in her favor as she now looked down over him. "So what will it be?"
"Still shaking down the local riff-raff, Dahleya?" Gunning and the Andorian appeared from nowhere, rounding the corner as though they had been listening. They wore phasers on their belts - it was always a good idea on Mira Station - but they weren't drawn. The trapped target looked up at the two Starfleet officers wild-eyed.
He wailed. "Officers! I've done nothing - this woman is holding me against my will!"
"Oh, shut up Elso." Gunning snapped back. "You're a piece of crap and pretty much everyone in this damned sector knows it. But I'm not here for you, so you'd better sing and let us be about our business."
Ize stood passively next to Gunning, keen eyes observing the scene they'd walked into. Her focus wasn't on Elso, but rather on the Denobulan predator standing over him. She was learning a great deal from these moments.
Dahleya sighed and spun Elso around to face the wall. She was not about to let him talk about Yorn in front of the Starfleet officers. She was not going to be beaten to another big score. "You and I are going to have a nice long talk later, Kalen. For now, just relax and let the adults talk." She held his wrists with one hand, and reached into her long leather jacket and behind her back. Pulling out a pair of shackles, she put them around Elso's wrists and turned him back around. Pushing down on his shoulders, she gave him a one word command. "Sit." He complied, and she turned back to the two officers, her arms crossed in front of her. "Well look what the Caitian dragged in. Didn't you retire?"
"Something like that." Gunning didn't really consider what he'd done retiring, especially when he'd been reactivated without any fanfare after barely any time. "Tried going freelance, didn't really work out."
Dahleya smiled. "Not everyone can hack it in the private sector. That's fine with me. To be honest you were my competition back on Three-Three-Two. Why would station security hire me for a job when they could hire one of their own?"
"It's funny you should mention that. I need to hire someone with your," he paused for a moment trying to phrase his need in a way which would appeal to Dahleya's ego, "particular set of skills. It's a long term job though - how does some job security sound?"
While Dahleya considered the question, Elso started to edge himself away from the trio. The Starfleet officers weren't interested in him, and Dahleya seemed distracted enough that she might not notice if he could edge out of her view.
The bounty hunter ignored the movements of her prisoner as she considered the offer. "Just what kind of job are we talking? I've been working on a long term thing of my own, and if could be very profitable. Still, a little job security might not be a bad thing, if I can continue my other investigation." She raised a finger in a pause gesture. "But I'm not deciding anything until we talk details. Who are we after, and how much is the purse?"
"The purse is a Starfleet flat wage plus fringe benefits and what you do in your own time is your business." Gunning knew better than to try and stop her pursuing her own thing. "Our targets are classified but they're high value - we can't claim any bounties on them but that doesn't stop you..."
Dahleya looked deep in thought, keeping her attention on the officers. Elso knew this was his best chance to get away. From just on the edge of the bounty hunter's vision, Elso rolled over and jumped to his feet. With his hands bound behind him, his gait was unsteady. But he sprinted down the corridor anyway.
"I'm certainly intrigued by the offer, Jordan," Dahleya replied. Her hand reached inside her long jacket down towards her thigh. "I won't do the Starfleet thing, though. No soluting or any of that bull." She lifted her hand, which was now grasping a phaser. Without looking, she pointed it down the corridor and pressed the fire button. A bright orange beam erupted from the emitter and hit the fleeting Elso square in the back. The smuggler stumbled forward and crumpled to the ground. Dahleya casually put the phaser back into her thigh holster. "Perhaps we discuss the specifics in more detail. I just need to drop something off at my ship first," she added, gesturing down the hall with a flick of her head.
Dahleya, Jordan Gunning & Ize sh'Ekesariss
