Loyalty or Self Preservation

Posted on Mon Jan 16th, 2023 @ 11:29pm by Captain Tristan Faust & Ensign Peter Novak & Lieutenant Shinobu Miyake & Arianna D'Tal & Petty Officer, 2nd Class Vithi D'Kiva

0 words; about a 1 minute read

Mission: Mission 1: A Fool’s Errand
Location: Interrogation Room 1
Timeline: M1 MD09 (2268.24.05) 0330

Immediately after the Orions retreated, the security department began rounding up the Orions left behind and throwing them into the brig. But now it was time to find out some information.

Ensign Novak and another security officer escorted the young female Orion pirate identified by her crew as the first officer to Interrogation Room 1. Peter gave a nodd to Petty Officer Sowande who opened the door for them.

Standing inside were the looming figures of Captain Faust and Lieutenant Miyake, neither of them looked pleased.

The three security officers dropped the woman unceremoniously into the hot seat and strapped her in.

A brief analysis of the Orion gaggle yielded a few results. Most were relatively young and conditioned to be as unhelpful as possible, while others were clearly in it for themselves. Soon they would find out which one this Orion was.

The Orion first officer was only 22, but she had been trained by Arianna herself. She'd offered up no resistance, once she realized she'd been caught, but she had yet to say even one word to anyone. It wasn't until she was strapped into the chair that she finally decided to open her mouth.

"Tell me Captain..." She said, looking right at Tristan, giving him a wry smile. She knew that within only a few short minutes, she'd have a massive advantage over the men in the room, and so she kept her calm. "Are you mad, because she broke your toys?"

"I'm annoyed that my ship was attacked, my people kidnapped," Tristan responded, in an even tone, "But what I will find out from you is where they are headed."

"I'm sure that's not all you want from me." She replied, her demeanor never changing, as she looked him up and down. She knew that she was already having at least some effect on him already. "You men are so predictable."

"So you think," Tristan responded, "Although it won't matter, since this is a job I generally leave to my Chief of Security... She is very good at her job and we should have the information we need relatively quickly." He was speaking in a matter of fact tone, "Although you get to choose how pleasant or unpleasant it can be... Ensign." He gave a nod to Ensign Novak.

Ensign Novak was more than slightly annoyed given one of the Orions had shot him in the leg earlier. Thankfully it wasn't a severe wound. He walked over to the Orion and struck her with a back hand hit.

"Just to show we mean business," Tristan commented.

The hit turned her head to the side, and she promptly spit a small bit of blood. She glanced looked at Novak, then looked at Tristan. "You're wasting your time." She said casually, then chose to outright lie. "I don't know anything."

"We're hardly as dumb as you seem to think we are, sweet cheeks," Lieutenant Miyake spoke up. "If you were as innocent in this whole scheme as you claim to be, then you wouldn't have been on that little boarding party of yours in the first place."

She moved over and drew up a seat in front of the Orion, leaning forward so that the two of them were facing eye-to-eye.

"So, what's say we cut this little charade of yours and get straight to the facts?" she stated bluntly. "You know something about what's going on here; you had to have known from the moment your commanding officer ordered you to attack a Federation Starship that there was some kind of motive at play. You don't just attack a Naval vessel and expect its crew to stand idly by and not protect their assets, so if you've got so much as a guess as to where your little friends are taking our crew, then you'd better start talking; now."

"I just do what she tells me to." Came the reply. She sat looking at this woman, giving occasional glances towards the others in the room. She was biding her time, just waiting for the right moment to make her move. "Do you really think someone who trusts no one is going to trust me with their plans?"

"Then start telling us what you've been able to see for yourself," Lieutenant Miyake suggested. "Surely, they've got to be letting off all those prisoners somewhere... unless your Captain's so far up her own ass with paranoia that she doesn't trust her crew with that information, either..."

"And if I refuse...?" It was a simple question, but one that strongly hinted she wasn't going to break easy.

"Well, for starters, you're looking at least three years in a Rehabilitative Center for Aggravated Kidnapping of a Starfleet Officer," Lieutenant Miyake explained. "Possibly as much as seven, if you're not willing to cooperate. But regardless of whether or not it takes you a few years to finally come around to your senses, we will be getting our answers in one way or another, and your friends will be held accountable for whatever they do next."

"Someone once told me the Federation was just a long list of failures, waiting to be exposed." She leaned forward as much as her restraints allowed her to, putting her nearly nose to nose with Shinobu. If she seemed phased in any way by threats of incarceration, she didn't show it. "If this is the best you can do, then perhaps they weren't wrong."

"Mark my words, sweet cheeks, you're going to be a good girl when we're done rehabilitating you," Lieutenant Miyake assured her in a somewhat threatening tone. "So let me ask the question again: are you going to come clean and tell us what you know, or do we have to force the answers out of you?"

"Go space yourself, Human!" The woman suddenly snapped at her, sitting back in the chair. At this point, the look of defiance was unmistakable in her eyes. "You can do what you want to me, because I'm not stupid enough to risk death, by betraying my Captain!"

"Well, don't say we didn't warn you..." Lieutenant Miyake sighed, standing up and cracking her knuckles before shifting her attention over to Tristan. "Permission to bust out the Mind Scanner, Captain?"

"By all means Lieutenant," the captain responded in a matter of fact tone, "This little captured device has always worked in the past." He snapped his fingers and signalled Mr. Novak to bring in the device. "You can still avoid this," he added looking at the Orion pirate, "Too long and you won't have the ability to consent to anything."

The woman's demeanor suddenly changed again, seeming calm and flirtatious. "Is all this really necessary?" She asked, looking bewteen Novak and Tristan. "If you untie me, we can relax and talk about more important things... I promise you won't be disappointed."

Ensign Novak gave Captain an odd look. The Captain squinted his eyes, "Mr. Novak, please step outside," he said. The ensign hesitated. The Captain looked at the other security officer in the room, "Mr. Delton, please escort Mr. Novak to the hall and give him some air," he said to young security officer, "And you stay out there as well."

Tag Delton - You are both feeling effects from the Orion Phermones.

The Captain turned back to look at the Orion female, "I know the game," he said, "And it isn't going to work... So you may as well tell us what we need to know to avoid any unpleasantness."

"Oh... They left! You took away my boy toys..." She said, giving him somewhat of a pouty look, before turning serious again. "Your little mind scanner can't find what's not there. As I told you before, I don't know anything. Even if I did, you'll keep me locked up anyway, so where's the incentive to help you, my dear Captain?"

"A pardon is on the table if you help us... Perhaps even some compensation," the Captain responded, "However, if you don't do it willingly... Then we will need to resort to other methods." The doors of the Interrogation Room opened and a female security officer wheeled in a large clear helmet with various silver cylinders protruding from it. "Thank you ensign, just leave it there," he said to the female security officer who nodded and left the roon.

"A pardon... I doubt you'd really let me just walk away, to return to my old life." She replied dryly. She began to subtly struggle against her restraints, looking for any weaknesses. "Failures... The lot of you! Hell, you even failed to stop us from taking your crew."

"What do you think you are? A failed pirate, a war prize," Tristan retorted, "Forget it, strap it on her. We're wasting time." He signalled for the security officers to strap the "Mind Ripper " on.

The security officers strapped the device on. "A partial session will yield temporary amnesia... A full session has been known to yield full permanent amnesia, vegetative state or even death," the Captain explained as he held out his hand. The security officer placed the control device into his hand. "Any last words," he asked.

"I deserve my fate." She said, then promptly spit in Tristan's direction, though it was clear she was scared.

The spittle impacted on the carpet in front of Tristan's black leather boots. "As you wish," Tristan responded coldly as he tapped a few buttons. The helmet came alive and lightning bolts emanated from the helmet to the Orion woman's head.

As the device came alive, she grunted as it felt like hundreds of tiny pin pricks across her head. After a few short moments, she panicked! "Stop!" She finally yelled out. "I'll tell you what you want to know, just don't take my memories!"

The device clicked off, "Good," Tristan responded.

"Ready to talk now?" Lieutenant Miyake repeated, now that they had conveyed their point.

"What is your heading," the Captain demanded.

Though scared out of her wits, the Orion woman glared hard at Miyake, before turning her gaze back to Tristan. "I'll talk to you, and you alone." She told him in no uncertain terms, despite the risk of it not working. "Get this off, and get them out, or you get nothing."

The Captain shrugged, "Get that thing off," he said. The security officers quickly took the gizmo off of her head, but the security officers remained although they moved further away. "They stay," he said, "Now tell me what I want to know, or we continue."

The Orion woman spent the next hour or two answering questions, giving them all the information they needed, including her name. She knew if her captain came back for her, she'd likely be executed, but keeping her memories was worth more than her life.

As the session came to an end, she threw in one last tidbit. "If you catch her, or she catches you she will use every advantage she can come up with, including killing your friends." Marina said, giving a serious look. "If you value your lives, and your precious starship, I'd just let her go."

"We shall see," Captain Faust responded before heading towards the door, "Confine her to a private cell. We'll deal with her again once we reach Starbase 10."

 

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