Lieutenant (JG) Valesha Sienelis - ...Hvei'khenn

[Quinn Reynolds]

((Beach, Cochtois Lagoon, Deluvia IV))

Sienelis: Fine, fine. You're both as beautiful, ::she put a hand over her heart, which was to say on her right lower ribs,:: and as precious as the benamite that powers the ship's engines.

::Even she couldn't tell exactly where the sarcasm stopped and the compliment began on that one. Not that it seemed to matter to either; Trellis chuckled, while Chris dropped down into the sand next to her. With one arm, he pulled her against his side, and she grinned, taking a swig of her rum as he supped from his bottle of tequila.::

Vondaryan: You are obviously not referring to Romulan engines.

::She gave the Vissian an odd look. Why would she be? That said, she hadn't the faintest idea what powered the Romulan version of quantum slipstream. The quantum singularity at the core of her people's warp technology wouldn't do it, so she wouldn't be surprised if it *was* benamite, just like the Federation's drives.::

Sienelis: I don't know. I have no idea how my people engineer their slipstream drives.

Vondaryan: I'm very sorry I didn't get to see the ship on Sikuna. Though I've heard tales.

::His thoughts got lost in the fire as he finished speaking, something mournful behind the reflected flames in his eyes. Oddly, Chris' expression seemed to follow suit, and she left them to their thoughts, her gaze drifting up toward the stars. Dangerous, deadly and entirely full of beauty and wonder. She'd always been drawn to them, but at the same time, they'd been the cause of so much pain in her life. The introspective silence was ended when Chris squeezed her a little more tightly against him, sending her hummingbird heart beating all the faster, and then he leaned back on his arm. He was quieter when he spoke, but she couldn't tell why.::

Johns: That'd be a thing to see. A hidden warbird underneath that colony. ::He whistled, low and sharp.:: I'm amazed they managed to fly it. My Romulan tongue is far too blunt.

::Valesha stayed quiet. She'd hung back from the Sikuna, the first time she'd been back within Romulan borders since Hobus. Sometimes she regretted it, having missed the chance to be among her own people for a time, to feel like one of the crowd, instead of the token Romulan in the room.::

Vondaryan: What other tales do you all have to tell? Glorious battles in the Klingon tradition? Scientific discoveries that push our understanding of reality? Great ballets that entertain us?

::Midway through a drink, Chris pointed at Trellis with the bottle in his hand as he finished swallowing.::

Johns: Ballets. Now, ballets I can tell you about. They're as epic as any glorious battle.

Sienelis: Now you've done it.

::She directed the comment toward Trellis with a sigh, shaking her head in exaggerated dismay. It was all an act, of course; although she knew very little about the dance, she was perfectly content to watch and listen to Chris as he enthused about something he loved. A little bit of vicarious joy.::

Vondaryan: Give me something to believe in and remember. ::He raised his glass.:: Over a good drink. To friends.

::Following suit, Chris raised his bottle up. Valesha did not, her attention drawn a short way down the beach. The Admiral was walking along the beach, in full uniform, accompanied by a Mazarite Commander she didn't recognise, and four armed security officers. Reynolds' expression was dull and blank, while the rest were impassively professional. At first she thought the group was going to pass them by, but the small group came to a pause beside the tipsy trio.::

Johns/Vondaryan: Response?

Reeves: Lieutenant Junior Grade Valesha ir-Jhianhre t'Sienelis?

::To the man's credit, his stumble over the pronunciation of the scientist's legal name was only a slight one. There was a reason she usually went by the abbreviated version.::

Sienelis: Yes?

Reynolds: ::Quiet, but firm.:: On your feet, Lieutenant.

::This wasn't good. Nothing yet had happened, but she could already feel her head spinning, the warmth fleeing from her veins, and it wasn't from the alcohol running through them. With an uncertain look toward Chris, she did as the Admiral ordered, leaving her rum propped up in the sand.::

Couzins: Hands behind your back.

Sienelis: What?

::The dark-eyed man with immaculate grooming didn't ask again, smoothly scooping one wrist from her side, walking behind and taking a hold of the other. She felt cold metal against her wrists, the weight of handcuffs, the ratchet of magnetic locks drowning almost everything else out. The remaining three guards watched, tense, like birds of prey studying their next meal, and only now did she notice their hands were on the phasers at their hips. 

::Just in case. 

::The stocky, olive-skinned Lieutenant leading the security contingent stepped forward. Her voice was curt, entirely unsympathetic to Valesha's obvious bewilderment.::

Reeves: Lieutenant Sienelis, you are charged with treason, espionage, making false official statements, obstructing justice, misprision of serious offence, conduct unbecoming of an officer and forty-seven counts of murder. 

::She paused. Valesha stared, dumbstruck, her blood rushing in her ears. A part of her wanted to laugh, because this was so ridiculous to be farcical. *Forty-seven* counts of murder? When was she supposed to have killed forty-seven people?::

Reeves: You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can be used against you in court. You have the right to talk to a lawyer for advice before we ask you any questions. You have the right to have a lawyer with you during questioning. If you decide to answer questions now without a lawyer present, you have the right to stop answering at any time. Do you understand each of these rights I have explained to you?

Johns/Vondaryan: Response?

::She understood, but at the same time the whole situation thwarted understanding. She had cuffs on. She was being read her rights. What was happening? Unable to put a coherent sentence together, she blurted out the first thing that her scrambled mind could manage.::

Sienelis: What?

Reeves: Do you understand each of these rights I have explained to you?

Sienelis: I— Yes. ::She knew she should stop talking, but she couldn't shake that burning question.:: But— Forty-seven? Who—? 

::The Mazarite locked his gaze with her, his eyes a pale, algae green. There was disdain in them, haughty and cold, and the single name he spoke oozed from his lips.:: 

Kotanne: The D'Mhaii.

Johns/Vondaryan: Response

::Bewilderment sank below waves of fury as the meaning of his words sank in. She started to lunge forward, and the rational part of her brain immediately regretted it that indulgence in Romulan passion. Couzins planted his foot in the back of her knee, two of the other security officers lunged forward, and the next thing she knew she was belly down in the sand, fine white grains of quartz and aragonite grinding into her exposed skin, courtesy of the combined body weight of three fully grown men and women.::

Reeves: Settle *down*, Lieutenant.

Johns/Vondaryan: Response?

::She didn't resist their restraint and nodded, her eyes hot and stinging. It felt like an eternity until they hauled her back onto her feet, the three of them staying close. Cheeks burning emerald, Valesha cautiously spat out the sand that had wormed its way between her lips, humiliation keeping her gaze low. She didn't see the flicker of disquiet that crossed Reynolds' face, nor could she bear to look toward Trellis. Certainly not Chris.::

Reynolds: Sienelis, I suggest you don't say another word until you have counsel.

::Valesha nodded again, the muscles of her jaw visible as she clenched it shut. Her eyes flicked up just enough to catch the glare the Mazarite sent toward the Admiral. If the woman noticed, she made no obvious acknowledgement of it.::

Kotanne: Yes. Quite. ::He sneered.:: Well, then. Let's be off. We have a cell waiting for you.

Johns/Vondaryan: Response

--

Lieutenant (JG) Valesha Sienelis

Science Officer

USS Gorkon

simmed by

Rear Admiral Quinn Reynolds
Commanding Officer

USS Gorkon

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