[MSNPC] Tark'Iqbar - My Blaze of Glory
Gila Sadar
((Main Engineering - Deck 15, USS Artemis-A))
Tark’iqbar: And these were… ::gestures to a thin web of tunnels snaking throughout the vessel:: Maintenance, right?
Far’ran Third: Jeffries’ Tubes, is what they call them. They function as maintenance tunnels primarily, but they’re all an interconnected web going throughout the entire Ship.
Tark’iqbar felt his blood run hot and cold all at the same time.
Tark’iqbar: So, theoretically, one could climb all the way from Deck 17 to Deck 1 without being noticed?
The older Jem’Hadar’s expression changed ever so slightly, barely perceptible as a frown, but Tark’iqbar could see. He knew that the context of the question wasn’t lost on the more experienced soldier, and as such, the reply was immediate.
Far’ran Third: Yes, in theory.
Tark’iqbar’s next order was given without pause. It was no wonder they’d been unable to hunt down the slinking cowards out in the open. They probably knew every insignificant crawlspace on this vessel like the back of their hand, and so, going on a hunt for them through the Jeffries’ Tubes themselves would be futile.
No. Tark’iqbar needed them out in the open.
Tark’iqbar: I want them vented. Use anything you can - smoke, gas, waste. Start from Deck 17 and work your way up.
Far’ran Third: Understood.
Tark’iqbar watched the Third do the task he had been allotted without question, without hesitance, and found himself nodding. Now, how to go from here? The most efficient way to conduct the search for the Starfleet officers would be to send out a message to the remaining decks, alert them to the intruders…
But if anyone but Tark’iqbar captured them, his glory would be lost. And his mettle would remain unproven.
But if they’d made it to the upper floors already, Tark’iqbar’s chances at catching up with them now were slim, and even if they’d been smoked out of their tunnels, they still knew the ship better than he did at present.
Of course, there was also the possibility that they’d remain in the Jeffries’ Tubes, dying of suffocation-
Far’ran Third: First, what is the pl-
CLINK!
On the floor below, Tark’iqbar heard an odd sound - well, odder than the ambient pulsing that the Starfleet vessel had been making ever since their takeover - and him and the small unit he’d brought with him walked to the railing to look over.
The soldiers below were investigating the peculiar noise, but the past hours of relative ease and the non-confrontative behavior of their Starfleet prisoners had made them lax. All eyes were turned to the peculiar sound, and thus, the group did not see what Tark’iqbar saw so very clearly.
It was a distraction.
It wasn’t so much a conscious thought as an instinctual connection his brain made on its own, as his eyes scanned the entirety of the lower floor - or what was visible from his vantage point for the sizable warpcore and the scattered walkways - but it was no coincidence that an alien sound rang throughout this room just as the Jeffries’ Tubes became unusable for stealth.
Tark’iqbar: Soldiers, remain alert!
The unit below scrambled in reaction to his order, quickly moving into familiar patterns as only one moved towards the distracting noise, and the others drew their polaron rifles in preparation for whatever ambush that might follow the sound. Another newer sound followed, the sound of metal scraping against metal, and Tark’iqbar drew his own weapon.
Jem’Hadar Soldier: Contact!
There it was. The Starfleeter.
But not the Captain. Captains wore red. The golden-shirted Starfleeter raised his phaser and stood in defiance of the gathering of Jem’Hadar.
Silveira: STOP. Kill me and we all die.
The Soldiers below paused, their fingers ready on their weapons, ready for one final order. Tark’iqbar’s face split in a vicious grin.
Silveira: I got this phaser set to blow when it falls from my hand. I think we all know what that will mean.
oO Do we now? Oo
Tark’iqbar presumed it had something to do with the obnoxiously bright and vibrant warp core in front of him. Presumably, the Starfleet Officer was intent on triggering a breach if he was shot. Were phasers that accurate? Doubtful, but then, this entire Ship was doubtful in its validity, and yet here it was.
If the Ship was as far ahead of the curve as his Second insinuated, who was to say the phasers aboard weren’t similar?
Tark’iqbar: Lower your weapon, Starfleet, and deadly force might not be our first choice.
The Officer grinned, his face betraying an unfounded confidence that Tark’iqbar found grating beyond reason. The Human Male tipped his head in his direction, clearly having pegged Tark’iqbar as the leader that he was.
Silveira: I am the Chief Tactical Officer of this ship. Do you really want to test me and see if I will blow it up, sacrificing everyone so it won’t end in Dominion hands? Really?
Tark’iqbar’s mind was processing the situation before him. A single lone Officer pointing on the warp core with a phaser. If this was the failsafe this crew had, any of the engineering officers present during the takeover would’ve defaulted to it. It would’ve been a good failsafe for the crew of a prototype vessel like this. And yet, none had.
This ‘Tactical Officer’ of theirs had waited until now to do so. Why not before? There was only one logical conclusion. He hadn’t been able to before. And why? Because he hadn’t been on board.
Which meant he’d gotten here after the Jem’Hadar took the vessel.
Tark’iqbar: ::chuckle:: Yes, I really do.
Raising his rifle to bear on the Officer, the nerves of the young unit behind him betrayed their apprehension. No one was out to die today. Tark’iqbar certainly had no plans to die either. But neither did he have any intentions of letting the Chief Tactical Officer of a Prototype Starfleet Vessel loose on his own Ship. Who knew the systems he’d be able to turn against them before they managed to hunt him down again.
No, now was their only chance.
Silveira/MacKenzie/Kel/Hallia: Response (if any?)
He aimed the polaron rifle straight at the Tactical Officer’s head.
Tark’iqbar: Where is your Captain, Starfleeter?
Silveira/MacKenzie/Kel/Hallia: Response
He adjusted his aim, ensuring the the barrel pointed exactly where he wanted it to.
Tark’iqbar: Captain Addison MacKenzie! I am Tark’iqbar, First of the LV Mak’ro. I’ve claimed your Ship. I’ve claimed your crew. And in the name of the Dominion-
He pulled the trigger, sending a polaron charge barrelling towards the haughty Human, and in doing so, sounded the warhorn, as Engineering fell into red and klaxons blared.
TAGs/TBC
Tark’iqbar
First of his Unit
LV Mak’ro
As simmed by
LtJG Gila Sadar
Medical Officer
USS Artemis-A
A240006GS1