Lt. Commander Ayiana Sevo - Big Ferengi On The Block
Aaron Schimmel
(( The Burning Hole, Nassau, Ma No Umi ))
The group was standing in a junk stall, made of junk, looking at junk. The human running it was also a piece of junk. Metaphorically. Vylaa was looking at a piece of plating zhe could strip down for some important material.
zh’Tisav: What I could really use is some benamite. Know of any of that around here?
The grumpy looking Human looked Vylaa up and down, thinking. Ayiana saw Vylaa move zher hand behind zher back, ready to pull her knife from under zher shirt if necessary. Ayiana was similarly protected by her combat knife.
Merchant: Good luck, that stuff is hard to find. Try Beezim’s down the road, he has a whole crew crawling the piles every day, seems to get all that kind of stuff. ::Turns to Vylaa’s companions:: What about you? You here to buy or just lookin’?
Sevo: Got anything like a quantum subharmonic flux sensor? Need to repair some of our ship’s sensors.
Nera: What about Bajoran tech? 2320 or earlier would be good.
Merchant: Lady, I only have basic scrap. You want specialized stuff like that? Go to Beezim’s, like I said, and stop wasting my time.
Ayiana couldn’t help but notice how the man eyed them suspiciously. Did word that a shiny, near-pristine Starfleet Sovereign-class ship docking at Nassau spread so quickly? Or was it something…else? Perhaps it was how clean the three of them looked. Most people around here wore disheveled clothes and were unkempt. They stuck out like a giant Andorian in a crowd.
Sevo: Thanks, then. ::She said and turned back into the loosely termed “street.”
Nera: Thank you. Lovely stall you have here, scraptastic.
zh’Tisav: Nice guy…
Sevo: Y’all notice how he was looking at us? I think we stick out a bit.
zh’Tisav: Welcome to my world, Commander. My sisters and I have been getting looks like that from males since our last growth spurt.
Nera: All it takes is one thing to set you apart, and people never leave you alone.
Sevo: We can try to dress up as much as we want, but it’s hard to lose the ::whispering:: “Starfleet” shine.
zh’Tisav: Hmph. Speak for yourself.
Nera: I suppose I could have rolled around Waste Management before beaming down, that might have lessened the shine ::grimacing:: Or made me smell like a toilet. Not that you’d notice with all the other lovely smells down here.
Sevo: You’d smell like a toilet. Don’t ask me how I know.1
Walking down the thoroughfare, it was easy to spot Beezim’s, mainly for the big, ostentatious sign with his name on it in multiple languages, least of which was Ferengi. “Beezim’s Quality Goods and Merchandise.” Someone had taken the time to use ship panels to construct a little building, with carved-out sections filled with glass to act as windows.
The interior itself seemed filled with people, browsing the wares and haggling over prices; and while the selection of equipment inside seemed extensive, even more was kept outside the shop. The larger parts would have no hope of fitting inside.
zh’Tisav: Well, this is clearly the place. Reminds me of one of the stalls in the Agrana Market in Ghutha. Except built from junk…
Nera: And the pop-ups in Jalanda City during the Peldor Festival ::nodding:: about as chaotic too
Sevo: I have no Trill equivalent. I didn’t exactly trawl peddler markets.
zh’Tisav: I’m guessing Beezim is that Ferengi out front. He’s even got security…
Looking in the indicated direction, it was impossible to miss the Ferengi in question. Brightly coloured clothes of impressive quality, gaudy rings, and that same grin all profit-obsessed Ferengi seemed to have when customers were about. Part hungry, part conniving.
Beezim was flanked by two hulking Gorn; tall and broad, teeth bared at any passers-by. The Gorn had quite a history, first as a mysterious, fearsome, cannibalistic adversary to the Federation, then begrudgingly neutral, to finally a loose peace between the powers.
Ayiana had a rather soft spot for them and understood them a bit more. Her first Captain out of the Academy, Nugra, was a Gorn. Exiled, but still a proud Gorn warrior. She had learned a bit about them in her time under him, least of which the Gorn had a sense of honor, to them at least. The Gorn here at the door were just using their fearsome visage (to aliens, anyway) as a deterrent for would-be robbers (seriously, though, who would rob junk?)
Nera: Huh. Not even the Borg can stop a Ferengi’s instinct for profit. I guess some things never change ::chuckling::
Sevo: It’s in their blood.
The closer they got, the more obvious it became that not only was the place more organised, but the quality of goods was significantly higher. It was far more organized than the last one, with things arranged by apparent similarity. There were piles of clothing, a table of PADDs, a stack of replicators, and even some plasma conduits leaning in one corner. As they approached the booth, one of the Gorn turned to watch them.
zh’Tisav: Easy big guy, we’re just looking.
Nera: Customers, like everyone else. ::hands up in the universal peace gesture::
Ayiana remained silent, but eyed them intensely. One Gorn matched her, stared at her for a moment, then smiled slightly and returned his gaze to the room.
Nera: That Gorn’s still looking at us ::whispering:: I feel like he wants to make a meal out of us
Sevo: Relax, it’s just posturing. They’re paid to look menacing. Stare them down; it shows strength and respect.
zh’Tisav: response
Nera: I’m just being paranoid ::whispering:: right?
Sevo: Just don’t do anything dumb. They don’t eat other sentient species anymore. I think.
zh’Tisav: response
Ayiana followed Nera to an area called the “Collective Collection,” an area devoted to (hopefully) deactivated Borg technology. Now that was what she was interested in.
There were some fragments of hull plating, ocular implants, and a pile of wires that resembled injection tubules. Ayiana was eyeing a deactivated power distribution node. She picked it up and looked at it, rotating it in her hands. It looked undamaged, apart from being deactivated, however. It might be a useful thing to study; see if there were differences in the Omega Borg’s power systems.
Nera: Oh hello.
Ayiana turned to see Nera speaking with a Ferengi, presumably the proprietor, Beezim. He was holding a cybernetic Borg arm.
Beezim: W-w-w-welcome honoured guests, w-w-welcome ::rubbing hands together:: I am Be-be-beezim, owner, and proprietor. Are you buying or se-se-selling?
Beezim was leering, eyeing Nera like a freshly caught fish in a trap. He was doing the stereotypical hand-rubbing. Ayiana was certain that and his stutter was just for show. Ferengi were fiercely intelligent; their own Gnaxac showed that. But putting a customer off-guard was standard practice. Make them feel like they had the upper hand.
Sevo: Browsing right now, thanks.
zh’Tisav / Beezim: Response
Sevo: It’s quite a collection of Borg parts you have. I’m assuming they’re all disabled, right?
zh’Tisav / Nera / Beezim: Response
Sevo: Grand. Give us some time to peruse.
Ayiana quietly pulled Nera and Vylaa to the side.
Sevo: I was just thinking; what are we going to pay him with? We don’t have a lot of latinum. Trade?
zh’Tisav / Beezim: Response
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Lt. Commander Ayiana Sevo
Mission Specialist
U.S.S. Gorkon
Image Collective
Wiki Ops
V239109AS0
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