MSNPC Administrator Soldu tr’Kharis - No Time for Diplomacy
Teayl Thorn
((Outside the Hab, Surface of Moon Sigma, Ross 580 System))
A sharp flare of heat ripped across his upper arm, spinning him half around before he caught himself against the rock. The containment suit’s outer layer blackened where the energy bolt had scored it. Warning glyphs flickered across his visor.
tr'Kharis: ::a hitched breath:: How… inconvenient.
For a moment he simply stood there. Breathing. He flexed the arm experimentally. Pain radiated through muscle already weakened by radiation sickness.
The Orion witch rushed forward, grabbing his uninjured side and hauling him behind cover even as a return shot grazed her own EV suit.
Solana: Standing in the open is a sure way to get shot, Administrator. Are you alright?
He turned to her, slightly confused at her actions, shock making his thoughts sluggish.
tr'Kharis: Merely a glancing blow. ::slight pause:: To both the suit… and my dignity.
Another bolt snapped overhead.
Solana: Well, there’s only two left. What say we put them down and secure that weapon?
Soldu exhaled slowly, ignoring the warmth spreading under his damaged suit where the blast had struck.
tr’Kharis: Whenever you are ready, Senior Chief. I find I am increasingly motivated to conclude this engagement.
Solana: As am I. I’ll lead their fire and cross over to that outcropping over there, that should get them to turn and expose their flanks to you.
tr’Kharis: ::breathing heavily:: I’ll follow your lead on this… and try not to get shot.
The Orion made a quick weapons check, then leaned out, fired a covering burst, and sprinted. Phaser fire snapped around her, missing by centimeters.
Solana: Come on you silicon pests! ::she shouted::
Soldu followed her directions waiting for them to follow her distracting dash. Then he leaned out, phaser in his good hand and careful of the weapon prototype, attempting to destabilize the leg joints of the two other Tholians with a sustained phaser blast.
tr’Kharis: ::rising smoothly, firing measured disruptor shots:: Yes… do focus on her.
She slid the last meter to cover, rolled prone, and unleashed a heavy volley. One Tholian staggered, colliding with the other as they attempted to activate the device. The collapsed to the ground.
Solana: I think I got them both!
tr’Kharis: ::coolly, advancing with deliberate caution:: Let us confirm before celebrating. Tholians are notoriously resilient.
The woman crept forward, rifle steady. Soldu was too tired and sore to crawl so he covered her and strode down the embankment towards the weapon and the downed Tholians.
Then both workers detonated, one exosuit exploding and triggering the other simultaneously. Crystal fragments scattered across the regolith and Soldu found the energy to duck low.
Silence returned to the thin atmosphere of the moon’s valley, save for the faint hum of the dropped device.
Solana: Can you make sure that thing isn’t about to make our lives shorter?
Kneeling beside the long cylinder, the old Romulan scanned the Sencha weapon with his suits visual diagnostics. A read out appeared next to his operational eye.
Device active.
Containment stable.
tr’Kharis: ::glances up briefly, good eye finding her green ones:: It’s active, but not primed to fire. I recommend we power it down with all due haste.
He gently slid open an operation panel and dialed the power down to deactivate the device as her comm line crackled.
Kel: =/\= Kel to Solana, it's time to go Chief. Fall back and beam to the Ronin, bring Mr. tr'Kharis with you. =/\=
Solana: =/\= Understood, sir. The Tholians had a sencha prototype with them, we’re making sure it’s not going to activate. Then we’ll join you. Solana out. =/\= ::to Soldu:: Looks like we need to retreat. I’m guessing by his tone, something just got worse. How’s the device?
tr’Kharis: ::rising slowly, voice measured:: The device is now dormant, but I would still prefer a significant distance between it… and us.
She sighed and called for transport.
Solana: Well, we’re far enough from the dome there shouldn’t be any interference from the Lid. ::she tapped her commbadge:: =/\= Solana to Ronin, two to beam up. Along with one device. Be advised, it’s a Sencha weapon and will need to be contained immediately upon transport so beam it first. =/\=
It looked like he wasn’t going to get the distance from the experimental sencha prototype he wanted, but he was finally going to leave the moon and the Lid behind. He remained crouched on the ground, chest rising and falling in a deep sigh of relief.
tr’Kharis: ::deep breath:: I thought you’d never ask, Starfleet.
Ronin: =/\= Understood, Senior Chief. We’re locking onto you next. =/\=
The blue shimmer enveloped the weapon. It vanished.
The enchanting creature smiled at him and Soldu felt a strange jolt in his desiccated chest, something akin to the fondness he felt deep down for Joakim… and, reluctantly, the doomed souls under his command at the edge of Erebus. He had thought he and the rest would die here, used up by the Lattice.
Solana: Well fought, Administrator. When we’re back on board, you should get that wound checked.
She tilted her head, her forceful gaze knowing. He felt a creaky, grizzled grimace, close to a smile stretch his bloodless lips in response.
tr’Kharis: If you insist, Starfleet. ::a faint pause:: Perhaps… a drink afterward? One old soldier… to a young—
The transporter shimmer began enveloping them.
Slowly.
Too slowly.
That was when the lurking Warrior struck. A massive crystalline form lunged from concealment, slamming into the woman and knocking her clear of the beam. She twisted, driving a bright, incandescent blade into the attacker even as loosed a terrible, splintering screech. Two apex predators in their prime.
Soldu stared from inside the transporter field, heart pounding. Alliance. Betrayal. Survival. Choice. For a split second he considered stepping out. Then the beam intensified.
oO I will ensure they return for you, Senior Chief. Try not to die before then.Oo
The transporter beam vanished, leaving no trace of Soldu tr’Kharis on Moon Sigma. The Tholian warrior and the Starfleet soldier were locked in combat, thrashing at each other in close quarters, kicking up grey dust in the moon's thin atmosphere.
((Transporter Room, Deck 06, USS Ronin))
The transporter shimmer collapsed, and Soldu tr’Kharis found himself standing on the polished pad of a Starfleet transporter room.
He had stepped aboard exactly three Federation vessels in his lifetime, enough to understand their patterns and predictability, but he barely registered this one's decor or that for this brief moment he had made the escape from the Lattice Alliance's clutches.
There was no time for diplomacy, or explanation. Solana was still down there and she was in trouble.
Two young crewmen, transporter technician and a security officer, stared at him. Surprise just beginning to resolve into action as Soldu stepped off the pad.
The Starfleet phaser in his hand rose smoothly, almost gently.
Two heavy stun bursts dropped them before either spoke.
tr’Kharis: ::quietly, almost courteous:: Nothing personal, gentlemen… and lady.
He was already moving, leaping off the pad and striding to the workstation. The console interface came alive under his fingers. Romulan interfaces were superior, but luckily Starfleets design was predictable once you knew what you were looking for. He located the last transport coordinates.
There were two lifesigns, almost intertwined. Too close to separate and the radiation was making differentiating species difficult.
His jaw tightened. For a moment he considered reviving the technician…and the security officer. Perhaps he had been… precipitous.
But then the old, haunting voice returned: oO Show no weakness, Soldu! Oo
He made a tiny adjustment to the last transport coordinates, calculating for offset and movement and reinitiated the transporter beam. Then he leant down, taped the security officers' starfleet insignia.
tr’Kharis: ::clipped, cool tone, almost matter-of-fact:: =/\= This is Administrator tr’Kharis to this vessel's security! You are about to have a Tholian intruder onboard at my present location. Reinforcements would be… prudent. =/\=
He released the badge and slipped behind the console, weapon ready as motes of light swirled on the pad and a struggling pair of creatures materialised.
Soldu waited half a second until he could distinguish Orion from Tholian, then he fired. The first phaser blast struck the creature square in the torso, disabling its web-spinner assembly. Energy lanced violently across the crystalline carapace. Partially refracting, hit but still dangerous.
His second shot shattered a lower limb joint.
Trying to carefully pick targets away from the Starfleet officer.
Soldu stepped out from behind the console at last, posture straight, weapon steady, expression composed behind the green-tinted visor.
tr’Kharis: ::calm, almost conversational:: I trust you will forgive the delay, Senior Chief.
[ End Act 2 For tr’Kharis ]
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Soldu tr’Kharis (he/him)
Station Administrator
The Lid
As simmed by
Writer for Lt. JG T'Fearne
Security Officer
USS Ronin - NCC-34523
R24107T14