Season 3 Episode 2 - The Price of Pleasure

[Judith Eastman]

[The Oasis - Room 942]

The second Dihiq landed on top of the Orion woman, Aryn straightened up, limping slightly from bashing her shin against the ottoman, and grabbed the weapon that had fallen to the floor. She gazed at it, perplexed, for a moment, realizing it wasn't a true weapon at all.

Tapping her concealed transmitter, Aryn broadcast, Situation contained. Our people are fine. She patted Odelot's arm, passing him to check on Dihiq and the captured intruder.

Aryn pointed the makeshift weapon at the Orion and said, Remain calm and he'll let you up. Then we can have a little conversation. Dotelo, would you block the door, please? She decided it would be best to stick with their pseudonyms for the time being.

Go ahead and stand up, if you would, please, Aryn said calmly to Dihiq. Internally, she was shaking. Of course, she'd practiced all kinds of scenarios in the Academy, and been through a few harrowing experiences since, but this situation took the cake. It had been stupid to go unarmed and she was lucky things hadn't gone worse.

The Emerald Enclave Pleasure Resort, The Oasis - Room 942

Sherri had heard of Klingons and their warrior ways.  She had even seen a few Klingons among the clientele here, usually acting as bodyguards for important people.  She had never seen one fight, however.  It was startling to hear the high-pitched warrior scream.   To have the man lunge at her.  He had come upon her seeming as an uncoordinated child might, lunging at a pool in a failed attempt to dive in.

And yet one could not argue with results.  To her dismay, the Klingon crashed into her and pinned her underneath his powerful- if surprisingly lithe- body.

Odelot, meanwhile, lifted his boot so that Sherri's weapon could be collected by his rescuers, and then followed his orders and shut the door.  Stepping over to fill he doorway with his bulk, he made it unlikely that the Orion woman would be able to escape, even if she somehow got away from the savage and formidable Klingon martial-artist in their party.

Despair overcame Sherri's fortitude, and she began to weep.  Openly and shamelessly, she sobbed.  Her life had been cruel, and now it would end cruelly.  She had stood up for herself this final time, despite the lessons a slave's life had taught her.  A foolish hope.  Now that hope was dashed, as she herself surely soon would be.

"Please... don't kill me.   I'm just a slave.  I'm not a Security Chief.  I'm a slave they use in Information Technology.  I detected something here... and I investigated for them.  I thought... whoever is doing this, maybe I can blackmail them into taking me with them.   Away from here.   But I swear, I won't tell anyone about... any of this.  Whatever this is.  I don't care.  I just want to live.  Please!"

Odelot looked down at the green girl, crushed under the brave and powerful Dihiq, and felt sad.  He knew he was supposed to be a bad man who was very rich and sold guns to other bad men, but he did not feel like being bad right now.

He looked to his friends, a pleading in his eyes, under big bushy brows.

Dihiq
[The Oasis, Room 942]

Shakily, hesitantly, Dihiq got up from the woman he'd just tackled. It was probably more traumatic an experience for him to be violent than for her to be on the receiving end of said violence.

"What have I done?" he mumbled as he backed up towards a couch. "I'm no better than an animal, giving into my instincts."
He stared at his palms, as if thinking his body to be a tainted, dirty object. He was shaken.

[Rough Diamond - Bar]

Lea grinned at his response, glad that her plan had started to work in terms of distracting him by getting to drink with her instead. So when he ordered a long island iced tea and told the bartender that she would have whatever she wanted, Lea soon made her mind up.

" Raspberry vodka and lemonade please " she said still being her playful self.

The Bartender had been the one she was flirting with earlier so when her drink was poured, he doubled the measure before handing it to her.

" an extra special one for Maura"He said with a slight purr before making the long island iced tea for Nick. Lea responded to the bartender with a teasing bite of her lip as she then returned her attention to Nick.

Nick Dixon
[Rough Diamond, Bar]

Nick was mildly perplexed that the bartender seemed to know his current conversation partner's name. He supposed she must be a regular visitor. Or had she said her name before? Either way, he couldn't be weird about it.

"Maura, huh? I'm Nick," he said, giving his name at last. "What line of work are you in?"
It was all just small talk, exploring possibilities.

[The Rough Diamond Casino]

The Bolian sat up rigidly straight and let his hand fall from Naira's lap, at the sound of the Caitian's snarl. His normally relaxed posture and confident demeanor were momentarily dropped as the instinct to pull away at the first sign of danger took over. Boref was not easy frightened. He worked in a dangerous profession, surround by criminals and with the constant threat the authorities coming after him, but what he did for a living stuffed his accounts with the latinum to hire body guards of his own and bribe his way into good standing with the Orions. However, he wasn't about to push his luck with a Caitian, not over this.

The thought of teeth and nails tearing into his flesh was not his idea of a pleasant experience.

Naira relaxed a bit as the Bolian pulled back, increasing the distance between them ever so slightly.

The dealer revealed his cards to the table and called on Boref twice before the Bolian tossed his own towards the center of the table and relinquished his chips.

"The tables don't appear to be on my side tonight. Come, join me for the auction," he lowered his voice as he spoke. "That's where the real action is." his confidence returned as he stood up from the table and gestured for the others to follow him towards the back room.

Naira stood up to follow and in doing so, she tapped her hidden badge so that the others may listen in.

Judy
While waiting for the Tholian to answer, Judy glanced towards the captain, who seemed to have started sending audio as well. It was only a fleeting glance, but it might well have been noticed; this made Judy regret not having her sunglasses or her readers on at the moment.

[Felicity Ellis]

[NPC - Galanna - The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"It doesn't quite add up, Theggy," the stunning brunette told her Tellarite partner with a pout as sharp eyes studied the group at the bar. "There's something almost unnatural about the way a handful of tonight's gamblers have been interacting."

Theg tugged on his impressive grey beard as he considered Galanna's words. They were in business together for a very good reason; and even though telepathic abilities were almost completely suppressed in The Diamond, he still knew not to discount her instincts. He was careful not to look directly at the group she was investigating, though Galanna's eyes suddenly flicked upward, toward the cordoned off area where Boref had been sitting.

"At first I thought maybe a heist, perhaps a group cheat effort."

"And now?"

"Now I'm not so sure." Galanna's lovely mouth twisted into a sneer. "But I will find out."

Theg grasped her hand and raised it. With a flourish that included a slight bow, he pressed a kiss against her knuckles. "I will leave this in your very capable hands, my dear. The auction is about to start. Try not to make too much of a mess, won't you? Effective clean up crews can be costly."

Galanna observed Theg's progress across the casino floor and toward the more private suite of back rooms before she raised a hand imperiously, and snapped her fingers. Two suited men appeared by her side within moments. With a few murmured directions, the disguised security personnel, or more aptly, hired muscle, began to move toward the two human females and the Tholian. Galanna continued to hang back, as was her prerogative as the Rough Diamond's manager.

"Identification, please." The hired goon was large, human and the demand was delivered in a gruff voice that left no room for misinterpretation. However, his presence seemed to have little effect on the brunette woman dressed in black, other than to annoy her.

[Felicity - The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"My thumbprint and access to my funds is more than enough identification, don't you think?" She knocked back a shot of something before continuing, her overall tone suggesting a growing irritation. "Go bother someone decidedly less wealthy."

[Volskene]

[The Rough Diamond - Casino Bar]

"Bartender! A round of boude please!" She gave the suddenly very busy server a smile and a wave while she asked for the colourful liquor, traditionally served in a shot glass and set alight. It was sticky, it was intoxicating, but it was tasty and slid down the throat with ease. Volskene's protests fell upon her deaf ears; Felicity had a sneaking suspicion that the Tholian had access to more lines of credit than most of the casino's guests, and that was saying something. She had no idea why she thought this, but she enjoyed the mystique it added to the surly Tholian's persona.

Felicity nodded in response to Judy's observations. As soon as the other woman had joined them to make a weird little trio, Felicity passed her one of the shot glasses that the bartender had begun to line up on the tacky, gilded surface. "Indeed it is," she agreed as Volskene took a couple of side-steps closer to her. She would have to tread carefully with this introduction. Too much information would confuse Volskene, too little would leave him with questions.

"Specialist Volskene, may I introduce Zehava Meir. I met Ms. Meir this evening and she is fast becoming an ally amongst so many potential enemies." That was sort of true. Eastman was Meir for that evening, and Felicity had technically just met her. She'd have to explain her true identity to Volskene when they'd completed their mission, but she wanted him to know that Eastman was a friendly, one of them, without actually saying those words. And for Judy, she needed her to know that the same was true of Volskene, and so she continued, "The Tholian Assembly were generous enough to allow Volskene here to join my organisation for a time, so we might benefit from his expertise and unique... perspectives."

*Judy Eastman

Judy noticed the duo whose attention she'd managed to grab. Something about them seemed a little off, slightly different from the drunken gamblers all around the bar.
In a nice exercise of conservation of weirdness, even as those two grew more suspicious in Judy's eyes, the Tholian became less so. Still, Judy had to keep the distraction up, which wasn't going to be fun for Volskene.
"Volskene, okay. Nice to meet you," Judy said, her fake accent staying flawlessly in place (her trick was to pronounce the English words as if they were Hebrew). "Do you shake hands, oR what?"
On some level, playing the culturally insensitive schmuck made Judy feel bad. On another level, it was fun.

As the Primary Medical Ruling Castemember gave her introduction of Volskene, the Tholian made no protest. As far as he was concerned, it was a mostly accurate description of his situation. Though, he had wanted a little more attention given to his superior intellect and prowess for scientific consultation. He needed to stop expecting so much... He stood there, thinking once more on the banality of such games of chance, which inevitably terminated with a bunch of duped humanoids.

Volskene was really having an issue understand what this new humanoid was supposed to be saying. He wondered whether his translator was malfunctioning, or perhaps she was speaking a language not populated by the (sparse) Tholian translation matrix. He simply raised his clawed limbs in front of him in an insectile fashion, but that was mainly due to another approaching humanoid. One that appeared immediately dangerous. Volskene really sensed the need for that disruptor, now.

Trying to ignore the heightening tension both within his thoughtspace and the general aura of the room, Volskene inquired to the Primary Medical Castemember. "I cannot understand your... companion."

[Judith Eastman]

[NPC - Galanna - The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"It doesn't quite add up, Theggy," the stunning brunette told her Tellarite partner with a pout as sharp eyes studied the group at the bar. "There's something almost unnatural about the way a handful of tonight's gamblers have been interacting."

Theg tugged on his impressive grey beard as he considered Galanna's words. They were in business together for a very good reason; and even though telepathic abilities were almost completely suppressed in The Diamond, he still knew not to discount her instincts. He was careful not to look directly at the group she was investigating, though Galanna's eyes suddenly flicked upward, toward the cordoned off area where Boref had been sitting.

"At first I thought maybe a heist, perhaps a group cheat effort."

"And now?"

"Now I'm not so sure." Galanna's lovely mouth twisted into a sneer. "But I will find out."

Theg grasped her hand and raised it. With a flourish that included a slight bow, he pressed a kiss against her knuckles. "I will leave this in your very capable hands, my dear. The auction is about to start. Try not to make too much of a mess, won't you? Effective clean up crews can be costly."

Galanna observed Theg's progress across the casino floor and toward the more private suite of back rooms before she raised a hand imperiously, and snapped her fingers. Two suited men appeared by her side within moments. With a few murmured directions, the disguised security personnel, or more aptly, hired muscle, began to move toward the two human females and the Tholian. Galanna continued to hang back, as was her prerogative as the Rough Diamond's manager.

"Identification, please." The hired goon was large, human and the demand was delivered in a gruff voice that left no room for misinterpretation. However, his presence seemed to have little effect on the brunette woman dressed in black, other than to annoy her.

[Felicity - The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"My thumbprint and access to my funds is more than enough identification, don't you think?" She knocked back a shot of something before continuing, her overall tone suggesting a growing irritation. "Go bother someone decidedly less wealthy."

[Rough Diamond]

The former counselor's reaction wasn't the most courteous, but it was the peak of politeness compared to Judy's reaction.

"Who do you think you aRe, you little [spoiler]bitch"?[/spoiler][spoiler](pronounced "beach")[/spoiler] Judy hollered. "You offend me with youR pResence! [spoiler]Fuck[/spoiler] off!"

But before Galanna could do that, Judy raised her handbag with both hands and took a swing at her. The handbag was heavy, as it was loaded with a purse, prunes, little notebooks detailing the medical history of Judy's family tree, a can of mace, a can of lysol spray, a can of air freshener, (empty) poop bags for the corgis, sunglasses, reading glasses, meds, coffee grounds, a harmonica, a first-aid kit, and some loose papers containing quotations. All in all, it was deceptively heavy; Judy had to work out often to carry it as easily as she did.
It hurt her hips to pivot, and her back probably didn't appreciate it either, but it needed to be done. Besides, at 52 years of age, she was a little young to turn her body into a museum piece. It was still a working, fully functional pain machine, that happened to cause pain to itself as well now.
After almost 30 years' break, and with only one hip her own, Judy Eastman was ready for a bar fight.

[Aryn Corliss]

The Emerald Enclave Pleasure Resort, The Oasis - Room 942

Sherri had heard of Klingons and their warrior ways.  She had even seen a few Klingons among the clientele here, usually acting as bodyguards for important people.  She had never seen one fight, however.  It was startling to hear the high-pitched warrior scream.   To have the man lunge at her.  He had come upon her seeming as an uncoordinated child might, lunging at a pool in a failed attempt to dive in.

And yet one could not argue with results.  To her dismay, the Klingon crashed into her and pinned her underneath his powerful- if surprisingly lithe- body.

Odelot, meanwhile, lifted his boot so that Sherri's weapon could be collected by his rescuers, and then followed his orders and shut the door.  Stepping over to fill he doorway with his bulk, he made it unlikely that the Orion woman would be able to escape, even if she somehow got away from the savage and formidable Klingon martial-artist in their party.

Despair overcame Sherri's fortitude, and she began to weep.  Openly and shamelessly, she sobbed.  Her life had been cruel, and now it would end cruelly.  She had stood up for herself this final time, despite the lessons a slave's life had taught her.  A foolish hope.  Now that hope was dashed, as she herself surely soon would be.

"Please... don't kill me.   I'm just a slave.  I'm not a Security Chief.  I'm a slave they use in Information Technology.  I detected something here... and I investigated for them.  I thought... whoever is doing this, maybe I can blackmail them into taking me with them.   Away from here.   But I swear, I won't tell anyone about... any of this.  Whatever this is.  I don't care.  I just want to live.  Please!"

Odelot looked down at the green girl, crushed under the brave and powerful Dihiq, and felt sad.  He knew he was supposed to be a bad man who was very rich and sold guns to other bad men, but he did not feel like being bad right now.

He looked to his friends, a pleading in his eyes, under big bushy brows.

Dihiq
[The Oasis, Room 942]

Shakily, hesitantly, Dihiq got up from the woman he'd just tackled. It was probably more traumatic an experience for him to be violent than for her to be on the receiving end of said violence.

"What have I done?" he mumbled as he backed up towards a couch. "I'm no better than an animal, giving into my instincts."
He stared at his palms, as if thinking his body to be a tainted, dirty object. He was shaken.

[The Oasis - Room 942]

Oh, hell, Aryn thought. The Orion intruder didn't look to be much more than a frightened kid and the young Klingon looked in little better shape. As the ranking officer currently present, she'd need to decide what to do right now. Aryn was filled with compassion for the young Orion slave, but made herself remember that it could all be a trick.

Stand up and have a seat, she said, gesturing to the ottoman. Aryn forced herself to keep a neutral tone, not cruel but not revealing the empathy she felt at the girl's situation. We'll not hurt you if you help us.

Aryn hesitated before adding the next, but felt it necessary and right. She couldn't stand the terror in the young slave's eyes. I can't promise anything, but we may be able to take you with us. No promises, she reiterated.

[Leanna Mazal]

Nick Dixon
[Rough Diamond, Bar]

Nick was mildly perplexed that the bartender seemed to know his current conversation partner's name. He supposed she must be a regular visitor. Or had she said her name before? Either way, he couldn't be weird about it.

"Maura, huh? I'm Nick," he said, giving his name at last. "What line of work are you in?"
It was all just small talk, exploring possibilities.

[Rough Diamond - Bar]

Lea felt relieved as the situation with Odelot was brought under control, happy that their Pakled friend   had been rescued and knew that she would find out more later when it was safe to do so. As she accepted her drink from the Bartender and Nick introduced himself, she liked the fact he had been taken by surprise slightly with the familiarity of how the Bartender knew her and it added to the mystery of her alter ego.

As she began to answer him, she heard the comm change and understood who had done it. Now was the time to be prepared in order to help extract their target as soon as the signal was given to do so. However maintained her cover as she spoke to Nick.

" That's correct and pleased to meet you Nick" she replied " As for what line of work I'm in, let's put this way I help people bring order to their home worlds and the systems they control".

[Odelot]

The Emerald Enclave Pleasure Resort, The Oasis - Room 942

Sherri stood, slowly and hesitantly.   The Klingon who'd tackled her seemed oddly regretful and ashamed.   The unlikely leader of this gang, Dotelo, suddenly seemed not to be the one in charge.  The crazy girl was cool and collected.  Everything about these people was unexpected and a lie.  Moreover, with the message one of them had spoken- to unseen accomplices?  It seemed there were more of them in other places.  If this was an action by a rival Syndicate or a heist by a band of thieves, it was certainly among the more elaborate she'd heard of.

Moving over to the indicated seat, she sat, looking at them all with a mixture of confusion and... hope.  Could this somehow turn out in her favor after all?

"I will cooperate.  Whatever you want me to do.  Whatever you need to know.  I have no loyalty to this place or these people."

However brutal and unjust this strange collection of souls might be, it was hard to imagine they'd be as savage as her own supervisor.  The idea of every male employee once again being gathered together...

She shook off the thought, even as images blazed in her mind and her stomach lurched in wretched anticipation.

If she dwelt on the memory, it would destroy her.

[Felicity Ellis]

Volskene was really having an issue understand what this new humanoid was supposed to be saying. He wondered whether his translator was malfunctioning, or perhaps she was speaking a language not populated by the (sparse) Tholian translation matrix. He simply raised his clawed limbs in front of him in an insectile fashion, but that was mainly due to another approaching humanoid. One that appeared immediately dangerous. Volskene really sensed the need for that disruptor, now.

Trying to ignore the heightening tension both within his thoughtspace and the general aura of the room, Volskene inquired to the Primary Medical Castemember. "I cannot understand your... companion."

[The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"Ms. Meir is offering her hand for you to shake, Volskene, as is human custom when meeting someone for the first time," Felicity informed the Tholian when he declared his lack of understanding. She was very curious as to whether or not he would accept, as she'd never seen him shake hands with someone before, though she was simultaneously all too aware of Galanna's continued attentions.

Her shoulders stiffened as the nosy brunette effortlessly summoned a pair of goons and made their way over to Felicity and her companions.

[NPC - Galanna - The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"Identification, please." The hired goon was large, human and the demand was delivered in a gruff voice that left no room for misinterpretation. However, his presence seemed to have little effect on the brunette woman dressed in black, other than to annoy her.

[Felicity - The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"My thumbprint and access to my funds is more than enough identification, don't you think?" She knocked back a shot of something before continuing, her overall tone suggesting a growing irritation. "Go bother someone decidedly less wealthy."

[Rough Diamond]

The former counselor's reaction wasn't the most courteous, but it was the peak of politeness compared to Judy's reaction.

"Who do you think you aRe, you little [spoiler]bitch"?[/spoiler][spoiler](pronounced "beach")[/spoiler] Judy hollered. "You offend me with youR pResence! [spoiler]Fuck[/spoiler] off!"

But before Galanna could do that, Judy raised her handbag with both hands and took a swing at her. The handbag was heavy, as it was loaded with a purse, prunes, little notebooks detailing the medical history of Judy's family tree, a can of mace, a can of lysol spray, a can of air freshener, (empty) poop bags for the corgis, sunglasses, reading glasses, meds, coffee grounds, a harmonica, a first-aid kit, and some loose papers containing quotations. All in all, it was deceptively heavy; Judy had to work out often to carry it as easily as she did.
It hurt her hips to pivot, and her back probably didn't appreciate it either, but it needed to be done. Besides, at 52 years of age, she was a little young to turn her body into a museum piece. It was still a working, fully functional pain machine, that happened to cause pain to itself as well now.
After almost 30 years' break, and with only one hip her own, Judy Eastman was ready for a bar fight.

The only response Galanna could give was the breathy "Oof!" that sounded from her as Judy's hefty handbag connected and clocked the woman in the side of the head. She stumbled in her impressive, delicate heels, and would have lost her balance and fallen gracelessly to the carpet below had one of the hired muscle-men not had enough wherewithal to make a grab for her. Once she was righted, looking a little flustered and red-faced, she slapped the man's hands away. "Forget about me, you dimwit, get them!" She sputtered, pointing at their little group.

Felicity glanced at the shot glass in her hand, then at Judy, before finally turning to Volskene. "Specialist, remember when I told you to keep your hands and claws to yourself?" She wound up her arm and let the glass fly toward the oncoming muscle, her mind flashing back to the Christmas before when she'd thrown whiskey tumblers at some murder-elves in Puzzles.

These men had weapons, though. And behind them Galanna was calling for reinforcements.

"Well, I temporarily rescind that order."

[Judith Eastman]

[The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"Ms. Meir is offering her hand for you to shake, Volskene, as is human custom when meeting someone for the first time," Felicity informed the Tholian when he declared his lack of understanding. She was very curious as to whether or not he would accept, as she'd never seen him shake hands with someone before, though she was simultaneously all too aware of Galanna's continued attentions.

Her shoulders stiffened as the nosy brunette effortlessly summoned a pair of goons and made their way over to Felicity and her companions.

The only response Galanna could give was the breathy "Oof!" that sounded from her as Judy's hefty handbag connected and clocked the woman in the side of the head. She stumbled in her impressive, delicate heels, and would have lost her balance and fallen gracelessly to the carpet below had one of the hired muscle-men not had enough wherewithal to make a grab for her. Once she was righted, looking a little flustered and red-faced, she slapped the man's hands away. "Forget about me, you dimwit, get them!" She sputtered, pointing at their little group.

Felicity glanced at the shot glass in her hand, then at Judy, before finally turning to Volskene. "Specialist, remember when I told you to keep your hands and claws to yourself?" She wound up her arm and let the glass fly toward the oncoming muscle, her mind flashing back to the Christmas before when she'd thrown whiskey tumblers at some murder-elves in Puzzles.

These men had weapons, though. And behind them Galanna was calling for reinforcements.

"Well, I temporarily rescind that order."

[Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]
Judy

After the purse made impact, with a force and accuracy that Judy could attribute to her golfing, swimming, and regular prayer, its wielder examined its contents. Everything seemed in place, from the weapons to the snacks.
For a moment, Judy contemplated having a chocolate-covered prune, but noticed the woman she just hit calling in armed goons and decided against it.
Instead, she pulled out an old-school taser and handed it to Ellis.
"Electroshock weapon. It stuns them," she explained, her Hebrew accent all but gone in favor of an American one with hints of upper-class Manhattan. The New Yorker assumed, of course, that figuring out which way to point a weapon shaped like a type-2 phaser was simple enough.
For herself, Judy drew a can of mace and spritzed at the goons.

After a round of spritzing, she began to back away before she could be surrounded. She was a little too old for jail, and was naturally relieved to make it to an emergency exit door. If only she had a spare hand to pull the fire alarm with right now...

[Rough Diamond - Bar]

Lea felt relieved as the situation with Odelot was brought under control, happy that their Pakled friend   had been rescued and knew that she would find out more later when it was safe to do so. As she accepted her drink from the Bartender and Nick introduced himself, she liked the fact he had been taken by surprise slightly with the familiarity of how the Bartender knew her and it added to the mystery of her alter ego.

As she began to answer him, she heard the comm change and understood who had done it. Now was the time to be prepared in order to help extract their target as soon as the signal was given to do so. However maintained her cover as she spoke to Nick.

" That's correct and pleased to meet you Nick" she replied " As for what line of work I'm in, let's put this way I help people bring order to their home worlds and the systems they control".

Nick

Nick was about to make some comment, but he noticed the brewing bar fight. This was very bad for business indeed. He glanced at his wrist, as if to check a watch he didn't have, and then excused himself.
"Oh, I have to meet someone at one of the other casinos. You'll have to excuse me," he said. "Put the drinks on my tab."
And just like that, he was gone.

[Room 942]
Dihiq

Dihiq silently made his way to the bathroom, to sob with just a little less indignity. This was a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day to be Dihiq.

[Naira]

[The Oasis - Room 942]

Oh, hell, Aryn thought. The Orion intruder didn't look to be much more than a frightened kid and the young Klingon looked in little better shape. As the ranking officer currently present, she'd need to decide what to do right now. Aryn was filled with compassion for the young Orion slave, but made herself remember that it could all be a trick.

Stand up and have a seat, she said, gesturing to the ottoman. Aryn forced herself to keep a neutral tone, not cruel but not revealing the empathy she felt at the girl's situation. We'll not hurt you if you help us.

Aryn hesitated before adding the next, but felt it necessary and right. She couldn't stand the terror in the young slave's eyes. I can't promise anything, but we may be able to take you with us. No promises, she reiterated.

[The Rough Diamond Casino]

"Say nothing,"  Naira turned her head and covered her mouth with her hand as she coughed out the command.

While Boref led them through the velvet roped entrance and passed the armed security guards guarding the back room, Naira listened intently to the exchange happening in the rooms above. Naturally, she felt a tinge of sympathy for the woman claiming to be a slave, as her own mother had been a slave in her younger years, but Naira had to remind herself that this woman, whoever she was, worked for the Syndicate and they couldn't afford to reveal themselves to someone who be putting on an act to gain their trust in the hopes that they might let down their guard.

[The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"Ms. Meir is offering her hand for you to shake, Volskene, as is human custom when meeting someone for the first time," Felicity informed the Tholian when he declared his lack of understanding. She was very curious as to whether or not he would accept, as she'd never seen him shake hands with someone before, though she was simultaneously all too aware of Galanna's continued attentions.

Her shoulders stiffened as the nosy brunette effortlessly summoned a pair of goons and made their way over to Felicity and her companions.

The only response Galanna could give was the breathy "Oof!" that sounded from her as Judy's hefty handbag connected and clocked the woman in the side of the head. She stumbled in her impressive, delicate heels, and would have lost her balance and fallen gracelessly to the carpet below had one of the hired muscle-men not had enough wherewithal to make a grab for her. Once she was righted, looking a little flustered and red-faced, she slapped the man's hands away. "Forget about me, you dimwit, get them!" She sputtered, pointing at their little group.

Felicity glanced at the shot glass in her hand, then at Judy, before finally turning to Volskene. "Specialist, remember when I told you to keep your hands and claws to yourself?" She wound up her arm and let the glass fly toward the oncoming muscle, her mind flashing back to the Christmas before when she'd thrown whiskey tumblers at some murder-elves in Puzzles.

These men had weapons, though. And behind them Galanna was calling for reinforcements.

"Well, I temporarily rescind that order."

[Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]
Judy

After the purse made impact, with a force and accuracy that Judy could attribute to her golfing, swimming, and regular prayer, its wielder examined its contents. Everything seemed in place, from the weapons to the snacks.
For a moment, Judy contemplated having a chocolate-covered prune, but noticed the woman she just hit calling in armed goons and decided against it.
Instead, she pulled out an old-school taser and handed it to Ellis.
"Electroshock weapon. It stuns them," she explained, her Hebrew accent all but gone in favor of an American one with hints of upper-class Manhattan. The New Yorker assumed, of course, that figuring out which way to point a weapon shaped like a type-2 phaser was simple enough.
For herself, Judy drew a can of mace and spritzed at the goons.

After a round of spritzing, she began to back away before she could be surrounded. She was a little too old for jail, and was naturally relieved to make it to an emergency exit door. If only she had a spare hand to pull the fire alarm with right now...

Momentarily her attention was drawn to what appeared to be an altercation occurring on the other side of the main gambling room. Boref, whispered to one of the security guards, who in turn nodded and pulled out a communication device to call in reinforcements. When Naira had asked her people to create a diversion, that was not what she had had in mind.

She sighed and stepped into the back room.

Unlike the main gambling room, this room hosted far fewer people. The bright flashing lights, pounding music and sounds of people winning and losing were replaced with a calmer mood. In one corner, a number a number of people sat around a small stage on which a number of young Orion girls and boys were being paraded for potential buyers. Others sat gathered at one of a number of small tables or booths, sectioned off by lengths of drapery hanging from the ceiling. A couple of slaves made their way around the room, offering drinks to those gathered.

Upon entering, a couple of individuals looked up from their glasses or PADDs at the Bolian. There were more bidders than she was expecting.

"Can we get started already?" a Ferengi piped up.

"Yes, yes of course." Boref grabbed a PADD off a nearby table and handed it to Adeyemi. Naira didn't need to look at it to know that it likely contained the details to the information and weapons available for purchase.

"Let's open the open the bidding at two hundred bricks of gold-pressed latinum." Boref announced as he scooped up a drink off the tray of a passing waitress and downed its contents.

[TRell]

"Yes, yes of course." Boref grabbed a PADD off a nearby table and handed it to Adeyemi. Naira didn't need to look at it to know that it likely contained the details to the information and weapons available for purchase.

"Let's open the open the bidding at two hundred bricks of gold-pressed latinum." Boref announced as he scooped up a drink off the tray of a passing waitress and downed its contents.

[Rough Diamond Casino - Back Room]

The backroom beyond the main floor made her skin crawl, and she felt she could lower the crime rate across the entire Federation with a few well placed phaser shots, with some difficulty she pulled herself back to the job at hand, she took a good long look at everyone in the room, being careful to keep her face in a snarl, hoping she looked the ever diligent bodyguard rather than a nosy and outgunned Starfleet security officer.

Chief Adeyemi looked over the offered PADD and T'Rell positioned herself behind him, resting a hand on the disruptor in the holster, not that she planned on using it, she was fairly certain it would more likely blow her own hand off than fire, but it was look she was going for, make them nervous and they will miss any small mistakes made by the officers. she flexed her right hand, unsheathing her claws for a moment and adjusting her head dress back behind her ear, the room was large but only seemingly had a single exit, which complicated any escape if they were uncovered, the two guards on either side of the single door stood stoic, and calm, a deadly Klingon disrupter rifle held across their chests, she figured all of the half dozen other body guards were also armed and most of the pirates, thieves and crime lords probably carried sidearms, she mentally picked her targets for if the need arose, at worst it would by time for the Captain and Chief to make it to the door and out into the Casino, where their chances to escape improved greatly.  The academy commandant at her Graduation had spoken "An Officer does what they must - in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures - and that is the basis of all morality." she hadn't really understood that until now.  She took a deep breath and calmed herself, what ever happened was going to happen all she could do was her duty.

[Volskene]

[The Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]

"Ms. Meir is offering her hand for you to shake, Volskene, as is human custom when meeting someone for the first time," Felicity informed the Tholian when he declared his lack of understanding. She was very curious as to whether or not he would accept, as she'd never seen him shake hands with someone before, though she was simultaneously all too aware of Galanna's continued attentions.

Her shoulders stiffened as the nosy brunette effortlessly summoned a pair of goons and made their way over to Felicity and her companions.

The only response Galanna could give was the breathy "Oof!" that sounded from her as Judy's hefty handbag connected and clocked the woman in the side of the head. She stumbled in her impressive, delicate heels, and would have lost her balance and fallen gracelessly to the carpet below had one of the hired muscle-men not had enough wherewithal to make a grab for her. Once she was righted, looking a little flustered and red-faced, she slapped the man's hands away. "Forget about me, you dimwit, get them!" She sputtered, pointing at their little group.

Felicity glanced at the shot glass in her hand, then at Judy, before finally turning to Volskene. "Specialist, remember when I told you to keep your hands and claws to yourself?" She wound up her arm and let the glass fly toward the oncoming muscle, her mind flashing back to the Christmas before when she'd thrown whiskey tumblers at some murder-elves in Puzzles.

These men had weapons, though. And behind them Galanna was calling for reinforcements.

"Well, I temporarily rescind that order."

[Rough Diamond Casino]

Pandemonium had broken out all of a sudden. The Tholian found that he was now sidestepping quickly to avoid the mêlée, even as the directive came from the Primary Medical Ruling Castemember that he was to defend himself. A torrent of thoughtcolours, warm and vibrant reds, oranges, and yellows, swarmed within him as his clawed limbs snapped forward in all directions without rhyme or reason. Not a member of any warrior castes, Volskene was clearly much more deficient in his offence than his militaristic brethren, but he hopped, dodged, and clawed all the same, making a serious effort to do as much damage as possible.

[Naira]

[Rough Diamond Casino - Back Room]

The backroom beyond the main floor made her skin crawl, and she felt she could lower the crime rate across the entire Federation with a few well placed phaser shots, with some difficulty she pulled herself back to the job at hand, she took a good long look at everyone in the room, being careful to keep her face in a snarl, hoping she looked the ever diligent bodyguard rather than a nosy and outgunned Starfleet security officer.

Chief Adeyemi looked over the offered PADD and T'Rell positioned herself behind him, resting a hand on the disruptor in the holster, not that she planned on using it, she was fairly certain it would more likely blow her own hand off than fire, but it was look she was going for, make them nervous and they will miss any small mistakes made by the officers. she flexed her right hand, unsheathing her claws for a moment and adjusting her head dress back behind her ear, the room was large but only seemingly had a single exit, which complicated any escape if they were uncovered, the two guards on either side of the single door stood stoic, and calm, a deadly Klingon disrupter rifle held across their chests, she figured all of the half dozen other body guards were also armed and most of the pirates, thieves and crime lords probably carried sidearms, she mentally picked her targets for if the need arose, at worst it would by time for the Captain and Chief to make it to the door and out into the Casino, where their chances to escape improved greatly.  The academy commandant at her Graduation had spoken "An Officer does what they must - in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures - and that is the basis of all morality." she hadn't really understood that until now.  She took a deep breath and calmed herself, what ever happened was going to happen all she could do was her duty.

[Rough Diamond Casino - Back Room]

Busy fingers began to tap away at blinking screens while each new bid was placed. The security chief was advised to play along, though was asked not to seem overly eager in outbidding each potential bidder.

It was strange for Naira to stand by and watch as the fate of the quadrant was decided by a handful of individuals silently cursed under their breath, wiped swear from their brows and watched as the bid grew ever higher.

An Orion man slammed his empty glass to the table, momentarily drawing the attention of the room to him as he tossed his PADD across the table. He had been outbid and lacked the funds to continue. Boref tilted his head in the direction of the man and a security guard escorted him out of the room.

"Damn, too rich for my blood," A Bajoran man stood up in a far more dignified manner, straightened vest held his hand out for his lady friend before the two of them made their exit.

Naira edged ever closer to Adeyemi to peer at the number on the screen. Never before had she seen such a figure. The fact that there were people in this room, very awful criminals, capable of accumulating wealth in the thousands of bricks of gold-pressed latinum, was sickening. To make matters worse, the information and weapons they were attempting to buy they did so with the intent to cause a significant amount of harm to innocent people. Her stomach tied in knots as she watched the others.

A Ferengi rubbed his hands together in glee after placing his latest bid. The bid jumped considerably, but with it a number of bidders found themselves unable to continue.

"Sit, relax," Boref had taken to walking a wide loop around the room, coming to stop just behind Naira as he placed his hands upon her shoulders and looked her up and down once more. "If you would like, you can add this one to your bid. I promise to give you more than her fair value."

"Hey," the Ferengi called out, "You didn't give me that offer!"

"I have no use of your Nausicaans," Boref shouted back. 

[Leanna Mazal]

[Rough Diamond Casino & Bar]
Nick

Nick was about to make some comment, but he noticed the brewing bar fight. This was very bad for business indeed. He glanced at his wrist, as if to check a watch he didn't have, and then excused himself.
"Oh, I have to meet someone at one of the other casinos. You'll have to excuse me," he said. "Put the drinks on my tab."
And just like that, he was gone.

[Rough Diamond - Bar]

With the way Nick suddenly made up an excuse and left before she even had chance to respond, she wondered what had made him so nervous. That however was soon answered when she heard the ruckus going on behind her and turned to see a full on brawl happening before her eyes. The conversations going on through the transponder where momentarily forgotten about as she was forced to get out of the way as a chair came flying in her direction, narrowly missing her as it connected with the shelves and glasses behind the bar sending them crashing everywhere.

Keeping as low as possible as she tried to look up to see where she could go without getting hurt and soon spotted three people she knew very well caught up in it all. Whether this had been intentional or not she didn't know right now as she was more concerned with hopefully regrouping with the others and discussing their next steps.

Dodging the melee as best she could, Lea wound her way through the large mass of people, occasionally being stopped as she was grabbed or manhandled, earning one unfortunate soul, a well placed kick to the nether region sending him mewling to the ground clutching himself.

You've still got it Lea she thought wryly as she continued making her way, skirting round the edge wherever possible, sidestepping those who tried to lunge at her and she expertly sent them to the ground.

Finally she managed to grab hold of Flick.

" Oops sorry there" she said apologetically maintaining her cover but the quick look that she gave her best friend suggested that they move.

[Aryn Corliss]

[The Rough Diamond Casino]

"Say nothing,"  Naira turned her head and covered her mouth with her hand as she coughed out the command.

[The Oasis - Room 942]

Mmm-hmm,  Aryn responded subtly to the captain's order. She realized she should have been more circumspect in her initial broadcast to the network and was being more careful now.

Not entirely sure what she should do with their prisoner now, Aryn walked slowly around her as the young Orion offered her cooperation. Her brow furrowed as Dihiq disappeared into the bathroom, but Aryn couldn't split her focus right now. She hoped he was okay.

The Emerald Enclave Pleasure Resort, The Oasis - Room 942

Sherri stood, slowly and hesitantly.   The Klingon who'd tackled her seemed oddly regretful and ashamed.   The unlikely leader of this gang, Dotelo, suddenly seemed not to be the one in charge.  The crazy girl was cool and collected.  Everything about these people was unexpected and a lie.  Moreover, with the message one of them had spoken- to unseen accomplices?  It seemed there were more of them in other places.  If this was an action by a rival Syndicate or a heist by a band of thieves, it was certainly among the more elaborate she'd heard of.

Moving over to the indicated seat, she sat, looking at them all with a mixture of confusion and... hope.  Could this somehow turn out in her favor after all?

"I will cooperate.  Whatever you want me to do.  Whatever you need to know.  I have no loyalty to this place or these people."

However brutal and unjust this strange collection of souls might be, it was hard to imagine they'd be as savage as her own supervisor.  The idea of every male employee once again being gathered together...

She shook off the thought, even as images blazed in her mind and her stomach lurched in wretched anticipation.

If she dwelt on the memory, it would destroy her.

Aryn paused when she was back in front of the girl, inspecting and assessing while running one finger over her lip in thought. Finally she asked, Does anyone you were coming to this room?