"Luck And Those Nasty Robots"
[Previous post: 'Just a Coincidence']
=/\=
Stardate: 60298.1458
Setting: TOLAT IV, Inside the Cloaked Ship
"Our patrol has still not reported back in," the Jem'Hadar First said to Serul who had not moved from the seat he had been in since their arrival.
"Do I detect a hint of concern in your voice?" the Vorta asked in a tone of superiority that his kind had been renowned for. "Are you worried that they will not be able to take of the mission they were sent to accomplish?"
"I am not worried. I was simply making an observation. They should have reported in several minutes ago."
Serul turned the chair that he had been sitting in to face the Dominion soldier, or at least his general direction, the lack of lighting on the bridge of the Romulan ship having made it impossible for the Vorta to see where the Jem'Hadar actually was standing. "Their orders were to secure the ruins and retrieve the artefact known as the Mind Stone. They were to report back only if they had not found anything. Since we have not heard from them, we can conclude that they did find something, unless you would feel more at ease believing that your men failed and that they are now dead."
"My men will not fail," the Jem'Hadar First voiced with authority, keeping the anger he felt in check. That the Founders had made the Vortas their superiors in the chain of command was the way of things, but that did not give them the right to belittle those who did the lion's share of the work. "I am only wanting to insure that the artefact is brought back to the Founders as they have requested it to be," the soldier added calming his voice down to a perfectly respectful tone.
"Your devotion to the Founders and their will is so noted," Serul said through an unseen smile. 'You can send one of your men to investigate how the others are doing. The other and yourself are to remain here to keep the ship secured. While this is happening, see if those two engineers back there could manage to give us limited sensors without hindering the cloaking device. I wouldn't mind being able to see something more than these black walls."
"It shall be done as you command," the Jem'Hadar First acknowledged before removing himself from the darkened room and the presence of his Vorta master.
=/\=
Stardate: 10298.2038
Setting: Unknown Planet: Corridor
Lea could not figure out if all of this good fortune they had been blessed with had been just that or something more. True Luke had been in this hellhole for much longer than she had but he had never revealed why. Why would any criminal organization want to keep an SFI operative for any lengthy period of time? Wouldn't each passing day bring with it the increase chances of an escape or better still of a rescue? Did these lowlifes believe that Starfleet would abandon one of their own? Then again Luke had been here for years according to his own account and since no one knew exactly where she was, Lea knew that the odds of a rescue were astronomical.
The SFI Agent stopped dead in her tracks when she heard the doors at the end of the corridor hissed open followed by a strange humming sound. With no where to hide and no where to run, Lea could only hope that the low lighting in the corridor would give her some protection and that whatever she had heard coming closer would stop before it actually reached her.
Lea became a statue as the noise became louder. Standing still had been the best she could do, the corridor not having been constructed to give anyone any room to hide in. This had probably been done on purpose, but Lea hated it, and for good reasons.
The SFI Agent let out a short sigh when she saw what had been making the strange noises. A robot similar in size and appearance to the one they had found in the control room had been the source and heading for the control room. Maybe it was just doing some sort of rounds or going to replace the other, but at least it didn't seem interested in the hyperventilating ex-prisoner. Without even pointing its single large round eye in her direction, the robot continued down the corridor leaving Lea to go about her business.
Lea resumed her walking down the corridor, occasionally looking over her shoulder to see if either of the robots would be returning this way. Neither one of them had appeared to be dangerous, but the SFI Agent had begun to distrust those rolling tin cans if only because they seemed uninterested about anything or anyone they came in contact with.
At the end of the corridor, Lea discovered that the doors to the shuttle bay Luke had mentioned were locked. No panels or access keypad could be seen leaving the SFI Agent at a complete loss as to how to gain access into the room. Maybe if she could pry a piece of metal off one of the robots, Lea could force the doors apart, but that would require her to get close to one of those things and frankly she would rather not have to do that. Discouraged that she would have to return to Luke without having been able to accomplish such a simple task, Lea began to head back only to once again stop dead in her tracks.
Lea staggered back against the closed doors. She felt her stomach begin to turn, looking at the blue and white robot she had first seen heading in her direction. Still beeping and chirping like an electronic instrument with a short, the little robot rolled towards her. Out of simple self preservation Lea slide to one side and let the robot continue on its course, causing the door to open as it did so. Quick enough to see an opportunity, the SFI Agent dashed in after the robot and entered the shuttle bay before the doors closed once again. Luke was right, luck had decided to make up for all of the problems they had been forced to endure over the last while.
=/\=
Tiffany Rose {lady_tiffany_rose@mail.com}
Ensign Lea Summers
Currently:
Undercover SFI Agent
Once assigned as:
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS ANUBIS
