To: , ,
        , ,
        , "JustKenning"
        
From: "Jay  P Hailey" 
Reply-To: trekcreative{at}yahoogroups.com

Title: Star Trek: Outwardly Mobile
Author: Jay P Hailey (JayPHailey{at}yahoo.com) Series: MISC - TNG OCs
COdes: None
Part: 117/335(?)
Rating:[PG]
Archive: Fine with me, just tell me where. Disclaimer: Paramount owns all
things Star Trek.  I claim Original Characters and Situations for me.
Webpage HTTP://www.phoenixinn.iwarp.com/jayphailey

    The Tallamatrix
    by
    Jay P. Hailey
    And
    The Star Trek Players

    "My mother was of the House M'Chok." Kevas said.

    "I don't recognize the name." Miriah said.

    "You wouldn't. It was destroyed about thirty-five years ago." Kevas
said.

    "Your mother survived it?" Miriah asked. It was rare for a Klingon to
survive the fall of his house.

    "She was on a starship on a deep space probe. When they returned to
base, she was informed." Kevas said.

    "And," Miriah prompted.

    "They expected her to kill herself honorably. She refused. The Klingons
expected her to behave as a dutiful wife or sister and go down with her
house. She wanted to take up her family name and keep fighting." Kevas
said.

    "What happened then?" Miriah asked. She was pretty sure she
could figure
it out.

    "She was discommodated and expelled from 'civilized' territory." Kevas
said.

    "How did she come to meet your father?" Miriah asked.

    "After some time as a mercenary in the Federation, fighting pirates and
small wars, she realized that she had no focus. She was just acting out the
role expected of a Klingon who was unjustly dishonored. She found a job
fighting and just kept on fighting. When she realized what she was doing,
she resolved to break out of the proper role and try to gain some power
over her life. Not too long after that, she discovered that Betazed was
seeking trainers for its self defense force."

    "Betazed has a self defense force?" Miriah tried to hide a smile. The
idea of Betazoids trying to form a military amused her.

    "Yes. Their uniforms are lavender." Kevas said. He waited patiently
through Miriah's laughter. "My mother applied and was accepted. She
taught the Betazoids how to fight."

    "How did they do?" Miriah asked.

    "My mother said that the Betazoids are not as weak as popular opinion
would have them." Kevas said.

    "And your father?" Miriah asked.

    "He was in one of my mother's first boot camp classes." Kevas said.

    "That must have been interesting. What does your father do?" Miriah
asked.

    "In daily life he is an accountant." Kevas said. He expected Miriah to
laugh again. She did not. "He is still in the self defense reserve.
They are married and their relationship is strong to this day." Kevas
said.

    Miriah tried again to picture it. "I hope I get to meet them some day."

    "Perhaps." Kevas said.

    -*-

    "Captain," Watabe said. "I believe I have a plan."

    "Well come on in and let's see what you have." Mitchell gestured Watabe
into his office.

    Watabe put an isolinear chip into the terminal on the Captain's desk and
punched in an access code. "This is a recording of the long distance
scans taken by Chelsea. The Phoenix Domain ships took the Tallamatrix back
onto their territory and kept going. They seem to have towed the ship into
the Phoenix Nebula. Intelligence reports suggest that they have a secret
police base in there. If that's true, then there's very little hope of
getting close to them with the Endeavor."

    "Are you sure?" Mitchell asked.

    "Yes, Sir. They have bases here and here, that could scramble ships to
meet us. The battle would keep us busy long enough for them to move the
Tallamatrix and any data they have recovered. If we tried to sneak around
the Nebula, we would run the risk of running into the Illshani. That would
be a whole campaign in and of itself. Then we would have to sneak through
the body of the Nebula. None of that takes the Lucifer into account."

    "That's not good. What's your plan?"

    "A cloaked ship forearmed with data about the Phoenix Domain forces and
installations could easily infiltrate right up to the nebula itself. It
would stand a good chance to remain hidden within the nebula once
there."

    "Wonderful. I'll call back to Starfleet for a cloaking device right
away." Mitchell said acidly. "One little problem, though. It's
illegal for us to use it."

    "It is not necessary to call back to Starfleet at all." Watabe said.
"Pirates are active in the sector. Many of them have cloaking devices.
We can take one of theirs. I don't think that they'll complain too
loudly."

    "Watabe, it's a beautiful plan except for one thing. If the Pirates have
cloaking devices, how are we supposed to find them?" Mitchell asked.

    "I have noticed a statistical spike, Captain." Watabe said. "The
Federation planet of Rhad is noted as a haven for free traders. The space
industries are their biggest employers. However their ships are
successfully attacked by pirates less often than random chance might
suggest."

    "They do tend to be well armed." Mitchell pointed out.

    "That is a factor, but I believe that there is another one at work. I
believe that the free traders of Rhad have discovered how to break cloaking
devices." Watabe said.

    "Are you sure?" Mitchell asked, stunned.

    "No. But I believe that you have contacts on Rhad?" Watabe said.

    "You're right. I have some old friends there who will know if anyone
does." Mitchell said thoughtfully. "Set course for Rhad."

    -*-

    Miriah wandered into the tavern on Rhad. Captain Mitchell had gone to
talk with his old friend alone and so the Endeavor's crew was taking some
shore leave on Rhad. Reading the brief on Rhad excited Miriah. Long, severe
seasons gave Rhad an extensive and hostile wild life. The planet itself
tended towards large forest regions and rugged terrain.

    In orbit above them, the Endeavor was docked to Graylight Station, a
large space dock. Rhad was the unofficial capital of the free traders for
the whole region. The only real industry on the planet was building and
crewing free traders and so it was everyone's goal on Rhad to become the
master of his own ship.

    The wild life on Rhad was extremely violent and persistent. This meant
that nearly everyone went about armed on Rhad. It was a libertarian sort of
world, long on codes of honor, short on law.

    Starfleet officers were advised to go armed on Rhad to conform to local
custom but to always be polite. The natives were armed also and often had
more experience with weapons.

    Miriah wanted to go down to Rhad with Kevas but found that the watch
rotation and the leave rotation did not favor that. Instead she went down
to the surface with her usual partner in crime, Genevieve Quest.

    The tavern was a low wide place, with a stone fire place in the middle
and a long bar across the back. Scattered randomly around the room there
were wooden chairs and tables. Miriah was strongly reminded of Carson City,
Nevada, a town a short distance away from San Francisco. Miriah visited
several different places on Earth during her time at the Academy. Rhad
really wanted to be the American West, she decided, but didn't actually
want to be uncomfortable about it, or anything.

    Along the wall behind the bar there were rows of bottles and odd
knickknacks from all over the quadrant. There were also replicators behind
the bar. The real stuff cost about ten times more money.

    The bartender was an older human with a wide girth and a friendly smile.
"Hello, ladies. Welcome to Carney's. What'll it be?"

    Miriah ordered a Raktajino. She would have ordered something stronger
but didn't want to get drunk. Genevieve ordered an odd liquor from the edge
of known space. Carney was proud to have some in stock.

    There was a scattering of spacers at the bar and among the tables of the
establishment. All were wearing solid, heavy guns strapped to them. Most of
them were humans.

    "Starfleet wimps!" One of them said.

    Miriah looked casual but stopped and listened for movement. Genevieve
sipped her exotic liquor and carefully ignored the loud mouthed patron.

    "How much you wanna bet that they run away if I call 'em out?" The loud
mouth said. His friend tried to shush him but it did no good. The loud
mouth stood up. He was over six feet and about two hundred pounds, with
thin brown hair and an unshaven face. He was padded but looked like he knew
how to use his weight. He weaved a little under the influence of too much
alcohol.

    "Hey Starfleet." He called. Miriah turned mildly to look.

    "I gotcher Prime Directive right here, haw haw!" He said grabbing his
crotch.

    Miriah looked at him.

    "Whatchu think about that!?" The loudmouth said.

    "It's a good thing you're covered by the Prime Directive." Miriah said.
"You're underdeveloped."

    The bar crowd laughed and hooted at the expense of the loudmouth.

    "Well, you know what I think? I think you pansy Starfleet cruds are a
bunch of damned cowards." He said.

    "Really?" Miriah said. She didn't like being called names in front of
the bar. She could feel the anger build inside of her.

    "Shee-yit, if I had to depend on you for protection against pirates I'd
be shoveling shit for some Orion Lord by now!" He took an uncertain
step forward.

    Genevieve said "Gee, look at the time, we've really got to be going
now..."

    "If it weren't for us, you'd have been bowing and scraping for a PD
noble and hoping that maybe an Orion would come along to bail you
out." Miriah growled.

    "Is that so?" Loudmouth said. "Is that SO!?"

    Genevieve tugged on Miriah's sleeve. "Miriah, take a deep breath."

    "Yes." Miriah said. "That's so."

    Loudmouth reached down to his weapons belt and unbuckled it. "Well let's
just see about that!"

    One of loudmouth's friends took the weapon way. The loudmouth struck an
uncertain martial art pose. "C'mon!"

    "Dude, are you sure?" One of loud mouth's friends asked carefully.

    "She'll probably ask to negotiate." Loudmouth said.

    "The moment I knock you on your ass, one of your friends will back shoot
me." Miriah said warily.

    The reaction of the bar crowd said it all. Many looked disgusted. Some
looked confused. "Naw," One said. "That's not the way it's done."

    "Is that the way you Starfleet types would do it?" Loudmouth
said. "I
bet it is."

    Miriah unclipped the phaser and holster from it's pocket on her uniform.
"Hold this." She handed it to Genevieve. "If they try
anything, stun 'em."

    Genevieve looked at the bar filled with armed patrons and said "Uh
huh."

    Miriah stepped up to the loudmouth and paused for a moment. "Whew!" She
said. "Can we trade some more insults until your breath clears up?"

    The bar crowd laughed. The Loudmouth turned red and swung a big punch at
Miriah.


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