Qapla

Posted on Sat Aug 3rd, 2019 @ 1:20am by Commodore Loatha Targaryen
Edited on on Thu Jan 2nd, 2020 @ 5:50pm

1,780 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Atlantis
Location: First City, Qo'Nos
Timeline: 2429-04-20

K’Toshak stood staring out the reinforced window of his personal office in the High Council building overlooking Qo’Nos below. The events of the day had been a whirlwind that he had barely been able to keep up with. When the day started he was a General representing his family within the High Council, barely more than a low level functionary representing the House of Grilka. Now he was the most powerful Klingon in the galaxy aside from Emperor Kahless himself. 

Not long after having been installed by Ambassador Teagarden he had retreated back to his personal office to do one important thing: contact his father and tell him the news. His father had been visiting one of the small settlements on H’Atoria, the backwater world where he served as Colonial Governor, when K’Toshak had contacted him. As always his father had been the pinnacle of Klingon honor both in his congratulations and advice. It had been not too dissimilar than what he had guessed his father would say. 

“Never forget you serve a greater purpose: to bring glory and honor to the Klingon Empire!”

He hoped he could live up to such ideals, but if his father ever found out the truth it would spell certain disaster for their relationship. It could spell doom for the entire Empire. 

From the shadow he heard a voice, “You’ve done well, Chancellor.”

The Klingon turned to see the source of the voice sitting in the corner of the room in a chair nearly three times her size. The shadows covered most of her body, but he could make out the figure of a fit, humanoid woman with long hair. Her arms were crossed as she sat in a seductive pose in the chair, clearly as if she were a master of getting what she wanted. 

“They would kill you if they knew you were here.”

“I’ve been dead before,” she said without missing a beat. “It’s quite liberating really, almost like therapy in a sense. It gives you ideas, ideas that you’d never consider otherwise.”

The Chancellor crossed his arms, “To what do I owe the pleasure of entertaining a dead woman?”

“I wanted to see what you thought of your new office,” she said from the chair. She leaned forward, almost far enough for the light of the fire to catch her face, but she was too smart for that. “I gave up a lot for you to have it now didn’t I?”

K’Toshak looked around the room, realizing that he’d made the proverbial deal with the Devil for his new position. “If my family ever found out how I got here, if the Empire ever figured out how this happened, let’s just say my death wouldn’t be an honorable one.  Nor would it be fast. When you contacted me saying that you would help me I never imagined, not in a million years, that you were being truthful. There is a stain on my honor for agreeing to this.”

“It’s only a stain if you let it be,” the woman countered, “and lucky for you I’m good at cleaning up messes.” She shifted in her chair, leaning closer to him as he stood, “Come, Chancellor, join me and we will discuss how you will repay my generosity.”

“I prefer to stand,” he answered showing backbone. 

She brushed it off, “No matter. My husband wouldn’t want me too close to you anyway.” 

“Does your husband know you’re here?” The Chancellor quickly countered. 

“My husband does not,” she answered, “but that’s not a problem either. I can take care of myself. I always have and always will. Now, my friend the Chancellor, let’s talk about the future. I installed you as Chancellor of this High Council because I believe in you, my government believes in you, and that is all you need to know to be a good soldier for our cause.”

The Chancellor walked to the wall and poured a tumbler of bloodwine, “2309 – no greater vintage. Would you care for a glass?”

“Never touch the stuff,” she answered from the shadows. As the Klingon drank she leaned back in the chair, “Now, you are a good soldier, right?”

“I am a soldier of the Empire!” He exclaimed to the woman. “I will never do anything that would harm the Empire or tarnish our honor.”

“Now you have honor? You didn’t seem all that concerned when we contacted you with our offer now did you?” It was the first time she was on the border of losing her composure. 

He finished the tumbler of bloodwine, “You will leave my world and never return or I will cut your tongue from your mouth and use it to wash my boot.”

“Maybe we can’t be friends,” the other answered with a sigh. “I was so hopeful, just as I had been with Akero. Now look where she is. I’ll regret it when you share in her fate. Your father is a close friend of mine. This is going to be sad.” She quickly pressed her fingers into her right forearm.

In an instant Chancellor K’Toshak could feel his body heating, pain growing throughout his system as it overwhelmed his pain receptors. His skin began to glow red with an inner energy that started to arc outward. He fell to the floor, the pain overwhelming him. “What is this?” He struggled to get out. 

The shadow figure leaned back, remaining silent for a moment as she watched. She wasn’t happy to see her latest project fail in such a spectacular fashion. Perhaps there was still time to salvage what was left. She tapped the same control again, allowing the Klingon to regain himself. She noticed that he’d urinated and pointed toward it, “Sorry I pissed you off, Chancellor.”

“What did you do to me?” He asked struggling to his feet. 

“Maybe it was something you ate? Or drank in this case,” she answered pointing to the bloodwine. “The nanoprobe is based on Borg technology and is untraceable. If you would try to remove it, it’ll just replicate a new one somewhere else. It can do it over, and over, and over again,” she said playfully. Then she turned deadly serious, “Not only can I ruin your honor and destroy your family, but I can bring you to your knees at any time. That was just a taste of what I can do if I’m unhappy,” the woman explained. “Now, my friend the Chancellor, let’s just be honest for a moment. You are only Chancellor because I want you to be, and I can change my mind at any time. So, let me ask again, do you want to be my friend?”

“Patak!” He cursed. 

“Actually, I’m a  Virgo,” she cocked her head, “but I’ve been called a lot worse.”

He collapsed into the chair at his desk, “I will never yield to the Romulan Star Empire.”

“That makes two of us,” she answered. 

“Listen you Romulan bitch I’m through with your games. Tell me what you want or be gone,” he demanded knowing it could be the last thing he ever said. 

“There you go calling me a Romulan again you insufferable Ha’DIbaH. I suppose I’ve been called worse though, but not by much in this case.” Her finger hovered over the control and she tapped it for a second, sending another wave of energy into the Klingon Chancellor. 

The alien leader fell to the ground as every pain receptor in his body came alive, electric energy pulsing and dancing over his skin as he struggled to keep himself upright. The woman walked over to him, for the first time taking herself from the shadows and into the light to allow him a full view of her. The Klingon Chancellor looked up at the Human – or Human looking – woman approached. Her hair was long, auburn brown with streaks of purple flowing through just enough that you barely perceived it but it made her look all the more wild. Her eyes were dark, but seemed to change depending on how the light hit them. She was athletic under the black tunic she wore, but there was something else about her that sent a chill through his spine. For the first time he felt like he was in the presence of a predator. 

She walked to the wall and pulled the Sword of Kahless from its place of honor. Spinning it in her hands she adjusted for the weight, feeling it, “Sad to know this is as fake as you.” The woman walked toward him, holding the weapon like a warrior as she swung it with precision to threaten. She brought the blade under his chin and used the blade to lift the Klingon’s chin toward her. “Yield.”

K’Toshak wanted to kill her, but his muscles wouldn’t answer. He couldn’t move his hand, he couldn’t move his foot, all he could do was feel the pain rip at his body. He struggled, the word harsh as it assaulted his ears, “I yield.” 

“Glad we’re on the same page,” The woman flipped the bat’leth into a relaxed pose and pressed the control on her bracelet once more. “Now, Chancellor, are you ready to be my friend?”

He vomited on the floor, barely missing the woman’s shoe. Dry heaving as he stared at the slate floor her struggled, “What do you want of me?”

“You and your Empire are now, and so long as you are Chancellor, allies of the United Federation of Planets once more. You will support its goals and endeavors until your death – either of natural causes, at the hand of your enemy, or mine. So long as you are useful and supportive I will do everything that I can to ensure that it’s the first category and not the either two that claims you. Now, are you my friend or not?” The grin was as mischievous as a Q’s.

The Chancellor wanted to scream at her, to hurl his entire body at hers and rip that smug face off her body. He knew, deep down though, that he would lose this battle and perhaps a few more. He would win this war though. “I’m your friend, you Federation bitch.”

“My friends call my Lynz,” the Commanding Officer of Starfleet Command answered as she set the bat’leth back upon the wall, “and this is the day the Federation conquered the Klingon Empire.”

 

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