Mirror Wears My Face

 Episode Name:  Mirror Wears My Face

   Written By:  Spider

         Cast:  Birev, Dana, Edwards, Hurley, Spider, Stewart, 
                Takamura, Thorne and Valentine.

  Produced By:  Starfleet

  Directed By:  Spider

     Aired On:  Sat Aug 14 04:23:33 2004

     Stardate:  54311.9

Time: Fri Aug 13 22:52:21 2004

Stardate: 54311.4

Edwards just mills about on the uppermost level of Operations, trying to look like he's working on his PADD without actually doing any work. When he hears a new arrival enter, he glances back and nods, "Leftenant Takamura."

Takamura settles in at the Security station, nodding to Edwards as he passes him. "Commander." He then checks his monitors to make sure everything is in order.

Hurley joyfully bounces into Operations - cheerful as ever - with the brightest of songs being hummed as quietly as possible. Bright smile, light step and friendly demeanor lead the Ensign to her Operations chair, where she does what she's best at: listening to and participating in chatter.

Valentine glances over her shoulder at hearing Edwards, and smiles slightly, before turning back to her station.

Stewart steps into Ops, making his way over towards the Tactical station, where he takes his seat and begins running through perfunctory readiness checks.

Birev settles quietly in at an engineering station, beginning his work with a focused expression.

"Shuttle Bay to Operations!" The hail's tone is urgent, sharp, and in the voice of one Chief Byjos. "We've got a situation down here, requesting immediate assistance, someone is trying to steal the Baer!"

Edwards proceeds to watch Hurley bounce on past. "Wow." He blinks. "I think I'm going to need Park to check me for diabetes now." he mutters to himself. He looks back toward his PADD as the others file in, until the hail comes through. "What? Takamura, send a team."

Takamura nods sharply to Edwards as he dispatches a security detail to the shuttlebay. "On their way, sir. Shall I raise any security fileds around the shuttlebay or prep the tractor beam in case they get out?"

Valentine squawks indignantly- somebody stealing one of /her/ shuttles?!?. She spins to take two steps toward the lift before protocol sets in and she edges back toward her duty station. "Can we get a visual on the shuttlebay?"

Stewart rests his hands on the console, asking, "Shields? We could try to bottle them in that way. Do we have any details on how they're trying?"

"Searching for communications into and out of the shuttlebay," Hurley chimes from her station, calmly, as though this is something that happens everyday.

Birev keeps an alert eye on his console, waiting for orders for the moment.

"Ready the tractor beam, Stewart. I don't want to leap across the room and try that again." Edwards instructs. "Scan the shuttlebay, Takamura. What can you tell me? And put up the security fields."

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Shipboard Systems (Sensors) skill vs a difficulty of Impossible and Fails!

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Shipboard Systems (Sensors) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Fails!

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Shipboard Systems (Sensors) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Succeeds!

<CONTEST> Hurley contests her Shipboard Systems (Communications) skill vs a difficulty of Moderate and Succeeds!

Takamura taps at his console, setting up the security fields. As his sensor readings come in, he reports. "Sir. We have several lifeforms that aren't accounted for by the normal duty crew or the security team. I'm reading human, Bolian and Centauran lifesigns."

Valentine stifles a growl. "Shuttlebay doors secure?"

"Ready on the tractor beam," Stewart notes, while watching the monitors to keep track of if and when the shuttle leaves.

"Is anyone else seeing these strange energy readings in the Shuttlebay?" Hurley asks, eyes narrowed as she studies the console in front of her. Quickly, she begins her attempts at investigation before Edwards even gets a chance to order it. "I don't recognize them, but they seem to be somehow associated with our commsys; at least they showed up on my communications scans."

<CONTEST> Birev (claiming advantage) contests his Shipboard Systems (Sensors) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Fails!

"Cut the com, fat man," comes a low, growling voice, easily recognizable to anyone in Operations. It's Randal's voice. Another voice, softer, and female, slips up after that, "Let's go. They'll have shields up; I can cut them down long enough for us to get out."

Birev taps at his console, frowning and shaking his head. "I can't get anything on the energy readings. I don't think they're associated with the comsys, but that's all I can say."

GAME: Birev spends a courage point.

<CONTEST> Edwards contests his Intellect (Perception) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Fails!

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Intellect (Perception) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Fails!

<CONTEST> Stewart contests his Intellect (Perception) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Fails!

"Randal Thorne? That idiot. He's really going to pay for this one." Edwards heads on over to the unmanned science station, accessing the controls there. "Calm down, Valentine. I want those people under arrest, Takamura. Five minutes ago. The rest of you... find out what the hell's going on!"

<CONTEST> Edwards contests his Shipboard Systems (Sensors) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Succeeds!

Takamura checks the situation report from the team leader, growling softly. "Sir. The security team can't enter the shuttlebay. It seems to be physically secured from the inside. They will have to gain entry via the jeffries tube. I'm also attempting to send a team in via transporter."

Valentine nods once, shortly. She's calm. Revenge is a dish best served cold. "Aye, sir." She digs into her station, calling up the prefix code for the Baer.

<CONTEST> Stewart contests his Shipboard Systems (Computer) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Fails!

Stewart taps at the consoles, saying, "It sounds like they've got the usual protocols covered. Suggest that our best chance of success is with something unusual that they're unlikely to have planned for." He frowns, and adds, "Can someone get control of the Baer? We could take it offline."

Hurley slowly lifts her gaze from her console to look at the bulkhead straight across from her. She did indeed recognize the voice and confusion and concern quickly set into her expression, then she shakes her head. "Nono, the energy readings are there, I promise, and I'm fairly certain they're not supposed to be." Her concentration immediately falls back on her console, eyes narrowed as she begins to search through older comms logs.

<CONTEST> Birev contests his Shipboard Systems (Sensors) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Succeeds!

<CONTEST> Hurley contests her Computer (Research) skill vs a difficulty of Moderate and Succeeds!

Birev frowns intently at his console, finally leaning back. "It appears to be some sort of transporter signature. It's nothing I recognize, though."

"Randal, it doesn't matter, we have to go!" The voice female cuts across the coms again. And then there's a second of silence, and the com cuts off entirely.

<CONTEST> Edwards contests his Intellect (Perception) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Fails!

<CONTEST> Stewart contests his Intellect (Perception) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Succeeds!

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Intellect (Perception) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Fails!

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Physical Sciences (Physics) skill vs a difficulty of Impossible and Fails!

<CONTEST> Edwards contests his Shipboard Systems (Transporter) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Fails!

"It's--" Edwards is beaten to the punch by Birev. He gives the engineer a look. "It's not a familiar one. Someone match it to something. And trace it." That last one command is added after he tries something and scowls. He looks up. "Whose voice is that? And get people in that shuttlebay anyway we can. Transporter, jeffries tube, magic!"

Takamura studies the sensor readings, shaking his head in frustration. Then he looks up more pleased. "Sir. The second security team has transported into the shuttlebay. Awaiting their sitrep."

Valentine calls over in response to Stewart, "Prefix code on the Baer is 58773. Shouldn't be a problem to shut the poor girl down."

"I think I recognize that voice," Stewart says, tapping at the keys a little. "I think that's Dana Rivers. What she's doing stealing a shuttle, I couldn't tell you." He then half-stands up, loosening his phaser slightly in its holster, and says, "Permission to join the second team via direct transport to the Baer? I promise they won't be going anywhere but the brig."

. o O Stewart thinks "Or the infirmary. Whichever's easiest."

"Whatever it is they're doing and have been planning," Hurley says, looking up from her console and settling her still rather friendly gaze on Edwards, "they've been doing so quietly. I'm not finding anything unusual in the logs to or from Randal Thorne for the last week. Unfortunately, I can't get a match on the other voice, Sir. I'll keep trying, though."

GAME: Birev spends a courage point.

<CONTEST> Birev (claiming advantage) contests his Shipboard Systems (Transporter) skill vs a difficulty of Impossible and Fails!

<CONTEST> Birev (claiming advantage) contests his Shipboard Systems (Transporter) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Succeeds!

Birev makes a slightly frustrated sound at his console. "Sir, I can't find an origin for the transporter signal. It's as if there isn't one."

"Dana Rivers?" Edwards whirls around, so he can look to Stewart. "Were you dropped on your head since you got back? She's dead!" He shakes his head. And despite that, he motions for Stewart to go ahead. "Get out of here. And none of them better show up dead. I want Thorne alive so I can smack him upside the head."

The transporter signal which shimmers around Stewart suddenly fluxes and expands, filling all of Operations. It's slick, almost liquid, and pulls everyone in...

... depositing /everyone/ in the Baer. Some who were sitting find themselves suddenly without chairs; all find themselves just behind the pilot and co-pilot, one Randal Thorne, scruffier than usual, if that's possible, and dirty, and a human female with her dark, long brown hair tied back in a ponytail. Yes. Dana Rivers. There are stars out the front viewport, moving at a rate which would indicate impulse speed.

The transporter whine draws the attention of both pilot and co-pilot: Thorne utters an anachronistic Earth epithet, his hand moving to his side as if reaching for a weapon.

Edwards blinks, recovering from the abrupt transport. "I didn't say all of..." That's when he realizes that the bad guys are right there. Reacting on instinct, he leaps forward to take a swing at Randal before they can acquire any holes in them.

<CONTEST> Edwards contests his Unarmed Combat (Boxing) skill vs a difficulty of Moderate and Succeeds!

Takamura was about to comment about how Dana Rivers is dead until he finds himself transported aboard the Baer. Instinctively, he reaches for the Type II on his hip to line it up on those in the cockpit. When he sees Edwards attacking Thorne, he calls out. "Stewart! Check our six."

Valentine is very glad her Ops station was a standing one. She blinks, then dives toward the back of the shuttle, to all the neat, fun engineering panels. Time for some cheerful sabotage just in case the fighting doesn't go the right way- not like she can't fix it later.

Stewart already had his phaser slightly out, but now he drops into a crouch and draws his phaser to fire on Dana Rivers, saying, "Three minor points: It wasn't my fault, I told you so, and we're in a shuttlecraft, we don't have a six."

Hurley was seated before the transporter incident, which means she continues being seated with a sudden and unexpected thud onto the deckplate punctuated with a gasp and wince. Shaking her head and reaching to rub at the sore spot where she landed, she looks up just in time to see the beginning of the fight between commander and.. "sorta-friend".

<CONTEST> Valentine contests her Propulsion Engineering (Impulse) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Succeeds!

Birev looks around the shuttlecraft, thoroughly disoriented. After a moment or two, at least, he shows the presence of mind to put himself between the scruffy crew Valentine as she works.

<CONTEST> Dana (claiming advantage) contests his Unarmed Combat (Brawling) skill vs Edwards's Unarmed Combat (Boxing) skill (given disadvantage) and Succeeds!

Thorne takes the fist to the face like a hero... or the antithesis thereof. With a grunt of pain, he flops over backward on the deck.

Dana, on the other hand, grabs the hand that Edwards used to punch Thorne with, and twists it around behind his back. In one smooth motion, she has a Bajoran phaser shoved under the Commander's jaw, pointed up into the soft meat under his chin, her teeth gritted. "Let's not be hasty, here, ladies and gentlemen," she growls. "We just needed to borrow your shuttlecraft for a moment; and we're /all/ very vulnerable right now. Let's everyone put our weapons down and take a nice, deep breath."

"That was satis--" Edwards suddenly finds himself spun around and in an awkward predicament. "Well, this is embarrassing..." He does his best to peer over at his captor, without moving all that much, lest his head be vaporized. "I'm so going to throttle you for desecrating the dead like this. You know that, right?"

Takamura continues to aim his phaser at the captor. "Let the Commander go and stand down." He also glances quickly to Stewart.

"Yessssssssss." That would be a very satisfied Valentine, as the thrum of impulse engines cuts out abruptly. Only then does she look up and spot the current situation, and at the 'vulnerable' comment, her gaze flickers toward the viewscreen.

Stewart smiles over at Dana Rivers, saying, "Oh, come on now, you can't threaten to hurt him. We don't even like him. Besides, it's not like he uses that head anyway. So how about you put the phaser down and we proceed to the taking you into custody phase, as opposed to the justifiable injuries sustained while resisting arrest phase?"

. o O Valentine thinks "Oh, /lovely/. Where the hell are we?"

Hurley glances between the armed officers, down at her side, then back to the main event - Dana and Edwards, round 1. After Steward speaks, she glances in his direction a little longer, eyebrow raised. She apparently missed that staff meeting. Carefully and slowly, her gaze shifts and locks on Dane, and she moves to check on the fallen Thorne since she's not likely to be participating in the current standoff anytime soon.

Birev stands quietly, glancing around at all the drawn weapons and trying very hard not to draw any attention to himself.

"I don't think so, Jim," Dana says, and it's obvious that she has to fight herself in order to /not/ do what Stewart says, for whatever reason. Her voice is low, gravely, and somewhat broken, now that it's not heard through a comsys. "Besides, where would you take us into custody, exactly? And if you injured us, what then? I have a counteroffer for you. You help us, and when we're done, we give you back your shuttle, and we all go our own ways."

GAME: Dana is now set IC.

. o O Dana thinks "Take us into custody! Ha!"

Thorne's phaser appears in his hand, and it's instantly in Hurley's face. "Don't do anything stupid," he warns as he pushes himself to a sitting position.

. o O Edwards thinks "He hasn't learned anything, has he?"

"Stewart? Shut up. And..." Edwards bites off the rest of his comment when Thorne rejoins the fun. "Hey. Scruffy. You get that away from her, pal. Or even without a head, I'll make you regret it." That said, he returns his attention to his own predicament. "We're going to talk this out. Nobody has to get hurt. Because this is pointless. You people don't really think this shuttle is ever going to leave this station, do you? It's just a matter of time now before we're all beamed off of here and into holding cells, until this is straightened out."

. o O Dana thinks "Idiot. We're already /off/ of your /station./"

. o O Thorne thinks "Hey! Who's he calling scruffy?!"

Takamura narrows his eyes at Dana and catches sight of Thorne getting up. Since Edwards is still calling the shots, Tak just maintains his aim on Rivers, waiting to see what comes next.

Valentine says in a low voice, "Chris, back up, slowly. Keep your hands where he can see them." She levels a cold look on Thorne. "She's not going to do anything stupid. There's no need to prove you're an ass; we already know it." Edwards gets one heck of an odd look at his last few sentences, and she shakes her head, just a little.

"Stupid?", Stewart asks, and says, "Nahh, I don't think I'd do anything stupid. Crazy on the other hand, crazy is a definite possibility. See, I just came out of a mental hospital, and I'm not sure I was quite ready. Want to try me? I've shot better men who had better hostages. Got the reprimand for it and everything." And he shifts his aim to cover Thorne. It'd seem he's not very good at the shutting up thing.

Hurley, shocked, stares at Thorne for a moment, her jaw dropped and eyes unmoving from the scruffy one. "Randal," she finally tries in a soft and friendly but slightly shakey tone, "don't do this. Come on. Put it down." Slowly, she leans back to kneel on her knees, hands moving upwards, "Look, I'm not armed. I wanted to make sure you were ok. Put it down, please."

Birev stays pressed back against a bulkhead, obviously quite relieved to be overlooked when it comes to pointing phasers at people.

"Jim, don't do this," Dana replies, her low, gravely voice cracking a little more. "We needed this. To rescue our you. We need our you. We don't have any /choice./ /Help us./" She doesn't look aside at Thorne, just murmurs, "You all right, baby?"

It's then that the sensors start lighting up proximity alarms, and now it's Dana's turn for a very colorful and anachronistic Earth epithet. "They've spotted us. Randal, get us moving, or we're all dead!"

<CONTEST> Thorne contests his Propulsion Engineering (Impulse) skill vs Valentine's Propulsion Engineering (Impulse) skill and Succeeds!

"You? You hit like a girl." Apparently, "Scruffy" Thorne wasn't too impressed with the Edwards treatment, although the blood dripping from his nose is making a rather interesting splash of crimson on the front of his shirt. He looks like he's going to spout off with some more mouth, but the alarm starts to scream. Hurley is forgotten, and the pilot's seat is found instead. "Aw, hell. Some genius back there overrode the engines. Hang on." Ten seconds after that, a signature Randal smirk comes to his mouth as the impulse engines come back to life.

"Good to know that a girl can drop you, then." Edwards retorts to Thorne. "Ensign, get back." That handled, hopefully, he glances down at the weapon that's ready to kill him dead. "Listen, lady. My people are loyal. Nobody's going to help you while you have a phaser pointed at my head. Obviously, I was wrong about the situation. So why don't you let me go and we'll call a little truce while you explain what the hell's going on?"

. o O Edwards thinks "My arm's starting to hurt. Man, this is a pain."

Takamura chances to look out the viewport briefly, before training his gaze back on Rivers. "Drop the phaser." As he says this, he braces himself against the bulkhead in case Thorne tries anything at the helm.

Valentine's expression goes from ice, to startlement when the engines roar, to flaming fury. She grabs for a bulkhead, fully expecting inertia to dump her on her rear if the thieving rat takes off at any sort of speed. It's really just as well that shuttlecraft don't have rear-view mirrors, for the look she's shooting Randal Thorne is one worthy of Medusa. "Hurley, Birev, brace for acceleration," she snaps.

Stewart raises his eyebrows before saying, "That mental hospital I spoke of? It's a nice place. You'll like it there. But hey, you want my help? Great. Let's help each other. For instance, all this aiming is making my arm tired, and I'm getting a little muscle twitch. How about you drop your weapon so that I can give my arm a little rest?"

The phaser is no longer in her face and Hurley releases a quick exhale of relief and her eyes close for just a moment, then she backs away as ordered. Chris glances to the viewport now that she's not staring at the business end of a bajoran phaser and remains quiet this time. No more bright ideas from this unarmed metaphorically red-shirted Ensign.

. o O Hurley thinks "If we get out of this, I really need to speak with Grandfather about his choice of friends. Scruffy, dirty, smelly friends. And he was going to shoot me! The nerve! Oooh, Randal, my friend, you'll be lucky if cheez wiz is the worst you'll get when we get back..."

Birev readies himself as soon as Valentine gives the order, looking around at everyone. His eyes settle on the ship's sensor display and he frowns, an expression that seems fairly typical for him. "There's a Klingon ship out there."

"A girl dropped you, /Commander,/ so let's stop trading the insults," Dana growls, low in Edwards's ear. "We don't have time. If the Governor's Right Hand catch us? We're all due for a long, slow talk with her 'people,' and I'm sure they'd be very interested to see one of the mythical Andorians," she hisses. "Get your big pit bull over there to put his phaser down nice and slow, and maybe we'll all make it out of here in one piece."

Thorne, still bleeding from the nose, snaps back, "and if any of you are any good with the phasers on this thing, I could use some help up here," just before a face pops up on the viewscreen, an incoming hail overriding his forward view. Another epithet, as a very familiar face fills the screen after a brief, unrecognizable symbol flashes across it.

It's /almost/ Dakin, save that the thin, pink scar that curls over his cheek takes out his right eye and bisects his forehead in a fashion that makes him look /almost/ like a pink Bolian. "Unidentified spacecraft. Cut your engines and prepare to be boarded."

"Hey, girls drop me all the time. That doesn't make you special, lady." Edwards speaks the truth... even if maybe he shouldn't. "You're the one wasting time. We'll all put our phasers down or we'll all suffer. It's your choice." He glances between Takamura and Stewart. "Start lowering. If she joins in, finish." Then he glances aside at Thorne. "Someone will help when this standoff ends. Not a moment before."

Takamura slowly lowers his phaser, but keeps a firm grip on it. The image on the viewscreen causes his eyebrow to twtich, but right now, he's more concerned with the standoff before him.

Valentine /pales/ at Birev's words. "Klingons?!? Thorne, get us moving!" Then her gaze snaps to the viewscreen. "What the... /unidentified/?" A quick assessment of the situation, and she sends a look toward Edwards that shows she seriously doubts the man's sanity at the moment. "Chris, get on the comm, delay those... Klingons or whatever they are. /Don't/ tell 'em who we are."

. o O Valentine thinks "/Our/ Dakin is a hell of a lot cuter."

Stewart lowers his phaser a little, so that now he's covering Dana's feet. "Oh good. We'd better not let them board us. I think we're already past the maximum recommended occupancy for this particular model of shuttlecraft."

Hurley is now very thoroughly confused, and in confusion looks back to Valentine questioningly. But, she has little doubt that this duo has absolutely no intention of cutting engines and preparing to be boarded, but she also has little trust in the current pilot. Clearing her throat, she pushes off of the deck and cautiously, eyes moving to and locking on Thorne, approaches a console. "Right, but /who/ am I talking to? Something is.. not right.. here, if you can't tell."

Birev echoes Dana in confusion, "Mythical?" He shakes it off quickly and asks the locals, "Are we expecting a fight here?"

"Cut it off, cut it off!" shouts Dana, lowering her weapon and turning to do just that. One hand comes slapping down on the panel behind her, cutting of the signal and leaving in its place that strange signal for a moment before the stars come up once more. "Get us out of here, slagslagslagslagslagslagslagslag! We're so dead, damnit, Jim, I'm so sorry, damnit!"

"I'm trying, baby, I'm trying," Thorne hisses between his teeth; his hands fly over the console, making expert adjustments to the controls, priming weapons and raising shields. Dana cuts back in with, "I wasn't kidding about 'if you want to live'! This is no time for moral stands, people, you're in this now, so help yourselves get out of it even if you don't want to help us!"

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his History (Human) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Fails!

<CONTEST> Hurley contests her History (Human) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Fails!

<CONTEST> Valentine contests her History (Human) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Fails!

<CONTEST> Birev contests his History (Human) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Fails!

Edwards lurches away from Dana when the Mexican standoff comes to an end and spins on his heel to face the cockpit. That's when he notices the viewscreen and the symbol. "Oh, not again!" Suppressing the urge to succumb to a bout of Space Madness, he moves to lend a hand. "Come on, people. Get to work. The bad guys out there are a lot worse than the ones in here."

. o O Edwards thinks "Stupid alternate realities."

Takamura gives Valentine a hard look, then barks to Hurley. "Belay that order, Ensign. We don't know who we're dealing with. This is some sort of alternate timeline." Holstering his phaser, he heads for the tactical console.

Valentine gives that hard look right back, before spinning toward the engineering consoles to pull up readings, most specifically checking to make sure full power is available to all systems.

. o O Valentine thinks "That's right, Mr. Timefleet, hope you're not planning on getting any anytime soon."

Stewart keeps his phaser out, and takes up a position to one side, saying, "Are we expecting to be boarded, or can you keep them off us and get us out of here?"

Hurley is at a bit of a loss and simply moves to the communications console and begins monitoring for nearby subspace chatter.

"If we get boarded, we're all screwed," mutters Dana, sliding herself into the pilot's seat and calling over her shoulder, "I could use a hand up here, if one of you knows how to fly this thing better than I do. We've got a little bit of a head start on them, so we can probably... maximum warp, and we'll be able to make it up into the next sector, maybe, if he doesn't have one of his buddies playing wolf-hound out there."

Thorne falls oddly silent, almost mesmerized by the consoles under his hands.

"Alternate reality, Takamura. I don't think it's quite the same, but I'm not sure." Edwards considers Rivers and their possible impending doom. "One of you get out of the way." he says, glancing between her and her copilot. "I'll do it."

GAME: Edwards spends a courage point.

<CONTEST> Edwards (claiming advantage) contests his Shipboard Systems (Flight Control) skill vs a difficulty of Impossible and Succeeds!

Takamura shrugs his shoulders. "We can argue semantics later, sir." He then proceeds to take aim at the offending vessels engines.

<CONTEST> Hurley contests her Shipboard Systems (Communications) skill vs a difficulty of Impossible and Fails!

<CONTEST> Hurley contests her Shipboard Systems (Communications) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Succeeds!

"Green lights across the board, Commander, you've got full power to all systems," Valentine calls, though she gives one particular monitor a vaguely anxious frown.

GAME: Takamura spends a courage point.

<CONTEST> Takamura (claiming advantage) contests his Shipboard Systems (Tactical) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Succeeds!

"They try to board this ship, they'll find we're a little less than hospitable." As the consoles he can cover are already covered by people more experienced than himself, Stewart remains where he is, phaser on his knee in case of boarders.

<CONTEST> Hurley contests her Intellect (Perception) skill vs a difficulty of Moderate and Succeeds!

"Sir," Hurley says, eyes narrowed while she listens to communications rolling in, "I think I hear Lie.. no, I *know* I hear Lieutenant Havaris. And... a Klingon, familiar sounding.. they're coordinating. Quite.. loudly and heatedly exchanging orders."

Birev presses back against a bulkhead, trying to take as little space in the crowded ship as possible. He notices Valentine's frown and asks with concern, "Is something wrong, sir?"

Thorne doesn't slide out of the way: Dana does. She stalks to the center of the shuttle, crowded in as they all are, and scowls at the forward view. "Maximum warp, Commander," she growls, her voice low in her throat. Now that she's not got Edwards standing in front of her, the cause of that gravelly voice is clear: her throat was, at one point, cut from one side to the other, leaving her with a thick, ropy scar across her neck. "If we can get ourselves into hiding, we can regroup."

"We won't argue about anything later. I'll just decide I'm right." Edwards settles into Dana's seat and begins entering commands. "I know how to do it." he replies tersely to her. Then he hits the 'engage' key. "There. We're on our way, and we shouldn't have any trouble. And Ensign..." he grasps for a name and comes up short, "Sunshine, that might be Havaris, but he's not the Leftenant. What are they saying?" He turns in his seat some to look back. "And why the hell did you decide to be such a pain in the neck over one shuttle, Rivers?"

Takamura gets his target lock and fires the phasers. The orange light lances out from the shuttle striking true, hitting the enemy's engines. "Pursuing craft's engines have been disabled, sir. I don't think they'll be following us anytime soon."

Valentine nods, her anxious frown becoming a worried one. Her answer to Birev comes in another call toward the front of the shuttle as she warns, "Commander, we're really pushing the shuttle. I don't recommend keeping this speed any longer than necessary, or we run the risk of blowing the engines, the hull, neat things like that."

Stewart remains where he is, though he watches the other craft on the viewscreens. "Well, hopefully we won't need to run it very long. The key to that is that we get away."

<CONTEST> Birev contests his Systems Engineering (Engineering) skill vs a difficulty of Challenging and Succeeds!

Hurley responds to Edwards, "Hurley, Sir." She's not able to hide the cringe at the mention of blowing the hull, which is her on her list of things not to have done today. She draws in a breath and repeats from memory, "The Lie.." she stops and tries again, "Havaris was moving to intercept us and try to herd us towards Bak'TUR. The Governor apparently wants this sector cleaned up and would be put right out if we get away. The Dakin-like-guy said they have almost all of "them" now, but was cut off as Havaris warned him to watch his engines, which ... well, you took out Dakin, Sir."

Birev opens a panel at the rear of the shuttle, fiddling around inside purposefully. "There," he announces after a short time. "I've optimized the power flow through the molecular positron network. We should be able to divert power to the warp engines and structural integrity fields without overloading the power systems."

Dana's face goes right hard at the mention of names. "If Dakin and Havaris are around here, their partner in crime's got to be out there somewhere," she mutters, leaning forward and over Edwards's shoulder. "C'mon, Vor'mak. Where are you? Cloaked bastard." The scarred female looks down at Edwards, and glances over her shoulder at Stewart. "Him. Or. Our him. Actually. We need this ship to break him out."

"Vor'mak? That guy's a nuisance in any reality." Edwards remarks. "Someone divert power, then." He returns his attention to Dana. "You're making my life hell so we can break /him/ out of jail? I would hit you for that, normally. But he's trying to be a better person, so I'm trying to like him. When he's not insulting me while someone's holding me hostage. His duplicate better be a lot more pleasant than he is."

Takamura sneers at the mention of the Klingon's name. Shaking his head, he doesn't seem too happy about the excuse for stealing the shuttle. Instead of commenting, he just pores over his console to search for the other two hunters stalking them.

Valentine winces at the mention of Bak'TUR, and it doesn't matter what reality she's in. She starts to nod, then grins toward Birev. "/Good/ work, Ensign. I may have to steal you to the shuttlebay." She calls, "Power diverted, sir." The engineer glances around, clearing her throat. "Ahhhh, for those of us who don't spend a whole lot of time reality-hopping, could somebody please explain just what the heck is going on?" Ms. Ropy-Neck over there gets an utterly vile look. Seems she's back to agreeing with Takamura.

Stewart nods amiably, and says, "Well, I can't say I have any complaint about a mission to save my life, even if it's not the me-my life. And really, this team could do with another one of me. If there were two of me, we could have picked off both hostage-takers at once."

Hurley is slowly catching on and attempts to help those playing along at home and Valentine. "So. You need your him," she glances back towards Stewart, "to be... rescued, for lack of a better word, and to do so, you jumped realities to steal a shuttlecraft and accidently picked up a crew to outrun this reality's authorities, who are apparently Bad Guys; so though we know everyone here, we don't know anyone here. Am I missing anything?"

Birev smiles proud to Valentine as he makes a last couple of checks before replacing the panel. "Thank you, sir." He then turns to listen to the explanations.

Dana's next words are very careful and ice cold. "I lost a very good friend the last time that people from your universe came into mine; as I remember hearing it told, there was a certain Michael Edwards that was part of the team that Wendy gave her life to rescue." Her hand closes on the back of Edwards's chair, broken fingernails digging in to the fabric slightly. "She was the leader of the Resistance; Jim took her place." She glances down at Randal, then, and lifts her hand from the chair to move and stand behind him, her hands folding over his shoulders companionably. Taking strength from his presence. "Since he was captured, we've... fallen apart. So many of us captured or killed. Sympathizers, operatives... when they killed Hamish, Randal and I barely got away. We /need/ him. He's the center that holds us together. He's our /leader./ He took over when Wendy died, and died for someone from your world. So pardon us if we felt like you maybe owed us a little /help./"

. o O Takamura thinks "Gee. Edwards causes trouble in whatever universe he steps foot in. I knew there was a reason I didn't care for him."

. o O Valentine thinks "Do I want to know what the me in this reality is like? *pictures a sweet, bashful virgin and shudders* Nope."

"Oh, we don't owe you /anything/." Edwards shoots back, red hot to Dana's ice cold. "You people tossed me and my friends on a dead runabout, so we could hang around for a week! Then we got captured by that Alliance and a nice vacation of digging for dilithium for about a /month/! Then you finally got around to hauling us out of there, which you had planned to do already in the first place! And now you're just plain pissing me off!" No words can properly describe the glare he levels at her. "We /are/ going to help you, so we can find some way to get the hell out of here, and because, despite all that, I did like Wendy. But don't even think for a moment that you're guilt-tripping me or anyone else!" That said, he pulls back on the emotion. "Now I suggest you tell us what's next."

. o O Stewart thinks "And it's for a good cause."

Takamura looks over his shoulder at the exchange between Dana and Edwards. He tries to hide the disgust on his face. Before it gets noticed, he quickly turns back to his console to make sure he doesn't miss an enemy sneaking up on them.

Valentine listens to the woman quietly, her brow furrowing, before she glances toward the communications officer with a faint smile. "Yes, but I was wondering more about this reality. Alliance, mythical Andorians, Resistance, et cetera," she murmurs.

. o O Takamura thinks "Just great. I get to be played as a pawn /again/. What did I do in a past life to have to work off all this bad karma?"

Stewart checks his phaser briefly, making sure it is indeed fully functional, more as something to kill time than an actual worry. "So where exactly am I, that I need saving? The other me, that is. I really need a better way to refer to him, this is just going to get confusing."

. o O Valentine thinks "Get?!?"

Hurley's eyes flicker towards Edwards at mention of his name and the life given for him, well, maybe him. She's not entirely sure, but she does look at him. Eyebrow raises at the outburst from the commander and her gaze shifts back to Valentine. "Oh, that I can't tell you anything about. Though, given access to a computer in this reality, I might be able to find records somewhere? Maybe?" Then, before Edwards and Dana can turn their anger on her, she goes back to searching for communications. It's good to have a valid distraction.

. o O Hurley thinks "I wonder if the this-reality-me has the opportunity to go shopping. By the sounds of things, I would think malls are not.. common.. around here."

Birev glances down at himself and shakes his head. "I sure don't /feel/ very mythical," he says absently.

"In our universe, Ensign, your race is extinct," Dana tells Birev, choosing to simply ignore Edwards and pet Randal's hair gently. Her attention turns back to Stewart, then. "Jim is being held by the Planetary Governor of Bak'TUR until transport to Qo'noS can be arranged for him. It's quite a jewel in her crown, and she's pretty determined not to let him get away again. Not as determined as we are to get him out, though." She gestures toward an upcoming moon. "There. On the northern continent. Bring us in slowly, and scan for neutrino emissions before you enter the atmosphere. I don't like that we didn't see Vor'mak."

. o O Valentine thinks "Eight of us versus the entire Alliance thingie on a prison break. I understand perfectly now. She's /nuts/."

"Who's the Governor?" Edwards asks, still sounding irritable. But that's pretty normal. He turns his attention to his console, doing as indicated. "If he pops up and kills us now, at least we won't have to worry about anything else."

<CONTEST> Takamura (claiming advantage) contests his Shipboard Systems (Sensors) skill vs a difficulty of Difficult and Succeeds!

Takamura focuses on his console, then once satisfied, he reports. "Sir, I detect no sign of Vor'mak's ship. And as for the Planetary Governor, I suspect that she's Churas. Considering all the other player's we've met so far."

Valentine just shakes her head slowly, keeping an eye on her monitors. Not a happy camper. "Oh, I'm sure they," she gestures toward Dana, Edwards, and Stewart, "Have all the answers, Chris."

"Just to make things clear," Stewart says casually, "If your plan was to have me stand in for your version of me, I hope you have a plan B. Because I don't care for the pawn sacrifice thing. Just wanted to, you know, state that for the record."

"I'm sure they do," Hurley comments to Valentine. "But, they have vendettas and things to get out of the way first - it might be faster to find a computer." She pauses, then glances to Edwards, "Havaris wants to continue tracking us, Sir," she cheerful chimes in dutifully. "It sounds like the ships are falling back and regrouping, though - he needs to assist with Dakin's ship." She pauses, then flashes a bright, Hurley-smile at Tak to add, "Good shot, Sir."

"Extinct?" Birev asks indignantly. "Unthinkable. Who's responsible for this?"

As the shuttle sets down in the deep forest of the moon's northern continent, Dana shoots Birev a /look/ that indicates that's the least of their problems at the moment. "History lessons later, Ensign," before looking down at Takamura. "You're... right."
Thorne cuts in quietly with, "Her and that ... Bajoran man of hers, Taimol. They're good. Too good. Without Jim, we're as good as gone." He glances over his shoulder at Stewart. "Don't worry. I don't think you'd cut it as our Jim. He's... personable."

. o O Hurley thinks "Churas and.. /Taimol/? *images of the Klingon participating in peaceful Bajoran ceremonies comes to mind* Wow. And I thought she and Lieutenant Cristobal were an odd couple..."

"Churas and... Taimol? That name sounds familiar." Edwards shakes his head and stands up from the pilot's chair. "Personable? He really wouldn't make it." He shakes his head and looks around at everyone. "I know this is weird, folks. We'll adapt, and you'll get more information as we go along. For now... well, I guess we better get comfortable here."

Takamura smirks as he secures his station. "It wasn't really to much of a stretch." He comments to Rivers, before nodding to Hurley. "Thanks." Then he just watches the reactions of the rest of the crew, with the occasional glance to Edwards.

"The Vedek. Bajoran religious leader," Tara Valentine supplies for Edwards, a bit surprised at that bit of info. She considers Thorne for a moment, then notes sourly, "The 'good as gone' scenario sounds good to me." With a nod toward her Commander, she sets her console on automatic and moves toward the back of the shuttle to start breaking out the fun comfy-getting stuff.

Stewart replies off-handedly to Quasi-Randal's remark, "Well, we can't all be perfect." Whether that's in reference to him or the other Stewart is something he leaves up for debate. "So who else is on which side, here... You know, so I know who to shoot and who to shoot less."

. o O Stewart thinks "I wonder if there's a mirror version of Tera here."

Hurley is simply shocked by the Churas Taimol thing. "Don't shoot me," she mutters under her breath as she secures her station and steps away. "Please."

Birev, still sounding somewhat angry over the news of his race's extinction, remarks quietly, "It's obvious that the state of this universe is due to the lack of my people's stable influence."

The shuttle lands, powers down, and the crew is escorted out by Dana, down into an underground shelter. It's obvious that they haven't been living there for very long, or very well; all the same, it's set up as well as one could hope under the circumstances, and one of the guards -- recognizable by sight if not by name as the Mirror version of an Engineering Petty Officer on the station -- waves them through. "They're back," he shouts down the cavern, a call which brings the sound of running feet from within.

A tall, lanky, and somewhat geeky half-Cuban, half-Asian man runs out, a PADD covered in scientific figures dangling from one hand. Nathan's preceded, however, by a slender, beskirted figure wearing a bandolier strapped with a series of tools; her black hair is tied back from her face and into a long braid. "Tera!" calls Dana with a sigh of relief, wrapping her arms around her friend and hugging her tightly. "We didn't bring him back yet," she murmurs, "but we brought the shuttle, and people who can." The incoming woman's face pinches up in keen disappointment, and as she opens her eyes, nodding once, her eyes fall on the group, one by one. Valentine. Hurley. Birev. Edwards. Takamura. Stewart. Her breath draws in sharply, and she stands quite still.