The Mirror Of Her Eyes

 Episode Name:  The Mirror Of Her Eyes

   Written By:  Spider

         Cast:  Dana, Edwards, Hurley, Mirror Jiasha, Spider, 
                Takamura, Thorne and Valentine.

  Produced By:  Starfleet

  Directed By:  Spider

     Aired On:  Fri Aug 20 03:42:37 2004

     Stardate:  54326.3

Time: Thu Aug 19 22:37:46 2004

Stardate: 54325.8

There's a third craft on the ground, now, some distance away: it landed a few seconds before Dana turns to Edwards and Takamura, eyeing them up and down. "You wanted your chance at this, and Hiroshi said we're supposed to give it to you. If you want your shot before Barana goes to work, now's the time."

. o O Dana thinks "Our noble, noble saviors. All hail."

"I guess that means now's the time." Edwards looks from Dana to Takamura. "You ready for this? And... up for it?" He gives the man a concerned look.

Takamura glances in the direction of the other craft and back to Dana. When Edwards speaks to him, Hiroshi takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly. With a curt nod and stone face, he replies, "I'm ready, sir."

Valentine gives the third shuttle a nervous look. "Let's do this thing."

Hurley plays with a few objects in the pockets of her jacket and glances towards the shuttle, then to Edwards. "You know, Sir, it may not be a bad idea to have Barana in the room with us. She'll be able to pick up on honesty very reliably.."

. o O Takamura thinks "Alright, Hiroshi. Focus. This is /not/ your Jiasha. Don't let your feelings get in the way of your mission."

There are figures moving through the trees, coming toward the compound, such as it is, when Dana turns to lead the group inside. Before she does, she raises a hand, waving it toward the foremost two in a group that seems clustered around a center point. The foremost two -- a green-skinned man with long, dark hair, and a petite, slender blonde -- raise their hands in response, moving slowly through the forest toward the compound. Dana steps aside once her greeting is done, ushering the group of Starfleet Officers inside with slow and yet somehow impatient arm gestures.

The incoming cell's pace is very clearly set by the slowly processing figure in the center: it is obscured by those around it, but appears to be wearing something akin to a dingy, ratty burqa. At one point, surely, the cloth was white.

This is no longer the case.

"Yeah... I think we're going to do this on our own." Edwards murmurs, watching the incoming rebels, before he's ushered on inside. He gives Takamura the sort of look that says 'this isn't going to end well.' But he refrains from commenting outloud.

. o O Valentine thinks "Ooh, who might that be? Another nutcase, no doubt."

. o O Edwards thinks "There's no way... Getting her to talk in a reasonable amount of time withou undue influence? This is gonna be a mess."

Takamura narrows his eyes to look at the incoming rebels, then nods slowly. Catching Edwards glance, he bobs his head almost imperceptibly. He then turns and follows the others inside.

. o O Hurley is clearly worried - especially for the Bajoran - and for the rest of her team. She's definitely going to put on a confident, cool face, though. That's her job. Smile and stand tall.

Valentine glances over her shoulder toward the approaching rebels, shivers, and quickly keeps up with her superior officers.

. o O Takamura thinks "Ah. There's Evanginor. But not our Evanginor. Must give him the benefit of the doubt. Don't worry, Commander. I think this will end better than you think."

Hurley's eyes fall on the green-skinned man for a moment longer than they should. With a deep breath, she offers a smile to the other, newly-arrived cell before turning to walk next to Valentine, hands still in her pockets.

Dana leads the crew back past the mess hall, past the bunk area, down into deeper, damper caves. The portable lights set in the halls provide only very occasional light: their glow seems sucked into the claustrophobic darkness that folds around the seven figures. When Rivers turns back, stopped in front of an opening, light catches only a corner of her face, playing more over the thick, knotted scar across her throat than anything else. The opposite side of her face takes its lighting from the low, ambient blue glow of a poorly-functioning forcefield, giving her the distinct appearance of a corpse as she stares at Edwards for a second before pressing a button and lowering the field.

Inside, Jiasha languishes, bereft of her manicurist, her jewelry, and, indeed, even her shoes. She's been left in a thin shift, with a single cast-off blanket.

And then there are the bruises: one stretches up her left arm, while the right side of her face is a welter of smaller blotches, all melting together. Her slender, ridged nose has been broken, and set poorly. For all this, yet she still manages to look disaffected, bored. Somehow? Dignified.

. o O Edwards thinks "Who turned up the creepy around here?"

. o O Takamura thinks "What the heck did they do to her? Torture obviously. ....Ok, Hiroshi. Focus. Concentrate. Remember why you are here."

. o O Hurley thinks "Oh my /GOD/!! WHAT did they do to her?! I need to get medical supplies. There's gotta be something that can help her. Maybe Commander Edwards will send me after a medkit to help her. Oh lord. This poor woman. Bitch or not, she's still a living, sentient being."

. o O Takamura feels shock and some disgust upon seeing the state of Jiasha. Then there is sense of peace.

. o O Valentine is horrified, has to stifle sympathy for the... poor girl.

Edwards hesitates when Dana starts to look an awful lot like their Dana Rivers. As in deceased. Spooky. He blinks and quickly looks away, focusing on what appears to be Jiasha's cell. He steps inside and his jaw clenches as he sees what kind of condition she's in. Approaching slowly, he gives her a closer look, before glancing back at the others. "We need a medikit."

Takamura follows along down the corridor, halting when they get to the cell. Upon seeing Jiasha, his brows rise up, his eyes flickering. Then it's over. His face returns back to its former stoic self. When Edwards asks for a medkit, he glances to the two female Starfleet Officers, with a slight motion of his head.

Valentine gasps softly upon spotting the woman, horrified. She gestures toward Hurley, unable to look away from the bruised Bajoran. "Shuttlecraft, underneath the starboard panel, the left cabinet."

The hike into the lower caves causes Hurley to look around quickly, her confident composure slipping more and more the further they descend from the light-giving surface. Upon seeing the Bajoran, she can't stop the sharp, inhaled gasp that escapes from Christine, and her eyes widen. She doesn't even see Tak motion to her - as soon as the magic words come from Edwards' mouth, she spins and begins the journey back to their shuttlecraft supplies at a dead run.

. o O Dana thinks "Oh, yes, it's so, so terrible. Let's all play a sad, sad song for the /professional torturer/ who finally got a taste of her own."

Dana withdraws a little, leaning against the far wall and staring absolute /daggers/ at Jiasha. Her wirily-muscled arms fold across her chest, and her mouth folds down into a frown.

Jiasha, on the other hand, stares up at Edwards with a passive sort of disgust. "Didn't I already kill you once?" she queries languidly. "You humans look so annoyingly alike."

. o O Takamura feels a flash of anger, then calm.

. o O Takamura thinks "That wench. Focus. Focus."

. o O Valentine thinks "Gee, that's original. Yawn."

Edwards looks back toward Jiasha, considering her. "I'm invincible." he comments. And, despite that wonderful little tidbit, he inquires, "Have them been feeding you? Giving you water?"

. o O Edwards thinks "Could she mean it? I shouldn't dwell on that."

Takamura steps into the cell to stand off to the side of Edwards with his hands clasped in front of him. There is another flash in his eyes, but that is the only break in his stoneface. He simply waits for the medkit to arrive.

Well behind Edwards, Tara rolls her eyes a bit at the invincible comment, then regards Jiasha dubiously. "Are you sure she's the Inquisitor's assistant?" she asks Dana. "I'd expect that person to come up with a better goad."

"/I/ don't need an entire team of cheerleaders to get the job done, sweetheart," purrs Jiasha at Valentine through lips thick with bruises. She languishes, oh, how she languishes. Life is difficult when you can look fashionable even after being beaten within an inch of your life. "Of course you are," she reassures Edwards, her voice rolling easily through condescension and right on into patronization. "Every day. Banquets. Feasts. They're keeping me in posh style, naturally. Are you blind, dear Michael?"

. o O Valentine is not particularly impressed.

Edwards, remarkably, doesn't let the attitude bother him. "I guess it's too much to hope that they'd give you basic sustenance, if only to keep you alive, while beating you." he says. This time he looks to Valentine. "Food. Water."

Takamura stands like a statue next to Jiasha and Edwards, observing carefully their interactions.

Valentine gives Jiasha an amused look, fighting the urge to pat the woman on the head. "Aye, sir." Spinning on her heel, she leaves the cell at a run to obey.

. o O Valentine thinks "Amateur wench."

Returning at the same pace in which she left, Hurley slows enough to pass through the maze of rebels and officers, sliding up to Edwards' side with medkits in both hands. Well supplied, she's still not ready for the sight of the Bajoran, which causes her eyes to widen once again.

"From these animals? Mmm. Yes. It is too much to hope." Jiasha lounges, licking her lips and managing to daintily spit a bit of blood onto the floor. Yes. Daintily. It /can/ be done. "It won't work, you know."

Dana radiates the hate. She's still because otherwise she might leap at Jiasha and tear her throat out /with her teeth./ That much is perfectly clear.

"Could you?" Edwards looks from the medikits to Takamura. "And what's that?" he inquires, glancing back to Jiasha. He raises an eyebrow, letting her explain instead of offering up any guesses.

. o O Edwards thinks "Probably thinks this is some sort of ploy. The Nice Strategy."

The Takamura statue comes to life when Hurley arrives with the medkits. As Edwards is asking him to treat her, he already is kneeling down in front of his patient, cracking open the case. Removing the medical tricorder, he begins to scan Jiasha to determine the extent of her injuries.

. o O Takamura thinks "I just hope she doesn't try anything while I treat her. I don't want to have to stoop to the levels of her captors. Though, her attitude /is/ starting to annoy me."

Hurley remains rather sullenly silent as she looks over the scene. Takamura may be an emotionless statue, but she's hardly that. Her eyes are already watering and her concerned and sorrowful gaze can't break from Jiasha. She's very much looking at the woman with newly-defined pity.

. o O Hurley thinks "She's doomed. She won't talk to us - look at her. She's not going to tell us anything useful and she's doomed. She'll get even worse treatment from our.. hosts.. but she doesn't seem to care. Why can't she just see that the information is coming out one way or another, and if she cooperates, her sanity and mind will be /spared/? She's so doomed."

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Personal Equipment (Medical Tricorder) skill vs a difficulty of Moderate and Succeeds!

Rolling her eyes elaborately at Edwards, apparently thinking his question doesn't even deserve an answer, Jiasha turns her attention to Takamura next, mugging for his tricorder scans like a model for a camera. So carelessly and yet so carefully arranged: the carefully orchestrated aura of listless ease.

. o O Mirror Jiasha thinks "Just kill me and get it over with, please, before I /die/ of boredom. These people can't even /interrogate/ correctly."

Edwards clears his throat and considers Jiasha. "I'll make this really simple. We're the closest thing you have to friends around here. Cooperate, and we'll make sure you're taken care of properly. Don't, and... they're going to finish you. Take what they want out of your head, no matter how much of you it destroys."

. o O Mirror Jiasha thinks "And they think they deserve more than mining dilithium and drawing my baths."

Takamura runs the tricorder over her, ignoring her posturing. He has a jobto do and that is what's at the forefront of his mind. Closing the tricorder, he reaches into the kit to pull out a bone knitter. He then glances up to Edwards for the word to begin his ministrations.

. o O Takamura thinks "Focus, Hiroshi. Don't let her get under your skin."

Valentine returns half out of breath. She must have gone all the way to the shuttle, for the utensils she carries- bowl, spoon, cup, pitcher- are constructed of unbreakable plasticene. The bowl holds a double helping of stew; the pitcher- water. The latter sloshes slightly as she skids to a stop just behind Edwards.

Hurley remains where she is, nicely and quietly out of the way and looking with pity on the Bajoran woman. There is, afterall, little she can do, and that hint of resigned helplessness dictates the sorrowful expression she unwillingly maintains. Her eyes don't break from Jiasha even when Valentine arrives with a not-so-graceful entrance.

. o O Hurley thinks "Please, Havaris Jiasha. Please say something - anything. Don't make them resort to the Betazoid."

"You're still so naive," Jiasha murmurs, "so sweet. I remember why it was such fun breaking you. You do seem to heal quickly, Michael, that's why we found you so intriguing. Well, that, and the screaming. You beg /so well,/ once you get started."

. o O Edwards thinks "She's just trying to get to you. It doesn't mean anything."

. o O Hurley thinks "That's... not what I was hoping for."

A few moments behind Valentine appears one Randal Thorne, passing through the door with a mixture of dread and curiousity on his face.

. o O Mirror Jiasha thinks "Now look, it's a party. Everyone's come."

Edwards pauses. He nods to Takamura and holds up a hand to Valentine, "After she's treated." He drops his hand. "This isn't about me, Jiasha. It's about you. The claims, the insults... none of that matters anymore. It's... unlikely that you'll leave her alive. Pretty much assured if you don't cooperate now." He regards her impassively. "You're still a teenager. Are you prepared to throw your life away already?"

Takamura nods to Edwards as he turns to Jiasha. "I need you to remain still while I treat your cracked rib." He then raises his knitter waiting for her to give him some space before turning the device on.

Valentine nods at Edwards' order, concentrating on juggling the stew bowl a bit in defense against the heat radiating through it to her hands. Her nose twitches a bit as the aroma of the food wafts forth.

Hurley's eyes widen slightly as she murmurs, "cracked ribs?" under her breath, which is quickly drawn in. She has to look away, and she does, right at Valentine, the circus feature. Wordlessly, she removes the pitcher from Tara's hands, offers a weak smile, then looks back towards Takamura and Edwards, the lion tamers.

Thorne clears his throat, stepping up behind Dana -- looking, oddly enough, like he's trying to be both reassuring and protective at the same time.

Dana turns her head, hate fading from her expression once Thorne steps into view; she raises a hand to brush his shoulder briefly before dropping it again.

Jiasha stares at Edwards for a moment, her gaze rather blank and bored. "I would ask you if you'd betray your people for an end to the pain, but I already know. The difference between you and I, Michael Edwards, is that I won't start crying like a child and screaming my woman's name when it begins. If you're right, then I have nothing to lose except something that's already practically lost. If you're wrong, then I'm not throwing my loyalties away as easily as you did." That said, she maneuvers her arms out of Takamura's way for a moment, reaching to brush a fingertip down his arm as she does so and giving him a sly little smile in the meantime.

. o O Edwards' anger flares up, but his impressive will stomps on it.

. o O Valentine thinks "Okay, now she's getting a trifle annoying."

. o O Takamura feels slight rush at her touch as if reliving a memory.

Edwards clenches his jaw momentarily. That's the only reaction he gives to Jiasha's comments for that moment. "If I'm right, you have your sanity and life to lose, when you could cooperate and keep both." he replies slowly. Then he tries a different tact. "How's Nua?"

. o O Edwards thinks "Come on, come on, mean something..."

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

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

. o O Takamura thinks "Ooh, I forgot how good her touch feels....Snap out of it Takamura. She's not your Jiasha. She's not the mother of your son. Focus on treating her and accomplishing the mission. No emotions are allowed to get in the way."

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

<CONTEST> Edwards 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 Dramatically Succeeds!

There's a little flicker of her eyes to Edwards, and she stares blankly, almost vapidly at him, unimpressed. Jiasha reaches a hand out to idly pet Takamura's arm again, trailing a finger up toward his neck absently, regardless of the bone knitter in his hand.

. o O Hurley thinks "*What* is she doing with Tak? ...Oh god, Tara."

There is a slight shudder at Jiasha's touch. Taking a deep breath, Takamura finishes mending the bone, glancing at Edwards when he makes the comment about Nua. His eyes quickly dart back to Jiasha, barely nodding at something he notices. As she touches him again, he pulls back so that he can get another tool to treat her bruises. When he does so, he chances to look into her whiskey eyes.

. o O Mirror Jiasha is hateful, angry, and also very under control. She hates Edwards most of all.

. o O Mirror Jiasha hates Dana second-best.

Valentine gives Hurley a smile of thanks for relieving half her burden, then she stills, /peering/ toward Jiasha. After a moment, she mutters, "Huh. I didn't know she meant humans're beneath her /that/ way."

. o O Valentine eyes those fingernails on her lover's neck. "Hurt him, and die, wench. And they won't be able to stop me."

. o O Takamura thinks "Oh no! It can't be. She /did/ have her own Nua. But something tragic happened to her. No wonder she feel this way. Is this how /my/ Jiasha would turn out if Nua had died instead of being rescued?""

Hurley's glint with just a little curiosity, again breaking her stare at Jiasha to look at Edwards. When she looks back to see the caress on Tak, she *immediately* turns her gaze to Valentine, then smirks slightly. "Well, anyway to use, abuse and toss them, I imagine," she notes barely above a whisper. "I never realized humanity was observed only by humans, though." Her eyes return to their solemn stare at Jiasha rather quickly, though, before she adds, "I do pity her, though. So much hatred - so much angst. I mean, you really have to wonder what more can be taken from her; she already lacks compassion and decency."

. o O Takamura feels conflicting emotions. Getting the two Jiasha's confused as his head and heart try to sort things.

Thorne raises both of his eyebrows at Valentine. A slight shake of his head, and then he turns his gaze back to Jiasha.

The eyes that stare back down at Takamura are hatred, distilled to its purest, most concentrated essence and contained behind the slightest veneer of carefully constructed ennui. It's the sort of thing that it takes a former lover to see, even in a Jiasha that was definitely never his. Jiasha seems to take some sort of perverse delight in discomfiting him, however, and leans back against the wall, sprawling her limbs as best she can with her hands bound.

. o O Hurley feels insanely guilty for that comment. She regrets it, but at the same time, is hopeful.

. o O Thorne thinks "I shouldn't pity her... and yet, I do."

. o O Valentine thinks "Mmmm. Must remember that pose for later use."

Edwards steps closer to Jiasha, invading her personal space, and reaches out to grab her chin and turn it toward him. "You might not care about yourself, but I /know/ you care about that little girl. Throw your life away if you want. Just keep quiet and wait until the others extract them information they want from your brain and toss your body in the garbage. But you think about what that's gonna do to her. I will do everything in my power to see that you get sent home in one piece if you cooperate. If you don't, you're condemning that girl to a life without her mother. It's going to be hell on her. Some people don't ever recover from that."

Takamura holds that stare returning disappointment, sympathy and perhaps a hint of love until Edwards turns her head away. Softly, he says, "Don't waste your breath, Commander. Nua's dead. And I think Hiroshi killed her." All the while, he gaze never shifts from Jiasha.

. o O Mirror Jiasha wants to eat Edwards's liver. She wants to boil his eyeballs. She wants to kill him slowly and messily. Literally. She hates so much. Love and grief have turned in on the center of herself, until all she can do is hate. And hate. And hurt. And hate.

. o O Takamura thinks "That must be it. That must be why she stares at me with such hatred. I have the face of the man who killed her daughter."

Valentine blinks, taken aback. "Nua? Dead?" Keen regret flashes through her eyes before she looks away quickly.

. o O Valentine thinks "Okay, so it wasn't our Nua. Still..."

. o O Valentine remembers Nua in the Warp Core, sucking on a grape popsicle. Her chest hurts.

Hurley's jaw drops at Tak's comment, her eyes traveling from the Bajoran, to Tak, to Edwards, Valentine, and then she rounds on the nearest rebel to her. Poor Randal. "A /CHILD/?! You guys murder /CHILDREN/?! What? Ran out of fingers from the Right Hand that you could find?!"

Thorne turns on Hurley, his eyes narrowing as she unleashes on him. "Accidents happen in war," he replies flatly.

. o O Thorne is sick inside. Absolutely sick.

. o O Hurley is building a barely controllable rage. 'I've been *defending* these people. For what? So /CHILDREN/ can die?!'

"Yes, you idealistic little enfant, that's exactly what we do. We go about merrily slitting the throats of children and draping our walls with their entrails," Dana replies, her voice a calm, cold slice, an iced knife through the air. "And then when we're through with that, we beat puppies to death with rocks, set all the flowers on fire, and pee all over their ashes. Hadn't you picked up on that yet? We're horrible human beings, and not at all to be trusted." She flickers her gaze to Randal, and places a steadying hand on his arm. "The bomb was meant for /her/ brother. Shrapnel happens. In case you hadn't noticed, we happen to be involved in a war where, if they catch us, they send us -- and our children -- to mine dilithium. Do you have any idea how long a six-year-old child takes to die in a dilithium mine? Or what it looks like when they do? Any at all? Seen it happen a few times, have you, maybe?" Her voice is gravely, low, and cold. "I'd be glad to moralize with you a little more on this, but I can't talk for long periods of time, on account of once having /had my throat cut/ and being /left for dead./"

Jiasha, having managed to inadvertently sow the seeds of discord, leans against the wall, looking quite smug and content with herself.

Edwards drops his hand from Jiasha's face, watching her with a mixture of anger and regret before he turns away. "Takamura... save her. And don't let them bring in that..." he trails off and heads for the exit, leveling a glare at Dana and Randal on his way out. "I need to have a talk with someone."

. o O Hurley thinks "Why are *we* dealing with the Eater of Worlds? Maybe we can send it through to this universe. Accidents happen, afterall."

Takamura seems unaffected by the firestorm around him. His attention remains fixed on Jiasha. Even as she assumes that smug look, he can't help but sigh with sympathy. Quietly, he says, "I'm sorry. I can only imagine how I would feel if I lost /my/ son that way. /Our/ son." As his eyes begin to glass over, he closes them quickly, opening them only after turning his head to reach for his medical tools.

. o O Mirror Jiasha feels complete revulsion at the idea of mating with Takamura. Right down to the marrow.

. o O Takamura is completely broken now. The chink has been found in the warrior's armor.

Valentine shoots a look of utter loathing and contempt toward Rivers. "God, if I hear your," her voice turns sarcastic, "'we're in a war here, if you haven't noticed' line one more time as an excuse for your atrocities... You're turning into the Alliance, you know. Just like they turned into the old Federation." She turns back to the ongoing scene with the prisoner, notes that Tak isn't done, and reaches out a steadying hand toward Hurley.

. o O Valentine thinks "There aren't any good guys here. Sure as hell not this Resistance."

Hurley's eyes narrow on Dana. "Oh, right. I'm sorry, I forgot - if *they* do it, then it's perfectly acceptable for *you* to do it. It's war afterall, isn't it? Meet evil with evil because you don't have to worry about morals. Pesky things like compassion and being /HUMANE/ are beyond you because you're in war. Who cares if you become what you fight and loathe? Who cares if you never reach a lasting peace because you're too busy planning terrorist *raids* on the enemies? How many of your and /their/ children are going to die because you all of you are too stubborn to be humane?" The hand on her arm does steady her, but only in as much as her gaze on Dana isn't quite as resentful. "I have noticed you're fighting a war, and in case *you* haven't noticed, you're getting nowhere fast. Accidents may happen," her eyes glance at Thorne, "but war isn't an accident, nor are the effects of it."

Regret wells up in Randal's eyes, and he glances away from Hurley. "If I could fix it, I would," he offers softly to no one in particular. "I really would." His tough soldier act is, apparently, just that. An act. His final words, directed at Dana, are delivered in a voice so low and so choked with guilt as to almost be inaudible. "Do you need some water?"

"I see. And in your utopian world, when you fight wars, you have magic bombs. Ones that don't kill children, only the /bad people./ So if you fire on an enemy ship, and you, say, blow it up, or when you bomb a planet, not /one child dies,/" Dana replies in a low rasp. "Thank you for this illuminating glimpse into your perfect world."

Jiasha stares at Takamura for a long moment before turning her face away to the wall, and lapsing into noncommunicativeness. She ignores the rest of what's going on in the room, now. She's lost her moxie. For that matter, she seems to have entirely lost her will to do anything other than lie there.

<CONTEST> Valentine contests her Law (Starfleet Regulations) skill vs a difficulty of Routine and Succeeds!

Takamura watches as Jiasha shuts down, slowly standing up to face the others. He looks like a smoldering volcano ready to blow. "ENOUGH! ALL OF YOU!" He pulls out his phaser and tosses it out into the corridor. Looking to Valentine and Hurley, he says, "Leave the food and water." Then to the entire group. "Get out of here! All of you. I've had enough of all this fighting and bickering. Get out of my sight!" His chest heaves from the explosion of emotion.

<CONTEST> Hurley contests her Law (Starfleet Regulations) skill vs a difficulty of Routine and Succeeds!

<CONTEST> Takamura contests his Law (Starfleet Regulations) skill vs a difficulty of Routine and Succeeds!

. o O Takamura feels pain, anger and frustration.

. o O Takamura thinks "That's it. I've had it with these people."

Valentine jerks a thumb toward Jiasha, her blazing eyes on Dana. "It'd be a lot easier to accept that if you weren't planning to bust her mind open like a melon. Or were you going to call /that/ an accident too?" She glances toward Randal, his words sinking in, and she takes a deep breath, the edge leaving her voice as she says softly, "Then there's still-" Tak's shout gets her attention /real/ fast, and her gaze whips around toward him. Eyes widening, she hastily sets the bowl of stew with its spoon beside Jiasha, and flees for the corridor.

. o O Valentine thinks "Uh oh."

Hurley is about to fire back at Dana, but is interrupted by Tak. Surprisingly, she's angry enough that she responds to Dana anyway in a low, barely audible comment, cheeks very reddened, "Don't you *dare* attack our society because you are becoming your enemy and are too high on your grand-standing pedestal to care." Her eyes cast towards Thorne, and a rather amicable concern floats in them for just a moment before she turns to depost the water pitcher and cup next to Jiasha, and immediately exits the cell as ordered.

"There's this thing, Lieutenant, where I don't report to or take orders from you, you may have missed it," Dana rasps, before turning her attention to Randal. "I'd like some water, yes, lover." She raises a hand and rubs it at the ropy scary on her throat. Hurley's words are completely ignored: her face has gone pale with fury, to the point where it looks like her next response would be with a fist rather than words, so she just ignores Hurley entirely. She waits until everyone else exits the cell before following after, linking her hand with Randal's, a silent, comforting gesture.

Thorne releases a puff of breath, but stands his ground after Tak blows. At least, up until his hand is taken... and then he's most content to amble out alongside Dana. The guilt still radiates off of him, though.

Jiasha continues to lie silently in the corner: with her hands bound, she can't do much, and she /won't/ do much, either, it seems. She might seem dead, save that she's visibly breathing.

Takamura's fury has not subsided. Glaring at Dana, he retorts. "I have not missed it. But, you will obey this time." The fire in his eyes only starts to diminish once she and Randal start to hold hands and walk away. He stares after the group until he can see them no more before turning back to Jiasha.

In the corner, Jiasha remains: tall, slender, now somehow impossible fragile. She's nothing now but a memory of strength, fading away into herself. Lost. Tiny. Very much a broken, broken-hearted teenage girl with absolutely nothing left.

Takamura bends down to pick up his regenerator again, then slowly makes his way back over to Jiasha. He speaks to her in hushed tones, regarding her with compassionate eyes. "Please, turn towards me. This way I can finish healing your wounds."

. o O Takamura feels sorry for the girl, who in another reality was his lover. The anger dissipated now that he's exploded.

. o O Takamura thinks "I won't let them hurt you any further. And I'll be damned if they try to bring that psychic vampire in here."

There's a long period of non-response before Jiasha simply rolls onto her back, staring up at the ceiling. She's passive enough to be a doll, sprawled in prettily messy disarray on the floor like she'd just been dropped by her owner.

. o O Spider is empty: she's already given herself up to the idea of death. She doesn't care whether she's healed or not. She knows it's only temporary.

Tenderly, Takamura treats each of her wounds. Every bruise and every cut. Once finished, he returns his tools to the case, then picks up the bowl and spoon. Cautiously, he brings it to her mouth. "Please. Try to eat a little bit."

This, he cannot get her to do. Jiasha simply won't open her mouth. For that matter, she won't even sit up. Once she's lying on her back, she won't even move. She might as well be made of plastic, save that she breathes and sometimes blinks.

. o O Mirror Jiasha thinks "Just go away. Go away and let me die. It'll start any moment now. I know it will. And then I'll die."

. o O Mirror Jiasha feels resignation, emptiness.

. o O Takamura thinks "Come on, Jiasha. Eat something. Drink something. I can't let you wste away like this."

Takamura sighing heavily, he sets the bowl of stew down. He then pours some water into the cup. After dipping his fingers into it, he gently rubs them over her lips to wet them.

Instinctively, her lips part for a moment, before she remembers to close them against the water, to deny what her body instinctively asks for, even if her mind dismisses it, turns it away. Jiasha stares up at Tak passively: there's not even hate there anymore. There's just an emptiness so profound that it forms the whole of her.

Takamura gazes down at her, his eyes showing the lost love he has for his own Jiasha. Letting his fingers linger on her lips, he pleads. "Please, Jiasha. Drink something. Don't let yourself die like this."

But there is no response from the Jiasha that isn't his: there is only silence, save for the slow, resigned pace of her breathing, a shallow hiss of air through her nose. Whatever light was behind her eyes before has gone, leaving only a husk behind, like a locust's molted carapace.