The One With The Klingon Prisoner

Posted on Mon Dec 5th, 2022 @ 4:25pm by Lieutenant Commander Diane Doctrine & Commander Antonia 'Tony" Stoffels
Edited on on Mon Dec 5th, 2022 @ 4:28pm

Mission: Traitor amongst us?
Location: Brig

The medical exam of the Klingon was inconclusive. No anomalies found. Diane sent all the information she had to Major Snyder. All that was left now was for her to confront the Klingon.

Diane waited in the brig for the Major to show up. As planned, Diane would stay out of sight while Sam worked.

Sam had reviewed the audio and visual logs that she was provided and handed them to her information specialists team with an exact plan in mind. She had a picture, she had a DNA scan and a medical work up. Nothing particularly stood out but it served its purpose. Sam arrived at the Brig at the time appointed by Commander Doctrine. The doors opened when she approached and with a smile, she greeted. "Commander."

"Hello Major," Diane replied, "I hope the information I sent you is helpful. This one is almost fanatical in her loyalty to her house. It's almost cult-like."

"Oh it will." Sam spoke, knowing that her team was already piecing the parts together. The team itself was experts in their field and a previous mission had really showed the type and quality of the work they could accomplish. "Have there been any developments, changes or situational alterations since we last spoke?"

Diane shook her head. "No, and she's had no contact with anyone since the last time I spoke to her. The opaque containment field blocks sound as well as light. She can be monitored on video with sound at the main console here or in my office."

"Alright." For Sam this was not the first encounter with a Klingon but with her plan in mind she was confident of a positive outcome. "Might as well get started, the sooner we get answers the better."

Diane nodded, "As planned, I'll stay out of sight and watch from the monitor console. The code for the containment field is two, three, one, nine."

"Thanks, let's begin." Sam spoke before walking in. It was obvious which cell it was because it was the only cell that was blacked out from view. Pulling up one of the few chair she placed it in front of the cell and then entered the code.

Gulew looked up and smiled. "Ah a fresh one I see. The other woman really was not up to the job. I have heard this about human females, that they are weak."

Straight into it, fair enough. Typical Klingon, straight into the attack with words. Sam didn't even flinch at the remark made her way. "Yes yes, weak Starfleet, unworthy foe, drown in my own blood, heard it all before." Sam dismissed. "You will forgive me if I don't take it seriously, being in a cell its hard to hear you clearly over such dishonour that's filling your cell." Sam looked down at the Padd she was holding that was live feeding her updates on her teams efforts.

"So, got a name or we going to just trade insults that are not taken seriously and waste each others breath?"

"I am Sergeant Gulew Khot, human. And so far even locked up I am the one that is winning." She showed her teeth in a smile.

"Think so?" Sam smiled tapping away at her Padd, just another tick added to the list. "And from what I understand you are from the house of....Rishtic, Rashtorc." Sam was deliberately mispronouncing it, that was the point.

"I wish I was but I serve my lord Reshtarc. You are too lowly to even know his name. One day you will all be slaves to the empire, when order is restored."

Sam kept a poker face but that was one more bit of information her team could use. "Isn't poison a dishonourable practice to Klingons? Especially to what you consider a weaker foe. If you wanted to kill Commander Stoffels, a blade would have been more of a statement."

Now Gulew put on a poker face as well, she could not be sure how much the humans knew. Knowing what she did she was sure there still was a very big chance Stoffels would not survive this. "I do not know what you mean."

"Uh huh, insulting me would have been more believable," Sam replied. Looking at her Padd she saw an update, the plan was almost ready for 'show and tell'. "You realise that your other Klingon friend has already talked. Said some very colourful things about you, and by colourful, I mean works like 'Coward', ''Without honour', 'A disgrace to the empire', 'never get into...Sto'vo'kor' Am I pronouncing that right?"

"You won't get me angry. I know what the other two are worth." Cowards both of them, put in place in this mission because they were too stupid to understand the masterplan and that way they could not spill any information either. She knew what the human was trying to do.

"Not worth much, believe me but I'm not Starfleet Security, I'm a Special Forces Marine and our methods are very different." Sam sighed. "You Klingons are all the same, the bravado, the threats, the yelling. Waving of blades and quoting Kahless." Sam spoke. "You see, were we at war you would have certain...legal protections, but since you are essentially a spy by act or deed, those protections are voided and at the end of the day, you all die just the same. I know, I've killed so many of you I'm sure your Great Halls are lined with their names." Sam added. "But, the truth of the matter is, you have failed, not only did you fail but you got yourself captured. The Commander is in recovery, already left Sickbay so that poison couldn't have been very potent or Lord Reshtarc set you up to fail, did you even check it or just take his word for it?"

"My lord does not lie! She will die! You are the one that is lying!" Gulew knew this had been a one way mission, lord Reshtarc had been very clear on that when she volunteered. The capture of the younglings had been a decoy to get to the real targets and she had no way of knowing if the assassinations on earth had been succesful. But she knew the poison, Stoffels had to be dead or dying, they were lying to her.

"You sure?" Sam flipped over the Padd to reveal a security camera, part one of Sam's plan. "This was taken not long ago, I borrowed it from the security feed." On it showed the Marine medical area, not that the Klingon would know that. A few biobeds, and medical staff of which were actually marine medics, the usual heart rate monitors and feeds bleeping and chirping. Even a one or two others resting in biobeds for effect. Another female marine of similar build and hair colour to Commander Stoffels clad in a medical gown with a mask on for oxygen. The whole thing was staged, even a cut up uniform on the floor from rushing to stabilise her. "That's her, leaving, bit wobbly I'll admit but there she is, walking away."

"That... that is not possible. This must be a trick." She was not sure as she had only seen photo's of Antonia Stoffels.

"No trick, pretty sure I'll cop some flak from Security over using the feeds like that anyway." Sam replied, there was the chink in the armour she needed, now to drive home and break through. "So, let me show you something."

Sam changed the view on the Padd and then turned it around so the Klingon could see, even turning the volume up so it could be heard. It was a standard federation news feed for the sector, a few routine points about trade, an election, the promotion of a new sector commander all of which was fake. Acted out by marines. "Hold on, it gets better. Start cooperating, or I'll approve the release of this."

The screen changed to a view of the cell, right at this moment. A picture of the Klingon appeared to the right side of the view, a name strode from right to left, her name. "She will die...I am Sergeant Gulew Khot, and I serve my lord Reshtarc." It was the Klingons voice, her words spoken in this very cell with Sam. Sam's team had pieced together audio snips and put together a hologram news cast. The scrolling header at the bottom changed. 'Poison Attack Failed, Diplomatic incident ensues.' Sam had switched targets, from the Klingon in front of her, to the Lord she served.

"Now, failure is one thing, but that failure casting light on Lord Reshtarc, on the galactic scale...causing a diplomatic incident." Sam shrugged. "You just made your Lord the public eye of both the Federation and the Klingon Empire. Through your failure, you have embarrassed your Lord and I'm pretty sure the Empire wont stand for it. He has brought shame, dishonour, and using poison too." Sometimes the way to catch the Fox, was by the cub. The acting by her team was amazing, just as she expected.

"I ... I will deny everything. I acted alone." Gulew was not so sure anymore."

"Do you really think, at that point, it will matter what you say?" Sam asked. "Think about it, the damage is done, the mess is made. Lord Reshtarc will have you killed just on principle alone. Anyone you knew, anyone who respected you, anyone you spoke to, will be killed just to tie off the loose end." Sam sat back in her chair placing the Padd in her lap. "The real question is, who do you fear more?" Sam asked. "What your Lord could do, or what I will do, if you don't start cooperating with me, right here, right now."

"The other woman threatened to throw me out of an airlock. I am not afraid to die, I knew I would not survive this mission." She said with pride.

"You Klingons have a saying. I particularly like this one. Kahless said 'Destroying an empire to win a war is no victory. And ending a battle to save an empire is no defeat'." Sam quoted. "I just want some information, and in return you get to save an empire from what will no doubt be a hefty political scandal and embarrassment." Sam spoke. "You are obviously prepared to die, I see that, but are you going to drag the empire down with you doing it?"

"Don't you get it! We are saving the empire from houses that allow filthy muts like that Pallara brat to live. Race purity is the only way forward. Those houses have to be eradicated before we can soar again like we used to." She fervently believed her own words.

"But what is it costing you?" Sam spoke, one leg hanging over the other. "You want racial purity, fine. You want to be like the Klingons of old, with glory and honour, of greatness." Sam continued. "If those Klingons of old saw you now, a captive, someone who uses poison, what would they be saying right now?"

"You poisoned Commander Stoffels, it failed. Why or how doesn't matter, won't matter to other Klingons other than it did. What I want to know are these things:-"

1, Assassination plans against the Stoffels family?
2, the type of poison you used?

"You want the days of old for your people back again, glory, honour, of might and dominance. To live and see such a time is better then to die and wonder if it ever came to pass. Tell me what I want to know."

"Why would I tell you when the plan is working? And if you cured her you must surely know the type of poison."

"Call it, the spirit of cooperation." Which it was getting ever clearer to Sam it wasn't going to happen. "But, seeing as that's something you're unwilling to do. I'll approve this for transmission. You can sit there while you ponder the scope of the damage you have done to the Empire." The thing was, if Sam did, it would have the exact same effect. The scandal, the embarrassment, the political upheaval. Klingon spies attempting to assassinate Federation citizens. Sam then stood up, brushed the wrinkles out of her tunic and started walking to the control of the cell again.

"They will see! This is for the good of the empire. I will gladly dishonour myself so that lord Reshtarc can be the next chancellor."

Sam paused at the controls. "If you think Lord Reshtarc will be the next chancellor, after your failure, and being caught by an agent of his admitting by name he orchestrated this. I don't see it happening. As I understand it, the Klingon High Council doesn't tolerate failure. No, you have failed, Lord Reshtarc has been implicated by you, and once this sweeps through the diplomatic channels, he's going to get a lot of unwanted attention." Sam put her hand on the console to seal it off once again. "Consider that, while you wait in this cell." Sam then pressed the button to seal off the cell again, leaving her in her confinement.

She walked to the guard. "Wake her every 60 minutes, give her a full hour though."

"Nice work," Diane mentioned once the guard walked away, "I wish I had thought of all that. You clearly have more resources than I do." Truth of the matter was, she was mentally kicking herself for not thinking of the angle that Major Snyder had taken. She folded her arms across her chest and added, "You've been doing this a long time haven't you?"

"Keep waking her every hour, sleep deprivation is an old tactic but a viable one. Klingons don't react well to solitary so that's something else you can use." Sam spoke, an avenue to explore once deprived. "It gets harder every time. Once you start down that path, it only gets darker." Sam spoke. "Breaking someone may feel like an accomplishment, the outcome may even outweigh the means, but you always lose a part of yourself in the process." Sam knew one thing for sure though. "Being Special Forces comes with a reputation and in cases, it's earned. We don't have the luxury to play nice because if we are involved its too late for that. I may have looks, but you can't do what I do without some kind of darker nature under it to do what needs to be done." Sam knew this from experience, using her looks to lure a foe or distract someone.

Diane nodded slowly. Some of what the Major said she already knew, the rest she took as advice for future endeavors. "I see. I will keep all that in mind during future endeavors." She glanced back at the holding cell, then back to Snyder, "Hopefully she'll come to her senses and realize she needs to give us what we want."