ULC 9 - The Game
---
"Are you sure? The woman in
this picture is at the arena?" Bur'ar was deadly serious and imposing. His
Klingon demeanor made the Talaxian vendor more timid than before.
Looking at the picture again, the vendor looked to the group of three people starting at him. They wore brown-colored and dirty cloaks that covered their entire head and body. Only a little part of the face could be seen. "Y-y-yes. I'm sure of it. She's won a few fights I think. I put some money for her to win tonight too!" He became excited, hoping his smile would lighten the mood. He knew he failed and looked away.
Bur'ar lowered the PADD and glanced to the Away Team. Ian replied to the vendor, "thanks. I'd cancel that bet if I were you." The three walked away, and then stopped under an alcove to consider their plan. They looked around to see if anyone was looking until S'Rel pulled out a tricorder.
"I'm still not reading her combadge. It's logical her captors have destroyed it."
The other two nodded at the Vulcan. Ian tapped his combadge. "McKinnon to Solaris, we'll need a scan of the arena grounds and structure. Send a schematic to our tricorders. We may have found the Captain and Doctor."
"Good news Ian. Downloading as soon as we can." Anthi's voice sounded relieved.
Bur'ar nodded. "We'll see if we can find our way to them before the next round."
With that, the three exchanged looks then headed toward the arena.
---
The Klingon held a hand to his phaser pistol but did not pull it from the holster. He nodded to S'Rel who then opened her tricorder and scanned the keypad lock. Entering a few codes, the door clicked and she pulled it open. Inside, the room was clearly an infirmary but was not sanitary enough to be healthy for patients; certainly not for Starfleet standards.
Four beds were in the room and two were occupied. S'Rel and Ian went directly to one of them as they recognized the woman on the bed from her blonde hair. Ian looked around the room while S'Rel did a visual inspection. "Doctor Kramer?"
Annika slowly opened one eye, the other was bruised shut. Other bruises were visible on her face and a dirty cloth was taped to her forehead. Dried blood crusted at the edge of the make-shift bandage. "You're late." Even though she whispered, her voice was coarse and gravely.
The Vulcan raised her eyebrows. "You do not have a restraining collar. That will help with egress."
Annika looked down toward her legs. "No need". Ian pulled the sheet and noticed the metal frame holding Annika’s leg straight.
"Doctor, was this injury a result of the arena combat?"
Nodding, Annika replied, "Captain can be a ***** when she's angry."
"The Captain's behavior is from the restraining collar. We've learned it injects the user with a chemical compound that enhances strength and survival instincts while inhibiting memory and judgment. The Captain is not herself wearing the collar."
Annika nodded. "It's more than that; it's an explosive device. There are perimeter sensors that will activate the charge if the user attempts escape."
S'Rel furrowed eyebrows. "That changes our current plans."
Ian lifted the kit already on his back to shift the weight of its contents. "I've got an idea. If I can find high enough ground, then removing the collar is possible, if not challenging. The Captain would not approve, though."
Bur'ar stepped into the room and closed the door. He raised a finger to his lips and the phaser pistol appeared. S'Rel joined him from the other side of the door and pulled out her own pistol. Heavy footsteps were heard approaching toward the door. Some deep laughter boomed in the hallway, and then the footsteps continued away from the door until there was silence. Both lowered their pistols.
S'Rel went back to Annika's bed and pulled a hypospray from her kit. Applying a small dose of pain nullifier to Annika’s neck, she then placed a combadge in the Doctor's hand. Tapping her own, S'Rel ordered, "Solaris, medical emergency, Annika to beam up to sick bay." The Doctor was washed in blue transporter particles and disappeared. She then stepped toward the other bed and scanned the injured gladiator who was so battered it was hard to recognize the female Nezu. She looked to Bur'ar and shook her head.
Covering their heads with the cowls from their cloaks, they left the infirmary.
---
Standing amid the rowdy crowd, two officers positioned themselves at the railing overlooking the arena grounds. Bur'ar growled as he tapped his combadge. "Ian, we're too late." Three combatants entered the arena from separate doors. All were clearly female: a Krenim, Ocampan and Human. Each wore simple leather-like armor in various dull colors covering torsos and lower limbs. They lined up in the center of the arena and faced toward the organizer’s section. A voice boomed through the building announcing the next match.
Ian responded, "I see her. Will this be a 'smash-and-grab'?"
"Yes."
---
Ian locked the scope into place and calibrated the sight. Lifting a leg from the bipod, he brushed away dirt from the ledge used to support the rifle. Activating the power supply, orange-colored photonic stabilizers appeared along the barrel near the emitter. Looking through the scope, Ian sighted his target.
Starfleet Captain Kathryn Beringer.
---
Bur'ar watched a massive four-armed reptilian-like gladiator stomped toward the three women who stood their ground and readied various weapons. Raising a huge spiked club, the gladiator tried to crush the Ocampan. She easily dodged the attack and struck against the fighter's wrist with her long pike. He back-handed the woman who spun from the counter-attack and collapsed to the floor a few meters away. The crowd cheered.
This was a diversion the other two women exploited as they flanked the gladiator. The Krenim used her shield to parry a large sword strike from the gladiator, but the force of the swing pushed her to the ground. Kathryn used the Krenim's fall as a launch pad toward the gladiator's back. Bringing a pair of long knives down, she pierced the gladiator's armored scales. The creature screamed from the pain and the crowd roared.
The first woman recovered, found her pike and charged the gladiator. Stabbing into a leg, the gladiator grabbed the Ocampan's head and lifted her from the ground with ease. She screamed until her head was crushed, spraying the gladiator with blood.
---
Everything was happening quickly. Bur'ar tapped his badge and said, "that's enough." He leaped over the guard rail into the arena, his cloak flowing open revealing the black-colored uniform of Starfleet. Without a word, S'Rel followed soon afterward as the crowd erupted into jeers and cheers. The announcer shouted through the microphone while the swirling combat ensued.
---
Ian saw Bur'ar's jump from peripheral vision, then closed his left eye to focus attention through the scope. Kathryn was moving quickly, but he was able to keep her in his sight. "C'mon, c'mon", he whispered as he knew Bur'ar and S'Rel were getting closer to her.
The combatants became distracted by the uproar from the crowd. When Kathryn paused in her steps, Ian kissed the air and pulled the trigger.
---
S'Rel saw the phaser bolt strike against Kathryn's neck. The restraining collar was blasted toward the gladiator, landed on the ground and exploded, throwing dirt into the air. The gladiator howled and Bur'ar charged into the smoke and dirt cloud. Covering her eyes from the shower of sand, she heard the impact of bodies slamming into each other. She stopped when she realized Bur'ar had tackled Kathryn to the ground.
Pulling out her phaser, she fired into the large shadow through the smoke. Another animalistic shriek responded. Tapping her combadge, S'Rel quickly said, "Solaris three to beam up, now!"
A large spiked club swished into the space evacuated by S'Rel as she was teleported away.
Looking at the picture again, the vendor looked to the group of three people starting at him. They wore brown-colored and dirty cloaks that covered their entire head and body. Only a little part of the face could be seen. "Y-y-yes. I'm sure of it. She's won a few fights I think. I put some money for her to win tonight too!" He became excited, hoping his smile would lighten the mood. He knew he failed and looked away.
Bur'ar lowered the PADD and glanced to the Away Team. Ian replied to the vendor, "thanks. I'd cancel that bet if I were you." The three walked away, and then stopped under an alcove to consider their plan. They looked around to see if anyone was looking until S'Rel pulled out a tricorder.
"I'm still not reading her combadge. It's logical her captors have destroyed it."
The other two nodded at the Vulcan. Ian tapped his combadge. "McKinnon to Solaris, we'll need a scan of the arena grounds and structure. Send a schematic to our tricorders. We may have found the Captain and Doctor."
"Good news Ian. Downloading as soon as we can." Anthi's voice sounded relieved.
Bur'ar nodded. "We'll see if we can find our way to them before the next round."
With that, the three exchanged looks then headed toward the arena.
---
The Klingon held a hand to his phaser pistol but did not pull it from the holster. He nodded to S'Rel who then opened her tricorder and scanned the keypad lock. Entering a few codes, the door clicked and she pulled it open. Inside, the room was clearly an infirmary but was not sanitary enough to be healthy for patients; certainly not for Starfleet standards.
Four beds were in the room and two were occupied. S'Rel and Ian went directly to one of them as they recognized the woman on the bed from her blonde hair. Ian looked around the room while S'Rel did a visual inspection. "Doctor Kramer?"
Annika slowly opened one eye, the other was bruised shut. Other bruises were visible on her face and a dirty cloth was taped to her forehead. Dried blood crusted at the edge of the make-shift bandage. "You're late." Even though she whispered, her voice was coarse and gravely.
The Vulcan raised her eyebrows. "You do not have a restraining collar. That will help with egress."
Annika looked down toward her legs. "No need". Ian pulled the sheet and noticed the metal frame holding Annika’s leg straight.
"Doctor, was this injury a result of the arena combat?"
Nodding, Annika replied, "Captain can be a ***** when she's angry."
"The Captain's behavior is from the restraining collar. We've learned it injects the user with a chemical compound that enhances strength and survival instincts while inhibiting memory and judgment. The Captain is not herself wearing the collar."
Annika nodded. "It's more than that; it's an explosive device. There are perimeter sensors that will activate the charge if the user attempts escape."
S'Rel furrowed eyebrows. "That changes our current plans."
Ian lifted the kit already on his back to shift the weight of its contents. "I've got an idea. If I can find high enough ground, then removing the collar is possible, if not challenging. The Captain would not approve, though."
Bur'ar stepped into the room and closed the door. He raised a finger to his lips and the phaser pistol appeared. S'Rel joined him from the other side of the door and pulled out her own pistol. Heavy footsteps were heard approaching toward the door. Some deep laughter boomed in the hallway, and then the footsteps continued away from the door until there was silence. Both lowered their pistols.
S'Rel went back to Annika's bed and pulled a hypospray from her kit. Applying a small dose of pain nullifier to Annika’s neck, she then placed a combadge in the Doctor's hand. Tapping her own, S'Rel ordered, "Solaris, medical emergency, Annika to beam up to sick bay." The Doctor was washed in blue transporter particles and disappeared. She then stepped toward the other bed and scanned the injured gladiator who was so battered it was hard to recognize the female Nezu. She looked to Bur'ar and shook her head.
Covering their heads with the cowls from their cloaks, they left the infirmary.
---
Standing amid the rowdy crowd, two officers positioned themselves at the railing overlooking the arena grounds. Bur'ar growled as he tapped his combadge. "Ian, we're too late." Three combatants entered the arena from separate doors. All were clearly female: a Krenim, Ocampan and Human. Each wore simple leather-like armor in various dull colors covering torsos and lower limbs. They lined up in the center of the arena and faced toward the organizer’s section. A voice boomed through the building announcing the next match.
Ian responded, "I see her. Will this be a 'smash-and-grab'?"
"Yes."
---
Ian locked the scope into place and calibrated the sight. Lifting a leg from the bipod, he brushed away dirt from the ledge used to support the rifle. Activating the power supply, orange-colored photonic stabilizers appeared along the barrel near the emitter. Looking through the scope, Ian sighted his target.
Starfleet Captain Kathryn Beringer.
---
Bur'ar watched a massive four-armed reptilian-like gladiator stomped toward the three women who stood their ground and readied various weapons. Raising a huge spiked club, the gladiator tried to crush the Ocampan. She easily dodged the attack and struck against the fighter's wrist with her long pike. He back-handed the woman who spun from the counter-attack and collapsed to the floor a few meters away. The crowd cheered.
This was a diversion the other two women exploited as they flanked the gladiator. The Krenim used her shield to parry a large sword strike from the gladiator, but the force of the swing pushed her to the ground. Kathryn used the Krenim's fall as a launch pad toward the gladiator's back. Bringing a pair of long knives down, she pierced the gladiator's armored scales. The creature screamed from the pain and the crowd roared.
The first woman recovered, found her pike and charged the gladiator. Stabbing into a leg, the gladiator grabbed the Ocampan's head and lifted her from the ground with ease. She screamed until her head was crushed, spraying the gladiator with blood.
---
Everything was happening quickly. Bur'ar tapped his badge and said, "that's enough." He leaped over the guard rail into the arena, his cloak flowing open revealing the black-colored uniform of Starfleet. Without a word, S'Rel followed soon afterward as the crowd erupted into jeers and cheers. The announcer shouted through the microphone while the swirling combat ensued.
---
Ian saw Bur'ar's jump from peripheral vision, then closed his left eye to focus attention through the scope. Kathryn was moving quickly, but he was able to keep her in his sight. "C'mon, c'mon", he whispered as he knew Bur'ar and S'Rel were getting closer to her.
The combatants became distracted by the uproar from the crowd. When Kathryn paused in her steps, Ian kissed the air and pulled the trigger.
---
S'Rel saw the phaser bolt strike against Kathryn's neck. The restraining collar was blasted toward the gladiator, landed on the ground and exploded, throwing dirt into the air. The gladiator howled and Bur'ar charged into the smoke and dirt cloud. Covering her eyes from the shower of sand, she heard the impact of bodies slamming into each other. She stopped when she realized Bur'ar had tackled Kathryn to the ground.
Pulling out her phaser, she fired into the large shadow through the smoke. Another animalistic shriek responded. Tapping her combadge, S'Rel quickly said, "Solaris three to beam up, now!"
A large spiked club swished into the space evacuated by S'Rel as she was teleported away.
---
Cast:
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Ian McKinnon - Ben Browder
S'Rel - Morena Baccarin
Bur'ar - David Ramsey
Annika Kramer - Abbie Cornish
Talaxian vendor - male street extra #1
Ocampan fighter - female street extra #1
Krenim fighter - female street extra #2
Gladiator - CGI c/ Weta Workshop
Dead Nezu - female street extra #3
Heard but not seen:
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
Kathryn Beringer - Rachel Nichols
Ian McKinnon - Ben Browder
S'Rel - Morena Baccarin
Bur'ar - David Ramsey
Annika Kramer - Abbie Cornish
Talaxian vendor - male street extra #1
Ocampan fighter - female street extra #1
Krenim fighter - female street extra #2
Gladiator - CGI c/ Weta Workshop
Dead Nezu - female street extra #3
Heard but not seen:
Anthi Ythysi - Katheryn Winnick
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