Ours Are The Furies: Executive Decision

[Tu'arr Korrtaurro]

Tu'arr watched with a somewhat detached air about him. He let his eyes pass from the Herglic to the Elomin, then back to the Herglic. His single extended claw halted its' movement, slowly moving back up to begin digging a second line into the desktop.

And then he stopped, pulling both hands away as he leaned back in the leather seat. It was... comfortable. With his hands curling around the front edges of the armrests, the Cizerack let out a long breath as he addressed the Herglic.

"What'ss jyourr name."

Rather than the one he'd asked, the Elomin let out a low growl.

"Don't answer that, Lieutenant."

Tu'arr blinked, letting his gaze shift to the other. A finger raised, and the butt of a blaster rifle thudded into the Elomin's gut. The alien doubled over, and another strike to his side sent him to his knees.

Another moment of silence, and his eyes went back to the Herglic.

"jYourr name."

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

Gradoona gawked at the show of force. She wasn't trained for this. Well, she was but it was the basic boilerplate introduction you got as a cadet in the navy. No amount of training could prepare you to accord yourself in a hostage scenario anyways. You either had what it took, like Lieutenant Ek'ette, or you didn't.

And Gradoona didn't.

But maybe that wasn't the point? Will and defiance could only last so long when you had nothing to bargain with. She was scared and hurt, well beyond her comfort zone, in a place far removed from where she could do the most good.

"Lieutenant Gradoona Pod-Floewander. Serial PD-9 66-4356."

[Tu'arr Korrtaurro]

"Grradoona Pod-Floewanderr," he let the name roll from his tongue like lazy, black ink. It was a strange name, but he that was the beauty of it, wasn't it? The diversity of language and existence.

Tu'arr finally gave a gentle smile. It was an alien expression on an otherwise stern mask. There was no hatred, not even any real anger. Instead, he seemed to gaze upon his captives like a disapproving parent.

And when he spoke, his voice lent credence to his outward appearance.

"jIt wjill be good forr you and yourr frrjiendss to obejy me. jI'm not an unrreassonable man, Grradoona Pod-Floewanderr. jIn fact, mjy actjionss - and thosse of mjy comrradess - arre rrooted jin equaljitjy and underrsstandjing. jIt jiss a crruel galaxjy that we ljive jin, and jit jiss ourr job to wjipe awajy the jinequaljitjy that rrunss rrampant all thrroughout."

He gave a shrug, eyes going down to examine an unsheathed claw.

"jIt jiss ourr grreat sshame that we ourrsselvess musst exerrcjisse that ssame brrand of crrueltjy jin orrderr to achjieve ourr goalss, but ssadljy that jiss the wajy of thjingss."

The Elomin coughed, growled out a string of unintelligible words, and slowly worked himself back up to his feet as Korrtaurro went on.

"We do not ljike actjing thjiss wajy, but jit jiss a necesssarry evjil, jyou musst underrsstand," he slowly stood up then, moving to skirt the desk and approach the two Alliance officers.

"... whjich jiss whjy jI gjive jyou thjiss chance to ansswer mjy quesstjionss wjithout the need for a... forrceful extrractjion. Sso jI wjill assk jyou njiceljy.

"Wherre, jiss Commanderr Akjiena."

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

The Herglic pressed her beak closed in a rightfully angry expression as she stared down at her captor.

"Soo you can kill him like you killed Lieutenant Nellis?"

A clawed hand tightened at her shoulder, but Gradoona was undeterred.

"You say you fight foor equality, but you turn aan the people moost inclined to help. Equality's what the Alliance stands foor!"

[Tu'arr Korrtaurro]

"We turrn on the people mosst ljikely to sstand in ourr wajy."

The words were spat out with a sharpness, and though he was a good bit shorter than Gradoona, Tu'arr's posture and bearing nearly made the two seem at eye level with one another.

"Whetherr on purrposse orr bjy sjimple asssociatjion. jIt jis unforrtunate forr the Alljiance, ass jI've no doubt thejy mean well... " A condescending smirk, "... and jI thjink, ass the sajyjing goess, 'Good jintentjionss pave the wajy jinto the hellss of Correlljia'."

He turned away to take a few steps away then, and after the third step pivoted on his heel.

"But no. jI do not wjissh to kjill Commanderr Akjiena. At leasst... not at thjiss tjime."

His hands moved to clasp together in front of him, his suit jacket slightly creasing with the motion.

"The Prjide jinssjisstss on majintajinjing thejir outdated vjiews of genderr jinequaljitjy. Thejy asssocjiate wjith forrda becausse jit jis advantageouss and economjical. But at thejir hearrt, thejy arre bejyond corrrupt. Thejy arre rrotten and defunct."

Tu'arr spread his arms then, as if to encompass all around him.

"jIt jis ourr ajim to pull out that rrotten corre and rreplace jit wjith a wajy of ljife that allowss all to be equal."

Fingers curled back into his palms then, and his arms retracted as his voice became as granite.

"And Commanderr Akjiena jis gojing to help uss."

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

"But why?"

Gradoona's voice was soft as her mouth parted again incredulously.

"The violence, the killing? Commander Akiena would have helped yoou and aall yoou had to doo was ask!"

Nothing the terrorist leader said so far seemed unreasonable on it's face. Gradoona wasn't blind. She could see how the Cizerack treated one another and outsiders. There was a lot that was messed up there, and she could understand a few people being steamed by it. But you sorted that out at the ballot box, not by murder!

[Tu'arr Korrtaurro]

Tu'arr only chuckled at that. He closed his eyes, giving a shake of his head in the process.

"jIf only jyou knew. Peaceful attempss bearr no frujit jin thjis endeavorr, Grradoona Pod-Floewanderr. We have trrjied."

Ek'ette bared his teeth at that.

"So then you resort to this?"

"jYes, we do."

It was a curt, stark answer.

"We have no otherr optjion than to sshow force. No otherr optjion but to put blood behjind ourr attemptss. The sstorrjiess jI could tell jyou of the masssacrress that happened sjimpljy becausse we ssought equaljity... thejy arre terrrjible. Atrocjitiess commjitted agajinst uss."

Tu'arr paused then, to allow his words time to fully sink in.

"We arre agajinsst the wall now, and musst do what we have to."

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

Nothing either Gradoona or Tu'arr said seemed to budge the impasse, and the Herglic found herself not so eager to condemn the Cizerack separatist outright. After all, back when the Alliance had been the Rebellion, they too had been forced to occasionally achieve goals by unsavory means. It wasn't a justification though. Not hardly.

"I toold you befoore, I doon't knoow where the Commander is, but I can tell you this. If his people are in danger, you can bet yoour sweet tuchus he'll do what it takes to keep 'em safe."

[Tu'arr Korrtaurro]

"jI do sso hope that jyou'rre rrjight."

Tu'arr turned his back to the Herglic, his hands moving to clasp together behind him. He stared at the blank wall that was the backdrop to the Commander's desk.

"jI'm betting on hjim dojing jusst that."

[Kes Akiena]

* * *

They'd fended off another wave with relative success, another two of their number receiving blaster wounds that thankfully weren't life-threatening.

Kes moved to the doctor's side. The redhead blinked, gave a tired sigh as he rested his blaster rifle against the gurney. His shoulders slumped.

"I need some small amount of good news, Doctor Vek."

[Vek Vek]

Vek's nictating membranes half-slid over his eyes in exasperation. He paused, pressed his lips taut, then moved on to evaluating the damage to organs.

"Fortunately amount of good news is small. Major arteries are being re-knit to prepare for transfusion. Not going to bleed to death. Death of organ failure merely the largest threat now."

[Kes Akiena]

"That's something then."

It was still short of the mark though, and both knew it.

Both also knew that they couldn't stay here indefinitely. They'd have to move, and they'd have to do it soon.

Fingers wrapped around the barrel of his rifle out of pure habit, and Kes pulled the weapon from where he'd placed it.

"We can't stay here, Doctor," he looked sideways at the Durwi. His voice was low and level.

"If you've got ideas outside of holing up in the maintenance ducts, I'm all ears."

Their options were beyond few, and Kes was loathe to opt for that last ditch effort of hiding. It wasn't a foreign tactic for him, but it wasn't his favorite, either. And with wounded men...

"Are we in a position to move?"

[Vek Vek]

The Doctor's expression became acerbic, and he regarded the Commander with grim weariness as he stood a bit straighter.

"Moving patient once was dangerous. Moving twice with less capability to treat, possibly mortal. Unwise. Reckless. Took oath to do no harm. Am ready to treat this man even if a prisoner."

It didn't leave Kes the option he likely wanted, but that was the hard choice they were now forced to make. The Commander could either regroup elsewhere or find reinforcements to shore up their position, but Doctor Vek's ability to administer care would be compromised if he left.

[Kes Akiena]

"Well then," there was no real anger in his tone, but there was a terse expectancy.

Their options were limited, and Kes was loathe to choose the ultimately worse option just because his doctor didn't wish to change locations.

"... What would you recommend, then. Because about the only way I can see our survival having half of a chance, is to pack up and move."

[Vek Vek]

Akiena wasn't taking no for an answer, and Doctor Vek's back was against a wall. The Durwi's large eyes flicked half-closed, then slowly opened as he considered bad and worse options.

"How much time?"

There was one possibility of buying time, but it didn't help this man's odds of survival much beyond staying in the infirmary and hoping the droids had mercy.

Around the corner, a trio of Alliance security staff and two Jaani'saarri darted, weapons shouldered at the ready. Reflexes and adrenaline ran high as the infirmary defenders and the newcomers quickly made the snap decision on whether to shoot or not.

[Kes Akiena]

Out of strange habit, Kes bared his teeth before lowering his firearm once more. His men did the same, and as the new additions mingled with the survivors, the redhead turned back to Doctor Vek.

"Hard to say," he admitted grimly.

"Could be five minutes, could be an hour."

Kes let his eyes move from the Durwi to the wounded man still laying on the medical bed before them.

"We can buy you time, but it is not indefinite, and us having to move is a certainty."

[Vek Vek]

The Doctor looked back uneasily to his patient, who was in the most fragile state possible. He returned his eyes to Akiena.

"Can induce coma. Twelve CC's kitrebuterol. Dangerous. Not improve patients odds. That, plus travel, may worsen them."

Vek sighed, committing himself to the choice as he said it.

"Will prepare injection. Need bare minimum supplies to carry with patient."

He was already walking back into the infirmary, snatching up a pad. Vek typed up an inventory as fast as he could, pausing as his large eyes moved left and right in deep contemplation. Once finished, he passed the pad to one of the newly-arrived Alliance troops.

"Gather supplies. Hurry."

Wasting little time, Doctor Vek began to prepare the kitrebuterol injection. He delivered it into the intravenous feed, watching on the monitor as the man's already weak and unstable vitals began to slow even more, right to the brink of death. Under normal circumstances, a cocktail of adrenaline and a vascular dilator would allow him to recover a patient from that state, but Vek had no idea what he'd be dealing with if they arrived at that point.

[Kes Akiena]

Kes watched, his attentions divided as he tried to keep tabs on the men keeping watch on their thrown-together perimeter. It was a haphazard defense line at best, offering only cover in certain spots. It was certainly nothing that they would be able to hold indefinitely.

Commander!

The call roused him away from the Doctor, and the redhead turned to his subordinate.

"Mayz?"

"Commander, we're getting talk over the squawker that they're sending droidekas and a mess of bodies our way."

Not the best news in any way. A bit of a grouse as he pulled up his rifle, and Kes moved away from the temporary infirmary.

"How long do we have?"

"They're on level 6, moving up."

"So not long."

It was, like all things in this horrid turn of events, a grim reality.

His voice rose.

"Ok then, people. We're moving. We're about to have more guests, and I'd like to outrun them if at all possible."

The small group moved as one, many going to help their less grievously injured comrades while other went to help the Doctor with his more critical case.

"Ease up, guys... "

"Careful, careful... "

"Hurry, but don't hurry too much y'know... "

There was a surprising amount of care given to their stricken fellow officer, and the cadre made pains to move fluidly as well as as gently as they could. They were a testament to their training as well as the tight-knit bond they all shared. They were Alliance, after all. They were family.

Watching over the cautious move, Kes put a hand to Doctor Vek's arm in reassurance.

"They'll make sure to do their best, I promise."

Another few tense minutes, and the small medicals tation they'd used as shelter was abandoned, not a body left.

[Tu'arr Korrtaurro]

* * *

Sequestered in the Commander's office, Tu'arr sat brooding. His people and the droids they used had been given little to no initial pushback from the station's populace, subjugating most and killing those that resisted. But - as with all things - there were indeed pockets of those who were able to stave off the advance with some degrees of success.

Of course, the one thing that gave him the most frustration was the still absent presence of Commander Akiena. It was a grating inconvenience that he hoped to remedy.

A low growl, and he pushed away from the desk to rise to his feet. Moving to the doorway, he stepped through. The rest of the hub was a mostly quiet atmosphere, their prisoners kept docile while at the business ends of more than half a dozen blasters trained on them. The few dead had been pulled out of sight.

Tu'arr's second gave a look his way, but he ignored it. His pace remained constant as he navigated his way to the intra-comms station.

The woman, the one that stuttered, had been deposited against the terminal close by, and he towered over her, his eyes unforgiving. A somewhat impatient exhalation, and he bent down, one hand closing roughly around the woman's arm to better haul her up to her feet.

"jI have a job forr jyou."

[Kiimiti Taassaurra]

Preita'rrou Taassaurra gave her captor nothing. Not a hint of compliance on her face, not a word in response. She continued to passively resist by not standing when he pulled at her arm, acquiescing only as she felt the pricking sensation of his claws in her skin.

That got a response, but not anything resembling a conciliatory one.

"S-Saa'u'e ne ja k-korrau'ei n-n-nii'daakaa're!"

Remaining angry helped to stave off being scared, and both were competing to pull Kiimiti apart at the moment.