Star Trek: Starbase 777 - long-term-brig

Renakir was confident and bold when he walked into the long term detainment room. He remembered exactly which guard had called him a gangly bitch and was going to find him. "We gotta find that guy, I have a few words to say to him," He turned to Allan with his back to the rest of the room. "Yeah so he was super beefy, really strong looking, he will definitely recognise me," He said as he waved his hands around to try and mimic how the guard looked. Broad shoulders, just like Renakir's, but the guard seemed more muscular than him, and strong arms too. He spoke with an animated tone, clearly very invested in finding this guy. "Hey, the gangly bitch is here," Renakir turned to face the whole detainment area, not sure where the guard was but he totally would have heard Renakir's booming voice. He put both of his hands on his hips, looking tall and in charge even though he was literally just a transport officer with his funny and much more social engineering friend beside him.

Allan supposed the song Renakir had gotten the idea from would always be a mystery, but that was alright because they had more important things to do now. Like find this guy. "Super beefy?" He asked, looking around for him as well. If he didn't already know the guy was rude as hell, he might have been interested in finding this guy in a much different way than they currently were doing, but nah, the guy was rude to his bestie so he automatically wasn't attractive. Allan also put a hand on his hip just to match, looking at Renakir for further instruction because he honestly was Not Good at taunting, just the supporting his friends and shaking ass part.

From within one of the areas behind a forcefield a familiar, deep voice could be heard, as the beefy ex-guard spoke from a seated position on a bed. "Well, well, well. If it isn't the sunglasses-wearing gangly bitch and his incredibly unintimidating shorts-wearing friend. If you're here for a fight I'd gladly provide if I wasn't locked away in here. But, then again, if you did try to fight me you'd probably end up in here with me, which would suit me nicely."

"Yep, super beefy, you'll get it when you see him," He responded to Allan as he faced forward and waited for someone to appear. Did he shout loud enough? Renakir was about to shout again when a guard appeared righ tin front of them. Renakir locked eyes with the guard, recognising his face and voice immediately. The nickname didn't faze him at all, in fact, he felt confident as hell. Renakir puffed his chest and flexed his arms with his posture straight as if he were some sort of bird trying to court a mate. "Eyy, that's Lieutenant Sunglasses-wearing Gangly Bitch to you," Renakir pointed to the double golden pips on his collar. He turned to Allan and smirked to signal to him that this guy was the guy. "And my friend looks hotter in shorts than you would in a potato sack," He said in practiced perfect Standard with a very try-hard Boston accent. Renakir had never been to the states, he just watched some films so he sounded.. Like a Romulan trying to be human, but it was the feeling not the execution that mattered.

Oh, shit! This dude was beefy. Good thing there was a forcefield in between them, but Allan couldn't help but identify the exit routes in his peripheral vision just in case a scene like last time happened to break out. Allan was going to say something after Renakir, but was definitely thrown off by the very try-hard Boston accent. When half of his family was from Boston it was hard not to laugh, but he managed to not show any signs of trying not to laugh because that would totally ruin the vibe they had going on here. "Seriously. You've already been bagged, didn't expect you to look the freakin' part. And you're callin' this guy the gangly bitch?" He scoffed, speaking in a Boston accent as well but it actually didn't sound that bad. He wasn't really good at trash talk, he just wanted to shake ass, truly.

"You both sound like absolute pansies." The ex-guard replied in a gruff English accent. It sounded like he was from London. "Of course I'm calling him a gangly bitch, he is one. I could bench press him. And besides, you're about as hot in those shorts as the outside of an airlock. They make you look like you're dressed as a Starfleet officer for a Halloween party. I'm surprised you haven't been chucked in here with us for breaking the uniform code." He scoffed.

Oh this guard had the audacity to insult his friend's shorts? Calling Allan UN-HOT? "You filthy veruul," Renakir really did it now, switching back to his normal French accent but spitting Romulan vulgarities. The Boston accent was hard to keep up, especially since he only knew a few words. He flung his arms out to the side and spun around so his back was facing the man. "OH?!? You may be able to bench me but I don't think you can do what we can do," Renakir signalled to Allan to follow his lead. "MACARONI IN A POT!" Renakir shouted and began to shake his ass whilst doing squats, certainly this was PEAK taint!! "MIX IT UP, MAKE IT HOT!" Renakir continued, making up his own words to the terran song. Even with his silliness he was actually a skilled rapper. Moving his hips at ever beat, all without even taking a single breath. Good thing about being Vulcanoid!

Pansies? Where the fuck was that 18th-century insult from? "Mmm, cute you think your opinion matters at this point, honestly. Your mom didn't seem to mind when she-" And that was when Renakir called the guy a filthy veruul and spun around. Allan followed his lead, of course, now it was Twerking Time. He started shaking ass, sure, but he really could not help but laugh a little when Renakir shouted 'MACARONI IN A POT', so that was the song he had been talking about!? He couldn't even follow along since Renakir decided to maybe sing some sort of remix, but damn was he a good rapper, so Allan just focused on what he could do: supplying the same skill on his end with the twerking, getting down real low on the ground, doing a split, getting back up... you get the idea. Just some dudes twerking in front of this guard, keep scrolling!

As the two Starfleet officers started twerking the ex-guard was... Beyond confused. "I'm sorry, what is this, a club? I thought Starfleet was filled with adults, not a bunch of teenagers. What are you even hoping to achieve doing this? It's fucking hilarious. You both look like complete pansies!" The ex-guard laughed in a way that sounded almost like a school bully.

Renakir had his hands on his knees as he shook his ass along with Allan. He gave his friend an approving wink as if to say 'we got 'em now!'. This was oddly liberating, he felt like he could literally do anything! When the guard called them pansies he stopped and turned around to face the beefy man he wrestled for a disruptor. He was unfazed, not afraid, and exuding confidence as he stood up straight. He pulled his long fringe from his face, showing off his lovely forehead ridges and bushy eyebrows. "Just showing you how hot we are, obviously. I know, it must really suck having no friends and losing a fight to a Reman," He shook his head, speaking in the most condescending tone he could. "Your insults are funny as hell, and a lot less intimidating without that disruptor. Oh, which I have reclaimed and turned into a water gun. You're lucky you didn't meet My friend at the base, he's got so many wrinkles on his brain," Renakir gestured to Allan, wiggling his fingers as if he was announcing royalty or something. "Oh Allan do you have any jams on your PADD we can shake to? I can rap but we need a good beat," Renakir whispered to his friend, out here trying to drop a diss track in the middle of the brig.

Truth was, twerking actually was oddly liberating. And that was why he winked right back at Renakir, perfectly content to keep twerking, but Renakir stopped and turned around so he did the same, not wanting to not follow his friend's lead. He also looked Very Unimpressed with this guy. "Seriously, is 'pansies' all you've got? That's not even hilarious, it's just sad," he tilted his head in mock pity for the guy, and then thought a little bit more about what the guy had actually said. "Also, make up your mind, are we at a club or are we teenagers? I sure hope to God you're not seeing teenagers twerk at whatever club you've been going to, you're already locked up for one thing." He shook his head and looked back at Renakir as Renakir claimed he had wrinkles on his brain. Did he really think that? No time to think about that though, time to find a beat to shake to. "Oh, you know I do," he smirked, taking out his PADD and scrolling through a few files before finding a fire ass beat to twerk to, something that was perfect for dropping a diss track in the middle of the brig. It was actually made from combining some... unique sounds together, but when all mixed together it was just plain . "This good?"

The ex-guard, clearly still finding how plain immature he thought the two Starfleet officers were behaving, simply decided to do a couple of things: Remain sat on his bed, and fall back on his training. This was clearly an interrogation tactic or some shit. "Yeah, it is good, actually. Thanks, this place has been dead as shit without any entertainment. Your hilariously un-Starfleet-like behaviour combined with this music has made my day." In the corner the Starfleet Security officer on duty began idly tapping his foot. He had no clue what the two visitors were doing, but he frankly wasn't paid enough to find out... And by that I mean he isn't paid. (edited)

"Yeah Allan this beat is fire," Renakir began to nod his head to the beat, he really wished he had a mic for this moment because it would complete the picture. Well, they were in a closed room, not the streets of Rator III with warbirds circling over head so there would be no issues with ambient noise.

"Yeah--uh... From the ashes of Remus, I'm MC Tenakruvek, Leading people with my voice call me Commander Obisek, I got bars for days, don't need no paycheck, With my bro Allan here, we mean no disrespect, but for messing with us you're gonna get wrecked, A human and a Romulan, you could say we're quite the gang, Uniting different races you can call me D'Tan, But doing it in style call me Eshen K'Tann, And if you got a problem with that you can talk to the hand."

Renakir was here, really spitting bars, confident as ever, he really thought his words were fire. His execution was amazing, he really looked like he was speaking the words of Reman Turbo Jesus. At the delivery of his last phrase he put a hand up for 'talk to the hand'. Juvinile, but it fit the vibe. Passion filled his eyes as he spoke each syllable right on beat, his body movements too, the waving of his hands and the smirk on his face. After his incredible rap he began to twerk again, hoping Allan would see and do the same.

Allan nodded his head along as Renakir just literally fucking went for it, dude. All of a sudden his recently-made-Lieutenant friend who - mind you, he had no idea could be this confident in front of people - was just absolutely spitting bars in front of everyone. All he could think of was that if this was what Renakir's freestyle was like, what kind of absolutely fire raps could they come up with if they sat down about it? With all these great references in just a freestyle - Obisek? D'Tan? Even a reference to Eshen? Yeah, he'd definitely have to ask Renakir later about featuring on him and Eshen's totally-upcoming EP release. He had been a little lost in Renakir's wonderful execution and style, just backing him up with some simple, on-beat 'ayyy's, but when the other started to twerk again, he knew what to do, getting right to it all over again, placing the PADD down beside them and letting it keep playing on loop just in case Renakir had more bars to lay. Maybe they -were- just providing this asshole with free entertainment, but what really mattered to Allan was just that they they were having a good time, and that he was supporting his friend in whatever way he could. And supporting friends was actually -very- Starfleet-like behavior.

By this point the majority of the detained Section agents were either bored out of their mind, about five seconds from smashing their head against the bulkhead, or actually quite enjoying the show. The beefy British guard still couldn't quite comprehend what was going on, but he also didn't give a damn. He found the two Starfleet officer's actions completely hilarious and yet simultaneously so very annoying, not that he showed the annoyance on his face. "Let me know when you've got that out of your systems."

Renakir shook his ass for a minute or two long. Showing off his very impressive leg muscles and lower back strength. Once he was done he turned around, stood up straight with his arms crossed. "Yep, I am done here. I got my payback. Oh and my pet epohh loves the disruptor," He said with a loud laugh, easily filling the room with his deep voice. He didn't care what the other officers were doing or thinking, he thought him and Allan were hot shit! Especially Allan, that man was fire! Even without the bright red hair! "Speaking of which, where the fuck did you guys get those? Did you find them on Romulan Kr'ags list or something? You really had the spines to try and fight me-- a Romulan, with my own weapon?" The confidence was still there and he was gonna see if he could get some answers. Right when he said that he realised he had yet to ask Allan about what he saw at the base. He looked at his friend and waved his hand to signal him to turn off the music. "You can ask questions too," He whispered to him, thinking this would probably be there last shot to ask anything.

No such thing as shaking ass for too long, first things first. Well - actually, you could, if you were shaking it for so long you exhausted yourself, but that wasn't the case here. Allan stopped when Renakir did, switching off the music when his friend started talking again. His epohh - oh, right, Allan had to meet Renakir's pet epohh sometime, maybe that would take his mind off of some things that had come up lately. Regardless, this certainly was doing that anyways. He chuckled at the mention of 'Romulan Kr'ags list' but was unsure of how to respond when Renakir told him he could also ask questions. Wait, this was an interrogation? But he'd just come here to shake ass! And support his friend. But if he knew this would be an interrogation... "I don't really have any," he said plainly. He really didn't have any questions, on his end they'd done what they needed to do and gotten the hell out of there for the most part.

"Yeah, like I'd tell you dimwits anything." The ex-guard scoffed. In truth he had no fucking clue where the weapons came from, he was just told to use them and not ask questions, and never ask questions he did. He didn't like questions, in fact. He hated people who asked questions, sticking their nose into business that wasn't their own. "Have you finished making a fool of yourselves? Did the gangly Starfleet officer get tired? Not got enough stamina? Pathetic."

Oh and this bitch was gonna call him gangly again? Renakir was not tired, he was Romulan and Reman, the two most un-tired races in the galaxy! He laughed and shook his head, clearly they weren't going to get any answers so he turned to his buddy Allan and and snapped his fingers. "We'll show 'em, watch," He said as he walked closer to the force field, strutting like he was back on the streets of Rator III about to smoke some poor Romulan kid who dared mess with him. "You keep calling me that, but I don't think you really know what it means," He said as he flexed his arms and chest muscles. "Yeah, my ass is gangly? Your insults are getting old, you don't know any other words?" Renakir clapped his hands and then shook his head. "Put the beat back on, we'll show this guy how it's done!" He told Allan, ready to do some more ass shaking.

Calling his friend Renakir gangly again?? Rude. And implying Renakir didn't have stamina? Even ruder! Didn't he literally fight this guy and win? "Bitch, what? We have stamina for days," also this guy really did have only a few words, huh? Gangly, pansies, anything else? He was just glad the mini-interrogation was over. Allan nodded at what Renakir said and then scrambled to get that beat on the PADD turned back on again. At least his PADD hadn't died in the middle of this or anything, but even then, he could definitely twerk to no beat, the beat only made it cooler to other people. Anyways. Mo ass shaking, -no- problem.

Throughout Renakir talking and flexing his muscles, and then Allan turning back on the music, the ex-guard couldn't help but laugh mockingly and roll his eyes. "This ought to be good." He scoffed, clearly now starting to get annoyed by the two officers not simply leaving him in peace. No orders, no do this or do that or shoot them. If it wasn't for these two he'd feel like he was on vacation right now. Arrested or not, this place was usually surprisingly peaceful.

[D] Renakir continued to shake his ass with Allan. Occasionally dropping some more bars. He also showed off some of his breakdancing skills. Pretty impressive too! When else would he be able to do flips and shake his ass? Anyway, they showed this guard who was boss whilst looking sexy too. He may not have appreciated the two's antics, but this was something Renakir was not going to forget. If anything, this was for him and Allan, just two bros hanging out and twerking in the brig, a normal Starfleet day.

All of a sudden, the lights went out in the brig and the force fields went down, allowing all of the prisoners to roam free now that there was nothing holding them there.

It had been another dull day of waiting for an update on the fate of herself and the other Section 31 officers when suddenly, the power seemed to cut out. There was a 'what the fuck' from the brig officer, and Radin watched as the officer immediately unholstered his phaser and aimed it in the general direction of where the cells were - but how could they aim at everyone at once? Some of her officers were hesitant, some more curious as they stepped forwards to test whether the holofields really had gone down or not. Eyes fell upon her, and it was rather daringly that she ignored the brig officer's statement of 'don't do it, I will shoot you.' She put a foot forward across the dividing line between the cell and the row between. There wasn't any sign of the holofield kicking in at all. There was a grin from herself followed by a single nod - and in a matter of seconds, the lone brig officer had been caught in a stampede of her officers, blind phaserfire not hitting a single one of them. She followed behind, giving the mob their distance but still keeping within reach. Finally -- Section 31 must have sent others to break them out.

"You do realise-" came a voice from behind Radin, himself having lingered behind as well. The Rigellian leaned up against the wall outside of his own cell, arms crossed. "-That if we go out there, they'll just haul us back immediately? Do you really think they're hosting a whole group of Section 31 traitors here without having Security on hand? We're wearing prison jumpsuits, Radin, it's not as if we're subtle."

She didn't like to admit it when Kae had a point, but this time, he did. "Start replicating new clothing," she called to the front of the group. "Change into something normal, or Starfleet uniform - I don't know if civilians would be allowed anywhere near here - head out there, and blend in. Whoever's let us out should have a shuttle waiting. We'll split up and work our way to the shuttlebay, rendezvousing there."

"And what if there's no one waiting for us? What if this is just some sort of a power glitch?" His head was tilted to the side, genuinely wondering -- but at the same time, he enjoyed watching Radin squirm under the weight of the pressure.

"You act as though we aren't highly skilled officers," she snapped in return, shooting Kae a glare. "It won't take much to hijack a shuttle. Now go, all of you - and let's fucking get out of here."

...And in a matter of minutes, the previously fully occupied detainment unit was now empty, every officer having escaped out onto the rest of the station.

In a bout of merely wandering the station -- and that was indeed the truth -- Copia just happened to approach and enter the long term brig. She'd never been down to the constabulary deck before, and as such she was quite thrown off by her surroundings. She'd of course visited the brig on past vessels a few times when documenting information from prisoners, but this was a whole new level of brig that she hadn't seen. [D] Copia was greeted by two security officers, who didn't really stand in her way but seemed surprised that Copia just randomly strolled up to the brig. "Oops," Copia exclaimed. "Forgive my intrusion. I have not yet familiarized myself with this area. It appears to me that this is the station's long term brig. I imagine I may be ordered to report here for documentation purposes as a Mission Specialist in the command division. May I walk around for a bit?" Shrugging, the security officers obliged. Copia didn't have any weapons on her, after all. Thankfully, the majority of cells that were in the brig, at least the ones in Copia's line of sight or to her periphery, were empty. For a while now, she had really tried to push the away mission with the Undine out of her head. Of course she learned valuable things about herself and how she operated. In fact, she was convinced that the Undine had already been transferred off the station, it had been a bit since the mission had happened so naturally the Undine weren't really on her mind that much. So, without any realization that her best friends (sarcasm) would still be here, Copia foolishly ventured further into the brig. (edited)

Funny that Copia would wander into the brig while trying to put her thoughts on the Undine aside, only to walk right into the place that was holding them. The front end of the brig’s long-term detainment section might have been empty save from the guards, but towards the back, five of the individual cells were lit up with holofields. Here, the officers who had assaulted the crew on the AFS New Dawn were being held. It hadn’t been long after their arrival here that they had been discovered to be Undine, noticed when they reverted back to their natural forms. For the past while now they had been here unable to communicate with one another while held in the brig… But they had started changing form back and forth, able to see one another through their holofields, using the people they changed into as some form of communication. Punishment for that had been them being given hyposprays of the same substance they had used to hold their forms as the New Dawn’s officers to longer, making them revert to a shapeshifted state instead of their natural Undine form… That they were only allowed holofield visibility down one at a time, so there was no way of them seeing what the other was up to. Copia had timed her visit perfectly – for right now, it was the Undine who had taken the form of Captain Rhea Tewari who had the holofield up but visibility filter down, enabling them to see out into the rest of the brig.

As Copia walked, she absentmindedly really didn't pay attention to who was in any of the cells, until... she approached those with the Undine in them. And fortunately -- or rather, unfortunately -- for her, only Tewari was visible. At first, however, Copia was curious as to why the visibility shields were up. It couldn't have been that she wasn't allowed to see inside - it had to be that the prisoners couldn't see out. Whoever was at the control panel could control the visibility shields, right? She didn't want to touch anything to mess any of it up-- Then, Copia's periphery caught a familiar form. One that had previously rattled her. One of a coward... one of a traitor... it was her neme--no. It couldn't be! Copia didn't have a...? It... made sense. Yes. This was her nemesis. As Copia's eyes scanned from the floor up to Tewari's head, her eyes transformed from those happy little ones into scowling ones. It's a miracle they didn't turn red from how angry she was at the mission originally. But now... now was where Copia had full control -- well, as much as she could through just standing and talking to Tewari. As if a switch was flipped on inside Copia, her brows furrowed and her fists clenched. All positive and cleansing thoughts completely left her mind as she revisited that dark, dark place in her head... *It was clear given Copia's complete and utter shift in behavior, that she obviously was not expecting Tewari to be here -- and she was not happy at all. It did give Copia a bit of solace, the thought that maybe Tewari would think the same thing about Copia and not focus her anger or sadistic practices upon anyone else. If she was to take the brunt of Tewari's wrath, she would gladly take it alone before Tewari hurt anyone else. It was unclear to Copia if the other Undine were here, but right now, Copia wasn't focused on anything else except for Tewari. Her nemesis.* "...you."

Upon noticing the approach of the officer, the Undine stood from the little bench at the side of the cell and paced her way over to stand in front of the holofield. Unlike Copia, there was no aggressive stance: no tension in her shoulders, no fists clenched. Perhaps being in the brig had mellowed out the Undine and had turned her indifferent compared to the enraged display that they had seen on the bridge of the New Dawn – or perhaps that had simply been an act. Did Undine get angry? Did they have personalities? They could certainly try to mimic the personality of the person whose form they had taken, but there was nothing to say that it belonged to the Undine themselves. The impostor stopped in front of the holofield and held her hands behind her back. For the most part she regarded Copia with indifference, if not a hint of curiosity in the way she tilted her head ever so slightly to look at this officer. This wasn’t one of the Security officers who guarded the brig, and the Lieutenant didn’t have the gold division stripe of Security either. So who was this newcomer, then? She might have guessed some sort of representative from Command, but anyone in that role would be far more restrained than this one. So quick to anger, and not-Tewari hadn’t even done anything! (Not done anything right now, that was.) “Me,” she replied flatly, and then raised an eyebrow. There it was: the slightest hint of sass, but hardly the aggression that Copia might have expected. “…Am I supposed to know who you are?”

Copia wasn't swayed by Tewari. In fact, despite how she expected she would react, Copia kept her ground and barely moved an inch. It wasn't like Copia to have this much confidence - it was as if she was an entirely different person altogether without actually being someone else. Regardless, Copia didn't let off of Tewari and remained stone faced. Either she was bluffing or legitimately didn't remember Copia. And, judging by Tewari's reaction, it seemed that she indeed did not remember Copia. That crossed a line for Copia - how she could be so insensitive to not even think twice about committing such a violent act, holding an entire ship hostage and causing a massacre that never had to happen. That no one ever deserved to endure. This was a true villain. Copia decided to give her a refresher. Maybe it would work, maybe not. But Copia was determined to remind Tewari. To make sure Tewari knew, no one had forgotten or forgiven her or the other Undine for their actions. "Perhaps this will jog your memory. You are not just a coward, you are a traitor. Sound familiar?" Those were the exact words Copia had spoken to Tewari on the bridge of the AFS New Dawn... Copia took one more step toward the holofield, while still staying far enough away to keep herself safe, but close enough for Tewari to better see who she was. Perhaps it was the holofield - but Copia didn't dare touch anything. Not when Tewari was dangerous enough as she was. (edited)

That was familiar, she had to admit. The Undine wasn’t sure if said words had meant to be intimidating. They hadn’t been the first time and they certainly still weren’t now. A grand total of none of what Copia said on the bridge had any impact on the Undine. What had this Starfleet officer thought? That her words were going to instil fear into the hearts of the group who snapped the necks of the legitimate bridge crew – the group who had almost managed to blow up the entire ship? It was a prime example of Starfleet heroics… And Starfleet officers really needed to learn that their proclivity for talking couldn’t solve all problems. It didn’t make them look intimidating, it didn’t make them look strong. It only made them sound like flies, buzzing in the ears of their betters. “You’re the one who talked too much, buzzing like a fly,” she mused with her tone still flat, watching Copia closely. While the Starfleet officer kept her distance from the holofield, not-Tewari didn’t. There was a slight spark off the field’s surface as she inched forwards – the closest she could get to it. “Didn’t one of your crewmates tell you off for that – that it ‘wasn’t the time for heroic speeches’? Weren’t they the same one who told you to stop doing ‘dumb things’ during our fight, too? They’re clearly the smartest of you. You need to learn when to hold your tongue.” The Undine smiled then; a smile that was perhaps a little too wide too be Human, but too creepy to be that of a friendly Denobulan. “After all -- do you want to know what happens to people who act like they’re the main character, Lieutenant? They get swatted.”

It replayed like flashbacks in Copia's head - indeed. She had been told off multiple times to both hold her tongue and not to do anything dumb. Was it her emotion chip? Was it her prior programming? Was it her personality that had developed through a combination of both? Copia wasn't sure. But indeed... Those memories came flooding back to Copia. And they weren't received fondly. The only fond memory of that whole thing was Vara stepping in to calm Copia down - Vara had saved Copia, in a way. Vara had reminded Copia that this wasn't who she was. That her actions weren't responsible for the outcome of the mission. The Undine were solely responsible, they had to be! They just had to! Nothing was wrong with Copia... Right? "Yeah, damn right, it's Lieutenant to you," Copia sneered. "Good, you already know your place. Let me explain what's happening here. You and the rest of your team are MURDERERS. We all witnessed you slaughtering innocent officers and calling us weak. Wasn't it you that said 'the weak shall perish?' Ironic, really. You telling me to hold my tongue." Copia's eyes locked onto Tewari's. "Let me ask you this... Do you want to know what happens to murderers? They get exactly what they deserve. And the only reason that you are still alive is that the Commander and Captain of Starbase 777 are allowing it. And look at you now... You can't even swat a fly if you wanted to." Copia's shoulders rolled back. "Now, you may be wanting to say... 'well, that's not the way of Starfleet officers, their ways are of mercy.' Killing completely innocent officers in cold blood and sabotaging a Federation vessel on the edge of Federation and Klingon space not only goes against countless Federation laws but also could spark another Klingon war. And yet... The Captain and Commander of the station have decided to keep you and the rest of your remaining team alive. How's that for mercy? For your own sake... I suggest you tell me what I want to know." (edited)

The Undine had downright laughed at the ‘it’s Lieutenant to you,’ finding Copia’s sneering to be positively amusing. However, the more she spoke, the more the Undine’s attitude changed. Instead of the indifference laced with the slightest hint of sass, it was then that there was the first flicker of the same sort of anger that had been seen upon the bridge. The stance with her hands held behind her back was relinquished, crossing her arms in front of her chest instead. Her brow furrowed into a frown. “Well, Lieutenant, as you’re so focussed on your precious little rank that means nothing in the big picture – that other crewmate is definitely the smartest of you, because so much of what you say is wrong. I had thought that a Starfleet officer on this starbase would know more than you do. So – allow me to correct your facts.” The Undine turned, pacing in front of the holofield as she spoke. “Firstly: murderers, yes. Well, not me - I didn’t murder. It was my crew who did – give them credit where credit is due. But generally speaking we have no qualms against killing to get what we want. And yes – I did say ‘the weak shall perish.’ If you were smart enough, you would know it as a traditional Undine quote, and might have worked out who we actually were instead of presuming that we were Changelings of all people. Secondly: murderers do not ‘get what they deserve,’ not here. Your Federation is weak. Instead of a life for a life, you imprison them instead. You do not execute. The reason I am alive is not because your higher-ups are allowing it: it is because we have rights, as dictated by your Federation laws. …And if you’re trying to imply that we should not have rights and that you would have us executed, perhaps I ought to let your Commander and Captain know? I’m sure that they would be delighted to hear that their officer has no regard for Federation law regarding the treatment of prisoners.” x_divider

16:04

She shook her head, looking back to Copia as she kept pacing. It was a trait that the real Tewari did, funnily enough. “Thirdly, we did not ‘sabotage a Federation vessel on the edge of Federation and Klingon space’. We sabotaged an Allied Fleet Service vessel, in the very home of the Khitomer Alliance, a sector away and over half a year ago. And finally,” she held up a finger, like a stern teacher schooling her pupils, “it would not ‘spark another Klingon War,’ as the Federation has made no act against the Klingons. The AFS New Dawn represents the Khitomer Alliance, both the Federation and Klingon Empire being part of said alliance. So please-“ the pacing stopped, and she looked to Copia again. “I suggest that you get your facts straight, and then I’ll consider ‘telling you what you want to know.’”

Copia's smile only grew. She had exactly in mind the sort of reaction Tewari was giving. Correcting her on basic knowledge of Federation law that was already instilled into her from the beginning. So as Copia simply stood and watched Tewari pace back and forth spouting out details about Federation law, her resolve only grew stronger. That's right, keep talking.* "You won't have to tell them anything," *Copia replied. "Likely they'll be informed through the security cameras and multiple guards that can hear us just fine. In fact... I'm hoping they are hearing this. Chapter IX, Article 55, paragraph 4: 'the United Federation of Planets shall promote Universal respect for, and observance of, intelligent lifeform rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to culture, sex, language, or religion.' I admit, I was not aware about traditional Undine quotes. Excuse my prior assumption. I don't wish to see you executed - in fact, despite your actions, I wish for you to live." Copia did mean that genuinely. "Chapter VII, Article 42: 'Should the Federation Council consider that measures under Article 41 would be inadequate or have proved to be inadequate, it may take such action by armed force as necessary to maintain or restore interplanetary peace and security. Such action may include demonstrations, blockades, and other operations by Starfleet combined peacekeeping forces.' Fundamental laws in the Charter. My question is... How did you know those and other Federation laws and rights to begin with? What you just told me proved to me that you've actively researched the Federation. You've done your homework on the structure of the Federation, its articles, its protocol, its structure. And by extension, you found a way to infiltrate it and impersonate highly respected Starfleet officers. See? I've already got you talking." (edited)

The Security officers on standby shared A Look. It wasn't a good one.

”If you ‘wish for me to live’ then why are you spouting drivel about us being-“ she slid her voice, it being a near-perfect copy of Copia’s -“’mUrDeReRs’ and how your Captain and Commander are the only ones deciding that we should live? Why are you reciting your Federation charter – congratulations, you can recall a statement – when it bears no relevance? What relevance is a charter referring to demonstrations, blockades, and ‘other operations’ by Starfleet? Neither of your statements refer to the Federation death penalty which was outlawed by the 24th century.” The Undine fixed Copia with a look that was now less angry, more unimpressed. Unimpressed seemed to be the norm. “I’m not going to entertain a conversation with someone who flip-flops between some sort of rage about murder and mercy to stating completely irrelevant information. You probably have some sort of tactic in all of this – you think you’re smart, because you think you have me talking – but so far you’ve proven to me that you’re nothing but unstable and incompetent. Prove that you’re capable of more than this stupid display,” she jabbed a hand towards Copia at that, the holofield’s energy arching and zapping the tip of a finger as she did so due to the proximity. She didn’t seem to care. “And then perhaps I will consider answering your questions. The answers might fill a gap in that head of yours.”

With a snicker, Copia literally brought her fist up to the side of her head and knocked it against her head... CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! "Apt of you to notice. I'm an android." Turning back towards the officers stationed at the door, Copia smiled. "Security! We've gotten some answers already and we haven't even had to try. I recommend passing this along to Lieutenant Commander Sul. She'll want to hear about it." Before she gave one last look to Tewari... And walked out. (edited)

[D] Not too long after Copia left, Timi walked into the brig, looking for the Undine prisoners they'd taken in after the incident on the New Dawn. He'd been briefed on what had happened, of course, but there were still many blanks that would need filling before anything substantial could be done. And so Timi was put on the case, along with Lieutenant O'Rielly, to see if they could wring some more answers from the talkative, but less than forthcoming prisoners. He wasn't wearing his visor, instead using his contact lenses today. It wasn't like the Undine would know the difference, not having seen him with his visor before, but that's how he was used to things. Visor for daily wear, contact lenses for missions. He was glad to have confirmed with Lieutenant O'Rielly beforehand that he could use telepathy to communicate with her during questioning. Being able to tell her things without a chance the Undine would pick up on it was absolutely preferable.

[D] A few moments after Timi; Aoife walked into the room. She was a few moments behind her compatriot as she had taken a moment to send away the regular brig officers with orders not to let anyone in save for other intelligence officers or the CO and XO so the two could work without, distraction from anyone. She had her hair in her almost trademark bun, her green eyes and purple uniform stripe ensuring that she had clashing colours from red to green and purple. Upon entering she gave Timi a nod, to say she was ready for him to knock on her mind and begin telepathicly communicating.

The end of the conversation with the Lieutenant earlier had been rather disappointing. She had expected a proper conversation – and would have liked it too, given how dull being in this brig was, technology preventing her from telepathically communicating with the other Undine nearby. It was rather abruptly that the Starfleet officer had left, leaving not-Tewari alone once more… Until now it seemed, with the flickering of her holofield becoming transparent and the sight of two new officers arriving. Neither of them were Security, just like the last. Maybe they were here to finish what the previous officer hadn’t been able to complete?

Timi knocked on Aoife's mind as indicated. "We will be courteous, and patient," he told her once he'd given her the warning of his intrusion. "The Undine are already backed into a corner, we don't need to aggravate them further, so we won't. I will use my PADD to type out the questions I want to ask, and you can ask yours whenever. I am capable of understanding both the questions and the answers." More explanation on that front really wasn't necessary. Instead, he turned to the Undine, nodding his head in greeting as he unlocked his PADD. "Good day," was what the device read out for him in a smooth baritone, Timi having prepared his first question beforehand. "Is there any name you'd prefer to be called by us?" A silly question at first glance, maybe. But aside from the fact that whatever this person might prefer to be called could reveal something about them, simply calling them "the Undine" or "the impostor" absolved them of all personhood, and Timi wasn't interested in treating the five impersonators before him as anything other than highly intelligent beings capable of taking responsibility for their actions.

Aoife responded telepathically to Timi. "Yeah, best not to piss them off. We wont get anything useful by interrogating them under a very bright light." She turned to face the Undine in turn with Timi and waited for an answer from the infiltrators to Timi's first question. Her posture conveyed a sense of relaxed and confident authority that she had tried very hard to radiate whenever she was in a position where body language was very important such as this. It was best not to let off any vibes other then that when in an interrogation.

Just like in the last visit, the Undine rose from the bench at the side of the cell so she could stand in front of the holofield to speak with these newly-arrived officers. She was still in the form of the New Dawn’s captain; the brig supposedly hadn’t been suitable for hosting group of nine-foot-tall Undine… And should anything happen, a person of a normal species and normal height was far easier to deal with than an Undine in their real form. As much as she would have liked to be back in her normal form and not confined to this body, even she would admit that it was fair play to Starfleet for making that decision. Stood opposite the officers with the holofield in between, she looked between the two of them, including the way that one of the officers appeared to use a device to talk. Unlike the previous officer who had stopped by for not much more than a chat, these two didn’t appear to be familiar in any way. “I am Designate 4109,” the Undine replied, quirking an eyebrow. No one had cared for any information: it had seemed that on their prison files, they were going by the name of the person whose form they had taken. “You are the first to ask that question.”

Bright light... Timi couldn't remember ever being taught that as an interrogation technique. Wait, wasn't there an account of torture by the Obsidian Order involving lights? Either way, that was not how Starfleet officers approached such matters. "Your posture is excellent, Lieutenant," he told Aoife, lightly teasing while also genuinely meaning the compliment. It was frequently hard for new Intelligence recruits to keep a straight face; he'd had the same issue himself, despite his experience as a Security officer. Aoife was genuinely doing well. At Designate 4109's answer, he took a few seconds to type a new message. "It is an important question, to me." The PADD's voice sounded neutral, as it always did, though the expression on Timi's face became pinched. Why had nobody thought to ask that question before? Was nobody treating these people like people? His hands danced over the PADD again, preparing his second question, but he wanted to give Aoife the chance to speak, too.

"I try my best." Aoife responded with a hint of sarcasm to Timi. In reality she was trying to project confidence as much as possible, with an undine in the room she didn't want to project anything negative that Designate 4109 could use against them. Speaking of Designate 4109 she turned to them to ask a question. "Well, we are the first to have a proper discussion with you." Aoife said in response to 4109's statement, unaware of Copia's earlier tirade. "What was your mission on the New Dawn? And was it sanctioned by your government." Aoife asked trying to establish if the five undine in front of her were agents of the undine, who the alliance were no longer actively in conflict with or if they had gone rogue for some reason. (edited)

"You aren't the first to attempt a proper discussion. Another of your officers tried earlier, but apparently acquired the information they needed and left despite saying they had more to ask." It wasn't outwith the Undine's prerogative to tattle on other officers. She had been more than willing to file a report on Copia for her speech earlier, after all. "Secondly, I have two questions of my own in response to yours. One: why should I tell you? Two: why should I tell you?" Her tone wasn't hostile in any way, more... Curious. After the debacle earlier (during which she had told the officer to prove she was worthy of answers and said officer subsequently doing the opposite) it seemed she wasn't willing to provide information to just anyone. She wanted a better conversation. "Prove to me that you are worth providing information to, and I might consider it."

Timi hadn't had many hopes for a proper conversation with Designate 4109, beforehand. There was no reason for them to actually tell anyone anything; realistically, if he were in their situation, he'd probably have sat down silently in the brig until the cows came home, and then some. Maybe more Undine would come to rescue them, or maybe not. All the time in the world if you don't want to jeopardise your mission. He saved the question he was going to ask for later use, and typed in a new one. "What would make us worthy?" the PADD read, and Timi shot Aoife a quick look. "We should play along for now," he told her. "We can always change our approach later, but given a chance like this, we can't afford not to take it at least some of the way."

Aoife nodded when Timi told her to play along, it made the most sense to roll with things. Letting 4109 think they were setting the tone would probably help them. She waited for 4109 to speak again, keeping her posture the same and trying to project confidence as much as possible. (edited)

As the previous visitor to the brig might have gathered, the Undine didn’t particularly like people barging in here and asking questions out of nowhere. Perhaps her research into the Federation and other cultures had yielded incorrect information. As far as she had been aware, introductions were customary – although maybe you simply weren’t entitled to them when you were a prisoner. Still… It would be nice to know exactly who these Starfleet officers were. The purple uniform colour wasn’t one that they had on the New Dawn. “Why don’t you start by telling me who you are?” 4109 posed, tone surprisingly casual. She folded her arms across her chest, but it seemed to be in more of a slightly sassy way than in a manner that conveyed anger. Would simple introductions be enough for the two to ‘prove themselves’? Maybe. The Undine wasn’t completely against talking, after all… She just didn’t want to talk to someone who didn’t make sense.

That seemed like a reasonable enough request, though Timi doubted that would be the end of it. He also hadn't considered that an Undine would care about who the people they were interacting with were, considering the Federation's generally poor diplomatic relationship with the Undine; but then, it was his own failure to not treat Designate 4109 as any other prisoner. "I apologise," his PADD said as he tapped a button for the phrase. He tapped several more buttons, quickly creating a sentence to introduce himself properly. "I am Lieutenant Commander Timi Sinon Kestrel." He looked at Aoife, and though he didn't tell her anything, it clearly implored her to introduce herself. He did make a mental note to update their personal security in order to protect sensitive information further. He couldn't risk this interrogation attempt compromise their work and personal safety.

As if on que Aoife also made her introductions. "And I'm Lieutenant Aoife O'Rielly. If you haven't already guessed the Commander and myself are from, outside the traditional starfleet structure." Aoife said, alluding to the fact they were part of starfleet intelligence and not the rank and file fleet. After speaking to Undiwari she addressed Timi mentally. "Do you really think 4109 will play ball after we made 'introductions?'"

’Outside the traditional Starfleet structure.’ Timi had presumed correctly when he doubted the request would be the end of it, and Aoife’s little statement there had piqued the Undine’s interest. There was no way of knowing if this Undine’s mannerisms matched that of the real Rhea Tewari, but it certainly looked as though they knew how to mimic a person in general. Designate 4109’s eyes practically lit up with this new information. “Now there’s the sort of thing that I’m looking for,” they mused, stance relaxing a little and shoulders becoming less tense. Sass turned to curiosity instead. Maybe they had mimicking mannerisms down, but not a proper hold on how emotions worked for normal people. They seemed to flip between them very quickly. “Well, go on then -- elaborate. If you’re from outside the traditional structure, then who are you? What is your purpose here? The Allied Fleet Service do not have this…” A hand was gestured at the two officers, indicating their uniforms. “Purple of yours.”

"I would perhaps not have shared that much that quickly. Designate 4109 will inevitably attempt to gain as much information from us as they can, so we shouldn't give information away for free," Timi told Aoife telepathically, calmly, as if he were simply stating a fact. He didn't intend to scold her, as this was still an early assignment at her new assignment, and frankly, the chance that Designate 4109 would have demanded the information eventually was very high. It did remind Timi of why he preferred to wear a Security uniform when performing many of his duties. The purple stripe was satisfying, but could really work against them sometimes. He took his time typing out a satisfactory answer. If there was one thing communicating through the PADD had taught him, it was picking his words wisely. "The purple denotes an intelligence gathering mission. I imagine introducing the signifier to AFS ships would cause more trouble than it is worth." The PADD read out the sentence Timi had typed, which was truthful while not actually revealing too much about how Starfleet Intelligence worked. He wanted to avoid giving away too much details that could be used against them. His expression, too, was neutral, giving nothing extra away. (edited)

"Yeah, maybe should have kept that vague, it's been a minute since I've done an interrogation like this. Most of me experience with interrogations is more, hands on so to speak. The brainiac mind games stuff isn't as much my field of expertise as it is yours" Aoife responded telepathically to Timi. Before turning back to 4019, and articulating in her mind what exactly to say. "So, now that we've established ourselves. I'll need an answer to my questions. What was your mission on the AFS New Dawn, and was your mission authorised by your government." Aoife's tall and squared away stance made it clear she wasent going to move on until she heard a satisfactory answer.

”An ‘intelligence gathering mission,’” the Undine mused, seemingly content with the answer. She had been waiting for ages for someone with proper authority to show up and ask questions – it had only been a matter of time. In some strange way she was almost looking forward to it. For one, this cell was awfully dull with no one to talk to… And for two, she had spent months aboard that blasted ship with only the other infiltrators to discuss things with. More traditional Undine wouldn’t have said anything – gathering information was how the enemy worked out how to stop you – but it was about time their cause became known. “I had been waiting for you to show up.” She tilted her head to the side as Aoife spoke. It might have been a normal gesture, other than her head tilted a little too far for it to be natural for any regular being. “Our mission was much like yours,” the Undine offered with a smile that looked far more sadistic than it did happy. “To gather intelligence. And no – this mission was our own."

"You have time to learn. I suggest taking as many assignments as possible, there is no better way to learn than by doing, and you clearly have certain skills that caused you to be scouted," Timi told Aoife, hoping to encourage her. Honestly, she was doing very well, for being on her first official Intelligence assignment. Timi remembered his own, and Commander Prisa had absolutely not been as satisfied with his work as he was with Aoife's. Although, Prisa would probably have more to say about Aoife than he currently did. Simultaneously, he'd been typing. He wanted to get another question out, before Designate 4109 decided that it was her turn to ask questions again. "Is there any particular reason you chose to replace Rhea Tewari and Tivop Cronos for this mission?" the PADD read out. Asking directly for the purpose of the gathering of intelligence was useless. Nobody worth their salt would answer a question like that, so asking was a waste of time, which was already something Timi had to take into careful consideration when communicating through his PADD. Asking about the replaced folks was a more neutral line of questioning, and, if they were lucky, would prove useful in determining whether they were still alive and thus able to be saved.

After 4109s answer Aoife took a moment to muse what was just said, rouge undine? This was a possible nightmare scenario. Undine could be anywhere, with any agenda, and no moral scruples should they decide to act. She began to speak to Timi telepathically. "This is a nightmare scenario sir, if they really are rouge they could have any agenda. Or they could be lying entirely to obscure the fact that they are the vanguard of a future first strike, or one cell of many who have infiltrated the allied fleet, or even further if there's enough of them. We need to find out if there more, as well are the status of the New Dawn's senior staff." She said in reference to Timi's question to 4109 about Rhea and Cronos. Aoife shifted her weight slightly rounding her shoulders and folding her arms in front of her as she waited until 4109 spoke again.

As the group spoke, Designate 4109 watched the two with a look of intrigue. Thankfully their telepathic conversation hadn’t been picked up on. Any gaps in the verbal conversation as a result had been covered by a wait while Timi typed. If the Designate had been outside of the cell then things might have been different. Undine were known for their telepathic communication – and Starfleet had accounted for that with inhibitors built into the cells. As a result, 4109 was none the wiser to the two actively discussing things right in front of her without her even knowing. If she had known, she might not have been bitter about it. It was a smart tactic. A shrug was given at the question of why they had taken these forms: herself posing as one Captain Rhea Tewari, and her close colleague (who now resided across the brig in another cell) as Commander Tivop Cronos. They had been the first two, and then the senior staff that they had gotten through so far had been replaced at differing increments. “They were easy to replace,” she stated simply. “We heard of them being sent to the Allied Fleet Service, and we needed a way in. A lone shuttle isn’t difficult to disable… So while they were en route to Khitomer II, we ambushed them and took their place. It wasn't anything personal. We simply needed the positions that they were headed to fill."

Aoife was right. This was a nightmare scenario, but focussing on that fact would serve only to demoralise. They'd have to report on the fact that these were rogue Undine, but hopefully, if they were completely rogue, there'd be no diplomatic repercussions for retaliation. "Why did they need those positions specifically, and what happened to the people they took? The important questions right now are the ones with actionable answers," he told Aoife, hoping to prompt her to fill the silence while he figured out how to word a next question for Designate 4109 to answer.

Aoife began to nod for a brief moment as Timi spoke to her telepathically, it was a completely normal reaction in her mind, so normal she didn't do it consciously. A split second after beginning the unconscious nodding she realised and stopped before flashed a concerned expression in a brief loss of composure knowing she had probably blown their secret means of communication before correcting her body language. "Sir I think I might have given us away. I didn't even do it knowingly I just nodded unconsciously." From the tone in Aoife's speech it was clear she had somewhat lost her composure, communicating telepathically was new to her and she was evidently a bit overwhelmed as she spoke to Timi this time with Aoife's words falling over eachother before she took a deep breath and pulled herself together and formulated another question in her mind for 4109. "What happened to the officers you took? I assume they were kept alive for interrogation. Did you take them back to fluidic space?" Aoife's next question was somewhat curt, as she didn't want to speak too much to 4109 after messing up their trump card big time. There was a very slight tremble in Aoife's voice as she spoke as she was still partially regaining her composure.

Aoife’s nod at seemingly nothing didn’t go unnoticed by the watchful gaze of the Undine. There had been nothing said in the seconds between her own answer, and yet this officer seemed to be nodding at something… And then stopped abruptly, as if she had caught her own mistake. 4109’s eyes narrowed as they looked back and forth between the two officers. The Undine themselves used telepathic communication all the time – but here in the brig, their psionic abilities had been dampened so they were unable to talk across the cells. How infuriating it was to have your normal method of communication stripped away from you – having to rely on this horrid speech instead – and how more infuriating to see the officers in front of you all but taunting you with it. The relatively neutral stance turned tense and in an instant, the Undine had sprung towards the front of the cell. The holofield visibly crackled to life, arcing jolts of energy that zapped off of 4109’s stolen form. They didn’t seem to care. “Don’t you know it’s rude to have a conversation about someone right in front of them?” Normally the statement applied to something like talking about someone behind their back. Maybe talking about them when they were right there made it even worse. “Your use of telepathic communication in my presence is insulting. Here – turn off your psionic dampeners and let me into the conversation.” There was a snarl to her voice, then. “Then there’ll be no more secrets.”

"It happens," Timi told Aoife, reassuring her even in the face of Designate 4109's outburst. "We can train it together, if you want. It's not too difficult to learn." Realistically, he couldn't really care less about the slip-up right now. It wasn't like 4109 would be able to do anything about it, and it was mostly for ease of communication that they did it. They had all the time in the world to get information out of the Undine, and if he couldn't, someone else would be able to take his place. However, the demand the psionic dampeners was... interesting, to say the least. He removed what he'd been typing. That could come later. Instead, he tapped a button. "Really?" the PADD questioned for him as he typed out a longer message. "'No more secrets', that doesn't sound like a situation you'd benefit from." The PADD sounded about as neutral as Timi looked. On a good day, he was calm to begin with, but on duty, you'd be hard-pressed to read a single emotion from his face. He wasn't trying to get Designate 4109 to deny access to their mind, since, well, one was only allowed to communicate telepathically with those that explicitly consented to it, and he was rather curious to see if it would speed the interrogation process up a little.

"I'll take you up on that, I have a feeling we'll be using it fairly often in future it'll be helpful to not be a total novice." Aoife replied to Timi, now recovered from her slip up and her composure noticeably returning via the telepathic link. Before a sudden jolt of surprise washed over her as Timi seemed to be considering telepathically communicating with an undine. "You can't be serious sir. Talking to 4019 telepathically is a death sentence, they can rip your mind apart from the inside if you let them in!" Aoife replied with a healthy dose of concern for Timi's sanity.

”I’m already telling you what I know,” the Undine hissed, still glaring at the two. Silvery eyes looked back and forth between the officers, constantly scrutinising them. Now knowing that they were having a secret conversation right there in front of them made things even worse. “How long will it be until there aren’t any more questions left, regardless of whether we do that verbally or telepathically? Even if I don't give all of those answers to you, someone down the line is going to demand them.” There were no doubts that wherever they ended up, 4019 and the other Undine were going to be interrograted. Starfleet used methods far harsher than other powers out there, of course, but there was no doubt that they'd still have their methods. Perhaps this was a way out. Her gaze fell upon Timi then; looking at the officer’s face, looking down to the PADD… “Go on. Do it. Let me in.”

This would expedite things greatly, and Timi was very fond of getting to the point. "I am not nearly as worried as you are, Lieutenant. Designate 4109 has shown to be capable of reason and common sense, and we will continue to communicate with them like that." After all, it was plain to see that it was in 4109's best interests to cooperate. As a result, Timi spent an age typing. The psionic dampeners hadn't been turned off, after all, so he couldn't address 4109 directly yet. "For both our safety, there are some terms necessary. Firstly, your cooperation will be compensated with additional privileges compared to your current situation, which is in line with how prisoners are usually treated. I will personally arrange for this, but any attempt to attack telepathically will forfeit that opportunity." A reasonable first demand, if Timi said so himself. He was trying to make this as fair as possible to both of them. For him that meant learning what he needed to know, and for the Undine it meant being compensated for their giving up information. "Secondly, you will be talking to me, not my colleague. She will stay in the room for my safety. Breach of this will also forfeit any opportunity for additional privileges. Thirdly, what I require is information on your mission, its intended goals, and the people that were taken and what you've done with them. You may demand any information from me in return; such is the nature of an exchange. If you have any terms you would need me to abide by, you can name those as well." For the last sentence, he looked to Aoife as well; she was as much a part, and if there was something she thought needed to happen for everyone to be safe, he would take it into account. He knew he was playing a dangerous game, but he was prepared to deal with the consequences of what he was doing. He was taking a calculated risk, and banking on the common sense of Designate 4109 for it to work. If they didn't cooperate, he'd call it off.

Timi's decision to create a telepathic link with the Undine might have been dangerous, but it was worth it. By the end of the questioning with the Undine prisoner - more co-operative, possibly because they were being trusted with telepathy - the Intelligence officers had managed to uncover significant further information. There was the group's motive, their methods... Plus knowledge that the officers from the New Dawn who had been replaced were still alive. The only issue was that the Undine was unwilling to give up their location... But that was now a further matter for Starfleet Intelligence to handle off the station.