<<OOC Note: This log takes place shortly before the Marines were marooned on the Romulan outpost- at the time Shiarrael still was a Commodore>>
[USS Charon, Brig, Interrogation Room]
Angry? No, Shiarrael wasn't angry. Anger meant she had feelings towards these men. Of course she had felt bitter disappointment. She gave Cole and his band of soldiers the benefit of the doubt, but that was now gone. In its place was emptiness, pure apathy. She waited in silence as the doors to the interrogation room were parted, a tall burly man set before her by a pair of yellow collared security officers. They waited, standing next to him, but that man did not intimidate her. She lifted her hand and flicked her wrist towards the door. They began to protest but she slammed her fist into the table silencing them immediately. One look at her expression told them not to argue.
When they were gone she turned her hollow gaze towards the Marine. A long silence filled the small room. She let it go on until it seemed she would let it linger endlessly, but then she finally broke it, like a sharpened meat cleaver digging into bone, "you all can't stand me. Do what is right for the Federation?" She laughed, his eyes were furious but she laughed at him "where does a pile of thrai dung get off so high and mighty? What have you done to make you so confident?" Shiarrael stood up "you win however. I will no longer tolerate your presence on my ship. For your acts of treason you will be marooned on the Romulan outpost until such a time that Starfleet can send a vessel to retrieve you. Now get out of my sight."
Nikolai heard the sharp edge of the foul creature's ire and his rage boiled over when she insulted his resolve to the Federation. The tall Marine was bound and couldn't get up but the battle trained Romulan would notice that he was tensed to try to rip her head off if he could.
"Your ship? This has never been your ship and never will be Romulan." he said to her. His voice was laced with pure hatred for the woman. On any kind of empathic race it would probably be choking, it was nearly tangible."Acts of Treason? Of the two of us in this room you're the only convicted traitor here Ael'Riov. Though I have trouble believing that fact. My Duty is to the Federation and to protect it against everything even its self when need be." he growled right back at her.
"You're a fool." Shiarrael's teeth grinded, she wanted to reach out and strangle this man where he sat. How much she would relish watching the life seep out of his cold irises- if this was Aylhr he would have been long dead floating in the abyss of space "if you removed me, what would you have done? Would you have returned to the Federation victorious? Shouting: I have slain the demon!? Would you have also killed my children? How far would you have gone?"
He looked at her coldly with his steely glance. He could tell the Romulan beast hated him as much as he hated her entire species. He thought briefly about what she asked. "I hate you, everything about you repels me Romulan. Nothing would give me more pleasure then slowly killing you over the course of several years." he said his voice straining with pain and hatred.
"But whatever taint your genes have left on your children isn't enough to change the fact that they are children. They are defenseless and I don't kill anything that can't fight back." he said to her almost choking on the words but he meant them, he doesn't kill kids unless he absolutely had to in a war zone. He wasn't far enough gone to kill an innocent yet.
"Perhaps I should feel relieved that you would have just murdered me and spared my children." She scoffed; the humor however was dry and empty. She leaned back in her chair crossing her arms. "If you hate me so much why follow Colonel Cole aboard MY ship? You could have easily requested another assignment. Why Charon? Did you want to be some sort of martyr? Did you think I'd waste my energy killing you? Indeed, if this was the empire you would be dead where you sit. I would have had you killed slowly, until, with your dying breath, you repented your actions. However, this is not the Empire and I am not afforded such luxuries on this ship. I am bound by law- your law. It is truly amazing isn't it Marine Captain? You sit here espousing your loyalty to the Federation- claiming that you must save it from itself!" She uncrossed her arms and stood up leaning forward "how ridiculous is that? There is only one officer in this room that follows the law- and that is certainly not you. Your actions today make you more similar to my murderous kin then me."
His eyes flared with even more burning hatred for her as she compared him to her filthy kin."I followed the Cole on board because allowing a Romulan to command one of our advanced science vessels is a horrible mistake. And giving you Federation command codes? Are they crazy? You who led the battles against us during the war. Who time and time again defeated our larger ships every time we thought we had the advantage." he said nearly hissing it.
"They are out of their minds! You are a Romulan we should have learned after the what twelfth time your people betrayed us? And now they give you complete open access to the Federation's inner workings. The Colonel asked for volunteers and I am first and foremost a loyal member of the Federation." he said to her. He knew she wouldn't understand...She might look like a real person but Romulans were betraying murdering machines. Even the Borg had more Humanity then they did.
Shiarrael pulled her arms back and sat down. She relaxed for the first time since they had dragged the fool before her and she smiled; it was a wicked and snide expression "so Colonel Cole was recruiting volunteers? I am pleased you have confirmed what I always suspect but had too little proof to suggest." She sighed, "You are right that I killed many of your people, but, it was war. You have killed many of mine." Standing up Shiarrael headed for the door, she had the evidence she needed to have Cole and his party convicted of mutiny. The punishment in the Federation wasn't nearly as permanent as that in the empire but certainly these men's careers were over. As she approached the door she stopped and turned around "and you are wrong. My rank is title only- do you think your people have made me privy to the inner workings of your precious Federation? Command codes?" She laughed "certainly they would have been crazy if they gave me such knowledge." She turned and walked out leaving him to ponder her last words.
Nikolai raised an eyebrow on his bruised face watching the filthy Romulan leave. What had she meant? Proof of what? That Cole only wanted volunteers for this mission, that he wouldn't force anyone to work with the Romulans on board? How could that help her he wondered. He wasn't sure if he should be pleased that he was wrong about the Federation trusting the Romulan with the command codes. For one brief moment his deadly hatred for the woman stopped and give him time to think rationally. If...and that was a big IF, the Romulan was telling the truth that would mean her command was crippled from the beginning.
She was supposedly a flag officer and a starship captain that came with the defense codes to sector 001. If she didn't have them and the home of the Federation came under attack, the Charon wouldn't be able to come to its aid. Perhaps just perhaps this situation was more complicated than he had thought before. He didn't regret throwing his hat in with Colonel Cole and if he had to do it again he would. But the slimmest possibility of misjudging Rehu passed though his mind.
[End]
*Commodore Shiarrael Rehu
Commanding Officer
USS Charon
Marine Captain Nikolai Chernienko
Disgruntled Marine
USS Charon
