warpfairy | life's blood

They're not near Cardassian Union space.

But then, they're not near Federation space either. This ship has as much right to be in this system as they do.

It makes Isabella nervous, anyway, and she's just about to suggest leaving and coming back another time, when the Prometheus is hailed.

They're armed. She can't warp inside a solar system.

She answers the hail.

"Hello, Federation vessel," says one of the three visible Cardassians in bad but intelligible English. "What're you doing out here alone?"

Isabella swallows. "This is the deep space survey vessel Prometheus," she begins.

The computer lets her know that they're charging weapons.

"We have no hostile intention," she says.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

From:

alicornucopia

Thus ends Brol.

Janor and Kelvok appear on the scene a few seconds later, armed with handheld disruptors. Janor is apparently less reluctant to shoot at Lalita than Kelvok is.

From:

dream_me_up

He's still faster. He dodges - a disruptor beam grazes his ribs - he disarms them both, breaking Janor's wrist in the process, and points one disruptor at each of them.

Then, after a short pause in which he decides not to bother offering mercy, he shoots Janor.

"You're kind of cute," he says to Kelvok, still in casually fluent Cardassian, "so at the moment I plan to let you live. If you annoy me, that plan will change. Clear?"

From:

alicornucopia

Kelvok nods.

From:

dream_me_up

"Good," he says, and smiles his nasty smile again. "I want something to tie you up with. I suggest you help me find it."

From:

alicornucopia

"...There are spare electrical cables," mutters Kelvok, closing his eyes. "In the cargo bay."

From:

dream_me_up

"Show me the cargo bay, then."

From:

alicornucopia

Kelvok warily leads the way to the cargo hold.

From:

dream_me_up

Lalita does a very quick, very thorough job of making sure Kelvok will not be going much of anywhere or doing much of anything in the near future, and then he takes both disruptors and leaves. Back to the room where they were keeping Isabella, with a short detour through sickbay.

From:

warpfairy

She is still a heap.

Her eyes are still empty of content.

From:

dream_me_up

He doesn't ask if she's okay. The answer is too obvious.

He does ask: "Can you move? Can you talk?"

From:

warpfairy

"I can speak," she says with the kind of excess care that suggests that she runs the risk of worsening an injury in so doing. "Possibly I could roll onto my back. I cannot walk."

From:

dream_me_up

"You're not going to get much help from a Cardassian sickbay," he says, "and you know what the Prometheus is like on that score. But as usual, I've got a trick up my - lack of a sleeve." (He's still naked.) "My blood has restorative properties, and I happen to know it works on both your parent species, not that I have any idea how. If I give you some, it should help. Okay?"

From:

warpfairy

"Yes."

From:

dream_me_up

"Okay. I love you," he murmurs.

It doesn't take very long to draw enough blood; it takes a little longer to get it into Isabella. Some amount of pain is unavoidable, with her injuries, but he tries to minimize it. (The long raw streak of a burn along his side is already healing, and it itches more than it hurts; he ignores both.)

From:

warpfairy

Isabella is completely silent throughout the procedure.

Her face doesn't even twitch with discomfort.

From:

dream_me_up

And now comes the even less fun part.

"I have to straighten out your broken bones so they'll heal right," he says softly.

From:

warpfairy

"Yes."

From:

dream_me_up

It's not the kind of thing where gentleness helps. But he can be quick, and he can be efficient. She doesn't have to hurt any more than absolutely necessary.

By the time he moves away, some of her bruises have already vanished. The burn in his side is long gone, without even leaving a scar.