A Light At the End of the Tunnel

Posted on 03 Jan 2017 @ 10:41am by Commander Marisa Wyatt

895 words; about a 4 minute read

Marisa walked through the street, careful to avoid direct eye contact with anyone. It wasn't that she couldn't handle herself in a pinch, it was more that she didn't want the complications. She'd learned over the months she'd been here that it was better to be unnoticed, to stay in the shadows, and to help where she could rather than confront someone directly.

She and a team from the Cartagena had entered the nebula to find a place where the ship could hide from pirates, but before the shuttle found Kreanus, the ship had been destroyed. The only survivors where the twelve personnel on two shuttles. The shuttle landed on the outskirts of the city as they weren't sure what kind of reception they'd get.

They hadn't gone far into the city when they were ambushed by a gang of young men who demanded their belongings. The team got away with only scrapes and bruises, but when they got back to their shuttle, everything that could be removed had been.

They made camp with what was left, going out in pairs to find food. After one of their forays they found Pete and Mara hung like scarecrows in the street. Both had been beaten to death. After that, the group found an abandoned cellar and set up camp there.

Marisa hadn't seen the others in days. She spent most of her time walking the streets, listening for information and getting food where she could. Being Vulcan she didn't need to sleep or eat much, which helped.

"Please, no!" a girl cried.

Marisa slipped down a side street, heading towards the sound.

"Shut up or I'll cut out your tongue," a male voice said in Romulan.

Marisa heard sounds of a struggle and glanced around the corner to see two Romulan males accosting a young Orion girl. The girl screamed again and one of them punched her in the face. When she collapsed, they pulled her into an open doorway.

Marisa moved quickly. If there were just two of them, she stood a good chance of helping the girl. She couldn't walk away and do nothing. A moment later, she was at the doorway. She paused to listen, then when she felt it was safe, slipped in.

It took a several moments for her eyes to adjust to the dim interior light. She was in an empty room -- orobably an abandoned shop. Noises from a room beyond told her where the men were. She paused to pick up a broken chunk of wall and moved silently to the doorway.

As she approached, the conversation between the two men made her stomach clench. She muttered a few choice imprecations to herself. She hefted her weapon and stepped through the open door, quickly targeting one of the men and hitting him on the side of his head with the rock. He fell to the ground as the other man pulled a knife. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"The Angel of Death," she hissed. he lunged with his knife and she countered by grabbing his wrist and twisting until it snapped. Then she grabbed him in a Vulcan Nerve Pinch and dropped him next to his friend.

Marisa made sure the girl was okay, then slung her over one shoulder and quickly carried her out of the room.

"What happened?" Petra asked when Marisa slipped into the cellar.

"A couple of Romulans," Marisa said, not needing to explain more.

"Lay her down over here," the doctor said, indicating one of the piles of leaves they used as a bed. She quickly examined the girl and sat back. "Nothing broken, thank goodness. She can stay here for now."

Petra stood and turned to Marisa. "Did you hear about the Galileo?"

Marisa shook her head.

"Nova class. The crew is being held in detention."

"How many?" the Vulcan asked.

"Most of the crew, from what I heard."

"Can we make contact?" Marisa asked. "Maybe they know of a way out of here?"

Petra shrugged. "I don't know."

"I know how to make contact with them."

Both women turned to the young girl. "You do?" Petra asked.

The girl nodded. "My mother works there. She can get word to someone for you. What do you want to tell them?"

"That there are other Starfleet officers here," Marisa said. "If they can get out, we can meet them. Can you do that?"

The girl nodded. "I can do that."

Petra pulled a scrap of paper and a piece of charcoal out of a small hole in the wall and wrote a quick message. "Give them this."

The girl looked at the paper and then put it in her pocket. "Okay."

Marisa had a couple of small coins she'd scavenged. She pulled out one and handed it to the girl. "As a thank you."

The girl shook her head. "You already paid me." She stood and brushed off the leaves on her dress, then gave Marisa a quick smile. "It's the least I can do."

"Thank you," Petra said. "Let us know if there's anything else we can do to help you."

The girl nodded and hurried out the door.

When she was gone, Petra sighed. "I hope they get back to us."

"So do I," Marisa replied. "So do I."

____
OFF

Lieutenant JG Marisa Sandoval
Counselor

Lieutenant JG Petra Valenti
Forensic Anthropologist

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