The Path Not Taken: The Interrogation (Part 2 of 4)

Posted on 09 Apr 2024 @ 1:19am by Lieutenant JG Montgomery Vala & Ensign S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor
Edited on on 10 Apr 2024 @ 2:13am

3,832 words; about a 19 minute read

Mission: Episode 19 - Tomorrow's Galileo
Location: Okinawa, Japan, Earth
Timeline: Early 2396

Previously on The Interrogation...

It was difficult to comprehend exactly what path Vialluh was trying to shove him down. He had always maintained a level of… conscious naivety around her. He’d never considered her a friend per se, but certainly someone where a mutually beneficial relationship had existed. The reality was, he knew, that she had held all the cards, but when it went well he had enjoyed deluding himself.

“What,” he said pointedly, “Are you asking me to do?”

Vialluh inwardly celebrated. Rh’vaurekon had always been a biddlable sort, and now that he had a wife, well…all the easier.

“You will doing the right thing, Commander Vala.” Vialluh began, and then slowly, concisely began to outline what Starfleet Intelligence desired of him. Part of her felt a sense of anticipation. She had done the research once the Vulcans came to them; oh how that must have put their arrogant asses out. The thought of being the one to succeed where countless numbers of their own kind failed in obtaining any meaningful intelligence…well…that would certainly be quite a success for her career…and for the Federation, naturally. Something to balance against the scale which held her failures, certainly.

Vala went through a range of emotions as he listened to the terms, his face contorting into a more and more incredulous expression as time went on.

"I am not skilled at espionage," he dryly stated. Something that should have been obvious to the trill, "But if you release S'Ers-a then…" He averted his gaze, "I must comply."

And now the continuation...

[ON]

==Sera’s Interrogation==

The perception of time was a fascinating thing to Sera. Six hours and forty-eight minutes she had been left in this interrogation room, alone. Her mind calculated the passage quite accurately, yet it felt longer. In that time she had been left alone, with only her thoughts to occupy her. Supposing this was a part of some type of tactic meant to intimidate or cause unease but she was Vulcan. The time was utilized for meditation…and consideration.

All things considered, however, Sera desired nothing more than to simply ‘get this over with.’

The door slid open as violently as a sliding door could, signaling a return of the two officers. They walked in practiced unison and sat down together in a fluid motion. Their eyes trained assertively on Sera.

The Vulcan carefully placed a PADD on the table then tapped his combadge, “Interview of S’Ers-a M’Lyr’Zor,” he said, his accent oddly stumbling on her surname, “Stardate 73033.9.” He allowed silence to fall for a moment, keeping Sera’s gaze.

His colleague then spoke, her tone was clipped, “Ms. M’Lyr’Zor,” she barely tried with the name, it came out something like ‘millayzor’, “Do you know why you are here?”

Sera studied the Vulcan male with a raised brow. Odd indeed that he would mispronounce her name. The human's butchering of it was irrelevant.

“I do not. It is illogical to speculate.” She finally responded to the human female but her eyes did not leave the Vulcan officer’s.

”Does my presence make you uncomfortable…Lieutenant? I must admit concern in hearing a fellow Vulcan mispronounce my clan name. The humans cannot seem to help themselves, but you…one might consider it a form of…insult.” Sera spoke in Vulkhansu and saw the human woman frowning. Interesting.

The black collared vulcan turned to his colleague, "She takes issue with our pronunciation of her name," he was unwilling to play language games. He turned back to Sera, "Such vanity is illogical. Deference may be awarded to you elsewhere," he began.

"In your household, perhaps," the human snidely interjected.

"But here it is irrelevant." He continued to look at this… fallen individual, "Rh'vaurekorn i'Varul, otherwise known as Montgomery Vala. You will explain what he is to you."

Sera blinked and tilted her head towards the female human. It would figure that the woman would bring up sexual relations. They really were quite uncouth.

“If your statement was meant to imply he treats me with humble submission and respect…he does - and it is reciprocated. He is also quite deferential in the worship of my body - as you humans are so interested in such things, perhaps it is logical to simply get that aspect out of the way.”

The woman’s mouth twisted into a smirk, but she said nothing more at the juncture.

“Are you bonded, Osu?” Sera asked in return to the vulcan, deciding to ignore the human as inconsequential in the moment. “He is my adun along with all that implies.” She would explain no further, but truth be told she trusted the Vulcan male not one iota.

“Irrelevant,” he said cooly to her inquiry, “He sought you out on the USS Galileo NCC-80010-A in 2392,” he tapped the PADD in front of him, “He approached you almost immediately upon arrival, and seduced you,” his disgust was thinly veiled, “Is this correct?”

The ghost of a smile graced her lips. He considered their pairing distasteful.

“Erroneous. It was Shon-ha’lock.”

“To which you succumbed,” he stated, “rather than seeking out a Kolinahr master.”

Sera's nostrils flared. Kolinahr. The word conjured up all sorts of bitter thoughts. She would rather be V'Tosh Ka'tor then allow one of them to 'touch' her.

“Which were quite plentiful in the Pleiades.” Sera settled upon. “But yes. You are correct. I…succumbed. It has brought much satisfaction within my life. Lieutenant Commander Montgomery is an exemplary mate.”

Sera’s eyes slid over to the human female and she stared at her as if considering her measure…and finding her wanting, of course.

“This is tedious. Perhaps another Vulcan here to interrogate me would be more efficient. I would rather not have to explain things…twice.

The Vulcan interrogator’s eyes narrowed slightly, a minute expression of disapproval. “Your request for another interrogator is noted but will not be accommodated. We are more than capable of understanding your…situation.” His voice was steady, but there was the slightest trace of disdain in his tone.

The human officer leaned forward, interjecting, “I understand it is foolhardy for a… widow to enter into a deep space assignment. Suicidal even. Someone in such a position might be easily…compromised.”

Sera stared at the human woman but said nothing. There wasn’t a question in what she said, and Sera was not about to talk biology OR her rationale for returning to active duty with an off-worlder.

“Unless martial law has been imposed you have no authority over my person. I am no longer a member of Starfleet. I request to be allowed to return home.”

“We have authority to detain and question anyone we deem a threat to the security of the Federation, and their associates,” the human female asserted, “Some individual… inconvenience has to be suffered for the good of the whole. You will be released if you have nothing to hide.” Her voice had a slightly self satisfied tone.

“Let us return to the topic at hand,” the Vulcan officer said, once again tapping on the PADD, “You associated yourself with this Rh'vaurekorn i'Varul whilst serving aboard the Galileo. Did you expose your mind to him telepathically?”

“We share a mate-bond. Dahshalik s'nash-veh eh worla dahshalik, worla eh kwon-sum estuhlan heh estuhlik” Sera responded stonily but then turned to the human woman and translated what she had just said. “Parted from me, and never parted. Never and always touching and touched. I refer to a permanent telepathic connection that Vulcan mates share…to varying degrees. I am not ashamed of my affection for him nor my connection to him, and I will not be compelled to testify against my mate. He is an upstanding officer, a brilliant scientist, and is committed to the ideals of what the Federation stands for. If that is the intention of this interrogation then I would suggest to you both that you find more productive ways to utilize your time.”

“I will record that as a ‘yes’,” the vulcan responded dryly. He was well aware of how a mate-bond was formed, despite it being highly profane that a Romulan was involved in it.

“Romulans are psychically dull species,” the human picked up the line of discussion, “Do you maintain a bond when you are apart, as Vulcans do?”

“Do not speak of things you know nothing about, human.” Sera shot back in a tone nearing a growl, feeling downright antagonistic. They were going after her mate…her mate! A deeply instinctual aggression began to form within her. Sera resisted the urge to start pacing…or throwing herself across the table and ripping the female’s throat out. Oh, now that was a thought. Sera’s eyes dilated in a predatory manner.

Sera started at her own sudden hostility, and exhaled slowly, forcing herself to relax. Civilian or not, it would not serve her well at all to physically assault an intelligence officer.

“Ask your friend. He can tell you all about what a Vulcan mate-bond entails.” She finally bit out.

The human gave a small smirk and looked to her colleague, “Another affirmative.”

The door to the interview room slid open and another officer came in holding a wooden chest that smelled of a tree no longer in existence. Unconsciously gripping her abdomen as if to comfort her thrumming heart, Sera’s eyes whipped from the box to the pair sitting across from her both now looking rather smug.

“You searched my home.” It was said in the calmest of voices.

The Vulcan officer looked at her impassively, “This was indeed found at your residence.”

“Very interesting design,” the female officer said with mock curiosity, “S'Vekhara Hemlock.” She looked at the vulcan male, “I’d say barely a handful of these exist in the galaxy. Since Hobus.” She smiled, baring her teeth as she looked back to Sera, “A very curious item to be within your household.”

“A Romulan item found in a Romulan’s home. Utterly inconceivable .” Sera responded calmly, however, deep within understanding the damning nature of the chest. “You presume much, otherwise. Generally one who is engaging in secrets does all they can think of to maintain the facade…and yet that item was displayed in our dining room. The cost of it is…incalculable.”

“Well we wouldn’t want to have to break it apart now, would we?” The woman said, her tone sickly sweet, “You can save this priceless artifact by opening it,” her voice morphed to be more assertive, “Now.”

Sera’s shoulders slumped. It would be logical to accede to her request. Her refusal would only mean that the chest would be destroyed, and that would be a loss for an object that was irreplaceable. Slowly standing, Sera began moving the pieces about the lid. It was slow going - and she could see out of the corner of her eyes the human female looking rather annoyed.

“I have only opened this chest once…it is a difficult puzzle to solve.” Sera responded as her fingers continued to move the pieces until an audible click was heard.

She remembered seeing what the box contained. It appeared to be items related to T’Ael’s former life before marrying the then leader of Lyr’Zor clan. Slowly sitting down, Sera watched impassively as the two intelligence officers pulled open the lid and began pulling out all of the items.

The honor blade that still held her dried blood on its steel. They then pulled out a holo-image; a young Rihannsu female, the spitting image of Sera except with the short Romulan haircut and subtle brow ridges, standing next to an older male and female. Then came the harness that was worn over a uniformed jacket, which came next - neatly folded - atop a pair of black pants. Other items were pulled out; a small bottle of a type of wine no longer in existence and even a romulan disruptor that had its energy source removed.

“Well, well, well, what a pretty collection of things,” the female officer said with a twisted smile, “So brazen to display a box of such items in a public space of your abode.” She shook her head, “It’s almost impressively arrogant.”

Her Vulcan colleague gave Sera an imperious stare, “What do y-”

Suddenly a woman’s voice echoed in the room, visibly startling Sera. “Lieutenant Nirak, Lieutenant Sheffield…have the young lady try on the outfit, please.”

Sera swallowed against a suddenly dry mouth as she looked down to her grandmother’s uniform. They…they were employing humor, certainly…right? However, the looks in both of the officer’s eyes was anything but jovial.

"I refuse. You may do with me what you wish, but I will not put on that uniform."

The two intelligence officers said nothing, but one leaned over and pulled up a holovid. It was the back of her mate, walking up the stairs of the Daystrom Building, with a small white cross over the right side of his lower back, the posterior position of his heart.

"You...you can't. He has done nothing wrong!" Her stoic demeanor crumbled at the thought of harm coming to Montgomery.

"Then consider this a lesson in obedience." The vulcan male told her stoically. Ah. There was more in play than a simple Starfleet interrogation. Well then...Sera held far more loyalty to her mate than to any other entity.

Slowly standing, Sera reached out and took the pants and lifted her leg and began putting the pants on. They fit well enough, and the shortness noted on her longer limbs would have been hidden within boots - if she had been serious about any of this.

The officers sat, watching her motions silently. Very well; she had no self-consciousness regarding her physical form. Sera calmly untied the cotton strap of fabric that served as a belt to her yukata and slipped the robe off of her shoulders, not quite caring that she wore nothing underneath it.

Let them be uncomfortable if they liked. She slipped on the uniformed jacket–sans the undertunic–and zipped it up. The sleeves too were a few centimeters short, and it was tailored for someone with more curves than Sera possessed, but it wasn’t outright noticeable. Lifting the interlocking harness, Sera studied it a moment before slipping it over her head and struggled with closing the clasps on the belt.

“You know, Nirak,” the female officer began, her eyes sparkling, “I thought when we hauled this one in it’d be to see what she had on her mate but…” she gestured up and down Sera’s body with her hand, “This seems like a whole new angle to explore.”

The Vulcan nodded, then glared at Sera, “Explain your affiliation with the Romulan Star Empire.”

Looking down at the front of herself, Sera was silent for a moment. She tilted her head in thought…she could feel Montgomery’s emotions–an inarticulate maelstrom of anger, outrage and… fear washed back from her mate. The feelings were muted but still so powerful, she gripped a hand at her middle to steady herself and project calm.

She was not going to continue this conversation dressed in an enemy combatant’s uniform. Her hands went to the belt, and she worked on disengaging the latch and noted that her hands were starting to shake. That was rather unusual.

“I would have thought it was obvious…Nirak. I have no affiliation with the Romulan Star Empire. My loyalties lie with my mate and my clan.”

“Not to the Federation?” Sheffield interjected.

“Lieutenant, you are being deliberately obtuse.” She sounded slightly distracted as her fingers fumbled on the latch on the belt. What by Surak was this…a puzzle latch within the belt? How utterly diabolical.

“It is well known that her clan stand apart from other Vulcans,” Nirak said to his colleague, “For them, and her, to have associations with Romulans. That may be a logical conclusion given all of this,” he slowly gestured at the box and its contents.

“To possess this uniform,” the male vulcan turned his attention back to Sera, “and these items. And indeed this rare box. Marks you as affiliated. I caution you to be careful in how you answer our questions.” He leaned forward, “How did you come to be in possession of these items?”

“This uniform?!” Sera’s voice took on a sharp, dangerous edge. “This is not the current uniform of the Tal Shiar…to my limited knowledge, this pattern was utilized well before I was born.” Her trembling fingers fought with the belt and finally got the latch to loosen and she ripped the harness off and threw it at the Vulcan male. “If this antique uniform and a wooden chest is the entirety of the case against me, it is spurious, at best.”

Her chest heaved as she tried to get in enough air and her heart raced as anger and irrational aggression coursed through her. Was it getting warm in here? Reaching up Sera tore the zipper down and stripped out of the damnable uniform and tossed the pieces to them until she was standing naked in front of the two officers. With a flourish, Sera slipped back into the spring-themed yukata. This was insanity.

“The chest was sent to me on Galileo on my transfer. It was my foremother’s.” Sera knew she had to give them something here. “She was an outsider, and was made a bride in an ancient, traditional manner of my people. She has never been allowed to leave the Old Citadel of Jian’Kahr.”

“This will be checked,” Nirak responded in a cool tone, “Even if it is your foremother’s then that would constitute a significant infiltration of your clan. To embrace a Romulan in such a way…” His lip minutely curled, “If she truly did send these items to you then it is logical to assume you are a part of the plans of the Romulan Star Empire. Wittingly or,” he said pointedly, “Unwittingly.”

Sera raised a brow. Was this man incapable of understanding? “She was kidnapped, Nirak. I do not believe she had any say in the decision.” Visibly trembling hands attempted to tie an adequate bow on the sash of her robe. It was an unusual manifestation of her inner turmoil certainly. It was as the bow was nearing completion that Sera recognized that the body-less voice gave the names of her interrogators.

“Nirak…what a fascinating name.” Sera turned her attention to the human woman, tilting her head in a manner to denote personal interest. “Do you know the story of Nirak, Lieutenant Sheffield? No I imagine you don’t. There was once a Vulcan soldier who lived before the Time of Awakening, named Nirak. He stood watch over the gates of Gol when he mistakenly thought an approaching army was a sandstorm and failed to send a warning. The army destroyed the city but they spared Nirak’s life. That name came to be known as ‘Fool’ in the Vulcan language.”

The human woman glanced very momentarily at her vulcan colleague to gauge his reaction.

“Discussion of the semantics,” his voice laced with the slightest amount of acid, “are irrelevant.”

“Stop avoiding our inquiries, M’Lyr’Zor,” the woman once again pronounced it ‘millayzor’, butchering it all the more in her annoyance, “We have you dead to rights. Tell us everything about this ‘foremother’ of yours!”

“Semantics is all we are discussing here. Truth, apparently, is utterly irrelevant. I have answered all of your posed questions. I have told you what I know about her past. She never took me into her confidence regarding her origins. It was through the chest that I learned all that you now know.” She slowly reached out and picked up the picture of her grandmother and studied it for a moment in silence before returning it to the table and staring beyond the two interrogators to the two-way mirror.

“So you claim,” Nirak said, his imperious tone returning. “Your word is insufficient.”

“And all of this,” the human said, gesturing slightly theatrically at the items and the box, “Is enough to put you away for a long time.” The slightest smirk traced her lips. She enjoyed having power over vulcans, her partner's company excepted. “I’ve even heard talk of the death penalty being instituted for traitors.”

“Which we of course abhor the thought of as citizens of the Federation,” Nirak said with a slight glance to his partner. He found it distasteful when she took too much mirth from an interrogation, “So it would be in your best interests to tell us anything at all you think we may find pertinent. To support your defense.”

Sera was silent. There was nothing more to be said. She had given all that she was willing to do so. To betray the clan…the family. Well, death as a traitor was preferable to what she would endure if she betrayed Lyr'Zor.

“I was a proficient engineer in Starfleet. It was…agreeable work.” Sera began, knowing it would not make any difference, but wanting her words to be recorded. She was giving them her motive, not that they would likely recognize it.

“I found much satisfaction with it, and in learning more about the world beyond Jian’Kahr. Resigning my commission upon my mate’s forced reassignment was necessary but not satisfying. It was logical to remain with him. But I found myself blacklisted on arrival to Earth. A highly trained and competent engineer and not a single offer for gainful employment. I applied to 137 open global positions. Then I watched as my mate was given an office in a specialty he had no training in, not trusted beyond coming into work everyday…and he is a Lieutenant Commander in good standing.” Sera paused.

Her expression shifted subtly, as if she were trying to commit to conveying something emotional and failing with the attempt. “This is all wrong. All of this.” Taking in a deep breath, Sera let it out slowly, “Kaiddth.”

“I have nothing else to offer you.” Sera ended in a soft tone. They had attempted to cause fear and humiliation, and failed on both parts. They did succeed in something else, however.

Sera felt towards these people and all they represented with the same unusual emotion that she had experienced towards the healers on Vulcan.

To be continued...

[OFF]

--

S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor
Person of 'Interest'

&

LT Nirak
Starfleet Intelligence
[NPC played by Vala]

&

LT Sheffield
Starfleet Intelligence
[NPC played by Vala

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