Verghese Siminway
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The Alpha 2
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Verghese was still seated at the legion, listening to K'hare and the others speak. In particular, he payed attention to Ing's and Tauvit's conversation. Then there was a little commotion at the door, catching his attention. He looked towards it and saw....her
T'Lai was trying to get into the bar, but a couple of drunken klingons was blocking her, deliberately not letting her in. The smell of alchohol reeked in thier breaths, and they were dressed in street clothes, making it obvious they were nothing but thieves.
"I said let me in, or I will slice both of you in half like two pieces of cake." She demanded.
Verghese looked at the two drunken klingons and shook his head. This wasn't going to end prettily. For a moment, he considered letting T'lai deal with them herself, but then remembered the fight earlier and the fact that she may just be heavily injured. Sighing, he got up, leaving his meal half-way. He signalled to the bartender not to clear it off, and that he would be back in just a minute. Walking towards the door, he paused just behind the front klingon, placing his right, cybernetic arm on his shoulder. Clearing his throat, Verghese simply spoke in a slow voice. "If I were you, I'd let her pass. She's got one of the meanest streaks I've seen this side of Romulus...and she has some very big friends."
Then one of them circled her, and lightly placed his hand on her shoulder. "Such dangerous words for such a lovely klingon." He told her. His partner laughed a drunken laugh.
T'Lai had about enough of their games, so she withdrew her dagger, and aimed it at the klingon in front of her's chest. "Move out of my way. Now." she said in an icey voice.
The klingon didn't seem to have noticed his presence behind him, instead focusing on something T'lai was holding towards him. Why does it always have to end this way Verghese thought to himself. Simply increasing the pressure he squeezed the Klingon's shoulder, causing him to gasp in pain. Verghese then simply pushed him aside, revealing T'lai holding a long blade right in front of him.
The klingon reconized the blade and yeilded. He then stepped aside as Verg used pressure points which were quite painful and she walked past him, ignoring the two fools as they left the bar
Verghese stepped aside as T'lai stormed past him, obviously in a rather bleak mood. He simply watched the other two Klingons leave before turning around and following T'lai in.
"I didnt need your help, human." She snapped. "I could have sliced that klingon in a blink of an eye if he didnt yeild." She said as she walked over to grab a tankard of blood wine.
Verghese wasn't taken aback at this. He had expected it, especially considering the results of the previous match. Verghese stayed back a few steps from her just in case though.
"Yes, and then get yourself sliced open by the Klingon behind you in the process." he replied.
T'Lai growled slightly at him. "What is it that you want? If all you have to say is to antagonize me, then leave." She demanded.
Verghese simply picked up his plate from his table on the way, following her slowly. "Nothing, actually. Just wanted to congratulate you on a good and honorable fight in the previous round."
T'Lai found an empty table to sit at. "Well thank you." She said, deciding to keep the conversation mutual.
Verghese took a seat as well.Taking a small bite, he simply asked. "Are you allright though? It seemed you took quite a hit in that round."
"Well mentally, Im fine. Physically, I broke my arm completely, and he sliced my arm pretty deep. For a while I was wearing a sling, but I took it off. My arm feels fine now." She said.
Verghese nodded, taking a sip of water. He didn't really know what to say - hell, he didn't really know why he was sitting here in the first place.He hesitated a bit before speaking.
"If you ask me, you really don't seem mentally fine. It looks like something is troubling you rather deeply...was it something the doctor said?"
T'Lai frowned slightly and shook her head after she took a drink of her wine.
"Are you sure?
Verghese frowned. There was definately something bugging her, but then, this was T'lai he was talking about...."you sure?" he asked, trying one more time to see if he could get anything.
T'Lai burried her face in her hands, as if she wanted to cry, with a hurt expression. Being that klingons can't cry, she just stared at the table. "He killed our baby..." She began.
"It happened after we got on meH'Haj. K'Vok had angered me, and we got into a challeneged battle.. He...he stabbed me in the stomache....and... " She paused for a moment.
"And I just found out I was ....pregnant.... and... it would have been his baby..." She said.
Verghese froze. He just froze. He had expected something minor, really. Something to do with the battle. Hell, he'd expected her not to say a thing at all. But that she had told this out to him, in here and out of the blue....inwardly he cursed. What had he gotten himself into? Slowly, he turned to T'lai and asked. "Does he know?"
T'Lai shook her head.
"Ever since that fight...we've been in a mutual relationship... he seems to ignore me or avoid me." She said quietly.
Verghese simply nodded sadly before speaking. "Well...the news is rather...startling and sad, to say the least." He paused, frowning. "I find it hard that any person could actually ignore you that easily. Unless you haven't tried getting his attention, of course."
"Let's just say, I'm in no hurry to find him. Normally he use to find me...now I am worried..." She said solemnly.
"Well then, what are you waiting for? If it is indeed his child, and it is now dead, he deserves to know. This is more so if you are worried about him...." Verghese replied, not looking up from his meal.
"I am not sure how he will handle the news...I kind of want to wait till I can handle it better myself.. I only found out a few hours ago...so it's still trying to set in my mind..." she said.
"I see....either way, you'll have to tell him sooner or later." Looking at a clock on the wall, he realized it was quite late. "It might be better to tell him later, actually. The matches will begin soon, and no doubt he will be busy enough with it."
"Yeah... And... well I got something else bothering me too.." She said quietly.
Verghese took a sip of his drink before asking for a refill. He listened intently. Turning to face T'lai, he spoke. "Speak up. I'm a bartender, so at the least I can offer a listening ear."
"Well.. They thing that I killed Chang..." She said. "That twirp, Taj, found armor in my room that I didnt put there." She told him.
Now Verghese really froze. "Chang......is dead?" he asked, slowly. Surprisingly, he hadn't heard of it yet. This was an interesting development indeed, as much as it was surprising. But what concerned him more now was what T'lai told him she was most likely a suspect in this case.
T'Lai looked over at Verghese. She wasn't aware that no one knew yet. "Oh my...I guess I wasn't suppose to tell anybody... But ... yeah he is..." She said with surprize.
"Well, it matters little. What matters is that you say you have been framed by this...'taj', as it were, with Chang's armour, it seems."
"Yeah but because Taj has been in the family longer than I have been, they dont believe me." She told him.
"Still, it is surprising that they did not question his role in this...or what he was doing in your quarters for that matter." Verghese replied.
"According to him, and his father, whom is on his side, he was "investigating" the room for clues." She said with disgust in her voice.
He frowned. This was puzzling indeed. "And yet, was this 'investigation' authorized at all? If they went out on their own, and then specifically to your quarters alone, it does make it a bit suspicious, to say the least. That, and I find it surprising that the elder Chang would have let you in with him alone, considering the time since your last meeting."
T'Lai nodded. "I have no clue if the investigation was authorized or not." She said. "then it would be better to find out first. If it is indeed unauthorized, then the fact that they were inside your quarters should come under question."
"Yeah...Can we change the topic? I'd rather not talk about this." She said. "Remember, you're not an intellegance officer anymore. And you aren't in my command either.. so I'd rather not talk about this if I dont have to." She requested
Verghese nodded. He knew the need for discretion. "What do you wish to talk about then?" he replied.
"Well, why you're here with me." She said with curiosity.
Oh nuts Verghese thought to himself, cursing inwardly. He had been asking that question to himself, and so far had come up with little answer. "Well.....first I saw you were having trouble with those Klingons. And after that, the way you stormed pass me...well, it just suggested you needed someone to listen to." he paused. "I am a bartender after all, part of my job is to listen to even the most drunken customers, may it be in the bar or out."
"Yeah..." T'Lai said. "But I believe you're here with me because of another reason though. Your face says one thing... but your eyes say another." She said calmly.
Verghese was a bit surprised at this. Well, he shouldn't be. "I don't know what you're talking about." He replied
T'Lai looked at him with a stern expression. "There is no need to hide anything from me. I just poured my heart and soul out to you, yet you wont give me the same courtisy?" She asked as she kept her eyes locked on his.
Verghese looked at her for a few seconds. Not speaking, not answering.Finally, he gave a sigh, looking around the bar a bit. "Well, yes I should." as soon as he broke eye contact, he came darn close to a panic. He had to think of something, someway to escape or even delay the inevitable.
"Do you know what happens to liars in the town I grew up in?" She asked just to stir him up a little.
"They were hanged and totured in various and horrible ways?" he mused.
"Their tounges were cut off so they couldnt speak another lie." She said with a serious expression.
She then watched his shocked expression, and she bursted into laughter.
"Actually nothing happened to them, I made that up... and you actually believed me!" She said with a snicker.
Verghese gave out a short laugh. Sometimes it was good to be had. At least now it gave him a few moments to breathe
"So... back to the topic... What's on your mind? Any deep secrets you want to talk about?" She asked him with a friendly punch in the arm.
Think! darnit Think! verghese thought to himself. He had to get someway out of this. Although part of him was pushing him to spill the beans, out of simply fairness, the other half wanted it to be secret, and not to reveal anything. Out of this struggle though, he got a small idea. "Well...actually, quite a bit." Verghese glanced over at K'hare for a second before turning back to T'lai.
"Well I am open ears too, you know... after all we are friends." She said with a slight grin.
Verghese gave a smile. "Well, it's more of the bar than anything else." He sighed, turning his back to the bar. "I miss the old life I use to have, running goods to both sides of the nuetral zone. The bar...it's too sedentary, too quiet. Oh, it's good and comfortable of course...But the recent mission on the Solar Bounty was my first in over a year, and the thrill of being on a ship once more...it's simply irresistable." His eyes went downwards as he remembered the old days.
T'Lai frowned slightly. That wasn't what she wanted to hear. "Yeah I know what you mean... I would do almost anything to go back to my old way of life... but if I did that, I would loose what little honor I have left." She said.
"That's the difference between us. I can go back at anytime. The darn thing's right there, calling to me...all I need to do is take in the Solar bounty and trade it in for the Vindicator.... then I'll be free once again." Verghese paused, frowning. "but then, I did leave it for a reason. Like you, I fear it may just end up that I loose everything if I went back."
"It's a shame that you don't join us at the meH'Haj.. You could try and gain back some of the things you lost....though I know there are things that are irreplaceable... you can always try and work for a better future for yourself and your family." She told him.
At the mention of his family, Verghese's frown turned into a sneer. He snapped back at her, obviously pissed. "I do believe I already told you once, I have no family left. I doubt I ever will have one either."
T'Lai was taken back by his reaction. "Well with that attitude, it's no wonder you wont ever have another family." she snapped back as she slammed down her mug.
"It's a good thing too, otherwise they'd end up all dead, just like my current one." He replied. His mood starting to go sour.
T'Lai was growing irratated. "You really are a fool." She said before standing. "If all you want in your life is to make a fool of yourself, then I want nothing more to do with you." She told him in a very stern and cold tone of voice.
Verghese paused, and then gave out a short laugh. His expression turned rather grim however, as he continued. "Perhaps so....but I'd rather live my life a fool, than to harm those whom I care for. History repeated itself too many times to me, and my fear of it repeating itself again has paralyzed me." He paused, looking up at T'lai. "I may be a fool to you, but at least I know to myself that I care enough to stay that way, rather than just let it affect those I care for. And then watch them die later on, all because I refused to stay that way." He paused, turning around and facing the bar once more and back to his food and drink.
T'Lai frowned and looked at him. "I really don't know what else to tell you. I tried before to convince you it wasn't your fault...but like you said... the past repeats it self alot... Like you, I have no family.... At least, not a real family. In this... house... to me... its a pretend family... and a 'suqy' one at that." accidentally pronouncing sucky incorrectly. "I lived all of my life until a few days ago in exile... A life of no honor, and no future. My life was at a void... I had nothing to live for. And then that all changed one day at the local bar..." She said quietly.
"Thats when I had gotten kidnapped and brought back to that ship...where I was a prisoner.... " she said.
"I wonder where I would be if I had chose to stay in bed that day. I would be where I was before that day... a nothing." She said.
Verghese simply nodded, understanding what she was trying to say. "Well, I don't know what I can say. Perhaps, someday the past won't repeat itself so much, and something extraordinary happens to me to break the cycle. You've already done it, but until I can, I doubt i'll ever be something more than a mere bartender." He paused, his meal almost finished. Dabbing at his mouth with a cloth. He continued.
"But in the case that we ever meet again after such a thing happens....at least know that you have someone that cares about what happens to you. And if you need help, you know where to look."
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The Legion (Read 2771 times)
