Ambush

Posted on Fri Jul 17th, 2015 @ 11:13pm by Captain Tim Williams & Lieutenant Commander Horatio Hawke & Lieutenant Commander Ciaran McIntyre & Lieutenant Ethan Kessel

Episode: Orphans
Location: Dreyas Four - Hidden Lab
Timeline: MD30 1505hrs

Entek had waited patiently for over two hours since the majority of Starfleet officers had left his lab, waiting to see whether their absense was only temporary and waiting to see what those still within and around his lab would be doing as part of their routine. They had settled into an hourly reporting pattern, with one of the two security officers on guard checking in on those inside briefly before returning outside to be free of the dampening field to submit a report back up to their ship. Entek had just watched the second such update be fed back to the ship, and had decided on how he would make his move.

Taking care to move silently, he approached one of the two security officers from behind, hidden from view and sensors by his suit. He removed his disruptor from its holster - which was similarly hidden within his personal holographic field - and swung it heavily at the back of the officer's head, before firing a quick shot on stun at the guard's companion. Just to make sure, he fired at the first security officer, ensuring himself the widest window of opportunity whilst they were both unconscious.

He then moved down towards the entrance to his lab and keyed the entry circuit, hoping that those inside would just believe the second opening to be one of the security officers passing on some information from the ship following their report. He could see all three of the unwelcome guests in his lab within his field of vision, and set his disruptor to a wide-beam, maximum stun setting, and fired; catching all three of them within the beam. Stepping inside, he sealed the door, activating additional locking mechanisms to keep out any more unwelcome visitors.

-Hidden Lab - 1530hrs

Ethan's head was throbbing. He opened his eyes and his vision swam. He let out a low moan, and tried to clutch a hand to his head, but found it restrained to his side.

"What the..." His vision began to clear. He pulled at the straps, but they didn't budge.
Then, his eyes were drawn to a figure, standing in shadow to one side. A Cardassian face. Entek. Without doubt.

"I expected you would recover first, given your enhancements," the shadowy Cardassian figure standing next to the table said, holding some sort of instrument between his hands. Entek had removed the holographic suit which had hidden him from view, and now stood in rather simple civilian clothes with tailoring clearly from Cardassia.

First? So... The others were still alive. That was something.

Enhancements? What was he - Oh. His cybernetics. Did this crackpot think he'd had them attached for the convenience of it? He looked at the instrument in his hand. A tool of some kind. A laser scalpel? He'd probably find out soon enough.

"Oh... A fan of borg cybernetics? I'd be happy to give you a demonstration."

His legs were of course, federation model cybernetics - he wouldn't be able to snap the Cardassian's neck with them, like Scorpius would have been able to have done. Any of a Praetor Class Borg drone would have been able to strangle him with whatever limb was closest...

For perhaps the first time, Kessel would have preferred the more aggressive frame...

Still... He had awoken first. That meant that some of the left over internal systems were active.

"Can't say I am surprised. So you are Entek are you? I thought you'd be smarter than this... You should have run when you had the chance. Now you'll have Cardassia *and* the Federation out for your guts... Not too smart, for a scientist. If you think they won't notice us missing..." He left the threat hanging.

"Oh, I don't doubt that they will notice that you are missing. I've been hiding from both governments for long enough now to know not to treat them as idiots. But I have sent a signal to my creations that will instruct them to... well, shall we say keep your friends occupied for the time being? Just long enough for me to study the enhancements the Borg have made to your being and make my escape." He moved and held the tool towards Ethan's wrist, activating it and stimulating the Borg implants there. After a second or so, Ethan's assimilation tubules emerged from between his knuckles and into a data module Entek had placed on the bed to collect a sample of Ethan's nanoprobes. Kessel gasped at the cold feeling as the Probes deployed.

"Your modifications appear to be far more extensive than the average drone," Entek commented, his tone conversational, almost is if they were discussing the topic over a cup of coffee. "And your nanoprobes appear to function differently to those that I have seen from the Orders records of previous subjects. I would hypothesise that you weren't turned into a standard drone."

"Standard? No... There was nothing standard about what happened to me, about what they made me into. The Borg carved up my body and turned me into something monstrous. They raped my mind with their hivefield and twisted me into something which should not exist. Then they turned me against my crew and... my Captain." Kessel burst, pulling against his restraints. He could feel them beneath his skin.

The Medical Team hadn't truly managed to deactivate the probes... They were sill active, spinning through his body doing whatever it is was that they did. They were a part of his blood supply now, replacing many of the functions of his bloodcells. The cybernetics he used now only functioned when modified to be compatible with him.

"Fascinating," Entek replied coldly, clearly thinking only of the intellectual. "Your nanoprobes definitely appear to be far more aggressive than the standard variety. I'm surprised that the Starfleet doctors who treated you were able to counter them, though they obviously couldn't do anything for your severed legs. Tell me; it isn't usual for the Borg to replace healthy limbs unless they wish to attach some sort of tool or piece of equipment in its place. Just what did they replace your lower body with?"

Enough armaments to wipe out a ships crew, enough armour to resist a full phaser hit, enough processing power to hack a ships systems within minutes and enough blades and a set of limbs powerful enough to break out of these restraints, grip your head in its claws and crush it into pulp before throwing your corpse across the entirety of this lab, without discharging a weapon...
He thought.

Instead, Kessel glowered at his captor.

"You know? You really are sick in the head... I think you'd have gotten on fine with those creatures. They'd have found plenty of ways to assimilate your technology and your mindset... Your obsession with genetic perfection is very... Borg." he said, think about the cybernetics.
Many of parts were, he new, still compatible, and in medical storage.

"As much as I'd love to have a nice calm conversation about the adjustments that they made to my form, I don't think I feel like talking about that much.

What do you think you can achieve here? The Highlander knows the location of this laboratory... As do our friends the Cardassians...
Now, we federation types, we have a sentimental fondness for trials, and charges and evidence... but the Cardassians see that as something as a bureaucratic nightmare... A soon as they think their men are dead, they'll see that there is nothing that they can get from you... And they'll bomb this laboratory into glass... All from Orbit." He voice grew cold as he played out the logical progression of events. Each sequence seemed to lead to an inevitable outcome. The corners of his mouth twitched as he glared at the insane scientist."

"Resistance is futile. Unless you surrender to the Federation of course... And hope that we don't come to an... Arrangement with the Cardassians...""

[Lab Exterior]

There was a crash followed by an angry yell in some exotic accent. "I'm not an engineer, dammit!" Came the cry. Lieutenant Ciaran McIntyre was putting his training to passable use by attempting to break the decryption on the door's locking mechanism while the Highlander's Executive Officer watched on.

"We'd be quicker trying to burn our way through." Mac said, defeated.

Hawke let out a sigh that bordered on exasperation and pulled the hand phaser from his hip. "Then why don't we do that?" he said as he tapped up the power of the weapon then aimed it at the door's lock.

"Sounds like a plan." The Scot replied, taking a few steps back and raising his weapon.

The XO pressed the trigger and fired a beam of intense energy, striking the door's lock. It glowed bright red for a fraction of a second before bursting apart in an explosion of molten mess. The door helpfully swung outward just a crack as Hawke tapped down the power setting and looked insufferably pleased with himself.

[Lab Interior]

Entek looked around at the loud noise and saw that his lock on the door had failed and he was only moments from having yet more intruders in his lab. He glanced over briefly at his isolation suit, piled against one of the walls where he had left it. There would be no time to don it again now. "I was going to say that regardless of whoever captures me, my scientific abilities are far to valuable to lead to me being simply killed for my past actions," he told Ethan as he dropped his tools, and quickly grabbed the data modules he had been adding data to. "But I would much prefer to continue doing my own work, free of government captors." He glanced once more over at the door as he made quickly for the side passage that led to his shuttlecraft. It was equipped with a stolen Romulan cloaking device; if he could get to it in time, he should be able to evade the Starfleet crew.

He wondered how he had managed to underestimate them. His creatures should have kept them occupied for far longer than they had, and the team at the lab weren't due to check in again yet. He should have had at least another half an hour before the former Borg's colleagues should have need to check in on them.

The two officers quickly reached another door and wasted no time in firing their phasers into its locking mechanism. It was much weaker and burned through in no time, swinging shakily open and allowing them to kick their way in.

Hawke led the way, his hand phaser at the ready, and immediately saw Ethan strapped to the table in the centre of the room. Not seeing any unrestrained occupant of the room, he darted across to the engineer. "Kessel, are you alright? Did you see where he went?"

"I'm fine," Ethan said. He indicated the side passage Entek had ran down with his chin. "He went down there."

The XO looked up at the open door then back to the away team. He pointed at Petty Officer Ropata, "You, stay here and help Mr Kessel. Everybody else, follow me." Without a backwards glance, Hawke made a beeline for the side door, hoping it wasn't too late.

Entek made it to the facility's small hangar, and ran directly for his shuttle's entry hatch. The shuttle was cloaked even on the ground - another one of his precautions which he had wondered if it was worth taking, but was glad to of now that his facility had been found - but he knew from memory exactly where the hatch was. He reached out for it, and found the control panel. His fingers traced a pattern of keypresses in the air, and the shuttle shimmered into view. Now all that was left was to enter the hatch locking code, board and leave. Even if the Starfleet officers were right behind him, their phasers should do nothing against the ship's hull. Then he could cloak as he ascended to orbit.

A few steps forward and McIntyre had already pressed the trigger on his phaser, the blinding beam of energy burst from its muzzle and seemed to pour into Entek's back as though it was a jug of water.

The Cardassian seemed to lurch forward as his muscles tensed and convulsed under the stress of the phaser bolt. There was a dull thud as his face connected with the shuttle's access door and he slid to the floor.

The away team rushed over to the downed scientist and Hawke knelt down next to him, making sure he was out for the count. "Not fast enough, fella," he said before tapping his commbadge. "Hawke to Williams. We got him, sir."

"Good work," came the static-filled reply as it just about made it through the dampening field. The hangar must have less shielding to prevent the shuttles systems being affected. "Get everyone back up here."

"Okay everybody, you heard the man. Let's finish up here and get back to the ship," Hawke said as he rose. He gestured to the unconscious Cardassian at his feet. "Don't forget our prisoner."