by Salvek
80607.0100
After Under the Weather. . .Modification Net
-=Underground Tunnels, Stra II=-
80607.0100
After Under the Weather. . .Modification Net
-=Underground Tunnels, Stra II=-
"Follow Mim this way!"
Salvek was not entirely sure what to think. As it stood right now, Mim was in charge of their fate. The safety of the children and the away team were to be trusted to this robot Salvek had met only moments earlier. For what it was worth however, Mim had given no indication that he intended to do anything but assist the away team, so long as he was not left behind.
"What about them?" Keiran asked, inclining his head towards the unconscious Stra soldiers.
"I believe they have been sufficiently dealt with Commander." Salvek said simply. He would be having a discussion with his chief of security about losing his cool and firing his weapon without provocation, but now was not the time or place. Nerves were frayed and Salvek knew enough about humans to know that in situations like these, pointing out lapses in conduct generally just led to insubordination. For now Salvek wanted Kieran up front, where he could keep an eye on him. "Please lead the way behind Mim."
The group left the control room, and returned to the lift that would take them back to the surface. Keiran and Avery ascended first, with several children and Mim. Upon arrival to the surface, they exited the lift. Several Stra saw the Federation crew and attempted to arrest them.
"You! Drop your weapons!"
"Get ready for a fight Doctor!" Keiran warned, as he leveled his weapon.
"Please be at peace, I have arranged for out safety." Mim said gently. Almost on cue, the advancing Strasa bounced off a forcefield and down to the ground. The men regained their footing, and stood helplessly behind the forcefield. As the remaining groups of children and Serendipity crew came up the lift, Mim rolled over to where the troops stood.
"Mim is leaving now. Goodbye." The robot lifted an appendage and waved to the Stra behind the forcefield.
Salvek arrived with the last group and nodded to Keiran, indicating that everyone was accounted for.
"Everyone please walk behind Mim to stay inside the forcefields." The robot warned.
"Father!" One of the children ran forward out of the group towards the Stra on the other side. February grabbed the child just moments before she touched the forcefield.
"Sala!" The Strasa yelled, relief spreading across his face. "I have been so worried about you!" His relief turned immediately to anger as he looked at the female Trill holding his child. "Where are you taking our children?" The man demanded.
"In all the confusion no one bothered to look after the children." February rose to her feet to look the man in the eye. "So our people took it upon themselves to make sure they were safe."
"My apologies." The Strasa said, as Salvek approached to stand at February's side. "Please release the children. You have my word a cease fire will be called until they are safely taken from this area and returned to their families."
"Then call it." Salvek said.
The man nodded, and turned towards his comrades.
"There are children here! Tell the people from Stra major we request a one hour cease fire until they can be taken from the building."
With communications down, the word circulated to the entrance of the building and out into the street the old fashioned way, by word of mouth. After several minutes the fervor at the front of the building died down, and Salvek was informed that the cease fire was in place.
"Mim." Salvek dropped to a knee, to address the robot. "These men will take care of the children now. I need you to isolate us separate from the children in the forcefield, so we can leave them behind. Can you do this?"
"Mim just needs to use the computer terminal. But why? The children will be safer with Commander Salvek."
"The children belong with their parents. They must choose what is best for them." Salvek said.
"The Strasa aren't nice to Mim, they won't be nice to the children either. They make everyone have the wire." Mim said the last word slowly and quietly, like it was a deep dark secret no one could know.
"That may be true, but my people, the Federation, are a society of rules. One of those rules is that we do not interfere with the natural course of evolution for a world, nor do we impose or values on them when they differ from our own. That includes taking children from the Strasa, just because we disagree with the use of the wire. Do you understand?"
"No."
Salvek stood up and considered his next words carefully. He simply did not have time to debate the merits of the Prime Directive at this moment.
"Lieutenant Grace, please bring the child here."
February took Sala's hand, and brought her to Mim and Salvek. She held the girl's hand, sensing her nervousness regarding all that was happening around her.
"Sala, can you tell Mim where you would like to go?" February asked.
"Back to my father." The girl said.
"She wishes to return to her builder." Rada said, appealing to Mim on a level the robot could better relate to.
"Oh!" Mim's mechanical eyes widened and glowed brighter blue. Without another word Mim rolled to a nearby terminal. February showed the girl back to the rest of the group of children, who stood together separate from the Sera crew. There was a pop as a forcefield rose between the away team and the children, and a second pop as the field between the children and the Strasa dropped. Sala ran into her father's arms, as the other children were escorted away to be taken to safety.
"Move out." Salvek ordered, and began to move for the exit safe inside the forcefield envelope Mim had created. He looked back over his shoulder to see that Mim was still sitting, watching Sala and her father hug. The robot's features turned down into an expression of sadness.
"Come on little guy. We need to return to our ship." Reece patted Mim on his mechanical head lovingly, and Mim slowly turned away, and rolled back to the front of the group.
The group made its way with ease to the Polaris. The Strasa that saw them were either too busy with their own problems to care about the group, or hopelessly trapped behind security fields.
Mim rolled his way up the ramp on the ship.
"Welcome aboard." Salvek said. "Mr. Dengar, please see to the comfort of our guest. Lieutenant Grace, please take the helm and bring us to the Fortune. We need to retrieve the shuttle before returning."
Grace nodded, and took the helm with Dabin sliding into the copilot seat to keep her company, as Kellyn and Rada took Mim to the rear of the ship to see what they could do for the bot in the way of maintenance. Salvek took a seat, along with Keiran, Avery, Dane and Hok.
"What's going to happen to Mim when we return to the ship?" Avery asked.
"That will be left to the Captain. I am fairly certain there is no legal precedent for a machine that has evolved to be sentient to request legal asylum. The Stra may very well argue that Mim cannot even technically request asylum, let alone be granted it."
"Aye well I saw the way Mim looked at that child down there and I can tell ye he's as real and feelin' as you and me." Keiran said. Then, realizing he was speaking to a Vulcan, corrected himself. "Well, me anyway."
"Commander." Reece spoke up over the group. "Scanning the Fortune's location. The shuttle is completely powered down and it looks like most of its computer components have been stripped."
Salvek looked at the readings himself, and saw there was little left of the Fortune's computer system. There would be no getting the shuttle back into space anytime soon, but he also could not leave the craft here to be picked over by the Strasa any more than it already had been.
"Torpedo, Mr. O'Sullivan." Salvek ordered. Keiran nodded and took up the tactical station. He ran a quick scan to be sure no civilians were nearby, then fired on the Fortune. The explosion incinerated the small craft, leaving behind nothing but a small crater and some shards of hull.
"Ouch, that's going to kill our insurance rates. So much for our good driver discount. That's what you get for living in a bad zip code." Reece said. "I'm not explaining this one to Liisy."
"Indeed. Lieutenant Grace, please return us to the Serendipity at your earliest convenience."
With her typical grace, February guided the ship safely back to its home. As the ramp lowered, Salvek could see the Captain's boots waiting for them in the docking bay. He descended the ramp, and as he did more of Zanh Liis was revealed until at last he could see her face. He noted that regardless of her current mood, her expression was always one of pride and relief at the same time when her away team returned to the ship. To Salvek it was much like the look of a mother who has just seen her child jump from a diving board for the first time. Zanh Liis was always grateful for the work of her crew and proud of their accomplishments, but never particularly enjoyed knowing she was putting them in harm's way.
"Greetings Captain." Salvek said, stepping within a half meter of her. Liis opened her mouth to speak, but stopped when she heard an unusual mechanical whir behind Salvek. Her brow furrowed, adding even more crinkles to her Bajoran nose. Slowly she tilted her body as the waist to the side, to peer beyond Salvek's shoulder. The Polaris crew parted, to reveal Mim rolling down the ramp onto the deck of the Serendipity.
Zanh Liis's already open mouth widened even more as she saw the bot, and wondered exactly what the away team had gotten her into. Before she could ask, Dabin Reece poked his head into her line of vision to speak to her.
"It followed me home Liisy, can I keep it?"
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Commander Salvek
First Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
Commander Salvek
First Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012