342: First Strike

by Jariel Camen
80615.2000
Concurrent with Looking for a Fight

-=Illusions Lounge=-

[[Sorry.]] Camen signed hastily to Salvek and Kellyn, as he watched Zanh Liis bustle towards the exit. He was still not sure what was troubling her so but he had a feeling that the intoxicated O'Sullivan at the bar had something to do with it.

He decided to ask London to package the food so at the very least he could try to get her to eat something in their quarters.

[[Can we get the food to go, please?]] He asked at the bar. Trick nodded and Camen tried to pretend O'Sullivan wasn't even there, but in reality the man's presence felt like nails scraping down a blackboard when he was near Camen in any way.

He raised his hands to thank Trick, and felt a clammy palm come down against his wrist.

"Watch what you're doing there, eh?"

Camen knew immediately who it was, even without the drunken warning, and snapped his wrist in response to free himself of the grip. To him the action to "silence" him was as offensive as if Keiran had put his hand over Camen's mouth when he tried to speak.

[[You're the one who should watch what they do,]] he signed back.

Camen had seen the way Keiran looked at Liis about the ship, and it always bothered him, but he was willing to let the Captain remain blissfully unaware. Now however, as he stood staring Keiran in the eye he couldn't help how good it felt to tell him off.

"Vedek, I'm sure that Mr. London can send someone with your food. You go ahead, see to the Captain and make sure she's all right." Blane warned from behind Camen.

TC was one of his dearest friends, but right now Camen wished he would just back the hell off.

"That's right, you go and take care of Zanh Liis. You know how to do it so much better than anyone else," Keiran slurred. "You're the sun and the moon in Universe Liis, and you'd better damned well get on your knees every night and beg the Prophets to make you worthy of the honor."

[[What did you just say to me?]] Camen replied, stepping closer to make sure he heard Keiran correctly before he issued the response such a statement deserved.

“I said, that you’d better beg your gods to make you worthy of her. You’ve got a bloody long way to go.”

The only way to describe the next five seconds was that Camen's life flashed before his eyes. He recalled his visions from the Orb, of everything Zanh Liis had gone through to protect his life. Every history contained in the Orb that had been unknown to him, revealed. Every time Camen had died, and she had pulled herself together to jump again and set things right with nothing more than her love for him as a motivation.

All of it leading to this time and place where things were set right, and they would live out their days together on this ship and wherever their lives would lead after.

Since they were children they had waged war against rules, regulations, Cardassians, Jem'Hadar, Starfleet, the religious orders of Bajor, pain, despair, agony, self doubt, self pity, the Prophets, and Time itself for the one central truth. That neither of their lives would ever have meaning or fulfillment without each other.

When every force in the Universe from gods to the Laws of Science had tried to tell them their love was wrong, Liis and Camen had defiantly stood up and silenced them all.

That's why, as Camen stood here now before Keiran O'Sullivan, he knew if nothing else that the man was right, and he should be thankful every day to be lucky enough to have Zanh Liis in his life.

It was the fact Keiran of all people would try to bestow such a warning on him that infuriated him beyond all description. If Salvek, Kellyn, Reece or Blane had said such a thing he would have taken it as a compliment towards Liis from longtime friends. Keiran had no right to any such entitlement in Camen's eyes, and he was not going to stand by and let him tarnish her honor.

As he drew back his fist, one phrase was burned into his consciousness.

*Just who in the hell does he think he is?*

Camen delivered the first blow, a right into the man's face. Keiran staggered back in his drunken state, and dabbed at a drop of blood dripping from his nose.

Quite satisfied with the result, Camen considered the matter over.

He looked around the room to see Blane had taken up a defensive posture, Dane had picked up a chair, Kellyn was holding her beer bottle by the neck, Keiran was regrouping to strike back and the rest of the crew members here present were all pushing away from their tables...

The matter was far from over.

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Jariel Camen
Ship's Chaplain
USS Serendipity NCC-2012