Aborted Apologies

Posted on Thu Dec 5th, 2024 @ 5:37pm by Lieutenant Commander Caradan Eunidas

Mission: The Only Thing Left Was Hope
Location: Columbia, South Carolina
Timeline: Current

Caradan, in her full coverings to include her al-amira stepped along the sidewalk of a residential development. She stepped slowly as she worked on her little speech that she was planning to give to whomever answered the door at a particular address down the road. She had passed the house once already, stepped across to the other side of the road and went back. She was about a ten-minute walk, at her current pace, from that address again and decided she was nowhere near ready to speak to the family residing within. A third lap around the neighborhood was going to be in order.

She took the day for R&R as Mindo was working on securing a ship for them to head out in search of the Pandora. There was, in fact, no R&R to be had.

It was not entirely strange for her to be walking slowly about the neighborhood. A few others were doing the same. Some walking dogs, their children. Couples walked arm in arm. Caradan was the only person walking around all alone. That was until a pair of feet brought another up from behind her.

At any other given time, someone stepping up from behind might have triggered, in her, an act to turn and launch herself into defense mode. That was the only setback of wearing the al-amira; Caradan could not see behind her. But the benefit of not allowing anyone to see her being was far greater to her than anything else. Besides, she knew those footsteps. The man had a way of walking to give himself away only if he wanted. And he wanted to.

"Lynch," said Caradan flatly.

"Cara?" he asked. "Oh, hey. What a coincidence meeting you here."

Caradan doubted that with every drop of her being. She made no comment.

"I was just in the neighborhood and..."

"Whatever it is Lynch. I am not interested."

"Oh but you will be."

"I am on orders if you didn't know."

"Caradan Eunidas, Lieutenant Commander, on orders to be the Chief of Security for Captain Nykolas Temple. He is a bit missing at the moment I am told."

"That does not change anything," she said.

"What if I were to tell you that this interesting bit of information I have for you does not, at all, interfere with your current orders."

Heriah stopped her slow walk. Might as well have been standing still anyway. She turned to Lynch. "You are going to ask me to circumvent my orders to an extent."

"Nope."

"Make the time to head off on some..."

"Absolutely not. Cara, listen. We feel there may be a Changeling in play."

"Since when do 'WE' 'NOT' feel that way," Caradan said.

Lynch did not answer that question. "There is a person of interest connected to the Pandora."

"And this person of interest is the Changeling?"

Lynch showed his palms. "Caradan stop. Let me do this short brief."

"I don't have time for this."

"Time?" he asked. "You've been pacing this neighborhood for, what, half an hour now? More? All the while trying to work up the courage to..."

"Get on with it Lynch."

Lynch took a sigh. "Our person of interest is a man named Thac. You should be aware of him."

"I am. I have read the reports. He is serving the rest of his natural life, without rank, in a maximum security detention center whose location is undisclosed."

"Well there is someone who may be trying to learn his location and possibly seeking to bust him out."

"Do we have a description of this someone?"

"We have many descriptions. All on the same outpost in a remote area of Federation Space. A person shows up, asks about Thac, gets turned away and threatened with jail the next he asks. A week later, maybe again in the same week, another person shows up, asks about Thac. No one person has shown up twice but we have about a dozen individuals over several weeks showing up with the same question. And this individual is never seen again."

Caradan thought a moment. "That sounds like the Villeneuve situation again."

"My thoughts exactly."

"But Thac is heavily secured. There is no way..."

"I have learned a thing or two about Changelings. One is that, if there is a will, there are many ways. I need you to keep your wits about you on this."

"Keeping my wits about me is my middle name these days. You know that Lynch."

"And that is what makes you such a good agent."

Caradan took that more as an offense than a compliment. "You would not happen to have any good news to share would you?"

Lynch thought shortly. "Um, no. Yes. Well no. Well...maybe yes...ok...this is not good news, but it will benefit you."

"More than anything I want this conversation to end Lynch."

"That house down the road," he pointed to the exact house Caradan was planning on visiting, "that house comes complete with a garage."

"I can see that."

"Well inside that garage is a classic Chevrolet Corvette, among the last batch to ever be made. On said Corvette is a sticker. It says 'Dominion War Veteran'. And that does not describe the one who lost his life during the mission where you were rescued. No, the Dominion War veteran is the father. He fought on the front lines; got to see first-hand the lengths the Dominion took."

"I take it he has a disdain for Changelings then."

"Oh disdain is such a weak word. Let's just say that if his chest were a cannon, he would shoot his heart upon any Changeling he crosses paths with. I know you want closure, you want to apologize to that family for the loss of their son during your rescue, but if you knock on that door...you know I am not a betting man, but if I were...my money would be on you getting phasered in the face sooner than you would be met with a kind word...or a malicious word...any word for that matter. Phaser first."

"I get the idea Lynch."

Lynch shrugged and turned around as Caradan kept her focus on the house down the road. "So, just keep your wits about you then. Now, if you will excuse me. I am very busy. I have 31 things to do." That got no reaction from Caradan. "Really? You used to love that pun." Still nothing. "Well...you loved it the first 31 times I told it. Hehe." Lynch started away.

It took a minute, but Caradan likewise turned and started away, aborting her endeavor to meet with the family. Lynch had already teleported away to parts unknown. Caradan, though able to teleport back to Starfleet at any time, decided to walk for a bit yet.