Equilibration (Trek uberfic -- UPDATED 8/2/04)

[jixer]

Hello Kittens-



Now this feels like a proper mix of Next Gen and classic Trek with the added bonus of W/T goodness. Talk about a series that should have been! But would anyone else understand the title-Kitten Trek?





Thank you for this, Captain



Jixer

[Kalita]

Interesting twists and turns here, great to see it all moving along.



What did Willow find in Warren's DNA? (I assume it was Warren...) Is he actually someone well-known, or does he have an unusual genetic background or... Hm. I hate this kind of mystery.



Ooh, and an unexpected boarding party! This could get very interesting...

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has. "

- Margaret Mead

[Grimlock72]

Now why did I see that coming.... and exactly WHAT is stopping Murdock and crew from beaming those invaders right back into space ?? For some odd reason I suspect Murdock did see something coming, can't explain why he would go into a probably dangerous situation without his primairy crew at their stations.



Hmm.. I've wondered about this before, can't they just lower partial shields to the area they want to beam people ? More to the point, isn't the main bridge shielded against direct beam-in?



Can I see Willow's PADD (with current page clearly visible) please ?? Can I, can I, can I... ?? Ingenious that people would try to alter their DNA to avoid being recognized by scanner. It makes sense of course, just was new to me.



I'm rather suspicious about the lack of personel on the bridge. That could also explain why the captain really didn't want Tara or Willow at the bridge at that time. Should teach him to prepare his plans better :-)



Given that that Guardian thingie is rather dangerous, shouldn't it be disabled and/or destroyed ? Willow was quite right, it IS dangerous to mess with the past.... and she would have lots of motivation to do so herself.



Grimmy

--
"You hurt Tara," Willow said too calmly. "The last one who tried that was a god. I made her regret it." -- Unexpected Consequences by Lisa of Nine

[bluewillowwitch]

Capt,

I loved this update! You have me on the edge of my seat wondering about many things. The main thing is what is up with the DNA? and are so cute. Can't wait to more. You know that you are evil with the cliffhangers, right? Update soon, please?





bluewillowwitch

---------------------------------------------

"Fate keeps on happening."--Anita Loos

[CaptMurdock]

Ah, it's great to be back, posting new parts of the story and reading the feedback, especially from Grimlock, my best critic.



"Beam them back into space"? That'd be inhuman! Besides, if they're supposed to capture the Maquis, it would not do to send them back where they came from. In the words of James Kirk Himself, "they've got us right where we want them." Or, something like that.



Yes, there is a reason for the absence of the senior officers on the bridge. Where they are...you'll find out in the next exciting episode. The personnel manning the stations are, shall we say, specialists. Again, stay tuned.



As far as Willow and Tara coming to the bridge at that particular moment...ah, the best laid plans of mice and men... The Hannibal's dedication placque contains the line:



"I love it when a plan comes together."



Yes, it is "Warren" with the DNA tags. His true nature will be revealed by the end of the story, trust me. (Faith, BTW, is the one who's mainly human but with a few unusual sequences -- you'll see why soon, although the full story behind her may take a little longer. Hey, have to save something for the sequel. ).



The Guardian is going to be the conduit of many things, including some information on...well, that would be telling. Heh heh.



I'll try to get back to you soon, but given how catch-as-catch-can my net access is these days, I can't promise anything.

_________________



"Honey, in case you didn't hear me the first six thousand times: no more teleportation spells."

[xita]

Captain, good to have you back. It's good to see Willow has her computer skills, but kinda confusing there at the end, what's going on? Low crew, weapons drawn? w/t make a good team , intuitive and intelligent , both able to pick out inaccuracies.

- - - - - - - - - - -
"The suspense is terrible. I hope it'll last."

-Willie Wonka

[Arwen276]

Ummmm, Welcome back!!!!



And I think I'm as confused as everyone else with the DNA results and the Yellow Alert...

You're such a tease leaving us hanging there when armed guys were just about to attack!



Oh and Willow and Tara teaming up! now that's a cute sight!



~Arwen

Hear That Baby? You're My Always... Willow

[shuyaku]

We are just learning all kinds of things about everybody - the character development is fantastic. And here come the bad guys. Please don't keep us in suspense too long



Fantastic update Cap'n,

-shuyaku

[the vamp nurd]

well beam me up and call me Scotty.



I'm a lurker, so if I ain't posted here, but I'm definetly bookmarking this one.



Ah the days of the first ST...



Is there going to be more fighting, I can't wait until Tara kicks Warren in the balls....

Sorry I missed church, I was busy becoming a lesbian and worshiping Satan



Open up Pandora's kiss.



Bardlet no #27

[CaptMurdock]

Small update. More to come.



At several key locations aboard the Hannibal, Maquis thugs beamed over from the Trieste, having taken over the science vessel several hours before. Armed with a variety of weapons and specific instructions as to which sections of the ship to storm, the anarchists/malcontents raced through the corridors, while the intruder-alert siren shrieked and the computer announced, “Intruder alert. All hands, General Quarters, Level 5.”



****



Even as the intruders beamed onto the bridge, Captain Murdock reacted decisively. Whirling to his command panel, he tapped out a quick sequence. In the furor of the moment, no one on the bridge noticed that several key lights on various stations went out.



A rather large brute, two meters tall and built for trouble, materialized next to Murdock. He leveled the Cardassian phaser that he took off a dead gul and started to say “Don’t move!” He got as far as “Don’t m--” before the captain’s fist, moving faster than he could see, crashed against the side of his face, rendering him unconsciousness faster than he could hit the deck.



In the same motion, Murdock drew his phaser and stunned a Maquis cradling a disrupter rifle. Step right up, folks, he thought, grimly yet with a certain relish. Come ride the Ride of the Century...



****



Warren’s plan called for beaming onto the bridge and taking the regular bridge crew completely unawares, thereby facilitating the capture of a Nebula-class starship for the Maquis. What he did not expect to see, as he materialized next to the forward port turbolift, was that almost every bridge station was manned by security personnel, complete with protective headgear and semi-armor, all drawing phasers or physically besetting the intruders.



The guard at the Ops position, a one-point-eight meter woman built like a valkyrie, pointed her phaser at Warren and fired. With barely an instant to spare, Warren managed to leap back into the turbolift alcove, which afforded just enough cover to keep him from being blasted. As he tried to flatten himself even further, Warren wondered two things: one, why the turbolift door refused to open to let him off the bridge, and two, who was the lunatic that thought of this plan?



****



Which lunatic came up with this plan? Faith wondered as she dived for the deck, avoiding a phaser beam that came from the security guard at the Tactical station, where she had materialized seconds before. She had not even drawn her disrupter before the young Vulcan in security armor had drawn his phaser; only her preternaturally fast reflexes had saved her from being stunned.



Security Specialist Valek permitted himself a microsecond of astonishment at the young Maquis’ speed, then dismissed it as his ingrained Vulcan discipline reestablished itself. He leaned over the console to get a better aim at her...



...allowing Faith to reach up and yank Valek bodily over the console and onto the deck. He rolled to his feet, noting that he had lost his grip on his phaser, saw that she had gotten up and was now aiming a punch at his head. He blocked the blow, then reached with his other hand to apply the nerve pinch.



Faith’s other hand closed over Valek’s wrist, slowing the advancing hand, slowing, then stopping, now forcing it back, away from her neck and shoulder. “No ya don’t, hobgoblin,” she rasped, as she grappled with Valek.



****



Willow was bewildered at the Maquis beaming onto the bridge. She looked over at Tara, who no doubt was similarly confused and afraid, but was masking it with professional detachment. It was only when Tara looked back at her that the mask of equanimity slipped, allowing a brief visage of terror out. Willow mustered her best ‘resolve face’ and shot it towards her friend, getting a ghost of a grin in return.



One of the Maquis shimmered into existence barely a meter from her station. As the quantum-phase “sparkle” effect faded, Willow was able to recognize him immediately: Jonathan Levinson. She was surprised at how short he was, barely coming up to her eyebrows. He was cradling a phaser rifle, one of the older, chunky Starfleet models that looked as if it had swallowed one of the hand weapons. He leveled it at her as soon as he noticed her; his attempt to affect a threatening posture was barely adequate.



The sound of phaser fire distracted both Willow and Jonathon. She reacted first, grabbing the phaser rifle and pushing it upward, catching Jonathan in the face. Unfortunately, before she could wrest the weapon from him, Jonathan had grabbed her sleeve to regain his balance, succeeding only in toppling them both to the deck.



****



Tara bit her lip as she saw Willow and Jonathan (whom she also recognized from his Starfleet record, during Willow’s DNA analysis) grapple with each other with the rifle between them. She turned to see one of the Maquis blast the security guard manning the Engineering station; although the xenopolymer sheeting of the security armor absorbed most of the deadly disruptive energy, the force of the blast still knocked the guard cold. She heard the ready room doors open off to one side, and turned to see two more security men, armed with phaser rifles, emerge through the doors. One of them leveled his rifle and stunned the Maquis who had fired.



Tara turned back to Willow. The redheaded science officer was still wrestling with Jonathan, who still held his weapon in a death-grip. Willow was having a hard time employing any personal-combat strategems, with Jonathan holding onto her as well.



She had decided to get up from the crouch she had adopted at the point of beam-in, when Murdock, having spotted her while slamming another Maquis face-first into a console, shouted “Tara! Stay down!”



As Tara prudently kept her place, not being confident in her ability to contribute to this sort of full-scale donnybrook, and with Murdock’s enthusiastic cry of “Hey, rube!” the Battle for the Bridge began in earnest.



****



“Break out the emergency support modules,” Govarr instructed his nurses and technicians as the intruder-alert siren sounded. He was in the midst of preparing Sickbay for an influx of casualties when two armed men, one human, the other Bajoran, charged through the main doors. The medical personnel backed away as the Maquis waved their weapons at them.



The human leveled his outmoded disruptor rifle and shouted “All right, everybody against that bulkhead!” He turned and saw Govarr, a derisive sneer sprouting from his face. “You too, porkchop.”



Sounding like a groundskimmer with a misaligned fusion core, Govarr growled low in his throat.



****



Another team of Maquis insurgents converged on the Engineering complex in the secondary hull. Their leader, a thorough-unpleasant human named Caleb, charged through the doors with a dozen armed men and women behind him. They leveled phasers and disrupters, of various pedigrees, at the Hannibal personnel. Caleb saw the chief engineer, DaKar, standing near the master systems console.



“Get away from that--”



With a burst of light and a crackle of powerful yet restrained energies, Caleb was dumped on his ass by the force field he ran right into. The rest of his team skidded to a stop, seeing that the Engineering complex proper was on the other side of the barrier. A couple of them helped Caleb to his feet; he was a bit woozy, feeling as if his entire body had gone to sleep. Some of the others re-leveled their weapons and fired, the destructive energy beams splashing off the sparkling force field.



DaKar shook his head. “This is Engineering....they think we can’t make a force field here?” He tapped his combadge. “DaKar to CIC...we’ve got some party-crashers here. Show them the door, please.”



****



Situated near the exact center of the saucer section, the Combat Intelligence Center (or CIC) was a slightly smaller version of the Main Bridge, yet was more utilitarian in purpose, reflected by the more subdued lighting from the overhead. Although the Nebula class, like its larger cousin the Galaxy class, had originally been designed with a “Battle Bridge” to be used when separating the two sections of the ship, this secondary control center had been phased out when field reports of the necessity of Separation Mode -- or rather, the lack of necessity -- had been received by the

Starfleet Corps of Engineers and the Advanced Starship Design Bureau. Although a great idea “on paper,” separating the saucer section of the ship just did not yield the tactical advantage that so many designers had envisioned.



As the Hannibal had only been partially constructed by the time this datum had been assimiliated by the ASDB, some rethinking had gone into its command and control systems. While Main Engineering, in the stardrive section, was deemed sufficient to control the ship should total annihilation somehow occur to the saucer section, a second command center for the saucer section, one better protected than the Main Bridge which after more than a century of design alternatives still rested atop the saucer like a sore thumb, was deemed imperative, or at least a darn good idea. Upon taking command of his new vessel, Captain Murdock, with his amazing sense of historical perspective, had named this new auxiliary control center after that used in American naval vessels in the late twentieth century.



In the Ops position, a virtual duplicate of that on the Main Bridge, Lt. Commander Gelfa Kolrami rerouted the myriad resources of the enormous starship on a second-by-second basis, tabulating, cross-referencing, her years of Starfleet training augmenting her natural talents honed by a hundred thousand years of Zakdorn evolution, keeping track of hundreds of subsystems as she rattled off a non-stop litany of information and instructions:



“…rerouting H-nine-five-seven elements CIC to Security Maquis intruders deck seven section 15-delta proceed at once CIC out computer establish force fields around deck seven section 15-delta and reroute all command functions away from deck seven sections 15-alpha to 15-epsilon CIC to Engineering acknowledged locking onto intruders energizing now CIC out CIC to Security Maquis intruders have been placed in transporter stasis initiate protocol beta-three CIC out…”



****



Caleb and his team were rather surprised when the transporter beam grabbed them, in spite of the scramblers that they all carried, which they were told would prevent the Hannibal crew from simply beaming them back to the Trieste. This shock, however, paled in comparison to finding themselves materializing, each in a separate cell in the

Security brig, sans weapons and behind force-barriers. The security guards standing watch outside the cells, toting phaser rifles, just added insult to injury.



****



Commander Olivia Faraday sat in the CIC’s center sea, quietly seething…not merely about the intruders on the ship, although it felt like a physical violation to have the Maquis storming about the corridors of her home and hearth. What really toasted her cheese was the captain’s insistence on being right in the middle of the “action,” as her called it, leaving her with the “minor task” of making sure the ship did not fall into enemy hands.



She flexed her hands, clenching and unclenching her fists, listening to Kolrami report incidents and countermeasures, listening to security dispatches from the ensign on watch at the Tactical station. She was about to ask Kolrami something when Ensign Warnock piped up. “Ma’m, I think we’re about to have visitors.”



Faraday started, then noticed the expression on the young man’s face. She nodded. “Advise Lt. Thelvran.”



****



Another Maquis team, this one led by a roguish gent named Mal, were looking for the Battle Bridge or other auxiliary control center. In front of Mal was a rather large man, who looked to be the product of an unholy union between a human and a Rigellian kaylar, saddled with the unlikely name of Jayne. He cradled a nasty-looking two-handed weapon, one which looked as if it would not emit anything as clean and refined as energy beams.



“Hang on, it’s gotta be around here somewhere,” Mal was saying, consulting a PADD with an electronic map.



“You said that three corridors ago,” reminded a tall, dark-skinned woman, pointing a Regulan plasma gun at the overhead.



“I know, Zoe, okay? It’s this way,” Mal countered, not really pulling off the tone of certainty he was hoping for. The rest of his team rolled their collective eyes, but said nothing and followed him.



“Where the hell is everybody?” another man named Simon asked. Indeed, the corridors seemed deserted. The flashing red lights of the alert system, plus the silence broken only by the occasional hoot of the siren, added to everyone’s edginess.



“Wash, try the scanner again. Maybe we can get a read on—“



Jayne’s shout interrupted Zoe. “Wait! Look, it’s just down there!” He was pointed to a sign reading COMBAT INTELLIGENCE CENTER, with a stylized arrow pointed further down a long corridor. As the Maquis team came around the curve, they could see two crewman standing in the corridor, consulting a PADD. They appeared to look up with nonchalance at the approaching intruders, then back to the PADD.



“I knew it! Starfleet wimps!” With a battle cry that could curdle the blood of a drunk Naasican, Jayne hefted his miniature cannon and ran pell-mell down the corridor, intent on mowing down the crewmen and charging into CIC…



…ending up knocking himself silly when he ran into an invisible obstruction about two meters in front of the crewmen, who continued to consult the PADD, look up at the Maquis, and back again.



“What the frackin’ hell…” Mal muttered, creeping forward while keeping his weapon trained on the crewmen. Zoe kept pace with him, kneeling down to check the unconscious Jayne.



She shook her head. “He’s out cold. What happened? That was no force field…”



Mal’s free hand, outstretched in front of him, suddenly encountered unyielding metal. The air behind his hand – as well as the silent crewmen – shimmered unexpectedly, like a shallow pond disturbed by a stone dropped into it. “A hologram…” he whispered, comprehending belatedly that he was attacked an enemy on its home ground.



From the bulkhead off to the side, several phaser beams lanced out, striking Mal, Zoe and most of the rest of the team, stunning them into oblivion before they could get a return shot off…not that it would have likely mattered, as they would not have been able to see the security team crouching behind the hologram covering the corridor that led off at right angle to where the Maquis stood. Frankly, it had taken all the self-control the security guards could muster not to laugh out loud at the sight of Jayne running hell-for-leather right into the bulkhead at the end of the corridor.



Simon and Wash, the two men who had hung back (and had not come into range for the guards to stun them) took off back the way they came…right into the arms, so to speak, of Thelvran and Gunn. The Andorian, disdaining to use his sidearm, grabbed Simon’s arm and with a chekkah move, flipped him over to the deck. When Simon, half-heartedly, attempted to get up, Thelvran dropped him with an economic elbow-smash to the face. As for Gunn, he used the barrel of his phaser rifle to “clotheline” the unfortunate Wash, who fell to the deck like a sack of hammers.



Thelvran surveyed the scene, as the security team deactived the hologram and moved to place the Maquis in custody. He turned back to Gunn and held up his hand, palm first, to his subordinate. “Five high!” he said, grinning.



Gunn thought about correcting his boss, then let it go. “Five high,” he agreed, slapping his hand against Thelvran’s.



The amused glint in the security chief’s eyes went cold. “Thelvran to CIC,” he said into his combadge. “We’re secure.”



TBC

_________________



"Honey, in case you didn't hear me the first six thousand times: no more teleportation spells."

[shuyaku]

Your back!! That Captain Murdock is one smart cookie (I'm pretty sure it is not coincidence that you share the same name )



There is so much going on and you have done a great job of having the reader 'jump' around the ship to follow the action just like a real ST fight. I think all Starfleet ships should have a second bridge. The one time (I think it was only one time) it was used in ST canon and now yours - they seem pretty effective to me.



I love this fic!

-shuyaku

[sabina]

Hi there

This is my first reply to this fic.

I just wanted to say that it is great.

I love Star Trek.

And you're writing everything really well. In this fighting sequence I could picture the whole scene



I'll be waiting for the next update

---

"If it makes you happy, it can´t be that bad" - Sheryl Crow

[AntigoneUnbound]

Howdy, Cap'n! Ah, the adrenalin rush of a pitched battle...You're very smooth in moving us from one scene to another and giving us both action and emotional states. I could see everything unfold, which I think requires a deft touch in such a complex scene.



I enjoy your ability to convey character insights with an economy of words: e.g., the Captain thinking "grimly but with a certain relish" about the impending battle.



I'm so glad to see this again, CM. Welcome back.



Oh...a one-point-eight meter woman built like a valkyrie... I think I dated her a few years ago, and I have to say, I'm a better woman because of it.



Mary

[jixer]

Hello Kittens-



Oh, how I would dearly love to see W+T on Trek. I like this group. There's a lot less PC than TNG and sneakier (i.e. smarter) tactics than Classic. I'm liking this a lot, Cap'n.





Jixer

[Arwen276]

Hey Capt Murdock !



Great Update! I must tell you I enjoyed the surprise of the CIC quarter, filled with the real crew.

The way you describe it really embedded the scenes in my mind, and they were terrific!





More Please!



~Arwen

Hear That Baby? You're My Always... Willow

[Grimlock72]

Heh, the maquis running into the bulkhead was fun to read. Still it reads like a rather elaborate (and dangerous) setup. Our dear capt. also waited till a verrrry late time before transferring control didn't he ? Seems to like living on the edge



The bridge is going to need mayor redecorating too, all those disruptor-blasts can't be good for it. Shame the first shot missed Warren, I hope that will be corrected soon. (though I'm still in favour of transporting Warren into space really).



Oh yeah I hope Willow knocks Jonathan unconsious or something, maybe Tara can help a bit ? Must be a large bridge judiging by the amount of people fighting on it. Why in the world wasn't sick-bay secured ?? For that matter why do any doors open during intruder-alert ?



I've no doubt this action will succeed in the end, but it's a bit too risky for my taste. I would be more carefull as startfleet capt. I think :-)



Grimmy

--
"You hurt Tara," Willow said too calmly. "The last one who tried that was a god. I made her regret it." -- Unexpected Consequences by Lisa of Nine

[bluewillowwitch]

Capt,

I loved the update! You have to love a good fight. over there getting in the middle of it. Kinda sucked that Murdock wouldn't let help out. I can't wait to more. Update son, please?







bluewillowwitch

---------------------------------------------

"Fate keeps on happening."--Anita Loos

[WebWarlock]

Oh Captain my captain!



Wonderful set of updates! I am glad to see that Capt. Murdock is cut from the same cloth of Capts. Pike and Kirk, despite his Number One's objections.



I've got my own theories about Faith, it will be interesting to see them played out.



Mal, Jayne and Zoe. Yeah, they are certainly the "F-Troop" of the Maqis. Gods, can't wait to see them in the brig.



Way looking forward to more.



Warlock

-----

Web Warlock

The Other Side,
home of Liber Mysterium: The Netbook of Witches and Warlocks: Available October 31st, 2003!

“Well-behaved women rarely make history.” - Laurel Thatcher Ulrich,
Professor Harvard University.

[CaptMurdock]

Ah, my children! So nice of you to come visit me. WebWarlock, I haven't seen you around here in a while, what have you been up to?



shuyaku: The Enterprise-D in TNG had a "Battle Bridge" that was basically a secondary control center, but it was only used when the ship went into Saucer Separation Mode. This only happened twice, in "Encounter at Farpoint" and "Best of Both Worlds, Part II." The producers felt that separating the ship was too costly in terms of time spent away from the dramatic parts of the story. I obliquely referred to that in my explanation for the change from "Battle Bridge" to "CIC."



AntigoneUnbound:

Quote:

---

Oh...a one-point-eight meter woman built like a valkyrie... I think I dated her a few years ago, and I have to say, I'm a better woman because of it.

---

Heh...after an experience like that, I think I would be a better woman, too.



Grimmy: You think Murdock likes living on the edge? CaptainSerek are you in here? Tell these Kittens about Cumberland! They didn't call him the 'Space Case' for nothing, you know!



Don't you worry, Warren will get his. Boy, does he ever.



Sickbay needs to be open so that injured, possibly fatally injured, personnel can be admitted with a minimum of hassle.



"...a bit risky for your taste." Well, as a great man once said, "Risk is our business." 'Nuff said.



bluewillowwitch: Yes, I know you would have love to see Tara help Willow. But, as Tara herself concedes, although she's had the basic Starfleet self-defense training, she's doesn't have the more intense martial knowledge that the security personnel would have for this sort of punch-up. Granted, Willow (impetuously) attacked Jonathan; Murdock didn't see the point of Tara getting seriously hurt -- he really should have ordered her off the bridge before contacting the Trieste but the press of events took precedence.



WebWarlock:

Quote:

---

I've got my own theories about Faith, it will be interesting to see them played out.

---

Well, given your "theories" on Murdock, that should be interesting...



Mal, Zoe and Jayne will definitely be going to the brig...but we won't be seeing them again. I think they (and Caleb) have been given all the "screen time" they deserve, don't you?



You guys rock! Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback. I'll try to update soon.



+ 4evah!

_________________



"Honey, in case you didn't hear me the first six thousand times: no more teleportation spells."

[WebWarlock]

Now I would like some stories about Capt. Cumberland. He looked like he made Murdock look like Picard.



Plus he had the one thing in my book that made him a good guy. He seemed to really care about Willow.



Faith, Faith, Faith. Oh such a character of wasted potential. I think most of my love for her is actually based on my perceptions of what she could have been rather than what she really was. I am looking forward to seeing her under your guidance.



Of course how can I forget the lasses that bring us all together.

When you said this was going to have shades of "Imzadi" to it, you were not kidding.



I mentioned this before, but it is worth repeating. I would read this story even if it did not have any W/T content in it. It is a good story. That is why Trek continues to excite the imaginations of so many.



I have asked myself what are the best Trek stories of all time?

"The Inner Light", "The Visitor", "The City on the Edge of Forever" and the book "Imzadi". What do all of these have in common? Love. Picard's love for a life he never could have, Jake's love for his father, Kirk's love for Edith Keeler, Riker's love for Troi. Love that stands the test, and currents, of time.



If I may be so bold. "Equilibration", Willow and Tara's love that centuries and light years could not break apart. May the Great Bird of the Galaxy always bless them and watch over them.



Warlock

-----

Web Warlock

The Other Side,
home of Liber Mysterium: The Netbook of Witches and Warlocks: Available October 31st, 2003!

“Well-behaved women rarely make history.” - Laurel Thatcher Ulrich,
Professor Harvard University.

[CaptMurdock]

Quote:

---

Now I would like some stories about Capt. Cumberland. He looked like he made Murdock look like Picard.



Plus he had the one thing in my book that made him a good guy. He seemed to really care about Willow.

---

Well, of course. How could he not? Cumberland may or may not have been my first character in the shared universe that my friends had created several years prior to my joining them, but he was my favorite. He, like Murdock, took on a life of his own; like Thomas Harris' Hannibal Lecter, who originally was a secondary character who became the focus of the later books. As Harris onced quoted a sultan famous for his prized falcons: "I do not own them. At best, they live with me."



As far as stories concerning Cumberland...we shall see what the future holds. Heh heh.

Quote:

---

Faith, Faith, Faith. Oh such a character of wasted potential. I think most of my love for her is actually based on my perceptions of what she could have been rather than what she really was. I am looking forward to seeing her under your guidance.

---

"Wasted potential." That could be the title of the unauthorized guide to BtVS. Just about every character on there was no fully utilized, except for Spike, who as much as I like him became overused. I just hope that I can do as much justice to Eliza Dushku's portrayal of Faith as I (think/hope/pray) I have done for Amber and Aly.



I'm working on the next phase of the Battle of the Hannibal. Hopefully, it will be up shortly.



Love you all, and grease for peace.

_________________



"Honey, in case you didn't hear me the first six thousand times: no more teleportation spells."

[WintersDreamer]

Just finished reading ..... reminds me of the "great" Trekker

fiction by Diane Duane... i.e. 'Wounded Sky' and 'My Enemy, My Ally"... (sigh) guess I'm going to go digging through bookshelves tonite!



Great job!

[SuperMandy13]

Just wanted to drop a note to say that I really love this fic and look forward to each new update. The story's great, and I love how you blended Willow and Tara and the other BtVS characters into the Star Trek universe.



Ooh, I do have one question about this recent update though.. Okay, Faith was grappling with Valek, a Vulcan, and she was able to push away his hand, right? But aren't Vulcans like 3 times stronger than humans or something? So, unless Faith is of an alien race or if she has her Slayer powers, I don't think she'd be able to overcome the other guy's strength. I was just kinda curious about that.





-Mandy

[CaptMurdock]

Always nice to see some new "faces"!



As to how Faith could successfully fight Valek off...well, that's a story in itself. But, as many of you have already ascertained, the female human DNA that Willow found to have certain genetic anomalies did indeed belong to Faith.



I promise, I am working on the next part.



See ya!

_________________



"Honey, in case you didn't hear me the first six thousand times: no more teleportation spells."

[CaptMurdock]

On edit: I'm correcting the formatting of this section, and clarifying one point that I thought I had made clear. Then, I'm going to go wipe the blood off of my slashed ego...



The two Maquis holding Sickbay hostage were getting increasingly nervous. More and more of their colleagues were becoming incommunicado, including Warren’s team on the bridge. The Bajoran, Kesli, kept trying to contact various other members of the invading force, with little success.



The apparent downturn of fortune was making his human partner more and more agitated, indicated by his rapid pacing and swinging of his disrupter weapon from Govarr, leaning against a diagnostic table, to the rest of the Sickbay staff lined up against the bulkhead and back again. “What the hell’s happening?” Stroud nearly shrieked for the fourth time in as many minutes.



“I can’t raise anybody…Caleb, Mal, Warren, any of the others,” Kesli replied in a more even tone, though no less worried. He tapped his commlink to switch frequencies in a vain effort to reestablish contact.



“Oh, to hell with this! Let’s just take a few scalps and go,” Stroud muttered, leveling his disruptor at the Sickbay staff, whose collective attempt to take a few steps back was stymied by the duranium bulkhead at their backs.



A very loud sound, somewhere between a high-pitched squeal and a bellicose roar, pierced their brains at over a hundred decibels. Stroud hastily covered his ears, all thoughts of counting coup with the helpless nurses and technicians forgotten; Kesli dropped his phaser entirely as his central nervous system nearly overloaded.



As he finished bellowing in his native language at the top of his lungs, Govarr rushed forward with surprising speed, drew back his arm, and hit Stroud across the jaw with the heel of his thick hand. The human terrorist dropped as if he’d been introduced to the doctor’s most powerful sedative…which, in a way, was precisely the case. Kesli recovered from his momentary condition and tried to tackle the Tellarite, who ducked under his arms and let his momentum carry him over…



…right onto the diagnostic table, where Kesli landed with bone-jarring force. Before he could get up, Govarr tapped the console beside the biobed, activating the restraining force-field. Clapping his massive hands together in satisfaction, Govarr turned to his medical staff, who were shaking their heads and rubbing their ears painfully. “Well? Not bad, eh? Everyone all right? Good. Quit clasping your heads; we have work—“



The double doors whooshed open. Thelvran, Gunn and two security guards dashed in, weapons at the ready. They blinked upon seeing the unconscious or incapacitated Maquis and at the otherwise peaceful sickbay.



“Ah,” Thelvran said, putting away his phaser.



“Heard there was a party going on here,” added Gunn sheepishly. “Anybody hurt?”



“I cannot hear,” Dr. Sivek, the Vulcan intern complained, although with an admirable equanimity.



“I’ll fix it,” Govarr offered, then affected a wounded expression. “This is the kind of gratitude I get around here, risking my life like that!”



“Perhaps you should take that as a sign to stick to medicine and leave the rough stuff to the professionals,” Thelvran countered, not bothering to hide his cheerful smugness.



Govarr sneered. “Oh, go secure something!”



Thelvran and Gunn looked at one another with put-upon expressions. The dark-skinned petty officer quirked up an eyebrow. “You get the feeling we’re not appreciated?”



The chief of security heaved a dramatic sigh. “Frequently.” He led his squad out of sickbay.



With a disdainful sniff, Govarr watched them go, then turned to the helpless Kesli on the diagnostic table. “You know, it’s a lucky thing for me that you decided to drop in when you did. My stock of spare Bajoran organs happens to be at an all-time low. I think you might be able to help me, how shall I put this, improve my inventory.”



Kesli visibly paled.



****



Security Specialist Third Grade Ele’ar, great-granddaughter of the High Teer Leonard James Akaar of Capella, fumed as she held her position at the Ops station on the bridge, trying to get a shot at the Maquis cowering in the turbolift alcove, while her fellow crewman Valek struggled with the dark-haired human woman. Ele’ar risked a quick glance back, to see the captain flip one of the Maquis over his shoulder to the deck, then dislocate the man’s arm with seemingly little effort. After taking a quarter-second for an admiring glance, Ele’ar re-aimed her phaser at the curly-haired human wielding the Cardassian phaser. A carefully aimed blast managed to hit the fingers holding the phaser, the stun setting causing no permanent damage but knocking the phaser to the deck. Ele’ar then saw the brunette block a blow from Valek – no mean feat considering the superior strength of Vulcans – and answer with a left hook that snapped Valek’s head back, Vulcan strength or no.



Enough. Drawing the tri-bladed (and non-regulation) klugat at her waist, Ele’ar let out an ancient Capellan call-of-challenge, making Faith snap her head around in alarm, and let the throwing knife fly with its characteristic whistling sound straight at Faith.



Incredibly, the Maquis caught it, the tip of the klugat coming to within two centimeters of her throat. She flashed Ele’ar a quick smile: “Thanks, bitch.” Then she turned and with a smooth motion plunged the dagger-like weapon into Valek’s chest.



However, despite Faith’s muscle behind it, the weapon proved incapable of penetrating the tough duraplas armor covering Valek’s torso. The Vulcan raised a somehow pitying eyebrow at Faith. “That would not have worked anyway. My heart is locat—“



“Shut up!” Faith snarled as she dealt him a right cross that pretty much floored him.



Disdaining to use her phaser and heedless of the man she had been trying to stun moments ago, Ele’ar leaped over the console and dove at Faith.



****



Faraday sat in the command chair in the CIC, listening to the reports coming in from various decks and sections. All things considered, things were going pretty well; the majority of the Maquis invaders had been neutralized. The only group that was still active since they had beamed over from the Trieste was the team that had beamed onto the bridge.



Unfortunately, there was not a lot that Faraday could do about it. Murdock, among other things, had managed to seal off the bridge; no one could get in or out, at least by turbolift or Jeffries tube. Faraday had earlier advised beaming everybody, friend or foe, off the bridge and let the transporter buffer sort them out. Kolrami had shot that idea down by informing her that someone had activated a transport inhibitor, preventing anyone from beaming in or out of the immediate area.



Again she seethed, that Murdock had placed himself in harm’s way. “Idiot! He thinks he can deal with anything!”



“Usually because he can,” a voice drawled beside her. The first officer momentarily started, turned to see Dr. Devereux had strode up next to her. Disregarding her slightly chagrined look at her momentary misbehavior, he laid a hand on her arm. “You know he’s dealt with far more dangerous situations than either of us…and in my case, that’s saying something,” he added ruefully. “You’re just going to have to trust him.”



“It’s not just him I’m worried about,” Faraday muttered, looking back at the older man. “We’ve managed to get a combadge ‘headcount’ of our people on the bridge. Besides the captain and the security personnel…” Devereux looked inquiringly as the first officer hesitated slightly. “Lt. Maclay and Lt. Rosenberg somehow ended up there, too.”



Devereux started to cloud up, then put on a forced air of calm. “Look, Sam will…the captain won’t let anything happen to them.” Faraday’s expression told him, however, than he was less convincing than he had hoped to be.



****



“Let…go!” Jonathan growled, as he rolled around the deck with Willow, the phaser rifle between them (thankfully pointing away from them both).



“You let go!” Willow countered, trying to maneuver into a position where she might be able to deal an incapacitating blow to her opponent. Unfortunately, he was holding her so tight (and she him) that the two of them were unable to effectively use any hand-to-hand techniques more sophisticated than pinching and tickling. “And…watch…those hands, buster!” she added, sure that this little nerd was going to use the opportunity to cop a feel.



Tara watched from her crouched position near the Mission Ops console, wanting to help but feeling her best course was to obey Murdock’s order to stay out of the way. She could not help but wince every time a security guard, or even one of the Maquis, would be hit with a phaser or disrupter bolt, or be slammed into a console or bulkhead or the deck.



By now, the field was getting clear as there were relatively few combatants left. Tara saw the curly-haired man retrieve his phaser with his unstunned hand, only to have to leap back into the alcove as one of the guards from the ready room had taken aim with his phaser rifle. In the center of the bridge, the captain was dealing with the last of the Maquis, who were apparently overmatched by his surprising strength and skill. Farthest from Tara, near the main viewscreen, two security guards, who she recognized as Valek and Ele’ar, traded blows with the dark-haired beauty who apparently had fists of steel.



Ele’ar had managed to get a couple of good shots, a kick to the solar plexus and a left hook, on Faith, only to get knocked back by an answering roundhouse kick. Valek tried to press his advantage then, but Faith was still too quick, blocking the nerve pinch and elbowing the Vulcan back.



Still, Faith recognized that she was in serious trouble; given time, these two might wear her down. Time to shift into high gear, she thought.



Ele’ar feinted a punch, then let loose with a snap kick at Faith’s head. Incredibly, the brunette caught the leg; then, utilizing unbelievable strength, lifted the larger woman and virtually threw her into the viewscreen (although it was not a screen so much as a holographic display, so actually Ele’ar hit a bulkhead) with bone-jarring force. As Valek recovered and charged, Faith clasped her hands into a joined fist and whirled, catching him across the face with such force that he spun in mid-air. He crashed to the deck, unconscious.



Faith had no time to gloat or congratulate herself, as her peripheral vision picked up the two phaser-riflemen on the upper deck of the bridge taking aim at her. Even her preternatural reflexes were barely enough for her to evade the beams that came at her. Tara was amazed, barely able to keep up with how fast Faith was moving.



Deciding that a little firepower would be the better part of valor, or at least kicking ass, Faith drew her disruptor and fired a double-tap, two shots so close together that the sound of them blended into one, nailing both of the riflemen with uncanny accuracy. Although their security armor absorbed most of the deadly energy, both men immediately sank to the deck.



Faith turned to find another target…



…and nearly ran into the muzzle of Captain Murdock’s phaser, pointed at the bridge of her nose. Whoa! Where did he come from? The deadly seriousness in the grey eyes was, she had to admit, daunting. This guy would shoot her, no question.



“Hold it, captain!” a voice off to her right called out. Warren held his Cardassian phaser in his off hand, holding the hand that Ele’ar stunned against his chest like a wounded paw. Even under the circumstances, Faith almost snorted in derision: Gee, now you decided to contribute…



Murdock glanced over towards Warren, calculating the odds that he might be able to blast both him and Faith, and not liking the probable answer to that question. In any case, Warren took the matter out of his hands when he spotted Tara in the aft part of the bridge. “You—get up!” he said, motioning with his phaser.



The captain sighed inwardly, then turned slightly as another sound caught his attention. Oblivious to everything and everybody around them, Jonathan and Willow still wrestled for his phaser rifle. Murdock had to restrain himself from smiling. “Rosenberg. Hang it up.” He lowered his own phaser, barely bothering to notice that Faith had raised her disruptor to bear on him.



With great reluctance, Willow relinquished her hold on the rifle, allowing Jonathan to quickly scramble up and point it at her. Keeping her hands raised, she pushed up off the deck, stepping down towards Murdock, even as Tara did the same. She glanced at the blonde counselor, their eyes meeting for a brief second, each finding strength in one another. Willow regretted having brought Tara to the bridge in the first place, and wanted to tell her, to apologize for having placed her in danger; but even as the thought formed, a sudden calm came over her, like a cooling mist, pressing her worried thoughts down to peace and stillness. She glanced over at Tara again, and saw in her face that her friend had not only read her feelings, but somehow conveyed some of her inner equanimity, part of the mental balance that she had cultivated over many years, over a mental link that neither of them had suspected existed, at least on a conscious level.



Warren covered the two young women along with Jonathan, then glanced back at Murdock. “Hand over the phaser, captain,” he ordered.



Murdock shrugged, making as if to hand Warren the phaser…then whipping around and hurling it directly at Faith’s head. Insect-fast, she snatched it out of the air; then her brown eyes darkened even further as she leveled her disruptor higher, finger tightening dangerously on the trigger. “Mama didn’t teach you any manners, did she?” she said, her voice somewhere between a hiss and a growl.



For all of the reaction that Murdock had to this possibly homicidal woman, one would have thought she was brandishing a water pistol. “Mama told me not to look into the eyes of the sun,” he quipped, the corner of his mouth quirking up to piss Faith off even more.



“Faith.” Warren’s summons went unheard, and he had to repeat it. “Faith!” She looked around to him, the look of mayhem in her eyes giving him no little consternation. “Go to the Tactical station. Activate Intruder Control.” He gestured with his phaser.



Tara and Willow exchanged a worried glance. If the Intruder Control system was brought up, most of the ship could be flooded with anesthezine gas, rending the crew helpless. Tara looked at Murdock, but the captain did not stir.



Faith sidled over the Tactical station. Although not ex-Starfleet like Jonathan and Warren, they had given her enough training to be able to work consoles such as this. She tapped in a few commands, only to be rewarded with a series of chittering beeps that had a somehow accusatory sound. “Hey, this thing isn’t working,” she said after several attempts.



Jonathan, after ensuring that Warren had Willow under cover of his weapon, went down the Ops position and tried several routines, all met with the same negative sounds. “Warren, I can’t access any of the main systems from here! All command functions have been rerouted to another location.”



Murdock managed to give the air of a man playing innocent, but the golden halo above his head needed severe polishing. Warren leveled his phaser at him. “Where did you transfer command functions?”



“Gee, I dunno,” Murdock said, scratching his head and playing the Absent-Minded Professor bit to the hilt. “The arboretum? No, maybe sickbay – I’ve got it! The waste-extraction facility! Go on down there and see. I’ll stick around here, if it’s all the same to you.” He turned abruptly serious at that point. “You guys actually thought that fake warp-core breach business was going to work? Pathetic. It’s so nice to know that the Maquis is recruiting from the backwater planets.” He glanced at Faith derisively. “What, did the Ferengi turn you down?”



“Watch your mouth, combadge-kisser!” she snarled, leveling her disruptor at him again.



Warren was about to threaten Murdock again when Jonathan clamored for his attention. “I can’t raise any of the other teams! Nobody’s answering!”



The Maquis leader exhaled disgustedly. “I think it’s time we relocated. Get their combadges; we’re leaving.”



Murdock took a step closer to Warren, glaring dangerously. “Look, Warren, you have me, a Starfleet captain. You don’t need those two,” he said, indicating Willow and Tara. Willow was about to protest when she realized that saying anything at this point would be counterproductive…not to mention, potentially fatal.



Warren, however, wasn’t buying it. “Oh, no. We’re bringing them along as insurance towards your good behavior.” He crossed over to Tara and snagged the combadge off her chest (and, Tara was sure, copping a quick feel in the bargain).



Jonathan was about to do the same to Willow when she glared at him. “I know how, shorty,” she said, throwing the combadge to the deck.



Murdock was about to step in even further when Faith gripped his upper bicep warningly. “Behave yourself, pal – whoa! What great muscles you got there, Grandpa!” Murdock, to his credit, resisted the obvious response, settling for silently removing his combadge.



Warren brought out a comlink and spoke into it. “Bugs to Foghorn…initiate Plan 4, now.”



*****



The science vessel Trieste, dwarfed by the much larger Hannibal, had been merely hanging in space waiting since the mass transport. Now, its weapons systems, such as they were, powered up.



A volley of energy bursts spewed forth from the Trieste, flying towards the other Starfleet vessel to splash against its defensive shields.





“The Trieste is firing some sort of tachyon burst at us,” Kolrami reported at the Ops station in CIC, her eyes flicking from one display to another. “It’s causing our shield harmonics to go out of phase.”



Devereux looked confused, but Faraday’s grim expression betrayed the fact that she knew what the Maquis were planning. “Recommendation?” she said tightly.



“If we don’t reset the shields, feedback may result. Our entire shield grid could collapse, leaving us vulnerable.”



Faraday sighed. “How close are the security teams to the bridge?”



“At this rate, bypassing the emergency bulkheads, the security forcefields and the disabled turbolifts, at least two point three minutes after we will lose the shields if we don’t—“



“Noted,” Faraday almost snarled. “Do it.”



****



In the instant the shield harmonics were reset, a split-second window opened in the Hannibal’s defenses. At the predetermined moment, Warren, Jonathan, Faith, Murdock, Willow and Tara became pillars of quantum sparkle…and vanished.

_________________



"Honey, in case you didn't hear me the first six thousand times: no more teleportation spells."

Edited by: CaptMurdock at: 11/18/03 7:11 pm

[TexanZeppo256]

Faraday is such an idiot.



She could have taken out the primary reactors on the Trieste or her warp nacels at any time during the entire 10-15 minute melee, thereby removing any possibility of escape or assistance for the Maquis.



But did she?



NOOOOOOOOO.



Why?



Because that would make sense.



Anyways...



Oh, and BTW, WHEN IN THE FRILLY HECK DO WE GET TO SEE SOME W/T ACTION??? OF ANY KIND???



If it's on pens, then there should be at least a LITTLE interaction between the two characters for which this board was created!



I'm sorry if I sound really bitchy, but still... Pens IS dedicated to the everlasting love of Willow and Tara, and I'm noticing that it's been rather W/T-light for most of the story, and especially for this chapter.



Don't get me wrong, its good writing, but please keep in mind Captain, action-packed plot lines and witty dialouge can only take you so far.



In fact, heavy repition of the two can make the story rather boring.



Anyways,



Later.

---------------------------------



There she is! There she is... ahh... Not so wounded as we were led to believe... So much the better. --Khan, "Star Trek II: WOK"



From The Land of Tolerance,

---The Texan Zeppo

[WebWarlock]

Yeah an update!



I thought I was going to have to send in a search and rescue team to find this thread!



Great update. I love the attention you are paying to the characters.



Your Gunn is still great. Govarr is wonderfully Tellarite (btw did catch the Tellarite on a recent Enterprise, I kept thinking of Govarr!).



Security Specialist Third Grade Ele’ar, great-granddaughter of the High Teer Leonard James Akaar of Capella. Nice touch.



Ok, I mentioned it before, but I have theories about Faith.

This is nothing I know for sure, but a guess based on what I know so far.



I think Faith is actually a Starfleet operative. Sent in to figure out what Warren was up too. In fact, I would not be surprised to find out that Capt. Murdock hasn't known this whole time. Now as to why she is so strong and fast? Genetic manipulation maybe? So far there have only been two people we have read about that have dodged phaser blasts, Faith and Murdock. I am thinking that is no coincidence.

So I am expecting some more interesting things from Faith.





Yes, more W/T interaction please! The Trek story is great, but I miss our girls.



Warlock

-----

Web Warlock

The Other Side,
home of Liber Mysterium: The Netbook of Witches and Warlocks. Available Now!

"I don't want to believe. I want to know." - Carl Sagan

Edited by: WebWarlock at: 11/14/03 7:14 am

[Grimlock72]

See... that was predictable with such a captain... to much kirk-like Most of the ranting below is caused by Willow and Tara being put at risk, if cappy wants to risk his own life he's free to do so. Told you I prefer the cautionairy approach, and no I won't yell "told you so" over and over now... honest...



There was not a single reason not to shoot Faith when he could. Wanting to savour the moment or look al smart is NOT a good reason. When you can shoot an enemy, do so... it's very simple.



Next on the stupid list is Ele'ar, why throw a knife AND yell a friendly warning with it even when you have phasers ? No matter how powerfull you are a phaser WILL fire faster than a thrown knife. And leave the shouting till AFTER you've killed your target, obviously without the shout she would have hit her target.



Speaking of finishing targets, who let Warren get his weapon back, hmm ?? It was mess there, nothing good to say about the stupid plan.



On to communications we go; how come the invader crew on the bridge could raise the Trieste at all ? Obviously they could 'cos the transport was timed with it. Come to think of it, that is VERY precise timing and it seems planned. Which doesn't make sense since there's no way they could either have predicted this much resitance nor do I expect them to plan that far ahead. What ever happened to the seperate bridge forcefield anyway ?? Why couldn't battle-bridge simply lower those force fields and dispatch extra personel to the main bridge ? Did cappy want his very own arena or something ?



Come to think of it, what exactly did stop them from firing some nice amount of photon torpedoes or phasers at the trieste ? Surely they would have stopped beaming whatever they were beaming. (I find it hard to believe anyway that shields can be overloaded that easily)



Tara should have helped Willow, period. There's nothing else to say on that subject really. Their very presense on the bridge marks yet another fault in the plan btw. it obviously was sealed to late. (not that it would have mattered hostage-wise)



This entire plan of the captain was fairly stupid to begin with (too high on maschoism ). He could have EASILY avoided combat alltogther, just flood the bridge with some sleep-gas and make sure there's no friendlies there OR flood it anyway (make sure not use russian gas though : --> ). Combat is risky, as is proven here. Prepare to be demoted for unnessecarily risking crew and ship .



Now please SOMEONE disable the Trieste's warp engines. Just shoot them to hell (the engines), after it's done it can't be reveresed anyway so hostage-threats won't help.



Faith is too strong and fast, it gets boring (and why is Capt. Murdoch as fast as he is anyway?). Phasers fire at a VERY high speed, I sincerely doubt human muscles could ever move at that speed. Not without severe side-effects anyway.



To leave on a positive note; the sickbay stuff was fun. Didn't entirely get who caused the sound/noise. If that was done by security they were a bit slow on the follow-up . "Oh go secure something" was fun.



Good thing I never wanted to become an ensign anyway, wouldn't want Capt. Murdoch as my captain. Not liking the man too much at the moment, nope.



Well described combat-scene (I was ranting and raving while reading it), just didn't like the end-result :-). Done ranting for today...



Grimmy (who hopes this doesn't come across to unfriendly/angry or such)

--
"You hurt Tara," Willow said too calmly. "The last one who tried that was a god. I made her regret it." -- Unexpected Consequences by Lisa of Nine

Edited by: Grimlock72 at: 11/14/03 10:33 am

[justin]

Those fight scenes were certainly very well written



All through them I was thinking how they seemed to be putting up more of a fight than is normal on the series. If this had been the Enterprise-D then the Trieste would have disabled their engines and weapons with a couple of shots and then a handful of people would have beamed over and taken over the ship in a few seconds.



Of course, this being Star Trek, the end result was forgone conclusion, it's just a shame that Willow and Tara got caught up in it all. Or maybe not, I'm sure they'll come up with a way to help the captain out of his predicament.



Anyway I'm looking forward to reading more.

Anya in a wimple...I'd pay full admission for that. Gods Served And Abandoned - by Antigone Unbound


You know the worst thing about people in a relationship? The fact that they're in a relationship. - Hilda Spellman

[bluewillowwitch]

Capt. ,

I love the update! The action scenes are great. was holding her own with Jonathan, course he ain't much. I love the part where knew Warren was copping a fell. Okay, you said to be paicent and I have been but WHERE ARE THE and DATING, AND SMOOCHIES, ETC.!!!! Can't wait to more. Update soon, please?





Grace

-------------------------------------------

"Fate keeps on happening."--Anita Loos