=/-\= USS CHIMERA =/-\=
Cortez slumped into the soft cushion of the large chair next to his bed. There were still a few hours left till he would be leaving for the away mission and everything he could think of doing to prepare his team he had done. Now with only a little time left he ordered them all to get some rest before departure, partly because Cortez himself felt tired and could use a nap, but mainly because he wanted the away team to be rested as well.
Leaning his head back he caught glimpse of the light flashing on the computer in front of him. Pressing the button revealed a communication from Lieutenant Jayson King, a lab junkie he had met back on Starbase Unity. The message read as follows:
Richard,
It turns out your suspicions were correct, that sample you gave me was full of a substance called Lysergic Acid Diethylamide. Not sure how you got it but I'd be extra careful what you do with it.
Attached is a data file with more info.
- King
Richard shook his head, trying to get the nightmare out of his head......
Cortez stepped into his office, it was the end of the day and a few hours since he'd had his chance meeting with Summers. For some reason or another she always had the ability to make Cortez desire a couple glasses of alcohol. Sitting at his desk he reached underneath to the secret compartment containing a small bottle of dark green liquid and a tumbler. It was a little trick he'd picked up from his old CO Jack Walsh, it seemed all Security Chiefs kept there stash in the same place.
The bottle was green but had no label. Popping open the lid he poured himself a good sized dose and immediately gulped it down. It tasted disgusting, of course most good alcohol did. He blinked a second then immediately refilled his glass, "Down the hatch", he gasped as he swallowed that as well. He guessed that it was some sort of strange alien alcohol he had never heard of before. Its smell was very medicinal and thick.
Suddenly his eyes became heavy. A couple seconds later he closed his eyes and fell into a sleep...
"Get your feet of the desk!"
Her voice woke him from his dreams at the same moment as she gave his boots a hefty shove that caused his feet to fall off the end of the desk. "What do you think you're doing anyway?" she asked eyeing him as he righted himself from the almost toppled chair. " Sleeping on duty are we?"
Startled, Richard jumped up, in doing so his leg caught the side of the chair he was sitting in and knocked him off balance and onto the floor. "What the-", he managed to say as he pushed himself onto his feet. It took a second for his vision to clear enough to realize that Rangi Summers was standing in front of his desk. He wanted to scream at her, but all that seemed to come out was "How?.
"How what?" she asked looking down at him as he struggled to stand up. " Ohhh...you mean how did I get here?...through the door of course." She pointed to the closed door and the lowered shades at the windows. " Very cosy in here isn't it?" she asked giving him a sweet smile. " Aren't you going to ask me to sit down?"
"Uhh, yah", Richard said straightening his shirt and running his hand through his hair, "I should sit down", why the hell didn't someone warn me she was here, moving his chair to its spot he sat back down. As he looked up he noticed the bottle of alcohol still sitting in front of him, with en empty glass. "Excuse me", he said quickly as he fumbled for the items and slipped them away into the desk. "So, what can I do for you, Commander", he said as his attention was drawn to the window behind Rangi.
Rangi looked around for another chair. There was one pushed back against the wall but Cortez hadn't seemed to notice it so she looked back at him then perched herself on the edge of the desk.
" Just visiting." she said and at his astounded expression added " No..not really. I came to give you this." She laid a padd down in front of him.
At that point the giant stingray floating through space right outside his office window had flown off, along with the disbelief that permeated Richards face. Shaking his head he grabbed the PADD and let his eyes adjust, after a few seconds he could make out the words. "THAT'S INSANE", his voice boomed. "You can't be Captain of the Chimera", he dropped the PADD, "You'll get us all killed!".
Rangi laughed as though amused by an extremely funny joke then suddenly she was silent and her eyes were hard as she stared at him. " I don't think that's the way to talk to your CO do you?" she asked then changed her mood again just as suddenly.
" Actually, Rojac thinks I'll be an excellent CO. He was quite keen for me to do it once he's had a little chat with Shane. They soon came to an agreement. He's packing even as we speak." She smiled to Cortez then frowned.
"Are you feeling ok?" she said "... you look very pale. Hang on." she hopped off the desk and bent down. " Now where do you keep it?" her muffled voice came then: " Aha...'here' it is!" She emerged a moment later holding the bottle. " I thought you'd have a little supply of...medication?" She grinned at him " Where did you get it from this time?" She undid the top and sniffed the contents jerking her head back suddenly and exclaiming " Oh!!" as she did so. She re screwed the top and dangled the bottle in front of him. " I think I'd better keep this don't you?" she asked and before he could answer, dropped the bottle into her bag. He hadn't noticed it before.
Richard's vision was going blurry again. He shook his head and rubbed his eyes. Was that a mouse running across the floor? No, it was a cat!. What is a cat doing here? Focus. "No", he said. "You've poisoned me!", he gasped at his throat, "And now your taking the evidence!", he lunged towards the woman but only managed to find air as he came crashing into the wall. He twisted around on the ground and looked up, she was still in the same place as before, except now it seemed she was laughing at him.
"NO!", Richard yelled as he jumped up from his seat at the desk. He looked around real quick, no Summers...no rats..no giant stingray. "It was a dream", he sighed to himself as he slumped back into his chair.
(Back to the present)
Cortez pushed another button and saved all the info on the drug that had been in the alcohol, he then went to his dresser where the rest of it was located. Pulling out the top drawer he lifted the bottle, slid it into a box and sealed the lid. He then wrote the name, "Jack Walsh", and made a mental note to have it shipped to him once he got back to Starbase Unity. He grinned wishing he could be there when he tried it.
Then, after placing the box back into the drawer and closing it he fell onto his bed and into a light, but much needed sleep.
=/-\= END LOG =/-\=
Major Richard Cortez
CSEC
USS Chimera
+
Commander Rangi Summers
(Played by Rangi)