Addiction Jitters (Part 2 of 2)

Posted on Wed May 16, 2018 @ 12:12pm by Civilian 'Key Holder' Yolanthe Ibalin & Civilian Aleczandra Naqiis-Ryan

1,652 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Victory Conditions
Location: Somewhere below deck 1000
Timeline: MD 6 0230

Previously on Addiction Jitters
“I believe this is the required buy in?"

"Not for you," The Yridian replied. "Call it symbiont insurance. Getting a worm to Trill quickly isn't cheap. Five strips."

Aleczandra glared at Gevran, but then she pulled four more strips out of her bra. “For that price, I better get free drinks,” she said, tossing back her drink and slamming down the glass. “Now find me a fight. I want people to see what I’m capable of so maybe I can get some jobs.”

And now the conclusion...


Gev took the proffered cash with a smirk. "Kemmick, find the lady a fight. Maybe t'Kanray?"

The Human nodded and beckoned to Aleczandra to follow him. He led her down to the octagonal ring and had a word into the ear of the Bolian in a white tux who acted as MC. Then he turned to Alexandra and pointed at a slender looking Romulan across on the other side of the ring. "That's t'Kanray. You'll be up next."

“Okay,” Aleczandra said. “Any rules? Weapons? No killing, so probably not?” She unzipped her hoodie and shrugged it off, revealing the knives sheathed at her wrists. She started to unstrap them. She studied the Romulan woman. “Anything you can tell me about her?” she asked. “I didn’t get a chance to do any research, obviously.”

Kemmick laughed. "Not no killing. People get killed all the time. Use whatever you want. But respect a surrender. If they surrender, don't follow through. And we have telepathy. We’ll know if you didn't try to stop. And if you surrender, no getting even in a back corridor. And as for research?" He glanced over at where t'Kanray was lumbering up and made a grunt of a laugh. "You ain't in the kiddie pool now. Suck it up, buttercup"

“Fair enough.” Aleczandra stared at the much larger Romulan woman. “The floaties are off.” She tightened the knife sheaths on her wrists again and yanked out the blades. There were metal plates beneath the leather of the bracers that would serve as a bit of a shield if needed.

Aleczandra spun the knives in her hands with great dexterity and strode forward into the ring. She nodded to t’Kanray and awaited the signal to start.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and everything in between," boomed the Bolian, winding up into his intro. "We have two ladies of death for you. T'Kanray of Romulus, with a hundred standard years of death dealing to draw on." The crowd howled it's approval. Then the Bolian indicated Aleczandra. "And her challenger, Juheni of Trill!" The crowd was just as loud, but screaming insults and threats and promises of what the Romulan would do to her.

Aleczandra just smirked. She twirled her daggers again, a bit of showmanship, as she studied the Romulan, the way she moved. Okay, this one was a fighter. She did a few stretches to limber up. Her body was younger, though, quicker than the Romulan. Let’s see just how Juheni’s skills stacked up.

Zandra approached t’Kanray and smiled. “So when this is over, care for a tumble, cutie?” she asked. “I find a good fight gets my blood up.”

The Romulan woman sucker-punched her. It was a hard jab to the face delivered with all her strength, and like their Vulcan cousins, Romulans were four time stronger than most species, including Trill. And the Romulan didn't give her time to recover, but kicked out at her weaker opponent.

Aleczandra grunted, flying back. She managed to roll with the blow at the last moment, but it still left her seeing stars and dripping blood, pain flashing behind her eyes.

“Gods damn bitch!” Zandra growled, taking the kick much better, though definitely getting a cracked rib as she rolled away to her feet. She slashed out at t’Kanray, warding her back to give Aleczandra time to recover and refocus.

Aleczandra glared at the Romulan, circling and studying, feinting and probing her defenses. Then she made a lunge, slashing a green verdant line across t’Kanray’s stomach and drawing the alien’s blood to mingle with her own on the floor of the ring.

The Romulan seemed unconcerned. She was probably too hyped up on adrenalin. Instead, she flicked a wrist, and a thin extendable baton whipped out. The end crackled with tiy arcs of violet light. T'Kanray jumped forward, swiping with the baton. The tip brushed Aleczandra's wrist with barely a touch. It made the whole hand tingle. If Juheni had moved a hair’s breadth slower the whole hand would be numb.

Aleczandra hissed. “Nice toy,” she said. She blocked the next swipe of the baton with one of her blades and spun clear, sweeping the other blade along the Romulan’s side, opening up another gash of green blood, the blow kept shallow by the fact that her hand was still painfully tingling. She kicked back, trying to take out the bigger woman’s knee.

The Romulan dodged with grace and ease and the electrified baton whipped through the air straight at Aleczandra's head.

Now knowing what to expect, Aleczandra dropped low, letting the baton flash a hair’s breadth over her head. She lashed out with a leg sweep at the Romulan.

As t'Kanray skipped over the sweep without effort and riposted with a downward strike of her baton, Gevran turned to Kemmick. "What do you think?"

The Human sucked his teeth. "Trill assassin versus Romulan gladiator, in open combat. My money's on t'Kanray. The kid may say she's smart, but t''Kanray is stronger, faster, tougher, than any Trill can be, and she knows how to fight like this. Its not backstabbing people who don't know you're coming."

Gev nodded. "What do we know about her?"

Kemmick frowned as the two women dodged around blow and counter blow. "I reached out. The Syndicate had a Juheni, about a hundred years ago. Witnessed, but as far as I can tell never went too far. Enjoyed it a bit too much."

"So she's fighting in a body that’s lighter and weaker than the mind is used to. I see why you'd bet on the Romulan."

"But you wouldn't?" Kemmick looked at his boss.

The Yridian gave a wrinkly grin. "It’s the kill crazy ones that you have to watch. They let you murder them just to get to you."

T'Kanray knocked one lunge aside and locked Aleczandra's right arm with her left, her own right elbow snapping in for a jawbreaking jab.

Aleczandra leaned into the blow. It hit hard, as hard as she’d expected. Her vision flared white and she staggered into t’Kanray in a clutch. That left her in very close to the Romulan. Close enough to drive her other dagger up into the woman’s spine.

Gev gave Kemmick a smug look as the young girl, her jaw now an ugly, misshapen lump, obviously broken, rammed her blade into the Romulan. Kemmick grunted.

T'Kanray made a gaping, sighing noise as the blade scraped along her spine. Her head was already coming forward in a head butt, and their skulls cracked together, but the real force that could have caved Aleczandra’s nose in was gone.

The Romulan's muscles locked and her own weight dragged Aleczandra off balance, and they collapsed in a tangled heap. T'Kanray banged her hand on the ground, a frantic tapping out.

Her vision still a bit wobbly, Aleczandra barely heard the tapping out. She nearly twisted her blade to finish the job. That was almost instinctual. Instead, she yanked it out and rolled away, her nose pouring blood profusely. She kept a wary eye on the Romulan, though, clutching her daggers.

The Bolian master of ceremonies grabbed her hand, pulling her up until her arm was raised with his. "The winner!"

The crowd did not go wild, but the few who had bet on the smaller, weaker, Trill cheered enthusiastically enough. Up above, the Yridian gave her a nod of acknowledgement.

Ushers, more of Gev's men, opened the forcefield, and two Romulans went to help the fallen t'Kanray, who still hadn't gotten up.

Aleczandra spat blood. She wiped the green Romulan blood from her daggers onto her pants and staggered from the ring with a grimace of pain. “You got doctors around here?” she asked Gev’s men.

They shrugged. "You're supposed to bring your own. Ask the boss."

Aleczandra rolled her eyes. She staggered her way over to Gev again. “Good enough?” she asked through the pain in her jaw. “How much did I make? And do you have someone that could fix this jaw?” She grimaced a bit.

Gevran glanced to a Human-looking man seated on the next table. That man consulted a padd, then passed two bars of latinum over to Gevran. Gevran pushed them to Juheni. "There's potential. But this is entertainment, not a job. You need to play with them a bit more. As for a doctor, go see Ibalin. She's got an isolated EMH. No questions, no data in the system."

Aleczandra frowned, but picked up the latinum. She slipped them into her bra. “No questions?” she asked, uncertain. “Okay, I will do that.”

Aleczandra walked away. Pain throbbed through her jaw and head. Maybe a concussion. Play with them, he said. She shook her head. Did he think killing was a game? But then these fights were, she supposed. She needed to get a paying gig. Do things proper. Quick. Silent. Deadly. For now, this would have to do.

Aleczandra put up the hood on her hoodie as she took the lift up to the Promenade, keeping her head low to avoid cameras and curious faces as she headed to The Box.

[OFF]

Aleczandra Ryan/Juheni Naaqis
Civilian/Syndicate assassin
NPC Caleb Ryan

Gevran and associates
"Businessmen"
NPC Maritza Soran

 

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