Date: Thu, 4 Sep 1997 21:37:36 +0000 From: loeffler@istar.ca To: seaquest-ff@escapenet.org Subject: (SQFF) Perseid Colony - First part Message-Id: Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT This one is longer than the others and is in three parts. "Hey, this is great! A four day pass! Can't wait!" Tony was excited to be able to get away from the ship for four days. He had been looking forward to it. "Sailor! Your pass will have to wait." Captain Hudson was about to spoil his fun, so he thought. What a lousy deal. "But sir, I have a pass. I've waited a long time for this. We don't have any emergency now, do we?" "Yes there is one which requests your presence in the conference room. Now sailor!" When Captain Hudson commanded, Tony learned he had to obey. He was not always happy about this. They went to the conference room together. All the officers were there. This must be important. They all stood at attention when the Captain came in. Tony wondered what he had done now. He couldn't think of anything. The Captain looked so stern, yet he looked funny with the bandage still around his head from when he fell on the bridge. Tony tried not to smile. He knew Captain Hudson would not appreciate it if he did. "Warrant Officer Piccolo." Tony looked at him. What was happening now? This was embarrassing for him. "It is my duty and my pleasure to share with you a communique from UEO headquarters. You have now made it to the rank of Ensign." Captain Hudson smiled. "Congradulations, Tony. Well done." Tony was stunned. He did it. He passed his exam. He was on his way up. He let out a yell. The others smiled and came over to congradulate him. Captain Hudson continued. "This is, right now, unofficial, until the actual promotion comes through, but you did pass the exam, and with flying colours. You did good, Tony." "Wow, Ensign Piccolo. Just wait til Pop hears about this. Um, thank you sir." He stood at attention and saluted. Captain Hudson saluted back. "You may now use your four day pass, Ensign." Tim came over and slapped him on the back. "I would never have believed it. Even when you took the exam. You've really surprised everyone Tony, congradulations." "Thanks, I can't believe it myself." He looked at Tiffany. "If it wasn't for you and Lonnie, I would never have had the courage to try again. Thanks." "No problem, Tony. I told you that you could do it. Have faith Tony. Now let's get Dagwood over to Perseid and we can celebrate this." Before leaving, Captain Hudson pulled Tony and Tim aside. "I want you two to make sure Tiffany doesn't get into any trouble there. She doesn't like to see Daggers being used and she may decide to do something about it. I'm trusting you two to keep her out of trouble." "Yes, sir." They both answered. What kind of trouble could she get into on a mining colony? Tony and Tim looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. They went to the minisub, where Dagwood was waiting. He seemed anxious. "Hey, Dagwood. A little nervous about seeing your girlfriend again? Just let Ensign Piccolo here give you some advice." "Tony! You leave him alone! He'll be just fine without your help." Tiffany cautioned him. "Hey, I just want to make sure he knews what to do, you know." "Tony, he'll be alright. You just concentrate on flying this thing in the right direction." "Yes sir, or ma'am. We're on our way." Tiffany did not want Tony giving any advice. His advice would be X-rated and Dagwood did not need that. Tim smiled. "Let's just relax, Tiffany, and enjoy the ride." "Easy for you to say. You're used to him flying one of these things. I'm not and I've seen him in a fighter. He's wild." She smiled and wondered how Dagwood felt. He didn't often show emotion, but he must be feeling some. He hadn't seen Rachel for over a year. She hoped Rachel would like Dagwood's friends. She sat back but kept her seat belt handy in case she needed it. "Hey, Dagwood, what are the chicks like there?" "Mmmm, Ok I guess." "Well, you know, looks. Are they all good looking? What about Rachel? Bet she's a looker." "Tony, leave him alone! We'll find out what she's like soon enough." Tiffany knew all he cared about was looks. Most of the trip was small talk. They arrived at Perseid colony. It seemed quite nice, but for a place which used a lot of Daggers for the mining, there weren't many out on the streets. Some of the shops had signs in them, saying, 'No Daggers Allowed.' They stopped in a couple of shops which didn't have the signs up. The people were friendly. Some didn't care if Daggers came in or not. They figured money was money, so who cares who it came from. Others didn't like the way things were. They thought Daggers should be treated better. Tiffany was interested in what they said. They finally came to The Dagger's Sheath. Tony's eyes were wandering. He seemed pleased about the women he saw here. Dagwood was excited. "In here! Rachel will be in here!" They followed him in. The place was dark at first or just dimly lit. It took a few seconds for their eyes to adjust to the light. They could see mannequins in weird, twisted positions. The mannequins were representing humans. "This is eerie. Maybe we shouldn't be here. It looks like this is what they want to do to us." Tony wasn't so sure about coming in here now. They came to an elevator and went down. "Rachel and Dagwood met over there." He pointed but he did not see her. They walked around a bit. All eyes were on them. 'Monotones' did not come down here obviously. Tim and Tony felt uncomfortable. People were staring. It didn't seem to bother Tiffany. She was interested in everything. Suddenly Dagwood stopped. Tony had his head turned and bumped into him. "Hey, Dagwood, what's up?" Then he looked around Dagwood to see why he stopped. A dark haired woman was talking to another Dagger. She stopped when she heard Tony's voice and looked with the rest of them. A smile came across her face. "Dagwood!" She came over and hugged him and then stepped back. "You look good. I'm so glad to see you." Tiffany came beside Dagwood. She put out her hand. "Hi, you must be Rachel. I'm Tiffany. It's really good to meet you. Oh, this is Tim O'Neill and Tony Piccolo." She smiled. Rachel was hesitant, but then shook hands with them all. Tony leaned towards Tim. "Yep, at least he has good taste in women." Tim elbowed him. He didn't want to cause any kind of disturbance here. He felt like a fish out of water. "I'm glad to meet Dagwood's friends. Come over here and sit." She led them to a table. "Any chance of getting some grub around here? I'm starved. Or will they serve us?" Tony asked. "As long as you're with me, they will. Dirk! Over here!" A man came over. He looked like a waiter. "This is my friend Dagwood, from SeaQuest. The one I told you about. He's visiting and brought some friends of his. Can we get something to eat?" Dirk nodded. He went and got menus and they ordered some food. "Do they always treat people like us as outsiders? I feel that they don't want us here." Tiffany asked. "Well, we don't have much use for any 'monotones'. Dagwood tells me you are different. I liked the letters you wrote, Tiffany. You seem familiar with our kind." "I've often stood up for Dagger's rights. It's not easy. A few years ago on Seascape colony I helped some Daggers get noticed and realize their rights." Rachel interrupted. "Seascape! I knew your name was familiar! You led that revolt. The one that made them change the laws about Daggers! You're responsible for us being treated somewhat decently. Every Dagger knows about you. You're the only 'monotone' who cares. You fought for us." Tiffany was blushing now. Tim and Tony were interested. They didn't know about this part of her life. "Yeah, that was me. I was only doing what was right. Rachel, you have to realize there are a lot of us out there who believe you deserve the same rights as us. I'm not the only one. It was a hard fight at Seascape. We lost a lot of people on both sides. But at least the remainder now live like decent humans. What about here?" "We have to bow down to the 'monotones', They only want us to use us to do their dirty work for them. They don't recognixe us as anything but machines to do their work for them." She looked down. "But with you here, they may see things differently. Tiffany would you say something to the Daggers here. Tell them you'll help us, please." "Well, um, I don't think I should get ..." "Here, come with me. You can tell everyone." Rachel grabbed her arm and pulled her up. She led her down to an area with a stage. They got up to the mike and Rachel called for attention. Tiffany wasn't sure what to do. "I guess this is what the captain was talking about, eh, Tony?" "Yep, and I think we had better be careful. We need to keep a close eye on her." Rachel had their attention now. She introduced Tiffany and pulled her up to the mike. "Tim, that girlfriend of yours sure knows how to get herself in trouble, I think. You know how to pick the winners." "She's not really a girlfriend, Tony." "Tim, you haven't said anything to her? What does it take to get you going?" "Tony, I haven't had the time." "You had better take the time. You should get your love life straight, Tim. Do you realize how many men on SeaQuest are envious of you and would jump at the chance to be with her?" They stopped to hear what Tiffany had to say. She tried to encourage them by telling them there were many humans who believed that Daggers were just as good as them and that they should be integrated into society. She said that better days would come and that the oppression would be at an end soon. She compared them to the blacks in the history of the former United States. Some seemed encouraged by her talk, but others weren't. They scowled and shook their heads. They would never believe a 'monotone'. Tiffany and Rachel were on their way back to the table. "I don't know how much I can help, Rachel, but I will do what I can. I'd like to see the person who runs this colony. What was his name?" "That's Tormandon. He's the one who hired all of us and keeps us in the mines. He doesn't like us being up top, so he gave us this place to keep us happy." "Not much if you ask me. We noticed there weren't many Daggers up top. You guys should be out there more. It's not good to be in here so much. Although the light up there is artificial, it's better than nothing." They sat down. "Tiffany, that was quite a talk. You do good at speaking in public." Tiffany smiled and thanked Tony. "Uh, Tiffany, we don't want to cause any trouble here. Your uncle would be upset with us." "Tim, did my uncle say something to you?" Tim looked at Tony. Tony answered. "Well, he just mentioned that, um, we shouldn't let you get into trouble, you know." "Oh, yeah, I know alright. Well, firstly guys, if I get into trouble, you can bet there is a good reason for it. And secondly, I don't intentionally get into trouble. It just kind of follows me." "Tiffany, it's just that he doesn't want anything to happen to you, is all." "Yeah, so you two are my bodyguards, or is it my guardians now?" She wasn't happy that Hudson had told them that. She wouldn't get into trouble if she could help it. "Besides, I just want to talk to the guy, find out what makes him tick, is all." "Well, it's getting late now, so why don't you do it in the morning. We have to find a place to stay for the nights we're here." Tim was also hoping she would be calmer and see some sense in not causing trouble in the morning. "Oh, you guys can stay here. We have lots of room for you. You don't need to pay for a place. It would be an honour to have Tiffany stay here. And her friends too." "Hey, Guys, the price is right. Besides I think we need to keep an eye on Dagwood. He might get a bit too rambunctious, ya know?" "Tony, get your mind out of the gutter for once. It would be nice to stay with you, Rachel." Tiffany gave him a look that shot darts at him. Rachel led them to a doorway, down a corridor, down some stairs and into a large room. It looked like a lounge, with couches, some tables, a vid-phone and a large vid-screen set up. There were several doors leading out of the room. They each had numbers on them. "Here is where we relax and socialize. It's often noisy here and there's no privacy." Tiffany could see that. "Rachel, is this the only place you have to relax and enjoy yourselves?" she asked. "Yes, they don't like it when we go up top so they gave us this. It's not so bad. I'd rather be here than to be with them up top. They don't like us. At least here we can be happy and we treat each other properly. Up there they scoff at us, ridicule us and make us feel bad." "I don't blame you for feeling the way you do about us, but you have to realize we are not all the same. Dagwood has seen that on SeaQuest. I wish you could see that too." "Talking to Dagwood and especially after I started to get his letters, made me realize that this part of the world isn't necessarily the way it is in the rest of the world. But it is still hard for me to be with the 'monotones'." "I know. You can't erase all the hurt and damage we've done to you in the past. It will take some time though but it can be done. Have you read any of the books about the black people I was talking about?" "No, we don't get much reading material here." "Well, I'll try and find some for you. You'll be surprised at the similarities between what happened to them in the last two centuries and what has happened to Daggers in the past twenty or thirty years." "Thanks, I'd like to read some. We'll go through the fifth door. That's for singles who are my age. You can stay there with us. We all sleep in the same room." "Same room? No chance for hanky, panky here eh?" Tony observed. "Hanky, panky?" This was a new phrase for Rachel. "Tony! Rachel just ignore him. He can be nice when he wants to." Tiffany was thinking maybe he shouldn't have come with them. They went through door number five. This was another dim corridor. "We need some new lights put in here. They haven't had the time to do it yet." Rachel was apologetic. "Don't apologize for them, Rachel. More like they can't be bothered. This is disgraceful. Something needs to be done." Tiffany was getting madder, the more she saw. Tim looked at Tony. Tony shook his head. They stoped at a room with the number S-30-40 on it. Tiffany remembered when she addresses the letters to Rachel, that her address was Perseid Colony, Dagger's Sheath #5, S-30-40. That's what the numbers stood for. Singles ages 30-40. Talk about being impersonal. Tiffany couldn't believe it. They went into a large room. Some of them were lying on cots and some were on the floor. At least they had bed linens. It was not impressive. She looked at Dagwood and could see by his face that he did not like the situation. He had his own room on SeaQuest with privacy and it was kept clean. He had it a lot better than these people. "Over here, Tiffany. You can have my bed and I'll take a spare here. The rest can each take a spare cot. There's enough." "Dagwood, um, I cannot sleep on here. I will sleep on the floor." The bed was far too short for Dagwood. He would be more comfortable on the floor. "Sorry Dagwood, I should have thought." Tony and Tim opted for sleeping on the floor too. Tiffany would not let Rachel give up her bed, such as it was. She would take the floor too. Later, when the others were sleeping, Tiffany kept dozing on and off. She could not get into a good sleep. She kept thinking about what it was like to live like this. She had always had a nice comfortable place to live. Even on a sub, it was better than this. She couldn't help be upset about this. No one should live like this. Surely they could have provided better places for them to live. This was like animals in a cave. They shouldn't be treated like this. She started to doze off again, then she felt something under the covers. There was something crawling. not just one but a few. She screamed and pushed away the covers. She saw bugs, cockroaches to be exact. There were several of them. She kicked the covers away. Tim had woke up and came over. "What's wrong?" By this time others had woken up. "Bugs! I can't stand them!" She was rolled up in a ball and staring at them as they scattered away. She was shaking. Rachel had woken up. Tim put his arm around her and held her. He could feel her shaking. Rachel came over. "What happened?" "Bugs. Cockroaches. Rachel, you live with those creatures?" "We don't have any choice. Some of us try to keep it clean here, but it's hard. We don't have some of the cleaners and equipment they have on top. You get used to it." "I can't. I hate them." Tiffany just stared at where they had scattered to. Sh wondered how they could live like that. Something had to be done. "Rachel, get me a jar please." "Yeah, I'll go into the kitchen and see if they have one." She got a jar. Later Tim and Tiffany went out into the lounge area. Tiffany felt she couldn't go back to sleep again. "Tiffany, what are you going to do?" "I'm not sure yet. I have to think about it. Tim, we can't leave things like this. It's not right. I can't just walk away from this. You don't have to come along, but I'm going to see that Mr., um, what was his name? Tonkin or something?" "Tormandon." "Yeah, whatever. I'm going to talk with him. I promise. I'll just talk." "OK, but I'm going with you. Come here." He hugged her. "I just want to help you. I understand how you feel. We'll both go and talk to him tomorrow. But until then, let's get some sleep." "I can't sleep, knowing those things are around." "It's OK. I'll stay awake and protect you." Tiffany smiled at the memory of the island. "Yeah, just like you did on the island?" She laughed. He looked so cute when she woke up. She smuggled up to him. She felt protected with him. He smiled and hugged her again. End of part one. Sherry Sherry Loeffler loeffler@istar.ca fanfic page: http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Set/7534/intro.html "Give whatever it takes, even if it takes more than you got." Tony Piccolo to Lucas on By Any Other Name - SeaQuest DSV. Date: Fri, 5 Sep 1997 08:38:07 +0000 From: loeffler@istar.ca To: seaquest-ff@escapenet.org Subject: (SQFF) (Fwd) Perseid Colony - Second part Message-Id: Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT BTW I should have mentioned that this story is a follow up to the one in which Dagwood meets Rachel. I thought Rachel was a good friend for Dagwood and the friendship should be continued. There was an underlying thread in my former stories. As usual the same disclaimers are in effect. Hudson, O'Neill, Tony, Ford, Lucas and Rachel are not my characters but belong to Universal studios. Here's the second part: The next morning Rachel came and woke them up. She felt bad about what had happened. She hadn't thought that something she was used to would bother Tiffany like that. Tiffany knew that often Daggers had to live under bad conditions, but she had not expected that here. "Rachel, don't apologize for this. It isn't your doing. They have no right to deny you the comforts and things you need. I'll go to Tormandon today and talk to him. We'll get to the bottom of this." "I don't want you getting into any trouble, because of us." "She won't. I'm going with her. It'll be OK." Tim said. "Hey you two aren't going without me. I'd like to see this guy too." Tony added. "Thanks for the support guys, but I don't want you two getting into trouble. At least I've been through this before." "Dagwood's been our buddy long before you came along. If his friends need our help, then we're going too. You're not the senior officer here. We're on our own time." Tony was protective of his friend. That was good to see. It made Tiffany feel better to know. "OK, but you two have to let me do the talking." They both nodded. "Dagwood, um, me and Rachel can come." "No, Dagwood. I don't think it's a good idea. They may turn on Rachel after we leave. I don't want any repercussions of this. Let's get something to eat and get going." They found their way into Tormandon's office. He wasn't keen on seeing them and they ended up waiting over an hour. Finally he came out of his office. He tried to brush them off. "I don't see what we have to talk about Miss, um, Rose is it? "Yes, Tiffany Rose. We're here to talk about the Daggers and how they are treated. We've seen the conditions of their habitat and they are deplorable. There was a law passed that they're to be treated with the same rights as we have. They are our equals." "Well, I wouldn't go that far, Miss Rose. Since you are persistant, let's go into my office." He showed them in. "Actually, in my experience you are right. They are not our equals, most of them are far more intelligent than us mere mortals and they certainly are stronger. However, that's neither here nor there. If you would like I can contact the special Dagger committee which was formed and inform them of these conditions. They would be interested in how you're running this colony." "Oh, I assure you there is no need for that, Miss Rose. After all, we're all human adults and can come to some agreement, I'm sure." "I'm sure we can. First of all they have to have access to the proper cleaning equipment so they can keep their places clean. Secondly, they should be allowed to come 'up top' as they say, with the same priveleges that the rest of you have. And most important, give them decent places to live. They can't keep living under those conditions. Do you ever visit their place?" "Well, no, I don't. I don't see any need to visit there. They have a lot of advantages there and we make sure they're well fed and have their basic needs." "Basic needs! What happened to companionship with others, love and at times when needed, privacy? Mr Tormandon, they are all bunking together in one room according to age and whether they're married or single. That's terrible! They need their own place. Each one of them. If they choose to bunk up with someone that's different, but to put a bunch of cots in a room and then say to them, 'Here it is' is not the way to do it. They need to be treated with respect, not like animals." Tim and Tony had not said anything. They were impressed with the way she handled herself. "We do respect them, to a point. We help them when they ask. We treat them well. We gave them their own place to socialize with their own kind. They don't need anything more." "I don't believe what you're saying. You talk like they're animals kept in a zoo. They are people! They deserve to be treated like people! Their sleeping quarters are horrible. No one should have to stay in a place like that." Tiffany was now holding in her hand the jar she got from Rachel. It was in a bag which was on her shoulder so no one could see it. She was ready to pull it out if necessary. "Miss Rose I must ask you to leave. There is nothing wrong with the place they live in. They never complain about it, so I'm not going to do anything about it." Tiffany was furious. She pulled out the jar and took the lid off. "Well, maybe you would like to live with some of their companions they have to put up with." Before Tim or Tony could do anything, she thrust the opened jar toward him and the contents came out onto his desk. Hundreds of cockroaches scrambled across his desk. Mr. Tormandon jumped up and yelled at her. "Get them out of here. Now! I'll have you put in jail for this." He pushed a button under his desk and then backed away from it. Almost immediately, two security men came in. "I want this lady put in jail immediately and get a fumagator in here!" "Ah, you don't really want to do that, sir." Tony spoke up. "Tony, let it go. It's alright. He deserved that." Mr. Tormandon was staring at his desk. He looked up at them. "Why not?" "Well, sir,um, we're on here on a four day pass from the UEO sub SeaQuest." Tony looked to the others for help. He did not want to do this along. Tim spoke up. "This is Lt.-Commander Tiffany Rose of the UEO ship SeaQuest, sir." "Tim, it doesn't matter who I am. He'll treat me the same." "Who are the rest of you?" "Ensign Anthony Piccolo, sir." "Lieutenant Tim O'Neill. But we aren't here as UEO officers, sir." "Well, maybe I could let you got for an apology." He knew better than to mess with the UEO. "You won't get one from me." "Tiffany! Just apologize and let's get out of here." Tim didn't want to cause problems. "No! I'm not leaving. Furthermore, I'm staying until you make some changes, Mr. Tormandon. You won't get rid of me that easily." "OK then, your companions can leave, but you are going to jail." "Um, sir, that really is not a good idea." Tony was a bit edgy. "Why not?" "Tiffany is Captain Oliver Hudson's neice and he's the captain of SeaQuest and I don't think he'll appreciate you treating her this way." "Tony! Don't bring him into this!" "Well, that does make a difference. Yes, definitely." He looked at the security men. "Take her away. Down to the second jail level." He looked at Tim and Tony. "You two can go and I expect you to be off this colony within the hour. As for Miss Rose here, I will inform her uncle where he can pick her up. Some time in our second level jail will do her some good." He looked at Tiffany. "If you think those cockroaches are bad, just wait." He had an evil smile on his face. Tiffany stood straight. She didn't falter. "We can't leave without Tiffany. We're staying." Tim said and Tony agreed. "No! Out of here now! Or you'll all be down there." "Look guys, I got myself into this. It's OK. You guys leave. I'll be alright." Neither Tim nor Tony wanted to leave, but they thought it would not do any good for all three of them to be in jail. They both left, but with some misgiving. Tim especially was worried. What did he mean by the second level jail? They left and went back to the Dagger's Sheath. They met up with Dagwood and Rachel. Tim told them what had happened. "The second level jail! Oh, no! That's horrible!" Rachel was really upset. "Why, what does it mean?" Tim wanted to know. "That's where they put us when we don't do what they say, or when we lag behind in our work. It's supposed to teach us a lesson. It's a horrible place. There are rats and it's so dirty." "We have to go and get Tiffany our of there. We have to." Dagwood stated. Tim knew he was the officer in charge now. This was no longer a holiday. It would be turning into a rescue mission. He thought he should first let the captain know what had happened. "How could you tell him? You know he'll have our heads for this." "Tony, I have to. It'll be better for him to hear from me than let that idiot tell him. Besides if anything happens to Tiffany I would never forgive myself and the captain won't forgive me either. Where's the nearest vid-phone?" Rachel showed him where the only one they had was. While Tim called the captain, Rachel disappeared. He didn't pay any attention to where she went. "O'Neill, what's going on?" Tim explained what had happened. The captain listened and didn't interrupt. When Tim finished, Hudson just stood there, staring at the screen. Tiffany had done this before. She led a rebellion for the Daggers, but this time she was in jail. They would have no way to get her out legally and he knew her well enough to know that she would not keep quiet so she could be released on her own good behaviour. "You say this Mr. Tormandon knows who she is?" "Yes, sir. Tony told him and also told him she is your neice. He seemed really interested in that part." "You three had better get back here, since he wants you off the colony. We'll form a plan when you get back." "Sir, we can't go and leave her. We just can't." "O'Neill, I know how you feel, but it won't do any good for you to stay. I don't want to make this an order, Lieutenant." Rachel had come back with two Daggers and cut in. "Captain Hudson, I'm Rachel. It's because of me she's in jail. She's being kept in a part reserved for disciplining us. My freiends here have been in there several times and they know some underground routes to get in and out. We can go and rescue her." "Sir, I'll go with Rachel and her friends. We'll get her back and then leave." Tim said. "Sir, I want to go too. After all I can't leave all this excitement up to Tim." Tony smiled. Captain Hudson was thoughtful. "It'll take us at least six hours to get there. I don't think it's worth the risk." "Captain, I know what it's like there. I've been there myself. Tiffany may not last that long. They will torment her and do things to her. You have no idea how cruel they can be." Rachel had felt their cruelty before. She knew exactly what Tiffany would go through. "But she isn't a Dagger. Would they do the same to her?" "She went in representing us. As far as they're concerned she's one of us. They'll show no mercy to her. She'll be a play thing to them." "O'Neill, you're the senior officer there. You'll have to do what Rachel's friends tell you. I think you had better get in there and get her out. I'll deal with our friend, Tormandon, when I get there. Make sure, no just get her out, any way you can. Understand?" "Yes, sir and sir?" "Yes, O'Neill?" Tim looked down. He was ashamed that it came to this. "I'm sorry. I should have known she'd try something, but if I thought that he'd react the way he did, I would never have let her go in there. I'm really sorry." "Tim." Tim looked up. "You had no way of knowing and if you had tried to stop her, it wouldn't have done any good. She's a lot like her mother. Her mother was a real rebel. Nothing could keep her away from helping the underdog." He smiled. "That's what I always liked about Tiffany. How much she's like her mother. Tim, just make sure you get her out." "Yes sir." Tim closed the communications and turned to Rachel. "This is Dirk and Jack. They'll help us. Don't worry. We'll get her out." Dirk had been their waiter the night before. Tim wanted to smile, but couldn't. He couldn't help but feel that this was all his fault. They should have slept in the rooming house up top. He just nodded. Tony put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, Tim, we got Henderson out when she was in jail. We can do it again. Let's go." They went over to a table and sat down. Dirk explained where the tunnels were. He showed them how they could get in and out without anyone knowing. They would have to time it perfectly though and make sure the guards didn't see them. They could get her out and there was a place the Daggers had built underground where they could hide until SeaQuest got back. Rachel could call the captain when Tiffany was safe and he could let her know how to procede. It all looked simple, very simple, but then again maybe it was too simple. Tim hesitiated, but then he thought it was the only way to do it. They started out. Meanwhile, Tiffany had been taken in an elevator down to a level which was below the sea bottom. She looked around. They got out and walked along a stone corridor. It was damp and musty smelling. It gave her the shivers. When she shivered, the man holding her arm, held it tighter and pulled her over to him. He looked down at her and smiled. "Not used to this eh? You should be since your such a Dagger lover. This is where they all belong. They aren't good for much." He stopped and pulled her around so she was looking at him."Their females are only good for one thing. That's what you're good for too." He laughed and pulled her toward him. She tried to pull away. His friend was impatient. "Come on, not here and not now. Let's get her into a cell." The man holding Tiffany looked at her for a few seconds and then started walking again. She almost tripped because he was walking so fast, but he pulled her up. She stumbled a couple of times, but he kept a good grip on her so she didn't fall. They reached a large metal door. The other man put a plastic security key in it, it slid open and they went through. On either side were cells. They all had Daggers in them. There were at least a dozen in each cell. Women and men were mixed. They watched at the three 'monotones' passed them. Some hissed and some reached out their hands to grab a hold of someone. Tiffany felt horrible for the way they were being treated. She asked them. "Why are they all here? What did they do?" "They disobeyed us. They want equal rights. What a laugh! They aren't equal to us. They're just bugs and we can squish them any time we want." His laugh was sinister. Tiffany could see why Rachel felt the way she did. It was worse here than what she thought. They came to an empty cell and he shoved her into it. "You're lucky. You get to be on your own, but you're no better than the other animals.When I come back, little lady, you had better be more serene, you know what I mean?" He touched her and she pulled away. She stared into his eyes. She would not let him know how afraid she was. He smiled and closed the door. "Just a little while longer and you'll know what it's like to be a Dagger." They both left. Her arm was bruised where he had gripped it. The lighting was very dim. She could not see down the hall and could barely make out who was in the cell across from her. Some one in the cell beside her hissed at her. She went over. "You're one of them. Are you spying on us for them?" "No, I tried to help your friends. I tried to get you some equal rights but got thrown in here instead." She told them the story of waht happened and how she came there. "Oh, I would have liked to see his face when you threw the cockroaches at him. What a laugh. It would be worth it just to see him jump." "Yeah, I guess it was good to see him afraid, but I sure didn't help your cause any. Not this time. I really fouled up." "What do you mean 'this time?" Tiffany told them about Seascape. Their whole attitude changed. She was trying to help them. "You had better get comfortable. You're likely to be here a while. They don't let anyone out of here too often." Just then, Tiffany heard a noise. Something was in the cell with her. She looked around. Her eyes were getting used to the light. She could make out a form in the corner. It was a large rat. She screamed. "He's mad at you cause you disturbed him by coming in here." Watch out for them. Many have died from their bites in here." Tiffany closed her eyes. She prayed help would come. She wondered how long it would take for someone to come and rescue her. She wasn't sure she could stand it in here. While Tiffany had been sitting in the cell, terrified, Tim and the others were in a tunnel. The tunnel went under the colony. It was below the sea bottom. It was a crude one and had only some wood slabs keeping it up. The walked for a long time. The Daggers help up their hands once in a while to indicate silence. They were so close to some corridors in the colony that they could hear people speaking. Most of the time they walked in silence. The tunnels were not made for someone as tall as Dagwood, so he crouched over all the time. Even Tim had to watch his head at times. Some of the tunnels were stone and apparently had been used a long time ago for mining, but had been abandoned. The Daggers made good use of these tunnels to connect up with their own. It made a maze of tunnels that others may get lost in. It must have taken quite a while to make them. The entrances into the Dagger's tunnels were camouflaged. Finally they stopped. Dirk was the first to speak. "Here we are. This is the way into the cell area. Everytime we use it, we have to block it up again so no one knows anyone came in here." Tim frowned. "But what about people you've freed? Don't they notice them back again?" "They don't even know who they put in here or why. They never know when someone has escaped. There are so many people in here, that they don't even keep track of them. Some have been in there for years. They're our, how do you say it, martyrs? They're the ones who stay here so that some of the younger ones can build a life and hopefully escape this colony one day." "What a way to live. No one should be treated like that. We would never think of treating Dagwood like that." Tony told him. They couldn't believe what went on that no one knew about. "It's about time they were stopped. When Captain Hudson comes ..." "No, when your captain comes, he'll take you away with him and forget about us. That's what they all do." "I don't think so. Tiffany is cut from the same cloth as him. I think he'll do something." Tim wanted them to know they were not alone. He could see why Tiffany wanted to help them so much. They seemed to accept things the way they are. Things needed to be changed. Dirk and Jack started to pull away at the wall. Dagwood helped them and Tim and Tony did too. It was hard for Tim and Tony, but easy for the Daggers. They all had a strength that Tim and Tony didn't have and it seemed easy for them to do it. They finally got through. End of Second part. Sherry Sherry Loeffler loeffler@istar.ca fanfic page: http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Set/7534/intro.html "Give whatever it takes, even if it takes more than you got." Tony Piccolo to Lucas on By Any Other Name - SeaQuest DSV. Date: Fri, 5 Sep 1997 15:11:30 +0000 From: loeffler@istar.ca To: seaquest-ff@escapenet.org Subject: (SQFF) (Fwd) Perseid Colony - Third part Message-Id: Content-type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT Here is the last part of this story. Now the list is caught up with all the fanfic I have posted so far. The next story is in the works and should be on in a few days. I'll give you a hint. It's about Robert Bridger and not only do we see Captain Bridger back, but also there is a special guest who comes back. You'll have to wait to find out who. Tiffany had been restless. She tried to sit down, but then one or two rats would inch their way over to her and she had to keep moving to keep them away. It seemed like hours that she had been in there. She hated it. The rats kept looking at her and watching her. She was really scared this time. This was not like on Seascape. There she had brought the Daggers out into the open. They had marched on the colony and into the offices. Nothing could stop them. She had no fear then. Maybe it was because she was older now. She was scared she would never see Jeremy again. Her son may be an orphan at age eight. Uncle Ollie would not be able to take care of him. Who would? "Hey, don't get yourself upset. If they see that they will harass you more. Come on. You have to be brave and don't let them see your real feelings." Someone told her. "I don't feel brave. I want to get out of here. I want to see my uncle again and my son. I want, oh, who cares what I want. I was dumb to start this anyway. I didn't thing jail would be that bad. I acted so brave upstairs, but I don't feel that way now." "Look, you'll probably be out of here soon anyway, so don't worry." "Yeah, you can take it for now. Show them you're strong and they leave you alone." Then the others started to encourage her. It helped to know they were on her side. It didn't seem to matter to them that she was a 'monotone'. They were showing kindness to her. "Yeah, I guess I should. I'm the one who talks about being brave and I try to encourage others, but when it gets to myself, I don't do anything. What a dumb way to be!" She smiled. "That's it. Keep that smile on. It can hide anything." Then they heard the door at the end open. The big man came in by himself. Tiffany couldn't see if the other one was with him. It was too dark in there, but she could see the outline of his figure coming down the aisle. "I told you I'd be back for you. Are you ready to co-operate?" He reached into the cell to touch her, but she stepped back. He laughed. "Oh, well, a little feisty never hurt anyone. It may make it fun." His smile was evil. "How do you find your cell mates? Rats make good cell mates, don't you think?" He laughed again. She hated that laugh. It was evil. Suddenly it seemed that the wall was falling down. Her cell was the last one and she heard a noise of someone breaking through. Tiffany turned to see a Dagger coming through the wall. The big man turned too and had a gun out ready for him. He fired and hit him. A shot came out from behind the Dagger. It missed. There was a second Dagger. Then she heard Tony. "Watch it! You don't know who is on the other side. You might hit the wrong person." "Tony!" She screamed. A shot rang out again, this time hitting the man in the arm. He also got a shot off but it went wild. Then she heard running down the hall. It was the other man who had taken her there in the morning. He had a gun out. Then Tim stepped out from behind the second Dagger. He had a gun too. He fired and his the second man in the arm. The second Dagger fired again and got the big man in the chest. He went down. The second man was close to Tiffany's cell and she reached out just as he was about to shoot and knocked his arm. His shot went into the ground. He turned on her. Then a shot came from somwhere. Tiffany did not see where. It got him in the head. He fell. The big man was trying to get up. He stumbled. The Dagger shot him again and this time he stayed down. Tim came over to Tiffany. "Are you alright? We were worried." "Now I am. I'm so glad to see you, all of you. What about the first man who got shot?" "He's dead." Rachel was bending over him. She tried to feel for a pulse, but there wasn't any. She looked up. "Rachel, I'm sorry. He died trying to save me." Tiffany felt bad. It was Dirk, who had been their waiter. It seemed like ages ago, but it was only last night. The other Dagger, Jack, was trying to get her cell open. Others were encouraging him. He got it open and opened another cell as well. He was going to open a third, when they heard noises coming from down the hall. Others had heard the shots and were coming. The Daggers who were not free told him to go on. They would be OK. He looked around. Tim and Tony had got Tiffany into the tunnel. They started to try and build the hole up again. Dagwood was working at a lock on a cell. Jack yelled. He looked up and they saw men running to them. Dagwood grabbed Jack and they started to run. Shots rang out. Jack fell. Dagwood stopped to pick him up and carry him. They climbed over Dirk's body and into the tunnel. Rachel yelled at them to leave the opening. They started to run. Tony looked back and fired a shot. Tim fired two shots. They kept running. Rachel had them running around in circles it seemed.The other Daggers who had gotten free, were long gone. They stopped to rest. Tiffany, Tim and Tony were tired out. Dagwood put Jack down. Rachel came over. He was dead. Dagwood had been carrying a dead body. "We have to leave him here. There's no need to carry him, Dagwood. It's OK." Dagwood looked down at the body. He hated death. It got him mad. Anger was an emotion which came out easily in Dagwood ever since he came back from space. Rachel was beside him. He banged the wall with his fist. "No! No!" He banged the wall again and again. Tiffany went over to him. She knelt beside him and put her arms around him. She held him tight. "It's alright Dagwood. He died for something he believed in. Don't worry. It will all work out. We'll see to it. I promise. I won't leave here until things change. I promise." "But why? Dagwood has nice friends. Dagwood likes SeaQuest. Why can't my friends here have it better? Why can't they be treated like Dagwood is? Why?" "I wish I could answer that one for you, Dagwood. I really do. I don't understand why people treat Daggers the way they do. They shouldn't, but they do and they get away with it. I'm so sorry Dagwood. I really am." "Tiffany is nice. Tiffany tries to help and they put you there. They have so many Daggers there too. What did we ever do to them?" "Nothing Dagwood. You are just being you. I wish I could explain, but I don't understand it my self." Rachel interrupted. "We have to got now. They will find this tunnel soon. I know a place where you can stay for a while." Tim asked her. "Rachel did they see you? Do you think you can go back without them arresting you?" "I think I'll be OK. Why?" "We need someone to meet SeaQuest when it comes in. Someone has to be there. I don't think any of us can go. They know Dagwood even, so he can't go." "I'll go and tell them. Come with me." They sent along several corridors. It seemed like a real maze to them, but Rachel was at home with them. Finally they came to what looked like it used to be an old mining elevator. "You can go in here. At the bottom is a tunnel. Stay in the tunnel, near the elevator. You'll know if anyone comes down and can move away if they do. It's unlikely they'll come down. They're afraid of cave ins. This is not a very safe place, but you'll be safe down there. No one will find you there. I'll see your captain and let him know how to find you." "Dagwood will go with Rachel." "No, Dagwood. They'll recognize you from the jail. Go down there. I'll pull the elevator back up when you're down there, so they won't know it was used. When I come back, I'll whistle like this." She whistled a tune. "OK, you understand that?" "Rachel our lives are in your hands. Thank you for what you have done. I know my uncle will want to look into this, especially when he hears what we have to say. Have faith in us, Rachel. We'll help you turn things around." "I know. Thank you. Listen for my whistle. Get in there now." Tim, Tony and Tiffany got in. Dagwood didn't want to. He stopped. Rachel went to him and hugged him, a long hug. She didn't want to let go. She stopped, but kept her arms around him. She looked up at him. He bent his head and kissed her. Tiffany smiled. He remembered what to do. Rachel almost pushed him into the elevator. She let it down and then brought it back up. They were in darkness. Back on the ship, Hudson was anxious. He wondered just what would happen to Tiffany. They had been asked to do a favour for UEO and had been quite far away when they got Tim's call. He tried to get hold of Tormandon, but was told he was in a conference. The first time he accepted that. The second one he demanded to talk to Tormandon, but his secretary said no. The third time Hudson threatened them with a full inquiry into the situation. Soon he was face to face with Tormandon. It had taken three hours to get him. "Well, Captain Hudson, this is an honour. To what do I owe this pleasure?" "You know darn well. My Lieutenant has informed me you are keeping my Lt.-Commander in jail. What right do you have to do that?" "A Lt.-Commander you say? Hmmm, well I, oh yes I know. You mean that lovely woman who came to visit me this morning. Um, I think her name was Rose, Tiffany Rose?" "Quit playing games. I want to talk to her now." "Oh, I'm sorry Captain, but she's not here. She left soon after she came in." "I know the whole story and if you don't let me talk to her, I will go ahead with a full inquiry, especially as to why you have her in your 'second level jail'." "My you do get around don't you? Who would tell you a story like that? I have never heard of this 'second level jail' you talk about. One moment please." Somneone had come into the room. He whispered intoTormandon's ear. Tormandon looked at the screen and then back to the other man. After a few minutes, he turned back to the screen. "I'm sorry Captain, but I can truthfully tell you that your Lt.-Commander is not here. I do not know where she is. It was nice talaking to you." He smiled. "Good bye." He cut off communications. Hudson smiled. That meant that O'Neill and Piccolo had got her out. Thanks to their new friends of course. He felt better now. Rachel left her new friends. She hoped that no one would think of looking in there. It was an unused shaft and was someplace where Daggers had hidden before. She quietly went back to the Dagger's Sheath. No one noticed her coming into the lounge. She wandered around, talked to a few people and then made her way to the docking bay. She stood at a railing where her and Dagwood had stood watching SeaQuest leave that day. She remembered how sad he was to see the ship leave, even though she wuld be back in three days for him. He really loved his friends there and he trusted them. She wanted SeaQuest to come. In the mine shaft the four of them sat. Tony was the first to speak. "Well, at least Dagwood got something out of this. Though it may have been your last kiss, Dagwood." "It was Dagwood's first kiss, well first real kiss." He remembered Lonnie had kissed him once, but that was different. It felt different. He liked kissing Rachel. He was smiling. "Hey, at least if we go, Dagwood's going with a smile on his face." Tony teased. "What's the matter Tony jealous?" Tim figured he would tease him. "Nah, although she is good looking. Dagwood." He said as he jput his arm around Dagwood. "I think it's about time you learned a little more about women." "Tony! Leave him alone. He's doing just fine. He'll learn more as he goes along." "Yeah, right and Tim will be so jealous next time, he'll explode." "Shhhh!" Tim heard something. They could hear footsteps running. Someone shouted something about the elevator and the shaft. Someone answered him by saying that if they were in the shaft, the elevator would be down. They kept running past. The four occupied themselves by talking about their lives and how they grew up. They learned a lot about each other. Meanwhile, Rachel was waiting for the Captain. She had drawn a map to the shaft and had written down what to whistle in case she couldn't come with him. She also wrote a note so that other Daggers would know that he was there to help. Finally she saw the great ship come in. Finally someone who would help them. She had hopes of living in peace with everyone. Tiffany had rubbed off on her. She only wanted peace between Daggers and 'Monotones'. She saw the Captain. He had two others with him. Just as she went to meet him, someone grabbed her from behind. "Ah, now here's the one we want. We knew someone would be here to meet the Captain. No you will not be able to tell him where your friiends are, but you had better tell us. Rachel screamed. The Captain started over. "What's going on here? Leave this lady alone." "Lady? Get real. She's a Dagger. We're arresting her and there's nothing you can do about it." "Oh, on what charges?" "Resisting arrest for one. Also conspiracy to aid and abet criminals for another." Rachel looked at the Captain with pleading eyes. He couldn't do anything. He shook his head. He was sorry. He wanted to help. Rachel struggled and broke away. She ran to the Captain. "Help me please! They will kill me! They will kill me!" She ran up to him and put her arms around him. She turned to look at the men who wanted to arrest her. As she did, her hand dipped down to the Captain's shirt pocket. She slipped the pieces of paper into his pocket. Then she turned to him and cried out, "No! Don't let them take me. Help me." The men were beside her now and took her arms away from the Captain. Husdon looked her straight in the eye. "It's Ok. It'll be alright. I'll do what I can. You and the others will be OK." Rachel went with the men. She turned to look and Captain Hudson had his hand on his pocket wher she had put the note. She knew he had felt the note go into his pocket. All she could do now is to let him handle things. She could do no more. Captain Hudson watched her leave. He wished he could take her away from them, but he didn't want to cause a ruckus now, until he found his crew members. "Come on," he said to Lucas and Commander Ford. "Let's find that Dagger's Sheath, O'Neill talked about." They left and went up top. Soon they came to it. They went inside. It was not impressive to them. Daggers kept staring at them. They felt awkward. Once inside they went to a table. Ford was curious. "What are we supposed to do now? They won't be here. They're fugatives." "Well, our lady friend gave me something." "That's what that was all about. She slipped something to you." Lucas said. "Yep, she's a smart one." He pulled the papers out. They had been folded into a small square that she could hide in her hand. He unfolded them. There was a map and a note for someone named Dave. Hudson called the waiter over and showed him the note. Immediately he went and got another Dagger. "I'm Dave. What do you want?" Hudson showed him the note and the map. "Can you take us there?" "Yes I can. If you're friends of Rachel's, you're our friends." He took off his apron and led them down a corridor. Soon they were in the tunnels under the colony. They walked quite a distance. Finally they stopped at an elevator. Dave looked around and then pointed down. He pointed to the note where it had some musical notes. Hudson whistled the notes and then sent the elevator down. Four very tired and weary crew members came up in it. They were glad to see each other. They hugged and went back to the Sheath. Hudson had already informed the UEO officials about what had happened here. All they had to do was wait. The Daggers were apprehensive about it. They weren't sure that these 'monotones' really wanted to help them. Once the officials came, Hudson, along with Ford, Tiffany and Dagwood went to see Mr. Tormandon. They marched right into his office with the official papers for him to hand over the governing of the colony to the UEO. They had picked someone to handle this. Tiffany showed them the way to the second level jail. There they found Rachel and the others. They freed them all, but with the understanding that they all had to report to a place set up for a consensus. They wanted to know who was there, what they did and their current address. With this information, they would find places for them to live within the colony. Tiffany, Tony and Dagwood were allowed to stay and help sort things out. SeaQuest went back to where they had been to finish the job. They came back a week later to pick up their crew. The colony was like a new one. Daggers were walking the streets. The monotones who didn't like the changes were allowed to leave the colony. Some of the stores were taken over by Daggers. Some of them wanted to do more than work in the mines. In this colony, it was intended that all Daggers and humans work together. The UEO issued an edict that the Daggers were to be treated equally according to the law which was passed several years ago. The humans and Daggers were to live together in harmony. Tiffany was happy about all the changes. She knew it would take a lot of getting used to, but it could be done. The first order of business was to bomb the second level jail. They did this and all the Daggers clapped and rejoiced. The new Dagger's Sheath had a bronze plate on it dedicating it to the Daggers who had died fighting the cause. This included Dirk and Jack. Rachel liked the idea. She was happy, but then she became sad because Dagwood had to leave soon. She would miss him. They were at the railing again, waiting for SeaQuest to come in. "I'll really miss you Dagwood. I wish you could stay." "I will miss Rachel too, but we can write. I can write now." "Hey you two. It's not over yet you know. Next time I get a leave in our home port, Rachel can come and stay with me. You've never seen other places have you Rachel?" "No I haven't. We were shipped here like cattle. I never saw anything. I'd love to come and stay with you. It'll be great." "Just remember, Dagwood, Tiffany doesn't allow any hanky panky." Tony had to put his two cents in. "Hanky panky?" Rachel still did not understand. "Don't worry about it. I'll explain another time. Let's get to the sub. There's SeaQuest." Tiffany and Tony walked away, but Dagwood lingered. He held Rachel. Then they kissed. "Hey, he seems to be getting better with practice." Tony observed. Tiffany elbowed him. But she noticed it too. Also their kisses were getting longer. Maybe she created a monster, a kissing monster. She laughed. They left for SeaQuest. THE END Sherry Sherry Loeffler loeffler@istar.ca fanfic page: http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Set/7534/intro.html "Give whatever it takes, even if it takes more than you got." Tony Piccolo to Lucas on By Any Other Name - SeaQuest DSV.