Rewired (Closed/Marco)

[Marco Benitez]

Marco's long stride took him through the station's pathways quickly, there was no need to run when you were as tall as he was.  Besides, running only made it easier to run into things and the last thing he wanted was to be detained by a bad fall.  He had his run in with falls before and they were always an inconvenience.

=^= Ensign Talbot to Crewman Benitez, suspect has been seen heading towards the brig...I've been shot, an-and Lt. P'uir is dead...I'm sorry, sir, he took us by surprise =^=

Marco did not respond, instead he frowned angrily, he was beyond furious now.  More reports came in but he mentally filed them away and continued to concentrate on his current mission.  He moved silently through the mess that was the brig.  The lights were flickering as the computer tried to restart the systems.  His phaser, still set to kill, was in his hands as he moved slowly, foot over foot in a way that would keep his tall lean figure from making any noise.

Marco's hair had detached from its usual neatness and now his dark locks fell over his eyes but they didn't disturb his line of vision.  Finally, he heard voices one of them was definitely those of Reyes, the other was sounded masculine and quite vicious.  As the alien raised his weapon at Kali, Marco raised his own, aimed and fired without hesitation.  It hit the bounty hunter true and the alien crumpled in death as Marco moved closer.

He took a deep breath but his face remained furious, "Oh no."  Marco spoke robotically, "...I killed him...my weapon was Á¢â,¬Ëœaccidentally' set on kill."  His eyes lifted and studied Kali as his features soften from rage to concern, "Are you alright?"   

[Kali Reyes]

It happened again. That feeling of not being in your own skin. For a moment, she was back in New Canton with a dying colonist in her arms and a weapon pointed at her.

Except Grey wasn't here. Or a Federation cavalry.

Maybe she didn't leave New Canton at all and this was just a fever dream. She could only sit here unblinking as the gun-for-hire suddenly crumpled to the floor. She felt nothing in a weird spectator sort of way. Like she wasn't even here to start with. She was just watching it unfold.

He took a deep breath but his face remained furious, "Oh no."  Marco spoke robotically, "...I killed him...my weapon was Á¢â,¬Ëœaccidentally' set on kill."  His eyes lifted and studied Kali as his features soften from rage to concern, "Are you alright?"

Kali did little but shrug and then gaze down to Dijon's motionless body on her lap. "No. Not really."

[Marco Benitez]

After a careful visual inspection of the area, Marco crouched near Kali and reached for her face.  His free hand cupped her chin gently and moved it up so he can take a better look at her.   His other hand continued to hold his weapon finding that he didn't quite want to holster it yet.  His skin still crawled with all the drama and murder and his adrenaline was in high gear.

"Are you hurt?  Are you bleeding?  Crewman!"  His voice was stern but no longer rough and angry, "Do you need me to take you to Sickbay?"  He was worried, she was probably suffering from shock and could see the haunted look in her eyes.  Sometimes shock was worse than any physical injury and he hoped that wasn't the case.  Kali was a lively woman and although he drove Marco crazy he didn't want to see that spirit crushed.

"Kali."  He used her first name for the first time, "It will be okay." 

[Kali Reyes]

She thought of engines, funny enough. Valves and crankshafts and flywheels all came to mind like jigsaw pieces. She found it way more interesting than what was before her. Compiling the heat system by memory was disengaging everything else and she definitely wanted that.

"Are you hurt?  Are you bleeding?  Crewman!"

Draft or no, it was a military title, and it was hers. Kali instinctively blinked and refocused in attention while the gears in her head clicked with determination in the background this time.

She shrugged again, but this time with a little more awareness. "Chill as a cucumber." Dijon, along with New Canton - well she'd rather not relive that right now. Instead she sheepishly pulled away from the security officer's grip and took better aware of her surroundings. "I'm definitely glad I'm not you right now. Clean up's gonna suck, Mister-" She realized she didn't have a name for that twisted mug. "Mister... ?"

[Marco Benitez]

As she moved away from his touch and asked for his name, Marco snapped back into duty mode.  He set his face in its usual pensive scowl and stood up, "Marco Benitez."  He responded pronouncing the words in perfectly pronounced Spanish, his r's rolling effortlessly.  "My friends call me Matt."  He shrugged as he revealed a very personal bit of information about himself.  His father was Marco, while deciding not to be called Junior, he had preferred to be called Matt.

He offered her a hand, "Let's get moving, Ms. Reyes."  Again his r's rolled smoothly as he pronounced the woman's surname properly.  "There is nothing you can do for your friend right now, but perhaps stay safe.  I'll take you to sickbay and have them check you out, then you and I will have a long discussion about what happened here.  How does that sound?"

[Kali Reyes]

"Marco Benitez."  He responded pronouncing the words in perfectly pronounced Spanish, his r's rolling effortlessly.  "My friends call me Matt."

She found the nickname odd, but it wasn't the most important thing looming over her head. "Benitez it is."

He offered her a hand, "Let's get moving, Ms. Reyes."  Again his r's rolled smoothly as he pronounced the woman's surname properly.  "There is nothing you can do for your friend right now, but perhaps stay safe.  I'll take you to sickbay and have them check you out, then you and I will have a long discussion about what happened here.  How does that sound?"

He was right. There was nothing she could do for Dijon. If the fool had just told her or tried to contact her about this - was he so stupid as to forget that she had a part in this hunt as him and Sweet were?! Anger colored her thoughts. It just seemed like a better thing to do than grieve.

But still, she couldn't detach herself from his body. Once upon a time they had a history. Erasing it wasn't going to change or fix anything. Starfleet's protocol had to be hammered between her ears in order to get her to see reason and loosen her hold.

She didn't (couldn't) take Benitez's hand. Didn't need it when Grey moved past the bodies of slain colonists and mercenaries to get to her and didn't need it from her father's sympathizers at his funeral. "I don't know what to tell you," she replied stiffly as she got to her feet. "Just a big old - stupid coincidence."

Except it wasn't, was it? Her gaze shifted to the head hunter's body. You thought Starfleet would put the past behind me, Grey, she thought with a derisive snort. I guess not.

[Marco Benitez]

Marco closed his hand into a large fist as the woman rejected It.  Sometimes it happened but he had been trained to help and he did want to help.  He nodded at that and instead turned his phaser from kill to stun before someone else died.  It was easy to forget that you could kill someone with a weapon like a phaser.  Protocol deemed to always have it on stun unless ordered to kill.  He had thought kill would be appropriate in this situation and he was right.  The man he had killed was a dangerous criminal and there was nothing he or Starfleet would gain by keeping a man like that prisoner.  If he could, Marco would prefer being judge and jury but he wasn't about to admit that outloud.

"I don't believe in coincidences, Ms. Reyes."  He turned to her and raked his hair away from his face and somewhat properly fixed it.  His dark hair was heavy and stubborn however and after a few minutes fell back over his face.  "Now, if you'd follow me to Sickbay?"  Just as he finished the sentence the lights went up and an all clear began to sound.  Marco looked around with just his eyes and settled his phaser back on its holster, "Good...things are getting back to normal."  He motioned her to follow him hoping she didn't look around now that the area was bright and exposed the chaos on the floor.  Dead bodies were never nice too look at.

[Kali Reyes]

"I don't believe in coincidences, Ms. Reyes."  He turned to her and raked his hair away from his face and somewhat properly fixed it.  His dark hair was heavy and stubborn however and after a few minutes fell back over his face.  "Now, if you'd follow me to Sickbay?"  Just as he finished the sentence the lights went up and an all clear began to sound.  Marco looked around with just his eyes and settled his phaser back on its holster, "Good...things are getting back to normal."  He motioned her to follow him hoping she didn't look around now that the area was bright and exposed the chaos on the floor.  Dead bodies were never nice too look at.

"I'm not injured," Kali protested a little too quickly. Her and Sickbays never got along well, health or sickness. She grimaced when the lights came on and massaged her forehead. "Can I make a comm call while you book me? Pretty sure there's still a gag order if you try to get a statement out of me over this."

[Marco Benitez]

Marco rolled his eyes, why was this woman so damn stubborn.  His lips moved angrily as he spoke, "Again, I did NOT ask if you were injured, you are going to sickbay."  He sighed, and calmed down.  Reyes had a way of pissing him off with just a few words.  "I am not booking you, Ms. Reyes, you have been helpful and I will require your assistance with this currently murder/infiltration."  He sounded official but his eyes had softened to something of a honey brown.  "Will you help me?"

[Kali Reyes]

Kali flared up at his tone. "Don't need it. Let's just skip the tricorders and go straight to the investigation." She never understood the need to visit the Sickbay every time something bad happened. It wasn't as if there was a doctor in the base that can magically wave a wand and memory wipe her. Because that's pretty much what it took to fix her - if fixing is the appropriate word for this. "But I wasn't joking. This," she gestured to the bodies on the floor. "This is a New Canton thing. And that's a gag order I don't want to break if I want to stay out of a Federation prison."

[Marco Benitez]

Marco conceded with her instead of continuing to argue.  He never liked Sickbay either but still he wanted to give her the option.  After all, she may not be physically harmed but it was clear her mind was affected.  Still, he conceded and instead sighed and pinched the bridge of his prominent nose.  "Fine..fine."

He dropped his hand as he listened to her supposed Á¢â,¬Ëœgag' order.  Marco frowned in thought, he'd have to check with this New Canton thing but he doubted he'd get much.  The next thing would be to report it to the chief and let him deal with it.  "Fine, you don't have to tell me about your history, just what happened right now.  Do we have a deal?" 

[Kali Reyes]

"Probably a good thing. I'm saving that for my autobiography," she replied dryly. "But this? I guess I can tell you a little sneak peak on what's going on."

Determined not to look at Dijon's body, she gestured to the head hunter instead. "This freak is a head hunter. Gun-for-hire, mercenary, space ass, the whole shebang. I think the Ferengi on Tellur II sent him. Greedy bastards."

[Marco Benitez]

Marco already had gathered that the man he had just killed was a bounty hunter.  The information about who may have hired him, however, was useful.   He took mental notes and would investigate it further and send the information higher on the line.  The security crewman then nodded at Reyes, "That is a good start, Ms. Reyes, thank you."

His eyes flickered over her, studying her before coming to the conclusion that she had paid for her trespasses enough.  "You're free to go."  He took a deep breath and let it out through flushed lips.  "You should leave before I change my mind, Crewman Reyes."  A flicker of a smile tugged at his lips before disappearing.

[Kali Reyes]

Marco already had gathered that the man he had just killed was a bounty hunter.  The information about who may have hired him, however, was useful.   He took mental notes and would investigate it further and send the information higher on the line.  The security crewman then nodded at Reyes, "That is a good start, Ms. Reyes, thank you."

His eyes flickered over her, studying her before coming to the conclusion that she had paid for her trespasses enough.  "You're free to go."  He took a deep breath and let it out through flushed lips.  "You should leave before I change my mind, Crewman Reyes."  A flicker of a smile tugged at his lips before disappearing.

Her eyebrows skyrocketed to her hairline. "I am?" No further interrogations, incident reports, and all the shebang that would have probably monopolized her entire shore leave? Taking his threat to heart, she quickly exited the room to avoid looking at the corpses behind her.

It was only when she reached the turbolift did she crumple against the wall and started to hyperventilate. Dijon's death was quickly sinking in and she tried desperately to lock that away too. Her fingers clutched for a pendant that was no longer there and no parental figure to guide her with a comforting hug and soft whispers. Breathe in, breathe out, breathe out, breathe out, oh god she forgot how to breathe in--!

The turbolift doors opened. Yates and Anderson paused by the door and had intended on going down to check up on her.

Anderson propped the doors open and peered worryingly at Kali's near fetal position against the turbolift wall. "Whoa, you okay?"

Yates was less than impressed. "Relax, Anderson. Reyes is probably just 'listening' to the hum of the turbolift. Aren't you, Reyes?"

That... that was actually a really good excuse. Kali managed to suck in a large breath and started to steadily walk out of the lift. "You know me, Yates. The machinery just... sings to me." God, she needed a drink. A good one.

[Marco Benitez]

This mission is closed, thank you Kali, I wish there were a hundred of you on this board..XD I had a lot of fun with the Condiment Gang.  I hope we can do this again.