Runaway Brides

Posted on Mon Mar 27th, 2023 @ 2:40pm by Commander Raven Adams & Lieutenant Aria Kanzaki

1,068 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Pirating Typhon resources
Location: Promenade

Aria dashed out of the turbolift, her phaser at the ready. The klaxons still wailed as she darted towards the area where the intruders had been reported. Several security officers joined her enroute.

"Kanzaki to Ops. I'm arriving at the scene where Intruders ate located. We're going to engage shortly" she said tapping her comm badge. She presumed that the pirates were armed so she was expecting a fire fight.

"Kanzaki, this is Raven. The intruders are currently contained in Brigitte's Bridal Boutique. I'll drop the force field once you and your team are in position."

"Roger that Raven" Aria replied as she used hand signals to direct the security teams towards the shop.

[Brigitte’s Bridal Boutique]

"Damn, there's a security field here. We need to find a way to get out" one of the Pirates said as he tested the field by the door. "Starfleet will be here any moment, any ideas lads?" He asked looking around at the four other pirates.

"I'll check the back." Alfrum said, turning toward the back of the shop. There was always a way in--or out--for those who worked here.

He found it, and one of the women who worked in the shop trying to hide behind a curtain. He grabbed her arm. "How do we get out of here?"

"I don't know," she said, visibly trembling. "I can't get out, either." She tried to pull back. "Let me go, please. I won't bother you. I...I just want to go to the workroom."

"Workroom?" He held tighter. That must have some way out. "Take me there."

Her face grew pale. She slowly nodded and led him through a side door.

The room was just as she said it was. A large room lined with tables along the walls. One entire wall was filled with shelves piled with fabrics of different colors, patterns, and materials. One table was for sewing machines, one for cutting, and one for patterns. There were no other doors and clearly no way out. In disgust he let go of her and went back to report to the others.

"No way out back there, either. The whole place is sealed off."

[A few minutes later]

Aria and her security team arrived at the bridal shop. She held her phaser tightly as she beckoned for her team to get into position on either side of the main entrance door.

"Kanzaki to Adams. Drop the security field on my mark" she said tapping her comm badge.

"Mark"

Raven dropped the force field affecting the promenade. "Done," she replied. She was curious as to why and activated the security cameras around Aria's location.


Aria and the other security officers rushed into the room; their phasers set to heavy stun.

"Stay where you are!" Aria called out. She then stopped a little confused. There in front of her were several men and a woman, all wearing wedding attire. Some of the men had even put on the dresses.

"Erm... What are you doing?" she asked confused still pointing her phaser at them.

"Trying not to get shot," one replied. "And don't damage the dresses. You have no idea how much they cost."

"Oh, trust me, I know how much they cost..." Aria stated. "Not that I've looked or anything!" she held her phaser tightly in front of her. "You beamed aboard, so you're under arrest, don't try to run, there's nowhere to go!"

"And if you do," another security officer added, "We'll make you pay for those gowns."

"You do?" one of the pirates asked Aria. "You don't look married."

Aria scowled at the pirate. "I'm not...! That doesn't have anything to do with you!" she said loudly in an angry tone.

"It explains why you were hanging around the bridal shop," the pirate retorted, scowling back. "If you let us go, I won't tell anyone about it. Nor will I tell them about your romance holoprogram." He was just guessing, but it made sense to him. She was probably going to die a spinster.

A burst of phaser fire narrowly missed the man’s head as Aria turned a bright shade of pink. "That's enough from you!" she warned. "Plus, you're the one wearing the dress!"

"I bet I wear it better than you would," he mumbled. Then, louder he said. "Touch a nerve, did I? Well, let me and my mates go and we'll give back the dresses. Then you can be the hero and all that gooey stuff."

"Or I just shoot you..." Aria said simply in response an evil smile spreading across her face. "Plus, that colour totally does not suit you!"

"Go ahead." He returned her smile. "I ain't runnin' or fightin,' so you would shoot a man in cold blood--in a dress. How would that look on the security footage? I'm sure the commander here would like that."

"It’s not in cold blood!" Aria responded as she raised her phaser again. "You're all under arrest! I will take you all to the brig!"

"For what? It's not a crime to try on dresses, and then you chased us out of the shop!"

"We're not even armed!" another pirate added, raising his arms to show that he really had nowhere to hide anything in the low-cut, off-the-shoulder, and sleeveless gown. "This beauty costs a small fortune, too. I's hand-sewn and not replicated. My Ma taught me to make a proper stitch when I was a lad."

"Look," the first pirate said, bringing the conversation back to him. "You caught us in a bridal boutique after hours. But we weren't stealing nothin'--not until you chased us out. We just didn't want to be seen trying on dresses. Who's to say we weren't going to leave them there with a note that we was comin' back later to pay for 'em? Not you. You never gave us a chance. And when some security type starts waiving around a phaser, we know it ain't good to run."

The others added their cries of agreement.

By now, a small crowd was gathering, many clearly wondering why security was chasing the men in the first place.

Just then, there was the distinctive sound of a transporter and all the pirates dematerialized. Without their dresses.

___
OFF

Pirates
NPC by Aria Kanzaki and Raven Adams

Lieutenant Aria Kanzaki
Chief Security Officer

Other security officers
NPC by Aria Kanzaki

RSS Feed