New Sheriff in Town

Posted on Sun Mar 31st, 2024 @ 6:17pm by Shea Voran II

1,367 words; about a 7 minute read

A'Halyia Proper, Planet Ayenna
Two Weeks Ago...

The snow didn’t slow the children down at all; a group of them laughing and playing, hitting each other with snowballs and dumping handfuls of the frozen rain down the back of each other’s jackets. Their parents sat or stood nearby, laughing in amusement at their antics. The human-like people of this world didn’t think anything odd of the woman leaning on a rail on the level above watching them; her dark hair and eyes not really seeming out of place. Had they looked closer they would have noticed the pupils of her eyes had a vertical slit appearance, and under her lips her canines were noticeably larger…

The park was on the west side of the river that separated it from the bulk of the capital city of the A’halyian Empire. Just across a nearby bridge was the government quarter; the spires of the Darkangel Temple - the capital building itself - can be clearly seen rising above the highrises.

Shea Voran, snug in a dark brown coat, leaned on a railing peering down and smiling at the children. One gloved hand lifted a long black cigar to her lips, the other flipping open a lighter and striking the flint. Her dark eyes closed as she took a deep, long drag, enjoying the taste of the smoke that filled her lungs.

She ignored the sound of an engine coming up behind her, wheels crunching on the snow, followed by the sounds of vehicle doors opening and closing. She could sense two of the men from the vehicle remaining behind; bodyguards. One walked toward her, alone.

"You know those can kill you."

Shea lifted the cigar from her lips; "Screw you, Rampage. It's been two years since I had a good cigar, much less a drink."

"Your fault for getting knocked up again." Beside her a man in a long black coat with sets of silver stars on its epaulets leaned against the railing beside her.

The woman just huffs and takes another long drag. "Eh. It was worth it. And he earned it, dealing with my bull all these years, and being faithful to all of us... Me, Tess and Lisa..."

"You're getting soft, Black Cat."

"We're all getting old, Rampage. Figured he deserved another cub before it's too late." They sat in silence for several moments, the General watching the kids in the park, while the woman enjoyed her cigar. Finally, she broke the silence; "So what'd you call me up for? You know I got a couple more weeks of Leave..."

He was silent for a moment. “We need you again...”

Silence was her response for a few moments. “You know I’m thinking about retiring. All the crap I’ve been through, all my enemies are dead or fleeing in terror…” She trailed off, a soft look on her face; “... I have another little boy now…”

“This isn’t a Combat Op.” He glanced at her. “At least, not as we see it at the moment. You recall about five years back you were sent to Amphitrite…”

“Heh… that was fun...” She cut him off with a wistful smile. “I shut that invasion down quick. But you know I’m a soldier, not a Starship Captain.” She eyed him cautiously.

“It's a Civilian Advisory posting.” He said defensively. “Security related.”

She stood and glared at him; “Hell, I may officially be in Security, but I haven’t worn the Green Badge in damn near fifteen years! My Operations Certification has been expired even longer!”

He faced her in turn, shoving his gloved hands in his coat pockets. “Black Cat, Starfleet Command has gotten word of a new Colony in trouble in the Beta Quadrant. Place is called Haumea, on the planet Xaeprea. Starfleet has an outpost there, but they’re badly understaffed and stretched thin keeping the colony going; they’re not developing as fast as they should be since the Federation Colonial Administration dropped the ball on supporting them like they were supposed to. Command has been sending them what spares from the area they can scrounge up but they need more.”

Shea was quiet for a moment, taking another long drag on her cigar. “You think the place may be important in the future, and a certain Admiral at Starfleet Command wants someone she can trust to be on hand when it inevitably hits the fan.”

“That’s why we need you.” He confirmed. “We’ve arranged for the Federation Security Agency to make you a Marshal, and you’ll be in charge of civilian-side security for the Colony, taking pressure off the Outpost.”

The woman gave a weak smile. “... you want me to be the town Sheriff, is that it?” At his nod, she leaned on the railing again, puffing on her cigar as she watched the children play for several long minutes.

The General knew better than to interrupt her, so he waited patiently, standing there in the snow, watching her as she pondered.

It was a full two minutes before she lifted the cigar from her lips; “Don’t they have a Starship assigned to the area?”

“The Atala. Merian class - but she’s got only a skeleton crew…”

Shea nodded slowly, another long drag on her cigar. Finally, she blew a smoke ring; “Guess it’s a good thing that I’ve already got my Resignation typed up.”

Rampage gave a nod; “I’ll personally fast-track it through Personnel. Standard SOFA, similar to the relationship you had at Fort Kudirka on Bajor. That’s it.”

She nodded thoughtfully; “I’m gonna want trusted people on this.”

“You’ll have them. There’s a detachment of Marines already on-site if you need muscle. CO’s a Light Colonel named Shawn Bradley but as I said, they’re short on personnel.”

“Status of the Command Staff?”

“FUBAR. I don’t have all the details on me, but CO’s currently M.I.A. They got a Temp there last I heard...”

“I’ll wanna see Bradley’s record.”

“That can be arranged.” The General replied. “I’ve seen it myself; he’s good. Military brat, ex-Fighter Jock, very competent.”

There was another long pause as she took another drag. “…” The General glanced back at the two bodyguards by the black car wearing black suits that practically screamed; “I’M A COP!”

After a moment she stood upright again, taking the cigar from her mouth and extending a hand; “Okay… I’ll do this as a favor to you and that Admiral. Now where’s my badge?”

Haumea Colony Spaceport
Yesterday...

Flipping open her lighter, Shea Voran stood on the tarmac and lit the first cigar she had since leaving Ayenna for this new posting. Behind her, the cargo she brought with her was repacked onto a two-wheel trailer towed by an open-topped 4x4 light utility vehicle she brought with her. Already a white placard with "POLICE" written in black was mounted below the windshield.

She had been informed after landing that the individual from the colony's civilian government she was to meet concerning her new job was not yet available, at least not until tomorrow. For now, however, she was content to spend a night just exploring the place and getting a lay of the land.

Snapping the lighter closed and tucking it into an inner pocket of her dirty brown bomber jacket, she took a long drag and looked over the city itself from her vantage point on the airfield. This place was young - very young - but already was taking on a unique personality.

Shea retrieved a wide-brimmed hat from her vehicle and donned a leather belt to which was clipped a holster and badge, resting the ensemble on her hips. Pausing to check that the tarp covering her cargo was secured and strapped down, she hopped into the driver's seat. Hitting the starter and working the long lever between her and the passenger seat in sync with the three pedals, she drove the ancient-looking vehicle toward the city itself.

... perhaps she could find some fun to tide her over until her appointment tomorrow...

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