Board Thread:Times Past/@comment-24866242-20140602014630/@comment-24930445-20140602015208

Katrylle Morghan Posted 06/01/14 -

It was barbaric, but being an officer of the law, there was nothing Riley could do. By rights, he had no real jurisdictional issues so he probably could have pulled rank and taken her off world, but he needed to see this played out. Every instinct told him there had been something off about the entire situation.

He knew that by tracking Jack Morgan, he would find the women involved in the injury of a fellow officer so many years ago. Morghan was loyal to a fault and, true to form, once he had been released from prison, he made a beeline home. He hadn’t stayed long on Pelvar, just gathered what he needed, found a ship and went straight to L’Riahan with Riley in close pursuit.

Something tipped Morghan off that Riley was on his tail and he had never actually come in contact with Katrylle. Then everything went to hell. By sheer luck, Riley had actually caught Katrylle as she escaped from the local cops. He maintained his status as an officer of the court and turned over his prisoner, though he had begun to seriously question her guilt. Still, he gave his evidence when called upon, telling them the facts of that day including what appeared to be Katrylle leaving Peel’s office.

As he waited for the guards to bring Katrylle out for her execution, Riley leaned against a wall and scanned the crowd. He couldn’t shake the feeling of the wrongness of it all and, once again, he filtered through all the facts of the case.

Yes, she had been on planet. She and her partner had been entertaining Nelton Peel quite extensively to get the contract and he had been playing them for all they were worth. Morghan had been getting frustrated with the situation, but Stinel had kept her level.

He couldn’t get past actually seeing her leave Peel’s office. Something bugged him about it, but he couldn’t put his finger on it and it was beginning to grate on his nerves. From the corner of his eye, he saw Morghan approach and he was fairly certain the man was headed in his direction.

Without taking his eyes from the scaffold, Jack stepped in to a spot beside the detective. “She didn’t do it, Riley.”

“I know.” Riley followed Morgan’s gaze.

“We have to stop them.” he could hear the strain in the other man’s voice and he sighed. Morghan was calm, but knowing what he did about the woman, Riley was sure all bets were currently off on his rational.

“Nothing we can do, Morghan. Not until its over. Since I still have a recovery order on her, the magistrate has signed over her body to me. I am to take possession the moment the quacks pronounce.”

From personal experience, Jack knew what that meant. Years ago, Riley had claimed his body when there was barely a spark of life left in him. His portable med equipment would keep her in stasis until he could get her back to… wherever. But that meant Kat had to die and that experience for her did not sit well with him.

Jack growled and took a step towards the scaffold but stopped when he felt Riley’s hand on his arm. “Don’t. Its not worth it and in the end, you’ll both be dead. I, on the other hand, will need… my assistant…. to help me get her body to my ship. That’s the best I can do for you Morghan. Take it or leave it.”

Jack looked down at the hand then slowly pulled his gaze to the man’s face. Riley could feel the hatred, the rage and worse, the helplessness of it all. Jack’s only reply was a short nod before Riley released his arm. “If you can’t watch this Morghan… watch and keep it professional, I’ll have you removed. I’ll not risk this because you can’t hold yourself together. I am going to do what I can for her, but you need to keep your head on straight, agreed?”

Jack seemed to consider his words, weighing whether knowing that Kat would survive versus watching her die. He searched Riley’s eyes as if to make sure there would be no tricks but, in the end, Jack slowly nodded his assent.

Riley returned the nod, then his attention was snapped to the other side of the courtyard as Kat was brought out. She had stopped screaming and struggling and appeared almost calm. Jack held his breath, waiting for the explosion and escape attempt, but it never came. Sedately, Katrylle let the guards strap her into the metal frame and Jack frowned. “What’s wrong with her?”

Riley shook his head. From what he knew of the woman, systems for five light years around should have been able to hear her cussing and fighting. They had even tripled the guards around her preparing for that eventuality. Yet, there she was, quietly going to her death.

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When the guards had come for her, she had been sitting on the floor, cross legged and very deep into a meditative state. Once she had realized there was no getting out of the cage, she began to seriously consider the situation. Time. She needed time. Time for Ryan and Ben to get to her. Time for Ryax to make it from gods knew where he and Vextis were. In a blood letting, the only way to hold on to time was to remain calm.

Bloodletting had once been a very barbaric form of medicine where the patient had been gradually drained of a small portion of their blood or other bodily fluids to restore “balance”. This place seemed to use it as a form of execution. Kat knew that adrenaline in her system would hasten the blood flow and, therefore, she would die faster. It hadn’t been easy for her to relax, but Mogneio had been teaching her meditation for years. Eventually, she was able to slow her body down and maintain the calm even as she felt the sharp blades caress her skin and the blood began to ooze.

As the guards raised the mental frame she was currently tied to suspend above the scaffold, her calm slipped. Her gaze locked on a professionally dressed woman seated in the front row. The floppy sun-hat had hidden the parts of her face a pair of oversized sun glasses had not. As Kat was lifted, however, the woman’s head followed and, with a smirk, she raised a hand and lowered the glasses.

Joslynne. A stream of cusses were cut short as the smirk widened to a smile. No, Kat wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction, though her meditative state was completely shattered. Her jaw clenched as she watched Jos lean close to her companion and whisper something. Kat’s eye narrowed further as she realized the man was no other than Lantis Pirin.

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From across the crowded courtyard, Jack and Riley watched the outburst and realized it had been aimed at a single individual in the front row. In unison, the men glanced at his companion as if seeking answers in the other. Jack shrugged and their attention was returned to the woman in the front row.

Riley placed a hand on Jack’s arm, nodding for him to remain against the wall while he went in search of a better vantage point. “Ya nae b’leavin her ta die, Riley. I’ll b’findin ye an killin ye.” Jack had slipped. He had always tried to keep his Irish to just a soft lilt, but the stress had pushed his speech back into the streets. In that brief speech, however, Riley mentally slapped himself. All the pieces had immediately fallen into place.

“The voice. It wasn’t her voice!” He shook his head as Jack looked at him in confusion. “I’ll tell you later. Your lady is innocent but her only hope is to stay on plan. Don’t do anything until I get back… Promise me, Morghan. Her life depends on it.”

Reluctantly, Jack nodded and leaned against the wall in his classic “Jack pose”, ankles crossed and hands in his pockets. Although he looked like an disinterested bystander, his entire body was screaming for action as he noticed the small seeping of blood that had been oozing down Kat’s arms was quite a bit more of a stream now. It was going too fast.

Riley slowly made his way around the outskirts of the crowd until he was at the side of the scaffold. With a nod to the magistrate, he leaned against a post as if settling down to wait his turn. He scanned the crowd, first to make sure Morghan was where he left him, then to get a better view of the woman a few feet to his left.

Her disguise was good… near perfect, in fact. Now that Riley knew what he was looking for, he could see through it. She had smiled at her companion, then lifted her single green eye to the hapless Katrylle hanging above them. At the moment, all that hair had somehow appeared much shorter and a white-blonde. Her business suit was sleek offset by a pair of bright red five inch stiletto heels.

Riley turned to speak to the magistrate, to point out the woman, to voice his concerns… to do anything to stop what was currently happening. Unfortunately, the man was a pillar of the judicial system even if he wasn’t much of a purveyor of justice itself. By the time Riley was able to get the man to listen to him, the woman and her companion had left. He had turned in time to see her slip out the gate furthest from Morghan. His moment was lost.

Looking up, he found Katrylle’s gaze locked on him and all he could do was whisper “I’m sorry” before he watched her start to fade.

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She had heard the cop trying to convince the magistrate. She had watch Joslynne and Lantis stand as if to leave. On a parting shot, Joslynne lifted her hand and waggled her fingers at Kat before the two made their way across the courtyard and out the gate. It was over. Joslynne had truly won.

She found herself watching the cop. She saw him whisper “I’m sorry.” then things started fading away.

“Hold on Kittyscott. You’ll be alright lass. Keep calm and give me a little while longer.” Her eyes flickered open at the sound of his voice, then closed again as she realized it had been in her mind.

“I can’t Jack. I’m tired.”

“Fight for me, Kat. A little longer, I promise. The kids need you. Your husband needs you. There’s so much for you to do, Kat. Stay with me a little longer.”

“What’s the point, Jack? We both know I’m dead and she’s won. I.. wish I could see him… once more.”

“Who, Kat? Who do you want to see?” She was fading faster now, but she called Ryax to mind and those closest to her could see a faint smile form on her lips.

Jack could see the image in her mind. It didn’t surprise him when he realized the last face she wanted to see was the man she called husband, but his heart and gut twisted none the less. In their connected minds, Ryax’s face flashed as if someone was flipping through a series of pictures. He laughed, he smiled, he frowned, he fought… he loved…. the pictures began to slow. In one he was holding a smaller version of himself, a baby boy of about two… in another, a young white-haired girl, also clearly his child. A third child appeared in his arms… another girl though this one clearly had Kat’s genetics as well… then… nothing.

His head slammed against the stone he had been leaning against and his eyes closed tightly. He didn’t know how long he stood like that, hearing nothing of his surroundings. The sharp slap on his arm barely pulled him back from his grief.

“Damn it, Morghan. Get your ass moving. We don’t have long!” Riley nodded towards the scaffold and Jack could see the guards had lowered her body. A med tech had made his way to the platform and was currently checking for vitals. The magistrate waved to Riley. “Lets go.”

Somehow Jack made his way across the courtyard. Gently, he lifted Kat into his arms as Riley spoke to the magistrate. “My man will take the body as agreed. Thank you for your assistance in this matter, sir. My superiors will be sending their own appreciation to you when we return home.”

Without a word, Jack followed Riley out of the courtyard and across a large landing pad to a small hangar. “Hurry, man. She needs to be in the pod.” Jack didn’t argue, though he found himself in serious doubt that any life remained in the body he cradled so gently. Her skin had grown cold and her face was so pale. “Damn it Morghan. MOVE!”

Once in the hanger, Riley pulled a pod from the lone shuttle that had been parked and opened it. “Get her inside.. quick.”

Jack was reluctant to let her go, but at Riley’s insistence, he lovingly placed her on the padded bed and barely moved out of the way when the cop slammed the pod closed. Jack couldn’t tear his gaze away from her face as Riley began punching a series of buttons on the side. Reaching out, he lightly touched the glass as if to caress her face, all but ignoring Riley as he muttered under his breath. “Come on, damn it. Come on. I know you’re there, girl. Shit.”

Another button press and Kat’s body convulsed, sending Jack into a frenzy. Jack threw himself on the pod, intent on getting her out, stopping only when Riley yelled “Got ya! Good job, girl. Easy Morghan. She’s back. Lets get her out of here.”

Jack crumpled to his knees, his head against the pod as the tears he never felt ran freely down his face.