Translating Nothing
Posted on Tue Feb 4th, 2025 @ 11:31pm by Lieutenant Adrianna Baciami
1,191 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Stars Around the Well
Timeline: Past
The marketplace bustled with the usual mix of traders, smugglers, and those who preferred to operate in the grey areas of legality. Adrianna stood beside Vance, arms crossed, the very picture of an uninterested translator forced into a job beneath her. In reality, she was barely containing her amusement.
Across from them, the Bolian ‘merchant’ adjusted his stance, his expression neutral but his eyes sharp. Adrianna recognised him instantly– Lieutenant Commander Raliva Verin, Starfleet Intelligence. The last time she had seen him, he had been briefing her on his own mission parameters that he needed a translator for, even though he spoke perfect Standard. The truth was, it was to help her get her foot in the door when she first came to Freecloud. Now, he was playing the part of a fence for stolen goods, and she was the smuggler’s woman.
Vance leaned in, his tone all business, “ask him if he’s got the shipment ready.”
Adrianna exhaled heavily, like she had better things to do, then turned to Ral and spoke in rapid Bolian, “You know, you really should shave that ridiculous beard. It doesn’t suit you.”
Ral’s lips twitched, but he played along. “And you should reconsider your taste in men, penne. You always had questionable judgment.”
Adrianna tilted her head, “You wound me, Commander. How’s the wife?”
“Annoyed that I took this job. She thinks I should have retired already,” Ral glanced at Vance, then back at her, “And you? I’d ask how Starfleet’s treating you, but…” His gaze flickered to the smuggler captain beside her.
Adrianna smirked, “they’re breathing down my neck for information but he's proving to be a handful.”
Vance cleared his throat impatiently, “Well?”
Adrianna turned back to him, schooling her expression into mild exasperation, “He says the shipment arrived yesterday, but he’s still waiting on final confirmation from his supplier before he can release it– apparently your reputation precedes you, amore mio.”
Vance frowned, “Tell him I’m not waiting all day. We've only got so long before our window closes and I'm not getting harassed by Fleeters again for a not so random stop and search.”
Adrianna turned back to Ral, arching an eyebrow, “The captain is very impatient. So, business?”
“So I see,” Ral nodded, “look, final trackers are being placed on it– maybe an hour.”
She hesitated for a beat before adding, “is this a Starfleet operation that conflicts with mine?”
Ral’s expression didn’t change, but she caught the tiniest flicker of something in his gaze, “it’s end game– not for him.”
Adrianna hummed, “Fair enough. Just don’t get yourself killed, Verin.”
“You either, Lasagne.”
She turned back to Vance. “He says he’ll have an update within the hour and we can collect in two.”
Vance muttered something under his breath and nodded, “Fine. We’ll check back.”
As they walked away, Adrianna felt the weight of Ral’s gaze on her back. Whatever he was here for, it was big. She just hoped it wouldn’t end with them on opposite sides of a fight.
***
Vance wasn’t thrilled about waiting, but he was even less thrilled about being kept waiting longer than promised. Two hours later, he strode back into the market with Adrianna beside him, his frustration evident in the tension in his jaw.
Ral was exactly where they had left him, arms folded, exuding the calm patience of someone who had spent far too long in intelligence work. He barely acknowledged their approach beyond a slow blink.
Vance jerked his head towards the Bolian, “Alright, tell him I don’t like being screwed around. If he doesn’t have the shipment, I’ll find another job.”
Adrianna sighed as if she were exhausted by the theatrics, then turned to Ral, her tone conversational, “Do you remember when we got stuck on the port here because you lost our shuttle key?”
Ral’s expression didn’t flicker, “It was a tactical miscalculation, carbonara.”
Vance crossed his arms, “Well?”
Adrianna glanced at him, then back to Ral, “It wasn't his fault– incompetence.”
“It was a malfunctioning security override,” Ral chimed in.
“It seems that he has a new guy on-board,” she appeared to translate before returning to Bolian and correcting him, “It was a hangover.”
Ral gave the tiniest shrug, “Tactical hangover. Either way, we found the keys and we managed to get the shuttle moved before anyone found out what we were up to. I owe you for that actually– really saved me having an extra set of hands, right?”
Vance scowled, “What’s he saying?”
Adrianna turned to him, all business, “He says the supplier ran into some complications because of the new guy, but he’s working on it. He wants to know if you’re willing to renegotiate the price.”
Vance scoffed, “Renegotiate? He’s late. Tell him I want a discount.”
Adrianna nodded, then turned back to Ral, “You owe me fifty credits from that poker game from the night before that incident.”
Ral’s lips twitched, “It was twenty.”
“It was fifty.”
“It was thirty.”
“Fifty.”
“Thirty five”
“I'm willing to say it was one hundred, if you continue– but fifty.”
“Forty– because you can't blame a guy for trying– and it was a tiny amount. It wasn't high stakes.”
Adrianna smirked, “and yet, you haven’t paid me a single credit. It was still fifty.”
Vance had been watching the exchange, his eyes flicking between the pair. After a while he cut in impatiently, “is he agreeing or what?”
Adrianna flicked a glance at him, waving her hand for him to not interrupt, “hush, I'm negotiating your discount.”
She looked back at Val and firmly said, “fifty, damn it and I need an actual discount or the captain will flip.”
Ral exhaled slowly, clearly enjoying the absurdity of the situation, “You’re really playing this role well, pesto.”
“You’re really bad at paying your debts, sweetheart.”
Ral rolled his eyes, “Fine. I’ll buy you a drink next time we’re on leave. Tell him forty percent– I'll pay you your fifty and a drink. But I need five minutes to fudge the papers.”
Adrianna nodded her understanding and then turned back to Vance with a grin, “forty percent discount but he needs another hour.”
Vance looked surprised, although tried to hide it. He muttered something under his breath before nodding, “Fine, but if he’s still stalling the next time we come back, I’m walking.”
Adrianna turned back to Ral with a smirk, “The Captain’s very serious. Adorable, right?”
Ral’s expression turned into a grateful smile, but Adrianna knew that he was actually stifling amusement, “So I see.”
As they walked away, Vance sighed, “I hate these deals, but that was one hell of a discount– remind me not to interrupt again– you may have got me a bigger discount.”
Adrianna patted his arm playfully as if consoling him, “you are forgiven. It’s all part of the service, amore mio.”
Behind them, Ral Verin chuckled to himself, shaking his head.
RSS Feed