Post 494: Masquerading As Light

Stardate: 71012.2120
Title: Masquerading As Light
Author:=/\= Zanh Liis
Scene: Bridge/Chaplain's Office, Independence
Time: Following Into Focus
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Zanh Liis continued staring out the viewport after Jariel left the ready room. Her mind spun in tight, fast circles, trying to process the gravity of what he had just told her.

*It could have been me,* Zanh thought, remembering her childhood at the orphanage on Bajor. *If I'd been born on Yensul, it would have been me.*

It wasn't just because she was an orphan, or a woman that she was so distressed by their conduct. She just couldn't fathom throwing so many people away, for any reason, or trying to exterminate a portion of your planet's population in order to satisfy some perceived divine mandate. It was beyond her ability to comprehend.

Within moments of returning to his office, Jariel had found the smoking gun, so to speak, that Zanh was looking for and he knew it. He sent an urgent message to her, asking if she could join him there.

"I'll be back soon, N'Dura you have the bridge." Zanh announced, stepping toward the lift. "If you see Mr. Blane," the lift doors opened, and there stood a very flustered, and annoyed looking TC Blane.

"Nevermind." Zanh concluded. "Walk with me, Lieutenant?" TC remained in the lift and nodded, and as the doors closed he sighed heavily. "Deck twelve." Zanh added.

"It'll be a pleasure, Captain, to walk with you especially considering the company I was just in."

"I can't wait to hear all about it." Zanh replied. "Just hold that thought a moment. First, we need to see the Vedek. He has discovered some horrifying information in the Yensuli texts already, and now apparently something more that we both should see immediately."

"Oh, you mean like he found out they were sexist, egotistical, misogynistic as-"

"Worse." Zanh concluded, interrupting. "Much, much worse."

The pair made short work of the trip to Jariel's office and when the walked in, they found the Vedek kneeling before his altar, eyes closed. He was praying.

He looked up, and moved to rise when he heard the doors open.

"I'm sorry, do you want us to wait outside until you are through?" Zanh asked hastily, not wanting to interrupt his prayer.

[[No, please. You have to hear this, right away.]] Jariel signed urgently, and the Captain translated for Blane. [[I went back to the beginning again, and I managed to find a way to decipher the meaning of the introductory text. It tells how their society came into being as it exists today. Four hundred years ago, there were originally two different factions of the Yensuli living on the fourth planet. They almost wiped each other out, in a war over the teachings of one man. A brutal, dictatorial leader. That man declared himself their Exulted Ruler. He took it upon himself to create all these regulations and commands, and the people who followed him passed those on as absolute law to future generations.]]

"So one man started all of this?"

[[Yes, Captain. One man with a vision and a purpose to remove anyone who questioned his authority. He managed to do so, and all these generations later, the people still believe that the words of the Exulted Ruler are the sole basis upon which they should build their entire lives.]]

"All of this about multi-faceted families, women being inferior," Blane tried to absorb it all.

[[All the beliefs of one man, who managed to convince many people he deserved their absolute obedience.]] Jariel sighed. [[There's more. I have reason to believe that the Exulted Ruler was a direct ancestor of Proconsul Tegget.]]

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Blane groaned.

"The situation is so much worse than you know, Thomas." Zanh replied, her voice heavy with despair.

"Jariel told me earlier that they banish widows and orphans, we don't know if that was symbolic meaning they kill them all, or if they really have stashed these women and female children away somewhere, so they don't have to deal with them. Thrown away, like refuse. They've exhausted so much of their female population that they are now interested in going to other worlds to find more females to propagate their species."

Zanh choked on the words and paused. Jariel put a hand on her shoulder, gently showing his support.

"That's it." Blane said, pounding his fist against the wall. He had seen more than enough and he couldn't take it anymore. "We have got to do something!"

"I agree." Zanh reassured him. "I would bet that if the Yensuli delegation does know anything about the fate of the Alchemy, they won't tell us. So it's time for us to take matters into our own hands. I'm going to stop by and see Corbinsky one last time, to see if there is any other information he's been holding out on me. But I think we're going to need to take a more," she stressed the next word purposely, "direct approach if we're ever going to find our missing ship and crew."

"Just say the word, Captain," Blane actually bounced up and down once, hands clasped and jaw set. "Please. Just give the word."

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=/\= Zanh Liis
Acting CO
USS Independence NCC-90791