What a Mess (Part One of Two)

Rahel's eyes flashed open once more from another nightmare. More images from the Baltimore, only twisted and frightening . . . She sat up and ran a hand through her damp hair and took a deep breath, trying to steady her heart rate. She thought her heart would beat out of her chest. But slowly it began to settle down.

~Are you all right~ She felt Ash ask.

~I'm fine~ She replied. ~Just go back to sleep. I'm going to head to the holodeck.~

~Do you want me to meet you there ?~

~Ash . . . just go back to sleep. I'm fine . . . I just have to relieve some of this tension.~

Feeling like he had finally settled for her answer, she swiftly changed into some black pants and a black shirt. She pulled her blond hair away from her face into a pony tale. With that, she grabbed a dagger, pushing into the belt of her outfit and threw a towel over her shoulder, before leaving her quarters and headed to the holodecks. She had to burn these emotions off. There was no other way now.

As she reached the holodeck, she activated the holodeck console on the wall beside the door.

"Computer, initiate program RKahfre329."

<Program is running>

Quickly, Rahel entered, grabbing her dagger and threw the towel down. This program was set in the woods on Timinaris and she was going to be expecting several attackers. Almost as soon as she stopped to look around they came. She found herself surrounded by five gruff looking Timinarian men. They were big, strong and nasty when they wanted to be.

They had been slave traders in their time and as one came up to her, she immediately took a fighting stance and yelled, lashing out with a flying side-kick. When he came back for more, she knife-handed him in the throat. He crumpled, unable to breathe, since she had broken his windpipe. As two more rushed her, she easily jumped over their heads and landed behind them. She grabbed the nearest by the head and snapped his neck as if he had been a doll. The other man began to charge her so she grabbed her knife and threw it, impaling him in the chest. He too, fell to the ground.

As the last two men began to approach her, she grabbed her knife from the dead mans chest and threw it once more. It hit its mark perfectly, right in the throat of one of the approaching men who back fighting to breathe. The other man stopped in shock, looking at his friend. That's when she ran and front-jump-kicked him, sending him backwards.

She retrieved her knife, went over to the last man and threw it down into him. He cried out before he too died. Suddenly, behind her she heard more footsteps and knew more men were coming. They wanted her badly. They were going to try to capture her and enslave her . . .

*Yeah, right!* She thought. She saw that six more appeared . . . perhaps more. She picked up her own dagger and then took the daggers off the men she'd just killed, storing them in the belt. Finally grabbing a handful of dirt, she stood motionless as the men began circling her. She had always been taught not to get in the middle of a fight. At the moment, that's exactly where she was and . . . maybe she would stay for a few minutes . . . Make them think they had something before ripping them to shreds.

As they began closing in on her, she picked the closest and threw the dirt into his face. She then kicked him where it would hurt the most, causing him to fall to the ground.

She pulled out two daggers and threw them. They hit two of the men who had encircled her. One was in the chest, the other in the throat. She jumped onto another man ranking her nails across his face like a tiger and then snapped his neck before setting her sights on his partner who had simply wet himself. All she did was walk up to him and say "Boo". He proceeded to yell and run away as if he had seen a monster from hell.

She laughed, but it still left her with at least one . . . perhaps more. As another man got close enough to make a grab for her, she swiftly jumped over him and grabbed him behind his head, around his neck, easily snapping it. As she dropped him to the ground, she sighed, thinking it might be done for the moment.

But then she heard more steps and she was ready for action if she had to be !. Just as a hand reached for her, she spun around, grabbed the hand and delivered a palm-heel to the face. As she finally got a look at the face, she saw just who it was causing her heart to jump into her throat.

"Oh my god ! Oh my god ! Are you all right? Are you bleeding or swelling ?" Rahel asked almost frantic. "Do we need to get you to sickbay?"