Stardate: 80716:0820
Title: Out of the Frying Pan
Author: Counselor Kami
Time: Current
Scene: Andarus V


Counselor Harak and Counselor Kami had changed out of the dress clothes thanks to the help of the holographic servants. Thankfully, it was making their efforts to reunite with the Horizon crew much easier.

“Thank you my dear,” Kami said, acting the part of a prince as the former teapot helped him into more comfortable clothes. He now wore loose pants and a loose white button down shirt, dressed much like a commoner in the 14th century on Earth. He swirled around, arms extended and smiled at Harak / Belle who was now in a looser blue and white dress.

“How do I look?” He asked.

“Like an idiot,” she replied, stepping down from the stool she stood on, away from the man hemming her dress. “Can we please find some way out of here?”

“Excellent plan,” Kami replied. “Madame, can you tell me where I can buy some nice flowers in town for dear Belle here?”

“Oh my yes!” Cried the large woman. “Just down in the court yard by the tavern.”

“Thank you my dear,” he replied, holding out his arm with his elbow bent. “Belle, shall we go select flowers for your enjoyment?”

Harak walked over, linking her blue arm tightly around Kami’s, faking a smile at him. As the pair descended the main staircase to the entrance of the castle, Harak turned to Kami, still faking a smile.

Through her teeth, she said “You’re enjoying this a bit too much Niran.”

“If we don’t keep up our act, they’ll suspect something,” Niran answered seriously. The guards parted allowing Niran and Harak to pass through the main gate into the courtyard of the village.

The pair crossed the relatively empty courtyard, noticing the Captain and the Horizon crew in the tavern’s window, surrounded by armed guards. Quickly, Niran grabbed Harak and pulled her into the flower shop before the guards noticed them.

“That can’t be good,” Harak said, ignoring the florist who was bothering them as to why they were cowering in her flower shop.

“Did you get a good look at their attire?” asked Niran. “They’re a bunch of fairytales too. Sparky is dressed like that ogre with the talking donkey, Remmick’s wearing that red cloak, all the women are wearing silly dresses. They must have completed their stories too.”

Harak looked at Niran oddly. “How’d you know that finishing the story would get us out?”

Niran stopped looking out the window of the flower shop and turned to the Bolian woman. “It’s how one ends any holo-novel: finish the story. I was at my desk when I appeared as Beast in that castle. I figured since I was large, furry, and surrounded by talking household items, it had to be a holo-program. So I let it play out and here we are.”

“You spend too much time on the holodeck, but its paid off,” she replied, taking another look out the window.

The armed guards through the courtyard and into the central castle were escorting the Horizon’s crew. The two Counselors quickly ducked below the window, now eyeing the very angry looking Vulcan florist.

“Purchase a decorative arrangement or get out of this establishment immediately,” she said bluntly.

“They can’t program emotions into Vulcan’s in this screwed up program?” Whispered Harak.

“We’ll leave, sorry,” Niran answered, rushing out of the store with Harak.

They watched as the Horizon crew was escorted down the street, passed the villagers, out of sight, into the grounds of an even larger castle. For some reason, the castle of Beauty and the Beast had vanished, replaced by the blue sky and the clouds.

“Now what do we do?” Harak asked. “I wish we could find my captain, but I wouldn’t know where to start.”

“What exactly happened when the Grimalkin got here?” Niran asked.

She pondered for a moment, trying to remember exactly what had happened.

“I was on the bridge when the crew suddenly started vanishing one by one,” she replied, “I found myself alone, with fake hair in an odd dress, working with the Beast in the castle. I tried to find a way out, but he blocked me at every turn. That’s when I started to forget everything, all I could remember was that my name was Belle and then I remembered seeing you.”

“The Beast before you wasn’t someone from my ship, but I’m pretty sure it was a hologram. Damn it, there are eighty-six people assigned to the Grimalkin, how are we going to free them all?”

“End the program obviously,” replied Niran. “Which must be what the Captain was trying to do before those guards showed up. Excuse me, bar keep!”

Niran was yelling to the barman standing outside the tavern, which was apparently a Tellarite man and would have made a better Beast, but alas, that was not either of their decisions.

“Where are those guards taking those people?” Niran asked.

“To the King of course!” Answered the barman proudly.

The man’s look became filled with fear and he fled inside the bar. Niran heard the door lock. The rest of the villagers were also starting to flee in various directions, away from Niran and Harak. A dark shadow descended upon the two Counselors, now alone in the courtyard.

Reluctantly, Niran looked up and shook his head. “Fantastic,” he said sardonically.

Above the two Starfleet officers descended a large, red reptile, with long claws and flapping long, leathery wings. The creature, to be frank, was a dragon.


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Ensign Niran Kami
Ship’s Counselor
U.S.S. Horizon
NCC-72400
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