Path: newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net!stamper.news.atl.earthlink.net!elnk-atl-nf1!newsfeed.earthlink.net!newsswing.news.prodigy.com!prodigy.net!newsfeed.cwix.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!newsread.com!newsstand.newsread.com!POSTED.monger.newsread.com!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated Approved: ascem@earthlink.net Organization: Better Living Thru TrekSmut Sender: ascem@earthlink.net Message-ID: From: "longbeachtrekstar" MIME-Version: 1.0 Mailing-List: list ASCEML@yahoogroups.com; contact ASCEML-owner@yahoogroups.com Subject: NEW FFF DS9: "Run Ezri Run" 1/1 (Ez/L, S/K imp, AU) [R] Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Lines: 738 Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 13:55:04 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 209.198.142.218 X-Complaints-To: Abuse Role , We Care X-Trace: monger.newsread.com 1103723704 209.198.142.218 (Wed, 22 Dec 2004 08:55:04 EST) NNTP-Posting-Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 08:55:04 EST Xref: news.earthlink.net alt.startrek.creative.erotica.moderated:86153 X-Received-Date: Wed, 22 Dec 2004 05:55:15 PST (newsspool2.news.atl.earthlink.net) Title: Run Ezri Run (Ezri Rennt) Author: longbeachtrekstar ( longbeachtrekstar @ yahoo . com ) Series: DS9 Codes: Ez/L, S/K implied, AU Rating: R Parts: 1/1 Warnings: Canon character death... sort of. Disclaimer: Paramount owns Star Trek. X-Filme Creative Pool produced "Run Lola Run" ("Lola Rennt" in the original German; 1998; written and directed by Tom Tykwer). Summary quote and Sisko's introduction (paraphrased) are from German soccer coach Sepp Herberger. This fic was written as a fan's tribute (to both genres); the only profit is (hopefully) an entertaining story. Archiving: FFF, ASCEM, others please ask. Feedback: Yes please, here or by email. Notes: Written for Round XVI of the Femme Fuh-q Fest -- http://www.geocities.com/femme_fuhq_fest/ The symbols ^ ^ are used to indicate dialog inspired by quotes from the film, as taken from subtitles of the English version. This is probably my most literal movie "retelling", and even includes some camera directions. Also, I don't know how to play Dabo, so I made up my own jargon. Summary: Nach dem Spiel ist vor dem Spiel. [After the game is before Run Ezri Run by longbeachtrekstar, October 2004 We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. - T.S. Eliot ***** Captain Sisko stands in an airlock accessway with his back toward the main hallway. He casually tosses a baseball up and down with one hand, then pauses to examine it. ^"The ball is round. The game lasts nine innings. Those are facts. Everything else is pure theory."^ He winds up and pitches the ball. ^"Here we go!"^ [The camera zooms out quickly, following the trajectory of the ball, which shatters the porthole of the airlock and flies out into space. As DS9 shrinks into the distance, we see that the station forms the dot over the letter 'i' as the stars around it come together to spell...] Ezri Rennt ***** [Zoom back in on Deep Space 9.] The mighty station turns slowly on its axis. Why is not apparent. Unlike its less advanced predecessors, it does not need to turn to generate artificial "gravity", pinning its inhabitants to the inner walls. The miracle of gravity plating has done away with that. It need not turn to stabilize its orbit, for it has not been above Bajor for many years. It need not turn ... But turning is in the nature of things. Planets turn. Galaxies turn. Space stations turn. So can a person's life. [Zoom in on the station for a closer view. The outer rim moves by like a speeding train. Speed sideways to match the revolution and focus on a private window -- the quarters of Ezri Dax. Zoom inside.] The comm panel buzzes, intruding on Ezri's already restless sleep. She's been working third shift lately, and though the local time is late morning, she's only gone to sleep a few hours ago. The comm continues to buzz insistently. Finally, she can resist it no longer. She crawls out from under the covers, stabbing the button in aggravation. "What?!" "Ezri! Ezri, you have to help me!" "Leeta? Leeta, what's wrong?" ^"Help me, Ezri. I don't know what to do."^ ^"Just calm down. What happened?"^ ^"Ezri, he's gonna kill me. I'm gonna die."^ ^"Stop it! You're scaring me. What's going on?"^ "I lost it, Ezri. I lost the money!" Though still exhausted, Ezri is now fully awake. Topless, in panties with tiny pink flowers on them, she puts her legs over the side, sitting up with her feet on the floor. "*What* did you lose? *What* money?" "You know! The money I picked up for the Grand Nagus. One hundred thousand latinum credits! I'm supposed to meet him at noon. If I don't have it, he'll kill me!" "Prophets, Leeta! I told you not to get mixed up with him. How did you lose it?" "I had it on the shuttle, returning from Bajor. When we landed, a bunch of security guards came storming aboard -- something about looking for a criminal. I thought they meant me! I got out of there as fast as I could. By the time I realized I'd left the bag behind, it was too late to go back." ^"Run away, Leeta!"^ ^"It wouldn't do any good. Nobody escapes the Nagus."^ "Where are you now?" "Just outside of Quark's." "Could Quark help you?" "Tell him I was dealing with the Nagus behind his back? I'd be just as dead! ... But maybe I can *convince* him to help me." "What do you mean?" "I have a phaser. I can take what I need. After I pay off the Nagus, I'll have to get off the station. Will you come with me?" "Leeta, no! Don't do anything. Just wait for me. I'll be right there." ^"I'll be dead unless I steal the money. I'm gonna do it -- at noon -- if you aren't here."^ "I'll be there! Don't do anything. Just wait for me." Ezri hits the button, closing the channel. Standing, she pulls on a snug white tank- top, lime-green pants, and black sneakers. "Who can help me?" she wonders. "Who?" Sisko? Kira? Odo? Sisko. Julian? Miles? Sisko. Worf? Sisko. Keiko? Sisko. "Sisko!" ***** [Techno beat...] I wish I was a hunter, in search of different food I wish I was the animal, which fits into that mood I wish I was a person, with unlimited breath I wish I was a heartbeat, that never comes to rest ***** > Running One < Ezri turns and runs out of her room, nearly colliding with Keiko in the hallway outside. As Ezri breezes past her, Keiko calls out. ^"Ezri, are you going shopping? I need shampoo."^ Her quarters are on an upper level. Rather than wait for the lift, she begins running down the spiral staircase to the Promenade level. In the stairway, Jake and Nog are pitching pennies. Ezri ignores them as she passes, but Nog sticks his foot out, tripping her. She tumbles down the bottom half of the stairs, bashing her knee when she hits bottom. She turns and glares up at the two delinquents. Jake is horrified, but Nog is grinning a toothy grin. She hasn't time to deal with them now. Running with a pronounced limp, she races out onto the Promenade. [Side view of a pedestrian walkway which crosses over the Promenade. People moving back and forth. Pan up and over the crossway, to look down on the Promenade itself. In the distance, Ezri comes running into view, weaving her way through the crowd.] Though the typical Promenade denizens might be described as bustling, they are nearly stationary compared to the young Trill racing through their midst. Running, dodging, weaving. Soccer green, Parrises Squares court, space station Promenade. It's all the same. She draws looks as she passes by. The old ones scoff at her impetuousness. The young ones ogle her form. With no bra to hold them in check, her breasts sway with the rhythm of her stride. The friction -- combined with the adrenalin coursing through her veins -- awakens her sensitive nipples to stab at her shirt. The bottom of her tank-top flaps in the breeze, playing peek-a-boo with the Trill spots which trace down her sides, disappearing inside her green pants. She races by the Infimary just as Doctor Julian Bashir is exiting the facility. His head is down, nose buried in a medical text on a padd he is carrying. She passes within inches of him. Feeling the breeze, he looks up and turns his head. All he sees is a dark-haired girl in white top and green pants. He does not recognize her as Ezri. With a shrug, he returns to his reading. Turning suddenly, Ezri runs down one of the station spokes toward the Ops Center in the hub. There, she encounters Ops Officer Miles O'Brien. She comes to a stop, breathing heavily, as he regards her with a superior air. ^"Hey, look at that. Our little princess, Ezri. What a rare pleasure. Why the rush?"^ She motions toward Captain Sisko's office. ^"Please let me in."^ ^"Little Miss wants to see Big Daddy? Sure thing."^ He steps aside, letting her pass. As she goes up the steps toward the heavy door with the thick glass windows, she hears muffled conversation from inside. Hushed voices. Hushed, but urgent. ^"It's worst at night. I wake up and can't fall asleep again."^ Kira is leaning against a small table along the wall of Sisko's office. Sisko is standing uncomfortably behind his desk, hands fidgeting. He crosses his arms, then decides that looks too aggressive, so he lets them hang awkwardly again. ^"I think about us,"^ Kira continues, ^"and then I ask myself what I'm doing here. How long will this go on? The secrecy. All this damned lying. Should I grow old waiting for a man who won't stand by me?"^ ^"I have to go,"^ interrupts the Captain. ^"Bashir will be here in a minute. Can we meet later on?"^ ^"Do you love me?"^ ^"Yes, dammit!"^ ^"Then you have to decide ... I'm pregnant. Tell me, do you want to have a baby with me?"^ Sisko ponders this. He looks at the clock. He thinks some more. Then, his austere face breaks into a happy grin. ^"Yes!"^ He moves to take Kira in his arms just as Ezri enters. ^"Sorry to interrupt. It's urgent."^ ^"What are you doing here?"^ snaps Sisko. Then he pauses, and looks closer at Ezri Dax. ^"What happened, Old Man? You look terrible."^ ^"Listen, Ben. If I tell you I need your help, and you're the only one who can help me, would you?"^ ^"Help with what?"^ ^"I need 100,000 credits immediately."^ ^"What?"^ ^"I need it within the next five minutes, or else something terrible will happen!"^ ^"I don't have 100,000 credits."^ The Captain looks annoyed with the unseemly request. He looks at the clock. He looks at Kira. Finally, he looks at Ezri again. ^"Okay, come with me."^ He grabs her by the arm and drags her out of the office. As Ezri stumbles down the steps behind the large man, she asks feebly, ^"Are you going to help me?"^ ^"Go home. I'm marrying Kira. We're going to have kids, and I'm going to try to be happy."^ He stops before O'Brien, who straightens up at the Captain's approach. ^"Throw her out, please."^ O'Brien looks confused by the request. "^Come on, get her out of here!"^ As Sisko turns on his heels, O'Brien reluctantly escorts Ezri out of the Ops Center. Just before the main door closes her off, O'Brien shrugs. ^"Well, we all have our bad days. See you around."^ Ezri stands still a moment, dumbfounded. Then her brain kicks in, and she remembers the clock. Only minutes left! She takes off at a dead run again. Down the spoke, out to the Promenade, heading toward Quark's -- and Leeta. ^"Wait,"^ Ezri thinks desperately, as if she could will Leeta to read her thoughts. ^"Don't do it, Leeta. Please wait for me. I'll be right there."^ Rounding the final corner before Quark's, she sees her lover stepping into the bar, phaser held high. Ezri screams. ^"Leeee-taaaa!"^ But she is too late. Leeta steps into the bar and fires off a round. Everyone jumps. Some scream. Dice and chips go flying. ^"Lie down on the floor,"^ she commands. ^"Hands behind your head, and keep quiet. I'll shoot anyone who bugs me."^ Ezri appears in the doorway. Leeta turns and looks at her. ^"Will you help me?"^ ^"Can't we just get out of here?"^ ^"Not anymore. You see the shit I'm in."^ ^"Why didn't you wait for me?"^ ^"I did. You got here too late."^ Just then, one of Odo's officers comes bursting in, also with a phaser drawn. Without thinking, Ezri kicks him in the gut. His weapon falls to the floor as he doubles over. Ezri picks it up and points the officer's own gun at him. Ezri and Leeta exchange glances, as if to say, "We're both in it now." They gather latinum strips in a bag and flee the scene. As they race down the Promenade, panicked crowds shrink back from the phaser- brandishing renegades. In short order, however, they come up against a security barricade. A dozen security guards and constables train their weapons on the duo. Stopped in their tracks, they look around futilely. In frustration, Leeta throws the bag of loot into the air, toward the officers. One young recruit excitedly squeezes off a round by mistake. The phaser-blast hits Ezri mid-torso. Inside her, Dax screams as he dies, though no one can hear him. Ezri only gurgles a moment, as thick black blood is forced the wrong way up her throat. Her muscles go limp, and she teeters over backwards, tumbling to the ground. Lying on her back, she stares up at the gathering crowd. As blood fills what's left of her lungs, she gasps out a final word. "Leeta..." ***** "Leeta..." The sexy Bajoran raises her head from between her lover's thighs. "Yes, Ezri, my sweet?" Ezri puts her arms behind her head on the pillow and sighs dreamily. ^"Leeta, do you love me?"^ ^"Sure I do."^ The Bajoran sinks back down to resume her work, wrapping her arms around Ezri's legs to urge them wider. Ezri looks down at her inquisitively. ^"How can you be sure?"^ Regretfully, Leeta disengages herself and climbs up to snuggle next to the diminutive Trill. Ezri is obviously in one of her contemplative moods, and hot sex is off the agenda for the moment. ^"I don't know. I just am."^ She begins tracing some of Ezri's spots, where they trail around a breast and down her side. ^"What if you never met me? You'd be telling the same thing to someone else."^ Leeta rolls onto her back, away from Ezri. ^"Fine. If you don't want to hear it..."^ ^"I don't *want* to hear anything,"^ protests the Trill. ^"I want to know how you feel."^ Leeta rolls on top of her once more and kisses her on the nose. ^"I feel that someone's asking stupid questions."^ Ezri squirms out of Leeta's embrace and sits up on the edge of the bed. ^"You aren't taking me seriously!"^ ^"Ezri, what's wrong? You want to leave me?"^ She remains silent a moment, then lies back down in the warm sheets. She takes her lover's hands in her own and smiles. ^"No, I don't want to. I don't want to leave!"^ ***** [Techno beat...] I wish I was a stranger, who understands the sky I wish I was a starship, in silence flying by I wish I was a princess, with armies at her hand I wish I was a ruler, who'd make them understand ***** > Running Two < Ezri turns and runs out of her room, nearly colliding with Keiko in the hallway outside. As Ezri breezes past her, Keiko calls out. ^"Ezri, are you going shopping? I need shampoo."^ She begins running down the spiral staircase to the Promenade level. In the stairway, Jake and Nog are playing with a targ. They'd planned to leave it in Odo's office as a joke, but the beast is proving to be more than they expected. It struggles against its chains, and snarls at Ezri. She is startled and stumbles as she passes, but regains her footing. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, she races out onto the Promenade. [Side view of Ezri, panning along as she runs. She is in focus, while all else is a passing blur.] One foot after the other, Ezri moves down the Promenade at break-neck speed. Is she really moving across the surface of the station? Or is the station rotating beneath her? If she thinks about such things too much, it hinders her stride. Alpha waves. Don't think. Act. React. Instinctualize. Beta waves. She races by the Infimary just as Doctor Julian Bashir is exiting the facility. His head is down, nose buried in a medical text on a padd he is carrying. She passes just a bit too close, and her swinging arm knocks the padd from his hands. He looks up, startled, as the device clatters to the floor a few meters from him. Slowing, but not stopping, Ezri looks over her shoulder slightly. "Sorry!" she offers the bewildered doctor. Turning suddenly, Ezri runs down one of the station spokes toward the Ops Center in the hub. There, she encounters Ops Officer Miles O'Brien. She comes to a stop, breathing heavily, as he regards her with a superior air. ^"Hey, look at that. Our little princess, Ezri. What a rare pleasure. Why the rush?"^ She motions toward Captain Sisko's office. ^"Please let me in."^ ^"Courtesy and composure are the Queen's jewels."^ ^"Let me in, please!"^ ^"A little anger is good for the heart."^ He steps aside, letting her pass. In Sisko's office, behind the thick glass door cocooning them off from the rest of the world, Sisko and Kira face one another. Harsh whispers give way to angry shouts, regardless of who else might hear. ^"What do you mean, it isn't mine? I don't care whether it was an accident or not. Great start for a new love!"^ ^"If you hadn't neglected me, it wouldn't have happened."^ Ezri enters, and they both stop to stare at her. Kira's voice drips venom. ^"Don't you see you're bothering us?"^ ^"What do you want?"^ asks Sisko bruskly. ^"I need your help."^ ^"Dammit! Why are you disturbing me now? I have a problem. Leave me alone."^ ^"I need money."^ Sisko rolls his eyes in exasperation. ^"Okay, just so you get out of here. How much?"^ He opens his desk drawer and begins rummaging around for some credit chips. ^"No, no! I need lots more!"^ ^"Aren't you ashamed, barging in like this?"^ spits Kira. ^"Can't you see we're busy?"^ ^"I don't give a shit, you stupid cow! I have other problems!"^ Sisko steps up and slaps her. ^"Don't you dare!"^ Frustrated, Ezri shoves a decorative vase and a sheaf of papers off a small table, to crash and scatter across the floor. With an angry growl, she storms out of the room. As she skulks past O'Brien, he regards her dispassionately. ^"It just isn't your day today. Doesn't matter. We can't have everything."^ Just as she is about to leave, she stops in the doorway of Ops, pondering O'Brien's words. Suddenly, she turns around. She proceeds straight to the weapons locker and pulls out a phaser. O'Brien is alarmed and takes a step toward her, but one look from her stops him in his tracks. Ezri moves quickly back up the steps into Sisko's office and points the weapon at him. ^"Have you gone crazy?"^ sputters the Captain. ^"Do you think you can do anything you like?"^ O'Brien comes up behind her. ^"Girl, listen. You don't know how to use that thing."^ In wordless response to the engineer, Ezri fires off a blast over Sisko's shoulder, striking the wall behind him. It knocks a picture down and leaves a scorched black hole. "Now then," she says to Sisko. "Take out a blank data chip and transfer 100,000 credits onto it." Sisko moves to comply, but does so in a leisurely manner. Not satisfied, Ezri waves the phaser at him. ^"Hurry up, man!"^ ^"Come on, Little Miss,"^ continues O'Brien. ^"Leave the Captain alone. You don't want anyone to get hurt, do you?"^ Ezri seriously considers the question for a moment. ^"I don't know."^ Moments later, credit chip in hand, Ezri flees Ops. Just outside, she pauses. Looking at the phaser, she tosses it away. Only minutes left! She takes off at a dead run again. Down the spoke, out to the Promenade, heading toward Quark's -- and Leeta. ^"Wait, Leeta,"^ Ezri thinks desperately. ^"I'm almost there. Wait. I'm gonna make it."^ Rounding the final corner before Quark's, she sees her lover stepping toward the bar, reaching for the phaser hidden beneath the folds of her long blouse. Ezri screams. ^"Leeee-taaaa!"^ The Bajoran stops and turns. Seeing the Trill, she smiles and moves toward her. Just then, Odo and a couple of his constables come up behind Ezri. "Hold it right there, Counselor," he calls, pointing his phaser at her. Betting that the Changeling will not shoot her in the back, Ezri turns and grabs Leeta by the hand. "C'mon!" The two of them flee down a docking station accessway. "Hold your fire," Odo shouts at his men. Into his communicator he orders, "Close the bulkhead doors on Accessway 7." Racing down the narrow hallway, the two girls see the heavy, gear- shaped door rolling into place. They increase their stride in an effort to beat it, but it is obvious they won't. Ezri pulls up, but Leeta makes a desperate leap for freedom. She is caught by the door and pinned brutally against the wall. An agonizing gasp is forced from her throat, and trickles of blood soon sprout from her nose and mouth. "Leeta!" cries Ezri. Odo comes up behind them, equally shocked by the turn of events. "Open the bulkhead! Open the bulkhead!" he calls again over his communicator. The heavy door rolls back, and Leeta slumps to the floor. Ezri, in tears, kneels and cradles the Bajoran's head in her hands. Leeta stares up at her with a look of confusion. "Ezri..." ***** "Ezri..." "Hmm?" The Starfleet counselor raises her lips from Leeta's nipple, but continues grinding her hips against the girl's crotch. ^"Ezri, what would you do if I died?"^ The odd question causes Ezri to halt her lewd motions. ^"I wouldn't let you die,"^ she answers, as she resumes. ^"Yeah, well, what if I were dead anyway?"^ ^"I don't know. It's a stupid question."^ She begins manipulating the Dabo girl's breasts, trying to distract her from the dark line of questioning. Leeta continues to simply lie there, physically unresponsive. ^"I know what you'd do. You'd forget me."^ ^"No."^ Ezri now tries using her mouth again on the Bajoran's luscious tits. ^"Sure you would. What else could you do? Oh, you'd mourn for a few weeks. And everyone would feel sorry for you. Then, this really nice girl -- or maybe even a guy -- would show up. And she's super sensitive and listens to you all day. And you can talk her ear off and tell her how tough things are for you. And blah, blah, blah. Then, you'd hop into her lap and cross me off your list. That's how it goes."^ Frustrated, Ezri raises her head and stares straight into Leeta's eyes. ^"Leeta!"^ ^"What?"^ ^"You haven't died yet."^ ***** [Techno beat...] I wish I was a writer, who sees what's yet unseen I wish I was a prayer, expressing what I mean I wish I was a forest, of trees that do not hide I wish I was a clearing, no secrets left inside ***** > Running Three < Ezri turns and runs out of her room, nearly colliding with Keiko in the hallway outside. As Ezri breezes past her, Keiko calls out. ^"Ezri, are you going shopping? I need shampoo."^ She begins running down the spiral staircase to the Promenade level. In the stairway, Jake and Nog are playing with a targ. It struggles against its chains, and snarls at Ezri. She is startled, but gathers herself and leaps from several steps above the delinquents. She flies over them and lands on the floor below. She turns and gives them a snarl of her own as she races out onto the Promenade. [Overhead view of Ezri as she runs along the Promenade. Her short yet bouncy hair flows behind her, and although her breasts inevitably sway with her stride, the snug tank-top denies the titillated viewer a satisfactory view. The camera rotates down to view her head-on as she runs through the crowd.] She races by the Infimary just as Doctor Julian Bashir is exiting the facility. His head is down, nose buried in a medical text on a padd he is carrying. She does not see him in time and crashes into him. They both tumble to the floor. Momentarily dazed, they sit up and look at each other. ^"Ezri?"^ ^"Hello, Doctor Bashir."^ ^"Is everything okay?"^ ^"No."^ Saying nothing more, she scrambles to her feet and runs off. Turning suddenly, Ezri runs down one of the station spokes toward the Ops Center in the hub. Down that same hallway, inside his office in the Ops Center, Sisko and Kira are having a weighty discussion. ^"Do you want to have a baby with me?"^ ^"Yes!"^ ^"There's something else..."^ Just then, O'Brien's voice comes over the intercom. "Sir, Doctor Bashir called. He's running late and asks if you could meet him below the Promenade." Pressing a button, Sisko responds, "That'll be fine. I'm on my way." Turning back to Kira, he places his hands on her shoulders and kisses her. ^"That's the nicest present you could give me. Let's meet later on."^ Without waiting for a response, he turns and exits, leaving a dumbstruck Kira in his wake. As the lift carries Sisko to the lower level, he disappears from view just as Ezri arrives. ^"Captain!"^ she calls after him, but it is too late. Outside Quark's, Leeta paces nervously, awaiting Ezri's arrival. Not far from her, two security guards come into view. One of them holds the bag that she'd left on the transport. They are questioning individuals as they work their way in Leeta's direction. One of the pedestrians, in response to a query, turns to point at Leeta -- but she is already gone. Only minutes left! Ezri takes off from Ops at a dead run. Down the spoke, out to the Promenade, heading toward Quark's -- and Leeta. ^"What can I do?"^ Ezri thinks desperately. ^"What can I do? I'll just keep running, okay?"^ Rounding the final corner before Quark's, she finds that Leeta is nowhere to be seen. She looks around, bewildered, and calls out in desperation. ^"Leeee-taaaa!"^ But there are only puzzled stares from strangers. Entering Quark's, she continues searching. Leeta is not there either. She steps up to the cash window and addresses the girl behind the counter. "100 credits, please. The account of Ezri Dax." The girl consults her computer. ^" You only have 99.50."^ Ezri looks at her beseechingly. ^"Please!"^ With a sideways look to make sure Quark is not nearby, the girl slides a 100-credit chip across the counter. Ezri takes it and enters the gaming room, moving over to the Dabo table. As the croupier spins the wheel, Ezri places her chip on the table. Lights flash and bells ring as the wheel slowly comes to a stop. The croupier calls out the results. "Alpha. Gold. Twenty." Ezri has won! ^"3500 for 100 credits,"^ says the croupier, sliding a stack of chips over to Ezri. The Trill immediately slides them back over to the same betting square. Drawn by the distasteful sounds of a crowd cheering on a winner, Quark himself moves over to the table. Placing a hand on Ezri's shoulder, he says, ^"Come with me, please."^ ^"Just one more game,"^ replies Ezri, as the wheel is spun. Down the Promenade, Leeta tries to lose herself in the crowd. Head down, facing the wall, she pretends to examine an advertisement in close detail. The two security personnel close in on her. "Miss Leeta?" one of them asks. Inwardly giving up, Leeta turns around in defeat. "Yes?" "I'm glad we finally found you. We're with Transport Security. This bag was left on a shuttle this morning, and we think it belongs to you." To Leeta's amazement, the guard holds up her bag -- lock still intact. Back in Quark's, the Dabo wheel stops once more on Ezri's number. "Alpha. Gold. Twenty," calls the croupier. Winning over 100,000 credits, the Trill happily collects her credit chips in a bag and leaves in search of Leeta. Ezri spots her Bajoran lover on a pedestrian overpass above the Promenade. She is talking to the Grand Nagus, who now holds Leeta's misplaced bag of latinum. Ezri watches with her heart in her throat as, to her surprise and relief, the Nagus shakes Leeta's hand and the two part on friendly terms. Leeta comes down a set of stairs and, spotting Ezri, rushes to her side. The two kiss and embrace. Looking at Ezri more closely, Leeta asks, ^"What happened to you? Did you run here?"^ Ezri is still a bit shaken and at a loss for words. ^"Don't worry,"^ comforts Leeta. ^"Everything's okay. Come on."^ The two girls set off hand-in-hand down the Promenade. Leeta notices the sack in Ezri's hand. ^"So, what's in the bag?"^ [End] ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ ASCEM messages are copied to a mailing list. Most recent messages can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCEML. NewMessage: