Amarillo by Morning

[Angel Ryder]

"You what?!" Angel glared at her. "You're why I lost one of my friends to that Civil War? Ohhhh... " she clenched her fists. "I may need to be restrained by security when you come aboard."

[Bellatrix]

Bellatrix looked around the Kitea as transporter despite her on the transporter pad. Doing a quick inventory she smiled, "You didn't disarm me?"

[Angel Ryder]

"Activate your kilden." Angel said with a smug grin. "We remove firing triggers and mechanisms, leave the casings intact. I find it causes less stress, they think they still have a working weapon, when all they have is a cosplay prop."

[Bellatrix]

"A minor inconvenience," she said with a shrug. "It was my fault. It's become such a part of me that I often forget that it's there. I take it you have not constructed your own yet? They are quite simple to fix."

She followed Angel out into the corridor as she was escorted to the conference room there was an awkward silence, yet Bellatrix didn't feel the need to fill it.

It wasn't until they had entered the conference room that she spoke again, "You know you were my first apprentice, after I killed my master. Frank Underwood. Needless to say your greed was greater than your skill. I appreciated the cunning though, and made it a quick death. "

[Angel Ryder]

"How nice of you." Angel said coldly. "Your counterpart and I... I consider as much, if not more of a mother than my own. Hell, I consider my father's wife, who was my old CSO more a mother than my mother." she gave Bellatrix a look. "I want our people back. And I want you out of our space. My father had no right to make this kind of deal. But the minute you took my daughter... I know she was tortured. I felt it."

[Bellatrix]

Bellatrix sat down in one of the chairs. Covertly she removed a black disk from her robes, and used the ijulna to float it to an obscured computer terminal where the LEDs illuminated green, and made a rotating illusion of light.

"I am prepared to offer a one Lieutenant Tereska Kellow in exchange for a starship. Her usefulness has come to an end. Unfortunately the fate of the individual known as Colonel Trinity Ryder-Morris-Talon is not open for negotiation. But, I understand that that news will be most distressing, so I will take her aboard the Vindicator and place her under my protection. No more torture. That's not my thing anyway."

[Angel Ryder]

"Or I could simply keep you, take your ship and my daughter and then take a long bubble bath while security watches your molecules spin around in a buffer container." Angel said with a tilt of her head. "I may be the cute, perky, nice one, but don't take that for weakness or resolve. I want my daughter back with her husband. You say it's war, then it's on. I have Marines that are just itching for some justice."

[Bellatrix]

She sighed, "I thought you would have that response. I thought we could be civil. I really don't have any need for Kellow. She's a waste of resources." She stood, and blatantly pulled her device towards her, and pressed her comm unit, "Kat, have you been listening?"

"Yes mistress."

"It's almost unfortunate that I didn't bring the good Colonel along, but Kellow will just have to do," Bellatrix said to Angel. "Have your prosthetics been able to replicate precise movements? For her sake I hope so. Kat, take the Kellow woman's right hand."

A few moments later a transporter beam deposited a severed hand in the center of the conference table. "Kat have you received the Kitea's command codes?"

"Yes mistress."

Bellatrix smiled, and sat back down. "Now, I hope that doesn't ruin her ability to be a surgeon," she said to Angel. Shrugging, "Now, I haven't ordered Kat to take control of your ship, but I will if I have to. The next body part that is removed will be her head, then I will destroy the Kitea. So, do you want Kellow or not? If not I will be on my way then. Of course she will die."

[Angel Ryder]

"You think you're so clever don't you?" Angel said as she ran her finger across the system's display on the wall. "You know, when I designed the Kitea's system, I designed it so that you could do just that. Take the command codes. But you would have about as much control of the ship... as oh, that hand on the table." she tapped a control on the table and beamed the hand to sickbay. "You're on my turf Bellatrix. Turn over Lt. Kellow, without further harm. AND I will let you have Athena."

Angel removed her uniform jacket and unzipped a small panel in the small of the back. "Return my daughter and you get this. What you are really after. The USS Independence. Mobile shipyard. Can crank out a frigate in about three days. A light cruiser in six. A heavy cruiser in two weeks." she put the device on the table and holstered her phaser. "Ship is on a constant security link to this. I destroy it, I destroy the ship. Only one like it in our Fleet. It's loss, could be a blow to our Fleet's security. It could also allow you to do whatever it is that you wanted an Erebus class that you'd trade a Lieutenant for her." she cocked her head. "So... do we have a deal or do I need to call a clean up crew and break my father's heart? He loved that ship almost as much as your counterpart loved the Erebus."

[Bellatrix]

Bellatrix shrugged, "I am clever, very clever. And that's a very enticing offer, but again the Colonel isn't even here for us to complete the bargain." Bellatrix stared at the black disk in her hand. "No, I don't think Independence would be a good bargain. That would be far too costly for what I have to offer. If that isn't a trap then you aren't as smart as I give you credit for. As for the Athena... I have revised my offer. I don't want it either. Kellow might share your DNA, but she's as much of an outsider as I am, and you were far too willing to meet my initial demands. No bargaining, no pleading. Here is my new offer. I give you Kellow, and you release a future Ajem'dasis prisoner of my choosing."