Dark & Twisty

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ Flesh and Blood

2013-05-22T21:25:00.002-07:00

A/N ~ I don't want to make Alice a single-volume character. There's way too much good stuff - seven years' worth - in Voyager. So for those of you expecting our girls to fall for each other right way...not happening. I want to bring a little steam and a little sultry back to the Twisty, and I want to take it nice and slowly.

Previously ~ Modifications

Captain Janeway

Ensign's Personal Log:

You know, there's an old saying that nothing motivates a repair crew like the promise of shore leave.

It didn't take Engineering long to mine the necessary dilithium ore and omicron particles the Captain requested. And Lt. Vasquez supervised the refinement process in almost record time. Overnight, junior officers went from being insomniacs to drinking raktajinos just to put in a few more hours on the job.

Who woulda thought?

Commander Chakotay
Commander Chakotay - a man whom I'm seriously falling in love with, by the way - got the Captain to extend shore leave for the crew by another two weeks. I'm sure it didn't take much doing. It's not like we'll get home tomorrow, and no one knows when we'll catch another break like this.

Hanging with the photonic has got me paying closer attention to the organic. Take the Captain and the Commander, for example. Talk about sparks flying. When they joke and laugh, it's hot. When they fight (and they fight all the time), it's even hotter.

I can't recall the last time I've seen such smoldering chemistry between two people. The forbidden factor makes it all that much steamier; though to be honest, I have to wonder what's so forbidden all the way out here. I mean, if we're still heading towards Earth in seventy years, would a romance between these two really matter all that much?

Puts things in perspective when you think about it.

Lt. Tuvok

And then there's Lt. Tuvok. To be honest, I have a thing for Vulcans. Contrary to popular belief, they are more emotional than Humans, which makes them less logical than you'd think.

Tuvok is no different; the sarcastic quips and irritable sighs are a dead giveaway.

At the Academy I had a saying, "Every Vulcan has a tell." You've just got to know how to spot it.

He's as hot-blooded as the rest of his pointed-eared kin, and were he not so devout to his wife (an incredibly sexy trait, mind you), I'd indulge myself. He's a Lieutenant, just above an Ensign, and he doesn't strike me as the type who'll kiss and tell. Discretion in a man is a most desirable trait. Especially when you consider the deep affection he clearly shares with the Captain. I used to think it was so romantic, but he's so loyal to his wife I've come to see them as just really good friends. Janeway wouldn't be the first Human Captain with a close Vulcan friend on the bridge after all.

So this brings us right back to the only member of the bridge whom I find touchable.

***

Alice Holt

"Holt!"

Turning away from the lazy sunset, Alice slid her sunglasses down a bit.

"You know," she smirked, "you can call me Alice."

"As long as you call me Harry," the tall Ensign winked. He looked good in his loose-fitting beach shorts. His skin was a bit pale from being stuck on the ship, but the golden hue was still smooth and unblemished.

He carried a lawn chair under one arm; he parked it right next to hers and laid back, sighing as he stretched out. "What? No book? No drink?"

"All I need are the rays," Alice sighed blissfully, turning back towards the sunset, breathing deep the salt of the sea. "I could lie here forever."

Ensign Kim

"Pity," Harry shrugged. "A group of Ensigns were going to camp in the snow later tonight. Warm fire, buttered rum - or at least, something resembling buttered rum."

Alice's head snapped towards him. "How'd you get your hands on rum?"

Harry snickered. "Let's just say Ensign Stih'lar and Crewman Burke have been clocking in some extra time in the Science Lab."

Alice's jaw dropped. "But Vasquez --"

"Doesn't know," Harry grinned. "Burke figured out how to erase the logs without raising suspicion. And Stih'lar...with a bit more practice, she'll have us sipping Begosian wine in no time."

Clearly, Alice had been missing out. There was obviously a world within a world on Voyager, where the gravity of the situation hadn't stopped the young people from being young. Despite the depression, the anxiety, and the pervasive homesickness, the junior crew were still very much themselves.

Alice suddenly found herself beaming broadly. "I had no idea this was all going on."

"Holodecks are fun - believe me," Harry assured her, "but outside the photons and forcefields, there's just so much more."

"So," she raised an eyebrow. "You said something about camping?"

***

Ensign's Personal Log, Supplemental:

Of all the species I've slept with, I've found that Humans are the easiest to seduce.

We're more prudish than Risians, so everything seems so much naughtier to us. We're needier than the Ferengi, and more arrogant than joined Trill; it drives our need validation. We're cooler to touch and less virile than Vulcans, which makes us hellbent on proving out how passionate we can be.

I must tread carefully with a Human, especially one like Harry Kim. I may be a bit rusty, but that'll work in my favor. Also, he still misses his girlfriend Libby; he's not likely to fall for me and be clingy.

Still...we are far from home and emotionally vulnerable. I must tread very carefully.

A Moment in Fandom: Nebulae

2013-05-20T20:09:00.001-07:00

Ensign Alice Holt has a fascination with nebulae. Turns out, so do I.

Note: These are real nebulae. These were not snatched from any of the Trek shows.

Carina Nebula

Eagle Nebula

Pillars of Creation, within the Eagle Nebula

Flame Nebula

Horsehead Nebula

Omega Nebula

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ Modifications

2013-05-13T18:31:00.005-07:00

Previously ~ Counting Down to Shore Leave

Alice Holt

"I remember recording this now," Dimaya nodded, slowly pacing the shuttle bridge. "It was the week after graduation. I was one of the top pilots." She paused, looked up at Alice, and smiled. "I was worried about being too lifeless."

Alice opened her mouth but Dimaya was still talking.

"I can't believe how much of myself I retained!" the hologram suddenly laughed. "I remember so much! But why didn't I remember it during Flight Level 1?"

"W-W-Well," Alice stammered uneasily, "I, uh...I sort of uh...I sort of um...I may have downloaded all your personal logs and files into your holomatrix."

Dimaya raised a brow. "'May have?'"

***

Dimaya Tala

Alice winced. "Well...you were lifeless!" she protested. "And dry. And very, very...computer-y," she added sheepishly.

Dimaya sighed wearily. "I was afraid of that. Bobby Sicorrelli swore up and down he'd make me as lively and interactive as possible, but I knew he'd just half-ass it. That's what I get for being stuck with Level 1." She paused, looking out across the port bow and glimpsing a brilliant greenish golden nebula.

She raised that brow again. "Or at least...I was stuck with Level 1. I see you've modified that as well."

Alice gave a helpless shrug. "I got rid of everybody else."

Dimaya snickered. "And somewhere out there, Bobby's having a migraine and doesn't know why." She turned back to Alice. "What ship are we on?"

Alice blinked, confused. "Um...the Gamma Rho?"

Dimaya rolled her lovely dark eyes. "No, doofus! Which ship does this holodeck belong to?"

"Oh," Alice chuckled. "Um...the USS Voyager."

"No way!" Dimaya exclaimed. "That was the ship I was originally assigned to. Did you find the Maquis?"

"Well...yeah," Alice slowly began. "We found them...and a bit more. We, uh...sorta kinda got dragged accidentally into the Delta Quadrant. We're thousands of light years from home and we're not quite sure how to get back."

Dimaya looked genuinely shocked. "Thank God I'm aboard the Phoebus." She paused, before murmuring softly. "I wonder what's happening to me now."

Alice shrugged. "I wish I knew. So...are you okay? I was worried the download would, like, mess with you or something."

Dimaya nodded. "Some of my algorithms feel a bit out of sync," she admitted. "Like, I want to talk to you about all kinds of stuff, and ask you a bunch of questions, but a part of me keeps wanting to get back to the stupid flight tutorial."

"Computer," Alice called, suddenly excited. "End program, but keeping Dimaya Tala running."

The nebula and shuttle vanished, leaving the two Ensigns alone in the vast, empty holodeck.

"Computer, generate a console capable of accessing Dimaya's programming."

The computer appeared as requested, and the two Ensigns crowded around it excitedly.

"There," Dimaya pointed at the screen, "I've got some conflicted programming. Not to mention huge gaps in my memory. I recorded a log on stardate 42631.2 and then didn't do another for like a week."

"There might be a generic way to fill those gaps in," Alice hesitantly suggested. "Starfleet records show where and when you were born, what languages you speak, which faith you practice...maybe we could access basic data on all that stuff and incorporate it into your holomatrix."

"But to what end?" Dimaya inquired. "I mean...it doesn't have anything to do with flying. It won't make me a better teacher."

"Here," Alice rapidly typed into the console, "one of your core algorithms focuses on flying. If we delete it, you'll still have the knowledge and the ability, but --"

"--but not the nagging obsession?" Dimaya smirked. "I'm with you. By all means," she nodded playfully. "Delete away."

***

Ensign's Personal Log:

I have a friend.

I know it sounds weird, considering all the live members on board who share my pain, but it feels great to have someone who's removed from all this. Dimaya doesn't care about getting back to the Alpha Quadrant; she doesn't miss anyone and she's not worried about dying out here. She's so positive and inquisitive; it's refreshing.

After getting her matrix stable, we decided to scrap the flying lesson. Using the scans and sensor sweeps from the ship's logs, we recreated the planet below where everyone's headed for shore leave (you know, ahead of me?). We wore bikinis on the beach and sipped Mai Tais while a couple of holo-masseurs rubbed us down with Risian cocoa butter.

Snatched from the Gaya's Astronomy files: a beautiful alien beach

Apparently, the real Dimaya kept some very in-depth personal logs. This Dimaya remembers so much - her favorite food, music, favorite trips and childhood memories, her brothers, her parents, favorite books - all of it!

We talked about our experiences at the Academy; some of our time there overlapped, but we'd never met each other. We talked about teachers, classes, classmates, hilarious drunken shore leave stories, and wound up going waaaaaaay past my allotted time on the deck. But no one else seemed to care. When I finally ended the program, the best thing in the world happened.

I came back to my quarters and slept.

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ Counting Down to Shore Leave

2013-05-09T22:51:00.004-07:00

A/N ~ Sorry for that long-ass delay. I've been wrestling with AT&T for almost two weeks now, and today's visit was allegedly the last one. Mm-hm. We'll see.

Shall we resume?

Previously ~ A Period of Adjustment

Alice Holt

Ensign's Personal Log:

Now that shore leave is official, there's suddenly this new strength, new buzz among the crew. Some people are going so far as to eating Neelix's cooking just so they can use their replicator rations for swimwear and camping tents. I myself replicated an electric blue bikini, and I intend to spend every single moment on the beach.

Of course, until we actually arrive at the star system, I still need help getting some sleep.

***

The Doctor

"Come on, Doc. Can't you just give me something?"

The Doctor didn't even look up from his tricorder. "If I had a strip of latinum for every time a crew member asked me that, I'd put the Grand Nagus of Ferenginar to shame."

Unlike most of her crewmates, Alice liked the Doctor. He had a wry sense of humor few grasped, and contrary to popular sentiment, it was easy to forget he was a computer program. Constantly interacting with the crew, listening to their whining, and remembering everybody's like quirks and preferences had helped him to rapidly evolve.

She didn't even mind when he chastised her.

"Yeah, Doc, I know I complain a lot but --"

"Ensign," he cut her short, "what you're experiencing is merely depression-related insomnia. With shore leave right around the corner, it will fade in time. For now, I now understand Mr. Neelix has a stash of Vykarmian black tea which I've found is quite soothing and helps put most humanoids to sleep."

Alice gave him a wary look. "What does it taste like?"

The Doctor gave her look in return. "What does it matter? It's medicine."

"Awww, Doc!" the Ensign scowled. "I'm dyin' here!"

"Ensign Holt, I'm well aware of the human tendency to shoot the hypospray first and ask your doctor questions never, but you've survived this long under enormous stress and another 12 hours won't kill you. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some work to do."

Alice scanned the empty sickbay. It was 0132 hours in the morning. Blinking, she asked, "What work?"

The Doctor's Office

"I need to purge several crew files in order to create additional memory space. The Captain's already given me permission to proceed."

Alice tensed. "You mean...the files of the dead crew?" she hesitantly inquired.

"Oh, no," the Doctor frowned, turning away from her and going to his desk where a giant stack of padds stood. "No, I'm referring to the fortunate officers who were initially assigned to Voyager, and then transferred at the last moment, before the ship even left drydock. There are dozens of them, as you can see."

Alice shrugged. "Need some help? God knows I have the time and energy."

The Doctor paused, as though surprised by her offer.

"That's...very considerate of you, Ensign." He nodded towards the stack. "You may begin with these."

She slid off the bed, grabbed the stack of padds and went over to an empty console. She was about two Lieutenants and five Ensigns in before she yawned.

Finally. She figured if she kept deleting all these irritatingly safe and sound officers, it would eventually put her to sleep. And she was right; the names and faces on the padds began to slowly blur together as her eyelids became increasingly heavy and she yawned a few more times.

Lieutenant Andrea Stiles; Science Lab. Lieutenant Chell; Security. Ensign Dara Makon; Bridge. Crewman Taureen Zoras; Engineering.

Ensign Dimaya Tala; Bridge. Ensign Dori --

Alice blinked rapidly, suddenly awake. For a moment, she paused wondering if she'd fallen asleep in sickbay, or if prolonged sleep deprivation had finally driven her to start seeing things.

She entered the Ensign's information into her computer for verification.

"Computer, is this a real Ensign?" she asked aloud.

"Affirmative."

"Elaborate."

"Ensign Dimaya Tala; Starfleet Academy Class of 2374."

"Current status?"

"Last known assignment: helmsman aboard the USS Phoebus."

"What information do we currently have on her?"

"Eight years of medical history, six years of personal logs, full academic transcripts and service records."

"Total memory size of this information?"

"Three hundred and seventy-eight kiloquads."

"Computer, transfer all of this officer's information to the Ensign Dimaya Tala hologram, saved in the Holt Flight Simulation. Ensign authorization: Alice-Theta-7."

"Transfer complete."

Good, Alice nodded. On the upside, she had a feeling the hologram would be a bit easier to interact with. On the downside, learning that Dimaya was a real person had woken her right back up.

Sighing wearily, Alice returned to the giant stack of padds awaiting her.

***

Lt. Vasquez

"What do you mean I don't get to go on shore leave?" Alice demanded.

"You don't get to go on shore leave today, Ensign, today," Lt. Vasquez stressed. "The Captain's ordered scans of the planet to comply with safety protocols. After that, officers with seniority will start beaming down. You'll get your turn in a few days."

"A few days???" Alice exclaimed. She closed her eyes and began to massage her forehead; she'd had a throbbing headache since early this morning and though thoroughly exhausted, she was till unable to fall asleep.

"I'm sure the Doc can give you something," Vasquez added softly. "And you'll still have the holodeck to relax."

Alice's eyes flew open. "The holodeck," she suddenly remembered. She was intrigued to see how Dimaya Tala would behave with some of her progenitor's memories restored.

"We don't have any samples to go over," Vasquez shrugged. "If you want to head there now, I'm sure you could put in some time. Maybe get a massage or do some meditation in a temple."

"Yeah, yeah," Alice nodded rapidly, not really hearing her boss. "Thank you, Lieutenant." She hurried out of the Science Lab as though she were being chased by Kazon scavengers.

Had she not been distracted, she would've been sorely envious of the officers filing past her with their replicated lawn chairs and beach umbrellas. She even overheard two Lieutenants talking about pitching a tent and going skiing in the woods of the northernmost continent, where it was supposedly snowing.

But Alice was seized by curiosity; she'd never done much holographic programming before and heard it was much, much more complicated than people made it out to be. She vaguely remembered something about balancing algorithms, and continuity in memory, but little more than that.

And the Lieutenant was right. With living, breathing paradise just one transporter away, no one was interested in the holodecks.

"Computer, initiate Holt Flight Simulation from the beginning of Level 2."

"Initiated."

The gray doors slid open, revealing the familiar bridge of the Class 2 shuttle Gamma Rho.

Dimaya Tala

Ensign Dimaya Tala stood in the middle, staring into the heart of a greenish, golden nebula, arms folded across her chest. Unlike her prior version, she seemed a lot less bubbly and didn't use an opening line.

Alice was confused. "Um...Ensign?"

The hologram turned slowly, looking both troubled and pensive. The look alarmed Alice, who fleetingly wondered what she'd done and if the simulation's safety protocols were on.

"Who are you?" Dimaya asked.

"Um...Ensign Alice Holt," came the tentative reply. "This is the Federation shuttle --"

"Gamma Rho, yes I know," Dimaya finished. "What am I doing here?"

Alice blinked, tensing. "You're...um...my flight instructor?"

Dimaya looked confused. "Flight instructor? I'm supposed to be aboard the USS Phoebus." She turned round and round, growing increasingly perplexed. "I was just about to catch a transport. Why am I here?"

Alice's mouth fell open, but no sound came out.

"Wait...wait...," Dimaya blinked repeatedly, as though struggling to remember something. "You're Ensign Holt. You just completed Level 1 of the flight tutorial. I was your instructor." She looked up suddenly, meeting Alice's gaze.

"I'm a hologram."

Next ~ Modifications

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ A Period of Adjustment

2013-05-02T18:33:00.004-07:00

Previously ~ Dimaya

Alice Holt

Ensign's personal log:

I realize that I've been resisting.

I haven't been doing as much as I should because I've been telling myself that I won't be on this ship much longer. It was a nice lie; it helped me sleep at night. But my denial is slowly eroding; days quickly became weeks which quickly became months. We came slow close to home so many times, and we've made enemies along the way.

I'm getting used to the sound of Red Alert; I expect the ship to get fired on by the Kazon daily. I'm used to trembling decks, and senior officers barking orders over exploding consoles and bulkheads. I'm used to repairs, endless repairs, using unfamiliar materials in a crunch.

I'm getting used to field rations, to the taste of Neelix's cooking (which is either hit or miss, and it's usually miss). I'm even getting used to the body count, to funerals with hollow eulogies, and a grim crew that's slowly turning bitter.

It's finally dawning me that I may never see Earth again, or that if I do, I may be a very, very old woman, and most of the people I know will be dead.

***

Dimaya Tala

"Well done," cheered Ensign Dimaya Tala. "For someone who's just begun studying the basics, you're doing extremely well."

Alice offered her a weak smile. It had taken her months to get this good, and she'd never saved the program once. To be honest, the bubbly introductory greeting of the hologram and the slow cruise through the Assynian Nebula helped Alice calm down and think. It was like getting to live the same day over and over, correcting mistakes, making new choices, and not worry about regret.

There were so many things she could've done to avoid winding up on Voyager. She could've requested assignment aboard a space station, or resigned her commission and become a civilian scientist. She could've gone home to her grandmother and forced the old woman to finally deal with her presence.

She could've done a lot of things to avoid getting stuck on this ship, but she hadn't and now she was.

"You have satisfactorily mastered Level 1," Tala grinned. The bubbliness of her intro was now apparent once more in her outro. "This concludes our session. You will resume with a new instructor in the Level 2 simulation."

Alice blinked, caught off guard. "A...new instructor."

"Yes," Tala beamed. "Lt. Calvin Morris will take over your instruction. The emphasis will be on engaging and exiting various warp speeds throughout the Mu'Tai Sector. This now concludes our --"

"Computer, freeze program," Alice hastily shouted. She didn't know what it was, but she was strangely terrified over starting over with a new hologram, learning new things. Her heart rate actually accelerated, as did her breathing.

"Computer," she asked, breathing heavily, "how many more levels are there?"

"There are nine levels to the flight simulation tutorial."

She didn't need all nine; Harry mentioned that at five she'd be good enough to fly the ship.

"Computer, open simulation parameters. Link Levels 1-5 with Ensign Dimaya Tala as the instructor for all five."

"Ensign Dimaya Tala is not programmed to instruct beyond Level 1."

Alice was suddenly irritated. "Computer, transfer all essential knowledge to Ensign Tala."

"That will require 6.2 megaquads of storage. Duplicating memory of that magnitude is prohibited under new ship protocol."

"Of course," Alice sighed into her hands. The ship had to conserve energy as well as memory on this journey. "Computer, how many officers have used the flight tutorials since Voyager left drydock."

"One."

"Are there any pending requests or scheduled lessons?"

"Negative."

"Computer, transfer the knowledge of all the flight instructors to Ensign Dimaya Tala, then delete the other holograms. Also delete duplicate levels. Consolidate all simulations into this one extended program."

"Please specify which simulations to delete."

Alice haplessly shrugged. "Um...the ones which don't have any nebulae."

"Deleted. Three duplicate simulations remaining."

"Does this relinquish sufficient memory?"

"Affirmative; 2.9 gigaquads of additional memory now remaining."

Alice raised an eyebrow. "Wow," she mumbled. Standing up, she called, "Computer, end program."

She'd deal with Level 2 on another day.

***

Commander Chakotay

"Crew morale is at an all-time low, Captain," Commander Chakotay reported. As usual, he strode into Janeway's ready room with little introduction. "The Doctor is reporting multiple cases of depression among the junior officers. And senior officers are experiencing bouts of insomnia."

Janeway, sitting behind a giant stack of report padds while sipping her third or fourth coffee, sigh wearily and laid her cup down. She planted both elbows onto her desk and began to massage her temples.

"We need shore leave, Kathryn," Chakotay pushed. "And I don't mean waiting to find the next friendly face; I'm talking about the first M-class planet we can find that has a decent beach the crew can stretch their longs on, and some dense woods where we can go camping. Fresh air, Kathryn. We need it. We need it now."

Captain Janeway

"We can't go now," she shook her head irritably. "We're days behind repair schedules, B'Elanna reports we're down to 40% of our dilithium, and Tuvok has found at least three different malfunctions in the weapons array." She raised her troubled eyes to face him. "I know it's hard, Chakotay but we've got to do the work."

"All due respect, Captain, we can go on like this for seventy years," he told her bluntly "We have a long journey ahead of us, and as much as I hate to say it, it's not going anywhere. It'll still be there next month, even next year. But we won't be around 'til next week if we keep pushing like this!"

He slammed a padd down in front of her for emphasis, and she wearily sighed, slightly rolling her eyes.

"Another padd, Chakotay?" she asked.

"Trust me; you'll like this one," he assured her. She picked it up and began to read. He recited the information anyways. "It's two days away. Unary star system, twin moons, a single M-Class planet. The first moon has a few dilithium deposits; the second moon's atmosphere has enough omicron particles replenish our stores for three months. The planet is 86% water and has plenty of sandy beaches. Sign the order, Kathryn," Chakotay finished tersely. "They're a good crew, they've been through hell, and they've earned a couple of weeks of shore leave."

Next ~ Counting Down to Shore Leave

Sorry for Delays

2013-04-30T09:06:00.002-07:00

But a massive storm down here has (allegedly) lain waste to internet services at my home and a technician will (supposedly) save the day tomorrow.

With AT&T, you just never know.

"Life in the Gray Area", a potential

2013-04-27T23:30:00.004-07:00

Let me know what you think, yeah?

I once said that after seeing the lawyer "Mac" in Season 1 of Angel, I've thought about building a fandom around her.

I wasn't kidding.

Dominique Jennings as Serena Mac

Serena* Mac works in the Acquisitions Division of Wolfram & Hart; she procures special items and, in some cases, people. Serena is very good at her job and definitely enjoys the perks; however, life in the gray area sometimes takes its toll. More often than not, Serena uses humor to deal with her conflicting emotions.

Bernadette Balagtas as
Christabel Aquino

Christabel Aquino works in the Contracts Division of Wolfram & Hart. Serena and Christabel often work together and are trying to develop something of a friendship. Like Serena, Christabel strives to be merciless and dedicated to her career.

Stephanie Romanov
as Lilah Morgan

My absolute favorite W & H lawyer of all time. After going through hell to keep her job in the Special Projects Division, Lilah ends up running the entire Los Angeles branch, outliving every man who got in her way. At the time of the fic, however, she'd still be a regular lawyer in "Special Projects", which implied some really dark stuff. Lilah was devious and ruthless to the core, and I loved her for it.

Daniel Dae Kim
as Gavin Park

Another favorite lawyer of mine, Gavin was initially in the Real Estate Division at Wolfram & Hart. He eventually got promoted to Special Projects, during Season 3 of Angel. However, my story takes place during Season 1, arguably the best season of all, when Gavin is still in Real Estate. I think he has a dysfunctional off-again, on-again thing with Serena.

Recurring Characters

Reagan Preston-Gomez
as Mika Hairston

Christabel's long-time girlfriend. Mika is the stylish design editor of Plush magazine. Christabel initially meant to propose to Mika...until she got hired by W & H. After Christiabel got the job, things became strained between the two. Mika suspects her girlfriend's not telling her something about W & H.

Julie Zhan as
Detective Jules Xia

A cop by day and a natural-born Demon Hunter by night, Jules and Serena have an "arrangement" which both women often violate. Neither woman can stand the other, but their arrangement - when it actually works - benefits them too much to call it quits.

I even whipped up a trailer for the occasion.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
*I decided to give her the name Serena. On the show, we never actually learn if "Mac" is her first name, last name, or a nickname.

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ Dimaya

2013-04-26T22:31:00.001-07:00

Previously ~ Ghosts on Deck

Ensign Dimaya Tala

"Welcome to Level 1 Flight Tutorial," a hologram greeted her. "The is the Federation shuttle Gamma Rho. I am Ensign Dimaya Tala, your instructor."

She was a lovely brown-skinned woman, with beautiful dark eyes and a genuinely sunny smile. As far as holograms went, her mannerisms were comfortable and voice carried the timbre of a living being.

Alice suddenly recalled that Voyager was one of the most advanced ships in Federation, with an extremely powerful and sophisticated computer system, and bio-neural circuitry throughout the decks.

So it would only make sense that even holograms were seem livelier and more realistic.

"What is your name?"

Alice Holt

"Alice," Alice blinked, briefly caught off guard. "Ensign...Alice...Holt."

"Pleasure to meet you, Ensign," Dimaya grinned. "Have you ever piloted a shuttle before?"

"A few times," Alice nodded. "But I haven't flown far. And never outside a holodeck."

Ensigan Tala laughed. "That's okay. This is no different. This simulation is for basic flight only, with backup and secondary backup safety protocols in place...not that you'd actually run into any problems in the Sigma Eridon System," Dimaya chuckled.

"Why do you say that?"

"Sigma Eridon uninhabited," Dimaya shrugged. "It's part of Federation space, but it has limited value. None of the planets can support life yet and none of them possess any valuable resources. So Starfleet Academy uses it for educational purposes." She gestured for Alice to take a seat at the helm.

***

Alice was probably one of the few officers in Starfleet who didn't mind Class 2 shuttles. They weren't as cramped as people made them out to be, they were equipped with a musical database and replicators, and they were capable of warp. What's not to love?

A Class 2 shuttle bridge.

"These are the flight controls," Ensign Tala began pointing to individual consoles. "And this for navigation. This console is inactive because it's not relevant to this simulation; on a real shuttle it would activate the weapons array. Weapons are not a part of this program, so it inadvisable to try to activate them. This console is for the transporter, and this console is for the sensors."

The more Ensign Tala talked, the more Alice found herself smiling. Indeed, she was a computer; she was beginning to sound recitative and just verging on monotone. Her warm little intro may have been convincing, but as the lesson progressed she proved herself to be just another non-sentient composite of photons and algorithms.

"Are you with me so far?" Tala asked.

Alice nodded. "Right there with you."

"Good," came the brisk, predictable nod. "Now, confirm the activation of the inertial dampers. Here," she pointed to a console, when Alice looked lost. "You want to get into the habit checking them even though they're programmed to engage automatically. As you know, without inertial dampers, a ship's crew would be crushed against the walls as soon as they went to warp.

"Now that you confirmed them, engage the impulse at one-quarter impulse. Here."

After a minutes, Alice started to get the hang of it. It had been a very long time since she'd flown a shuttle and she'd forgotten several of the basics.

"Where you would like to go first?"

"The Assynian Nebula."

"And what is the heading?" Tala suddenly quizzed her. Alice's eyes skimmed the navigation screen.

"Four-six," she began haltingly, "...2...mark...875?"

"Eight-seven-nine," Tala nodded patiently, "but good. Set course, and engage."

The ride was slow at first, but as Alice gained confidence, she zipped through the outer edge of the Sigma Eridon Star System towards the nebula.

A Class 3 Nebula

The nebula was a beautiful ghostly streak of purple against the black. It was Class 3, typically ignored by starships, but Alice was in awe to the point of falling in love with the view. She wanted to cruise the ship on thrusters alone while quietly savoring the ethereal beauty.

But...Tala kept quizzing her on stuff.

"What is our current distance from the nebula?"

"Approximately five hundred thousand kilometers," Alice blinked, glancing at the sensors. An alert suddenly went off.

"Report?" Tala neutrally inquired.

"We're accelerating!" Alice exclaimed. "We've gone to half-impulse!"

"And the reason?"

"The gravitational pull at the center of the nebula!" Alice gasped. "I mean, it's weak, but still strong enough to drag us along."

"Compensate."

Alice haplessly stared at her navigational console.

"Wrong console," Tala shook her head. "Check your sensors and do the math. We want to travel at quarter-impulse, but the nebula is pulling us at half. Therefore, we need to --"

"Switching to thrusters!" Alice triumphantly yelled. She relaxed as the ship began to slow, and wondered why she hadn't done more flying back at the Academy. She'd come to rely too heavily on transporters and passenger ships. The more she thought about it, the more she realized how impractical she'd been all along. Piloting was an obviously crucial skill, especially considering Voyager's current situation.

Tala gave Alice a perfunctory nod, typical of an educational hologram. "When encountering a phenomenon with its own source of gravity, it is sometimes prudent to maintain a safe distance so that you're not pulled in. However, this is a Class 3 nebula; we're not any danger and we can take a closer look. But in order to properly navigate the nebula, we need to engage in basic maneuvers."

"Sweet!" Alice cheered.

Tala gave that nod again. She spoke as though Alice hadn't just said anything. "We can actually adapt to the gravitational frequency of the nebula."

"You mean ride its waves."

Tala nodded. "In a manner of speaking. Your sensor screen will show the frequencies. Your navigational console will chart a course along those frequencies."

"And the conn will allow me to fly the course," Alice beamed. She'd always wondered how pilots did it and now she knew.

Tala went on like a computer reciting the mess hall menu. It appeared that who ever had programmed her could only go so far with maintaining her semblance of a personality.

"When initiating a maneuver, you have to take into account your ship's current speed and maximum maneuverability. The wrong maneuver can rip a ship apart."

"Computer, freeze program."

Everything froze, including Ensign Dimaya Tala. Alice felt the need to rub her temples. There was a reason she typically avoided simulations like these; the humanity and flexibility of these holograms could only go so far. Even aboard a ship as advanced as Voyager, Alice still got the feeling she was talking to a computer.

She was half-tempted to fast-forward through the program, but then got a better idea. She could end the program without saving each day, allowing herself to appear more advanced. This way, the good holographic Ensign would assume Alice was far ahead of herself and skip to the point a little faster each day.

Alice suddenly called, "Computer, end program."

Voyager's holodeck when empty

Standing in the barren, metallic chamber crisscrossed with grids, she realized she was craving something hot and soothing, and a good night's sleep.

She'd deal with the talking computer again tomorrow.

Next ~ A Period of Adjustment

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ Ghosts on Deck

2013-04-25T18:25:00.002-07:00

Previously ~ My Captain

Judy Reyes as
Lt. Ana Vasquez

"Afternoon, Ensign," Lt. Vasquez greeted Alice as she walked through the doors of the Science Lab. "We're approaching a nebula which is home to at least three planetoids; our ETA is 1642 hours. The Captain's given approval to collect samples via transporter."

Ever since the reality of their situation had sunken in, temporary officers like Alice found themselves taking over officers who killed during the anomaly which brought the ship into the Delta Quadrant. For example, she hadn't initially been assigned to do any work in Voyager's Science Lab, but after the death of Ensign Walsh, she'd rather seamlessly assumed the role.

And despite herself, her heart rate increased when Vasquez mentioned "nebula" and "planetoids." No offense to the dead officer who previously held this position, but this was a sweet gig. In many ways, it was exactly the sort of job Alice was hoping to have aboard the Equinox.

Alice Holt

"What class are they?" Alice asked. She was a sucker for nebulae and she was particularly obsessed with ones that had planetoids. She often wondered what it be like to live on a dark planet, shrouded from the sun, seeing only moving swathes of color in the sky.

"Preliminary scans show they're Class J planetoids," Vasquez replied, leaning over her microscope, no doubting examining some rare, space-borne bacteria. "No life signs of any sort, which is to be expected since there aren't any suns, no water, no breathable atmosphere...but the nebula itself is very beautiful, very colorful, and filled with viable omicron particles. You game?"

Alice grinned. I love being a nerd.

***

After her shift ended at 1900 hours, Alice walked down the corridor to her quarters. She had to admit she really liked these Intrepid-class starships; they weren't as spacious or luxurious as the Galaxy- and Constitution-class ships, but they were still very comfortable. The rooms were colored in the moderate shades of blue and gray, standard issue. Instead of being moody, the colors projected a sort of military elegance, making Alice finally feel like a grown-up.

Voyager crew quarters with furniture

But still...whenever she walked into her quarters there was this subtle chill, this eerie quiet which greeted and rattled her every time. She had shared this place with someone. Granted, all of her deceased roommate's things were removed and put in storage, including her bed, and now there was this...emptiness which Alice felt compelled to fill and soon.

Voyager crew quarters without furniture

Yes...I'm a nerd. That's the whole point.

No offense to the dead, but she need to move on, and she couldn't do so feeling obligated to respect the space of someone who was no longer there.

Plum-colored curtains. Silver gray rugs. An blue runner for the table. Some replicated glass art. Anything to make the room hers and wholly hers.

Until - God forbid - the Captain assigned someone to her room again.

The door beeped, jolting Alice from her thoughts.

"Come in," she called.

Harry Kim

To her surprise, Ensign Harry Kim walked in, holding an elegant glass vase. It's shape was that of a twisting rectangle which wasn't really Alice's style, but it was somewhat sophisticated and very..."Starfleet."

It was just the sort of thing a full-fledged officer would have in her quarters.

"House-warming present," he explained with a slightly shy, awkward look. "When I was at the Academy, I lost a roommate to a training exercise. Our room never felt the same again."

"Thank you," Alice smiled, accepting the vase and placing it squarely in the middle of her tiny dining table.

"My shift ended thirty minutes ago," Harry began tentatively. "Tom and I were going to play pool in Holodeck One. You game?"

He really was a handsome man. He had such smooth skin, emotive eyes, and soft-looking lips. In another time and place, she'd gladly have gone wherever he invited.

The infamous vase

But Harry Kim was what Alice intuitively knew to be an Untouchable. Contrary to
Janeway's insinuation, Kim wasn't like other "fresh out" Ensigns. He was wasn't scraping plasma manifolds below deck somewhere, or studying lab samples. Upon graduation, he'd been assigned as a bridge officer, with his own quarters and a fairly high level of authority. The fact that the Captain knew him by name signified she'd already developed an attachment to him, and though he didn't realize, he'd soon have her ear.

So if anything were to go wrong - and Alice already knew it would - it would adversely impact her career and she couldn't have that.

"Actually," she replied casually, though her mind was whirling for just the right excuse, "I was going to head over to Holodeck Two to try out one of those flight tutorials you mentioned. I'm really looking forward to trying my hand at piloting," Alice added, even though she had very little interest in piloting.

He smiled kindly enough, but she could see the subtle disappointment in his eyes.

"I'll leave it you to then. But if you change your mind, you know where to find me."

***

"Computer, is Holodeck Two in use?"

"Negative."

"Show me the list flight tutorials, Level 1."

There were dozens, which she hadn't expected. Each one had a different instructor and was located in a different star system, some in the Gamma Quadrant, some in the Beta Quadrant, most in the Alpha Quadrant.

"Computer, describe the Olois System."

"Trinary star system. Eight planets. Seventeen moons."

"And the Antreka System?"

"Unary star system. Six planets. Ten moons."

"What about Sigma Eridon?"

"Binary star system. Four planets, three moons. The Assynian Nebula."

"And we have a winner," Alice nodded. "Computer, designate this program as my own, Ensign authorization Alice-Theta-7. Title: Holt Simulation Level 1."

"Acknowledged."

"Begin."

The gray metallic doors opened, and Alice stepped onto the tiny bridge of a Class 2 shuttle.

Next ~ Dimaya

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ My Captain

2013-04-23T18:06:00.000-07:00

A/N ~ I don't know what the hell's going on here, but the vibe and flow I'm getting from this story was the one I had hoped to get from Gaya's Astronomy. I don't know what it is about Alice Holt, y'all, but I'm totally falling for her.

Previously ~ Staying out of Trouble

Alice Holt

Ensign's Personal Log

I'm a blueshirt.

You may have heard a lot about redshirts, which is to be expected; they're the reckless ones. They're the fearless captains, the devil-may-care first officers, and the crotchety old one-eyed Admirals who have all the best stories. Yes, they have a higher death rate, but they're the ones who get to sit in The Chair.

I, however, am a blueshirt.

No one's every really sure what we do; I'm often mistaken for a nurse or a medic, since I'm obviously too young to be a Chief Medical Officer. But for the record, blueshirts are the scientists. Squints. Lab rats. The Geek Squad - whatever you want to call us. I'm not ashamed of this role; some of the best figures in Starfleet history were total nerds. Ambassador Spock, for example, readily comes to mind.

Not that I'm anywhere that brill; even so, I'm content. I love nothing more than collecting samples during a planetary survey. See, a nerd's life is quiet and exciting at the same time. We get to see all the little things which make this infinite universe of ours so beautiful and fascinating...while generally staying out of a firefight.

It's one of the reasons I applied for a position aboard the Equinox. I remember my adviser at the Academy chuckled and shook her head, saying officers don't choose the missions; the missions choose them. I didn't know what the hell she was talking about, so I didn't pay attention. My application was approved, and that was all that mattered.

But now...I'm beginning to wonder she meant.

I look at my Captain and I wonder why such a mission would choose her. Captain Jean-Luc Picard was the famous one, commanding the flagship Enterprise itself - why not him? Why couldn't Kirk, perhaps the most reckless Captain in Starfleet history, catch this case? Or soon-to-be-Captain Benjamin Sisko? He's the one always taking those ill-advised jaunts to Gamma Quadrant. How come his crew couldn't get stranded on the ass-end of the galaxy?

Of all the Captains in the Fleet, while the hell did this have to happen to Captain Kathryn Janeway?

As soon as I asked the question, the answer immediately occurred to me. More often than not, the best man for a particularly difficult job...is a woman.

***

Captain Janeway

"I don't believe we've met, Ensign...?"

"Holt," Alice helped her out. "Alice Holt."

"Ensign Alice Holt," Captain Janeway nodded as they met in a corridor while walking towards the mess hall. "Got a nice ring to it. You a graduate?"

"Fresh out," Alice chuckled. She suddenly realized she was nervous; though Janeway was rapidly developing a warm demeanor towards her crewmates, she was still a Captain. And she was one hell of a woman too; she had this deep, rusty voice which reminded Alice of a smoky lounge she once visited on Andoria. And the Captain had this...level, steely gaze which Alice guessed would make even the most stalwart Admiral check himself.

"Nothing wrong with that," Janeway assured her. "Our Operations Officer is an Ensign...Harry Kim to be exact. Have you two met?"

"No, Captain."

"He's a fine officer," Janeway nodded briskly. "Even though he's 'fresh out', as the kids say. If you ask me, the fresh out are the best ones out; you kids have a way of seeing things with new eyes."

"Flattery," Alice grinned. "I like that in a Captain." Normally she wouldn't have dared such a response, but ever since they'd gotten stranded, some rules had changed. Janeway wanted to warm up to her crew; she needed them to her as both strong and compassionate to everyone from going psycho.

"No, no," the Captain assured her. "Kim's presence on the bridge is a breath of a fresh air, especially when the Captain is a stodgy old woman."

"Stodgy?" Alice raised an eyebrow. "Hardly."

"Flattery," Janeway smirked. "I like that in an Ensign."

They parted company as soon as they entered the mess hall; some senior officers needed to speak with the Captain about repairs and supplies. Alice wandered through the mess hall, suddenly realizing she was completely alone without a single familiar face on board. None of her graduating class members had been assigned to Voyager and it suddenly occurred to Alice that she wouldn't be seeing them at any reunions or serving with them aboard any other ships.

The yawning emptiness she felt came from nowhere, threatening to knock her off her feet.

Voyager Mess Hall

"You can sit here if you like," someone offered. Alice looked down to see Ensign Harry Kim warily poking at his lunch. "I can't say what's good on the menu today, but I hear the ice water's good."

Alice smiled. The Starfleet crew did that a lot; they smiled at each other, offered a helping hand, cracked jokes to lighten the mood...the Maquis crew were still acclimating.

"I'm not actually hungry," Alice replied, taking a seat. Harry was even better-looking close up. She'd seen in passing before, but she'd never realize just how youthfully smooth his skin was, how svelte his voice or how utterly tender his eyes were.

Fresh out indeed, Alice mused. Most Ensigns had that look. "So...you're assigned the bridge, huh?"

Ensign Harry Kim

Harry blushed, no doubt modest about his assignment. "I'm only running ops. You?"

"Science Lab on Deck 8," Alice shrugged. "I suppose that works out considering I also live on Deck 8."

"Roommate?"

Alice tensed. "No. Not anymore." They didn't like to talk about the dead; there had been so many in such a short time. And while Alice preferred to live alone, a luxury unknown at the Academy, every time she walked into her quarters, she always got the feeling something - someone - was missing.

"Hey...Kim?"

"Call me Harry."

"Harry," Alice began slowly. "You were specifically assigned to this ship so you probably know your exact role here, but I...I was supposed to transfer to the Equinox weeks ago, and I'm not entirely sure what to do with myself. I mean, my expertise is in short-term surveys and bio-analyses, not exploration and certainly not combat."

"Funny you should mention that." Harry was finally brave enough to try some strange pale green pasta on his plate. After a bite or two, he decided he liked it and kept munching. "Some of the lesser experienced officers were going to ask the Captain to start a running combat simulation program to enhance our skills. You could join us. Also, Commander Chakotay mentioned something about a shortage of good pilots. We've only got one Lt. Paris, and if something were to happen...." Harry trailed off. He stared down at his plate as though he'd lost his appetite, but Alice didn't know if it was because of the food or the morbidity of his statement.

"Piloting, huh?" she asked, feeling a little uncertain. She only knew the basics and had never really mastered those.

"Yeah," Harry nodded slowly. "There are a couple of holo-tutorials on file, complete with assessments as you advance each level. If you complete Level 5, you'll be qualified to pilot Voyager."

Alice had no intention of doing that. In fact, as glamorous and appealing as bridge duty was to most officers, she wasn't interested. She liked labs and wanted to stay in hers, but she wasn't stupid. They weren't all going to make it out of here alive and it was beneficial to master as many different skills as possible.

And besides...she had a feeling they weren't going to be stuck in the Delta Quadrant for decades. They were going to get out of this, and it wouldn't hurt to have a bunch of new skills on her resumes when they got home.

Next ~ Ghosts on Deck

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ Staying out of Trouble

2013-04-21T20:28:00.002-07:00

Previously ~ The Diary of Ensign Holt

Ensign's Personal Log:
Ensign Alice Holt

When you're at the Academy you watch video recordings of starship missions. You watch a ship buckle under a full spread of torpedoes, while the Captain goes flying out of his chair and across the bridge. You see consoles exploding, redshirts dropping from 3rd-degree plasma burns, and you hear that annoying Red Alert in the background.

Considering that the only reason I joined the Academy was to stay of trouble, I always had the weirdest, most random thoughts while watching the vids.

Like...what if you were in the middle of screwing when the Red Alert went off? Do you finish or do you separate your privates right away? And what if you're going down on someone when the ship suddenly turns hard to starboard during evasive maneuvers, and your teeth clamp down, causing your partner excruciating agony? What then? How do explain your partner's bloodied genitals to the ship's doctor?

I'll be honest; I never took those videos seriously. I never took them seriously because they always came to an end. The Captain or Commander (usually) saved the day, resolved the crisis, and whatever was left of the crew came home. I didn't fear going on the missions because I always knew they'd come to an end. Sometimes a situation took hours to resolve, typically days, every so often weeks or months. I could handle that. I could live off emergency rations or survive on an uninhabited moon for weeks if necessary. I could do it; I knew I could do it.

I knew I could do it because I knew there'd be a hot shower and a ready replicator waiting for me when it was over. There'd be shore leave and a ship to Risa. There'd be my drinking buddies and a barrel of bloodwine when it was all over hours, days, weeks, or even months later.

But not this time. This time, there's no fast-forwarding to the end of the mission. There's no waiting it out. You don't get to just skip to the end of seventy years. You don't just wait out a 70,000-light year ride.

This one...this one you actually have to live through.

***

Alice Holt woke with a jerk. There was no point in trying to go back to sleep; she already knew she couldn't.

"Computer, what's the time?"

"The time is now 0342 hours."

Alice sighed loudly and fell back against her bluish gray pillows. She couldn't sleep but she needed sleep. The ship had sustained moderate damage since being dragged to the Delta Quadrant. Several crew members were dead, and after a week of being stranded, the crew's sanity stood on the edge of a knife.

Her first instinct was to rise, walk to her replicator, order Valerian tea, sip it slowly while watching the stars, and let it put her back to sleep. But then she remembered how everyone had been assigned replicator rations. And since that spotted Talaxian chef - Neelix, was it? - couldn't cook a decent meal to save his life, Alice knew better than to blow a whole ration on a cup of tea.

I was supposed to be on this ship for, like, seven days, not seventy years. She hadn't even been assigned to the Maquis mission. Voyager was supposed to rendezvous with the USS Equinox, a science vessel, where Alice would have been assigned to short-term planetary research near Bajoran space. She'd even been considering applying for a position aboard Deep Space Nine.

Nichelle Nichols as
Grandmama Holt

Most of the crew were worried about their families, but family was the least of Alice's worries. She'd never known her father; he was a freighter captain who was always off in some distant sector. Alice's mother was an infamous lush on Casperia Prime. And Alice's grandmother, a retired fashion designer, had shipped her from one boarding school to another until she'd ended up at Starfleet Academy. Her grandmother, Juliet Holt, had insisted the Academy would instill some much needed discipline in Alice, lest she turn out like her parents.

It hadn't. Though Alice had taken in interest in scientific study, and had shown a talent for bio-analysis, she mainly partied her way through school. She skipped class at least once or twice a month, spent most of her holidays on Risa, and often drank her weight in bloodwine sangria.

Alice also enjoyed sex. She wasn't into drunken one-night stands, however; on the contrary, she considered sex an art form which required three essentials: intellectual compatibility, complete sobriety, and time...lots of time. She believed lovers needed to learn about each other's bodies, to talk about what they liked, to confess their fantasies without any fear of rejection.

The upside was that this often led to great sex. The downside was that way too many people became infatuated with her.

This would especially pose a problem on a small ship with a family-sized crew trapped thousands of light years from home. The rumors would actually be the least of her problems; she already knew a certain unspoken protocol would emerge cautioning crew members against shitting where they ate.

And yet, right now, at this moment with all this stress...Alice nothing could help her sleep better than a really good roll in the hay.

Next ~ My Captain

Prologue ~ The Diary of Ensign Holt

2013-04-21T11:37:00.000-07:00

Previously ~ Dramatis Personae

A/N ~ Damn it feels good to be back in the 'Trek verse!

Before we begin, I need readers to understand that I will be exploring elements of what I call "experimental fiction" in this story. I also need readers to understand that as the relationship between Alice and Dimaya unfolds, the *gasp* factor is not that they're a same-sex couple. This story is meant to examine the relationship between humans and computers. It explores the concept of sentience which, thanks to the Doctor on Voyager, was a crucial running theme.

And now that we've got this out of the way, I want to dedicate this to Dabo Queen, Amaya, Neo-Prodigy, and Jules for various reasons. They'll know why.

Enjoy!

Women's University of Adera, Tiranis Colony
April 5, 2398

Amber Jones as
Professor Sera

Professor Anaya Sera preferred to teach outdoors. Outdoors meant fresh spring air, no chairs, no desks, no creative ways for students to pretend they weren't sleeping.

"All right, kids," she called, tapping her padd to remind them to look at theirs. "Last month, some of you...critiqued my choice of literature. According to the Dean of the Written Arts College, 80% of you filed anonymous protests against my decision to assign reading of Ancient Vulcan Literature. Apparently, to some of you, Vulcan literature is - and I quote - 'a major snore-fest'."

The students unsuccessfully attempted to hold back a ripple of chuckles.

"So this month," Sera continued, equally amused, "I've decided on something else. I recently got a hold of the personal logs of an Ensign who served aboard the USS Voyager when it was first carried off into the Delta Quadrant."

That got their attention. Captain Kathryn Janeway's bizarre, unexpected seven-year mission still fascinated people all across the Alpha Quadrant. But while interest in the bridge officers had slowly waned over the years, interest in the lower-ranking crew members remained alive and well. The Ensigns in particular almost never got any attention.

"As you know, Voyager finally returned to Earth twenty years ago," Sera continued, now that she had their attention. "Even after all this time, we're still learning so much about their mission in the Delta Quadrant. We're still learning about the scientific data they collected, the species they met, and the people who lived and died aboard that ship. These personal logs were just recently transcribed and published in the form of a diary. They belong to a woman named Alice Juliet Holt.

"Now, very little is known about Alice herself. Very little was known about her when she was on Voyager and no one knows much about what happened to her after the ship returned to Earth. What little we do know comes from her Starfleet records which, let's face it, don't always tell us much, and this diary." She raised it for emphasis.

"Now over the course of the next few weeks we'll be reading about Ensign Holt's experiences aboard Voyager. And since some of you requested something steamier and more exciting than classical Vulcan literature...I think you'll be quite entertained.

"Any questions before we begin?"

Next ~ Staying out of Trouble

Amber ~ Outside the Icebox, an Epilogue

2013-04-20T20:27:00.004-07:00

Previously ~ Xia

"Jules says you two had quite a night," Carl Kolchak raised a brow. "Got attacked by a Fox Demon and everything."

Perri was anything but amused. Every bone in her body hurt from being thrown across a room, and this chamomile tea he'd served her wasn't doing a damn thing.

"So what was she like?" Kolchak pressed.

"Beautiful," Perri admitted. "Jules must've caught her on an off day, though, 'cause she just kept throwing Xiaowei around like a ragdoll."

Kolchak laughed. "Well...sounds like Jules."

"I still can't believe that was a demon, though," Perri sighed. "She just didn't seem...demony."

"Jules once told me that that was the whole point," Kolchak shrugged. "The better to walk among humans in peace."

"I can't keep working stories like these," Perri shook her head. "I'm tired, my whole body hurts, and I just might get killed next time. That thing had its hand right above my heart, Kolchak! I don't even know how I'm going to sleep tonight."

He reached out and gently touched her hand. "I'll stay. You sleep. Tomorrow, you'll see things a bit more clearly."

***

Ten years later

For some reason, Xiaowei felt drawn back towards the Eastern Hemisphere.

She knew better than to return to China, of course; as homesick as she felt these days, she didn't want to enter the hornet's nest. While traveling through the Americas, she'd been told Europe was a nice place to visit.

She picked up a dart and threw at the map in her motel room. She rose from the bed and crossed the room to get a closer look. It had landed on England.

Her brow furrowed; she didn't know much about England but figured it was all the more reason to go. She'd spent the last decade learning to blend in and stay off the supernatural radar. She was ready to embark on new, unfamiliar territory.

She paused, rubbing her chin and pondering.

It wouldn't hurt to have a new skin for the journey.

~ END XIAOWEI'S SECOND ADVENTURE ~

Amber ~ Xia

2013-04-20T19:51:00.003-07:00

Previously ~ Dreaming of Azaleas

Xiaowei

The spell didn't break right when Amber Hollis left, of course; it was at least a few days before Xiaowei could feel the spirits withdrawing. Many of things which had appeared in the apartment suddenly began to disappear. She knew that in time, the seal upon the door would finally break and she would be free.

So she pulled on her human skin, dressed in her favorite silk robes, lit some candles, and practiced music to wile away the time. She played her lute as she had thousands of times before, and this time, it wasn't at Amber's command. The song was suddenly hers again, and she was finally herself.

Unfortunately...she was too much herself.

With a strange mix of horror and relief, Xiaowei realized the ice was back.

This wasn't the thin, cool blast from the spirit world; this was the full-on hellish cold of Hanbing Diyu. Already she was immobilized; her mannequins and candles were quickly encompassed in ice, and the walls frosted over. Amber was gone, the spell of the ghosts was broken, but the ice had rapidly returned, and she was trapped all over again.

The Blonde Ghost

She looked up to see a bitter face staring down at her.

"You," she whispered to the Blonde Ghost. "You told it where to find me."

"We made a deal with it," came the frigid reply. "While you served our purpose, we were willing to hold you here so you could continue your sentence."

"And if I had made Amber a star?" Xiaowei weakly rasped. "You would've just handed me back over to it?"

"As payment for your services, I would've given you a heads up, but foxes are stubborn as they are wiley," the Blonde Ghost snorted. "Honestly, Xiaowei, you've got a lot to learn about this world."

"Any parting tips?" Xiaowei hoarsely murmured, as her ability to speak finally left her.

"Same as before, sweetheart," the ghost sighed. "Now, I've got a hunch you're going to break free again so listen good. The old tricks don't work anymore. You've gotta start thinking outside the icebox, sweet thang, otherwise back into the abyss you go."

She vanished, leaving Xiaowei to succumb to the frost. The cold pierced her like needles; she felt her joints fuse in as her skin crusted over in ice. She should've planned better, taken precautions. She should've planted charms and written wards on the walls. She needed to be more vigilant next time, if what the Blonde Ghost said was true. She had learned much over the past ten years, but she still had so far to go.

To any god who ever favored the huli jing, she thought, if you free me this once, I promise to do better next time.

She hadn't expected her prayer to be answered almost instantly, but it was.

Perri Reed

At first she'd thought Amber had returned. She was willing to make the woman a billionaire if she had, but she quickly realized the brown face staring across the room was someone else.

The stranger was appalled.

"What...the hell...?" She could even finish her sentence.

Xiaowei could, however. Hell, indeed, she mused.

As the woman cautiously walked towards her, the ice began to immediately recede.

Her heart is special, Xiaowei realized. She's hot enough to melt ice.

"It's the ice which to Xiaowei was condemned centuries ago," a new voice explained. Xiaowei didn't need to look up to know she was in the presence of a Demon Hunter.

Jules Xia

"I have half a mind to just leave her to freeze for eternity," the Demon Hunter went on. "But we both know that won't work."

No matter, Xiaowei thought. The ice was melting. She could breathe again, move again. Slowly, she laid down her lute and rose to her feet. She couldn't afford to play possum; she needed to kill this Hunter and flee this place quickly.

"Perri, stay back," the Hunter warned her companion. "This thing is a lot more dangerous than it looks."

Finally! Someone who gave the fear and respect she was due!

"Let me guess," Xiaowei rasped. "You're from the Clan of Xia."

"The name's Jules," the Hunter nodded, brandishing a long blade. "What gave me away?"

"The descendants of Fuxi all smell alike," Xiaowei scowl. "You all have that same scent to your blood." She cocked her head to the side. "I have outlasted generations of your family."

"I bet you have," Jules smirked. "Funny you should mention that. You see, we've been a little busy while you were detained."

Perri watched Jules zoom forward, inhumanly fast. There was no way a person could move that quickly; she even caught Xiaowei off guard. She zipped forward like lightning, attempted to behead the Fox Demon. Lithe and agile, Xiaowei gracefully bent backwards while remaining where she stood. The blade missed her by a hair.

She twisted and turned to face her attacker but Jules's left leg flew out, kicking Xiaowei in the stomach so hard she actually went flying across the room and into a wall.

"We've had centuries to refine our methods of hunting," Jules mused, slowly walking towards the fallen demon. "Our ancestors decided the demon infestation on earth had become intolerable. They realized the old tricks just didn't work anymore."

"Seems to be theme of the day," Xiaowei choked, slowly getting back to her feet.

Jules attacked again, but this time, Xiaowei was ready. She was a bit rusty, not having used hand-to-hand combat in years. Jules was anything but rusty, and she had the reflexes to match her opponent. Xiaowei found herself being knocked into pillars, into mannequins, and sent flying across the rooms multiple times. As it turned out, Jules packed a punch like a Vampire Slayer, and didn't easily break a sweat.

Xiaowei paused for a moment, blinking at the bewildering fact that she was getting her ass handed to her by a human.

As Jules cut open her own hand and bled on her sword, Xiaowei smelled her own death on its blade. Though she loathed to admit, Xiaowei knew she wasn't going to win this with force. This Xia wasn't like the other Xia. In addition to their dogged persistence and unflinching disciplined, this Xia had some new, preternatural skills. She had clearly slain fox demons before and Xiaowei was not going to defeat her. The old tricks just didn't work anymore; she still had so much to learn about this world.

It was times like these Xiaowei was grateful for innocent bystanders.

Instead of rushing Jules, she swiftly ducked across the room, behind Perri. She grabbed the warm human body and planted five fingers squarely above her heart.

Jules actually rolled her eyes. "Seriously, Xiaowei? Have you really sunk this low?"

"The Xia of the my day may have been worthless, but at least they were honorable and untainted by dark magic," Xiaowei fired back. Perri tried to pull from her in vain. "What's happened to humanity? You've become utterly despicable, beyond redemption."

"Says the creature who's left a trail of bodies from here to Houston," Perri bit out. "What about all those people?"

"Oh, let me tell you about those people," Xiaowei hissed. "The CEO who shipped sweatshops to brown countries. The wealthy philanderer who couldn't keep his pants zipped, the creepy fetishist who preyed on women in the street - the list goes on!

"I was condemned to eternal imprisonment for saving the life of a faithful husband. He resisted every and all temptation to preserve his marriage. I now realize why my tale is so bitter. It may have taken me a thousand years but I finally get it. They don't make humans like that anymore. You're all selfish and vain. The Demon Hunter who's enhanced her skills with dark magic. The self-righteous reporter who's only interested in her job. I've spent days trapped here by the ghosts of greedy, shallow actresses who never did anything for anyone else, and then wondered why their lives went nowhere. Humans are the ones who've sunk to a new low, Jules. It's humans whom the gods need to put on ice!"

Her tirade came to abrupt end. Using the element of surprise, Xiaowei hurled Perri at Jules with all her strength. Without waiting to see if they recovered, she turned to flee the apartment.

Jules recovered quickly, of course, but the strangest thing happened. Xiaowei could hear the mannequins moving, sliding across the room to block Jules's pursuit. The Fox Demon paused, turning to see what she instinctively knew Jules couldn't see. The dead had risen to defend Xiaowei; Angela, the Blonde Ghost and dozens of others were shoving the furniture in Jules's path. They appeared in their fancy dresses and hairstyles spanning decades. They looked dainty and delicate in their high heels. But when they picked up furniture, they hurled it like warriors.

"Thank you," Xiaowei whispered, almost moved to tears by the unexpected assistance.

Angela gave her a brisk nod. "We owed you one."

"Now run!" the Blonde Ghost yelled, and for once, Xiaowei was happy to obey.

Next ~ Outside the Icebox

Amber ~ Dreaming of Azaleas

2013-04-20T17:45:00.001-07:00

Previously ~ A Woman's Work

Xiaowei

"No."

Xiaowei turned away from the ghost Angela West and her roommate from hell, Amber Hollis. She went to daintily sit down on the platform bed in the middle of the apartment. With a wave of her hand, all the candles lit, and she peered at herself in the mirror.

Angela was taken aback by her response, while Amber looked confused. "What do you mean, 'no'?" she asked. "Gumiho --"

"What's your Korean name?" Xiaowei demanded suddenly, never turning away from her bronze mirror.

"What?" Amber blinked, shaking her head. "What on earth are you --"

Amber

"You know what the Joseon called me," Xiaowei shrugged. "It's only fair that I know what you grandmother calls you. And when was the last time you saw your grandmother, Amber? Or any of your family members? You said 'we' used to spend 'our' summers in Korea - who's 'we', Amber? Do you have siblings?"

"Why does that matter?" Angela demanded, cutting in. Without looking at her, Xiaowei could already tell the ghost was furious. "What does that have to do with her career?"

"She doesn't have one," Xiaowei snickered. Angela was right. She was the Infamous Xiaowei. And though she'd spent much of her existence in prison, she was a laohu, and she was anything but toothless.

Angela West

She might not be able to swap skins or trade place or enchant her mortal roommate, but she was still a Fox Demon - the Fox Demon, in fact - and she still had a trick or two left in her war chest.

"And she can't have one," she cruelly continued. "She doesn't have the Gift, remember? Isn't that what you called it, Angela? Isn't that what you said?"

For the first time, Amber acknowledged the ghost's presence. She turned to Angela, demanding, "You said that?"

Angela tried to do damage control. "Amber --"

"I remembered you," Amber protested. "I thought of you and loved all of you, years after everyone else had forgotten you were even ever here."

***

***

The Blonde Ghost

"And look at how they've repayed you," Xiaowei chuckled.

The Blonde Ghost suddenly appeared, her steely eyes grim. She materialized across from Xiaowei, taking a couple of steps forward.

"Stop changing the subject, Xiaowei," she bit out in her low, Southern drawl.

"Oh, but this is the subject, Blondie," the Fox Demon sneered. "You knew Amber wouldn't get the part because she 'ain't no damn It Girl.' None of you have any faith in this woman; you're just using her. You don't want what's best for her; this isn't even about her, it's about all of you working through your issues so you can stop hanging around this shit hole of building like a bunch of deadbeat losers."

"You're one to talk," the Blonde Ghost fired back. "You're no better than an ex-con. And a homewrecker to boot, you cheap whore. Did you really think that man you 'loved' --"she actually used air quotes, "--was going to leave his wife for a girl he found in a bandit's flea-infested tent?"

Xiaowei was impressed, despite herself. But before she could spit one back, the Blonde Ghost ruthlessly went on.

"There's a reason why the term 'huli jing' has a double meaning, Amber," she called across the room. "They're fucking whores, and not the Hollywood kind of whore who's puttin' out to get somewhere. The huli jing want to be loved, to be taken seriously enough to achieve human status - a pipe dream, if I might add."

"Say what you want about me," Xiaowei replied. "I've had a heartbeat. I got to smell the azaleas and share the body of my warm, loving Princess. It may have only lasted one lifetime, but I know I will have that again someday."

The Blonde Ghost wasn't interested. "Let's shuck right down to cob, shall we? You want out of this hell, then you send your little shadows and make our girl a star."

"No," Xiaowei calmly shrugged, lightly dabbing her lips with gloss.

"No?" Angela echoed. "Do you want out or not?"

Xiaowei snickered again. "Ladies, you may be stuck in Limbo, but you've clearly never been to Hell. Now I've been to Hell."

"I stood imprisoned in ice, tortured day in and day out in ways you can't even imagine. You bitches have only been in Limbo for a few decades," Xiaowei pointed out. "And as far as Limbo is concerned, it's not nearly as bad as Hell. I might not be able to leave this apartment, but I can still have the things I want."

With a wave, she conjured a bottle of perfume and lightly spritzed her robes. The scent of azaleas wafted through the room, making even the ghosts wince. Xiaowei stood slowly, slipping out of her robes.

"See, the way I've got it figured," she casually went on, "Amber is the link which binds us all together and keeps us trapped here. Amber's mortal," she shrugged. "She'll die eventually, and the link will be broken."

Xiaowei Unmasked

Reaching behind her head, Xiaowei began to pull off her human skin, revealing her true form beneath. Her long white hair tumbled about her strikingly pallid, sexless body. And her voice, ghostly and ubiquitous echoed through the room.

She propped her skin, lightly spritzing it with the azalea fragrance, while adjusting a stray hair here and there.

"And when that link is broken," she mused in that inhuman voice of hers, "I will get up, and simply walk out of here. But if you want my advice, Amber, don't wait to die here. Accept the fact you weren't meant to be an actress. Go home to your family. They may be angry and disappointed, but trust me, that will pass. The worst thing you can ever do is leave your mother, go die somewhere, and never let her know what happened."

"Don't listen to her," Angela ordered strictly. "You're meant for great things, Amber."

"Like you were?" Amber snapped.

"Pack your things and leave quickly," Xiaowei calmly suggested, still spritzing her skin. "They might be able to hold me here - for now - but you'll always be free."

The Blonde Ghost drilled her cold blue eyes into Xiaowei's. "You'll regret this, laohu. We will not forget what you've done here."

"I'm sure you won't," came the breezy reply.

The Blonde Ghost exchanged looks with Angela, and both immediately vanished.

"Tick-tock, Amber," Xiaowei called over her shoulder.

Next ~ Xia

Amber ~ A Woman's Work

2013-04-17T18:59:00.000-07:00

Previously ~ Circling

Perri was surprised Jules was willing to meet with her. She'd expected the detective to brush her off, but instead, she was oddly willing to meet her for a very early early breakfast the next morning.

They met at Perri's coffee house, the one she kept to herself. She ordered her usual Red Eye as soon as she walked in the door, and to her surprise, Jules ordered the same.

Then again, she is a detective, Perri reasoned. She probably lives off Red Eyes.

They headed for the most secluded booth, this time away from the windows. Their butts hadn't even hit the seats before Jules began.

"You first," she said curtly, looking Perri in the eye.

Perri had to admit she was impressed; obviously Jules was afraid of nothing and no one, and since Perri had been the one to extend the invite, she felt she had no choice but to start.

"The trail is going cold," she admitted slowly. "There hasn't been a body in some time, but I feel like that's what this is all about it. Time. It's just a matter of time before the killer strikes again."

Jules raised a slender, skeptical brow. "I thought I was the cop here."

It was Perri's turn to be fearless. "When you work with a reporter like Kolchak, you soon realize your duty goes far beyond writing, Jules."

"True," Jules nodded, "but I don't see why you're speaking to me. You don't believe in demons. I do. The thing that killed those men is a demon. I'm not going any further with you until you accept that and believe me," she pressed, when Perri appeared to almost interrupt, "you need to accept that."

***

***

Their coffees arrived and they waited for their server to leave. Perri took a diplomatic sip, pausing briefly before changing tactics.

"You didn't call after your meeting with Wolfram & Hart."

"Wolfram & Hart was a bust," Jules shrugged. "Serena Mac - my contact? - doesn't consider Xiaowei enough of a threat."

Perri frowned. "Who?"

"That it's name," Jules replied. "Xiaowei. My family and Xiaowei happen to go way back and now it's here, in LA. Irony, huh?" She snickered humorlessly. "We spent generations hunting that thing and it actually has the balls to show up right on our doorstep."

Perri put her disbelief aside for a moment. "Do you know how to find it?"

"Wolfram & Hart normally have ways to track such beings but apparently something's in the way this time," Jules sighed. "The shamans kept referring to the Veil, about being unable to see beyond the Veil. Looks like Xiaowei's picked up a few new tricks to protect herself."

"Herself?" Perri was getting confused.

Meanwhile, Jules was getting impatient. "Fox Demons like to 'borrow' skin in order to pass as human," she said brusquely. "Whey they are newly formed, they take the skin from the recently deceased. As their powers mature, they start to swap skins with the living, and if they meet a human dumb enough to hand over their heart, a fox demon can actually become human...after they serve a thousand year first. Xiaowei lucked out early on and acquired the visage of extraordinarily beautiful girl. Unlike other huli jing - fox spirits - she never bothered to change her face; she never had to. But then a little over a thousand years ago she royally fucked up. She saved a man, and for that transgression, she was imprisoned in ice for centuries. She's managed to escape a couple of times since, and now...the bitch is here."

"Wait, wait, wait," Perri shook her head. "Setting aside the talk of demons and skins...let me get this straight. She saved someone...and was punished?"

"Everything which exists under Heaven has a purpose," Jules patiently explained. The newbs always felt sorry for Xiaowei and she needed to shut that down - quickly. "And everything which exists is beholden to certain Laws. For a Fox Demon to save a mortal is unlawful and punishable."

"But," Perri blinked, feeling a twinge of sorrow, "...she saved someone."

Jules mercilessly snorted. "She tried to break up his marriage, and even went so far as to frame his wife for murder. And speaking of murder, Xiaowei's hit list goes on for miles. Like...remember those eight guys? The bitch needs killed, Perri; if we go after her with you feeling all sympathetic and shit, it could seriously fuck us over. Fox Demons are experts at emotional manipulation."

Perri raised an intrigued brow. "If we go after her?"

"No offense to Kolchak, I like the guy and all, but this is a job for a woman," Jules shook her head. "Straight men are worthless in the presence of a huli jing; they go all ga-ga and roll right over to do her bidding. I know I can fight this thing, but first I have to find this thing, and I don't have much to go on. If I could just pinpoint a general location of where Xiaowei is I know I could track her."

Perri grinned slowly. "A general location, you say?"

Next ~ Dreaming of Azaleas

The Diary of Ensign Holt ~ Dramatis Personae

2013-04-16T20:51:00.000-07:00

Whenever I watch a Trek show I haven't touched in a long time, I also see things with new eyes and understanding. Star Trek: Voyager was a wrongfully mishandled show with undeniable potential. It had a great cast, and some awesome episodes, and kick-ass captain.

So naturally...fic.

Many years after the USS Voyager returns to the Alpha Quadrant, a literature professor discusses with her class the diary of a young Ensign who was aboard the ship.

Jurnee Smollet as Ensign
Alice J. Holt

The last thing Alice wants to believe is that she's actually stranded 70,000 light years (70 years at warp nine) away from home. Not that she really has a home to go to; neither of her parents raised her, she doesn't have any siblings, and all she remembers of her grandmother is being told every day to "stay out of trouble." At the Academy (which she only joined to get away from her grandmother), the free-spirited, Alice partied harder than she studied and irony of ironies...on her first assignment she's sent on a voyage of the damned.

Joy Bisco as Ensign Dimaya Tala

Ensign Dimaya Tala is a holographic simulation. Based on a real student at Starfleet Academy, Dimaya specializes in flight training. Her friendly demeanor and recorded memories of life on Earth attract a lonely Alice Holt who slowly develops a relationship with her. Because Alice continually saves the flying program and modifies its overall structure, Dimaya eventually gains sentience as her programming expands.

Additional Characters

Roxann Dawson as Lt. B'Elanna Torres,
Chief Engineer

I'll be honest; I didn't like this character all that much. I think the actress ruined her. Roxann Dawson agreed to play a human-Klingon hybrid but then demanded that she didn't have to look "too Klingon." The character started off Klingon and semi-proud, then spent the next seven years playing a human constantly running from her Klingon half, which was trite and tacky. I kept getting a racial issue vibe from her, like she was a brown girl (Dawson is a Latina) fleeing her ancestry. In the episode where she tries to tamper with the DNA of her unborn daughter, we find out that her dream child is a dainty little blonde girl.

Alexander Enberg as Ensign Vorik

Yes...Taurik had a twin brother.

For reasons I can't fathom, he proposes marriage to B'Elanna during his pon farr (which I guess explains the lapse in judgment). She turns him down, because she thinks Lt. Tom Paris is a better fit. Anyways...I thought Vorik was hot (not his best pic), and you can't have too many Vulcans on a Trek show.

Tim Russ as Lt. Tuvok

The sexiest portrayal of a Vulcan I have seen. After recently rewatching Voyager, I find myself salivating at the very thought of this man. He's Voyager's tactical officer and is approximately one century old. He is brilliant, at time sarcastic, and expressive despite himself. Tim Russ's portrayal of Tuvok made him one of my favorite actors of all time; because of the various situations on their highly unpredictable mission, Tuvok got to express a full range of thoughts and emotions not typically associated with Vulcans.

Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay

A Native American Maquis rebel turned Commander was a sheer stroke of genius. Beltran's suave portrayal of Chakotay had me sighing from day one. The tattoo was hot, the uniform worked, and just look at the face! Chakotay's lack of character development was noticeable, but his sex appeal more than made up for it.

Garrett Wang as Ensign
Harry Kim

Garrett Wang will always be my husband. Therefore, some people need to step off before they get got. His casting as Harry Kim was one of the things which first got me interested in Voyager as a teenager. He had the boyish good looks, the shy sense of humor, the boyish good looks, the professional ambition, the boyish good looks....

Oh, my God.

Robert Picardo as the Doctor

Because the ship's doctor and nurse die in the first episode, the ships Emergency Medical Hologram is activated and acts as Chief Medical Officer for seven years, developing gifts for music, painting, and classical acting. He makes friends and has romantic relationships. He vastly transcends his programming. Picardo's portrayal of the Doctor made his character one of my favorite Trek characters. He's definitely my favorite Trek doctor.

and Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn
Janeway

My Xena of the Trek world, Kate Mulgrew was my #1 reason for getting interested in Voyager. I love a strong woman, and she was strong on and off screen. While commanding a ship in an extremely dangerous and difficult mission on screen, Mulgrew was a single mother of two working 18-hour days and making history off screen. She and Captain Sisko were my favorite captains. They both had no-nonsense attitudes and a strong sense of morality. And there was nothing better than watching either of them telling someone to get the hell off their ship/out of their office.

Next ~ The Diary of Ensign Holt

Amber ~ Circling

2013-04-16T19:25:00.001-07:00

Previously ~ The Taste

Amber Hollis

"You...you think I'm a...," Xiaowei blinked, "...that I'm a --"

"Gu-mi-ho," Amber enunciated irritably, rolling her eyes. "And yes, Xiaowei, I know."

The Fox Demon was taken aback, unable to form speech for several seconds. It had been centuries since she'd heard the Joseon version of her name, and she found herself staring at Amber - really staring at her - for the first time.

It's in the eyes, she finally realized.

"Amber --"

"We used to spend our summers in Korea with our grandmother," Amber waved dismissively. "She spent every night telling us stories about the devious gumiho, and how to spot one, and how dangerous they could be - blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. I pegged you from almost the moment we met. You've got a lot to learn about passing for human, sweetheart.

"Now, if it's not too much trouble...eyes on the crisis?"

Xiaowei

Xiaowei was still dumbfounded. "Crisis?"

"We're sorry it's taken so long for us to get you up to speed," Angela apologized, her eyes twinkling with amusement, "but now that the cat's out of the bag, I think we should all get to work, don't you?"

"I still don't know how I'm supposed to help Amber under these new 'rules'," Xiaowei insisted.

"Think," Angela mused. "Think hard about the source of your magic, Xiaowei. Think back to the night when you charmed a man away from the Princess."

The Fox Demon winced, taking a step back. She didn't like thinking of that night. It had had disastrous consequences. She tried to block the memory out but it didn't work; standing in Amber's presence was like wallowing in one's worst memory, living and it reliving it excruciating detail.

She had charmed the Princess's lover, bewitching him by filling his eyes with lies.

"The Fox's Shadow?" Xiaowei asked. "Is that what you're suggesting I do?"

Angela smirked. "The eyes are windows to the soul after all, Xiaowei."

The ghost of
Angela West

Xiaowei raised an eyebrow. "I can't leave this apartment, remember?"

"No," Angela mused, raising her hand and pointing past Xiaowei. "But you can crack open a window."

On cue, the old wooden window behind Xiaowei slowly creaked open. For some reason, she was seriously creeped out, despite having seen (and done) some far creepier things.

"Send the shadows, gumiho," Amber practically ordered. "Compel my agent and every casting agent he knows into making me a star."

***

***

Perri Reed

"We should call it a night."

The moment the words came out of Kolchak's mouth, Perri knew they'd been stood up. Jules wasn't calling them back, and whatever she knew about the supposed "Fox Demon", she wasn't sharing with them.

And considering Kolchak's, ahem, "respect" for the good detective, he obviously wasn't going to do anything to convince her.

Perri smiled her best pageant contestant smile and casually shrugged. "Yeah, I'm beat. Hey, you mind if I borrow your files? I want to head home, look 'em over before I catch some shut eye. I feel a bit out of the loop on this whole 'laohu' myth you and Jules were talking about."

"Sure," Kolchak nodded, heading over to his desk. He was back in flash. Perri smiled. Good ole Kolchak. Always so eager to please.

"I'll walk you to your car." It wasn't an offer, and she didn't mind. It was LA after all. They headed to the garage in silence. When she remotely unlocked her car, Kolchak, ever the gentleman, swooped forward to open the door for her.

"Good night, Carl," Perri grinned, sliding into the driver's seat.

"Night, Perri."

There was an all-night coffee house she hadn't told him about. It wasn't because she was holding out on him; she just needed special places reserved for moments exactly like these. She needed a place where he wouldn't be.

"Red Eye," she ordered as soon as she strode through the door. "Double up the espresso." She grabbed a booth by the window and immediately began sifting through Kolchak's notes.

First thing first; she catalogued the victims by time and place of death until she'd established a pattern. The bodies led away from the middle of West Hollywood and towards the outskirts. The last corpse was found a few blocks away from a small warehouse district with converted high-rises were cheap and mostly empty.

They were all actors; on a whim she checked to see if they had shared representation but they didn't. It made sense; the killer wouldn't have targeted a group of men who all knew each other. After the first one went missing, the others would've smelled a setup.

Prior to the killer's arrival in Los Angeles, they'd killed wealthier, more powerful men. Kolchak had an entire file on the killings in Houston, but the file didn't say much. Except that whoever was doing the killing had seriously downgraded their targets since Houston.

Perri didn't like this. The trail was growing cold and she didn't appreciate being kept in the dark. The murders still weren't being reported which mean the culprit had no reason to stop any time soon.

Whipping out her cell phone, she resolutely dialed.

"Jules? It's Perri Reed. We need to talk."

Next ~ A Woman's Work

A Moment in Fandom: Foxes

2013-04-13T20:56:00.001-07:00

Yes, yes, Amber WILL continue, but I want us to take a moment to honor the utterly adorable little creature which has helped to bring us even closer together.

"The Final Frontier", a snarky potential

2013-04-11T20:14:00.002-07:00

Needless to say, talk of the new Trek film is giving me hives. Makes me almost want to scribble something to bite back.

The keyword in that sentence is "almost". But if I were....

The Gents

Rick Yune as Captain
James Tiberius Kirk

After being accused of sleeping with an Admiral's wife, Kirk is "banished" to the Anticon System, where he's been assigned to command the Enterprise, and ship that's infamous for always getting into trouble. Kirk is fairly certain the Admiral is hoping he'll be killed out in the field.

Adetomiwa Edun as
Commander Spock

A brooding Vulcan-Human hybrid from two hotly feuding families, Spock asks to be assigned as far away from home as possible to avoid dealing with his problems. He insists that avoidance is perfectly logical. And should he die before having to return and face a possible arranged marriage, well...then...Surak be praised.

Bryton McClure as
Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy

A sardonic country boy at heart, "Bones" gave up an archaeological dig, deciding he was tired of studying the dead wanted to switch to treating the living for a while. Granted, he misses being outdoors, but there's no shortage of moons and stars in outer space.

Eddie Spears as
Chief Montgomery Scott

When he accidentally causes a massive explosion at a shipyard during an experimental procedure, Scott is exiled to space and barred from conducting experiments ever again. Doesn't change the fact that he's a genius, and as far as the Enterprise is concerned, his arrival is quite timely.

Ryan Conferido as Lt.
Commander Hikaru Sulu

A rebel who's already been in a lot of trouble with Starfleet Command, Sulu can't wait to board the Enterprise and take her helm. He finally feels as though he's found the ship made just for him: bold, beautiful, and bad to the bone.

Michael Trevino as
Ensign Pavel Chekov

A quirky Ensign who plays the violin and enjoys Klingon opera, Chekov is excited to be aboard the Enterprise, despite knowing its reputation. His assignment worried the hell out of his parents, but he's not fazed. Not yet anyway.

Saving the Best for Last

Dana Davis as
Lt. Nyota Penda Uhura

A brainy xenobiologist, Uhura prefers to stay out of the field. But to be considered for a promotion to Lt. Commander, Uhura is advised to clock in some time aboard a starship. On a whim, she chooses the Enterprise. Of course, she's never paid much to the field missions, otherwise she would've reconsidered.

Iyari Perez Limon as
Counselor Christine Chapel

An experienced officer, Christine has served aboard the Enterprise under two captains and is hoping the third time will be the charm. She's tired of breaking these people in only for them to run for the cushiest desk job at the first sign of trouble. And there's always trouble.

Jenna Ushkowitz as
Lt. Janice Rand

A party girl at heart, Janice has served aboard many ships as a communications officer. She's handy with a phaser, and loves nothing more than bars, bourbon, and Billie Holiday. Since the Enterprise is always in trouble, she figures its bridge is where all the action's at.

and Blair Wingo as
Lt. Charlene Masters

A curious, open-minded xenotheologian, Charlene feels every deity in the universe has abandoned her when she's assigned to the Enterprise. The only thing making the trip bearable is the presence of her old friend, Janice Rand.

Questions? Comments? Dirty looks?

Amber ~ The Taste

2013-04-11T11:05:00.001-07:00

Previously ~ Unspoken Agreements

Xiaowei

In order to properly diagnose Amber's acting problem, Xiaowei waited and let her go to the audition without any hints or pointers. While she waited for Amber to return, she got another..."visitor".

"Let me guess," she scowled, looking over the new ghost's clothing, "you came here back in '53 and everyone told you that you weren't supposed to be here?"

"Actually," the new ghost laughed, "I arrived New Year's Eve of '69. I was going to be the next Nichelle Nichols. I wanted to sit on the bridge of a starship and lock lips with a certain pointy-eared Vulcan."

Xiaowei cocked her head to the side. "I take it things didn't work out?"

"No," the ghost shook her head. "I had saved up for two years and my money was gone in two months. Of course...it took them a lot longer to find my body."

She sat down on the platform bed to fix her curls in the mirror. "Angela West, by the way."

Tatyana Ali as the
ghost of "Angela West"

Xiaowei sighed in defeat. "Nice to meet you."

"Do you have a plan yet?" Angela asked. "To fix Amber's career, I mean."

"If you can even call it career. And the answer's no," came the irritable reply. "I don't know a damn thing about Hollywood."

"But you know about lies," Angela pointed out while touching up her lipstick. "You know about pretense. That's all Hollywood. Amber's problem is that she doesn't know how to lie. As you may have noticed, she has a very accepting nature. She assumes others do as well. Amber is a blunt, truthful person. The people she auditions for, however, want her to lie to them, to give them a fantasy they can turn and sell to others. She doesn't know how to do that."

Xiaowei was confused and exasperated. "You mean the woman who spends all her time fawning over dead actresses and dreaming about eras gone by...can't deliver fantasy?"

Angela laughed. Her laughter was oddly warm and musical for a ghost. "Here's the secret all of us know but none of us want to accept: it's a gift. You either have it or you don't. And believe me...you have it."

"But how can I pass on that gift if we don't trade places?" Xiaowei exclaimed.

***

***

"Trading skins and places with that girl won't break the magic which draws and keeps us here Xiaowei," Angela warned. "We're here because none of us made it. None of us became famous or successful at anything else. We all died young; most of us from drugs, murder, or suicide. This city killed us and that kind of karma just doesn't disappear."

Xiaowei threw her hands in the air. "I never died young! I'm not even human!"

"No, but it's the goal of a huli jing," Angela raised an eyebrow. "You tasted that once, didn't you? You got to bask in the sun and smell the azaleas. You tasted life and love, and that's all it was - a taste. After your Princess died you were put back on ice, and that's how we feel. Some of us saved up for years, some of us braved the Klan, we braved pedophiles, we struggled and scraped to get here...and all we got was a taste."

Angela suddenly rose to wander between the mannequins, touching Xiaowei's silks. "I had an apartment. I went to auditions, premiers, and jazz clubs - oh, Xiaowei...there's a reason why Amber's so drawn to women of my era," she gasped, much like a dreamy schoolgirl. "I had first my sip of champagne while listening Diahann Carroll sang 'Quiet Nights.'" She sighed blissfully. "Have you ever heard Ella Fitzgerald sing? I said I wanted to be the next Nichelle Nichols. Did you ever see her face, hear her voice?"

"No," Xiaowei shrugged. "I don't know any of these people. I was...detained for much of the last thousand years."

"It's a pity," Angela replied softly, with a sad half-smile. "I wanted to be them so badly, and for a split second, I thought I could be. It was a dream which filled me such longing."

Xiaowei shifted uncomfortably. She was starting to remember things long buried, like the smell of flowers after centuries of smelling nothing. She felt a deep stirring of emotion and wasn't sure what it would make her do.

"I still don't see how I can turn Amber into a success. You ghosts keep going on and on about rules, well I have rules too! This body of mine has magic which enchant almost any mortal. To give her that magic, I'd have to trade places, or skins at least!"

Angela laughed, and despite her sweet face and gentle demeanor, there was something hollow and eerie about the way she laughed. She fixed Xiaowei with a sly look, coyly murmuring, "Really? You're telling me the great Xiaowei who's broken from the Hanbing Diyu twice and lived thousands of years can't cast a simple illusion? Am I to believe that an experienced and devious laohu can be so toothless?"

Before Xiaowei could tell her to tone down the sarcasm, an irritable Amber swept in like a monsoon, with a terrible look on her face. She barely acknowledged Angela's presence.

"I didn't get the part!" she snapped angrily.

"How do you know?" Xiaowei asked, eyes darting back and forth between the ghost and her roommate, curious to see if and how they'd interact.

"They gave me the whole, 'Thanks for coming in speech'," Amber scowled. She quickly switched from angry to petulant. "Xiaowei, you 're a gumiho. Isn't there something you can do for me?"

Next ~ Circling

Sorry for the delays but..."Hunter" is here!!!

2013-04-09T07:01:00.002-07:00

While journeying through the Kingdom of Oon Sati, Selo and Inya are invited to join the bounty hunter Vathi tracking a prince with a generous price on his head. As Selo learns about the laws of mixed society, the quest brings her face to face with the woman who almost killed her...and a thing or two she didn't know about Inya.

New Faces

Vathi ("vah-tee"): A fun-loving bounty hunter from the Queendom of Soneti, Vathi typically works alone. She's an old friend and sparring partner of Selo's.

Mimi: Vathi's prized black stallion whose name means "friend friend" or "best friend".

Queen Bathia V: The Queen of Soneti. She's the one who hired Vathi.

Kimmeka ("kim-mek-kah"): The royal astrologer who serves Matawai. Her name means "full moon." She recently took over for a much older astrologer, and Matawai still doubts her ability. In Antwari, her kind are traditionally referred to as "Bone Singers."

Mero ("meh-ro"): The man Vathi's tracking. He's specifically been requested to be brought back alive.

Onnoka ("oh-noh-kah"): Briefly introduced, she's a female spy who serves Matawai. Her name means "faceless moon."

Places of Interest

Kuwari ("koo-wah-ree"): The Amalian kingdom is mentioned for a second time here; it lies beyond the northern Antwari border. Like Antwari, it is mountainous; unlike Antwari it is very fertile.

Fun Facts

1) The women on the covers are deliberately ambiguous. Artist Jules Nguyễn's intent is to let the viewer's imagination sort of roam. So if you like, then the woman on this cover can be the bounty hunter... or not.

2) The women of Soneti look somewhat like dark-skinned Southeast Asian women. Thai women in particular come to mind.

3) In this volume, we learn the meaning of Selo and Inya's names.

4) We also learning the meaning of the Selo & Inya "glyph".

Hunter is now available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Amber ~ Unspoken Agreements

2013-04-07T15:22:00.000-07:00

Previously ~ Our Girl

"I can't believe she wouldn't let us go with her to meet the lawyer from Wolfram & Hart," Perri snapped, taking a seat at her desk at The Beacon. "Now we've got to sit here and wait for them to hash things out."

Kolchak looked uneasy. "Considering whom she's dealing with, I would say it's best if we left them alone. Jules specializes in this, remember?"

Perri snorted. "You're really sweet on the good detective, aren't you? Respecting her boundaries, obeying her rules...God, Kolchak. You must have one hell of a crush on this woman."

"Don't be ridiculous," he said softly, and something about his tone sobered her up. It didn't take her long to realize what is was.

He was doing it again. Sitting on her desk and looking at her like that. It didn't help that they were back in the office after hours. In the dark.

Don't you ever use chairs?!? she wanted to ask.

"We'll just sit tight and wait for her to call," Kolchak suggested. "In the meantime...how have you been?"

"Really?" Perri blinked. "Seriously? We're doing this?"

***

"What's wrong with this?" he asked shrugging. "We never get to do this."

"Kolchak, I see you every day. We have coffee, we research stories --"

"But we don't get to talk," he insisted. "I feel like we need to talk."

"Fine, we'll talk: Kolchak, there's no such thing as demons." She need to switch to something safer, more professional.

"Not about demons," he shook his head. "About normal stuff. I worry about you."

Perri's eyes widened. "You? Worry about me?"

"You look tired," he nodded, looking concerned. "And I'm beginning to think it's my fault."

"I'm...I'm okay," she assured him. "I'll admit I miss the run of the mill serial killers, murder-suicides, and embezzlement cases. But I'm good. I like what we have going here," she admitted cautiously. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."

He smiled warmly and nodded. "Right there with you."

Are you? she wanted to ask. Because I'm not sure we're even talking about the same thing.

***

Jules

"You're screwing me, Mac."

"I think I'd remember doing that, Jules," came to the smirking reply. "And how did you get in here anyway?"

"Not a vamp; I don't set off alarms, remember?" Jules snapped, as she followed the lawyer down the seemingly labyrinthine corridors of the new Wolfram & Hart LA branch. "Not to mention I'm a hell of a lot more human than you, you selfish, soulless, bloodless reptile!"

Mac smirked again. "I love it when you talk dirty, Jules."

"Cut the bullshit, Mac! You knew there was a laohu in town, and you didn't call! Per the agreement you should've picked up your cell when the first corpse dropped."

"Per the agreement," Mac raised an eyebrow, "corpses shouldn't be dropping in the first place, as I recall. Face it; your clan has lost its touch. The Xia just don't use their instincts like they used to."

"Damn straight," Jules spat. "If we did, we would've never crawled into bed with the likes of you!"

Dominique Jennings as
"Mac"

"There you go again with the sweet nothings," Mac snickered. "Oh, get over yourself, will ya? Do you know how many species of heart-ripping demons Wolfram & Hart has catalogued in this dimension alone? No one expected it to be something so mundane, so prosaic, so woefully antiquated as a fox demon, Jules."

"I don't know if you've been brushing up on your Chinese lately, but a laohu is a particularly dangerous and ancient fox demon."

"Who tempts mortals and rips out hearts," Mac snorted. "Ooh...scary. Calm down, will ya? We're keeping track of them too. In fact, the last laohu to flag our systems was put on ice for, oh...a few minutes shy of eternity? True, she broke out some years back, but after skimming the writings of Corbius, I seriously doubt she's a major threat to us. What was her name again? Xian? Xia..Xia --"

Jules stopped walking. "Xiaowei."

"That's the one." Mac stopped walking and turned around to face her. "Look, I'm late for a meeting with the Brotherhood of the Fell. If it will make you happy, I will have one of our shamans send you some leads to help you find your furry little friend. Are we Even Stevens now?"

Next ~ The Taste

A/N ~ "Mac" was an actual Wolfram & Hart lawyer on Angel. I've always thought that if I could just find the actress who played her, I could write fanfics about the woman. And today I finally did! It's Dominique Jennings!

Amber ~ Our Girl

2013-04-06T21:30:00.001-07:00

Previously ~ Connecting the Dots

Xiaowei

A couple of days before Amber's audition, Xiaowei noticed she hadn't left the apartment since she'd first moved in. She hadn't been hungry, she hadn't gone searching for hearts, and the ice hadn't come for her. She actually tried getting up and walking towards the front door, but her footsteps got heavier and heavier, and there was a blast of cool blocking her way. It was a different cold from the Hanbing Diyu; it was thinner, more airy, and it moved with a purpose of its own.

I'm trapped.

Up until now, it had only been a theory, one she hadn't wanted to entertain. But like it or not, she had somehow become entangled in a sort of spiritual web, and she wasn't sure how to get out.

Her magic was also beginning to work on its own, without her permission. Things appeared from nowhere without her consent, and as usual, Amber Hollis didn't question. And why would she, when all the things which appeared were something Amber wanted?

Amber

Fans. Scarves. Satin bath robes. A large porcelain bathtub sitting on golden lion's feet. Amber loved nothing more than a long, hot soak, pampering her skin and hair with floral oils while she made Xiaowei sing to her. She never got tired of Xiaowei's song, and after a few performances, would even sing it along with her.

No questions. No comments. Not even once.

The first time one of the ghosts materialized in the apartment, Amber didn't so much as blink. The ghost was clearly some long dead actress; she lounged on Amber's prized blue chaise, fanning herself slowly with Amber's white feather fan and staring into space. She didn't tarry for long, only a few moments. And then just as randomly as she appeared, she disappeared, leaving cold breath in her wake.

***

***

The first time Xiaowei came across one of the ghosts, however, she was deeply alarmed.

The ghost was sitting on the platform bed she shared with Amber (and how come Amber had no problem sleeping next to a complete stranger?), looking into the mirrors and retouching her lipstick. She did not acknowledge Xiaowei's presence, and when she was done getting pretty, she vanished.

Xiaowei realized her power over illusion was clearly getting out of control; the spirits were being pulled back into their reality. They didn't speak. They just lounged on the chaise, preened in front of the mirrors, fingered Xiaowei's precious silks, or longingly gazed out the window at the streets down below. They never stuck around for more than a few minutes.

But she knew this was only the beginning. She knew it was merely a prelude to --

"She's not gonna get the part."

Mena Suvari as
The Blonde Ghost

Xiaowei whirled away from the stove, to see a blonde woman dressed in clothes from another age. She gawked, speechless, frozen in shock as realization dawned upon her.

Behind her, the kettle shrieked, but she couldn't hear it.

"You should see to that," the ghost snickered, speaking with a distinct drawl. Xiaowei turned to silence the kettle, before turning back to the ghost.

"You shouldn't be here," she began, even as her voice threatened to stick in her throat.

The ghost laughed. "That's what they used to me all the time," she mused. "I first came here back in '53. Didn't know my left foot from my right. Everybody I met told me the same thing: that I shouldn't here. Course, I told them the same thing I'm about to tell you, Xiaowei. I am here. And we need to talk 'cause we've got a bit of a situation."

"You think?" the Fox Demon snapped. "What the hell is going on?"

"Our girl is a sweet little thang, ain't she?" the Blonde Ghost mused. "She's a dear heart. 'Minds me of myself in some ways. 'Specially the part where's she's about to go to that audition, and she's not going to get the part. She's not going to get the part 'cause she ain't no damn 'It Girl.' So she's gonna come back here, sit on that damned chaise, sip tea, and fan herself, and come next audition, we're all gonna lather, rinse, and repeat."

Xiaowei shuddered. "You're not supposed to be here. I'm not supposed to be here. How do we get out of here?"

"We don't, sweetheart," the Blonde Ghost chuckled. "This is Hollywood. Even if your body's lucky enough to leave in tact, your spirit's stuck here forever. And since you're already a spirit, I think you know what that means."

"I'm a demon, though!" Xiaowei protested.

"Oh, yes," the Blonde Ghost grinned, deeply amused. "The demon who comes to offer the actress a 'deal'. Immortality, fame, and fortune, all for the price of her tender little soul. Awwww," the Blonde Ghost beamed. "I know you think you're special 'cause you're a whatchamacallit - a huli jing? But I like said, this is Hollywood, darlin'. You ain't the first to come around here wheelin' and dealin', peddling those promises. You're just the first predator dumb enough to actually move in with the prey."

Xiaowei was getting so impatient now that she was no longer freaked out by the spirit's presence.

"Exactly how does this help me?"

The Blonde Ghost, however, remained amused. "You know, for someone so old you're actually really young, Xiaowei. You want to know the real connection between you and our girl? You are our girl. Hell, you're us. You are no different from every starry-eyed young'un whoever came to this town and thought she'd be the next Miss Rich and Famous."

"I'm still not seeing how this is supposed to help."

"Get her the part," the ghost raised an eyebrow. "She's not just your second chance, sweet thang; she's ours too. We need her just as much as you. And Xiaowei? Don't bother with that whole skin-swappin' thang you do. As you might have noticed, the rules have changed a bit since you stepped through that front door, and the old tactics just won't work here."

Amber ~ Connecting the Dots

2013-04-06T19:34:00.003-07:00

Previously ~ Woe of the Willows

Perri

"Here's what we know so far," Perri said, hanging up her phone and showing a list to Kolchak. "All eight victims were male, and held various positions in buildings owned by Wolfram & Hart. However...they were not crucial members of whichever business they worked at. These were part-time jobs. Their actual career - if you can call it a 'career' - was acting."

"But even though they worked part-time only, they were getting paid more than you and I put together," Kolchak raised an eyebrow.

"True," Perri nodded with a chuckle, "but that was due to their image. They were all very good-looking, and whatever acting gigs they got, it brought their respective businesses some positive publicity."

"It also put them in the public eye," Kolchak pointed out.

"Unfortunately," Perri sighed. "Now, according to the coroner's reports which you...'found'...the hearts were definitely ripped out. There were microscopic nail fragments found embedded in the chests, but the DNA doesn't have a match. Of course, the DNA also reports that whoever did this is, well...pretty old. So old, in fact, that it's got the medical examiner scratching his head."

Kolchak's brow furrowed. "How old?"

"Like...thousands of years of old."

Kolchak slowly slid off her desk (Damn! Did the man never use chairs?). "Beautiful woman," he recapped, "ripping out hearts, and apparently thousands of years old."

"Yes," Perri nodded. "Ring any bells for you?"

Kolchak visibly paled. "Unfortunately it does."

***

***

This time, Kolchak drove, because Perri had absolutely no clue where they were going.

"Her name's Julianna Xia," he explained. "Except I advise you never call her that; she goes by Jules. I met her about a year back; she's a detective. I went sniffing around one of her crime scenes which, by the way, I also advise you never do. Jules takes her job pretty seriously."

"Okay...." Perri blinked. "And we're meeting her...why?"

"She knows what did this. In fact, she sort of specializes in what did this."

"Kolchak --"

"It's better if she explains this, Perri; trust me," Kolchak insisted, as he drove 20 miles over the speed limit towards Southeast Hollywood.

Today apparently seemed to be the day for dive bars, except unlike the others, this one was ~~infested with~~ frequented by cops. Kolchak had a quick word with the bartender who pointed him towards the pool tables.

Jules Xia

She was a beautiful woman, actually; she had sun-kissed skin and a sunny smile...for a cop. She was circling the pool table with a double shot of brandy, chuckling and shaking her head.

"You're not going to make this one, Jerry," she was telling her fellow officer. "Luke's taking your money for sure."

"Not tonight!" came the defiant reply.

"Jules," Kolchak called. "A word?"

Her black hair practically whipped at the sound of his voice. She flashed him an inscrutable look before going back to the pool game.

"I thought I told you to keep maximum safe distance, Carl Kolchak," she said loudly. "And I thought I made it clear that arrangement was non-negotiable."

"Well, yes," Kolchak haltingly assured her, and it was very amusing for Perri to watch because he was clearly apprehensive of this woman. "But I've got this case I'm working on - not one of yours," he added hastily, when her head snapped towards him and her eyes flashed venom.

"Beat it, Kolchak," Jules turned back to the game. "And if I ever see you in here again --"

"Detective Xia," he pressed insistently, "I think the perpetrator in our case is a laohu."

"A la-what?" Perri blinked.

Jules seemed to freeze; an eternity passed before she raised her head and looked at them. She knocked back her shot and set down the glass. When she spoke, her voice came out grim and rough.

"Let's take a walk," she said lowly, and led them out to the parking lot. They followed her out, trying to keep up with her incredibly quick stride.

"Could someone tell me what's going on?" Perri demanded. "What is a...whatever Kolchak just said?"

"A laohu," Jules repeated. "An 'old fox' - a very old fox."

Perri was bewildered. "You people are saying a fox ripped these people's hearts out?"

At the word "ripped", Jules stopped walking, eyes painfully closed. Her whole body stiffened, as though she were fighting some deep, dark pain from within.

"It's not an actual fox," Kolchak explained. "More like a fox spirit, fox demon. It takes the form of beautiful women and to maintain its human appearance, it consumes the hearts of mortals."

"My family has been hunting them for thousands of years," Jules said finally. "But we haven't come up against a laohu for at least sixty generations. I was afraid this would happen. Ever since those reports all the way back in Houston --"

"Not that I'm buying this 'demon' angle," Perri interjected, "but...you knew? You knew this was going on this whole time?"

Jules turned to her. "What is your name?" she asked suddenly.

"Perri. Perri Reed."

"Well, Perri, this has been going on since the dawn of human civilization. Where is the creature now?"

"West Hollywood," Kolchak replied with eagerness of a teacher's pet. "She's picking off aspiring actors with connections."

"Why hasn't this been in the news?" Jules demanded.

"Wolfram and Hart," Perri frowned. "The people who died were either they're employees or clients."

"Damn it!" Jules rasped. "Those fucking bastards! This is in direct violation of our agreement!"

Both Kolchak and Perri were rendered speechless. Eventually, Kolchak was able to muster a question. "You have...an agreement with those people?"

Jules nodded furiously. "One which seriously needs to be revisited." She headed for car, barking over her shoulder, "Come!"