Lieutenant Varien paced across the floor for what must have been the hundredth time. A trickle of cold sweat ran down his neck. He glanced nervously at the door to the Captains ready-room. He had been waiting for fifteen minutes and the captain still hadn't opened the door. He struggled to control the feeling of apprehension that was growing within him. This whole mess had been an accident, but unfortunately, bad luck was not an acceptable excuse.

He reached a point about ten feet from the door and pivoted to pace back in the other direction. Back and forth. He counted twenty steps forward, than turned and took twenty steps back. Turn, twenty steps, turn, twenty steps. Over and over, he clenched his hands into fists. His stomach was cramping with agitation.

He leaned his shoulder against the wall and focused on his body. Healing energies smoothed away the pain and restored some measure of calm.

Another minute passed before the doors to the ready-room opened. He swallowed loudly and entered.

Captain Blackfire sat at her desk. Her eyes were hard, but seemed to dance with cruel amusement.

Varien stuttered out a few words. "I- uh- Captain-"

Blackfire silenced him with a gesture. "It seems that you have run into some difficulties Lieutenant."

Varien nodded, "Yes Captain, I-"

"I know what happened", interrupted Blackfire. "Your actions resulted in the death of Ensign Adams. Killing another crew member is punishable by death."

Varien had to use magic to stop his trembling. "I hope that some other end can be accomplished Captain. The situation was-"

The Captain cut him off once again. "The situation was indeed odd. Never the less, you killed him in front of myself, Ensign Dreamsong, Lieutenant-Commander Brightsting, Lieutenant Strikes-Like-The-Hawk, and that poor slave you were treating."

Varien winced inwardly. He had been given the "special" assignment of being personal healer for the Captain. Not "to" the Captain, "for" the Captain. Hardly a day went by without some task or another that left him feeling drained or depressed. He hated having to heal the Captain's slaves. He hated the whole idea of slavery in the first place.

Blackfire made a dismissive gesture. "Go to your quarters, continue your duties as normal. We will discuss this in more detail tomorrow."

Sighing with relief that this would not be the decisive meeting, Varien saluted and left the room.

Blackfire remained siting at her desk after the Lieutenant had left. Three figures stepped out of a concealed alcove in the bulkheads. Ensign Dreamsong, Lieutenant-Commander Brightsting, and Lieutenant Strikes-Like-The-Hawk.

Blackfire turned to her fellow conspirators. "He¹s a naive little cub isn't he?", she asked.

Brightsting nodded once. "He suspects nothing."

Dreamsong frowned. "What if he accidentally discovers that you set this up?"

Blackfire laughed. "Why I'll tell him it was a test of his abilities, maybe hint at a promotion. He will never find out that we are behind his misfortune, and if he does, that's only a fraction of our plans."

Strikes-Like-The-Hawk cocked her head a little to the side, in a gesture of curiosity. "You mean your mind-games, right? All that scurrying about to treat the slaves?"

The Captain smiled. "Yes, our dear Lieutenant seems a little unhappy with his position. Until I know his loyalty is strong, it will be a rather unpleasant time for him. I don't think he's rebellious yet, but if the distaste that I suspect he has for me grows to anything more... Let us say his useful abilities will not be sufficient compensation to keep him alive."

In space most people are woken by gentle alarms, which play music or simulate chimes and other soothing sounds. This was not so for Lieutenant Varien. Recently bestowed the dubiously honourable title of "Captain's Veterinarian", he was responsible for the health of Blackfire's human "pets"

This particular morning (if you can call 0400 standard Terran time morning) he was awakened by a fierce mental summons from his Captain. This came at the worst possible time. Already his nerves were worn raw by the incident with Ensign Adams several days ago.

Varien had been summoned to treat one of Blackfire's toys that day. He arrived in haste, eager to be done with the distressing work ahead. Talon was absent that day as well, and Varien felt particularly vulnerable without his soulbrother.

The Captain's quarters were dimly lit, shadows flickering over the body that lay sprawled at the foot of Blackfire's bed. Blood from the vicious whip cuts that crisscrossed her body seeped onto the floor. It made Varien tremble to realise that the Captain probably was more upset about the stain then the slave.

Rage carefully pent up inside of Varien began to work loose. The wolf held so long in check was fighting to be free, to sink its teeth into the throat of the one who hurts the innocent and undefended.

But the Captain had not been the one to hold the whip...

Not daring to look into the Captains eyes, fearing he would go for his phaser if he did so, Varien knelt before the huddled form and noticed suddenly that the room held many people other then the Captain. Blackfire's slave handler was there, as well as the Captain's woman Dreamsong, and Lieutenant-Commander Brightsting.

The first two were expected, but he had not thought his chief would be here. Even now

Brightsting stood at Blackfire's side, watching impassively as the girl squirmed with pain. How can he?, thought Varien. How far had the Wolfriders fallen with the passage of time, that his chief now served this women of evils hand and foot! Surely this abuse of the helpless was against the way. No wolf would cause pain and suffering for pleasures sake.

But his mind reminded him, she doesn't harm the slaves...

Strikes-Like-The-Hawk! The thought hit him suddenly. He looked up into the face of the slave handler, and nearly fell back by what he saw there. While Blackfire's face was cool, calm, a study in composure, Strikes-Like-The-Hawk's face was contorted with vile delight. Suddenly he realised his mistake, it was this! This vile creature was the one who bore the whip...but it must have been at the Captains orders.

Then a new face caught his eye, a man who stood in the shadows, his features nondescript - a man you would never quite be able to remember...

Varien ignored the new man and placed his hands lightly on the girl's back. The emotions that seeped from the wounds made him want to retch, Strikes-Like-The-Hawk had laughed long and loud as these were made, that was certain. Gathering his energy, Varien willed the wounds to close, and slowly the skin began to crawl over the rents in her flesh.

A glint of light suddenly shining on his eyes made him glance about to find its source. The man in the shadows had drawn a blade of some type of alloy, and was preparing to strike at Blackfire's unprotected back!

Tearing himself out of the healing trance, Varien whipped out his phaser and fired in one fluid motion. The man tumbled to the ground, a smoking hole in the place of his chest.

Drastically untrue to form, Blackfire appeared greatly upset.

"What have you done? This is murder!"

Varien said nothing, only stared at the hand which held the blade aimed for Blackfire, the hand which was now empty...

Varien shuddered at the memory. He had gone through a fake trial and subsequent interrogation following that event. It was not until he had been reduced to his current state of being that Blackfire revealed, in a voice which dripped honey, that "...he had passed his tests of loyalty with flying colours and that the Ensign slain by his hand was a hologram constructed for just such a test."

Now, weakened in body and mind, Varien stumbled alone through the halls of the Ghidorah, moving towards the Captains room, and yet another scene of pain and perversity.