Christine awoke with an intense pain in her mouth. She looked around the empty room. She could not see anything but the concrete walls of a cell. She suddenly realized that she was chained to the ground with a large chain that passed through a ring that passed through her tongue.
The voice suddenly boomed into the room, "You have made your living of the despair of others. You have used your tongue to disparage the careers of great men including Admiral Bruce Montgomery, Cleveland Powers and the Phoenix Colony senior staff from Chancellor Nicole Branson to Commodore Vincent Viceroy and even as high as Governor D'Solos Vreenak and Phoenix Federation President William Hunt. You have used your tongue to cause pain for these people and now your tongue shall experience that same pain."
Christine struggled but the chain passed right through her tongue. There was no escape.
"For you, dear representative of the Omega News Network, your escape is simple. A large knife has been provided for you. You can walk out that door if you cut off your tongue to allow the chain to fall to the floor.", the voice boomed into the room.
"Just as those whom you cover are left drowning in their own despair, you too will be left drowning in despair. Failure to complete your escape and you will be left to drowned.", the voice boomed as the water began to flood into the room.
Christine struggled. Christine started to cry. She thought about ONN coverage. She thought about the Klingons. She thought about her Romulan heritage. She thought about her Vulcan heritage.
Christine picked up the knife. She thought about the coverage she had given Nicole Branson while she recouperated from losing a leg in the birth of Magenta Coren-Branson. She thought about the coverage she had recently given Tania Branson as she lost both legs and one arm to the failed living ship experiment. Now she was about to have an amputee. She was about to have to cut off her tongue.
Christine tried to cut her tongue. The water was already up to her knees. She was terrified. She could not do it. Her tongue was her life. Her hands were shaking. She tried to get it into her brain that she would be able to take medication that would help her tongue to rejuvenate. This was 2391. She would regain the use of her tongue and her voice. She tried again to cut. She could not do it.
The water had reached her waist. She did not have much time left. Christine was wailing like a little girl. She could not remember the last time she cried. She did not cry. She was too strong for that. It was illogical and violation of her Vulcan heritage. She did not cry.
Today, she cried. Christine felt the water touch the bottom of her breasts. She looked around the room, "Somewhere, someday, my Rover is gonna find you Klingon bastards. Someday you will pay for this."
Christine took a huge breath. She sliced off her tongue. Her screams were suddenly muffled. She rushed for the door and opened it. The water rushed into the hall. She was in the ONN building. Her own building. She fell to her knees and cried out.
The Klingons had sent a powerful and dark message. Christine lay on the floor still struggling.
Uhlan S'Lynna came in with a group of cameras and covered the scene including the fact that Christine T'Nley was now without a voice. S'Lynna proudly proclaimed herself the Voice of the Omega News Network; the voice of ONN.
Christine tried to shout out but her voice was nothing more than a muffled mmmmm....
S'Lynna stepped over her to cover the days activities on the Network.
Posted by:
Christine T'Nley
Omega News Network
Phoenix Colony
Phoenix Federation
Inspired by the amazing recent post by
Nicole Branson
Chancellor - Omega Academy
Phoenix Colony
Phoenix Federation
