9/10ths Of The Law
| Star Traks: Waystation | |
| Episode name | 9/10ths Of The Law |
|---|---|
| Season | Stardate 55--- |
| Episode number | 2 |
| Writer(s) | Alan Decker |
| Year | 2378 |
| Stardate | Unknown |
| Chronology | |
| Previous in series | Hail To The Chief |
| Next in series | That Certain Someone |
| Previous in timeline | Hail To The Chief [WAY] |
| Next in timeline | The Weakest Link [VEX] |
Lieutenant Commander Sean Russell's vacation is cut short as he finds himself embroiled in an unwelcome mystery. Meanwhile, Dr. Amedon Nelson receives some even more unwelcome guests.
Summary
Lieutenant Commander Sean Russell is on leave visiting his cousin, Olivia Russell, on Halydol, a planet that bears the distinction of being one of the few places in the galaxy visited by five different versions of the Starship Enterprise. Olivia is something of a nomad. She travels around the Federation. When she likes a place, she sticks around and see what work she can get. When she gets tired of it, she moves on. She shows Russell around then takes him to her favorite establishment, where she buys him a nice big drink. Back on Waystation, Dr. Amelia Nelson receives word that representatives from Bracktia Prime are coming, and they are coming for Midon.
The next morning, Russell is rudely awakened by the Halydol Constabulary, who have come to Olivia's place to question her about a theft from the planet's museum. Someone stole their authentic Captain James Tiberius Kirk ripped uniform tunic. Olivia was spotted at the exhibit on five separate occasions and she has a robbery charge in her past on another world, so she is considered a suspect. Of course, the surveillance equipment in the museum was jammed during the robbery. Since Russell was with Olivia the night before, she has an alibi, and the police leave. Russell asks Olivia about the other robbery charge, which she says was a misunderstanding with a previous employer on Alpha Centauri. Not willing to see his cousin falsely accused, Russell decides to open his own investigation.
The Bracktians arrive on Waystation and demand Midon. Captain Lisa Beck stalls for time, inviting the Bracktians to a conference in Ops, while she sends security to make sure that no one gets near Midon.
Russell heads to the museum and meets up with Inspector Rebecca Chambers. Chambers is not thrilled to have Russell in her crime scene at first, but admits that she could use Starfleet's help. Russell scans the area with his tricorder and can't find a single trace of evidence, not a hair or transporter trace or anything. Stymied, he asks Chambers to lunch. She quickly invites him back to her place.
The Bracktians tell Beck and Dr. Nelson that the symbionts are no longer threatened on Bracktia Prime. Joining is no longer an option, though. Those Bracktians who want to join are given psychiatric counseling, and Bracktians who are already joined must register with the government and are not allowed to hold certain positions. When the hosts die, the symbionts are returned to their pools never to join again. Midon will be taken to the pools as well. Beck has little option but to hand Midon over until Nelson announces that Midon has been in the Federation for five years and is therefore eligible for citizenship. Beck has to research this and calls for the meeting to resume in three hours.
Russell and Inspector Chambers search the apartment of Morris Quinn, an obsessive collector of Enterprise artifacts. He place is clean (of evidence. Otherwise, it's filthy), but Chambers says something as they are leaving that gets Russell's mind working. He excuses himself and walks back to Olivia's apartment.
Beck cannot keep Midon on the station, so Dr. Nelson goes to see the symbiont. As she touches Midon, they share telepathic contact, and she knows what she has to do. She summons Porter to the Infirmary (angering Joan Redding in the process) and tells him that she needs him to reimplant Midon inside her. With the Bracktians and Beck on their way to the Infirmary, Porter beams himself, Nelson, and Midon out of there to find a safe place to perform the surgery. Needing a mobile position so that transporters could not lock onto them as easily, Porter takes Nelson and Midon into a turbolift and sets to work implanting the symbiont. When he is done, he and the newly rejoined Amedon Nelson go to Ops to face the Bracktians, who are furious. With Midon now secure inside Nelson, Beck is more than happy to kick the Bracktians off of her station.
Russell goes back to Olivia's apartment and informs her that he's solved the case. It was her all along. She got him drunk enough to pass out, took him back to her apartment, then slipped out to the museum, using a clean suit that she has from her job to make sure that she didn't leave behind any evidence. In her bedroom, Russell finds that Olivia has been packing to leave. Faced with this, Olivia admits the truth. She works for a buyer with a taste for antiquities, moving from place to place to steal items that her buyer wants. She felt her cousin, Sean, who she always considered to be an incompetent idiot, would be the perfect alibi for her crime on Halydol. She expected to to fail completely or pin the theft on someone else. Russell tells her that he's been a Chief of Security for five years now and he knows his job. Olivia contacts her escape ship, the Ozymandias, but before she can beam out, Russell jumps after the Kirk uniform tunic. The shirt rips in half, and Olivia beams away with her section. She's gone, but Russell has two weeks of leave remaining, use of Olivia's apartment, and Inspector Rebecca Chambers to keep him company.
Featuring
- Captain Lisa Beck
- Commander Walter Morales
- Lieutenant Commander Craig Porter
- Lieutenant Commander Sean Russell
- Dr. Amedon Nelson
- Yeoman Tina Jones
Also Featuring
Author's Comments
Inspectors Rebecca Chambers and Malone both have "Cheers" to thank for their names. There's no particular reason I used names from "Cheers." It was just something to do.
Morris Quinn works for Maracaan Industries, which provided the USS Secondprize with faulty sensor software in the "Thanks For Your Support" story in The Star Traks Reunion Special.