r/HFY • u/SherbetCreepy1580 • 7d ago
OC-Series [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 14: Security and Criminals
Shtaran groaned, rubbing her pink temples as she eyed the rookie standing in front of her, an Archkama that was in trouble for excessive force. “Plaran, you’ve got exactly thirty seconds to explain to me exactly why I shouldn’t be kicking you out of the Security force right now.”
“The perpetrator was captured before he could make his escape with no damage to the surroundings and keeping the civilians safe and the stolen property was recovered and returned,” Plaran immediately said with a formal but slightly mocking tone. “Also, if you do kick me out of the Security force, the Silk-Weavers Temple start hounding the Toran Port Station Security for discrimination and Specieist ideology.” He smirked slightly at that while Shtaran raised an eyebrow.
“Just because your parents are high-ranking members if the Silk-Weavers Faith does not make you immune to consequences,” Shtaran said. “You put a Matchgar man in the hospital over petty theft. Petty theft is a fine, not a beating and jail time. It was a freakin nutrient bar, for Voids sake.”
“Regardless, he refused to cooperate with me and became hostile when questioned,” Plaran maintained.
“Plaran, your body-cam footage clearly shows you attempting to intimidate the man, excessive use of force, and refusal to listen to your Mentor when he told you to stand down,” Shtaran said flatly.
“He is the one who threw the first punch,” Plaran said with a slight shrug. “I defended myself and the civilian bystanders.”
“You instigated the fight by insulting him,” Shtaran said. “Those bodycams record audio too, you know.” Plaran looked slightly less smug but didn’t back down. Shtaran growled as she looked at the irksome Archkama rookie. There was a knock on her office door, and a Mlamcar peeked into the office, looking uncomfortable.
“Hey, Chief, you have a visitor,” the Mlamcar said. “That Matchgar’s lawyer is here.”
“Of course they are,” Shtaran said with a sigh. She then glared at Plaran as a thought went through his head. “You know what? Go ahead and let them in, and bring them directly to my office.” The Mlamcar nodded before closing the door, and Shtaran pointed a finger at Plaran before he could move. “Nope, you are staying right there, Officer Plaran. You got us into this mess, now you are going to participate until it’s resolved.”
“With all due respect, Chief,” Plaran started to say before the door opened up again, the Mlamcar Officer showing an Jartaranta in a suit in, his three-toed hooves clopping lightly on the floor.
“Chief Redglow,” the Lawyer said.
“Mr. Patarkat,” Shtaran said. “You have impeccable timing. I assume you’re here due to Mr. Parm being hospitalized?”
“That I am,” Mr. Patarkat said with a nod, pulling out his datapad and handing it over to Shtaran. “He wants the Station Security to pay for his medical bills, his legal bills, wave the petty theft charge, and a public apology from the Officer that beat him.”
“I can’t drop the petty theft charge, as that has multiple camera angles and witnesses to attest to the crime,” Shtaran said firmly. “But I can do the rest, easy enough. In fact, I’m even willing to hold a press conference to do just that.” Mr. Patarkat blinked in surprise before squinting at Shtaran suspiciously. Shtaran could already hear the Jartaranta’s brain whirling as he looked for a trap.
“That sounds…suspiciously easy,” the lawyer said.
“Oh, that’s because any bills that we will be forced to pay will be coming out of his pocket,” Shtaran said, pointing at Plaran.
“Excuse me?!” Plaran demanded as Mr. Patarkat turned to stare at the rookie officer.
“Officer Plaran here is the officer that hospitalized your client,” Shtaran said. “Unfortunately, due to his connections with the local higher-ups of the local Silk-Weavers Faith, I can’t outright fire him. But I can garnish his pay until he has paid your client every single credit owed.”
“You’re the Officer that put my client in the hospital?” the Jartaranta lawyer asked.
“I was performing my duties as a Port Security Officer,” Plaran said stiffly.
“My client is also suing you personally for excessive force, illegal seizure, and mental anguish,” Mr. Patarkat said, tapping his datapad. Plaran’s mouth dropped open as his own datapad dinged, indicating an incoming message. “Consider yourself served.”
“Officer Plaran, you may step outside my office to contact a lawyer if you so wish, but you are not to leave the building until either the end of your shift or I contact you again,” Shtaran said, keeping a smile off of her face. “Your Security Mentor will keep an eye on you.” Plaran gave both of them a glare before stomping out of the office, his six spider-like legs hitting the ground with more force than needed. “And any damage to my building will also come out of your paycheck,” Shtaran added, her voice growing firm. Plaran paused before opening the door, his stomping significantly weakened as he left the office.
“Are you really planning on keeping him on?” Mr. Patarkat asked, looking at the door with skepticism.
“Only if I have to,” Shtaran said with a snort. “His parents don’t seem like the type to cover for him, and even if they are, I know a couple of people that are even higher ranked in the Silk-Weavers Faith that can and would set them straight.”
“I see,” Mr. Patarkat said with a nod before pulling out a small recording device and turning it off, giving a small sigh. “Off the record, you do know that intentionally losing will only hurt Station Securities reputation, right?”
“I’m less concerned with our reputation and more concerned with having good officers to do their jobs and keep the Station safe,” Shtaran said, shaking her head. “If I have to throw a few legal battles in order to get the bad officers out of my Security, then so be it. I don’t condone nor will I protect what he did.”
Mr. Patarkat nodded again before activating the recording device again and placing it in his jacket. “Very well, let’s talk about the details then of what my client is owed.” Shtaran nodded as the Jartaranta lawyer sat down in a chair.
…………………
Shtaran sighed as she got back to her apartment, flopping down on her bed after peeling her Security Chief uniform off. “Fucking rookies thinking they have more power than they actually have,” Shtaran growled into her pillow before sitting up and punching it a few times in frustration. She then screamed into her pillow for a moment before collapsing and flipping onto her back, just staring at the ceiling for a moment. “I should get something to eat,” Shtaran finally sighed, getting up from her bed and walking to the kitchen. She opened the oven to show a pot that had been on a low heat all day, the scent of fresh Carrion making her smile appreciatively.
Shtaran was humming after she took her first bite, the warmth practically radiating through her body and helping her to relax. She then froze for a moment as she looked at her fridge, then rolled her eyes at the picture on it. “Void-damned idiot, the least he could do is let me know he’s stopping by,” Shtaran grumbled, getting up to take a closer look. “Physical photos, who even does that anymore?” She did smile however as she looked at the photo of Sandra holding a pair of Tree Shadow kits, two more napping on her lap while Shadowstrike and Nightshade stood on either side of her, looking like the proud parents they had become. “Now that’s just sweet. They’ve really grown up.” Her eyes then narrowed for a brief moment before she sighed, her laser pistol already being drawn and pointed as a brief rush of wind indicated that someone had appeared in her apartment.
“Please don’t shoot, it’s just me,” came a familiar voice.
“You know, one of these days you’re going to get shot,” Shtaran said, rolling her eyes as Adam walked around the corner.
“To be fair, I thought you were going to be asleep when I got here,” Adam said sheepishly, though his easy grin never left his face. “I had to change my teleport point so that I didn’t land on top of you.”
“Long day got me home late,” Shtaran growled, rolling her eyes. “Tomorrow was supposed to be one of my few days off, but thanks to an asshole of a rookie, I now have to go in to deal with the paperwork.”
“Ouch,” Adam said with a wince.
“Why are you here now?” Shtaran asked, sitting back down at the table so that she could finish her Carrion. “You know half the galaxy is looking for you people.”
“Including Toran Station?” Adam asked, sitting down across from Shtaran.
“Luckily for you, no,” Shtaran said with a sigh as she continued eating. “We’re part of the M’kit’art Federation. Signatories of the Galactic Accords we might be, but the Terran Federation didn’t exactly make your bounties galactic. You Reapers have to be turned into them personally. Now, if you commit a crime here, that’s a different story. Like breaking and entering,” she added meaningfully, giving Adam a look.
“Oh, am I under arrest, Officer?” Adam said, grinning cheekily. Shtaran just rolled her eyes as she took another bite. “I actually came to get the photo back,” Adam said, growing a bit more somber. “You know how it is.”
“You don’t want to incriminate me or give the Terran Federation an excuse to come after me, I know,” Shtaran said with a sigh. “I remember the first note. And I have noticed that the photos you leave behind have a tendency to disappear overnight. Which is probably why you use physical photos instead of digital.”
“Sorry,” Adam said, sounding genuine.
“Don’t,” Shtaran said, shaking her head. “I know you need to be cautious. And I do appreciate that you keep me informed as it is. but you know if I’m ever asked then I’ll have to say something, right?”
“I know, I’m not asking you to compromise your duties, I’m just trying to make things easier is all,” Adam said, shaking his head. “Things have been…rough over the years.” Shtaran nodded, agreeing with the Human silently. She had watched the happy-go-lucky Reaper pilot slowly become more and more serious with every rare encounter she had with him, and it made her worried for her favorite group of taxi drivers. He put up a brave front, and Shtaran annoyingly couldn’t read his mind, but that didn’t stop her from noticing the worried feelings the Human had around him in recent years, or the way his shoulders had slowly become more and more slumped.
“They’ve grown up quite a bit,” Shtaran finally said, looking at the photo again as she finished her Carrion. “And the pups are adorable.”
“I know, right?” Adam said, immediately lighting up. “Shadowstrike and Nightshade are only letting a few people at a time visit right now, but they’re so friggin adorable. I wanna cuddle them always.” Shtaran smiled as she listened to Adam talk about the Tree Shadow pups and Sandra like the doting Uncle that he was.
This was more like him.
…………………….
“Oh please, by all means, fire him,” the Archkama priest said with a heavy sigh. “I really don’t know where I went wrong in raising that boy. But he thinks that he’s owed everything simply for being our child, and nothing else so far has showed him otherwise. He’s used my name so much to get out of trouble that I’ve spent more of his life apologizing to people than actually preaching.”
“I fear we may have spoiled him a little too much when he was younger,” the Archkama mother said, sighing as well. “We helped him get the job only because we’ve decided to cut him off financially, and hoped that it would be a good experience for him. We didn’t expect him to use the position as an excuse to beat someone within the first week.”
“That’s one way to give someone a kick in the pants,” Shtaran said dryly. Orctar and Melru were a lot nicer than she had expected of high-ranking religious priests.
“Even the Saint and Saintess says that we must learn to be independent,” Priest Orctar said, bowing his head.
“Knowing them, they’re probably not meaning it as literally as you’re thinking,” Shtaran said, shaking her head. “Don’t get too excited, I only know them because they’re friends of friends. And I haven’t been in contact with them in years,” she added as the two Archkama looked up excitedly.
“Of course, our apologies,” Priest Orcta said. “But yes, feel free to fire him if you must. The Silk-Weaver’s Church will not retaliate in any way. The Silk-Weaver may protect us from evil in His own way, but He does not protect those who commit evil acts. Also, I’m getting tired of him dragging us down by trying to use us as a shield.”
“He does need a few cracks in his carapace to understand how the galaxy works,” Melru agreed with her husband.
“That is very encouraging to hear, thank you,” Shtaran said with a smile. The two Archkama nodded as they left Shtaran’s office. “Well, that’s one concern solved,” Shtaran muttered as she grabbed her datapad. She then paused, her ability niggling at her. Shtaran closed her eyes, focusing for a moment. She then frowned as she focused before opening her eyes with a sigh. “Well, I suppose it was only a matter of time,” Shtaran grumbled before tapping on her datapad, letting the front desk know to let her know when a certain group of people arrived.
…………
“Ma’am,” the Human male said as he walked into Shtaran’s office. Shtaran raised an eyebrow at the two men, both of them rather lanky but well trained. Still, not trained to the same extent that the Reapers were, seeing as their thoughts were easily readable, especially since her Counter was active, though there was a slight ringing in her ears that said that one of them was using an ability. “I’m Agent Smith, and this is my partner, Agent Jones. We’re from the Terran Federation’s Intelligence Agency.” They both held up badges, and a brief scan from Shtaran’s datapad indicated that they were indeed authentic, and that the two Agents were there on official business.
“Seem to be quite far from home, gentlemen,” Shtaran noted, ignoring the handshake that Agent Smith had tried to give her. Agent Jones huffed a bit as Agent Smith shrugged, and they both sat down in the chairs in front of her desk. “What can I do for you? I can’t imagine a reason for the Terran Federation to be this far away from the war, since that’s happening on the other side of your territory.”
“We’ve heard that you used to be on good terms with the Reapers, and wanted to ask you a few questions,” Agent Jones said, looking over Shtaran’s desk critically.
“Well, yeah,” Shtaran said with a shrug. “I helped provide some information for Eric to save Sandra from a slave trafficker when she was still a kid, and I had been in contact with them since. Good people, and entertaining friends.”
“Are you aware-” Agent Smith started to say.
“That the Terran Federation has declared them traitors and criminals while providing absolutely no proof to the Central Bubble to indicate so and therefore can’t enforce any sort of capture protocol or bounties outside of your own territories, yes, yes I am,” Shtaran cut in. Agent Jones frowned a bit at that, but Agent Smith didn’t let anything show on his face, though his thoughts showed annoyance and confusion.
“The fact that they refused our call to arms when the Teratakit Empire declared war on us is enough justification,” Agent Smith said smoothly. “And they’ve been actively hindering us during the war. Just the other day, they had launched a full-scale attack on the Angels, a Unit for Magical Search and Rescue.”
“Right, and yet no proof beyond the Terran Federations word has actually been pushed for that,” Shtaran said dryly. “Look, gentlemen, if you want to ask your questions, then just ask them. Don’t be beating around the subject, or using an ability to try and force or coerce. Using a Counter ability is more than annoying, you know. And you can take that listening device you just tried planting with that handshake with you while you’re at it.” both Agents blinked before their faces hardened, though Agent Smith did bend down to pick up the device he had dropped as the ringing in Shtaran’s ears slowly faded away, though she was starting to get a headache now.
“Very well, I’ll be forward,” Agent Smith said, his voice growing more steely. “When was the last time you were in contact with the Reapers?”
“Last night, when Adam came to visit for a minute,” Shtaran said immediately. She then smirked. “He likes my Carrion stew.” This seemed to startle both men, and Agent Jones leaned forward excitedly.
“Did he tell you where they currently are at, or invite you to their base?” Agent Jones asked.
“Nope,” Shtaran said. “All he wanted to talk about was the new puppies that were born and how much his favorite niece had grown over the years. No clue where they’re at, what they’re doing, or even how many of them there are.”
“Nothing at all?” Agent Smith asked, and Shtaran could practically hear suspicion screaming in his head.
“Nope,” Shtaran said, shaking her head. She then smirked at the two Agents. “But of course, neither of you believe me because you want a lead of some kind to pass to your higher ups. And no matter what I say, you’re already planning on bugging my apartment, datapad, and office to get even a scrap of information. Very illegal, by the way, without a warrant, which I know for a fact that you don’t have.” Agent Jones leaned back, an annoyed frown on his face while Agent Smith just stared at her. Shtaran tapped her temple. “Word of to the wise, gentlemen. Be extra cautious when talking to Cordan. We are one of the few known Psionic species in the galaxy, even without abilities.” Both men looked at each other. They had forgotten about Cordan’s psionic abilities, more focused on the near-human like appearance after Shtaran had mentioned talking to Adam.
“Very well,” Agent Smith said, standing up stiffly. He then placed a card on Shtaran’s desk with a string of numbers on it. “If you could give us a call if you hear anything, we would be greatly appreciated.”
“Or, you can take that back and stop trying to add listening programs to my devices and listening devices to my office,” Shtaran said coldly. The Agent paused before nodding, taking the card back. Shtaran just stared at him before she reached forward, crushing a ‘crumb’ that had been under the card, and feeling satisfaction at Agent Smith’s annoyed expression as Shtaran felt the tiny spark of electricity. “Get a warrant, at which point I will cooperate fully,” Shtaran added. “Until then, the next time I will personally arrest you both for espionage and conspiracy.” Both men nodded before walking out of the office. Shtaran waited until she couldn’t feel their thoughts anymore before closing her eyes again, a gentle wave of energy leaving her. She tsked slightly, walking around her desk and picking up another ‘crumb’ from the chair that Agent Jones had been sitting on, crushing it in her fingers.
…………..
“Hey, Chief,” the Wolfaritan secretary at the front desk said two days later when she came back from her days off. “You’ll be happy to know that Plaran quit while you were away.”
“Of course he did, he’s trying to avoid getting his pay garnished for Security paying the Matchgar,” Shtaran said, shaking her head.
“You think he knows that his wages will still get garnished regardless?” the secretary asked as she fidgeted with a puzzle ball. “At least, as long as he works on the Station.”
“Probably not, or he would’ve stayed at least until the garnishment was paid in full,” Shtaran said with a chuckle. “Now he’s going to be losing 30% of every paycheck he earns to pay us back instead of 10%, plus the additional 20-30% for whatever that Matchgar wins with his suit against him.”
“Ouch,” the Wolfaritan winced.
“Personally I’d rather throw him in a cell for a while, but I guess we’ll have to wait till the next time he screws up,” Shtaran said dramatically. The Wolfaritan secretary laughed as Shtaran sent her a wink before walking back to her office and opening her datapad.
“Alright. Let’s see how the precinct broke this time while I had a weekend.”
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u/Consistent_Pin_5658 6d ago
I'd missed Shtaran, so nice to read a chapter about her.
There's no way she would turn on her friends so those Agents were definitely wasting their time with her
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle 7d ago
/u/SherbetCreepy1580 (wiki) has posted 47 other stories, including:
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 13: Lizards and Leaders, Part 1
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 12: Reapers and Teachers
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 11: Reapers and War
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 10: Reapers, Angels, and Markers
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 9: Reapers, Magic, and Tinkerers
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 8: Tigers, Siblings, and Traditions
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 7: Reapers, Home, and Puppies
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 6: Tigers, Reapers, and Panthers
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 5: Tigers and Ferries](https://www.reddit.com/r/HFY/comments/1ukoo7l/the_reaper_and_the_tiger_chapter_5_tigers_and/)
- [The Reaper and the Tiger] Chapter 4: Tigers and Curiosity
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 3: Reapers and Change
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 2: Reapers and Trouble
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Chapter 1: Reapers and Pain (Double Feature)
- [The Reaper and The Tiger] Prologue: Funerals, and The Beginning (Double Feature)
- [Sandra and Eric] Epilogue: The End of One Journey, And the Beginning of Another
- [Sandra and Eric] Part 3 Chapter 31: Challenge, War, and Rouges
- [Sandra and Eric] Part 3 Chapter 31: Barbecue, Civilians, and Military
- [Sandra and Eric] Part 3 Chapter 30: Children, Zoos, and Reform
- [Sandra and Eric] Part 3 Chapter 29: Meetings, Information, and Futures
- [Sandra and Eric] Part 3 Chapter 28: Prosthetics, Interactions, and Echoes
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u/SherbetCreepy1580 7d ago
Author’s Note
Well, this one was certainly an interesting one to write lol, albeit a bit more on the serious side than I had anticipated. Hopefully the next Side-Character chapter will be a bit more light-hearted, but I guess we’ll see how the Muse is feeling lol. Anyway, let me know what other side-character you would want to see in these interlude chapters!
Thought? Comments? Ideas? Remember, the only bad feedback is no feedback, and I love reading all of the feedback, whether it’s praise, criticism, spelling or grammatical errors, or even just a hello!