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Quark had been smuggling Terran's for several months when Odo first approached Quark in the deserted Bar after hours.
“What brings you here, changeling?” Quark set down the glass he was polishing and eyed the shapeshifter suspiciously. Odo walked behind the bar, invading Quark’s space, and crowded him up against the shelf behind the Bar.
Odo leaned in , talking in a low gravely voice, “I know you've been smuggling Terran’s off the station.”
Quark’s complexion went positively grey. He blinked hard, “Me-? Smuggle Terran’s? Ridiculous- why would I bother -” Quark swallowed hard as Odo eyed him up and down.
Odo leaned his face in close to Quark’s lobes and said- so quietly Quark could have denied hearing it all, “I want to help.”
Quark turned his head and looked at Odo in guarded alarm “you can't be serious-”
“Deadly serious ,” Odo was mere centimeters from Quark's face , boring holes through him with his deep set changeling eyes. Quark swallowed thickly again, his mouth dry and his heart pounding loudly in his ears.
“We can't talk here,” Odo said quietly before backing out of Quark’s immediate personal space and resuming at a normal volume, “if you have any information you wish to make available to me concerning my Terran workers disappearing, you'll know where to find me. “
He looked at Odo in confusion; before now Odo had barely looked in the bartenders direction let alone entered his establishment and talked to Quark. Odo punched a few buttons on a padd that was behind the bar and handed it to Quark before nodding stiffly and exiting the room as quickly as he had appeared.
Quark mopped up the sweat that was beading on his lumpy brow. If Odo knew he was smuggling Terran's it was only a matter of time before the entire Alliance chain of command was nipping at his heels. Quark had to figure out a way off the station. Sooner rather than later.
Quark had almost forgotten the padd Odo had handed him. He glanced down at the glowing orange lettering.
‘Meet me on level 7 section 8. Wait 10 minutes after I leave and then follow. Come alone. Delete this message.’
Quark wasn't sure what to do. He could run now. Try to hide on a transport ship, find his way into a cargo bay, a loading crate, anything.
Quark wondered then if Odo was actually serious. With Odo’s help he could smuggle more Terrans at less risk. Odo probably has connections beyond what Quark was capable of establishing with his limited clientele.
Quark slapped the padd against his hand a few times mulling over the choices. There really weren't any choices. There was only one cargo ship docked and they had unloaded all the cargo as far as Quark knew. He could stow away in a conduit perhaps ? Unless…
He could go see the changeling.
Ten minutes of contemplating finally used up, he deleted the message on the padd and scrambled towards a turbo lift.
He rounded the corner to section 8 and looked around for any sign of the shapeshifter. He passed in front of a corridor and was pulled into an unlit hall. Odo's hand was clamped over Quark's mouth and Quark resisted the urge to bite at the approximated flesh.
“Shhhh” Odo spoke in a low whisper , barely audible “follow me”
The hand released Quark's mouth and reached to grab his own hand in the darkness. Quark followed Odo down the pitch black hallway , terrified of whatever lay at the end of their path.
Odo made a sharp right turn and Quark was yanked unceremoniously, covering his own mouth to silence a squeak of surprise. Odo stopped suddenly and lightly pinned Quark against a wall.
“This is the safest place we can talk ,” Odo spoke slightly louder here than before, but not by much.
“I have a plan”
~~
It had been 4 months of smuggling Terran’s for Quark and 2 since Odo had proposed his initial plan. They had gotten a few dozen Terrans to relative safety but Quark knew it was only a matter of time before his smuggling caught up with him, and Odo.
He signaled Odo to meet him at the usual spot, in the dark hallway, and explained his growing anxiety.
“Its getting too dangerous, Odo” by now, Quark was used to the light pressure of Odo’s body sandwiching him against the wall, he’s relished the few encounters they've shared like this since that evening 3 months prior. “I know they suspect me , but they're letting me hang from the thread to see if I can draw anyone else involved out. You aren't safe with me around Odo-”
Odo placed a finger over Quark's mouth “I think they are beginning to suspect something is not right in ore processing as well-”
Odo opened his mouth to say something , but wasn't sure how to say it.
“I have a plan-” Odo said at,last , mirroring what he said the first night “ we arrange one last smuggling transport , the biggest we've ever done -”
“Odo-” Quark said in spite of the finger still over his mouth
“shh- we have to,work quickly. There's a Bolian freighter scheduled a day from now, we can get all the Terran's from my ore processing level onto that ship -”
“Odo they're gonna kill us-”
“We'll go with them.”
Quark tried hard to see through the thick inky blackness that obstructed his view of the changeling. “Leave the station- together?”
Odo nodded but given the darkness added, “together”
Quark's heart did mini flip flops inside his chest and Odo pressed him harder touching their foreheads together. In the 2 painstaking months the pair of them orchestrated escape transports together Quark had found it harder and harder to pull himself away from the changeling with every passing secret meeting. Odo nuzzled Quark's forehead with his own and brought Quark back to the moment. The warm constant he had grown attached to in such a short span of time.
Odo broke the contact and backed away from the bartender “47 hours from now we'll be free men Quark-”
Quark reached out into the darkness for Odo but the changeling was gone.
Quark spent the first day as he usually did; wiping counters, serving replicated refreshments, toadying. Constantly checking over his shoulder was his wont as well.
The second day was almost nothing like his usual day. It started off normal enough; Quark did his morning routine and afterward he opened the dismal bar to the same 17 customers from the previous day. That was where his ‘normal’ stopped.
He had a few things to do as far set the plan he and Odo had devised into motion. Odo had arranged the cargo transport with some Bolian freighters who agreed to look the other way as far as “smuggled goods”. Now, Quark had to figure out a way to get down to ore processing in order to set off the distraction for Odo so he could safely lead the Terrans to the cargo ship.
As Quark served a small group of rowdy Bajorans he overheard them talking about the “New Intendant”.
His interest irrevocably piqued, he hovered around their table to hear what else they might have to say.
“She looks just like the intendant,” one of the younger Bajorans said lecherously.
“She's a little more..” another bajoran glanced around at the occupants of the bar, searching for the right word, “Agreeable”
The group chuckled darkly and they all took a swig from their drinks.
Quark continued to wipe down an already spotless table, ears trained on the men.
“They're like that Kirk,” an older bajoran piped up “she's gonna have to kill’em”
A few nods of agreement from the men.
“Serves’em right” the second bajoran said.
Quark knew about kirk, everyone knew about Kirk. The other universe. Quark let his let his mind wander as he considered the possibility of another universe. Another Quark.
He made his way back behind the counter as 3 cardassians sauntered into the bar.
Quark severed them their Kanar and watched them suspiciously as they seated themselves at a booth in the back of the room.
In preparation for the escape, Quark had bought a phaser rifle and hidden it beneath the bar counter. He found himself glancing anxiously at it as the hour of his and Odos escApe inched closer.
It was barely five minutes later when the “New Intendant” and a Klingon bodyguard walked into his bar. He walked over to her cautiously.
“You certainly are the spitting image of the Intendant just as they said,” Quark looked at the brightly colored outfit that contrasted so sharply with the black leather the Intendant wore.
“Hello, Quark” Kira said with a tinge of irritation.
“You know my name,” Quarks eyes widened in surprise.
Kira began to steer the conversation towards transporters, and Quarks ability to get her access to one. Quark, suddenly, had a devilish idea pop into his head.
“Didn't I hear somewhere that a transporter was involved in the first crossover?” he punched a few buttons on the replicator.
“That's right,” Kira nodded, pleased that Quark was catching on.
“Do you have a way back to your side? Under the right circumstances, I might be willing to help you get access to a transporter.” Quark leaned in close to Kira handing her a Jumja tea.
“Look, Quark, I don't have a strip of gold-pressed latinum so don't even think about it.”
“Gold-pressed what?” Quark stirred the Jumja tea and looked at Kira questioningly.
“What is it you want?” Kira was then the one looking at Quark questioningly.
He leaned in even closer, speaking softly, “The ability to send others across to your side.”
“Others? What others?”
“That's not important.” Quark waved the hand holding a spoon, trying to seem nonchalant.
“Look, I can't open a revolving door to-”
Suddenly Garak and his Klingon squad walked through the doors of the bar “Quark!”
“Mister Garak,” Quark glance anxiously at Kira, “what can I get you today? Drinks are always on the house for you.” Quark sat the jumja tea down and walked over to the cardassian.
“You must come with us.”
Quark’s heart stopped and his blood froze in his veins. He blinked hard “Is there a problem?”
“Yes. A slight problem. You've been helping Terrans escape from the station.”
“Me? I'm a simple barkeep, and a coward. I assure you I don't stick my neck out for anyone.” Quark began to resort to his usual weaseling, and he backed up slowly behind the counter.
“That's not what the Terran we caught this morning told us during his interrogation.” Garak matched his steps.
“This is all a misunderstanding.” Quark turned away from Garak like he was attending to business behind the bar “I assure you-”
Quark grabbed the contraband rifle from under the counter and nearly got a clean shot at Garak, but the shot went over the cardassians shoulder as he grabbed the rifle from Quark’s grasp.
Quark panicked, shoved Garak away, and leapt over the counter. He could hide in the maintenance shaft if he could just get to a panel. Before he could get a meter from the counter, three klingons grabbed his jacket and hauled him out of the bar. Quark growled furiously at the klingons as they dragged him down the promenade.
They took him to a small dark room, and strapped him down to a chair. Quark whimpered into the darkness and struggled against the binds.
Garak walked in with a slimy smile on his face. Quark bit back another whimper.
Two black eyes, a couple lost teeth, several bruised ribs, and a broken nose later, Quark was dribbling whatever words would fall out of his mouth.
He told them about the other Kira's interest in the transporters , he told them how he smuggled so many Terrans off the station, he even hinted about two of his connections who had helped him countless times in organizing a rendezvous w a cargo ship; but he never breathed a word about Odo or their plan for that day. How he kept that information inside him, he wasn't sure; some divine interference from the blessed exchequer himself, perhaps. All he knew was that his face and chest were on fire, and he had to get to Odo however he could.
Quark was drooling on himself when Garak returned to the dark room and removed him roughly from the chair. Quark gasped in pain as his ascending ribs let out new burst of flames into his torso. Garak and his men dragged Quark to the Intendant’s quarters and dropped him abruptly on the floor. .
Garak looked at the intendant “He's made a complete confession and implicated two others, who have been arrested.”
The intendant crouched down to look at the puffy faced ferengi, “Quark. I've always liked you, you know that.”
“I have nothing but respect for you, Intendant.” Quark continued to weasel, “I'm so sorry.”
“You did it because you felt sorry for these Terrans. You hate to see them suffer, just as I do.”
Quark looked at the other Kira while addressing the Intendant, “Yes, Intendant”
The Intendant smiled “But where would we be without them? Who would perform the labour for the Alliance?” she touched Quark’s chin gingerly, angling his head to look at her. She looked him a moment and then stood addressing Garak “A quick death. Don't make him suffer any more.”
“No, Intendant, please.” Garak and the Klingon lifted Quark up and out the door “I made a mistake. Have mercy. No, please!”
The doors shut on his pleas and he was hauled down the corridor yet again. He hung his head in defeat, watching the floor pass beneath him absentmindedly.
A,familiar voice woke him from his dissociated state. “Ill take it from here ,”
Garak stopped and turned to look at the changeling, he laughed boisterously.
Odo, undeterred, continued “I would like to hold the honor of killing this troll-”
Garak looked him over “just because you're the Intendants favorite little mystery, doesn't mean you can order me to do anything, changeling.”
“I wouldn't dream of ordering you around, Garak.” Odo looked at Garak, his face unreadable. The cardassian considered the changeling for a moment.
“What would you want with the ferengi” Garak narrowed his eyelids at Odo.
“He's been stealing Terrans from Ore Processing right under my nose,” Odo stepped closer to Garak and the Klingon holding Quark. “Understandably, I have a grievance with him I intent to settle.”
Garaks face remained neutral for a beat before it crack open into a devilish grin, “very well, the ferengi is yours. The intendant insists on ending it quickly for him but I won't tell her if you don't.”
Garaks eyes gleamed at thought of defying the Intendant, even in such an inconsequential matter as this.
Garak and the Klingon dropped Quark on the ground heavily and he suppressed a cry of pain.
Garak grabbed Odo, “Oh, that Doctor fellow that came with the Major- I believe he's under your supervision in ore processing?”
Odo looked down at the hand gripping his shirt and nodded stiffly.
“Well, I have a most delicious plan cooking up, and in exchange for this little favor with the Ferengi, I want the good doctor thoroughly destroyed , on my signal.”
Odo scrutinised Garak before nodding again, “very well.”
Garaks eyes were alight with mischief as he turned away from the changeling.
When Odo and Quark were finally left alone in the corridor Odo crouched next to Quark and held his swollen face lightly in his hands.
“How'd you know i’d been found out,” Quark’s voice was hoarse and distorted by his swollen lips. “I have my channels,” Odo forced a smile and lifted Quark into his arms. “Can I still count on you to initiate the thorium leak ?”
“I can do it ,” Quark croaked out.
“I've also heard that the Intendent is planning a party tonight - that's a perfect distraction. We need to get that thorium leak started by x000 hours.”
Odo brought Quark to a panel in the wall and crouched. Odo sat him down and opened the panel, Quark crawled in as quickly as his bruises would allow him to. He turned to look at Odo, and they shared a moment of eye contact before the changeling replaced the panel cover. Quark crawled weakly down the maintenance shaft on his hands and knees. He knew how to get to the ore processing level but at this rate he would be late for the cargo shipment.
~
Odo hurried back down the corridor to the turbo lift. He had to get back to Ore Processing before anyone noticed the supervisor was missing.
As he walked into the steaming cesspool that was the processing deck he saw the doctor and Kira conspiring. He stood there and watched, unsure if he should break them up or not. Before he could make a decision Kira turned away from the doctor and walked to the door giving a Odo a slight nod.
Odo turned back and tried to look calm, but he just managed to look menacing.
He had a meager few hours to get the plan to its final stage. More than anything, he wished he had a comm link to Quark.
--
Odo selected the most trustworthy Terrans in the Ore Processing unit and divulged to them that “it was their last night on the job” so to speak. The smart ones understood what he meant because of the rumors about Quarks Terran smuggling, the rest simply feared the Intendants wrath.
Odo's connections informed him about the Intendants impromptu party that was getting underway in the Bar, a perfect distraction, but Quark had better get this thorium leak underway soon. Odo walked up to the Terran doctor, kicked him in the back, and cocked his leg up on a piece of machinery behind him. Odo had to appear as anything but a Terran sympathizer, but it was obvious the doctor was taking his callousness seriously.
“You're not accustomed to this workload, are you, Doctor? You have much to learn. It's a shame this is going to be your last night on the job.” Odo was about to tip the doctor off about the freighter when a flash explosion and a tremor shook the ore processing deck. Quark was right on time. Odo looked around at the smoke beginning to bellow into the large room and hit his comm badge “Engineering, we have a thorium leak down here!”
Odo looked around again to make sure all the Terrans were heading for the exit, he yelled up to the other guards “Release the security locks!”
Odo watched as the doctor disarmed one of the guards, his eyes alight with anger, and aimed pointedly at the changeling.
Odo reacted from reflex and drew his phaser on the him, who fired at the changeling without hesitation. Odo dramatically splashed on the walls and the ore processing machinery as Terrans ran for the doors. The changeling goo automatically began to recollect in a puddle as the room filled with more smoke. Odo slid along the floor to an air vent and squeezed through the grate; at least now, no one in the Alliance would be looking for him. His only job now was to find Quark, Odo knew the Terrans he tipped off would lead most of the others to the freighter on the upper pylon.
He hoped Quark was headed for the freighter as well. He reached a section of the air vent that intersected with an access tunnel, he oozed through the mesh and landed on the floor.
Odo took on the form of a cardassian vole and began scampering through the maintenance tube. He passed another intersection and heard a faint shuffling coming from the third corridor. He turned to see Quark, crawling weakly through the maintenance shaft in Odo’s direction. If he had lungs he would've breathed a sigh of relief.
Quark looked like he was seconds from passing out, however , and Odo’s relief was short lived. Odo shifted back into his humanoid form and crawled down the intersected shaft. Odo lurched toward Quark just as the ferengi’s arms gave out underneath him. He tugged Quark down the tunnel, in a position resembling a one armed heimlich.
After he had dragged Quark about 10 meters, Odo heard voices coming from up ahead and he froze,
“I don't see you. You're not here. I'm just trying to seal this thorium leak.”
Odo recognized the accent of O’brien and the voice of the Terran doctor, “Look, I don't know my way around these conduits but you do.”
Odo sat in complete silence for a moment- waiting. The voices moved down and away from him and Quark and he took that as a signal to keep moving. He knew if he could just get to the turbo shaft it would be a straight shot to the pylon’s docking port.
He hoped he had enough time. The Bolians were instructed to wait for Quark and Odo but he knew if it got too risky they would leave when it suited them.
He dragged Quark 30 meters down the access tunnel until he reAched the panel that allowed access to the turbo shaft. He maneuvered around Quark and pried the panel from the wall. Odo stuck his head through the panel and looked down the shaft; it was seemingly endless as it careened into an abyss.
Odo heard the whir of the turbolift as it made its way down the shaft. He yank his head back into the access tunnel- not a moment too soon- as the turbolift flew swiftly past the access panel. Odo knew it wouldn't be long before the same lift would be headed back up, so he wasted no time in scrambling through the opening and pulling Quark through after him. He balanced the incapacitated ferengi on his back and began the perilous climb up the turbo shaft.
Odo began sending tentacles up like grappling hooks to speed his assent. Quark started to mumble into a drool spot that was saturating Odo's shifted uniform shirt.
The higher Odo climbed the less sheer the shaft became as the pylon began to curve inward, and the less terrifying the journey seemed.
When he was only about a dozen meters from the docking level Odo heard the unmistakable whirring again. He wasted no time in shooting long appendages to the opening and yanking himself and Quark up to the landing. He grabbed the floors edge, sent two tentacles into the corridor, and hauled himself and Quark into the hall.
Odo didn't bother to look behind him and continued towards the freighter, Quark still mumbling faintly. He crossed the threshold of the airlock and ran into several panicked Terrans who were crowding the doorway to the bridge.
“What's going on here,” all of Odo’s grumpiness was compacted into those 4 words and a few Terrans who were uninformed as to Odo’s role in the escape plan yelled out in fear of being recaptured.
A Terran who Odo had a longstanding connection with spoke up, “the Bolians, they've abandoned the freighter.”
Another Terran said with a tremor “they've surely turned us all over to the Intendant!”
Odo turned back towards the airlock as a half dozen more Terrans rushed in from the hall. He groaned inwardly and repositioned Quark with an abrupt lift.
Odo weaved through the Terrans and closed the airlock with his override code. The doors closed with a hiss and everyone went silent as they turned to look at the changeling.
“Attention Terrans ,” Odo yelled into the freighter “the Bolians who run this freighter have deserted their ship. Do not think, for a second, that this is the end of the fight. Now- that said - Anyone with flight experience follow me to the bridge.”
Odo squeezed through the anxious Terrans and made his way to the front of the ship, still carrying Quark.
When he finally stepped onto the bridge not one Terran was following him. He slid Quark into a the first officer’s seat and sat down in the chair next to him. He sighed as he looked at himself in that moment. As he looked at Quarks swollen bruised face. He wasn't exactly acquainted with Bolian controls but he punched a few buttons that seemed to be on the right track.
“Quark,” Odo shook the ferengi who was drooling on himself.
Quarks eyes fluttered slightly and he mumbled a faint, “huh?”
“Please tell me you know how to fly a freighter ,” Odo wasn't completely at a loss but he also wasn't a pilot, and anything Quark had to offer might be helpful.
Quark cracked an eye open and furrowed his brow, “where are the Bolians?”
“Gone. We need to get out of here. Now”
Whatever was happening in the station must have been enough to distract the control center, because Odos request for the release of the docking clamps happened without so much as an ID check from ops. Odo didn't want to waste time contemplating this lucky break, he took his chance to unconfidently hit a few more buttons and the ship lurched forward, then stalled again.
Quark struggled to focus on the control panel in front of him; he squinted at the glowing buttons.
Also not an expert on Bolian tech, Quark fumbled with the controls. Though, Quarks experience on a ferengi freighter was enough to give him enough insight to hobble away from the station like a wounded animal.
Terok Nor began to shrink in the distance as Odo and Quark goaded the freighter further into space.
Two ships exited the station, one right after the other, and they headed off in opposite directions.
Odo and Quark watched in amazement as an enormous cloudy disk of purple and pink opened up and then disappeared in the span of a few seconds. They glanced at each other with confusion, and hope also.
Quark altered their trajectory and they started heading straight for the point where the disk had appeared.
The End.