Hi readers! Just taking a break from my novel for some more silly stuff! Thanks for following and reviewing! Merry Christmas to all!

"A-hee-haw, hee-haw!" Nagus Zek's laugh sounded to Maya like the braying of a donkey. "Romulan necks are tougher than I thought. We get to watch him wriggle like a worm on a hook after all." He kicked back and giddily shoved a handful of bugs into his mouth.

Maya was still frozen in horror. Zek's description of the poor Romulan was an apt one. She had come that close to losing everything. But as fortune would have it, there was one final wild card to play. She had rather hoped to keep that one close to her chest for later, but it couldn't be helped. She was an honest and open person, who was unaccustomed to the ways of subterfuge.

"He can find the Krykalee."

Zek's ears perked up, but his smile faded. "You're lying."

"He's the one who defeated her and last saw her adrift," she insisted, "And if you release him...I'll give you ten percent of our findings."

"Fifty!"

"Twenty."

"Forty, and that's my final offer."

The Romulan's kicks were becoming less enthusiastic. His time was about up. "Done," she sighed.

Zek was silly with pleasure. There was nothing a Ferengi loved more than a sweet deal. "Okay, let him down." He motioned to the alien bounty hunters, who leisurely cut the rope.

At first, the Romulan didn't move after he hit the muddy ground. But thankfully, he soon began to cough, and got to his knees. He stared at her for a moment, trying to ascertain what had just happened. She smiled triumphantly in response, so as to let him know to whom he owed his life. The Romulan narrowed his eyes. He knew.

"When do we leave?" Zek clapped his hands together.

Maya whirled around, "You're not coming."

"Oh, yes I am. Or your Romulan friend gets strung back up so he can continue his Michael Jackson in anti-gravity impersonation." He burst into braying laughter, and even his servant, the purple people eater...or whatever he was, laughed too.

"Great," she mumbled to herself, "I'm stuck with a raunchy old Ferengi who laughs at his own stupid jokes."

Velal tensed his muscles to keep from shivering under the icy waterfall. His hair and uniform were caked with mud. After he rinsed out his jacket, he turned his attention to his hair. It made his skin crawl to think of what sort of organisms could be squirming about in the alien slime that covered his body. Best not to think of that at the moment. The sound of footsteps behind him announced his rescuer's approach.

"I suppose I should thank you," he was forced to admit.

"That is what's generally said when somebody saves your life."

He brushed his wet hair out of his eyes. "Alright. Thank you. Now what do you want?"

"To find the Krykalee."

Years in the Star Navy had taught him to control his facial expressions. But the sound of that word startled him nonetheless. "You're a nice lady," he said, once he composed himself, "Take my advice: have nothing to do with that ship."

"You can't possibly believe all of those silly stories about her being haunted?"

"Lady, that ship is dangerous."

She crossed her arms. "You don't actually believe all of that curse nonsense, do you? Look, I don't care about power or weapons. What I'm searching for is a particular object of historic significance."

So, she was an archaeologist of some sort, and a naïve one at that. He gathered she must have spent the majority of her time reading, rather than partaking in any hands on research. "I take it you're referring to the Maltese Falcon?"

Her eyes lit up, and a becoming smile spread across her face. Velal had not realized it before that moment, but she was quite a beautiful woman. "You mean you've seen it for yourself? Is it really there?"

He wrung the last bit of water out of his jacket and threw it over his shoulder. "Yes, it's there."

"Then you'll take me?" Her pretty brown eyes peered hopefully at him.

To his surprise, the thought of refusing her made him feel like a louse. Her childlike whims utterly disarmed him. What's more, he found he didn't wish to appear to be a superstitious coward in her eyes. "As you wish."

"Wonderful! It's a deal." He shook the hand she offered to him. "We'll leave first thing in the morning." She then began to giddily scamper off.

Velal suddenly realized he didn't know her name. "Lady?" he called after her, swallowing his pride. "You never informed me to whom I owe my life."

"Maya Carmen," she returned, after a pause. He had no idea what it meant, yet it sounded pleasant to his ears all the same. His study was interrupted when the Grand Nagus hobbled onto the scene. Had the leader changed his mind about letting him go?

"Hey! Don't forget me!"

Velal turned back to Maya with a surprised lift of his brow.

"It was part of the bargain," she moaned.

"So is fifty percent of the find."

"Forty was what we agreed upon!"

Zek brayed again. "Just checking. You're not so dumb after all, for a hew-mon female."

Maya indignantly put her hands on her hips. "Troll," she grumbled under her breath.

"I heard that! If you two want to get off this planet you'd better show some respect. Got it?"

"Fine, we get you," she snapped, "Let's go already."

Though he was equally as angry as Maya—probably more so—Velal kept his expression neutral. He was, after all, the one who had little to no say in the whole affair. This was going to be a long expedition, and he wasn't certain he would ever come back from it. Maya had no idea what kind of peril she was getting herself into. She was obviously intelligent and educated. Only a lack of any real experience could explain why she wouldn't heed his warning.

Oddly enough, another part of him looked forward to the venture. The Krykalee, of course, could self destruct. He wanted to learn more about this human woman named Maya Carmen.