One Imposter to Another

Posted on 04 Aug 2025 @ 11:09pm by Lieutenant Commander Joey Geisler & Story Teller

1,179 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Imposters Among Us
Location: Intelligence
Timeline: July 7, 2390 || 1245 hours

Clone Joey paced the floor of her office, her eyes drifting toward the terminal on her desk. Not much intimidated her, but this was one of the rare occasions. Contacting the head if their entire operation. It wasn't for fear of getting caught. No, Joey had been exceptionally careful covering her tracks and making all incoming and outgoing communications appear as official Starfleet business.

She moved to her desk and stared at the terminal where D’rimo’s secure channel, pulsed with muted light—waiting, expectant, almost accusatory. Her fingers hovered over the initiation command, retreating every time she dared press.

She wasn't ready. Not yet.

The request she was about to make weighed on her. The mission wasn’t over yet, but what Camila and her group had uncovered… it was too much. Sacrifices needed to be made.

Joey drew a shaky breath, brushing an errant strand of hair behind her ear. She’d been engineered for loyalty, for getting things done. Yet here she was, faltering—not because she didn’t know what had to be done, but because she did.

The console gave a soft chirp.

Channel ready.

Her hand moved, slower this time, toward the call button until it made contact with the screen.

Immediately, the screen flashed, replacing the unfamiliar LCARS readouts with a familiar face. Unlike the days-old clone of Harvey Geisler, the imposter now in illegal command of the Gamma Quadrant flagship, Joey was much older. For much of her life, she had known the Karemma now displayed in cloaked form on her screen.

D'rimo remained still for a moment, studying the woman he knew intimately. In many ways, she was different–ranging from the way her hair fell over her left shoulder, tactfully hiding its full volume, to the uniform she wore. Her eyes, however, were still her own.

"You are concerned," D'rimo simply stated. There was no need to discern this from her physical appearance or expression. Joey had operated for weeks without making contact, aside from messages they'd sent each other while the small Confederation craft had rested inside the Black Hawk's hangar.

Joey didn’t flinch at the statement. D’rimo was right, of course.

"Yes," she confirmed as she finally settled in her chair. "A small few of our crew know too much. You know them from Mellon. They were present when you paid Emily Carter and her family a visit."

D'rimo frowned, not expecting this particular turn of events. "That is... unfortunate. I thought it was unusual for outsiders to be present on Mellon. And their description did not match what you had shared about Geisler sending an undercover team out this way."

"That's because the leader of that merry band of misfit is smart. Smarter than I have given her credit for," she said with a frown of her own. "We're heading for the refinery. I don't have all of the details, but I know she's out for proverbial blood. We might need to consider a sacrifice."

"A sacrifice?" bellowed D'rimo. Normally, the Karemma was an expert on maintaining his composure, however with the current circumstances taking a turn for the worst, he was not expecting such a ridiculous notion. He collected himself quickly and stated, "You are well aware of how few we are in this universe. The rift we entered from closed behind us. And until we are successful in opening new ones, we cannot afford for our numbers to dwindle."

Joey didn’t flinch at his outburst. Her expression remained steady, but her grip on the edge of her desk was white-knuckled. “I know exactly how many we are, D’rimo. I’ve counted heads every morning since the rift sealed behind us.”

Her voice was calm, but firm—controlled like a seasoned officer (thanks to her implanted memories) threading the needle between reason and urgency. “But we have to be honest about the odds. If we’re going to survive this, we need leverage. Influence. And sometimes that comes with cost.”

She stepped closer, meeting his gaze without wavering. “G90B has become a liability, and because of that, I feel we need to let it go. I’m asking you to acknowledge the reality... if we don’t make that sacrifice, we're guaranteed to fail. Camila won't stop, but killing her will raise even more problems. She's far too good at what she does. I’m just trying to make sure our cause and plans remain intact.”

D'rimo did not immediately reply. His mind instead calculated different possibilities and weighed the potential cost down to the loss of even a single life. "What is Starfleet committing to this... fool's errand?"

"That, I'm not one hundred percent sure of, but whatever it is, I'm sure we can thin out their numbers considerably. We already did that when we took out Unity and her support vessels," Joey said as she, too, began to calculate the possibilities. "If we can decrease Starfleet's presence here in the Gamma Quadrant, that will only help our cause, but we need to make them feel like they're accomplishing something. If not G90B, then it has to be something else worthwhile."

The Karemma on the screen frowned. "Reducing Starfleet's presence is preferable. And the refinery took heavy damage. Perhaps there is a way for this to be mutually advantageous for all parties." D'rimo's voice trailed off as he considered further options.

"The question is... how? Di Pasquale won't give up on destroying G90B," the clone stated as she briefly drummed her fingers against her desk. Was she ever going to get the opportunity just to sit back, relax and enjoy the fruits of her labor? Joey seriously doubted it.

"That..." the Karemma said, allowing the pause to linger for a moment, "is not yet decided. Nor can we decide it on an open channel. Assessment is required. For now, sit in the shadows. Collect their plans and participate. Sabotage if absolutely necessary. Let them feel accomplished. If they get to desperate, then they might become unpredictable."

"That's the current plan," the Intelligence Chief confirmed. She hoped things would go in their favor, and if Joey had her way, it certainly would. "If you have need of me, you know how to get in touch. In the meantime, I will continue doing what I have been and will do my best to keep you apprised on plans as they come up."

"See that you do," D'rimo ordered. "And I will see what we can afford to part with. Since we you brought us the architect of this grand parade, our forces won't be so little for long. Carry on." Suddenly, the screen went blank, leaving Joey alone in her office.

Joey sat there for a few minutes staring at the black screen before her. Things definitely seemed to get a bit complicated, but hopefully, she and Harvey could put things back on track. For now, she had to keep up appearances, and that had her getting to her feet to return to her duties.

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