Rautha is to be Avoided at all Costs

Posted on Wed 18th Feb, 2026 @ 10:31am by Commander Heriah Rex

888 words; about a 4 minute read

"Well, the plan went off without a hitch. I came out with a brain bleed, broken patella and fractured ribs. The security personnel had similar injuries but, I dare say, the whole charade was a success. Damion bested us and escaped, disguised as Anslo Tol. Those two elite Trill trackers, Ryzhkyn and Rautha were...well they were pissed beyond imagination.

I told them I had denied Anslo his request for asylum. Showed them my denial myself. I explained how I was escorting Anslo to the civilian brig closer to them so, once their ship was repaired, they could take him and be on their way. Of course Ryzhkyn accused me to incompetence. The fact that Anslo had escaped and me being in the shape I was in was evident of that. So they left.

My concern though is that Rautha character. He never said a word. Just stood there and watched as Ryzhkyn did all the talking. With Anslo present, this was prior and in my office, I had contacted the Path of T'Ril temple I had visited many years ago. I asked about Rautha, being this warrior monk.

The acolyte I was speaking with...I saw his face go white and his spots fade a few degrees. It was as though he was fearful of even speaking on the topic. He told me that these monks mutilate themselves. They undergo a procedure that I feel would be insanity inducing.

You see, when I was Joined with Rex, there was this moment...a quarter second more like, but it felt like years...where I felt the most alone as a person could feel. There is this nerve cluster in a Trill's abdomen that the symbiont attaches to. This nerve cluster, we can go our entire lives without ever thinking about it. It has this mucous membrane covering it which acts as a loopback to our brain letting us know, "There is nothing to see here." And we continue on with our lives. Without that mucous membrane, the nerve cluster terminates into emptiness. The only way that mucous membrane is removed is the symbiont as it sniffs out the nerve cluster during a Joining.

Rex sniffed out my nerve cluster then wiggled about, this way and that, wiping away the mucous membrane. It was then that I felt as though floating in a vast void of nothing. My conscience floating about in a universe void of light and matter and thought and live. I was utterly alone. Time did not even exist and I felt myself going mad. Then Rex attached himself. Well, I like to say he bit down, because that was how it felt. I was alone in the universe then suddenly had another conscience communicating with mine.

Rex was attached and our minds had become one. Well, it was a little more dramatic than that. All I need to do is review the recording of my Joining to see it was anything but calm and serene.

Anyway, this Rautha character, these monks have a Joining doctor open them up, wipe away that mucous membrane, then cap it off so the membrane does not reform itself. Then...

...


...then the doctor closes them up...without a symbiont.

That...that loneliness I felt. That time that felt like a year of more, but was only about a quarter second. That is what Rautha's existence is now. He has spent years perhaps in this state.

The acolyte told me that these monks are considered to be unliving. Their eyes are dead. They are consciousless. Without feeling or remorse. Dedicated to their mission. They do not fear, not even death, and will stop at nothing.

I generally do not fear much either but knowing that the likes of this monk is out there searching for Anslo makes even Rex twitch in my tummy.

The acolyte went on to tell me that these monks, their numbers are unknown, are always combing the cortex looking for any record of them, anything written or spoken, anything that speaks on their existence. And they will search out that record to destroy it, the creator of that record and kill them. These monks do not like anything known about them. That is why they have no written religious texts, no written orders, no codes of conduct, etc. And that is why I am keeping this personal log private and under my Command Authorization Code. I am not going to attach this to the medical profile we have on file for Rautha when he was in Sick Bay. Doing that will only draw him back here eventually.

Rautha is one to avoid at all costs and it is advisable to ensure he stays away from 109. He could be a formidable ally if we could but win his allegiance, but that is something I feel is not worth the risk. Until we know more about these monks, why they mutilate themselves, what they believe, and how they operate, I advise silence, redaction and secrecy. As well as an open eye for if and when one may show up, an open ear should we hear of one again.

This cannot be taken lightly.

...

Computer, delete lo...no.

...

Set log to private. Accessible only with my Command Authorization Code. Leave unsynched with the Federation cortex, accessible only aboard 109.

End log.

 

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