Kris leaned forward and looked at Jhu directly. "I will see if we can get anything from any of the worlds in the regions of space being targeted. We could always ask the Dominion for information but something tells me that they would subtly tell us to do something with ourselves in more ways than one" added the Commander with a small smile. "The Vorta especially always have a poetic way with their words."

"Don't be an idiot." Jhu ignored the distrust in Kris' eyes, well accustomed to that look from previous assignments. Leaning forward against the table, she easily met his gaze with an icy look of her own. "I can get the information, even from them. But that will require your help, which I don't expect you're eager to give. This is a scientific vessel... its intelligence gathering capabilities are sorely limited. Either we find a way to solve that problem or I'll have to get in touch with people you won't like. Take your pick, sir."

Commander Kerouac scoffed at the Intelligence Officer, dismissing her tone of voice. "Please excuse the Commander. She ate a few souls that haven't been agreeing with her lately" joked Kris, flashing a smile at Jhu. "Who would those people be, Commander? Perhaps your Cardassian friend?" Kris added nervously.

"Science vessel or not, I'm not in the mood to spend weeks staring at a nebula contemplating whether or not it is safe to enter. We don't have time for just pining for discoveries" Kris said sternly. He looked around the room "No offense to anyone who loves nebulae and scientific exploration, but there were lives counting on that convoy of medical supplies and I feel inclined to strangle the sons of bitches who stole those supplies."

"He's one of them." Enjoying the nervous tone of Kris' voice, Jhu leaned back in her chair. "Give me resources to find them and I'll help you strangle them."

"Ahem..." Maica cleared her throat rather loudly to interrupt where this was going, looking sternly between each crewmember. "If you please, we are all setting out to the same end goal, correct? Retrieving the pirated medical supplies and ending further piracy, if I read this correctly. May I suggest that we all focus our specific skills and abilities towards that goal using each other as support for optimum resolution of the situation?" Pausing for a moment, Maica continued in a much more docile tone. "Captain, looking over the systems in the area of the piracy, I'm familiar with most of them. The Wadi, for example... I've seen their... Games firsthand from before I joined Starfleet. Easily offended if you don't take part in their games of chance, but otherwise one of the far friendlier species in the area."

Kris' attention was drawn away from Jhu and toward Maica who cleared her throat and played her part as diplomat. The Commander nodded at Maica and then at Jhu. "Well, the Artificial life form is telling me that I am being an ass and so I am inclined to agree. Commander t'Dharvanek, if you need more resources, we'll get those resources and personnel" added the Commanding Officer.

He then looked back at Maica "Lieutenant, excellent display of diplomatic skills. You knowledge of the Wadi may in fact come to use" Kris added as he relaxed and leaned back in his chair.

"Thank you Captain. I just hope we don't run into any of my creator's associates... They were rather unsavory in their tastes." Maica spit the words out a bit like a cat coughing up a hairball - she obviously didn't enjoy their company.

Commander Kerouac nodded. "If we happen to encounter any of your creator's associates...we'll cross that bridge together."

"Captain," Liam interjected, "Do we know any more about the specific illness that is affecting those people. The brief is a little, well pardon the pun, brief. I see additional medical supplies have been on loaded for us as well, but if we end up retrieving the supplies, I'd like to know what we may be exposing our people to."

Kris turned in his seat to face the Chief Medical Officer "I'm a Flyboy not a medic...okay that's a lie. I have field medic training. Well, Doctor, the planet is populated by members of the Teplan species. The whole colony of course is affected by the Teplan blight which we had begun treating before the war ended, but the Blight has become rather resistant to the previous treatments in recent years" the Commander explained.

"I thought Doctor Bashir had been able to prevent the Blight from being passed in utero," Liam said, looking up from the PADD. He noticed the slightly glazed looks from most of the staff. "I'll have my people look into and see what we can figure out." He said, quickly and settled back into his seat slightly indicating he was done speaking.

"We all thought that. Bashir's work was impressive and it looked as though there would be an end to this Blight. However, something went wrong over time and what Doctor Bashir came up with only caused the Blight virus to adapt. Eventually it just became too resistant. If anything, it is more aggressive now than ever" explained Kris with concern.

"At least we don't have to worry about becoming infected... Bashir never found any evidence it could pass to other species." Jhu tapped the corner of her PADD, setting it into a lazy spin on the glossy surface of the table. "The real problem they have is they're not as advanced medically as we are. No resources. No medical laboratories. There has to be a way to supply them with more than just drugs to treat it."

Noah Evans-Weaver barely had time to really put down his duffel but he was confronted by a yeoman who had sought him out. How this person knew his whereabouts was beyond him but he didn't question it. He was informed of a staff meeting and to bring his transfer orders to 'kill two birds with one stone' as the yeoman put it. All he did was nod and then was on his way to deck one. From the lift he crossed the upper aft section of the bridge then down to the main level and to the briefing room. The door parted to reveal a room full of people and a meeting in progress. "Uh, I apologize for the intrusion sir," Noah said as his attention fell onto the commander. "Doctor Noah Evans-Weaver," he held up the PaDD with his transfer orders. "You're new chief of science." He moved forward, but didn't take a seat just yet.

Kris looked at the young man enter the room and a odd feeling came over him. It was one that he was hoping was not apparent to the others. However, he could not let the distraction occur. "Have a seat, Doctor" Kris said to the Science Officer.

Noah offered the commander a broad smile then spotting an open seat, moved to the chair and slid into it. He set the PaDD down onto the table and looked around at the various people who sat at the large conference table. He made sure he paid attention, he didn't want to miss anything.

Lieutenant JG Darzen burst through the door, dropping and scattering most of the PADDs he was carrying, with Kail bitching at him the whole way. He had missed breakfast and the irritable slug had been hounding him ever since. It wasn't really a conversation between the two of them, more like shared feelings that sometimes seemed to vi for control of the body. "Sorry... I'm sorry... oh geeze. I'll uh... pick that up." He dropped down to his knees and started to pick up the scattered PADDs. Then he stood up again abruptly, saluted the Commander, and returned to his knees to clean up his mess.

"Lieutenant, relax. Have a seat and join us. We are all a little frazzled at this point" Kris said with a small smile.

Tul glanced up momentarily as yet another member of the senior staff appeared. As the man struggled with a stack of PADDs, the XO focused on the briefing. He felt the topic had strayed. "Our mission isn't to cure the Blight. We're assigned to identify and stop a group, or groups, of pirates. Any suggestions on that matter?"

So, you do speak thought Kris to himself. "Commander Zanaar is correct. Our primary concern has to be the pirates. That is our assignment and that will be where we will place our focus for the time being" added Commander Kerouac.

"In that case, I'll make sure my people are ready for any possible casualties. Since we aren't exactly sure what we will find." Liam said. He ran his hand through his short hair, he was already starting to get a little bored with the meeting, but he'd have to get used to it, as CMO he'd be sitting in on department head meetings at least one a week, usually several times more frequently, not to mention meetings with his own staff, and all the other work involved in running a department. He was trying to remember why he'd wanted this job again when someone else began to speak.

Commander Kerouac simply nodded in the Medical Officer's direction. "We will be disembarking form Deep Space 11 shortly after this meeting. So, I want this ship ready to leave within the hour. All stations are to be checked and ready to be brought online if not already active. That includes Sickbay, Doctor Cohen. We may have to engage these pirates in combat."

"We're loaded and ready but short staffed, there is only myself and one other qualified surgeon on board, but if you can't get me any extra personnel we will make do with what we have." Liam said.

Kris had been looking over Doctor Evans-Weaver's transfer orders and bits and pieces about his background and accomplishments. Kris smiled and looked up at Liam "Interesting. It seems our Chief Science Officer could be some assistance to you, Doctor Cohen" Kris said as he changed his gaze to the Science Officer.

"Doctor Weaver?" said Kris, cutting the man's extended name down a bit.

Noah nodded. "Actually on paper it's Evans-Weaver, however professionally I use my own surname of Evans." It was something he just wanted to clear up from the get go, Kyle also ran into the same problem with the hyphenation. So, he had decided after they got married that he would use his own surname for professional reasons. "But yes, I hold two degrees a medical degree and a doctorate. So I can help out if you need an extra pair of hands doctor," he said. He would also be talking to the commander about possibly taking some shifts in sickbay just to keep up. He wasn't sure what Kyle would think about the added work, but he had to do what he had to do. This was, after all, his first ship board assignment.

Liam nodded to the other man, "We can use any help we can get."

Evans Kris thought, making the mental note.

Darzen had found a place to sit at the table and was trying to listen to what was going on, but he had questions on his mind and he didn't want them to get away from him. Not seeing any possible breaks in the conversation he resorted to raising his hand, like he was in school again. He waited to be called on, looking at the Commander earnestly.

Commander Kerouac respected that the man serving as the Chief Operations Officer had resorted to the schoolhouse tradition of raising one's hand, but it was an odd sight to see. "Proceed lieutenant Kali."

"You said something about pirates?" Kali went on, lowering his hand. "Do we know what kinds of ships they are using or what they're capable of? What sorts of weapons do they have? Sorry if you already went over this before I got here, I'm just curious."

Kris shook his head. "No, we do not know anything about them other than they hit fast and haul ass. I'm working on gathering information from the Dosi and other species who have been victims of the pirates. I'll be heading down the the Astrometrics lab after in order to put some pieces together" explained the Commander.

Jenni shifted in her chair, the thought of the Katana disembarking within the hour was unsettling. She had inherited a problem ship, delayed for years by a refit that still wasn't complete. Now or never she thought and began to enter a few things into the PADD in front of her, creating her priority list to meet the launch time, including get the warp core back online.

Commander Kerouac looked around the room. "You each know your duties and your stations. Make sure that they are ready within the hour, I want no delays or excuses. Lives are depending on us" he said as he swiftly sat forward in his chair. "I'm calling this meeting to a close. You are all dismissed except for Doctor Evans. Please remain behind, Doctor" said Kris firmly.

The Katana was underway, racing towards the planet which would hopefully hold leads about the missing supplies. Now Cohen had called a meeting with his staff, they were short handed and he had made several ‘acting’ appointments. The Bolian Lieutenant Pano was his Chief and only Counsellor. Lieutenant Cates the human female from New Zealand, was acting as Chief Surgeon.

Lieutenant Reya, the Bajoran Nurse, whom was now going to be beginning surgical training was acting Head Nurse. The meeting was filled out with the few other senior medical officers. Lieutenant Evans would be supporting the department as well. “Alright so the current duty rotation is complete, our two main missions en route will be peeping for possible casualties. I also want to start a training schedule, both internally focusing on trauma and emergency procedures, as well I want to look into training as much of the crew in emergency medical procedures as possible. We still need command authorization, but given the fact we’re short staffed I feel the extra qualifications will help in an emergency.”

There was a murmur of agreement around the room. “Good, in that case Doctor Cates I understand you have level 2 truman certification?” He said, the woman nodded, “Good, then you’ll take point on the basic training.” Again she nodded. “Dismissed,” The meeting had been short, but it was a chance to get face to face with his staff and get things moving.

He lingered in his seat as everyone filled out of the small briefing room he’d taken over for the meeting. He’d managed to draw up a suitable rotation, they only had about 80% of the staff they should for a vessel this size and a mission profile like this. But the fleet was stretched thin in this region, most ships were understaffed to a degree, they’d make do.

He rose to his feet and looked out the window behind him as the ship cruised at warp, it was weird to think, this fragile humanoid body, that had grown from a single microscopic cell, now encased in metal, synthetic alloys, and transparent aluminum, being propelled at hundreds of times the speed of light through the vastness of interstellar space. The six foot four doctor suddenly felt very very small. He smiled, turned on his heel and headed to bridge, decided to check in and possibly get a chance to speak to the XO.

"C'mon..." Jenni muttered, jostling the jammed conduit. Since leaving the briefing, the engineering staff turned all attention to getting the critical systems stabilized for launch. Jenni was hoping to have two more days at the most, but she wasn't expecting it to become one hour, especially with a small crew. Thankfully, the captain came through with his word, bringing in some extra personnel from the station. Within the hour, all of the critical systems were ready to go except the warp core.

Here she stood now, beside the warp core, trying to get the EPS tap to cooperate and hooked back to the warp core. Unfortunately, it was stuck.

She grunted as engineers rushed past her, tending to their duties, focusing on bringing main power online. The silence that had dominated engineering all morning was nonexistent and doubtful to return for days.

"C'mon!" she growled, pulling with all of her might. Finally, it moved and locked into place, but not without spraying a shower of sparks. She yelped, leaping backwards in an attempt to avoid the shower. Jenni immediately winced when the shower enveloped her hand. A quick glance at the blistering skin and the pain shooting up her arm was enough to confirm she'd been burned.

"Dammit..." she muttered. In their rush, Engineering had been fortunate to avoid a lot of accidents, save for a couple crewmen from earlier. And a look back at an operational station where a petty officer was trying to hide his face informed her that this accident was a result of negligence. Jenni could not fault the man, but he should have checked one final time before trying to switch on power to the core.

"I'll be back," she told her deputy, noticing how quickly the blisters were developing. She had to get to sickbay quickly if the damage could be repaired. The turbolift ride could have gone faster, and so could have the trek to sickbay.

"Doctor...!" she called out as she entered the room. Aside from the staff meeting this morning, she had yet to formally meet the rest of the senior staff, and since she hadn't focused on names in the meeting, rather than the mountain of tasks at hand, Jenni remembered that she did not only forget the doctor's name, she also forgotten what he had looked like!

Liam turned from where he was filing a report, "Grab a seat Lieutenant." He said pointing to the bed as he grabbed a tricorder and dermal off the instrument tray. "What happened?"

Incompetence was almost her immediate reply. As her stress level was high, she took in a deep breath in a vain attempt to calm her nerves. "Burned by an EPS relay," she replied. "It was stuck and by the time I finally forced it back in position, someone had primed the connection without checking to see if I was done. One small spark ignited the primer, and I got burned."

She sighed. "The Katana has been in refit mode for years, and no one's been in a hurry to finish her until now. We're launching in minutes and the warp core is still offline." Looking at the doctor, she asked, "How about you? Rushing to get your station ready too?"

The Doctor began treatment and did a deep tissue scan to make sure there was no damage to the underlying muscles and ligaments. "Luckily no, were a few people short but Sickbays's upgrades have been done for months." He said, "Have you spoken to the Captain, I mean, I'm no engineering but by my understanding we need to Warp core to travel at warp." He joked as he turned the young Lieutenant's hand slightly to continue his work.

Jenni smiled. His joke was enough to start relieving some of the stress. "You were at the briefing. Our Captain may be inexperienced, but he certainly has passion. If that table were glass, you'd be tending to his hand too." Her smile faded as reality returned to her mind. "Besides, this is my first round as a Chief Engineer. I'd hate to set a bad precedent for what the engineering team can do this early in my tour."

"I know the feeling, I've served as an Assistant Chief for a while, and acting CMO before, but there's something different about knowing there isn't someone there to take over the reigns, that you're the top of the totem pole." He paused, "Freaks me out a bit to be honest."

"But you can't be on top of the pole without people underneath." Jenni smiled, thinking of her first Assignment out of the Academy. "A former shipmate of mine once told me that if you can't trust the people you work with, you'll never be able to relax."

Shrugging, she added, her eyes locking with his downcast gaze, "Of course it's hard to do right off the bat, especially when one of them nearly burns your hand off on accident, but eventually it's worth it."

Liam finished up his work. "Well, that should fix that, you may notice some redness and tenderness for a couple days, if it gets worse or last longer than a couple of days come see me." He said, doing a final scan and making a couple notices in the woman's file.

"Thanks, doc." Jenni flexed her hand, feeling a slight bit of tenderness. She stood up to leave, but not before sending a "See you around, doc," before leaving sickbay. Had there not been a warp core to bring online, she might've stayed for an extended chat.

"Hopefully not as a patient again any time soon." He said with a smile as the young Lieutenant departed. He glanced at the time just as the doors opened and Doctor Cates entered to take her shift, he exchanged a few quick words updating the other Doctor before heading to the mess to grab some lunch.


A Joint Post By:

Lieutenant Liam Cohen, MD
Chief Medical Officer
USS Katana - Task Force 9

and

Lieutenant JG Jennifer Matthews
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Katana - Task Force 9

Kyle wasn't sure what to expect from his new boss. The fact that the Captain didn't trust her spoke volumes to him. He hadn't really been able to access much of her records yet, though he was pretty sure he'd be able to crack the codes and find some useful information. From what he could gather she was probably Section 31. That is all that he needed, all the ship needed was some self-righteous bitch with her own agenda.

Still the best way to gather information was the old fashioned way. Human Intel. He was playing a dangerous game, gathering information, or at least attempting to, on his boss. She had far more training than he did, but that was okay. He didn't mind the challenge. He also had his father Patrick's instincts.


He walked into the main office unannounced. He was the assistant chief. He worked here.

"If you're trying to sneak up on me, you need some more practice," Jhu commented without looking up from the console she was working on. If he managed to get through the main door, he either belonged there or was about to cause trouble, and either way she wasn't too worried about his presence. "There something I can help you with?"

He kept his expression neutral, though his natural inclination was to smirk, "Yes ma'am," he replied, his voice as neutral as his expression, "I work here, I'm the Assistant Chief. Oh and one more thing. I wasn't trying to be sneaky. If I were you wouldn't have heard me."

"Wanna bet?" Jhu brushed her hair back from one pointed ear. "I can hear the warp core humming from here... and you have to breathe eventually, even when you're being sneaky." Deciding that the work could wait, she closed the open files and gave her new assistant a studious look. "I assume you have a name."

"Don't we all?" he started to ask, but thought he should wait to play the smart ass til after he introduced himself, "Lieutenant Kyle Weaver," he said. He suspected that she was exaggerating somewhat, the exact opposite of what he was accustomed to doing, but he wasn't going to challenge her. "It looks like we are going to be working together."

"Better than how our illustrious captain intended for me to work," Jhu commented dryly, picking up a PADD to consult her personnel list. "The only Weaver I have here is a Patrick, middle initial K. Is that you?"

"Yes, that is me. I prefer using my middle name. No one I know calls me Patrick. "and how does our Captain want you to work?"

"Kyle it is then." Not wanting to argue over something as simple as what name he liked, Jhu made the correction in her personnel list and set the PADD down. "He thinks we can work down here with no information, and he wants us to do it silently. Without pestering him. Ever." She rolled her eyes, making no attempt to disguise her dislike for Kerouac. "But he's allowed us access to the sensor grid and given us some extra computing power, so there's that at least. Though how he expects me to learn anything without any data is beyond me."

"Why do you think he would put those kinds of restrictions on you, on our department? Do you think he has something to hide, or is he like every other typical Fleeter Captain and fearful of the people that have to do the heavy lifting to really keep the Federation safe?"

Jhu smiled very slowly. "I like you. And he's a typical Fleeter, doesn't trust Intelligence one bit. But he doesn't trust me in particular, and I have no interest in making him like me. I'm only here to do a job, not cater to his whims."

"Well you shouldn't have to change to please him. Just do what you came here to do. Now what about me? What do you see my role as? I am new to this chief stuff. My specialty is as an Infiltration Specialist, but I'm betting you already knew that. I mean I know if I were in your position I would want to know as much about everyone on board. You can never be too careful, you know."

"You..." Jhu paused, not entirely certain where his skills would be useful short of away team duty. "Other than the obvious tasks of helping me sort through what data we do have and determining what's worth pursuing, you'll probably get more away team assignments than I will. Kerouac would rather kill the away team himself than send me with one. He's a damn fool, if you ask me." She shook her head slightly. "And yes I do want to know as much as I can about this crew. If you want to help me with that, you can. If not... I'll do it myself."


"I can help with the crew and with the data. I've only met the Captain briefly. He seems a little unsure of himself, I'll grant you that, but what makes you think he's a fool. Mind you, I'm not disagreeing with you, I just want to know. I could try to get closer to him if you'd like. See what's on his mind."

"Intuition, Lieutenant. After you've dealt with enough men like him, you start to recognize them on sight. No concern for how his actions might affect other people, and no clue what he's getting into. Telling you any more than that would be inappropriate... the rest you will have to judge for yourself." Jhu paused, considering Kyle's offer to get close to Kerouac and see what the man was thinking. "If you can do that without raising his suspicions, I'll put you in for extra shore leave. Consequences be damned."

~Oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive~ Kyle thought to himself. He thought about how much trouble he could get in, with his boss, his husband, the Captain, if things went just the least bit south. He'd not only be a man without a country, but he'd be a man without a universe. He would be walking tight rope with virtually no safety net.

"I think I can handle that assignment."

"Be careful. If he starts to catch on, back off. Last thing we need is to lose a member of this department before we get to do anything." Jhu picked up a PADD and scribbled some notes down on it for ideas of what to gather on the captain, handing it to Kyle when she was done. "I'm not looking for leverage, per se. Just information."

He took the PAaD from her, "I think I can handle that and if he starts to get suspicious, I'll just turn on my boyish charm." He left to her imagination what that might entail. There were some lines, he just wouldn't cross and being unfaithful to Noah was one of them. But he didn't have to give her all the details.

"Feel free to keep those details to yourself," Jhu remarked dryly. "But keep me updated on what you find out. You can start whenever you're ready."

"Okay, maybe I'll find an excuse to stop by his cabin in the next day or two. You know just pay him a visit. How does that sound?"

Jhu grinned at him. "Perfect."

"Well, I guess I'll be going then unless you have anything more for me."

"Nothing else at the moment. You're free to go."

He turned to leave and said, "I'll report back to you in a couple of days."

ON:

It had been a long trip, but things were drawing to a close in just a few hours they would be at the Katana, their new ship, their first assignment together. Kyle had been working out in the gym trying to work off some excess energy and though he wouldn't admit it, nervousness It was going to be different than his last assignment and his first time being the Assistant Chief and he wasn't sure if he could really handle the job.

His hair was still damp and a little spiky from the shower he had taken when he stepped into the cabin he shared with his husband Noah.

Noah had just finished packing his duffel and had left it on the couch in the main part of the cabin. He stood at the table gathering PaDDs when Kyle had emerged, he offered the other man a slight smile then continued to round up the information devices that contained crew dossiers, specs, and transfer orders. He was an organized man, he wanted to be ready for anything that was thrown at him. "Hello," he said. Though he spoke, his voice was deep but muffled slightly. Even with all the help of the hearing aids and speech therapists over the years, he still could not master 'normal' speech. His words always sounded muffled, but at least he could be understood. That was the key.

Kyle returned Noah's smile smoothing his hair down with his free hand. Then his smile faltered somewhat,"I'm sorry, I didn't realized I'd been gone so long, I hope you didn't have to do all the work."

Shrugging, Noah looked at the other man. "It's fine, no big deal really," he said as he took the stack of PaDDs and deposited them into a carrying case. "I didn't really have anything else to do," he picked up the case and moved to the couch and set the case next to the duffel. He returned to the table and picking up one lone PaDD he handed it to Kyle. "This one contains your transfer orders, I figured you would want that on you when we board the Katana."

"Yeah thanks," he said taking the PaDD, "that would be helpful." He put the device in his pocket. "Do you have a minute to talk?"

"Sure," Noah said. He pulled one of the chairs from the table and sat down. He never liked the phrase 'do you have a minute to talk' but he tried to shove the doubt and worries out of his mind. "What's on your mind?"

"You know I love you and would follow you anywhere and I thought I had the whole promotion thing under control, but I've never done it before and I'm beginning to doubt myself."

"Oh." He certainly didn't expect that. Nevertheless, he wasn't sure what Kyle was really saying, he was trying to read between the lines. Was he not going to take the promotion and not transfer to the Katana with him? That would be absurd, right. "You shouldn't doubt yourself, you are good at what you do and you are being recognized for that." He paused and shrugged. "Besides, I am in the same boat after all. I have spent the last ten years at the Academy, being on a ship, running a department is a whole new ball of wax for me. At least you have shipboard experience, that is a plus in your favor." Noah smiled. "I know you will do great, I have plenty of faith for the both of us."

"I guess its going to be a bit of a leap pf faith for both of us then and you have no idea how good it makes me feel to know that were going to be together and that we can lean on each other. Are we going to have time to get dinner before we leave? I was thinking we could do the whole candle light thing."

Noah nodded. They had a few hours before they would be docking with the starbase that the Katana was docked with. He was definitely excited by this new endeavor he would be taking with Kyle. "Sure, that would be nice." He stood and extended a hand to the other man. "I will help you prepare it."

Kyle took his hand and signed, "You always know the right thing to do to make me feel good. What are you in the mood for?"

"I've known you half my life, I'm bound to know what makes you feel good," Noah signed in return. "Italian sounds good."

"You've known how to do that almost from the very start Noah, its just one of the reasons I love you. I never want to be without you. How about something simple; spinach salad, bow-tie pasta, Marsala sauce, and Garlic Bread?"

Noah reached and touched the other man's cheek then let his hand fall back to his side. "That sounds delicious."

Kyle looked directly into Noah's face "You look delicious too," he signed, then leaned forward to kiss him.

OFF:

Lieutenant Noah Evans, M.D., Ph.D.
Chief Science Officer
USS Katana


Lieutenant(j.g.)Kyle Weaver
Asst. Chief Intel
USSKatana

Kyle really wasn't ships security, it wasn't his business what went on behind closed doors, or for that matter open ones as long as didn't jeopardize the mission, or it piqued his curiosity. But after his conversations with both the Captain and his boss, he was pretty sure there was more going on, on the Katana than met the eye, and that could be very dangerous indeed. So he decided to check things out for himself, but taking a quick tour around.

It was somewhat unorthodox and unauthorized, but things like that rarely concerned him. He was in Engineering when he heard an unfamiliar sound. He was about as far from an engineer as he could get, but even he new it wasn't normal and needed to be investigated. It was coming from one of the Jeffries Tubes as near as he could make out.

So he crawled inside, ready to draw the phaser he had in the small of his back and came face to face with fairly attractive looking woman in a Star Fleet uniform. She didn't seem to be fixing anything just kind of standing there.

"Can I help you?" he asked keep his right hand close to his weapon.

Sabrina had been ranting away at Bob, about how she couldn't even shower in her own quarters because her towel, or clothes, or both, kept mysteriously disappearing. So here she was at the end of a 12 hour shift, still in uniform and needing said shower. When she heard the hatch start to open she shut up and turned to look.

Could he help her? He was the one coming into the Jeffries Tube Junction. She then spotted the pips. "No sir. Can I help you?"

"I am just a bit curious as to why you're doing in this place? I mean it looks like you're an engineer, or in the engineering department, but you don't look like you're fixing anything. Can you explain what you're doing?"

"Ummm." Sabrina blushed. Ok, this was embarrassing. She couldn't exactly lie and say she was repairing something, she had no tools. "I am an engineer, repair specialist." She specified. "Sir. But I was...." She paused. "I was talking to Bob." There really was no way to explain it without sounding like a crazy person. "I named this Jeffries Tube junction Bob and he's a good listener." Sabrina's mind started doing a chant of 'please don't judge, please don't judge.' All she needed was to get written up for, well for whatever it was that was wrong with spilling your guts to a Jeffries Tube Junction.

Kyle's face remained impassive. Talking to a Jeffries Tube wasn't the most rational thing he had heard, but it was by far not the most irrational. He figured as long as Bob did not talk back then things couldn't be too bad. "So what have you been talking to Bob about?"

Sabrina's blush deepened. She would refrain from answering, but training had it drilled in her. You answered direct questions from superior officers.

"Just about some practical jokes being played." Hopefully that was specific enough to satisfy him while being vague enough to keep her from further embarrassing herself. She pushed a lock of hair off her face, one that continually managed to escape her pony tail. "I'm sorry if I was disturbing you." She wasn't aware of anything needed to be done in Bob, but maybe he just needed a passageway to somewhere else. Sabrina attempted to step to the side as an indication that she would leave so he could enter and go about whatever it was he needed.

"You didn't disturb me, I was just taking a little tour of the ship and thought I heard something. You can go on talking with Bob, or we can go get something to eat. I'm a much better listener than Bob and I even answer back."

At the mention of food, her stomach growled, it practically echoed inside Bob. She stared down at her stomach and mumbled. "Thanks a lot." Then back up to the Lieutenant Junior Grade whom she still didn't know. "Crewman recruit Sabrina Corbin." She wasn't about to accept or not accept his offer without at least getting a name.

"I'm Kyle Weaver, and it is just the two,well three of us, you don't have to call me sir and you most certainly don't have to call me by my rank."

He offered her his hand, "Now, could we get out of here? Bob and I aren't going to get along that well if we stick around much longer."

Sabrina let out a little chuckle. Well at least Kyle had a sense of humor. "Sure." She patted the bulkhead. "Bye Bob, be good." She then followed Kyle out of the hatch and into the corridor, where her stomach promptly growled again. "Shut up already." She blushed. She was really going to have to have a talk with her digestive system. It had been twelve hours sense she'd eaten though, and she was very hungry. "Intel?" She asked, taking note of the color on his collar.

"Guilty as charged, but I really an a sweet guy. All the stuff you read in the holonovels, most of them are pure fiction, I'd invite you back to my place for some real non-replicated food, but people might get ideas, so I guess it's the lounge. And what kind of food are you in the mood for?" Almost unconsciously he ran a hand through his hair.

If Sabrina weren't keeping secrets she would comment that she hardly thought it could be worse than her roommates thinking she slept with the Captain. She didn't get any vibe that he was hitting on her, or she would have declined his offer, but he was right about appearances. "I can't say I've read any of those type of holo novels, but the lounge is a good idea." She had to think about what she was in the mood for. Mostly she was just plain hungry. "Italian." She finally decided.

"Well, I just had Italian last night, we'll probably have leftovers, so I'll think I'll have breakfast, I could eat breakfast anytime." He started walking out into the hall.

Sabrina nodded her agreement enthusiastically. "Oh for sure, pancakes are good whenever, and anything taste good if you drown it in maple syrup."
She noticed the 'we'll' and suddenly worried she was keeping him from home. "You don't have to babysit me if you want to get home." She offered.

"He's a big boy, he can take care of himself till I get home, and I wouldn't doubt if he's still working But I better not stay out too late."

Sabrina chuckled. "I'll have you home by midnight, wouldn't want you to turn into a pumpkin." They entered the lounge, and Sabrina headed straight to the replicator, ordering spaghetti with meatballs a salad and a sourdough roll, along with a large glass of water. Getting it all to the table without spilling it was an exercise in balance, but she managed.

"Midnight works," Kyle commented as he followed her to the replicator. He got himself chocolate chip pancakes, a couple of strips of crisp bacon, fried potatoes and a glass of apple juice.

"Nice hand," he told her as he sat his tray down beside her.

Sabrina nodded and smiled, seeing what he had ordered. "Good choice." Then she started eating, very much like she hadn't eaten all day, which she hadn't. When she finally came up for air, she realized that she was probably suppose to tell Kyle something. "Did you ever have roommates?"

"Well Noah, that's my husband, was my roommate at the Academy, so that's not the same. But I've been on a couple of ships while he was finishing school, so I've had a couple. They can be a pain in the ass sometimes. Why? are you having problems with them?"

Sabrina reluctantly nodded. "They can be a pain in the ass." She agreed. He'd spoken candidly so she felt free to as well, to a point. "How do you get them to stop short sheeting your bed, and stealing your clothes while you are in the shower and drinking your private stash of real coffee." She finally stopped rattling off the list of offenses, though she had more.

"Well, I could pay them a visit if you want, make them think they're under investigation for something, that should put the fear of the Universe in them. But, have you tried returning the favor?"

Sabrina chuckled at the mental picture that suggestion gave her. "and stoop to their level." She shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I'll work it out. It's a good idea though."

"Well, sometimes you have to fight fire with fire, the other solution is to kill them with kindness. Go out of your way to be nice to them. Bring them coffee, turn their sheets back, that kind of thing. Both methods can be effective. But if you change your mind, let me know."

Sabrina didn't like the sound of that option at all. She'd just have to keep his Intel option on the back burner if she really got desperate. She finished her spaghetti, and looked longingly at his pancakes. She'd wait until he'd left and get her own, less she appear to be a complete pig.

Kyle had saved the pancakes for last, he glanced up at her as he began eating them. Between bites he said, "You know you should come over for dinner sometime. Meet my better half and get a home cooked meal."

"I'm sure you don't need some crewman recruit interrupting your evening." Though the friendly offer was the best one she'd received yet. She longed to just say yes and thank you.

Kyle saw the uncertainty in her eyes, "You wouldn't be intruding, otherwise I wouldn't have asked you. Noah won't mind. He's used to it by now and besides we both like to entertain."

Sabrina let out a small chuckle. "You bring home strays a lot do you?" She then smiled. "I'd love to, thank you."

Now it was Kyle's turn to chuckle, "Ever since we were in High School. But tell me we've talked about your problems. Maybe we should talk about you. What brings you here, I mean why did you join Star Fleet?"

"It's kind of embarrassing." But he'd already caught her talking to Bob, and she'd told him about her awful room mates, she figured she had nothing to lose. "I was going to go to college, follow my boyfriend kind of thing. We'd both been accepted to the same college. But then at prom he decided he wanted more than I was willing to give. I broke his nose." Sabrina grinned. She was actually quite proud of that. "So of course he told everybody I was a bad in bed even though I wouldn't sleep with him, and I was going to die of embarrassment." She blushed. "So I pretty much ran off and joined Starfleet so I could get as far off planet as possible. I was surprised when the aptitude test said repair specialist. I thought I wanted to be a Marine Biologist. Anyway, that's how I ended up here."

"Good for you, you should have stood up for yourself. We do have a lot in common. Before Noah and I
got married, when I was stationed on the Nimitz and he was finishing up his studies on Earth, I had a guy start rumors about me, well him and me. It kind of spread throughout the ship. I've never slept with anyone but Noah, I never would. So I wound up decking him. I got busted down to Ensign and just recently got the promotion back to Lt. (jg). But you know something, it was worth it."

Sabrina smiled. That was sweet. "I bet. I hate rumor starters. It's so high school. I was really hoping things would be different here. I mean they are for the most part, except the roommates. They already think something that isn't true, and I'd love to deck all three of them." She chuckled. "But I don't really have any lower to go, just booted out. Now I'm looking forward to meeting Noah, if he's worth taking a demotion for."

"He's worth even more than that. How about Friday night, about 1830? And I am sure you can take care of yourself, but if you need any help with those roommates of yours let me know. I'll be glad to lend a hand."

"That sounds good. Thanks for the invitation. Can I bring anything? I'm sure I'll come up with something, but I'll let you know." She really did need to stop avoiding and come up with something. Bob was a great listener, but was horrible on the back. Cold decks were not meant to be slept on.

"Well I was thinking of making meatloaf and baked potatoes, unless you had something else you'd rather have."

"No that sounds great." If she hadn't just stuffed herself on spaghetti and meatballs, no doubt her stomach would growl again. "I better let you get home to Noah, I need to get back to my quarters and study." and shower, but she wasn't going to mention that part. He'd been kind enough not to tell her she smelled, so she wasn't going to bring it up.

"Yeah, I had better leave and get home, I've got somethings to talk with him about. I'll see you on Friday."

"Thanks again." Sabrina smiled kindly at him, then cleaned up her mess and headed to her quarters.




Crewman Recruit Sabrina Corbin
Repair Specialist


Lt.(j.g.)Kyle Weaver
Asst. Intel Chief

ON:

Noah Evans was not apprehensive about sickbays, or doctors for that matter. He spent the better part of his childhood in medical complexes surrounded by doctors, nurses and surgeons to make him immune to the effects of these types. Heck he became a medical doctor himself. In fact it had perplexed him why people ignored medical staff or even worse - were terrified of them. It made no sense, especially in the 24th century. He just assumed it was some deep seeded fear that was ingrained in the humanoid psyche. But not his. To him a new arrival physical was nothing. He entered the medical bay and surveyed the small area. He wasn't taken aback but he wasn't sure what to really expect. Specs never truly prepared oneself for the enormity that was a starship. The Intrepid-Class was on the smaller side, but still quite spacious. Sickbay was small but adequate for the size of the ship. The compartment was immaculate and there was a newness to it, though he was pretty sure the Katana wasn't a new starship. However, it was new to him.

He stepped forward. "Hello," he called out. "Doctor Cohen?"

Liam looked up over the bio bed, he'd been on his hands and knees recalibrating the imaging scanner on the bio bed in the small critical care area of sickbay. It served if needed as an emergency third OR, and had a greater deal of equipment included than the three along the wall. "Yes." He replied getting to his feet, he recognized the man from the meeting earlier as the new Chief Science Officer. "Doctor Evans." He said smiling, extending his hand as he approached the other officer.

Noah nodded and took the offered hand into his own and gave it a firm shake. "Good to meet you Doctor Cohen," he said. He let a moment slip by then spoke again. "I'm here for my physical."

"This is going to take some getting use to." He said gesturing to the bio bed, "I actually have senior staff coming in before I start hounding them about it." He laughed, he ducked into his office for a second and grabbed his stethoscope and then scrubbed before moving back to the bio bed. "Any preexisting conditions I should be aware of?"

Noah hopped up onto the bio bed, his legs dangling over the side. He smiled as he lifted his hands to point to both ears. "Deaf, otherwise perfect health," he said. He looked down at the stethoscope then looked back up at the chief medical officer with a curious look. "Is that a stethoscope? I didn't know doctors used those anymore."

Liam laughed, "I like the personal touch." He said gesturing to the bed, and started the scan.

"Nothing wrong with a personal touch," Noah said. "I think 24th century doctors, or at least most of them, seem to have lost that personal touch. Not that medical technology isn't great, but people still want a soothing gesture." He shrugged, "At least that is what I think."

"I agree." Liam said as he pressed the stethoscope against the man's chest. "Deep breath, and another." He instructed.

As instructed, Noah took in a deep lungful of air, blew it out and then repeated. He knew he was healthy, but he had to admit this was an interesting way of doing things.

"Looks good, your readings are all normal as well. I'm just going to take a quick blood sample for the usual screenings." He said. A moment later the blood sample was drawn and the analysis already under way. "That should be it," He said, "But while you're here I wanted to talk about the possibility of you lending us a hand down here if we need one. I know you'll likely have your hands full as CSO but, I have the feeling we'll need all the MDs we can get at some point."

Noah had prided himself on his health, it was something he maintained with strict diet and exercise. Though, he did allow himself to splurge once in a while, to him there was no reason to deny oneself the pleasures of food or to just lay around and do nothing. He had spent a lot of evenings in the gym, learning to box, it was a great way to take out his aggression and anger that he would bottle up. "I'd be happy to help doctor," he said. He knew that his duties as a science officer wouldn't always be needed, especially if they ever ran into a battle crisis. "In fact I was hoping to be able to take on a shift or two in sickbay or as needed."

"Good. I'll look at scheduling you in, if it conflicts with your other duties, just let me know." He said, with a nod.

"Will do," Noah said, mirroring the nod.

"Alright well if there's nothing else you're free to go." He said.

Noah offered a smile to the chief medical officer and shook his head as he slid off the bio bed. "Thank you doctor," he said. "Again, It was nice to meet you." With that said, he exited sickbay and continued on with his day.

OFF:

Lieutenant Noah Evans, M.D., Ph.D.
Chief Science Officer

Lieutenant Liam Cohen, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer

Maica knew she would have to network quickly on the ship - she'd have to be ready for anything in the constantly changing environment that a mobile diplomacy position would put her in. This is why she was currently looking for the Chief Intelligence Officer's office. In the past, she had shared information with other Intel Officers and she hoped she could do the same here. Not that she enjoyed the sneaky peaky secret squirrel stuff, but having a bit of an extra edge at the bargaining table while mediating was a definite plus and had made her job just that much easier in several negotiations.

Finding the door she had been searching for, Maica pressed the door chime and waited. She expected the door to be locked and who knows what to be going on inside. She also expected her synthetic systems to set off any sensors for listening devices and the like. It couldn't be helped though - she was what she was and nothing could change that.

The chime went off at the same time as the 'recording equipment detected' alarm, but all Jhu saw on the sensors was Maica. Oh, right. Android. Sheepishly, she disabled the alarm and opened the door herself, offering Maica an uncharacteristic apologetic smile. "Someone clearly forgot to update that thing. Can I help you with something?"

Smiling warmly up at the taller woman, Maica just shrugs it off. "It's fine. I'm used to setting those things off. As for my visit, I've done a lot of work with Intel officers in my last assignments so I was hoping I could continue that cooperation with you, if you're willing."

"On this ship, I appreciate any help I can get. Come inside." Jhu stepped back to give Maica space to enter. "We don't have a ton of space in here, but it's enough room for two people to work."

Stepping inside, Maica glanced around the office. It was barely bigger than a storage locker, but it was at least something. "Look at the bright side - you have an office. Most lower ranking diplomats are expected to entertain dignitaries either in a shared briefing room or their own quarters." Taking the guest chair, she relaxes a bit while offering up the PaDD she carried. "I've been reviewing the file Starfleet has on the Wadi and added my own notes based on my experiences with them before I joined. They're nothing official, but you might find them an interesting read."

"Might be helpful. I don't think the files I have are complete... not surprising, honestly. Most Fleeters don't trust Intel." Jhu took the offered PADD and sat down at the tiny desk, looking over it. "You're right though. At least I have this little closet to work in."

"I left out the name of my creator. I'd rather not remember him at all, but the perverted Ferengi was into those Chula games so if my experiences can help, so be it." Maica's synthetically perfect facial features were starting to contort into a bit of a frown. She didn't enjoy the days on end she spent trapped in those games, but she was forced by her programming at the time to pretend to love it and to perform oo-mox afterward...

"Chula is a terrible game for terrible people." Jhu cautiously avoided mentioning Maica's creator, not seeing the point in forcing her to relive any abuse she may have suffered at the Ferengi's hands. "But whatever tactics we know going in will help."

Maica smiles warmly, nodding slowly. "And I put all the detail I can into the parts I added. I know the games have changed a bit over time, but the principles are constant. Through every game though, no matter what I did, the only way out I could find was to finish the game." She looked down at her hands, flexing each of her cybernetic joints in turn, thinking about the flatly colorful game boards and the various symbols and trials. Shaking the memories off, she looks back up at the intel officer. "What about you? Any interesting info you can share?"

"Unfortunately, I know less than you do," Jhu admitted after a quiet moment. "I'm not familiar with the Gamma quadrant, and there's only so much information I can request without looking suspicious. And Kerouac already doesn't trust me." Granted the man had good reason not to trust her, but she wasn't going to tell anyone that. "But I do remember the report Sisko wrote on the Wadi. There's no way to cheat. The obvious path usually leads to losing one of your 'pieces.' And it's the only way these people will talk to us. Anyone who doesn't play won't be a part of the discussion."

"My experiences have led me to the same conclusions, sadly. And if push comes to shove, I'm the only one with the experience in the games to actually make it through one successfully." Maica knew she would be on the away team to the planet - there was no denying it. She just hoped she could take the stress ok. "So how about you? It's not every day one sees spots and pointy ears on the same being outside of a trashy holo-novel. Do you have an interesting story you can share?"

Taken aback by the comparison, Jhu gave Maica a blank look for several long seconds before she started laughing at the idea. "I never asked if it was that interesting. Frankly I don't want to know how wild and crazy my parents' sex life was. With Dad being a Trill, I'm sure they had their moments." Still laughing slightly, she abandoned her PADD to the desk and leaned back into her chair. "The Star Empire had some sort of exchange program with Starfleet in the 2350s. When they got tired of Mom causing trouble for them, they dumped her in the program and then basically banished her. I honestly don't know how she ended up on the same ship as Dad... she'd known the previous host, so they got friendly... and I probably don't have to tell you what that led to."

Giggling a bit in response, Maica nods and holds up a hand in response. "It's likely I have a better idea what they did than you do. I was programmed as a very full featured sex android, after all. No, I was more hoping you had some interesting lessons from your youth. I can't imagine your childhood was easy and since I basically skipped childhood..."

"Wasn't too bad before we left the Hyperion... pretty much everyone there treated us like any 'normal' kids. Probably because they were all afraid of my mom. Earth though... with other kids around... not as easy. I mean, Jaddy and I could just wear our hair loose, but Aerv got teased a lot. Until I rescued him from a bully anyway." Jhu grinned at the memory of saving her older brother and the look on his face afterward. "And I hate to say it but Starfleet hasn't been much better."

"I can imagine. I've noticed that members of the Federation are more tolerant of most, but they're still just that. Tolerant. If you're not one of the warm cute and squishy races, you're not on the party invites. They're still better than the Ferengi, though." Maica shuddered at the thought of what the Ferengi considered 'diplomatic relations.'

"Some days they aren't even tolerant." Jhu sighed, glancing away. "Being half Romulan leads to me not being trusted. Which means I can't do my job. At least Saavik could pass for being fully Vulcan."

"Look at the bright side. You haven't been completely dissected and reassembled by an engineering team. When I asked for asylum from the Federation they did everything they could to prove that I was a spy or a trick designed for profit." Maica smiled warmly at that thought - those engineers were a lot kinder than she had hoped and expected. "They failed of course."

"That certainly puts it in a different perspective," Jhu admitted quietly, smiling just a little. "They've never tried to literally take me apart during their 'questioning.' But the distrust is alive and well on this ship. Proof of it everywhere... there was plenty of time to install a proper intelligence suite. We'll pay for the oversight eventually, and it's no secret who Kerouac will blame."

"Well you did also join Intel. Not many people trust anyone in your line of work. Very secretive and isolated." Maica leans in and whispers meaningfully. "They watch you peeee..." She nodded slowly at that as she leaned back, a solemn look on her face.

"We do not. That's gross." Jhu couldn't help giggling a little at Maica's solemn expression. "Secretive, yes. No argument there. But most of us are isolated by our non-Intelligence colleagues. I wouldn't mind being sociable, but by my count approximately zero people here like me. And Weaver doesn't count."

Maica giggled with Jhu, glad she could bring a laugh to the Intel officer. "I hope you move that number up by one. I'm starting to like you quite a bit."

"...really?" Not accustomed to people outside of her chosen profession, Jhu wasn't quite sure how she should feel. "I mean... well." She paused, an expression of relief crossing her face. "I guess I'll have to update my numbers then! You really have no idea how rarely I hear that. Thank you."

"You're very welcome. We're both in fields where we need all the information we can get, so why not get close to each other?" Blushing, Maica looked away. "Sorry, that didn't sound right..."

"No, it did not, but that's okay. Language can be a funny thing, no matter how long you've known it. Besides, you have a point. Your department's probably the only one mine is ever going to agree with, so we might as well start sharing now." Jhu grinned a little mischievously. "Easier to gang up on Kerouac that way. Not maliciously, just to irritate him a bit. Kind of deserves it."

"He seems nice enough, but yeah I can see that. I offered him my bed... oh... I don't use my bed so I was offering it as an aside... I bet he took that the wrong way..." Maica blushed even harder at that thought. "Anyway, I'll back you up whenever you need it."

"He hasn't been nice to me, so I definitely appreciate that." Jhu picked up a PADD and transferred the unclassified portion of her mission notes to it before handing it to Maica. "At least we know he's capable of being nice. I was starting to wonder."

Taking the PaDD, Maica glanced over it before looking back up. "He does seem to be a disturbed individual, but given time, I think those rough edges will smooth out." Standing and smiling warmly, she offered her hand for a handshake. "It's been a pleasure meeting you, my friend. I look forward to our future collaborations."

"So do I." Returning Maica's warm smile, Jhu gladly accepted the handshake, grateful to have found at least one friend on board.

Lieutenant Commander Zanaar was in the shuttle bay, standing next to one of the Katana's smaller shuttles. He held a PADD which listed the names of the crew he had chosen for the upcoming away mission. For a normal mission, the choices on the list were a little strange. As was the use of a shuttle over the transporters. However, the mission itself was a little out of the ordinary. Tul and his away team would be looking for pirates on Tomerela IV. Pirates that may, or may not, be there.

For such a -possibly- dangerous mission, Tul would have preferred a large security force. However, the pirates were still only a possible presence. Thus Tul chose to take only the Chief of Security, Sirigh, one of his men, and hand phasers. To complicate matters further, the Wadi could be dangerous. Stories of their Chula game circulated throughout Starfleet. His list included the name Maica, the diplomatic officer, should tensions arise. Last on the PADD were the names of a young engineering crewman and a pilot.

Tul reviewed the names once more before he tapped his badge. "Lieutenant Sirigh, Lieutenant Maica, Lieutenant Verak, and Crewman Corbin. Report immediately to the shuttle bay for departure."

Lieutenant Verak, having received the order to head to the shuttle bay, stood up from his seat at Helm and surrendered the seat to a young ensign. "Maintain current status unless ordered otherwise" Verak said to the ensign as he departed from his station and proceeded to the turbo lift. He knew where he would be taking the Away Team. It would be to Tomerela IV, home world of the Wadi people.

Illogical games thought Verak rolling his eyes, an act of expression from his human heritage and human upbringing. He proceeded to the shuttle bay having made a brief detour at the armory to check out a Type-II. The Vulcan-Human helmsmen entered the shuttle bay with a brow raised as he looked at the First Officer with some scrutiny.

Holstering the phaser and crossing his arms, Lieutenant Verak looked at the Andorian. "Lieutenant Verak reported as ordered" he said in a flat tone.

Tul looked up from the mission specs on his PADD as the Vulcan helmsman arrived. "Alright Lieutenant. The rest of the team should be arriving shortly. You may begin prepping the shuttle."

The helmsmen inclined his head and entered the shuttle, heading for the cockpit. He began to do a complete systems check of all the vital systems.

Maica was in the middle of writing up yet another diplomatic paper when she got the call to report to the shuttle bay. Leaning back in her chair, she acknowledged the order and grabbed the more common uniform jacket - it was still her diplomatic purple trim, but wasn't anywhere near as formal as her other outfits. It was likely the expected away mission, so she grabbed her favorite tricorder and headed out the door. Since she didn't normally get issued weaponry, she would have to use one of the shuttle's phasers if things got really bad.

After about a minute, she was stepping out onto the shuttle bay floor, looking for Commander Zanaar. She headed for the one shuttle being prepped for launch, finding him just outside of it. "Lieutenant Maica reporting, sir."

Sabrina came hurrying in, with two full repair kits slung across her shoulders. She didn't know what needed repairing, but she'd heard the scuttlebutt of an Away Team going to Tomerela IV, so whatever it was probably needed to be fixed in a hurry. She spotted Lieutenant Commander pips and came to attention, rather awkwardly with the weight of the kits. "Sir, Crewman Recruit Corbin reporting."

"Welcome," Tul said as Lieutenant Maica and Crewman Corbin appeared one after the other. His antennae nearly crossed in confusion as his gaze fell on the encumbered engineer. "Crewman, we have suitable repair kits on the shuttle. You didn't need to bring.... two. Here, let me help," Tul offered, reaching for one of the kits.

"On the shuttle sir?" Sabrina was confused. "I wasn't sure what needed repair, so I came prepared." His offer to help didn't really process until he actually touched on of the kits. "Oh, I've got it sir." She stood nervously in the bay full of officers, who were obviously preparing for an Away Team. She wished she'd gotten more information then just 'Report to the shuttle bay.' She did much better with clear instructions, and time to mentally prepare.

Tul gave an affable nod and let go of the repair kit.

Sirigh strode proudly down the corridor, much more composed and less moist for his own meeting with his security staff than he had been for the Captain. He received the transmission from Lt. Commander Zanaar, however, just before he walked through the doors to his own office. Half his brain cursing quietly, he betrayed none of his annoyance as the other half tapped his com badge with a simple "Rodger that," and only just as he strode in and watched those who'd be working under him rise to their feet. "Change of schedule," He said to the the room at large as he walked across it, not bothering to give everyone the order to sit, "I've been called for an away mission. Meeting will resume at 0700 tomorrow morning."

As he swung around on his heel, he was only somewhat looking for a random face, though something thought the least perturbed would show promise. "All dismissed except for you," He said, nodding to a particularly short Vulcan, "you're with me, Ensign Safis." Only after he had chosen did he realize an unperturbed Vulcan was little to be impressed with. Nonetheless he said little as the room cleared and he led the way towards the shuttle bay, ensign in tow.

A few corridors and a turbolift later, Sirigh and Safis found themselves in the Shuttle Bay. Sirigh needed only glance about the room before spotting and striding for Lt. Commander Zanaar, only to find the awkward, overburdened engineer flustering between him and his superior. He cleared his throat, delaying for only a moment to remember her face from the crew roster. "Crewman Recruit Sabrina Corbin, I presume?" He said, not unkindly, even as he had to look down from a full foot and a half above her height.

More officers, very large scary looking officers. "Yes sir. Crewman recruit Corbin sir." Sabrina now had a firm grip on both engineering kits, they made very good security blankets. She took a step back and took a deep breath. Whatever it was the group needed from her, she was sure to find out soon enough.

"Lieutenant Sirigh," Tul said, greeting the tall Orion security chief. The bulk of the away team was now assembled around him and the shuttle. The group stood near the shuttle's hatch so Tul assumed Verak could hear him.

"As you all may have heard..." Tul paused, suddenly remembering something: Crewman Corbin hadn't been at the briefing. Oops. That must have been why she was so surprised. Tul began again, "As many of you may know pirates have been attacking ships in this area. As an away team, we are assigned to visit Tomerela Four and attempt to identify these pirates."

"Lieutenant Sirigh will supply everyone with hand phasers," Tul glanced at the security officers, both were already armed. "I will only ask once that every member of this team remains vigilant. Not only for suspicious activity but for the Wadi people themselves. Do not accept any object from them, do not agree to play any game. We are not on shore leave. However, if any Wadi seems willing to speak with you, try to gather any information you can."

Tul swept his hand towards the shuttle's hatch, "All aboard." The Andorian XO knew the mission's details were sparse but it was what they had: try to find those pirates.

Away Team. She was going to be on the Away Team! Sabrina wanted to let out a squeal of delight, but dared not in the current company. She did her best to appear ready and calm, as if she went on Away Teams all the time. No big deal. She was now glad she'd brought the engineering kits. With two of them she could build a rudimentary robot, at least they would be prepared repair wise, if the need came up.

Sirigh waited to board the shuttle last, letting the rest of the crew and his own underling precede him. With no small thought of his first away mission as the senior of his subset, he smiled as he tapped the few buttons to shut and seal the door behind him. "All aboard and accounted for, Lieutenant Commander."

--Tomerela IV--

The shuttle set down just outside of a Wadi city. Tul pulled the hatch release then turned to the away team. "Let's go. Remember to keep an eye on the Wadi themselves. We can save the Chula games for after we locate the pirates. Lieutenant Sirigh, you first."

Verak who had just landed the shuttle with his precision piloting skills remained in his seat. He turned slightly in his seat, making eye contact with the Andorian First Officer. "I'll remain with the shuttle if you have no objections... We may need to leave immediately at any given time. It is only logical that we be able to do so" the helmsmen said with a slight nod of his head.

However, the helmsmen reconsidered his logic. I do not want to be stuck at the rank of Lieutenant forever. I should stay with the others. If they should encounter any sort of danger, there would be strength in numbers regardless of how few of us there are on this Away Team thought the half Vulcan. "On second thought, Commander... I'll accompany you and the others" the helmsmen said as he proceeded to leave the cockpit.

Tul almost stopped Verak, thinking the helmsman could back up the away team with the shuttle's systems in a pinch. However, he knew that if trouble did occur, the shuttle would be too little too late. More hands with phasers was preferable. "Indeed, Lieutenant."

Sirigh nodded and moved for the hatch first, having to squint against the bright, bluish light of Tomerela IV's sun when the hatch opened, his skin stained an almost iridescent looking green. He stepped out after giving his eyes a moment to adjust, quickly checking each side before scanning the rest of the view. "All clear." He said after a quick glance to his tricoder, looking over the city before him.

They had set down on a bald, grassy hill overlooking the small city of Mousa. The flat base of city, along with the sloping, painted walls looked more like a game board, and within the tall, geometrically intricate shapes looked even more like game pieces than buildings. Even the vehicles floating back and forth, each more eclectic than the last, could have been players or point-tokens.

In typical and logical fashion, the Security Chief appeared to have taken the immediate lead by whipping out his tricorder and taking initial scans. This caused the helmsmen to follow suit as he too took out a tricorder and took some scans. "It would seem that we are in a relatively rural area of the city of Mousa" commented the half Vulcan with a raise of a brow.

Sabby took up the rear, squinting at the bright outdoor light as they exited the shuttle. It took her eyes a moment to adjust, it was then that she got a clear view of the city. Wow the Wadi sure liked their games. She had no interest in the Chula gangs, and wasn't sure she'd recognize a pirate if she saw one, but she nodded at the orders none the less.

The half Vulcan helmsmen took a stance next to the crewmen from Engineering. He saw the look on her face and looked outward towards the city to see what she was looking at. "A society constructed and operating on pure pleasure... for entertainment and capital. Highly illogical and disturbing... yet remarkably interesting" he said with an odd mix. He was as much Human as he was Vulcan though he often rejected his Vulcan heritage, siding mostly with his human upbringing.

Lieutenant Verak placed a hand on Sabby's shoulder and shook his head at her. "We're not here on Spring Break, Crewmen" he commented to her in a relaxed tone of voice. He quickly removed his hand from her shoulder and put his tricorder away.

Sabby look offended at Verak's comment, but she didn't comment. Just because she was young was no reason for the man to make those kinds of assumptions. She simply adjusted her engineering kits and prepared for orders.

Verak looked at the Andorian First Officer and the Orion Security Chief. "I suggest we head into town. There's little value to us hanging around the shuttle in this rural area. The Wadi as questionably advanced as they are... do not leave their games unattended. They are likely expecting us to come to them rather than them to us. No doubt they will want us to partake in these games of theirs" added the half Vulcan with a look of reluctance. He had no interest in playing games with the Wadi.

"Then we will have to respectfully refuse," Tul said firmly, equally disinterested in playing games. "We have a job to do."

Tul glanced over his team one more time. Corbin and Maica were still unarmed. He stepped back into the shuttle momentarily for a pair of hand phasers. "Crewman Corbin, leave one of those kits in the shuttle. They'll slow you down and we may need to run..." He didn't require her to leave both of the big ship-issue repair kits for the shuttle's smaller, emergency one. Tul was convinced that, if they did get stuck in a Chula game, she would be able to find a way out of the game.

"Have you used one of these, Crewman?" Tul asked finally, holding out one of the phasers.

Sabrina quickly put one of the kits back. He did have a point, there really was no reason for two. "Yes sir, but only in training. Basic marksmanship."
She wouldn't accidentally shoot somebody in the head or foot, but she wasn't exactly skilled either. She took the phaser, very much hoping she would not have to use it.

Verak then looked at the Orion looking Andorid, the Chief Diplomatic Officer attached to the Katana for circumstances such as these. Verak was accepting of her presence on this Away Team. It was logical that Commander Zanaar had selected her for the Away Team. "Are you familiar with these people, Lieutenant?" asked the helmsmen.

The decidedly sour look on Maica's face had been present since they entered the atmosphere. This place was all too familiar and for good reason - she had spent days inside of the Chula games and a couple times she had been in a reproduction of this very city. Disturbed from her thoughts, she glanced up at Verak before resuming her staring into the city. "More than I care to admit. My creator spent a lot of latinum on this world and I was his game piece of choice...." Sighing heavily, she continued. "Once you're inside of a game, there's no way out until the game is over, but they have to tell you upfront if the risks can be lethal or harmful. They enjoy their games and they can dump you in one indefinitely, but they do have a code of honor about being able to play again later."

Tul had been listening carefully. Maica's information was valuable. So Chula was more or less unlikely to kill anyone. That was good to know. Not that he had any intention of playing now or ever. From Maica's voice alone, it didn't sound pleasant. "We'll avoid being dumped in Chula indefinitely at all costs... Here, Lieutenant," Tul handed her the second phaser.

Maica stared down for a moment at the phaser before taking it and securing it to her waist. "There's something I rarely touch... Thanks Commander. I just hope they work in the game fields."

"Lieutenant Sirigh take point. Let's go," Tul ordered once the team was ready to move.

Sirigh nodded, not looking up from the beeping and clicking of his phaser as he responded a short "Rodger, Lieutenant Commander." He looked up, satisfied that his weapon was on the perfect 'stun but sting-like-a-bitch' setting. Taking in the scene and anything ahead, he walked ahead of the party, waiting for the rest to fall in.

Ensign Safis, the short-statured Vulcan security officer, took up the rear of the party. He scanned left and right but could see nothing suspicious on the grassy plains outside the city. If pirates were here, it was logical that the Katana's away team would have already been spotted. Yet there was no sign. Soon, they left the plains and entered the Wadi city.

The city was bustling. People came and went from houses and games and attractions set out on the street. A few heads turned at the arrival of the away team but no one approached them. Here, as outside the city, Safis saw no indication of suspicion or pirates.

Lieutenant Verak's Vulcan ears heard the shrilling voice from afar. "It sounds like there is some kind of commotion up ahead" the helmsmen announced.


Meanwhile, in the Wadi village The Ferengi Daimon, Marg and his Nausicaan associates, and his slave/merchandise traveled trying to trade the strange creature that Marg had chained to some of the Wadi and other visiting species. However, nobody was interested in the creature. "What is the mater with you people?! This is a deal of a life time that you're passing up here. Just look at this...thing. It will plow your fields and pleasure you!" shouted the small Ferengi as he tried to sell the creature but his shouts were ignored.

I need to market this ugly thing better "She knows how to play over a dozen games!" he shouted and then the Wadi started to circle around him. They kept tossing various furs and bottles of beverages as payment but Marg had no interest in these items. "No...no...no! I want gems!" Marg shouted smacking away hands from touching the creature.

"Hands off the merchandise unless you have what I want" he nearly hissed.

The forest child did not like so many hands on her, grasping and examining her to test her worth. They touched her hair, her wings, tugging and pulling painfully to find that both the grass-like hair was real and the insectoid wings were a natural part of her body. One of the Wadi pulled away the sash protecting her eyes to get a good look at her face. She squeaked as the light burned her eyes and again tried to hide her face. She could hear the Wadi speaking to the troll that held control over her, not knowing that the Wadi was trying to barter for the sash he had taken from her. Apparently, they were quite interested in the craftsmanship of the primitively woven cloth which was now suddenly a new avenue of profit to her master, but all the little creature knew was that something precious had been taken from her.

The little woman was growing tired of this. She had been pushed past her limits, she had enough! She pushed out, throwing everyone in the marketplace away from her. She waited a moment, expecting to feel the pain of the collar and her master did not disappoint. She fell to her knees, clawing at the device that was causing her pain. Enough! She grasped the device firmly, forcing her ability into the device in an attempt to break it, heedless of the fact that she was causing harm to herself as well.

Sabrina rushed in. Youth and righteous indignation her fuel. She'd once ran off three boys who were picking on a beached Seal. "Hey! Leave her alone!" Sabrina yelled, swatting at the hands of the Ferengi as she reached him. She had a plasma based cutter out of her kit in a flash and slashed at the chain with little finesse. Finesse wasn't necessary for the job however, and the chain severed falling to the pavement.

The forest creature had no way of knowing that Sabrina was just trying to help. She was in pain and terrified of everything going on around her and she just wanted it to stop. Fearful of this new person near her, she pushed at the human woman, throwing her away then resuming her attempts to break the collar with labored breathing, her throat bearing heavy bruising from her earlier attempt.

Sabrina landed in an undignified heap a few feet away. That was going to leave a large bruise on her hip where she'd landed harshly on the pavement. She looked up to see that the rest of the Away Team had arrived.

Tul ran up to the crowd, his face flushed a dark blue with anger. He stood over Sabrina, taking in the area with a glace. A Ferengi and an unidentifiable humanoid dominated the scene amid fleeing Wadi. Tul couldn't be sure, but he thought he had seen the creature attack Crewman Corbin before his arrival... Regardless, the young engineer had interfered with something that, previously, hadn't involved the Katana's crew. Tul chose to address this action without order first.

"Crewman! You are on report pending review of your actions!" Tul snapped, "Stay here and try not to interfere further!" Without waiting for her response, the XO stomped off.

Sabrina slumped in defeat, remaining where she sat. "Yes sir." Her voice small and timid, a far cry from just a few seconds ago. She'd only been trying to help.

"Commander Zaraan to Katana. We seem to have encountered some trouble..." Tul started to explain the Ferengi but abruptly cut the channel instead. A group of Nausicaans had appeared on the scene. Could this be the pirates they were here looking for...? Tul drew his phaser.

Catching a glimpse of the Ferengi, Maica moved behind a nearby building corner and rested her hand on her phaser. for all intensive purposes, she seemed calm, but her internal programs were anything but. Was it someone she knew? Did they know her creator? Or worse yet, was it someone that did business with him? No. This wasn't the time for these thoughts. Someone else was hurting. She could hear the girl's screams of agony. She had to do something to help, but what? Glancing around that corner, she looked over the scene carefully.

Her hand moved. Not drawing her phaser, but pulling out her tricorder. She started scanning for the locator tag she knew the big eared toad would have embedded into his latest slave. There it was - almost identical to the one she had to remove from herself all those years ago. With this she could locate the being again with relative ease. For now though, she discreetly made her way next to the commander. "Commander Zanaar, I have her locator tag in my tricorder. As they're likely either the pirates or acquainted with them, I recommend we follow them cautiously."

Tul nodded. "We'll follow them," he answered, "the Ferengi and his pirates are likely to stay near... her?" Tul wasn't sure, he was still highly suspicious of the creature. But this was a lead, "Well done, Lieutenant, let's go."

"Crewman Corbin, come on," Tul hadn't forgotten the engineer and wasn't about to leave her in the area with Nausicaan's and pirates about.

The Nausicaans moved into the picture to maintain order. Marg had saw what looked like a hU-mon approach the creature and suffer a small attack. He could have sworn he saw a Starfleet uniform and had signaled for his Nausicaan escorts to come. The lead Nausicaan grunted at Marg who muttered to the Nausicaans to search the city. "I saw a hU-mon. The Federation are here... you know what to do."

Marg addressed the crowd. "Bidding is closed for this item. Minimum bid has not been met" said Marg to the creature as he pulled it by the arm.

_____________________________________________
CONTINUED After This Point in Part II
_____________________________________________

ON:

After his meeting with his boss, Kyle wanted to rush back to his cabin, to unload on his husband, to confess what he had done or more accurately what he was proposing to do. But he forced himself to walk at a normal pace. He knew that there were security cameras throughout the ship and he wouldn't put it past his boss to be watching him.

As soon as he was in their quarters he turned to his partner and said,"I think I just did something incredibly stupid."

Being a senior officer had it's privileges on an Intrepid-class starship. It meant that he and Kyle got larger quarters automatically. It helped that they were also married. The quarters consisted of a bedroom, a bathroom and the living/dining area. There was also a desk with a work station. The cabin still needed a personal touch, the furniture, the carpeting was all rather dull and bland. "Oh?" Noah turned from putting down a framed picture of himself and Kyle at their wedding. He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. This was really nothing new for Kyle or for Noah to hear for that matter. "Are you going to end up in the brig because of it?" he asked.

Kyle gave him a half smile as he moved to stand beside his best friend. "If things go bad, I'll be lucky if I wind up in the brig. The Captain doesn't trust my boss. He thinks she is Section 31 like dad." he took out the PAaD Kris had given him, "He wants me to hack into her personnel files and retrieve all the redacted material. He wants me to spy on her. So I checked in with her, playing it subtle of course. She doesn't like or trust him. They're not at the top of each other's Christmas list. I kind of instinctively trust him, her not so much. But I figured the best way to get her to open up to me, is to get on her good side. So she thinks I am going to spy on the Captain.

So I could get my ass in a sling."

Noah let go an equivalent of a sigh and rolled his eyes. The Section 31 business his father-in-law partook in always grated on his nerves. It seemed to go against everything that Starfleet taught. It was counter-productive and hypocritical. But why was Kyle telling him all this? The less he knew the better in this regard. He hated that Kyle even allowed himself to even get wrapped up in such a thing. "I am sure that is putting it mildly," he said, though he was sure Patrick would get his son out of any mess. It had happened before. He looked down at the picture and then back up at Kyle. Though it didn't show, he was growing increasingly frustrated with the other man. "I just find this all a little odd, it seems so obscure to accuse someone of being in Section 31." He shook his head, this bothered him greatly. "Is it because of her Romulan heritage that there is cause for concern?"

Kyle nodded at Noah's words. Perhaps if he had been paying closer attention the subtle cues he may have noticed something amiss, but his mind was focused elsewhere, "I don't think he's that shallow really to be concerned about her being part Romulan. Its more her personality and the fact that she has a lot of holes in her history. I can see his point, she does give off, I don't know bad "vibes."

Noah raised his hands and did the air quote thing and then followed it up with, "Vibes?" He laughed, though it was a deep muffled sound. It was more of a sarcasm thing then actual ha ha funny. He still shook his head. "Seems off to be," he kept his gaze on Kyle. "Why you Kyle? You are still a junior officer who is only second in charge of the intelligence department." He pulled away and began to pace, a hand went to his temple and he began to massage the flesh gently. "I know your father is very vocal about Section 31 and he is... influential, but you promised me you wouldn't be pulled into that life and yet here you are sneaking around and doing things that are probably against 500 sub-protocols." He stopped paced and steeled his gaze on his husband. "If something were to go wrong, if something happened to you..." he shook his head as he held back the tears that wanted to form.

"Noah dear, I know you're worried about me, but I promise I'll be careful. And, I don't know why me," Kyle said his voice going flustered as he spoke,"maybe because he doesn't have anyone he can trust. Everyone else here is even more junior than me.

You know father and I don't agree on the merits of Section 31, and I know what I promised you. God knows I'm not doing this because I want to. I have to,I'm doing it to protect you. What if she is Section 31? What if she has some ulterior motive that might compromise the ship, put you in danger?"

He put hand on Noah's shoulder and stopped signing. He locked his gaze with his husband. "I wont let anything go wrong. I'll be careful."

Noah was still skeptical, he knew this couldn't end well if something happened. It made him uneasy, but he expressed his concerns and that was all he could do. So he just nodded. There really wasn't much more to say about it. He did understand, there was duty to perform, but still there had to be limits and lines that shouldn't be crossed. He felt that what Kyle was doing not only toed the line but was taking a large step over it. But, he couldn't question it, especially if the order came from the captain. Though, if he thought about it, he probably would have questioned it either... maybe. "Alright," he said simply.

"Thanks for understanding," he signed, "Or trying to. I just have one more thing to tell you."

"Okay," Evan signed. He wasn't sure what else Kyle could tell him that was as bad, but he still braced himself nevertheless.

"This one is pretty minor. I ran into a crewman on my way here, which is why I'm a little late. She was having some roommate problems so I invited her to dinner on Friday. I'm going to fix meatloaf."

Noah had been shocked, he had braced himself for far worse. He smiled then. "Sure, that sounds nice," he signed. "I look forward to meeting her."

"Great, now I need to get to work on trying to decipher this bio. See if I can pull anything from it. Are you going to be up late?"

Noah shook his head. "I might make it an early night and then an early morning. I want to get acquainted with the science staff and all the equipment we have on board." He paused. "I will probably be in my office most of the day, but if you have a chance maybe we can have lunch."

"I'll make time, lunch would be good. I'll try not to wake you."

Noah offered a bit of a smile and nodded. He wasn't sure if there was anything else to say.

OFF:

Lieutenant Noah Evans, M.D., Ph.D.
Chief Science Officer


Lt.(j.g.) Kyle Weaver
Asst. Chief Intel Director

Beta shift would be ending soon and the Gamma shift would be replacing them. Gamma shift, also the last shift or also known as 'Night Watch' to some was the time when all the Department Heads were off duty, usually asleep and only a few high ranking officers would even be on duty. Power output would be minimal and the lighting was dimmed significantly. Some of the lower decks were practically dark and void of anyone. The Mess Hall was always open but the galley was not manned at this hour. A lot of stations were empty, the Bridge would only be a select few like a watch commander, helmsmen and someone at tactical.

The Saurian cadet was only ever assigned to Gamma shift which was fine with him because his species were naturally nocturnal but easily could adapt to sudden change in their environment. Bright lights, however, were a physical weakness to them. They liked the dark and could only tolerate dim lighting unless wearing the proper eye care. This was why being assigned to Gamma shift was not a big deal to the fourth year academy cadet. In fact, he was rather fortunate to be on the Katana anyways. When he applied for the opportunity for a senior year field placement, he like many others who signed up, did not expect to actually get the assignment. Those who did often got their 'field' assignments on Earth serving as a personal aide to an Admiral's aide. The Suarian shoot his head at that concept. What does one do as an aide to an aide? he pondered as he entered the empty pitch black Mess Hall.

The young cadet intended to have what would constitute as his breakfast before heading to the Bridge to check in with the watch commander who would likely struggle to find something for the young Saurian to do. Yes, he was fortunate to be assigned to the Katana but it was his third choice. His top choice was actually to serve on the Olympus Base where he felt he would be most beneficial. However, Starfleet apparently had other plans for him. Now, he was stuck on a starship in the Gamma quadrant and nobody seemed to trust him with anything. As soon as he went near a station, an officer would give him a look of reluctance and nervousness.


Cadet Bariz was rummaging through the storage units in the Galley to find something to eat. His dietary needs were a little unique and the replicators did a piss poor job at settling his stomach. The Saurian was not expecting company nor was he anticipating the lights of the Mess Hall to come on surprising him as he held a platter of left over caviar from a previous party.

Sabrina came walking in with her arms loaded with PaDDs. She had studying to do, and as much as she enjoyed Bob, he could not provide her with food and coffee. Both were a necessity at the moment if she wanted to pass her quiz on the EPS system. "Oh sorry." She called out, seeing the discomfort of the only other person in the Mess Hall. "Computer, lights to previous level." She called out. The PaDDs were provide enough illumination for her. She took the nearest table, large enough for four, but by the time she spread out her stuff, it was full.

Bariz carried the platter to the table and sat it down, taking a seat across from the woman. "No worries. I was the one messing around in the dark, you could not have known" the Saurian said with a gentle tone. "I needed something to eat."

"That looks good." Seeing the food reminded Sabrina that she hadn't eaten since breakfast. "I'm going to go grab something. Did you want anything else?" She asked politely.

"No. Thank you, though" he said in response as he studied the plate and dove his face right into the pile of caviar slurping and licking up all the tiny salty eggs. He most likely sounded disgusting and look even more repulsive. At least that's how most viewed how he ate.

While Sabby loved most seafood, she was a child of the ocean after all, caviar had actually never been a favorite. She liked it well enough, but didn't go looking for it. She returned with crab legs and clam chowder. With a happy grin she picked up her bowl. Finally somebody she didn't have to have good table manners for. She might not have his ability to slurp quite so vociferously, but she did a fine enough job. "Help yourself." She motioned to the crab legs, then put down the large bowl, and cracked open a crab leg with obvious experience. "I'm Sabrina."

"Zalmon Bariz" said the Cadet as he observed how the young human ate the item which she was offering him to enjoy with her. He was glad that he did observe her because he was initially going eat the hard exoskeleton of the creature. "Ah" he said his mouth ajar as he easily cracked a leg.

He held the leg to what was somewhat of a mouth and gave a very strong slurp as the meat of the leg came sliding out of the shell and down his throat.

Sabrina smiled. "Good?" she asked.

"Mmm" replied Cadet Bariz as he struggled to find the words. "I believe the Earth word that I am looking for is....fabulous?" he said with a series of nods.

It wasn't exactly the word she would use to describe food, but it worked for her. "Glad you like it." She went back to eating, and between the two of them they managed to put back an impressive amount of food. Sabrina even let out a belch before sitting back and holding her belly. "Now I'm going to fall asleep before I can study." She joked.

"I wish I could study. I spend most of the time sleeping until Gamma Shift, then I am on duty...or at least I try to be. They do not seem to want me to really touch anything as a cadet."

"Even as a fourth year?" Sabrina asked. She was expected to touch a whole lot more than she was comfortable with. "I only had a few months of training, and it seems they expect me to be able to fix everything!" She lamented. "Hense the studying."

Bariz sighed "I wish I had responsibilities and duties like you."

"I'm sure you will, especially once you graduate. Then you can order us enlisted around. Most ensigns seem to think that is their responsibility."

"What...why?" the Saurian responded perplexed by that concept. "Some enlisted personnel have far more experience on starships and starbases than I will when I graduate. It will take me at least a year or so to be on their level. Rank should not deter away from age and respect" he added licking the rest of his caviar plate.

Sabrina smiled. "you are preaching to the choir. I've only been at this a week, but some of the chief petty officer's really know their stuff. I think the ensign's just want to feel important, or prove they can delegate. Well some of them anyway, some are very helpful. I bet they love to pick on 4th year cadets."

"Mmm" the Suarian began "They do...they do. They like to call me lizard boy or fish face" explained the Cadet.

Sabrina was clearly shocked. "That's horrible. You don't have to put up with that. Xenophobic comments are not acceptable." Clearly Sabrina still had a youthful indignation about the subject.

"It's alright. I think they just like teasing me because I'm a Cadet. I primarily work in the science labs, what do you do?"

Since he didn't seem overly offended by it, Sabrina let it go. "I'm a repair technician. One day I'd like to be an officer, but it's going to take a long time to finish that schooling.

"Why did you enlist? If you wanted to become an Officer... I mean the best way to do so is to apply to Starfleet Academy. You seem intelligent enough to be accepted and pass the required tests. Were you not confident enough in your abilities, Crewmen Corbin?" asked the Saurian.

Sabrina let out a short little giggle. She found the Saurian's manner of asking, well cute. "I didn't have the patience at the time. I wanted to get as far away from home as fast as possible. I also wasn't entirely sure what I wanted to do. I took Starfleet's aptitude test, I didn't expect it to be anything to do with engineering, but I decided to just go with it. This way I get to be out here instead of the classroom."

"A reasonable decision. I too wanted to get away from home. Not many of my species ever leave our home world. We get plenty of visitors wishing to trade with us and thus very few of us see reason to leave. My family owns a distillery back home."

"Neat. My parents are both Marine Biologist." Sabrina pushed her plate away. She'd had quite enough. "I better get to studying if I want to get any sleep tonight. It was nice to meet you." Sabrina smiled at him, sincerely glad that she'd had a chance to talk with a member of the crew.

Crewman Recruit Sabrina Corbin
Repair Specialist

Cadet Senior Zalmon Bariz
npc apb Ray

Kristopher Kerouac sat in his command chair waiting for something, anything to happen. The Away Team had been sent to the planets surface via shuttlecraft as the USS Katana patrolled the sector of space. It had been all rather quiet on the starship for the past hour. He was beginning to suspect that nothing would happen. He was even starting to doubt his decision to send an Away Team to the Wadi home world. What if this has been all for nothing pondered Kris as he arched forward in the Captain's chair.

He had stood up from his chair to stretch his legs a bit when he heard the humming of the turbolift. A visitor? he thought with some hope that it was Doctor Cohen. However, there was no such luck. The lift came to a stop and the doors opened to reveal her. Kris rolled his eyes.

"To what reason do I owe the honor of seeing you?" asked Commander Kerouac bitterly towards Commander t'Dharvanek.

"Believe me, I don't want to be here any more than you want me here," Jhu replied crossly, giving him a suitably icy look. "I would prefer not to discuss this standing in the hallway. May I come in?"

Kris headed towards his Ready Room and gestured Jhu towards the room. "We'll discuss this in my Ready Room then, Commander." Kris entered the room and waited until Jhu had followed him in. Once the doors closed behind them, he crossed his arms.

"What is it?" he asked cutting right down to business.

"Trouble," she said just as abruptly, producing a PADD from a hidden pocket in her uniform and handing it to him. "The ship wasn't Ferengi. Look at its attack pattern again. Does something seem off to you?"

Kris studied the PADD with a scrutinizing gaze. He looked at her and then back at the data. It was something he had not been expecting. He shook his head "What?! I don't understand this. I would have placed my bets on the Ferengi acting alone on this. I'm no tactical officer, Commander... who am I looking at? Klingon, Cardassian, Orion..?"

"None of the above." Jhu tilted the PADD toward herself and tapped a button on the side of the display, causing a mirror image to appear on the other side of the Dosi ship. "Something about it didn't make sense until I displayed it this way. And there's only one species I know of that attacks in a paired pattern like that." She tilted the PADD back to face him again, allowing him to watch the new pattern. "It's Nausicaan. The real question is why didn't the Dosi scans pick up the second ship?"

"Pardon the language but what the fuck are the Nausicaans doing in the Gamma Quadrant? I know they are sometimes employed by the Ferengi government as body guards and enforcers but these activities are down right illegal," said Kris firmly. "I don't know why the Dosi did not get readings of a second ship but this is unsettling evidence."

"I don't know, and not knowing scares the hell out of me. I've looked over the sensor record, and I can't tell if it's been tampered with or not." Jhu hated admitting it, especially knowing that Kris didn't know how well she did her job. "Either way there is something very fishy going on here, and I can't promise you I'll see an attack coming. I don't like how vulnerable that makes us."

Kris was about to respond to the Chief Intelligence Officer when the starship shook suddenly, as if being were being rocked by a shockwave. He looked immediately at the Commander "Guess who?" he said with a smirk. He shook his head and headed out to the Bridge after another shake of the Bridge. "Now, I'm pissed" he muttered as he exited onto the Bridge.

The Bridge was somewhat sparse. an Ensign was sitting at helm control. Lieutenant T'Val, the Assistant Chief Science Officer was manning the tactical station.

"Report!" shouted Kris as he crossed the Bridge and the Red Alert had already begun to sound.

The light haired Vulcan's head shot up from tactical station. "We're being fired upon. Two vessels, one is of unknown design but reads similar to a Ferengi Marauder. The other one is of Nausicaan design. Should I return fire?"

Kris shook his head at the Vulcan. "No, return to the science station. Monitor the Away Team" commanded Kris. He turned to Jhu. "Commander, take over tactical. Find vulnerabilities on those ships and capitalize on them" said Kris firmly. "Knock their damn shields down if you can. I want to get a good scan of them."

"Yes, sir." Whether she liked him or not, this wasn't the time to argue. Familiar enough with the tactical panel to work with it unassisted, Jhu immediately took over the station from the light-haired Vulcan officer, wasting no time in searching for a soft spot in either attacking ship's shields. "These readings don't match Ferengi or Nausicaan power outputs," she growled under her breath, wondering just what the hell was going on. Before she could begin to speculate, the Marauder-style ship rolled slightly, exposing its weaker ventral shield face. "Keep us below the Marauder! She has no weapons there, and a soft belly!" Even as she set the first firing sequence on the Marauder, she began looking for weaknesses on the Nausicaan ship, which wasn't making it easy for her with how swiftly it moved and rolled. "Be still for two seconds, you ugly bastards."

Kris rushed towards the helm station "Ensign" said Kris firmly. The young ensign seemed to know very well to surrender the seat. Commander Kerouac slid in and took control. "I'll keep us below the damn thing, Jhu, you just make your shots count," said Kris.

With a more experienced pilot keeping the Katana positioned below the Marauder's attack runs, more of Jhu's phaser blasts landed on target, stripping away the shielding over the other ship's hull. "Marauder's ventral shielding is at... ten percent." Why won't those shields drop? She fired on the strange Marauder again, finally cutting through a portion of the shielding and scoring a hit on the hull, sending the Marauder briefly tumbling. While it was busy recovering, she re-focused her fire on the Nausicaan ship, hoping to pierce its shields long enough to disable its engine. "I have a feeling we flew right into a trap..."

"Remind me why I gave this up?" said Kris with a small chuckle and smirk. "I need those shields down, Commander."

"Working on it." Jhu studied both ships for a long moment, looking for more holes in the shields. "Granting your wish in 3... 2..." Both attackers rolled just the right way, and she slammed both of them with multiple phaser hits and a spread of torpedoes for good measure. "Shields down, both ships!"

Kris, piloting Katana was trying to bring the starship closer to the Ferengi vessel. He quickly opened a communications channel to Sickbay "Doctor, I need a favor. Could you provide us with some sort of chemical compound unique to the Federation medicine that would be used to treat Teplan Blight?"

"Copy that sir." Cohen's voice said over the comm.

Kris looked over his shoulder back at tactical "Do you the old Hammurabi code?" asked the Commander.

Wondering which part of the code he might mean, Jhu quirked an eyebrow at him. "Sure. I know it... is there anyone who doesn't?"

"Good...good. Can you disable the Ferengi vessel's engines or can we use a tractor beam to hold them in place?"

"Let me see what I can do." Jhu chased the Ferengi vessel around with the phasers for a moment, trying to take down its engines. "Too much shielding... tractor beam it is." A quick sequence of button taps, and she had the Marauder trapped, where it strained against the beam's pull. "Ought to let him blow his own engines out, the ornery little rat." As the Nausicaan ship swooped in trying to rescue its partner, she drove it back with several phaser strikes to its bare hull.

"Excellent" said Kris as he maneuvered the Intrepid-class starship up close underneath the Ferengi vessel, the Katana holding the Ferengi vessel in place like a crown. "Get me any reserve power we have to strengthen that tractor beam. I don't want our friends shaking us lose" said Kris with a smirk as he returned focus to the helm controls.

"Commander, please hail our Nausicaan friends" he added politely.

"Sending extra power to the beam." Since they were at red alert, Jhu drained the power from the holodeck systems, pumping it into the tractor beam emitters instead. "That should hold them," she remarked somewhat triumphantly, accessing the communication grid as she did so. "Hailing Nausicaan vessel, skipping traditional friendly greeting and going right to 'cooperate or die'."

Kris surrendered the helm controls over to the ensign. "Just hold us in place, Ensign" whispered Kris.

The Commander looked at Jhu "I don't think you have the best comm voice" joked Kris. "Just tell them to stop pushing the firing button. Open a channel to them and I'll do the cooperate or die talk."

"Oh... all right. Semi-friendly 'please stop shooting me' message instead." Jhu sighed theatrically, opening the requested channel. "Channel open."

He mouthed a simple 'thank you' to the woman. "Nausicaan vessel this is the Federation starship Katana Captain Kristopher Kerouac in command..." Really? Did I just use the Captain card?. Kris took a seat in the Captain's chair and continued "Let's be smart about this. We know you are working with these Ferengi... Clearly you see that we now have your associates in a tractor beam and are very close to their vessel. Now, if you continue firing on us, you risk my starship exploding... how would that benefit you? If Katana were to blow up, the Ferengi vessel would be destroyed as well. I'm assuming this would mean no pay for you. The choice is yours, make it well" said Kris.

He stood up and gestured for Jhu to close the channel. "Let them mull that one over for a few minutes" said Kris. "That should keep them occupied for the time being."

Commander Kerouac added "Comm channel to Lieutenant Weaver" he said abruptly.

Jhu tapped a simple command into the panel and then nodded slightly. "You're on with Weaver."

With the channel to the Intelligence Officer opened, Kris started to put his plan in motion. "I hope you are wide awake, Lieutenant. I have a special assignment for you. Please grab a phaser from one of the weapons lockers and proceed to Transporter Room one and wait for further instructions."

Kyle had just dodged the blow the large, but rather clumsy Klingon and was about to pin his wrist behind him, when the ship shook and the Red Alert klaxon sounded ^=^Computer, freeze program.^=^he intoned.

He was about half way to the Intel Office when the call came from the Captain. He tapped the com badge replying, ^=^ On my way sir.^=^. He made a quick detour to his cabin where he grabbed phaser and a tactical knife and then made his way to the Transporter Room.

"Good. I want you to wait for Doctor Cohen to arrive. Please prepare three or four pattern enhancers. The two of your are going on a lovely trip though it will be rather short" said Kris over the comm channel.

Kyle quirked one brow ^=^Aye sir, I assume you'll give us the... itinerary for our little trip?" While waiting for the response he started started to to set up five enhancers. He preferred going overboard and staying alive to taking short cuts or merely meeting expectations.

"You two have won yourself a luxurious stay at a Ferengi vessel. The two of you will spending some not so spacious time in honeymoon suite also known as the packed cargo hold where you will snoop around with the good Doctor and pick up the sick and dying Teplan people some life saving gifts and get your asses back here as soon as you can because there's only so long that Commander t'Dharvanek and I can hold a Ferengi vessel with a tractor beam and threaten some rowdy Nausicaans."

Kris then reached over to the panel near the Captain's chair and opened a channel to Sickbay "Hello, again Doctor. I hope you aren't against making a house call... Don't worry about medical equipment. You may want a tricorder though and meet up with Lieutenant Weaver in Transporter Room one."

"On my way sir." Cohen replied, he grabbed a ticorder off his tray and headed for the double doors.

Commander Kerouac then switched the comm channel to Engineering.

"Ms Matthews, I apologize for any damage we've endured. How bad is it?" asked Kris hoping that there was nothing too serious.

"Get that locked down!" Jenni ordered just before the comm chimed. She kept her gaze fixed on the burst EPS relay on the second level of Engineering as she tapped her combadge. "Secondary EPS tap burst in Engineering. Securing it now." She then looked over at a situational display where several other caution lights were blinking on the schematic. "Looks like bumps and bruises mainly," she continued, choosing not to go into detail. "Any chance we could get a warning next time? I've got a few people in the Jefferies Tubes trying to settle waste extraction issues..."

Kris suppressed a smirk. "Glad to here we are doing okay down there. I'm afraid I have no control over ships coming in firing, but the shooting has stopped for the time being" explained the ship's captain. "Kerouac out" he added gently, knowing that Matthews was busy.

He returned his attention again to the Intelligence Officer and Chief Medical Officer.

"Lieutenant Weaver & Doctor Cohen, your window of opportunity for this little operation is small. There's no telling exactly how long you two have. So, you are going to have to act as quickly as you can once aboard. Doctor, you know what to look for. Lieutenant, you know how to do things like this covertly. I want to do this without them realizing it for a while" explained Kris.

Kyle exchanged glances with the doctor. "We won't disappoint you."

The doctor nodded as the transporter beam swept them up.

"Good. See that you don't gentlemen" said Kris cutting the channel.

Ray: First general announcement is that we now have a Chief Medical Officer. So, you can all welcome and thank James who will be writing Doctor Liam Cohen. He will keep you healthy, fit and most importantly, alive!

I know that some of you are away camping or on a little trip for the next few days, but I wanted to give you all a clear heads up on what is in store for you (for the most part anyway).

1. The USS Katana will be heading for region of space that has a cluster of planets around. Actually, the trip will be rather fast because we do not need to even go that far for this first mission. We will soon be enroute to Tomerela IV (selected by Hilary/Tul Zannar), the home planet of a species known as the Wadi. We will be going here in order to collect information and to see if we can pick up the trail of the mysterious pirates.

2. An Away Team is going to be set to the planet lead by Lieutenant Commander Tul Zannar. (Hilary has already made her own selections as to who will be joining her). The Away Team will consist of:

- Lieutenant Commander Tul Zanaar (First Officer)
- Lieutenant Sirigh (Security Chief/Chief Tactical Officer)
- Lieutenant JG Maica (Chief Diplomatic Officer)
- Crewman Recruit Sabrina Corbin (Engineering Repair Specialist)

Away Team Primary Objectives
- Mingle with the Wadi
- Collect information regarding the piracy in this region of space
- Defend the Wadi from another pillaging by the pirates and raiders
- Rescue the strange creature, Shira

Away Team Optional Objectives:
- Capture Daimon Marg

3. The rest of the crew will be remaining aboard the USS Katana. Proceed with mingling amongst each other and settling into your positions. We will be patrolling the nearby sectors while the Away Team is on the Wadi home world. We will be coming to their aid shortly after the pirates and raiders arrive.

Katana Primary Objectives:
- Defend the planet from the Ferengi and Nausicaan vessels
- Destroy the attacking vessels (if necessary)
- Recover the Away Team

Katana Optional Objectives:
- Locate and retrieve the missing medical supplies from the Ferengi vessel


OOC James: Sounds fun, I just want to say hi to everyone, i'm not sure I've simmed with any of you in the past, I've popped up in Bravo Fleet a few times, most of my simming experience is in Sixth Fleet and it's predecessor Tango, I do currently play on the Unification as well as Captain Usmanova as well. I'm always open for a JP so just feel free to send me a start. I should have Liam's bio flesh out over the next week or so. Cheers!

OOC Azmaria: I'm on the unification too! i'm the Orion there. ^_^

OOC James: Howdy !

OOC Ray: I'll most likely start a JP with you soon, James. I will be delighted to see what you do with Liam.

Crysta: I'm home! Welcome aboard, James! :) I'll be catching up with tags for a little bit.

Ray: Additional update: Please welcome the newly wed characters, Patrick & Noah written by Chris & Matthew!
Patrick will be our Assistant Chief Intelligence Officer. Noah will be our Chief Science Officer.

Hil/Tul: Alllll the peeps! Welcome aboard guys!!!!

Thanks for the welcome,we will try to exceed expectations. It looks like we'll have some exciting writing together. I look forward to it. Oh and I know my husband is cute boys but keep your hands off of him.

James: Haha I'll try, or Liam will try rather :P Welcome to the other newcomers and thanks for the welcome everyone.

Monoui: Welcome Welcome! And hurry up you guys! That bastard Marg made Shira perform Oo-mox and it was disgusting. My character needs some serious saving. *wanders off to scour brain with industrial strength degreaser to remove that vile display*

Hil/Tul/SuperBlueMan: Away team toooooo the rescue! Shortly.

Your knights in shining armor have arrrived

Hil/Tul: Do us a favor, guys, and please include your names when you post here. I don't know who is who! D:

Crysta: If you hadn't said that, I was going to! Yes, please include your name somewhere in your comment. Otherwise we'll all go crazy. ;)

James: Added, sorry, I'll try to remember :P

Ohh, my bad-Kyle/Chris Your knights in shining armor are here

Hil/Tul: Welcome good sirs!

Noah/Matthew: Thank you for the welcome :)

Ray: Seems like this group of writers are getting along well :) Heads up all, I may break the Senior Staff meeting into two parts as it is getting rather lengthy.

Hil/Tul: That is an excellent idea!

Crysta: Agreed! No harm in having two shorter ones.

James: Works for me haha.

Kim/Darzen: Hey all! Late response due to a crazy week. I'm Kim and I'll be playing your local Trill Darzen Kail. I am currently aboard the Venture, the Lexington, Pandora and I run Olympus Base. Looking forward to seeing where this all goes and looking forward to writing with you all! :D

Chirs/Kyle: Hey, I am new to the ship and to Bravo Fleet, but I have characters on about 8 or 9 other sims and have held various positions and ranks from Petty Officer to CO

Crysta: Yay, more new people!

Chris/Kyle Yes Matt aka Kyle's other half, are both new to Bravo, but the Katana looks like fun.

Crysta: If anyone notices updates from me without updated material, it's because I'm fixing coding mistakes. I don't correct anyone's spelling unless I know they're okay with it, but I do fix code. :)

Ray: Feel free to fix my spelling if I screw anything up (quite possible when I'm writing at 4 or 5am).

Crysta: LOL, easy to do at that hour. I don't mind people fixing mine either.

Monoui: Ditto, feel free to edit my grammar and spelling.

RAY: If anyone is pondering "Where Did the first part of the Briefing go?" Fear not. I have it and am doing some work on it. It is safe and will return for public reading soon.

James: Feel free to edit anything of mine too, I'll admit I'm a pretty terrible speller some times, which is sad because I'm a teacher, but it's Science so it all goud ;)

Hil/Tul: Alright! Away Mission: Rescue Shira is a go!

Monoui/Shira: WOOT!

Chris: Good to know that I can correct other's mistakes, I do a pretty good job at catching them. However I miss my own, so everyone feel free to correct mine.

James: I just wanted to say quickly I'm really excited to be here, the level of activity is awesome to see, I apologize if I leave any JP tags hanging, I always try to get them within in 24 hours but work can be a pain at times, as I'm sure you all know. But the simple fact that I have three JPs going at the same time and the mission is just getting going is awesome. :D looking forward to some really great writing with you all.

Chris:Yeah doesn't it suck how work interferes with the fun stuff

Crysta: Don't worry about it, James. I'm a full time college student finishing up semester finals and this summer I'll be working full time, so you're not the only one who can get pressed for time!

Az: there are days my back and legs/knees won't work and i can't get out of bed. when i finally do, i have farm work to help my mom with. if i don't reply to a JP within a day, send me an email or something. I sleep with my laptop, but if i can't sit up i can't use it still.

Ray: We're all going to have busy times with work and other obligations. Always remember that we are understanding here and your personal lives come first and foremost. That's what LOAs are for if it is going to be a while. :) If it takes a little while to reply, don't sweat it.

Andrew: Yeah, feel free to correct my grammar too. And I know it's not Wednesday, but I'm more or less back.

Ray: You get *hugs* for returning.

David: So with first contact being a "where are the games?" political office of all levels being solved by gaming tournament, and even social status being mastery of games, I figure their city must look like a goddamn game board. Hope no one objects n.n

Chris: I took a look at the sneak peak, it definitely looks fun.

Crysta: I'm freeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
-----------------------------------
RAY: Posting this on behalf of Hilary. She has hit a little snag OOC in regards to wrapping up schooling and all those stressful things. That is why she has been slow with the Away Mission. However, I am going to do my best with Monoui to advance the Away Mission a little. Also, Verak's involvement will step up a little to help move things along.

Crysta: About how much longer are we running this "episode"? I want to get a JP going for Jhu to meet Kyle, but I don't want to feel like we're holding everyone up. :P

PPC: I don't see any reason we can't do the JP between Kyle and Jhu and fit in however we can.

Crysta: *cackles* I like him. But if he calls Jhu a bitch to her face, she will sooooo hurt him. lol

Kyle: Just because he's blond doesn't mean he's stupid

Ray: Feel free to JP, Crysta. That goes for all of you. Ideally, I'd like to have the mission finished quite soon but I do not want to do too much without Hilary. This week will be my finals week so I'll be slightly slowed down. However, my personal activity will be picking up so fast, you won't keep up :P

Crysta: I don't know about that. I'm checking the three sims I'm involved with pretty constantly looking for something to respond to! :P

Hey Crystal, if you're looking for more punishment, I'm sure there are other sims you could get involved with

Crysta: I'm sure there are! But I'm going to be working through the summer, starting in about a month. I doubt I'll have enough time to devote to more sims at that point.


Understood

Crysta: Out of town for the day. I'll get my tags when I get home.

Chris: Okay

Az: sorry i've been out of it. i'm good for tags now. ^_^ anyone want to JP?

Matthew: Just wanted to give a heads up, I'm having surgery tomorrow I will be out at least a couple of days. I will do tags tonight and then maybe by Wednesday I will be up to tags (I am bringing my laptop to the hospital. YAY wifi :) Wish me luck!

Crysta: Home but computer is being DUMB. Posting from new phone so please forgive typos..

Chris: Good luck Matt, we're all pulling for you to get better, some of us more than others maybe. Get Well

Hil: Hey guys. Sorry it has taken me a little to get back. End of school wrap-up and travel and all that. But here I am so lets get this mission rolling :D

Chris: The mission is rolling,the party has started, but there is always room for one more.

Hil: Tag pirates in Lament of Greed.

Crysta: Computer needs a new hard drive. But I have my tablet so posting is a bit easier than on the phone.

Chirs: Hope you can get your computer fixed soon, but at least you don't have to deal with the phone, that is always a real pain in the ass.

Matthew: I am kinda back, surgery went well just sore. I will be in the hospital one more day then home tomorrow it looks like. So, I will still be able to respond to tags, just might be slower still until I am home. Thanks for your understanding.

Chris: Glad to have you back and good to know the surgery went well

James: I'll be out of town this weekend, so may be slow responding to tags, if you need to move posts along feel free to take my tags or just NPC Liam for the next few days. I'll try to get them but I'm not sure if i will be able too. Cheers!

Az: built new stairs today. hurt my back worse than ever. shoved a half inch piece of wood through my hand. made some epic spaghetti. will be out of it for a day or two. will hit tags as i can sit up.



Chris: I thought I had a busy day.

Ray: No worries. My day was fascinating to say the least. Az, hope you feel better soon. <3

Chris:@Ray If you are still having issues I've got your back. Please give me your address so I can send you my extra chainsaw

Ray: Nope. I'm fine and I am back to full activity.

Chris:Good, glad to hear it.

Crysta: Still on the tablet because we aren't certain a new hard drive will fix the laptop. Hubby wants to test one of his spares in it before we commit to upgrading it to a solid state drive. I'm getting pretty fast with this thing though, lol.

Ray: I'll be doing some work in the morning and afternoon on replies and doing a second part of the Away Mission in order to keep things as clutter free as possible.

Hil: I'm up for JP's if anyone is running out of tags :D

Andrew: Me too. Hil, I might try to set up something with you in a bit.

Crysta: I'm always free as well. Bit slow now though due to mental fog brought on by the respiratory infection my husband passed on to me. And cough syrup does not improve mental acuity!

I am usually free as well and not cough syrup or cold on my end. Which means I will have to come up with an different excuse for my mental fog.

James: I'm back from my mini vacation, and while my liver may still be recovering I'm getting caught up and should be able to get back tags pretty quickly, should be completely caught up shortly.

Chris: Sounds like you need a vacation from your vacation, or at least parts of your body do

Ray: Glad that you are back. Was not about to do anything crazy without my Doctor's advice.

Andrew: Ray, I severely doubt that....

Ray: You ALL are going to be the death of me.

Monoui: *evil grin* I should certainly hope so!

Crysta: Darn. He's figured out our plan! :p
_________________________________

Ray: I'm posting this as there is enough in it and to clear the way.

Monoui: It has come to mind that my character, Shira, will need quite a bit of help adapting to life on a ship. It's my end goal that she becomes a Science officer, likely a biologist/botanist, but until then it's going to be a long road just getting her to a point that she can interact with the crew without some form of assistance.

I'm including Dr Cohen and Luss Pano in this discussion as I think Medical and Counseling are obvious necessities in her initial discovery. Maica will be involved since this is technically a first contact incident. Noah Evans would be studying her from a scientific/anthropological standpoint as well as assisting with communication (Ray had an idea about Noah and Kyle using sign language). Zalmon Bariz would be offering assistance with light adaptations as Saurians are sensitive to light just as Shira is. Also tossing in Sabrina Corbin since Shira will be assigned as Sabrina's roommate.

Also, Ray helped me pick the name. Shira is Hebrew for song. I went with that because her kind communicate through vocal intonations, essentially singing. One of the crew will have to name her since she will have no name they can use. After all, we can't keep calling her 'the creature' forever. I don't know if Ray wants Kris to name her (since he came up with the name) or if that opportunity is up for grabs, but I figured it couldn't hurt to toss the option out there. If one of you sees an opportunity to pin the name on her, then do so. You know, once she's on the ship and all, lol.

So anyway, I would love to hear questions, comments, suggestions, anything to help get Shira acclimated to the ship and her crew.

Ray: From a Security/Tactical concern, is dangerous to the crew or the ship?
Chris: My vote for naming her should be whoever came up with her name in OOC. That would be the most fair and logical, baring that I would say if there is someone who IC is gifted inlanguages

Monoui: well, her kind are more likely to act passively if they aren't provoked. obviously, Shira has struck out at Marg, but it was fear and self-preservation. She might be dangerous to the Katana crew at first, but once she sees that she isn't being harmed then she'll calm down. There's also the possibility of misunderstandings causing harm and maybe even her curiosity getting her into trouble, but Shira isn't malicious in any way. I'm including Sirigh since the Security issue is worth discussing.

James: Sounds good to me, interesting plot line as well.

Matthew: I agree with James, it does seem like an interesting plot line and I have already began to think of ways Noah will be able to Shira acclimate. Noah has always had to acclimate, so he would definitely understand what it feels like to figure things outs.

David (Sirigh): Wow, sorry I didn't see this earlier, Hil (Tul) and I were just talking about this X3
Sepcifically, Sirigh would show significant interest, since his return to humanity sparked a lust for "inefficient" activities such as Martial Arts and Mythology, and such would actually be a great way to break such into the RP proper. Migration from something inhuman to human society could also play in, but less so than the mythological interests. All that is purely from the Sirigh as a character standpoint

(Still David) From a tactical standpoint, she poses no more threat than any other unknown agent, and beings Starfleet is all about First Contact, there's little reason Sirigh (or even I) could conceive of her as a threat. That being said, there's little saying the rest of the security team or even superiors can't clash with Sirigh's personally-motivated opinions.

(Still...) The only big concern, which we should bring up, is whether her species has Warp tech and is thus a violation of the Prime Directive to have her on board.

Monoui: since you were discussing this with Hilary, I've added her to the discussion as well. (hi Hilary!) Anyway, about your concerns with the Prime Directive, Shira has already been contaminated by the Ferengi, so she could seek asylum. One could argue about the rest of her kind; they did see the Ferengi, the weapons, and the transporter matter stream, but unlike Shira they didn't see the ship, so interacting with her race if they managed to find her world to return her may violate the Prime Directive. As for Mythology, I'm still developing the customs and culture for her kind, but I would love to have Shira explore that with Sirigh.

Ray: This could be a point of interest as far as a debate in character. However, Prime Directive or not... Ferengi or not, we could really only theorize about her species since she would be the only of her kind that we'd be aware of and communication with her would be very limited for a while.

Az: *pushes her glasses up her nose* The point is somewhat addressed in the ST:TNG episode "Homeward" (season 7 episode 13) when one of the natives wanders off of the holodeck into 10 forward. They leave it up to him whether he goes back or stays. In the end, he can't handle it and kills himself. Either way, in the eventual integration and adjustment, i see the counselor and diplomatic officer playing key roles in that journey, much as Troi and Picard did for the displaced Boraalan native.

Matthew: Gotta love a TNG reference :) I agree with Ray, the debate would be a neat one IC, especially between those in the scientific/medical/counseling/diplomatic areas to those in sec and tac/intel/CO and XO (I'm guessing). But as Ray pointed out, we won't know anything about her, so it will create interesting dilemmas, right vs wrong, rules/regs vs bending those, even academia vs hesitation and caution. It will make for interesting story telling and character development that is for sure. I look forward to it that is for sure :)

Chris: it should prove interesting indeed Kyle doesn't necessarily toe the Intel party line and would probably be more inclined to be lenient once he's got a good idea she isn't a threat. Some good old inter-departmental "discussion"/conflcit

Monoui: those are some excellent points and I look forward to seeing how it works out IC. @Azmaria: thanks for the TNG reference! I know what I'm watching today! Although, I can assure you that Shira will not be killing herself, lol. Not that I couldn't toy with the concept in character, maybe give her a depression phase that she can work herself out of during her adjustment, but she's definitely sticking around for the long haul, no suicide. I'm really loving some of this discussion, you've all got some excellent ideas and I can't wait to see how we work through it IC.

Az: Star Trek 4: The Voyage Home could also be a reference. After all, Kirk brought a 20th century human back to the 23rd century with him and with no way to 'send her home', she stayed and worked for Starfleet as a marine biologist. (that movie wasn't the greatest though - you don't have to watch it)

Ray: Double dumbass on you Az! :p That is actually my favorite of the TOS movies. *cough* Environmental activist/Vegetarian/Whale Lover.

Az: Ray, Dr. Gillian Taylor was an expert in cetacean biology - a specific area of marine biology, for which she got her Ph.D in. ^_^ BTW, my favorite movie of the set is 6 - The Undiscovered Country. "taH pagh taHbe'"

Ray: Not sure what you were aiming for with the response :p I was just in general saying I like the movie dealing with Environmental issue like species going extinct.

Az: just geeking out. I don't get to do it often enough these days.

Ray: Geek away <3

Chris: Nothing wrong with being a geek

Hil: Since Skip and Mr. Security are "Yay! New life form! Let's make her a part of the crew!" I'd like to play the devils-advocate with Tul and be all, "Grrr... This thing HAS to be dangerous, I don't know how. But it is o.O"

Chris/Kyle: Sounds good, I love IC conflict

Monoui: I'm all for having an adversary. and who doesn't love a good IC conflict? It's not all butterflies and rainbows, I wanna see some DRAMA!


Chris:Butterflies I can do without, nothing wrong with rainbows though. However there's even more drama sometime when rainbows are involved.

Hil: Woohoo! Haha.

Chrsi: Where do you think the term Drama Queen comes from? Just sayin

James: bahaha, truth

Chris: Matt is doing well after surgery and hopefully will be posting in the next day or two

Ray: I miss Matt.

Chris: So do I, but I think is he back now
______________________________________
Ray: Posting this as we'll be moving onto new and exciting things.

Liam was seated on the low couch near the window, watching the stars stream by, the nimble Katana now cruising at high warp. He wasn't sure if it was the change of setting, the 24th century version of jetlag, or what, but he couldn't sleep. He took another sip of the mug of tea in his hand, and closed his eyes for a moment, leaning his head back against the couch. He opened them again and looked over his shoulder as the door opened.

Commander Kristopher N. Kerouac was reviewing as much as he could about the Wadi and Dosi as the the starship Katana was currently on its way to the Wadi home world where Kerouac's First Officer would lead an Away Team down to the planet on a shuttle. He had spent the past hour brushing up on the Wadi specifically and found himself in the need to stretch his legs and clear his mind.

He walked into the Mess Hall just out of habit. It wasn't that he craved any food or beverages, if anything he felt that he mostly craved human companionship. Kristopher had been bouncing theories and ideas off the bulkheads all evening. Sometimes, he told himself that he wanted to be alone with himself, but he was always best at lying to himself.

When Kris spotted his Chief Medical Officer, Doctor Cohen, he proceeded to walk towards the medical officer. Kris cleared his throat just as a means to draw attention to himself. "It's disconcerting to me as well, Doctor" Kris said vaguely.

He soon added "The Teplans. You had some interesting things to say about the Blight" said the Commander gently as he navigated himself around the room and placing himself beside the Doctor.

"Oh, I understand they aren't part of our main mission. In fact I spoke to a friend with Fleet Operations, they're readying a convoy headed by the USS Cushing and a couple of escorts. It should be shipping out in a couple of weeks. So at least the Teplans will have some support." He said.

Kris shuddered. "A couple weeks...." said the Commander with a bitterness. "In a couple weeks there will be a diminished population of the Teplan. We're closer to that Teplan colony planet, Doctor. Certainly a hell of a lot closer than anyone else" the Commander said bitting his lip.

"How are you this evening Captain?" He asked, extending the formal courtesy of referring to the Commander of a ship as Captain regardless of rank.

Kerouac scoffed and sighed. "Heavy, Doctor...quite heavy. I'm studying everything that I can on the Wadi in order to help the Away Team before they leave, but the Teplan are on my mind."

The Medical Officer nodded, "Save the ones we can, honour the ones we couldn't. A very talent doctor and very good man told me that once. It's true in my line of work, and I think it probably rings true for Command too. We all accept this job knowing there are going to be loses. It doesn't make it any easier, and it doesn't mean we don't do everything in our power to save people, to better their lives, and to try to improve our little corner of the universe, but we can't lose perspective. Many more Teplans will die if we don't address the piracy issue, and the convoy and Cushing are far better equipped to address the long terms needs of Teplans." He said. Liam turned slightly, facing the Captain. It was a different perspective than the meeting. He was much closer, Liam could see the find lines around the man's eyes. Fatigue most, but a few of the tell tale signs of a life marred with substance abuse of one form or another. Something the only a Doctor exposed to that would notice. "

Focus on the pirates he told himself and the Chief Medical Officer's words were more reassuring than anything that he could ever tell himself. "You're right, Doctor" the Commander said with a small hesitation in his voice. He could feel the Doctor near him, even the slight touch of the man's breathe. "We'll find those pirates Doctor..." said Kris clenching his fists "Where do we go from there? Where do I go?"

"We catch those sons of bitches. We take them into custody and we hold them accountable for their actions." He said cooly. "Where do you go," He said, leaning in and placing his hand on the Captain leg. "You go to bed, you look exhausted. Doctors orders." He said with a cheeky wink.

The Doctor's verbal response was pleasing. However, the physical response was not what Kris was expecting. It caused him to react instinctively, and he pulled his leg away and inched himself away. "I'll live" he said gruffly. "You can order me to my quarters if you have medical evidence to support your assumptions, but I'll sleep when I feel like it."

Liam with drew his hand at the Captain's action, admitted it was overly forward, he wasn't thinking straight. "Uhm, well consider it a strong recommendation then." He said with a forced laugh, "I should, I should get going Sir. Enjoy the evening or morning I guess is more accurate now."

"Yes, of course. We all have places to be and other patients to touch" added Kris looking away from the doctor. I didn't mean that he thought to himself.

"Uhm. Sorry Sir, that was out of line." He said, he rose to his feet. "I'll be in sickbay if you need me Sir, still trying to iron out the duty rota with the short handedness."

Kris quickly turned just as the Doctor was leaving "Wait" he called out with a small tightness in his voice.

He shook his head. "Defensive mechanism. I did not mean to snap at you like that, Doctor. I'm still learning to open myself up... I'm a man of few friends and the number has only been falling in recent years."

Liam turned around, "It's fine sir, defensive or not, I was out of line. But, I may not be a counselor but if you want someone to talk to, i'm a pretty good listener."

The Commander was able to show a small smile given the circumstances. "I like dessert" he said heading towards the medical officer. "I open up more when I'm eating. It helps me carry on a conversation. Otherwise, you're not likely to get anything out of me besides a few grunts here and there."

"Hmmm, come to my quarters tonight, for dinner, I can cook, and I have a few tricks up my sleeve for dessert too." He replied.

The Commander shook his head and nervously looked away for a moment. If your actions earlier were a sample dessert, I had better watch my diet the Commander thought as his eyes returned to meet the Doctor's. "Dinner in your quarters it is then."

The Following Evening - Doctor Cohen's Quarters

Liam was dressed far more casually, a pair of fitted grey pants and a navy button up, the sleeves rolled up to just below the elbow as he put the finishing touches on dessert before sliding it out of site. Luckily engineering had been able to fit a small kitchen into his quarters. He wasn't sure how often it would get used but it was nice to be able to rely on things other than the replicators.

The dinner with Doctor Cohen had given Commander Kristopher Kerouac a reason to look his best, the best he had looked in months or perhaps years. He had grown his facial hair for the past few years as he retreated inside himself, cutting himself off from those around him. He usually kept his facial hair trimmed, but this was the first time in a very long time that Kris shaved it all off. When he saw himself in the mirror in his quarters, he felt like a young Ensign again, baby faced and youthful as if just out of the Academy.

He dressed lavishly but simplistic, a warm white turtle neck and grey pants. The turtleneck was nothing new nor replicated. It was something he had been given years ago as a gift, something he treasured. Fortunately, it still fit. Actually, it fit quite well. He had apparently lost weight rather than gained it as he aged. It most likely was from the stress and depression in his life. He just did not have to appetite that he once had when he stuffed his face throughout his Academy years.

Kristopher showed up outside the Doctor's quarters and pressed the panel, chiming the room. I'm a nervous wreck thought the Commanding Officer as he looked at his reflection on the sleek metallic paneling. He started to play around with his hair as though he were a teenager again going out on a date. Personally, he knew better. It's just dinner and dessert with my Chief Medical Officer he told himself.

The door opened and Liam smiled, "Come in." He said, gesturing to his quarters. "Can I get you something to drink?" He said moving into the kitchen again and quickly putting the finishing touches on dinner.

Kris entered and thought for a moment. Discipline yourself. You cannot drink, not tonight. "Marob root tea" the Commander said as he looked around at the quarters. "Not bad...could use some decorating" joked Kris. He knew the Doctor had not been aboard long enough yet to really make his quarters a home.

"Yeah, I was never one for nicknacks, besides I find on ships they usually get broken, I had my quarters decompressed into space once." He said returning to the couch with two mugs of tea, he handed one to the Captain and sat down on the couch. "So, how's are you handling the transition?"

Commander Kerouac moved towards the couch and took a seat beside the medical officer. "I'm going to try not to have any sort of decompression occur on Katana if I can help it, Doctor" said Kristopher as he held the mug of tea in his hands. "Not well. I've been screwing up more often...moved onto harder liquor and well, I'm sure that you can tell that I am not sleeping more than a few hours here and there" blurted Kerouac as if he had said nothing at all.

"Well don't be too hard on yourself. From what I've seen no major screw ups. I won't pretend to understand have the shit that goes with command but you're doing good in my book." He said with a reassuring smile. "As for the liquor. You shouldn't be self medicating, if you can't sleep I can help." There was a moment of internal struggle. Part of Liam wanted to pull the smaller man into his arms. Hold him tight and help him. The other half was reminding him of the Kris' previous response, and to respect the other mans space.

"Do you want to know why I actually took this assignment, Doctor? Do you want to know what keeps me up at night... why I can never sleep? Why I'm self medicating myself?" rambled the Commander as he sat his mug down on a nearby table and stretched out on the couch as if he were in a counselling session though instead of propping or resting his head on a pillow, the Doctor's lap became the pillow.

Kris closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "It doesn't take a Vulcan or Betazoid delve into my mind but they wouldn't want to. There's too much darkness and emptiness in here" said Kris tapping an index finger to the side of his head.

Liam's hand move to the other man's head. Hi fingers lightly touching the dark locks. I read your file. I know it doesn't do justice to what you've been through Kris, but you don't need to be afraid. You have a crew that Is behind you. You have people who care. People who what you to open up. Let go of the darkness and start letting the light in." His other hand moved from the couch and slowly took the Captains. The size difference between them as evident in their hands as it was in their height. "You're safe here. You always will be."

"My file...is worthless" said Kris dismissively. "Born on a an abandoned collapsed Federation colony and forced to live on the streets, fighting and killing to survive, using and abusing substance after substance just to stay alert enough to protect myself. That's nothing....nothing compared to what Starfleet couldn't care any less about" added Kerouac.

"NO" he said sharply. "It wasn't growing up on that nightmare of a world that has turned me into this piss poor excuse of an officer. It was losing Uri."

Liam didn't say anything, he gave Kris' hand a slight squeeze and continued slowly playing with his hair. "I won't pry Kris, but I mean what I said, I'm here."

"Thank you" said Kris with a sigh. "It's a long and painful story, Doctor and one that I will share when the time is right. For now. let's just enjoy dinner tonight, continue on with dessert and share a few stories."

Liam smiled down, for a moment, it wasn't his new boss with enough emotional damage to sink a Galaxy-class explorer confesses his deep dark past, he was just a man, an a very attractive man at that, who was laying there with him, and Liam had to force his mind to not run away with his own ideas. "Dinner then, hope you're hungry."

"I could eat. It has been a while since I've had something that wasn't replicated" replied Kris with delight. I could get used to having cooked meals again he thought eagerly.

"Wellington with Rylian pork and Bajoran baby potatoes, and salad. Desserts a surprise." He replied moving into the kitchen.

Kris smiled as he looked at the meal. "It's lovely, truly lovely" he said nervously. I'm going to be repenting after this one he thought to himself. He did not want to make the Doctor uncomfortable nor did Kris wish to offend the man. The Doctor had gone to all the trouble to make the food and so Kristopher prepared himself. "Dessert is always a surprise" countered the Commander.

"I hope you like it," Liam said setting the plates down on the table, he poured the Captain a glass of water, the wine glasses remaining empty. He said down across from the CO and waited for him to take a bite.

"I like it" answered Kristopher said with some hesitance. "But I like you more" added Kris, deflecting away from the food and projecting focus on the Doctor.

"Well thank you. I like you too." The doctor said. Blushing slightly. He took a bite of his food, not really sure what to do with himself in the moment.

You've done this before, Kris. Treat it like you would any other diplomatic situation. Be smooth and polite, he may not even notice the Commander thought to himself as he came up with a strategy. Kris began eating some of his salad and every now and then would munch on a potato. Keep a conversation going he told himself.

"So, why the Gamma Quadrant? There's three other quadrants out there and yet you end up serving on a starship in the Gamma... any particular reason?" asked Kris trying to make conversation. "I suppose it might be something to do with frontier medicine?"

"Well I'd previous been serving in the Neutral Zone, I kind of wanted a change, and the Gamma Quadrant offered that, plus yes a chance to explore, to see things we haven't encountered before." He said, noticing the Captain wasn't eating much of the food, or at least eating very slowly. "Plus, I felt like I was ready for the challenge of being a CMO, so admittedly that was part of it."

Commander Kerouac flashed a small smile at the man. "We needed a Chief Medical Officer, you got it. I am glad that it worked out the way that it did. There were only a few Doctors who applied for the post. I turned down all of them. Command told me they would decide for me...guess my stubborn nature paid off. I most likely would not be sitting here having dinner with you of I chose one of the applicants they had provided me" Kris said as he took a sip of water.

"I would have wanted anywhere but the Gamma quadrant, myself. I chose it but it was not really so much a choice as it was a calling" Kris added.

"Well, maybe there will be a pleasant surprise in it for you." Liam replied, taking another bite. "I like it so far, I have a good staff, albeit small, and the Captain seems pretty legit." He said with a wink.

Commander Kerouac pursed his lips together and simply shook his head. He could have laughed but he wanted to keep some of his emotions bottled up. "Well, the small staff sort of comes with an Intrepid-class starship. We're not the biggest starship in the fleet, nor the Task Force. Regardless, I am sure that you will find Sickbay and your medical staff to be quite competent" said Kris taking a small sip of water to keep his mouth from drying.

"As for the Captain...well, he finds his Chief Medical Officer to be pretty legit as well" added Kris with a smirk. "What sort of pleasant surprise?" Kris said with a raise of his brow.

"Who knows, we still know very little about the Quadrant." He said, his tone shifting to a slightly more professional one, "People say we can never truly discover who we are if we're still in our comfort zone. I'd say this is pretty far out of mine anyway." He said smiling, he glanced down, his hand mere centimeters from Kris' casually on the table. He wanted to reach out and take it, something about the other man made him long for that physically contact he'd had mere minuets ago on the couch. He controlled himself and grabbed the pitcher of water to refill their glasses.

Kris was oblivious the the Doctor's wants or desires, he was like most times in his life oblivious to what was within his reach. He was always looking ahead and looking back, but never seeing what was in the here and now. This was what had cost him academically at the Academy and no doubt what had held his otherwise glowing career with Starfleet back. "Sometimes, I forget that we are even in the Gamma Quadrant. Hell, I even forget that we may end up exploring uncharted, unexplored space. The crew have no doubt as a whole left their comfort zone, but I'm not sure I have a comfort zone left to leave. If anything, this Quadrant may be my comfort zone" explained Kris as he sat there gazing off, looking at nothing but feeling everything pulsating through his body.

"It will be an adventure regardless of the outcome." He replied. "How's the food?"

"Amazing" replied Kris knowing that his lack of eating was not going unnoticed. "I love that you cooked for us... for me. However, I probably should have let you know that I kind of don't really partake in eating...meat" Kris added.

Liam smile fadded, "Crap, I'm sorry. I should have asked or something." Liam frowned, "Why didn't you say something."

"Because, you went to all this trouble to make everything and I didn't want you to look like that" said Kris shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Doctor. I did not want to ruin dinner between the two of us. This was not the evening you planned out and I've just completely killed the mood."

Liam laughed, "You didn't, I should have thought about something like that, I don't get a chance to cook for people very often, luckily I know quite a few vegetarian and vegan dishes that are pretty good, next time." He said smiling, he shifted his body slightly and his foot grazed the Captain's leg, there was a moment again, he wanted to leave his foot there, keep that tiny degree of contact. "Sorry," He said smiling, moving his leg. "Well how about dessert?"

Kris smiled back at the Doctor. It's been like thirteen years, Kris. You should get out and date. This isn't just another nameless body laying in your bed the Commander told himself. He was thankful that the Doctor was not a telepath or empath. "Don't be" said Kris moving his leg back towards the Doctor's. "Don't be sorry" added Kris.

I'm just easily hurt he thought. It was not something he cared to admit. He felt it would damage his image as Commanding Officer. "Dessert sounds like a plan."

Liam smiled, he brushed he leg against the Captain's again for a moment, before rising to his feet. He took the plates and disappeared into the kitchen, a moment later he returned and set a plate in front of the Captain. "Risian Brulée, no meat, I promise."

Kris smiled and flashed warming eyes at the Doctor. "It looks delicious. I cannot wait" said Kris as he picked up the plate and a utensil, taking some of the dessert and bringing it to his mouth. A few seconds later, Kris was smiling ear to ear. "You may want to quit medicine and open a bakery."

The Doctor laughed, "I like to keep my options open," he grinned, glad to see Kris seemed to enjoy the dessert. "Like it?"

Kris sat the dish aside and pulled the Doctor over to him, close to him. "I like it" replied the Commander with a small smile on his face and gentle gaze in his eyes. Kris turned in his seat and placed his hands of either side of the Doctor's face, inching closer until their lips gently touched and there was nothing but the few seconds of a light kiss.

"I liked it quite a bit. Perhaps we could do this again?" asked Kris slowly pulling himself away.

Liam smiled, "I'd like that, a lot."

ON:

Always ready with an easy-going smile, things tended to not bother Noah Evans. He had been through enough in his life to really let the small stuff roll off his back, how could he not. What was that saying: Don’t sweat the small stuff? It was truly the case for him; he never really sweated the small stuff. But, that didn’t mean things didn’t bother him or that things didn’t stay with him. He just hated to be labeled a pacifist, but yet he truly was. He hated conflict and a lot of times he would just hold in the snarky remarks he wanted to bite out. Instead, he took out his aggressions on a punching bag. He became a fairly decent boxer because of this. Sure, he wouldn’t consider it a hobby, nor would he ever compete, but still he was good at it.

Here he was, on the Katana, punching a punching bag. His fists hit the vinyl hard, he grunted with each punch, his teeth bared. Sweat had dripped down; his tank tee had been soaked now. Tears had stung his eyes and he continued to blink hoping to hold them back. He hated feeling like this, he hated feeling unsure and lost, he hated feeling betrayed. He had been through so much in his short life, but he defied the odds and put all those naysayers in their place. He spent years in academia and he made it. He became a commissioned officer in Starfleet and was offered a department head position.

Every part of his life was measured, controlled, he made sure of that. Maybe a lot of people would label that a weakness but he didn’t. He felt it was one of his biggest strengths. He had to be like that, it was the only way he could get by, to make sense of all the huge blows he had dealt with since the moment he was born. He got straight A’s, he was a good son, he was popular and smart and that carried over into the Academy. His parents raised him to believe he could do anything, handicapped or not and he took that to heart. He proved himself time and time again.

So why, why in the world was this bothering him. Why was a rumor, which was over a year old still nagging at him like a stupid fly? Because it wasn’t the only rumor, that was why. There were others, even some as recent as their trip to the Katana. He didn’t confront Kyle about those rumors; there was no reason too. Either Kyle already knew about them or truly just was oblivious. Maybe he didn’t want to happen what happened on the Samson which got him demoted. Why. Why. WHY! Nothing but a bunch of whys!

Kyle was good looking, smart and funny and he could see why people were attracted to the man. So again, it came down to rumors. Why were there so many? Were people that petty in that they had to start something just because they felt spurned? That made no sense. He was sure thousands of people were turned down a day. It happened, it’s what happened in humanoid relations, but the problem was jealousy, for all the enlightenment, people still couldn’t get past that basilar emotion.

Noah wasn’t a jealous person, he never did get jealous. There was no reason too. Even when rumors circulated around Kyle, he didn’t get jealous. That was simply because if the rumor was true, he would just get rid of the guy. He had no time for cheaters and he would be more angry and sad then jealous. Jealousy was for teenagers, not for grown men.

He slammed his fist into the bag again; again the equivalent of a grunt escaped his lips. He felt the anger that was manifesting slowly begin to dissipate. It wasn’t dissipating fast enough though. Now there was this business of spying on the chief intelligence officer, or well trying to piece together a record that had more holes in it then a golf course. Sure, he understood it was an order, he understood the reasons but it still made him uneasy. Maybe he just didn’t understand. He not only took an oath as a Starfleet officer but as a doctor as well. Maybe those oaths were clouding his own judgment on the whole matter.

But still it made him so angry.

Then he stopped hitting the bag and his arms fell to his side. Something had dawned on him; something that he knew was always there but didn’t readily admit to. He couldn’t bring himself to admit it. As he thought back over the past few months, he had been hitting a boxing bag more and more frequently. Maybe it was more about him then it was about Kyle. He was beginning to question his whole relationship with Kyle. He had been with the other man half his life; Kyle had been the only man he had ever been with. He married him. But why did he marry him? They had been together a long time before marriage even happened. Was it truly jealousy?

Again it all came back to why. That one lone word was so simple and yet so loaded. To him it was almost like a ticking time bomb. He was conflicted now; there was this part of him that wanted to leave Kyle, to be free of him, to be free of the frustrations the man caused. However, there was the part that loved Kyle, but was love even enough to salvage what they had? Right now he didn’t have to see the other man as much, he was working a lot which wasn’t an excuse actually. Before it was academics, now it was being a department head. Was he just hiding behind all of this so he wouldn’t have to face the inevitable? Maybe it was an excuse.

Was it in the cards for him to be unhappy?

No, that was unfair. There were a lot of happy times, a lot of fun times, and a lot of passionate times. Those were memories he’d always keep dear to him, memories he would keep stored in his heart for the rest of his days. But still, he wasn’t sure what to do and today was not the day to figure it out. But, he kept telling himself that for months now. There was just never going to be a good day for this type of stuff, it needed to be faced head on.

He shook his head, sighed then started to punch the bag again.

OFF:

Lieutenant Noah Evans, M.D., Ph.D.
Chief Science Officer

Jenni wondered whose idea it was to adjust the corridor lighting during the graveyard shift. To her, it always had seemed odd. Looking out any viewport ninety percent of the time, all one would ever see was the black velvet of space.

And only space.

Legend told it was to keep the internal clocks of the crew somewhat normal. Jenni was used to it, as much as it seemed odd to her. Growing up on the light side of the moon all of her life, the same approach was taken on the New Aries Colony.

Bright sun light. Dim corridors. Artificial gravity. Seemed like the perfect recipe to breed a Starfleet officer, and in Jenni's case, it worked just fine.

What she truly struggled with at the moment was the lack of life in the corridor. She'd been around a lot of people the past few days, both in tight Jeffries tubes and in various Engineering sectors around the ship. Thanks to the corridor lighting, those who were awake were manning their stations, leaving not a soul to pass by her in the corridor. Jenni was a loner, but being around people once in a while, especially on duty, had begun to weaken her resolve.

When the door to her quarters closed behind her, Jenni instantly backed up against the door and slid to the floor. She heaved a heavy sigh, eyes fixed on the viewport across her quarters. And, it was exactly as she expected, star streaks whizzing by over black velvet.

Jenni glanced up at the ceiling, noting her own lights were dim. It was only then that she realized that she hadn't seen her ceiling for the last couple days.

Pushing herself off of the floor, she walked to her bedroom, immediately noting her duffel bag and violin were right where she'd left them. Jenni leaned against the doorway. Had she really been on duty for the last thirty-six hours or more? When she'd accepted the assignment, she was eager to finally have an engine room of her own. No dealing with fellow officers with petty excuses or actions.

She wasn't expecting to pull together a ship two years past due on a refit in a matter of hours. The Katana wasn't perfect by any means. But, she was working. The star streaks outside her window were proof enough. She'd have to file a complaint with the crew that handled the refit, though she was sure others higher up in the Task Force had already done the same.

Alpha shift started in a few hours, but she was far too wired to go to sleep. Jenni opened the duffel bag and removed an oversized T-shirt. She tossed the duffel bag on the floor, planning to unpack when she had more time, which probably wouldn't be for another week or so. She took a minute to undress, then put on the t-shirt.

Jenni sat on the bed, cross-legged and placed the violin case in front of her. Carefully, she opened the fragile case and removed her prized possession. It was just as she left it, clean and fit. She picked up the bow and placed the violin under her chin. Jenni closed her eyes as she began to pull the bow over the strings, releasing a tender melody. The sound of serenity replaced the whirring of life support and the reverberations of the warp core through the deck plating. Long, low and sweet came each note, more soothing than a infant's lullaby, each one bringing Jenni closer to relaxation and sleep.

Part 2


The Nausicaans moved into the picture to maintain order. Marg had saw what looked like a hU-mon approach the creature and suffer a small attack. He could have sworn he saw a Starfleet uniform and had signaled for his Nausicaan escorts to come. The lead Nausicaan grunted at Marg who muttered to the Nausicaans to search the city. "I saw a hU-mon. The Federation are here... you know what to do."

Marg addressed the crowd. "Bidding is closed for this item. Minimum bid has not been met" said Marg to the creature as he pulled it by the arm.

The creature hissed at the little troll as he grabbed her by the arm and roughly pulled her to her feet. Again, she struck out at him, throwing him and the Nausicaans away from her. This time, instead of waiting for retaliation, she ran. Her attempt to flee was clumsy as she was not accustomed to running, but her escape was well timed as she found herself in a sea of Wadi who had no interest in the forest girl.

Marg was attacked by the creature once again and in the process, he had lost the creature. It had scurried off into the crowd of Wadi. "No!" he shouted as he searched for the creature but he was too small in height to see over the tall Wadi. I'll shock it he thought as he reached for the control to the shock collar. However the controller had been lost and was now on the ground, stomped upon by one of his Nausicaan escorts. Marg saw it spark after being crushed.

The Ferengi was outraged. He grabbed the nearest Nausicaan "Find the creature!" he shouted in a shrill. In response, the Nausicaan pushed through the crowd of Wadi without any regard to his aggressive nature. Amongst the Away Team, Lieutenant Verak quickly encountered one of the Nausicaans who was looking for the creature.

The little forest girl ran feebly through crowd, the Nausicaan not far behind. She panted in effort, her throat swollen from the abuse of the collar, not to mention her own efforts to free herself. But at least it was no longer hurting her. She would find a way to remove it later, right now she just wanted to put as much distance between herself and her captors as quickly as possible.

Verak turned to address the others of the Away Team. "It appears as though their captive has escaped" announced the half-Vulcan. Verak watched as the creature scurried past him with a Nausicaan in pursuit. Verak allowed the creature to pass by him but he quickly extended his leg outward and tripped the Nausicaan.

The creature glanced back to see the Nausicaan fall. Finally, a bit of luck! She scurried away, hoping to lose her pursuit in the crowd, but she didn't know how much longer she could go on. She was tired and hungry, exhausted from the pain her master had inflicted on her as well as from using her telekinesis. She had never used it so much at once before and she felt like a strong wind would surely topple her over, but she couldn't stop until she was certain she was free of the angry little troll.

Tul and Maica caught up to the remainder of the away team just as Verak tripped one of the Nausicaans. Tul stunned the fallen pirate and disarmed him. For now, it seemed the Ferengi's captive had escaped.

"Sirigh, bind the Nausicaan. He may be useful in helping us locate the Ferengi and the pirate operations."

Sirigh fell upon the Nausicaan without a second thought, his hand reaching out to whip a cloth belt off the closest onlooker he could reach, putting the Nausicaan in a less-than-comfortable armlock before binding him into the position. "Which way did the girl go? She's be just as useful for information, and probably more willing to give it."

Tul turned to Maica, "Take Verak and track the creature. But be careful. Stun it if you have to, it's going back to Katana with us. The rest of us will find the Ferengi."

"Roger that. Lt Verak, try to keep up." Before she had even finished speaking, her tricorder was out and tracking the creature, darting after it through the crowd. Her smaller frame was good for this sort of thing, though she did have to squeeze her way a few times as she headed towards a dark alley her tricorder said the alien had gone down. On her way, she started reconfiguring her tricorder to be ready to hide the signal of the slave tag just in case.

Verak's glare was as pointed as his ears as he set off after Maica and the creature. "I can assure you, Lieutenant Maica that I was on the Academy track team... I will be more than able to keep up" he said countering. It did take some effort, but Verak did keep up with the Orion looking Android. "We should proceed with caution. The creature may be a potential danger to us" asserted the helmsmen.

Maica slowed at the entrance to the alley, splitting her attention between the darkness and her tricorder as her cybernetic eyes adjusted her contrast processing level. "Agreed. That earlier display of telekinetics may have tired her out, but I think it's safe to assume that she can do it some more if she feels threatened."

In the darkness of the alley, behind the safety of an abandoned merchant cart, the little forest girl allowed herself to relax for a moment, crying softly as she rubbed at her sore, blinded eyes. They felt swollen from all the light; she hoped she wasn't damaged too badly. One of her elders was caught out in the light once and came back blinded. She could still see, but everything was blurry. She sniffled a bit; the blurriness could just be the tears or it could just be the exhaustion, so she would try her best not to work herself up too much over this since there wasn't much she could do about it right now. First, she needed to rest for a bit then figure out what to do next. Perhaps she should just try to hide until darkness set? Maybe by then she could fly, then she could really get around! Her stomach growled, effectively ending any further planning. She needed food before she could do anything else.

Her master hadn't fed her anything she could eat, just grubs and stale water that made her feel sick. She didn't know how to acquire food in this place, though. The creature didn't want to take food that wasn't hers to take, that was wrong, but on the other hand she didn't want to starve. She had seen the Wadi bartering for her sash, saw an exchange between him and her master. Other Wadi had traded colorful sticks with each other for goods. She didn't have much with her and she didn't know if any of it would hold any worth to these people. For that matter, she didn't even know if it would be safe enough to try to barter with them. They seemed uninterested in her when she was running from her master, but what if they took her back to him now? She was so afraid, she didn't know what to do...

Lieutenants Verak and Maica were in pursuit of the creature, tracking it on their tricorders. Maica obviously had more experience in situations regarding first contact. However, Verak was the senior officer of the two of them. When the two officers started to close in on the creature, Verak extended his arm to hold Maica back from moving forward. "The creature appears to be quite impulsive. I would not advise the both of us approaching it together" said Verak.

Nodding at Verak's words, Maica had to agree. "A situation like this, I would seem to be the logical choice to approach her. Less risk of injury." She looked up at the half vulcan curiously. "Unless you think you could speak with her telepathically?"

Verak looked at the Android with a nervous look. It was purely his humanity showing to her. "You may be the logical choice to approach her. However, we still do not know if her psionic attacks are a danger to your mechanics or myself. I have only done a mind meld a handful of times in my life, Lieutenant. It would be ill advised to do so without knowing how the creatures mind and my mind would connect. A meld with an unknown species could have disaterous results for the both of us" explained the helmsmen.

"Not quite what I meant, but point taken. I'll have to do what I can then." Maica put up her tricorder and composed herself.

She could hear people approaching, hear them talking. Frightened that they might be there to take her back to the monster that had collared her, she considered her options. Her first thought was to hide, but she quickly dismissed the thought. If they were strangers there for their own reasons then that would be fine, but if they were looking for her then hiding would just leave her cornered. Maybe she could make a stand, or she could try to run! Neither idea sounded very appealing; she didn't know if she could fight anymore, she was simply too exhausted, and if they truly were looking for her and had found her so quickly, then it stood to reason they could do it again just as fast. So where did that leave her? With no further ideas, she simply hugged her knees to her chest, making herself as small as possible in the little nook behind the abandoned cart, and she waited, hoping beyond all hope that whoever was in the alley wasn't looking for her.

The Vulan-Human helmsmen of Katana looked at his Android companion and nodded. "You approach her, Lieutenant but be careful. She is practically cornered and looks terrified. One false move on our part and she may attack us both."

Maica stalked forward slowly, getting on hands and knees as she peeked into the tiny space with the alien. Upon seeing her, Maica's first thought was 'ooh cute' but she refrained. Instead, she started to coo softly and soothingly, trying to calm the creature. She wasn't sure if it could speak, but perhaps it was amicable to soothing tones like many of the flying creatures on Earth.

The creature flinched at the sight of the green woman. They had come looking for her! Her muscles tensed and she reached out to push the woman away, but then she stopped. The woman was approaching slowly, hesitant and cautious, making herself small so as not to be a threat. And the sounds she was making... it was nonsensical to the creature, yet somehow soothing. For the slightest moment, the creature relaxed, listening to the gentle sound and watching the woman grow closer. Then the creature tensed again. She didn't know the green woman's intentions. Untrusting of this stranger, she whimpered and tried to work herself tighter into the corner of the space they occupied, but she never struck the green woman. Maybe she was too tired or maybe there was just something about this woman, she didn't know.

This was a good sign. Maica wasn't being attacked. Smiling a bit, she layed down and kept cooing, adding a bit of humming and a few bird song calls now and then, watching the small girl's actions carefully. She should have brought some food to help win her trust, but she didn't have any. Right now she just had to hope the girl could say something so she knew which language to try to use.

The creature seemed quite interested in the bird calls. This green woman could make such interesting sounds! But no, she couldn't trust her, the woman could be here to take her back to her master! But if the green woman was going to do that, wouldn't she have done it by now?

Home, the little creature sang, hugging her knees tighter I want to go home. There were no words, just a pleasant melodic sound. It hurt her to sing, her throat was so raw and bruised, but this green woman was trying to communicate with her, she had to at least try to reciprocate.

The helmsmen arched a brow when the creature began to make sounds that seemed to be in response to Maica. "Lieutenant, is the creature singing? It sounds like you have made first contact of some sort."

She responded. Maica wasn't sure exactly what she had said, but it was at least something for her universal translator systems to work with and it was telling her that the girl wanted to go home. Maica paused for a moment, smiling back at Lt Verak. "Can you find some water? Her voice sounds rather sore." She continued singing in what she hoped was a more intelligible string of sounds, aiming to get the point across that they would try to help her find home. Intermittently, she would tap her nose and sing her name that an avian race had given her.

The creature listened intently as the green woman sang in response. The little forest girl couldn't understand what she was saying; the song sounded familiar, but it just wasn't quite right. Yet the girl could understand that this woman was trying to communicate with her, not merely barking orders she couldn't understand, nor was she hurting her. And then there were more bird sounds. She didn't understand that bird sounds at all, but they were pleasant to hear. Slowly, she started to relax, though she had yet to remove herself from her hiding place.

Verak nodded. "I'll get some water... just don't let the creature go" said Verak as he slowly backed away and headed back into the Wadi city to retrieve water. It took him a few minutes but he did manage to trade one of his own personal possessions in exchange for a small container of water. The helmsmen rushed back to Maica and the creature as soon as he could.

The helmsmen looked at Maica and then at the creature as he himself slowly approached her this time. He crouched down poured some water onto the palm of his hand and then brought it to his mouth to drink, showing the creature that it could do the same. He extended his arm towards the creature, offering it the container of water.

"Drink" he said to the creature as though she'd even be able to understand him.

Maica didn't seem to be making much progress, but if she could get the small girl to speak a bit more she would have more to work with. As Lt Verak offered the water, she quieted down a bit, switching to more of a soft purr. Hopefully having some water she would be willing to speak a bit more.

The creature was distrustful of the man and the container he offered. He drank from it which showed her at the very least it was safe for him to drink it, but it took her a while longer to decide that the risk was worth it. Slowly, very slowly, she moved away from the wall, crawling towards the strange man and the green woman, watching them both warily as though waiting for them to make a sudden move to catch her. Once she was close enough, she snatched the container of water from the man's grasp then put distance between them. She studied the container and it's contents. The container smelled funny, so she couldn't tell if there was anything wrong with the water, so she gave it a cautious sip. It tasted fine and cool liquid was a welcomed balm to her parched throat. She took another sip, and then another, careful not to drink too fast. All the while, she kept her eyes on the pair in front of her, still mistrustful of them but willing to let them near for now.

Maica giggled softly as the small girl drank. After a few sips, she remodulated her voice and repeated what she had heard earlier. The song piece about home. Perhaps she would communicate a bit more now.

Verak was delighted to see the creature was drinking as it did not look well nourished. The helmsmen pointed to the Android "Maica" he said gently and then he pointed at himself "Verak" he added. Then, the helmsmen pointed at her.

The creature still couldn't comprehend what either the man or the woman was trying to say, but she was starting to see that they weren't trying to hurt her. Whatever they wanted from her, they seemed to be putting a great deal of effort into making her compliant. As long as they weren't trying to take her back to that little troll that gave her pain, then she supposed she didn't mind so much. Speaking of pain... She set the container of water aside and crawled a little closer to them. She tugged at the collar around her neck. She had done some significant damage to it, but it was still firmly in place. If they weren't here to take her back to her master, then they would take the collar off of her, right? At least, that was what she had hoped.

Smiling and nodding, Maica slowly pulled out her tricorder and started scanning the collar. The Ferengi normally used a pretty simple wireless signal to trigger them and with her own experiences with escape, she felt she could get it off easy enough. Soon she found the signal it was looking for. Tapping the tricorder a few more times, the collar clicked open and she slowly reached towards it to take it off.

The creature momentarily backed away, still fearful of contact, but eventually relented, allowing the green woman to carefully remove the collar from around her neck. Underneath the collar, her neck had burns from the shocks the collar delivered as well as heavy bruising from her earlier attempts to remove the device. The creature rubbed at the abused flesh, grateful to be free of the hated device.

Taking the collar and scanning it a second more, she hands it up to Verak. "I recommend destroying that. It has the tracking device in it." Turning back to the small girl, she again, tries to communicate, her internal universal translator now grasping at straws.

Verak nodded. "Can you safely destroy the collar, Lieutenant?" asked Lieutenant Verak. "We may want to bring it back to the shuttle and have Crewmen Corbin look at it."

The little forest girl put her hand over the green woman's mouth to stop her from making any more sounds. Whatever the green woman was trying to say was still nonsensical, and as much as the girl appreciated the effort, she was simply too tired to try to make sense of it.

Taking the hint to be silent, Maica stopped her sounds and nodded slowly. Instead, she started to get up and motioned for the girl to come with them, offering her hand in friendship. It would be tricky to get back to the shuttle with her so they might have to use the transporter to get back safely.

The creature hesitated, but she did eventually follow, crawling out of her hiding space to join the man and the woman. She still kept her distance, she still couldn't trust them yet, but so far they had helped her and she was willing to take a leap of faith that they weren't going to turn her over to her master.

Glad that the creature was free of its savage collar, Verak and Maica were leading the creature. "I think we have convinced the creature to trust us, Lieutenant... at least to some extent."

Maica smiled at the girl - she was taller than expected, only being a few inches shorter than the android. "Thank goodness. No one deserves to be a slave to those trolls."

Verak nodded. "It would seem logical that these 'Trolls' are operating on their own accord."

The creature listened to them talk as she followed, intensely intrigued by the conversation. She couldn't understand a word that they were saying, but their tone and body language spoke volumes to her and that made her feel more comfortable than any of their placating behavior and she allowed herself to move closer to them. But then she stopped, just short of exiting the alley, her safe harbor from the light. She blinked at the brightness hurting her eyes, afraid to go any further; she had already been exposed to too much light, she dared not leave the darkness now.

Maica paused just a moment after the girl, looking at her curiously. "She was blindfolded earlier - perhaps her eyes are hypersensitive to light. I recommend we use the shuttle's transporter to get back. The light will be much softer in there."

Verak looked at Maica "We should get closer together for the Shuttle's to get a stronger lock on our location" the helmsmen said as he approached the android and creature. He tapped his communications badge in a series of taps. It was to activate the shuttle's capability to perform an emergency transport. The three were soon encased with the glowing energy of modern Federation transporter tech and soon the planet around them would be replaced with the sights and sounds of the shuttlecraft.

The creature had felt this sensation before! As soon as the matter stream dissipated, she stumbled back, unsettled by the sudden change in surroundings. The shuttle's interior lights may have been gentler than the harshness of the sunlight outside, but it was still quite uncomfortable to her eyes, enough so that she felt the need to shield eyes. Clearly, she was not in the same place her master had kept her, but she still wasn't certain what to make of their actions.

Maica stepped to the shuttle controls, turning the lights almost all the way off. After that, she grabbed an emergency ration, broke it into three pieces and offered the other two each a piece, nibbling on hers. It wasn't culinary cuisine, but hopefully it would help the girl for now and she hoped sharing food would help her relax. She just hoped the vegetarian bar was good enough. "I'm fluent in over four million forms of communication and you have me stumped. Amazing."

Still on edge from the lights and the abrupt location change, it took the creature a moment of watching the green woman eat before she was willing to trust the offered food, but she did eventually take the ration and nibble on it. The taste was not all that pleasant and its dry texture made it a little hard to swallow with her throat so sore, but it was edible and it felt good to have something in her stomach.

"We should let the others know where we are. We should also try to help her with her injuries." Pulling out the emergency medkit, Maica sat on one of the bench seats in the back of the shuttle and patted it in the hopes the girl would sit down as well. "I'll admit, I don't know much more than the basic first-aid classes though."

The green woman had to repeat the gesture a couple of times before the creature figured out that she needed to sit beside her. Wary at first, she eventually complied and settled on the bench seat, watching with great interest what the green woman was doing.

Smiling warmly, Maica took out the dermal regenerator and pantomimed using it on herself then moving towards the girl's neck with it slowly. This would help heal those wounds, but the girl had to trust her enough to let her.

The girl looked at the tool, then the green woman, then back to the tool, blinking curiously. She had trusted them this far, no sense in say no now, so she let the green woman do whatever she needed to do with the tool. Like magic, her neck seemed to feel better as the green woman passed the tool over her neck. She felt about her neck as the woman kept working; sure enough, the injuries were getting better! She was still tender, but it didn't hurt so bad and the little forest girl couldn't help but smile excitedly.

Verak nodded. "I'll inform Commander Zannar of our situation." The helmsmen opened a channel to the Away Team. "Commander Zannar this is Lieutenant Verak. Lieutenant Maica and I have liberated the creature and have returned to the shuttle. The creature may be in need of medical assistance. Should we wait for you and the others to return or should we leave orbit and head back to Katana?"

=/\= We're on our way back to the shuttle now. We'll be bringing in a couple of... Guests as well =/\= Tul's voice cut, interrupted by a whining Ferengi voice before the channel closed.

Sabrina was still in the spot she'd been thrown. Threatened with being written up, she wasn't about to disobey orders, and orders had been to stay put. She did try to see what was happening with the rest of the away team, but she soon lost sight of them in the crowd. She hoped they were successful in rescuing the creature.

Tul and the two security officers, Sirigh and Safis, reappeared in the town square. Their hunt had apparently been successful. The Ferengi, Marg, and one of his Nausicaan associates were under the Away Team's arrest. Tul, his hand on Marg's shoulder, pulled the Ferengi to a stop as they neared Sabrina.

"Crewman Corbin, still have your phaser?" Tul asked,

"Yes sir." Sabrina pulled out her phaser.

"Good, keep it on this one..." He pushed Marg a few steps ahead so Sabrina could take over.

Sabrina was happy to do so. She had nothing against Ferengi, but the way the man had treated the creature was horrid, and she was
glad he was under arrest. She'd be happy to stun him if he say......sneezed.

"Lieutenants Maica and Verak were successful in finding the pirate's creature. They have already taken her back to the shuttle,"

Sirigh shoved the captive Nausicaan none too kindly, a slightly bleeding eyebrow reminding him that this was a rather violent captive. "How's your arm?" He asked towards Safis, who had a burn on his left arm from the trouble their toothy friend had given them.

"Well enough." The Lieutenant responded, his eyes never veering from where they walked.

"Take him. I'd like to take point and make sure we don't have any more incidents getting on the shuttle."

Safis nodded and took hold of the Nausicaan by what remained of his initial "bindings," as well as a hand on the man's neck, threatening a certain nerve pinch if he resisted.

When the remainder of the Away Team reached the shuttle, Tul found the hatch was closed. A little confused, as Verak should have had the craft ready to go, Tul tapped his badge. =/\= Tul to shuttlecraft... We are outside. Is the creature secured and ready for our return to Katana? May the rest of us board the shuttle? =/\= The commander was still leery about the new creature. He didn't trust it or know how she would react when the larger party tried to board the shuttle, previous captors included.

Tapping her comm badge, Maica responded quickly. "This is Lt Maica. Stand by one moment. The girl is hyper sensitive to light." Taking a sling from the medkit, she gently pressed it to the small girl's eyes before hitting the door controls so the others could board. As nervous as she was with being in the same shuttle with a Ferengi, she knew her ward would likely be even more upset. As the door opened, she slipped back to the girl and wrapped her arm around her protectively, her other hand close to her phaser.

As the door opened, Sirigh holstered his phaser and boarded, making sure to take up the majority of the shuttle, a green wall between the girl and her former captors. He gestured to the engineer first, "Bring him in, Crewman Recruit." He stated, keeping his eyes on the girl at the front of the shuttle and his ears on the movements behind him.

Sabrina looked as menacingly as she could manage to at Marg and led him into the shuttle.

The creature trembled in fear at the sound of her master's voice. Had she made a mistake in trusting these people? Were they going to hand her over to her master? Maybe she just didn't want to believe that the green woman was going to betray her after all she had done for her, but the little forest girl was putting her trust in her now, moving behind the green woman to hide.

Daimon Marg was not pleased that he had been taken captive by the Federation. He would be sure to say nothing that could incriminate himself. In stead he simply kept his mouth shut and glared at the Starfleet officers as the shuttle soon lifted and shook slightly. Back to their starship thought Marg concerned that they would turn him over to Federation authorities and not return him to his vessel. Knowing his brother, he would take claim to Marg's Maurader.

Kyle wasn't a big fan of having his molecules scrambled then reassembled, despite all the redundancies and safeguards built into the system. If things weren't put back in the right order, there was no Do-Over, no Mulligan. Still he took plenty of other risks, Noah was constantly reminding him of that- reminding him to the point he was starting to tune him out, so it really wasn't that big of deal to him, he'd just prefer the shuttle craft. Though in this instance he had to agree this was the best option. Thankfully they materialized in one piece in a corridor on the Ferengi ship.

Liam's eyes darted around the immediate area, they were alone, "Lead the way." He said to the Intelligence Officer.

Kyle took a moment to orient himself then took a few steps down the corridor till curved to the right. He
took a breath to center himself then stood in front of the sensor on the door.

Liam silently followed the junior officer as they entered the cargo bay, the bay massive, it would take a while to search.

"We should divide the area up and locate these supplies at least that would be my recommendation, we need to be in and out as fast as possible. What am I looking for?"

"Look for crates with Starfleet Medical Corps marking, I doubt the Ferengi would have bother to recrate all the supplies. If we can't find that we'll have to resort to searching the hard way." He said with a nod before separating and beginning to search.

The man Kyle called dad was a doctor so he had some rudimentary understanding he turned to the port side even as the Katana's chief medical officer turned to the starboard side of the large room. Most of the crates were in Ferangi, he recognized the language, though that was about it. There was nothing in Federation Standard, however. The more he looked the most frustrated he became.

Liam silently but quickly moved between stacks, the bay was large, more like a warehouse that a ships cargo hold. He could see everything from weapons containers to fuel cells, to cages, despite being empty at the moment he couldn't help but feel disgusted imagining the likely numerous former tenants.

He was just about to say something, to get further clarification from Liam when he heard the doors they had just entered through slide open.

Liam quickly ducked down, peering around the edge of the crate to see two Nausicans enter. More security. It was then that he saw it, in the shadow of a large emerald green crate. The unmistakable insignia of the Starfleet Medical. He carefully maneuvered towards it, luckily medical supplies were usually rather small, the entire supply packed neatly in a corner. The trouble would be setting up enhancers and beaming out
unnoticed.

Kyle dove behind a too small crate as the two rather odoriferous aliens entered. He hid himself as best he could, but knew if they looked in his direction he would be found. If he moved from where he was, he would be spotted. He confident he could take one out with some effort. but two, well even he wasn't that good. Fortunately they weren't looking for him, or anyone at the moment, just a routine check, but it would be very bad if caught a glimpse of him.

The two burly guards turned and left again, Liam released a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. He cautiously got to his feet and signalled the spook to join him. "This should be all of them." He said gesturing to the cases. "The routing numbers match the shipments slated for the Teplans."

Kyle's hand moved away from the rather large knife he had been clutching and walked over to where the Doctor was. He was beginning to think Noah might be right about the profession he had chosen being a bit too dangerous, but now that the guards had left he was feeling like his old self again. "Good job, doctor." he told the other man.

"Let's set up the enhancers and get out of here. I love a good adrenaline rush but I rather be back on the Kat before security makes another round." He said getting the equipment ready.

Kyle helped him finish the preparations "I think that's about it. Its time to get the Hell out of Dodge. You ready?".

Liam nodded and tapped his combadge. "Cohen to Katana two and supplies to beam back," and a moment later they dematerialized.

Back on the ship, Maica was taking her new friend to sickbay. The events earlier had shaken both of them up. The girl they could help, but Maica just had to get through it. Anyway, they had just stepped off of the turbolift outside sickbay and as she rounded the corner and walked through the door, she was about to call out for the doctor when she realized that since she hadn't ever seen a doctor, she didn't actually know their names or even how to address them... Hopefully, just calling out 'doctor' would work.

"Doctor?" Maica called out, her arm wrapping around the girl softly and a bit protectively. "Is there a Doctor in? I have a visitor here that needs to be checked out."

The creature clung helplessly to the green woman as she was blindly let into the medical bay. She felt so confused and lost; she was ready for things to calm down. She was beginning to doubt that she would ever go back home, but she just wanted all this chaos to stop.

Rather than waiting for a doctor to show up, Maica turned the lights down a bit and headed over to the replicator with the girl. She needed clothes so she quickly went through a few sun dress designs, picking out an open back version for her wings. Thankfully, finding a pattern she might like was easier - one of the first choices was a green and brown speckled pattern with streaks of blue intermixed through it. As soon as it materialized, she pulled it out of the replicator and started putting it on over the smaller girl's head. Hopefully dressing her will be easier than communicating.

The little forest girl stepped back, casting a dubious glance at the cloth in the green woman's hands. Stars above, what was the green woman trying to do? She pushed at the green woman's hands, trying her best to prevent this strange cloth from encircling her head.

Well this could be going better. Giving up for a moment, Maica started to take her uniform top off, rubbing the dress against her own clothes. Hoping that made some sort of connection, she tried getting the girl into the sundress again.

The girl got closer to the green woman, curious about the layers of cloth covering her body, tugging and examining the purple shirt. She had noticed this on many of the individuals she had seen in the place her master had kept her as well as in the marketplace where her master was trying to sell her. She wondered what these layers of cloth symbolized. The people of this place wore cloth that looked almost identical to one another, and they wore shiny bits of metal. She noticed a pattern with the bits of metal, but she hadn't figured it out yet. And what did the different colors symbolize? She liked the blue/teal color the people in this room were wearing, but the green woman's purple shirt reminded her of some flowers back home. She smiled, taking the bit of cloth from the green woman's hand, examining the pattern. There was something pleasant and whimsical about the pattern that she liked. Perhaps this cloth was a symbol of status? but then, what was her status? Certain she would learn eventually, returning the cloth then waited for the green woman to show her how to put it on.

Smiling brightly, Maica lifted the girl's arms through the dress, draping it over her loosely. It looked good on her and as the android thought, her own size fit her loosely, but really well. Smiling triumphantly, Maica clasped her hands in front of herself and made a happy cooing noise.

The girl wiggled uncomfortably. This cloth felt funny. She wasn't accustomed to being covered all over and felt no shame in expressing her displeasure with a sour expression and a disgruntled grumble.

She didn't like the dress, it seemed. It was the lightest fabric she could find, and something from her own personal wardrobe, at that. Maica pouted and looked back at the replicator, wondering what she might possibly like.

Liam entered the main area of Sickbay, tugging slightly on his scrubs. "Lieutenant, this would be our new guest I assume." He said. The man slowly approached, his tall frame turned slightly, consciously trying to look non-threatening as he approached the pair.

The creature hid behind the green woman slightly, wary of this new person, but not outright afraid, not yet anyway.

Maica held the girl's hand, moving to stand closer to her as she tried retreating behind her again.

Liam slowly opened the tircorder and began scanning, he turned the device for the creature to see it and scanned himself to show it wasn't harmful.

The little forest girl was curious about what this man was doing. Earlier, the green woman had done something similar, using a magic tool to make the injuries to her neck stop hurting. Perhaps this was another magic tool? She remain 'attached' to the green woman, but poked her head out curiously to watch what this man was doing.

He entered a few commands on bio bed, "Lieutenant can you get her to sit on the bed?" He said, a moment later the scan began. "Her vitals look stable, I can't really do much more than infer having never encountered her species. Have you been able to get any language out of her?"

Maica lifted the girl up onto the bio bed, hugging and smiling warmly as she did so, both hands holding onto hers tenderly. "Unfortunately no, I can't seem to build a translation matrix yet. It may take a while, considering she's an unknown Gamma Quadrant species with a very unusual language. We don't even know if she has a name yet."

Liam glanced at the officer for a moment. "Very well." He held up his hands to show they were empty as he began to slowly examine the girl. A multitude of minor injuries, but nothing looked life threatening. His eyes looked over the readings again, "Odd, it looks as if there's plant like DNA incorporated into more traditional humanoid DNA." He said, "Even her hair looks more like grass than hair, and her circulatory systems looks more like plant vasculature."

The creature's eyes followed everything the man did, mostly out of mistrust but there was also an insatiable curiosity that yearned to know what he was doing.

"Normally i'd like to take a blood sample for further anaylsis, but I feel like that might cause more harm right now, so that can wait for another day. Any luck figuring out what kind of food she eats? Looks like a case of malnourishment, I doubt the Ferengi feed her well." He set down the scanner, and picked up the dermal regenerator and began to treat some of the remaining wounds.

Shaking her head no, Maica squeezed the girl's hand softly. "I don't. I was kind of hoping you could tell from her digestive system if she's an omnivore or herbivore. I'm pretty sure she's not a carnivore at least - she doesn't have the teeth for it and the Ferengi troll didn't have any bite marks as far as I could see."

The creature watched with fascination as her wounds disappeared with the man's magic tool, chattering on in musical tones about how strange it felt and how amazing this place was to have these kinds of tools. She was definitely more curious than afraid now.

"I would guess herbivore. I see little in the way of biologically processed animal proteins, as long as it's balanced I don't see why she wouldn't be able to have a balanced plant based diet, but possibly put the offer out there. Eating is a pretty generalized processed across life, if you put a plate of food in front of her I'm sure she would be able to figure out what she does and doesn't like." He said, finishing the last of the injuries. "I feel like water is going to be a major issue, she almost seems to have plant like transpiration, possibly native to a much more humid climate."

The curious little creature lifted the magic tool out of his hand, examining it from a variety of angles, curious to see how it worked.

"And here we see her amazing talent with telekinetics once again." Maica giggled lyrically at the thought of the girl nicking tools from all over the ship like that.

"Interesting." Liam said, entering a few commands into the computer to activate a neurological scan. "You do realize the Captain may not like this, it's one thing to bring an unknown creature aboard, but if she has psionic abilities it could pose a threat to the ship, especially if we don't know the extend of them of her level of control."

"This is true, but based on her use of it under duress on the planet it seemed she couldn't do much more than knock people back a few times at most. Crewman Sabrina Corbin was hit by it as well as several Nausicans with no ill effects." Maica really wasn't sure of the extent of her powers, but based just on what she had seen so far, she was fairly confident that the girl wouldn't be a danger.

"Still, I'll have to put it in my report. I mean, hypothetically if we were attacked and she was scared, and used her abilities, she could rupture an EPS main and blow up the ship. Especially if we can't effectively communicate with her." He said, making a few more notes as the scan finished. The Doctor carefully plucked the device out of the air and set it back down. "I think that's everything I can do for her for now."

The creature's expression practically wilted when the man plucked the magic tool from the air. She wasn't finished looking at it! Oh, but it was his magic tool, she had no right to demand what wasn't hers. but that didn't stop her from pouting.

Liam watched the expression change. He picked up the device and removed the power cell before holding it loosely in his hand in front of her.

The girl seemed to understand that he was offering the magic tool to her and reach out to take it with her long, nimble fingers, smiling slightly.

"Keep it, the more things she becomes familiar with the easier it may make communication at some point." He said Maica.

"She doesn't even have quarters yet... Oh, I was wondering if you could do anything for her light sensitivity. The normal light levels blind her." Maica had almost forgotten about that rather important point.

"I'm hesitant to do much more, especially without being able to communicate or know more about her anatomy. My recommendation for now would be low tech alternative." He moved to a replicator and returned a moment later, "These are polarized, they'll reduced about 80% of the light without actually hindering her vision too much. I think that would be the best thing. We can possibly look at medical options down the road if needed." He said. He showed the google like glasses to Shira before putting them on his own face to show her what they did. He then attempted to put them on Shira so he could order the lights back to normal.

The creature made a sour face, pushing the man's hands away from her. She was just barely tolerating the strange clothe the green woman had given her, she was not putting anything on her face! She 'said' something that required little translation: she did not like what the man was trying to do.

Liam stopped and handed them to Maica, "Maybe you'll have better luck."

Maica couldn't help but giggle as she took the goggles. "Maybe later Doctor. She has a lot to get used to as it is. I think for now, we can leave the ship's lighting lowered while we get to know her. Thank you." Taking the girl's hand, she helped her off the bio bed and made ready to leave.

"Good luck, I'm here if you need any support." Liam said and watched the pair leave.

Being the spouse of a Department Head did have its privileges. One of those was an actual kitchenette rather than just a replicator. Kyle liked to cook, when he had the time and he had even taken off a little early. Since he was planing to meet the Captain the next day, he wasn't feeling too guilty.

Just as he had promised he was fixing meatloaf. He was dressed in a pair of dark jeans and a faded Parrises Squares jersey. He finished chopping some onions and put them into the mix. He added a pinch more salt and pepper and then placed it into the oven.

Since boarding the Katana Noah's days had been on the longer side. Not that he minded, hard work never hurt him, besides it kept his mind occupied which allowed him to think of something other than what Kyle was going to be doing. He was still vehemently against it, but didn't question it further or raise anymore concerns. All he knew though, was it was a path he could not follow on and didn't want any part of it. Since their talk about it, they had been amicable, but they hadn't really seen much of each other either. Maybe that was a good thing.

Though, when he walked into his quarters, he smiled as the smells tickled his nostrils. When Kyle and he were together, he was spoiled by the other man's cooking. It was always hard to eat replicated food for a few days after. Still, with their work schedules, he had doubt Kyle would be cooking so much or that they would be sharing meals together. "Hi there," he said as he set some PaDDs on his desk then moved to where Kyle stood. "Smells delicious."

Kyle smiled when he heard the door open but the smile was somewhat forced. Yes, it was good to have Noah home, but it seemed like they were seeing less of each other than they had when they had been light years from each other. He was no telepath but he was feeling some underlying tension just below the surface and he couldn't for the life of him explain or even define it. He wanted to talk with Noah about it, but they had a guest coming and now was not the time for it. He felt the other man's presence beside him and turned to face him, this time the smile was a little less forced.

"How was your day?" he signed with a casual air.

"Oh just fine," Noah signed in return. "My desk in my office is a mess, but that is to be expected until I get things organized."

Sabrina knew that she wasn't expected to bring anything, but she felt obligated to anyway. She had nothing to bring other than her precious coffee however. She hated to part with any of it, but she placed some in a small bag, enough for a full pot of coffee at least. She changed into a sun dress and a flat pair of sandals. She was accustomed to 'beach' ware and rarely dressed up. The simple dress and sandals would be fine for a casual dinner, she hoped. With a smile she made her way to their quarters and sounded the chime.

"Come in," Kyle called out, not sure if Noah had removed his hearing aids.

Sabrina stepped in and waved at Kyle. "Hi."

"Hi," he returned, "Sabrina, I'd like you to meet Noah Evans, my husband. Noah, this is Sabrina Corbin, she's the young lady I was telling you about."

Noah looked to Kyle then back to Sabrina and nodded. "Hello Sabrina, it's a pleasure to meet you," he said. "Welcome."

"Thank you." Sabrina smiled. "I brought coffee." She held up the small bag. "I didn't have anything else to bring. I hope it's ok."

Kyle didn't really like coffee, though he could tolerate it when he needed to. "From your personal stash? We're honored aren't we hun?"

"Oh it's more than okay," Noah said. He loved coffee, in fact it was his one vice that he allowed for himself to have. "Thank you," he took a hold of the bag and had to show restraint from not opening it and smelling the grounds. He was used to replicated coffee, but it was always nice to have fresh. It was one thing he missed from his time on Earth. "Please have a seat," he said, indicating the couch that sat under a bank of large windows.

"It was my graduation gift. Costa Rican beans." Sabby smiled, they eyed the view. "Wow." Interior quarters shared with three other enlisted did not lend itself to such dramatic views. She curled up on the couch completely backwards, forgetting her manners in her awe of such a view. "Please tell me you never get tired of this."

In some ways Kyle was jaded. In fact his fathers had done the best to spoil him, though they would never call it that, when he was growing up. But there were two things he could never get enough of, three if you included Noah. The other two were being in the outdoors and watching the stars. "No, never."

Noah stood there, he crossed his arms over his chest and just like Sabrina, he found himself lost in the stars. Being on a starship was new to him, it gave him a new perspective into the night sky. Just like a lot of Starfleet personnel, their draw to the stars was looking up into the vastness of space from their home planet. He remembered doing that when he was a child, he remembered feeling so small and that same feeling resurfaced when he looked out beyond the view ports. "Never," he said softly.

Sabrina unfolded herself and took her feet off their couch, ,turning around with a slight blush as she remembered her forgotten manners. "Sorry. Can I do anything to help with dinner?"

Noah looked to the other man, this was Kyle's show so he left it up to the other man to say yes or no.

Kyle cut his eyes between Noah and Sabrina. "You can help set the table if you want. I should be dishing up in about five minutes."

"I can do that." Sabrina chimed in, standing up. It was always her job to set the table, she was sure she could manage. She found the plates and silverware easily enough, but just for fun she replicated cloth napkins and folded them in a fancy shell pattern. When all three places were set she looked up "Ta Da" she grinned with a little flourish.

Kyle was dishing up the food: meatloaf, green beans and potatoes au gratin on to three platters and brought them over to the dining table.

"Looks fantastic," Noah said as he pulled out the chair for Sabrina's chair for her. One thing that could be said about him was that he had good manners, traditional ones even.

"Thank You." Sabrina smiled kindly at Noah. "It looks fantastic." Sabrina chimed in, agreeing with Noah. "I haven't had a real home cooked meal since Earth."

Noah took his own seat and pulled the napkin from the table and laid it on his lap. He looked to the young woman. "After you taste Kyle's cooking, you might cry when you have to use the replicator next time."

Sabrina chuckled, grabbing her own napkin as well. "I just might. Nobody was a very good cook in my house."

Kyle blushed slightly at the compliment. Had he been misjudging Noah? Reading something into the situation that wasn't there, or was he just being his usual polite self. He wasn't sure, but he placed an affectionate hand on he other man's arm and grinned at Sabrina. "He exaggerates, I'm not that good."

Sabrina decided to put the matter to rest by actually eating. Her eyes lit up. Meatloaf had never been a favorite of hers. She didn't dislike it by any means, she'd simply never gone out of her way to have it. This was amazing. She tried the potatoes and beans as well. She had to force herself to chew and swallow before speaking. "It's really very good. You're just being modest." She told Kyle. "So how are you both liking the Katana?" She asked.

"Thanks for the compliment," he said with a smile, genuinely happy. "I like it fine, it just I don't get to see Noah enough we're both so busy."

Noah put down his fork and began to sign, then paused and smiled. "Habit," he said as he picked up his fork. "This is actually my first ship board assignment, I feel very lucky to have gotten a department head position."

"Now looks who's being modest. He to the position, because he deserves it. Luck had nothing to do with it." Kyle told her.

Sabrina had to force herself not to go 'awwwww'. They really were just too cute together, but she didn't want to embarrass them. "It's fine." She told Noah. To her it was a non issue. She made sure to look at him when she spoke, and to speak normally. She didn't want to stick her foot in her mouth and ask for specifics about his hearing loss, not when she'd just met him anyway. "Seems like you both have careers on the right path. I hope I will eventually."

"I am sure you will Sabrina, it's just a matter of applying yourself and doing what they expect from you. Most of the time anyway," Kyle said.

Sabrina smiled at Kyle's comment. She tried not to let the silence be too awkward, but she really had no experience with friendly dinners. She's always been the child at the table, and she didn't have the confidence to steer the conversation towards a specific topic, or even start one. The small talk starter had been the limit of her social skills. She was only a few months gone from beach parties and volleyball. She doubted either was interested in talking about surfing or boys, the two main topics disussed between her and her friends.

Noah nodded in agreement. "Kyle is right, just apply yourself, take pride in your work and do what is expected and go above and beyond," he said. "So," he wanted to switch gears to lighten the conversation even more so. "What do you like to do for fun Sabrina?"

Ok, that was a topic that was easy to talk about. "Surfing, beach volleyball, hiking, diving. I grew up on the beach. The holodeck isn't quite the same, but it's not bad at all. I wish I could find some real players, but I still enjoy playing. If the holodeck isn't free, talk to Bob." She smiled at Kyle, knowing he would get the joke.

Kyle chuckled slightly remembering how he had met the woman. "Bob isn't the best conversationalist I've come across. I've only played volleyball a few times, but if you want someone to play with hit me up sometime."

"That's nice of you." It was one thing to accept an invitation to dinner with the both of them, entirely different to take up Kyle's time for volleyball. The offer was nice though. "What about you guys? What do you like to do for fun?"

"Well I like outdoor things, reading, holonovels, things like that. Noah?

Sabrina turned her attention to Noah. So far her and Kyle's interest were hard pressed to be compatible with life on a starship.

"My interests vary, but I am into plants, vintage comic books, the holodeck, old movies," he said. "I like to box and baseball, baseball is more of a holodeck thing now ya know."

"I like baseball. What's not to like about guys in tight pants?" She teased.

Sabrina relaxed as the conversation started to flow a little more naturally. It was nice to spend time with people who weren't trying to make her life miserable. Sabrina realized everybody was done eating, so she got up to help clear the table.

Kyle snickered at her remark about guys in tight pants. He just couldn't help himself. "You don't have to do that," he said, "Noah and I can clean up. You're a guest."

"I don't mind. cleaning up is actually kind of relaxing. There's no kitchen area at all in my quarters. So it's kind of nice to actually eat around a table and then clean up. One of those little things about home you never think of missing, until you don't have them."

Kyle looked over at Noah and shrugged his shoulders, "Knock yourself out."

"You think I'm being silly, don't you?" Sabrina smiled, but didn't look offended. She was done cleaning up, with the replicator able to recycle all the dishes and food, it really didn't take long. "I should get to studying. I'm never gonna get past Crewman Recruit if I don't pass some certifications."

"Thanks for doing that Sabrina and I really wasn't making fun of you. You better get going."

"I know. Noah, it was nice to meet you. Thanks for having me, both of you." She nodded politely to both.

Noah smiled. "Nice to meet you as well." He watched the crewman leave and then he walked away from Kyle.


Crewman Recruit Sabrina Corbin
Repair Specialist

Lt. Kyle Weaver
Asst. Intel Chief

Lieutenant Noah Evans, M.D., Ph.D.
Chief Science Officer

Commander Kristopher N. Kerouac and his crew had made a difficult decision. It was one that completely changed the lives of the crew of the USS Katana and perhaps the life of one peculiar creature from the Gamma Quadrant. When the creature was brought aboard the Intrepid-class starship, there was very little contact between the creature and the crew. In fact, nobody even knew what the creature was saying if it were even trying to say something. The situation was more or less the same. It had begun to be more vocal and physical with its expressing itself. However, the creatures linguistics were still a mystery to the Science Department. As for what it was... that was still a mystery that the Medical Department was working on in collaboration with the Science Department.

Kris had a difficult call to make and he made it much to the displeasure of his First Officer. Not only had Commander Kristopher Kerouac permitted the creature to be taken aboard the Katana, Kris was not keeping the creature contained to the Brig or to one of the Medical of Science Labs. Kris had ordered that security be increased around vital areas of the ship such as the Bridge and Engineering, keeping those off limits to the creature. However, he did allow the creature to more or less roam free around the starship. The Captain ordered his crew to be polite and cordial around the creature, to move out of its way should it run or swing by them. They were ordered not to touch it or bother it unless the creature seemed to want to be touched or catered to.

Some of the crew were nervous and even wary of the potentially dangerous creature roaming the corridors and various rooms of Katana without much restriction. However, others were very war and welcoming. Personally, Kris was like most of the scientist and physicians... fascinated by the creature. Captain Merith would be jealous if she ever got word of this thought Kris as he walked down one of the corridors of his starship, close to the last reported sighting of the creature. He had taken the day off as was the prerogative of the ship's Commanding Officer. He wanted to see to creature again, study it for himself and not be bothered with the mob of scientist and physicians. He was no scientist nor physician but he did have the adventurous heart of an explorer and as such, he and his crew had more or less discovered as new species in the Gamma Quadrant at least he and his crew had been the first Federation eyes to lie upon the creature.

As he turned a sharp corner he found himself taken aback by the creature which had somehow managed to find its way to hang upside down in the middle of the corridor. The creature appeared to be singing or cooing as personnel carried on with their every day business, paying little attention to the creature. Kris stood a few feet back from the creature, staring up at it and smiling. He shook his head and sighed.

"Well, aren't you the cutest the damn thing" he said with a small chuckle. Kris nodded to the passing crew members and then crouched down and patted the floor in front of him. "Come down here. Come on... GR-OU-ND. Ground is good. Do you want to come down and walk with me?" asked the ship's Captain hoping that the creature would at least somewhat understand him.

"I have a surprise for you" he added with a bright smile.

The creature looked down at Kris, tilting her head curiously. Most of the people walking past just ignored her, but this one seemed to want to interact with her. His behavior was interesting, tapping the floor. The green woman had tapped a seat to indicate she wanted her to sit, so perhaps this individual wished to sit as well? But in the middle of a busy walk way? She suspected he was asking something different of her. She released her hold of the bulkhead, tumbling gracefully in the air as her wings fluttered into action. She floated down to Kris, curious about what he wanted.

Kris blushed at the creature's graceful beauty. The creature's wings only added to her alluring appeal. "Remarkable" he muttered to himself as he extended and arm out to the creature in hope that she'd take his hand. "You can trust me" he said trying to assure the creature of her safety.

"I'm going to show you something but you have to come with me if you want to see it" he added with his eyes wide and a cooing tone of voice. He was hoping the cooing and humming would help him establish some form of understanding with the creature that he meant no harm.

She recognized the gesture. Her own people would travel hand in hand to lead each other to new places, but it could also be a sign of courtship. Somehow she doubted he was trying to court her, but the thought of her experience with Marg did give her reason to pause. She shook her head, banishing the doubt. These people had been kind to her, she would trust them. Hesitantly, she took his hand, floating gently beside him.

The young starship Captain breathed a sigh of relief when the creature took his hand. "Oh good you trust me enough to hold my hand. That's good" said Kris as he slowly lead the creature down the corridor and headed to the turbolift. "I don't suppose you are too used to one of these yet" he added as the doors to the lift opened.

He stepped in and gave the creature a small pull. She seemed to get the idea. The doors shut behind them and he looked down at her. The Turbo Lift's lighting was at normal level for most humanoids. "Damn it" he said when he noticed the creature flinching.

"I'm sorry my friend, the crew need to get used to your special needs. I told Commander Zanaar to remind the crew to keep the lighting at a reduced lighting in public areas" explained the Commander. He shielded the creatures eyes with his hand for a few moments.

For a moment, the creature thought he was punishing her for something she had done wrong, but she relaxed when he moved quickly to cover her eyes. So, it hadn't been intentional... She did her best to remain calm as she waited for him to adjust the lights.

"Computer dim lighting in all public areas of the ship by 25%" Kris said and the lighting in the turbolift dimmed to a level relatively safe for the creature. Kris removed his hand from her eyes and smiled. "Better?" he asked knowing that his words meant nothing.

The girl sighed in relief to see the lights at a tolerable level. It was still more than what she was accustomed to, but it didn't hurt her at this level. She offered him a slight smile to show that she was okay.

"Deck 11" he said to the computer and the lift soon began its decent.

Kris saw the creature was smiling up at him and it caused him to smile in return. "I'll make sure whoever adjusted the lighting back to normal is reprimanded. Hopefully it was Commander t'Dharvanak. She'd do anything to piss me off I'm afraid" joked Kris with a shake of his head.

These strange moving rooms were going to take some getting used to! She bumped into him slightly as the lift began to move, so she decided it would be best to keep her feet on the floor when in one of these moving rooms.

When the creature bumped into Kris, he instinctively held onto her, wrapping an arm around her like one would do to a younger child. "Careful, wouldn't want to have to take you back down to Sickbay so soon" he said warmly.

The lift came to a stop and the doors opened. Kris held the creature's hand and lead her out onto Deck 11. "Creature... that just isn't going to work. I feel bad for thinking of you as a creature. It isn't the most flattering thing to be called. I mean if you understood us you most likely would be disgusted by that. Creature. We have to find you a name at least until we can make better contact with you" said Kris.

She smiled as she followed him out of the moving room. She liked his voice, the unique tambour and cadence of his speech patterns was soothing to her. She cooed a short response telling him so even though she knew he couldn't understand her. Maybe one day they would understand each other, but for now she was content to listening to him speak as they were.

As the two walked hand-in-hand down the corridor a few passing crew members turned their heads as if not to stare at the creature. Kris rolled his eyes. He looked down at the smiling and cooing creature and smile at her. "Forgive them. They aren't sure how to react around you so they look away" he said as they came to a stop.

Kris pressed a control panel at a room and it opened. It was the Hydroponics Bay with a dozen or so plants having just begun to grow. "It's not home but I thought maybe you'd like it in here. The Doctors say you seem to have both plant and animal DNA" said Kris releasing the creature's hand and allowing her to roam free and explore.

The creature's eyes lit up with excitement, abandoning her escort to look at the growing stations. Oh, this was amazing! This looked like the gardens in her village! And these plants, she's never seen anything like them! She flitted about from station to station, like a hummingbird moving from flower to flower, trying to take in everything about how the plants were grown. Then she rushed back to Kris, singing excitedly to express her gratitude.

She's happy thought Kris. This caused him to smile widely and his cheeks to turn a reddish shade of pink. "You're welcome my friend" he said walking over to one of the setups of plants. "I wonder if this is like home to you?"

She didn't understand the question any more than he could understand her ramblings about the plants. She looked about the station, trying to figure out how it worked. The machina she couldn't figure out, must be some kind of magic, but she could follow the tubes that fead the nutritional water to the root baths and then recycled it through the system. Then she examined the plants growing up a support frame. They seemed to be producing some sort of fruit, firm and green at the moment, but she could see some of them starting to turn red. The fruit was obviously not yet ripe so she couldn't test it, so she took a leaf, sniffing it then giving it a nibble. Oh, it was quite healthy! She moved on to another station, exploring more plants and assessing their well-being.

Kris studied the creature as she inspected the fruit and the leaves of plants. "Interesting" he said to himself. Kris smiled at the creature and pondered. "Say... you wouldn't happen to be a vegetarian or vegan would you?"

She squealed in excitement when she found plants she recognized. This growing station had a number of tubers and root vegetables! they were much larger than the vegetables she helped grow in her village, but their leaves tasted the same! Oh, she wondered if the vegetables tasted the same. Once again, she returned to Kris to thank him for bringing her here.

"Hmm" said Kris with a sense of curiosity. He walked over to the side of the room where there was a replicator system. "I wonder..." he said as he thought about trying a little experiment. The Commander cleared his throat.

"One ripe Honeycrisp Apple, One Orange Bell Peper, and one hot dog" he said with the strange order. Okay so it isn't real meat... it is replicated but this should work he muttered to himself as he held out the plate of food to her.

He waited to see if the creature would come over and examine the food items. If his theory was correct, she would eat the Apple and or the Pepper but not the disgusting weaner which was too much of a reminder to Kris of many of random bedmates.

The creature followed him curiously, watching with great interest as food seemed to materialize out of thin air. Wonders of wonders, they could make magic food?! then why did they need to grow food? The reason became obvious when he offered the food to her. Picking up a slice of the apple, she could tell right away that something smelled off about it. It smelled good, even healthy, but there was just something not right about it. An experimental taste informed her that it was indeed edible, the taste was definitely palatable, but just not right. It was good and filling, but it just wasn't real. Hm, so this must be why they grew foods in addition to this magic box that made food for them.

Next, the little forest girl tried the pepper. It smelled strange and she wondered if that had something to do with the fact that it was magic food. It had a pungent taste, not altogether unpleasant, but she was not all that fond of it. But, being polite, she ate the rest of the piece she was working on. She didn't want to seem unappreciative of the food she was offered, even if it was just magic food. The last object had her stumped. It smelled like meat, but what kind of animal produced meat that looked like that! She was unwilling to try it, it looked and smelled so strange! Truth be told, she was much more interested in the bread it was laying on. She took a piece of the bread, then grimaced. Ooh, that was not very appealing bread... Still, she ate it, not wanting to appear ungrateful, then grabbed another piece of apple.

Kris laughed uproariously at the creature as she turned the Hot Dog down. He walked over to the creature and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Disgusting isn't it" he said. "Don't worry, I'm not a fan either. Well, this doesn't rule anything conclusive but I am starting to suspect that you and I are going to be good friends one day" added Kris.

The Commander then walked back over to the replicator system with the plate and hit the recycle option. The plate and the remaining food vanished. He then tried round two. "One Hot Fudge Sundae with a spoon but hold the nuts" he said and the delicious treat appeared. He picked up the cold bowl and offered it to the creature.

"Now, let's see if you have a sweet tooth" he said with a smile.

The creature fluttered closer, looking at the bowl in his hand with curious intent. Stars above, what was it? She couldn't identify its smell, but she was willing to try it. Disregarding the utensil provided as it baffled her, she touched the ice cream to find it cold. Oh, and the sauce drizzled over top was hot! But, why create such a curious concoction? She tested the taste, licking the ice cream and sauce from the end of her finger. Her eyes brightened. Oh, it was so sweet, but so good! She dabbed her finger into the mix for another taste, smiling and humming appreciatively at the treat he had given her.

Kris snorted with laughter. "Ooookay someone loves Ice-cream sundaes" said Kris with a smile. "Between you and me, never tell the Doctor about this." Kris couched down next to the creature and stuck his own finger into the bowl, getting some of the dessert and sucking it off his finger.

"MMM Good" he said. He studied the creature as she continued eating the cold dessert. He watched how she played, sang and devoured ice-cream and he was brought back to his childhood on Turkana IV. "Shira" he said with a sweet sigh.

She sat on the floor next to him, happily digging around the desert for more. As good as the sauce was, it was just a little too sweet for her to have too much of it and was now focusing on just the plain vanilla ice cream. Then he surprised her by taking her hand and showing her how to use the utensil sticking out of the bowl. Oh, how ingenious! This would make it so much easier to eat! Her coordination with the tool needed some work, but she was getting the hang of it.

"Good job" he said encouraging her use of the spoon. "See, you are learning to use a spoon. The Anthropologists in the Science Department will be breathing fire down my neck if they saw this. They are stupid scientist like Merith. They don't understand our connection, Shira. You and I are going to have to work together to show them that you have a place on this ship until we can find your home" said Kris.

He then rubbed the creature's head of grassy hair. When he met her eyes, he pointed to himself "Kris" and then pointed at her "Shira."

The creature again tilted her head curiously at the man sitting beside her. He wasn't just talking, he was trying to communicate something to her. She put the spoon down and wiped off her mouth with the back of her hand, intent on giving him her full attention. He repeated himself several times, pointing to himself then to her, saying the two different words each time. Just when it seemed he was about ready to give up, clarity dawned on her. She pointed to him. "Kris," she said, drawing out the word, pronouncing the syllables awkwardly. She had never tried to communicate this way before, so her clarity would understandably be off, but the word was simple enough to get on the first try. The other word was a little more complicated. "Sh-shir-ah," she enunciated awkwardly as she pointed to herself.

"Yes!" he shouted. He wanted to just hug the little thing with all his strength but he restrained himself and instead smiled with his warm eyes. He pointed to himself and nodded "Kris" he said again. He then pointed to her "Shira." Contact had been made between the two of them on a personal level. He had named her and she seemed to understand that he was Kris and she was Shira.

Kris quickly stood up and tapped the communications badge on his chest. =/\= "Commander Kerouac to Lieutenant Maica. I did it. I did it Maica, I made contact with the creature. It isn't much but she can kind of say my name and I've named her Shira. I think she likes it" announced Kristopher with excitement. "I'm in the Hydroponics Bay on Deck 11. You might want to come down here."

Maica had been tapping into the internal sensors doing all she could to find a way to translate what the strange girl was saying. Thoughts, ideas, repeating patterns... Anything to build a translation matrix off of... But though the girl was singing a lot, her and the computer couldn't get anywhere with figuring out what she was saying other than a few basic vague guesses and it was driving her crazy. She wasn't even sure now if her first words to Maica in that alleyway involved home or water or food. For all she could tell, the girl had been referring to a nasty bolian souffle. Fluent in over 4 million forms of communication and the only forms she hadn't mastered were telepathic. She felt like the biggest waste of 4 million bars of latinum right about now...

And then the call from the Captain came in. She almost didn't respond, she was so distraught and depressed. She knew she had to though, so after a few seconds she replied. "I'll be there in a moment, Captain." Clicking her desk terminal off, she slowly stood and left her quarters, making her way towards the hydroponics bay.

Kris looked at Shira. Her face was like that of a child with a circle of ice-cream worn around her mouth. "We might want to take care of that before the Lieutenant gets here" said Kris as he grabbed a cloth from a nearby station and dipped it into water.

The Commander approached Shira with the wet cloth and began to clean her mouth. "There. That's better."

The creature, no, Shira smiled up at him. She didn't understand what he was so excited about, she had just repeated some words he was trying to teach her, but seeing him so excited somehow brought a smile to her face anyway. She then proceeded to undo his efforts to tidy her up, shoving another glob of melting ice cream in her mouth, dripping vanilla and chocolate all over the simple sundress the green woman had given her earlier.

When the doorway behind them opened, Kris stood up and turned swiftly. "Thanks for coming down here, Lieutenant. I did not want to do much more without you present. You have more experience with all of this than I do" greeted the Commander.

Stepping into the hydroponics bay, Maica found a curious sight. "Well, you introduced her to chocolate and ice cream. I'd say you're on the right track. You'd be amazed at how often those two have smoothed over negotiations." Kneeling next to the two, she smiled weakly. "Now what is it you want to show me, Captain?"

"Watch this" said Kris. He pointed to himself "Kris" and then pointed at the Diplomatic Officer "Maica." He then looked at Shira, gave her a nod as he soon pointed at her.

Oh oh! he was pointing at her, she had to say that word! "Shir-ah," she said clumsily. She definitely needed some speech lessons, but for her early attempts at communication it wasn't that bad. She set down her spoon and pointed to Kris. "Kris," she said easily enough, then pointed to the green woman. "My-ka," she said proudly, still uncertain how this was worth so much excitement but still so proud that she was able to do it.

Resting her hand on Shira's shoulder, Maica smiled a bit more warmly. "Shira... That's a cute name." Would this be the way they would have to learn to communicate with her? Teaching her basic? Figuring her language out was already becoming an obsession. What if it was impossible for her to process it? Sighing lightly, Maica nodded. "You have a pretty dress, a pretty name, and a pretty song. What's next?"

Kris smiled. "It fits her and yes, it is cute. It was my sister's name" Kris said with a subtle movement to turn away for a quick second and compose himself. "Well, I was hoping you could help us all with that. Lieutenant, I want you to work closely with our Science Department. I think that if you and Doctor Evans put your heads together... the two of you may be able to help us form a firm line of communication with Shira be it verbal or non-verbal."

Kris looked at Shira and flashed a smile. "I'm going to continue working with Lieutenant Commander t'Dharvanek and Lieutenant Weaver down in Intelligence. I may pull Lieutenant Verak's help as well. I want to see if we can find start narrowing down the possible systems that our friend here is from. I want to get her back home as soon as possible."

Shira smiled at Kris. She held up a spoonful of ice cream to him, making a big mess all over her dress. Finally noticing the mess she had made, she frowned. She didn't like that she had dirtied the cloth that the green woman, Maica, had given to her. Now she would have to clean it. She put the spoon down and stood, pulling at the simple dress trying to figure out how to take it off.

"For me?" said Kris as he bent down and picked up the spoon and ate the ice-cream. "Thank you" he said to Shira. Kris noticed that she was struggling with her dress, having had dropped ice-cream onto it.

Kris scurried over the the replicator and altered its functioning to create another sun dress. It was quite similar to the one that Shira was wearing and trying to remove. Kris handed Maica the new sun dress and smiled. "I'll step outside a few minutes. Would you mind helping Shira change into this?"

Standing and taking the dress, Maica nodded. "Hurry outside then. She's almost naked again." She giggled as the captain headed out of the room. There was the joy in living she had lost for a while.

Turning back to Shira, Maica couldn't help but giggle again. She had somehow gotten tangled in her dress trying to take it off. "Shira" she said, getting the girl's attention. She raised her arms into the air, motioning for the girl to do so as well. When she had, Maica grabbed the bottom of the dress and pulled it up over her head, easily stripping her naked. She then slipped the new dress over Shira's head just as easily, settling it into place.

Shira hummed excitedly. This cloth felt so soft! Magic food, magic clothes, was there nothing that these people could not do? She continued 'chattering' on about the hydroponics that Kris had showed her once she was again properly clothed, excited to share her experiences with Maica.

Tapping the door controls, she let the captain back in. As lost as Maica was with the obvious storytelling from Shira, she did her best not to let it show. She nodded now and then, listening intently to the girl's humming as she followed her around the hydroponics bay. Now and then, she tried repeating something in an attempt to make the communications 2 way with her guesswork.

Kris entered the Hydroponics Bay again, finding a fully clothed Shira and smiled at her. "Well, it is nice to see you fully clothed" Kris said to Shira. He then looked at Lieutenant Maica. "Do you think we'll ever establish communication with her? Over a hundred crew members on this starship and not a single one of them is Betazoid or Deltan. At first I was glad not to have an Empath or Telepath aboard but now I am starting to see their benefit."

Shira giggled and left the two to talk while she fluttered about the various growing stations. This place was just so exciting, she couldn't wait to see more!

"It's distressing..." Maica stared at the far wall for a few seconds before looking back to the captain. "Sorry. It seems I'm not being very useful. I can take guesses at what she's saying, but nothing I try to say seems to be intelligible to her." Sighing heavily, she continued. "I have a friend or two I could call for advice, but without some sort of telepath, I don't think that'll turn up any leads."

Kris shook his head. Son of a bitch he thought to himself as he bit gently on his bottom lip. Wonderful. Kris knew, however, that he could not go around showing his frustration. Commander Kerouac knew all too well that Lieutenant Maica was doing her best with what she had, using all her programming. "Lieutenant, I appreciate your hard work. You are the best we have and that's all we need, our best. I have complete faith that you and Doctor Evans will be able to establish a stable form of communications with Shira. It just is going to take a little longer than it would if we had some telepaths. However, this is a first contact situation and those are why you are here" said Kris reassuring the Android.

Maica nodded at that. "This is true. It just takes time. And if all else fails, we can always use some reverse engineered borg neural probes. I hear they're amazingly good at sharing knowledge." By the end of saying that, she was grinning like a cheshire cat. Before Kris could reply though, she twitched. Her face went blank and she went dead still - not even her breathing or fake pulse were running. She was processing something Shira had said and it was taking up every single gigaflop she had. Several seconds later, she started moving again. She knew something. She knew why she couldn't translate Shira's speech.

"Captain... I know one word. But that word is so wildly variable based on the context of everything she's experiencing, it's insane. Emotion, other people, colors, what she's looking at..." Maica twitched again, her vision refocusing. "She's saying Good... More specifically, she's only saying 'Good.' Over twelve thousand recorded variances of the word..."

The Commanding Officer looked at Maica and studied her behavior. He wanted to ask if she was okay, if he needed to call Engineering or Operations to send someone to have her examined for a malfunction. However, he quickly put his concern behind him when Maica engaged him in conversation again. This time, she informed him of the word that she believed she understood. If that's what you look with an aha moment, I'd hate to see you confused thought Kris.

"Good is good, Lieutenant. It gives us something to work with... good is a hell of a lot better than bad. She seems like she is happy here and she has been interacting with you and me just fine. I think that she is getting used to some of us. I encourage her to explore more and maybe form connections with some of the other crew members" said Kris with a nod at Maica.

Nodding slowly, Maica let her usual warm smile creep back onto her face as she watched the girl caring for the plants. "I couldn't agree more, Captain. It may be some time before we can find her homeworld and we need to welcome her into our family until then - perhaps even permanently."

"Shira came aboard this starship as an unknown creature. She'll leave here as a member of this family. I'll make sure we find her homeworld, Lieutenant. If it is out there... we'll find it."

I told him I wasn't a scientist, Jhu groused as she worked with one of the input panels in the astrometrics lab. Obviously someone had to figure out where the fairy-like being had come from, but didn't they have a science officer who could have done it? No one would ever believe her, but Jhu was pretty sure that Kerouac was punishing her for something, likely the thrashing she'd given him during the senior staff briefing. She thought he'd deserved it, but maybe calling him out in public hadn't been wise.

She sighed as she looked over the away team's notes again, as well as notes that Kerouac had made about Shira. 'Forest dweller' and 'likely vegetarian' really wasn't much information to work with, but light sensitivity seemed a promising start. The only problem was that she didn't know whether the planet's cloud cover or vegetation kept Shira's home in darkness. Or whether the entire planet was entirely forested. Or if Shira's people were spacefaring. Or if they were the dominant species on the planet. Or how long ago the Ferengi daimon had captured Shira. Simply put, she didn't know much of anything. She hadn't even seen Shira in person yet. It was swiftly becoming apparent that she was getting nowhere with her current search, so she dumped it and started again, muttering a few Romulan curses under her breath.

The door to Astrometrics swished open and the little forest girl came tumbling through looking thoroughly distraught. She was thoroughly lost trying to find her way back to the hydroponics bay and someone had turned the lights on in the corridor again, leaving her stumbling about blindly. Thankfully, this room wasn't too bright. She found a corner and tucked herself away, crying softly as she rubbed her eyes. This place was so exciting, but it was still so big and intimidating as well. It made her long for the simplicity of home.

The swish of the door was nothing new on a starship, so Jhu ignored it, instead trying to focus on her assigned task. The quiet sound of someone in distress, however... that was unexpected, and she soon discovered that she couldn't ignore that, no matter how cold-hearted the rest of the crew might think her to be. Setting the panel to run systems within a few days of travel against what little they knew of Shira, she looked around for the source of the quiet crying. At first she didn't see anyone, until she spotted what looked like a young girl huddled in a corner, barely visible in the dim light of the astrometrics lab. There weren't any children on board that she knew about, which left her wondering where the girl had come from. "Are you lost?"

With a rustle of her grassy hair, Shira looked up at the woman addressing her. She wiped away the tears in her eyes, attempting to hide her distress as she sat up straighter. She was so very lost, but she had no way of telling the woman that, nor any way of know that was what the woman had asked. Instead, she just faced this as another opportunity to learn something, despite the fact that she wanted to be in the hydroponics bay right now.

"Shir-ah," she enunciated, pointing to herself as a way of introduction. She had figured out that everyone had names and this was what 'Kris' had decided to call her. Why, she had no idea, but she was willing to answer to it. She waited patiently for this new person to state her name.

Not a child. The little forest fairy! Remembering from the notes that Shira didn't seem to understand much spoken language, Jhu wondered how she was even going to communicate with her. Names were a good start, so she pointed at herself like Shira had done. "Jhu." Not wanting to distress the small forest-dweller, Jhu crouched down near her. "I don't know how much you understand, you're safe here."

"Jhu," Shira repeated softly, crawling away from the wall. She pointed to the station where Jhu had been working, expressing her concern with a gentle hum. She had interrupted whatever Jhu had been doing; she did not wish to be a distraction.

Jhu glanced back at the console and the screen above it flipping through star systems with forested planets. It was finding a lot of forests, and she sighed at it. This is going to take weeks. Wondering if Shira could possibly help, Jhu got up from the deck and went back over to the panel, beckoning Shira closer. Perhaps Shira knew what her planet looked like.

With a flutter of her iridescent wings, Shira answered Jhu's beckoning gesture by floating beside her, following her to the console. Her curiosity seemed to be insatiable.

"I was wondering if you could actually fly." Intrigued by how easily Shira took to the air, Jhu watched her hover for a moment. "Kris wants me to find your forest. Where the others like you are." She still didn't know if Shira understood any language at all, but it seemed rude not to at least try to explain. "I think it's on one of these planets, but I don't know which one."

Shira blinked, tilting her head curiously at the mention of Kris. She looked up at the large screen displaying planetary information from Jhu's search. Shira didn't know what any of this information was, but she was entranced by the images of fauna from the different worlds. Shira looked at Jhu, then at the forests again, chattering in a melodic tones as she fluttered over to the screen, curious about these forests.

"I'm getting the feeling you just like to look at the pictures." If entertaining her unexpected guest kept her from crying, Jhu would indulge her for a while. The melodic chattering was easier on Jhu's ears, and since they were clearly happy sounds, she slowed down the feed to let Shira get a better look at each one. It was a long shot, but maybe Shira would see something familiar.

Shira giggled excitedly, applauding gently when the feed of images was slowed down. Shira was very interested in the pictures, cooing and humming as each one passed by. They all looked so very pretty! She wanted to see them all! Oh, but then one picture had a brilliant display of stars. Oh, it wasn't like her forest. She had to go above the canopy to see the stars. She placed her hands on the screen, studying the stars with great interest. Even the stars didn't look the same from this place. Another picture appeared on the screen, one that was just trees and no stars. She whined, tapping on the screen in the hopes the other picture would come back.

For a moment, Jhu didn't know why Shira had suddenly become upset. She hadn't done anything to the forest girl, wasn't even close enough to touch her. Then she noticed that Shira was tapping on the screen. "Oh! You want the stars back. I'm sorry." Jhu paused the algorithm and put the previous image back on the screen. "There you go."

Shira twirled in the air where she floated, happy that Jhu had understood and made the screen show her the pretty stars again. Her hands again went to the screen, tracing patterns among the brilliant star field, looking for patterns that were familiar to her, but was disappointed when she found none.

Since Shira didn't talk, Jhu watched her body language instead, noticing that it seemed almost child-like. Maybe that's how her people communicate. Shira's disappointment in the stars after tracing them gave Jhu an idea, and she quickly set the program to only show the view of the stars from each planet. "Let's see if we can find your stars."

So many stars, and all so beautiful! Shira fluttered about, watching with great interest at all the different stars she could now see. She could see so many patterns, it would take all her days to find all the patterns! Such a daunting task...

Jhu couldn't help smiling a little when Shira showed so much interest in the stars. "Maybe we should give you a job in astrometrics. Think you'd like that." Hoping that Shira would see a familiar pattern, she reset the program to switch manually, to give Shira ample time to look at each image. "Don't rush. We can work on this all day. All week if we have to." Kerouac had wanted her to do it alone, but he could hardly object to her entertaining their new passenger for a while.

Shira blinked and chattered in surprise when she learned that touching the screen offered her control over which stars she saw. It took her a few tries to figure out how to make the pictures change from one to another, but she did eventually figure it out. She kept looking through the stars until she found something that looked familiar. It wasn't the stars that looked familiar, but something else... Shira tapped on a formation in the night sky, a nebulous cloud whose edges luminesced a violet hue through the atmosphere. Her intent had been to show Jhu, but the computer had interpreted the motion as a command and had zoomed in on the nebula, startling Shira. She backed away from screen, but her curiosity won out as she was right back at it, trying to figure out what other control she had over this magic wall that made pictures appear before her.

"Whoops. Should have turned the magnification off." Jhu tapped a button to zoom the image back out, studying the nebula for a moment. It didn't seem familiar to her, but she didn't know much about spatial phenomena in the Gamma quadrant. "So you've seen that before." Not knowing the planet's name, she scribbled the coordinates on a PADD to show Kerouac later. She couldn't be certain it was Shira's home, but it was the only lead they had so far.

Shira studied the edges of the strange formation in this sky. The shape wasn't right, but the color was! Again, she tapped on the nebula, looking to Jhu for help. She wished they could understand each other so she could tell Jhu what she needed.

Puzzled, Jhu watched Shira with her head tilted to the side, much like a dog would. Was something about the nebula wrong or was Shira trying to tell her it was the right place? The fairy girl seemed excited and agitated at the same time, which made conversation even more difficult than before. "I wish you spoke English. Or that I spoke your language. Because I don't know what you're telling me. Unless you just like purple... which is okay. I like it too."

Shira puffed up her cheeks in frustration, releasing a puff of air as she floated in the air lazily, thinking of some way to communicate with Jhu. She drew closer to the star field, tapping on the nebula. Then, she swept her hands over the star field, as if to bring the nebula into more of the image.

"Make it bigger, okay." Not sure how that would help, Jhu expanded the view of the nebula. Still wondering what Shira was trying to say, Jhu lightly chewed on her lower lip. "Let's try something else. Computer, identify this spatial anomaly."

"The Jenkata Nebula," the computer responded. "It's composed of--"

"Whoa, that's enough. Halt read-back." As the computer went silent again, Jhu wrote the nebula's name down next to the planetary coordinates. Maybe someone on board would know about the planet.

Shira again studied the nebula. This was definitely something they could see from her forest. It wasn't always visible in her sky, but this was definitely familiar. The stars still weren't right, though... Her lips pressed together in thought before she finally decided to stop and return to Jhu. She had been doing this for a while now, she was tired.

"Had enough, huh? I don't blame you... I'm getting a headache." Jhu was convinced the Shira knew the nebula, so she set the algorithm to list all planets that had a view of the Jenkata nebula at any time of the year. It would still be quite a list, but now she felt like she was getting somewhere. "I can take you to where you're staying." She paused, looking at Shira and wondering where on the ship the forest girl would be comfortable. The Katana didn't have a full-fledged arboretum, but it did have a hydroponic garden. She wondered if Shira was staying there; it was the closest thing they had to a forest without relying on the holodeck. "Hydroponics? Flowers?" she asked, putting a picture of the hydroponics bay on the screen. It was, after all, the only place that made sense.

Shira's face lit up with excitement at seeing the image of the hydroponics bay on the screen. She nodded and pointed. Yes! That's where she wanted to go!

Jhu grinned, delighted to discover that Shira really could communicate with pictures. "Okay. I'll show you how to get there." Picking up her PADD of notes, she downloaded the list of planetary systems and then turned the system off, overriding the lights so they would stay dim. "Computer, dim the lights in all corridors and turbolifts to this level." There was a short pause, then the computer beeped an affirmative to signal that the lights had been dimmed. "Someone will undoubtedly turn them back on, but we have a few minutes." She opened the door to show Shira it was safe, then stepped into the corridor and waited for Shira to follow.

And Shira did follow. Like a loyal puppy, Shira remained right by her side as Jhu led her around, humming pleasantly all the while.

"You really are a cute little thing. No wonder that Ferengi took interest in you." Jhu took her time leading Shira back, but she couldn't help wondering how Shira had gotten lost. It didn't really make sense until they reached the turbolift; then it clicked. Shira didn't talk... and there was no way she'd had time to learn the ship's schematic to use the map. As the door opened to let them in, she looked at Shira then back at the map inside the turbolift car. How could she make sure Shira knew how to get back to hydroponics?

Shira ceased her fluttering, her feet touching the deck plating softly. She had learned it was better to be on her feet when this room moved. Then she looked up at Jhu helplessly. It was because of this moving room that she had gotten lost in the first place. She had been riding in it for so long before she gave up and started wandering the corridors.

That helpless look was the same one new cadets often had during their first shipboard assignments. "Wandered in here and got stuck, huh? Guess no one thought you'd need to know how the turbolift works. Up here." She tapped just under the map, hoping Shira understood. "Like the screen with the stars." She tapped the map itself, making it zoom in on where hydroponics was. "Hydroponics. Home."

Shira studied the little display carefully, watching how Jhu manipulated before reaching out to touch the screen to manipulate the map. She found the place that Jhu called... well, there was no way she could say that big word. The smaller word she could maybe handle. "Home," she said, tapping on the location for hydroponics and setting the lift in motion. It startled Shira, but only briefly, then she was looking up at Jhu with a glowing smile. She had done it!

"Good job." Jhu grinned a little crookedly, wondering why she couldn't relate this well to the crew. "I can teach you other places. When I'm not working."

Shira, of course, couldn't understand the words, but somehow understood the meaning. She had done a good job! She waited patiently for the moving room to stop moving and let her out. thankfully, when the doors opened the lights were already dimmed and it was a corridor she recognized. She knew the rest of the way. She fluttered out of the lift then looked back to Jhu to see if she would be coming too.

Jhu recognized that look from her cat; she could almost hear the implied question, and she laughed quietly. "Yes, I'm coming too." She'd been meaning to see what sorts of plants the hydroponic garden held, to see if she'd be able to tolerate them. So she followed Shira into the corridor and let her lead the rest of the way.

Shira smiled, happy to know that she would have company a little while longer. She hummed cheerily as they traversed the corridors. Sure enough, Shira knew exactly where she was going, heading straight for the hydroponics bay. As soon as the doors slid open, Shira fluttered over to a planter box with some flowering plants. She picked a small lavender flower from one plant that had a pleasant scent, then returned to Jhu to offer it as her way of saying thanks.

"You clearly have a thing for purple." The flower had a pleasant scent and didn't make her sneeze, so Jhu accepted the gift with a smile. "Thank you."

Shira beamed, happy that Jhu had accepted the flower. It seemed she had made another friend in this strange place! She was about to show her new friend around the bay, but then she yawned. the day, it seemed, was catching up with her.

"Yeah... I'm tired too." Jhu envied Shira slightly; Shira got to go to sleep while she had to find Kerouac and tell him what she'd learned. Sleep sounded a lot more fun.

Shira smiled groggily, then took Jhu's hand and pulled her towards the replicator on one side of the bay. She had seen Kris and Maica make things in this magic box. Maybe Jhu could do it as well?

At first Jhu didn't know what Shira was so eager to show her, but when they stopped in front of the replicator, she looked at it and realized it was another voice-operated machine that everyone basically took for granted. But what did Shira want out of it? Was she hungry or looking for a blanket to sleep with? "All our fancy equipment must seem like magic to you. Here." Jhu tapped a button to bring up the tactile menu and showed Shira how to make it scroll. "Food, blankets, clothing. Makes all the stuff we use really."

Oh, it was so complicated! Shira watching as Jhu worked through the menu with so many pictures. How was she to find what she wanted? Surely she would just need some patience, but there was still so much she had to learn. Making a blanket from the magic box was quite exciting, but that wasn't what she was looking for. Shira frowned. she clung to her new blanket then looked up at Jhu for help.

"Not what you're looking for." Even the basic replicator here had an expansive menu. It was mind-boggling enough for Jhu; she couldn't imagine how hard it must be for Shira. Maybe she could narrow things down by removing things she knew Shira didn't want. It was easy enough to eliminate blanket patterns, but sorting through the food menu was trickier. Not all of the recipes specified if they were vegetarian, and none showed a level of spice. Wondering if she could get someone to do something about that, she picked several meatless dishes she was familiar with. Drinks were easier; most of those were juices and teas. And, of course, water.

Shira shook her head as she watched Jhu cycle through foods and then drinks. No, she had been given plenty of water earlier and she had been nibbling on enough vegetation from the hydroponics bay that she was not hungry. She held up her blanket.

Jhu looked at the blanket and the earnest look Shira gave her. What goes with a blanket? Pillows? Feeling a bit dumbstruck, Jhu cleared the replicator selections and started again, this time showing Shira other pieces of bedding. A small selection of pillows, a tiny folding cot that looked too small even for Shira, and the hammocks that Caitian officers liked to hang near the ceilings.

Shira pointed excitedly to the hammocks. Oh yes, that! She chattered enthusiastically as she waited for the magic box to make her new bed.

"Is that what you sleep in?" Jhu tapped one of the hammocks, entering in an estimate of Shira's height and weight. The replicator produced the requested item, and Jhu retrieved it, looking around for a place to hang it.

Shira clapped excitedly, flying to a corner of the room with some plants with tall foliage. It made her feel like she was back home to be among the plants. It was hardly her forest, but it was as close as she could get for now. And these people, they had been so nice and accommodating, it made the strangeness of it all just a little bit more bearable.

Following Shira over to the corner, Jhu briefly studied the tall plants. She was worried that even the sturdiest of them would support the hammock with Shira in it and she was certain that whoever tended the garden would hate it. But she could hardly make Shira sleep on the deck. A simple enough solution, a couple of hooks on the bulkheads and soon the hammock was swinging freely in the corner under the dense foliage.

Shira seemed quite pleased with the results, quickly settling into the hammock with her blanket. She chirped a cheerful thank you and good night to Jhu, closing her eyes with a smile.

"You're welcome. Good night." Happy that Shira was resting comfortably, Jhu quietly retreated from the hydroponics bay to go find Kerouac and tell him what she'd learned.

2am. These are the life and times of the Starship Katana. Sabrina chuckled to herself as she kept the silly mental soap opera going in her head.. It was
definitely time to get to bed. Her brain was full, but it had been a good day. She'd learned an entirely new set of repairs, and her times on others
were getting faster. She figured her roommates would be already asleep, so thought she brave her own quarters for the night. After that Away Mission she
deserved a mattress, a pillow, and a blanket.

When she stepped in the door of her quarters she immediately smelled the evidence of the evening before she even visually processed it. Bottles of alcohol and snack food were scatted everywhere. One of her roommates was passed out at the small table in the center of the room, the other two were passed out in the two lower bunks. One of them naked and not alone. Sabrina averted her eyes, but the view did not get better. Her blanket. Her stupid childish blanket with the wrong color sea creatures. She loved that blanket. There is was laying on the floor, with a large rip right down the center, as if they'd been fighting over it, and a rather large pile of what she actually hoped was simply vomit.

It was true what people said about snapping. She could almost feel the process as it clicked in her brain. "WHAT THE HELL!!!" She stomped over the two steps needed and pulled Connie up by her loose ponytail.

"Owwww Sabrina! What the hell?" Connie slurred, still drunk.

Apparently hell had been very busy.

"My blanket!"

The yelling had woken up everybody else, and soon four sets of eyes and one set of genitalia that she was pretty sure she was still too young to be looking at were staring at her.

"Clean it up! Now. I've had it with all of you!"

"Don't be such a bitch." Naked man groused.

"Yeah Sabrina, you are always such a witch." Connie chimed in, looking around for more alcohol.

"Argggggg!"

Naked man strode over and grabbed Sabrina's arm. Not hard, but just having him so close and well naked, was disturbing. "Why don't you just calm down, and hang somewhere else tonight."

"Let go of me!" Sabrina pulled away, but was grabbed again. That was it. She didn't wait to ask again. She balled up her right fist and decked naked man in the jaw as she brought her knee up and into his unprotected groin.

From there chaos ensued. Connie grabbed her, somebody called security, somebody fell in the vomit, and the table and chairs were thrown over.

A few minutes later. Sabrina found herself in the brig. Her righteous indignation had chilled, and now she slumped on the hard bench, completely unable to stop the tears.

Commander Kristopher Kerouac had received word that one of Katana's personnel had been taken to the Brig. Kris was quick to respond, not bothering to get the who or why of the matter. He simply wanted to see for himself who had been stupid enough to end up being tossed in the Brig. He was still learning some of the many names of the crew. He knew his Senior Staff, the Department Heads and some other senior officers. However, a lot of the lower ranking personnel and enlisted personnel were nameless to him.

However, when he walked into Katana's Brig he found someone that he knew quite well being held behind a force field, sitting on a bench in her holding cell. Kris walked up to the field and looked at the woman, his arms crossed and with a shake of his head, he cleared his throat. "What the hell did you do, Crewmen?" asked Kris.

Sabrina looked up at the voice, and only cried harder. Great, now she had really done it. "I pulled one of my roommate's hair, and I may have bit another, and I decked a naked man." That about summed it up. Sabrina put her head back down.

"Crewmen, this is Federation starship dispatched and specifically tasked to explore the Gamma quadrant. We're not a damn circus ship" said Kris shaking his head. "That's a hell of a story, Sabrina. Now, tell me more. Why did you attack three individuals?"

Sabrina let out a sigh. There was no need to try and cover it up. She might as well go down honestly. Being a Marine Biologist wouldn't be all bad. They hired dishonorably discharged people, right? "I came in after working all day, then studying until 2 am. My roommates and some random naked guy were all passed out in the quarters, and somebody ripped by blanket, and vomited on it. I cracked."

"Problems with your roommates?" said Kris with a shake of his head. "You can ask for a room change, Crewmen. You do not need to crash in the Brig. Get your act together, Sabrina. You are already on report for your actions on the Wadi home world. Lieutenant Commander Zanarr still has a stick up his ass over your actions. Hell, piss him off again and I may find a transfer request on my desk."

"Yes sir." Sabrina wiped at her eyes. "I was told we weren't allowed to do that." Sabrina commented, but kept talking. "That Ferengi was hurting her, it wouldn't be very Starfleet of us to just stand back and let it happen." Sabrina stuck her chin out stubbornly. She didn't regret helping that poor creature, on report or not.

Kris shook his head. "I understand that you are new to Starfleet, that you're young and enlisted... you have not done four years at the Academy like most of us, especially those of us such as Lieutenant Commander Zanaar, myself and Lieutenant Maica who know better than to get involved in matters that do not concern us" said Kris crossing his arms. "Being in Starfleet means more than acting impulsively. It involves acting intellectually" added Kris.

He lowered his arms, uncrossing them and tapped out a command on the wall panel to lower the force field. "However, just because I and other know better, does not mean that we would not do the same thing. I cannot speak for anyone else... but I may have acted much like you did. However, actions come with consequences. You are grounded, Crewmen. You will not be eligible for the next Away Mission. Due to your physical assault on your roommates, you will be reassigned a new room and a new roommate. Additionally, you are being temporarily assigned additional duties in the Mess Hall."

"Yes sir. I understand sir." She wasn't being kicked out! Sabrina wanted to squeal with joy. She refrained. "It won't happen again. I'll do whatever extra duty is necessary. Thank you sir."

"You're welcome. Your new crew quarters will be on Deck 9, Section 22. I'll have the Quarter Master find you a room in that area. Since you already attempted to help Shira back on the Wadi planet, maybe the two of you should spend more time together. Congratulations, Crewmen Corbin. You'll be sharing your new quarters with Shira."

"You found out her name, that's great." Sabrina smiled. "I'm going to share quarters with her? Isn't it like a first contact thing? I'm not trained in diplomacy, I mean obviously...."

"I gave her a name so that we can all stop calling her 'creature' and in a way, yes.. it is like first contact. No diplomatic training? Tough shit, Crewmen."

Sabrina chuckled. Kerouac was anything but traditional, and she kind of liked it. "I guess I will have to fake it then. I won't let Starfleet down."

"You're just a Crewmen Recruit, Sabrina. You let Starfleet down, they will just boot you out. Who you really have to be concerned about letting down is me. So, don't do it."

Sabrina swallowed heavily. "Yes sir." The last thing she wanted to do was let Kris down.




Crewman Recruit Sabrina Corbin
Repair Specialist
&
Commander Kristopher N. Kerouac
Commanding Officer

Despite deeply wanting to follow Shira's example and just go home to bed, Jhu instead sought out Kerouac, this time for more pleasant business. She almost couldn't believe that she was actually looking for him of her own free will. She hadn't been sure how to find him or where he was likely to be until she looked at her watch and realized it was long past the end of day shift. No wonder her head was starting to ache!

Since it was so late in the day, Jhu began her search at Kerouac's cabin, figuring it was the most likely place to find him. With her PADD in hand - and the sprig of lavender tucked into her ponytail - she tapped the button to ring Kerouac's doorbell, waiting for him to answer.

Kristopher Kerouac had retired to his quarters for the evening, relaxing on a sofa in his living area. He was turning the pages of an old book when he was alerted to his surprise guest. He was dressed for once, more or less with a black undershirt and a pair of white sleeping shorts. He was stretched out on the sofa and swung his legs around, setting his book down and took a deep breath.

"Enter" he called out with a crisp and firm shout. When the doors parted way and the light from outside was let in, Kris stood up and walked towards his guest.

Kris looked interested in the woman for a moment. "Lieutenant Commander t'Dharvanek?" said Kris with some concern. "Is there something wrong?" asked Commander Kerouac.

"No, for once it's good news. Bet you didn't expect that." Commandeering part of his table, Jhu set the PADD down and pulled up her list to show him. "Never would have managed it if Shira hadn't wandered in..."

Kris shook his head. "Well, considering you are bringing it... no. I wouldn't have expected good news from you" said Kris with a small smile. "Shira seems to have that so of affect on things. So, what good news do you have?"

"Very funny. You're such a comedian." Where there was normally bitterness, Jhu's voice carried a note of humor. "She wanted to look at stars, so I was letting her look at sky views from planets in this sector. She recognized this." She pulled up an image of the purple Jenkata nebula. "It's not as big a lead as we were hoping for, but it's better than the list I'd have brought you trying to do it by myself. It has to be one of these planets."

"With a small adjustment in our present course, Commander, that nebula is on our way to Teplan... Excellent work, Jhu," said Kris with a small smile.

"Thanks, but I'm not done." Jhu paused, leaning on the table for support. "I think we need to start with heavily forested planets. She's got a serious liking for trees... those were her second favorite pictures to look at. And flowers. She loves them."

"Well... she does love climb. I'm afraid of letting her into Engineering... she may climb up and hang from the upper level. It takes sense to me that she'd be used to a planet with a good forest. We'll head for the Jenkata nebula and begin searching for potential planets" Kris said with a nod.

"What do you make of Shira?" asked Kris with a look of interest.

"She's... really friendly. I don't think she's dangerous to us at all. But... she likes me. That may be a problem for the crew." Jhu was no stranger to being mistrusted and very aware that she wasn't the most liked person on the ship. "And she's smart. Catches on to new ideas faster than most races I've encountered."

Kris smiled. "She likes me too. Imagine that, someone that actually likes the both of us. Oh how strange," joked Commander Kerouac. "She's something else."

Jhu snickered a little. "She's obviously a terrible judge of character if she likes us both. Reminds me of a little kid who wants to love everyone."

Commander Kerouac nodded. "She does seem to want to get along with everyone. However, do we not want the same?" said Kris with quick look. Kris then added "So, do you have anything on the nebula. Intelligence information of any sort that could be of assistance to us?"

Jhu shook her head. "Not yet... asking a bit too much for tonight honestly. If I look at another computer screen, my head might split open."

Kris smiled and looked around his quarters. It was not as though his quarters were a mess per say but there were books out of place and a mug of tea from earlier that he did not fully finish. "I understand the feeling. I know it all too well... mind the mess" said Kris as he headed back to his sofa and took a seat.

He patted the free space on the seat and looked at Jhu. "Have a seat?"

Was this a trick? Jhu gave Kris a wary look as she sat down. "You should see my cabin if you think yours is bad. The cat shredded two chairs and half the carpet... the quartermaster threatened to skin him."


Setting his copy of King Lear aside, Kris looked at Jhu. "I'm considering insulting the next person who gets under my skin by calling them '...The son and heir of mongrel bitch'" said Kris. He flashed a smile at Jhu "I did not know that you even liked animals, Commander."

"...you're kidding, right? I like animals more than I like people. No dog or cat has ever insulted my heritage or implied that my mother's ancestry meant I couldn't be trusted." Jhu smirked slightly.

The words sort of hit Kris in the pit of his stomach. Was that intentional? he wondered as he saw the smirk on the woman's face. He was not sure if her strike was intentional or just coincidental. However, regardless of her intent or not, Kris felt the blow and the blow brought up some sense of guilt. He sighed and sat up straight, turning to face her. "Commander, I owe you an apology. I was one of those people who implied as such. I'm sorry," he said frankly.

Great, now I look like the asshole. Jhu sighed, shaking her head. "I didn't mean to goad you into apologizing. Everyone's entitled to their opinion, regardless of how 'bad' it is. I'm just very tired... and a lot of people have made that mistake long before you did."

"You haven't goaded me into anything, Commander t'Dharvanek" replied Kris with a firm tone of voice. "I needed to apologize anyways. I was drunk and out of line. I have never been a fan of the Romulans, but that should have absolutely nothing to do with you. However, you do fascinate me and leave me with more questions than answers, Jhu. Who the hell are you?"

Drunk? She'd based her entire opinion of him on stupid nonsense he'd said while he was drunk? Well, wasn't that fantastic. "Afraid I haven't really been fair to you either. As for your question... you really don't want to know. Trust me."

Kris smiled at her. "I do want to know... trust me," he said kindly.

Jhu glanced away, looking down at the deck. 'Who are you' was not a conversation she'd expected to have so early in her assignment to the Katana, and she didn't have an answer ready. "You won't like the answers you find there."

"We're Starfleet officers, Commander... sometimes, the answers we find are not the ones we like but are the answers we must face regardless."

"And if those answers are related to certain aspects of fleet life that the Federation won't acknowledge?" Jhu didn't like where this conversation was headed, not one bit. "What then?"

"Then, you'll tell me when you are ready, not sooner" said Kris reaching over and taking Jhu's hand in his. "I do not care who you worked for or what you did in your past. Katana is the now and the future, and that will be what we make of it. Together. You, Tul and I have to work together to keep this crew and ship together."

"That... is not the answer I expected to hear," Jhu admitted sheepishly. "You're going to find out eventually, and I would prefer you hear it from me." Not wanting to mention the organization by name, she instead picked the PADD up with her free hand, pulling up her own file and unlocking the portion of it he hadn't been able to see before handing the PADD to him. "I would appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone. I have enough problems with the crew."

Kris looked at her with some concern. "Problems with the crew that I should be made aware of?"

"Nothing serious. Just the usual 'what is she doing here' looks. I'm used to it." She shrugged slightly.

Kris shook his head and stood up. "No" he said firmly. "The hell if I will stand for that on this starship. You do not need to be treated like that here. You are my Second Officer and Chief Intelligence Officer. You have earned the respect of all on this ship. "

Jhu rolled her eyes at him. "You're not going to change generations of mistrust. I appreciate the gesture, but it's really not necessary. I've been through worse, and there's no need to draw attention to this."

"You're worth the attention" Kris said firmly. "I will not have my Second Officer being seen as not trust worthy. You may one day have to assume command of this starship, and I want to crew to be aware of that possibility and that I trust you with Katana," added Kris.

"I'm starting to wonder if you've been replaced by a Changeling." It seemed there was no changing his mind and she couldn't really argue against his point. The wary looks might only be a minor annoyance, but they could be a sign of impending mutiny if she ended up in charge of the ship. "All right. I'm not going to argue with you." She didn't gave the energy to fight with him over it, and it was clear he wasn't budging.

"Nope, I'm still me. You can have a blood test done on me if you'd like" joked Kris. "However, I have stopped drinking recently. So, you're seeing me sober and more in control of my life. Also, I'm kind of seeing someone," Kris said with a warm smile.

"That explains it." Jhu snickered a little, suddenly understanding his seemingly strange change in behavior. "You weren't messing with me during the meeting then. I thought it was some sort of prank."

Kris scoffed. "No pranks, Jhu just some changes in my life. Now, if there is nothing else that I can assist you with... I want to get an early start in the morning."

"Just one thing. Shira can't live in hydroponics forever... she needs a place to bathe in private." Jhu stood up, stretching slightly. "I'm sure she'll sleep in hydroponics. But there's no bathroom there."

Kris smirked as he thought about his evening thus far. "Oh it has been taken care of, Commander. Crewmen Corbin and Shira will be rooming together effective next evening."

"Oh. In that case, I'm going home to eat dinner, feed my cat, and go to sleep. Hopefully in that order."

"Just so long as you don't eat the cat" said Kris with a chuckle, walking Jhu to the entrance/exit of his quarters. "Good night, Commander."

"Hmm. That would be bad. Good night." Still a bit dazed by Kerouac's changed behavior, Jhu walked out of his cabin and headed down the corridor to go home.