Mission 96.0715: Ehlu u'Tae: Lost and Found

[Deleted]

It had been an absolutely miserable ‘shoreleave’ for the majority of the S’Harien crew, but at least it appeared to be over now as the warbird had set course away from the outpost hours ago and had yet to be summoned back for more diplomatic torture. As relieved as Commander Echal felt, however, the long silence from Command made him uneasy like they were plotting their next move against him trying to come up with the absolute worst possible assignment possible or debating whether or not to make him pay for leaving the outpost without orders in some way. This whole back-and-forth, cat-and-mouse game with Command was getting tiresome. He had enough enemies as it was, and his energy would be better spent focused on his assignments rather than his superiors, but unfortunately, it wasn’t up to him when the trial-by-fire period would be over. He could only hope it was soon.

There was also the addition of two new members of the crew, though one could hardly be called crew, and both of them linked directly to Ambassador Tedak. The diplomatic aide was already generally disliked, at least by those who’d met her. Govan in particular was unimpressed by her, but he knew better than to complain. There was no one who would listen after all. And besides, he’d probably have little contact with her while Tedak would have to deal with her on a regular basis and also disliked her, and that fact didn’t bother Echal in the slightest. What did bother him was the presence of the diplomat’s daughter.

The Commander had never understood the concept of children onboard a warbird, being placed into harm’s way on a regular basis. Their presence on a tactical vessel made no sense to him. The world was dangerous enough without adding weapons and enemies of the Empire to the mix. And now, there was an innocent little girl on his ship, as such, she was under his protection and his responsibility, and Govan didn’t like it one bit. The fact that she was the child of his own personal enemy made no difference to him. She wasn’t to blame for her father’s mistakes and had only just met him after all. Again, there was no point in complaining, as it would fall on deaf ears, and Tedak may have been obnoxious, but he also had deep diplomatic connections, which he would use to ensure she stayed. And so, as usual, Echal just had to deal with these insistent frustrations as best he could.

After several hours of uneasy silence as the S’Harien continued to travel away from the outpost, Govan decided he’d had enough of waiting around for the next disaster, and so he had relieved the primary bridge crew, included to Dor’vel, turned the bridge over to a secondary shift Commander, and headed off to get some food and rest before whatever was to come finally arrived, because there was no point in suffering until it got there after all. And so, Commander Echal had forced himself to pretend to enjoy a nicely replicated meal, not that he really even noticed what it was, and go to sleep, where he pretended to sleep for an hour or two before actually drifting into a restless state of unconsciousness.

After another couple of hours, his sleep was disrupted by an incessant beeping sound. In a frustrated daze, the Commander sat up and growled, “What!?” into the darkness. As if hearing him, the alert ceased beeping almost immediately only to be replaced by a voice.

=/\=“I’m sorry to disturb you, Sir, but we’re receiving a communiqué from Command.=/\=

Sighing and grumbling to himself, Echal threw back the blankets and dragged himself to his feet. “Transfer it to my personal terminal...that is if it can be transferred,” Govan added sarcastically, cursing under his breath as he stubbed his toe on some piece of furniture. “Lights!” he demanded, cursing again as the ever obedient computer raised them to full.

=/\=Acknowledged, Sir. The transmission is being routed to your location,=/\= the as yet unidentified voice replied, his words confirmed immediately as the screen lit up with the unpleasant visage of the Romulan Officer as soon as Echal managed to get to the desk.

=/\=Commander Echal, am I disturbing you?=/\= the mocking voice of the superior officer questioned, able to tell from location and Govan’s appearance that he had been asleep.

“Not at all,” Govan shot back, balancing a matched sarcasm and the necessary respect.

=/\=Good,=/\= the man replied, though his stony visage didn’t crack even slightly. =/\=The S’Harien’s presence is immediately required in the Zeta Volantis system. The Koimae, a Romulan scout vessel was assigned to investigate some suspicious subspace readings and attempt to locate two research vessels also missing from the region during the past eight months. Your assignment is to take over the Koimae’s original orders and to locate the Koimae as well or at least determine what happened to it,=/\= he informed Govan stoically.

All signs of irritation or sarcasm were gone now, as Govan was able to recognize the first legitimate assignment he’d been given as Commander of the S’Harien. “We’ll require the schematics of the three ships, as well as any sensor data on the subspace readings for the science department. Also, any information on the timelines of all three disappearances and the last known coordinates of each of the ships would be helpful,” Echal requested.

=/\=Everything we have is being sent to you as we speak,=/\= the reserved Romulan replied, though Govan thought he almost detected a hint of approval. =/\=This is an important and dangerous assignment. Don’t screw it up,=/\= he concluded before the screen went dark.

“Nice...” Govan mumbled to himself, but deep down, he felt a bit of hope and pride. This wasn’t a throw away mission or one assigned solely to test his patience. This was a real mission with real consequences, a test of a different type. He wasn’t sure if he received this assignment because it was so dangerous they didn’t mind risking him or not, but that didn’t matter now. The important thing was that they had it, and this was a chance to be taken more seriously in the future, and he, for one, certainly was not going to pass it up.

All thought of sleep or rest forgotten, the Commander quickly got dressed and returned to the bridge. Most of the ship was asleep, particularly the senior staff, but at least he could get the S’Harien pointed in the right direction and begin his own preparation work first. If this mission was as important, to the Empire, to Command, and to his own future, as he thought, he was going to have to put everything he had into making it a successful one.

<Tag All>

[Deleted]

Despite Govan telling the senior staff they could go off duty, Kreiala had continued to work in her office she wasn’t about to let whatever mundane tasks assigned to her by the ill educated commanders of the ship get in the way of her greater studies.

It was her overachievements that had landed her on the ship of the damned, and she was sure that it would be the same thing that would act as her deliverance.

She preferred working at night always had, most of the crew were asleep or otherwise preoccupied, and she was allowed the comfort to be with her own thoughts uninterrupted by fools.

She stared at the computer screen, eyes unmoving but mind fully at work. The only sounds in the office were her light breathing and the constant hum of the ship itself. Her office had no windows and was afforded no luxuries, but that didn’t bother her in the least. A window provided no practical use the sensor readings streaming in to her secondary console told her more about what was out there than her vision ever could simply staring out of a window.

Her concentration was interrupted by a beeping sound, her head turned almost mechanically towards the source of the noise, an incoming message.. it had been pushed onto a secondary comm. channel due to the fact somebody was using a heavily encrypted channel.

She assumed since the message that she had soon discovered to be a text only document, was for her due to the fact it had arrived to her office console. Downloading the message onto a padd. She began to read only for her eyebrow to raise after the first sentence.

Darling,

I hope this finds you in a better shape than you were when you wrote to me last..

She stopped reading the message was obviously not for her, due to the fact that people who would write to her knew better than to refer to her as darling.. for threat of having their nose broken.

Searching the records for the origin of the message she discovered it was from a Federation vessel, and sent on a diplomatic channel. Shrugging as this left only Tedak and his new aide as the possible intended receivers she placed the Padd on her desk.

Looking again to her main computer screen showing schematics for the sensor array she had designed she sighed. The aide was out of the question she soon though, nobody in their right mind would find anything about her darling Kreiala thought.

That left the Ambassador, thinking for a moment she turned her chair around again and went to work deleting the original message from the computer banks.. something she knew how to do expertly.. after being sure no trace of it was left she nodded to herself. She had no doubt that the Ambassador was disliked and that certain members of the crew wouldn’t hesitate to read his mail had they the chance.

It wasn’t out of any goodwill to the Ambassador that she did it, more for herself should anybody have accessed the message they would have known she had also seen it.. at that could lead to them thinking she was a possible ally in whatever stupid mind games they enjoyed to play.

** Morning **

Walking to sickbay where the Ambassador was still resting, Kreiala stopped in the doorway carefully examining the room before entering.. she looked around for the rather annoying nurse that she was sure that close proximity too would send her into a sugar induced coma.

Nodding to herself at the ‘all clear’ she proceeded to Tedak’s bedside. “Ambassador.. I am Krieala Vyaln.. I received this last message last night accidentally.. I must inform you that I read the first sentence.. you may wish to tell whomever is writing to you to begin their correspondence with your name to avoid it happening again.”

“I made sure this was the only copy.. to avoid anybody else for accidentally receiving it.” A euphemism for spying.

<Tag Tedak>

*** The letter**
Darling,

I hope this finds you in a better shape than you were when you wrote to me last.. I am not sure you and I have the same definition of play if yours incudes daggers.. it’s a good thing your attractive cos’ you sure ain’t the brightest Ambassador I have met.

Speaking of which we are currently escorting a Cardassian Ambassador to Romulan space it’s hard being so close but yet so far away from you.. I am tempted to steal a shuttle and track your new ship down.. but well the shuttle bay is several decks down from sickbay and it would take at least three minutes to get there.. too much hassle.

And don’t you worry I don’t plan on getting myself into any danger, Admiral Reckus knows what she is doing.. but I will be sure to let her know your keeping an eye on us. But it isn’t her I am worried about you say your commanding officer stabbed you? What kind of maniac does your government let command ships these days? Be sure he doesn’t do it again.. Because I would have to punish him, and we have already been through the hassle it is to walk the three minutes to the shuttle bay.

Well I must be off I start my shift in a few minutes, be careful and be safe, oh I have saved up quite a bit of shore leave, let me know when you are able to do the same.

All my love,
Kerry-Anne Kennedy

P.S
No more dagger play, not all women like scars!

[Deleted]

Tedak was growing weary of having to spend time in sickbay, regardless of it's origin. Yet one of the nurses had been so kind to bring him both nourisment as well as something to read. Aside from that most of his time was spent trying to get to know his daughter. Though first he had tried denying it, there really was no denying her heritage. Now that he had studied her features, the likeness to him was unmistakeable.

Over the past few hours she had simply sat with him on the bed, or curled up in his arms. Surprisingly she hadn't been fussy about being transferred to him. For now, she refused to call him daddy, but she was friendly enough towards him. She had told him though in no uncertain terms that her name was Kassandra, and not Kasia. Mommy called her Kasia and since he wasn't mommy he couldn't. Obligingly, Tedak had refrained from using the shortened name, for now. He would earn her trust, eventually.

The girl was now lying in the crook of his arm, blissfully asleep. The diplomat looked up when he heard approaching footsteps. A crisply clad female officer, wearing gloves, approached him.

“Ambassador.. I am Krieala Vyaln.. I received this last message last night accidentally.. I must inform you that I read the first sentence.. you may wish to tell whomever is writing to you to begin their correspondence with your name to avoid it happening again.”

Accepting the PADD, Tedak arched an eyebrow at her in curiosity. "I shall endeavour to make it known to the author," he vowed.

“I made sure this was the only copy.. to avoid anybody else for accidentally receiving it.

"That is very considerate of you ma'am, if not discrete. I wonder how this message ended up with you, as it's clearly addressed to me." He smiled as his eyes scanned the message, his smile widening then ending in a confused frown. "Dagger play?" he muttered, "surely she knows daggers aren't toys?" He glanced at the sleeping child, vowing to keep his traditional weaponry well out of her reach.

"Tell me Kreiala, what is your function on this vessel, and how long have you been aboard?" He tried to start a casual conversation since most of the crew avoided him like plague. "Met anyone of interest yet?"

[Deleted]

OOC: A JP between Dor'vel, Tamir, and Kreiala.

“Do you think she...needs all of this?” Dor’vel questioned, as he shifted the cumbersome baskets around in his hands. “I mean, I’m sure she will like it, but isn’t this a bit…much?”

“Maybe,” Tamir agreed, as she strolled cheerfully down the corridor, basket in each hand. “But I got so excited about welcoming her properly, and I had so much fun baking, that I ended up with all of this. But you can never have too much good food,” the nurse added, her face glowing with anticipation. For the first year, she had kept to herself, scared to get into trouble or raise anyone’s suspicious, ire, or worse, interest, but recently, she’d felt more comfortable aboard the S’Harien, safer. Maybe it had to do with her friendship with Dor’vel, which didn’t have to be a secret and wouldn’t put her in more danger. Tamir felt so much safer with his presence, plus, she knew Govan was in the background, ready to help if she really needed it as well, so all was well, and she was so much happier. “Thank you so much for helping me with all of this. I wouldn’t have been able to carry it all myself, and I don’t think I could have chosen what to bring without wishing I could bring the rest.”

“It’s no problem,” Dor’vel assured her, juggling the baskets once again. In truth, he felt a bit awkward, bringing welcoming gifts to a new officer with Tamir...but he couldn’t say no. She was too excited about it, and he just couldn’t disappoint her. Besides, he supposed part of a First Officer’s job was to welcome them aboard, just not usually with cookies. Not only that but he had a suspicious that it was best for the nurse if he went with her. The new Science Chief didn’t exactly strike him as the friendly sort, not that Tamir would ever consider that in her desire to be friendly to others. Perhaps Kreiala would be less harsh for his presence, if not grateful and welcoming as the girl walking next to him would want.

Finally they arrived and beaming with excitement, Tamir rang the chime to Kreiala’s office.

Looking up from her computer console, Kreiala sighed as she turned off the screen. Looking to the door she said, “Enter,” her voice less than welcoming but not as harsh as she could manage.

Stepping into the sparse room, Tamir offered a warm smile. “Hello,” she greeted softly. “I know you’re new here, so I wanted to welcome you to the S’Harien, and let you know we are glad to have you here,” the nurse began. “I decided you could use some freshly baked food, since the replicator can only make so much. I went a little overboard, but I have two kinds of muffins, three kinds of cookies, a loaf of bread, and a pie in here somewhere...”

Feeling incredibly awkward, Dor’vel shifted the baskets in his arms again as she spoke. He didn’t know what exactly to say or do, as this was such an unusual situation, one he’d never been in before or even heard of... He didn’t know whether to glare at Kreiala to try and indicate for her to be nice or look apologetic, again trying to get her to be nice to the well-intentioned but clearly naïve nurse. “She spent a great deal of time on this, and I have first-hand experience to know that she is quite skilled when it comes to baking,” the First Officer supplied, meeting the science officer’s gaze firmly, hoping that would be enough.

Blushing, Tamir replied, “It wasn’t too much trouble, and I hope everything came out ok.”

Standing up and moving from around her desk, Kreiala raised her eyebrows at the sight. It was almost as if her face didn’t know what expression to settle on. “How unexpected,” she said, a rather middle of the road expression for her. She couldn’t bring herself to be nice, but at the same time she held back her desire to throw the woman out baskets and all.

The first officer was there, and for him to be dragged into doing something so childish for a man in his position she could only assume he had some sort of feeling for the disgustingly polite and sweet nurse. As such not wanting to get into a pathetic fight with the little weed of a First Officer, Kreiala was as nice as possible for her. “It has been some time since I ate any baked goods. Baking is something I haven’t done since...” She stopped herself and took a deep breath her face again turning to ice. “For some time... Would you like to come in? Of course, if you’re needed somewhere, don’t let me stop you... Duty is important.”

Beaming at the apparent success of her efforts, Tamir nodded and stepped inside, looking around for a place to put the baskets, and finding there was plenty of floor space. “Well I hope you like it. I didn’t see any allergies listed in your medical record, so I hope that you don’t have any nutritional requirements I didn’t know about beforehand,” she babbled, still holding onto the baskets, not knowing if the equipment in the office would be disturbed.

After breathing a sigh of relief that the woman hadn’t hurt Tamir’s feelings, Dor’vel followed the nurse into the office. It looked exactly like he would have imagined her office: spartan, efficient, and clean. “I am currently off-duty,” he replied simply, again meeting the woman’s gaze and nodding once firmly, to indicate his thanks for her generous response to what was most likely an unwelcomed intrusion. “However, we wouldn’t wish to disturb you and your work, as I’m sure you are still very busy getting settled in and brought up to speed.”

“Oh! Of course, I’m so sorry if we’ve disturbed you,” Tamir stated, suddenly wondering if this was such a good idea. “It certainly wasn’t my intention to interrupt your work here...”

Looking to Dor’vel she saw the look of thanks in his eyes, thinking suddenly that she would teach him a lesson and put a stop to this niceness in the future, Kreiala shook her head and said. “No interruption, nothing that can’t be completed just as easily a little later, and I was up to speed before I set foot on the ship. Take a seat, I surely cannot eat all of this myself, and baked goods are so better when shared.” She smiled and surprisingly it was convincing, she motioned to the two chairs in front of her desk and waited for the nurse to walk towards it. Once Tamir was out of eye line Kreiala shot Dor’vel a look that said she was less than amused.

She looked directly at him as she asked. “So Tamir, are you and Dor’vel a couple?”

Happy at the idea of a visit, Tamir had moved to the chair and sat, only to nearly choke on nothing at the question. Feeling her face flush, the nurse stammered, “Uh…um, well, uh no, no, no we’re just friends, and he was kind of enough to offer to help me carry all the baskets because they were too heavy for me to manage myself, and I asked him, and he agreed, and so that is why we both came here, together I mean,” she rambled, her face growing greener with each word. She couldn’t even manage to look in Dor’vel’s direction.

Dor’vel had caught the look from Kreiala and knew what it meant. She was being nice, but she wasn’t happy about it, and he, or perhaps they, were going to be paying for it. At the question, his fears were confirmed, but unfortunately, he was so taken aback by it that he just stood there, dumbfounded, with no idea what to say while Tamir tried to explain. Much to his dismay, he could feel his face flushing as well, no matter how well he managed to control his expression. He couldn’t look at Tamir either... “Since it is my duty to welcome new officer’s aboard and ensure that they have everything they require, when she made the request for me to accompany her, I saw it as an opportunity to fulfill my duty to check in with you following your arrival,” the Centurion replied, hating how warm his ears were beginning to feel. “I hope you are settling in and find your accommodations satisfactory.”

“Oh I see I am sorry for the confusion. Just the way he looked at you is all.” She replied casually while giving Dor’vel a look that said mess with me and pay better than words ever could. Turning and walking towards her desk she almost laughed at the pair now blushing, but she regained her composure and added. “Well that was very nice of him…such a good friend.” She sat down and looked down at her gloves and added. “My accommodations are functional that is as much as I need.” She looked up at Tamir and said. “I feel awful about the Ambassador. Poor man…how unfortunate that he ate something he was allergic too.. I can’t help but feel it was intentional somehow. Good natured people like you and myself would be appalled at people who would do such a thing.” She cast a look at the man and while staring at him she said. “Probably my imagination, too many crime novels I have read.”’

Dor’vel’s embarrassment was quickly fading as the Science Chief continued talking, his gaze hard as it met her own. She wasn’t someone to mess with, he could see that now, and unfortunately, poor Tamir was caught in the middle, the sweetest, kindest...that witch didn’t deserve her offer of friendship, or her cookies for that matter, but all that he could do was seethe silently. The nurse had no idea what was really going on, and that was for the best. Now he just had to get her out of there, and quickly, to minimize any damage...

Still blushing, Tamir didn’t know what to say about ‘the way he looked at you’ comment. Kreiala was clearly mistaken, but to say so just wouldn’t feel right, so she focused on the provided change of subject. “Accidents do happen,” she murmured quietly, “...especially where allergies are concerned. “I’m just glad he’s going to be alright and that Sural and everyone else was there to get him back to the medical bay quickly. That was fortunate.”

Although still a bit embarrassed, Tamir wasn’t ready to give up on the friendly chat, getting to know the new member of the crew. “And his daughter is just adorable. You did so well with her, really. She seemed to trust you and like you very much. You must have a lot of experience with kids. Did you have younger siblings or do you have children of your own?”

She looked up a fire washed through her eyes and then just as quickly as it appeared it vanished. “The young girl, yes, children are easily swayed with the giving of sweets.” She cleared her throat, as she then added. “I was an only child, and I had a son, but he died several years ago.” She stopped and merely gave a slight shrug portraying nothing of the pain it caused her. She didn’t talk about it often if at all, not out of any pain talking about it would cause her because she dealt with that every second of everyday it couldn’t get worse.

“Oh…I am so sorry...” Tamir murmured, forgetting all about her embarrassment, sadness and compassion in her eyes. “I didn’t mean to...” she began, but stopped, knowing that she didn’t have the words to fully convey her sympathies, let alone make any difference in the pain Kreiala must feel. “I’m sure you were a wonderful mother, and I’m truly sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. You were not responsible. Those who were now join him in death.” She said coldly. “Accidents befell them all… The universe has a sense of justice.” Again said with coldness and the word accident less than convincing, Kreiala immediately regretted getting caught up in the anger and saying that aloud, but she didn’t let it show on her cold hard face. “And yourselves do either of you have children?” she asked quickly to change the subject but knowing already the damage may well have been done.

“No,” Tamir replied simply, feeling like she had stepped unwittingly into a minefield. Her heart ached for Kreiala, not even bothered by the ‘accident’ reference. The pain she must live with had to be unbearable. No wonder she came across as cold. That was probably the only way she got through the day. “Maybe someday...” she mused, feeling her blush starting to return again, and so she, unnecessarily, added, “And I was an only child too.”

“I do not,” Dor’vel replied simply, watching Kreiala carefully. His anger at her behavior was beginning to diminish somewhat. He realized that this knowledge wasn’t commonly known or shared, and that somehow, in her simple naïve way, Tamir had discovered something very personal about the Science Chief. But this still had to come to an end, for all of their sakes, before some other disastrous turn of conversation happened, and now, they all would probably benefit from getting out of this. “I should probably return to my duties. I’m sure there is something I should be attending to. If you have need of anything, simply inform me,” he added, stepping back from the chair he hadn’t even used and moving back.

“Oh...I should probably go too,” Tamir agreed, standing quickly. “I hope you like the food. I like baking, so if you have any requests for more, just ask, and I’ll be happy to try. And I don’t have too many friends onboard, so if you ever want to have a home cooked meal or relax or something like, feel free to ask or just stop by. I have two kittens! They’re pets, from Earth, and they are very friendly, if you want to meet them sometime. I’d like that.”

“Perhaps if I find the time, with ship’s business and my own personal work, I don’t often have leisure time.” She replied to the invitation. “If you could stay a moment?” she said to Dor’vel before looking again to Tamir. “Ships business, classified you understand? Again, the basket was…well…thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Tamir replied with a smile. “Hopefully, I will see you later,” she offered with a quick, somewhat nervous glance in Dor’vel’s direction before she left. That hadn’t exactly gone very smoothly, or according to plan, but at least she had made a new friend.

After she left Kreiala almost shook trying to wash away the niceness she had to fake. “That was avoidable in future I would direct her good intentions elsewhere were I you. I don’t do friendship... This time you both got off easy… I am here to work, not play nice.”

She sat back down behind her desk and looked to her computer. “I wouldn’t go digging if I were you. Some information that is found can be…hazardous.” Looking back up she waved her hand and said. "Leave me. I have work to complete."

“She means well, and it didn’t kill you play nice for a few minutes,” Dor’vel retorted, torn between his continued anger and the nagging sympathy after learning she’d lost a child. “I know she’s not like the rest of us, but she has friends in high places, so I suggest you continue to play nice if she contacts you again if you know what’s good for you. You don’t have to be friends with her or encourage it, but just be friendly at least, because I assure you, if she is upset or hurt, you won’t like what it gets you,” he threatened, knowing that the same went for him. “I will leave you to your work now,” he concluded, exiting quickly.

She scoffed as she shook her head and muttered. “Govan isn’t high places.” She sighed and continued her work.

[Deleted]

Tedak had grown tired of being stuck in sickbay, a place he didn't know how long he'd been in for now as he had spent some time unconscious. Seeing as Sural made no attempt to release him, and given he'd not seen the doctor in quite some time, Tedak rose from the bed, only to be immediately encountered by his new aide.

She placed the palm of her hand flat on his chest, glaring up at him. "And where do you think you're going?" she demanded.

"Where do you think you're going sir," he corrected her acidly, "and since you're my aide and not my caretaker, that's none of your business. Step aside."

The girl stood her ground, palm still touching his chest. "Your health is my business. I'm your aide and I'm to see to your needs." She smiled sensually. "All of them." She gave him a slight shove back towards the bed, and for him it was either step back, or violate her personal space as she immediately stepped closer to him.

"You are to see to the tasks I give you," the diplomat snapped back, "and you are not to touch me again without invitation from me to do so, understand?" He snatched her wrist and forcibly wrenched her arm down to her side. "You are neither family nor lover, you will not touch me again. Now, I want you to go to my office and go over the information sent there by Commander Echal in regards to our new mission. Report anomalies to me." She'd be busy with that for a while, he mused as he glared down on her.

Not awaiting her response, he snatched up his daughter and carried her out of sickbay. His shoulder was still smarting and the sudden movement and strain on it probably didn't do him any good, but he needed to get out of here before it affected his sanity. First, the diplomat went by his quarters to make arrangements for the girl's lodging with him, then changed into fresh robes. Taking Kassandra's hand, he slowly made way for the science officer's office, knowing he had her to thank for the girl's initial care, after Mhiessan had failed miserably at that task, or so he'd heard.

As he approached the office, he heard voices, and waited patiently for a moment, stepping aside when Dor'vel stepped past him, seemingly not noticing his presence at first. Whether he did after that, Tedak had no idea of as he'd entered the office. "Govan may not be high places, but I am," he offered pleasantly, "is something wrong?"

[Kreiala]

"I've heard I've you to thank for the initial care for my daughter, after my aide blundered at it. And I observed you with her myself, before I knew of her identity. You're a very good caretaker, almost a natural." His praise was without falsehood, his expression open and honest. "Thank you for caring for her," he finished, "may I call upon your assistance in her care, should I require it?" He paused briefly. "I am not without knowledge, but a daughter is...different." He looked down, grief evident. "I had a son..."

[Kreiala]


ooc: office entered unannounced with kreiala's prior permission

[Deleted]

Looking up at the voice, she gave a slight nod. “It always confuses me when people threaten you with repercussions from people from high places.. it only reveals the fact that they themselves have no real authority or power.”

“Come in Ambassador.. Is there something I can do for you?” She offered cold guard slipping for a moment as she took note of the young daughter holding his hand.

She nodded slowly as he explained how he had heard of her being the one too look after his daughter after she was dropped by his aide, Taking a deep breath her first instinct was to remind him that she was Science officer and not a school keeper. However for some unknown reason she was rather fond of the Ambassador, most likely due to the fact that almost everyone else on the crew hated him. Much like her although for different reasons, beside that he was a man of intelligence. Not as much as her but if she only spoke to people as smart as her she would hardly talk at all.

“I see, well if you are in need then I suppose I can offer my assistance Ambassador.. I would dislike to see your aide take the duty again… speaking of which your more forgiving than I were I you she would be looking for another job already.”

She then noted the look of grief on his face as he mentioned he had a son, It was a look she recognised all too well. She didn’t know why but she then said something she rarely did. “Yes I had a son also.. he died shortly after his eighth birthday.. it is a pain one would not wish on their worst enemy.” She was honest normally she would have only alluded to the fact. But the Ambassador knew exactly what she felt.

She looked down at his daughter and said. “Do you like cookies?”

<Tag>

She picked up one of the baskets given to her only minutes ago by Tamir and placed it on her desk. “The nurse gave them too me as a welcoming gift.. but I surely can not eat them all myself I do not have much of an appetite for sweet foods.”

Looking up again to Tedak she said. “If you don’t mind my enquiring Ambassador, how is it you have been assigned to this ship? From what I have heard you were assigned to the Federation.”

<Tag>

“I see, I myself invented a system of sensor relays that have twelve point four precent more range than our current model.. my direct supervisor stole my idea and took credit for himself and sent me here so I could not expose him.. now if I told anyone I would not be believed... So instead of running a research station of my own I am here to answer to Govan who couldn’t grasp the usefulness of science should it rear up and bite him in the behind.”

She shrugged her shoulders slightly as she added. “No matter I don’t intend this purgatory to last forever.”

[Deleted]

“So let me get this straight...you carried baskets of cookies down the corridor to the Chief Science Officer’s Office all the way from her quarters?” Govan questioned, almost in disbelief.

Trying to keep a straight face, in spite of feeling his ears growing warm again, Dor’vel shot back, “Well, you’re the one who asked me to look after her and become her friend. And she asked me to help, and I didn’t know what Vyaln would do if she’d gone on her own.”

Eyes dancing with mirth and an amused smile on his face, so rare it almost looked out of place, Govan shook his head trying to keep from chuckling. “Well, I certainly can’t question your devotion to orders. Seriously, that is commitment. I mean, I’d want to help and look after her, but she asked me to do that, I’d tell her what she could do with those cookies...”

Raising an eyebrow, Dor’vel replied, “I believe you.” And he did. It was so strange to think of Govan as Tamir’s boyfriend. He certainly didn’t act like it, but then it was an unusual situation. Most boyfriends didn’t have to worry about a relationship getting their girlfriend killed... “I think my presence may have helped moderate her response. She did make a few snide comments, but they were vague enough that I don’t think Tamir understood the intent behind them. And their conversation actually revealed something interesting about Vyaln. Apparently, she had a son who died and implied that she killed those responsible.”

A range of emotions crossed Govan’s face, starting with shock, then sorrow, sympathy, and finally settling on the more typical cold, hard anger. “This universe is seldom a place for children,” he finally stated, the fury seething beneath the surface but visible in his eyes.

“She also ‘suggested’ that looking into it would not be advisable,” Dor’vel added, making a mental note of Govan’s reaction. He was probably the person onboard who knew the Commander best, save Tamir, and yet the man was still somewhat of a mystery. He had stepped in to protect Tedak’s daughter earlier and now had visibly reacted to news of the Science Chief’s son. It was another small piece to the puzzle of just who Govan Echal was.

“There is no need. It is in the past and best left there. Whoever acted to take care of the monsters who would harm a child deserves a medal, and they deserved what they got.”

Nodding in acknowledgment, Dor’vel added this to the ‘file’ on his superior and moved on. “So, we have new orders?” he questioned. “Yet another lesson in humility and patience?”

Expression lightening somewhat, Govan replied, “Not this time. It seems we’re past being tested in that manner and onto a test of a different type. This one’s a real assignment with real necessity and repercussions,” the Commander stated, handing Dor’vel a padd detailing what he knew so far. “We’re already on route to our destination, and I’m calling a senior staff meeting in half an hour to present our new mission and orders to the crew.”

Carefully reviewing the data, Dor’vel concurred with Echal’s assessment. This was a real assignment, not designed to test patience but actual ability. It wasn’t an easy, throw-away assignment, nor designed to make them miserable. This was a challenge to see if they could accomplish a difficult mission, complete their objective, and come out in one piece.

“Hopefully, this is a mystery that’s actually capable of being solved,” Govan mused. “If it isn’t, Command might just get their way after all and find a different way to get rid of me. However, I don’t intend to make it that easy,” he added with a smirk. “I believe they made a mistake in underestimating me, the S’Harien, and her crew. We may surprise them yet.”

“I believe we will,” Dor’vel echoed Commander Echal’s sentiments with a hint of smile. It was a difficult challenge, but the First Officer had faith that they would meet it. “I’ll review this information more carefully before the briefing and see what I can find in the databanks.”

Nodding, Govan replied, “I’ll send out notice for the meeting and see you then. Dismissed.” As the Sub Commander departed, Govan too turned his attention to his screen and the information displayed there. As promised, all that he had requested had been sent. His focus was on the timeline of the disappearances and the coordinates. The scientific data meant very little to him, but hopefully, Kreiala would be able to make some sense out of it. It would be interesting to see what the senior staff had to say, ask, and offer by way of a suggestion for the first, real mission. This would be the ultimate test to see if they really were ready to be a reliable, honorable warbird in representation of the Romulan Empire.

Opening a ship-wide comm channel, Govan announced, “All senior officers, report to the Ward Room in thirty minutes, Echal out.” That done, he sat back in his chair. Time would tell.

<Tag All>

[Deleted]

Sural was starting to find it frustrating that his sickbay was becoming the next best thing to an embassy. Injuries aboard the S'Harian were few and far between. There were of course the usual complaints, headaches, sprains and cuts but they were handled mostly by Tamir and the junior staff. An Uhlan in Engineering was showing signs of a brain tumour but so far the results were inconclusive and in any event Solot his neurologist would handle any operation there.

Tedak was becoming something of a permanent fixture. He mused about naming the bio bed as resevred only for the diplomat. Looking through the Ambassadors medical file he was certain that visits to sickbay would be the norm rather than a rarity. For a man of peace he sure seemed to get himself injured a lot. Much of his previous wounds had been from knives, phasers and explosions. It seemed the Ambassador was a little too headstrong for his own good. Given his attack on Govan Sural had added stupid to the list of words to describe Tedak.

He watched in mild amusement as the Ambassdor was accosted by his aide and then stormed from sickbay. Sural didnt particularly mind. Yes there was protocol and paperwork but as long as his patient was well enough to leave sickbay Sural was happy to wave all of the red tape

“All senior officers, report to the Ward Room in thirty minutes, Echal out.”

Sural sighed, he had hoped for a little time to himself. He had been driving himself hard in the lab and had been planning to take a break in the sparse rec room on deck 12. That would have to wait. He got up from his desk and reached for a hypospray, swiftly injecting himself with a stimulant that he hoped would keep him cognisant for at least the next hour or so.

Noting that Tamir was absent, probably of with Dorvel. Now there was an interesting triangle. At first Sural had suspected Govan and Tamir of having... feelings but now Dorvel had added a new dimension. He shrugged to himself. As long as Tamir contiuned her excellent work why did he care. He left sickbay instead to the care of Nurse Opinka instructing her not to break anything or kill anyone.

There was something comforting about a Valdore class vessel. Sural was used to the enormous vacuumous interiors of D'Dedrix class ships. The S'Harien was mroe ... homely. The lines of the vessel were sleeky. Where a D'Dederix was a hulking eagle the Valdore was a swift and deadly falcon or hawk. The interior was muted grey and green but the overall lighting was better and the decor more conducive to a good mood. He wandered idly up through the ship to the Ward Room. He wasnt concerned about being late, if it was a medical emergency he would already know about it, either from Govan or from the Imperial Medical Board. As it was he was among the first to arrive and so he was able to take the pick of the chairs. He chose one near the window some way down the table from the Commander.

[Deleted]

“Yes I had a son also.. he died shortly after his eighth birthday.. it is a pain one would not wish on their worst enemy.” She was honest normally she would have only alluded to the fact. But the Ambassador knew exactly what she felt.

She looked down at his daughter and said. “Do you like cookies?”

As the girl looked up at the man who had claimed to be her father, Tedak nodded his consent. It pained him to hear that someone had gone through something similar as he had. However he would respect her privacy and not press the matter since it was clearly painful to her. "I...grieve with thee," was the only vocal response he had to that. Vulcan in origin, but no less truthful, even in Romulan society. And he meant it.

“The nurse gave them too me as a welcoming gift.. but I surely can not eat them all myself I do not have much of an appetite for sweet foods.”

Looking up again to Tedak she said. “If you don’t mind my enquiring Ambassador, how is it you have been assigned to this ship? From what I have heard you were assigned to the Federation.”

"It seems that Kasia." The girl cast him a murderous look, upon which he hastily corrected himself. "Kassandra," he amended pleasantly, which earned him a smile in return, "does have a penchant for sweets. Much like her mother, I'm afraid. I'm not too keen on sweets either." He paused, pondering her question. "I was assigned here, probably as a form of punishment by one of my former superiors. Vebn s'Khellian no doubt has a deeply rooted hatred for me, and he has never made a secret of thwarting me. I am a successful diplomat, though it seems to grate others that I approve of certain Federation ideals. I was caretaker of several El-Aurian children on Starbase Assailant, and I took great pride and pleasure in teaching them Romulan morals, as well as Federation morals. There is no better audience than a child, when one aims to teach tolerance and respect." He shook his head. "It obviously wasn't appreciated, and I was sent here, much to Vebn's delight, who no doubt is responsible. It is ... highly dangerous for me to be here."

“I see, I myself invented a system of sensor relays that have twelve point four precent more range than our current model.. my direct supervisor stole my idea and took credit for himself and sent me here so I could not expose him.. now if I told anyone I would not be believed... So instead of running a research station of my own I am here to answer to Govan who couldn’t grasp the usefulness of science should it rear up and bite him in the behind.”

She shrugged her shoulders slightly as she added. “No matter I don’t intend this purgatory to last forever.”

"I am quite sure you'll find a way to stake your rightful claim," Tedak agreed with a slight smile, "all in all, Govan isn't a bad commanding officer. He just has a way of, how do you say it? Go against someone's grain? No matter how he sees me, I do not hate him. I still owe him my life, and that debt has not been repaid. He once was assigned as my bodyguard you see, and he did a very good job even though then he already disapproved of me. He is a man who takes his tasks very seriously, which I find commendable. Dim though he may be where people and science are concerned, he does have a brilliant mind where tactics are important."

He listened as the call for a meeting was announced. "I should go and get Kassandra settled. No doubt he'll be roaring for my presence if I don't appear on time. It was... nice... talking to you ma'am." He gave a slight bow before he picked up the girl and walked out.

Thirty minutes later, exactly on the second, he glided into the Ward Room, silently taking his seat in the hope to go unnoticed.

[Deleted]

“I am sure you will be given the chance to repay your debt eventually since your now posted on the ship.” She said in reply to Tedak’s life being saved by Govan.
Her head tiltled slightly at the sound of the comm. channel coming to life and announcing a meeting. She looked to Tedak who beat her to the punch by excusing himself to get his daughter settled in time for him to leave for the meeting.

“Ambassador.” She said in reply to his goodbye, she looked to Kassandra and said. “Miss. Kassandra.” She watched them leave before looking back down at her work.

She thought on some of the Ambassadors words, He was an idealist. In that he was galaxies apart from Krieala who was a cynic about the nature of Sentient beings, she believed tolerance was only used when it was advantageous to those giving the tolerance.

The moment it becomes clear that intolerance and violence became more profitable for the majority they easily did away with pie in the sky ideals. She finished up her final notes keeping a close eye on the time. She planned to be two minutes late for the meeting, that way she wouldn’t have to engage in any small talk and get straight to business.

Eventually the time came for her to leave the peaceful solitude of her office and venture out into the cretinous bunch of dim wits that manned the ship. Taking a final breath she stepped out of her office and kept the look of stone cold annoyance on her face.

Nobody spoke to her nor dared to hold their gaze on her over long, much to her satisfaction.

Exactly two minutes and thirty seconds after the meeting had been slated for starting she entered the War room and took an empty seat. Her gloved fingers tapped on the table as she awaited things to start.

[Deleted]

Finally. They had gone from that wretched diplomatic waste of time and were on their merry way to anywhere else...

Taev almost couldn't believe it. It seemed they would be stuck in a time loop called diplomacy forever. But thanks to a few strategic measures, the S'harien along with her crew were gone on another quest for the Empire. Taev was generously granted a slight reprieve from duty to get caught up on other security matters. There were several investigations that needed to be taken care of, all of which he would get to in due time. As the hours tolled on, Taev sifted through data, held interrogations, and came up with conclusions to many problems. Most were resolved peacefully. Taev was typically prepared for any kind of confrontation, but thus far, had little respect for it, as any kind of altercation meant more paperwork that needed to be filed. It was always an inconvenience.

The call came for all senior officers to report to the ward room. Taev was rather pleased at this. It was hopefully the beginning to a real mission that would finally be worth his time. Taking his leave from his current duties, Taev made way to the bridge. He intended on checking up on things before the meeting was to begin. Arriving quickly, he walked to the tactical station and took his information. Ship and crew were good to go. For once... Finding everything to be in order, he made his way to the Ward room.

Upon his entrance, he found the Doctor and Diplomatic officer already present. He was apparently the third to arrive, with the science officer coming in after him. Things were about to begin.

[Deleted]

Arriving at the Ward Room along with Dor’vel, Govan was frustrated to see that both the new Science Chief and Legate were absent. As much as the lack of respect for his orders irked him, he cared less about Tevio than Kreiala. This mission wasn’t exactly Intelligence heavy, not that many were, but as much as he disliked the notion, it relied on the science department rather prominently. It hadn’t occurred to the Commander until later, when he was reviewing the details, just how important Uhlan Vyaln’s input would be and how much he would need to rely on her expertise. It was far from an ideal situation, and he hated to be in a position of really needing someone else’s ability to make up for his lack, but there was no other option when you commanded a ship, something that he still needed to learn and accept, and unfortunately, now was as good a time as any seeing he had no choice. Gritting his teeth, he decided to wait for her. There was no point in giving out information he would just have to repeat. He was definitely going to have a talk with her about this...

Noting both Kreiala’s absence and the irritation on Echal’s face, Dor’vel knew that in this case her presence was crucial, so he decided to step in. “I’m sorry, Commander, I forgot to bring the data you requested,” he lied as Govan took a seat. “I’ll return with it shortly.”

“Be quick,” Govan shot back, wondering, as he often did, what he ever did before he had assigned Dor’vel as his First Officer. The man practically read his thoughts and was much better with personnel related issues than he could ever be. Unfortunately, the pause that would prevent the Commander from having to choose whether to obviously wait for her or continue on without her did not avoid this rather awkward pause. No one said a word as Echal glanced around the room, taking in the inscrutable doctor, the slightly eager looking tactical officer, and the bored, if not sleepy, Ambassador...quite the motley crew he had.

Fortunately, the wait wasn’t nearly as long as it felt, and soon enough, the Science Chief sauntered in with Dor’vel directly behind her. “So nice of you to join us...” Govan quipped at the tardy scientist as she took her seat, and his First Officer took his place to his right.

Skipping any pleasantries, which he’d had no intention of giving as it was, Govan launched directly into the briefing. “The S’Harien is en route to the Zeta Volantis system, where the scout, Koimae, was conducting an investigation into the disappearance of two other ships and reports of unusual subspace readings. There has been no contact with the Koimae in four days, so we are being sent to investigate the disappearances and the readings.”

With a few keystrokes on the in-table control pad, Govan activated the display showing a map of the region with an icon to indicate the last known coordinates of the three ships as well as the date of their last contacts. “The freighter Ortaim was last heard from eight months ago. There was a brief investigation, but no evidence of her was ever found. Last month, the I.R.W. Tagor was patrolling the region and also disappeared. Before losing contact, they reported detecting unusual subspace distortions in the area, and the Koimae was sent a few weeks later. Now that three ships have been lost, Command has decided to take this more seriously and send the S’Harien to determine the cause of the cause of all this, the sources of the readings, as well as recover the ships and crews, if possible.”

Looking to Kreiala, he addressed her specifically. “All sensor data they have on record is now in our databanks, and your department will need to review it while we’re en route. You will also need to lead the research into the subspace readings and that portion of the investigation, so I will need the scientific department functioning at their peak efficiency.”

<Tag Kreiala>

“Lieutenant Lhoell, you will work with the Operations department to coordinate the search for the missing vessels, and since we don’t know what’s behind this, I’ll want the tactical department prepared for anything, and the S’Harien will be on medium alert with shields up for the entire duration of our stay in this region. I do not want us taking any chances.”

<Tag Taev>

Glancing around the room to gage their reactions, Govan added a simple, “Questions?”

<Tag All>

[Deleted]

“Too right it is.” She replied to Govans quip about it being nice of her to join them. Where it possible for her to have a more annoyed look on her face she would have.
She listned to Govan waffle on about the mission and the reasons for which they had been sent to which Kreiala mildly paid attention at best. This information would have been easier sent to her through text at which she could have read it and began work already.

Govan looked directly at her and Kreiala looked back at him, although he only had half her attention and her face showed it. He gave the assignment of which he wanted her to oversee. “An uncharacteristically wise decision from you to rely on my expertise.” Was her only venom dripped response.

“I suggest you tell your ill trained monkeys, to leave me to my work… alone.” She demanded as she stood up not bothering to stay for the briefing nor intimidated by anyone in the room. She was out of the room as fast as she arrived. She had no wish to listen to the questions the crew would have nor had need to hear Govan’s answers. The computer contained all the information she needed and in more detail than she could ever imagine Govan being able to understand never mind convey through verbal interaction.

Finally she made it back to the solitude that was her office, it was her right as head of the science department to work on the bridge. Though she preffered to delegate that job to one of the lesser scientist.. the bridge was the place where the ill informed command staff asked stupid time wasting questions, and Kreiala could do without that particular frustration.

She brought up the files that had been downloaded into the database and she immediately began to work, cross referencing the signature of the subspace distortions to any previously encountered by Romulan Vessels. That in itself would take some time.

She looked up as her door opened and stepping through Govan who looked less than pleased.

<Tag Govan – going by our OOC talk the other day)

“I care not for what is expected.. you asked me to do something and I am doing it.. now as I see it you have some choices.. You can confine me somewhere as punishment, or try to kill me I suppose.. OR you can leave with your tail between your legs and allow me to finish my work.. because with out it you won’t find those ships and you will fail this mission a failure more heavily resting on your shoulders than mine.”

She sneered in disgust and rolled her eyes at the time now being wasted. “And before it enters your small mind.. nobody else on the ship has the qualifications needed.. you need me.. which is made all the more delicious by the fact I don’t need you.,, Choose quickly I have not all day.”

[Deleted]

Though he appeared dreamy and bored, and pretty much half asleep, it was all a deception on Tedak's part. If one had bothered to study him more closely, that person could've noticed that in fact he was very much alert and heard everything that was said. He was pleased to learn that they finally had a mission that could be potentially good for morale, if not for Govan's own mood.

The diplomat knew from experience that Govan was a moody and easily irked person, especially where his personal honour was concerned. In a way, Tedak mused, they were similar in that. Tedak too took great value and pride in his personal honour. After listening to the briefing, Tedak sat up, crossing his hands before him on the table. "Is there anything specific you'd like me to do commander?" he asked quietly, for the first time drawing attention to himself, and thus away from the science officer who seemed to be in a hurry to leave after her less than diplomatic answer.

"Might I suggest that you leave the monkeys to their own work, and out of Miss Vyaln's way?" he added pleasantly as he rose to his feet, "I presume her so-called monkeys are quite able to see to their own duties, and leave her to deal with what she must. I'm sure she'll call for help if she requires it."

The diplomat paused, pleasant smile still stuck to his face even though he was fairly annoyed with the science officer's remarks. If this crew was going to be needed to work as a team, solitary players weren't exactly helpful. "Perhaps I could liaise between parties, so she doesn't have to deal with them," he offered stiffly, already not looking forward to such a duty even if it were granted. No doubt, Govan had something unpleasant in mind for him, aside from such a duty as he had just offered to do.

[Deleted]

While others may have been intentionally delaying their arrival at the briefing, Tevio Ch'varak, for once, was not doing anything of the sort. Rather he was doing the equal and opposite.. hurrying in no small measure to the ward room from his quarters (that he'd barely settled back into after his recently concluded classified mission).

The mission had taken up the second half of the diplomatic event - now left far behind at the Starbase - and a portion of the very start of this new assignment. He'd got back on board in covert manner, thanks to the insidious stealth devices of the Tal Diann. Once arrived, he'd had hardly any time to get back to his quarters, and now he was off straight to the ward room.

Tevio arrived very late. He swung around the table, successfully - or hopefully - concealing the fact he was a little out of breath. It was also fortunate that Romulans showed very little flush in their cheeks when they were flustered or exhausted. He took his allocated seat, meeting eyes with Govan Echal once, and realising that perhaps the Commander's well-known primal energies of rage were focussed elsewhere, for the time being. The S'Harien's CO continued delivering his briefing

“I suggest you tell your ill trained monkeys, to leave me to my work… alone.”

The words bit through him with all the ease in the world, and Tevio found himself startled. The science officer was standing and spouting words, and once she was finished she was gone from the room.

Surprised officers, some cringing in nervous expectation after what'd just happened eyed each other; Tevio saw them all quickly decide to stay quiet and react to this as little as possible until probably the end of the meeting.

He thought the same thing. Because while the Legate very much enjoyed seeing Echal riled on a frequent basis, he also retained enough wisdom to know that the collateral damage the former Tal Shiar tended to inflict could be large.

When the briefing did conclude, Tevio found his attentions split between deciding how he might best utilise the Intel department for this assignment, and contemplating asking Echal directly what he was meant to do here. Personnel rosters of the three missing vessels beckoned, that was for sure, and any circumspect career histories among those would quickly give open up further investigation. However, if they were not useful...

An air of annoyance and anger seemed to surround the ward room now that the briefing was over. It made it hard to ask questions. "Commander. How would you best wish me to proceed?" the Legate asked, but making absolute sure on his timing so that it appeared he'd only asked the question to alleviate the heavy atmosphere. It was especially difficult, considering that he was seething with nothing but the purest rage, his own primal energy locked into a cool, quiet box of neutrality deep within him.

<Tag Govan Echal>

He arrived back in the Intel nerve centre, placing datapads on a counter. Mor'vhek watched him put them down. "The briefing, Legate?" he asked, well within Tevio's circle of trust to be able to speak in such an offhand manner.

"Tiring and awkward," he answered truthfully, eyeing Mor'vhek simultaneously with the rest of the department. He was feeling very wary of something, but he could not say what. "Sub-Lieutenant," he said, "I don't know where the monkeys are, but if you find them, point me in their direction would you?"

"Uhh.."

<Tag All> & TBC

[Deleted]

Just before Govan began the information portion of the briefing, Tevio came slinking in. If the Commander hadn’t already said something about Kreiala, he might have said something else, but following the Science Chief’s blatantly nonchalant, could-care-less arrival, the Legate’s stood in stark contrast. He was somewhat out of breath, and his body language almost indicated...apology, something that most likely never would be actually verbalized, if indeed Echal was seeing what he thought he was. Their eyes met briefly, and although an apology wasn’t exactly conveyed, there was no sign of Kreiala’s arrogant condescension, so Govan decided to just let it go. It wasn’t really worth the trouble if it was unintentional.

“An uncharacteristically wise decision from you to rely on my expertise,” Kreiala shot back as soon as Govan stopped talking. “I suggest you tell your ill-trained monkeys to leave me to my work...alone,” she concluded before swiftly exiting the stunned, silent Ward Room.

In a very rare occurrence, Govan found himself absolutely speechless. Sure, he hadn’t exactly been a favorite among his superiors or the crew, still wasn’t, but he’d never, ever been spoken to like that before. Even among those who disliked him, there was a degree of respect given for his abilities, and even among his superiors, most insults were veiled. This was...unheard of. You could have heard a pin drop in the Ward Room, and it almost seemed like no one was breathing, let alone moving or speaking. The shock faded after a short while, although it seemed like an eternity to Echal, and was quickly replaced with his usual surge of fury. How dare she...just who did she think she was, or who she was talking to that way? His own, personal pride aside, it was absolutely unacceptable. It would not be tolerated. He had fought too long and too hard to gain respect and stay in command of the S’Harien to allow such behavior to occur now. He couldn’t let that slide.

"Is there anything specific you'd like me to do, Commander?" Tedak questioned quietly, of course being the first one to dare break the silence. "Might I suggest that you leave the monkeys to their own work and out of Miss Vyaln's way?" he added, most likely by way of a joke, but Govan didn’t find it funny in the least. "I presume her so-called monkeys are quite able to see to their own duties, and leave her to deal with what she must. I'm sure she'll call for help if she requires it. Perhaps I could liaise between parties, so she doesn't have to deal with them?" the Ambassador suggested in keeping with his job description.

The mild mannered joking was infuriating, despite its probable, tension-alleviating intent, but it was the offer of assistance that actually tempered Govan’s response. In some ways, it was a little bit insulting, as if he couldn’t deal with it on his own, but there was an edge behind the diplomatic smile, a disapproval that was clearly not directed at Echal but at the current source of his ire, and that not only strongly indicated the Tedak wished to help, but also earned the Ambassador a slight reprieve from the frustration the Commander was feeling. “I will deal with her,” Govan replied evenly, his words clipped and voice tense.

“As for your assignment, I would suggest you make use of your contacts to see if there is any less official information available regarding the region, the disappearances, or the crews of the missing vessels,” Echal responded, adding, “If you have any additional time on your hands, perhaps you should direct your efforts to training your new aide. She could use it.

<Tag Tedak>

"Commander, how would you best wish me to proceed?" the Legate questioned carefully.

Sighing slightly in irritation, more spill-over from his general emotions than because of the question or who it came from, Govan again tempered his response, somehow. Tevio was actually clearly making an effort to be respectful, like Tedak had. Besides, it wasn’t their fault that Kreiala was a... “Like the Ambassador, check with your contacts, and take a look at the rosters of the missing vessels,” Commander Echal replied, not sure what else to assign either him, or Tedak, as this didn’t seem like a diplomatic or Intel centric mission. “In fact, both of you should do your research separately and then compare notes,” Govan added, thinking that maybe the two of them could keep each other occupied for a while.

<Tag Tedak and Tevio>

Glancing at his very quiet tactical and medical officers, Echal addressed them briefly to hopefully avoid any more questions. “Lieutenant, proceed with your orders, and Doctor, I’ll except sickbay prepared for potential casualties and injuries.” Not really feeling much like conversing further, Govan concluded the short meeting with a very simple, “Dismissed,” figuring that if anyone had any additional questions, they could ask later...or ask Dor’vel.

<Tag Taev/Sural and All>

As the officers dispersed, his XO stayed behind, the expression on his face mirroring how Govan felt. They needed to talk about Kreiala and how best to deal with her. For a long moment, there was silence, as neither seemed to want to speak first. Finally, Dor’vel put an end to the awkward pause. “I assume you know how to make it look like an accident?”

The attempted joke earned a slight smirk from Govan. “If only I had the luxury,” he retorted with a heavy sigh. “But we need her this mission, unless you have some sort of degree in subspace phenomena that I’m unaware of, but her behavior cannot be allowed to continue.”

“Agreed,” Dor’vel replied. “She makes Tevio and Tedak look like sycophants, and that’s saying something.” Shaking his head, Dor’vel glanced in his superior’s direction. “How do you think you’re going to handle it?” he asked. “I’d be willing to step in if you’d like, or we could send Tedak to do it after all, maybe kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.”

“I appreciate the offer, but I need to handle this myself,” Govan replied, face showing the disgust this unfortunate fact elicited. “Her behavior may be undermining my authority, but sending someone else would do the same thing or make it even worse, and I can’t afford that. No, I need to speak with her, and somehow get her to reign in that attitude of hers.”

“I don’t envy you. I’m not sure what I’d say to her to be honest. She didn’t seem particularly reasonable when I spoke with her earlier, and that was just an attempt to get her to take it easy on Tamir if she should continue to be friendly, which I think I will warn her against.”

“Please do. That woman isn’t the friendly type and would only end up hurting someone like Tamir. She’s...not like the others,” Govan murmured, before quickly changing the subject.

“Well, I have to think of something to say to her, some sort of plan for dealing with her. I don’t know what yet, but I need to think fast. I can’t allow her behavior to go unanswered for too long, both to temper her own egotistical thinking and the perceptions of the crew.”

Nodding, and taking note in the slight change in tone when discussing Tamir, one of the first signs he had ever seen of Govan’s supposed feelings other than his actions, Dor’vel nodded. “I would offer my advice or suggestions, if I had any to give. Unfortunately, I am as stumped as you,” the First Officer admitted. “I will remain here and work to give you a chance to consider your response. That way, the bridge crew will think we’re conversing.”

His anger tempering slightly, Govan offered an appreciative nod to his XO. “Thank you. That will help... I don’t know if any period of time will do me any good, but I’ll still take it.” And with that, Commander Echal exited the Ward Room directly into his ready room. He had some thinking to do, not to mention trying to calm down. Maybe he needed a drink...

~

After taking a few moments to calm down and contemplate his reaction, as well as getting that drink, Govan exited his office, left the bridge, and headed for the science offices. The atmosphere on the bridge as he moved through was tense and on edge. Clearly, the ship’s gossip grapevines, so to speak, were in full force. Where they had gotten the information that something had occurred in the briefing, he did not know, but Romulans were always suspicious, always curious, and always watching. For all he knew, they could have found out just by observing the body language of the participants and the late arrival and early departure of the Science Chief. He wouldn’t put it past the crew of a Romulan warbird…

Arriving at the office, dreading this already, Govan entered without requesting permission, trying to set the tone himself. “I believe we need to have a discussion, Uhlan,” he began, but before he could continue, Kreiala took it upon herself to speak first, interrupting him.

“I care not for what is expected. You asked me to do something, and I am doing it. Now, as I see it, you have some choices. You can confine me somewhere as punishment or try to kill me I suppose…or, you can leave with your tail between your legs and allow me to finish my work, because without it, you won’t find those ships, and you will fail this mission, a failure more heavily resting on your shoulders than mine. And before it enters your small mind, nobody else on the ship has the qualifications needed. You need me, which is made all the more delicious by the fact I don’t need you, so choose quickly. I have not all day.”

He was losing control...he could feel it, the anger and fury rising up within him to an almost overwhelming level. How easily he could end all of this, just cross the room and snap her neck without any effort whatsoever. But easy wasn’t always best, and that would solve only one problem and create ten more in its place, and she wasn’t even worth the paperwork.

Doing everything he could to reign in his temper, Govan placed his hands firmly on either side of the desk and leaned over, his face inches from her. “I think you know perfectly well that I could end your life in a moment without exerting any effort to do so. If I didn’t know better, I’d think that is what you want given your behavior. If you enjoy playing games and living on the edge, do it on someone else’s time, not mine.” He looked directly at her with a look that had terrified more people than he could think of counting, but that was not his intent here. It was just a warning. She may not have been the type to cry or suddenly be scared into submission, but the message would still be received. She was many things, but she wasn’t that stupid, and anyone with eyes and a brain could tell that he was quite capable of inflicting great physical violence, and everyone had a sense of self-preservation, whether they admitted/showed it or not. She tried to reply, but he continued before she could.

“No, you’ve said your piece, and now it’s my turn. This is my ship. I’m in command, and although you may not respect me, that’s the way it is. Now, we’re going to have to work together to get anything accomplished, because in spite of what you might think, it takes more than scientific knowledge to run a warbird or complete a mission. You have no idea what we might encounter, and believe it or not, it might be something you can’t think our way out of, and you might just need us mere mortals to get you and your brain out of it. I can think of plenty of things that I can do, that you cannot, and circumstances I’d survive and you wouldn’t, and I don’t need your IQ to do it, so try thinking about that before you go announcing who you do and do not need, or you might just end up eating your words.”

“Now, your behavior and your attitude are both unacceptable, and they stop, now. I’ve had enough. So suck it up, show some respect for the chain of command and for protocol, and stop being so overly dramatic, narrow-minded, needy, and immature. You think you’re so smart? Start acting like it, and prove that you have some common sense, not just a bunch of facts. Not all of us just do whatever we want with no regard for what’s going on around us. My first instinct is to break every bone in your body, but unlike you, I happen to have some self-restraint. I suggest you use some of that vast intellect you keep bragging about and learn some restraint yourself, unless you don’t think you’re as capable of it as I am.”

In spite of the absolute rage he felt, Govan kept his tone low and steady, his words even and measured, and left any evidence of just how he felt about her drilling into her through his eyes and through his body language. He didn’t move an inch the entire time, instead staying perfectly still leaning over her desk, his muscles coiled and ready to unleash an attack at any moment, which never came. Now as he finished, he straightened up slowly. “If you have something more to say, I suggest you begin to exercise what little restraint you currently have and keep your mouth shut, unless you can’t manage that,” he added, and with that, he turned and left the Science Chief’s office without a pause or glance back.

[Deleted]

“By self restraint you mean if you killed me and failed this mission your bosses will finally be able to assign you a duty more suited to your intellect level.. perhaps a clown for children’s birthday parties… You try to insult my intelligence but by doing so you reveal your own lack there of... Reverse physcology is for children”

“And before you try to intimidate me again with the muscles, bare in mind not everybody shares a fear of death.. I’ve suffered far worse than you could ever do.” She replied as she followed him out.

She straightened and gave a smug smile. “As for the self restraint you don’t think I have.. take the evidence that you don’t have a knife sticking out of your throat as an indication I have a lot.. You wouldn’t be the first Tal’Shiar trained man I have put down… Commander.” Almost spitting as she added his rank.

“You may tell your lackeys you thoroughly cowed me but think on what bothers you so about me.. is it my refusal to act like a good little crewman.. or is it I am one of the few around here that does not cower at your very glance.” She sneered again as she turned on her heels and entered her office.

Pulling out a small hand held sterilizer she cleaned her desk where Govan had just moments ago been leaning. Walking back behind her desk she silently continued her work. Passing on the relevant data to junior officer on the bridge.

[Deleted]

Taev nodded at his orders and after being dismissed he immediately went to the bridge. He was annoyed with the specifics of this mission, as it seemed as though the High Council sent the S'Harien on only science missions. Though it took much to quell his annoyance, his mood lightened at the thought of being forced to work with the abrasive science officer. She was an interesting piece of work, with all of her "attractive" qualities. Taev was amused at the thought of calling her nearly always negative attitude as being sarcastically attractive. The perfect woman...

Taev's mood and overall position regarding the mission also lightened upon his remembrance of the details. The ships disappeared, after all, whether by spacial distortions or the helmsman laying in a bad course, and there was bound to be trouble; trouble that would be dealt with a disruptor. It was easily his favorite method of diplomacy, one that would no doubt rustle Ambassador Tedak's Romulan feathers, to borrow a human phrase.

Approaching the main tactical station, Taev put in for a series of drills. It was time for the crew to act like a fighting force rather than sit around as they had been. He put his junior chief in charge of overseeing the drills. He also sent out messages to the operations chief and engineering chief. In them he had instructions relevant to the mission. As the most senior Romulan officer among them, they would heed his word. He opened a channel to the science chief.

"Vyaln. I want the results of your analysis as soon you finish." He spoke in a very commanding and condescending tone and immediately cut the channel. He wasn't about to waste his time arguing with the woman.

(Kreiala)

Taev made his final preparations and checked how long the wait was going to be before again speaking into the comm. "Commander, we estimate arrival in thirty six hours. All systems report ready."

(Govan)

With everything prepared, he left the bridge, off to find something better to do.....

[Deleted]

“By self-restraint you mean if you killed me and failed this mission your bosses will finally be able to assign you a duty more suited to your intellect level, perhaps a clown for child’s birthday parties… You try to insult my intelligence, but by doing so, you reveal your own lack thereof... Reverse psychology is for children, and before you try to intimidate me again with the muscles, bear in mind not everybody shares a fear of death. I have suffered far worse than you could ever do. As for the self-restraint you don’t think I have, take the evidence that you don’t have a knife sticking out of your throat as an indication I have a lot. You wouldn’t be the first Tal Shiar trained man I have put down…Commander. You may tell your lackeys you thoroughly cowed me, but think on what bothers you so about me. Is it my refusal to act like a good little crewman, or is it I am one of the few around here that does not cower at your very glance,” Kreiala spat in his direction before turning and reentering her office, leaving Govan standing and steaming in the corridor behind her.

What was this woman’s problem? Was it that difficult to just show an ounce of respect to him as her Commanding Officer? Seriously, it wasn’t like he was asking her to bow at his arrival, just show some basic common sense… It wasn’t rocket science...which she was probably capable of understanding based on her vaunted intellect. As he glanced around, the corridor was empty, which at least meant no one had witnessed her response, but it still wasn’t something he could just let go. Steeling himself, he marched right back inside.

“Look, I don’t know what your problem is, whether it’s with me, this ship, your assignment, it doesn’t matter. All I ask is that you show up for briefings on time, leave when they end and not before, and try to extend some sort of respect and courtesy to the people around you. If you can’t handle that, I suggest you request a reassignment because that’s how it works here, take it or leave it. It’s your choice, because I don’t care either way.” And with that, Govan stormed out and quickly strode to the turbolift to ensure she could not follow.

Fortunately, the lift arrived swiftly, and as soon as the door slid shut, he breathed a sigh of relief and one of smug satisfaction in knowing that at the very least, he had gotten the last word, for now. At least the ship itself was cooperating... He had reached his wit’s end with the Science Chief. Govan honestly didn’t know what else to do. True, he did tend to resort to intimidation, but only because that’s what he knew best and it generally worked. So now, he had tried reasoning, and that still didn’t seem to work very well either. As for plan C, he didn’t really have one. A worked almost all the time, B had only been in theory until today, and now...what now? Commander Echal didn’t have the slightest idea what...

Entering the bridge, Govan made eye contact with Dor’vel and jerked his head towards the ready room as he made his way to his office, still far from happy about this situation. Not one to miss hints, the Romulan First Officer handed the bridge over before he followed his superior inside. “That woman is the most arrogant, stubborn, impossible person I’ve ever had the misfortune of dealing with,” Echal raged as soon as the door slid shut. “And I tried to reasonable. I tried adjusting my approach, but I don’t know if it’s possible to get even the most basic of facts through that thick skull of hers. What use is a smart person if they don’t have any ears? She might as well have an IQ of zero for all the good it does.”

“What exactly did you try?” Dor’vel asked carefully, knowing to tread carefully given the Commander’s mood. “Maybe she was just too stubborn to show she actually heard you?”

Shaking his head, Govan paced his office furiously. “I tried being reasonable. She has no sense of self-preservation, so intimidation didn’t work, so I tried reasoning with her, but as I said, it’s like her head’s made of concrete. She said something about reverse psychology being for children and wanting to stick a knife in my throat...” His eyes darkened at this. “Like she’d actually be able to accomplish that...I’d have the blade on the ground and her puny little wrist broken before it got halfway there...” he grumbled as he continued pacing.

Wincing slightly, as it didn’t sound like it’d gone well at all, Dor’vel replied, “And how did you respond?” It’s not like he’d expected it to go well, but it seemed like it’d gone about as badly as it could have gone, save the two of them ending up in sickbay or the morgue.

“The little vermin followed me out and said that. I’d said my piece, stayed perfectly calm, and she stormed out after me, said that, and stormed right back inside again. So I had to go back in, and I, again very calmly, told her that I didn’t know what her problem was and didn’t care. I just expected her to arrive to briefings on time, leave when they ended not before, and to show some common decency to the people around her, and that if she couldn’t handle that, she should just transfer. Then I got out of there, and she didn’t follow or at least couldn’t catch up,” Govan added with a slightly triumphant smirk at that.

“That sounds perfectly reasonable,” the XO responded, actually breathing a sigh of relief that Govan managed to control his temper so well. He'd come a long way, and he wasn’t the type to lie. If he’d lost his temper and chewed her out, he would have simply said so.

“Of course it does to reasonable people, but I’m not sure if she knows the meaning of the word! Well, she might, but certainly not how to recognize reasonable when she hears it.” With another heavy sigh, Govan sank onto the ridiculously uncomfortable sofa. “I’d rather have five Tedak’s and Tevio’s onboard than her... Well, ok, maybe just one of each, two at the absolute most. I thought they were bad, but she is nearly ten times worse, easily.”

“Well with any luck, her little stunt placed her on both their radars. You may have refused Tedak’s offer to mediate, but he doesn’t strike me as the type to leave it alone, and if that doesn’t get Tevio considering some kind of investigation, I don’t know what would, since her behavior screams disrespect and disloyalty, and that’s a beacon for the Tal Diann...”

“True,” Govan replied, another dark smirk crossing his face. “Perhaps the three of them will end up killing each other off and make my job a whole lot easier, just...not until after the mission is over. As much as it makes me sick to say it, we...I...need her for this one.”

Nodding, surprised that Echal had even admitted that out loud, Dor’vel responded. “She might just request a transfer like you’d suggested. It’s clear she doesn’t want to be here.”

“It’d certainly make our lives much easier if she did... We can always hope,” Echal added with another, less dark smirk. “Let me know if anyone else complains about her… I can’t imagine that the senior staff is alone as the target of her poor behavior and bad manners.”

“I will, and I’ll deal with any complaints, as that’s my job,” Dor’vel added with a slight smile. “That way, at least you get an occasional break from her. We’ll trade off to remain sane.”

“Deal,” Govan replied with an almost smile as his First Officer returned to the bridge. At least he didn’t have to deal with the rotten woman alone. Having support was kind of...nice.

[Deleted]

Stifling a yawn and reclining in his office chair Sural rubbed his eyes and dropped the PaDD he was reading on to the desk.
A little under two hours had passed since the mission briefing and Sural had spent that time quietly closeted in his office reviewing information on the Koimae.

He had started with their duty roster and medical logs, really the only things he was vaguely interested in. The scout vessel had a crew of 30 of which 2 were medical officer. Neither of these were Doctors with little more than field medical training. The Commander of the Vessel was Centurion Tromak. His medical file listed him as physically competent but his psyche evaluation implied that Tromak would never progress beyond Centurion or that he would ever command anything larger than the Koimae.

The rest of the crew were mid-level functionaries, neither brilliant nor inadequate. Standard for pretty much most of the fleet. Not ever member of the Imperial Navy got to serve on a Warbird, most in fact did not. They amused themselves on Birds of Prey, Mogai Escorts, Stations, or Planets. Sural himself had seen plenty of all of those.

Working out a crick developing in his neck he picked up the PaDD again and reviewed the last batch of logs to reach Command. Nothing seemed out of place until he noticed something in the quartermasters inventory. Making a copy he got up and went to the bridge.

Dorvel, Govans henchman was sat in the centre seat as he entered the bridge. He nodded respectfully and headed for the Commanders ready room. He buzzed once and then entered,

"Commander could I have a moment"

TAG Govan,

"Of course, I ll be quick. Look here" Sural said passing the PaDD over revealing a long list of medicines and their stock levels.

"What am I looking at Doctor" Govan asked icily,

"This is the stock list for the Koimae. It was transmitted in their last dispatch before disappearing. It all looks fine except for here" Sural moved around the desk to point to a row entitled Flupirtine.

Govan shrugged, "I have you to be the Doctor so I dont have to know this."

"This is Flupirtine, its an analgesic, painkiller and muscle relaxant. All vessels stock it and have the biomedical pattern in the replicator. What is interesting is that the Koimaes consumption has increased suddenly in this dispatch. The point is that the increase coincides exactly with when the Koimae would have entered the Zeta Volantis System. From the minute they entered that region the medical staff increased prescriptions by 35% above the norm. I don't know if it means anything pertinent but that is your decision to make."

TAG Govan

[Deleted]

Tevio sat at the head of the small table, holding conference with a half-dozen of his staff. Four of them were the senior members of the department, two were the lowliest of the low, but he considered their input pertinent to the briefing. He was directing them all on the next move in the investigations.

In situations like these, when there was no definite objective for the Intel team, Tevio tended to run proceedings on an off-the-cuff basis: making a decision, carrying through the action and then deciding what course to follow from there, pass down the orders and so on; sensing his way forward in the investigation like some sightless sea creature, using his officers as his feelers.

"Two of the rosters have been rendered pointless to investigate," he said to them, shifting from one infopad to the next in front of him, "I've been informed that Sural has looked at information on the Koimae, so we will leave that one aside. The Tagor is a ship I have knowledge of, and studying its roster is needless at this stage." He didn't explain why.

Mor'vhek, now his primary assistant, with the reassignment of Sub-Lieutenant Hhurvan, made it clear he wanted to speak. Tevio nodded and sat back - the whole thing had been orchestrated between the two of them prior to the meeting. "That just leaves the Ortaim, then," Mor'vhek said with a glance around the table. "Commander Echal's told us the disappearance of the freighter was investigated eight months ago, but no evidence was found. What he didn't tell us was what the Ortaim was carrying and where it was headed."

Tevio watched - with a contented eye, for the meeting was passing off well - as Mor'vhek stood and circled the table to stand before a screen, which he promptly activated. It showed an image of the Ortaim, along with specs and a cargo load-out beside it.

"What was the Ortaim carrying, Sub-Lieutenant?" Tevio filled the gap for his underling.

"Ortaim had a rather dangerous cargo, Legate," Mor'vhek said, scanning the table of attentive eyes. "It had its hold full with a drug named Korpaxian." There was recognition, especially in the two lowly crewmembers Tevio had invited. "Korpaxian as you might be aware, is an experimental performance-enhancing agent, optimised to intensify the five standard senses and to increase strength, agility, awareness and reaction speeds tenfold. The substance is reputedly, rather intense. The Tal Shiar had been testing it for about six years up to five months ago... three months after the Ortaim disappeared. Its load of Korpaxian was being lifted to Hezidus Zeta, the site of a Tal Shiar secret facility, but of course, the ship fell out of contact." Mor'vhek - rather needlessly - continued to spit the name of the Romulan secret intelligence agency.

"Good research, Sub-Lieutenant," Tevio said, then turned his attention to the two crewmen as Mor'vhek returned to the table. "V'kal, and... Roata," he addressed them, knowing what he said next would be answered positively, "You know of this drug don't you?"

They nodded, paused and looked at each other. "We were subjects of the tests," Roata told him.

"I know. And there was one definite problem with the drug wasn't there?"

Again they nodded. "Yes," Roata swallowed.

[Deleted]

His head was killing him. Govan was trying to review some of the scientific data that had been forwarded along with the mission info, and it just wasn’t processing. He’d decided that if he tried to understand some of that sup-space stuff, he could show Kreiala that he wasn’t completely inept. Unfortunately, this information was well beyond him...VERY well beyond him... He found himself rubbing his forehead after every sentence, as if he could somehow manage to push the information into his brain. Instead, he was just attempting to ease the throbbing his effort at understanding was creating. His goal had been to even just slightly diminish the importance of the science chief for this mission. He had failed...

Finally, in a moment of pure frustration, the Romulan Commander tossed the datapadd as hard as he could across the ready room and into the far bulkhead, grumbling to himself about stupid scientists and their stupid data and stupid subspace and its stupid radiation. As he sat there fuming, with his arms crossed over his chest, Govan didn’t think his head could hurt any worse than it did right then...at least until the door’s chime sounded. Growling under his breath, Echal briefly closed his eyes before responding. “Come in…”

Of all the people who didn’t want to see, the doctor was somewhere in the middle of the list, but at least not at the top or in the top three. "Commander, could I have a moment?"

Clenching his jaw to keep from snapping, Echal merely nodded at him, trying not to glare.

"Of course, I’ll be quick. Look here," the doctor began, handing over a datapadd much like the one Govan had just hurled into a wall. It was more data...at least quite a bit easier to understand, but not much. It was a list, that much was easy enough, but the words in the list were just as inscrutable as the scientific formulas he had been trying to figure out.

He was through trying to translate..."What am I looking at, Doctor?" Govan finally asked.

"This is the stock list for the Koimae,” Sural began. "It was transmitted in their last dispatch before disappearing. It all looks fine except for here," the doctor continued, pointing to a single line in the midst of long, medical/scientific looking words Echal couldn’t pronounce.

"You’re the Doctor, so I don’t have to know this," Govan snapped, having reached his limit.

"This is Flupirtine. It is an analgesic, pain killer, and muscle relaxant. All vessels stock it and have the biomedical pattern in the replicator. What is interesting is that the Koimae’s consumption has increased suddenly in this dispatch. The point is that the increase coincides exactly with when the Koimae would have entered the Zeta Volantis System. From the minute they entered that region, the medical staff increased prescriptions by 35% above the norm. I don't know if it means anything pertinent, but that is your decision to make.”

His brain was already overloaded, so it took a few moments for him to process what he’d heard. “So...what you’re saying is...” Another few moments, and a brief massage of his temples, and Govan tried again. “What you’re saying is that for some reason, once they entered the system they began to use more pain relief? Did they send any medical reports or records with the rest of the information to indicate what exactly they were using it for?”

<Tag Sural>

~

Sitting in the command chair on the bridge, Dor’vel was doing the same thing Govan had been earlier in the ready room with slightly more success. This was way outside his area of expertise, but he at least had a very general understanding of what the sensor reports were talking about, but there was a lot more he didn’t understand. As the former tactical officer on the S’Harien, his biggest concern was what effect the subspace readings were going to have on the ship’s security. There was really only one person on the ship that could answer that, unfortunately, but luckily, he didn’t have to be the one to ask her.

Rising and moving towards tactical, the First Officer passed the datapadd containing an overview on the subspace data to Taev. “Lieutenant Lhoell, liaise with the Science Chief to determine any potential risk to the S’Harien from these subspace irregularities. I want a report from both of you and any necessary changes implemented before we’ve arrive.”

<Tag Taev>

As the Security Chief exited the bridge, a tiny hint of a smile crossed Dor’vel’s face. The big chair certainly did have some advantages, and he’d take his mountains of paperwork over working with that unpleasant scientist any day. He did not envy Taev on this one…

[Deleted]

Looking up from the data padd she had just been handed Kreiala sneered in disgust. “What is this?” She demanded harshly.

Her staffer looked around slightly confused by the question he had thought it pretty clear. “Well it’s the calculations you wanted.”

She dropped them on her desk and let out a disgusted sigh. “Pathetic… it’s ten to the power of two not four… the whole things is a waste because you can’t even remember basic quantum theory.”

She picked it up again and read a little more before sighing again. “One thousand? You needed a whole Padd to work out One thousand!” She threw the padd across the room and shook her head. “Not to mention the answer should have been one thousand three hundred and sixty four point six.”

She stood the urge to rip his face off and cut him into little pieces rising (after which she would have gotten really nasty)

“If you need a whole Padd to figure out something I did in my head in less than a minute and get the wrong answer at that your not cut out to work under me.. your fired or transferred or whatever it is they do.” She pointed to the door. “Get out!”

He left before getting in any words of rebuttal, leaving Kreiala steaming in her office.

She sat back down and let out a disgruntled sigh, “Idiots!” She muttered as she continued to work at her computer.

Her door opened again and entered in the idiot who had interrupted her conversation with Govan with his pathetic excuse of an ‘order’.

“What do you want Teav.. I don’t have the time to explain the big confusing numbers for you I’m not your mum.”

<Tag Teav>

She sighed heavily. “What information did you want?” She asked as she looked back to her computer.. “Speak quickly I have not all day!” She demanded when he didn’t answer her question within a second of it being asked.

<Tag Teav>

[Deleted]

OOC: Joint post between Tedak and Tevio Ch'varak. Tedak, I hope you're ok with the colour I've chosen

IC:
Ch'varak stood at the door of the primary ambassadorial suite, a room which was now permanently occupied by Tedak. Tevio had been - and was still - unhappy about that; why couldn't the Ambassador content himself with a standard room like the rest of the crew? He wasn't on an indefinitely long diplomatic mission, he was a crewmember of the Warbird S'Harien and should see himself as such. Finally the chime was answered, and Tevio virtually forced his way into the room, unwilling to speak until he was out of the corridor.

Grumbling to himself about having been told to work with Ch'Varak, and knowing the intelligence officer held no love for him, Tedak let the Intelligence officer into his quarters. "Ch'Varak, Govan wants us to work together."

"Yes, Ambassador... I've come to compare our investigatory findings." Slowly he took the time to look around, locating the wall infopanel where he might discuss his research with the Ambassador. Comfortable seating was arranged before it. He wandered over there, thinking Tedak would follow him, and then looked back, "Why not a drink?" he suggested coldly, "So we might share our results in comfort."

"I've sent out queries to as many contacts I could find and I'm hoping some will return information, which I'll pass on to you," Tedak said. "In the mean time, what can you tell me about this disappeared vessel?"

"Which one?" Tevio asked, not feeling particularly guilty that he'd given the easy retort. He sat on a chair. "If you mean the scoutship Koimae, I know little about it. Its disappearance is as mysterious as the IRW Tagor's before it."

"All of them," the diplomat suggested, while joining Tevio, making a point of ignoring the drinks comment. Of all things he liked the least, it was being dictated what to do in his own quarters." And keep your voice down, my daughter's asleep."

Tevio shrugged. "My staff are investigating the Ortaim," he said dismissively. "The Tagor I have personal knowledge of," and he paused. He briefly diverted his eyes in thought; to be sharing information with Tedak was important, it introduced an instant bond between them where they might discuss matters pertaining to the crew, and might 'assist' in each others' respective concerns. Yes, it was worth divulging information to this Ambassador. "I know the Tagor," he resumed, "There was an intelligence officer I knew well there. In the past, he and I were operatives held in similar regard by our commander. We worked as a pair on occasion, and during a stretch on a constant basis." Tevio fetched a glass of cold water from the matter replicator.

"Of course, I wouldn't think there'd be anything in his file which would help us discover what happened to the ship, but it might be worth researching. We could look at it together, for he has had his issues with diplomats in the past... You might be interested in some of that." Tevio stood and passed an information pad to the Ambassador. "Let us say he hasn't conducted himself well with officially appointed Ambassadors of the Romulan Star Empire."

Tedak nodded, studying the information. "I presume he and you were friends?" he asked quietly, "and that he often contacted you?"

Tevio scoffed and sat down again, "Jovik? Hardly, or never. Friends were a luxury ill-afforded in the service I was in. We had to be willing to end such acquaintances as easy as they were started, even more so than on any vessel." He glared at the floor beneath his feet, concentrating hard, "No, Ambassador, take his file. He's committed atrocities against Romulan citizens, started unlawful conflicts with minor species, blocked the work of diplomats from Romulus... Regardless of what you do with the information he may already be dead, mind you."

"What can you tell me about the Ortaim, what you've discovered so far. I reiterate again, as soon as I know something, I'll forward it directly to you for your staff to sift through. I might be good at gathering information, but I might miss something inportant." He smiled wryly. "I do lack certain training, I'm sure you'll agree."

Tevio ended his glare at last, and he sighed as he succumbed to Tedak's earnestness. "Fine, Ambassador, seeing as you're being so willing to share information I'll tell you. At time of disappearance the Ortaim was carrying an extremely dangerous drug to a Tal Shiar facility. The drug is meant to enhance physical and mental performance but it has some dangerous side-effects," he handed Tedak the file on the Ortaim, so he'd know everything on it in time.. well, most of it, "Seeing as it sends the body hyperactive, it causes in most cases muscular seizures and a period or periods of advanced psychosis. Ask Sural about the details," he waved a hand, then something occurred to him, "And as I gather it, he's also looked into the Koimae, if you want more on that."

The diplomat nodded as he scanned both files. "I wonder if this is in any way related to the incident with the USS Jefferson recently," he mused, "and whether the Ortaim is in any way involved in this."

Tevio stood and moved towards Tedak; water finished, he was preparing to leave. "I recommend you leave the Ortaim to me, Ambassador," he said sternly, "As for the Tagor, research it all you want. And when you see Sub-Lieutenant Jovik's name, pursue it as much as you like."

"We'll see." Tedak looked up from his reading. "I can't make you any promises legate. I never make a promise I know I won't be able to keep. And, knowing Govan's rather rid of me than having me here, I think we both know that he'll want both of us investigating the very ship you're asking me not to concern myself with. I'll try, but that's all the assurance I can give you."

[Deleted]

His brain was already overloaded, so it took a few moments for him to process what he’d heard. “So...what you’re saying is...” Another few moments, and a brief massage of his temples, and Govan tried again. “What you’re saying is that for some reason, once they entered the system they began to use more pain relief? Did they send any medical reports or records with the rest of the information to indicate what exactly they were using it for?”

Sural shook his head,

"I m afraid not. I can only say how I would prescribe it. I m just suggesting it odd. It is possible there is some kind of supspace anomaly causing the prblem or it could just a case of mild flu going through the ship. The key problem is that none of the ships that have gone missing are ships of the line. They don't have fully trained medical staff. Besides our information only exists up until they disappear. As with all cases of the unknown I urge caution." Sural paused, "But then you know that full well yourself."

"What about the risk to our crew" Govan asked

"That is just as difficult to predict. I would like for you to make it an order for all ill health no matter how trivial be reported to me as a matter of course and ensure our new science officer is capable of spotting any celestial oddness. If thats all sir I suspect I am going to be quite busy with scrapped knees and dodgy stomachs?"

TAG Govan