Indecent Proposals

Posted on 03 Feb 2016 @ 4:43am by Lieutenant Wilhelm Von Haeften & Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm

2,441 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 10 - Symposium
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 1, Admiral's Quarters
Timeline: MD 27 - 0950 hrs

[ON]

Wilhelm Von Haeften was quite jittery with excitement as he bounded down the halls at an almost jog. He had finally finished the rough outlines of what the science department was going to present at the symposium in the next month or so. He thought it was well thought out, with a myriad of topics to inform, educate, and entertain.

He was quite excited to present it to the Admiral for approval.

Asking the Admiral if she was available, he found out that she was working from her quarters, and so that was the German CSO's destination now.

Having found it, with it's large plaque announcing to all the hallowed presence within the walls, Von Haeften rang the admittance chime.

"Enter!" The familiar light voice of the Orion rear admiral permeated through the door to invite the guest to come in to her abode. She was up to nothing important at the moment, and sat at her desk in front of her LCARS terminals browsing through recent task force operational reports to quell the boredom of shore leave.

Wilhelm entered cheerfully at first.

"Ma'am, those proposed symposium topics you..."

Von Haeften ceased his germanic staccato when he noticed the room felt warm, the air stiff, much like back in the Admiral's office when he first reported in. The CSO shook it off.

"Uh...the topics you asked to see drafts of." he added.

"Oh. Yes, thank you." Lirha tapped away at her console for a short moment to finish up her current document, then closed the screen and took the PADD from Von Haeften and began to peruse through it. "Interesting..." she mumbled to herself in the process. "What about your topic, lieutenant? I trust it is equally as...interesting?" Perhaps that the was the wrong word. From what she had just skimmed through, 'unorthodox' would perhaps best describe the Galileo science crew's choice of topics.

"As you see Admiral, my plan was on uh...Interspecies courtship and how it is viewed in various cultures." Wil said, slightly blushing.

"Interesting..." Lirha was rather well-versed with personal experience in said topic, and she now wanted to know more. "What aspect of courtship are you studying? And between which species? Or is it a general comparative overview?"

Wilhelm felt his face get hot, and was sure he was turning such a hue of crimson that together with the Admiral, they'd look like the picture of Christmas. Gathering himself, despite the sweat the German felt creeping down his back, he willed himself to be calm and continue in a professional manner.

"The uh...atcual "courting" part ma'am, and how the uh...actual uh..sexual act is viewed either negatively or positively in various cultures. My main points are on Human, Vulcan, Klingon, Andorian, and Orion."

Von Haeften immediately felt silly with that last phrase, as if he was trying to get 'field notes" from the attractive female Admiral.

Lirha raised her eyebrows upon hearing such a specified subject. "Oh. You will be talking about the mating rituals and copulation of each species? In detail?" she wanted to confirm.

"Oh uh..no ma'am. That would hardly be professional, I mean how interspecies mating and courtship is viewed, through the cultural lens and historical context, of various cultures...ma'am. Uh, that is...unless you would be interested in such a subject...ma'am." the German stammered.

Shut up Wilhelm! the voice in his head urged with great intensity.

"Well, I suppose." Why not, she thought to herself with a mental shrug. Perhaps there was something she could learn from such a study. "Why did you choose those specific species," she then went on to ask. "Why not, suppose, Tellarites or Cardassians...or Changelings?"

"I wanted to choose species that most of the audience would be familar with ma'am, and perhaps even have some experience with. These species are some of the most common to experience inter-species romantic uh...relations. However, the Cardassians are a good one ma'am, as their well-documented uh...'relations' with Bajorans would make an excellant example." the CSO explained.

She nodded in agreement. "Yes, and there is often a strong cultural impact that comes with inter-species mating. Certainly a Cardassian and Bajoran relationship is almost just as storied as a Vulcan and Romulan one." The more she was beginning to think about it, the more it sounded like a fun and in-depth presentation with several practical applications further down the line.

"Yes ma'am. I found out fascinating things about orion customs as well; such as the fact that an Orion man taking a human mate is met with much more controversy among traditional circles than a female Orion taking a male mate, meaning they would have a problem if one of your men brought home, say, Tuula, but would not bat an eye when you brought me home." the German said.

Wilhelm thought about what he had just said.

"Uh...Not that I'm suggesting that we would. I mean, I would never do...well not never, but never with you, not because of YOU you, I mean...not because you're not lovely, because you are ma'am, but uh...is it hot in here?" Von Haeften stammered, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. The CSO decided his best course of action was to shut his mouth.

Lirha blinked a few times while the German struggled through his sentences. She couldn't but be mildly amused, and waved her hand a bit dismissively. "I understand what you are attempting to convey. And you are correct, of course. You see, Orion society is traditionally matriarchal...it is us women who are the heads of our families and give approval for certain marriages and copulations to take place."

"Oh...really." Von Haeften said; it seemed like the safest thing he could say to the Task Force CO.

"Yes. Many Humans find this strange, in my experience. Although in fairness, Orion piracy and the slavers of the last century did not do much to help the misconception," she admitted with an internal sigh. "Have you met many Orions, Mister Von Haeften?"

"Not many are found in the Reserves ma'am. The ones that are are overwhelmingly female. This being my first Active Fleet vessel, you and the handful we have aboard are the only other representatives of your species I've had the pleasure of meeting." Wilhelm stated, trying to add a charming flourish to hopefully make the olive-skinned admiral forget the last conversation.

She smiled at the compliment. "Have you had a chance to meet my sister, Nesh? She is a young cadet and a bit....ambitious...but she enjoys her time in your department as a scientist's mate." That was perhaps a bit of a lie, for Nesh did like science but not quite as much as the other science personnel. Regardless, though, her sister was fitting in quite well with the department considering she had only just left her home in San Fransisco about a year ago.

"I've met her, yes ma'am." the German admitted. "She does good work, and seems to mesh well with the team."

Von Haeften thought for a moment.

'She's also...feisty ma'am. Definately not afraid to tell me when she thinks I'm wrong. Don't misunderstand me ma'am, it's a good trait for a young officer. They should never be afraid to critize their superiors, so long as its respectfully. Which she does...mostly." Wil said, truthfully.

What the CSO didn't say was that the young cadet had drawn the eye of nearly half the young, single men in SCIDEP. More than once, he had to urge off some of the younger, more hormonally-driven enlisted men from the barely 18 year old green-skinned cadet, not that he wanted her for himself, but Wil thought it most unprofessional of them, especially since she was barely a legal adult, as well as an officer-in-training. part of Wil couldn't blame them, as he DID admit that the young lady was pretty...its just that he was going to do nothing about it, while they wanted to.

"She has always been a free spirit, I suppose," Lirha began while her mind wandered to the days of their youth on Earth. "She is not like most Orions. Well, she is, however she was more or less raised on Earth. In San Fransisco, of all places." Such was the outcome of their family during the Dominion War -- their settlement on Earth had not been by choice, but rather by circumstance due to the dangerous nature of trading during the time period.

"She is more," Lirha paused to think of the correct word, "open to the cultural integration of the UFP than an Orion from Rigel would be. I suspect she feels very comfortable aboard the ship, despite her young age."

"Yes ma'am." the German replied simply. "She's shaping up to be a fine officer."

"Well," Saalm sighed as her attention returned to the PADD in front of her and looked through the rest of the presentation. Which apparently seemed to be entirely focused on inter-species relations, as the lieutenant had priorly stated. "I have to admit, I believe this is a topic with which many can relate to some degree or another. Even if a person has not experienced courtship with someone outside of their species, most often they know at least one or two people who have."

"Have you ever done so ma'am?" Wil asked. He immediately regretted his curiosity, as such a question could be construed as highly personal and improper for a subordinate to ask about.

Lirha blinked. "Done what? Sleep with someone outside of my race?" she asked with a cock of her head. Not that it was anyone else's business, but she wanted to make sure she understood the man's question.

Von Haeften flushed bright crimson and immediately backpedalled.

"Yes ma'am. That is, no ma'am. I meant if you tried a romance outside of your own race and if you encountered resistance from your family."

It seemed like a much safer alternative than asking about the flag officer's sex life.

"So...you are asking about my 'romantic' life...?" Her light green eyes stared into that of the Human's with intense scrutiny. "And my 'assumed' family's resistance to such a hypothetical?"

Wil now felt very uncomfortable. "Uh...not unless you do not wish to Frau Konteradmiral." the German CSO said nervously. "It's just..I mean...my research has shown the 'typical' response to Orion women being courted by other species, but I have not yet had the chance to ask for uh...personal experiences...ma'am." Wilhelm was wondering if he should stand at attention.

"I see. So I am part of your...'research' project? A case study?" she asked, her voice now becoming more firm. Although she didn't know the new science chief very well yet, he seemed to be rather forward. Which could be a good or a bad thing -- Lirha hadn't yet made up her mind on that front.

Wilhelm felt the sweat starting to trickle down his back. He needed to choose his next words very carefully.

"I meant no disrespect ma'am. It was idle chatter and I apologize if I have offended you. I would never choose to conduct uh...'field studies' in you..uh..on you...that is, with you....ma'am."

"Shame, I was hoping you'd experiment with me right here in my quarters, perhaps all night? An...overnight..experiment?" the olive-skinned Admiral said as she licked her red lips seductively.

"What was that ma'am?" he asked.

"..Hmm...yes, of course not..." she mumbled loud enough for him to hear her before taking a deep breath and leaning back in her chair to relax.

Wil realized that the image before was in his head. He blinked hard several times when Saalm looked away to try and clear his head, lest he say the wrong thing at the wrong time.

"I suppose, if you would like a more intimate view of Orion relations, I have some private literature I can pass along to you," she then offered as a compromise. "Most of it has been passed down through my family over the generations, thus you will not find it in any archive. Perhaps it can give you a better perspective on Orion mating customs?"

"As you like ma'am." Wil said, feeling it a safe answer.

Lirha proceeded to reach down into one of the drawers near her knees and rummage through the contents for a long moment. She finally looked back up with a PADD in her hand which she hoped contained the proper books and logs, then quickly browsed through its contents to confirm. She then held out the silver device for the German to take. "You will probably find it quite interesting. The computer can translate most of the text for you."

"Yes ma'am." Wilhelm said. His curiosity could no longer be contained, as his mind raced at possible answers.

"Uh...ma'am, forgive my curiousity, but what did you mean by that comment earlier, when you muttered 'of course not'?"

She again stared at him for a long moment, unsure of which comment of hers he was referencing. "I am not sure what you are referring to..."

"uh...after I uh...said I wasn't going to uh..." the German cleared his throat and tugged at his collar, which seemed to be getting tighter.

"...After I said I wasn't going to do any...um.."experiments...ma'am."

"Oh, yes," Lirha quickly remembered, narrowing her eyes again. "When you mentioned conducting a field study inside of me?" The Orion now sighed and shook her head with a bit of amusement. "Mister Von Haeften...as much as I enjoy your company and your enthusiasm, I will not be having sex with you for the sake of a scientific study."

"I uh...that was a uh...not my um...I wasn't going to suggest...it was a uh...you sounded er..." Wilhelm was stuttering now, thoroughly embarassed.

He came to attention; it seemed like the best course of action.

"Request permission to be dismissed ma'am." the German CSO asked.

A single nod from the Orion indicated her approval of that idea. Things were beginning to get weird now, and it was best if he went on his way before it got any stranger.

"Good luck with your research," she said.

"Yes ma'am." the CSO said. He sketched a salute and hurried on his way, determined to find a cold shower.


[OFF]

--

RADM Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

&

Lieutenant JG Wilhelm Von Haeften
Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo

RSS Feed