Commanding Scientists

Posted on 21 Nov 2018 @ 8:00am by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Commander Scarlet Blake

3,255 words; about a 16 minute read

Mission: Episode 17 - Crystal of Life
Location: USS Galileo-A - Deck 1, Captain's Quarters
Timeline: MD -180, 1930 hrs

[ON]

Alpha shift had long ended and the hour was now approaching 1930. Inside her quarters, Captain Lirha Saalm paced around semi-frantically in the kitchen of her berth to tend to several different menu items she'd been preparing for her pending dinner with Scarlet. Both she and her Human XO had much to catch up on, and so she'd invited Blake to her quarters earlier in the day with an offer to cook dinner. Perhaps it'd been a bit...ambitious, for now the Orion flipped the two sirloin slabs of targ steak with one hand while she tried to stir the mashed Andorian potato beets with her other hand. Her olive green forehead was covered in small beads of sweat from the hot steam of the stove top.

The chime interrupted in a perfectly timed syncopated rhythm with the clatter of the spoon. When Scarlet entered, she stopped only a few steps into the room, coming to a standstill to take a deep breath of the scents coming from the kitchen area. There was a savoury tang in the air that had to be meat, but Scarlet couldn't quite put her finger on what. "Is now a bad time to tell you I'm a vegetarian?" she asked lightly...but there was a definite shine of humour in her eyes and smile that showed she was only joking.

Lirha looked over her shoulder and cast a sideways smirk at Scarlet's jest. "Perhaps...but I'd simply order you to eat it anyway," she replied with some dry humor of her own. A chirp sounded from the nearby oven which prompted her to abandon the beets to pull several rolls of bread from the toasty baking compartment. "I do apologize for running late," Lirha then said over the audible sizzling of the frying pan. "Have a seat and get yourself a drink from the replicator."

"Thanks," Scarlet watched her as she crossed the distance to the replicator. Lirha might look a little...harried, but it wasn't reflected in just how good the food smelled. She replicated a bottle of wine in the end, setting it down on the table. That way, Lirha could join her with a glass if she wanted....or she could just polish it off herself. It wasn't entirely unknown. "I'm impressed...I didn't know you enjoyed cooking."

"I didn't either," Lirha laughed back over her shoulder while she finished moving all the dishes to their serving plates. "But I find it rewarding. Not burning or overcooking a meal, that is." One by one, the Orion placed the platters on the small table in the dining section of her quarters and finally sat down next to her XO. She looked at the bottle of wine and grinned. "And I didn't know you were telepathic."

"It's compulsory for counsellors, you know," Scarlet replied with a deadpan tone, nodding sagely, but there was a teasing glint in her eyes. Settling into the chair, she leant forward to pour Lirha a glass, glancing up to her with a relenting smile. "Seriously, this looks great. Thank you."

Lirha bowed her head with gratitude for the compliment. "Just don't tell Snuffles we are eating one of his kin." She then pointed to the different items. "These are sirloin cuts, seasoned with Tellurian spice; those are mashed Andorian potato beets; and here are some croissants from Earth. The sector of France, I believe?" She hoped at least one plate of the diversified selection would appeal to Scarlet's taste buds. Humans tended to be pickier about their food than most other species, in her observations.

"Ah...targ," Scarlet nodded with a soft chuckle as she started to help herself to a bit of all of it. "I couldn't place the smell. Not surprising though, I'd be in serious trouble without a replicator. I'd be lying if I said I can do anything more ambitious than cutting an apple up," she tsked at herself, taking a mouthful of the steak to try. Her eyebrows lifted with surprise as she looked to her, nodding with approval. "This is good..."

After serving herself and placing a napkin over her waist, Lirha started to dig in herself and smiled at Scarlet's praise of her mediocre culinary skills. "Tell me," she said in between chews, "how was your first day on assignment?" She chewed some more and stuffed some of the mashed beets into her steak cuts. "Any complaints?"

Scarlet couldn't help her smile, shaking her head as she reached for the wine. "I'd be in trouble if I was complaining on my first day out," she chuckled gently, taking a sip. "The reading seems never ending, but I'll live," she assured with a wry smile. "I'm just pleased to finally be out here and on the move."

Lirha followed Scarlet's example then took a long sip of wine from her own glass. It was synthehol but it still tasted good. "I feel the same," she confessed while slicing off a piece of her steak and smothering it with potatoes. "Want some advice? The paperwork never ends. That is the key to happiness in Starfleet, I've learned -- accepting our fate as permanent secretaries of exploration."

Scarlet almost choked on the wine, unable to stop the laugh that came from the description. "Permanent secretaries of exploration. I like it," she nodded with a soft smile, setting her glass carefully down having nearly spilt it. "All I know is that this feels better than teaching at the Academy did."

"Explorers never really enjoyed being stuck on planets. I can't imagine how constrained the early ones felt...not having the technology to travel the stars and being forced to only stare at them through a magnifying glass?" Lirha shook her head at the ancient thought.

Scarlet was silent for a long moment as she thought on the words. She'd never thought of herself as an explorer before. Not really. She'd always felt like she'd fallen into it accidentally. But the more she was pulled away from life on a ship, the more she missed it. "You came up through Intelligence, didn't you," she asked softly, wondering if Lirha had been in it for the exploration from the very beginning.

The Orion shook her head while she chewed. "Operations, actually. After I graduated from the Academy, I was a communications specialist for four years -- aboard the Santiago and the Mackenzie. I was already fluent in eight languages by the time I applied to Starfleet -- one of the benefits of being a trader," she winked while pausing to take another drink and continue. "It wasn't until '86 when I was transferred to Starfleet Intel as an encryption specialist. Similar skill sets, I suppose," she shrugged.

Scarlet nodded slowly as Lirha went over her past experience, watching her with interest. She was right, she could see how that ear and eye for languages could easily cross over into intelligence work. "Was this always the goal?" she asked with genuine curiosity. "Being out here, exploring, driving it forward from the command chair?"

Lirha cut off another piece of steak and mixed it with more potatoes. "I suppose I have no real goals," she strangely admitted with an unconcerned shrug of her shoulders. "I'm an Orion. My people are explorers by nature and always have been. The Orion Colonies were first formed centuries before Earth and Qo'noS had even achieved warp travel." She took another bite and reflected some more on her own inner thoughts. "But we don't explore for the same reasons as the Federation. My people are more...opportunistic than scientific. Exploration, for us, is a means to expand our culture, trade, and society through colonization. Which in turn creates wealth and prosperity."

"And yet, here you are, commanding scientists on a leading science vessel of the Federation, exploring the frontier," Scarlet smiled knowingly at the point of difference from Lirha's description, shaking her head as she lifted her fork. "Breaking the mould..."

The captain smiled to herself at the apt observation. "Yes...here I am. I don't think I could ever settle down and live planet-side," she privately admitted to Scarlet while looking up from her plate into her eyes. "I need to be in space and travel the galaxy. It is my passion."

Scarlet held her eyes for a long moment, just watching her in silence, to see the meaning behind the words, understanding them. "Same," she finally replied. "Well, at least, the not being able to settle on a planet part. I've...yet to work out the 'why'," she admitted.

"What's the rush?" Lirha grinned, then waved her empty fork, "We're young and ambitious. This is our time to make a name for ourselves. Then, we can think back on it in 50 years with pride." She swallowed another long drink of wine then refilled her glass and Scarlet's.

"Speaking of ambition, Luke came to me today with an unorthodox proposal. He requested full-time security officer presence on the bridge at the auxiliary station. 'Someone dedicated solely to security and tactical on the bridge monitoring the bigger picture,' if I remember his words. Has he spoken to you about this?"

Scarlet nodded slowly as she thought back to their meeting before they'd left, remembering a number of topics they'd touched on. "He said he wished to have a security presence on the bridge at all states of readiness. I said I could see it working at red and yellow alert," she gave a final nod, content that she'd recalled it near enough.

Cutting into her targ sirloin again, Lirha looked back up to Scarlet. "So you agree with his assessment, then?" she asked, "That our crew is not yet prepared for a tactical engagement?" It was a comment he'd made earlier which she'd reflected upon at various points throughout the day.

"I wouldn't put it quite like that," Scarlet tilted her head as she considered, shaking her head with a slight frown, wanting to make sure she made her thoughts clear. "We have a skilled crew. And as a science ship, we have a rich talent base in that area. That's why it's even more important we have people like Wyatt, who are more experienced in the harsh realities of life out here. And you know me, I don't think there's any such thing as too much training, and that's something everyone can get involved in,"

Blake looked into her glass as she thought deeper on it. "But every Starfleet member is trained to defend their ship, and each other, if they have to. Which is why I think a compromise of having a security presence in the case of yellow or red alert may be about right. I'm not sure we need security on the bridge all the time when there's no alert, but if we need to be cautious enough to move to yellow alert, then it's perhaps prudent to have a security officer on the bridge..." she looked to Lirha with clear question to see what her view was.

Saalm listened to her XO's pitch which sounded reasonable enough. "I do not see any problem with it, personally. Yellow alert is a 'shipwide state of increased preparedness for possible crisis situations', as written in the Command manuals. It would be...prudent to not underestimate Security's importance during such a time," she agreed before waving her fork again as another thought came to her.

"But I do not want a security presence on the bridge during normal operations. This is a vessel of science and we must foster a culture of non-violent exploration," she added. "As you Humans say, it would be a 'bad look'. The crew doesn't need a constant reminder of potential conflict in their presence for the entire duty shift."

"I think that's a fair decision," Scarlet nodded as she sat back slightly, letting out a soft breath. "Of course, we can always run drills for security, to make sure their response time to get to the bridge is as low as possible? It might also set Wyatt's mind at rest."

The captain thought for a second then shrugged. "If you wish. His office is only two decks down, it is not like they are traveling the road to Sto'vo'kor each time they arrive."

Scarlet chuckled softly, shaking her head at the gentle barb as she crossed her legs to lean closer in. "It may reassure him that his team can respond in an adequate time even if they're not permanently on the bridge. Makes me feel better though, that we have him on the job, so to speak."

"Hmm, yes of course," Lirha mumbled in between bites before pausing. "Can I ask you a question, Scarlet?" she asked with probing, light green eyes. "Of a personal nature?"

Scarlet blinked with surprise, but the small, comfortable smile remained as she shrugged. "If you like. I'm not particularly a keeper of secrets," she assured.

"You and Luke," the Orion prefaced. "You two have a relationship, yes?" It wasn't often that the captain inquired into her crew's personal affairs, but she was curious.

"Relationship?" Scarlet was mildly surprised at the word she'd used, but her smile remained easy as she leant back in her chair to watch her Captain. She briefly wondered if it was the Captain's hat Lirha was wearing when she asked the question. "He's my friend, if that's what you mean."

"Mm.." Lirha pondered to herself while noticing the XO's relaxed posture. She met her eyes again. "Yes, I suppose so. You seem to get along well together. Has it ever become...something more?"

It took a good amount of the ex-marine's discipline for Scarlet to keep her surprise from her features. She wondered if rumour had prompted the question. She hoped not. As she watched her Captain, she thought briefly on whether to tell her that Luke had once told her that he wanted more. It wasn't a good memory, remembering how she'd upset a good friend that day. She'd never wanted to hurt him. She decided not to break his privacy. "No," she said honestly, shaking her head gently. "We are and always have been very good friends. I'll be honest, Lirha, I don't think I'm cut out for romantic relationships. Not anymore. Besides, I have Lily and my career. It's...a lot."

Lirha listened to Scarlet and regarded her with a private understanding only she could possibly understand. Unspoken in words, the captain's face expressed a subtle sorrow while she reflected on her own unborn children who'd been cruelly taken from her by the Kreanans and General Kor'aH when Galileo was destroyed. "I understand."

The emotion in the other woman's face wasn't lost on Scarlet and she frowned with regret at having caused it in her. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "Did I say the wrong thing?"

The captain shook her head slowly. "No. You just reminded me of someone." She smiled politely back to Scarlet. "I remember a similar feeling like yours almost a year ago. But then...things changed."

"Change can be...a difficult and uncomfortable word," Scarlet replied quietly, holding her eyes, her expression inviting her to say more if she wanted, but not pushing. Lirha knew her background as a counsellor. Ironically, it made some people wary about talking to her casually.

"Yes, it can." Lirha agreed. "But nothing in life is easy," she shrugged before returning to her food. "If it was, we wouldn't need to be out here on this type of mission," she then added. It wasn't exactly clear what the captain meant by her last few words.

A small smile pulled at Scarlet's lips, not missing the mystery in her choice of words. She casually swirled her wine glass, looking to the moving swirl of liquid rather than at Lirha. "This 'type of mission', hm?"

Saalm looked up with her eyes only briefly before returning to her food. A sort moment of silence passed before the Orion captain answered. "Yes. You understand this assignment. That was...why you agreed to join me, yes?" she assumed.

Scarlet held her breath for a moment longer, sure that she had detected a hint of something more behind the words, but she just nodded with a small smile. Lirha had worked in intelligence; she'd tell her when she was ready. "Couldn't let you have all the fun by yourself, now could I..."

"Scarlet," Lirha started then stopped to wipe her mouth with her napkin. "Don't be coy. You and I both know this is a one-way trip." Her light green Orion eyes fell to the tablecloth. "Starfleet Intelligence wouldn't have bailed me out of rehabilitation and suddenly given me command of a new starship if it was anything else."

"Or maybe they just think you were wasted anywhere else than on the bridge of a starship," Scarlet pointed out with an arched eyebrow, challenging her to think that maybe it was her ability that had gotten her place back.

Lirha sat in silence for a long moment while thinking about her XO's words. They were thoughtful and perhaps had truth to them, but the captain's own previous experiences in Starfleet had made her more skeptical. "Maybe," she half-admitted, then reached for her glass of wine. "But there are not many of my people who choose to serve in Starfleet. Even less who make it a career. There's a stigma my kind hold, and I've always felt like an outsider on Human worlds," she confessed with private emotion. She took a long drink then shook her head with a muted grin. "But I suppose that is how someone from Earth would feel if they'd served in the Orion navy having grown up on Vajripam. My point is, Starfleet sees us all as expendable. Me more than most now, because of my...convictions."

Scarlet watched her with gentle eyes. She didn't deny Lirha's thoughts on being one of the few Orions in the fleet; she hadn't experienced it for herself, she had no idea what it had to be like for her...she only hoped that it wasn't as lonely for her as it sounded. There was, however, one thing that she was sure of. She leant forward on the table, holding her gaze with a mixture of certainty and humour. "Lirha Saalm...there is absolutely nothing expendable about you."

For some reason, hearing the words from Scarlet felt comforting. Maybe it was because she was a former counselor, or because her XO. Or because they were both friends who'd served together for over two years together. Lirha looked into the brunette's blue eyes. "That is very kind of you."

"It's not kind," Scarlet assured with a slight smile at the words all the same. "It's just true. No one else can fill your shoes in this life. They're yours to walk in..." more humour came to her eyes with that though. "So we may as well make sure they're stylish."

Saalm teased her with a shrug then took another bite. "As long as you're buying," she conceded, then offered up a new subject that'd been on her mind recently. "So. Tell me about Lily."

Scarlet's smile softened at the subject without her even realising it. She reached out for the wine bottle, leaning in to refill Lirha's glass. "Well, there was this incident about the monster in Engineering...."

[OFF]

--

CAPT Lirha Saalm
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo-A

CMDR Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo-A

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