“All right, let’s begin this meeting.” Captain Kero Elan stood up as the last officer stepped into the Troi’s meeting room. The senior staff were seated around an oval shaped table, with a terminal by most seats. There were PADDs in the middle and some in front of Kero. A big window spanned the wall behind the Captain’s seat.
“As you know Argo has had a confrontation in the Doza system. Doza IV has been hit by a Genesis weapon and we are going to go there and investigate the effects before the planet goes boom.”
The Captain paused a moment to look at the rest of her crew. They were all focussed on her briefing, a couple tapping on the terminals next to them.
“We are not going there to sate our scientific curiosity. Lives have been lost, including that of DS 13’s XO. Something good can come out of this – we can gather data from a planet hit by Genesis first hand and maybe even bring some samples back to Starbase for analysis. The hope is that we can find a way to develop a technology that would aid terraforming, preferably without destroying an entire planet in the process, or even finding a way to reverse Borg assimilation on a large scale – when a whole planet has been assimilated for example.”
Kero grabbed the PADDs in front of her and distributed them to the various officers in the room.
“I do not need to tell you that we cannot loiter. The planet should take about a week before it reaches critical levels, but we don’t know for sure.” The Captain sat down in her chair, then looked at her XO.
“Commander Vausse, make sure that all the preps are done on time, and if anything, and I mean anything, seems off, we are not leaving dock until it’s all perfectly ready. Clear?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Vausse looked at her PADD to find the full list of assignments for each department involved.
Kero turned to her Chief Engineer, “I want those shields at peak efficiency and the warp engines ready. The ship needs to be able to sustain a lot of stress, should the planet decide to give us a firework display.”
“And I guess we don’t want to stay long to admire it?” The Chief responded.
Kero nodded, “Quite.”
“Commander Riley” Kero turned to her Science Officer, “Let’s put those advanced sensors to work. I’d like them to be on the planet at all times to make sure we keep an eye on any changes. It won’t be much but we should get some advance warning at least.”
Josh Riley inclined his head to a side, “You mean to use the slipstream algorithms, ma’am?”
“Precisely. They are designed to predict changes in the slipstream - if we had one. I’d like you to adapt them to this situation.”
“That won’t be a problem ma’am, but may I ask what advantage a couple of seconds of warning can give us?”
“You may, or you may read the PADD fully.” The Captain smirked. “Liaise with engineering so that the sensors are tied into the transporter system. Once the indicators that the planet might become unstable raise their ugly head – well – hopefully once the sensors have predicted such indicators with the algorithms, the transporters would automatically beam us out of the planet.”
“I see.” Josh quickly turned to his PADD making sure he didn’t miss anything else.
“That will cut out the need to hail the ship, get a response, then having someone initiating the beaming sequence. It will save us more than a couple of seconds.” Kero continued.
The Captain placed her hands on the table and leaned over. “Questions?” Silence followed.
“Good. We are leaving tomorrow at 08:00 hours. Dismissed.”
As the crew left the room, Kero turned towards the window behind her seat, one hand touching her chin, the other supporting her elbow. One officer however had not left the room.
“This is not the most dangerous mission you took us into. What’s on your mind?” Inquired Vausse.
“What makes you think I have something on my mind?” The Captain’s tone was calm.
“Something in your demeanour... I can’t really put the finger on it.” The XO stepped next to her Captain.
“I appreciate your concern, Commander, but trust me, everything’s fine.” Kero turned to her XO and offered her a smile.
Vausse eyed her Captain for a few moments before continuing, “I know it is the first major mission since you came back. Your crew is still very loyal, nobody doubts you.”
Kero remained silent for a few moments, then turned towards the window again. “I am not worried about the crew’s doubts.”
The Commander appeared to want to say something but decided not to. She also ventured her gaze towards the star-filled sky, before looking at the PADD in her hands. “I better get on with this.”
The Captain smiled again and nodded slowly, while closing her eyes for a moment or two.
Vausse did a sharp 180 and then left the room, leaving her Captain alone with her thoughts.
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Kero was sitting at her desk in her office, sipping a cup of Raktajino while reviewing some files on her PADD. Commander Vausse had kept the crew at peak efficiency in her absence, to the point where Kero wondered if she should just go on permanent LOA. Ahh the perks of well trained officers! She smirked to herself at the thought and looked at the window a few feet away from her. They were still proceeding at warp speed, but it wasn’t too long before the Troi would arrive at her destination.
And so it was: the shooting stars appeared to slow down to a halt and a message came through the comm, “Captain, we are in the Doza system.”
The half-Kliingon tapped her badge, “Understood Ensign.”
After a pause she tapped her badge again, “Captain Elan to Commander Vausse, gather the away team and let’s beam to the planet.” As the Captain walked on the Bridge on her way out, she looked at her Second Officer and with a nod she added, “You have the Bridge.”
Doza IV was beautiful. A flourishing of plants and green life, blue pristine waters… but the signs of seismic activities were very evident. Before beaming on the surface, the Captain and her away team were apprised of the situation on the planet - the instability had already started to show in the form of changing volcanic landscapes and seismic activity, but it wasn’t yet at levels that would present a risk to the crew.
A total of four teams were sent to the surface to perform scans and gather samples, including Kero and Luthien Vausse. Some plants were similar to some existing on Earth, others were very different. However interesting, nothing was as fascinating as the next thing one of the Science Officers was going to discover a few moments later. The crewman called on the attention of the Captain.
“I have never seen anything like this” He started with a hint of excitement in his voice, “This flower… it appears to have some electric filaments going through its stalk and petals.” The dark haired crew member proceeded to scan the plant and then pointed his tricorder in several spots around him. “Fascinating.”
Kero raised an eyebrow, “What is it?”
Her subordinate was quick at responding, “It looks like all plant life in this area has the same feature. I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t even need the photosynthesis process to stay alive. They seem to emit some sort of… resonance… wave? Signal?”
Vausse looked at the crewman with an inquiring gaze.
“I don’t know yet, it’s hard to say.”
The Commander nodded, “Carry o-”
“WHOEY!” Another crew man had his weapon drawn and was pointing somewhere to the right of the group at a number animals that looked like wolves. Everyone in the group drew their weapons instinctively.
The wolves were observing but they weren’t making a move. Their eyes appeared to glow a strange green shade of light.
“Keep an eye on them,” Kero began while raising her left arm as to say to lower the weapons, “But let’s not cause them any harm, unless they try to attack.”
The wolves, seemingly having sated their curiosity, scurried away amongst the vegetation.
The teams kept scanning various things and gathered samples for a while. The planet had a tranquility to it, reborn and completely oblivious of the fight that had ensued only a few days before and of the lives that were lost.
A violent jolt shook the ground. That beautiful paradise was not meant to be. It never was meant to exist in the first place and it wasn’t going to last. Another jolt quickly followed the first one. Soon a fully blown earthquake pervaded the area where the teams were deployed.
Kero tapped her badge, “Captain to the Troi. Riley, report!”
“Captain, we are detecting an increase in seismic activity throughout the planet.” The Science Officer was talking quickly, “It doesn’t look like the planet is going to disintegrate on us yet… but I wouldn’t want to be in an earthquake ridden area no matter what planet we are on!”
The Captain stopped to think for a moment or two. “Understood Riley, we will wrap things up shortly.”
Kero turned to the rest of the crew and shouted, “Okay listen up! Get your samples, wrap up your scans, I am giving you another thirty minutes then we are out of here. Make sure you stand in the open and away from anything that could fall on your head.”
After only a few steps, another quake began to shake the earth quite violently. Some crew lost balance. A scream could be heard about ten meters away from the main group.
A crew member fell down a hole that was created by the ceasing ground beneath his feet. He was in extreme pain and couldn’t move. Kero, Vausse and a few others run to his rescue, with the violent tremors doing their best to make them lose balance in the process.
The Captain and her XO were the first to arrive on the scene, the crew member was holding one of his legs and was trying hard not to scream.
“We are going to get you out of here and everything will be okay” Said Kero, “Understand?”
The crew member nodded, his eyes shut and the muscles on his face tense.
The half-Klingon tapped her badge, “Captain to transporter rooms.”
There was no answer.
Vausse promptly decided to try again, “This is Commander Vausse. Troi, do you read us?”
Still no answer.
The wounded crewman screamed again.
Kero turned her head to him once more, “We are getting out of here.”
----
To be continued...
And so it was: the shooting stars appeared to slow down to a halt and a message came through the comm, “Captain, we are in the Doza system.”
The half-Kliingon tapped her badge, “Understood Ensign.”
After a pause she tapped her badge again, “Captain Elan to Commander Vausse, gather the away team and let’s beam to the planet.” As the Captain walked on the Bridge on her way out, she looked at her Second Officer and with a nod she added, “You have the Bridge.”
Doza IV was beautiful. A flourishing of plants and green life, blue pristine waters… but the signs of seismic activities were very evident. Before beaming on the surface, the Captain and her away team were apprised of the situation on the planet - the instability had already started to show in the form of changing volcanic landscapes and seismic activity, but it wasn’t yet at levels that would present a risk to the crew.
A total of four teams were sent to the surface to perform scans and gather samples, including Kero and Luthien Vausse. Some plants were similar to some existing on Earth, others were very different. However interesting, nothing was as fascinating as the next thing one of the Science Officers was going to discover a few moments later. The crewman called on the attention of the Captain.
“I have never seen anything like this” He started with a hint of excitement in his voice, “This flower… it appears to have some electric filaments going through its stalk and petals.” The dark haired crew member proceeded to scan the plant and then pointed his tricorder in several spots around him. “Fascinating.”
Kero raised an eyebrow, “What is it?”
Her subordinate was quick at responding, “It looks like all plant life in this area has the same feature. I wouldn’t be surprised if they didn’t even need the photosynthesis process to stay alive. They seem to emit some sort of… resonance… wave? Signal?”
Vausse looked at the crewman with an inquiring gaze.
“I don’t know yet, it’s hard to say.”
The Commander nodded, “Carry o-”
“WHOEY!” Another crew man had his weapon drawn and was pointing somewhere to the right of the group at a number animals that looked like wolves. Everyone in the group drew their weapons instinctively.
The wolves were observing but they weren’t making a move. Their eyes appeared to glow a strange green shade of light.
“Keep an eye on them,” Kero began while raising her left arm as to say to lower the weapons, “But let’s not cause them any harm, unless they try to attack.”
The wolves, seemingly having sated their curiosity, scurried away amongst the vegetation.
The teams kept scanning various things and gathered samples for a while. The planet had a tranquility to it, reborn and completely oblivious of the fight that had ensued only a few days before and of the lives that were lost.
A violent jolt shook the ground. That beautiful paradise was not meant to be. It never was meant to exist in the first place and it wasn’t going to last. Another jolt quickly followed the first one. Soon a fully blown earthquake pervaded the area where the teams were deployed.
Kero tapped her badge, “Captain to the Troi. Riley, report!”
“Captain, we are detecting an increase in seismic activity throughout the planet.” The Science Officer was talking quickly, “It doesn’t look like the planet is going to disintegrate on us yet… but I wouldn’t want to be in an earthquake ridden area no matter what planet we are on!”
The Captain stopped to think for a moment or two. “Understood Riley, we will wrap things up shortly.”
Kero turned to the rest of the crew and shouted, “Okay listen up! Get your samples, wrap up your scans, I am giving you another thirty minutes then we are out of here. Make sure you stand in the open and away from anything that could fall on your head.”
After only a few steps, another quake began to shake the earth quite violently. Some crew lost balance. A scream could be heard about ten meters away from the main group.
A crew member fell down a hole that was created by the ceasing ground beneath his feet. He was in extreme pain and couldn’t move. Kero, Vausse and a few others run to his rescue, with the violent tremors doing their best to make them lose balance in the process.
The Captain and her XO were the first to arrive on the scene, the crew member was holding one of his legs and was trying hard not to scream.
“We are going to get you out of here and everything will be okay” Said Kero, “Understand?”
The crew member nodded, his eyes shut and the muscles on his face tense.
The half-Klingon tapped her badge, “Captain to transporter rooms.”
There was no answer.
Vausse promptly decided to try again, “This is Commander Vausse. Troi, do you read us?”
Still no answer.
The wounded crewman screamed again.
Kero turned her head to him once more, “We are getting out of here.”
----
To be continued...
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Growling could be heard amidst the thunders of the ground. The group of four turned around to see a pack of wolves encircle them. They had the same glowing shimmer in their eyes, perhaps they were the same wolves they saw earlier. Why they decided to attack now, with the quakes hitting the ground in quick succession, was a bit of a mystery.
The group however no longer had the time nor the inclination to explore the marvels and quirks of the planet that seemed bent on killing them.
The four raised their weapons and began to shoot a few phaser blasts at the beasts’ feet to try and scatter them. The wolves backed off, ears stretched backwards, but they kept growling with a fixed gaze on the people a few meters in front of them.
Vausse, a Betazoid, allowed her self-imposed mental inhibitions to fall and started to “scan” the Captain’s mind on the surface, to try and anticipate her wishes as she usually did in situations like this one. It was a very unintrusive connection, focused on the Captain’s intentions of the moment.
Unexpectedly the Commander was hit by strong emotions she wasn't prepared to deal with in the midst of all that was happening. Kero was exasperated, angry… with herself? Images almost hit Vausse’s mind: a beach, a strong emotional attachment, people shooting… Eventually it all became clear.
“Commander!” The voice was muffled at first. “Vausse? Wake up!”
Luthien blinked and turned toward Kero who had just shouted to grab her attention. She had a cursory glance around her and realised that the wolves were dead and the Captain had managed to reach the crewman who had fallen into the hole, her hand extended towards her XO and wanting help to get out.
Vausse finally shook off the confusion and leaned towards Kero, grabbing hold of her forearm.
Suddenly, a flash, and the group was surrounded by walls and lights.
The Captain was still on the floor, “About time.” She looked around to ascertain everyone was on board and tapped her badge, “Con, set course to DS 13, Warp 8 on the double!”
She turned to the crew member who had fallen and squeezed his shoulder gently. Vausse arranged to have him beamed to the infirmary, while the Captain finally stood up on her two feet and swept some dirt off her uniform.
She proceeded to look around at the rest of the away teams who looked relieved. A few of them had boxes with samples.
“Go, get some rest.” Kero began, “We’ll worry about those samples later.” She turned to her XO, “Get Riley and our Chief Engineer in my office in half hour. Something went wrong with our fail-safes and that planet deteriorated way quicker than it should have. I need to know why.”
“Yes ma’am” Vausse's response was crisp.
Kero sat at her desk, her XO sat at her right, while her Science Officer and her Chief Engineer were sitting across, a few PADDs in between.
Jurgen, the Chief, handed a PADD to Kero, “From an engineering point of view, everything worked just fine, internally the comms were just dandy and the transporter diagnostic turned out negative.”
The Captain inspected the information on the PADD she was given.
“However there was some interference from the planet.” Kero was still reading the PADD when Riley began to speak, “The away team recorded some strange signal.”
The half-Klingon nodded, “One of the crew thought it might have been some resonance wave?”
The Science Officer handed another PADD over and continued, “Preliminary exam of logs and plant specimen seem to corroborate that theory. Those electric filaments in the plants might be our clue.”
Vausse crossed her arms on her chest, “I have a theory.”
The other three people in the room turned to her in unison.
“If every single plant sent that signal, that’s a lot of signals. I think it jammed our comms and sensors, which couldn't gather data… or had too much data. The algorithms either didn't have enough info to trigger the emergency response because of the jamming effect, or they had too much and it is possible they were predicting several outcomes.”
Riley nodded, “I will check those logs and see if either theory holds true.”
Kero narrowed her eyes and for a moment, her gaze focused on nothing in particular. She raised to look at her officers, “Those wolves… that was out of place. They really were not supposed to be there, I thought it was established that Genesis didn’t work.”
The XO sighed a little. “Well, as we saw it didn’t. The planet degraded even faster than the first time it was ever used. Abnormalities with a weapon such as this are bound to happen. But like the planet, the wolves' metabolism would have probably collapsed in short order.”
The Captain looked at the pile of PADDs on her desk, “Hopefully any of this information will be of use to our peers in Deep Space 13.”
Kero sighed and turned her gaze to Riley and Jurgen. “Thank you gentlemen, you are dismissed.”
The two officers stood up, bowed ever so slightly and walked out of the office.
Kero stood up and made a move towards the window. She allowed a few moments to pass without making a sound. Vausse knew something was amiss, “Captain?”
The half-Klingon kept looking through the window at the stars that shot past, “What the hell was that on the ground, Commander?”
Vausse remained silent.
The Captain turned around, "You just stood there, we almost lost our crew, you need to be on the ball."
The Commander kept her cool, "It won't happen again."
Kero took a deep breath, "You might not have the luxury of it happening again, if you let it."
Silence ensued once more.
"Permission to speak freely." The Betazoid’s voice betrayed her apparent calmness.
The Captain pondered on the request for some moments, then reluctantly responded, "Fine, granted"
Vausse’s gaze turned to the floor and despite her request she didn't say a word.
Kero didn't go to great strides to hide her impatience, "You wanted to speak, Commander?"
The XO finally decided to voice her thoughts, "I know. I felt it, I hadn't realised what you went through, until today."
The half-Klingon perked an eyebrow in her characteristic way, "What are you talking about?"
The Betazoid’s tone was subdued, “I guess your feelings were right on the surface…”
The Captain was very still. A shiver went through her spine.
“I saw it. The shooting… Shiala... the a… I felt everything.” Vausse continued.
Kero continued to be very still, "I see.” She managed to say, “That was the past, it doesn't bother me now."
"It does, I felt it." The Commander responded without thinking.
The half-Klingon closed her eyes for a few long moments and breathed deeply before offering a response, "Not long ago, someone reminded me that everyone has weaknesses. But we cover for each other."
"The counsellor perhaps?" Vausse inquired.
Kero nodded once, "I am not special. I haven't had it harder than everyone else. And I do enough second guessing when I talk to her, I can't afford do it on the field and I can't afford you doing it for me either. If I don't let it affect me, you shouldn’t either."
Vausse almost lashed, "You aren't just Captain, you are my friend. I worry for your well-being."
Kero sat on the couch by the window, "And you are mine. If you need me, you call, I'll come at 3 o'clock in the morning and be there for you. Any time. But if you want to help me, we need to be an uncompromising team, no distractions on the job. If crew died it would have crushed me." The Captain stopped for a moment to breathe, "I speak to Commander Sedai because she doesn't pity. She is there, she cares for people's well-being. But she also shakes me and 'wakes me up' and stops me from being self-destructive. That's what I need, together with a friend and first officer I can count on and I won't doubt in dire times."
The Commander waited a little before responding, "I understand."
It was about 9 in the evening. Katriel was still in her office reading files and making notes for the day after. There were two piles of boxes. The bigger one was made up of wrapped up presents. The smaller one she hadn’t yet touched.
The Counsellor knew it was going to be a busy day so she brought some boxes in the office to wrap in between appointments and other work-related things. Something caught her attention and caused her to raise her head towards the door a moment before the chime went off.
“Come in", she said.
A familiar figure stood out in the light as the door hissed open.
"Hello, Kero. What brings you — "
The Captain hazarded a couple of steps forward. Katriel realised she wasn't going to get a word out of the half-Klingon who was visibly shaken. Kero just wanted her to listen. To her thoughts, to what she was feeling.
Vausse had struck a cord. What happened with Shiala was still painful.
Kero advanced towards the Counsellor who stood up. The Captain wrapped her arms around her and let the tears flow.
Katriel could hear the other woman's thoughts. She’ll win this, they were saying. She’ll be strong, she’ll carry on. But right now she just needed to let go, be selfish, she needed to be somewhere where other lives were not depending on her.
The group however no longer had the time nor the inclination to explore the marvels and quirks of the planet that seemed bent on killing them.
The four raised their weapons and began to shoot a few phaser blasts at the beasts’ feet to try and scatter them. The wolves backed off, ears stretched backwards, but they kept growling with a fixed gaze on the people a few meters in front of them.
Vausse, a Betazoid, allowed her self-imposed mental inhibitions to fall and started to “scan” the Captain’s mind on the surface, to try and anticipate her wishes as she usually did in situations like this one. It was a very unintrusive connection, focused on the Captain’s intentions of the moment.
Unexpectedly the Commander was hit by strong emotions she wasn't prepared to deal with in the midst of all that was happening. Kero was exasperated, angry… with herself? Images almost hit Vausse’s mind: a beach, a strong emotional attachment, people shooting… Eventually it all became clear.
“Commander!” The voice was muffled at first. “Vausse? Wake up!”
Luthien blinked and turned toward Kero who had just shouted to grab her attention. She had a cursory glance around her and realised that the wolves were dead and the Captain had managed to reach the crewman who had fallen into the hole, her hand extended towards her XO and wanting help to get out.
Vausse finally shook off the confusion and leaned towards Kero, grabbing hold of her forearm.
Suddenly, a flash, and the group was surrounded by walls and lights.
The Captain was still on the floor, “About time.” She looked around to ascertain everyone was on board and tapped her badge, “Con, set course to DS 13, Warp 8 on the double!”
She turned to the crew member who had fallen and squeezed his shoulder gently. Vausse arranged to have him beamed to the infirmary, while the Captain finally stood up on her two feet and swept some dirt off her uniform.
She proceeded to look around at the rest of the away teams who looked relieved. A few of them had boxes with samples.
“Go, get some rest.” Kero began, “We’ll worry about those samples later.” She turned to her XO, “Get Riley and our Chief Engineer in my office in half hour. Something went wrong with our fail-safes and that planet deteriorated way quicker than it should have. I need to know why.”
“Yes ma’am” Vausse's response was crisp.
---
Kero sat at her desk, her XO sat at her right, while her Science Officer and her Chief Engineer were sitting across, a few PADDs in between.
Jurgen, the Chief, handed a PADD to Kero, “From an engineering point of view, everything worked just fine, internally the comms were just dandy and the transporter diagnostic turned out negative.”
The Captain inspected the information on the PADD she was given.
“However there was some interference from the planet.” Kero was still reading the PADD when Riley began to speak, “The away team recorded some strange signal.”
The half-Klingon nodded, “One of the crew thought it might have been some resonance wave?”
The Science Officer handed another PADD over and continued, “Preliminary exam of logs and plant specimen seem to corroborate that theory. Those electric filaments in the plants might be our clue.”
Vausse crossed her arms on her chest, “I have a theory.”
The other three people in the room turned to her in unison.
“If every single plant sent that signal, that’s a lot of signals. I think it jammed our comms and sensors, which couldn't gather data… or had too much data. The algorithms either didn't have enough info to trigger the emergency response because of the jamming effect, or they had too much and it is possible they were predicting several outcomes.”
Riley nodded, “I will check those logs and see if either theory holds true.”
Kero narrowed her eyes and for a moment, her gaze focused on nothing in particular. She raised to look at her officers, “Those wolves… that was out of place. They really were not supposed to be there, I thought it was established that Genesis didn’t work.”
The XO sighed a little. “Well, as we saw it didn’t. The planet degraded even faster than the first time it was ever used. Abnormalities with a weapon such as this are bound to happen. But like the planet, the wolves' metabolism would have probably collapsed in short order.”
The Captain looked at the pile of PADDs on her desk, “Hopefully any of this information will be of use to our peers in Deep Space 13.”
Kero sighed and turned her gaze to Riley and Jurgen. “Thank you gentlemen, you are dismissed.”
The two officers stood up, bowed ever so slightly and walked out of the office.
Kero stood up and made a move towards the window. She allowed a few moments to pass without making a sound. Vausse knew something was amiss, “Captain?”
The half-Klingon kept looking through the window at the stars that shot past, “What the hell was that on the ground, Commander?”
Vausse remained silent.
The Captain turned around, "You just stood there, we almost lost our crew, you need to be on the ball."
The Commander kept her cool, "It won't happen again."
Kero took a deep breath, "You might not have the luxury of it happening again, if you let it."
Silence ensued once more.
"Permission to speak freely." The Betazoid’s voice betrayed her apparent calmness.
The Captain pondered on the request for some moments, then reluctantly responded, "Fine, granted"
Vausse’s gaze turned to the floor and despite her request she didn't say a word.
Kero didn't go to great strides to hide her impatience, "You wanted to speak, Commander?"
The XO finally decided to voice her thoughts, "I know. I felt it, I hadn't realised what you went through, until today."
The half-Klingon perked an eyebrow in her characteristic way, "What are you talking about?"
The Betazoid’s tone was subdued, “I guess your feelings were right on the surface…”
The Captain was very still. A shiver went through her spine.
“I saw it. The shooting… Shiala... the a… I felt everything.” Vausse continued.
Kero continued to be very still, "I see.” She managed to say, “That was the past, it doesn't bother me now."
"It does, I felt it." The Commander responded without thinking.
The half-Klingon closed her eyes for a few long moments and breathed deeply before offering a response, "Not long ago, someone reminded me that everyone has weaknesses. But we cover for each other."
"The counsellor perhaps?" Vausse inquired.
Kero nodded once, "I am not special. I haven't had it harder than everyone else. And I do enough second guessing when I talk to her, I can't afford do it on the field and I can't afford you doing it for me either. If I don't let it affect me, you shouldn’t either."
Vausse almost lashed, "You aren't just Captain, you are my friend. I worry for your well-being."
Kero sat on the couch by the window, "And you are mine. If you need me, you call, I'll come at 3 o'clock in the morning and be there for you. Any time. But if you want to help me, we need to be an uncompromising team, no distractions on the job. If crew died it would have crushed me." The Captain stopped for a moment to breathe, "I speak to Commander Sedai because she doesn't pity. She is there, she cares for people's well-being. But she also shakes me and 'wakes me up' and stops me from being self-destructive. That's what I need, together with a friend and first officer I can count on and I won't doubt in dire times."
The Commander waited a little before responding, "I understand."
----
It was about 9 in the evening. Katriel was still in her office reading files and making notes for the day after. There were two piles of boxes. The bigger one was made up of wrapped up presents. The smaller one she hadn’t yet touched.
The Counsellor knew it was going to be a busy day so she brought some boxes in the office to wrap in between appointments and other work-related things. Something caught her attention and caused her to raise her head towards the door a moment before the chime went off.
“Come in", she said.
A familiar figure stood out in the light as the door hissed open.
"Hello, Kero. What brings you — "
The Captain hazarded a couple of steps forward. Katriel realised she wasn't going to get a word out of the half-Klingon who was visibly shaken. Kero just wanted her to listen. To her thoughts, to what she was feeling.
Vausse had struck a cord. What happened with Shiala was still painful.
Kero advanced towards the Counsellor who stood up. The Captain wrapped her arms around her and let the tears flow.
Katriel could hear the other woman's thoughts. She’ll win this, they were saying. She’ll be strong, she’ll carry on. But right now she just needed to let go, be selfish, she needed to be somewhere where other lives were not depending on her.
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