Into the Lion's Den

Posted on Fri Mar 15, 2019 @ 5:27pm by Lieutenant Nicole Anderson & Fleet Captain Rhea Kennit

837 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Plaga Navis
Location: Ready Room
Timeline: After "Long Day's Journey"

Nicole walked onto the bridge and practically marched to the Captain's ready room. She wasn't looking forward to this, but she didn't want the Captain looking daggers at her for the next week or two. She rang the chime and tapped her foot impatiently.

The doors remained closed. After a moment, the Doctor has to ring the chime again,

As the doors opened, she stepped inside, hands behind her back, and stood in front of the Captain's desk like she was back at the academy. "Captain, I would like to formally apologize for my behavior earlier this evening. It was unprofessional and I am embarrassed by my lack of self control. It will not happen again."

Kennit was standing by the viewport, gazing out into the black of deep space. “Eighty-seven people are dead. You tell me they’re dead because someone out there created a virus that is not hampered by species which is lethal across the board, You tell me you need a specialist. Starfleet provides a specialist, and you throw a tantrum.”

Nicole blushed heavily. "I lost my head," she admitted. "If it had been anyone else..." she swallowed hard. "Permission to speak freely?"

The Captain turned in a slow, fluid motion to lock eyes with the Chief Medical Officer. Her gaze swept over the Doctors ramrod straight posture without any reaction. One eyebrow rose slightly, and she gave the smallest of nods as she replied “Granted.”

Nicole bit her lip then forged ahead. "Do you...'like' that you were assimilated?" she said. "Not in so far as it's been useful to you, but do you ever wish it hadn't happened? If the people who did it to you were on this ship, what would you do?"

“I’ve never thought about it.” Kennit answers honestly. “It didn’t seem relevant somehow. As for what I would do if the people who assimilated me were here on this ship..as they were Borg drones, I think there’d be a much more difficult issue to worry about..”

“Now if you asked me if the people who have repeatedly experimented on me. Forced me to undergo unnecessary surgeries to satisfy their own curiosity over the nature of what makes my implants and systems different...”. She shook her head once, just once.

"That man," Nicole said, trembling a bit. "He made me. Literally. Constructed me in a lab, gene by gene. I am the reason he's the best geneticist in the Federation. Everyone tells me to focus on all the good I've done but that to me doesn't alter the fact that I'm an offense to nature. My very existence upsets the balance, and the more I try to ignore that, the more I try to do some good with what I've been dealt, the most the universe throws it back in my face." She caught herself as her volume started to rise. She took a breath to calm herself.

"Those eighty-seven lives," she said, "mean a lot to me. I want them avenged, and I don't want more bodies. I will do whatever it takes to stop this, even if it means working with him. I won't let you down. I just...need you to understand."

“Understand...” the Captain echoed.

Nicole's shoulders sagged. She should have known better than to say that. She looked at the desk, at the carpet and finally settled on a spot in the corner. "Permission to return to my quarters," she said quietly.

"Denied." the Captain replied. "The assistance you specifically requested has been provided. You have a job to do. Regardless of your personal feelings. You can cut him up and make bookends of his skull and his stuffed and mounted genitals for all I care.. AFTER the virus has been analysed and we have a cure, and preferably some measure of an idea regarding who created it and why..."

"Smashing," Nicole said, exasperated. "Seeing as we've already spent over an hour in the lab getting our first simulation underway, mission accomplished. I'll start leveling my new bookshelf. Permission to go back to work, Captain?"

"The attitude is not helping. At all." Kennit snapped back uncharacteristically.

"Oh, I disagree," Nicole said, folding her arms. "The angrier I am right now, the more eager I'll be to make this go away, and the less distracted by the sight of evil in our midst. So do us a favor, accept my sodding apology and let me get back to work!" She was seething now, her irises ruby and her cheeks flushed.

"On the contrary Doctor. When angry, people make mistakes. And in this case, with this particular virus, mistakes.. can not happen." Kennit retorted, unimpressed by the red eyes or flush to her cheeks. They both knew even if the good Doctor lost control and attacked, the moment Kennit's blood, laden with nanites, entered her system...the Doctor would be lost.

"Then if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go avoid one," Nicole said, turning on her heel and marching out.

 

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