Where Art Thou Family?

Posted on Thursday, 26 March 2020 - 1:59pm by Commander DeVala Victrix Ph.D

Mission: Operation: Overdrive
Location: Taurus Fleetyards
Timeline: 2393 - Before starship launch

ON:

Eyelaya had received a call from Victrix. She briefly wondered if she'd be kicked off the ship before she fully boarded it. It had been a day since her encounter with the commander. She'd burned him, drowned him, and tried to suffocate him....not on purpose though.

She stood now in front of Victrix's guest quarters and rang the chime.

Victrix walked over to the doorway and hit the panel at the side of the door. She was expecting company albeit not preferred company as the Chief was more than enough to handle on a good day. Today was an okay day, but a mild headache had formed over the past few hours. Now, Victrix had opened her doors to the embodiment of a headache. "Chief, you are going to be serving on a Federation starship, not a Klingon one. Killing off the Executive Officer is not the way to climb the ladder" teased the woman, having read some reports that Soral had sent to her.

Eyelaya blushed her pale skin rather then reddening turning a deeper shade of gray/white. "I...I ... I didn't mean it. Is he okay? I've been so afraid to ask...is the Commander hurt badly? I tried to put him out...not that he was on fire but I heard that cold water helps when you get coffee burns and...."

"He survived the whole ordeal" replied Victrix who thought she would have some fun at the other woman's expense. She tried her best to look stern and solemn while proceeding. She gestured for the chief to come in and make herself at ease a bit. "Unfortunately, he was not pleased about the prospect of continuing to serve aboard the same starship as you. We were not left with many options, and he has decided to take another posting aboard a different starship. So, as of today we are without a First Officer" added Victrix, not breaking character. She was fighting so hard internally not to break as she lied to the woman.

Eyelaya felt horrible. "Oh no! You can't let him. This is all my fault. He told me I shouldn't be bringing coffee on the pod. I'm..." She sighed. "I'll go. Tell him to stay and I'll ... stay here." She wasn't about to let the Fontana loose it's first officer.

DeVala knew better than let the Chief go. The older woman grabbed the chief's arm, firmly but gently. "Oh no you don't" she said reprehendingly. "Soral is fine. He's not going anywhere and you are not either. I was just having some fun at your expense, Chief; however, you do need to give Soral some space...lots of it and probably a good deal of time. He's not the warm fuzzy type if you've gathered?"

She visibly relaxed, "No...he's not. Vulcans are...usually not." She looked at the woman. "I'm sorry Commander. I really didn't mean to spill coffee on him...I did mean to throw water but that was only to help counteract the coffee."

"Oh believe me, it is not the first time anybody has spilled coffee, coco, or some other beverage hot and cold on a superior officer, even a Commanding officer" replied Victrix. She saw some interesting traits in the woman that though did not remind her of herself, they did remind her of some people she had known over the years. "Something tells me you are a bit of a worry wart, Chief. Someone that constantly worries in stressful situations when you have no control over the outcome. I also see signs of a perfectionist attitude. You come across as being someone who strives for perfection in their work, the slightest flaw even if it is minor makes you feel like a failure?"

She gave a nod. "That's true enough. I like things to be done right the first time." The truth of the matter was she forgave others their flaws but not herself. Truth was years of adoptive parents telling her she wasn't good enough had sunk in. Even successes carried measure of failure. She studied the woman. "I'm not good with people. I like engines but people take some getting used to." She studied the woman. "I can't do that either," she said honestly waving her hand as if to indicate the entire person of the commander.

"Cannot do what exactly, people skills?" she asked trying to figure out what that last gesture was. "Be an officer? Take command?" Victrix pressed on with some line of questioning. "It's part of my job to know my crew. Well, it is really more Soral's job to do so, but I cannot allow myself to serve with such a low crew compliment and not try to at least connect names to faces. I've read your personnel record, Chief."

She gave a nod. "Well all of those things too but I mean look like you do all the time. I have a ... friend," she said the word as if foreign. "On Vulcan and she used to say when I attempt to put on make up I look like I have pre industrial war paint on." She looked down at the record comment. "My record is good." She wasn't too convinced too many had complained that her incessant talking was nuisance but she knew her work was good.

Victrix dismissed the war paint comment with a wave of the hand "Pish posh" she said swiftly. "I grew up on Risa, Chief. We were expected to cover our natural beauty with all these cosmetic enhancements. Fortunately, I got away from the life of pleasure and luxury before things went too far. Some women on my planet were known to undergo extensive surgical procedures to change their appearance. I look the way I do because I've spent my most recent years in a civilian job, not serving aboard Federation starships or space stations" explained Victrix. "We can work on your war paint problem down the road if you want" offered the woman.

"Additionally, yes" she stated. "Your service record is smooth, clean, and performance evaluations have been nothing but adequate in the modest and exemplary from those who had a bit more to say; however, you lose points in the area of socialization. Practically all reports from your direct superiors, Ship's counselors, and Executive Officers note your lack of socialization."

She knew it was true. "Yes...I guess so. I do try though...I did make friends with our EMH in the shipyards!" She said as if it was a valid point.

DeVala Victrix did not even know how to address that. "I respect all forms of life. I'm not going to say the EMH is nothing more than a tricorder with a programmed personality, but I certainly am not about to say interaction with an EMH or any hologram makes up for lack of actual friendship with a sentient being" replied Victrix. "I cannot order you to socialize and make friends, but I strongly encourage you to so do. There are more than a few things on your personnel file and service record that cause a dozen flags waving around catching my attention."

"Oh..." She looked down at her shoes seeming to develop a need to examine them "Okay."

"Chief," Victrix said in a calmer voice, approaching the woman and placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I did not mean that in a bad way exactly. I am just a bit perplexed what the hell you are doing as a Chief Petty Officer" the Commanding Officer said with a look of curiosity. "You are a university educated graduate. Any recruiter in their right mind would have pushed you towards the academy's officer candidate school. Instead, they what? Had you enlist and bumped you into the Petty Officer ranks?" Victrix shook her head.

"Oh no." She looked up. "I chose to enlist. I finished my studies on Vulcan and after my masters I ... chose to leave. I didn't want to study more. I just wanted to work." She smiled radiantly, "There is something so wonderful about hearing the hum of the engines. When you introduce yourself to a new system...." She paced a little, "It's always like a dance at first the engine won't have it but then she or he accepts and lets you know it. When you learn the engine's name well that's pretty special. I'm kind of happiest with my gears and tools. There is something magical about taking something that stops working and breathing new life into. Enlistment let me do that right away. I'm good at fixing broken things." It was true the only broken thing she hadn't been able to fix was herself but working with engines allowed her to push that off to he side.

Why anyone would choose to do such a thing to themselves was beyond DeVala's comprehension, but she had to respect that the Chief made her own bed and chose to wallow in it gleefully. "I see..." replied Victrix still trying to understand the woman's motives. "You do understand that choosing an enlisted path is not likely to lead you to climbing the ladder in your department very easy or likely for that matter. You have a better shot on a small starship like the Fontana, but if you get tossed aboard anything larger...it will take you years to get even middle rungs" explained Victrix. "Did you have no asperations of being a Department Head?"

She smiled, "No, I'm happy just fixing things." She thought a moment. "I did have one ambition though."

"Oh? What pray tell could that be?" asked Victrix. She was genuinely intrigued by the woman. She was rather young for a Chief Petty Officer, but she had an education that exceeded academy cadets, and undeniably more hands on experience then fresh out of the academy graduates.

She smiled, "To see the stars. I was stuck on the stockyards but look." She gestured, "We'll soon be sailing the star filled skies. I have everything I could want."

"I'll be dammed" replied Victrix. "You just wanted out of your cage. They have kept you behind the curtain working on parts and pieces to starships, working on assembling them, and all this time this was what you wanted...to be free to explore, to see what's out there?"

She gave a nod. "Yup." She smiled brightly. "You gave that to me." She spontaneously gave the woman a hug. "Thank you."

poor kid thought Victrix. She liked people and personal space was not something she cared too much about having been born and raised under the Risan sun, but having a subordinate hug her was a bit uncomfortable. She had no children of her own and kids always made her uncomfortable. The Chief was no child, but there was something endearingly childlike about her. "There there" replied Victrix patting the woman's back.

She took a deep breath. You owe me for this Commander Soral she thought to herself. "Welcome to the stars, Chief. Hopefully, when this is all said and done you may continue on aboard and I'll be back home on Earth behind my desk where I belong, not gallivanting out here on the final frontier."

Eyelaya pulled back. "You can always stay and do paperwork amongst the stars." She smiled and waited not knowing what was next. She hadn't dealt with many commanding officers. Mostly departments heads. "What happens next?" She asked.

"Well, you seem happy in your current career situation" assessed Victrix. "So, asking you if you would be interested in officer training school down to road seems to be moot at this point" noted the woman. "Grab yourself a drink and have a seat. I have a few minutes to spare and I'd like to get to know my crew."

"Okay but I'm not that interesting." She said walking to the replicator. She gave a little tap on the control panel. "Hello computer. I'd love some cold water please with a little bit of lemon."

The glass of water shimmered into existence in a glass with a star pattern. "Thank you!" She said turning from the machine. "Would you like something commander?"

She smiled. "Yeah, it's going to be one of those days...can feel it in my bones" replied Victrix. "I'll take cortado, hot" she said pleasantly providing her order. "It's an Earth drink and I am a bit of a coffee addict."

"I love coffee!" Eyelaya said. "Computer. A Cortado please make it hot, thank you!" She picked up the drink and set it in front of the Commander. Contrary to her fears and the rough start this was turning out to be a good day. She sat down waiting for the commander to start.

Victrix smiled and proceeded as gently as she could with the younger woman who was still childlike in some ways. Perhaps, and advantage not having been out among the stars yet. "Half Cardassian half Bajoran, raised by neither" began Victrix. "Now, that is actually quite interesting. I saw that you were raised primarily on Betazed of all places, but your advanced education came from Vulcan? You may not have not had any starship postings yet, Chief, but you certainly have been exposed to some vastly different cultures."

She gave a nod. "Yup. I spent some time on Bajor when I was young...It's a fuzzy memory. I was then moved out of the Bajoran orphanage to Betazed and adopted out there. It wasn't the place for me and I knew I wanted to see other places so I had a professor who helped me escape...that is move to Vulcan." She smiled, "It was fun there. People liked to work as much as I did and I got to meditate and learn about history. It was....my real first home."

DeVala Victrix did her best to fight the snorting sensation that happened. Unfortunately, the Chief had made mention of meditation after Victrix had taken a sip of coffee. The end result was not the most beautiful nor tranquil of one as she choked down some of the coffee whilst the rest of it shot out of her mouth and nose, undoubtedly getting some of on the Chief. "Shit!" said Victrix, her voice raised a bit. "I'm so sorry, Chief. I just...you meditating made me lose it."

Eyelaya watched a moment at the commander's less then graceful actions. She did indeed get some coffee on her but it didn't diminish her smile. She, instead, grabbed a napkin that had been on the table and offered it to the commander. "Actually I should say I tried to meditate I learned about it but... well the Vulcan masters pretty much banned me from the sanctuaries for meditation...I kind of asked a lot of questions or I'd think of something and have to get up and write it down. But it was fun trying!"

That sounds more like it thought Victrix. "Vulcan meditation isn't for everyone. Even those who do meditate often within their own cultures tend to have a difficult time with the techniques of Vulcans" she said to the Chief. "There are plenty of things within my own culture that I suck at" she added. "You are right though in that sometimes, it is fun to try."

She smiled shyly. "I like learning about other cultures and I like languages." She looked at the commander. "May I ask you questions too?"

Lieutenant Commander Victrix nodded. "Of course, Chief. This isn't an interrogation" she replied teasingly. "If we are to get to know one another, then asking and answering questions for one another would be productive. What is it that you wish to ask me?"

"Oh good!" She practically jumped off the sofa and then looked momentarily concerned. "Oh I know! What's your favourite colour and what's Risa like? Is it true they have a weather system that makes it hot all the time? Does it have an engineering museum?"

"Purple" replied Victrix simply with the first of several questions in a line of questioning. "Naturally, chaotic and about as miserable as Ferenginar, but with more tectonic activity; however, the weather control systems put into place ensure that we maintain that pleasant pleasure planet appearance. In general the humidity is high and the temperatures make it tropic in most regions of the planet. We have various museums like any other planet, but there are a few engineering museums."

"Wow. That's amazing. Purple is my favourite too. Just like a plasma stream as it reaches heat limit." She waited giving Victrix her shot at questions. This was most unusual. Her previous CO's and Department CO's didn't bother to get to know her.

Victrix nodded. "How about your parents? How did they take you wanting to enlist in Starfleet? Some parents have no issue with that. In fact, some have a long legacy of serving. Were they supportive of your decision to enlist, or were they opposed to it as a career for you?"

"Well that depends," she said. "I never knew my real parents. I understand from the records from the Bajoran orphanage that they found me. My mother was Bajoran. My father Cardassian. I had a brother...but I never really met him. I've gotten some letters...although I thought I saw him once when I was on Vulcan after the accident...but I can't be sure."

She shrugged. "Arlena and Benjamine Aderi adopted me on Betazed. But... They were really never my parents. I wasn't allowed to take their name," she said looking down, "I mostly went to school and then came home and stayed in my room. They only liked me to come out at parties. I got to pretend that I was part of the family. Ariena explained to me that they adopted me to raise their status on Betazed to show they were...I think she used the word magnanimous....generous but they didn't really want kids. But don't get me wrong, I had a roof over my head, I had food. I was just alone most of the time." She thought back. "Oh my teacher on Betazed...the one that helped me find a place on Vulcan. She said she was grateful that I had found a place too." She looked up at Victrix. "Does she count?"

Victrix felt more now for the woman than she had previously. It was no surprise that she failed at social graces nor personal space given her past. "We do not get to choose our birth parents, Chief" she said keeping herself from being emotionally compromised. "This was even more true in your place as you were adopted, and improperly so. I'd say less adopted and more claimed and displayed like a piece of artwork" explained Victrix.

She took a deep breath, looking into the woman's eyes. "That was not fair to you then or now. You do get to pick your family and it would seem that you have done well for yourself even without your parents. You can find a family of your own now, maybe the crew will become that for you? Only time will tell how this crew works together."

She smiled, "I'd like that." She thought again. "I'm excited about being on the Fontana." She looked at the woman. "Commander I promise I'll work hard. I won't let you down."

"I do not doubt that, Chief" replied Victrix. "I have a good bit of work that I will need to take care of before boarding the Fontana" added Victrix bridging herself into an out. "If you have some time, poke about the Fontana" the woman said with a smile.

She smiled and gave a nod. "Of course." She stood and then turned back to the commander. "Sir?"

"Not last time I checked" replied Victrix with a smirk. "I suppose I should make that a bit clearer for everyone when aboard the Fontana. Being addressed as Sir though technically accurate feels archaic to me. I'll learn to live with Captain, but ma'am would be preferable" explained Victrix. "Something else on your mind, Chief?" asked Victrix.

"Arlena and Benjamine Aderi do not judge them too harshly. Perhaps they had less then generous motives but they gave me a home and food and it was more then I had a lot of time. They also gave latinum to the orphanage and I can't help but wonder how many benefited. They did their best." She looked at Victrix again. "Thank you...for being nice to me. Not many people are." She smiled and waved. "Bye Commander!"

Victrix smiled. "I'll see you on the Fontana, Chief. Dismissed" she replied swiftly.

OFF:

Lieutenant Commander Victrix
Commanding Officer

Chief Petty Officer Eyelaya
Engineering