COMPILE_TERMINAL_VIEW
USS Nimitz
nimitz Oubliette day4 Feb 2025-04-17
Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Sick Bay - ACMO Lt. Kestra Troi - 0900) Kestra had recovered from her bought with the Rogue Winters and was coping with the after affects that the antidote/enhanced agent. It had helped her, but, she had not figured it would have such side effects on her. It had almost taken her over and would have ruined her if she had not been able to stop taking it after the first one. She had the help of Nurse Wang to keep her from succumbing to the drug. Kestra had written up a report of what she had done mixing the telepath suppressant with the drugs that she had found with Dr. O'Shea's help. This report she had forwarded to the captain and to starfleet, so, they would be able to study it. Maybe, with their facilities, they could perfect the drug or send instructions out to ban it. Kestra had said in her report that she felt that the drug would be very dangerous if not control and would probably be better if they banned it. Kestra visited each one of the original Away Team members to ensure that they were recovering from their ordeal. Dr. Fickett, Commander Nakamura, Commander Winters all looked at her differently than they had before. She could feel the fear of her, but, then again it wasnt her they feared. Sevant was the only one that had not given her a very cold shoulder and she could not understand why. As far as she knew, she had not done anything to them, other that the incident with Vanyssa. Kestra thought that maybe if she could, she needed to have a long talk with Vanyssa to see what was going on. "Lt. Troi to Commander Winters, May I have a word with you?" Kestra asked after tapping her combadge. (Reply Vanyssa, any) (posted by Frank) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Counsellor's Quarters - COUNS Vanyssa Winters - 1030) Vanyssa was sitting in her quarters attempting to come up with a report to detail what had happened in the alter universe. She looked up when her comm badge beeped. "Counsellor" a male voice spoke. "We've had a problem with our comm system this morning, and Lt. Troi tried to reach you." Vanyssa acknowledged it, and sat back, head held in her hands. ~What am I going to say to Kestra?~ She thought for a second. ~I just wish that she would disappear, but that is not likely to happen. Besides, she's probably having as hard a time as I am.~ The charitable part of Vanyssa thought quietly. The uncharitable part reminded her, however, that she couldn't really stand Kestra, so what would ignoring her request do now? "Vanyssa Winters to Kestra Troi." Vanyssa spoke, hitting her comm badge. (reply Kestra) "Kestra, I'm sorry about earlier, but there was a comm malfunction, and I didn't get your message until right now." (reply Kestra) Vanyssa listened to Kestra talk, and then suddenly felt very tired almost immediately. She cut Kestra off. "Kestra, I'm sorry, but, I'm not up to this right now. If you really need to talk, feel free to come by my quarters and we can talk, ok?" Vanyssa shut down the comm connection feeling very much guilty and almost completely like a traitor. She shouldn't've brushed Kestra off, no matter how she felt about the matter, but ... Sometimes you needed to do stuff for yourself. Before others. And no one was going to die right now if she took some of that time that she needed. She put down the report, pulled her knees up to her chest and began to cry for all the things that she had lost in the last couple of days, the least of which was her innocence. (reply Kestra, any) (pb melinda :-) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Sick Bay - ACMO Lt. Kestra Troi - 1035) =/\=Vanyssa Winters to Kestra Troi.=/\= Kestra heard coming from her com badge. Kestra knew that Vanyssa had not wanted to talk to her, so, now she was wondering what she had done now. The only reason for Vanyssa to call her at this time was probably to set her to doing something she would not like or to chew her out for something. "Lt. Troi here, how can I help you Commander?" Kestra asked hesitantly, but, curious. =/\=Kestra, I'm sorry about earlier, but there was a comm malfunction, and I didn't get your message until right now.=/\= Vanyssa told Kestra. "Sir, I just wanted to try and get a session with you as to what..." Kestra was starting to say when Vanyssa interrupted her. =/\=Kestra, I'm sorry, but, I'm not up to this right now. If you really need to talk, feel free to come by my quarters and we can talk, ok?=/\= Vanyssa told her as she cut the connection. "No problem Commander, I didn't need to talk to anyone anyway." Kestra finished after the connection was cut. Kestra had known that Vanyssa didn't like her anyways and really did not blame her for what she did before and now with the doubles incident. She was just not going to survive this one she thought, but, she would just continue to do her work. (Reply from any) (posted by Frank) Stardate:2406.04.21 21(USS Nimitz - Counsellor's Quarters - COUNS Winters & Captain Sash - 1200) Sash hadn't seen Nessa all day and was beginning to feel badly about it. Actually, since breakfast the day prior, he had been a little busy. She had sent him a message but by the time he had been able to answer it he figured she'd be asleep. Lunch! He'd take her to lunch. ~Why is all of our get togethers revolve around food?~ "Computer, where is Lt. Commander Winters?" [Lt commander Winters is in her quarters.] He figured he'd just drop in and surprise her. As he walked he ran through some calculations on a PADD, having to do with the shield frequency modulations, which had been giving engineering some trouble.? It wan't really his expertise but he liked to dabble. A couple of people dodged out of his way, still uncertain as to who he was. Sash apologized and headed for Nessa's door. As his hand his the door chime he had a strange sensation of forboding. He shook it off and waited for a reply. Vanyssa looked up from her tears and realized that she was projecting. She shut that down immediately and responded to the page. Sash walked into her almost dark Quarters. She looked up at him framed in the light and launched herself from the couch into his arms with a cry of anguish. Sash just held on to her tightly and let her weep. He could feel the dampness on his shoulder and neck. Slowly he stroked her hair and whispered hushes in her ear. "I had no idea that you'd be this upset over me not calling you yesterday," Sash joked. Vanyssa looked up and broke into semi-hysterical laughter. She pulled him into her quarters and led him over to the couch. "Kestra called me a while ago, and I blew her off. I am supposed to be the Counsellor, and I can't manage to get my emotional stuff taken care of, let alone deal with hers, and people are going to come and talk to me about it, and they should, and I can't deal with it right now, I can't deal with my own,and I can't ask Sevant to give me time off, because there is so much that needs to get done and I can't stand Kestra anyways, and I don't know what to do...." She looked up as she panted for breath from the run-on sentence. "I feel so... so lost." She finished. Sash's head was spinning. It was almost too much information to be taken in, in the time frame it had been given. When Vanyssa stopped for a breath Sash had to force himself not to laugh. His friend was hurting and that made this a very serious situation. He sat down beside her and pulled her in close for a reassuring hug. He had no idea what to say, so he just held her. One thing he had learned over the years was that many times people were not looking for a solution to their problems, but simply to vent their frustrations. But Sash was a problem solver. It was his genetic predisposition. "Oh little girl," he lifted her face and smiled into her pained face, "you have to allow yourself time to heal too. You've been through a lot, and people understand that, especially Sevant. True he is a Vulcan, but he seems to understand, even with that handicap." He took a pause to see if she were understanding him. "As for Kestra Troi," he continued, "well, she is having a hard time with somethings, as I've noticed, but she needs to find someone more disconected than you are." "But I'm supposed to be the Counsellor! It's my job! And there is only one of me here, and well, they need me. And I can't be there right now, I just can't. I can't talk to Kestra. Maybe some of the others, but not as Counsellor, only as friend." She realized how close her body was to his about then and resisted the urge to reach up and kiss him. ~Why do I want him so badly! This is wrong!~ She thought. "I have a confession, Sash." She spoke quietly. Sash was pretty good reading body language, but tried to ignore what his instincts were telling him. This was Vanyssa Winters. She was like his little sister on the Newman. But the feelings he was haing now were very unbrotherly. He didn't want to recoil, for fear of hurting her feelings. And to be honest with himself, he didn't really want to. But he did have to be very careful here. After all, he had no idea how long he was going to be on the Nimitz. "Really," he replied, " and what is that?" Vanyssa looked up at him and said. "I probably shouldn't be saying this, but whatever you do, don't tell me that it's the stress of the last couple of days, please?" And then she looked down at her hands. "And don't stop being my friend because of what I'm going to say?" This time Sash had to laugh. "There is nothing you could say that would cause that. I have told you before and I will tell you again, I will always be there for you." "You know that I've always had feelings for you, right? Well, they've gotten much bigger recently. Ever since seeing you, it's all I can do not to do what my body wants to do. And I feel bad about it, because I know that you don't think of me that way." Sash smiled at her face. He stroked her hair a little absent midedly, then realized what he was doing. With his free hand he rubbed at the scar over his left eye. "Even if," he said softly, and then took a deep breath, "even if I said I had similar feelings..." He started again, "Look, I am a Starfleet Captain, and it would be inappropriate for me ... and for you..., even though we're not on the same ship, I..." He realized that he wasn't making sense and probably sounded like an idiot. He was never any good with women. "Besides, I'm what, twice your age." Vanyssa looked up at him, savoring the very intimate feeling. "Doesn't matter. You aren't a command officer here, yet, and you aren't taking advantage of me. And even Captains get to have fun. Why I've heard tales of Alexandra Lowell of the Cochrane that would make this seem tame in comparison." She snuggled in closer. Sash chuckled. He had heard rumors over the last couple days of the so called "Love Boat." He could feel the closeness of Vanyssa and just relaxed with it. The bottom line was, she was right. He was not a command officer on this ship. The likelihood of him becoming a command officer again seemed fairly remote. Why should he not enjoy the time with someone he has cared about for a long time. After all, she was probably one of the most attractive women he had met. It was that long red hair. He was always a sucker for long red hair. On an impulse he leaned over and gave her a small kiss on the lips. Light and gentle, that could be taken many ways, but always one of caring. She melted in his arms, and then reformed a moment later, after relaxing in the feeling, and finding a small part of her heal. She reached two hands around his neck and pulled him in closer to her, liking the feel of him against her. "Even if that's as far as it's ever going to go." She whispered against his ear, "It's a memory to cherish. I like the closeness." Sash sighed, enjoying the sensations that he had denied himself. It had been a long time since he'd allowed anyone to be this close. "I like it too," he said softly in her ear. His arms enfolded her, holding on to her even tighter, wondering if this were as far as it would ever go. She wished that her telepathic abilites weren't still blocked in order to let herself heal, and she pressed herself against him. "I'd like it to go farther, but only once we find out what is going to happen with you.? She blew gently into his ear. "As you know, I'm not the one night stand kind of girl." She then leaned back and smiled into his face, and kissed him heartily. She was truly happy for the first time today, but wondered how she would feel when the euphoric feeling wore off. Sash basked in the glow of Nessa's happiness, and returned the kiss. "Good thing that it's lunch then." She clung tighter to him, then relaxed in his arms after the embrace. "Hungry are you?" She laughed. "What would you like to eat?" "Nothing has changed there," Sash replied, "I can eat just about everything. You pick, I'll buy." Vanyssa nodded. "Would you mind staying here, though? I don't want to go out and see people yet. I promise not to seduce you over food." She laughed. Sash laughed out loud. That was a vivid picture in his mind. "If you can keep your hands to yourself," he said, "then I will too. Then we shall eat at Chez Winters. Let me just fire up to the old replicator." Vanyssa laughed and looked around her Quarters, remembering the days when David had barbequed for them on Earth.? "I think I want new Quarters." She spoke quietly. "I don't know if I can handle staying here now that David is gone. There is so much here that is his, and he has no family. It saddens me to look at it all, but I don't want to forget him." She finished softly. "And you never will," Sash replied. "Some memories will not be as vivid, but you will always have the memory of him, and what he was." The voice of experience as he had a quick flash of memory of his own wife and daughter, now long dead, for nearly 40 years. "You never will forget." Vanyssa turned to him, hearing that sound in his voice. He had told her when she was younger about their deaths. "Is it wrong for me to want to change quarters? Is it wrong for me to want to pack up his stuff and store it for Kat? I want her to have things of her fathers if she wants them, so she has some connection with him." "Wrong to want to move," Sash repeated her question, "I don't think so. Sometimes moving on simply means moving to another place. Sometimes it just makes things easier. And saving David's stuff for Kat is a good thing for her. One day she's going to want to know about her father, and pictures don't always do the trick. Rumaging through someone's "stuff" can be quite cathartic. David is a part of her, and she will want to know him, sooner or later, for one reason or other." He pressed some controls on the replicator. "What you really need is Sash's special Minestrone soup." He lifted two bowls of the steaming soup from the replicator and brought them to the table. Vanyssa smiled as he put a bowl of soup down in front of her. She sniffed at it and smiled as the savory aroma wafted up to her. She lifted up her spoon and dug into the soup, suddenly feeling very hungry for the first time this day. "You know, this is fabulous." She spoke with a smile. (reply Sash, any) (pb melinda :-) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Eloise & Nishi's quarters - Lt. Cmdr. Nakamura- 13:49) Nishi was hanging by his arms, he couldn't feel them anymore, he couldn't feel much of anything. He heard the door open and knew instantly that it was her, the panic set in, the blind desire to get away, to hide, but the shackles held him fast, unable to move, totally powerless. Kestra circled him, the knife in her hand. "Please" he pleaded, "I'll tell you anything" Kestra smiled, her lips shifting into a small grin. "I know you will" she whispered. "Now lets she what's inside that mind of yours" she said, raising the knife and cutting into Nishi's forehead. Nishi's eyes opened slowly, he was laying on the couch in his quarters, he couldn't hear any movements nearby, Eloise must have gone out. He rolled over onto his back, so he could see the stars moving past outside, and started to cry. (USS Nimitz - Eloise & Nishi's quarters - lt. Cmdr. Nakamura- 14:37) Nishi Stepped out of the bathroom, his hair still wet from the shower, and made his way over to the bed-side table where he had left his comm. badge. It had been 3 days and he hadn't been able to shake the unpleasant feeling, the way his skin would crawl for no reason, the waves of emotion that crept up on him, or the nightmares. He held the comm. badge it in his hand for a second, reluctant to activate it, then with a small internal sigh, pressed it's front; "Nakamura to Counsellor Winters. if you have some time, I think I need to talk with you." (Reply; Winters) He placed the comm. badge cack on the table, it was strange not to be wearing it, but he knew he wasn't ready to go back to work, Stolev could handle security, nevertheless, the restlessness was starting to get to him. As he made his way across the room, toward the cupboard, his Comm. badge chirped into life. "staff meeting for all senior staff at 16:00" Nishi looked at the badge for a moment, then selected a uniform from the cupboard. (Reply; any) (Posted; A) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Eloise & Nishi's quarters - Lt. Cmdr. Nakamura- 13:49) Nishi was hanging by his arms, he couldn't feel them anymore, he couldn't feel much of anything. He heard the door open and knew instantly that it was her, the panic set in, the blind desire to get away, to hide, but the shackles held him fast, unable to move, totally powerless. Kestra circled him, the knife in her hand. "Please" he pleaded, "I'll tell you anything" Kestra smiled, her lips shifting into a small grin. "I know you will" she whispered. "Now lets she what's inside that mind of yours" she said, raising the knife and cutting into Nishi's forehead. Nishi's eyes opened slowly, he was laying on the couch in his quarters, he couldn't hear any movements nearby, Eloise must have gone out. He rolled over onto his back, so he could see the stars moving past outside, and started to cry. (USS Nimitz - Eloise & Nishi's quarters - lt. Cmdr. Nakamura- 14:37) Nishi Stepped out of the bathroom, his hair still wet from the shower, and made his way over to the bed-side table where he had left his comm. badge. It had been 3 days and he hadn't been able to shake the unpleasant feeling, the way his skin would crawl for no reason, the waves of emotion that crept up on him, or the nightmares. He held the comm. badge it in his hand for a second, reluctant to activate it, then with a small internal sigh, pressed it's front; "Nakamura to Counsellor Winters. if you have some time, I think I need to talk with you." (Reply; Winters) He placed the comm. badge cack on the table, it was strange not to be wearing it, but he knew he wasn't ready to go back to work, Stolev could handle security, nevertheless, the restlessness was starting to get to him. As he made his way across the room, toward the cupboard, his Comm. badge chirped into life. "staff meeting for all senior staff at 16:00" Nishi looked at the badge for a moment, then selected a uniform from the cupboard. (Reply; any) (Posted; A) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Bridge - TAC/ASC Lt. Stolev - 1430) Sasha rubbed his forehead as he reviewed yet another security report. As part of standard procedure for cases in which control of the ship is compormised, the security command team must review every security report filed during the incident, as well as the 72 hour period before and after. Usually this would be a task he would share with Nishi, but Nishi was still off-duty, recovering from his ordeal in the mirror universe, so the tedium of the task fell squarely on Sasha's shoulders alone. He looked up from his console as Captain Sash emerged from the turbolift. Grateful for even the smallest of distractions from the report review, he gave the Captain a wink and a nod as he walked by on his way to the ready room. Sasha smiled to himself as he remembered spending a few hours with the good Captain the night before. Not only had Sash demonstrated an appreciation for fine vodka, but he also had engaged in a spirited discussion of the relative merits of the various antique projectile-based firearms in Sasha's collection. Sighing, Sasha returned to his console and continued to stare at the same report that had been up on the screen for the past five minutes. He had at least thirty more to review, and didn't think he could take much more of this. He turned to another console and pulled up the current set of Starfleet regulations, looking for a section that might pertain to procedures for declaring an interim assistant department chief -- anything to enable him to offload some of the work to someone else. Sasha's search through the regulations was interrupted by a command message flashing at the top of the screen. Grateful for some distraction, Sasha tapped the icon and read through the announcement. ---------- To: Senior Staff From: Captain Devan Sash, acting First Officer There will be a staff meeting in Conference Room 1 at 1600 hours. Have your status reports ready. First Officer out. ---------- Sasha smiled a bit at the news that his new friend would be remaining aboard in some capacity, although he did take a moment to wonder how he would sort out being Sevant's subordinate, even though he outranked the acting CO by a grade or two. Thankful for something else to do, Sasha abandoned his report review and began to assemble a status report for the meeting. (USS Nimitz - Conference Room 1 - TAC/ASC Lt. Stolev - Day 4 - 1600) Sasha hurried into the conference room, getting there just as the clock struck 1600. He smiled as he saw Nishi sitting near the head of the table, back in uniform. Sasha quickly took the empty seat next to Nishi and clapped his friend's shoulder softly. "Good to see you back in the saddle," he said quietly. (reply Nishi) Sasha set his PADD on the table and leaned back in his chair, waiting for the meeting to start. ~This ought to be interesting.~ (reply any) (posted by Aaron Scifres) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - CSO's Office - Lt(jg) Falthgood - 1430) Zach tossed a PADD to the side, and wrapped his arm around his aching ribs once more as he focused his attention on yet another PADD dealing with the Anomaly and what was learned from it. The speed-healing of his broken bones had been completed, now all that was left was the ghost ache of tortured nerves, the remembered impulses of pain. Falthgood was well acquainted with the techniques, more now so then ever. He had done his time after getting back, without any medical help, then had spent his required day recovering after his session in sickbay. The doctor had tried taking him to task for not coming to sickbay immediately, but Zach had ignored her. Truth was, he had wanted some revenge after he had gotten back. He had done what he could, watching the boarding shuttles destroyed had been enough, and watching the anomaly close had been even better. He had run through all the numbers, he figured that the anomaly would be opening again in twenty-two years, and had put in recommendations that Starfleet either send a ship this way at that time to keep it closed, or several warships to make sure nothing came through should Starfleet Science not want to be so presumptuous as to close it. It was little matter to Falthgood, he probably wouldn't be around for it. His only goal now was to get his department back in running order, and to avoid the suspicious glances of his fellow department members. His double here had murdered someone, apparently, and there were several people who couldn't distinguish the difference. ~If they only knew.~ was his only thought to that. He had murdered before, he had had several people put to death before. That had been his job once. He wasn't the same man as had taken his place, but so many of the thought processes were the same, it was almost sickening. He had tried for two days to put aside the doubts, but he had failed miserably, so he had finally retreated to the office to put his stamp on all the paper work, so everyone else could breathe a sigh of relief at not having to work with him. Although, he was also getting tired of the sideways glances himself, if that didn't change he would probably have to hurt someone. His buzzer went off, though he didn't look up. "Come." he said, as he unwrapped his arm. Showing weakness was never one of his habits, he didn't intend to start now. The man that came through was one of the higher ranking ones still left in the department. Falthgood looked up, nodded, then looked back down at the PADD. "Yes?" "The final readings from the anomaly, Sir, all has gone quiet according to the probes." That had been expected, "Do they conform to what we have already theorized?" "Yes Sir." "Good, then load it into the warning buoys and Ill inform the Captain that they are ready to launch." He looked back up, "Ready the buoys." The man nodded, then walked back out. ~At least he didn't act afraid or angry.~ thought Zach sourly. His terminal beeped not long later, informing him there was going to be a meeting. Zach rolled his eyes, and shrugged. It was to be expected. (Nimitz - Observation Lounge - Falthgood - 1555) Zach slid into the Lounge, found a seat, and waited for the meeting to start. (reply: any) (posted by Trout) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Counsellor's Quarters - COUNS Winters - 14:38) After almost an entire day of writing, Vanyssa had finally been able to get the entire encounter down on a report almost the way she had remembered it. It had taken a lot of soul searching, and a lot of crying, and she felt exhausted afterwards. =^=Nakamura to Counsellor Winters. if you have some time, I think I need to talk with you.=^= Vanyssa heard the comm system say. She had expected a call from at least one of the away team members the entire day, and was unsurprised to get it. "Nishi, I'm in my Quarters." She replied aloud. "If you'd like to come and talk I'll be here. I'd rather not make this official since I don't think that I'm up to being the Counsellor right now, so how about coming to talk as a friend?" She spoke quietly, sniffling from the tears that were coming back up again. (reply Nishi, any) (pb melinda :-) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Eloise and Nishi quarters- Lt. Cmdr. Nakamura - 14:39) "Nishi, I'm in my Quarters. If you'd like to come and talk I'll be here. I'd rather not make this official since I don't think that I'm up to being the Counsellor right now, so how about coming to talk as a friend?" "That sounds good" he replied, her voice sounded as if she had been crying. "I'll be there soon" Nishi took awhile getting into his uniform, he half heartedly hoped that Eloise would be back, be he knew that she was back in sickbay these days, while Ryuchi was at the day care. Walking the corridors, Nishi avoided making eye contact with the crewmembers he passed, he had read the reports on what had happened, but there's so much that reports don't say. He didn't know who had been hurt by his double, or how much trust had been eroded by his double betraying the crew. He didn't like to think about it, the chief of security should be trusted by the crew, as much as they trust the captain and the first officer. Nishi arrived at Counsellor Winter's door, and rang the chime. (Reply: Winters) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Personal Quarters - CMO Lt. Fickett -1440) Louis sat bolt upright in bed at the insistent beeping sound coming from the computer terminal. He fumbled along his bedside table until he found his glasses, then he stumbled blearily over to the desk, where he plopped into the chair. He had never done well when roused suddenly from a deep sleep, especially one pervaded by such dreams as he had been having. He peered at the console and noticed the "New Message Waiting" light flashing. He figured it must be high priority, as he had already directed all non-essential messges into a holding folder to be sorted through later, once he returned to duty. He tapped the screen and leaned forward to read the tiny blue text. ---------- To: Senior Staff From: Captain Devan Sash, acting First Officer There will be a staff meeting in Conference Room 1 at 1600 hours. Have your status reports ready. First Officer out. ---------- ~Devan Sash?~ The name was unfamiliar to him. Then again, he had been mostly unconscious for the past several days, ever since the trip in the shuttle. They had told him what had happened in sickbay, of course, once he had regained consciousness after what apparantly had been hours of intensive treatment. It all seemed rather farfetched, as his conscious mind had been able to recall none of what they described. The nightmares, however, were a different story. They bore a striking resemblance to stories told by the other away team members; stories so horrible that it would be understandable for his mind to compartmentalize and bury any memories of the events, lest they overwhelm him and push him beyond the brink of sanity. He made a mental note to make an appointment with the counsellor to discuss this possibility, but for now, he apparantly had a meeting to prepare for. ~Hopefully Kestra can fill me in on what's been going on.~ He was reaching for his comm badge when, all of a sudden, the mere thought of contacting Kestra sent him into a sudden panic. He wiped the sweat from his brow and withdrew his trembling hand from where it had been reaching for the comm badge. He decided to let Kestra handle the medical part of the meeting, although simply considering that in just over an hour he would have to be in the same room as her sent chills down his spine. ~What is wrong with me?~ he thought. "Come on Louis, pull yourself together," he said aloud, hoping that the sound of his own voice might jerk his mind back to the present. Instead of preparing for that meeting, he pulled up the counsellor's schedule to make an appointment as soon as possible. (USS Nimitz - Conference Room 1 - CMO Fickett - Day 4 - 1559) Louis walked into the conference room and froze when he saw Kestra conversing with an officer whom he did not recognize. He noticed the captain's pips and reasoned that it must be the acting FO. He looked around the room, seeking out an empty chair as far away from Kestra as possible. Almost everyone was at the meeting by now, and as such there were not many chairs available. Before he could decide where to sit, Kestra caught his eye and gave him a small smile. For some reason, that smile filled him with panic and it took all his self control not to turn and bolt from the room; as it was, he bumped into the bulkhead as he instinctively stepped back. (reply Kestra) At a loss for what to do, but knowing only that the thought of going anywhere near Kestra was terrifying, Louis slid over to the viewports and sat down on the edge of the sill and waited desperately for the meeting to start, so that he might be able to focus on something other than the fear welling up inside him. (reply Kestra, any at meeting, any) (posted by Aaron Scifres) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - COUNS Quarters - Lt. Cmdr. Nakamura & COUNS Winters- 14:50) After her long meeting with Sash, and having another crying fit from packing up David's belongings, she heard the chime. She called out, come, and saw Nishi there. "Hi, Nishi." She spoke quietly, getting up and dusting off her uniform. "Can I get you something to drink?" She asked quietly, not liking the way he was looking. "Um, yeah, a hot chocolate" replied Nishi, noticing how worn out she looked, it's funny, he'd always seen the ships counsellor as being somehow immune to the the strains and damage that they were there to help heal. Nishi took a seat, he felt uncomfortable, the stigma of having to see a counsellor, officially or not. Funny, he'd been known to suggest the counsellor's services to members of his team, when they had suffered emotional damage, he'd always tried to make it clear that there was no shame in it - it seemed that he hadn't beleived his own words. Maybe he was just aprehensive about discussing what he had gone through, it was personal, and hard to revisit, he hadn't even spoken to Eloise about it. Vanyssa got the drinks and the two of them sat on her couch. She handed him a throw blanket since he looked cold and since nothing was forthcoming, she asked. "Wanna tell me what's up?" She knew from the look on his face he was probably going through hell, and she had a pretty good idea from what. Nishi took a sip of his drink, trying to figure out where to start. "How long should it take?" he asked, looking into his cup, "before I can sleep without the nightmares, before my skin stops crawling, before I feel whole again?" Vanyssa thought about it a second. "Well, do you want the clinical answer or an answer from a friend? The clinical answer is that eventually the trauma will fade, with time. From a friend, a while. It'll go better if I can find us a betazoid or vulcan mind-healer...they can go into the memories and fix them.. helping the person be whole again. But yeah, it's going to take a while. Coming here for regular appointments will help you get over it faster. Facing your fear of Kestra will help too." Vanyssa finished. "And I can share with you the memory of my killing the alternate one, if it would help." (reply Nishi) "And how are you doing?" Nishi asked, suddenly feeling self conscious and wanting to shift the attention away from himself. Vanyssa smiled wanly. "Not too hot. Finding out that David is dead was a real shock. Finding my alternate here...and she is full of it... doesn't help much. I feel like we should be torturing them the way they tortured us. I want to attack her, and I can't. I want to hold her neck between my hands and choke her." Vanyssa admitted guiltily. "Looking forward to getting out of this area, though, and moving on." She spoke quietly. "That's all I can really do...keep on going." (reply Nishi, any) (pb melinda and Alister) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Ready Room - Captain Sash- 1550) Sash liked to be the first one to any staff meeting. Of course, in the past, he had been the host. Now he was only the co-host. He was happy to be part of a crew again. He hadn't realized how real the thought of being on an administration detail had been to him. He paced the ready room, curious as to how it would be recieved for him to take the FO spot. He knew that there were people on board who had been there longer, and might have expected to move up into that slot. Still, Sevants reasoning was logical, and you usually can't fight logic. Sash finally settled himself down and sat in the seat to the right of the captain's chair. He picked up the padd and began going over duty rosters and progress reports he'd already recieved. He heard the door open and looked to see who was the first to arrive. (reply any senior staff memeber) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Conference Room - OPS/CONN - 1551) Onyx was putting the last finishing touchs on the reports and has she walked in she didn't see Sash there, instead she went to the replicator and ordered herself a raktajino, she knew that she would have time to drink it all before the meeting and took a sip of it. When she turn around, she nearly spat out the sip, but swallowed it instead. "Sorry, you surprised me, I thought that I was the first one in." Onyx went to her seat and put down her cup. (Reply from Sash) "Everything that the engineers did have been reversed and repaired. I have retrieved the shuttled with the probe, and I probably asking myself the same question has to everyone... What are we going to do with those doubles on board?" (Reply from Sash) Onyx was a bit surprised by that question. "I don't know what to think of you yet, I didn't see much to have an opinion. I did read your file, but a file is just a file, it's not perfect and don't say all of it. This the same for everyone. Why did you ask that question? Better, what do you think of me? I imagine that you read the files of the crew." She wonder if it was the right move to be this curious. (Reply from Sash, anyone) (Posted by Laurence Durand) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Conference Room - ACMO Lt. Kestra Troi - 1556) There just did not seem to be any way to figure out what was going on to Kestra. Vanyssa did not seem to want to talk to her at this point in time. So, without her, Kestra just had to go on and try to cope with it as she could. She would use her abilities, but, the attack had left her temporarily without it or at least very little. At the moment all she could use was her empathic abilities and it was hard to decipher peoples emotions with only that when you had the use of your entire telepathic abilities to help you. She had been working in Sick Bay when the computer delivered a message that informed her that there would be a staff meeting at 1600 hours. She was not sure she wanted to be at the meeting to once again see the looks that most of the away team gave her. She really did not have any choice, she had to attend as part of Sick Bay. When she reluctantly arrived, she noticed that Captain Sash, Ensign Kateb, and Lt. Falthgood had already gotten there. She stopped at the door looking at Sasha and Falthgood knowing what they probably were thinking. She had gotten the momentary fear/hatred from them that she had been getting ever since they had gotten back. "Captain Sash, Lt. Falthgood, ... I ... uh ... " she tried to say something that might ease their pain but she did not know what to say. She just stammered then stopped and went to her seat to sit down to wait for the meeting to start. (Reply Sash, Onyx, Falthgood, any) (posted by Frank) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Ready Room - COUNS Winters- 1556) Vanyssa walked in right as Kestra was trying to say something to Sash, kateb and Falthgood. Vanyssa stood back watching what had just happened, realizing that Kestra really needed to talk to someone about everything. Vanyssa walked up to Kestra. "For better or for worse, I am the Counsellor on this ship, and you do need to talk to someone. After this meeting is over, would you like to go someplace private and talk?" Vanyssa looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry about earlier, if I hurt your feelings." She looked into Kestra's dark betazoid eyes, and felt a stab of envy that Kestra was the epitome of betazoid beauty, and Vanyssa...well Vanyssa looked like a human. (reply Kestra) After having the brief conversation with Kestra, Vanyssa took the sear next to Sash and smiled at him, feeling the lust that she always experienced around him flare up briefly. She squashed that down, knowing that she was blushing and tried to act her age. "How are you taking things?" She asked quietly. "Congratulations on being made first Officer. I'm sure that you will do a fabulous job." She finished, smiling, and feeling a little bit hollow inside. She had leaned so hard on him the last couple of days that she wasn't really sure how to act around him. She looked up as Nishi walked in, caught his eye and gave him a wink and a smile, hoping that it helped some. (reply Sash, Kestra, those who are at the meeting, anyone that wants to play.....) (pb melinda :-) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Conference Room 1 - TAC/SC - Lt. Cmdr. Nakamura - Day 4 - 15:57) Nish took a deep breath and steadied himself, before stepping close enough for the door to recognise him and slide open. He knew that she would be there, he also knew that she could probably sense the fear deep down inside him, it was deeper than the rational side of his mind, the part that knew that this was not the same Kestra. Involuntarily his breath caught in his throat as he saw her sitting at the table, He tried to be calm, or at least look it,as he made his way to a seat. Counsellor Winters, smiled and winked as he came to his chair, she, of all the people in the room, knew that he was struggling to keep control. "Afternoon everybody" he said, taking a seat. Stolev dropped himself into the seat next to him, and put his hand on Nishi's shoulder in a friendly manner. "Good to see you back in the saddle," he said quietly. Nishi smiled, Stolev couldn't know how much he needed to see a friendly face, "I was getting bored, sitting around all day" He grinned, "did I miss much?" (Reply; Stolev, any) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Conference Room - Captain Sash - 1557) Sash sat in his seat silently, watching Kateb get herself something from the replicator. When she turned around he thought she was going to throw her drink on him. He almost laughed at the reaction. "Sorry, you surprised me, I thought that I was the first one in." Onyx went to her seat and put down her cup. "I didn't mean to startle you. I just like to be prepared for these things. So how are things going?" he asked trying to change the subject. "Everything that the engineers did have been reversed and repaired. I have retrieved the shuttled with the probe, and I probably asking myself the same question has to everyone... What are we going to do with those doubles on board?" Sash chuckled, "That is the the high grade latinum question isn't it? That really is up to Starfleet. And as far as I know, we haven't heard yet." "So what do you thingk of me as your new FO?" he asked. Onyx was a bit surprised by that question. "I don't know what to think of you yet, I didn't see much to have an opinion. I did read your file, but a file is just a file, it's not perfect and don't say all of it. This the same for everyone. Why did you ask that question? Better, what do you think of me? I imagine that you read the files of the crew." Sash looked at her squarely and replied, "I can tell you this, I wish I had someone like you on the Endeavor. Things might not have ended up the way they did." At that the door opened again and Falthgood waklked in and took his seat silently. Sash thought that to be a little strange, but let it go since he didn't know the man very well. he was followed a minute later by Kestra Troi. Even Sash could sense the tension in the room as she entered. He could only imagine how that could make the telepath feel. On top of dealing with her own addiction withdrawl symptoms, she had to deal with all that. He decided that after this meeting he would have a talk with her. "Captain Sash, Lt. Falthgood, ... I ... uh ... " she tried to say something, and then stopped and just sat down, looking into her folded hands. Sash got up and walked around the table. He put his hand on Troi's shoulder and she jumped with surprise. He knelt down on one knee and smiled at her. "How are you feeeling?" (reply Troi) "Listen," Sash began again, "I'd like to talk with you after this meeting. Would you come to my office?" (reply Troi) (posted by Al Muir) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Ready Room - ACMO Kestra Troi - 1559) Kestra jumped a bit as Sash put his hand on her shoulder. Sash knelt down on one knee beside her and smiled, "How are you feeeling?" "Sir, I am ok" Kestra said with a slight smile only gathering courage enough to flick a couple of looks in his direction. "Listen," Sash began again, "I'd like to talk with you after this meeting. Would you come to my office?" "You are the First Officer sir, I will be there." Kestra responded then Sash went back to his seat. Then she watched as Vanyssa walked, it looked more like stalked, up. She knew now that she was in trouble for having talked to Captain Sash. Kestra really wanted to talk to someone but the ones that she wanted to talk to really did not want to talk to her. "For better or for worse, I am the Counselor on this ship, and you do need to talk to someone. After this meeting is over, would you like to go someplace private and talk?" Vanyssa looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry about earlier, if I hurt your feelings." "No Sir, you did not hurt my feeling. Anyways you and the other members of the away team are the ones we need to watch out for. You are the ones that went through hell, not us." Kestra said and watched Vanyssa go to see beside Sash. (Reply from any in meeting) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Ready Room - COUNS Winters - 1559) "For better or for worse, I am the Counselor on this ship, and you do need to talk to someone. After this meeting is over, would you like to go someplace private and talk?" Vanyssa looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry about earlier, if I hurt your feelings." "No Sir, you did not hurt my feeling. Anyways you and the other members of the away team are the ones we need to watch out for. You are the ones that went through hell, not us." Kestra said and watched Vanyssa go to see beside Sash. Vanyssa thought over what Kestra had said, and made a resolve to go and talk with her when all this was over, no matter what. She was the Counsellor, and she would do the best that she could. Sash was her friend, and well... maybe more, in the future. Not right now, though. She caught Kestra's eye and apologized inside her own head, knowing not only that Kestra wouldn't be able to hear her, but knowing that Kestra would probably think something bad about it. (reply any) (pb melinda :-) Stardate:2406.04.21 (USS Nimitz - Conference Room - FO(temp)- Captain Devan Sash- 1602) Finally the CEO came through the door and found his place. Sash had to smile. he had been kept busy and Sash had several opportunities to work with him, but he still seemed a bit embarrassed by their initial encounter where he almost took Sash's head off with a tool box. When everyone was settled Sevant made his enterance. it was as if he had been waiting for everyone to arrive. He nodded at Sash who stood up and began to speak. "Let me start by stating the obvious," Sash began. "I have been assigned to the Nimitz, temporarily, as the first officer, and our new captain is Captain Sevant. After this meeting a ship wide announcement will be made to announce these status changes. I'm sure that Captain Sevant comes to you as no surprise, but him chosing myself as FO might have. I certainly hope that I can show him and all of you that I am worthy of his confidence." He took a deep breath. Sash wasn't great at making speaches, after all he was a soldier first, but he had learned early in his carreer that sometimes they were necessary. He continued. "We have just come out of a very difficult situation, but unfortunately the hardest part of this mission is still to come. The repercussions of the actions of your doubles will not be truely known for some time. The biggest problem is rebuilding the trust between the crew and the command staff. And," he looked around the table stopping his gaze on Troi, "rebuilding the trust amongst ourselves. We have all been through a trying time, and I would hope that our training, and your personal relationships, can withstand this upcoming trial." He looked over at Sevant, who simply nodded and indicated for Sash to continue. "With that being said, we need a status report from all stations." Sash sat down and listened to the status reports. (reply all in the meeting) (posted by Al Muir)