EXETERRPG: (2, 2150) CO, Captain Trip Williams, , aFO, Commander Alex Jones

[Will Banowsky]

Mission: A new day dawns
Day: 2
Stardate: 2446.01.29


(Earth- Home of Trip and Ashlyn Williams- CO, Captain Trip Williams,, aFO,
Commander Alex Jones, 2150)

Alex stepped slowly down the hall, his eyes talking the scenery in, his
mind trying to figure the next few moments out. He’d been given a heads up
by Bracken, about a level that Command officers should be working at, even
during supposed time off. Reaching the door to the study, he knocked on the
frame of the door.

"Oh, AJ come in." Trip said as he stared at a signed flag with the 1st
Fighter Wings logo. He was pining for simpler days

He opened one of the beers, and handed it over. “Not altogether sure I know
what to say Skip. I know he was a brother to you, and others.” Opening the
other, he took a sip.

"Yeah. I guess it's a matter of guilt. I had hoped that he would come back
to us."

"No shame in hope." Alex said as he perched on the edge of the desk. "All
things considered what you've all been through and all. Can see why you'd
hope the person you knew would just come home fit and well."

"He was my first right hand man. My XO on Mars. Now he's dead. Died in
disgrace."

"I don't pretend to understand close to half of what Bracken’s report said,
but there wasn't much of that man left. He was driven mad by the nanites.
Yes he died in shame, disgrace, but the man that was your XO died a long
time ago."

“See, I just, I don’t want to believe that. I want to believe that what we
encountered was just a scared….and scarred person who maybe just needed
space.”

“I wouldn’t know about that kind of thing, but, even not knowing you all
that well, I feel that you’d have given him the space that he would have
needed.”

“It’s my fault really.”

Alex sighed. “Spare me. Look Captain, I get that you shoulder a lot, but
someone elses guilt…”

“I mean not really, but I could have stopped him before he ever left the
Exeter.”

“Far be it from me to say this to a man in his own study in his own home;
especially when he and his wife have been such gracious hosts, but I’ll
remind you that you tried…and he stabbed you.”

Trip just sighed.

“Skip, the road to madness is paved with ‘what if’s’ and ‘if only’s.’”

“Thing is, I didn’t try hard enough.”

“I’m not sure I know exactly where you’re going with this one.” Alex
admitted.

“Like intellectually I know you are right. But Ravok is good with longer
blades, but he is not a hand to hand combatant. I’m probably one of the
best hand to hand combat specialists on the Exeter and trained with using
my Empathy to anticipate enemy movements. I could have…. I could have
blocked his stabbing blow, with my left hand and knocked him out with my
right. I…. I let him stab me, knowing that the bay knowing I’d survive the
area he was stabbing in. I thought….I thought he needed to run to think, to
clear his head, that some distance would do him good and then he would….he
would come back. I thought if I forced him to stay, locked him up, he would
become more bitter….I chose poorly.”

Alex looked around him, around the study, and saw another picture of Trips
family, with Ash and Ronnie. “Said it to you yesterday, you have a very
beautiful family.” He drank deeply from his beer. “If I may be bold?”

“I’d love for you to be bold.” Trip said. Despite his exterior confidence
and his swagger and charisma, he was still only 23 years old.

“You’re second guessing the un-second-guessable. You need to shut all the
crap out. You’re a young man, young family, with a big job. Ronnie is at
the age where she grows up horribly fast. Happened to my sister. Turn round
twice and a couple of years have gone. Take some time, shut out all the BS
and don’t be ‘Sir’ don’t be ‘Captain’ just be ‘Daddy’ or ‘tidy up your crap
you’re doing my head in dear’” Alex smiled and shrugged. “Turn around twice
and you’ll be my age wondering where the last fifteen years went.”

“I guess you're right.” Trip said, raising his beer in a salute.

Alex shrugged. “Don’t have a family of my own, not now, I remember all
those times Dad never came home, and when he did he was ‘busy’”

“It’s easy to forget that I can’t tell the future. I am allowed to make
mistakes. I mean…I guess….would have been nice to have those years where I
was allowed to screw up and not have catastrophic results.”

“Can’t help you on this one, I’ve flown a desk most of my career.”

“My first day on Mars we were tasked with reviving the fighter wing, my
second day, Ravok, Ire and I gathered in my quarters trying to figure out
how to make it work without someone being in charge. My third day we were
engaged with pirates, my fourth day I was leading the fighter wing at 22 in
a combat mission. I should have been polishing shuttle crafts or flying
around puffy admirals. Sometimes I take all that, take all that
responsibility thrust on me, and think, think I have to keep up that
appearance, that I have to be perfect all the damn time, always make the
perfect choice….If I keep that up…Am I gonna get everyone I love killed?”

“...and some have greatness thrust upon them.” Alex said obliquely. “You
think that there’s a reason for all those scenarios and stuff for the
Command competencies and Bridge Officer exams? It’s for stuff like this, to
give you that toolkit, so when things inevitably go wrong, you can help
self assess. Or failing that.” He nudged his head toward the room where Mrs
Williams was a short while ago. “Find someone who knows you, knows what
buttons to press to stop you circling the drain like you’re in danger of
doing.”

“Yeah. Well I don’t think….okay, I’m circling a bit. My head is just going
through all the calculations and computations. The aftermath so to speak. I
guess….well at least the finality allows us to move forward.”

“Absolutely, and there’s nothing wrong with a debrief. Look, If I’ve
overstepped…”

“No you’re fine. I needed it. Need clarity. It’s why I requested you to
replace Ailynn.”

“That’s a comparison I’ll take.” He took the compliment.

“It will be good to have the wisdom that comes with age on hand for advice
and counsel.”

Alex laughed. “Steady with the age young ‘un.” A deep smile on his face.
“It’s going to be interesting. I’ve read all the logs and reports I could,
recent events notwithstanding, it seems that adventure always finds a place
to happen around you guys. A Q? Your FO went toe to toe with a Pah Wraith?
Never a dull moment eh?”

“Yeah, if I wasn’t married, truth be told, I’d have been more tempted to
willingly shack of with an all powerful trans dimensional beauty.” Trip
said laughing.

“There we are, a laugh and a cheeky smile.” Alex teased the younger man.
“On the mend already.”

“I have a feeling that some of my senior staff, myself included, will
probably struggle with this over the next few weeks. And by feeling, I
mean, well my empathy tingles.”

Alex nodded. “Part of me is glad that I’m removed from that, but I’m also
glad I don’t have those extra ears. We still have time, and whereas I don’t
think that they’ll get over it, slowly, they’ll manage to cope with the
feelings that they’re struggling with.”

“Yeah, Ire, Ire I think if he can just go fly, get that space, he’ll be
fine, as long as he manages not to blow himself up first.”


Alex opened his mouth to ask, but didn’t trust whatever the next question
was going to be.

“Long story, there is a reason he called his fighter Lucky number 13,
because he wasn’t lucky at all.”

“Poor chap. I saw Frosts file too, maybe suggest the two borrow a couple of
Valkyries from the Mars Base, blow some steam off maybe.”

“Hell, I might do that for myself.” Trip said with a simple. “Cortez,
honestly don’t know as well as she should other than she dated two of my
cousins, and well, has been through the ringer once or twice. She was close
to him, good friends from the academy. Like family almost. I…don’t know how
she’ll take it. Might be worth checking in on her over the next few days.
Maybe you could use the getting to know your new crew thing as an excuse to
pop by and see how she’s holding up.”

“I will do.”

“As for Keira….I don’t know what is gonna happen there. She’s as likely to
move on as she is to call in an entire Klingon fleet and wipe out any
evidence those pirates ever existed.”

“Viking Romulan…How badly wrong could that go?”

“I’ve had nightmares.” Trip said with a laugh. “They usually end with my
head on a platter.” Trip smiled to show he was joking.

Alex laughed. “There’s worse solutions to the problem I have to admit.”

“If….she invokes the right of vengeance….I think, I think we might have to
put her on leave and transfer her. And I really don’t want to do that.”

“Joking aside, no we don't. She’s a great Engineer. I don’t think that she
will, but I’ll have counselling continue with sessions anyway.”

“Yeah,” Trip stood up, “I really appreciate this by the way.”

Alex shrugged. “It’s all good. Like I said to you yesterday, I’m not afraid
of disagreeing, or giving counsel, but it’ll always be respectful and in
private.”

“Me too…I’ve already had that experience with a former third officer. Had
to ask her to leave the bridge. I don’t…I don’t want to have to go through
that again.”

“What was he like? Ravok I mean, before all this?”

Trip stood up. “Ravok was so proud and honored to be the first Romulan to
serve in Starfleet. To him that was one of the greatest honors of his life.
I hate to see that it tarnished like it was. But, I think, the fact that he
still had his ring on his hand…gives me hope that he was still in there.”

“I hope so, for both his memory, and your own feelings. Like I said, I
don’t presume to understand much of it, but truly I hope that you were
right. The thought of him going to the grave with that much hatred.”

“You know, I think this is one of those moments where I’m going to go on
believing the best. Believing that the man who helped me rebuild the Mars
Defense Perimiter, that helped turn the 1st Fighter Wing of Mars into what
it is today, that in the end, he was still in there.”

“For the moment, for good or ill, that may be the best option, time may
come that you may need to face other truths, but that’s for a different
day.”

“I mean that's about the only thing I can control in all of this.”

“For the moment, yes, it is. Like I said though. Try not to dwell on it for
the moment. You have better things for your attention.”

“Yeah, speaking off, I should probably go and make an appearance or
something. I can’t leave my very pregnant wife out there all by herself.”

“That’s probably a good move. Not that I know about such matters.”

“And I think, I think, if I can project a calmed presence, maybe the
healing can begin.”

“You have a good bunch of Officers, all have trauma at the moment, but
think of it as a moment of tempering, they’ll all come out stronger.
Which…admittedly you may not if you hide in here instead of helping the Mrs
entertain.” He winked.

“Roger that Father Time. I guess this conference is officially over.” Trip
said as he clinked his beer bottle against Alex’s before downing it.

“Cheeky bugger.” Alex said, leaving the room after Trip, putting the bottle
into the recycler, he grabbed another one, making his way out onto the
porch. He’d annexed enough of the Captain’s time, and others may want to
chat.

Trip then made his way to the den where he lit a warm fire in the fireplace
and sat hoping that the light of the fire could serve some comfort for any
who passed by.

(Reply none, any)
(posted by Will and Mark)
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