With Orders to Relax

Posted on 02 Apr 2025 @ 9:40am by Lieutenant T'Lara Ahmad & Lieutenant Commander Temerant Bast

2,026 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Shoreleave and Reassignment
Location: Starbase 375
Timeline: Following "Home"

The transport back from Trill finished its docking sequence, and the passengers on the transport all stood from their seats, collecting their belongings and getting in line to exit the ship. Bast let everyone walk out before getting up himself, collecting his bag from storage and walking out the hatch with a few other stragglers. He was now walking without the help of a cane. His leg, while not back to its full strength, could now bear his full weight. He only required a mild analgesic a couple of times a day.

He deposited his bag in another area, where it would be transferred to his assigned cabin down on Elysia, before making his way to Fleet Maintenance, where he knew the engineering team would be assembling to coordinate repairs on the Cygnus. Most of the Engineering team would still be on leave on Elysia, but a quarter of the surviving team would rotate in and out over the next several weeks and months, for periods of two weeks at a time, to help out the Starbase teams and expedite the refit.


T'Lara had taken Captain Bane's suggestion to take leave on the planet with due consideration but did not act on the recommendation. Days passed, and still she remained on the station, or lurking about Cygnus overseeing the substantial repairs in whatever capacity she could. She told herself that she wasn't hiding; but it somehow felt that way. Perhaps it would be easiest for all involved to request a transfer? Even with reviewing her personal logs, her life prior to the explosion on the ship had been utterly wiped away. It was like reading a fiction; not a single log sparked a glimmer of memory.

Slowly exhaling, T'Lara closed down her computer screen and instead sat motionless staring at the blank screen. She sat in the remains of her office. Oh, the debris had been cleaned away, but the space had been stripped down to the bulkheads to remove the scorching and had the replacement panels had not yet been re-installed. It somehow felt comfortable, somehow echoing her mental state.

It spoke of T'Lara's level of distraction that Bast was able to not only enter Main engineering but make it to her office--sans door--before she even discerned his presence.

"C-commander--" T'Lara started and quickly pushed herself away from her desk to stand.

Bast smiled at the Chief Engineer. She hadn't been at the Fleet Maintenance HQ on the starbase as he'd expected, but perhaps, he thought, he shouldn't be all that surprised to find her here. She was an engineer through and through, as he had been before he was Joined. Of course she'd want to oversee most of the repairs firsthand.

"I'm sorry if I'm disrupting your meditation," he said apologetically. "I just got back from medical leave, I wanted to check up on the repair schedule. I see they're pretty far along with the dismantlement." He looked down at the floor. "Though that ugly carpet is still here."

"Repairs are proceeding on schedule. I have been placed in the periphery of this process. It is most...dissatisfying." T'Lara looked down to the aforementioned carpet and silently agreed with Bast's assessment. "Indeed. I can put in a request to have it removed...perhaps a replicator 'accident' regarding a colorful, permanent dye?" Her eyes widened at her own flippancy.

"Or maybe something that would leave a smell so strong the Starbase engineers simply won't be able to ignore it. We could smash a few durian fruit on the carpet," he suggested. He turned toward her, regaining his composure. "As for being on the periphery, don't take it personally. This refit includes the Engineering personnel, but also requires a lot of operational coordination - not just from us, but from Starbase Operations as well. They have specialists rotating in and out of the Cygnus and onto other ships currently in for equally massive refits. You're focused on the Cygnus, but Commodore Xaeralan is currently overseeing twenty-six similar refits, he has to look at the much larger picture. You may think you've been sidelined, but you'll be called upon whenever they're ready for you. In the meantime, after everything we've been through, everyone deserves... Hell, everyone needs a break. You've been granted shore leave, I strongly suggest you take it."

"It is my ship." T'Lara replied, perhaps with a little too much passion for a Vulcan. She had taken being shuffled to the sidelines on the repairs rather badly. Who knew the ins and outs of the ship like it's chief engineer, and no one had sought her out for her expertise. That was why she sat in her destroyed office during her duty shift hours reviewing repair logs and acquisition forms so at least she had some understanding of just what was going into this new iteration of Cygnus. "I am Vulcan. I do not require such...down time." Oh, she was stubborn too.

Bast raised an eyebrow at T'Lara's sudden tone. The inflection had been subtle, but it hadn't gone unnoticed. "You don't need as much downtime as the others, perhaps," he conceded. "But everyone needs a bit of downtime now and then. Keep in mind that Commodore Xaeralan is no fool. He was part of the team that designed most the latest classes of Starfleet ships coming out of Spacedock these days. The man might be a bit strange, but he knows his way around an engine room, believe me."

He looked around and saw that there was no other chair for him to sit. He opted to sit on the nearest console, which was deactivated anyway. "As for your lack of involvement and your feeling of being sidelined, I have the feeling that most of the planning was done while you and I were both hospitalized. They might not be aware that you've returned to duty just yet. I'll try to pull a few strings and get you back in the loop."

"I would...appreciate that." T'Lara responded after some consideration. It wasn't exactly a Vulcan statement but it adequately conveyed how she felt regarding Bast's offer to assist. She chose to ignore the first part of his comment. Why did everyone think that she required so much relaxation in order to function? As it was there was so much she couldn't recall that it was imperative that she keep working as if somehow it would magically unlock the damaged part of her memories.

"How are you faring, sir?" A change of subject was in order.

"Better," he replied. He stretched his leg, feeling a bit of stiffness in the quadriceps. "I still need a bit of physical therapy for my leg." He started as characters suddenly.spramg into view. Air pressure, surface temperature readings, radiation levels. He blinked them away. "And I'm still getting used to the artificial eye."

"That is agreeable news. It was unfortunate you lost your eye, however, I have heard that your survival was not certain at first. It is gratifying that you have recovered." T'Lara paused momentarily. "Have you visited the planet yet?"

"No, not yet. I've seen holos, but I haven't had a chance to go. I need to be briefed by the refit team at the shipyard before I go, but hopefully by the end of the week I should be able to visit Elysia. I hope to see you there as well," he said pointedly.

"I will consider it." T'Lara responded, and then sighed, realizing she was being rather obstinate. "I am partial to the warmth of my quarters. It is familiar...comfortable. Elysia appears to have so much...water."

"It does," conceded Bast. "But if water's not your thing, there are a number of villas up in the hills. A walking distance from the accommodations on the beach, but far enough up the hills to be all but hidden in the jungle. There is a small simian species living there. Harmless, although from what I hear they can be a bit of a nuisance if you leave any fruit lying around on the terrace."

"Indeed." T'Lara responded, utterly nonplussed at the thought of fighting with tiny alien creatures over fruit - which happened to be an epicurean weakness of hers. "You have made a convincing argument..." to remain on the ship. She added silently.

Enough! she chastised herself. She was acting like a petulant child, but the truth was taking 'leave' felt like acceptance to this new reality...or perhaps surrender. T'Lara had all but convinced herself that if she simply buckled down and stayed busy with the work of the ship that somehow everything would return to normal...but there were be no returning to once was and with the new chaos in her mind where once order resided...it was...unnerving.

She had never felt more alone. Even after her parents death, Malik had been there to help her navigate. Here she was on her own.

Bast eyed the Chief Engineer closely. He had spent enough time among Vulcans, during two of his three lifetimes, to be able to discern the emotions that were playing out on T'Lara's face. Even through her considerable self-control, subtle hints crept through. Though the uninitiated would never have noticed a thing, Bast knew better.

He also knew better than to bring it up, but in his role as First Officer, it was also his responsibility to make sure she took the requires time to rest and heal, and return to duty at her best.

He pulled out a PaDD from one of the few maintenance drawers that hadn't been emptied, and logged into the system. "Hillside Villa T-36 is unassigned."

He tapped the device, and a holorepresentation of the villa sprang into view. The small house was located about a third of the way up the hill. The back was surrounded by what appeared to be a thick jungle, while the front faced the sunset. A deck with a high privacy wall was on the left side, with a small private swimming pool, lounge chairs, and a meditation mat - that last one being an addition he'd just tapped in as an added selling point.

"Should I put your name on the reservation list?"

T'Lara recognized that she had been outmaneuvered. Damn. She thought silently, feeling a wave of giddiness course through her at the use of a human colorful metaphor. "As you believe I will somehow benefit from this unneeded leave, I will acquiesce to your recommendation." Of course it was not said in a sarcastic manner at all.

"I do believe it will be beneficial for everyone. Including the Starbase maintenance crew, who need to be able to do their job without us breathing down their necks. They know what they're doing, and we can have several rounds of inspection throughout the refit to set things straight, if need be."

He entered T'Lara's name on the reservation form. "You're all set for Villa T-36. I look forward to seeing you down on the surface. I'm thinking of a dinner party at Uncle Lim's, at some point. I think it would do us all some good to socialize a bit, the last time the crew was assembled was at the memorial service."

He stood and replaced the PaDD in the drawer where he'd found it. "Anyway I'll let you pack your bags. I'll talk to Commodore Xaeralan's team and have you included in the briefings, which you can attend remotely from the villa. Does that sound like a good plan?"

"It is...a compromise." It was most likely the best she could 'hope' for. T'Lara wasn't the sort to disobey directives from her superiors. Preferred or not, it would appear she was going to take 'leave.'

"Good," said Bast, satisfied. "I'll see you down on the planet then." With a final nod, he walked out of Engineering, and headed back for the Station.

- - - -


A mission post by

Lt. Cmdr Temerant Bast
First Officer, USS Cygnus

And

Lt. T'Lara Ahmad
Chief Engineer, USS Cygnus

 

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