In The Beginning

Posted on 16 Apr 2014 @ 4:03pm by Cadet Sophomore Grade Alenis Taban & Senior Chief Petty Officer Keval zh'Erinov

2,280 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Episode 06 - Legend of Souls
Location: USS Galileo - Operations Office
Timeline: MD 2 - 1500 hours

[ON]

Keval had a lot on his mind. He usually did, even at night he had trouble turning his mind off. Especially if he was trying to solve a problem. Usually those problems revolved around something at work. Some issue with security or communications systems that he specialized in or on occasion other concerns that other people brought to him.

Now though it wasn't technical issues but personal ones he was facing. The whole thing with Asahi and Elijah and whether what was happening with either of them would turn into anything more than friendship.

So he decided to go in early just to tinker, to get his mind off of things. So he walked into the department's main office and came face to face with one of the largest men, well boys, he had ever seen.

Both antennae stiffened slightly until he saw the cadet's uniform. "Can I help you?" he asked.

Taban looked up from his PADD suddenly and immediately his eyes started moving nervously between the PADD and the Andorian's face. "Errrr..." he finally said "I think I'm alright thanks, Chief... unless I'm on the wrong deck again. This is the Operations Office, isn't it, Chief..." He scanned his PADD with his eyes again to try and catch the Andorian's name from the manifest. "Graysan?"

"Relax," said the Petty Officer,"you're on the right deck. Don't worry about it. It is the Operations Office and you can just call me Keval, its okay Cadet. Has anyone shown you around yet? Sounds like you're kind of lost."

"No, Sir... Keval... Chief... Keval..." he replied quickly and with a stutter. "Sorry, Chief, I'm here for field study assignment from Beta Ursae Minor II arrived this morning on the Jian'Karra. I only got here thirty seconds before you arrived so was just getting my bearings." He paused to breath for a moment. "Thanks, Chief."

Keval let out a small chuckle It didn't surprise him that the cadet was Cardassian. After all they were here to find out was was going on at the mining colony. Nor did he have special negative feelings about the man's race. He couldn't help who his parents were. "you're welcome. You're going to need to report in to the department head, but I can show you around the ship first if you want."

"Thanks, Chief. That would be greatly appreciated. I didn't want to disturb Lieutenant..." he glanced down to his PADD to double check the name while he replied "Zhao on bridge duty unnecessarily so I thought I'd check down here first." He paused for a second as he glanced around the office "Are there many in the department?"

"There's about a dozen of us, give or take. The Science Department is by far the biggest department on the ship but they really can't do much with us and Engineering to back them up.

Have picked a field to specialize in? And you said you were here on field study, what field? If you don't mind me asking."

The Cadet nodded at the former comment and made a note of the number on his PADD. "I'm still deciding for certain," he responded sheepishly with his eyes glued to the PADD "I'm probably most interested in Operations Division, and for now Operations itself appeals most to me so I applied for field study in Ops, but I'm also looking at Security and Flight Control." He neglected to mention his experiences on the Jian'Karra and the impact they had on his interests.

"Well, sounds like you have lots of options. I bet a big, strong guy like you, has the Security Recruiter drooling. If you went with Operations is there any specific area you'd study?"

Taban shuffled awkwardly and glanced from side to side at the former comment. "I guess I've always liked fixing stuff... and I've done most with computers, comms systems, and power management. Patching up a rust bucket like the Jian'Karra for four years teaches you all sorts of tricks." He half chucked at the end of the statement, but realised he'd inadvertently spoken about the freighter and clammed up again.

Keval's right antennae curled forward slightly," Jian'Karra? Sounds like there's a story behind that name. I'll buy you a drink if you want and you can tell me all about it."

As much as was possible for a Cardassian - even a half-Bajoran - to blush, Taban did. "Oh... errr... yes, thank you Chief. I'd... I'd like that." The blaze way in which the Andorian made the offer made Alenis immediately wonder if the 'official' line in which enlisted and commissioned didn't exist to anywhere near the same degree in practice as he'd been led to believe at the Academy. On the other hand... he wasn't commissioned, yet, and the Chief Petty Officer was technically in the same role as he was. Either way... after not long aboard at all this was a most welcome offer to the youngster, who had assumed he'd be quite lonely on board. "Is there anywhere here I can leave my bag, Chief?" He asked as he lowered the duffel bag from his shoulder to the floor. "I've not been assigned my quarters yet."

"You can stow it at my place. I'm sure my roommate won't mind. And we'll stop by the Quartermaster's Office and get you assigned though I should forewarn you that he tends to flirt with all the new guys."

Taban smiled. "Thank you, Chief." He paused for a moment before adding. "And thanks for the tip. Betazoid, is he then?" He smiled to himself and chuckled inwardly as he remembered the various jokes Berant had told him about Betazoids over the past few years.

"Yes he is and he is pretty much the stereotypical Betazid. Don't get me wrong he's a nice enough guy and I'm sure if you make it clear you're not interested, assuming you wouldn't be interested and my gaydar says you're not, he'll respect your boundaries. You just have to be firm with him."

"Just think 'no', loudly." muttered the Cadet, hardly loud enough for the Andorian to hear, but with a nervous chuckle which followed and drew attention to the attempt at humour. With an edgy shift on his feet he glanced around the room once more and took a deep breath "I'd better not waste your whole shift, but thank you so much, Chief. Where to, then?"

"My room. its not far from here, drop off your stuff and we head to the to the new lounge I've still got 45 minutes or so before my shift even starts."

The hybrid immediately smiled. "Oh, wow... Chief, I didn't want to impose on your time off... are you sure?"

"It's no imposition Cadet, I just came in early to distract myself and while I love tinkering, I'd rather distract myself by talking with someone than tinkering."

The Cardassian/Bajoran hybrid couldn't help but hide the smile which spread over his face. "I thought I was the only one who liked tinkering..." he murmured as they proceeded into the corridor "maybe I'm right for Operations after all then." He joked, though nervously.

Keval clapped a hand on the bigger man's shoulder then looked at him a bit closer as they headed down the hallway towards the turbolift. "You're not 100% Cardassian are you?"

Immediately at the mention of the accursed species' name he shrugged the hand away from his shoulder and stopped where he stood in he corridor. "I'm Bajoran born and raised. That's all." He replied, in a low snarling growl of a tone."

Keval took a step back, both of his antennae stiffing. "Stand down Cadet," he exclaimed in a loud stage whisper, "I didn't mean anything by my statement and you better learn to control that temper of yours."

Taban's face went through a series of awkward twitches between rage, remorse, annoyance (probably self-directed), and regret. His eyes, though, almost seemed to turn a deeper shade of blue, open wider, and anchor themselves to the floor, though if one could have caught a glance of them one would have only seen hurt, pain, and a deep-seated inner-torment. After an awkwardly long pause he finally mumbled an apology. "Sorry, Chief, I... I... I just don't like that word. It's... it's just not who I am. Not who I ever could be..." He sighed for a moment and slumped against the corridor wall for a second. Finally raising his head to look the Andorian in the eye he spoke in an animated whisper "I guess... I guess I'm just a little on edge that there are so many Cardassians here... I've never met one outside the orphanage... and... well... that was different."

Keval watched the cadet's face and body language, he observed the changes, but not being a telepath knew none of the specifics, though he could guess at some of them.

"It's okay. I don't pretend to know what you're going though, but you must really be confused and hurting. We can skip the lounge if you want someplace more private. We'd have more privacy at my place. But that's up to you."

Taban mused for a moment. "Thanks, Chief, but... no... I just need to push through it." He moved himself off the bulkhead an started moving down the corridor again 'May as well get all the funny looks out of the way now, I suppose.' He thought to himself. That was always one thing he had never understood about people... the way they reacted to new faces - especially in small communities. Growing up in the orphanage he'd been so used to seeing faces coming and going he had never considered it anything other than the norm. The Jian'Karra had exposed him to plenty of 'shadier' small trading posts where, on the few occasions where he left the ship, he would cause quite a large stir - and he supposed this was just the same all over again, and probably would be throughout whatever career he might have.

"Up to you, like I said, so you can just toss your stuff in my place and we'll head to the lounge."

The Cadet nodded and replied, trying to sound as assertive as he could - though not particularly succeeding - "Lead the way, Chief!" as they closed the gap to the turbolift and he pressed the call button. "How long have you served on the Galileo then, Chief?"

'I've been here about nine months or so. It's a really good ship, I like her."

As they stepped into the turbolift and it started moving upwards the Cadet stood quietly... rapidly running out of what Berant would have termed 'small talk' and not wishing to annoy the closest thing he had to a friend on board with irrelevant chatter. Once the turbolift stopped he followed the Andorian down the corridor until he stopped outside a door marked '04-1006 EN'. Swinging his duffel bag off his shoulder and clutching it under his arm he again thanked the Chief while making sure he had everything he needed and preparing to hand the bag over. "Much obliged again, Chief, thanks." He pulled a second PADD, containing his orders, from the end pocket, though along with it came a small, battered stuffed animal in the shape of a Bajoran hara cat which fell to the floor and bounced in front of the Chief's feet.

Taban immediately tensed up and, dropping to his knees, made a grab for the small animal, but only succeeded in bumping his forearm into Keval's right boot. "Oh... err... sorry, Chief." he stammered at a whisper before finally getting hold of the animal and stuffing it back into the end pocket of his bag and hastily sealing it again.

Keval bit down on his lip to keep from laughing. Amused not so much by the fact that a grown man, especially one so large would have a stuffed animal, but that he would be so embarrassed by it.

"It's okay," he managed to say once he could keep a straight face, "Your secret is safe with me. I didn't see a thing."

Alenis tried to recompose himself. Keval was the first person outside of his 'family' on the Jian'Karra to ever see Hara. In all his years at the orphanage he'd kept the toy safely hidden away behind a broken wall panel behind his bed - for fear that the other children would steal it from him. To say he had 'trust-issues' relating to Hara would definitely be an understatement. He had no idea how to proceed... he'd normally only allow a trusted friend to see Hara... but Keval hadn't tried to steal him... and he'd agreed to keep the animal a secret. Somewhere very deep down in Taban's subconscious that immediately made the Andorian a trusted friend.

Finally, he glanced up as he rose from his knees and mumbled "Thanks... Keval." in response. He handed the bag to the Chief with a nod and a nervous smile.

Keval took the bag, then reached down to help Alenis up. "You're welcome, he responded. Now let's get to the lounge, you can tell me your story and I can give you the grand tour."

Taban smiled and nodded. "Lead on then, Chief." The idea of 'telling his story' wasn't necessarily something he was entirely comfortable with - in any situation - but he felt like the Chief had earned it at the very least for all his help and the warm welcome.

OFF:

Cadet (Sophomore Grade) Alenis Taban
Operations Officer (provisional)
USS Galileo

&

CPO Keval Grayson
Operations
PNPCJared Nicholas
USS Galileo

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