A Calm After the Stone (part 2 of 2)

Posted on 02 Feb 2013 @ 11:25am by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm

2,461 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 03 - Frontier
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 2, Stone's Quarters
Timeline: MD-01 0730

Previously on Galileo:

He was skirting this issue, he knew, and it was going to bite him in the ass when she made her report and it got to others in Starfleet, the ones who have been working on running him out since they allowed his torture. "You believe there is a need but then you take that need away because it doesn't suit others? How is that practical, sir?"

And now, the conclusion:

[ON]

He was skirting this issue, he knew, and it was going to bite him in the ass when she made her report and it got to others in Starfleet, the ones who have been working on running him out since they allowed his torture. "You believe there is a need but then you take that need away because it doesn't suit others? How is that practical, sir?"

Once again, Lirha felt herself beginning to get angry. Usually a calm and even-tempered person, she realized that Stone had a knack for pushing her buttons, regardless of whether or not he realized it. Taking a deep breath through her nose, she addressed his question while simultaneously preparing herself to transfer the man off her ship if he kept pushing her. "Yes, Mister Stone, you have a need. And if you cannot see that, then you are the one who is naive, not me." she replied bluntly. "Sidious is not being taken away from you, I simply do not want him on the bridge during your shift unless it is absolutely necessary. Your shift is only six to eight hours per day depending on the number of breaks you take, which still leaves you with ample time to interact and work with him. He was meant to be both a social and work aid for you, Mister Stone, and unfortunately, the bridge is not a social center. It is the starship's command center and contains the most sensitive technology and equipment that can not be operated by a canine without extensive training and retrofitting."

Once again, it came down to his species. cannot be operated by a canine without extensive training and retrofitting. That was telling. That was the crux of it right there. Modifications and accommodations had been made for dozens of other species. Hell, he was told he had to accept that a member of this crew was allowed to threaten and assault others at will because of his species's need but Sidi wasn't even allowed to do what Jeremy was told he would do? He was told they understood but...that was just another pretty lie told by people who expected him to be something that he wasn't. Now another was suffering for it - again. He was the one that was broken so why did he keep breaking others?

He shook his head as he slumped against the wall. "I'll have custody of him transferred to one of the other members of the department, sir. In case you don't realize it, I have no desire to socialize, to be subjected to anymore hate and scorn and unrealistic expectations than I absolutely have to. What makes you think that I-" He swallowed hard as he stared at his hands. "If that doesn't work for Starfleet Command, then he and I will disembark at the starbase and ... I'll see him back to Earth to be reassigned before I..." he shook his head. "Captain, none of this is what Holliday told me when he brought Sidi aboard. I never would have accepted him under these conditions. I certainly wouldn't have taken him on just to be a piece of equipment."

He shook his head. "This isn't...this isn't my Starfleet anymore and I have to stop trying to..." He glanced at her. "Thank you for coming by, Captain but please leave. I have...to make arrangements for Sidi one way or other. I feel it's only fair to inform you, though it may be my last official act as a Starfleet officer, I will be filing a complaint regarding this entire ... incident ... with your superiors." He snorted derisive laughter, "Though you shouldn't worry, if history has taught me anything, it's that nobody is going to care about anything I have to say..."

He felt the room ripping away from him, gravity increasing by a factor of ten. He finally found his breaking point. Finally found the thing that drove him away from Starfleet and it was over a dog? One that'd known for less than a day? But it was better this way. He...he...didn't have pets or friends or...

"Please, go," he said, using what strength he had left to remain in control of himself while she stood victorious and gloating.

Lirha stared back at him with searching eyes for many long moments. She realized she was now caught up in a personal struggle, one which was conflicting with itself. On one side, her new CSEC was rude and disrespectful, received multiple complaints on a daily basis, put members of her crew in the brig, and disrespected fellow officers. But another side of him, arguably the most important, reminded her that he was competent in his duties and had proven himself to be a reliable and proficient officer. She had to think quickly and make her decision.

"Mister Stone, despite what you might think, I actually do care about you and your future in Starfleet." she began, trying her best to be diplomatic. The last thing she wanted was to force the man into a corner and make him quit, but she also couldn't tolerate his continued presence if he didn't improve. "I see many positive qualities in you and I don't want to see you quit and ruin your career. I know you have been through a horrible experience and I want nothing more than to help you...really, I do." she spoke sincerely.

"The issue of having Sidious on the bridge is a contentious one, I admit." she continued with a sigh, "And I am also pleased to see that you have formed such a strong bond with him already in the past two days. But you must understand...he cannot be barking or making sudden movements while he is sitting in the middle of the forward consoles where everyone can see him. He would need to be much more disciplined and complete several holodeck training simulations if you ever hope to have him in either the main bridge or engineering command centers."

He nodded and whispered. "That was my fault, I should have prepared better. I should have made sure he was better prepared for what was going to happen. He's still young yet and inexperienced. Don't blame him when the fault is mine. I'm his handler, I'm his supervisor. I'll take the reprimand for his inappropriateness. I..." he shook his head again. "I would train him to be an asset on the bridge. He's trained nearly his whole life to be a Starfleet officer, this is all he knows as well. He wouldn't even know how to be just a 'pet'."

Lirha continued to watch Stone closely and observed the empathy and dedication which was present in his voice and facial expressions. She had been a trader for ten years during her youth, a Starfleet intelligence chief, and therefore had experience dealing with all types of species and individuals in the Alpha and Beta quadrants. Simply, put, she knew when someone was lying. And the man in front of her wasn't. He seemed to truly care for Sidious, and was willing to do whatever it took to make the appropriate changes. "Very well." she replied simply with a nod. "I will speak with Commander Holliday and compile a daily simulation training routine in one of the holodecks. He has two weeks to complete the program...but if you are truly a great handler, you can probably complete it in one."

He looked up - well down - at her. "Sir?" he asked, confused. But...well...it wasn't unheard of for various non-traditional species to learn to operate control stations. Sidi seemed smart. He was given high marks for his training. The weak link was him. Two weeks? That would put them back at Starbase 185. "He'll be ready. He can do it, but I'm afraid his handicap will be his handler."

"Handicap?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, wondering what exactly he meant by that phrase.

"Sorry, Terran word," he said wondering if the universal translator was on the fritz as well as the wireless computer access. How widespread a ship malfunction was this? "It means a condition or circumstance that limits normal operating parameters for an otherwise average being."

Suppressing a smirk, Lirha shook her head. "Yes, I am familiar with the word. What I meant specifically was, how will your handicap affect his training?" she genuinely wondered. "You seem like a dedicated enough officer to be able to accomplish the task..."

"Oh," he said, shaking his head. That should have been an easy one to get. "He's smarter than I am," he said. "Has a better memory, more easily trainable and..." here he frowned. "People seem to like him on sight. And I'm not a...I'm not a very good trainer or teacher. That requires patience. But it'll be done, Captain, you'll see. You won't have to have any concerns about him on the Bridge."

He frowned again. "Though, he does think the most comfortable seats are his. That might be a difficult habit to break. He's kind of stubborn in some ways."

"No exceptions, Mister Stone." the captain interjected. "I am fond of my new chair and would prefer to not have dog dander all over it. And I am sure that the other bridge officers feel the same way." she added, then paused so shift her weight on her feet. "As I explained, he will have to successfully pass a series of simulations for the ship's two command centers. After I am satisfied with his discipline and performance, his presence will then be allowed on the bridge during your shift. I will be sure to send the training information to your PADD before the end of the day, today."

"Yes, sir," Jeremy said, frowning as he thought about the materials he would need. The panels were...his paws would have problems with a normal panel but...he saw the solution to that. "He's not allowed on the furniture in here either." Jeremy said knowing that was true. But how to configure the station? And two weeks? He let the breath out.

"Sir?" he said, staring at his feet. "I do know that I have problems. It would be a lot easier if I didn't know that, but I do know it. It took me a long time to get to that point but I'm there."

Lirha nodded slightly at the man's admission, then casually waved her green hand. "At some point in our lives, we all have issues that we need to deal with...some of then just happen to be more glaring and difficult than others, but none of them are an easy task. It is always easier to run away from adversity than to confront it, and I am happy you have decided to stay aboard Galileo." she responded. "I think your counseling sessions will help you to greatly improve." she added.

Sensitivity training, not counseling he thought to himself. One helped the other didn't but...he didn't think he decided to stay, in fact he was pretty sure it was the opposite. But he wouldn't leave when the arrived at the starbase tomorrow. He'd wait for their return because by then he would have trained Sidi to work the station or not, but the bigotry would be exposed. He wasn't going to leave until he accomplished that much. "Thank you, sir."

Without a duty shift today he could get a start working with Sidi.

"Don't thank me just yet, Mister Stone." she replied with a sideways smirk. "There is still much work to be done."

Unclipping her PADD from the side of her belt, she leaned against the wall as she input a series of commands into the small device, resulting in an audible medley of soft computer tones. About a minute passed before she completed her task, then reclipped the device back to her waist and looked up at the lieutenant. "I have restored your security clearance and computer access for the time being." she explained. "And you are cleared to return to active duty. You may report to your station as soon as you are ready."

"What?" he asked, frowning. "My computer access and clearances were...you removed them? Why? Sir?" At least that explained why he wasn't able to access the computer from his PADD or desk system through the night - which stopped him from completing some work he still had to do. Fortunately he had all the necessary materials to finish the two reports for Holliday - which he had done. But...why would she remove his computer access? What was she trying to prevent him from doing?

"Why?" she repeated with a raised eyebrow. "Because after I confined you to quarters and Chief Quinn sealed your door, you somehow managed to override his authorization and open them again. I was tempted to simply cuff you and put you in the brig for the night, but decided it would be easier for me to simply post guards outside of your quarters and remove your LCARS access." she explained.

"Anyway, I have to report to the bridge. I trust I will see you there shortly." she finished as she turned on her heels and stepped towards the door, then turned and looked back over her shoulder. "And one last thing, Mister Stone....no more complaints from the crew about your behavior. I mean it."

"I followed every order you gave me," he muttered, knowing just how useless it was. He sighed and shook his head. It was odd to finally have an end date. Two weeks. Their return to SB 185 and he was done. He'll have proved them wrong regarding Sidi by then and...he sighed. There was nothing left. Starfleet had passed him by. He turned to his room as the Captain left. Two weeks...or however long it was until they returned to SB 185, he still had a duty to perform. He snorted. Not that it mattered. Nothing he did around here mattered. Only what they believed of him.

[OFF]

--

CAPT Lirha Saalm
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

LTjg Jeremy Stone
Chief Security/Tactical Officer/K9
USS Galileo

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