Out of Joint

Posted on Wed Feb 5th, 2025 @ 5:23pm by Captain Malcom Llwyedd & Lieutenant Commander Rhiana t'Aegis & Lieutenant JG Zub Enel

3,469 words; about a 17 minute read

Mission: Interlude 1 Gamma Quadrant
Location: Main Security Centre DS18
Timeline: After LtJG Enel’s Lunch with Abi

[ON]

Barreling along like a charging beachball on stilts, Zub Enel's boots clomped on the Security deck of DS18 as he swept out huge strides. His PADD chimed again.

“Gah!” He cried without looking at it. Another reminder of his meeting with Lt. Commander t’Aegis. His yell made several passing Security members widen their eyes and steer a course further from his own.

Forty-five minutes! That’s how long he’d kept the Commander waiting while he had a sumptuous lunch with his new friend Abi Gordon. Captain Llwyedd’s able yeoman must have contacted the Chief Security/Tactical Officer for a meeting moments after Zub left the Ready Room. The alert had come to his PADD but he was too busy finding the mess hall to notice. He’d meant to just pop in for a quick snack.

“Forty! Five! Minutes!” He heard himself shout. He saw the closed door to the Chief Sec/Tac’s office. He fought the urge to sprint the last few yards and burst in on her all full of abject apologies.

He’d seen her from afar when he was detailed to the base for ad hoc Security. A Romulan. No nonsense. Icy. A panicked entry wouldn’t do. He knew he was in deep coprolite for keeping her waiting, but he also knew to at least show some composure. His boots squeaked on the deck as he halted. He needed several deep calming breaths. Eleven of them.

He reached out and tapped the call button next to the door.

Nothing happened.

Or at least, the button did its dutiful chime to announce the visitor, but the door did not open.

The office was located just off of the reception area of the main security office. Even with an extremely reduced security staff, Enel was not alone. A handful of security officers were sitting at workstations in the open space and they all watched him as he was catching his breath. The reception desk was occupied as well, a young woman with the rank of Petty Officer 1st Class was sitting behind it. She had glanced at the big Voth as well, but she was professional enough to more quickly return to her duties. Contrary to him, they all had been working closer with the chief of security than him. They knew her. And they thought they knew what would be awaiting him. They almost felt pity, as much pity as one can have with a seven-foot-tall Voth.

After a few moments with the door still closed, the dark-blonde Petty Officer took her eyes off of her screen and looked at Enel. "Can I help you?" Her tone was friendly and she had a light smile, but there was also a slight undertone that suggested that it would have been a good idea to not ignore her in the first place.

Standing at rigid attention before the closed door, Zub Enel’s heart had slowed to where it no longer drummed in his ears. He had expected some sort of reaction to his tardiness, especially to someone as high ranking as Lt Commander t’Aegis. And he agreed he deserved whatever that reaction was. He steeled himself. He was already in thick.

“Sir?” the female voice said from behind him. Rich in timbre, professional, but it carried the faintest frisson of annoyance.

Realizing he’d heard her speak to him a moment before, he wheeled about, arms stiffly at his sides. He could see the other staff watching him now. Whatever decorum was practiced in this office, he realized that in his haste he had blindly rushed past the reception desk and entered the lion’s den unannounced. He swallowed. He had already torpedoed himself.

He smiled at the young woman. He approached gingerly and stood in front of her desk at attention, his golden-eyed gaze straight ahead, soaring above her dark blonde tresses. “Lieutenant Junior Grade Zub Enel reporting.”

"Enel...," the Petty Officer repeated and looked it up on her workstation. "Ah yes. You had an appointment with Commander t'Aegis 48 minutes ago, but you didn't show up." She looked up at him questioningly, waiting.

Zub broke his stare at the wall straight ahead. He looked down at the humanoid female. Head craned back; she peered up at him. Intelligence glinted in her eyes. She was likely the counterpart to Captain Llwyedd’s yeoman Kipp.

Enel decided to avoid any unnecessary explaining of himself. He’d already shown up unforgivably late and then had cluelessly zoomed past her, obviating her gatekeeping duties. His chances of success at anything else ad hoc didn’t strike him as good. “That is correct. I apologize for the delay. Is she too busy now to see me? I’d completely understand if so. Happy to reschedule.”

He pressed his lips together to shut down his urge to babble effusively. He brought his gaze back up to straight forward, his back straight, his three-fingered hands pressed to the sides of his trousers.

"You don't need to apologise to me," she said and nodded at a row of three chairs that lined the outer wall of the chief of security's office. "Have a seat. The commander wants to see you today."

The emphasis of his not having to apologize to the Petty Officer was not lost on Zub Enel. She wasn’t the one in need of an apology.

“Very good,” he said. He decided not to do a crisp Academy Left or Right face and march about the office like a wooden soldier. He was confident he was already the object of scorn by the staff working there. He relaxed his stance and walked to the chairs.

He wondered if picking one was yet some other test.

Take the middle one; he was a dominating, selfish pig guilty of stuffing his craw instead of responding immediately to the security chief’s hail.

Take the one furthest from the door; he was a sniveling coward so afraid of being scolded that he withdrew as far as possible from the source of conflict.

Take the one closest to the door; he was a reckless fool who couldn’t tell time nor check his PADD regularly.

Pig. Coward. Fool. It didn’t help him, no matter which chair he chose. He settled into the one closest to the door. The seat was so low that his knees bent up to his chin. He straightened his long legs and tugged his trouser seams until perfectly straight. He put his hands and PADD in his lap. He kept his gaze from darting around the office. Calm he was. Dead calm. Dead. Calm. Dead...

Some time passed.

And then some more.

The security officers had returned to their duties now that at least part of the show was over.

It was quiet in the office. Sometimes, one of the officers stood from their chair to walk over to a colleague to discuss something or other. At one point, one of them disappeared further into the security centre. Some time after that, two security guards arrived and chatted with the petty officer at the reception. There were a few muted laughs.

No sound nor movement came from the office of the chief of security.

Eventually, the wide double doors to the security centre opened again and Commander t'Aegis walked in.

Backs were straightened.

Banter stopped.

Everything became even more business-like than before.

The two guards at the reception desk half-stood at attention when the Romulan in Starfleet uniform approached and only gave a curt nod in their direction.

"I've sent you the documents for your next meetings, Commander," the petty officer said before Rhiana uttered a single word. She sounded professional and respectful, not intimidated. "You have also received an urgent request from Captain Zurek of the SS Latinum's Glory for a meeting regarding his cargo. And Lieutenant Enel is waiting for you." That last bit was accompanied by a nod in the Voth's direction.

Rhiana nodded along with that status update and at the mention of Enel, she turned her head to glance at him briefly before she looked back at the petty officer. "Thank you, de Vries. Set up a meeting with Captain Zurek for today."

"That'll be difficult," de Vries replied as she looked at her computer screen. "Your calendar is pretty full. But I'll arrange something," she added quickly, seeing a potential to rearrange other appointments.

"Good," Rhiana replied without another word turned away from the reception desk, and walked to her office. The door leading into the space slid open before her but she did not cross the threshold. Instead, she looked at the Voth with an unreadable expression on her face.

"Come."

Zub Enel had leaped up when Commander t'Aegis walked in. Ignored by everyone as their attention naturally centered on the arriving commander, he still followed protocol to rise to attention when a superior officer entered.

Her glance toward him after Petty Officer de Vries mentioned him had been direct but inscrutable. As she approached her office, he felt his hands along his trouser seams grow frosty. Steeling himself for a fit of pique, one he richly deserved, he stood facing the double doors even as she came to his side and her presence triggered her office door.

At her order to follow, he replied crisply, “Yes, ma’am!”

"'Yes, sir'," Rhiana automatically corrected him. "I am not a civilian." Without waiting for a reply, she stepped through the open doors into her office. It was a large room, but not unusually so for a station of this size. It contained a large desk with a comfortable chair, two visitors' chairs, and, a little off to the side, a small sitting area, but was devoid of any personal touches.

Rhiana walked around her perfectly tidy desk on which lay only a single PADD. She did not sit down but remained standing with her hands clasped behind her back in a position not unlike parade rest. Her eyes were on Voth who was almost a foot taller than her and considerably bulkier. Nevertheless, she did not appear to be intimidated or worried by that fact.

The scaly Voth stood at attention before the Chief Security and Tactical Officer. Her tidy office and perfectly-in-order appearance shouted that he was in a serious spick-and-span situation in front of a seriously spick-and-span officer. Already in trouble for tardiness, he didn’t want to make a further mess of greeting his new boss.

His golden-eyed gaze was fixed straight ahead over the tall and slender Romulan’s head. He stood with his back straight, arms to his side, his PADD held against his thigh and the inside of his wrist with long, clawed fingers. He prepared himself to be left standing that way for as long as Commander t'Aegis deemed appropriate.

He made sure he’d emphasized her preferred honorific. “Lieutenant JG Zub Enel reporting, SIR!”

The chief of security indeed took her time to respond to that announcement. While the Voth had to stare straight ahead, she spent was looking at him. Taking in his stance. The state of his uniform. The way he was breathing. Whether he dared to blink or not.

It might seem like an eternity to Enel, but in reality, it was only a few moments. She was trying to make him figuratively sweat without drawing this out too long because that would be a waste of time for both of them.

"You are late," she stated without inflection. Maybe it was a question. Or an invitation for an explanation. Or simply a fact.

His deep voice was partly muted by the carpet and acoustical ceiling. “Perhaps not, sir. I could be extremely early for our next meeting.”

The silence was as frigid as deepest space itself. He wasn’t at all sure why he had tried humor. She seemed a most focused Starfleet officer. She’d probably decide to cut her losses and march him out of an airlock.

He began again. “I sincerely apologize for wasting your time, Commander t’Aegis. I have no excuse for it. I should have come directly from Captain Llwyedd’s office. I became distracted. No disrespect was intended, sir.”

He pressed his lips together to prevent himself from babbling out three more apologies.

She gave him nothing and merely continued to look at him. No raised eyebrow. No change in her stance. No indication at all as to what she was thinking. Though of course that and her silence through that attempt at a joke were likely already telling enough.

"What was more distracting than your duty?" Her tone was not incredulous nor exasperated. It was merely a request for additional information.

Zub Enel unlocked his knees so he wouldn’t pass out and topple onto her like a rotten snag. His eyelids scraped down dried-out corneas as he blinked once at the wall. He didn’t slouch, but he relaxed his tight abdominal muscles. It occurred to him that if Commander t’Aegis was making him cool his nacelles, he would be comfortable waiting her out. He relaxed the shackles on his brain.

He said, “Rhetorically, the correct response is that nothing should distract a Starfleet officer from duty. That’s drilled into us, starting....”

He recalled her tone. She’d asked a genuinely curious question about distraction from duty; a question not only about how such an unthinkable could be possible, but also whether there was anything good during duty that wasn’t duty. Something she had missed all her life until this moment. An answer she deeply wanted.

Involuntarily, he looked down at her. Her expression, impassive. Her eyes, though dark, were like a little girl’s, on tiptoes looking out a porthole at a passing grand ship she could never board.

He wondered about what lived beneath her layers of reserve and buttoned-down exterior. Vulcans had physically smaller brain areas to generate emotions. Vulcan reserve came naturally. Romulans had equally prodigious self-control, but like Terrans, Klingons, and Ferengi were highly emotional beings. Few races were as dangerous as a Romulan riled.

Her question begged another; was she wanting to be someone other than her duty?

"I had an officer flogged for insubordination once," Rhiana remarked in the same matter-of-fact tone she had used earlier after another moment of silence. "Alas, Starfleet and the Federation frown upon corporeal punishment." Her voice held just a hint of regret before it turned cold. "If you continue spouting philosophical rubbish instead of answering a simple question, Lieutenant Junior Grade, I will make certain that you will get ample time to think about your attitude while you are scouring the narrowest Jeffries tubes aboard this station with a toothbrush. In addition to a report in your personnel file for dereliction of duty."

Zub swallowed hard as he returned to attention. He could half-believe this Romulan had someone flogged and only reluctantly acquiesced to Federation sensitivities. “Understood, sir. I was late because there was no appointment when I left the captain’s ready room. I slipped into the mess hall to replicate a quick snack. Instead, I met an interesting cadet nurse and an amazing chef. I sat with the two conversing over a delicious lunch. I noticed the appointment and subsequent alerts well into my meal. My tardiness was due entirely to inattentiveness on my part. I assure you, sir, it will never happen again.”

Rhiana finally moved. Stepping around her desk, she stood before Enel and looked up at him. "Your behaviour until now has not given me any reason to trust you, Lieutenant." The Romulan's tone was very quiet and ice-cold now. "Not only were you late and inattentive - an inexcusable offense for any security officer - you also utterly disregarded the chain of command by flagging a potential security threat directly to the captain."

Zub Enel’s hand twitched on the PADD he held against his thigh. His scales warmed and reddened. “With utmost respect, sir, I did not intentionally disregard the chain of command. I would not have brought up my investigation to Captain Llwyedd because I had not finished it. He asked me about it. He was not best pleased that I had taken an investigative assignment without your authorization. I noticed this PADD on Lieutenant Kooba’s desk: an unsubstantiated report of cloaked intruders. This struck me as something to verify, in case it was true, especially given the recent attacks on DS18. I could not find Lt. Kooba nor, at the time, you. So, I had hoped to learn enough about the reported sightings to speak intelligently to you about it when we did meet. This was not blatant insubordination, sir. It was a simple clarifying inquiry that snowballed out of hand.”

He pressed his lips together. He wondered what color toothbrush worked best in Jefferies tubes.

"I am only hearing excuses from you, Lieutenant Junior Grade, no explanations" Rhiana continued in her cold tone while making a mental note to speak with Lieutenant Kooba about leaving sensitive information accessible to anyone. "All these excuses tell me is that you are not taking procedures and processes seriously. There is absolutely no excuse for that. The report in your personnel file will reflect this."

She turned away from him and returned to behind her desk where she pulled out her chair and sat down. "Now tell me about these cloaked intruders."

Zub Enel felt his vertebrae popping from being pulled so straight. His scales roasted. He was sure he had turned crimson. He remembered a Terran lizard that shot blood from its eyes. He was certain his blood pressure had climbed to that point. Around his wrists, his down was fully protruded. The Voth was sure he looked like plucked poultry.

Martial arts training took over. He loosened his stance. He took a deep cooling breath. He kept his voice steady. “Sir, the initial report of cloaked individuals sighted in the bowels of the base was from by Chiefs Truman and Harlan. They reported lizard-like persons that cloaked before they could be confronted. I interviewed Chief Truman. He was keeping a lookout for the intruders. He had armed himself with a phaser and an enormous wrench. Being so armed speaks to his concern that the sightings are significant.”

He glanced down at his PADD. “The description of ‘ugly and white’ was not adequate for identification. I asked the computer for all known reptilian and saurian species. There are 22, counting my own race. Many have coloration that tends toward dark green or brown. I selected light-colored ones to make a mélange of images. I was planning to show this to Chief Truman for him to, hopefully, point out what he saw before they cloaked.” He offered the PADD toward the Chief of Security, his long arm easily closing the distance over her desk.

Rhiana reached out to take the PADD and looked at its contents without actually reading them just yet. While her facial expression had not changed, her concern about Enel's report had grown. Not only because of the potential threat but also because she had not heard anything about this previously. She could blame it on Koona's failure to submit reports about his work, but in the end, she was the one to blame for not knowing what was going on in her department and on the station. There was no excuse for that.

Of course, maybe it was nothing at all. The irrational mumblings of some disgruntled old engineers. While she hoped that would be the case, she could not rely on that.

Rhiana raised her eyes from the PADD to meet Enel's. "You will continue with this investigation and speak with Chief Truman again. Now," she added to make it very clear that he was not to dawdle and be distracted by another meal. "You will report your findings directly to me. I will then decide on how to proceed further," she explained in more detail than she normally would have, but the Voth seemed to need it so he could hopefully avoid the next blunder. "Questions?"

Zub Enel accepted the PADD back from her. He went to attention and stared straight ahead. “No, sir! Permission to proceed, sir!”

Rhiana gave a curt nod. "Dismissed."

Zub Enel executed an about-face so crisp it nearly flung his uniform off. At attention, he retreated briskly through her door and through the next set and into the base.

[OFF]

Lieutenant Commander Rhiana t'Aegis
Second Officer / Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Firebird NCC-88298

Lieutenant JG Zub Enel
Security Investigations Officer
USS Firebird NCC-88298

 

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