True Terror

Posted on Mon Jun 22nd, 2020 @ 1:49am by Cailus Griffin & Ensign T'Kemi & Lieutenant Kalin Brennan-Griffin PhD
Edited on on Tue Jul 7th, 2020 @ 2:16pm

Mission: Into the Wild
Location: Carnage/Shae and Cailus’ Quarters
Timeline: Current

A Mission Post by Lieutenant JG Cailus Griffin & Ensign T'Kemi & Lieutenant Kalin 'Shae' Brennan PhD
Mission: Into The Wild
Location: Carnage/Shae and Cailus’ Quarters
Timeline: Current
Mon Mar 12th, 2018 @ 3:35pm

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Carnage Engine Room
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In the hot, grimy engine room of the Carnage, a blue sparkle briefly illuminated a space near the entrance, which soon materialised with its distinctive loud noise into a severe looking man in uniform. His hands were on his holstered phaser, but as he checked his surroundings with suspicious eyes, the man relaxed. There was an entire six-man team of security personnel present, all heavily armed, guarding twenty Ravagers at the back of the room, far from any controls. The pirates looked unconsciousness for the most part, although the conscious ones seemed strangely nervous, their eyes constantly tracking every shadow. One of the larger Ravagers, a brute of a humanoid over eight feel tall with immense legs and arms, was quietly sitting in a corner, holding his knees while rocking back and forth on the deck. He seemed to be jabbering quietly to himself in some unknown language, keeping his eyes shut tight.

Confused, Cailus thenfocused on the dimunitive Vulcan woman who stood close to he’d materialised. T’Kemi looked quite terrible, he noted with sorrow, which for her, was practically a capital crime. Her long hair was a mess, while her skin was so slick with sweat that her vest clung to her body in an embarrassingly revealing way. Still, Cailus knew better than to acknowledge her appearance in any way, even by an offer of assistance. Glancing at the prisoners once more, he privately reflected that she’d been through quite enough already.

“Ensign,” he said instead, “status report?”

“Secure,” T’Kemi replied with typical Vulcan somberness. “The prisoners have been no threat to us, lieutenant. We are currently waiting for the Palatine to prepare another holding area for these prisoners.”

Nodding, Cailus crossed his arms, frowning as he counted the pirates from across the room. Seventeen? “Very good. Furthermore, dependant on Captain Temple’s authorisation, I’m putting you up for a commendation, perhaps even a medal. Your skill and dedication in neutralising this many hostiles was extremely impressive, Ensign.”

T’Kemi didn’t blush, exactly, but the Vulcan woman clearly tensed up. “Sir, I ask that you do not do that. It would not be correct. With the exception of two hostiles near the docking bay, Lieutenant Smith and I did not neutralise anyone. By the time we arrived, this compartment was already secure. Twenty hostiles had been neutralised. Seventeen were incapacitated and three were deceased.”

Cailus’ frown deepened as he looked back to the prisoners. “Then who...” he broke off, his mind putting the pieces together. “Lieutenant Brennan?”

At T’Kemi’s mute nod, Cailus’ eyes widened, focusing once more on the utterly broken huge Ravager who hadn’t yet opened his eyes, still clutching his legs for dear life. Such a being was big enough to break Cailus in half, never mind the tiny Shae, but somehow the pirate was utterly petrified.

What in blazes happened here?

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Cailus/Shae’s Quarters
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It had been a long day and Shae had been eager to shed the black suit and human guise she had worn on the Carnage. A shower and some civilian clothes had helped her decompress somewhat, but a trip to Sickbay to check on Nyx had her all wound up again, so Shae did not truly feel like herself until Aoife came home from her daily therapy. The little fox-child had been upset by the shaking of the ship, but was no worse for wear and was utterly delighted to see her mother again, unknowing of the turmoil raging within her mother. Shae settled on the couch with Aoife in her lap and a book in her hands, both very much in need of this mutually comforting bonding as her soft lilting voice rose to tell the tale of Briar Rose, the Sleeping Beauty.

Cailus too was unsettled as he returned to their quarters, but as the doors opened and he heard Shae’s distinctive Irish brogue, the wave of relief that swept over him was enough to dispel any unease. As the doors closed behind him, he shed his uniform jacket and opened his shirt collar collar as quietly as he could, unwilling to disturb the delicate, precious moment. It was hardly an unusual scene since either he or Shae read stories to Aoife every day, but today it felt different, somehow, although Cailus didn’t care to analyse it. Instead he simply walked up to the couch, sat down next to Shae and extended his arm around her shoulder, listening to Shae read the old fairy tale right along with Aoife.

Shae smiled as Cailus joined them, leaning into him as she continued the tale. Although, Aoife was starting to look rather droopy, which was no surprise, she often needed a nap after a good workout, so Shae continued to read until Aoife was sound asleep in her arms.

After they were quite sure that Aoife had eased into slumber, Cailus absent-mindedly stroked Aoife’s hair, unwilling to move from the couch, even if he knew that he needed to change out the uniform. After all the worry and fright, it was blissfully comfortable to simply sit there with them in peace, with no more threats or battles upon the horizon. Shae and Aoife were both safe. It was something that Cailus had been taking for granted lately, and he swore never to do so again.

“How are you doing?” Cailus whispered as quietly as he could manage, conscious of disturbing Aoife.

"I'm alright," Shae said, carefully moving Aoife to lay on her belly on the couch beside them. As Shae covered her up with a little fluffy blanket draped over the back the couch, Aoife tucked her little legs up underneath her and continued to snooze peacefully. There was a spot on the couch that would be forever drool-stained from all the naps that Aoife had taken here. "No, I'm not alright," Shae amended her statement with a sigh, running her fingers through Aoife's curly hair, "but I will be, I promise."

Cailus sat there in silence for a moment, watching her quietly. For all of Shae’s casual certainty, doubtless drawing from experience, he thought he heard something in her voice that frightened him just as much as shooting her out an airlock. It felt as if she was a sword that had been hammered into shape, but the blacksmith kept on hammering endlessly until the blade turned brittle.

“You’ve never had someone with you afterwards, have you?” he asked as gently as he could. “Someone to help?”

Shae raised her gaze in surprise, then turned to look at him; no one had ever asked her anything like that before, but then again, not many knew enough to ask. "No," she said after a moment of hesitation, her gaze faltering, unable the bear the warm empathy in his eyes. "At first when I was sent out, I would go right back to my little box afterwards, but then later when I was trusted enough to have a touch of freedom, I had a small hide-away and a shuttle to make it easier for me to work, but I- I never had anyone to care for me, I was always alone..."

“Was, past tense,” Cailus said pointedly, stroking her far shoulder with his fingertips. “I’m here, Shae, for whatever you need. You’re safe now.”

Shae's mouth opened to speak, but she remained silent, struggling to find words that simply were not there. "I don't know..." she said, sounding so lost. "I don't know what I need." Instinctively, she drew closer until she was encompassed in his arms, and then she nuzzled against his chest. "Seven," she said ever so softly into his chest. "I killed seven people today... hardly my highest body count, but it would always leave me hurting inside even if it was just one." In the moment, she was hardly the terror that had traumatized the surviving Engineers, she was simply a broken woman trying to find her way back to the land of the sane.

“I know, love, I know,” Cailus mumbled, holding Shae tight against his body, lightly stroking her back as she snuggled into him. The hell of it was that he did know exactly what she was going through; seven was hardly his biggest body count either. “It’s all over. You did what you had to do, and you saved a lot of lives. Just let it go now. You’re safe here. I’m not going anywhere.”

But Shae didn't know how to let it go; not once in all the years that Section 31 had used her had Shae ever forgotten the face of any of the lives she had taken, and she carried them with her even to this day. And so with his words she cried for them, all those lives cut short by her hand were mourned in the safety of Cailus' embrace; she cried and cried until she felt numb, allowing her tears to slowly subside into hiccups, and despite the massive headache she now had, somehow she felt better, lighter even. She would never forget, but that didn't mean those lives had to weigh her down any longer...

Having held Shae through it all, Cailus sighed with relief as Shae’s tears finally faded into hiccups. He could feel the cold dampness on his chest from where her tears had soaked through his shirt, which was causing a distinctly uncomfortable sensation in the contrast against Shae’s warm body. He shifted slightly so he could see into Shae’s eyes, grateful that Aoife had slept through her mother’s turmoil.

“Feel better?” Cailus asked quietly, smiling faintly.

"Yes? No, I have a headache now," Shae said with a pout. It was nothing a nice cup of tea and some quite time relaxing with her boyfriend wouldn't cure, but it wasn't like she needed an excuse to cuddle and have a cup of tea, and she hated crying for this very reason, the headaches afterwards were the worst!

“Tea then,” Cailus said with a knowing nod, having long since learned what Shae’s preferred headache cure was. After planting a kiss upon Shae’s forehead he got up to change into more comfortable clothes and make some tea, but it wasn’t long before he was back with her, the two snuggling together on the couch while Aoife napped away beside them. For a short while they were quiet, simply listening to the lullaby of Aoife’s slow, rythmic breathing as they sipped their tea.

Then an idle thought struck Cailus, and he sighed deeply, having a reasonably good idea of what it’d be like in the Temple household. “When you reported to Sickbay earlier,” he whispered softly, with Shae leaning into his chest and her perky ears tickling his chin, “did you happen to run into Emilie?”

The question caused Shae to tense up in his arms and she very nearly dropped her piping hot cup of tea into Cailus' lap. "Uh, n-no, just Nyx," Shae said uneasily, then quickly silenced herself with a long sip from her cup.

Cailus noticed Shae’s tension (not that he could miss the imminent danger of piping hot tea being poured on his unmentionables), and he frowned, though the frown was more thoughtful than his usual grumpiness. “What is it?”

"Nothing!" she tried to assure him, which was quickly followed by the mumbling, "I don't want to talk abou it."

“Okay,” Cailus acceded simply, taking a sip of his tea as if he was quite content to let the matter be. Still, unseen by Shae, he grinned, knowing precisely what would happen next.

"What are you so smug about?" Shae asked. "I can hear you grinning, you know."

“I’m not grinning,” Cailus lied smoothly, his grin growing even wider. It was taking considerable effort to not start laughing silently, to keep his chest still. “If you don’t want to talk about whatever happened in Sickbay, then we won’t talk about it.”

Shae leaned in to nip him on the chest with a playful growl. "Good, fine, no more fishing."

“Yes ma’am,” Cailus said with a faux-serious tone. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

"Good," Shae said softly, nuzzling lovingly against his chest paying special attention to the spot she had nipped, and finally she began to relax again.

At the tender care that Shae was administering to his torso, Cailus couldn’t help but melt a little. Blast it, that mouth of hers should be classified as an illegal weapon given how effectively she could use it to get what she wanted, but right now, he was past caring. After a mere hour of being terrified for Shae’s life, made worse by the knowledge that he was the one who had sent her into such awful peril, Cailus was simply grateful to have her there with him.

”Come here,” he grumbled, and with a gentle touch he guided Shae’s face up to his own, kissing her softly, sensually, even as he set his empty teacup aside. Cailus maintained the kiss for a good while, one hand stroking her hair while the other stayed on her jaw, but he finally withdrew by a bare inch or so, looking into her bright blue eyes. So close, the effect of her alien pupils was almost overwhelming. “You scared the life out of me today. You realise that, right?”

It amazed Shae how with a simple kiss Cailus could make her feel so safe and contented that she immediately started purring. Setting her own teacup in her lap, she raised a hand to caress his cheek as his lips assaulted hers so tenderly, and when he finally pulled away, her eyes were so dilated with a hazy love-drunk gaze. "I know, I'm sorry," Shae said softly, her fingers tracing his lips. "But I'm here now, I'm safe," she said with a small smile.

“Yes, you are,” Cailus agreed, caressing her brow. He had had every intention of talking to Shae about her death-defying heroics but it was just so damned difficult to be angry with her. That half-awake smile of hers never failed to ease his mind, to relax him even at his most irritable. Instead, Cailus sighed, surrendering to the inevitable with Shae in such a mood. “Is Aoife still asleep?”

"Hn?" It took Shae a moment to realize what he was asking, and with a swivel of her ears she listened to Aoife's slow, steady breathing. "She's out like a light," she assured him, though for how long was the real question.

“Good,” Cailus said softly. He waggled his eyebrows and glanced at the bedroom door pointedly.

Shae grinned with a blush; he didn't have to tell her twice, so she set her teacup on the table and practically jumped to her paws. "I suspect there's bound to be a baby boom on Salvaxe for those who are of the same mind as us," she said playfully as she led Cailus to the bedroom.

“A victory to be proud of,” Cailus said with amusement, then as they reached the bed, he spun Shae back around and kissed her passionately, his cold right hand supporting her back. She had a point; there was nothing like the relief of escaping imminent death to get people reaffirming their love. Gradually he lowered Shae down onto the bed, maintaining the kiss all the while until he was lying on top of her.

Shae loved getting lost in these moments with Cailus, when it was just the two of them and their passion. Being with him made her feel alive in ways she could not describe, and even when they weren't intimate just being around him made her want for more in her life, made her dream of the future and the possibilities she never would have thought were possible before; he made her feel safe and whole for the first time in a long time.

Of course, in concept it was a brilliant idea to sneak away for a quickie while the little one was taking her nap, but just because Aoife had been 'out like a light' was no guarantee that she was going to stay that way. Shae could normally hear Aoife moving around their quarters, but she was so wonderfully distracted, her senses were filled with everything Cailus, so she completely missed the little person that had joined them on the bed. The only reason Shae noticed at all was when she felt something touch her arm that was not Cailus.

"Oh shite," Shae blurted out, then turned her head to look at Aoife sitting on the bed so proudly. Sneaky little imp, and just when things were starting to get good too; Cailus had just taken his shirt off and her tunic was about to join his on the floor!

Having just hiked up Shae’s tunic a little to expose her well-toned stomach to his assault, Cailus jerked up at her sound of surprise. “What?” he said with confusion, then upon glancing to his left, Cailus leapt off Shae as if he’d just been electrocuted, staring at the little one in shock. “Aoife! What...how...?”

Shae heaved a heavy sigh of frustration as she pulled her shirt back down, then reached over to grab Aoife and pull her to sit on her belly. "Well lookit that, little imp, you gave Cailus quite a scare. You are quite the troublemaker, just like your mum," Shae said with pride to Aoife, who was looking quite pleased with herself.

“That’s one way of looking at it,” Cailus said ruefully as he got off the bed and bent down to retrieve his shirt, then paused in mid-motion. “Hang on,” he said with a frown, holding the shirt in his hand as he peered at Shae’s large vulpine ears, “how did she manage to sneak up on you with those ears of yours?”

"What, like I'm not allowed to be distracted, especially by you," Shae retorted, making an expression of shock and surprise, which Aoife imitated with a laugh. Hard as she tried, Shae just couldn't be mad at Aoife for interrupting; after all, it's not like Aoife knew what was going, nor did Shae think that Aoife should be punished for what was actually a fairly impressive accomplishment. "And I bet it's just going to get harder for Cailus to distract me once you're walking, right?" Shae said to Aoife, to which the impish toddler nodded, having no real idea what she was agreeing to, but it made Shae laugh anyway. "I can see now I'll have to find ways to keep you occupied for a while... maybe the little challenges and puzzles my biological mum made for me when I was just a kit like you." Aoife was entranced by the playful mysterious tone Shae used, and her mouth formed an 'O' in excitement.

“That’ll be a sight to see,” Cailus said with amusement, his shirt now back on. Chuckling to himself, he bent down and kissed the top of Aoife’s head before leaving the mother and child be. And thus, within mere minutes, the laughter of the happy family had banished the terror and tension of the day as if it had never happened. Shae’s awful actions on the Carnage mere hours earlier were but a distant memory.