Offer She Can't Refuse

Posted on Wed Jun 24th, 2020 @ 3:49am by Captain Nycolas Temple & Sasha Vieers (Deceased)
Edited on on Fri Jul 10th, 2020 @ 6:02pm

Mission: The Evils Within
Location: Deck 17 - Brig

ON:

The planet had stopped shaking and the Pandora had come to a rest again in a new location; however the disruption to the ship and sudden evac from their original landing spot meant the Pandora was no longer in contact with the two Away Teams currently on the planet. Temple was hopeful that the crews were okay, knowing they were capable and responsive to any danger, but he would feel anxious until they reestablished contact and returned home. With no other option but to wait, he decided to enact another plan he had previously put into motion.

Sasha Vieers was asleep on the floor of her cell; she had felt the earthquake and sudden motion of the ship but didn't really care at all. News of her parent's deaths had shaken her to the core, and the knowledge that they had died while coming to see her had only added to her grief. She had managed to cry herself to sleep for a while, but her dreams were only the nightmarish embodiment of her real, waking life. She was stirred back to reality when the lights in the corridor by the cells illuminated again, sending a piercing shine into her eyes. She stirred and rolled over, trying to cover her face and ignore whatever was causing the disruption.

"Sasha?" Came a voice. At first it sounded like her father's, deep and commanding but with a hint of concern. "Sasha?" She wanted to believe it was him, that the news had all been a lie, but if she opened her eyes to look and found that it wasn't, she would lose him all over again. "Sasha." She only had this moment of the in-between, where she had hope it was him, without ever knowing for sure.

"Sasha Vieers?!" Temple said more loudly this time.

Sasha turned and opened her eyes, a glare resting on her face. Of all the people she wanted to see, Temple was on the bottom of the list. "What?" She asked weakly.

"I wanted to check up on you." Nyx replied gently. "How are you?"

"I... am nothing." She whispered. "I am empty."

"Have you eaten?" He asked in response, eyes sympathetic.

"Why would I?" She retorted, holding a hand to her face as she adjusted to the light.

"You should -"

"I SHOULD WHAT?" She cried out suddenly, mostly in exasperation over his persistent presence. "There is nothing for me to do, Temple. My parents are gone because of me. Dorian and Vicuno are gone because of me. I am better off dead."

"That's not true."

"Spare me! You know it, everyone on this ship knows it!" As soon as she said the words, the tears came again. "Just leave me here to die, Temple, and don't pretend for a moment you won't be happy to see it happen."

Temple bit his lip. He wanted to protest but he knew she wouldn't accept it. After several minutes of heavy silence, he tried a different tact, "You know that regulations state we have a duty of care to ensure you are healthy and not in danger of self harm...."

"You're just prolonging my torture." She sighed.

"...So that you can face prosecution for your crimes and you can take responsibility for them." Temple added, "That is one of the things you have to live for right now, Vieers. To explain yourself in front of the eyes of the law and receive whatever justice is deemed necessary for you."

Sasha nodded solemnly, as there was a part of her that wanted to have her day at tribunal, even if she knew the likely outcome would be life imprisonment in a Federation Maximum Security facility. She remained lying on the floor and staring up at the ceiling, trying to block out the swirling chaos in her mind.

"You can only honour your parents now by ensuring they didn't die in vain." Temple said quietly. "Do it for them."

Sasha let out a long, sorrowful sigh, "I guess." She wiped her cheeks. "That's if we ever make it back home, Temple. I'm stuck on this ship which you seem determined to destroy." She sat up now and rolled her eyes at him. "What was that anyway?"

"An earthquake. A strong one, with a localised epicentre." Nyx explained simply.

"Seismic sensors should have detected shifts in the planet's tectonic plates." Sasha rubbed her eyes. "Did you increase sensor depth and sensitivity when we landed, with a fluctuating stabilising field on the inertial dampeners?" She may no longer stand at the Ops post, but she was still Operations in her heart and head.

"We did." Nyx managed a small smile. "But it came on very suddenly. I'd say... unnaturally so."

"Man-made earthquakes?" Sasha nodded, "That could only mean someone's doing something very stupid on this planet."

"That someone is us." Nyx replied, looking directly at her. "Or, the Federation at least. There's a secret Science Facility underground, we believe whatever they've been doing has been causing the disruptions to the planet's atmosphere and surface."

Sasha sighed, "And I'm sure no one responsible with have to face justice for this."

"They're putting others in danger." Nyx nodded again.

"They'll probably get a medal for it." Sasha snarked. "It's so wrong."

Nyx took a long pause before replying, "I agree with you."

Sasha looked up to him and squinted, suddenly realising the cordial nature of the conversation, and the way in which Temple seemed to be leading her to a conclusion. "Why have you come to see me, Temple? Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I know what it's like to lose your whole world." Nyx began, "Such a loss, it... reshapes who you are. Changes you from the inside out. But first, you go to a very dark place and you stop seeing the opportunities that are now around you."

Vieers slowly pulled herself off the ground, her eyes never leaving the Captain. She felt weak in her body from emotional exhaustion but she wanted to hear more, wanted to know what he was getting at.

"I have nothing, Temple." She said cautiously. "Even if I do make it to court, I will only then face a life of imprisonment and, finally, death."

"That's the darkness talking." Nyx said, his tone so knowing and confident, it was alarming her. "But I know you have capabilities now."

She took a step back, shaking her head. "No."

"You spent thirty years in that alternate world learning everything you could about special ops training, reconnaissance, systems subversion." He nodded, "And when you came out, you made sure you retained that knowledge. You kept training and practicing, you were running rings around Paradise and Pandora without any of us knowing."

"You caught me, though." She reminded him.

"Sure, you got sloppy and you made mistakes, but you still have skills beyond your years and position." Temple quickly replied. "You would have made an amazing candidate for a symbiont, Sasha. I still believe that."

Sasha didn't want to hear this litany of praise coming from the Captain; it felt almost Faustian in approach. He was trying to convince her to do something, she could feel it, but her head was full of grief, anger, and remorse - and her emotions were so overwhelmed with yawning depression that she refused to believe it. At least, she was trying to, but he was so utterly convinced himself that the words began to make their mark. She allowed herself a moment to indulge his flattery, before her sense of guilt quickly closed in on her again.

"No. I am nothing!" She said through gritted teeth.

"You are not." He said firmly. "The Federation is at war with hostile forces, both inside and out, and I am not going to be a pawn to anyone else's games any more. As Captain of this vessel, I have a responsibility to use every weapon at my disposal to ensure the safety of my crew and to uphold the true values of the Federation."

She looked up to him, half refuting and half believing, "And what does that have to do with me, Captain?"

"You...." He smiled, "Are a weapon."

Sasha's heart was beating loudly in her chest, her hands balled together, sweaty and hot. She was taking heavy breaths as she stared continuously at this man - this Captain that she once loyally served but now despised - as his words hung in the air like a threatening storm cloud.

Finally she shook her head, "I... I am not. I just want to be left alone to grieve for my mother and father. I don't want a part of your mission!"

"Think about it, Sasha." Nyx said, his tone hopeful still, "You have your day in court, your day to uphold your parent's final wish, and you show how you used your abilities to help save the Pandora and this planet. And maybe then," He shrugged obviously, "life imprisonment isn't the only option offered to you?"

Sasha sat down on the bench and buried her head in her hands. "Please. Go away. I can't think about this now."

Temple sighed, "Take your time. But the offer won't be on the table for long."

With that, the Captain sauntered away down the corridor and the lights returned to their previous dim darkness. Sasha sat alone with her thoughts, though her heart still raced. For the first time since Paradise, and despite the heart ache delivered by the news of her parent's death, she was being shown a sliver of light. She didn't want to believe the Captain's offer was genuine, but she also felt like she had nothing to lose. Sasha didn't know exactly what Temple was asking her to do just yet, but she had to admit that she was intrigued by the opportunity, especially if it meant not spending the rest of her life in a cell.

It was madness, it was against all her better judgement and feelings, but Sasha already knew she was going to do it.
OFF