Que Sera

Posted on Sat Nov 21st, 2020 @ 1:07pm by Commander Owen Nash & Captain Nycolas Temple

Mission: Shore Leave
Location: Deck 1 - Ready Room
Timeline: Before "Family Reunion"

ON:

Nyx had been trying to avoid having a mid-afternoon, post-shift bourbon, but today felt like the day for it. Heck, these past few weeks were the definition of days requiring bourbon. He also didn't feel ready to go back to his quarters just yet so the Captain was leaning back in his chair, staring at ship diagnostics on his screen, sipping casually on a neat Kentucky small-batch, savouring every sip as he felt the warm liquid soothe his throat and his woes.

Having cleared up the details for Lt Roderick to be assigned to Operations in the interim and also finding posts for the surviving Starfleet Officer from the installation on Hesiod Green, Owen decided it was best to find out what else had happened whilst he was away, especially now that he'd also been involved in the meeting with both Admiral Milne, the real Admiral Francis and Captain Rao aboard the Palatine.

As the turbolift doors opened onto the bridge, Owen took a step out and then stopped for a moment as the doors closed behind him. He used the pause to look around the Bridge of the Luna Class vessel and felt a sudden excitement at being back aboard again and being stood on the Bridge once more. With the relief shift working away at the various stations, he made a slow walk towards the Captains Ready Room, re-acclimatising with the one place he had missed the most.

Owen did take a long hard look at the Executive Officer seat as he walked past and then carried on before arriving at the Ready Room entranced. Pressing the chime, he waited outside.

Nyx usually just let people walk straight into his room, but today he didn't want to be seen to be drinking. So first he kicked his heels off the side of his desk and actually looked on the door's sensor to see who was visiting. Immediately, the Captain smiled.

"Ah, Owen!" Nyx cried in relief. "Come in!"

Owen walked in and saw Nyx sat behind his desk looking a little relaxed and after the doors closed, he also noticed the bottle of neat Kentucky small-batch on the desk as well.

"Kicking back I see? I take it that this last mission was quite hard for the crew as well as yourself?" Owen asked as he took his customary seat on the opposite side of the desk.

Nyx hadn't wasted any time reaching for another glass and pouring some out for Nash. "Nightmare." He offered in response.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I am glad that I am back home, however. I've missed being aboard after my "Extended leave" away looking for our special guest," Owen added.

Adding in some ice cubes, Nyx offered the glass to Nash, "I'm very glad to see you again. I did worry that my message through Paradise wouldn't reach you. But finding Francis was the key to pulling apart Thac's plans."

Owen accepted the glass gladly and raised a small salute before taking a sip of the drink and allowed himself to savour the taste. Once he was happy, Owen replied.

"I'll be honest, I'm glad that we have some friends out here who were able to help me out. Having Mauricio along for the ride was also a good edge to have out here in the Expanse," he explained.

"However I'm also glad that we have both Admiral Francis back in friendly space and that we have Admiral Thac in custody. that's vital to making sure that he answers for his crimes in front of a tribunal." After all of the hard work that he had gone through, Owen was glad that there was light at the end of the tunnel.

"Agreed," Nyx said with a nod, "I'm torn between wanting to rush back to Earth and drop that scumbag off in front of a Grand Jury, and our need to stay and ensure the Hesians are settled into their new home. We have so much to make up for, but I want the man responsible to face justice too."

"It's a difficult choice, I agree," Owen said before taking another of his drink. "To be honest, I do feel that we need to get Thac back to familiar territory to face his charges and also face a Grand Jury. He has a lot to answer for and we have a duty to bring him in to face those charges." He paused for a moment. "However, your point about ensuring the Hesians are settled into their new home also has merit. The last thing we need to do is give them an opportunity to become unsettled or at the same time allow Thac a chance to try and escape and get away again. He's a slippery bastard, that's quite clear."

"Is there a way we could request another starship to rendezvous with us and see if we could request that they monitor the relocation of the Hesians and then return, quietly, to see how the relocation is getting on once we've delivered Thac to Starfleet?" Owen offered.

"It's possible, but I want the Federation to declare this area off-limits." Nyx replied, "The Hesians deserve the chance to develop on their own without any interference and we can't trust that everyone in Starfleet has the same intention. Thac didn't act alone in making Pithos or knowing the consequences to Hesiod Green's environment, and we have no guarantee they won't try it again. The quest for power is... too persuasive." Nyx shook his head, "I just don't know who we can trust right now."

Owen sat forward as he took on board what Nyx was saying. "Dare I say it, the only people we can trust are the crew we have onboard...and both Captain Rao and Admiral Francis on the Palatine," he pointed out.

"Its become a small world for us suddenly since we were thrust into this situation by Thac and it wasn't welcome either. When the top brass in Starfleet starts doing this sort of thing, it also becomes a scary situation with the Federation as this affects their standpoint...and what changes this brings on the political front." Owen sighed for a moment. One thing he hated was politics. "Surely we can rely on Rear Admiral Milne? She seemed adamant about getting Thac back and also having the real Admiral Francis located. Maybe she can be or will be a force for positive change and defend the idea of declaring this area off-limits?" he asked. Despite the dark side of Thac's work and how Starfleet could be easily bought into this type of operation, Owen still wanted to believe that Starfleet was a positive.

Nyx nodded, "Yes, I'm down to have a conference call with her later tonight, as soon as our time coincides with Earth's morning. Milne does seem motivated to clean up Thac's mess, so I'll take a chance on trusting her. I'll bring up the quarantine of the Hesiod system." He shrugged, "So Arnaldo came with you on the mission? How was he doing, any news from Paradise?"

Owen smiled as he took another drink. "I have to say, if he was still a Starfleet Officer, I'd be putting him up for a commendation," he started. "If it weren't for him, I may not have made it back on several occasions so I'm really glad that he came along with me. It was good to have someone with some experience along for the ride and he was able to convince Francis at one stage that we were both genuine."

Owen paused for a moment. "As for Paradise Station, its holding its own nicely according to Arnaldo. Katya is running the place much better now that she has the freedom to and they haven't been bothered by the Breen of late either...I am surprised that they are giving the place such a wide berth to be honest," he said.

"That's good to hear," Nyx replied, turning up his bottom lip slightly. "I was concerned we'd left then in quite a mess but it seems like Katya has it under control. We can't be certain that the Breen aren't just gathering forces to take Paradise again." He looked down at a message on his screen that just started flashing. "Ah, looks like we have our orders from Starfleet to return home." He tilted his screen so Owen could see it too. "Straight from the top. They want us back on Earth as soon as possible."

"Well, that answers that question then," Owen said. "We're headed back to Earth." He pondered for a moment. "It's been a while since I've been back home, hopefully, for the crew and those who hail from Earth, this could be a good break as well," he said, but upon seeing Nyx's expression at the message, he knew there was something else.

"You're concerned by this? Is it such a bad thing to be ordered back to Earth after all we've been through? With Admiral Francis on board, we can explain what happened here with substantial evidence on our side."

"Oh, I'm very keen to get back." Nyx replied, with a nod, "But I've also realised how far we are from Earth. It'll take weeks just to return to the Carnwennan Corridor. And while we've done a lot of good things in the Expanse, we've also managed to piss off the Talarians and Breen. Recently. I hope we make it back to Federation territory in one piece."

"Amen to that, all I ask for is a chance to get back to known and safe Federation space and get some normality back to the ship and the crew, it would make a nice change," he said with a smile.

Nyx took in a deep breath. He collected the empty glasses and placed them in the replicator to be recycled. He turned to Nash with a faint smile, "I'm glad we've been able to catch up, Owen. And I'm especially glad you've made it home to us safely. Who knows what trouble I might cause without my XO around, right?"

"Why else did you think I was coming back? hell was I leaving this poor crew to suffer under the Captain alone without their Guardian Angel XO to make sure he doesn't go off on some wild goose chase or hell-bent vendetta to get them all in trouble... Oh. wait," Owen answered before they both fell into a fit of laughter.

Laughing, Nyx guided Nash towards the door. "Go, get some rest. Catch up with Kaleri. I'll let you know as soon as we're ready to depart."

"Understood, I'll see myself out sir, enjoy," he said before leaving the Captains Ready Room and making his way across the bridge to the nearest turbolift.