Planting flags

Posted on Thu Jan 17th, 2013 @ 4:01pm by Commander Alexandra Vance & Colonel Damon Raine

1,810 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: The Enemy Within: Lying in Wait
Timeline: Commander Vance's quarters

Damon had a lot on his mind as he went over the casualty reports of the last mission. He knew it was no longer his job to oversee these along with the progress reports from medical on injured and recovering crewmembers, however, he felt some things shouldn't be given up.

His eyes glazed over the PADDs as he took note of all the other things he was giving up as he had stepped aside from the position of ship's Executive Officer. Not only would all the work he had put into both maintaining the ship and building up the crew be at stake, but also the way the ship was fundamentally run had been taken away from him.

The information he was reading suddenly held little interest compared to what had now dominated his mind. Without another look at the PADDs Damon got up and left his office for the crew quarters; though not his own.

A few minutes later, Damon arrived at his destination, Commander Vance's quarters. He pressed the chime and waited.

Sergeant Beckinsale had only left a few minutes before the chime had rang. Amarylis had tried to convince Alexandra that the Borg were not to blame, but she knew it was they whom released the animal inside her. They had no assimilated her into their hold, they showed her whom she really was.

She turned her head slowly to the door scowling at it. "Enter." she said through her gritted teeth.

Damon entered the room and regarded the woman scowling at him. "Not a good time?" He asked.

"Its fine Captain.." she said with a slightly drawn out sigh. She turned her gaze back upon the dark wall in front of her. The area where the chair she sat upon was dimly lit only barely silouetting her figure. The light still bothered her implant. "What can I do for you?" she asked flatly.

Damon let the door behind him close and the room was almost engulfed in the darkness. For some reason, the look of the room and the little regard he was being paid only served to annoy him.

"I suppose I should be asking you the same question." He allowed his reserves of empathy to instead come out, remembering what she had recently gone through.

"The doctor gave me all the aid I require." she responded once again in a cold flat tone.

Damon crossed his arms over his chest. "Neither of us believe that."

"Believe what you will Captain, but that would make you a fool." Vance replied somewhat mockingly.

"Your lack of sound judgement, even now, proves otherwise Alexandra." He shook his head at the cut.

Alexandra laughed softly. "You speak of sound judgement yet you serve beside the one you love the most not realizing how easily you can be exploited. What will happen when you lose her? What will happen when you lose yourself?"

"I'm not here to talk about me." He could feel the anger bubble up from the mention of his relationship with Sam, but stuffed it down again instantly. He walked over to a nearby chair and took it with him as he positioned himself right in front of Vance and sat down.

Vance stared at Damon studying him with her occular implant. He was calm despite the tone of the conversation, no doubt trying to extract information empathically. Vance had time to recover from her time speaking with Amarylis, he would not intrude upon her mind.

"Than state your purpose Captain."

"You." He said with the same flat tone she had used with him earlier. "It has been pointed out to me recently that I am vulnerable. So right now, understanding you and your role on this ship has become my purpose."

"Simple, I am the Executive Officer of this ship charged with the safety of the crew in conjunction with the Commanding Officer. I serve as the advisor to the Commanding Officer and the liason between the crew and Commanding Officer." she stated almost robotically as if dictating from a script.

"Not good enough." He said without breaking eye contact.

"Will it ever be good enough Captain? Will I ever be good enough to serve by your wife's side? or is that a position in which only you are entitled to?"

"No, you wont." He folded his arms again. He wasn't about to be baited. "Not if you don't believe you will be."

"Excuse me?" she asked in an irritated tone.

"You will never be good enough to serve on this ship if you don't believe you will be the best at your given duties. Not third best, not second best, but the best."

"Let me assure you Captain, I AM the best. I have survived nightmares that would twist the minds of many, I have endured pain in which some would wish death upon themselves first. I have gone where most men, most anyone has ever gone before. Here I am, before you....still breathing, still standing.....still fighting." her voice was raspy, full of conviction, anger, resentment, hate and fire.

Damon finally felt like he was getting somewhere. "You aren't the first person to have horrible things happen to them. Many think they can handle it until one day they snap under the pressure, under every pent up feeling and frustration. They let it get the better of them and they slip up. Only for people like you and me a slip up means not just our life but the lives of everyone aboard."

"Don't patronize me I know full well the hazards of our jobs, I did not get out of the Academy yesterday!" she replied in a raised voice.

"But let me assure you my dear Captain..." she paused and leaned forward into Damon. "These horrible things that have happened to me.....they will be nothing compared to what I am going to do to the next beings that try to harm this ship..."

She leaned back smiling wryly, proudly at what her mind was stewing.

Damon once again shook his head. "Alexandra, you are a fine officer on paper. You come highly recommended and have a lot to offer this ship. None of that worries me. What worries me is exactly what you are telling me now. Your anger and what it does to change your decision making processes."

"What you see is not anger Captain Raine....what you are seeing is clarity."

"Do you call what happened to Vance of Borg a moment of 'clarity as well? You know better than anyone how outmatched we were against that Rhombus, there was no way the Calypso stood a chance at survival. And yet, for all of the perfection of the borg, they were soundly outwitted. Why is that Alexandra?" Damon backed himself off from what he wanted to say.

"That was a bad judgement call. The Commodore should not have come for me. The good of the many over the few. You would not be short fifty seven crew members had she done the right thing and fled." Alexandra shot back.

"You are evading the question, Commander. How was Vance of Borg beaten and the Rhombus destroyed?"

"It's time for you to leave Captain." Vance replied smiling as she leaned back comfortably into her chair and the darkness.

Damon wasn't about to let Vance ignore the point. "You told me you were the best, How can you possibly say that when there is such a glaring issue at hand?"

"Because it is true...." she said smiling proudly.

Damon wasn't amused. "You aren't fooling anyone. We all know what that anger issue of yours can lead to."

"I wasn't aware you had formal counselling training." Vance replied mockingly.

"An Executive Officer becomes whatever is necessary. Even if what is necessary isn't in their nature." Damon wasn't going to back down.

"A good Executive Officer will use the proper resources around then instead of posing as something they are not. It's much like you coming here as if you are still the Executive Officer even though you are not." Vance said stabbing a shot at Damon.

"No, I'm not, but I am a concerned ranking officer." She was making it difficult for him to stay calm, but somehow he felt more at ease now than he did just minutes before. "And you wont be the Executive Officer either if you keep getting people killed because of your anger."

"So now you are a Borg sympathizer, how cute. Perhaps you should organize a peace conference, the second coming of Jonathan Archer." Her mind was actually calmed as she continued her verbal assault on the Captain. "Unfortunately for you Captain, you don't get to make those decisions anymore...." She leaned out of the light so only the right portion of her face was clearly visible. "And if you try to use your wife's position to influence change I assure you, I have many friends whom will make your careers.....difficult."

"I don't need friends to make your carrer...difficult." He parroted.

"I've had better people do worse." she shot back.

"If they are anything like you i'll just throw a Polaroid of a Cardassian in front of them and watch as they foam at the mouth while attacking it."

Vance shot up from her chair and retreated to her window. Tears fell from her eyes as the shot hit low for even her. She grabbed her temple. "Captain you will have to excuse me, my headaches are acting up and I need some rest."

Damon sighed and looked down at the floor. He couldn't believe he let himself take such a shot, even if provoked. There was never an excuse for conduct like that, however, it was something he thought he had learned years ago.

"Alexandra, I'm sorry. That wasn't fair of me to say." He apologized. "I had no right."

"That's Commander sir and right or not, your true feelings were spoken." Alexandra replied wiping the tears from her face.

"True." He stood from the chair he had taken. "That's the scary thing about strong feelings, they get the better of us when we aren't expecting it..."

Alexandra crossed her arms over her stomach and said nothing staring at the stars....she just wanted to be alone now.

"Don't let your strong feelings, anger, get the better of you Commander. They will end up destroying you and those around you." He put the chair back in place and headed for the door.

Before crossing the threshold into the corridor Damon paused and turned to the Commander. "One more thing, don't you ever threaten Samantha in any way again." He slowly and carefully modulated the next few words. "That is your only warning." With that, he left the room.

"I am not your enemy Captain....." Alexandra said softly.

 

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