Stars And The Sea

Posted on Wed Dec 2nd, 2020 @ 9:57am by Commodore Ledeya ‘Ed’ Ehestri (*)

Mission: Cosmos
Location: USS Cosmos and Seabase Aegaeon
Timeline: 2396
1225 words - 2.5 OF Standard Post Measure

Ledeya heard the insistent chiming and moan moving away from the man who was sprawled over the majority of her bed still dressed in half of his uniform. She grinned and shook her head as she woke up enough to realise the chiming was a fleet communication. The officer moved silently to grab up a robe wrapping it over her Starfleet academy t-shirt and shorts.

She glanced at Lakeland before she disappeared into the living area and shook her head seeing the trail of boots and jacket. “Computer put the call through to my terminal.” She requested grabbing a coffee from the replicator as she went. If they had waited that long they could wait a few moments more.

When she sat down though she was surprised to see Kaleetha Sloan appeared on the screen with a background that said she was finally at the Seabase. “Finally,” Kaleetha said with a sighed. “I thought you were never going to wake up.” Sloan had been pretty convinced that the woman had been comotosed.

“What time is it there?” Ledeya asked taking a sip of the perfect mocha.

“Lunchtime. Just had some fantastic seafood from the local market.” It would not always be like that when they got further from land but for now, it was worth it. “Do you like my new office?” Kaleetha asked pushing the console she was using back to show the very nice office that she now had. It was smaller than 621 offered but the view out of the window was worth it. No matter how much Ledeya loved the star view it was a beautiful sea view.

It was strange to the cosmos CO to see the woman in red instead of the blue uniform but it was about time. Kaleetha had been wasted just in science her leadership skills were a marvel even if they were not always the route that others would take. Ledeya had always called it the route less travel on but it was always on worth it for the end result.

“I do. It is very you.” She teased seeing how bare and impersonalised it was at the moment. It would change with time but for now, it was a blank canvas. “So did you call to just show me the décor Kal or was there something you wanted at zero five hundred?”

“Well, I actually wanted to talk about what happened here,” Kaleetha admitted making Ledeya firstly frown before she nodded. She had been expecting a call like this but she had bot thought it would be so soon or the executive officer making the call.

“Well, a lot of it you know about. We responded to Starfleet request for assistance as they had not heard from the base. There should have been at least ten crew from the last information that they had received from Starfleet Command. I sent down eight officers where they discovered the base had been doing some rather 'risqué' experiments for Starfleet Intelligence.” Kaleetha rolled her eyes. It was no wonder that Starfleet Intelligence got such a bad reputation when things like that kept appearing.

Kaleetha watched the woman carefully. Ledeya was a beautiful woman but it was easy to see the pain that this event had caused her written on her face. Anyone else would not be able to see it but Kaleetha had not been her roommate all-through Academy for anything. “On the first inspection just found emptiness and random slime everywhere in the operations centre. Commander Agrax and Snow searched the Captain's office and found his pips and file called Parasol Project or Lazarus Seabed. Within hours I lost four crew members to what creations had been created there.” Ledeya counted it as the biggest loss of her career so far. She hated how she had sent those crew members to their deaths and that Section 31 despite insistence that it did not exist had been involved in it. It had left her unwilling to work with intelligence officers until they admitted it all to her.

“So really Zombies?” Kaleetha said hoping the files had been wrong. She leant back in her chair trying to think through the possibilities and what Intelligence could possibly want with something like that. It was scary to think about what it could have been used for.

“According to the files they had been working with a bacterium they had found on the seabed, one that seemed to have regenerative properties. They had found life on the bed of over 200 years old and believe they had the technology to tap into that. Research reports were promising until people started to express concerns as it went on with how it progressing. And that is how the story ends.” Ledeya said with a small sigh as she returned to sipping on her coffee and staring at the other woman thinking through it all.

Kaleetha nodded. It made sense with how Ledeya had explained it and the reports were verified in her mind as 90% true with that. “That is just crazy and I know crazy. I am normally the driver of it.” She admitted before she paused and squinted at the screen. “Who’s jacket is that? I know you do not wear blue anymore. We both are in red now.” It amused her how far they had come but there was no way that was her uniform jacket so whos what it. “You and Ranav are not back, together right?” Kaleetha supported most relationship for her friend apart from that one. It was not a good relationship for the woman now that she was so high, she needed someone level headed and able to put up with her uniqueness.

Ledeya glanced back and grinned at Lakeland’s jacket slung over her couch and grinned. “It’s Lakeland.” She admitted making the other woman first open her mouth like a fish before she stood.

“I knew it. There had to be a reason he left the base.” Kaleetha screamed. She had been wondering for a while what would make the man move from a base the size of 621 to Cosmos and now it made sense. “Well… he is not your usual type at all.” She admitted watching as the other woman blushed.

“Maybe it is what I needed.” The Captain commented on with a shake of her head. She had not felt like that before and he liked her despite the telekinesis abilities that she could use if she did not take daily medicine. It did not even seem to phase him or both at all. “Maybe I have been with the wrong type up until then?” Ledeya commented glancing back at her bedroom, he was oblivious to her feelings but maybe she needed to change that.

“I have to go to Led. I have a team meeting but I will talk to you soon okay.” Kaleetha was annoyed her time was so short. She wanted to gossip, wanted to catch up especially now that there was less chance of her coming to visit.
“Calm seas then my dear friend.” Ledeya touched the screen back as the younger woman disappeared being replaced with the Starfleet symbol. She could have to activate the hologram settings next time to interact properly but this was enough for now. It had been a perfect start to the morning.