The Potential For The End

Posted on Sat Mar 14th, 2020 @ 7:16am by Commodore Ledeya ‘Ed’ Ehestri (*) & Commander Adamya Ryon
Edited on on Sat Mar 14th, 2020 @ 7:24am

Mission: Cosmos
Location: USS Cosmos
Timeline: 2396
1529 words - 3.1 OF Standard Post Measure

Ledeya sat down at the table and looked at her companion. It had been nearly a week since they had left Dauncine and the chaos that had been created by the Seabase’s wild experiments that had either killed the crew or turned them into creatures from nightmares. It had been left for Starfleet Science along with Intelligence to fix as soon as her crew got themselves out of danger. She was still waiting to see where her formal complaint around Starfleet Intelligence interfering in her crew was going before she decided the fate of Commander Snow but the situation on Starbase 261 was much more pressing. She passed over the glass with amber liquid and sighed, this was not how things were meant to go. “How are you doing after your rough start to joining Cosmos?” She wondered off Ryon.

"As far as maiden voyages go, this hasn't been the worst," Ryon responded. "My last involved the destruction of the Yorktown and then there was the Dominion War," he listed. Knowing the gravity of the situation he then solemnly added, "But, the Seabase carries implications that force me to take a long hard look at some of Starfleet's shortcomings, and I don't like what I see there." Smiling weakly, he said, "The crew, however, impressed me and I'm honored to be aboard the Cosmos again."

"Well that is nice to hear that you are honoured to be back but I can not help but agree on the shortcomings but I believe it is not Starfleet but Intelligence working outside their remit," Ledeya admitted sadly. She hated working with spooks but she was unable to remove the department or put it under Security as she wished to. It had left her worrying the last 48 hours being locked in the isolation ward with Lake. They had not caught up since so it was nice to just sit down and relax knowing she was in her right mind again. "Thank you for supporting Gavin last few days. I apologise it was not the way helping in Sickbay was meant to go."

"Starfleet Intel had much to d with my current situation as well...," Ryon added, stopping himself from relaying information that would get him further demoted. Shaking his head in a reassuring manner, the former Captain added, "What matters is that we are here."

Ledeya pursed her lips, knowing exactly what he wanted to say but could not. It had to be let go though. "Just about." Ledeya was pretty sure if she had spent any longer in the isolation ward she would have had a death on her hand.

"How are you handling everything?" Ryon asked. He had been forced into isolation a few times during his life, mostly at the hands of Cardassians or, more recently, splinter groups making the Badlands home. It was an experience that left scars that could not be seen on the outside.

"Been better but the medicine is kicking in so I should be back to myself soon enough. Head will leave soon." Ledeya had been pricked and prodded since getting out of sickbay by the Officers there and then again by Ranav to be doubly sure she was fit and well as she could be. The Medical Officer had only seen her telekinesis once in action but Ledeya was not willing to allow it to happen again.

"After all these years, I knew you always held something back," Ryon nodded toward the Captain. Turning a bit more serious, he added, "I'm just happy you're okay." He gestured toward the exit door, as he said, "Station is a mess. It'll take a long time to recover."

"How did you learn?" Ledyea wondered softly thinking he had always known about her condition. Ledyea nodded looking at where he was looking and could not help but agree. She had not seen much of the base other than the bombing areas having spent the best part of the last five days in sickbay either as a patient or working.

"Learn about what?" Ryon asked. Clarifying a bit, he added, "I just knew that you were in Sickbay after you got caught by the gas." He hid his worry a bit, losing a Commanding Officer and friend was not something that he wanted to experience. Giving a smile to indicate that he was going to mess with her, he added, "You're tougher than you look is all I meant."

Ledeya frowned a little not sure if he knew about her telekinesis or not now. "You do not survive an occupation of your homeworld without being a little bit tough." The woman said bluntly.

Nodding his agreement, it was not a topic that Ryon enjoyed talking about. The Occupation and subsequent Dominion War broke his faith and made him a stranger on his own homeworld. "You don't remember our trip to Gerian IV do you?" he asked, wondering if he remembered the shuttle crash years ago.

"Gerian IV?" The woman blinked for a moment having a glimmer of recognition before she shook her head. "It is fuzzy," Ledeya admitted. She was sure that was when she had, had a psychotic break like the one she had feared was going to happen if she had not gotten out the isolation ward. It had left her with huge gaps in her memory of around six weeks.

"We had a shuttle accident," Ryon explained. "I was trapped in the pilot's chair for a day and you were without your meds," he added. He left out the parts where she talked to herself about what she picked up from his feelings at the time before finishing with, "Eventually, you used your mind to pull the wreckage off me." It was not a great story, but he was not sure how much she wanted to remember.

Ledeya stayed quiet for a long time. "I thought that was a dream." The woman admitted quietly looking into her empty mug as if it would contain everything she needed to know. "I dream about it and that person who pulled the wreckage off of you scares me. I thought she was going to come out in the isolation ward."

"Scares you?" Ryon asked, concern growing in his voice. He leaned forward a bit, a bit closer to Ledeya, "Is that why you try so hard to suppress it?" His voice was lower, almost like a whisper.

"She is scarily powerful and that power inside of me scares me." Ledeya murmured watching him carefully for any sign that it scared him. That power had helped her survived the worst of the occupation of Betazed but it had made her an outcast due to the damage to her paracortex. "Yes. Who would want to serve under let alone with someone like that?"

"Everyone who knows you," Ryon stated. "You aren't the first telepath to serve in Starfleet. Just make sure you don't throw us halfway across the galaxy and I don't think you'll have to worry about being terrifying."

Ledeya glanced at him and paled more. She had never even crossed her mind that it was possible now that was terrifying. "But not many have telekinesis." She pointed out looking down at her empty cup again.

"I come from a society where wormhole aliens are trusted with a civilization's spiritual life," Ryon pointed out. Looking back to his friend, he was a bit more reassuring, "A Vulcan could easily overpower everyone on a Bridge, a Binar could take over the ship, and many other races have their own super power. As long as you don't flaunt it, I think most people won't give it a second thought."

"My own species are scared of it," Ledeya admitted. "They have wards and wards full of people who went mad from it all." It was one of the things she did when she went home, she visited the wards to check in on people she knew from the occupation. People who had fought harder and longer than her.

"You're scared that you'll end up in a ward one day?" Ryon asked. He knew what it was like to grow up under Occupation and to fight for freedom, even being on a bit on the young side for a traditional army. He had known people who were never the same after enduring the fight against occupation.

"I am more scared I will hurt people with it so I take my medication daily." She took it exactly the same time without fail. Not an hour early, not an hour later. It was for the best, for her and for the people around her. She had been lucky in the isolation ward that it had been less than twenty hours.

"You haven't hurt anyone, and you've been in positions where you could," Ryon offered. At this point, words were only words and Ledeya would have to believe in herself. If she did not, Ryon was probably witnessing the beginning of the end of a great career.

OFF::

Commodore Ledeya ‘Ed’ Ehestri
Commanding Officer
USS Cosmos / TG 72-B
(PNPC Gregnol)

Commander Adamya Ryon
Chief Strategic Operations Officer
USS Cosmos