Recalled To Duty

Posted on Mon Sep 9th, 2019 @ 12:40pm by Captain Enalia Telvan & Commander Rita Paris

Mission: Family Detention
Location: Planet Vulcan
Timeline: 2396
Tags: Vulcan Pilgrimage VII

Adjusting the collar of her anachronistic uniform, the gold-clad Commander Rita Paris looked herself over in the mirror, insuring that her appearance was inspection-ready. The trio of tourists had been approved to visit Vulcan High Command today, and while she had very little idea of what they would find there, she was determined to make a good impression. After all, Starfleet personnel were allowed entry, but it was a professional courtesy extended by the High Command, and by no means a right. Thus she was going to ensure that when she made the scene, she would make a good impression, and reflect favorably on Starfleet, the Hera, and of course, Sonak.

Seeing Vulcan with him had been… surreal, in a way. The world she had never visited in her travels before Nero had destroyed it, was instead a thriving active world of wonders, teeming with people and places she had only known through her husband’s stories and legends she’d heard. But to see it as a living, breathing, tangible legend had been magnificent, and she was excited by this next phase. She had swum their calm seas, climbed their tall peaks, seen their universities and their blasted plains. While she could be considered an expert on the planet by no stretch of the imagination, she was definitely a well-traveled tourist now, and as pilgrimages went, she felt she had accomplished much of what she had set out to do with this particular expedition.

Someday she and her logical love would plot out the timeline, take the medical steps necessary and they would conceive children. Hera herself had foretold it to her, although Rita suspected that her fate was never set in stone, no matter what the powers of the universe might say about it. While she believed in the reformed goddess, and the thought of her made the ancient astronaut smile, she knew that this universe had never accounted for Rita and Sonak… nor Az’Prel, for that matter. They would always be wild cards, x-factors in every equation, who could change the course of destiny with their actions because they were never meant to be there.

Yet and still, in her heart of hearts, Rita truly believed this was where they were supposed to be. This was where they belonged, in this space and time. Maybe the universe needed wild cards, or maybe it just liked a little chaos. Whatever the cosmic reasoning, Rita felt quite certain that she was meant to be on the Hera, alongside Enalia Telvan, supporting the spotted captain in her efforts in the shadows. Ensuring that as the perennially embattled and conflicted captain lived in those shadows, there was always a light beside her. After all, without light, there were no shadows, only darkness.

Thinking of her friend and captain brought a smile to the face of the buxom blonde bombardier. Enalia had done so much for her, and cared for Rita more than she could easily admit. In that, the feeling was mutual. Rita respected the woman- she was noble and damaged, fierce and flawed, fearless yet filled with awe and wonder at the spectacles the universe showed her. And she refused to give up on people- particularly Rita Paris, even when she was ready to rend space and time to run from her like her ass was afire. Chuckling, she shook her head at how the woman’s wry sense of humor had kept her guessing as she’d promoted her to first officer, then sent her to meet her destined rendezvous with Sonak, closing the paradoxical loop begun by her sending her old communicator back in time and space with her final report, which had given him the clue to come find her in the here and now.

It had been the most joyous day of her life, and one for which she would be forever grateful to them both. He for traversing space and time just to find her, to return to her, to reunite with her- proving to her that love was, indeed, stronger than any force in the universe. Her for preventing Rita from running, and giving her a home where she was wanted, needed, appreciated and respected. With a captain who sought a first officer who was flexible enough to handle the sort of missions the Hera encountered, but with a strong enough moral compass to keep them firmly on the side of the angels.

The Hera had brought her into contact with Asa Dael, the young immortal, of whose soul she felt herself a custodian. When she was less than dust they would still stride the stars, and she knew the lessons they learned in the here and now would stay with them for a lifetime, and it challenged her to be better, to provide an example to them that would hold up to scrutiny and provide memories that would last however many centuries they might endure.

There was Samuel Clemens, the southern gentleman spymaster whose code of honor and speech patterns made Rita seem positively modern. Yet his warm smile and gentile manner warmed every room he entered, and despite losing so much of his physicality to mechanical replacement, his humanity and warmth were second to none. Thex sh’Zoarhi, the acrobatic Andorian whom had been so lonely when they had met, yet was now so fulfilled with an entire family of her own surrounding her, with young ones on the way. When no one would take the time to explain the modern world to her, Thex had been there to catch her up, and save her life. Rita would never forget her for that, and she treasured their friendship.

The wide-eyed Ila Dedjoy, a scientist so afraid of away missions and the danger inherent in them, who had sacrificed her own life to save the crew of the Hera was another unique life she had encountered. Yet in doing so she had become something more, and Rita in turn had been able to repay the debt she’d owed the Ilaran scientist, recognizing her as a quantum ‘ghost’ and helping to reconstitute her form, after a fashion. The Dedjoy system would forever bear her name to honor her sacrifice, even as the young woman herself lived on in a cybernetic shell housing her consciousness.

The Baroness Schwein von Alcott, now betrothed to the Mighty Thor, had grown distant of late, but Rita suspected she knew why. The one-eyed cyber pirate was deeply sentimental, and while she was loathe to admit it, cared deeply for those she called friends. Knowing that she would soon have to leave the crew of the Hera, she had begun the process of distancing herself, so as to make the process easier when the time came for that separation to become permanent. While she understood it, still Rita missed the surprisingly good-natured, calm and generous super-soldier’s company, even as she was glad to see her finally having found love and companionship, in the arms of a man who could withstand her passions- a man who was not a man at all, but a god.

Then there were the Doxes.

When she had met Melanie Dox, the young officer had been furtive and evasive, a shy, pudgy young woman who would have been content to remain in obscurity, avoiding any attention and shuffling through a career of no distinction because she believed she had no worth, as an officer or as a person. But Rita had been unwilling to accept that, and had challenged her to be more. To her delight, the young pilot had proven her to be more than correct, and had risen to be both a great officer, a fine young woman, and a true friend, a sister beneath the skin. The fact that the young woman, over the course of time, had discovered that she was not half-human but fully Romulan had mattered not at all to Rita, who judged not on race or species, but on character. And in Mnhei'sahe Dox, as she was now known, she had sensed a nobility and purpose she felt obliged to foster.

The relationship Mnhei'sahe shared with her mother Jaeih was complex, as the woman had built an elaborate web of lies to protect her daughter over the years, including genetic manipulation, surgeries, and intense training combined with a harsh and unforgiving mein that left little room for warmth. But when the opportunity had presented itself, Rita had worked to try to help them bridge that gap and reconcile. Likely it was her own issues with her estranged father which would now never be resolved, despite her repeated attempts through the years, which drove her efforts. But slowly the two women had come together, with none-too-subtle help from both Rita and Enalia, and Jaeih had come into her own as well, rebuilding her relationship with her daughter even as Mnhei'sahe built a life with the Miradonian genius Mona Gonadie. As their family grew, so too did their closeness, and it was wonderful to see.

Which made the incoming message that much more dreadful for her to hear, as her comm badge chirruped.

Tapping it with a puzzled from, the Starfleet siren spoke clearly. After all, it was likely Vulcan High Command, and she had to be prepared. "Commander Paris here, over."

=^= Incoming transmission on encoded channel, your eyes only. Please verify that you are alone and confirm identification =^- the computer voice intoned, which was not the cool, logical tone of the Vulcan computer comm system, but that of Starfleet. That frown deepened as her brows began to knit together at the base.

"I confirm, I am alone. Commander Paris, Rita. Authorization code LTCDR 867-5309," she offered, then the comm channel chirruped again.

=^= Incoming transmission from Captain Enalia Telvan. Stand by. =^=

If the Captain was contacting her, it couldn't be good news, and in her stomach, that familiar feeling started... the one that meant trouble was on the horizon. The sort of trouble that the rest of the fleet didn't send out starships for, and instead, they very quietly dispatched the Hera. In that moment, Rita began mentally inventorying where their belongings were, how long it would take to collect Sonak and Az'Prel, and what she could do to arrange passage off-world. Because if she was right...

"Rita..." Enalia's voice was strained and sounded as if she hadn't gotten any sleep. "Sorry to call like this but there's been an incident. We're on our way to pick you up at maximum warp. While on holiday, the Tal'Shiar captured..." For a moment it sounded like she was just going to use their first names and thought better of it. "They captured Lieutenant Dox and Agent Dox. We'll be there in three hours to pick you up."

A number of things raced through the mind of the first officer of the USS Hera all at the same time. One was that is both the Doxes had been captured, that likely meant family business, and bad business with the Romulans, which meant that they were headed through the Neutral Zone, and the potential for war with the Romulans if they were caught or captured.

It was a foregone conclusion that they were going, of course.

The second was that if Enalia was calling her now, the meant that she’d been pushing the Hera at her top speed to get here since the event had occurred, which likely meant that for… Rita ran the calculations in her head, and it meant that for the better part of three days now, the Trill captain hadn’t slept, had hardly eaten and was pacing like a caged tiger worried sick about her officer and her agent. While she was often cavalier about her own safety, there was nothing more precious to the starship captain than the lives entrusted to her care. If Mnhei’sahe and Jaeih had been taken, that meant Enalia was sick with worry and equal parts furious at herself for ‘allowing’ them to have been taken. Which meant she was flying the ship apart to come get Rita, Sonak, and Az’Prel, because she needed them all now more than ever.

There were details, of course, that could not be discussed over an open channel, or even a secured line such as this one. This was implicitly understood between the two women, and it would remain unspoken. Rita wouldn’t ask, Enalia wouldn’t volunteer. Instead, the briefing would come once they were all aboard. Likely Enalia had the rough outline of a plan, some resources in place, some favors called in, and right now she needed support. She needed unconventional brilliance. But more than anything else, she needed hope, in a dark hour where it looked like there was no hope to be found.

“We’ll be ready for you, Captain. And we’ll find them, and we will bring them home.” Rita stated it as a plain and simple fact, with absolutely no uncertainty whatsoever. Because right now, that was exactly what Captain Telvan needed to hear. In truth, right now, that was what Rita needed to hear. She could worry later- right now, she would focus on canceling their plans and getting the three of them off Vulcan and out of the system, so the rendezvous with the Hera could occur quickly and efficiently. Already her mind was racing with to-do lists as she plotted the course of how to get them where they needed to be… where the Hera needed them to be.

Because their shipmates needed them. And between the three of them, there was not a one of them that would not move heaven and earth for those in need- particularly those they cared about.