Interview with a Baroness

Posted on Sat Jan 12th, 2019 @ 6:08pm by Lieutenant Commander Mnhei'sahe Dox & Captain Enalia Telvan

Mission: Section 31-B
Location: Deck 8, Crew Quarters
Timeline: 2396

It was fairly late onboard the U.S.S. Hera and Lieutenant Mnhei'sahe "Melanie" Dox was just beginning to get settled. Her uniform tunic was opened and she had a glass of lehe'jhme juice she was nursing as she looked over the flight crew rotations for the next duty shift on her PaDD.

It had been a fairly long if uneventful day on board, but she was happy to be off duty even if she had a problem shutting off and not still working.

The stout Romulan redhead was roused from her thoughts by the familiar chirp of the communication panel on her wall. Muttering to herself in her native Rihan, she walked over to the screen. "What the hell is this?"

If it was one of her crewmates, they would simply have called on her comm badge. Entering her security clearance code into the computer, the screen filled with an image. It was the crest of the Artan Family. The Pirate family of her Captain and one that Dox herself now tangentially belonged to, having recently been declared a Baroness of the Artan's during a mission with the Captain.

Refastening her uniform top, she spoke to the computer, using her given Romulan first name that she had decided to enter on to her personnel file. "Lieutenant Mnhei'sahe Dox. Begin message."

The image of a somewhat burly man dressed in a black and gold outfit similar to Schwein's tasseled formalwear appeared on the screen and while he had scars to spare and looked like he could scare the pants off of a seasoned veteran, he smiled kindly when he saw Dox. "Hello, I'm Captain Magnus, I run the family while Princess Telvan is away. I hear that you've been named a Baroness by the Princess and if you've got some time, I'd like to ask you some questions. It's a bit of a formality and all for confirmation. Is that ok with you?"

The surprised young pilot had only one experience as a 'Baroness' and wasn't completely certain as to what was happening or how she should react. But as a Starfleet officer, she chose to err on the side of caution and answer professionally.

"Good evening, Captain Magnus. My name is Mnhei'sahe Dox and my time is yours."

Magnus grinned wider. "Excellent. Thank you, Baroness. First off, the circumstances of your assignment are clear enough. The report from the Princess indicates that Baroness Schwein was injured in a prior mission and due to her recovery, she needed backup. Due to your past and skillset, it was deemed that you were qualified and brought into the fold aboard the Fluffernuttenfaust. During the mission, the Princess's faith in you was upheld and you performed admirably, quickly removing the party and all winnings from the auction expediently and safely. Do you concur with this report? Do you have anything to add to it?"

Still finding the idea of being called a Baroness slightly strange, it was almost as strange to Dox's pointed ears to hear Captain Telvan called a Princess. "I do, yes. Aside from answering any questions you may have regarding specifics, all I can think to add was that I consider it an honor to have been chosen to assist Captain Telvan and Baroness Von Alcott in any capacity."

Magnus nodded, satisfied with the answer. "We don't entirely expect loyalty to a person or a place or anything like that, but more to an ideal. That ideal is freedom. We fight against the Syndicate most of the time and though we're pirates and privateers, a lot of our income comes from hunting down other pirates that break the rules and mining these days. With your position in Starfleet, What's your position on this?"

The expression on her face had shifted to a more stern one as Magnus mentioned the Syndicate. "As a Starfleet officer, I am Lieutenant, pilot and Chief Flight Control Officer. Before that, I lived and served for the first sixteen years of my life on the smuggling ship, the Forager. We functioned primarily within the Romulan Neutral Zone moving both information, refugees and enemies of the Empire away from Romulus in aid of efforts towards Romulan/Vulcan reunification. We freed people."

Pausing for a second to collect herself, Dox continued. "In those years, we primarily did our best to avoid the Orion Syndicate as our cargo was a potential target to slavers. Which is a long way of saying that I find slavery and those that do so reprehensible."

"Indeed, I remember we worked with your mother more than a few times over the years." Leaving it at that, Magnus moved on to the next question. "Are you aware of the current turmoil within the family between the Princess and her mother, the retired Queen?"

While Mangus changed the subject quickly, Dox was somewhat surprised at just how many people in her new life were familiar with her own Mother. It raised questions, but those would have to wait as she answered his question. "I know they have an extremely... tense relationship and know some details of their past problems. As for current turmoil, however, I don't know much."

Magnus sighed and leaned back in his chair, beginning the story. "Her mother has been adamant about continuing the Artan line for some time now and as you no doubt know, the Princess is married already to someone that can not give the family such an heir. The strain with her mother has reached a peak unfortunately, and she's insisting upon a suitor be selected and a surrogate mother be used to create one from the Princess and a suitor of her choosing so she can raise the Princess's so called daughter as the next blood thirsty heir. As you can imagine, this has not sat well with her."

The concept filled Dox with a rush of anger.on behalf of her Captain and her friend, but she did her level best to not let that show on her face. "I can imagine not."

Continuing, Magnus tapped on his terminal, sending some files over the comm line to Dox detailing the procedures involved in pirate politics. "Hence why she's requested a tribunal stating that her mother is trying to tear the family apart with these actions. As Captain of the Fleet, I'll oversee an investigation done by the Baronesses which may take as much as half a cycle to complete. At the end of it, we'll provide our findings. Odds are good that we'll side with the Princess, but getting a full majority will be hard. It will still likely end in a duel."

Magnus leaned in, all business now. "Here's the part where I need your help. I need two Baronesses to support the Princess in this to even start the process. Since I just confirmed you to be the fourteenth Baroness of the family and that it's not related to this incident, I need you to confirm this tribunal on her behalf. Schwein's already agreed to it and is working on the documents on her end. With you and her, we have our two and we can at least push this off until we have the full support of all the old guard baronesses that are scared of her mother or... Or until the old bird feckin dies..."

Tilting her head as she thought, Dox responded quickly. "Consider my help yours, Captain, with my full support of Captain Telvan in this matter. Just let me know what you need me to do."

"Thank you, Baroness," Magnus flashed a smile again, pulling up a copy of the bylaws himself. "In the data packet I sent you, you'll find all the rules we follow. Yeah, I know... Freedom, yadda yadda... We need something to follow for disputes and the higher up the chain, the more rules there are on those disputes. Anyway, if you look at chapter three, section one, subsection nine, attachment C, that's the document I need you to fill out. It's only three pages and if you need any help, Schwein should be able to help you out."

"I'll confer with her if I need any assistance and will be reviewing all the provided information this evening, thank you." Dox replied, smiling lightly but maintaining her professional demeanor.

"Oh, and before I forget." Shaking his head, Magnus couldn't help but let loose a shit eating grin and a soft chuckle. "Pick out a ship name. As a rookie Baroness, I can't guarantee I can get you much of a ship, but I'll try to get you better than a picket miner at least. As for a crew, I'm afraid you'll be on your own for that. Schwein's in the same pot, so don't feel bad. No crew, but at least she has a ship."

"Well, the Fluffernuttenfaust is an excellent little ship, so I'm not concerned, Captain. And I appreciate the trust you've all placed in me. I will do my best to continue earning it." Her tone loosened ever so slightly. "I can send you a name with my paperwork. I'll think on that."

"Thank you, Baroness. Sorry for the less than celebratory welcome to the family. Normally we'd feast all night in your honor, but considering the circumstances..." The gruff man grinned wryly. "Thank you for being someone the Princess can trust with her life though. I really do appreciate it. Ah... Before we end... Do you have any questions for me? Any concerns? I know being in Starfleet and what's technically a pirate family, some might see as a conflict of interests."

"That's probably for the best, Captain. I rarely do well with celebrations of anything in my honor." The anxious pilot allowed herself a light chuckle before continuing. "But you can rest assured that myself, Baroness Von Alcott and the entire crew of this ship will always stand behind Enalia Telvan no matter what."

Then she paused to think for a second. "As for conflicts, I'm a half Romulan, half human, smuggler, Lieutenant and now a Baroness. I manage contradictions as often as I fly. But I have no additional questions at this time. Thank you."

"Heh. Well if you think of anything just let myself or Schwein know. Magnus out." With that, the transmission ended, leaving the Artan family crest on the screen.

Standing there for a moment, the young Romulan pilot tilted her head and muttered. "Huh."

Stepping back to her small dining table, she picked up her PaDD and glanced over her homework assignment. When she had received the title and ID of an Artan Baroness, she had thought it was little more than a cover identity for a mission. When the Captain confirmed that it was quite a real title that she still held while talking over tea, she began taking the idea seriously.

Now she had been confirmed and endorsed by the man that was essentially running the family. Somehow, in the span of a few months the perpetually anxious Officer went from a mostly human looking, half-Romulan Ensign stuck on a lonely starbase to a Junior Grade Lieutenant, a full Lieutenant, a Starship pilot, a senior staff member and section chief, a green-blooded and pointed eared Romulan and now a Baroness fifth class of the Artan Family.

"Imirrhlhhse." She muttered to herself, a Rihan expletive, as she wondered what tomorrow would hold with a smile.