Shared Responsibilities - Part I

Posted on Sat Aug 9, 2025 @ 2:27am by Commodore T'mpest Michaels & Commander Cara Letsul & Lieutenant Commander Curtis Thibideaux
Edited on on Sun Aug 10, 2025 @ 5:09am

1,338 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Time After Time
Location: Captain's Ready Room
Timeline: MD 16 - afternoon

T'mpest had finally received her boxes from Vulcan and put a few personal touches in her office. A Scottish claymore and a Vulcan trillpa mounted on the wall behind her desk. While they were for decoration, they were also sharp and easily removed, if necessary. Prints of Shi'Kahr, the Scottish highlands, and the Mystic Mountain nebula on a wall above a comfortable couch. Nearby sat a bookshelf filled with print books.

She stood at a viewport, looking down on Pangaea as she waited for the others to arrive.

Pacing evenly, Curtis's contact kept a clock running down so he'd arrive at the appointed time. He was still getting used to how BIG this station was. His ear picked up the rhythm of his boots scuffing on the carpet and his fingers tapped at his trouser seam line in counterpoint without his actively being aware. There was so much to do that his brain was humming all by itself. Nearing the Commodore's ready room, Curtis's contact reached out and activated the automatic handshake, causing the door to cycle as he walked in without breaking stride.

Stopping a prescribed distance from the Commodore's desk, he said, "Good afternoon ma'am."

T'mpest turned and smiled. "Hello, commander. How are you settling in?"

Grinning, Curtis said, "The very term settling might indicate I've had time to actually stand still ma'am. I doubt I'll be doing much of that, nor unboxing the few things I brought with for a hot minute. There are some pretty hairy bugbears lurking around, as they say. At least from my window." Chuckling then, he asked, "How's things look from yours?"

"Life here is never dull. Negotiations with the Cardassians and Xi'Cadians will begin in a few days. That will hopefully help things settle down, but I'm not counting on it."

"Well ma'am," Curtis said, glancing at his finger nails. "If you want quiet, you could take that Flag the fleet keeps wanting to offer. I have it on good authority being an Admiral is deadly dull."

"I'm sure it is. But I've found a home here I never expected to find and I have no intention of leaving. Besides, boring is overrated." She raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Besides, if they really want someone, they could always promote you."

Cara stepped into the ready room just as Curtis had commented upon being an Admiral. "Well now, sounds like someone is speaking from experience." A twinkle in her eyes ,Cara gave a nod towards T'mpest.

"Greetings, I am Commander Cara Letsul. Pleasure to meet you, Commander Thibideaux" she had looked up his information upon the manifest. Though she was getting the sense that the Commander and the Commodore may already know each other. Curiouser and curiouser.

"Shall we sit around the table?" T'mpest asked, indicating a small table for four in a corner. "Do either of you want anything from the replicator?"

Curtis smiled and said, "Commander Letsul, nice to meet you. Your reputation proceeds you, ma'am." Looking to the Commodore, he said, "Sit, Commodore ma'am. I can serve." Stepping over to the replicator he looked back expectantly, even as he decided to order a Dibek style, medium sweet and baklava."

Meeting T'mpest's eyes, he said innocently, "I'm much too young and un-jaded to be an Admiral, Commodore."

That made her laugh. "I am much older, but do not consider myself jaded. Perhaps because I refuse to take a desk job."

Looking pointedly toward the Commodore's desk, Curtis's contact scanned the shape and gave him a quick and dirty run down on its possible type. "Yes ma'am. From my experience, the desk chosen one choses to park their senior self behind speaks volumes and tends to be a representative of themselves. Coffee Commodore? I'm getting a Turkish style."

"Well, I do like puzzles," she replied blandly. "I will take a Vulcan spice tea. Thank you."

"Sweet and spicy matcha green tea please." Cara responded, not hiding her amusement. "It is good to see that you do research, Commander," giving a chuckle.

This also gave her an indication that it will probably make it a bit easier for Vasal to track her down if he still had his contacts around. Her gaze went slightly sharper as she scrutinized the commander.

Once the cups and pastries had materialized, Curtis put everything on a tray and brought them over, handing them around, he left the pastries and a caddy with additional sweeteners on the tray, near to hand then sat and met Cara's eye. Smiling he tapped his right eye and said, "I cheat, Commander. I have a networked contact in my right eye that lets me access things quickly and on the sly. It does take some getting used to though."

"Which is one reason you will be an asset here," T'mpest said. She turned to Cara. "When he was aide to admiral Shy he tried to get me to take a desk job with a promotion."

"I see." Cara raising an eyebrow, towards Curtis. "And a tell all to boot eh?" accepting the tea and taking a sip. "Delicious and thank you"

Taking a pastry, Curtis tore it in half as he responded to Cara. "I find it's a good idea to inform people I work with or am around that I have the OAR, or Ocular Accessing Resource. Otherwise, they might think I'm making a pass as there is some blinking and eye twitching involved. To those that don't know me, they're free to think I'm just odd."

Popping the pastry into his mouth, Cade chewed and swallowed the small sugary delight and grinned toward T'mpest. "I was just checking the nets for the Admiral and Bu'Pers, ma'am. Gotta switch bait and see what attracts."

"Being odd will help you fit in. There are already plenty of rumors about me and Cara. You will simply give them someone new to talk about. I suggest you avoid curious little old ladies if you don't want to join the gossip mill." Although he was likely being talked about already.

"I shall avoid them like the Borg, ma'am," Curtis assured T'mpest. "There are so many rumor mills around this place... My only question is going to be how to feed them the miss-information we want them to have." Then he grinned, "Or would that be Lieutenant Lamberti's nick name."

"That could be a good use of her skillset." And give the intelligence officer something to keep her busy. "I also think we can use them to feed information we want people to know without it coming directly from us."

Cara chuckled. "Ah yes the rumor mill. It can definitely be useful, and also could be annoying. Tongue wagging abounds. There was one rumor I heard of a tee shirt which said Merrick's Merry Maids. It reminded me of a Marine I once knew, having the last name of Merrick. He served on the station I was once in command of." she had a twinkle in her eyes. "I wonder if he knows of it. The man tended to be a rather somber one."

"Who were the merry maids?" T'mpest asked. It sounded like something from an operetta.

" I haven't the foggiest idea. Just that the tee shirt is rather interesting to be seen. Like a book cover for some romance novel." Cara giving a slight shrug. "I would love to find out what his reaction would be."

"Sounds like a cleaning service," Curtis mused, "Though it does remind me of an ancient Earth movie called the Merry Maids of Madness I saw once. As I recall it had something to do with all the women of William Shakespeare in a modern, for the time, setting. To my disgrace, I was on a date and fell asleep during the movie... Sadly, I remember more of the movie than my date."

(To be continued...)

Commodore T'mpest Michaels
Commander
Deep Space 5

Commander Cara Letsul
Executive Officer
Deep Space 5

Lieutenant Commander Curtis Thibideaux
Strategic Operations Officer
Deep Space 5

 

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