Sendoff

Posted on Thu Oct 26th, 2023 @ 4:03pm by Commander Amaya Lance & Lieutenant Alexis Ryan

Mission: Wrath of the People
Location: Starbase One - Officers Lounge
Timeline: Post-Mission
2149 words - 4.3 OF Standard Post Measure

Amaya had organised the encounter under slightly nefarious auspices; inviting Alexis to a quick debrief over a light drink, suggesting that she mainly wanted to thank the Lieutenant before she departed for a new assignment. Perhaps it was part of her new, rehabilitated self, but she was feeling much more optimistic about things since her meeting with the Commodore. Her new assignment felt like it would bring a renewed clarity to her life, and the confidence that brought with it.

"Lieutenant, over here." She motioned as soon as she saw Ryan appear. "I wasn't sure what you liked so I ordered something for you." Amaya slid a tall thin glass across the bar.

As was often the case, it had been the other woman's offer that had finally forced Alexis to assign herself some downtime, having drafted an interim roster that gave her entire staff light duties whilst allocating herself desk-time to handle paperwork. It was, in many ways, how the Lieutenant tended to process things; remain productive, focus on what could be achieved and keep her head down until she had some emotional and temporal distance between herself and whatever mess was being left behind. It made things easier later on, she argued, to deal with administration obligations while there was nothing much else going on. It never tended to fool many people.

She wasn't...good...at wallowing in self-pity.

Slipping into the seat beside Lance, Alex had at least taken the Commander's invitation to heart and appeared out of uniform. There hadn't been time yet to debrief with Kane directly, which had its benefits but hadn't allowed the science chief to back up her written commendation with a verbal recount of Lance's proficiency under fire. Now, as the reversion of leadership was complete, Alex felt a little guilty about that. She hadn't been directly avoiding the conversation but she'd been content enough to wait for it.

Picking up the drink, she took a tentative taste and pulled the glass away to admire it. "They've actually stocked Ktarian beer for once." She angled the drink towards the other woman. "Skål."

"Cheers." Amaya, relaxed as she'd been in a long time, raised her own glass a couple of inches. Whatever the drink was, it was saccharine sweet. "I owed you a proper thanks. I think that following your advice and believing in myself for me a little more was one of the reasons why we made it out of that scrape in one piece. And yes - the scratches did buff out as you promised."

Rather than rush to denounce the need, Alex regarded the other woman thoughtfully for a moment before using another sip of her drink to formulate a response. It was, she could concede, very good advice but only because it wasn't hers. "The beauty of this situation," she settled on, "is that if you really took it to heart then the only person to thank is yourself." It coaxed a rare grin from the scientist. "At which point, I am content to agree completely. We made it back under your leadership."

"A team effort," Amaya corrected. She put the glass down. "Which is why I wanted to talk to you. Face-to-face." She paused, recalling how she had rehearsed this little pitch. "I'm taking up a new posting. The USS Edison. I suppose it's my second chance at command. A proper one, I mean." She looked up at Alexis' face. "After what we talked about before - about being overlooked. I wondered whether I could tempt you to join me."

The glass stopped just short of a next sip. Having worked for years to curb her more demonstrative side, Alex masked her surprise with reasonable success, tempering it to a more curious contemplation as she took a moment to choose her words carefully. "Congratulations." Whilst the acknowledgement was somewhat of a ploy to buy time, it was also entirely sincere. Trying again wasn't easy, especially once the stakes increased. "A worthy choice, though one the Commodore might second guess if he knew you were trying to headhunt his crew." The Science Chief gave a huff of laughter.

"He might not be aware of my intentions..." Amaya said lightly, a little smile of her own creeping in. "That's the thing about some men: as much as they like to think they're so smart, they don't quite see everything that's in front of them."

As much as the mischief amused Alex, she was also aware of a certain degree of agitation that she had no feasible explanation for and thus sought to immediately squash. It wasn't a matter of offense, more an indistinct yet profound sense of loyalty that had reared its head a few times just recently. The sentiment itself wasn't objectionable, she just wasn't sure she had an adequate explanation for its current potency.

"Whilst I'm flattered, I don't think the timing is quite right for another change in focus." The Lieutenant regarded the other woman thoughtfully. "Not that an eventual move to a science vessel wouldn't be tempting."

"Well, that's a 'no' but not a 'never'." Amaya made the best out of the answer. She eyed Ryan for a few moments longer after sipping her drink. "The Commodore is certainly a particular kind of man to inspire such loyalty. The way I've seen you speak about him...is it merely admiration? Or something else?"

A much younger Alexis would have bristled at the invasion of privacy, having been far more inclined back then to premeditate criticism before it was even an option. Now, though still reticent to confide easily, she had a scientist's appreciation for pattern recognition and, if nothing else, Lance's astuteness gave Alex some insight into how obvious her motives were. Making a note to work on that, she permitted a tired smile and leaned in to the casual humour that normally wouldn't have needed any attempt at charade.

"I started out a scientist," she replied, offering a vague reference to her childhood, "and then deviated for long enough that the Commodore is..." She frowned. "His methods are familiar and reflective of a time when I needed the structure of rigid and unwavering belief. Stepping back into starship service after hiding away in the shipyards didn't come without an element of nervousness, his command style has eased some of that. I'm sure 18-year-old Alex might have answered differently." The redhead grinned suddenly, seeking refuge in a form of confession that held no current relevance. "But those days are exhausting enough as pure memory."

"We're all a product of our experiences, in the end," Amaya agreed. "I should know that, more than most. But I think recent events have helped steer me back onto a simpler path. It sounds like he has done the same for you." Her lips curled. "And you're sure there's nothing...more...to that familiarity?" she teased.

Other than his random appearance in my dreams of late.. Alex smirked, a wry deadpan before a resigned huff of laughter. "If I made a habit of entertaining ideas about my commanding officer, you'd be no safer than he is." As much as it was direct flirtation, it was delivered as a clear attempt at humour without intent. Hunching over another sip of her drink, Alex did her best to dismiss the topic. "I admire tenacity, what can I say."

"I'll bear that in mind," Amaya giggled. It felt good to actually relax with someone who felt more like an equal; despite their difference in rank, their similarities when it came to the sciences and approach to life were there to be seen. Letting the levity settle, she touched the base of her glass with her fingers. "I should mention, even if you're not going to be joining me, that I put a recommendation on your file. That you be placed on a formal command training path." She looked up. "As much as you might not appreciate it now, it struck me that maybe you needed the push."

A resigned scoff of amusement saw Alex shake her head. "That noose is tightening, I think." It would make a third official recommendation and Alex had a feeling Kane would be back to have another conversation sooner rather than later. Leaning back, finding herself at ease in a way that wasn't always possible to manage in the midst of endless duty shifts, she turned her glass in slow circles and watched the slosh of liquid against the sides.

"What convinced you to do it?"

The question invited a level of confidence that the Science Chief didn't always seem open to. Alexis was intentionally personable, easy to approach and a fairly decent communicator but she was not great at opening up her personal life to others. Recent decisions had been confronting, however, and she'd have been lying if she'd tried to say that basing her orders on the tactics of a bunch of doomed terrorists hadn't revisited some old insecurities about her professional identity.

"I admire tenacity, what can I say?" Amaya grinned, echoing Alexis' own words back at her. "But honestly? I didn't need much convincing. When I was first given a position of authority, I was green as anything." The memories remained of being that young Lieutenant Commander, suddenly thrust into a position of leadership over an entire starbase. "But I learned to lean into my strengths and work hard on my weaknesses. And to be honest, you're way ahead of me on that front. I think in some ways you need to let yourself be open to the challenge of stepping outside of that comfort zone again."

"And again and again." Hiding her cryptic meaning behind a tired smile, Alex hitched an eyebrow as if to partially concede. "There's at least a small chance I don't actually have a comfort zone, at least not one well-established enough to call the shots. They don't really let you have one in the marines, and terrorists don't tend to foster them either." Her amusement turned wry. "I came close to one at the shipyards, but that's why I'm here."

"Like I said, you have space to learn as we all do. And...if you need a mentor..." Amaya's grin softened into a gentle, warm smile. "I won't be all that far away."

Silence became the best response, a gentle nod of acknowledgement as the topic receded once again until the next time someone brought it up. The space between conversations seemed shorter by the year. Contemplating her drink for a moment, Alex took a swig and then navigated a course alteration of her own. "So, Edison's a Sutherland, right? They were working on some pretty impressive upgrades for your sensor suite when I left the shipyards."

Amaya straightened her posture, pushing the mostly empty glass back towards the barkeep. "Indeed she is. Admittedly, it's a little more my speed compared to a Prometheus-class ship. Back to my roots, as it were. We can't all be the rebellious former-marine-turned-scientist now, can we?"

"See, if Athena was any other class, you might have yourself a more compelling offer. If I'd thought they wouldn't physically place a boot on my backside and push me out, I'd have requested another six months just to work on the upcoming revamp for Sutherlands. Mostly under the hood," Alex added, shaking her head as the bartender silently motioned for a refill. "But that's where all the excitement is anyway if you ask me."

Seeing that Ryan was done with drinking, Amaya similiarly waved the offer of a refill away. "You'd get bored after six days," she said with a slight smirk. "I've seen you in action; unless you're out in the thick of it, you'd get frustrated. And that's not healthy for anyone involved."

"I spent two years working on the Prometheus upgrades," Alex protested, though not without an element of jovial chagrin. "Built an entire reputation around being the only fool for miles who'd willingly stare at code in her downtime." The Lieutenant lifted a shoulder to concede. "The jury's still out on whether I was particularly fun to be around during that time though."

"I guess that'd depend who you ask; any good scientist would be right there with you bearing a sympathy coffee." Amaya retorted with a soft pat on Ryan's shoulder. She stood up from the bar stool. "Look after that ship and crew. They might not understand you, but they'll definitely need you."

Though she had no desire to linger, Alexis remained seated out of a courteous attempt to avoid awkwardness. She turned towards the departing Commander, however, and flicked off a casual salute meant more as a friendly gesture than an act of deference. "Good luck with everything." A parting smile permitted a moment of open admiration. "The Fleet's lucky to have you back."