Tic For Tac

Posted on Sun May 19th, 2024 @ 7:25am by Lieutenant Commander P’rel M.D & Commander N'Garzi Zora

Mission: The Trojan Horse
Location: Corridors
Timeline: MD2. Evening [Backpost]
1134 words - 2.3 OF Standard Post Measure

"P'rel," Zora called down the corridor after the Vulcan intelligence officer. She didn't stop, slow down, or show signs that she had heard the first officer calling after her. Oh I know you heard me with those Vulcan ears of yours! Zora thought to herself as she picked up her pace. Not only had P'rel ignored her, but Zora was sure she had picked up her pace. You're walking right towards a court martial lady. "P'rel!" Zora said when she was finally close enough and was able to place a hand on her shoulder too, for good measure.

Turning her head very, very slowly to look first at the spindly witch-hand upon her shoulder and then to the face of Commander Zora herself, P'rel offered a look which she imagined was best exemplified an ancient Earth idiom. 'Mess around and discover', or 'find out'; she wasn't entirely certain owing to the less an exact translation. Perhaps, she mused, a more modern expression would be to encourage one to test their assumptions at their convenience. "Commander..." she withered, dryly, in that way which she was led to believe made non-Vulcans want to punch Vulcans.

"Just the person I wanted to see," Zora said, ignoring the Vulcan's frosty reception. She found treating P'rel equally like a robot and a child was best. The woman went out of her way to make people feel uncomfortable and when she didn't get her way, she threw...tantrums, for lack of a better word. These behaviours were not befitting of a Starfleet officer but P'rel wanted a reaction, she fed off of them, and so Zora would not comply. "Did you catch up with Keating and Ryan?"

Arching a brow at Zora's initial words, she found it quite unlikely that the El Aurian wanted to see P'rel at all, unless.... The Vulcan turned her body around to face the Executive Officer, much as one might if she were ready to defend against a wild sehlat. "I have not spoken to Commander Keating nor Lieutenant Ryan yet this morning" she confirmed, although she was due to check in with both of them prior to lunch.

Too busy sharpening your scythe? Zora thought, catching herself before the words fell out of her mouth. "Late start?" She settled for, replicating the arched eyebrow.

Bristling slightly at the implication, P'rel corrected the Commander; "We have an important mission with many innocent lives in real and immediate risk, requiring effort not recreation. I have not yet slept since we left Starbase..." she informed her matter of factly. "Yourself?" she asked, wondering if the Executive Officer had found time for an intoxicating beverage or two, a bit of holodeck time perhaps.

"Yes P'rel I have slept considering that was three days ago and we're still days away from the Naghel IV star system," Zora said exasperatedly. Apparently, every conversation with this woman was going to be some sort of ego-struck competition. "Considering it's such an important mission, and you haven't found the time to sleep, I would have thought you would have checked in with the department heads by now?"

"As I indicated..." she replied coldly, "I am doing so now. I prefer to allow our people to exercise the full realm of their job roles and creativity, doing that which they are best at, as opposed to micro-managing them. Yourself?"

"Sounds like an excuse for dropping the ball," Zora smirked. "That's an idiom, by the way, meaning making a mistake by not taking action when you should have. It's okay, you'll get used to how the chain of command operates on board a starship, eventually."

"Eventually" P'rel returned with a glare. One of those 'Vulcan' glares where one was never really certain if it were just their resting expression, or a sign of pending lethality. "I assume you need me for something. What is it?"

"Of course," Zora said, almost forgetting that she had chased the Vulcan officer down the corridor. "Doctor Ki has been recalled to Earth on some urgent business, which leaves a gap in our medical staff." She paused, watching the look on P'rel's face. She hoped to see recognition but was met with cold contempt. "That means you will need to take over the role as CMO until we can replace him."

"No thank you" P'rel replied tersely and turned again to walk away. She hardly had the time to fulfil her new command role, let alone spend the mission fixing stubbed toes and cut fingers.

"No, thank you?" Zora muttered to herself, her brain only just registering the words that had escaped the Vulcan's mouth. She felt her left eye twitch as P'rel walked away; playing cat and mouse was not on her to-do list for the day. "This wasn't a request Lieutenant-Commander," she said as she hid her struggle to keep up with P'rel's stride. "It's an order. The Commodore and I can shoulder the command responsibilities. We have some experience in that area."

P'rel stopped and turned to face Zora, clasping her hands behind her back. "Some" she conceded, cocking her head and returning her stare to the Commander's eyes as if goading her with a look which said 'what next'.

Zora felt the wind leave her body as she collided with the Vulcan, clearly not expecting her to turnabout so quickly. She took a step backwards, creating a bit more of a natural talking gap between the two of them. "Some," she repeated, "more than you," she added.

"Indeed" P'rel acknowledged. "At one hundred and fourty six years of age, your approximately five years of command experience in excess of mine is most...impressive?..." the Vulcan queried with a droll tone. Not that she cared, P'rel didn't want the command assignment in the first place; accepting only as some logically challenging paradox of loyalty to Kane and a penance for risking the same. In truth, she would be quite content to operate sickbay rather than the command platform of a warship. Battling with Commander Zora, however, was an opportunity never to be missed.

Zora smiled. Not today demon! "Good memory, Commander. Now, I'm sure you remember the way to sickbay," she said, her smile widening. She didn't wait for a response, she had things to do. "And don't forget to speak to the department heads," she called from halfway down the corridor.

As Zora departed, the Vulcan stood pensively in the corridor. She looked around and confirmed that nobody else was present, before again initiating the confusingly satisfying human hand gesture she had learned. El-Aurian abilities being what they were, it was entirely possible the Commander sensed it anyway. Changing her original course, Dr P'rel now headed to sickbay.