Getting to Know the Captain (Part 2)

Posted on Tue Jun 24th, 2025 @ 10:58pm by Captain M'Mira

1,893 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Mission 5 - The Cold War Ends
Location: The Crown Inn
Timeline: MD03 - 1130

[Last Time on Getting to Know the Captain]

"I'm also the baby, only girrrl, and the tiniest. I had fourrr brrrothers borrrn with me in my litterrr. Mom decided that was enough, which is fine by me because I'm clearrrly the cutest," M'Mira replied puffing with pride.

Kaylee chuckled warmly. "That is something that you and I share, being found the cutest. My brothers at first didn't want a girl, they were hoping for another boy, but apparently they thought I was adorable, so decided to keep me."

[And now for the Conclusion]

"Did they rrreally have a choice?" M'Mira asked laughing.

Kaylee grinned, "Nope no choice at all." she sat back in her chair relaxing her posture. "Seems like we have some similarities of background. My mother wanted me to become a diplomat, and she trained me in those duties as I was supposed to become a wife to a diplomat or something like that. I didn't want to be something like that. I wanted to be someone who could get dirty, climb trees and just have fun. When I was being trained by my mother, she didn't want me to go out and get dirty I was just to dress pretty and such."

"I perrrsonally like drrressing prrretty. I would love nothing morrre than to be staying at home and rrraising a full litterrr but since that neverrr seems to happen, I figurrred, I had betterrr do well in my carrreerrrr. I have a unique knack forrr fixing things. Did you know that I was the Ops Chief when I firrrst went to the planetarrry station? This place seems to have capturrred me, as opposed to a man."

"You were on the planetary station on Faltan, as chief of Ops?" Kaylee's eyes widened. "Woah, I didn't know that at all. Fascinating, so you can see what needs to be worked on then. Do you have the desire to go out and work on things broken out on the station? I know I would love to go out and do patrols under the color of security. Now though I am wearing red of a command position."

"You arrre behind, arrren't you?" M'Mira answered. "Yes, I was the Ops Chief orrriginally when I came herrre. This space station did not exist. Therrre was just the planetarrry station which we leased out from the Falteans underrr the prrrevious goverrrnorrr. He was a good man from what I could tell. Died suddenly. Murrrderrred. Then Taga took overrr. Anyways, when we came to the planetarrry station, it was a mess. Nobody had done anything with it forrr who knows how long? I prrractically rrrebuilt the thing myself. I spent many a night getting grrreasy in the bowels of that station." The Caitian smiled fondly at her reminiscence.

"We went thrrrough a few Captains until I eventually was prrromoted to Commanderrr and took overrr. Things seemed poised on peace despite Taga's insistance that we neverrr leave the grrrounds of the station. In the meantime, Starrrfleet starrrted building this station. I do not think that they wanted to rrrely on the goodwill of the Falteans orrr morrre specifically, Taga." M'Mira frowned and looked heavily at the table.

"I had worrrked well with many Ambassadorrrs and peace seemed to be on the way. Everrryone came to an event that I orrganized forrr a peace trrreaty. Then came the suicide that starrrted the cascade. He exploded and all the rrresiduals that touched anyone exploded...." The Caitian's voice sounded defeated.

"I could do nothing. I orrrderred the abandonment of the planetarrry station and we came herrre. Because I did not think to securrre the station forrr confidential inforrrmation after the attack, anotherrr perrrson was orrrdered to take charrrge of this station. Eventually, howeverrr, I got the station back and afterrr many years was prrromoted to Captain. Things have been peaceful since but what little inforrrmation we get, mostly frrrom Candy, things arrre not stable therrre. Taga is a tyrrrant."

M'Mira shook her head. "I'm sorrrrrry. I did not mean to go into all of that."

Before Kaylee could answer, food arrived and was placed before them both. The waiter asked, "Is there anything I could get either of you?"

The Captain shook her head in the negative.

"Thank you but no nothing more, the drinks and the food here is perfect." Kaylee smiling brightly. Once the waitress left, she directed her attention to M'Mira. "Oh, don't be sorry about telling me this. I don't think much of that is known until now. And I really needed to know about all that has happened here before me, and the others had come to this station."

Kaylee picked up her fork to cut off a piece of the fish and sampled it before she continued. "The station where we came from, we dealt with bombs and even an attack from the Breen. An investigation had been done, as to how nanites had infected the station we were on, and it caused a lot of trouble. The person who brought them to our station had been murdered and they escaped."

She took a drink then added, "The nanites were dealt with but still, we had our own troubles from them. We even had a spy upon the station and that wasn't discovered until the spy escaped, she had framed one of the department heads, making it look like the department head of engineering, had planted a bomb sabotaging the station. And there was a bomb that had been planted in a cake, which injured a few, and killed another. We ended up getting another chief of security who was able to locate other bombs upon the station and got rid of them."

"What station was this?" M'Mira asked as she took her fork and stabbed the fish and started eating it directly from the fork while it hung in midair.

"It was Poseidon Station where Colonel Patton and others are from. I had worked with Colonel Patton on that station, as assistant chief of security." Kaylee took another bite of her fish after cutting another bite.

"So, you have a lot of shared history, then," M'Mira confirmed in a musing tone. She then took another bite of the fish off her fork which was still hanging in midair.

"We do and he's a good man." Kaylee stated simply, before getting back to her eating. She paused to pick up some chips with her finger two at a time.

"That is the least that you have said this entire time. Why is that?"

"Ah... well you see on the station that he and I were on, he was one of the Executive Officers on that station. There was another as well. The duties were divided between him being in charge of the marines, as well as tactical details for the station. Whereas the other person, she was in charge of another part of station operations, and the CO, he was in charge of other things. It worked rather well all three working in synch and being supportive of each other."

"That rrreally does not answerrr my question as to why you say he is a good man."

"Oh, that is what you were meant. " Kaylee picked up her beverage glass and leaned back in her chair. "He cares about his people, and back on Poseidon Station he cared about those of the station. He is really worried about security of the station, especially with his wife, Aer, being pregnant. He may seem rough around the edges but M'Mira, I would trust him with my life. And I do not give my trust easily. Back on Poseidon Station, our CO was kidnapped. And Colonel Patton went above and beyond to get the CO back. I don't know where they found Captain Harrington, but they found him, he and his Marines and brought him back home."

Kaylee moved to where she put her glass down upon the table. "All this happened while there was also an investigation into the murder of a famous author." She moved the remanants of her food to one side.

"Yes, tensions are high and when dealing with someone of an unknown component, Candy." Kaylee reaching out to take a drink, to moisten her throat.

"Candy, who seems to be friends with the person in charge on Faltan, that vigilance isn't going to go away. You are now under the protection of Colonel Patton and the Kingsmen as well as the rest of the station. And let me give you fair warning, there better not be anything happening to put his lovely wife, Aer into jeopardy, especially since she is with child." Kaylee picked up her drink and slumped back against the chair. "That in a nutshell is a little bit about Colonel Patton, the Kingsmen and where we came from."

"Well, I hope that the Colonel will learn to trrrust me. Candy is not a thrrreat to this station. She can be difficult and she has hurrrt me. Howeverrr, she is not a trrraitorrr. I have almost a decade worrrth of experrrience with herrr."

"Well, hopefully things can be worked out. Where Candy is concerned that is going to be an iffy situation. You said she hurt you, how did that happen and in what regards did it?" Kaylee wanted to hear more. "As for her being a traitor, the jury is still out where she is concerned."

"She rrreporrrted that I had incompetently allowed the conferrrence to be attacked and that I had not taken apprrroprrriate measurrres to safeguarrrd everrryone. Even though the fault lay with the suicide bomber, she was not incorrrrrect." M'Mira bowed her head at this admission. "She blamed me for the emboldened Taga and Falteans. Therrre is an arrrchived brrroadcast if you carrre to see it."

"I will watch it, but how are you supposed to guard against a suicide bomber. Blames you and she is the one who is consorting with Taga? That is what humans call the pot calling the kettle black." Kaylee frowned.

"A commanding officerrr is supposed to anticipate prrroblems. I did not. Also, I would not call what she does 'consorrrting with Taga.' Once you underrrstand Candy's code, she's quite easy to manage."

"A commanding officer, can't always anticipate everything that is impossible, otherwise you are saying you'd be omnipotent and you are not, and the same for others, too." Kaylee's voice was rather earnest in her speech.

"Perrrhaps not," M'Mira answered. "But you will learrrn that the standarrrds are differrrent, the higherrr you rrrise in rrrank." She thought for a moment and asked, "Have you attended command school orrr everrr considerrred taking the courrrses?"

"I have considered it, and I have also taken the courses. If I hadn't I wouldn't be in the position I am in. And I do realize there are a great amount of things to experience." Kaylee said honestly.

"Well, I am happy to assist in whateverrr way that I can, if you want to learrrn anything."

Kaylee nodded, "I will definitely ask when the time comes. Now though, well... " She drew in a breath, "Is there something I can do for you?"

"Enjoy lunch?" M'Mira asked with a small, hissing laugh.

"Indeed, we shall." Kaylee giving out a laugh and raising her glass in a toast towards M'Mira." To you, Captain M'Mira an enjoyable lunch."

 

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