Earned Trust [Backpost]
Posted on Mon Mar 31st, 2025 @ 10:19pm by Commander Rylen Lyo & Captain Lorut Vila & Admiral Albion
Edited on on Tue Apr 1st, 2025 @ 9:16pm
2,524 words; about a 13 minute read
Mission:
Yesterday’s Enterprise
Location: Starbase 210 - Near the Romulan/Cardassian border
Timeline: MD0 - 0745 hours
Albion stood, looking out of a large window overlooking the sloping down. The typical mushroom shape of the standard Starfleet Starbase class, and her hull shone brightly beneath him. He smiled as a pair of tethered workers came climbing from beneath the underside of the top stardock.
Starbase 210 has been moved to its current location due to the rising threat from the Klingon/Reman Alliance. Cardassian Prime was still decades away from self-dependence and the Dominion War Treaty forbid them from developing a war fleet like those of their past. What few Galor class warships that had survived the war were in joint operations with Starfleet to secure their border and their planet.
He clasped his newly cloned hands behind his back. He was more Caitian now and less android. Less…cy…Borg. In fact, he was - per the doctors treating him - close to seventy five percent restored. He felt more alive than when he was just a shell, a part of a cat encased in metal and transparent aluminum.
The alert chime at his door indicated they were arriving, early and a good sign that he was making the right decision. “Enter,” he called, his timbre deep and guttural.
Acting Captain Lorut Vila came through the door. "Sir," she said, pleasantly. "Captain Lorut Vila, reporting as requested," she added.
She remained at attention until he excused her. She'd had to shape up these past few months - and, in a way - GROW up. She was making really good strides in her therapy and the medications were helping a lot too. She was finally making inroads with the crew. They weren't fully "there" yet, but they were getting to a place of trust. She was learning to let some things go, lighten up with her perfectionism, and that maybe danger didn't always lurk around every corner. Every day was a challenge but so far, so good.
Rylen was tracking just behind his new captain, Lorut. As she stopped and came to attention, he followed suit. “Admiral, sir,” he also greeted the large Caitian. He was always awed by the majesty of the greater felinoid species.
Initially, Lyo’s reaction was to resign the position as Executive Officer, but after weeks of traveling just to get back to Federation space - and the journey wasn’t exactly the easiest - here they had remained for nearly six more months.
It had given Lyo a chance to consider a lot of choices, and immediate choices while coupled with grief, were usually bad ones. Besides, Max would want him to remain beside Lorut. Anything else might seem like a betrayal when he returned from wherever he was. Counselor Rena seemed to think him deeply in denial, but if Max had died on that unnamed planet, deep in the Beta Quadrant, somehow Lyo thought he would know. They shared more than just a bed, a ring or some paper.
As these thoughts raced through his head, he heard and automatically responded to the order to relax and an additional invitation to sit.
Unusual for the demanding, commanding Admiral. Albion had a well deserved reputation as a hard ass, from the schooling of Admiral Edward Jellico directly. At least in Jellico’s short time as an adjunct professor to the Academy.
“I’ve called you here for a reason today. Can you guess it?” Admiral Albion asked. He found his mind was healing at a less rapid pace than his genetically cloned replacement parts, but feeling more feline than Borg was softening the shell between himself and others. Utopia Planetia would be with him forever, but that didn’t mean he had to punish others for events they weren’t even involved with.
Rylen looked at his captain skeptically but wordlessly. He simply was waiting for the other shoe to drop. ’A new captain,’ was Rylen’s first thought. ’Or total reassignment of the current command team,’ was his next guess. He hadn’t known what Max had done to his mind, but he hoped he wasn’t projecting. He certainly get nervous.
Vila sat quietly when given permission. He was different - the Admiral. Maybe the past six months had been good for ALL of them. She didn't know yet. Still, she proceeded with caution.
"Well, I am hoping you're about to tell us that the last six months have been a simulation and you're about to turn it off," she said, keeping her tone careful. That would be the dream, at least for her. She glanced at Lyo. He needed to calm down a little bit. The worst that would happen would be that they would be split up - actually, MORE likely was that she'd be reassigned and they'd bring in a better fit for captain until Lyo had earned Albion's ire enough to warrant a promotion.
Albion chuckled, the sound was usually disconcerting to non-felinoids, but the response warranted a moment of levity. “Hardly, Captain Lorut. I am satisfied with the work that you and Commander Lyo have been putting in as the command team of the Intrepid. I’ve called you here to finalize your current positions as the command teampermanent command team, assuming that’s what you want.”
Vila was rarely speechless, but right now, she was. After a moment, she regained her composure. "I would like the opportunity to continue on with the crew, yes," she said. "We've come a long way, and to move on would damage us further, I think," she said. For as long as possible, they needed to stick together. At least until more healing had happened. She looked over to Lyo.
"I'd like to have you as my XO if you'd like to," she said to him.
Without hesitation Rylen answered, “Of course, Captain. As you’ve said, we have come a long way and still have served together for quite a while.
“To split up now would be damaging for the crew, I think,” he finished. He truly felt that he and Lorut had joined as a team quite well. Staying with the Intrepid would be the best way to find Max as well. It would be the first place his lover would return to, to Rylen’s mind anyway.
"Can I recommend Commander Ripley be moved to second officer permanently, with a bump in his rank? He's really been instrumental to both of us, and was with Captain Culver too," she said. That was the other thing she was doing - trying to recognize others' abilities and use them where she was lacking.
“It is your command team now, Captain Lorut. I am officially recognizing your accomplishments over the last seven months and I fully trust your judgment.
“Besides, not that Maxwell did it on purpose, but the Intrepid has found itself in quite a lot of trouble in the months leading up to his death,” Albion finished, though he hoped he didn’t come off as blaming the former commanding officer.
“Missing,” Lyo said quietly, almost a deadly whisper. This Caitian did not seem to know to whom he was speaking. A single call and Albion would be more parts than he had been before his cloned upgrades. But medical science could be easily unspooled if someone knew the science and had the power and opportunity to unravel it.
The Admiral’s head seemed not to move, but his ears were clearly, visibly tracking Commander Lyo now. They tucked back, indicating both annoyance and attention.
“I am sorry, Commander. Truly, I am. But the Federation investigation has found that the likelihood of his survival was less than five percent AND that was before all they could find were scant traces of his DNA - triple helix indicating the complex genetic structure of an El Aurian. Starfleet has confirmed his death, despite there being no body, son.
“The inquiry was satisfied and closed by the CinC of Starfleet Command at the official court martial into the loss of the USS Lovelace.”
Rylen grit his teeth, setting his jaw firm. “As you say, Admiral, but I dare say I knew him better than you. As such, I hold firm in my conviction that he still lives.” Rylen’s fists were clenched so hard that his fingers were turning white.
“From your mouth to his Gods’ ears. I believe the El Aurians believe in Kai and Toh and, if he lives or died, it is entirely in their hands now,” Albion said as he met the Kriosian’s deadly gaze. The Kriosian held strongly to his belief. Despite the reports of the god, Thor, being on Planet X, Albion still didn’t believe it.
Rylen turned an apologetic gaze to Lorut. He knew that she and Max were never really on a first name basis, but he hoped he had her respect - or would have soon - to call her Vila.
“My apologies,” he said, basically to his new commanding officer for embarrassing her. He returned a passive gaze back to the Admiral. “So to where are we being sent, sir?” he asked to push past the tension in the room.
“My first recommendation is a trip through the corridor between New El Auria and Krios Prime. Tensions along the former Romulan Neutral Zone and the new Klingon/Reman Alliance.
“I don’t expect you to make yourselves available to those planets, just seen entering the Beta Quadrant as our flagship of the Beta fleet task force. Then on to exploration as Intrepid had been doing before the Planet X tragedy.”
Vila simply watched the exchange. She would do the same if it were Fraiser down there, probably. Or anyone, really. In fact, she HAD done the same, not less than a year ago. "It's Ok. They do believe in Kai and Toh, similar in faith to my people, sir," she said. "And I don't fault the Commander for his words. We're all still mourning the loss," she said. Even if he were alive, he was missing, and had been for a really long time, and that stung.
When the Caitian indicated that they were free to move about the sector, she raised an eyebrow. "Excellent, sir," she said. "The flagship?" She clarified. Oh no.
USS Intrepid was the flagship before Captain Culver’s,” Albion paused, trying not to be boorish toward the still grieving crew, “loss,” he decided on a semi-neutral word. “It is in the interest of the task fleet that it remain that way. Consistency, Captain Lorut, is important, don’t you think?”
She nodded wordlessly. Crap. "I think that's best, given the circumstances," she managed to say. The flagship of their task force would have plenty of eyes on them. On HER. Oh, no. This was like...the worst day in a long time. Now she had to behave. She couldn't act rashly, or behave like she used to. It was one thing to be "acting" Captain, pretending to make big decisions and lead the day to day activities, but it was quite another to make it officially be so.
"And the current crew? Will they remain on the Intrepid as usual?" She asked. They needed to stick together.
“I have no intention of interfering with your crew choices or changes, Captain Lorut. When I say that the Intrepid is yours to command, I truly mean it.
“That said, you must finalize the crew placement. I believe Odren Xall and T’Karnak have yet to be permanently assigned to their respective positions. You should absolutely make those roles permanent or change them before you depart,” Albion suggested. As an engineer and a helmsman, both officers were well respected and would be highly sought after if Lorut chose differently.
Vila nodded. She would insure that they stayed together. "We'll stay together. I would welcome Lt. T'Karnak if he is willing to stay. We've had our problems, but at the end of the day, we're a family and a crew. Culver would've wanted us all together," she said, firmly. "Lyo, will you stick by me the way you stuck by Captain Culver? I can't do it without you," she said. That was true. Lyo was far more by the book than she. As far as she was concerned, the ship could fly itself and SHE could hang in the labs.
“I would hope that we can be more friendly than you two often appeared. It will take time, but we will learn to work with each other than against each other. As I’ve already said, it is in the best interest of our ship and crew to work and stay together.” Rylen looked to Lorut and then to the Admiral, restating his readiness to get underway with his new Captain.
She smiled lightly and nodded. "Alright, Admiral. There's your answer," she said. "Anything else you need from me before I go gather my crew?" She asked. The others got a few days' respite before they launched. They needed a shore leave, a chance to recover and grieve properly. A chance to refresh, and then the opportunity to go out and explore further, deeper into space.
“Only to say congratulations and you’re dismissed, Captain Lorut. You have plenty to do and not much time before launch. I expect I’ll be changing things like that, there always seems to be a rush of crew to return to their ships.
“Something to think about…for me anyway.” The admiral nodded. “And I still keep you while I ramble. Apologies. I know you’ll do great things for the Federation and to continue our goodwill tour of the Beta Quadrant. Captain. Commander. Godspeed and good luck.”
Vila smiled tightly. "Thank you, sir," she said.
She turned to Lyo after leaving the admiral’s office. "Well. That's over," she said, and then stood up.
Rylen followed his new captain out and into the station’s corridors, nodding at her relieved comment. “I’ll return to the ship and begin preparations to get her underway immediately, Captain. I assume you will want to recall the crew, as your first truly official duty, ma’am,” he led off a dual plan to be ready in just under an hour and a half.
Vila nodded. "Please do that, and I'll meet you on the bridge in an hour," she said. She had to tell Fraiser first, and maybe go panic, privately, of course.
Rylen gave his most practiced sincere smile - a skill he was taught even as he began speaking. “Captain,” he said, using a similarly practiced warmth to his tone. One had to be nothing if not polite and diplomatic among the ruling class of Krios.
Rylen turned one way into the busy station, noting that his new Captain was headed in another direction. Soon, the corridors twisted and turned so that neither could see the other.
It didn’t matter, they had an hour before they would reunite on the bridge.
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