Finding ones feet

Posted on Tue Oct 12th, 2021 @ 7:23am by Primrose Theodora & Fleet Admiral Cerywyn

Mission: The Black Planet Rises

"....crewmen give me a second, I would like to change into something more comfortable," Theodora said as she walked into the bedroom, opening a few bags and pulling out, well something more sensible, which was a white t-shirt, pinstripe pleated skirt, and a nice simple black blazer. "Ah, much better, now crewmen let's go take a look at my offices," Theodora said adjusting her glasses.

"Oh, y yes of course," the young crewmen said, with a smirk, "right this way," she said leading them out of the quarters and down the corridor, "as the lieutenant said, this whole area is for diplomatic use, and here is your office," Cora said, allowing the diplomat to have some time to take a look around. The office was very utilitarian which Theo didn't mind, in fact, she liked it the desk was a simple gunship metal gray with a black leather office chair, along with a similar setup with a coffee table, sofa, and a couple of chairs.

Cora followed the diplomat into the office, for as utilitarian as it was still nicer than most of the offices minus the admiralty on the station. "I hope it is to your liking?" Cora asked simply before continuing on. "Your office and living quarters are customizable to your needs. They do not need to stay this utilitarian. Just get with the quartermaster and there are shops on the main promenade. You'll find most are occupied by artisans and craftsmen. If the station can't replicate what you need, they can."

"Yes this will do just fine," Theodora said, her fingers running along the smooth edge of the desk, her eyes darting about, but never feeling like they were darting around. "So, now that we have gotten done with the tour, what can you fill me on?" Theo asked taking a seat on one of the black leather chairs, "it seems that this station and region are shrouded in mystery, I think that is the best way of putting it," she said crossing her legs, and indicating for her to sit.

The crewmen awkwardly sat, it wasn't because she was nervous but more so well the station never had a diplomat actually stationed on the station, sure the planet below had the embassy and they hosted but all that was different very different. "Honestly not much, um, like the lieutenant said you are all first assigned diplomat, and well the main species is not keen on seeking peace or even talking,* the crewmen said adjusting in her chair, "also like the lieutenant said, you should get some rest as you have your meeting with the admiral in the morning," she added.

Maybe the crewmen were right, she should get some sleep, "fair enough, see you tomorrow morning crewmen," and with that Theodora stood and headed back to her quarters.

[Next Morning]

"....alright crewmen lead the way," Theodora said adjusting her well frankly very uncomfortable uniform, with PaDD in hand they headed out. The walk and journey were done in silence, not uncomfortable just silence as they tried to figure one another out.

"One second, and I'll see if the admiral is ready to accept you," the crewmen said as she disappeared leaving Theodora alone, after entering the outer part of the office, Cora hit the chime for the inner office.

Lieutenant Grace looked up and then quickly back down at the Admiral's calendar before calling out "Enter!" She stood, nodding at Crewman Cora. "I have the ambassador down for an hour for this first meeting. You can come back and pick her up then." At that, lieutenant Grace turned, extended her hand toward the newly arrived diplomatic officer. "Madam Ambassador, Welcome to Space Station Cyrga."

"Thank you, Lieutenant, but I am no ambassador, just a mere diplomat," Theodora said giving a polite nod, her body, and weirdly her mind getting used to the station, which was odd, seeing as she has spent time on stations before. Cora nodded, as she turned and headed off to help get things ready for Theodora's day. "I have to admit this is new for me, I am not sure what is happening, to be honest, and this is a first for me," she added.

Lieutenant Grace nodded. "I'll leave that explanation to the Admiral, Ma'am. She's waiting for you in her office," said Grace, pointing to the doors on the far side of the office.

"Fair enough, lieutenant please lead the way," Theodora said giving the lieutenant a simple nod.

Lieutenant Grace turned and headed to the double doors on the other side of the anterior office area. Cerywyn had been in meetings. The newly arrived executive officer had met with Cerywyn earlier, but from the drawn look on the Admiral's face when Lieutenant Grace had taken in some requested reports, did not bode well. It had been about an hour past. With the new diplomatic officer having arrived, it was looking to be a long night ahead. Lieutenant Grace gently smoothed her hair and checked her uniform before hitting the chime.

Cerywyn had watched Captain Rasmussen leave but all things considered, she hadn't had time to let her thoughts grow too dark. There was simply too much to be done. When the door chimed, she quickly checked her reflection in a nearby mirror. Her non-traditional uniform may not look like Fleet issue, but everything about Cerywyn did. She quickly glanced around the office. The office was her second home. Behind her desk was a beautiful set of backlight stainless steel, wood, and glass shelving and in each little delicate cube rested what some would see as dust collectors but what she saw as memories. Her eyes lingered for a while on the small spherical box. She tapped the lid which sprang open at her touch. The haunting strains of a long-forgotten melody drifted up and the holographic image of what had once been her home flickered around her. She closed her eyes and for a moment found herself transported to a different time and place. The tune finished and the notes faded once more to memory. Two empty seats sat at an angle near her desk and across from the fireplace in her office. This fireplace was small in comparison to the one in her quarters. The dancing flames were comforting when the reaches of space grew dark and cold and threatened to engulf her very being. She had just taken her seat when the door chimed again. She looked up. "Enter" she called out, pushing herself back up to stand.

The Novan, with a fun little twist, one for whatever reason she kept hidden until a) she couldn't, and b) it needed to be revealed. "Admiral, diplomat Primrose Theodora, a pleasure to meet you," the diplomat said politely.

Cerywyn had stood as the doors opened. She extended her hand 'Ms. Theodora, Welcome to Space Station Cyrga....and perhaps the hub of political chaos." She motioned to the empty seats. "Please, take a seat." Cerywyn gave an imperceptible nod in Grace's direction as the Lieutenant quietly exited. There was a small tea cart with a steeping pot of hot water and a variety of tea blends along with delicate pastries to tease the eyes and the tastebuds. Asa, had, as usual, outdone himself. "Would you like a cup of hot tea? If not, please feel free to help yourself to a beverage of your choice from the replicator."

Tea was fine for her, in fact, she preferred it, once she had her tea she took a seat, "my specialty," Theo said with a small chuckle, "I have also heard there is a power that refuses to talk," she added.

Cerywyn nodded. "Something to that effect, yes." Cerywyn tapped a small screen that displayed a holographic map of the region between herself and Ms. Theodora. "There is much of the Delta Quadrant that is, for lack of a better word, untamed, uncharted. There is also a region of space controlled by the Tykarian Empire with whom we have a neutral, mutual agreement to stay out. Much like the neutral zone that exists in the Alpha and Beta quadrants, there is a similar space, just so," she said pointing to the map, her finger wiggling about in the holographic image. She was far too dignified and stifled the chuckle that threatened to spill forth at the sight. She continued "There are known threats from an Empire inside the 'uncharted space. They've ravaged the Delta Quadrant before; they occupied Cyrga for a time even - but we beat them back and at great cost. Normally, they stay out of the occupied space where they know the Federation is likely to be moving and out of Tykarian space. They have grown more brazen of late and the result is that occupied planetoids, colonies, and outposts are evacuating. We've already lost contact with several. Early scans indicate that nothing remains where they once existed." She tapped the console and the map disappeared. Cerywyn sent a copy of the file to Ms. Theodora as she leaned back. "There have been no survivors so far. Instead, we now have multiple outposts, colonies, stragglers who are fleeing to the safety of the station and the Federation. It's nothing short of chaos and I don't have the staff to deal with all the civilian matters that need to be dealt with. That's why you're here. Stem the chaos ... or at least help stem the tide.

Theo didn’t bother to hide her sigh of frustration, or the annoyed look on her face, but what she did do was take a deep breath to help calm herself, “….I understand that I don’t know this region and that from the sounds of it, that pretty much all the power shout here do not want to bother with talks to maintain some kind of mutual living arrangement, but….,” she stopped and took another deep breath, before taking a few calming sips of her tea.

“….but what you just asked me to do, is what a civilian affairs officer is trained for, I am trained in how to negotiate, to interpret and help maintain some kind of neutrality when dealing with alien species, and to help make it clear that war doesn’t benefit anyone,” Theo said hoping this didn’t come across as, as what, “my apologies, I am not saying that I won’t help, but it means this wasn’t what I was trained to do, yes I do have experience with chaos, hell anyone and everyone that has worked in Starfleet or the Federation in some capacity has dealt with chaos or anything that is living for that matter, but, err, never mind,” she said as she finished speaking and a few more calming deep breaths.

Was she just overtired from the trip, or overwhelmed with everything, but as she was thinking this the other thought passed through, {how big of an ass were you, just then?}

Cerywyn let the woman finish. She sensed a certain level of disquiet and had to refrain from frowning. "Ms. Theodora - the Federation searched the area. There is no civilian affairs office onboard Cyrga because we don't typically require one. The only reason people are fleeing here is that we represent a safe haven and for all, I know at any moment now, war will be upon us either from within or without, I know not. What I do need is someone that can manage people, keep them calm, help them with what they need. There are colonists here from several regions of the DQ and they'd not normally be in contact with one another. Now they find themselves thrust into the middle of something beyond their control and with people they may not like. You could very easily find yourself negotiating peace." Cerywyn paused. "The situation is not ideal, but you are what the Federation could spare and I need someone with your skillset. Many of these people are wary of anyone with psi power and mine is well known here. I don't need to be the cause of their unrest. I don't want to add to their concerns or increase tensions. The station is already brimming with enough"

Cerywyn looked at her chrono. "I have to get to the bridge. The choice is yours, Ms. Theodora. If you need to think about it, do so. I expect an answer in 24 hours though." With that, Cerywyn stood up and walked around her desk, and headed to the doors. She paused long enough to stop in front of Theodora. "You can be of much use here even if you do not see it. lieutenant Grace has already located your guide. Until tomorrow." Cerywyn inclined her head and stepped through the doors as they swooshed and remained open.

Theo followed her out, her mind racing mostly the thought of backing down, and slight confusion, and really just not truly understanding how the Federation worked, especially when it came job placement. "...oh yes Cora, I could use a nice cup of tea, can you make that happen in my office?"

"Oh, yes of course I'll place the order and it should be ready by the time we get back down there," and with that two of them were off.