Stardate: 70927.1400
Title: And In This Corner. . .
Authors: Lily T'Ana and Zanh Liis
Scene: Ready Room, USS Independence
Time: Following "Caught in the Act" and before "Is It Really True?"
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Lily T'Ana looked up from the science station in dismay as she observed the commotion around her.
All had been quiet on the bridge for hours and then suddenly, all hell had broken loose. Security had rushed into the ready room and had not come back out for what seemed an eternity. There were no outward signs of a struggle; no thumping noises or shattering glass or phaser fire heard. What was going on in there?
N'Dura and her team emerged from the room at last with a very handsome, well dressed, but pale looking man in their custody.
"This way, Dr. Corbinsky," The Klingon growled, as she moved him into the lift and ordered "Sickbay."
*Corbinsky! They caught him!* Lily thought. Then her brow furrowed. No intruder alert had sounded, nothing unusual had come up on the sensors.
Or had it?
She ran a quick diagnostic scan on the station just to be sure she hadn't missed anything. She waited impatiently for the results, and once she got them, quickly realized that they were not at all what she was expecting.
Something was not right. Someone had been making alterations to the settings of the ship's internal sensors, and she believed she knew exactly who it was. In fact, she was certain of it.
She did not care that Dabin Reece was this well known, brilliant scientist who had flown into virtually every galaxy if you counted all seven lifetimes' experience of his symbiont.
He was not going to screw with the settings of her sensor grid and not work with her on it- or at least tell her in advance- about it. Lily was going to remind him who was who's superior officer the minute he set foot back aboard Independence!
Lily looked up as TC Blane emerged from the ready room and prepared to take command of the bridge once again. "As soon as medical finishes with Corbinsky, we can catch up to him at the brig, Sir." He addressed the captain just before the doors closed. Lily approached him.
"Lt. Blane, I am leaving Ensign Crane in charge here, I need to speak with the Captain for a few minutes."
"Is there anything I should know about Lt. T'Ana?" Blane asked inquisitively.
"I don't think so, but I will let you know after I talk to the Captain. I will make my return shortly." Lily wore a rather determined expression on her face. She looked like a woman on a mission, and Blane was happy, or more to the point, hoping that he was not the focus of that mission.
Lily made her way to the Captain's ready room and chimed to enter.
"What is it?" Captain Zanh growled as Lily entered the room. It was perfectly clear to Lily that the Captain had much on her mind and was lacking her formidable daily dose of caffeine that she should have consumed by now.
"Captain I hate to disturb you, but I was going over the settings on the internal sensor grids,"
"Oh?" Zanh interrupted. The word that echoed through her mind was *busted*. "Everything in order?"
"No!" Lily lamented. "In fact, several protocols have been altered and I can't seem to trace how or where it was done. Have any of my officers, or the engineering department, been authorized to make changes or upgrades to the system that I should be aware of?"
She was trying to be as diplomatic as possible- and trying to avoid getting her head bit off. What she really wanted to say was, 'Was that flipping Reece being his old, "I am the greatest thing since the replicator was invented!" self and doing whatever the hell he wants to do and damn what my superior officer will say? Has he been taking creative license and ignoring my authority?'
"Not engineering, or your officers." Zanh replied, hitting the off switch on the computer before her and giving T'Ana her full attention. "But someone did make alterations to the sensors."
"Who authorized this? I'm Chief of Science. If there are changes to be made to any of my sensor grids, I should be the one to make them."
"Normally I would agree with you. But in this case, we had to take another approach. I'm sorry, lieutenant, but it couldn't be helped. I authorized it, and the information was need to know. You didn't need to know."
Lily felt as if her blood were truly coming to a rapid and active boil as she processed the last two sentences Zanh had spoken.
"I didn't need to know? With all due respect, Sir, I am head of the department. How could I not need to know?" Her hands balled up into compact little fists. "Did Reece need to know?"
"Mind your tone," Zanh warned. "I am in no mood for this today. Lt. Reece had nothing to do with the sensor changes. He was far too busy working on the Alchemy. Who did it and why is not something I am at liberty to discuss with you. So you're just going to have to take my word as your commanding officer that I did what I had to do. Now that you have been promoted, you're going to have to accept the fact that sometimes, CO's have to make decisions like this and they don't have time to run it by everyone on the senior staff. Welcome to the big leagues."
"Acting CO's, you mean." Lily mumbled, before she could catch herself.
Zanh's eyebrows shot upward and disappeared beneath her shaggy black bangs. She blinked several times in quick succession as she felt her temper slipping.
"I'm sorry," she rose slowly from her seat at the desk, "What did you just say?"
By the time Lily said what she did, she had turned around to walk away.
Zanh threw her shoulders back. "I know you weren't about to walk out on me without being dismissed first."
Lily turned back and glared at Zanh. "Permission to speak freely, Sir?"
Zanh's eyes narrowed. "Go for it."
She was of the belief that it was better to have your officers tell you what they really thought of you, to your face, than say it to the rest of the staff behind your back.
"Believe me, I know what being in the big leagues, as you call it, means. I've lived on starships my whole life, I have eaten, drank and slept Starfleet since the day I was born. I also know that not telling me about major changes to the sensors on the ship could be a disaster in the case of an emergency. I do not take my position as Chief of Sciences lightly, Captain, I should hope you don't either.
"Any person who commands a post on this ship needs to know what they are up against if they're going to run their department properly. What's more, I do not take the responsibility I have to protect the lives of the people on this ship lightly." T'Ana was trying to assure that the Captain knew she did not like being up against something she could not see.
"Lily," Zanh said, softening her previously harsh tone. "If you think for one moment that I do not feel, every second of every day, the responsibility that is on my shoulders when it comes to the safety of every single soul aboard this ship, you're mistaken. Seriously mistaken."
Zanh locked eyes on the younger woman now. "You remind me of someone I used to know. Someone who had a lot of potential, but also a lot to learn. Someone who pushed the envelope when they thought there were right, and tore through it when they were certain of it."
Lily returned Zanh's gaze without wavering.
"Major changes to the sensors were not made. Adjustments to the timing, making them a more efficient net to catch the fish we were after, were made. By my authorization. As far as who implemented those changes and how, it doesn't matter now. It's done. They were effective. That is what matters."
She took a breath before continuing. "I give you my word that I will do my level best to keep you in the loop as my chief of science. I value your diligence and your place on this crew. However. . ." Zanh made sure there was no mistake about the next point,. "I am not your Uncle R.J. And if I make a decision, and in my judgment it's in the best interests of the crew, for the sake of their safety and security to tell no one, I will tell no one. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Sir." Lily put a little more spin on the last word than she intended.
"You're dismissed."
Lily started toward the door then stopped. "The person that you said I reminded you of. Are they still in Starfleet?"
"Could say that."
"Successful? Are they still pushing the envelope?"
"Pushing the envelope? Definitely. Successful, I'd like to think so. You're looking at her."
"Captain," Lily hesitated, but Zanh gestured for her to continue. "I do not expect you to be anything like R.J. Gilmore, and I do respect your authority to run this ship as you see fit," Lily thought about it for a moment, then added, "believe it or not, all my life I've been trying to out run my family, spread my own wings and fly."
"Well, it looks like this is your chance," Zanh reassured her. "Your time is now."
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Lt. Lily T'Ana
Chief of Science
USS Independence NCC-90791
and
=/\=Captain Zanh Liis
Acting CO
USS Independence NCC-90791