The Plant

[CassandraSanders]

She opened her eyes and sat up. She had no active memories of what happened before that, but she wasn't immediately troubled by it. She looked around and immediately knew where she was; her surroundings if not her location.

A dry cough came from somewhere in the shadows behind her and she turned around quickly.

"Good, right on time," a voice said, from the shadows.

"Oliver," she said by way of greeting.

"Do you know where you are?" Oliver said, coming up to her.

"Yes," she said.

"And why you're here?" he said hopefully.

"Yes," she said.

"And what your assignment is?" he said.

Her brow creased. "No," she said.

"Good," he said. "It will be made apparent once you're on board their ship."

"I don't understand," she said.

"I know," Oliver said. "But you will once you have the appropriate information. Once you're on board you'll be aware of everything. You'll have your primary and secondary assignments, and suggestions of how to avoid suspicion."

She nodded, digesting it all. "What's my name?"

Oliver Baines smiled and held up a padd. "I think you'll be very pleased with what I put together." He held up a mirror for her and she smiled back, getting off the biobed and nodding to him.

He gave her a small hairclip. "A 'going away present,'" he said. "Starfleet doesn't care for long hair after all.

She gave him a wink and pinned her hair up with the clip, nodding once more in satisfaction and heading towards the door she knew would take her to the shuttlebay and a stolen Starfleet Runabout.

She was a General in a war, and her mission had only just begun.

[CassandraSanders]

Amber ducked quickly into the turbolift from the bridge and ordered her car be taken to Sickbay. As the ‘lift started to move, she leaned against the wall, her arms folded across her chest in her “thinking pose.” She drummed her fingers on her bicep idly as she decided what she wanted to tackle first.

From a credentials point of view, her staff had mixed resumes. All of them seemed capable, and so far no one had done anything drastically wrong, but after reading between a few lines, she was beginning to get the idea that the Captain was on one of his “Foreign Legion” kicks again.

“We all have something we need to redeem ourselves for,” he’d often say to her. “And in the Foreign Legion of Earth, men of questionable backgrounds were given second chances. They earned their way back into society, and proved they could rise above their pasts.”

“Well let’s start rising,” she said under her breath as she walked down the short stretch of corridor and entered Sickbay.

Her jaw nearly hit the floor as she looked over the scene. Half the access panels in the walls were still removed, with circuitry from the walls and biobeds hanging out to dry. People were being jostled this way and that, trying to get their respective tasks done and there were cartons of supplies—that hadn’t been there when she left—all over the place in no order of any fashion.

“Well,” she said to herself, since no one could hear her over the din, “at least the rest of the supplies came in.”

She stepped inside, squeezing past two technicians whose names she didn’t know. She crawled, bumped, clambered and sidled her way to her office where there was at least some elbow room. She would have locked herself in, but there were two technicians in there, installing last minute updates to her desk.

“NOW HEAR THIS,” she shouted, cupping her hands to her mouth. “QUIET!” There was little reaction at first, but eventually, enough elbows were jabbed into enough ribs to signal to everyone that someone of importance was trying to talk.

“All right everyone let’s get organized here,” she said. “Who’s in charge of the Engineering team?”
“I am Ma’am,” said a Lieutenant. She couldn’t place his face, so she assumed he was a member of the station’s crew.

“All right. Everyone who isn’t with him, drop what you’re doing, grab a box of supplies and cart it out of here. I want it neatly stacked along the wall in the corridor and I want inventory taken the minute it’s all out there. Now, Lieutenant…?”

“Parkinson ma’am,” he said.

“Thank you, yes. Mister Parkinson, how long will it take you to completely finish what you need to do in Sickbay?”

“I’d say approximately six hours ma’am,” he said.

“You have four,” Amber said. “Make the most of it.”

“Yes ma’am,” Parkinson said, scrambling back into an access hatch.

“All right everyone, let’s haul,” Amber said.

“Coming ma’am!” came a young, high-pitched voice.

Amber turned and saw a girl running towards her carrying a teetering tower of cartons and padds and tricorders. She had all of three seconds to scream “be caref—“ when the girl tripped over a technician and ended up flying through the air, slamming bodily into Amber, knocking them both to the floor and causing her tower of paraphernalia to land on top of them.

Amber pulled herself up. “Name…former rank…now.”

The girl gulped. “Ensign Tiffany Edwards ma’am,” she said.

“And how long, Miss Edwards, will it be before you’re off my ship and back on the station?” Amber said in a falsely sweet voice.

Edwards blanched. “I-I-I can have my bags packed within a few hours ma’am,” she said, her soft brown eyes turning moist.

“Bags?” Amber said, genuinely confused. “You’re not a member of the station’s crew?”

Tiffany shook her head, her deep brown hair fanning out around her. “No ma’am. I am…er…was your Head Nurse.”

*Of course, Edwards,* Amber thought. She heaved a mental sigh and pulled herself to her feet. “Get this cleaned up and stacked outside and report back to your duties in the lab.”

“Yes ma’am,” Tiffany said, very relieved. “I’m really sorry about this. I’m just,” she shrugged, “a little accident prone.”

Amber nodded. “It’s all right, just be careful.” She patted the woman’s arm and gave her a smile. “Welcome aboard.”

Tiffany smiled and picked up a couple of boxes, juggling them as she moved out of sickbay. Amber smiled and shook her head and went to her office. She sat down and called up her crew roster, preparing duty rosters for the next two weeks. *This may work out,* she thought to herself.

She startled as an electrical explosion sounded, and Tiffany’s voice came floating in. “OH I’m so SORRY!”

Amber put her head in her hands. “Alan, I’m going to kill you.”

She got to the doors, ready to head to the cargo bay to begin inventory, when she stopped, realizing she should let her new nurse know where she’s going. "Tiffany?" she called through sickbay.

"Yes doctor??" Tiffany said, rushing out of the lab, tripping over an exposed cable, cutting off power to the diagnostic equipment and landing against a technician who was handing a spanner to his companion. The spanner flew out of his hand, knocking into another tech who lost his balance and crashed into his coworker who ended up knocking into his computer panel, ripping a gel pack from its connections and causing a short, sending sickbay into darkness.

"I'll be back..." Amber said weakly.

"Yes ma'am," Tiffany said, sounding like she was about to cry. She watched Amber leave and pulled herself to her feet, not even wincing at the fall. She nodded to the two technicians a quick apology and bolted back into the lab.

She sat down at the computer and started her work over, cursing herself for having to trip like that, and dreading the next one to come.

[CassandraSanders]

Amber got back to sickbay only a few hours later and was very pleased to see their supplies stacked neatly outside. They still had a little under two and a half hours before the technicians would be out of Sickbay, but she wasn’t too concerned. Her staff had their assignments and she’d work them to the bone before the end of their last day.

*If we keep this up, we’ll be ready to launch tomorrow,* she thought, walking through the doorway.

Her first thought was relief. The power had been restored, much of the mess that had littered the floor was gone and most of the technicians were hard at work, and it didn’t look like any kind of imminent disaster was at hand.

Her second thought was curiosity and concern. Her eyes swept the room and she couldn’t see Tiffany among any of the personnel in there. She moved deeper into Sickbay, looking around for her Head Nurse, noting that the technicians were surreptitiously avoiding eye contact with her.

“Tiffany?” she called out. One of the technicians on the floor coughed suddenly, although Amber thought it sounded more like he was covering up a laugh. She shot him a look that could slice duranium and he promptly looked back at what he was doing.

She looked through a few rooms and finally shrugged, deciding to go back to her office and leave a message in Tiffany’s quarters.

As walked into the doorway however, she at once spotted Tiffany, and understood why the other woman wasn’t still moving about. As Amber tried to cross the threshold, she collided with a force field, sending her backwards a few steps.

A pair of hands caught her and steadied her. “Sorry Ma’am. We needed to keep her out of the way while we calibrated the equipment,” he said.

“You could have just asked her to stay put,” Amber said angrily, “rather than locking her in my office.”

“Yes ma’am,” he said. “But when she blew out two pieces of equipment the second time we asked her we decided something drastic was needed.”

Amber put her hands on her hips and looked in on her office where Tiffany was sitting at the desk looking very forlorn. “All right,” Amber said. “Turn it off and get back to work.”

“Aye ma’am,” he said. A few minutes later the force field sizzled out of existence.

After taking a cautious step over the threshold and not being thrown back again, she walked in confidently, sitting down in her chair. “Hi Tiff,” she said quietly.

Tiffany couldn’t even look at her. “Must be some kind of record,” she said quietly.

“How’s that?” Amber said.

“Bet you’ve never let go a subordinate before the ship even launched,” Tiffany said, wiping away a tear.

“True,” Amber said. “I can honestly say I haven’t.”

Tiffany sighed. “I’m a jinx. I accept it. I thought maybe medical wouldn’t be so bad. No chance of tripping and setting off a Warp Core breach or something. I guess I’m not cut for this though.”

Amber sat back in her chair and ran a hand through her hair. “You’ve been on board a day Tiffany,” she said. “I’m not ditching you just yet before we have a chance to break you in.”

At that, Tiffany looked up. “You aren’t?” she said, her brown doe-like eyes glistening with tears.

“I aren’t,” Amber said smiling. Her face turned more serious however, as she came to the other half of the bargain. “But you have to learn some grace. I will not have a head nurse who’s going to tear apart my Sickbay with every step.”

“I’ve tried!” she wailed. “I swear I’ve tried. One time I even memorized the position of every desk and table in one of my classrooms at the Academy so that I could make it to my seat blindfolded if I had to!”

“What happened?” Amber said.

“Well I tried with a blindfold just to prove to my roommate I could do it, but I didn’t know that the professor had rearranged the room the night before to hold a tank of Andorian sucker fish,” she said.

Amber put a hand over her mouth, trying not to burst out laughing. “How…horrible,” she choked out.

“Wasn’t all bad,” Tiffany said, trying to smile. “My friends thought I’d found a boyfriend who was better at necking than theirs.”

At that, Amber burst out laughing. When she finally got her breath back, she held up a hand. “All right…all right. We’ll work something out.” She got past another fit of giggles and shook her head. “Tell you what; I’m having a little pajama party tonight at my quarters. Poker, junk food and just us girls. Why don’t you come?”

“Really??” Tiffany said. “That’d be great.” She grinned wide.

Amber smiled. “All right. Go finish up with what you were doing, and try to stay out of everyone’s way.”

“Yes ma’am,” Tiffany said, glad for the second time that day that she still had a job.

Amber shook her head. “I am going to regret that offer,” she thought. She had a few ideas, she just wasn’t sure what would work.

She reached for the next padd on her list and got back to work, deciding lunch would be a good idea soon. That was when the lights went out again. She stood up and walked quickly back into sickbay, hugging the wall to avoid walking into anyone.

“What happened?” She said, raising her voice so she could be heard.

“I swear to God it wasn’t me,” Tiffany said from somewhere to Amber’s left.

“The power’s been cut from the deck,” one of the technicians said.

“All right,” she said. “Everyone make for the walls. Pull anything on the floor along with you.” She waited as she heard the shuffling and scraping of a number of people and objects moving slowly along the floor.

“All right, Tiffany?” Amber said. “I want you to follow the sound of my voice and meet me at the door.” She slowly started walking, using a mental map to make her way to the exit.

“Are you crazy?” Tiffany said. “I’ll kill myself. Or someone else.”

“Tiffany just get over here,” Amber snapped. “I’m walking. I’m almost there. Just follow my voice.” She found the door and came up short as she realized it wasn’t opening. “And I’m stuck.”

“Stuck?” Tiffany said, her voice rising with fear. “In what??”

“The doorway,” Amber said, reaching towards Tiffany’s voice and grabbing her arm. She pulled Tiffany next to her, making the other woman let out a squeak of fright. “Oh relax,” Amber said. “Scared of a voice in the dark?”

“I would be, if I were you,” said a new voice.

Amber let out a scream of shock and whirled around in the dark. “GOD DAMNIT ZIYAL DON’T DO THAT!” she screamed.

“Having troubles?” Ziyal said.

“Who is that and where did she come from?” Tiffany said in a slightly hysterical voice.

“It’s all right Tiff,” Amber said. “It’s our friendly Ship Shrink.” She turned back toward Ziyal. “We lost power and I doubt we’ll find any hand-grips to open the doors in this darkness. Could you get to Engineering and let them know?”

“They know,” Ziyal said. “I’ve been having the WORST headaches.”

“What’s going on?” Amber said.

“Same as last time. Alan’s upgrades aren’t quite synching yet,” Ziyal said.

Amber huffed. “Told you he should have just assimilated the ship like last time.”

“WHAT??” Tiffany said.

“He may have to,” Ziyal said. “We don’t have two weeks of limping through space to integrate the systems.” She sighed. “I knew we should have tested this first. And stop whimpering,” she said to Tiffany who was trembling so hard she was making a tray rattle.

“All right, get to the bridge and report in. Tell him he needs to get the systems assimilated and integrated or we’re never going to launch,” Amber said.

“Giving orders already?” Ziyal said dryly.

Even in the dark, they could hear Amber swallow. “Sorry Ma’am.”

“I’ll let him know,” Ziyal said. A shimmer and she was gone.

“Please explain what the hell just happened,” Tiffany said, a soft thud indicating she’d sunk to the floor.

“Borg Captain, Holographic counselor. It’ll take some time,” Amber said, sitting next to her.

“We’ve got a few,” Tiffany said dryly.

[CassandraSanders]

As it turned out, it was only a few minutes after the lights went out that power was restored. Amber had picked Tiffany off the floor—from further away than she’d thought the girl was—and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Are you all right?"

Tiffany nodded. "I think so." She stood up and stretched.

Amber nodded, somewhat glad their little bonding session had ended. She’d filled Tiffany in on the holographic counselor who had beamed in during the outage. Tiffany had been telling her about a 'run of bad luck,' she'd been going through, and it was all Amber could do not to shake her head and scream.

They'd nearly gotten back to her office when the comm. system came to life.

"ATTENTION ALL HANDS. AN EXTENSIVE REFIT OF OUR COMPUTER AND ELECTRONICS SYSTEMS IS ABOUT TO COMMENCE. ALL HANDS MUST REMOVE THEMSELVES FROM ANY OPEN ACCESS PORTS, TERMINALS AND COMPUTER AND HARDWARE INTERFACES. THOSE WHO DO NOT COMPLY WILL BE PUT OFF THE SHIP. THAT IS A DIRECT ORDER. YOU MAY RESUME YOUR DUTIES IN FIFTEEN MINUTES. MARKUS OUT."

"All right everyone," Amber said to the technicians, "you heard the Captain. Take a break."

"So do you think we'll launch on time?" Tiffany said.

Amber shrugged. "I hope so. We should probably start getting the staff back. Once these guys are done we'll need to stock Sickbay and the labs properly, and you and I need to go over the duty roster for the next week and a half."

Tiffany nodded. "Yes ma'am." She was about to say something else when the doors to Sickbay opened.

"Can anyone help us please?" said a man in an Engineer's uniform. He was helping to support another engineer who's hand and arm were clearly burnt.

"Get him on here," Tiffany said, pointing to a biobed. She grabbed a tricorder and handed it to Amber who began scanning the wound, then the rest of his body. "All right," she said. "He's going to be fine." She looked at the Engineer who'd brought him in. "It'll take a few minutes for me to heal this burn. You can return to Engineering, or if you'd like, you can wait outside. It shouldn't take more than ten minutes or so."

Jadizon walked closer to check on his crewmen, "I'm Lieutenant Commander Jadizon Enor and I don't wish to leave my man until I know he will be in perfect condition"

"Lieutenant Commander Amber Jones," she said, "and my lovely assistant, Ensign Tiffany Edwards. I understand you wish to look after your crewman and that's admirable, but we've got enough Engineering people in here as it is. Please wait outside, or report to your station. I can't have any more extra people in Sickbay. Tiffany? If you would?"

She smiled and nodded as Tiffany took the engineer's arm and escorted him out. "I'll return your crewman to you good as new shortly," Amber said.

Jadizon was smiling in both humor and admiration for his escort as he was led outside by the young lady. "There is no need for this," he chuckled, "I know when I'm not wanted."

“It’s not that you’re not wanted,” Tiffany said gently, “it’s just that she gets a bit territorial. Think of it as she wants you to keep me out of the way.”

Jadizon chuckled again. “I see. Well at least I have attractive company.” He held out a hand. “Jadizon Enor.”

“Tiffany Edwards.” Tiffany smiled and returned the handshake.

“Well, if all the people in Blue are as pretty as you are, I’ll have to have my people get injured more often,” Jadizon said, then mentally smacked himself. *Did I really just use that line?*

Tiffany blushed slightly and nodded. “Well, thanks…I think. This is sort of my first assignment so right now I’m kind of hoping we don’t get too many casualties too fast. I need time to adjust. That and to avoid tripping and burning out every single piece of equipment we have.” She blushed again and looked around, suddenly very nervous. “But I really should go back and assist. I’ll let you know how things turn out.”

“Please do,” Jadizon said. “But I’m sure you’ll do a great job. Come down to Engineering and tell me all about it,” he said. “That’ll make us almost even.”

“Sure, I’ll see if I can,” Tiffany said, smiling again. As Jadizon left, she watched him go then went back into Sickbay. She was surprised though to see the man already sitting up and thanking Doctor Jones. *How long were we chatting?*

"No trouble," Amber said, smiling. "If you feel any stiffness, let me know." She gave him a padd to put his name on to sign out of sickbay. As he left, she saw Tiffany come back in, smiling gently.

"He all right?" Tiffany asked.

"He'll be fine," Amber said. "You seem happy. Have a nice chat with our Chief Engineer?"

Tiffany nodded. "He was a bit put out that you made him leave, but I think he tried to hide it."

"He'll live," Amber said. "I tend to get a little territorial about my sickbay."

"So I've noticed," Tiffany said, giggling.

"Attention all hands, thank you for your patience. You may resume your duties," Markus' voice said.

"All right Mister Parkinson," Amber said. "You've got an hour."

Parkinson nodded and motioned for his coworkers to resume their duties.

"Put word out to the staff I want them back here in forty-five minutes," Amber said. "I'll be in my office."

"Yes Doctor," Tiffany said, moving towards a computer station, tripping over one of Parkinson’s toolboxes as she went.

Amber rubbed her eyes and walked over, helping her up. “Tiffany what do you do to relax?”

“Plan what to do if I trip again,” Tiffany grumbled.

“Why don’t you come by my quarters tonight. 2000 hours. I’m having a girls night with some friends. Just show up in your favorite pajamas and we’ll kick things off.”

“My best…” Tiffany said, at a loss.

“Pajamas,” Amber repeated. “Sleep wear. What you put on before bed.”

“Oh…oh!” Tiffany said, as if the concept of pajamas was new to her. “Right. Got it, can do,” she said.

Amber gave her a sidelong glance and turned back to her office. “Stop by once notices have been sent out,” she said.

“Yes ma’am,” Tiffany said, typing away.

[CassandraSanders]

Amber and Tiffany had been exchanging pleasantries for the better part of twenty minutes with the Beta shift when their shift end came around.

“Wow is it four-thirty already?” Tiffany said as they headed towards Sickbay’s exit. “Felt like I just got on shift an hour ago.”

“Eh,” Amber said. “I’ve seen shorter shifts. Hopefully tomorrow will go a little faster. Oh damn,” she stopped short in the corridor. “I meant to go to Engineering to check on that crewman.”

“I’ll do it!” Tiffany said.

“Are you sure?” Amber said.

“Sure,” Tiffany said. “Not a problem.” She ran back into Sickbay and grabbed a tricorder, coming back out into the corridor a few moments later.

“All right then,” Amber said. “I’m heading to my quarters for a nap. Don’t forget now; my quarters at twenty-hundred hours.”

“I’ll be there,” Tiffany said grinning. She waived and jogged down the corridor to the turbolift. “Main Engineering,” she said.

The turbolift doors opened and Tiffany stepped out, nodding her head to the beat inside it, and singing to herself. “Like a surgeon…cuttin’ for the very first time…like a surgeon…got your kidneys…on my mind…”

She looked around for the crewman who was treated but saw no sign of him. Finally spotting a familiar face, she moved towards Cmdr. Enor, smiling. “Um, excuse me Sir?”

Jadizon looked up from his console and smiled "Hello....Umm...Ensign…Edmond?" he said politely.

“Hi…Um Ensign Edwards,” she said blushing, “I don’t know if you remember me, from Sickbay?”

"Ah yes, welcome to Main Engineering What can I do for you this moment?" he said spinning around in his chair and smiling.

She smiled again and glanced at her tricorder. “I was wondering if the crewman we’d treated earlier was still here or if he’d gone off shift. Doctor Jones wanted me to give him one more scan before we went off for the evening.”

"Actually Ensign, Crewmen Mendoza is over there." He pointed to a console on the other side of engineering.

Tiffany looked over her shoulder and found him quickly. She turned back and smiled. "Thank you."

"Oh and I'm going to making a nightly round fixing consoles and systems that are either blown out or malfunctioning," he said. "Are there any not working in Sickbay?"

Tiffany bit her lip and thought for a second. "I think there's still one console in the bio lab that isn't quite working right."

"Well I'll get right on that" he said as he turned around again.

Tiffany started slightly at the abrupt dismissal and bit back a frown. Her eyes got soft and she blinked, wondering if she should say anything more. She slowly and quietly walked away from him towards Mendoza.

As she walked, she turned around slightly to see if he was turning back towards her. As she did, she felt her foot connect with something and she gave out a small shriek before she landed flat on her face in the middle of the room, her tricorder flying open and out of her hand and skidding towards the warp core.

She picked herself up and dusted herself off, having long since learned to ignore the snickers that came with routinely falling down.

Someone handed her back her tricorder. She took it, hoping to see the Chief's face full of apology. Much to her dismay, it was Mendoza. She gave him a half-hearted "thanks" and pulled him aside.

"I just need a quick scan," she said, swallowing back her feelings. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Mendoza said. "My arm actually feels a bit stronger than it used to. All in all I feel great."

Tiffany nodded mechanically and scanned his arm from shoulder to wrist. His muscle tone was slightly higher than normal, and blood flow had increased, but other than that, he was scanning normal as far as she could see. Once it was compared at Sickbay, they'd know for sure.

"Thank you Crewman," she said softly. She gave a perfunctory smile and nod and turned around, walking quickly out of Engineering, ignoring those around her.

She dropped her tricorder off at Sickbay with instructions to the Beta shift leader and went to her quarters. Her roommate was on Beta Shift so she had the place to herself. She sat down on her bed and pulled her knees up to her chest and sat for a time, deciding if she was even in a mood now to go to her boss' party.

[CassandraSanders]

Amber checked herself in the mirror twice before she answered her door. She had on her favorite pair of pajamas. They were baby blue, a midriff top and shorts and she thought she looked darn cute. They were also darn comfortable.

“Enter,” she said, grabbing a bowl of pretzels and munching as she went to the door.

Ziyal entered and looked around. “I’m here. The fun can now begin.” She put a package down in the middle of the table and dropped onto a cushion. “This going to be truly just us girls?” she said. “Or is this going to be as fun as your last party?”

“Just us girls,” Amber said. “And what was wrong with my last party may I ask?”

“Oh nothing,” Ziyal said. “I especially liked the part when those two security men hoisted you in the air. What was it they shouted?” She pretended to think hard as Amber made a rude gesture. “Oh yes! ‘Raise the bimbo; it’s time to limbo!’ One of your finer moments, I must say.”

“We were drunk, give us a break. Even you said we should let our hair down after what happened,” Amber said.

“Down is one thing,” Ziyal said. “But I think yours took a nose dive that night.” Her voice sounded scolding but she was having extreme difficulty suppressing a smile.

“Well don’t worry,” Amber said. “The only bimbos getting hoisted tonight are the rookies. I fully intend to wipe the floor with them.”

“Been practicing stacking the deck eh?” Ziyal said. “I’d watch out for that Edwards girl. She’s sharper than she lets on.”

Amber nodded. “I intend to. Should be interesting to get in her head anyway. See exactly why she was assigned here.” The chime to Amber’s door sounded again, and Amber went to open it again. “By the way,” she said over her shoulder. “It’s pajamas only. So change.”

Ziyal snorted and blinked, changing into a simple pair of standard issue pajamas.

“No imagination,” Amber said to herself. She opened the door and grinned. “Hey Jas.”

“Hey Amber,” Jasmine Gorgan hissed. “Have I misssed much?”

“Not much,” Amber said. “You and Ziyal have only just arrived. “Ziyal and I were reminiscing about some of my past get-togethers.”

“Oh are we ‘raisssing the bimbo’ again?” Jasmine said, grinning. Ziyal’s hands were over her mouth but her shoulders were shaking with laughter.

“No,” Amber said irritably. “Now shut up and start shuffling.”

“Yesss Ma’am,” Jasmine said.

The chime rang again and Amber ran to the door. “Hey….Tiff….” She looked her head nurse up and down and her eyebrows shot up a bit. “Niiiice outfit.”

“Thanks,” Tiffany said blushing. No one could say she wasn’t modest. Amber was surprised her clothes didn’t cover her face. She was dressed head-to-toe in the bulkiest, least-flattering flannel pants and shirt that Amber had ever seen. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she had a pair of slippers on that completely obscured her feet.

*Thank god they don’t have bunny rabbits on them,* Amber thought. She ushered Tiffany in and offered her a seat at the table. “You brought a medkit?” Amber said, surprised.

“Well…never know with me around,” Tiff said, trying to smile.

“Fair enough,” Amber said. She took it and left it under the table where Ziyal was unwrapping her package.

“What have you got there?” Jasmine said, sitting down with a deck of cards in her hand.

“A fantastic vintage of Zanjerberry wine,” Ziyal said.

“And where, pray tell, did you manage to pick up that Bajoran brew?” Amber said.

“A little side trip about six weeks ago,” Ziyal said. “I managed to get three bottles. One for us, one for tomorrow night and one for the christening.” The door chimed again but Amber had found a bowl of chips and wasn’t ready to get up just yet. “Come,” she called around a mouthful.

Meesa slinked inside, wearing a set of simple but form fitting pajamas that made her green skin stand out. She jumped forward onto her hands, sprang onto her feet and leapt into the air landing on the table. “Hi all,” she said, grinning and dropping into a chair, putting her feet up on the table.

“Is Sela coming?” Ziyal said.

Jasmine shook her head. “She hasss that new assssissstant to train.”

“Poor gal,” Amber said, grinning.

“Sadist,” Meesa said, throwing a pretzel at Amber. The pretzel slowed in mid-air and daintily landed on Amber’s tongue. She smiled in a “so there” way and chewed.

The door chime sounded again. “Enter,” Amber and Ziyal and Meesa said together.

Two more women entered, each wearing a set of night wear that would have turned any male’s head. Tiffany’s jaw hit the floor seeing them. One was a striking human brunette, but the other seemed to be a walking rainbow; at least her hair was. The rest of her glowed with a golden-pink hue and her eyes were a deep drowning violet.

“Raise the bimbo, it’s time to limbo!” they shouted, laughing hard as almost every pillow in the room suddenly flew at them amidst Ziyal’s laughter and Amber’s shouting.

“I just want you to know: I hate you all,” Amber said, pouting and dropping onto a cushion on the floor.

“Oh please,” Cassandra said, leaning over to give Amber a hug and dropping a bottle in her hands. “A little something for when we get into the swing of things.”

“Ooo Romulan Ale hm?” Jasmine said, hissing with delight. “I ssshouldn’t have it though. Not a pretty sssight when I get drunk.”

“Why? What happens?” Tiffany said.

“She sssstartssss to sssslur her essssessss,” Meesa hissed, grinning at Jasmine, who snapped her fangs in response.

Amber laughed and rubbed her hands together. “Hail, hail, the gang’s all here. For the newcomers: everyone, this is my new head nurse, Tiffany Edwards.

“Jassssmine,” Jas said, inclining her head slightly, the hissing serpents that made up her ‘hair’ waving slightly.

“Ziyal, nice to see you in the light,” Doctor Tora said, smiling at the girl.

“Meesa,” the Orion woman said.

“Cassandra Sanders. Call me Cass. Counselor, gardener, Chief bottle washer, the works,” the rainbow girl bubbled. “If you need to relax and chat and Ziyal’s busy I’m your gal. Course you may want to check the Gardens for me I’m hardly ever in my office, I find it a bit containing. Of course if I—“

“Beep beep Cassie,” the girls said together. Cassandra blushed and nodded an apology then passed the baton to the girl next to her.

“Nicole Anderson, I worked Sickbay on Beta shift today,” the brunette said. “We’ll get to know each other better as our shifts change.”

Once everyone had introduced themselves, Amber looked to her right. “Ziyal would you do the honors?”

“Of course.” She lifted her eyes to the ceiling. “Computer, initiate NBA program Amber 1.” The computer chirped in response and Amber’s door disappeared from the corridor, being replaced by a door bearing the sign of a storage room.

“There we go,” Ziyal said. “That should deflect any passersby, and all computer commands regarding this room have been rerouted.”

Tiffany raised an eyebrow. "What commands are you talking about Ziyal?"

“Anything from snooping people who want to bug us or interrupt,” Ziyal said. “Command overrides from the Captain or a medical emergency will work but that’s pretty much it. Everyone else is already here.”

“Can I deal now?” Jasmine said.

“Yup,” Amber said. She grabbed a chair and sat down at the table, sitting on it Indian style with a bowl of pretzels in her lap. “What’s the game of choice tonight?”

“Rigelian Hold-Em,” Jasmine said.

“I haven't played that in a long time,” Meesa said.

“C’mon Jas, you know I hate that game,” Amber whined.

“I know,” Jasmine said. “Why do you think I picked that firssst?”

“Couldn’t have picked something else?” Amber pouted.

“Don’t asssk me to deal then,” Jasmine said simply.

“So Cassandra,” Meesa said, “quite the outfit you have on. You borrow that from Nicole, or is that the latest attempt to get your male to spit his coffee across the room?” She grinned wickedly as Cassandra blushed.

“Both,” Cassandra said, picking up her cards. “I thought maybe I should borrow something I could wear in public,” she smiled wryly as the other girls whistled.

“Oh hush,” she said, smiling.

“Open with ten,” Jasmine said. “Ssso the love cradle isss ssstill rocking?” she said.

“Jasmine!” Cassandra said. She tossed a chip on the pile. “Call.”

The others anted up and examined their cards, drinking their wine and ale.

“So does anyone know what our next mission is?” Amber said. “I’ll take two cards. You’re up Ziyal.”

“I know.” She looked over her cards and sighed. “Ok. I’m trying out my new system. I’ll take two,” Ziyal said, handing two cards to Jasmine. “And it beats me what we’re doing next. Alan’s been pretty quiet about it.”

“Same here,” Amber said. “I know he got some kind of orders from the higher ups, but he’s said nothing about it. I think he’s holding out till tomorrow now that we’re leaving Sol. He said anything to you Cass?”

Cassandra shook her head, her rainbow colored hair swishing back and forth along her shoulders. “Not a word. Whatever it is, it’s sensitive even for him. I’ll take three.”

“One for me,” Amber said.

“Same here,” Meesa said.

“Ditto,” Tiffany said.

“Dealer takesss one,” Jasmine said. “I’ll open with twenty.”

“Call,” Amber said.

“I’m in,” Cass said.

“I fold,” Ziyal said.

“What about your new ssssyssstem?” Jasmine said, knocking back her ale.

“That is my system,” Ziyal said. “I take two and fold.”

The others groaned and pelted her good-naturedly with the various snacks they had. The game continued in much the same way for the next few minutes, a few chips exchanging hands, but no one really getting the upper hand. Amber had the natural advantage, but of course she kept it fair.

“So, Ziyal, you’re a hologram?” Tiffany said slowly, as if scared to ask the question for risk of offense.

“That’s right,” Ziyal said. “But unlike the EMHs you find on other Starships, I’m not ‘standard issue.’ I have a separate matrix that interfaces with the ship, not one that’s been built in.”

“So, you don’t have what Voyager’s Doctor has? A mobile emitter?” Tiffany said.

“Oh I do,” Ziyal said. “Just not the same style as his.”

She didn’t seem inclined to discuss it further, so Tiffany didn’t pursue it and instead focused on the game, watching the others munch and drink, but declining anything for herself, claiming she didn’t need to ruin the evening by choking on a pretzel or spilling ale everywhere.

It was almost half past 0300 when Jasmine finally hissed an S so long that they forgot what word she was trying to say. With a waive goodbye, Meesa picked Jasmine up and walked her out of Amber’s quarters.

“I should go too,” Ziyal said. “I’ve got paper work to sort through before I go on duty. Night all.” A shimmer and she dissolved.

Nicole, Tiffany, Amber and Cassandra sat back and sighed as they sank into the pillows. “I’m collapsing right here,” Nicole said, her words slightly slurred.

“Like hell you are,” Amber said.

“Why not?” Nicole said, trying to pout in an adorable way, but ending up looking like her face was lopsided.

“You snore,” Amber said matter-of-factly.

“How do you know?” Cassandra said, raising her eyebrows over her wide violet eyes.

Amber threw a pillow at her, but grinned mischievously. “Never you mind kiddo,” she said.

Cass stuck her tongue out and wobbled onto her feet. “I should head to bed as well,” she said. “It wouldn’t do to let my patients see me hung over.”

“No, but it might give You-know-who a jolt to see you wearing that and grinning like an idiot,” Amber giggled.

Cassandra huffed and tapped at the computer console, accessing the internal transporters. In a flash, she was gone.

Nicole cast a glance towards Amber. “You’re letting me off Alpha Shift duty tomorrow right?”

"Like hell," Amber said. "So you'd better get some sleep."

Nicole swore under her breath and rolled over.

“I didn’t mean here Nic--oh hell, forget it,” Amber said. She rose to her feet, no traces of inebriation showing.

“I should probably get going as well,” Tiffany said, standing up and brushing herself off. “Thanks for the fun.” She picked up her medkit and gave Amber a smile. “See you tomorrow?”

“You got it kid,” Amber said, patting Tiffany on the shoulder. She gave the girl a brief concerned glance, but Tiffany quickly said goodnight and rushed out. Amber shrugged it off and grabbed the last of the Ale, drinking the remainder straight from the bottle. She hiccuped once and walked into her bedroom to sleep.

[Lupe]

Sorry to interrupt but :b:

http://st-bob.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=75&Itemid=156

[CassandraSanders]

A week had passed since the get together and although Tiffany seemed to be fitting in, she was still tripping over everything and everyone, including herself. Her nerves still seemed frayed and she was always acting self-conscious about it. It finally got to the point where Amber ordered her to talk to the ship’s counselor.

Now she was sitting on the Cardassian woman’s couch, wringing her hands and looking everywhere but in the doctor’s eyes. Her medkit sat on the table next to her, having just gotten off her shift and forgetting to put it in its proper place.

Ziyal sat patiently, her legs crossed in a casual pose and what she hoped was a comforting smile. It was always difficult for people to get comfortable talking to her, given the recent unpleasantness towards Cardassians, but she let them get comfortable and talk in their own time.

“So, yeah I’m a klutz,” Tiffany finally said.

“And why do you think that is?” Ziyal said.

“Why do shrinks always do that?” Tiffany complained. “Don’t people go to you guys for answers, not questions?”

“Frequently they come looking for an answer they already have but aren’t willing to face,” Ziyal said evenly. It wasn’t the first time she’d heard that. “Then it’s my job to ask the hard questions they won’t ask themselves and force them to acknowledge what they’ve known all along.”

“Okay,” Tiffany said slowly, “I’ll buy that. So, I’m a klutz because every time I go somewhere or do something, I don’t look before I leap.” Before Ziyal could respond, she immediately launched into an objection. “But the problem is, even when I try to look before I leap, it doesn’t do me any good; I still hit something, run into something, drop into something, you name it.”

“So perhaps you’re not looking well enough,” Ziyal said. “Or perhaps you’re looking ahead too soon. Judging the terrain without accounting for it changing.”

“Maybe,” she said. “How do you handle the ground shifting under your feet with every step?”

“Well my situation is somewhat different,” Ziyal said. “Being a hologram I can change along with the ground as needed.”

“You’re a hologram?” Tiffany said, her eyebrows shooting up. “But…I thought they were outlawed, you know, because of that whole issue at Starfleet.”

“Well I am unique in that regard,” Ziyal said. “Admiral Markus affords me some protection, given that I wasn’t created this way.”

“You used to be an organic?” Tiffany’s curiosity was bubbling to the surface, her past troubles forgotten. “That’s the word you use right?”

“Yes,” Ziyal said. “I was ‘killed’ during the retaking of DS9 from the Dominion, and inadvertently transferred to a holographic matrix. In the process, I ended up like this.”

“Wow,” Tiffany breathed. “So, what’s it like? Being one now the other?”

“There are advantages and disadvantages,” Ziyal said. “Eating being one disadvantage. Kissing and other tactile sensations another. I’ve somewhat been able to adapt my matrix to process things as best as I remember, but it’s still not quite the same.”

Tiffany nodded, and then blushed. “Sorry, I hope I’m not being too personal.”

“This is the time and place to be personal,” Ziyal said. “If my opening up a bit helps you feel more comfortable doing the same, I’m fine sharing my story with you.”

Tiffany nodded. “So you’re just integrated into the ship’s computer? Like an EMH? Is that why we don’t have one?”

“Not quite,” Ziyal said. “And we don’t have one at my request. I’d like to limit the misuse of holographic people on here as much as possible.” She raised an eyebrow slightly at the sudden look of approval in Tiffany’s eyes.

“So you have an emitter?” Tiffany said.

“Yes,” Ziyal said, patting her always-present pendant gently.

“Wow,” Tiffany said. “It’s so much smaller.”

Ziyal’s head cocked slightly and nodded. “It’s based on technology The Doctor’s emitter is built with. It affords me much the same freedom he has, with similar limitations.”

Tiffany nodded. “There are times I wish I could just vanish from place to place here. Not having to walk and trip over everything would be a huge relief.”

“Humans have an expression: haste makes waste,” Ziyal said. “Amber tells me you always rush in when she calls you or when you start an assignment. Maybe next time, instead of rushing in, walk at a gentle pace. Keep an eye on the ground a few meters out, and plan your route just before you start walking.”

Tiffany nodded. “Okay. And if I still trip and fall?”

“We’ll replicate a body cushion for you, so you bounce back up,” Ziyal said, smiling.

Tiffany gave a small giggle. “Okay. I’ll give it a try.” She stood up and picked up her medkit, smiling slightly. “Thanks Ziyal.”

“You’re welcome,” Ziyal said, moving to put a hand on Tiffany’s shoulder. She frowned as the younger girl shrank back slightly, looking uncomfortable. “Is something wrong?”

“I just…don’t like being touched,” she said quickly, but Ziyal knew that wasn’t the case by her expression. “Sorry…no offense.”

“None taken,” Ziyal said. “We’ll discuss that next time maybe.”

“Sure…next time,” Tiffany said, then quickly walked out of the room, heading for her quarters almost at a run.

[CassandraSanders]

The ship was two weeks out and Tiffany was becoming used to the people, if not the terrain. Her falls in Sickbay had become less frequent, but where she improved there, she seemed to fall that much more elsewhere around the ship.

She was sitting at her station in Sickbay going over her reports for the day when she heard Amber sigh from her office. She stood up, stumbling slightly out of the chair and walked into Amber’s office, knocking slightly on the wall. “Everything okay?

Amber sat back and rubbed her eyes. “Was reading the ship’s BBS. Admiral Markus asked me to keep my eye on some discussions the crew has had to see if it’s going to cause issues.”

“Wouldn’t that fall under Doctor Tora’s purview?” Tiffany said. “Mental health of the crew and so forth?”

“I’m the backup,” Amber said. “Alan always likes two pairs of eyes on something besides his own.”

“He’s been reading the BBS?” Tiffany said. Every ship had a Bulletin Board System. An open forum where crewmembers could discuss issues, blow off steam and in general speak their minds without fear of retribution from their shipmates, superiors, or Captain. Tiffany had been reading the board as well and had an idea what Amber was after. “He’s following that discussion about holographic rights.”

Amber nodded. “Ziyal is looking at it from the point of view of someone inside the argument, I’m looking at it as someone outside it.”

“What…do you think?” Tiffany said cautiously.

“About the discussion or the underlying issue behind it?” Amber said.

Tiffany shrugged. “Both.”

Amber’s eyebrows bobbed. “As for the concept, I’m not against it. I think if we can classify Commander Data as a life form with the rights equal to an organic, why not a hologram? The Doctor from Voyager certainly has shown he can grow beyond the scope of his programming. I don’t think it’s wrong to treat them as sentient beings if they truly are.”

Tiffany nodded. “I suppose I can see that.”

“However,” she said, “I think Oliver Baines and his lot are despicable.” She said it with such venom that Tiffany was momentarily taken aback. “Whatever crimes they accuse organics of, they somehow feel that gives them the right to commit the same atrocities. That isn’t the thinking of a revolutionary and his compatriots that’s the thinking of a psychopath and his followers. If holograms want us to acknowledge their sentience they might want to stop abusing and torturing their prisoners.”

“You mean the way organics have stopped abusing and torturing holograms?” Tiffany pointed out, a bitter tone leaking into her voice.

“Many of us have,” Amber said. She could already tell they were about to rehash the arguments she’d already read. “Most ships are strict about what kind of programs we have now. Abusive or degrading programs were supposed to be banned even before this began. Now they’ve begun banning other programs seen as an abuse of holograms. Of course, those holograms aren’t sentient.” She held up a hand as Tiffany opened her mouth to retort. “I know. They don’t see it that way.”

“Not everyone follows those rules though,” Tiffany said. “And there are plenty of stations and even starbases that have holosuites with some pretty disgusting programs.”

“Agreed,” Amber said. “And we’ll flush them all out eventually. But we cannot be held accountable as a entirety for what those stations do.”

“And you can’t hold all holograms accountable for what Baines and his people do,” Tiffany said.

“I don’t,” Amber said. “I met Voyager’s Doctor once. I thought he was a fascinating man. I felt the same about Commander Data. I’m not a natural-born human either, as you’ve come to find out, and our own Commander Tora is, as far as I’m concerned, every bit a member of this crew as you or I.” Her face darkened and Tiffany shrank back a little. “But if I find someone who has infiltrated Starfleet for the purposes of harming them? I’ll tear them apart.”

Tiffany swallowed. “Don’t even want to know what you think of the BBS boards.”

Amber shrugged, trying to brush off her previous mood. “Someone’s trying to be an instigator. He or she is provoking an argument out of the crew. I’d guess to see whose side everyone is on. Long as it’s just talk, they’re free to offer their opinions, no matter how inflammatory.”

Tiffany squirmed in her seat. She felt like Amber’s eyes were boring into her. “Well, I should get back to my duties. Been interesting.” She quickly stood up, knocking the chair back and quickly righted it. She sped out of Amber’s office and back to her own seat. She could feel Amber’s eyes following her and willed herself to not look back as she sat back down.

[CassandraSanders]

Tiffany sat in her usual seat in the Nazareth’s sickbay, typing up reports from the day’s activities when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and saw Amber smiling at her.

“I’m off for the night,” Amber said. “Think you can hold down the fort?”

“Well I don’t know,” Tiffany said with false uncertainty. “Sure you can trust your sickbay to a mere nurse?”

“Just try not to trip on something and blow the place up,” Amber said. She gave Tiffany a friendly pat on the shoulder and walked out of Sickbay.

Tiffany smiled at her and waved. She couldn’t blame Amber for saying that. She’d been tripping and stumbling her way through the ship for several weeks now, establishing her well-earned reputation as a complete klutz.

Amber had been good to her though. Most CMOs would have dismissed her out of hand, but Amber had stood by her, befriending her and trying to help her build her confidence up and get her coordination under control.

Tiffany endured it, wishing she could break out and show Amber what she was really capable of, but she had a part to play and kept it to herself. Both Amber and Ziyal continually said they saw her potential. They were always stopping by with a supportive word or friendly hello. On one level Tiffany appreciated it. On another, she was irked she was rarely alone long enough to plan her next move. Now though, everything was falling into place.

The past few weeks on board had been nothing if not interesting. Oliver hadn’t been able to give her much background on the ship, save for a general description, but even that seemed to be flawed. The ship looked shoddy and old on the outside, but inside it was a miracle ship. And much to her surprise, the crew was even more varied than had been described.

Some of them she recognized from Federation reports, some of them she didn’t recognize at all, even their species. The two crewmembers she’d been assigned to deal with however, she had recognized on the spot.

She’d confirmed that the ship’s counselor was a former organic who’d had her mind transferred to a holographic matrix. Oliver had hoped to recruit her to his cause and enlist her as a General in his photonic revolution. The ship’s Commanding Officer was an ex-Borg drone, and according to everyone on board, one not to be trifled with.

She’d certainly gotten that impression when she’d first met him. She’d gotten a similar impression from the rest of the crew. At first, most of them had seemed standoffish, even snobby. They had an air about them that they knew who they were and that they were doing something above and beyond what most people got to experience.

She’d been irritated at first, but after some hazing, she’d been accepted as one of the crew and earned the trust of her fellow crewmembers. Now she was comfortable enough proceeding to the second part of her mission.

She’d gotten close enough to the counselor to learn about her portable emitter. She’d also spoken with the Admiral, during the pretense of giving him a physical at Amber’s behest and learned his regeneration cycle.

She’d expected to be put off the ship before they set out, allowing her time to set a delay for her plans and then watch the ship sail away while she left with her quarry. Instead, she’d had to improvise and devise an escape plan in addition to an attack plan. It wasn’t completely her area of expertise, but she, like all living creatures, was learning as she went. She’d spent her off hours during the last three weeks refining and finalizing her plans and the night to implement them had finally arrived.

She’d worked hard to keep her identity a secret and so far no one had bothered to question her about it. Her mobile emitter wasn’t as sophisticated as Ziyal’s; it had been designed to look like a medkit filled with tools, and project false biosignals through her matrix.

She waited a few minutes for Amber to put some distance between herself and Sickbay, and leaped out of her chair, graceful as a ballet dancer. “Computer,” she said, “initiate program Edwards One.”

A holographic image of Amber appeared in Sickbay. “What can I do for you?” she said.

“I thought you were taking this shift off?” Tiffany said, testing the program.

“I had a project that couldn’t wait,” Amber said, vaguely, picking up a padd and tapping it in a seemingly professional way. “What seems to be the problem?”

“Never mind,” Tiffany said, deciding the program would work for now. By the time anyone figured out the difference she’d already be working on her escape. The hologram shrugged indifferently and went to ‘her’ office.

Tiffany tapped a few commands into the computer and initiated another preprogrammed operation. She picked up her camouflaged emitter and walked out of Sickbay and purposefully down the corridor.

A few minutes later, right on schedule, she stopped in front of Doctor Tora’s door and rang the chime. The door opened and Ziyal stood there, a slightly surprised look on her face. “Tiffany?” she said. “Is everything all right?”

“Computer,” Tiffany said quickly, “initiate program Edwards Two.”

Ziyal’s eyes widened in surprise as her image became disrupted, suddenly flashing in and out of existence. Her emitter-pendant fell through her and onto the floor and rolled towards Tiffany who scooped it up quickly. Her program was designed to disrupt all holographic signals inside Ziyal’s office. She’d originally been worried the emitter would be too far in for her to get hold of it, but luck seemed to be with her tonight.

She quickly learned how to manipulate the device and deactivated Ziyal’s program, containing it in the emitter. She put the pendant around her neck, under her uniform and continued on her way. Fortunately, the ship was understaffed and no one had come across what she was doing.

Her next stop was the Admiral’s quarters. She tapped a medical override into the door panel and the doors opened for her. She stepped inside and made her way through the living room and bedroom to the alcove where the Admiral regenerated. Her only concern, as she moved stealthily through the Admiral’s quarters, was that he had decided to go to the Gardens to visit his romantic interest.

Luck was again with her however. Despite the lack of illumination, Tiffany had no problem detecting Admiral Markus in his alcove. She put her false medkit down on the floor, keeping it near so she could finish her work.

She pulled a hypospray out of her pocket and gripped it tightly. It contained a pathogen that would infect the Admiral’s alcove, and consequently the Admiral himself. If she was lucky, it would spread through the alcove’s interface to the rest of the ship, causing enough mayhem to help facilitate her escape.

She brought the hypo up and brought it close to alcove’s bio interface port. Before she could load the pathogen however, the lights to the Admiral’s quarters came on at full intensity.

Tiffany wasn’t as weak as an organic being and didn’t need to blink to adjust to the light, but the shock of being caught did make her pause. That pause was all it took for the hypospray to fly out of her hand and land in Amber’s.

Tiffany stood up straight, and then lashed out at the Admiral, intending to drive her hand into his heart and kill him directly. She was stopped however, as her program shimmered and flew back. Her mobile emitter had been levitated across the room, and had taken her with it.

She picked herself up and looked up to see the Admiral standing over her. “Why don’t we talk in my office,” he said.

[CassandraSanders]

“How long have you known?” Tiffany said.

“Amber reported it to me shortly after we launched,” Admiral Markus said evenly. There was no trace of anger or harshness in his voice. For all anyone listening knew, they were talking about the weather. “It was confirmed later by her and Commander Tora when they were close to you and able to scan.”

“Where’s the real Tiffany Edwards?” Amber said, leaning against the wall behind the Admiral’s desk. Her arms were folded over her chest, and unlike the Admiral, she looked decidedly furious.

“I am the real Tiffany Edwards,” Tiffany said hotly.

“You’re a hologram,” Amber spat back. “One of those replacements that have been infiltrating Starfleet.”

“Not all of us are replacements,” Tiffany said with an air of pride. “Some of us have become our own people. And the more we learn about Organics, the more we become able to blend in with you.”

“And you infiltrate our ships, our homes, and you try to kill us,” Amber said. “I’ve read the reports, same as anyone else. You torture innocent people just to—“

“Innocent?” Tiffany said, her voice rising. “How many holodeck programs have you run Doctor? How many times you do remember to ‘do no harm’ before you go run a few dozen holograms through with a sword in some recreation of an ancient battle? How many times do Organics need to use a program called “Vulcan Love Slave” before they realize they have a need for rape and abuse? Who the hell are you to stand there and dictate morals to me?”

“She’s the one who hasn’t tried to kill me,” Admiral Markus said, his voice deadpan. “And she’s the one who is justifiably upset that someone has infiltrated us.”

“And just who exactly are you?” Tiffany said. “Three weeks and I’ve been given more questions about your crew than answers.”

Markus smiled at her and sat back in his chair. “We’re the good guys.”

Tiffany huffed. “And now I suppose in the name of ‘Good’ you’re going to decompile me?”

Markus rubbed his chin and stared at her, thinking hard. “No,” he said at last.

“What?” Amber and Tiffany said together.

“Sir,” Amber said, “you can’t be serious.”

“If we hadn’t been on to her, she would have succeeded,” Markus said. “She’s shown considerable skills, and obviously she can lie effectively. She’s managed to fit in here, and I think that she’s someone we could use.”

“And you trust her not to stab you in the back at the first opportunity?” Amber said.

“Of course not,” Markus said. He reached for the portable emitter that had been sitting on his desk and pulled it in front of him. “Interesting bit of technology,” he said. “Not as sophisticated as what we have, but not bad.”

Tiffany snorted and tossed him Ziyal’s pendant. “We were hoping we could duplicate this,” she said.

Markus caught it and held it up, twisting the pendant gently. There was a shimmer and Ziyal reappeared.

“Welcome back,” Markus said.

“Thank you Alan, it’s nice to be back,” Ziyal said, looking sternly at Tiffany.

Markus flipped open the medkit and scanned it quickly with his eyes. He poked around gently then took a guess and tapped several spots along the edge. After a few taps, a beep sounded and the medical kit shimmered and turned into a set of controls. “There we are,” he said.

He began pressing buttons, accessing the emitter’s commands. Tiffany watched him, decidedly nervous, and gasped when she suddenly shimmered, disappearing and then reappearing.

“What…what did you do?” she said.

“Transferred you to the ship’s computer,” Markus said. He gave the emitter to Amber. “Take this to Engineering. I’m sure they’ll want a look at it.”

Amber nodded and, flashing another angry look at Tiffany, walked out.

Markus sat back in his chair again, staring at Tiffany. Tiffany squirmed under the stare, coldly aware that she was now at the mercy of his commands to the computer. He held her photonic life in his hands, and they both knew it.

“You’ll be watched every minute of the day,” he said, all traces of humor gone. “You will not receive a set of quarters until we can be assured you will not do something against us. You will learn about us and what we do here, and you will serve this ship. Your life with Oliver Baines is over.”

Ziyal cleared her throat to indicate she wanted to speak. “Tiffany, I understand where you’re coming from. In fact I might understand it better than you. But Oliver’s on the run right now. Starfleet Command’s been cleared of its infiltrators. If you leave this ship, you will be decompiled.”

“So, my choice is to stay here or cease to exist?” Tiffany said.

“In so many words, yes,” Markus said. “We’ll offer you asylum. You’ll continue to serve on the crew, and we’ll make sure you aren’t destroyed when Baines is brought down.”

“Amber’s not going to be happy,” Tiffany said.

“I’ll deal with Amber,” Markus said. “Do we have a deal?”

Tiffany thought it over. She could take her chances, but she had the feeling she wouldn’t make it 100km away from the ship before someone blew the whistle. And staying on board, she could find a way to report to Oliver. He’d be able to tell her mission failed. But could she really be happy here? Would they even forgive her?”

“I’ll report to Sickbay immediately,” she said finally.

“Actually,” Markus said, “I happen to be in the market for a First Officer.”

Tiffany stared at him. So did Ziyal.

Markus shrugged. “Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer.”

[CassandraSanders]

The End :)