Thousands of Questions

Posted on Fri Apr 11th, 2025 by Lieutenant Shral ch'Vyrhor & Lieutenant JG Alexandra Ortega

1,114 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: M02 - The Sixteenth Rule
Location: Crew Mess, USS Hooke
Timeline: Present

Alexandra had spent much of her shift trying to get used to the bridge layout and the layout of the controls at the helm, it was strange having the operations station behind her rather than right next to her. That'll take some getting used to, She thought to herself as she grabbed an empty mug and filled with with hot tea. A lot of getting used to, She added to her thought while sitting down at an empty table. It was obviously not lunch time yet considering how empty the crew mess really was.

Alexandra knew it was practically the only mess on the ship, save for the Captain's private dining room. Though, she'd seen the Captain eating with his crew the night prior along with his daughter. She smiled warmly at the thought, he was a single parent from what she had understood. Maybe he'd be of some help later on if things got really complicated really fast, she'd also hoped that her sister would make friends with the Captain's daughter. Truthfully, Alex hoped her sister would make friends with all the girls on the ship.

Shral had noticed their new pilot sitting alone, he contemplated moving from the table where he was sitting in order to go join her. He didn't know if she wanted to be left alone, however, and as such remained where he was for the time being. She didn't know anyone, Shral was certain of that. Eventually, he decided that perhaps she wouldn't mind some company and got up. Once Shral was standing in front of her he spoke, "Mind if I sit with you Lieutenant?"

Alexandra looked up to see the ship's Chief of Security standing in front of her. There were at least two dozen empty places where he could have sat. She was certain he'd already been in the crew mess to begin with and had simply moved from wherever he'd been sitting too. She shrugged, "Sure." She answered. Alex kept her eyes on him, not sure what to make of the Andorian officer. Wondering what his intentions were.

Shral sat down, "How are you settling in Lieutenant Ortega?" He asked. Shral wasn't very good at making small talk, but it was probably his only real choice at this point. He didn't know what else to say to her, or what else to do.

Alex sipped her tea since it had cooled just enough for her to actually drink some of it. "Oh I'm settling in just fine Lieutenant ch'Vyrhor. My little sister, however, I'm not sure how well she's settling in just yet," Alex frowned as she said the words. This was the first actual starship her sister had lived on. Sure, Ash had come visited her when Alex was on her previous assignment, but that was just a visit.

Shral knew Alexandra had become the sole caretaker for her younger sister, though he didn't know all the details. At least not yet, "The Captain's daughter, and Commander Bancroft's daughter too in fact, has been on a starship previously maybe your little sister could talk to her. Or, Kate if that's possible." He shrugged, "I think being a kid on a ship is probably different than being an officer on a ship."

Alex nodded, "Yeah it is," She answered with a small sigh. "She has her first appointment with the counselor, if that's not already going on... Hopefully that all goes well." Alex added the last part, "I'll talk to her about whether or not she's had any luck making friends on the ship. I saw the Captain with his daughter last night when I came here for dinner, I was kind of surprised to find him in the crew mess."

Shral grinned warmly, "He's rather personable with the crew," He said. "Captain Cohen is still a relatively new Captain in Starfleet and this is also his first command. I'm sure that will probably go away at some point, or he'll only use his private mess for dignitaries and the like." He shrugged, "I don't know."

Alex nodded again, "Well regardless his daughter seems like quite a nice person, I'm sure she'll be friendly with Ash. I'm sure all three of the girls that are on the ship will be friendly with Ash." The question wasn't whether or not the others would be friendly, it was really a question of trust. How long would it take for Ash to not only trust them, but for her to trust her big sister? Alex hadn't ran into any real conflict with her sister, but she had to figure out where to draw the line between being a sister and being a parent.

Alex didn't want to think about that for nearly as long as she had, and yet she was still at a loss for words on it. "How long have you been on board Lieutenant?" She asked him hoping that if she changed the subject away from her sister she'd be able to ignore the thousands of immediate questions she had.

"Not very long, probably three weeks. I came on board when the ship was still orbiting Earth before leaving for her first mission," Shral answered. "We went to Terra Nova though I didn't actually make it down to the planet, but there will be other planets for me to visit I'm sure." Shral had wanted to see other places, that was a small part of why he'd joined Starfleet in the first place. This position was simply a stepping stone for that opportunity, and for other opportunities that he'd yet to fulfill.

Alex found that interesting, "It seems like a good majority of the crew haven't been on board for very long." She told him, "I guess with her being newly built and commissioned that makes some sense." Alex did believe this made it a little easier to come on board. When the ship had been around and the crew had a good trusting relationship a lot of new crewmen would find it hard to fit in.

"Yeah," Shral told her. He stood up slowly and stretched realizing that he needed to get to the ship's gym for the self defense class he had set up. "I have a self defense class that I'm teaching." He told her, "You're welcome to join if you want to."

Alex thought about it then shook her head, "Maybe next time Lieutenant." She answered. Alex needed to be available for her sister just in case the counseling session went poorly or something.

Shral smiled warmly, "You're always welcome to join whenever you're ready." He told her then left her alone in the crew mess.

 

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