03-17-2025, 12:11 AM
Over the years, Tyra had become proficient at anticipating Nathan's reactions to her diatribes. He'd come a long way from the idealist indignation that has colored their first altercation years before and even from the contrite, overwhelmed young man that had asked for her help after Pomn instead of hiding it. A hundred smaller interactions in between, more often associated with more pleasant feelings than rage, had brought a well rounded tone to her knowledge. She'd anticipated a self-deprecating grin and likely a well aimed joke at one of their expense to defuse the situation but he'd gone well off script when he had stepped off the transporter pad with what sounded like a genuine response.
There was a momentary delay in realizing his intentions, caught off guard by the audacity and boldness. Her hands managed to find purchase on Nathan's chest before he managed to fully close the gap between but there was very little force applied despite her intentions. Instead, his warm, tight embrace reeled her in so quickly that even if she had wanted to, there was no leverage to push with any amount of force.
And if she was honest, she wasn't sure she could have summoned the will. His tactic for defusing, likely pulled from the book shared by Logan and Bryan, was effective and while she might have remained a ball of tension, Nathan would have felt a long breath escape her as her forehead fell forward to find a resting spot on his shoulder.
"**** you," she said softly, though it lacked the vehement rage of moments before. Actually, there might have been just the tiniest hint of a wry chuckle but it just as much could have been the muffling quality of his shirt.
For a second or two, she tried to hold onto her anger; it felt like she deserved to be able to all things considered.
For weeks upon weeks, since the enormity of the cluster that had been Callisto had become evident and even more so since arriving on Artemis again, she'd felt like a lone ship in the middle of a raging sea with no aid in sight. With Damian and Ben gone, her pool of confidants on Artemis had dwindled to almost nothing and while she had no doubt of the loyalty of her officers, the relationships weren't deep like the ones she'd enjoyed in the past with Jenny or Mat or Judith or Zephyr or Jason or Ethan... or Nathan. There was something to be said for the bonds forged in blood and fire, a sacrifice made in exchange for peacetime assignments.
And while she had no intentions of telling him, Nathan felt like a lighthouse's beacon breaking through the storm. The tiniest glimmer of hope, even though it signaled the threat of rocks as well.
“I’d hoped that they’d keep their word,”he said as he released her.
Her hand hooked his elbow to keep him from venturing too far as her blue eyes, set into an expression of clear confusion at his words, began to systematically assess him. His expression was set into an array of emotions that she couldn't quite untangle as if she was missing a context that was key to everything. He looked scruffy and unkept and frankly, he didn't smell much better. However, he looked whole and unharmed, at least superficially.
She just starting to open her mouth to ask any number of questions to clear up her own confusion when he muddied the water further.
“Did you know that I’d be on the qoH? Did they tell you to come get me?”
She couldn't help the way her head tilted, her jaw tightening again as a wave of frustration started to rise again. Nathan, though, kept barreling onward.
Who the Hell is 'they'?
His rushed attempt to offer her context didn't answer her questions but it did pour gas on her frustration, that spark of rage flickering right back to life. She wondered if he could hear her teeth grind together as he explained her inadvertantly role in his assignment on the qoH. He certainly would have felt her fingers tighten on his elbow before she realized and released him.
If the whole thing pained Nathan, it absolutely enraged her. She had one person in prison and another running around on a smuggling vessel, all out of misguided attempts to protect her. Oh, she understood the impulse, it was the same one that had her ready to fall on a sword, but the audacity of someone to dangle that carrot in front of Nathan was enough to make her want to blaze a war path through any number of HQ buildings.
“I say all of that, because when you hear what is up, it’s gonna have some similarities to..." There was a moment's hesitation and she was certain she knew what was coming. "...Pomn."
It was fitting. Pomn was what had handed them the shovel to dig the grave it felt like they were standing knee deep in and it certainly was fitting if Fate wasn't done yet. It didn't mean she had to like it though and it certainly didn't mean she needed to accept this fate.
She shook her head as Nathan added the final context, her jaw clenching and unclenching.
"And Starfleet sent us out here to... I have felt like a piece on a freaking chess board since I left Earth but this feels like too much. This would imply a level of intelligence that just does not exist in those hallowed halls," her words dropped with bitterness and anger.
She shook her head again, her hand combing through her hair before tracing her long braid. She gave it a rough tug as if it was the offending party in the room before letting it hang once more. Then, she took a step around Nathan, even as she turned so she was still facing him.
"No, I didn't know. I didn't know about the qoH or that you were on it. We only engaged it because, frankly, I was tired of playing with sensor buoys. Shocking, I know," she said, a brief flash of self-deprecation shining through before it was swallowed again.
"Hell, I'm not even suppose to be here, much less in command," she added, her tone swinging right back to the frustration and anger that seemed a permanent fixture these days.
She let that settle for a second as she let herself drop onto the top step of the transporter pad. "So what did they promise you? And who is it? I need to know who to add my Christmas Card list."
== Tag! ==
There was a momentary delay in realizing his intentions, caught off guard by the audacity and boldness. Her hands managed to find purchase on Nathan's chest before he managed to fully close the gap between but there was very little force applied despite her intentions. Instead, his warm, tight embrace reeled her in so quickly that even if she had wanted to, there was no leverage to push with any amount of force.
And if she was honest, she wasn't sure she could have summoned the will. His tactic for defusing, likely pulled from the book shared by Logan and Bryan, was effective and while she might have remained a ball of tension, Nathan would have felt a long breath escape her as her forehead fell forward to find a resting spot on his shoulder.
"**** you," she said softly, though it lacked the vehement rage of moments before. Actually, there might have been just the tiniest hint of a wry chuckle but it just as much could have been the muffling quality of his shirt.
For a second or two, she tried to hold onto her anger; it felt like she deserved to be able to all things considered.
For weeks upon weeks, since the enormity of the cluster that had been Callisto had become evident and even more so since arriving on Artemis again, she'd felt like a lone ship in the middle of a raging sea with no aid in sight. With Damian and Ben gone, her pool of confidants on Artemis had dwindled to almost nothing and while she had no doubt of the loyalty of her officers, the relationships weren't deep like the ones she'd enjoyed in the past with Jenny or Mat or Judith or Zephyr or Jason or Ethan... or Nathan. There was something to be said for the bonds forged in blood and fire, a sacrifice made in exchange for peacetime assignments.
And while she had no intentions of telling him, Nathan felt like a lighthouse's beacon breaking through the storm. The tiniest glimmer of hope, even though it signaled the threat of rocks as well.
“I’d hoped that they’d keep their word,”he said as he released her.
Her hand hooked his elbow to keep him from venturing too far as her blue eyes, set into an expression of clear confusion at his words, began to systematically assess him. His expression was set into an array of emotions that she couldn't quite untangle as if she was missing a context that was key to everything. He looked scruffy and unkept and frankly, he didn't smell much better. However, he looked whole and unharmed, at least superficially.
She just starting to open her mouth to ask any number of questions to clear up her own confusion when he muddied the water further.
“Did you know that I’d be on the qoH? Did they tell you to come get me?”
She couldn't help the way her head tilted, her jaw tightening again as a wave of frustration started to rise again. Nathan, though, kept barreling onward.
Who the Hell is 'they'?
His rushed attempt to offer her context didn't answer her questions but it did pour gas on her frustration, that spark of rage flickering right back to life. She wondered if he could hear her teeth grind together as he explained her inadvertantly role in his assignment on the qoH. He certainly would have felt her fingers tighten on his elbow before she realized and released him.
If the whole thing pained Nathan, it absolutely enraged her. She had one person in prison and another running around on a smuggling vessel, all out of misguided attempts to protect her. Oh, she understood the impulse, it was the same one that had her ready to fall on a sword, but the audacity of someone to dangle that carrot in front of Nathan was enough to make her want to blaze a war path through any number of HQ buildings.
“I say all of that, because when you hear what is up, it’s gonna have some similarities to..." There was a moment's hesitation and she was certain she knew what was coming. "...Pomn."
It was fitting. Pomn was what had handed them the shovel to dig the grave it felt like they were standing knee deep in and it certainly was fitting if Fate wasn't done yet. It didn't mean she had to like it though and it certainly didn't mean she needed to accept this fate.
She shook her head as Nathan added the final context, her jaw clenching and unclenching.
"And Starfleet sent us out here to... I have felt like a piece on a freaking chess board since I left Earth but this feels like too much. This would imply a level of intelligence that just does not exist in those hallowed halls," her words dropped with bitterness and anger.
She shook her head again, her hand combing through her hair before tracing her long braid. She gave it a rough tug as if it was the offending party in the room before letting it hang once more. Then, she took a step around Nathan, even as she turned so she was still facing him.
"No, I didn't know. I didn't know about the qoH or that you were on it. We only engaged it because, frankly, I was tired of playing with sensor buoys. Shocking, I know," she said, a brief flash of self-deprecation shining through before it was swallowed again.
"Hell, I'm not even suppose to be here, much less in command," she added, her tone swinging right back to the frustration and anger that seemed a permanent fixture these days.
She let that settle for a second as she let herself drop onto the top step of the transporter pad. "So what did they promise you? And who is it? I need to know who to add my Christmas Card list."
== Tag! ==