05-26-2025, 02:19 PM
Though Jenny had expected Tomer to react poorly to being dismissed, the fact he had decided to embark on a tantrum that would put her four year-old daughter to shame had been something of a surprise. It reminded her of a quote she had once read, from the early twenty-first century, that said 'the smallest minds often come with the biggest mouths'. While that was perhaps uncharitable to say about Tomer, he had to be at least reasonably intelligent to rise to the position of attaché, his ego was definitely running the show.
Jenny had, at least initially, been prepared to let him vent his petty insecurities. He would diminish his own standing among the crew, and some would criticise her for not immediately stamping on him, but it was the least dramatic way of dealing with events and would allow her to concentrate on the mission; the reason they were all actually there.
Then out came the finger.
This hasn't happened for a while...
The last person who had gesticulated in such a manner in Jenny's presence had been several years ago, while she was but a lowly Lieutenant Commander. A rather smarmy and egocentric young Midshipman had decided it a smart idea to sit in the Captain's chair and flip Jenny off when she told him to move. The result had been a broken middle finger (fractured, really), and an eventual fitness report so scathing that his career had stalled and he'd been forced to return to the family shipping business to even get near command of a starship. That said family were currently in financial and legal trouble was just the icing on the cake.
Still, there was a vast difference between a junior officer and a member of the Diplomatic Corps. While breaking Crandall's finger had earned her a slap on the wrist, doing anything so rash to a diplomat would likely get her in trouble with Starfleet Command. Again.
On the other hand...
Given the situation, the race having just begun, Jenny could no longer afford the distraction. She was on her feet, hand clamping around the jabbing finger, and pulling the diplomat close to her in an instant. He was now so close she could see the stitching in his clothing, smell his cologne, and feel the ego.
"Number one, you are a guest on my ship. Number two, this is my mission. Number three, you have five seconds to get off my Bridge before I have you removed, and I can't guarantee you won't get hurt in the process."
To reiterate her point, Jenny squeezed her hand around the finger and began to exert the tiniest bit of pressure to bend his finger backwards, against the knuckle. As the finger bent backward, Jenny looked over her shoulder towards where Qi sat.
"Have it set up for burst activation, but don't engage; we don't want to be attached for longer than we need to be, and we don't know whether that's against the rules or not. T'Lari, if I give the word I want that tractor beam. Keep an eye on the Os'rusa, too; I'd rather win fair and square but if we need to throw something else at them, I'm not against it."
She deliberately ignored Chertstone's remark; that wasn't something that needed addressing in public, given that it was at least partially amusing, even if it was inappropriate behaviour for the Bridge - at least from someone as junior as he. Still, he needed direction for what Jenny wanted him to do, as she wasn't quite sure she trusted him to make the best choices for the success of the mission and survival of the crew.
"Try to get between the Os'rusa and the comet, we'll take the 'inside' track and use the shorter distance to get ahead."
Jenny had, at least initially, been prepared to let him vent his petty insecurities. He would diminish his own standing among the crew, and some would criticise her for not immediately stamping on him, but it was the least dramatic way of dealing with events and would allow her to concentrate on the mission; the reason they were all actually there.
Then out came the finger.
This hasn't happened for a while...
The last person who had gesticulated in such a manner in Jenny's presence had been several years ago, while she was but a lowly Lieutenant Commander. A rather smarmy and egocentric young Midshipman had decided it a smart idea to sit in the Captain's chair and flip Jenny off when she told him to move. The result had been a broken middle finger (fractured, really), and an eventual fitness report so scathing that his career had stalled and he'd been forced to return to the family shipping business to even get near command of a starship. That said family were currently in financial and legal trouble was just the icing on the cake.
Still, there was a vast difference between a junior officer and a member of the Diplomatic Corps. While breaking Crandall's finger had earned her a slap on the wrist, doing anything so rash to a diplomat would likely get her in trouble with Starfleet Command. Again.
On the other hand...
Given the situation, the race having just begun, Jenny could no longer afford the distraction. She was on her feet, hand clamping around the jabbing finger, and pulling the diplomat close to her in an instant. He was now so close she could see the stitching in his clothing, smell his cologne, and feel the ego.
"Number one, you are a guest on my ship. Number two, this is my mission. Number three, you have five seconds to get off my Bridge before I have you removed, and I can't guarantee you won't get hurt in the process."
To reiterate her point, Jenny squeezed her hand around the finger and began to exert the tiniest bit of pressure to bend his finger backwards, against the knuckle. As the finger bent backward, Jenny looked over her shoulder towards where Qi sat.
"Have it set up for burst activation, but don't engage; we don't want to be attached for longer than we need to be, and we don't know whether that's against the rules or not. T'Lari, if I give the word I want that tractor beam. Keep an eye on the Os'rusa, too; I'd rather win fair and square but if we need to throw something else at them, I'm not against it."
She deliberately ignored Chertstone's remark; that wasn't something that needed addressing in public, given that it was at least partially amusing, even if it was inappropriate behaviour for the Bridge - at least from someone as junior as he. Still, he needed direction for what Jenny wanted him to do, as she wasn't quite sure she trusted him to make the best choices for the success of the mission and survival of the crew.
"Try to get between the Os'rusa and the comet, we'll take the 'inside' track and use the shorter distance to get ahead."