01-02-2026, 02:17 AM
== On the way home ==
Mara laid the thin knife down on the side of the sink and splashed cold water over her freshly redone side shave. The right side of her head was bare skin, her chestnut brown hair brushed across the left and braided in the latest bout of restlessness.
She looked at herself in the mirror and sighed. The Chief of Security looked as haggard as she felt, dark circles forming around her eyes. It didn’t matter how hard she worked, how much she pounded the gym, she just couldn’t get tired enough to get any sleep beyond a cursory couple of hours here and there.
It ain’t like it’s some great mystery why Calleja thought to herself as she got dressed in black jeans and a simple long-sleeved pastel green top. My brain’s still runnin’ laps and it don’t matter how much I want it to just shut the fuck up and let me sleep…
With another, even more heartfelt sigh, she got herself a coffee from the replicator and then settled herself down on the couch to drink it.
Her quarters were in a state of disarray. There was a pile of armour marking a trail from the door to the bedroom where she’d stripped it off after returning from the clones’ moon. A pair of guitars were propped up, one against a table covered in empty plates and another against a keyboard, where they’d been left. The weapons safe was the exception - she’d at least had enough self-discipline to make sure everything potentially dangerous was locked up.
Mara’s dark eyes took in the mess and she shook her head slowly before taking a sip of coffee. Unbidden, her foot started to tap out a rapid rhythm on the floor as the accumulated nervous energy sought yet another release.
The Amazonian officer was feeling uncharacteristically insecure. She felt like she was justified in being happy with her performance on the mission. Before the paint had even dried on her name over the COS’ office, she was leading away teams into hostile situations. There had been some injuries on the qoH, but that was always going to be the case when fighting Klingons up close. With the tactical advantage down on the moon, she’d ruthlessly cut the garrison down and avoided any repeat. In both cases they’d achieved their goals, and the moon mission had been carried out whilst surrounded by officers who outranked her.
It was everything else that had her uncomfortable. She was a few days removed from losing her shit at pretty much everyone in a crimson tunic in the middle of a staff briefing. And that hadn’t even been the first time this year that her sharp tongue had gotten her in serious trouble with senior personnel. Mara still seemed to enjoy the confidence of Captain Crawford, or the CO wouldn’t have put her in charge of those missions. But the command structure itself was so much in flux, Mara wasn’t sure if that was enough.
Tyra’s in charge. Artemis is her ship, we’re her crew. But is she even supposed to be here? She was apparently smuggled on board when we left before. That’s all gonna have to be worked out. There’s that Givens bitch roamin’ around somewhere and she really does hate my guts, and I absolutely get why. Is she supposed to be in command and she just got quietly sidelined? There’s technically an FO but nobody is listenin’ to a damn word he says ‘cause we all know he’s just a placeholder till Coleman comes back or a proper replacement is found. So I really don’t know where I stand any more. Or where anyone else above me stands, for that matter.
The room was silent as she took another drink.
Then there’s bein’ in the room when a bunch of colonists decide to end it all, and someone’s gotta be there to make sure life is extinct before we blow it all to hell. I’ve killed plenty of people in combat, but it ain’t the same as watchin’ them all do it to themselves. They were just so… so fuckin’ calm about it. Like it was the logical decision. And then one after the other, down they all go.
I don’t get why it’s rattled me so much. It was my call to give them that option. It was the logical option. But here I am, still seein’ those hyposprays bein’ passed around on the back of my eyelids. What the fuck is wrong with me?
With another sigh, Mara came to the decision that she needed to talk to someone. All she was going to accomplish sat here on her own was new levels of impotent frustration.
But who do I go to that’s actually goin’ to be able to relate? I’d say maybe Robin, she was there with me on the moon, but I know she’s pissed at me for chuckin’ everyone out of the doctors’ lounge so I could have it out with Sydesh. Maybe let that one calm down before I go there.
There was someone that Calleja was pretty sure would understand what she was going through. Someone else who was slap bang in the middle of the command clusterfuck. Someone who had had her back at every turn, and someone who potentially could use some friendly company.
Is she gonna want to see me though? Her fingers drummed on the side of her mug before she shrugged. Fuck it. Let’s find out.
Mara drained the coffee and dumped the mug on the arm of the couch as she went to find a pair of boots, before leaving her quarters.
>> CO and FO Quarters >>
Mara laid the thin knife down on the side of the sink and splashed cold water over her freshly redone side shave. The right side of her head was bare skin, her chestnut brown hair brushed across the left and braided in the latest bout of restlessness.
She looked at herself in the mirror and sighed. The Chief of Security looked as haggard as she felt, dark circles forming around her eyes. It didn’t matter how hard she worked, how much she pounded the gym, she just couldn’t get tired enough to get any sleep beyond a cursory couple of hours here and there.
It ain’t like it’s some great mystery why Calleja thought to herself as she got dressed in black jeans and a simple long-sleeved pastel green top. My brain’s still runnin’ laps and it don’t matter how much I want it to just shut the fuck up and let me sleep…
With another, even more heartfelt sigh, she got herself a coffee from the replicator and then settled herself down on the couch to drink it.
Her quarters were in a state of disarray. There was a pile of armour marking a trail from the door to the bedroom where she’d stripped it off after returning from the clones’ moon. A pair of guitars were propped up, one against a table covered in empty plates and another against a keyboard, where they’d been left. The weapons safe was the exception - she’d at least had enough self-discipline to make sure everything potentially dangerous was locked up.
Mara’s dark eyes took in the mess and she shook her head slowly before taking a sip of coffee. Unbidden, her foot started to tap out a rapid rhythm on the floor as the accumulated nervous energy sought yet another release.
The Amazonian officer was feeling uncharacteristically insecure. She felt like she was justified in being happy with her performance on the mission. Before the paint had even dried on her name over the COS’ office, she was leading away teams into hostile situations. There had been some injuries on the qoH, but that was always going to be the case when fighting Klingons up close. With the tactical advantage down on the moon, she’d ruthlessly cut the garrison down and avoided any repeat. In both cases they’d achieved their goals, and the moon mission had been carried out whilst surrounded by officers who outranked her.
It was everything else that had her uncomfortable. She was a few days removed from losing her shit at pretty much everyone in a crimson tunic in the middle of a staff briefing. And that hadn’t even been the first time this year that her sharp tongue had gotten her in serious trouble with senior personnel. Mara still seemed to enjoy the confidence of Captain Crawford, or the CO wouldn’t have put her in charge of those missions. But the command structure itself was so much in flux, Mara wasn’t sure if that was enough.
Tyra’s in charge. Artemis is her ship, we’re her crew. But is she even supposed to be here? She was apparently smuggled on board when we left before. That’s all gonna have to be worked out. There’s that Givens bitch roamin’ around somewhere and she really does hate my guts, and I absolutely get why. Is she supposed to be in command and she just got quietly sidelined? There’s technically an FO but nobody is listenin’ to a damn word he says ‘cause we all know he’s just a placeholder till Coleman comes back or a proper replacement is found. So I really don’t know where I stand any more. Or where anyone else above me stands, for that matter.
The room was silent as she took another drink.
Then there’s bein’ in the room when a bunch of colonists decide to end it all, and someone’s gotta be there to make sure life is extinct before we blow it all to hell. I’ve killed plenty of people in combat, but it ain’t the same as watchin’ them all do it to themselves. They were just so… so fuckin’ calm about it. Like it was the logical decision. And then one after the other, down they all go.
I don’t get why it’s rattled me so much. It was my call to give them that option. It was the logical option. But here I am, still seein’ those hyposprays bein’ passed around on the back of my eyelids. What the fuck is wrong with me?
With another sigh, Mara came to the decision that she needed to talk to someone. All she was going to accomplish sat here on her own was new levels of impotent frustration.
But who do I go to that’s actually goin’ to be able to relate? I’d say maybe Robin, she was there with me on the moon, but I know she’s pissed at me for chuckin’ everyone out of the doctors’ lounge so I could have it out with Sydesh. Maybe let that one calm down before I go there.
There was someone that Calleja was pretty sure would understand what she was going through. Someone else who was slap bang in the middle of the command clusterfuck. Someone who had had her back at every turn, and someone who potentially could use some friendly company.
Is she gonna want to see me though? Her fingers drummed on the side of her mug before she shrugged. Fuck it. Let’s find out.
Mara drained the coffee and dumped the mug on the arm of the couch as she went to find a pair of boots, before leaving her quarters.
>> CO and FO Quarters >>