The Angel with a Broken Wing

Posted on Wed Mar 15th, 2023 @ 1:26pm by Commander Ashe Rii'Na MD & Captain Landon Mabrade
Edited on on Wed Mar 15th, 2023 @ 1:26pm

1,339 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Pirating Typhon resources
Location: Mabrade's Office, Ops

On:

Ashe stood outside Mabrade’s office, trying to get up the courage to touch the chime. Lurch was off on a coffee run otherwise he would have announced her whether she was ready or not. Rii’Na was broken, it was not easy to look to the man who had trusted her to help run his station without feeling like she had let him down. Like the look in her father’s eyes the first time she had gone home, after being a ‘bed warmer’. She didn’t want to see that same look, the pain, disappointment and worry in those eyes. If she saw that with Landon, she would crack for sure.

With a sigh, she hit the chime.

Mabrade had things stacked up to his neck; the pirate incidents were rapidly becoming the definition of a war. There is a Governing body to take down and a fleet and army of cutthroats to be dealt with. The chime was a welcome change.

Ashe stepped through, the longer Bajoran style dress in a soft blue was a safe choice for this chat and a far cry away from the command jacket that she didn’t even want to pick up again. He hair was down and slightly pinned back, but most of it was flowing over her shoulders. She was struggling to hold it together already and it felt worse as soon as that door closed. Ashe looked like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders and it was winning.

"I see you are back." Mabrade knew that stance; the fact she is out of uniform and looking like she lost her fire. "How are you holding up Ashe?" He did not add the Usually normal Commander to his address.

“Like the angel with the broken wing, very unsure of life as it stands.” Ashe had to bite her lip. *You are not going to cry. Commanders don’t cry in front of their CO’s!* She thought to herself, right as there was a slight sparkle at the corner of her eye.

"Take a seat, please." He moved to the edge of his desk to be closer to the offered chair. "You are not supposed to report for duty yet and that is rather a new dress by the looks of it and not uniform regulations." He had a sly grin. "Want to give me the overview before I evaluate how broken the wing is?"

Ashe moved through, taking up the offered seat. The dress flowed along around her like a small wisp of sky. She settled in, yet found it hard to look at him, how could she? “I am not sure where to begin. I pretty much feel like a failure as an Executive Officer. You asked me, tasked me with looking after this station and its people. I get taken by someone from my past and two of our security members are vaporised and… JC winds up in the Infirmary. I wind up going through what feels like some of the worst torture of my life… I did my best to hold out. My faith helped and I did not want to give up… I didn’t want to see that look of disappointment in your eyes. The same one that was in his eyes when I went home.” Her hands were clasped together and shaking in her lap. “I was a blasted bed warmer to that damned excuse of a Cardassian man from the age of nineteen. He claimed my virtue and let others savour me as though I was candy! It took four masters and a Starfleet raid for me to get away and then have some form of normal life.” The tears were starting to flow and the shaking was bad. “Only JC and you know about that part of my past now.”

"Nothing you could do." Mabrade said calmly. "I have read some history and accounts of Bajor when I was stationed near their border." He added. "Please go on."

“I don’t think I can put that jacket on again. I love the idea of serving and don’t want to let you down and leave a hole where there should be none, but Command is supposed to be three links in a chain…. Some link I am. I wanted that to have been me out there! Not those security personnel, not JC! I could have lived with losing my life rather than one more moment with that….MONSTER.” She had to bite her bottom lip and yet she was shaking like a leaf. “How do you ask someone you look up to….how do you say that your pagh has had enough."

"Mortosh." Mabrade said simply. "Enough of a fight taken." He explained. In a duel that means you can fight no more." Nodding though he did not cross his arms but remained neutral in posture and expression.

“First do no harm…” she said as she hit her thigh. “I came into Starfleet on those words. First do no harm. I don’t think I can do this anymore….I am so sorry Landon….” Ashe was crying into her hands. She felt like she was letting her father down all over again. She respected this man, wanted to serve and have him be proud of her and felt like she had failed dismally.

"We need a Chief Medical Officer." He offered. You would be good in that role; life beats us all down, after my station was attacked so easily I felt lost. " He admitted. "I am a siege expert in tactical Training and look what I have gotten us into, a Bloody Pirate War. How long will I be here in Command really?" He put a hand on her shoulder tenderly. "No failure to me; the Cardassian that shot them was to blame; I have been trying for my career here to get some kind of weapon locks on the standard issue phasers..."

“You have probably been in command longer than I have. I did start out in medical. You would be okay with that? You would need a new XO to replace me. I honestly didn’t think I would be given a second chance. I thought I that I might be out on my ear. You would trust me enough to be CMO?” her hand came up to his on her shoulder. “Second chances are not always given, I know that.”

"A good Commanding Officer can tell where a person belongs if they just get to know their crew." He smiled. "No Second Chance, just helping you get where you can excel and feel a purpose again."

“I swear, I will not let you down again, Landon. I will take up the teal again, seeing as you have trust and faith in me. I looked up to you, from the moment I got here. You are a friend and closest I have to most other relatives as I don’t get home much, besides things feel off there. You will not regret this. I will have that Infirmary in tip top shape and doing our best to get everyone back on their feet with the best care and as quickly as able. I swear on the Prophets tears.”

"Then I will hold you to it Ashe." He said. "No reason to cut your rank, you will just be kept on books as a Stand-by for Control Room duty. You have the training and clearances, I will not need to train someone else so don't give up on 'Never' having the Command Urge again. Just get that wing healed and we will revisit your next Command Evaluation then."

"Or the one after that. I will take it one day at a time, that is the promise of the Prophets after all." She got up, turning to her CO. "Thank you, for understanding. It means more than you know."

TBC

Captain Landon Mabrade
Commanding Officer
Star Base Typhon

&

Cmdr Rii'Na Ashe
Executive Officer

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