A Return To Grace?
Posted on Tue Aug 6th, 2019 @ 4:19am by Makeba Brown & Lieutenant JG Mira Jayna & Lieutenant Junior Grade Mira Jayde & Ensign Hoa Nhi Nguyen
Edited on on Tue Aug 6th, 2019 @ 4:23am
1,652 words; about a 8 minute read
Mission:
Episode 7 - Home Again
Location: Upper Promenade - Central Core Deck 5 - Empok Nor
Timeline: MD007 1300 hrs
Jayde and Jayna decided to take a day off and explore the starbase. It reminded them a great deal of DS9, and brought back a lot of memories, some good and some not so good. But if this was to be the Pioneer's home port, they needed to deal with them and move on. So, today was for reliving the memories and putting them to rest.
As they were off-duty, both chose to wear simple black jumpsuits with no rank insignia or ship affiliation. Jayde had her usual collapsible staff clipped onto her belt and Jayna had her boot knife. Old habits died hard and neither felt comfortable without at least some form of protection, even though they knew it would not be necessary.
They began their exploration in the promenade.
Makeba's head was swimming, after all that was discussed over lunch. Was it even possible that Starfleet was behind the Maquis. No... No that was not right. Leyton is pulling everyone's strings. The Maquis, Starfleet, the Cardassians everyone. Makeba thought as her mind raced she walked side by side with Hoa Nhi in silence. She had to get to the bottom of this and see who earned her loyalty. As the thoughts raced Keebs saw two women, twins walking together. She recognized them from the Pioneer, one she has seen in the Brig standing guard. But she had no idea there was twin. Makeba could tell that the other woman was Intelligence, she felt it in her gut Makeba could smell an Intel Officer a mile away. She decided to watch and see where these women were going.
The shops were mostly what they would expect on a promenade. They stopped in one and then another, mostly window shopping. both twins, in their own way, were trying to replace old memories with new ones. But after a couple of shops, Jayna slowed and moved a little farther away from Jayde. They were being watched, but she didn't know why, or by whom.
Jayde barely nodded. She stepped into one shop so her sister could go into the one across the way to watch.
Makeba was curious about these two and why they were here. She turned to Hoa. "Come on girl let's go make friends she said with a smirk." Makeba walked right up to the twins and addressed them both as she was unsure which was which. "Well it seems that ole Malbrooke is very afraid of little ole me. That is if he sent more shadows. I already have one Ensign Nguyen here, there really isn't room for many more."
"You were watching us," Jayna said, "Not the other way 'round." She recognized the woman and hoped she could learn something from this exchange.
"Your escort is sufficient," Jayde added, bowing to Hoa. "Why do you believe we were sent to watch you?"
"I can't see any other reason for a security officer and an intelligence operative to be on this station and in my general vicinity." Makeba replied, her voice dripping with contempt.
"Shore leave?" Jayna said, smiling sweetly. "Surely you know that."
Jayde gave her a cautionary look. "Mere coincidence," she said.
Makeba cocked an eyebrow, and she was very much on edge now. "I suppose, but in Starfleet there is almost no such thing as coincidences." Makeba smiled and chuckled. "You guys should really try harder to look a little less conspicuous."
Jayna couldn't help chuckling. If she'd wanted to be inconspicuous, Makeba would never have noticed her. But it was in her interest to let the woman think her inept. "As you wish."
Makeba took a look around, things certainly had changed in the year since the Pioneer showed up. This station used to be a lot louder, and more fun. "Say where are they? When the Federation arrived at Empok Nor they made sure that the Cardassians understood that anyone could dock here. Except now when I look around I do not see anything except Starfleet and CDF. Where are the civilians? Where are my friends?" A mixture of anger and sadness came through in her voice as she spoke.
"Ensign Nguyen can answer that better than we," Jayde said. "My sister and I are only recently arrived on the station. Perhaps your friends have simply gone elsewhere because Starfleet is here?"
Jayna hadn't thought of the station in the terms Makeba mentioned. Now she looked around more carefully, deciding that perhaps she should look into it, simply out of curiosity. "Is it possible they left simply because the Pioneer is here?" There was something, too. Something she couldn't quite put her finger on.
"I myself have arrived recently as well," Nhi said and then she turned to Makeba. "But I do hear things now and then. A lot of civilians left because of recent events. Come on, can't you feel it, something is about to happen. There is a lot of tension in the air. I don't know what, but I can feel it. Something is brooding."
"Yes," the twins said in unison.
That was it, Jayna thought. A feeling of building expectation.
Jayde glanced at her sister, then to Nguyen and Makeba. "Yes. I was not sure if this feeling was normal for Empok Nor. The station itself has an air of expectancy."
Makeba knew the plan for the station, but the timetable was off it was too soon, or was it. Her head was upside down. "If there is any tension here it is because you people had to station a whole battalion of killer grunts here. Marines are like Klingons wherever they are battle is soon to follow. This makes no sense..." Her voice trailed off and she began to pace the area of the upper promenade.
"Marines and Klingons are both honorable warriors. They do not start battles, they end them," Jayna said, keeping her feelings on the subject from showing. "Unlike Cardassians."
"Perhaps the problem you notice was already inherent and has only now come to manifest itself?" Jayde added as a counterpoint to her sister. "The seeds of what you see now were planted long before our arrival."
Makeba decided to respond to Jayde first. "That part is true, these seeds were planted before you got here. However, honorable or not Klingons do start battles. They got so power hungry a few decades ago they started a battle with themselves. The point is when you have Klingons you have a fight, when you have Marines you have a fight. In all the years that this station has been here it has never been attacked. Yet a whole battalion of Marines are here. You have to agree that this is might of an overreaction. Especially if all you are trying to do is repel some rebellious colonists." Makeba's voice revealed her mind as it often did. She was in full tactical mode, she was after all a Starfleet Tactical Officer, and as such none of this made sense.
"A good point," Jayna said. "But you can say the same about all species. We've all fought wars, and fought against them." She cocked her head to one side, considering Makeba's words.
"What is your opinion of what is going on?" Jayde asked.
"I think the Cardassians are doing what they do best, lying. Starfleet and the Federation is buying it hook line and sinker. The price is going to be a war and the Maquis will be caught in the middle. If Starfleet knew what was coming they would simply give us what we want and then perhaps we would join them in what is going to be a bloody fight with Cardassia." Makeba responded as if she was in a dream state. It was like she was seeing into the future.
"Of course the Cardassians are lying," Jayna said. "But do you have proof to take to the Federation?"
That was the crux, wasn't it. She didn't, she had no absolute proof except her own hunches. This was something that Makeba trusted more than people. "Unfortunately no... There is no way to get it either. All I have is a gut instinct, one I have learned never to disregard."
Jayna nodded. "I do not discount your gut instinct, but Starfleet will want more. I can tell you that I will do some digging. I can't promise anything, but I will try." Makeba was a woman Jayna could not trust, but there was something in her manner that caused concern. And if she was right, Jayna could not ignore her words.
"If you learn anything at all, let us know," Jayde added, also feeling that there might be something to what Makeba said. "Or let Ensign Nguyen know."
"Sounds good..." Makeba squinted for a moment at the twins she was unsure what to make of them. "...And thanks"
Jayde bowed. "That may be premature, as we will likely have no more luck than you did."
"But we'll try," Jayna added. "For the sake of peace."
Nhi smiled and nodded, as she said, "I am always around when you need me. I may just have come out of the Academy, but I strongly believe, through experience you learn."
Makeba nodded and smirked as her and her shadow walked the opposite way from the twins. What Keebs had not realized is that her nemesis Commander O Flannagain had just won and he did not even know it.
A Joint Post By
Makeba Brown
Maquis Tactical Officer
Warrant Officer Mira Jayna
Infiltration Specialist, USS Pioneer
Lieutenant JG Mira Jayde
Assistant Chief Security/Tactical Officer, USS Pioneer
Ensign Hoa Nhi Nguyen
Security Officer, USS Pioneer
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