The Night Before Departure

Posted on Mon Aug 16th, 2021 @ 8:52pm by Captain Aviram Drell & Commander Temperance Zachary

Mission: Episode 05: "Deep Water"
Location: Drell’s Quarters, USS Vesta
Timeline: Day 12 at 2247

ON: [[Drell’s Quarters, USS Vesta, Mission Day 12, 2247 hours]]

Things had been busy ever since the Vesta had arrived at Cestus III. Between meetings with flag officers, briefings from the fleet staff, and conversations with ship’s crew, there had scarcely been time for anything else.

As the day wound to a close, however, Drell was relieved to find time for rest. He sat quietly beneath the viewports that ran along one side of his quarters, a simple tunic and trousers in place of his uniform. Soft music played gently in the background and he listened as the tones ebbed and flowed.

The tall glass in his hand was half-filled with a purple liquid, one which seemed to have a slightly effervescent quality. Drell raised it to his lips, took a sip, and then lowered it again before casting a glance toward his guest.

“Penny for your thoughts.”

Temperance looked across at him and smiled, taking a sip of her own drink. "Only a penny?" she asked before taking a sip of her own drink, resting the glass on the arm rest of her chair. "It seems to hard to comprehend," she said quietly. "We're getting so close to launch. It still seems so surreal." She smoothed invisible creases from the ankle length skirt over her thigh and shook her head slightly, her long hair rustling lightly over her back. "Commander Everingham's transfer was finalised today, he departed this afternoon. I think that's making it feel even more real." She laughed softly. "Now I'll need to find someone else to play Mahjong with."

“We knew there’d be changes,” Drell told her, though he certainly understood the sentiment. The last twelve days had seen almost two thirds of the existing crew transferred to other assignments, several he had known well and more than a few he had only just started getting to know. “A mission like this is a big ask, even for a ship like the Vesta.”

A slow nod, another sip, a soft sigh. "At least six months in completely unknown and unchartered space, I don't blame people for requesting reassignment." she said softly. "People have families, history that they don't want to sacrifice." She paused. "This mission has a very different dynamic, different consequences." She watched Drell carefully for a moment. "Are you looking forward to it?" she asked curiously. "Being back closer to your own people?"

Drell did not answer right away. Instead, he turned and looked out the viewport at the planet below, which had just passed into darkness again.

"Aviram?" Temperance's prompt was softly spoken, a hint of concern in her voice as she watched him carefully.

“I will admit, the prospect does intrigue me,” he said, turning to face her again, “though I’m well aware this may be one of those situations in which I should be careful what I wish for.”

There was a moment of silence before she spoke again. "What were they like?" she asked softly. "Your family I mean." She paused, contemplating, aware of the longer lifespan of the average El-Aurian. "Do you remember what it was like to be around your own people?"

"It has been a long time," Drell said, "but yes, I do remember." His voice was low, thoughtful, almost as if he were handling something delicate. "There were four of us - me, my sister, and our two parents - and we...we travelled a lot. Every so often, we would move to another location (another star system, even) so that our parents could follow up on some lead they had found."

"Was it fun?" she asked curiously, intrigued by the idea of such a free lifestyle. "To be travelling all the time? Always seeing new places? Was that what inspired you to join Starfleet?"

"Oh, this was many, many years before Starfleet," he told her, "though I don't doubt it played a factor in that decision. More immediately, however, seeing all those places and watching our parents interact with the different peoples inspired my sister and me to follow in their footsteps. We both went on to become cultural scientists and to visit different worlds ourselves. And that, I suppose, is what brought us to Earth..."

"Do you still speak to them?" Temperance asked, taking a sip of her drink as she watched him, realising suddenly that in all their friendly meals they shared, they'd never spoken about personal matters like family.

"No."

"I'm sorry," she replied simply.

"It is a reality I have come to live with."

Reaching across the small table between them, Temperance placed her hand over his and squeezed gently. "Sometimes reality isn't all it's cracked up to be."

The two of them sat in silence as Drell allowed himself to take comfort, both in Zachary’s presence and her words. Nothing either of them said to one another right now could change the fact that his family was lost. It did, however, affect how he felt about it (at least, for the moment anyway).

Drell eventually withdrew his hand and took another sip from his glass. “What about you,” he asked, turning the conversation around, “How are you feeling about our heading off to the Delta Quadrant?”

Temperance moved her own hand back to her glass, fingers curling around it before raising it up to her lips as she contemplated over the question. "I guess this is where it's advantageous having no family, I have no ties to keep me here." She shrugged slightly. "I spoke to my uncle earlier today, they wished me well, I'll speak to them as often as I can, but other than that..." another pause. "I think in some ways the thought of it is kind of exciting. This really will be exploring the unknown. We'll be in areas of space that the Federation has never traversed before."

Her response elicited a nod of understanding from Drell. Every member of the Vesta's crew had been hand-picked for this assignment, if not by him directly than by folks in the offices of personnel management and fleet operations. Zachary was no exception. Her background and experience were well-suited to the position she now found herself in, something which had been proven several times over in the months they had been serving together. She (as much as anyone) knew what she was getting herself into by choosing to stay...and how much she was giving up.

"There's still time to request a transfer..."

A mischievous smile tugged at the corners of Drell's mouth. They both knew he wasn't serious. If nothing else, trying to find a new executive officer for a multi-year mission this close to their departure would have been a nightmare.

Temperance laughed openly at his remark. "And give up all this?" she grinned. "You're not getting rid of me that easily. Besides, I've got a bit of a soft spot for this eclectic crew, including the cranky old Commanding Officer," she taunted in return. "Where else am I going to find a crew like this? Besides, I don't know a single other CO that could talk down the Tholian's without phaser fire or bloodshed, and my gut tells me that the best is most definitely yet to come. I want in at the ground floor."

“Indeed,” Drell said. He lifted his glass to her in a silent toast and then took another drink. As he lowered it again, he thought about her words and the certainty with which she spoke.

"Have faith Captain," Temperance reassured. "You've got this." She took a sip of her drink before setting her glass down on the table. "Now, how about leave tomorrow until tomorrow and enjoy a nice dessert? I had operations program in a heavenly new black forest brownie if you're feeling indulgent?"

---

OFF

Captain Aviram Drell
Commanding Officer
USS Vesta NX-94200

Commander Temperance Zachary
Executive Officer
USS Vesta NX-94200