Past Hope
Posted on Sun Apr 14th, 2024 @ 12:48pm by Commander Mariko Tao
Edited on on Tue Apr 16th, 2024 @ 1:40am
1,148 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Cold Cases
Location: Starbase Hope
Timeline: During the 'The Sins Of History' mission
Starbase Hope was a place that tried so hard to give what its name said allowed. Hope.
It was a fickle thing in the sector they called home. It was so close to the Romulan Republic but still refugees often flooded the area, tried to cross into Federation space or got into conflicts with neighbouring species as much as each other. A station that was sometimes described as a melting pot of many different species with all sorts of customs and beliefs.
Mariko had always found that fascinating and loved people watching whenever she got the chance and some free time. You could learn a lot about someone, about a species, about how they interact with each other and with other species different from themselves and Starbase Hope was no different from any trade hub, meeting space or space station in most sectors.
She sat on the top level of the promenade with a cup of sencha, a green tea from Japan, her home nation had she been born on Earth. A large group of Japanese nationals decided they wanted to move off word in the 2240s and a colony was formed on a world christened Anbara-sei and over the next 150 years would grow into a bustling world of much tradition, culture and a proud people.
As Mariko drank her tea you could mistake the level around her to be silent, to be free of life as she didn’t stir as someone dropped a tray and smashed its contents. She was a woman of serene calm on the surface, someone very hard to shake or startle. It came in handy as she’d been a diplomat most of her adult life so far, and she’d made a name for herself as she was a Lieutenant Commander and chief of department at 31. Not entirely unheard of but still quite rare with only 10 years under her belt in Starfleet as a whole.
=/\= Captain Thuram to Lieutenant Commander Tao, please report to my office. Thuram out. =/\=
’Always to the point’ Mariko thought as she finished off her tea and placed the cup back down on the saucer gently. As she rose to her feet she went her usual route to head up to station operations adjacent to the captain's office. It was a good 10 to 15 minute journey, one which was uneventful.
– Ops –
Leaving the turbolift she was met by the station's Ops chief, Lieutenant Avestri. He was a Betazoid man with a tight enough uniform that didn’t leave a lot to the imagination as much as it bewildered Mariko how he got much work done without fear of the fabric ripping.
“Hey Mari.” he said as he strolled up. “Captain does not look happy. Good luck!” He slapped her on the back with a big grin before heading back to his station. Apparently he had enough time to take out of his own whilst running ops to come and make one of his teasing comments.
Mariko sighed, approached the doors of the office and rang the bell.
“Come in commander.” came rather stern words through the intercom.
As the doors parted Mariko walked in, her posture as perfect as her purple uniform, and stood in front of the captain’s desk. “You wanted to see me ma’am.” she said standing to attention.
“Mari, sit down.” Thuram shook her head. “Everytime you come in here you look like you're one stretch away from cracking that porcelain you call skin.” she gestured to a seat in front of her.
Mariko took a bow and sat down.
There was a silence that floated between them. A tension that dared not break. However, Mariko could see the captain’s annoyance. “You look troubled, captain.” she stated.
Thuram scoffed and shook her head in disbelief. “You’re telling me you don’t know?” she asked.
“No ma’am?” Mariko replied. “Has there been development in Romulan space?” she asked.
“If there is, you don’t need to concern yourself with it.” Thuram replied cryptically. Her annoyance was compounded by the lack of response from Mariko. She always played her cards close to her chest, her emotions most of all. In a negotiation even the smallest tell gave away an advantage.
“I’m being replaced?” Mariko asked half rhetorically.
Thuram pursed her lips. “Transferred, and promoted.” she said simply.
“Why?” Mariko asked. “I have no desire to leave.” she added with a flicker of annoyance creeping out.
Picking up a PADD Thuram began to read from it. “By order of Rear Admiral Declan Ford Lieutenant Commander Mariko Tae is to be promoted to the rank of Commander and transferred to the USS Artemis to become its first officer. This is effective immediately and a replacement Chief Diplomatic Officer will be sent in due course.” she placed the PADD down with a bit more force than she normally would. “There is more but you don’t need to know and frankly it doesn’t concern you. What annoys me is that I am losing you.”
Declan Ford… Admiral Ford… Mariko knew that name from her past. In her mind the wheels and cogs began to turn to bring the information to the forefront.
’Declan Walker Ford, Captain of the USS Yenolen.’ she thought. He had been friends of their homeworld, an apparent lover of Japanese custom and way of life and longtime supporter of her parents she recalled a few times over the past 30 years she’d met him. Mostly back on Anbara-sei before she joined the Academy… in fact, he’d been her sponsor. She wasn’t entirely sure what he was doing now but if he was ordering her transfer it would be one thing she’d quickly go into investigate mode to find out.
“Do I have any say in this? Any way I can refuse?” Mariko asked.
“No.” the captain shook her head. “Special request. His authourisation. His rules.”
“I see.” Mariko replied, looking away with a slight frown to her brow. “When do I have to leave the station?” she asked.
“You’ve got a couple of days to get your things sorted and I want to have a going away party…”
Mariko went to open her mouth but Thuram put her hand up to stop her.
“I know you’ll hate it, all those people being nice to you and wishing you good luck. I know you hate parties but this will be good for you, for them and for me. So, it’s happening tomorrow night and my last order is that you be there.”
Mariko stood and bowed once again at her captain. “As you wish, captain. I would be honoured to be sent off in such a fashion.”
Thuram chuckled. “You’re an odd duck Mariko. Get out of here. Dismissed.”
Lieutenant Commander Mariko Tao
Chief Diplomatic Officer
Starbase Hope
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