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"Blue Tears" by Lady Rainbow
Rating: PG-13 And Captain Sato and Enterprise aren’t forgotten. You’ll hear from them from time to time in this fic. Some Switcheroo guests: Crewman Ethan Novakovich and Lieutenant Jane Taylor. In the RU, Ambassador Thoris was the Andorian Ambassador in 2155, during the Coalition of Planets talks in “Terra Prime”. He’s got the same position in this AU. Please leave a review! Thanks! Thanks, Pesterfield! :) One June 23, 2155 About 2 weeks after “The Batty Engineer” NX-02 Columbia Captain Matthew Hayes entered the Mess Hall at six A.M. as usual. Alpha shift wasn’t supposed to start for another two hours, but he enjoyed the quiet of the early morning. The Mess was barely a quarter full, with some people of Gamma shift having “dinner” or a “late-night snack” and a few from Alpha grabbing a quick “breakfast”. “Mornin’, Captain,” came the greetings from all around. Hayes nodded and replied cordially as he made his way to the Captain’s Mess. He gave his personal steward, Crewman Novakovich, a slight smile as he sat down. “What’ll it be this morning, Captain?” Novakovich asked. “The usual?” “Ham, scrambled eggs, toast and coffee, Ethan,” Hayes replied, “and a small fruit cup on the side.” “Got it, sir.” The young man’s smile became a small smirk. “I noticed you’ve been eating quite a bit of fruit lately.” “Doctor Arroyo told me I should lose a little weight. And, well, my wife suggested eating fruit, since she does every morning.” “Captain Sato’s been a good influence on you, sir, if you don’t mind me saying so.” Hayes chuckled. “She has, indeed, Ethan.” “You miss her a lot, sir.” He glanced up at Novakovich. “Is it that obvious?” “Only to your steward, who sees you every morning,” Novakovich said, with a hint of sympathy. “Don’t blame you, though, sir.” Hayes gave him a sad smile; yes, Ethan saw through the calm, confident facade he usually put up in front of his crew. In fact, Ethan had become a close friend and confidant, much like Rosie Arroyo had, and like Rosie, he tended to see things other people didn’t. Being a steward meant you were trained to serve, but still expected to keep your mouth shut. Boy, do I know. It’s a useful skill to have. And Ethan was more skilled than most, and Hayes appreciated it. “Thanks, Ethan.” “No problem, sir. I’ll be back with your breakfast. Will Commander Daniels be joining you this morning?” Hayes resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. “The commander has the day off. He’s been holed up in Science Lab One since four A.M. Something about his spatial anomaly project.” Ethan laughed and shook his head. “Commander Daniels needs a life.” “I agree, but he has made some progress since we left Spacedock.” “He sure has.” And with that, Novakovich left to bring Hayes’s order to Columbia’s chef. - Hayes sighed and settled in to read the daily ship reports. As he did, the lights in the Captain’s Mess dimmed, then brightened again. Nowadays, it happened so often, most of the crew barely noticed it, but Hayes did. Columbia had been plagued with equipment and engine trouble since their second launch from Spacedock. Chief Engineer Opur and his department were trying to keep the ship together with little more than spit and baling wire as Columbia made its way back toward Earth. The possible delay of several more months irritated Hayes to no end. Columbia and Enterprise were supposed to be exploring the galaxy, seeing its wonders and meeting new cultures. Instead, they’d gotten mixed up in politics and faulty equipment and the inevitable bureaucracy of Starfleet and the Earth Council. Judging from Hoshi Sato’s complaints, his wife was also growing tired of the bickering among the highest officers and ministers on Earth. I miss you, Hoshi, he thought. Then he resolutely took his mind off that path. They both had responsibilities and obligations to their crews and to Starfleet. They knew it would be difficult, both being starship captains. Yet his own rebellious heart reminded him of it every day. The comm whistled. “Taylor to Hayes.” “Hayes,” he replied absently. “Sir, you have a incoming message, priority two, from the Hanrii.” He straightened up at Lieutenant Jane Taylor’s words. The Hanrii was Andoria’s newest and fastest battle cruiser and under the command of ...“Shran?” “Yes, sir. He sounds rather agitated; I think something’s happened.” Taylor’s normally calm voice held a note of concern. Like Hoshi, Jane Taylor seemed to have some kind of empathic radar that warned her of oncoming emotional storms. Shran, of course, was more emotional than most. “Put him through, Jane.” Hayes tapped his viewer and the screen reformed to the blue-skinned, white-haired visage of Captain Shran. The Andorian’s antennae were ramrod straight on the top of his head, which meant Shran was just holding back his anger. Hayes straightened at the anguish shining in his eyes; he’d only seen Shran like this once before, and once had been enough. “What’s wrong, Shran?” he asked, getting directly to the point. “Did someone in your clan die?” The Andorian shook his head. “Not dead, Tirh’lar,” he answered in a hoarse voice. “My family—“ “What’s happened?” Hayes’s heart tightened in his chest and he had to make a conscious effort to relax. Jhamel and little Talla. Oh, no. God, something’s happened to them...it’s the only thing that would make Shran this upset. “What can I do?” Shran brought himself under control, but Hayes saw the effort it cost him. “Jhamel and Talla have been taken, Matthew. They’ve vanished. We must get them back.” Half an hour later, Hayes still sat in his Mess, but this time, the room was more crowded. Commander J.T. Daniels, his First and Science Officer was irritated at having his “day off” interrupted, but once Hayes had explained the situation, Daniels had set his own irritation aside. Major Nathan Kemper, Columbia’s Armory Officer was also there, as well as Doctor Rosie Arroyo. Instead of Shran, the image of Admiral Maxwell Forrest occupied the left half of his screen, while Captain Hoshi Sato of Enterprise was on the right. Hoshi’s eyes brimmed with worry and sympathy, and Matt felt her presence over the light-years. Hoshi smiled at him and he felt the turmoil within him ease, just a little. “Starfleet and the Earth Council received an urgent request from the Andorian government,” Forrest said, his voice calm and professional. “They want Columbia to divert to Andoria to help in the search. Needless to say, they were quite adamant at Captain Hayes be involved in this matter.” “I’m sure Captain Shran had something to do with that,” Hoshi remarked. “Indeed. His wife is a well-ranked diplomat in the Andorian government, so her disappearance is a huge loss. The High Councilor also reminded me that an Andorian’s duty to his or her family is paramount.” Forrest gazed at Hayes and Hayes winced. The admiral had never exactly been thrilled at his “adoption” into Shran’s clan, even if it was just ceremonial. “Therefore, in the interest of Earth’s relationship with Andoria, Columbia is to divert to Andoria at her best speed.” Hayes let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. “Thank you, sir.” It was Daniels’s turn to wince as he reminded everyone, “This will delay our arrival at Earth to correct our computer software problems.” Forrest nodded in agreement. “Yes, I’m aware of that. I’m not happy with that fact, Commander Daniels, but the situation has changed, so we have to be flexible. A clutch of brother-engineers from Raquilla have altered course to rendezvous with Columbia instead of heading to Jupiter Station. Once they arrive, they will assist Commander Opur with preliminary repairs to the ship’s computer.” Daniels nodded, although the science officer still didn’t look happy. Opur had been a leading warp drive specialist on Raquilla before joining Starfleet, and his “clutch of brother-engineers” reminded Hayes of a tight-knit fraternity. In fact, the brother-engineers had dropped or delayed their various projects on Raquilla to assist Columbia. That was a sign of true loyalty and dedication for their beloved Raquillan instructor. Again, Hayes bristled at the unspoken reproach in the admiral’s voice. “This situation on Andoria had changed Starfleet’s priorities yet again. Captain Sato, Enterprise is hereby ordered to Vulcan to render any assistance to High Minister V’Lar’s government. I realize nearly half of your command staff has been ‘requested’ to return there anyway; it’s only fair to you that you be in a position to help them in any way.” Hoshi nodded. “Thank you, Admiral.” There was the silent, but understood meaning: And if either you or Columbia needs help, you’ll both be within range of each other. Max Forrest was no fool, and unlike Lucas Gardner, he did understand the trials of a married couple in Starfleet. “Those are your orders. Starfleet Command, out.” And Forrest’s image winked out. “We’ll be getting underway immediately,” Hoshi added. “Our ETA to Vulcan is—“ she looked off-screen at someone, probably Travis Mayweather, “—forty-two hours.” “We’ll be reaching Andoria at about the same time, Captain,” said Daniels. She nodded. “If you need anything, Matt, we’ll be within shouting distance. Take care, and give my regards to Shran, Jhamel, and Talla.” Hayes heard the hopeful note in her voice; yes, they would find Shran’s wife and daughter. “We will, and you do the same if you need anything, Hoshi.” Then Hoshi raised her hand, kissed her fingers, then pressed them against the screen. Matt did the same thing. “Until later. Enterprise, out.” “Take care, Hoshi. Columbia, out.” Her face vanished and Matt sighed inaudibly as he dropped his hand. This is gonna be quite a mess...Shran’s gonna want blood if anything happens to his wife and daughter and I’m in the thick of it... “Sir?” Hayes looked up at Daniels. Normally, the staid science officer would give him a disapproving look for a Public Display of Affection in front of the senior staff, never mind the fact that it was still within the privacy of his own Captain’s Mess. Daniels was a stickler for the rules and PDA wasn’t something he normally endorsed. This time, Daniels stood there, awaited orders and said nothing about the subject. “Best speed to Andoria, J.T. Nate, I want an assessment of Columbia’s defense systems. Rosie, dig up everything you can find on Andorian physiology from the database. I need to get in touch with Ambassador Thoris and see if I can wrangle out what’s happened.” “Yes, sir,” they all chorused, and scattered to their assigned duties. J.T. paused at the door and raised an eyebrow, Vulcan-like, even as his eyes betrayed his sympathy. “Good luck with Thoris, Captain,” he said dryly. “I understand he can be rather...cranky.” Hayes chuckled at his choice of adjective. “Thanks, J.T. I’m gonna need it.” Daniels only inclined his head and left the Captain’s Mess, as Hayes began to route his comm request to Taylor on the Bridge. |
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