A Wolf in a Starfleet Uniform Part 1

Posted on Thu Apr 30th, 2020 @ 4:24am by Captain Alistar McKeon & Commander Isabella dei`Silvisi & Lieutenant Katan

1,688 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Distant Shores
Location: Bridge/Captain's Ready Room

ON:

The turbolift's doors opened as Katan stepped out. He was now in uniform, with his Klingon sash going from his right shoulder down to his left side, and his hair in a pony tail. The Klingon stood there, for a moment, at attention, with his hands behind his back and his face stern, his eyes constantly forward. Before moving, he look around the bridge to locate the Captain's Ready Room, then he made his way towards it. At the moment, he had no intention of interacting with anyone else, but the Captain and Executive Officer. His goal was to properly check in. Whether it was a good first impression or a bad first impression still remained to be seen.

The day had settled into a routine one, but with an air of quiet that settled over the throughout the ship. It hadn't taken long before rumors of the events of the morning had been whispered from one end of the Endeavour to the other, but the news had finally burned through the crew like a fever and everyone had fallen to their duties once more. Isabella had taken to managing the bridge from the science station, allowing her to fulfill both of her positions at the same time. She had been in the middle of a diagnostic on the primary sensor array when the sound of the bridge turbo-lift doors announced an arrival. Glancing up, she frowned thoughtfully at the sight of a Klingon in a gold collared uniform. Deciding that she needed to at least check in on the arrival, she stood and after a quick glance at the diagnostic settings she headed across the bridge.

Managing to intercept the officer just as he arrived at the doors leading into the ready room, Isabella smiled. "I take it you're new to the Endeavour, Lieutenant?" she asked.

Katan stopped, just short of knocking the woman over, and looked at her with his stern scowl. He narrowed his eyes as he slowly crossed his arms over his chest, allowing a slight grunt to be heard, right before replying. "Very perceptive." His voice was deep and showed no sign hint as whether he was trying to be funny or patronizing.

Isabella tilted her head to one side and smiled upwards at the Klingon. She couldn't be sure if he was being sarcastic or just typically Klingon, or something else entirely. She finally shrugged mentally and dismissed it before speaking again. "I had heard that we were getting new officers and crew," she said as she held out her hand. "Isabella dei`Silvisi, Chief Science and Executive Officer of the Endeavour."

"Katan." He replied quickly. There was a slight hesitation as he looked down to her hand, then to her face, before actually giving her hand a strong grip. Apart was disappointed, which remained hidden behind his stern scowl, from not being able to say Son of Gregargh immediately from his name. While it was Klingon tradition, it was difficult to say, considering his current relations with him house and people. "I have been assigned to this ship as its Chief Security and Tactical Officer."

"Oh, then you definitely need to see the captain," Isabella said as she released Katan's hand. She sensed something hiding behind his stoic demeanor, but she couldn't quite place it. She decided not to press, at least for now. "I'd join you, but I'm in the middle of several things that require constant attention. Please give my regards to the captain along with my apologies. If you require my assistance with anything, please don't hesitate to ask," she finished, giving the Klingon a friendly smile.

Katan nodded slightly, placing his hands behind his back, as he replied in his deep tone. "Very Well." He was about to turn toward the Captain's Ready Room, but stopped himself. There was a slight hesitation before he spoke again, towards the XO, almost as if he wasn't sure it was appropriate or not. "I am, to understand, you are familiar with the Captain? Enough to judge her reaction towards certain topics and requests?"

Isabella smiled and nodded as she clasped her hands behind her back. "I am as familiar as anyone can be with the captain. All I can tell you about Alistar ... Captain McKeon, is that he's direct and honest. But of course, I'm not sure what questions you're planning on asking, either," she replied.

He paused slightly, narrowing his eyes slightly, before replying. "Should you require to know I am prepared to tell you."

Isabella raised her eyebrows slightly, unsure just how she should respond for a brief moment before she looked straight up into the Klingon's eyes and spoke. "That is entirely up to you, Lieutenant Katan, however, if this is a matter of a sensitive subject then perhaps it's best that this conversation continue somewhere other than the open air of the bridge."

Katan, instinctively, felt challenged by her look and took a step forward. He looked down at her and replied quickly. "My request is not a private matter, but one that will affect my duties and everyone on board the ship, as well as the bridge crew." He stopped immediately, taking a step back and a bit of a deep breath, before continuing. "You misunderstand my intention, Commander. I wish to incorporate something which I have grown a custom to working with and has proven to be beneficial in both my duties and relaxing surrounding officers. This is, of course, my experience and may no prove the same on this ship. I only asked you, first, because of your experience on board and as the Executive Officer."

Unsure of how to respond, Isabella gave Katan an understanding nod of her head. "You may tell me what you intend to ask the captain, but I may or may not know an answer," she said.

He paused for a moment before nodding his head. "Thank you." Katan said softly, before adding. "I came on board with a... a companion. Some may call her a pet, but I prefer to think of her as a close friend. On my last ship, I added her to my routine, and a considerable change. Not only do her skills benefit my duties, but her presence, seems to inspire more confidence where it was originally believe she would be more of a distraction." He stopped, immediately realizing he had gone this long without explaining who he was referring to. "I am speaking of my white wolf, Valkris. While she often tends to be more of a free spirit, I found incorporating her into my routine, tends to provide a more comfortable environment." He looked down slightly before concluding. "More, to the point, when it comes to my own presence around others. While I may come off as intimidating and unapproachable, Val's presence tends to put others at ease and helps me with my job. She will often pick up on things I do not and, because of this, I take certain cues from her which have proven beneficial."

Isabella frowned thoughtfully for nearly a full minute before she spoke again, unsure of just how to reply to such a request. "I definitely would present that to the captain. Sometimes he's a bit more relaxed than most other star-ship captains, but there are some things he sticks closely to Starfleet regulations on; however, on this I'm not sure how he may respond," she finally said.

Katan went back to his emotionless scowl, unsure of whether this was something she approved of herself of disapproved of. There was a part of him that felt he might be trying to recapture something he had lost back when he was in the Klingon Defense Force. Klingon animals were often seen on the bridge, and wondering the corridors, and it put many of the officers at ease. If ever boarded, they provided a certain level of defense, and allowed the warriors a level of comfort. He finally looked firmly to the XO and nodded his head. "Thank you for your assessment."

"You're very welcome," Isabella said as she gave the Klingon officer a smile. "Good luck, Lieutenant Katan, and welcome aboard the Endeavour." With a parting nod of her head, she turned and walked back over to the science station.

He watched her leave before turning back to face the Ready Room doors. Katan paused slightly, as if in deep thought, about his conversation with the Executive Officer. The Klingon finally took a deep breath and took the last remaining steps to the door, before placing his hand on the chime to signal his presence there.

Alistar was sitting at his desk in his ready room, his mind wandering over the captain's mast and the fallout from the incident on Inti. He had lost two of his senior officers, one who had been transferred off ship and the other demoted and barred for quite some time. Starfleet had at least jumped on the matter and assigned replacements, one who was due to arrive at any time. Still, the matter had muffled over the mood throughout the ship from 24 hours before. His thoughts were interrupted by the door chime. Turning towards the door, he pressed the controls on his desk and opened the door.

Katan walked into the Ready Room, a firm look on his face, as he approached the desk. As the door behind him closed, he looked to the Captain, and said in a deep tone. "Lieutenant Katan. Chief Security and Tactical... Captain." He looked forward again, focusing on the wall behind the Captain, so as not to seem too overwhelming.

Alistar instantly noticed the officer, seeing the Klingon sash and trying to place the family crest but coming up with a blank. His knowledge of internal Klingon matters was limited even more so in this timeline, so he shrugged it off mentally and stood. Fixing the Klingon officer with a neutral stare, he nodded as he spoke. "Katan, ghaH 'ej Duvan, 'ej revan tu'lu'. (Greetings, and welcome.)" he said in as near perfect Klingon as a human could.


TBC

 

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