In the Heart

Posted on Wed Jul 5th, 2017 @ 9:53pm by Lieutenant Valeria Mordin & Lieutenant Hel Samedi

Mission: Awakening
Location: Primary Engineering

It wasn't often that someone from sciences came down to engineering. The two departments, in the mind's eye, couldn't be further apart. One was sterile and clean, while the other had a connection to ancient engines and power production that tinted the image to something dirty. Though that wasn't the case any longer, it was still odd to see a scientist in engineering.

Though that was the case at the moment. The resident Ts'usugi, Valeria, had taken a walk down to Engineering on a specific mission. She asked one of the crew hands for assistance and direction, and found herself staring at a pair of boots sticking out from a panel. "Lieutenant Hel Samedi I presume?" the rabbitess asked, amused. "If you have some spare moments, I'd like to talk with you. No specific topic."

Hel's reply was muffled. "Yeah I can spare a moment. Got a break due anyways. Just let me finish up here, won't be long." she mused, her feet twitching a bit as she worked. "Lieutenant Mordin, was it? I'd been hoping to get a chance to speak with you."

"I can wait." Valeria replied, "And please, just Valeria." she couldn't even offer a ghost of a smile to those boots.

The rabbitess waited by those twitchy boots until the pale engineer extracted herself. "I've not been having the best of days, so I was looking for some friends to talk with, and it's when you look for your friends that you truly find how short in supply you are in." she was well composed for someone having such a poor day, oddly enough.

Hel's ready smile was replaced by a concerned look when Valeria admitted to having a bad day. For someone like her to cold open a discussion with an admission like that meant that what was going on wasn't a small thing - at least, not to the Ts'usugi before her. She hefted herself to her feet with a grunt, then motioned towards the door. "Come, we'll find a place to sit down, have a talk over a drink, you can tell me what's wrong. My quarters are not far from here, won't be disturbed there."

Valeria gave a nod, and followed, "Thank you. I'm sorry to burden you with this when you wanted to be the one to talk with me." As the Ts'usugi followed Hel through the corridors to her quarters, and took a look around once they arrived. The dimmer light within was actually a welcome relief, to which Valeria actually relaxed a little.

Hel's quarters were dimly lit and sparsely decorated, more with color - or lack thereof - than with knickknacks. Simple geometric shapes decorated the walls in various grays, and the rare painting was also of simple design, and held themes of darkness, even death - but ever among life. The two extremes, together like they belonged as such.

"Direct light on Ts'usu is rare. We often live our lives by reflection." she mused aloud. "Shadow and reflection, dark and semi-light." she continued, "Apologies, but such a simple thing is a welcome thing at the moment. May I sit?" that picture of protocol rose back up. Despite how bad her day may have been thus far, she still had time to be proper.

"Sure. Wherever you want. Make yourself comfortable." Hel offered, even as she set about removing her contact lenses. "I'm from Asphodel colony, where we live in constant dim light due to some particles in the air. Our eyes have grown extra sensitive to compensate, I wear contacts when out and about to not be blinded by federation standard light levels. Can I get you anything to drink? Or snack? Don't worry about protocol, nobody will know."

So invited, the rabbitess sat. "Ziyal and I already had some drinks earlier, and I'd rather not push the limits of my eldest brother's teachings." a ghost of a smile formed. "But I'd appreciate a snack, if you don't mind." It seemed even at the invitation of the dropping of protocol, she couldn't help but at least remain polite.

"Contact lenses." she mused, "Clever. I just learned to cope, that and I've never been fond of anything going near my eyes." she offered as a comparison. Then, she just took a breath, held it for a silent count, and then slowly released it. She closed her eyes and just exhaled, letting all the stress of the day thus far leave in one big huff... "It's said that the Child of Ts'usu that screams at the walls has lost the battle with themselves. Having nearly screamed at a bulkhead twice so far today..." a weight seemed lifted, but it was obvious there were more weights beneath it.

"Without contacts the Federation standard light level is blinding to me, not quite something I can learn to cope with. Painfully uncomfortable." Hel mused as she headed into the kitchen area. "You'll be happy to know that I'm not a wall, so you won't lose face. I will judge you about as much as a wall would though, meaning not at all." came her voice from the kitchen.

"So, talk to me. Tell me what's bothering you." she added, returning with a plate of rice cakes and fried dumplings, as well as a bowl of peanuts with a spicy, crunchy coating. Hel put the snacks down on the low table before flopping down on a black leather loveseat, pulling her legs up and making herself comfortable.

"You'd appreciate the light of Ts'usu... well her moons anyway. We're not allowed to live on Ts'usu, just her moons." Valeria explained, her nose starting to sniff at the familiar scents, then a little more at the new scents. "I appreciate your offer, and while I probably won't yell at you I cannot promise that I won't yell." the daughter of Ts'usu took one of the cakes in hand and gave it an appreciating nibble. Replicated, but at this point she didn't care.

"Ever since we were given the task of arbitration, my loyalty has been thrown into question again and again. I'm expected to abandon my home.. my people.. my family, and just betray everything to Starfleet. No question, no limit, nothing. I hold back something, loyalty questioned. I fail to answer a question to the satisfaction of the questioner... loyalty questioned. I use the wrong pronoun... loyalty questioned." she started, and it didn't sound like that train was stopping.

"I was born a Ts'usugi. Raised a Ts'usugi. I went to a Ts'usugi school. I LEFT that school to go to a better school.. then I was caught by a Ts'usugi officer and brought to a Ts'usugi magistrate to face Ts'usugi law." she illustrated each point with a motion of her rice cake. "My crime? Truancy. My punishment... Go to a higher Ts'usugi school. Achieve nine ranks, or pay the true consequences."

"Now I'm expected to put all of that on the side, or just betray it, to satisfy the symbol on my uniform? Look, I've worn uniforms before... pride, sure. Loyalty, maybe, but the point of a uniform is to make everything level and equal. No one is superior or inferior, we're all the same. So then where is the call out to anyone else's devotion to the fleet?"

Hel furrowed her brows as she listened. She understood Valeria's frustration, or at least she understood why the latter was frustrated. Truth be told though, the pale engineer wasn't sure she fully agreed with the Ts'usugi woman. She'd have to tread carefully, that much was certain. "Well, I for one don't question your loyalty, Valeria." She mused, feeding herself a hand full of spicy peanuts. "You've not given me any reason to."

"The thing about uniforms is that they are a way to identify which organization you are loyal to. You wear a Federation uniform, people expect you to be loyal to the Federation first and foremost." she mused. "Now, the situation as it is doesn't put the Ts'usugi and the Federation at odds, so I have no reason to think you might have a conflict of interest. I fully understand and respect that you can only tell us about Ts'usugi and Dalacari technology and politics in as much as you have permission to. It's not like everyone in Starfleet tells each other everything either."

Valeria gave a nod as she listened. Knowing that Hel could at least relate to her plight helped put the Ts'usugi at ease. Another nibble on the rice snack before she was tempted to try one of the nuts. One was selected, sniffed, and then chomped. Nothing yet, but there was a trick to spices in that they had something of a fuse.

"Thank you." she started, as a blanket for Hel's understanding. "Though I suppose perhaps it was an unfair comparison of uniforms. In so far as Starfleet's it may mean significantly more than just unity. I know this, and I know where my loyalties lay. Though I find being expected to fully disclose, even against permissions so wide that I was impressed I received them, I find a little more than unfair."

"You reme..." and then it hit. Like a meteor on a moon. The look the Ts'usugi gave was almost comical, as she took a chomp out of the rice cake to ease the burn. Then another. She was in tears as she finally defeated the spice of the nut.

Hel listened as Valeria spoke, believing - as she suspected the other did as well - that listening was the more important part of conversing. When the spices of the Katjang Pedis nuts hit though she flashed a grin, that grew only bigger as the Ts'usugi struggled to recover. "I'm sorry," she said earnestly but with a hnt of amusement even as she rose to quickly gather the other a glass of water. "I should've warned you. They pack quite a punch." the Asphodelian spoke as she offered Valeria the water. "Crunchy little bombs, they are."

At that she sat back down again. "It's possible they underestimate the vehemency with which limits have been placed on what you're allowed to tell and what not. Chances are they think you're just making things difficult for the sake of making things difficult. Thing is though, it's not really that much different from what's happening every day already. I don't see how this is any different from SFI having their little secrets hidden behind authorization clearances, need-to-know lists etcetera enzovoorts undsoweiter."

There was no attempt to even voice a reply until half the glass of water was gone. After which, Valeria looked at the nuts, then Hel, then the nuts, then gave a soft smile, "Quite a punch indeed. I think I'll stick to the dumplings if that's alright." another sip of water, for good measure. "You were there in the room when I got the contact from the Buoy and was given clearance to discuss just about anything. Still..." she just shook her head, "I think perhaps because SFI exists is the reason that there's such a dislike and distrust of anything that isn't full-disclosure. As you suggested... Frustration, perhaps, is the root of the cause?" she offered, now starting to look at the situation more as a challenge than an attack.

"Possibly." Hel mused, feeding herself another small handful of peanuts, the only reaction she gave to the spicyness a slight pause after eating them. "We're inherently distrustful of people who keep secrets from us. Don't take it personal, we're a very curious people. When it's obvious someone isn't telling us everything, well, we inherently don't like that."

Valeria gave a nod, "I'll try not to, knowing there's more behind the cause now." she mused further on Hel's commentary, "See, Ts'usugi don't have that reaction. We understand that sometimes what we're told isn't the entirety of the situation, but we don't immediately blame the messenger for it." she explained. "It's an intriguing reaction, though, now that I can look at it from a social mindset stage as opposed to being singled out and targeted."

"How can you eat those?" she questioned, almost with incredulity, like what Hel was doing was impossible.

"Human physiology. We're remarkably tolerant of all kinds of food. Omnivores in the broadest sense of the word." Hel smiled. "Plus, I've been eating these things since I was about ye high, worked up a tolerance for them." She pulled her legs up and once more made herself comfortable on the leather loveseat. "In human cuisine, there are foods that make these look like childs play. In fact, there are recipes and spices with so much capsaicin that they're pure poison to some of the more biologically fragile races. Don't worry, I doublechecked with the computer that these weren't poisonous to a Ts'usugi before putting them on the table."

Valeria gave a nod, "That's actually remarkable." she complimented, "I could probably write an entire thesis on the adaptability of the human genome. Submit it to the Ts'usu Academy of Science. Might get eight marks, easy. Nine if I bring a test subject." the rabbitess gave Hel a smirk, "So, wanna take a trip?"

She let that hang in the air, before she actually gave a soft smile back to the human, "I'm teasing. But your species is remarkable, you should take pride in that. We don't have anything this spicy back home, not to say we're lacking in spices or flavor, but this seems... deliberate." she regarded the tiny solar masses that resembled nuts. "You've lifted my spirits. Between you and Ziyal, I think I'm ready to face the remainder of this mission whatever it may bring, with my head held high."

"So, what did you wish to talk about? I'm sorry, I've been monopolizing the conversation."

"Deliberate? Yeah. Quite. Think about it. When you can stomach - pardon the pun - the variety of food that a human can, how do you ensure a meal stands bout? How do you ensure a meal to be memorable? You spice it up to levels that certain other races would consider poisonous." She took a sip of her drink, an undetermined, murky black liquid that she sipped with a reverence not extended to the spicy peanuts.

"As for what I wanted to talk with you about - " Hel paused a moment, considering. "Well, I admit I don't know a lot about your people, but I find you rather fascinating, Valeria, and I'd been hoping to get to know you. To be friends. Spend time with you."

Valeria gave a nod, "Well, I certainly consider us friends, now more than ever. Though absolutely. I'll get you a copy of my schedule, and we can meet in the lounge or what-have-you. I'll cite that Federation holodecks are more advanced than Ts'usugi, but our use of holograms is slightly more widespread than the Federation's." she pointed out. "Just give me a little notice if you wish to stop by my quarters for a discussion and drinks. My Night Warden doesn't like bright lights."

She paused for a moment, "It's a flower from home. As a child, I hated them."