Protocols

Posted on 11 Dec 2019 @ 1:50am by Lieutenant Commander Camila Di Pasquale & Captain Harvey Geisler

2,308 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Epilogue
Location: Ready Room
Timeline: April 7, 2389 || 1100 hours

Camila paced back and forth in her office. The Captain had yet to call her and her nerves were beyond shot. Her ombre hair was lackluster, she had dark circles under her eyes that she made no attempt to hide and there wasn't even a bare hint of a smile on her somber face. It was if she had found a place beyond Hollow and made it her new home but she knew if she didn't go see The Man In Charge, that facade would break and she would start screaming and never stop.

She finally left her office without telling the receptionist where she was going or anyone else, even when politely queried. She entered the turbolift. "Bridge," she said in a monotone voice and stood motionless until it reached her destination. She left it when it opened and looked around for the Captain.

Harvey stood behind the vacant science station, looking at the map that had been charted of the Zone. Lieutenant Carmichael's final gift to the crew was a rather complete map of three sectors inside the Zone. He had to assume that the map was going to come in handy for the Dolmoqour's nefarious goals, or so he assumed by the private notes left by the Lieutenant. Regardless, they would be helpful indeed.

Camila headed over to where he was and cleared her throat. "Do you have spare time, Captain?" she requested in her monotone voice, her expression revealing nothing.

The Captain glanced to his side where his Chief of Security stood. He didn't know entirely what to expect from the woman, but if there was one thing he did know, it was that he couldn't ignore her. Not this time. He nodded to her, added, "Of course," and gestured her to proceed to the Ready Room.

She turned and headed across the bridge ot the Ready Room, but didn't enter or make any move to activate the door while she waited for him.

Harvey was only couple seconds behind her. As soon as he was close, the proximity sensors picked him up and he walked past her into the office. "Can I interest you in a cup of coffee?" he asked, walking over to a carafe that sat on the table with several mugs next to it. "It's a fresh brew of Wilkins. Private stash."

For a fleeting moment, Camila felt as if he would murder her if she turned him down. "Sure. Why not, Harvey?" She asked as she went to sit on the edge of his desk and crossed her arms. "Then we can chat about good times."

First names now, thought Harvey. Many of the crew, per protocol, always addressed him as simply Captain. For Camila to resort to that as soon as the door was closed, Harvey knew that this meeting would be anything but pleasant. He poured coffee into one mug and then another before turning and handing it to the woman. He took note of her posture and replied, "Your sarcasm is noted... Camila." For now, he let her have the desk. He sat down on the couch's arm rest.

"What sarcasm?" she asked flatly as she stared at him. "There has to be some good times." She pretended to think about it for a moment, then she threw the offered coffee cup across the room at the door. "Nope. Not a one since I've come aboard!"

Harvey didn't flinch, not even when the mug shattered against the closed door. He kept his eyes, both of them, on her as he took a healthy drink from his mug. "I have seen many things in my life," he said plainly, lowering the mug so that the bottom of it rested in the palm of his other hand. "Mind controlling parasites... that's a new one."

"Do you know why we got mind controlling parasites?" Camila asked him as if she expected him to know the answer.

"Because they gained control of the Away Team," Harvey stated, wondering where she was going with this.

"Thanks for rubbing that in," she said flatly. "Do you remember certain protocols that I submitted that you dismissed as being over the top?"

He didn't reply. Harvey did remember those protocols, and he did his best not to flinch or otherwise respond. He needed to see where she was going with this.

"Do you still think they're over the top, buddy?" Camila asked him sweetly. "Or maybe you think I should just abandon all the Security protocols and invite aliens and traitors do whatever they want while we bow to them?"

Harvey simply sipped his coffee, and lowered it back into his palm. "You really think those protocols would have stopped all of this?"

"We'll never know, will we?" she asked as she came off of his desk. "Because you denied them."

The Captain remained still. Her protocols were fresh in his mind, especially since he'd taken the time the last few days to locate them and review them once more. "Hindsight, Camila, is a terrible thing. Eighty-four people have died on this mission. The Consortium killed a lot more, but I certainly... feel this more." Harvey rose from the desk and walked around to the other side of the desk and picked up a padd. "I've read them, and read them, and read them again. If I approved those... they wouldn't have stopped the Dolmoqour."

"I didn't know you had a background in Security as well," Camila said sarcastically. "Eighty-four people who it was my job to protect. Eighty-four people that could have had a chance to live. You make life and death choices for us every day, but you won't let me make decisions that can help save lives."

"I've had several years of experience in command," the Captain reminded her. "You get to blame someone for bad decisions. I don't. The protocols are an oversight I corrected this morning. But I'm still not convinced they would have prevented Penduli V. Lieutenant Carmichael and Ensign Mackie were infected days before you reported aboard. Sensors never knew it. It took the medical staff a while to detect it, and that was only after they knew it was there. Ensign Mackie, an Operations officer, had access to critical systems as part of his duties aboard the ship. He never would have tripped the protocols. And those are just the first two of the seven."

She fumed for a moment, then sighed. "There's so many possible scenarios and coming up with a protocol for each of them isn't perfect," she admitted. "I'd still like to make some changes once we get back to the Gamma Quadrant." It seemed all the air had gone out of her sail, and she just looked tired and sad.

"Changes?" Harvey echoed, sipping some of his coffee before slipping into his chair. "Aside from these seven protocols, what else did you have in mind?"

"I want drone surveillance in every Jeffries Tube. I want patrol drones in the corridors. I want an oversight committee to verify access to critical systems, and I want every single person on this ship scanned by the best Betazoid telepath Starfleet can send us," Camila said. She knew she wouldn't get the last one and probably not the committee, but she was going to push for everything she could.

He nodded, listening to her measures, making sure she was done before speaking. "The Betazoid... you can count on that. Before my runabout was shot down, I got that probe off to the Gamma Quadrant, and it included a message for whoever was in charge out there to not trust us. You better believe they're going to subject us to strict measures before clearing us for return. The committee... we can talk about that one. The drones... I'm not too sure about that, but I'll definitely entertain a proposal."

She was surprised that the last two proposals had earned more consideration than the drones. "But Captain, with the unmanned drones, we'll save lives of Security officers who go into situations blindly. They can be remotely controlled from the Security office and provide live feed to the watch officer. We could even equip the corridor drones with Type I phasers keyed to the controlling personnel in the event of boarders."

"I didn't say no, Lieutenant," said a Captain who was grateful they were back on rank. Hopefully that was an indication this was going well. "Get me specs, and protocols for those. i'm all for saving lives, and I do like that there's a person behind the controls."

"I already send you the specs for the corridor ones," Camila reminded him. "Even though a lot has happened since then."

Harvey narrowed his eyes, trying to remember when Camila could have sent him those specifications. "That's right," he recalled. "It was a couple of weeks before we got to Penduli. I remember looking at them, but I also spent a lot of time reviewing the Kalisa data. I'll check with Mila. I'm sure she saved them."

"They're equipped with non-lethal armament, too," she said. "The expanding ferrofluid balls that we developed in the Armory."

The Captain leaned back in his chair and briefly pointed a finger at Camila. "I heard those got a test run against the Dolmoqour. And that they were rather effective."

"The ones that managed to get activated," Camila said. "But the ones that did get hit ignored the pain of tearing free of them. Which is why I'd rather equip the drones with Type I phasers."

Harvey nodded. "I'll track down those specs, and we can meet about it later this week. Also..." Harvey set down his mug and handed a padd to his Chief of Security. "This is yours. Your protocols are approved. I'd like to see an implementation plan for review by Tuesday."

"You'll have them and uh, I'm sorry for the coffee cup," she said a bit sheepishly.

Finally, Harvey caught a glimpse of the woman he promoted in a Holodeck not too long ago. Knowing that she was still in there gave Harvey the dash of hope he needed for the day. "It's forgiven," he plainly stated. "I'm just thankful you chose the door and not me."

"I still have an oath to protect, Sir," Camila told him.

The Captain nodded, figuring neither heaven nor hell would protect him if that oath were ever nullified. "Anything else I can do for you, Lieutenant?"

"Yes," she said after a moment. "Don't hide your damned hidey hole passage so good next time," she groused.

"Good point," he admitted with a nod. "I should probably move it though. I never liked that it came out in the shower."

"And make sure that I know where it is this time," Camila added. "Commander Teixeira had to show us where the exit was."

Harvey simply replied, "That's fair. If and when that happens, you'll be the first to know, alongside Operations."

"Those cleared to know," she added.

"Of course." Harvey lifted his mug to finish the last of his freshly brewed coffee.

"I'm also no longer in favor of giving pity right away to others," Camila added. "Especially after what we've just been through."

"The Guardians learned that lesson too, I think." Harvey set his empty mug on the desk. I know first hand they regretted not blowing us up at first sight. Frankly, I can't say I blame them."

"Do you blame me?" she asked, the guilt heavy on her face now.

"No." Harvey let loose a deep breath before rising from his chair and joining her on the other side of the desk. "There is only one person to blame here, and that's me. Hindsight may be clear, but doubt will keep us confused as to its true interpretation. Only you can blame yourself. Want to honor those that died? Then we have to be better in the future."

"I'm the one that made the decision to surrender," Camila said quietly. "My decision. I saw the looks and heard the others when I did that. I also know that my decision led to more than a few deaths, including one of my people who was possessed and blew himself up in the sensor control room." A tear slid down her cheek as she remembered Baby Face Rodriguez and Allen "Miller Time" Miller. Now Rodriguez was gone to another posting and Miller was dead.

"They wouldn't have killed you," Harvey suggested, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You only would have delayed the inevitable. For a group that's been stuck on their planet for the better part of five hundred years, they're certainly not good at fighting. If I'd truly been facing Camila Di Pasquale in that VIP room, and not a doppleganger, I know I wouldn't have come out of it alive. If you don't believe me..." Harvey jerked a thumb behind him. "You can interview the coffee mug."

"Inevitable or not, I'm the one that made that decision, Captain. I'm the one that has to live with it." she told him quietly. "I have too much blood on my hands as it is."

The Captain didn't press any further. He knew better than to try. The task now belonged to an army of counselors, which Harvey would fight to get on the other side of the zone. "We all have things we're not proud of. The trick is learning how to live with it. Just don't follow my lead with carrying it for fourteen years."

"Time will tell," The Security Chief said. "If you'll excuse me, Captain, I need to see what I have left to work with. I'll get the proposals in by Tuesday."

Harvey nodded to the woman, stepping out of her way. "I look forward to it. Dismissed."

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