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USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

[ PO1 B'Nila Skai | Crew Quarters | USS Resolve ] Attn: folks from the Resolve
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The lights were at the ship standard level of brightness, a thing that was not normally a problem, but even through her black hair and her face pressed into the pillow, it burned into B'Nila's golden hued eyes. With her hands tied with thick rope and held above her head attached to one of the upper bed posts, there was very little she could do by way of resistance, even if she was inclined to do so. And with the hand on the back of her neck forcing her down, holding her still, she knew her place in the world.

Petty Officer Michal Silika of the security department was many things, but a considerate lover was not one of them. In fact as the other woman forced the slightly to large phallic object strapped to her groin into B'Nila again and again, it was clear that this was not some act of sexual pleasure, it was someone who felt powerless making themself feel powerful by dominating someone else. It was all about power and from the moment Michal saw B'Nila she had decided to dominate the pale skinned woman.

And B'Nila, so desperately alone, let the other woman treat her like that, because in her mind it was that or solitude and she did not want to feel alone.

It was not uncommon for Michal to continue thrusting that thing into B'Nila for more than an hour at a time. It had a series of nubs inside so with every thrust Michal's cliterus got plenty of attention. But this wasn't about orgasm or pleasure, the fact that B'Nila got any at all wouldn't matter to Michal in the slightest.

When Michal finished, pleased with herself, she pulled the slightly too large phallus from B'Nila's abused hole with little ceremony and looked down at her handy work. B'Nila's skin did not turn that lovely red that Michal's other victims did, but the look of the gray skin with a small smear of B'Nila's gray blood did make her smile. She unhooked the straps of the phallus and tossed it on the bed next to the pale woman. "I'll be late for my shift if I fuck you any longer, so you get to clean up," the woman said as she pulled on her underwear. Michal said it with the tone and way of one who normally might have at the very least helped clean up, but that wasn't Michal's style at all. Michal fucked 'em hard, and left.

B'Nila lay still on the bed and did her best to just breathe. So instead of comforting her lover Michal just smirked, pulled on her uniform and undid the binds holding B'Nila's hands to the bed post.

"Oh, and I won't be in tonight, I've got my eye on one of the cute little fucks in the science department, so you know, don't wait up," Michal said as she left B'Nila's quarters.

Only when Michal left her quarters did B'Nila really begin to move. Her genitals and abdomen ached from the abuse they had just undergone, so she moved slowly. She glanced to the large strap-on phallus and upon seeing some of her own blood on the surface of it she could think of nothing but to get ready for the day.

With some effort she pulled herself upright and finished unwrapping the rope from her wrists. She placed the rope in a box with an assortment of various sexual paraphernalia Michal insisted B'Nila keep in her quarters. Then B'Nila took herself to the bathroom, carrying the large phallus with her, it was already cooling down from being inside her. Mutely she went about cleaning both it and herself up. The sonic shower both hurt and felt nice, kind of like her relationship with Michal. As the sonic vibrations did their stuff she wondered if this was really the extent of her life. If this was it. She glanced to the closet, where she kept her personal phaser. She had it for self defense, but some mornings, after Michal had finished with her, she almost wanted to point it at herself.

But the moment passed and she stepped from the shower to apply her daily makeup. She covered a few small facial bruises with a simple layer of some white foundation and conceal. The split lip from the fight the night before was not so easy to remedy. Given the lack of supplies she could hardly have her own dermal regenerator, so she would either have to explain it in sickbay, or let it heal naturally. So that meant no lipstick then.

Once she had prepared herself she put the phallus in the box and slipped the box into her drawer, taking out a clean set of standard issue underwear and a fresh uniform. She dressed in silence, the light of her own quarters remained uncomfortably bright for her. But there was nothing she could do about that.

With her uniform on and looking slightly more presentable, the bruises were still visible to any who looked and the rope marks were just as visible at the edge of her sleeve, she left her quarters and made her way to the mess hall for breakfast. She walked a little oddly as she was still in a fair bit of pain from the encounter, but she held her shoulders square and smiled a plastic smile when she passed people in the corridor.

Once in the mess hall she got her usual breakfast supplement and took a seat at an empty table, doing her best to not look as rigid as she normally did. She wanted to look more approachable, yet she seemed to most as little more than a cold fish, as emotionally detached as a Vulcan.

From here people can introduce whatever they like, going into their character's morning routine on the resolve if they wish.
 B'Nila is in the mess hall and F'Rell can be found in the cargo hold if you want to interact with either of them.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #1 –
[ PO1 Eliska Bremmer | Mess hall | USS Resolve ] attn: @Absinthe

One of the perks of being a starship's mistress-at-arms, even one in Resolve's situation, was that she didn't have to stand a watch as a regular security guard on a regular basis.  Sure, she had to fill in once in a while or she would get called up to serve on an away team or a specialized detail because of her experience and qualifications, but as a rule she had something fairly close to what was once referred to as a nine-to-five gig. 

But she still tried to get in early, get through paperwork first thing in the morning, work on maintenance and repairs in the afternoon, and provide training where required after that, or somewhere in between depending on watch schedules and how busy the docket was for the day.  It even gave her plenty of time to spend at the gym.  And definitely enough time to enjoy her meals in a civilized amount of time. 

When she walked into the mess hall, it was shortly after their Elsarian counselor.  B'Nila Skai was an odd bird in Medical; she was fulfilling a full counselor's role, but without a commission of her own.  Normally it would make her a mental health nurse, at most, but she fulfilled the role of someone who'd normally get Sir'ed or Ma'am'ed.  And, in a way, it made her much more approachable for the enlisted crew of the Resolve, what with 'being one of them' herself even though she had the authority to override even Captain Kendrick if she had a legitimate justification for doing so.  And that morning, she had that stiff-legged, somewhat halting gait Eliska had noticed before.  The kind she had every time Silika had a go at her.  Mind, the only reason Bremmer knew about this was because she was bunked with that sadistic bitch in a 4-man room. 

And other things the Security Petty Officer could not fail  to notice was the split lip and how her makeup looked just a little thicker than usual.  But it was not until she walked past the junior counselor with a tray full of food and saw her reaching for her drink that she noticed the rope burns about her wrists. 

Bremmer did not so much as turn around as reversed her motion and turned around, planting her tray across from the Elsarian's and sitting down in front of her.  She could have asked the obvious question, but she knew if she asked who it had been who did this, she was unlikely to get the truth.  "Why do you let her do this?" 

The question was point-blank, with no preamble.  There was plenty that could have been said first.  How she was doing; if she minded the company; any other bit of small talk.  But instead, Bremmer cut right through the chase.  For she knew Michal Silika; she had gotten a feel for her within an hour of meeting her when they'd first met, and her superior made her skin crawl.  Hell, she'd even rejected her advances a number of times, and had drawn a very clear line when the Petty Officer First Class tried to make it an order, and then tried to use her authority to get what she wanted. 

And it was time to put an end to this, one way or another.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #2 –
[ PO1 B'Nila Skai | Crew Quarters | USS Resolve ] Attn: CanadianVet, any other folks from the Resolve
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It was a question B'Nila had been asked before, by others. Her physical state seemed to speak volumes of what went on behind closed doors and the nature of her relationship with Michal Silika. Yet to B'Nila it was not any easy question to answer, there never could be an easy way to explain it to someone else. She was a counselor, she knew enough to know that she was an a relationship that was no good, yet... Yet she could not bring herself to break free, or maybe she didn't really want to. She wasn't hurt so bad that she could not function. She could continue on.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean," B'Nila said with a banal smile as she took a sip from her drink. She aimed to keep the mask of her face as placid and calm as physically possible. It gave her a veneer of being in control, even if the marks on her wrist and lip spoke a great deal of text to the contrary. She would not exist in solitude and Michal cared for her, or at least she told herself that and it was believable enough to her.

As she looked up into the face of the other woman, he golden eyes still showing the red lines of being blood shot, perhaps from being held down or maybe it was tears. B'Nila had almost the look of a painted doll, yet just under the surface it was clear there was damage. She had carefully made herself up and carried herself in such a way to make the damage less visible. Yet it did not take much to see it.

She was lying and more than that she wore the lie out in the open and would deny it at every chance.

"What makes you think that someone is doing something to me?"

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #3 –
[ PO1 Eliska Bremmer | Mess hall | USS Resolve ] attn: @Absinthe

Enlisted personnel never got the kind of investigative training officers within Security received.  But it did not mean they were getting none.  And, even in this day and age, domestic violence was a kind of call that was unpleasantly common.  Granted, it tended to be not so widespread on starships, but they did happen with painful regularity on starbases or planetside installations with a large civilian population.  Which hardly meant Starfleet personnel were never involved themselves.  And Security personnel were all trained to recognize the signs.

B'Nila was trying to look impassive, to shrug off the question.  Which she actually gave voice to.  And that too was common enough in abusive relationships. 

And that filled Eliska with plenty of anger all right.  Michal Silika was a bitch on a good day, and she was one of those people who only took no for an answer if the person giving it had ways to back it up immediately and decisively.  Not that it stuck, because she had her ways to try and make that 'no' go away.  And Bremmer recalled how she was told space was a dangerous place, and that accidents did happen... and how, doing regular maintenance, she found a narrow slit in one of her suit's seals.  Sure, the seals could weaken and crack, but that hardly looked like material fatigue; not when the seals had been replaced less than a month ago. But there was no proof either way...

"Proboha živýho1, B'Nila." As she was prone to do under certain kinds of stress, Eliska could slip a few words in her native tongue, her homeworld of Nova Kosice's dialect combining elements of German, Czech and Polish that was known as Silesian.  And that much was largely true when it came to profanity.  "I know you've got all the fancy degrees, but please give this dumb grunt enough credit to recognize the signs, all right?" 

Bremmer took a deep breath and took a sip from her coffee.  At least, it would seem the ship's hydroponics bay, with its accelerated growth cycles, could keep the crew well supplied with the real stuff.  "And I'm bunked with Silika.  And I work with her every damn day.  And she tried to make me one of her toys.  I've heard her talk, how she really likes the fact you've scored officers' quarters because you're a counselor despite being just a PO."  Those were all things the human knew all too well.  And that angered her to no end.  But she couldn't really come forward with accusations herself.  Not without evidence or hard testimony from the victims. 

"Tell me, how does she keep you quiet?  Did she tell you being in space was dangerous, that accidents happen all too easily?  That if you rejected her, something bad would happen to you and it would never trace back to her?  That she'd hurt someone else?  That if you went and told someone who could stop her, she'd have you discredited instantly?  That no one would ever believe you?"

Oh, perhaps Bremmer was dreadfully uneducated by most Federation standards, that she was what could be considered a redneck or hick from some backwater, backwards world.  But she was hardly stupid.  No one who was stupid would have been picked for customs inspections on her first tour of duty, or consular security on her second, or advanced combat operations training and subsequent deployments.  Or accepted her application for the Resolve's mission.


1For fuck's sake, in Czech

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #4 –
[ PO1 B'Nila Skai | Crew Quarters | USS Resolve ] Attn: CanadianVet, any other folks from the Resolve
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The way the other woman made it sound, well perhaps that was the way it really was, but B'Nila was to blind to see it. It was not so simple in her eyes though. It wasn't simply that Michal was there for her, in fact she sometimes questioned if Michal was really there for her in any real way at all. Michal felt to her like some massive thing that had drawn her into its gravity well. It was as if she had been sucked in and every part of her claimed. What right did she have to refuse it now?

She shifted in her seat uncomfortably, the pad in her panties pressed uncomfortably against her sore genitals, but if she leaked any more blood she did not want to ruin her underwear. The last thing she needed was to explain why she kept ordering replacement underwear from the replicator, especially when the power shortages got harder. Period pads were easy enough to acquire and discreet enough, but against her sensitive and abused flesh they were far from comfortable.

All the while she gazed at the grayish yellow sludge in her cup and said nothing. She didn't know what to say. She felt as if she should defend herself in some way, defend her position, yet she was no fool. The clinical part of her understood exactly what was going on. But the clinical part of her wasn't really in control of that part of her life. No, she'd given that side over to her emotions long ago and Michal had swooped in and claimed her easily because of it. Like some horrid addiction B'Nila knew enough to know how bad for her Michal was, but she also knew that there was no quitting.

B'Nila blinked and drew herself back into the moment, though she still could not look the other woman in the eye. "No, she hasn't needed to say anything like that in awhile..." she replied simply. She just reminds me that without her I would be alone, came the thought B'Nila gave no voice to. But she knew she couldn't leave it there. B'Nila had to say something more, she had to justify the bruises and the marks. And the lie came out of her like some foul thing, almost gagging her one the way out. "She... It's not so... It's not like you think it is... I... I like it when she is rough with me."

She paused there and lifted her cup to her lips, taking a drink of the thick sludge in her cup, it was just on that edge of needing to be eaten with a spoon, as most Elsarian foods, texture was not among the key things they traditionally looked for in food. As a result the thick slimy texture and heavy fungal flavor did not appeal to many outside of her own kind. Like many things about her restricted her to things away from others. Indeed spending to much time in the bright lighting around others still hurt her eyes a great deal. She longed to get up and adjust it, but could not bring herself to do it.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #5 –
[ PO1 Eliska Bremmer | Mess hall | USS Resolve ] attn: @Absinthe

Eliska hadn't pulled any punches when she had spoken.  There were several ways to initially approach them when one wanted to see them see the light.  In her case, how she had initially denied she was on the receiving end of that sort of mistreatment, it was an indication she needed to be jolted more than anything else.  And at first, it seemed to have very little effect.  Oh, B'Nila was known to be aloof at times, but there was much emotion showing in the way she was looking down at what passed for her food, such conflict. 

As the Elsarian remained quiet, Bremmer took a long pull from her coffee and a few bites from her food, and stopped once the other woman started to speak again.  Speaking without meeting Eliska's gaze.  If anything, she looked like a dog that had been beaten down too much.  And her words were like a punch to the Human's gut.  She had been right.  Of course, like everyone else Eliska Bremmer liked being right; but there were times part of her wished she wasn't.  Not said anything like that in a while... so Silika knew she'd gotten her hooks set in deep, and that she needed to give them a tug only once in a while to make sure B'Nila was going to remain docile...

And then there was the lie.  A lie that led Bremmer's hands to clench into fists.  But, a few deep breaths later, she relaxed her hands, leaving the indents of her fingernails deeply imprinted in her palms.  "Didn't I ask you to give me some credit and at least pretend like I'm a total fucking moron?"

Only then did Eliska reach across the table and placed her callused hand on top of B'Nila's, careful not to make contact with her bruises.  "You're not the only one she's hurting, B'Nila.  We both know that.  Do you want other people to get treated like you by Silika?  She scares them, like she scares you.  They're all too scared to speak up, scared that whoever they speak to will get hurt, too."  Bremmer's tone was soft, gentle even.  But it then hardened.  "She tried it with me too, you know?  She wanted to use me like she uses you.  Thought it'd be easy because we were bunking together.  But I didn't let her." 

Eliska was aware there were those who knew she enjoyed sex with either gender, and she was far from exclusive.  In fact, a lot thought her to be a slut or easy, but failed to realize that she indeed had standards and fairly high ones at that.  And Michal Silika had come painfully short of meeting them...  "And then, she tried to hurt me because of it.  Sabotaged my exosuit.  I found out, but didn't say a word.  But enough's enough."

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #6 –
[ Lt. Jg. Suq | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] ATTN: @Absinthe

To say he was excited was the understatement of the past three years. Suq was bouncing, skipping down the hall. His hair, up in a ponytail, swayed from side to side like a little girl frolicking in a pasture, except he was a grown man with facial hair and he was skipping through a space-borne deathtrap. Under one arm, he carried his step stool from engineering. Bright green, with bright blue accents, and a little face that looked like a frog on one side. He took this with him into the cargo bay. If something there needs to be adjusted, he might need it. The real reason he carried it though is so that he could be face-to-face with F'rell, so they could speak. Or, at the very least, so he could be tall enough to see her.

“Heeey? F'rell?” He called out, his two voices ringing through the doorway. He heard his smile in his voice, but he didn't have time to feel embarrassed about it. After all, it was a special time.
“F'reeeelll? My floating, flying, lovely friend? My wonderful, brilliant, shiny genius?” He walked more normally, trying to search for her. He only flattered his friends like this when he needed something. Apparently, he thought it was rather funny.
“F'rellll? Could you come out? I just wanted to ask, maybe you could do me a little favor...?” He called out, setting down the step stool and climbing on so he could see over miscellaneous containers.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #7 –
[ Lt. JG Sinead O'Riley | Mess Hall | USS Resolve ] Attn: @CanadianVet & @Absinthe
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Sinead O'Riley was in a struggle, one that was bitter, violent and almost life-threatening, but no one knew; because no one could see it. To any casual observer, the Bringloidi was naked, sitting cross-legged on a prayer mat, the IDIC icon in her hands, her fingers steepled and arranged in a precise manner, balancing the chain around every finger, all in a precarious arrangement that would destabalize with the slightest lapse in concentration. Her body was stiff in medication, and despite the cool temperatures, her room's ambience was colder than normal, as those were the climates she was used to and most comfortable in, there were beads of sweat on her brow, and her eyebrows were furrowed in a struggling concentration. While she was still as a statue outside, inside, she wrestled within her mind against herself, seeking dominance over her volatile, emotional side.

“LET ME GO!” said her duplicate, grappling with Sinead, who had the IDIC icon hanging around her neck. Her duplicate had nothing, both wore no clothes, and more struggled in earnest. Though it was in her mind, Sinead felt the strain from her hands to her elbows like they were really struggling physically. “ARGH! I will be free! Ye will keep me prisoner no longer!”

Sinead gritted her teeth, swept her left leg behind her duplicate's, and felled her, then she pressed her left forearm to the neck, while her right hand smothered the duplicate's face, blocking her nose and mouth. “Ye be no prisoner, Sinead. Ye are me, and I am ye, there be no death here, no defeat, only acceptance.” Her duplicate flailed wildly, panic overtaking so strongly the calm Sinead almost felt it herself, but she maintained her self-control. And in an instant, the duplicate was gone, like a draft of air. As she rose in her mind, her physical eyes opened, the daily struggle concluded, and she was calm as can be as usual. Only Eliska Bremmer would have remembered how she was before her time amongst the Vulcans.

Rising from her mat, she dressed and readied herself for the day, deciding to head out to the mess hall for breakfast for a change, and when she entered, passing Eliska and B'nila's table, her eyes quickly scanned over the grey-skinned woman, picking up on the bruising on her hands, the discomfort she demonstrated in her movements, and she caught the last parts of their conversation, and the Bringloidi spoke without hesitation, “Has Michal Silika been abusin' ye again?” she said, not shouting, but doing nothing to keep her voice low or soft. She thought B'nila odd, but she did not think it benefited anybody if their counselor was being ill-treated, least of all B'nila herself. “Ye were tied op, and ye had ye vagina misused inappropriately.”

She did not like Michal. Something would have to be done soon.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #8 –
[ PO1 B'Nila Skai | Mess Hall | USS Resolve ] Attn: @CanadianVet, @Triage, and any other folks from the Resolve who want in on this clusterfluff
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As the other woman spoke B'Nila continued to gaze intently at her cup of bacteria rich sludge. She really wasn't in the mood to eat at this point, perhaps it was from the continued discomfort in her loins or maybe it was the pang of shame she felt building inside her. Either way all she could think about was how her private pain seemed to have been dragged out for all to see and comment on, even if most did not. As a counselor she knew that even in the 24th century most people were still more likely to look the other way when it came to these kinds of things.

She didn't know if she was grateful for that or wished they would say something. She had not hidden the marks on her wrists or even made a move to hide her split lip. Both would have been easy to repair. In fact she could have repaired all of the damage by stopping by sickbay and stealing a dermal regenerator.

Yet she had not done that. Instead she had only superficially covered her bruises, enough to pretend she was undamaged.

She was about to say something, when the arrival of Sinead knocked any thought of what she had been about to say out of her mind. She glanced up for a moment at the other woman, her eyes not meeting the new arrival's for even an instant, before they strayed back to the cup she held in her hands. Because of of her unique colorless biology subtle color variations that usually showed emotion in a face were not as pronounced on her features. It was thus easier to hide her humiliation in that moment, but her expression showed a shadow of exactly how she felt.

Her stomach hurt and it felt like what she had managed to consume of her morning meal was about to be jettisoned out all the same.

"If you ladies will excuse me..." she said in barely above a whisper as she slowly got to her feet, moving to leave.


[ F'Rell of the 12th House | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] attn: @FollowTomorrow
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The long serpentine body of the ships most alien of residence was nestled among several large containers, however at the sound of someone speaking she moved. Though she could understand much of what was said around her, the way some humanoids seemed to delight in stretching out words, seeming to add qualities to it not unlike their music, still made it harder to understand what they were saying.

She moved carefully among the caintainers, until she saw the person who was speaking. They did not seem to be armed with a weapon, though the large object they had with them had no clear purpose to her. When the humanoid set the object down and stood on top of it, she wondered if that was the object's purpose, or mirely what the humanoid was using it for.

"<I be there>," came the flat intonation of the translator as F'Rell's triangular head appeared from the sea of containers not far away from the humanoid, her silvery eyes looking directly at him. Her translator was still learning much of the structure and nuance of her language, and at this point was only capable of translating her into a broken form of Basic English. The result was a computer voice that sounded like it had an odd unplaceable accent and odd misused words. Some concepts were lost altogether. For more technical concepts she had been able to communicate using a PADD and schematics. In fact the name she was using was the result of her name written down and run through the translation program. In truth it sounded nothing like the name she would say was her own, however it was what those who inhabited the ship would call her and she had learned to respond to it. "<Do you need a thing? Who thing do you need?>"

OOC ; In case people are curious her is the complete word list for F'Rell's vocabulary right now, she can understand more, but she is still using a translator that she hasn't personally programed. Word list

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #9 –
[ Lt. Jg. Suq | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] ATTN: @Absinthe

Her voice was delightful. Though it was a result of her deeply foreign language, the auditory-favoring Suq thought it was an exciting blend of intonation, accent, and word usage that kept him on his toes, so to speak. He was aware that his own voice didn't translate well, particularly when he sang, due to his vocal chords. However, he just couldn't help it sometimes.

After he located his victim, he stepped down off his stool and scooped it up again. The offensively colored object accompanied him to F'rell's side.
"F'rell! There is a thing I need. Do you think we could disable the safety limiters on our warp core? I want to get us home as fast as possible. We're going so slow..." He smiled innocently, knowing full well that the answer would be "only if you want to die". To help explain himself, he set his stepstool down and pulled his PADD out from his ever-present, customized tool belt. From the PADD, he pulled up an interactive diagram of the core, using it to illustrate the concepts he talked about.
"I was thinking we could mix some tetra-nitrohydracilic acid in with the coolant to mitigate the thermal output of the warp core, like we did before. We wouldn't have to worry about the sludge it makes right away since we'd be at a starbase." It was still a dumb idea. There were more factors than increasing the efficiency of the coolant, such as the fact that the ship's structural integrity would no longer allow it, unless they stopped for some major repair work. But home was right on the horizon. All Suq could think about was a massive, four-post, full sized bed with 10 pillows and breakfast in bed. His hope lied in the idea that she was as eager to meet civilization again as he was.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #10 –
[ F'Rell of the 12th House | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] attn: @FollowTomorrow
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After she had hear his proposal F'Rell could not help but writhe her tendrils and appendages that were not actively gripping something in annoyance and fury.

"<You be a foolish! You will be dead if you do that!>" she intoned loudly, the sound from her vibrating whisker like tendrils almost drowning out the sound of her emotionless translator. It was unfortunate that her translator did not work as well as she would have liked because in her own language she truly cussed him out for such an idea. The T'fanrell were a cautious race who took their time to do much of anything at all. They were long lived and patient, never in much of a rush. The only reason they even toyed with advanced warp technology like slipstream drives was because they were also curious. And it was also unfortunate that the translator had a volume control she had not fully mastered yet, as she was yelling at him, but the emotionless voice of the translator did not change at all or even get louder. "<Not only you, but all the man on the ship be dead. And that be all you account, not me.>"

She now looked at him as if her were a child. Looking to run before he could so much as walk correctly, wishing to strap wheels to his appendages to go faster than it was safe for him to run. She had raised children before and in those times she had been patient and kind, but none of her children had come to her with a plan that might kill her either. She steadied herself and did her best to calm down. Such impatience was known about humanoids, she had ready the reports about them. "<You be like the young, me see danger you do not. Waiting be key, you get there and this be past. Waiting now, there in time.>" As she spoke her vibrations took on a more melodic tone, almost comforting, in contrast to the almost scolding tone her vibrations had before.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #11 –
[ PO2 Eliska Bremmer | Mess hall | USS Resolve ] attn: @Absinthe @Triage

There was only so much Eliska could do.  One could take a horse to water, but one could not force it to drink, after all.  And it would seem B'Nila had no interest in helping herself when it came to Michal Silika.  But then again, it was the sort of thing that was common when it came to sexual and domestic abuse cases.  Once upon a time, that sort of thing was called the Stockholm Syndrome, where a hostage would sympathize with his captors.  And the Elsarian had it.  Bad. 

But if she would not speak out on the record, if she would not actively call for help, there was nothing Security could do, officially speaking.  Nor could a testimony be compelled, for that matter. 

And then a voice, with a lovely lilting accent Bremmer knew all too well, sounded with the bluntness that had always characterized its owner.  Sinead.  An old friend.  Their paths had crossed a few times during the Dominion War, and then again when they were both assigned to the Merrimac where they had struck a friendship... after Eliska's advances had been turned down flat but without an ounce of hard feeling or bitterness on either side.  After all, Bremmer could, and did, take 'no' for an answer and then they had both wound up together again, on Resolve this time.  And being with a familiar face, although one who'd taken her commission and had to maintain a certain degree of separation at times, had been a joy in its own rights.  However, the happy, rather bubbly woman the Nova Kosice native had known had become far more subdued, and somehow she didn't quite light up a room the way she had used to...

But having an old friend around when they'd been tossed into the middle of nowhere had been a gift from whatever divine being was out there.

And she had hammered B'Nila with her merciless forthrightness.  And it would seem the Counselor had not taken kindly to it.  Standing herself, Eliska reached out, but she did not grab the grey-skinned woman's arm.  Instead, she simply laid her fingers flat across her biceps, a gentle restraint that was more symbolic than anything else, more an entreaty to stay behind and talk rather than a command to stop in her tracks.  "B'Nila, please.  You know what she's doing is wrong.  It's not just you she's hurting but others too.  You say you enjoy it, and while I don't believe it for a second I have to accept it as an answer for now.  But can you just stand there and let her hurt others?  And not just the ones she's abusing, but innocent members of our crew who have nothing to do with any of it, just to force her victims to cooperate."

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #12 –
[ Lt. JG Sinead O'Riley | Mess Hall | USS Resolve ] Attn: @CanadianVet & @Absinthe
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For a moment, just a moment, Sinead's eyes flashed with intensity and emotion, mainly anger, before her impassive mask returned, but her tone was firm and strong, “Do no' leave, Pe'y Officer B'nila Skai.”

She fixed the Elsarian with her gaze, and nodded towards Eliska, “Eliska Bremmer be tellin' ye th' gentle truth. But Michal Silika endangers th' crew wi' her ways, and my job is t' protect th' crew, from one another if necessary. Not long ago, she be tryin' t' take advantage o' Meony. Ye heard how tha' went. They nearly killed each other. Meony be one o' our pilots, and if she dies on accoun' o' Michal Silika, this be on ye as well, ye know this. Michal Silika is a threat to the Resolve.”

Sinead did not mince words. She was never known for sparing anyone the truth, the brutal honesty of it all, of what she thought and how she acted on the knowledge that is given to her. Her words would have a dawning realization on people who knew her well enough. If she considered something to be that big a threat, and Sinead never exagerated her intents, then she had a clear solution: Eliminate the threat. She turned her blue eyes on Eliska then, silently conveying her feelings on the matter about Michal. It almost didn't matter now what B'nila said or decided, though it would help stay Sinead's hand if she expressly asked.

Logic dictated however, that the only sensible and best solution was to remove Michal from the equation. For the greater good.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #13 –
[ Lt. Jg. Suq | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] ATTN: @Absinthe

It was his personal opinion that all members of his this ship should be made to feel like family. After all, that is what this ship was now. In Suq's mind, he had long ago started to use the Efrosian terms for extended family to think about his crewmates. Unsurprisingly then, he seemed to delight in the family-like role of being scolded. His smile was positively glowing, eyes bright. He held onto every word F'rell had to give to him, no matter how harsh. Just like home.

"Ah, you honor me with my scolding, miss." He responded, when she was done. "It's how I know you care. I know it would be stupid to try, but, you know..." as he paused, he pressed a button on his PADD that played a little animation. Over the image of the warp core appeared a cartoon explosion.
"It's difficult to wait any more than I already have. Three years is a lot when you only live a handful of decades."

He tuckd the PADD away and glanced up at the alien. He had put much effort into learning F'rell's body language. He learned a little, but not all of F'rell's color patterns, and he only knew enough to determine that she was in some state of upset earlier. Now, he couldn't even begin to guess what those colors meant. It was so difficult with no aural cues...

"Will you give me some work to do with your translator? To keep me busy, that is. Sounds like you need volume control." Regardless of whether she would answer positively or not, he turns his step stool over and sat on it. He was going to stay right here and hang out.

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #14 –
[ PO1 B'Nila Skai | Mess Hall | USS Resolve ] Attn: @CanadianVet, @Triage, and any other folks from the Resolve who want in on this clusterfluff
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All it took was the hand on her wrist for B'Nila to freeze midstep. It didn't take but the gentlest of restraints to hold her back these days. It betrayed her heart that part of her expected to be yanked back around and forced to face a very angry partner. She half expected Michal to yank her back and slap her, to throw her down and derate her.

B'Nila knew what they were saying was true.

But she could not bring herself to turn around, even as the other women's words cut into her back like knives. If she turned around it would mean something and she wasn't prepared for that, but she also wasn't prepared to fight back either. She was trapped in a place where she could not move as any movement would be to make a choice she was not ready to make.

Finally she hung her head in shame. She knew the other women were right, that Michal was dangerous, but she couldn't... It didn't change the fact that some part of her belonged to Michal, yearned for her, cherished her, loved her above all else. Standing there, in that moment, she felt like someone had held up a mirror to her own damage and forced her to look at it.

And she loathed herself for it.

"I..." she said softly as her mind struggled to piece together a sentence. "I can't... I just..."

She was suddenly aware she was crying, how long had that been going on then? she wondered. Next her knees began to tremble. Her shoulders followed. And in a sudden rush not unlike she had been poured out of something B'Nila's knees gave way and she crumpled to the floor in an upright heap. She wept openly, unable to hold anything in, her heart over ruling anything her mind might say.


[ F'Rell of the 12th House | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] attn: @FollowTomorrow
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He was like a child or some pet. He had known she would reject his plan and he had come anyway. She marveled at him. She knew much of the crew was curious about her, but that was to be expected. They were of child races and as such had a curious way about them. This led them to violence as well, far to often. It was this that also gave F'Rell a great deal of anxiety about the crew. She knew they were innocent like children, but children would be quite aggressive if you let them be. The T'Fanrell people had seen ages past of violence and in their history even their children had been violent, and F'Rell knew of her own children that much.

Indeed she was surprised how much seeing him there reminded her of her children. Her thoughts drifted to her homeland, now so far away and of the family there she had. She thought of last conversations and final goodbyes. A myriad of emotions played their way through her and as such the soft light of her body shimmered him a variety of prismatic hues. She was truly a sight to behold.

Yet in a moment that ended and she returned to her neutral bluish tinge, her large silvery eyes focusing on him once more with their infinite depth.

"<No>."

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #15 –
[ PO2 Eliska Bremmer | Mess hall | USS Resolve ] attn: @Absinthe  @Triage

There as a moment of indecision.

Eliska had taken a risk in trying to stop the abused counselor, even as gently as she did.  She well might have even crossed the line into actively hurting her despite her best intentions.  And Sinead, bless her heart, amplified on what she'd said herself, making it clear that her own duty, and Bremmer's for that matter, were to protect the ship and the crew from any dangers, inside and out. 

That moment, after O'Riley's words, and reaction, lasted but heartbeats but it felt like hours, and B'Nila just crumpled in her own footprint, sinking to her knees and weeping.  And that was when Eliska herself moved around the table, and she too dropped to her knees, and she wrapped her arms around the shattered Elsarian and pulled her into a gentle hug.  Granted, Bremmer was hardly the softest presence on board; she was lean, and there was just enough softness over her lean, taut muscles to keep her looking feminine enough; she was fairly small-breasted, and there was no one who could ever honestly doubt she was as tough as they came.  But she also knew how to temper her strength, keep it sufficiently leashed as to not be overpowering when it wasn't needed. 

Looking up to the officer who'd joined them, she spoke softly.  "Sinead, could you clear the room?"  Oh, it was certainly an informal mode of address; but then again, the two Security women had known each other for quite some time.  They had crossed path a few times during the War before they were together on the Merrimac.  And, finally having time to spend together, they'd struck a friendship of their own, and it came a time where, between Sinead's own understated beauty, their shared experiences, their friendship, and simply a compatibility of character, Eliska had made a move on her... only to be turned down flat.  But O'Riley had explained where she'd come from, how relationships that would not engender offspring were beyond taboo among her people, and how she simply was not attracted to women herself. 

And that had not damaged their relationship.  Instead, it had strengthened it; Eliska could and did take 'no' for an answer, and she'd accepted the Bringloidi's position without a fight.  And, truth be told, now being both on the exact same page, they had come to make an excellent team.

Without waiting for Sinead to eject the rather thin late-breakfast crowd in the messhall, Eliska gently rocked B'Nila in her arms, much like a child.  "You're safe here, with us.  No one will hurt you; no one will judge you.  It's not just our job to protect you, we're shipmates; hell, we're practically family.  And that's what we do." 

Eliska was speaking softly, quietly in her heavily accented voice.  No one on board with half a brain would ever mistake her for being soft or weak; but she could also be gentle.  "Sinead and I, we're not going to make you do anything you don't want to.  All we ask is that you listen to us, and please come to the office with us.  Make a statement, help your, our, shipmates Silika is hurting too."

And then, Eliska looked up, her eyes meeting Sinead's.  The permanent dark makeup about her eyes gave the glance she gave her friend a dark, stark intensity.  Both of them were veterans of the Dominion War, they had seen things and been in messes that reduced some hard people into quivering wrecks.  And there was a message, in that glance.  That no matter what B'Nila decided, they'd have to do something about Michal Silika sooner rather than later, whether it be through official channels, or not.   

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #16 –
[ Lt. JG Sinead O'Riley | Mess Hall | USS Resolve ] Attn: @CanadianVet & @Absinthe
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Sinead's cold blue eyes, silvery under lower lighting, followed B'nila's movements, whilst she stood upright, almost unmoving. It was not that she was unsympathetic to the Elsarian woman when she began to cry. She knew pain, and grief, and so on, but she felt the woman needed to let this out, so she let her. It was the logical choice. But part of her remembered how important touch could be, and all that it could convey, mostly, sympathy, compassion, and empathy. So she found herself easily kneeling down, and lightly resting her hand on the woman's shoulder, trying to offer what comfort she could. Eliska was better at this.

She retracted her hand when her friend took over to offer comfort. They pushed B'nila hard, but Sinead felt no regret. Her sole concern was the safety of the ship, the crew, and most of all, the captain. Her heart ached everytime she thought of him, and how she always never could bring herself to say what was in her heart and her mind, always excusing it as him being too busy or he needed to focus, and she would be a distraction. Maybe when they found home...she nodded wordlessly at Eliska and gently coaxed the few onlookers away from the place, asking for time and privacy.

She watched Eliska comforting and convincing the Elsarian to aid them and bring Michal Silika to justice. She stood at a distance, and when she locked eyes with Eliska, she got the conveyed message, which she believed aligned with her own thoughts. So she nodded at her friend, firm and resolute. The time to act was going to be soon...

Re: Deleted Scene : Things left Unresolved

Reply #17 –
[ PO1 B'Nila Skai | Mess Hall | USS Resolve ] Attn: @CanadianVet, @Triage, and any other folks from the Resolve who want in on this clusterfluff
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The world moved, and for a time B'Nila did not. She sat in her crumbled heap on the floor barely aware of the world around her. The filth had spilled over the damn, and was flooding her mind. The lies she had told herself and others just to get by were being dragged out into the open and she didn't know how to cope. She could barely keep her head above the water at the best of times and now she felt as if she was about to drown. She was far too damaged to save herself at this point, the mask of professionalism she worked so hard to maintain was, at this point long abandoned.

It had been the slipping of that calm cool mask she seemed to always have on that had attracted the attention of the few people in the mess hall, but not many were likely to stand up and demand the right to watch someone fall to pieces when asked politely to give them privacy. So they filed out and B'Nila hardly seemed to notice them as they did. The once poised and proper counselor was at this point nothing beyond a broken wretch weeping silently as she was cradled by another woman.

The word would get through the ship in a matter of hours as to what had happened. B'Nila knew this. Though she could hardly respond her mind still processed the world around her, or it processed a little. She thought about Michal finding out she fell apart in the Mess Hall like this. She thought of the look of disgust Michal would have on her face. She thought of how pathetic Michal would see her. She thought of how pathetic she was.

She wished the ground would open up and just drop her into the inky void of space, where she could do no harm anymore. She had never wanted to hurt anyone. She had only wanted to help people. Yet the two other women were right, she was scum. She had enabled Michal and done far more harm than good.

But there was one simple truth to the matter. One undeniable fact behind it all. She was broken and damaged, bloodied and bruised, but she was still herself, at least she was still pretty sure she was herself. And she could not deny her heart.

"I... I can't..." she said softly, her voice muffled by her hands, pressed to her face. She pried them away to look up, looking very much like the sad broken woman she was. "I love her..."

Re: USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

Reply #18 –
[ Lt. Jg. Suq | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] ATTN: @Absinthe

“But F'rell!” He tried to whine, but he laughed instead. There was nothing that could spoil his mood. “How will you yell at me when I say stupid things? You know I say many stupid things.” He grinned, it was a boyish, troublesome grin, like he was just seconds away from saying more stupid things.

Even still, he was really a smart man. Many of his 'stupid' ideas were the only thing holding the ship together right now. Though he would likely never meet F'rell's knowledge of warp theory, he had proven himself to be creative with the knowledge he does have and willing to learn more. After all, over the course of three years, he acquired a knowledge of chemistry to supplement his already existing engineering knowledge. His fabrications using the industrial replicator were odd, but they worked.

He crossed his legs in front of him and laid a hand on his leg. His other hand scratched his fuzzy chin as he appeared to be thinking.
“You know...I could always add a cuss-word protocol to your translator. You could call me awful names in your language and I'd hear them in mine. It's not hard to do, takes maybe twenty minutes on these UT's. And it would be so funny. Imagine the looks on everyone's faces when you show up in engineering and drop the F-bomb for the first time.” He snickered a little, imagining the very scene in his mind.
“We gotta make a good first impression at the starbase. Maybe I could tweak the intonation a little bit. Oh, I could give you an accent.” He chatted on, apparently quite content regardless of whether or not F'rell listens to him.

Re: USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

Reply #19 –
[LT Keval ch'Rayya| Mess Hall| USS Resolve] ATTN: @Absinthe @Triage @CanadianVet


Keval was tired after a long shift and his body posture showed it as he walked into the mess hall, twisting his right arm ever so slightly to cause a loud pop which brought some relief to the old Andorian.

But he noticed that something was wrong when he saw the young counselor in B'Nila Skai with Sinead and Eliska standing near her that his antenna dipped forward in concern at what he was seeing and considered staying out of the situation as he knew that the two women were both in security.

But as the ship's second officer, he knew that he also would hear about it eventually and plus, something about it brought up an old memory which drove him to walk over to where the three women where and politely cough to get their attention. "Excuse me but is everything alright here?" he asked in a soft tone to both Sinead and Eliska.

Re: USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

Reply #20 –
[ PO2 Eliska Bremmer | Mess hall | USS Resolve ] attn: @Absinthe @Triage

Bremmer was hardly a counselor herself. She knew it.  But she'd seen enough people crack during and after combat operations to have a certain degree of familiarity with what happened to someone when they were strained to or past a breaking point.  So she simply stayed there, holding the Counselor as she wept her bitter tears.  And it was odd, knowing B'Nila was in this shape.  She was always so cool, so poised.  In fact it was one of those things that made her effective as a counselor for some people, that knowledge she wouldn't be disturbed by whatever she heard and dealt with. 

But, as it turned out, that cool facade could crack and break, and there was indeed a limit as to what she could take. How would it affect her, later, Eliska had no idea.  But at least, it would be enough to remind everyone that she was no machine, that she was just as capable of feeling as the rest of the crew...

And the answer she gave, when the Security Petty Officer asked her ,not commanded her in any way, to make a statement, was one she hardly cared for.  But she would respect it.  Especially when she knew the lie of those words. This was not love, this was a carefully crafted dependency by a woman that got her jollies off hurting others and dominating them in every way possible.  But at this point?  There was nothing Eliska or Sinead could do about that.  They couldn't just drag her into an interview room and compel a statement. 

However, given the separation B'Nila created, Eliska met her gaze.  There was no judgement in her eyes, no anger.  Only genuine sympathy and sorrow.  "I know you think you love her, and if that's the real bitch of it," Eliska said softly.  "Like I said, if you don't want to make a statement, we won't make you, no matter how much I wish you'd reconsider."

And then, she looked up to to Sinead again, eyes meeting eyes.  But this time, Bremmer's gaze hardened to something angry and unyielding.  To something dangerous and filled with purpose.  That the 'sooner rather than later' timing to deal with Michal Silika had been accelerated to 'as soon as we're done here'.

Re: USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

Reply #21 –
[ F'Rell of the 12th House | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] attn: @FollowTomorrow
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As the man spoke F'Rell was only aware of the ridiculousness of him. He possessed many of the telltale signs humanoids would associate with maturity, yet he reminded her more of her children then of the adults of her planet. In fact he seemed less like the adults on the ship around her. She wondered if he simply was talking this way in an attempt to rouse a reaction from her, though that too spoke of an immaturity. This left her wondering if perhaps he were a child of his species, though that seemed unlikely given his position of the ship. Thus he made little sense to her.

"<That be a foolish idea. Such word do little to help I talk to other,>" the translator said in it's broken translation. Of course F'Rell was aware that her translator did not sound as smooth in terms of speech as the other members of the crew sounded, but she was still working on getting the translator to understand the full breadth of her vocabulary, so modifying it to serve any additional function at this point was not only foolish, but it would likely risk the database she had already accumulated, to say nothing of the issues with proper nouns and the complex relationships between certain words. Her biggest hurdle in communication at the moment was knowing full well that the translator only had a very limited number of words it could translate and she could only effectively use those words to communicate. If she used more it would grable the whole of the translation. "<I do not need the apparatus to bad talk.>"

Re: USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

Reply #22 –
[ PO1 B'Nila Skai | Mess Hall | USS Resolve ] Attn: @CanadianVet, @Triage, @DocReno
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The moment dragged across her like a knife and B'Nila was not sure what she could say, let alone do. She knew she could not stay there. She had to move. She had to get up.

With a great deal of effort she forced herself upright, lifting herself to her feet, her balance seemingly a little off. "I... I need to get to my shift... They will wonder where I am," she said mutely as she wiped the tears from her pale face off on her sleeve, smearing the make-up that disguised her bruised face. Yet she hardly seemed to care. At this point she felt more numb than anything else.

She made her way to the door, pausing as she reached it for only a second, as if she were going to look back, to say something to them, but she had nothing to say. So she stepped through the doorway and it slid shut behind her.

As she walked through the corridor she felt as if the weight of the universe came to rest upon her shoulders. She couldn't bare it. SHe felt like it would crush her at any second. When she reached the turbolift she fell against the wall and sighed before stating the deck her office was on. She had to pull herself together. She had to make herself presentable. At the very least she needed to refit her mask of professionalism. It had slipped off and she had allowed others to see how broken she was. She almost hated herself for that alone.

When the doors slid open she she had pulled herself upright once more and her mask was back on. Her face was impassive, neutral. SHe had once more lied to herself in the seconds before the doors opened. She told herself that the others were wrong, that Michal did care about her, that she was just a little rough, just a little less refined. It was not a problem. There was no problem.

She was fine.

[exeunt B'Nila]

Re: USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

Reply #23 –
[LT Keval ch'Rayya| Mess Hall| USS Resolve] ATTN: @Absinthe @Triage @CanadianVet


Keval watched as B'Nila went right past him and he noticed the state that she was in and then turned his attention to Sinead and Eliska, their body language and posture telling him more then he wanted to know as he set his face in stone as he approached the two younger officers and in a hard tone he flatly said "I don't know what that was about but I take it things between B'Nila and Michal have gone astray and in a bad way but I want you both to understand that you're *OFFICERS* no matter what."

Keval then fixed both women with a hard look, his light blue eyes become as cold as glaciers native to his home world as he took them both in but when he spoke, it was still in the hard and commanding tone that he used as both a member of the senior staff but also as the Resolve's Second Officer...but it was  just loud enough for the two women to hear instead of addressing the whole room as he reached into a pocket of his uniform to pull out a PADD and make an inquiry before he spoke. "Now I want you both to understand that you two are to nothing against Michal who will be in cargo bay two tomorrow at zero eight thirty doing some routine checking of our stem bolts there without anyone else in the bay."

He then looked at the PADD again, his eyebrows coming together in a thoughtful expression before tapping a couple of things and turning to face Eliska. "Furthermore I felt the need to inform you, Miss Bremmeer, that all surveillance will be down for a fifteen minute cycle as all com-badges will be going through a cycle purge as I have noticed that there has been too much static over the open channels as of late...that too will start at zero eight thirty tomorrow at the same time." he said,

Keval then stepped back and simply asked "Do I make myself clear?" before looking at Sinead then Eliska and adding "But I do want to hear if you two have a good day tomorrow."

Re: USS Resolve: Things left Unresolved

Reply #24 –
[ Lt. Jg. Suq | Cargo Bay | U.S.S. Resolve ] ATTN: @Absinthe
His smile never left. He was so happy to be here, so happy to be going home, so happy to be with a friend. He slumped over on his stepstool in mock depression,
“But F’reeeelll” He whined again, using his lesser voice to flutter the name as he drew it out. “I want to heeeelp. I’m trying to be nice to youuuuu.” He began to slide off his step-stool, onto the ground. The display looked like he was melting. He finally wound up face-down on the floor, all sprawled out as if he were dead. There he remained in quiet for some time as he thought.

When an idea struck, he was animated once more. His arms reached out to F’rell’s ephermereal body, his head lifted up to talk clearer.
“I can still fix it, if you want.” He began to sit up, and then scooched towards F’rell to try and hold one of her many lovely, floaty tendrils. Despite still acting like a child, his voice was more technical this time. His idea more serious.
“We can just take the data from your translator and put that on a PADD. The real problem with those things is computing power, and it looks like yours needs a lot of it to translate your language. I bet one of the communications guys has the know-how to put together a body language-centered translator out of a PADD, if someone in computing set the framework up right. I don’t know how long it’d take or how good the outcome would be, but probably better than that thing.” He gestured at the combadge she held on one of her tendrils. “I’d be happy to round up the right people for the project for you. For a price."

He beamed again at his last words, and before she got the wrong idea, quickly added on. "If I do that for you, could I get at least one hug sometime in the future?"
 
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