Arrain Ael tMirok

Arrain Ael t'Mirok did na give the oira crew a second glance as she entered the lift. The less said, the better. It was bad enough to be suspected in some sort of attack on the Khre'Riov, but to be congratulated for doing a menial job that was part of her assignment....well, that was equally as annoying. Without so much as a backward glance to see if io of the security officers would yet again 'escort' her, she stood at attention and barked out the orders for the lift to return to her quarters. Whiskey could see some unpleasant emotion (embarrassment? frustration? guilt?) working under the controlled expression of the Rihan Arrain's face, and so he waited until he'd joined her inside the turbolift and the doors had slid shut before countermanding the order. "Computer, belay. Main Security." He glanced at the Arrain and gave her a faint shrug. "Figure we'd all be better off to get the incident report out of the way fast." Ael narrowed her eyes at him, her lips pursing into the ever present frown. "Taking me into custody, Arrain?" She narrowed her brow. "Hardly," Whiskey said easily. He didn't miss the sudden defensive darkening of the woman's expression, but he didn't respond to it either. At the moment his only inclination was to get the facts on what had happened to Admiral BluRox — from there he would have to decide exactly what to do next, but for now, he just wanted to know the situation, and perhaps smooth over some of the diplomatic shambles that the locker room had become with Dr. Weber's arrival. Pretty lass, bites like a snake when she's irked. And me to clean up the mess, he thought, sighing to himself, then went on, "Just want to deal with the paperwork off the bat. I'm sure it's the same in the Empire, aye? Even when nothin's wrong, still end up with a PADD stack a mile high." Clearly not in the mood to be talkative at the moment, Ael would have sulked in a corner had the lift tube na been 'round'. She merely gave Bardolph a slight nod of acknowledgement. Whatever promises the Khre'Riov and Enarrain had made, it was clear that neither could control their crew. Na that she would have expected full control, she was realistic after all. But the promises had been made and it irked Ael that she'd been a verrul for agreeing to them. "Knew you'd understand," Whiskey muttered wryly, sotto voice, as the lift dropped beneath his feet. A short and somewhat awkward silence ensued, after which he added casually, "Shouldn't take long and we'll have you back in your quarters soon enough." Ael cut her eyes over in Bardolph's direction, her eyebrows raised, still na saying a word. Why Republic security officer felt the need to fill the silence, she had yet to discern. If he felt so uncomfortable with a lift ride with her, she knew the conversation in security would be interesting. Perhaps this could provide some entertainment after all. They needed her and her cooperation, more than they even knew. How this played out would determine the course of her participation in the mission. She wondered if the Dheno understood that? Whiskey groaned inwardly. With the beginning of the chaos and some of the crew's response, their guest had gotten a distinct rod up her rear which was going to get really tiring if it stuck around. "Ma'am…" he said carefully, keeping his tone even and polite."Relax…really. There's no need to get uptight; I'm not like to get twitchy unless there's something in the situation that warrants it, and thus far all you've told me gives no cause for that. Just trying to work out the formalities." He was treading carefully here. His inclination was to believe that things had gone down in the locker room as t'Mirok explained it — for several reasons, of which the rumors of BluRox's recent head trauma and their guest's general good behavior to this point were only a few. But he also couldn't throw out any lines he couldn't keep to; he could only try to keep the situation on an even keel. For the first time since they'd entered the lift, t'Mirok turned to the dheno accompanying her. "Twitchy?" Ael's pronunciation of the word was thickly accented, but there was no mistaking the haughty tone to her voice as she inquired vaguely to what he was referring to. Whiskey felt himself somewhat pinned by her dark eyes, but he smiled faintly. Progress. "You know…liable to start throwing accusations around and overreact. Not my style unless someone gives me a reason. She looked as if she were to respond, but the lift doors opened at the moment. She turned her attention away from Bardolph and back to the corridor ahead of them. "Which way, Arrain?" "Left turn, first door on the right," Whiskey answered, lounging his weight back on his heels to let her walk out in front of him. She exhales and followed his instructions with not one word uttered. When she found the security room, she paused just inside the door to wait for further instructions. Whiskey poked his head in behind her and, seeing that no one senior to him was currently on-duty, walked over to his desk to pick up a PADD and then gestured at one of the office chairs. "Have a seat, Arrain." She looked around the room, curious about the set up and if the dheno would be as eager to show off the security complex as the last io had of the mess hall earlier in the day. "And au's detainment facilities....?" She took another sweeping glance as she lowered herself into the chair he indicated. "Little further back," he answered casually, seating himself across from her, gesturing over his shoulder deeper into the security facilities. "Not much point to having 'em right out by the front door, is there?" He switched on the PADD preparatory to taking notes. t'Mirok realized she was showing an incredible amount of restraint at the moment. She could have very easily refused to cooperate and returned to her quarters. Especially given the current interactions with the crew she had experienced thus far. She frowned a little, folding her hands in her lap. "This is a complete waste of mine time, Arrain. Fhaen, let's get this over with so I can return to my quarters." Whiskey chuckled faintly. "You and I are both…dheno, Arrain. You know as well as I do that this is not the fun part of the job for me either." He leaned back in his seat, hooking one leg over the other. "At any rate…on the record so to speak…give me as much detail as you can on what you were doing when the Admiral collapsed." With as little detail as possible, Ael responded, "I was preparing to change clothing. I heard a noise. Saw the Khre'Riov on the floor. Went to check on her. Au and the rest of the circus team entered. I left. The end. Now may I return to my quarters?" Whiskey couldn't help but grin at the 'circus team' comment, even as he fought down a moment of frustration at the way she had clammed up. "Arrain, I think we're talking at cross-purposes. This isn't an interrogation. I want to know what happened — for your sake as well as anyone else's." He raised one eyebrow at her, meeting her gaze pointedly. "But you're feeling sore about the situation, so we're gonna get nowhere." It was neither entirely a question nor entirely a statement — more a feeling out of the situation to see where she stood. He couldn't entirely blame her for being aggravated, but things would get touchy fast if she started spoiling for a fight. "Sore?" She stood and placed both her hands on his desk, leaning over it so that glare down at him. The last of her resolve evaporating. "Sore? I have been nothing but cooperative and consolatory. I have kept my thoughts and opinions about this....this....fvadt crew and ship to myself, I do na participate in the rude, animalistic behavior au Lloann'na have. Yet I am asked na to be sore ..." the word was dragged out like finger nails on a chalkboard. "...about it. Are au completely lost au's mind?" Now we're getting somewhere… "I've been accused of it on occasion," Whiskey said blithely. "At the moment, though, I like to think I'm playing with a relatively full deck. And while I won't deny that some of us haven't quite got off on the right foot with you, I will repeat that this current exercise in record-keeping is as much for your benefit as anyone else's so, please…rekkhai. Sit down." There was just a little bit of an edge in his voice, a little bit of implied sourness. I don't mind you being in a bad mood, but don't take it out on me for doing my job. "I have nothing more to add, Arrain." She leaned back, folding her arms across her chest. She chose purposely not to sit back in her chair, choosing strategically to remain standing. It would easier that way to be judge by his reaction to her defiance whether he too was one of the verruls on this ship. And if he was, better to know now than later in the mission when her life depended on the dhenos. Whiskey puffed a slow breath out between his teeth. Right…guess that's that. "As you please," he said with a shrug, setting the PADD down on the desk. "Thanks for your…cooperation. You can return to your quarters If you like; I'll have someone called in to escort you down." "I can find my own way," She said through her teeth, turning on her heals and stalking out of the room. She began muttering her breath as she stormed out, the universal translator doing a mediocre job of translating. "Foolish bunch of worm dunged chicken gutted aggravating slop pile." Within a few moments of t'Mirok's departure, at the point in which Bardolph thought she was safely out of his hair for a while, Ael reappeared suddenly. In an apparent fouler mood than when she left, she was escorted by the ship's first officer, Captain Kwai. While Kwai was smiling, t'Mirok was not as they entered the room. Rian glanced around to see who was on duty, spying Bardolph almost immediately. "Lieutenant, bring me one of those personal lockboxes, will you?" Whiskey blinked and looked up to see the XO standing in the doorway. "Aye, ma'am," he said, standing up. "What's the—?" He didn't bother finishing the question, however, as he spotted t'Mirok standing behind Kwai, steam all but coming out of her ears. "Oh, aye. Welcome back, Arrain," he said evenly, moving past the two of them into the armory lockers and emerging with a small lockbox a moment later. "Thanks, Bardolph." Kwai then turned to t'Mirok. "Listen, Arrain. In light of the issues going on with the crew, I think it's best if we make some changes to help ease the transition for both you and them." She motions for Bardolph to go ahead and open the box. "What sort of changes?" t'Mirok's eyes narrowed again, she glance between Kwai and Bardolph, sensing an ambush in the making. Whiskey opened it quickly, wincing slightly as he looked between the two women and then handed the box to Kwai. "To start with, we're going to lose the disruptor." Rian motioned to the box. "Au want me to remove my weapon?" "Yes." Kwai turned the box around so that t'Mirok could put her distruptor into it. "It would relieve the tension among all sides." "Au want me to remove my weapon?" Ael asked coldly. Kwai glanced at Bardolph as if to ask for a little help before she continued. "Look, I know the Admiral asked you, now I'm telling you. The weapon. In the box. Now." She raised a brow. "You'll be the only one with access, you can keep it in your quarters. I just don't want it on you while you're on this ship." Whiskey rubbed the back of his neck, feeling a little awkward, and then put in, "It'll help keep things on an even keel, Arrain, no question. And I can promise you'll be in no danger without it." "You want me to remove my weapon?" "Yes. Uh…ie," Whiskey answered, keeping his tone at its usual relaxed level with a modicum of difficulty. Rian felt as if they'd entered some sort of space/time continuality loop or the Romulan had become a broken record. "It's not like you're not a walking armory anyway. This will just remove the visible one from the thoughts and minds of our crew. It's for your safety and theirs. Remove the temptation to provoke someone into doing something dumb." "You can na control your crew, and yet au want me to remove my weapon...my defense from these....these....creatures?" While t'Mirok's voice sounded as if she was injured, seething, in reality the Romulan woman was pushing buttons to see how far the two of them would go to enforce this new directive. Better yet, what the reasoning was behind it, since she had yet to do anything to warrant the removal of her weapon. Kwai glanced at Bardolph again, then motioned in the box. "It's either this, or you spend the rest of the voyage in your quarters." She sighed. Whiskey's expression turned down at the corners slightly at the reference to 'creatures,' and he straightened a bit at the Captain's ultimatum, watching t'Mirok guardedly. His impression of her thus far was that she might yet make the choice to keep the peace, but he was waiting to see that confirmed before he made any assumptions. Kwai set the box down on Bardolph's desk. "Ael, let me ask you a question. Has my security team done anything to disabuse you or cause you to mistrust them in anyway?" "Na," t'Mirok stiffened at the use of her informal name. "They have na." She glanced at Bardolph, knowing she'd been unfair to him and his department to loop them into the chaos that the others had created. "They're here for your protection. If you feel at any time that they are not doing their jobs and that you are in need of your weapon again, then you have all rights to retrieve it from this lockbox." Kwai motioned with the lid of the box. "But help them do their jobs now, and put it away before someone does something stupid and provokes you..........or them." Whiskey almost smiled at the grudging backwards compliment from the Rihan but kept his expression still. "We've got your back, ma'am; our job's to make your stay here smooth for all parties," he affirmed. "But we all need to be on the same page, I reckon; best to head off any potential obvious conflicts." t'Mirok gave Bardolph a look that clearly said you're no help, while Kwai continued to stare down the Romulan. The only hint of nervousness on the part of the Captain, was the finger twisting she was doing behind her back, hoping to the joined gods the woman would see reason. t'Mirok wasn't stupid. She knew if she continued to push buttons she'd spend the rest of her time in the detainment center, weapon or not. But that didn't mean she had to be completely cooperative. Let them squirm, she thought rather vindictively. After that last encounter, they deserved it. She looked up, only to find the Enarrain give her an expectant look, na the least be uncomfortable with the silence between them. Ael had to grudgingly respect the restraint that both officers were showing. After what seemed like an eternity, Ael withdrew her disruptor from its holster. She had yet to lay it in the box. "How does this device work." She scowled at it, afraid it would cause some sort of damage to her weapon. Kwai answered. "The lockbox is keyed into your biosignature. Just press your thumb there and it be keyed only to your biosigns." She motioned. "Please, Arrain. Do this for me." t'Mirok removed the battery cell from the weapon with the efficiency of any well trained dheno officer, she then placed the distruptor into the box, sliding the battery into the box next to it, and carefully closing the lit. She pressed her thumb to the keypad and watched it turn from red to green. "As au wish. But do na disappoint me again." She stood back, her eyes on the box, her safety net tucked so neatly away. Whiskey let out a slow breath. That had gone down easier than he'd expected, really, and he grinned slightly at t'Mirok in tacit thanks for being reasonable. "You'll be wanting to keep it in your quarters, ma'am? Or locked up here?" "You are joking, ie?" She raised a brow, thinking that the humans had a strange sense of humor. "My quarters, of course." "Thank you again, t'Mirok." Rian nodded slowly, letting out the slow slow breath she did not realize she was holding. "A word for a moment, Jameson." Rian nodded for him to follow her just bit off while t'Mirok was preoccupied with the lockbox and looking like she had just lost a good friend. "Do me a favor, do not repeat anything I said to her..." she jerked her head back to the Romulan. "...to the Admiral." Rian then paused. "Oh hell, who am I kidding. Holly's probably video'd it and brought popcorn for the screening. Just....keep an eye out for her. The crew is going screwy, and they're going to need some protection from her if they ever managed to actually provoke her, yes?" Whiskey blinked at this sudden moment of muttered confidence and nodded agreement with a mildly puzzled expression — more at the question of when he would have occasion to pass such information on to the Admiral as at the actual request. But it was the reference to the potential for violence (or at least conflict) that got his attention, and he nodded again, more soberly, at it. "Long as she's aboard, Captain, I've got eyes in the back of my head, and I'm pretty sure everyone else in the department does too. We're keeping a close eye on the teams assigned to her and they're all well briefed. If things decide to get interesting, we'll be ready to step in." He paused, then glanced over his shoulder at the Rihan woman, noting the taut, tense line of her jaw that said her frustration was still bubbling just under the surface. "Jaysus, though…" he muttered, shaking his head."I really hope it doesn't come to that."

With a half dozen eye glued to her being, watching every shift in her position, studying every symbol uttered, she realized that must find her to be just as exotic and strange as she found the Lloann’na officers. The only difference – she was na gapping at them like some wild animals put on display for their amusement. She wished to rest her hand on the grip of her sidearm, to feel the comfortable familiarity of its weight shift on her hip. But to do so could be misconstrued as a hostile action and na soothing motion she intended. So the dheno remained rooted in spot and did na shift so much as an eyebrow hair. She was still unsure why the Lloann’na Khre’Riov continued to apologize for the state of her ship or her crew. It was either an attempt to downplay the power and efficiency of the Lloann’na Galae or an attempt to give the dheno officer a false sense of security. Or maybe, just maybe, she was sincere in her confession. Ael hoped for her own sake that she was na. The Arrain admired her own Daise’Khre’Riov’s tactical prowess for assigning t’Mirok as a liaison officer. As a female, she would be viewed as a less threatening antagonist to the human male dheno officers studying her form from the back of the oira like a rare zoological experiment. And yet, she would also complement the strong alien female command staff standing before her. Like the dheno aboard her ship, she was well trained to follow directions, to be observant and carefully scrutinize situations, to be patient in crisis situations, to analysis threats and provide appropriate tactical support, to follow directives to the bests of her ability and when io finally required use of io’s weapon, to always hit io’s target. What set her apart from her fellow dheno was her grace under pressure and her ability to conceal her distaste for unsuitable situations. And she would never do anything to dishonor herself, tr’Vatrix or the Empire. It was true, she was na on this Lloann’na ship to make friends. All they knew of her was her rank and her House name. But that did na mean she could na learn a thing or re about this new Lloann’na advisory and this new ship called Republic.