Rock and a Hard Place ((T'Prise/t'Tamarak))

[Jaiysa t'Tamarak 0]

War.

 

Jaiysa did not know exactly what she had expected but war had not been factored into the equation. In some other lifetime, she might have had access to information such as the buildup of Arcturan forces on the lloann’na border; now, though, it had come as a surprise. It hardly seemed fair somehow, coming almost on the heels of the strange, destructive virus which had nearly decimated the Manticore’s crew (their intervening leave notwithstanding – which had hardly been a leave at all, so marred was it by the news of their subsequent destination).

 

At the moment, she stood in a turbolift hissing its way through the ship’s innards, her eyes narrowed, her mind elsewhere. She was not, per se, afraid of going off to fight; in the spirit of being somewhere useful, she in fact relished it, in a sense. She was, however, she had to admit, unnerved by the idea of going off to fight a lloann’na war; it was odd how different the idea seemed from being an expatriate in peacetime. It bore new issues.

 

One of the security erei’riovir, Kenickie, had made a somewhat disturbing suggestion when the crew had been called together for the initial announcement, broaching the idea of making use of their knowledge of the Echococcosis virus to release a plague on the Federation’s enemies. It had taken a certain amount of self-control for Jaiysa to prevent herself from making an outburst at the time; as it was, the casual reference to the destructive illness had been infuriating – as was the knowledge that Jaiysa’s own opinions on the subject would probably have little to do with the eventual decision the Fleet would make; thankfully, however, the subject had been dropped and seemed to have remained where it had fallen.

 

Preoccupied, Jaiysa had returned to the station’s Promenade for a while, then retreated to the ship; all data on the reptilomutative virus (and its accompanying smaller mysteries, such as Arrain Morran), would have to be brought to some state of closure before the ship’s departure. She had, at least, some control over that. Of course…her initial attempts to get any information from the science department to that end had resulted in a frustrating amount of silence; notwithstanding her vague knowledge of the project she’d overheard erei’riov Escher being tasked with, she was hardly in the mood to be put off on a packet of data that would probably take five minutes to load and transmit to sickbay.

 

Stepping off the turbolift, she turned a corner and walked into the main science lab.

 

T’Prise looked up expectantly from where she was working, holding the partial completed miniaturized emitter array she turned towards the door. She had sent a crewman down to Engineering to obtain additional parts and tools they required for constructing the slipstream components, she was at a juncture where a larger hypo spanner would be helpful. Her eyes narrowed slightly as Dr. t’Tamarak stepped through the doors instead of the expected crewman. They were behind schedule on completing the weapons upgrades and interruptions would no doubt delay the process.

 

“Doctor?”

 

"Jolan tru, rekkhai," Jaiysa said, a little more irritably than she'd meant to; evidently she'd used up her self-control during the debriefing. Taking a moment, she cocked her head back and then moved over to stand on the other side of the console over which T'Prise was now leaning, as she seemed to be the ranking officer in the room at the moment. "I'm here to ask after the state of your comm system."

 

T’Prise stared at the Romulan for a moment, pondering why the doctor would be inquiring of her if something was wrong with the comm or if she meant something else entirely. “If you have found a defect or issue within the comm system, I would suggest that you request a repair team from Engineering to address the matter. Responsibility for that system does not currently fall within the purview of Science.” Turning back towards the work table, T’Prise began to make adjustments the emitter once more, effectively dismissing t’Tamarak.

 

There was a short silence in which Jaiysa resisted the urge to slap the heel of her palm against her forehead as her jibe fell completely flat. Sarcasm was pointless on yyaioir...she wasn't sure why this continued to surprise her. She pondered trying to explain the line of thought for a moment, but it hardly seemed worth it. “I sent you three requests for your collected information on the mutation virus and Morran in the last four hours. I’ve had na response; have you received them or no?” she said tiredly instead.

 

Glancing back up at the doctor T’Prise gave the Romulan a sharp look before answering. “We are currently working on a project deemed top priority by the Admiral. When our project is completed, the information you are requesting will be made available to you. As it is not critical to our upcoming mission, your request will be delayed until more important matters are addressed.”

 

Jaiysa made a noise of frustration at the curt dismissal. "It's a fvadt information transfer; hardly the most complex use of your facilities. What project has you at such a loss for resources?"

 

“We are working on a project that will play an important role in our upcoming mission. I am not at liberty to discuss any further details with you.”

 

"Na at liberty--" Jaiysa snapped, then clamped her jaw shut. She was, perhaps, impossible to please. She had at first rejected Atragon and Vilanne's immediate trust when she felt it was offered too easily; T'Prise's, on the other hand, was clearly still restricted, and while Jaiysa could respect that in a sense, it was hard not to be tempted her to pry at the erected wall. Mixed with her earlier frustrations, it grated and she released a breath in a low hiss. "Rekkhai, I am na here to steal your secrets; I am here so that I may do my job aboard this ship."

 

Focused on the emitter, T’Prise spoke plainly, in a bland tone as if merely reciting facts. “Your situation as an expatriate of the Romulan Empire has yet to be suitably defined in terms of your status as a citizen of the Federation. Although the Admiral has invited you to remain aboard the Manticore and even given you a position as an attending physician, you are not an officer aboard this vessel, nor have you been commissioned as such by Starfleet. Given the situation, it is only logical that the information you are privy to regarding projects and mission be limited to what you are required to know to perform your duties as a doctor.”

 

She was right, of course, which was in itself aggravating, and a number of responses flashed through Jaiysa’s mind. I do na care about au fvadt science project, rekkhai. I know I do na have the authority; I accepted that from the beginning. So why was she so frustrated about it?

 

Because now, for the first time since her escape from ch’Rihan, with the Manticore facing something that had nothing to do with her areas of expertise (the public ones at any rate)…she was caught up, in a way entirely different and in a way almost worse than in the Empire, in a situation beyond her control. She felt helpless, not a pleasant feeling for someone bred in a society where who and what you knew were as important to survival as food and drink. And not entirely for her own sake, either; for the sake of those aboard this ship, some of whom it was hard to picture walking into a war zone at all…

 

“I did na know when I came aboard if I would wish to stay,” she said, twisting her voice to make it a sardonic jab, though she was speaking as much to herself as to T’Prise now. And do I now? Yes…I know that much. “If I had been so desperate to learn the secret inner workings of the science department I’m sure I could have found the authority…for now, rekkhai, I merely want the information on Morran and the virus, to perform my duties, and I will be on my way.”

 

"As I have already informed you, we are currently in the middle of a project which supersedes everything else. If you would be good enough to let us complete this project, we may address your request in a timely fashion," the Vulcan replied unperturbed, still focused on her work.

 

“By which time it will na matter anyway,” Jaiysa muttered, giving up with a shake of her head and turning towards the door. “War tends to be something of a time commitment.”