SIM:Ra Percussive Maintenance

((OOC: Right before launching the Ronin, Karrod and Aeryn had a special evening aboard the Arrow.

((Captain’s Ready Room, Deck 3, USS Ronin))

Since returning to the Ronin Karrod had barely left his office. Meals were intermittent and were far more often coffee than anything else as he tried to wade through the enormity of what the ship had experienced in his absence. He’d spoken to most of the senior staff, had hundreds of pages of reports to go through and felt like he found some new horrifying detail with each word he digested. He’d left strict instructions that he wasn’t to be disturbed for any reason short of a full scale Borg incursion so he was…less than polite when an unexpected knock came at his door. Back muscles frozen from sitting too long protested loudly as he stood and stalked to the door, face darkening and scowl deepening. He tapped the door controls and prepared to absolutely melt whoever had so foolishly disturbed him. To his surprise something inside of him melted instead.

She almost wholly expected to see exactly what she saw when he answered the door. In response, she offered him one of her hyper-rare smirks and allowed a twinkle to shine in her eyes.

Ra: Well hello to you too.

All the angry exhausted gears which had been turning in Karrod’s mind seized together in shock. He hadn’t seen Aeryn since he’d left the Arrow yet his memory of their brief time together was precious to him. With a series of strangled grunts and awkward gestures he invited her into the office as he desperately tried to unstick the jammed clockwork in his mind.

Internally she was somewhat amused by the scene playing out before her. Usually she reserved her emotions and judgment, but Karrod had managed to get beyond her typical shell, and he deserved better. Besides, he looked like he could use a vacation, a bottle of Romulan ale, and some good companionship, not necessarily in that order.

Ra: I know I came unannounced, but I didn’t think you’d be speechless.

Karrod chuckled begrudgingly, shook his head and took a breath. He finally found his voice a moment later.

Niac: Sorry about…that…::nodding towards the door::..you’re the last person I expected to see on the other side of that door. It’s…good to see you.

If there was one thing that Aeryn almost never did, it was to share any emotion on her face. The doctor she worked with daily had only just started to get her special sense of humor, and true smiles were left for spectacular moments. In the course of four courses, (or had it been five?) she’d discovered a sort of ease in the gesture. And thus, the corners of her lips edged upwards and one of her upswept eyebrows rose.

Ra: After the stories circulating on the station, it’s better to see you. You look frazzled.

Without high level clearance she couldn’t read all of the reports, but it didn’t take too much to put the stories together with the clear facts to see where something went dramatically left.

Karrod let out a breath and leaned back against the front edge of his desk, looking inward. He had to very carefully gauge what he could share..and with who.

Niac: It’s been a difficult few weeks…for the Ronin and for me.

A hint of concern drifted into her eyes.

Ra: Are you alright?

Karrod laughed a bit bitterly and shook his head.

Niac: Not particularly, no. How about you? Losing a ship is never easy and it sounds like your circumstances were...unusual.

Ra: Apparently, we were switching ships anyways. At least that is what the veterinarian told our CMO. ::Pausing, she raised an upswept eyebrow to herself.:: Why there is a vet and dedicated space for her practice on a starship is new to me. Not something we’d see on a Romulan or Thracian ship.

Karrod felt a strange lightness creeping in around the edge of his exhaustion as he listened to her. He remembered his less than successful attempt at Romulan cuisine and the brief moment it had afforded the two of them.

((Flashback, Stardate 240008.27, Holosuite 2, USS Arrow))

After all, they lived at work on the Arrow, as did so many other crews across the stars. A momentary comfortable silence fell around them for a time, and Aeryn risked moving a bit closer to the scents and the workings of the out of uniform first officer. As she drew closer he seemed to notice.

Karrod gestured towards the racks of equipment, the pots and pans hanging from overhead hooks, the cooling and heating units.

Niac: I know that this whole room could easily be replaced by a single replicator that sits on a tabletop and, up until a few years ago, I would’ve considered all of this to be a ridiculous indulgence. Now? I’ve learned it’s an art form…and like all art, it’s best when it’s shared.

This was very new territory for her, but not at all unwanted. It seemed that life in Starfleet had more surprises yet.

Ra: Well it is certainly enjoyed, even if it started with viinerine.

Another rare smile graced her features for a moment as she looked at him and he at her. Generally a loaner by necessity rather than choice, it occurred to her that maybe that didn’t need to be the reality.

He felt a small flush on his cheeks as the sharp, angular woman joined him in the kitchen while bathed in light from the dining room beyond. He found himself looking at her with fresh eyes and seeing not the competent Chief in her medical uniform, but instead a striking figure that seemed to quietly command the spaces around her. It made him put aside his puttering and turn his attention to her fully, the meal momentarily forgotten.

Niac: I have a hard time believing that someone like you isn’t getting invited out to dinner regularly.

((End Flashback))

Karrod shook himself out of his pleasant reverie. Aeryn reached out hand to him as if to bring him back from whatever thoughts seemed to capture him in that moment.

Ra: What can I do to help?

The question was very much serious and while she knew there was limited solid information he could share with her, she felt that looking towards the future to restore whatever had eroded the past couple of weeks was where she could make a difference. There was care and concern in her eyes as she watched his.

Karrod huffed out a breath and shook his head.

Niac: Honestly, I’ve got no idea. I’ve only been back aboard for a few days and I feel like the padds are multiplying when I don’t look directly at them.

Ra: Whatever I can do…I’m yours until they recall us.

Truth be told she wasn’t used to feeling so helpless to fix things. Broken bones, cuts, physical wounds were all within her wheelhouse when it came to fixing, but the shadows that danced behind his eyes and the dark circles indicating fatigue were something else. Still, there had to be something she could do.

Niac: I appreciate the offer…more than you could know. It’s just been a long time since I’ve taken much of a…break. I’m pretty sure if a day was twice as long Starfleet Command would still find a way to fill every minute with bureaucratic minutia.

Then it struck her. She reached out for the padd on the desk.

Ra: May I?

But she was already looking at the basic schematic layout of the Ronin. Committing what she needed to memory, she gestured towards the door.

Ra: If you trust me, I'd like to…share something with you.

He rubbed at the solid muscles in his neck and let out a breath. He was technically off duty and had been for hours.

Niac: You know I trust you Aeryn. Lead the way.

((A short time later, Jefferies Tube Junction Near Main Engineering))

Aeryn was almost certain that Karrod would have questions to answer later; it could not have been a common thing for a woman who looked vaguely Romulan to pop onto the bridge, remove a hatch to the jefferies tube and lead the captain through it. And yet, that was exactly what had transpired to bring them to where they were now. As the narrow tunnel opened up to the wider junction, she slid across the widest part of the opening and turned to face the man she’d made the trip with, for the first time since they started.

Ra: Sorry for the hassle but I feel it's worth it.

She repositioned slightly to give him as much space as possible. Even so, when he had fully egressed from the tunnel, they couldn't avoid touching in the only slightly larger space. How was this junction bigger on the Arrow?

The blue glow illuminating the area cast shadows that accentuated the usually subdued features on them both. His face became one of experience, trial, and tribulations. The pain of not only his past, but that of the lives imprinted on the symbiont he carried within was etched in his very skin, the creases and marks indicative of a story without a whole lot of happy endings. Her ridges became more pronounced, leaving anyone who might have looked on to wonder what the captain might have been doing with a Romulan in the depths of the ship.

She might have asked that too as she let the warmth of their proximity to the powerhouse of the ship wash over her, closing her eyes momentarily as she settled in. The aches in her bones themselves seemed to start melting away.

Karrod had never heard a Romulan purr but as he watched Aeryn’s muscles relax and her eyes close in quiet ecstasy he half-imagined the sound echoing through the jefferies tube.

Niac: Enjoying yourself?

Ra: Romulan vessels are cold, even when they were fighting for Thracia. As a hybrid, I was always freezing. Never let it be known on account of being seen as weak, but I did find an escape.

Raising her arms as much as the space allowed, she indicated the heated junction. Every ship had one, which made her happy to serve on any ship, though she had a preference for anything not Romulan.

Karrod followed her eyeline and saw the nearby EPS junction which fed a large portion of the ship's dorsal decks. He could feel the heat radiating off it nearly as much as he could feel something else radiating from his unexpected companion.

Niac: You know, I hear a Cardassian sauna recently opened on Thirty Three. Warm, comfortable rocks for lounging on and I’m told their drinks aren’t bad either.

Without missing a beat she looked up at him.

Ra: It has nothing on here and now, given the company.

Karrod could feel himself blushing slightly under his beard and moved to place a hand on her shoulder.

Niac: I’m glad you’re here, Aeryn. Things have been…difficult aboard the Ronin. The ship and crew are fantastic but the missions we’ve been assigned…the losses we’ve already suffered…it's been wearing on me.

Concern surfaced in her eyes and on her face, something she let few people see, as she reached up and laced her fingers between his and took his hand.

Ra: It would on anyone. I’m somewhat isolated from what you see as a captain and an officer, but it’s a similar feeling when it seems like the flow of injuries never stops.

They intertwined, all but pressed against one another. The rising heat in the compartment had nothing to do with the nearby junction.

Niac: You? Really? I didn’t think anything could make you lose a step.

Her voice grew soft as she looked at him. Had it really been so long?

Ra: Just have to keep moving forward, one step at a time.

She paused for a moment as if to etch the scene into her mind, fighting the urge to throw up the walls and protect herself until she found herself vocalizing her innermost thoughts.

Ra: Karrod, I’ve missed you.

Reaching up to brush away a loose strand of hair that had fallen in front of her eyes, Karrod again found himself falling into them, much as he had on the holodeck all those months ago. The shimmering depths of her deep brown eyes pulled at him and this time there was no inconvenient kitchen timer to get in their way. He leaned forward and their lips touched, a burst of electricity running through the both of them.

Time fell away. The sounds of the ship gave way to the beating of hearts and the metal of the deck was forgotten as his hand traced a line down the small of her back. When they came up for air a few minutes or several centuries later they both leaned back, quiet surprise and delight written on both their features. When he eventually found the ability to speak again his voice was husky and low.

Niac: …I missed you too. More…more than I let myself feel until right this moment.

She only whispered back; time might have frozen wrapped up in his embrace, but it felt delicate as if it might shatter if she spoke too loud.

Ra: I am here now.

There would be time enough to miss each other again later, but for that moment they had what they had left waiting all those months ago. The shadows that reflected the loneliness of command drifted behind the look he gave her as she traced his spots with a single light fingertip, stopping when his collar prevented any further exploration.

He could feel the taut muscles in her neck becoming more pliant under his hands as he pulled her close. He brushed his lips against her beautifully angular ear and the words rumbled from deep within his chest.

Niac: I hope you don’t have to get back to the Khitomer soon, Aeryn. I’m going to make sure you’re not fit for duty for at least a day.

Aeryn grinned and leaned in against him, purposefully this time. She could feel his hands as they pulled her closer still and she contented herself just then with the feel of his warm breath and the sound of his heart as it beat, perhaps a bit faster and louder than normal.

Ra: You may be captain, but as the captain’s personal medical advisor, I think you should take the rest of the night off then.

He nipped at her earlobe and nuzzled at her neck as she pressed herself into him. His lips curled and there was more than a hint of humor in his husky voice.

Niac: Whatever you say Doctor. I’m in your hands.

Ra: Indeed you are. Time has a habit of cutting itself short on us and I think it would be good to make the most of at least tonight.

She had become quite curious about just where those spots led, and while relieving him of duty might not have been on the table, relieving him of his uniform definitely was. For that brief second, Aeryn was kind of glad that he was not telepathic. Smirking slightly, she found herself thinking not about defenses or offensive moves, walls or shutting everyone out, but of where this was leading. She couldn’t help but think of how good this connection felt, never mind the deeper feelings she’d not yet allowed to fully surface. If that first dinner (date?) echoed anything though, it was that he wasn’t the type to let her walls stand.

That was the last coherent thought that danced through her head as she let her fingers return to the exploration and the two of them fell into passion’s growing flames.

===================

Captain Karrod Niac Commanding Officer USS Ronin - NCC-34523 V239509GT0

And -- Master Chief Petty Officer Aeryn Ra Paramedic

as simmed by:

Commander Ash MacKenna Chief Intelligence Officer USS Khitomer R238605KN0

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