New Teacher Arrives

Posted on Thu Oct 13th, 2022 @ 8:13am by Commander Kyle Reece & Lieutenant Nicholas Reece [Reece] & Lieutenant Cassia Cavendish

Mission: Season 5: Time Warp
Location: USS Elysium, various
Timeline: 16/08/2397 / 1430 hrs
2007 words - 4 OF Standard Post Measure

Cassia had stowed her belongings and had, after checking out her cabin on deck 20, made her way to the Academy Commandant's office. She was dressed in her uniform and she made sure it was neat as she hit the chime and waited for a response.

Kyle was busy going over some academic files of his students, when his door chime rang. "Enter!" He called out as he continued to read.

With the call, Cassia entered and as her gaze hit the man sitting behind the desk her eyes widened in shock. And then they narrowed as brain caught up with what her eyes were seeing. Anger and hurt flooded her and it drove from her mind that the man before her might not be the man she thought he was. "Nicholas Reece!" Her voice was icy cold. Nicholas was a dead man walking and her tone promised retribution. "You sneaky, arrogant,.." she had been saving up for a while.

Kyle looked up as the familiar woman walked in. He couldn't connect her name to her face until she started yelling at him and called him by his twin brother's name. "As you were, Lieutenant!" His booming voice overpowering hers. "First of all, I'm not sure who you think you are, to come into my office, and start barking at a superior officer!" He paused a beat then added, "Secondly, I am not Nico, Cassia. I'm his twin brother, Kyle."

She could just kill him anyway. Her eyes flashed. "Close enough to some minds" she retorted. Then her training reasserted itself and she took a breath. "My apologies Captain." She had missed the rank. "I don't suppose you know where he is so i can give him a piece of my mind?"

Kyle was silent for a few beats. Then, after letting a calming breath flow out of his nostrils, he indicated the empty chair in front of his desk. "Have a seat, Cassia. Would you care for any refreshments?"

"No thank you." She replied her manners reaserting themselves as well, but she took the seat indicated.

Kyle sent a message to his aide that they were not to be disturbed. Then he looked back at Cassia. "As for where Nicholas currently is, I have no idea. I'm sorry."

"You and everyone else." Cassia grumbled. "If you hear from him, tell him he has a lot of explaining to do. And yes I know its been a couple of years but I am owed an explanation."

Kyle nodded as he replied. "You have my word." He paused a beat before saying, "If it means anything, of all the women he used to date, and there were only five before you, he always told me that you were the one he cared about the most. I'm sure there is a very good reason why you haven't heard anything. Nico is not the kind of man to just disappear. Our parents raised us right. When you see him again, try to keep that in mind?"

She narrowed her gaze at him. "Before or after i gut him?" she asked, not that she would but if Nicholas had told his brother anything about her, he would know she carried a Breen knife in her boot.

"Oh, possibly in between? He's worried both our mother and baby sister as well. He's been away for a very long time now. Whatever his assignment is, it clearly is a critical one. I can't even find him with my own contacts."

Cassia shrugged "Fine. I think i can leave some for your family." She slid a PADD across to him. "My orders. Some clown thought I would fit well here."

Kyle chuckled as he took the offered PADD. "Thank you for that, I'm sure my mother would definitely appreciate your sacrifice in this matter." He then started to read the orders. "Flight Control Instruction. As I already have a starfighter instructor, I imagine you would be focusing more on starships?"

"Yes, And Shuttles." Cassia replied "There is more than fighters out there Captain."

As Cassia was replying, Kyle's comm beeped. "Forgive me," he stated as he reached over to open the channel. "I thought I said no interruptions?"

"Apologies, Sir. The...individual here states that it is extremely important that ...they...speak with you." His aide sounded like she was holding back a mixture of emotions as she spoke.

Ke exhaled loudly, annoyed by the situation. Looking back over at Cassia, he said, "Please excuse this interruption." He then addressed his aide. "Send them in."

She shrugged and half turned in her chair to face the door.

The doors slid open, and Kyle's face changed from annoyance to shock. "What the hell?"

"Hey big brother! Sorry to barge in like this. I just arrived and as soon as I heard that..." Nicholas Reece stopped speaking when he saw who else was present. "Cass?" His smile grew even larger, though his eyes took on a sad look to them. "I..I...hi!"

Cassia had bolted to her feet when Nicholas had entered the room, it was almost instantaneous. Her face went pale and her right hand was now clutching the knife she normally kept in her boot. It was a nervous thing, something they both knew she did when extremely off balance. And most of the time she barely realised she did it. Her gaze narrowed on Nicholas, promising a painful reckoning.

Seeing the woman he had loved dearly stand with that vicious knife of her drawn, Nicholas spoke slowly and calmly. "Cass, I'm sorry. I never wanted to hurt you in any way. I was under orders and had to leave immediately, with no one but the Captain knowing why I was leaving. I haven't been allowed or able to get a message to you directly, but, I wrote you every single gle day, wishing that I was still by your side." He pulled out a small PADD and offered it to her. "The letters were held by my handler during the mission. He gave them all back to me once I was heading here, following my debrief."

Cassia eyed him and then the PADD. "You are interrupting a meeting Mr Reece" her tone was cold. The blade however did vanish. She reached out and took the PADD. But she didn't turn it on.

Nicholas heard the pain in her voice, and nodded, seeing that he had more than likely lost the love of his life. He got quiet and then nodded, clearing the emotion from his throat as he replied. "Y-yes...um..you're right. P-please forgive me." He looked over at his brother. "Captain, please excuse the interruption. I...I'll be in my quarters when you are free to talk." He then shrank some and stole a quick glance at Cassia again, before turning and leaving his brother's office.

Cassia watched him go and then stowed the PADD in her pocket.

Watching the interaction between his brother and Cassia, he knew there was still love there. Before she returned to the chair she had been sitting in, he spoke up. "Lieutenant Cavendish, I have accepted your orders of transfer. As my first oder for you as your immediate supervisor, take a few days to get your quarters..and personal affairs squared away. Report to your class on Friday, oh-eight-hundred hours. Dismissed."

Cassia gave him a look then nodded. "Aye Captain. Thank you." And she left the office. Once she was clear of it, she picked up her pace, she could hear Nico's footsteps heading for the turbolift.

She rounded a corner and saw his back. "Nicholas?" she called out.

He was in the turbolift, the doors starting to close, when Nicholas heard Cassia call out to him. Extending his left arm through the open doorway, he stopped the lift doors from closing. His eyes locked on Cassia's as she approached and entered the lift with him.

She stepped into the lift and when the doors closed she crossed her arms and studied him. "So that's it? Some words then you walk away? You left Nicholas. You left me a note and a rose and you NEVER came back. And when you finally get out, you go see your brother. Were you ever going to see me?"

"Yes, I was," he said softly. "I didn't know I was coming here until about an hour ago. My transfer orders are probably still in transit." He reached out to gently caress her right cheek. "Cass, I had no choice. I was under orders! You know me pretty well, and you have a pretty good idea what I do in Starfleet. I'm in Intelligence, and more than that, I am an Infiltration Specialist. When I am sent in on an assignment, it is under deep cover. No contact is made with my past, for security reasons. I am good at what I do Cass, that's why I usually receive the more difficult missions."

She let her eyes flutter for a moment closed then they opened as he touched her cheek. "You got demoted I see." She said softly. He had outranked her before.

He nodded and sighed. "Yeah. I...uh...punched a superior officer after I disobeyed an order of his."

"Nicholas." Cassia sighed. "So now you are assigned here?"

He nodded. "Seems so. I was told that I would be reporting to the Intel Chief here, and training cadets on what it takes to be an Infiltration Specialist."

Cassia considered his words, the PADD in her pocket seemed to burn her. "Well I am sure you will enjoy that." She said as she heard the lift ping and the doors opened. "Your deck I presume?"

Before he could answer, the doors opened and a Bolian make stepped inside between the two of them. He was busy reading a PADD so intently, that he didn't even notice them. "Deck five, section Beta," he said and the lift took off to its destination.

Nicholas raised a finger to his lips, asking Cassia to stay silent. He was curious if their friend would notice them at all.

Cassia smirked and leaned back against the wall of the turbolift. She glanced at Nicholas and raised an eyebrow at him.

"I can't believe those idiots!" The Bolian muttered to himself as his eyes stayed glued to the PADD that he was reading.

The lift finally reached the requested destination and the doors slid open. As the Bolian stormed out, he continued to mutter. "It's going to take me three hours to fix this!" The lift doors then slid shut, leaving Nicholas and Cassia alone again.

"Forgive me for being forward," he said softly, his eyes locked on hers. "I really want to talk to you alone, but, as I've only arrived about ten minutes ago, I don't have assigned quarters yet. Could we talk in yours?"

"Deck 20" Cassia ordered the lift. "Very well. We will talk."

The lift started moving deeper into the ship.

"Thank you, Cassy." Nicholas called her the private nickname he once gave her without even thinking about it.

She gave him a shrug. "have you contacted your parents?"

He shook his head. "Not yet. Was going to do so once I got settled in." As theift continued towards it destination, he offered, "You look good Cassy, real good."

"You look alive which is more than I thought you would be. And I just yelled at your brother thinking he was you." She added with snark.

This made Nicholas's brows furrow. "Since when have you ever seen me with a beard? Also, I'm much better looking than my brother," he chuckled softly.

The lift finally reached their destination and the doors opened to an empty corridor. Nicholas held the door from closing and stepped aside, to allow Cassia to exit first.

She exited and said over her shoulder. "No you are not better looking than him."

Nicholas's eyes grew wide in shock. "Hey!" He said aloud in humorous admonishment. He then started to move after her in pursuit.

~TBC~

 

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