Continuation

Posted on Wed Apr 26th, 2023 @ 2:50am by Captain Mattias Richardson [Reece] & Captain Gary Taylor & Commodore Phoenix Lalor-Richardson & Tristi Richardson

Mission: Season 6: Episode 2: Survival
Location: Command cabin
Timeline: Md3 17h00
2087 words - 4.2 OF Standard Post Measure

After Commander Reece had left the office, two security officers entered the pffice bringing with them, a cadet and a civilian teenager.

Phoenix looked up from the paperwork she was reading with Gary and stared. "TRISTI!" She gasped at the sight of her adopted daughter.

She ignored the cadet as she moved to Tristi and checked her face carefully.

Both girls were sporting black eyes and both had scratches.

Clary glared at Tristi but didn't move from where she had been led to.

Gary looked up as the security officers brought in a female cadet and another young woman. He looked to Phoenix as she blurted out "Tristi!" at the young woman as she moved to check her face. He shifted his attention back to the security officers, "Report gentleman." He asked but his eyes were on the cadet.

"Sir, Cadet Harrison and this young woman were having a fight, they were in one of the caves close to the shuttle entrance. A hair pulling, eye scratching, face punching and calling each other uh some rather unsavory names sir. They were um also covered in snow.""

Gary nodded at the report. Before he spoke to Clary, "What have you got to say cadet?"

The Cadet straightened. "Sir, this is what happens when you bring uneducated, illbread and mannerless people onto the ship. They think they can walk around and just start hitting whoever they wish"

Phoenix turned from her examination of Tristi and narrowed her eyes at Clary. "Watch your words Cadet." She warned her tone glacial.

Gary glanced at Phoenix. "I've got this Commodore; you tend to Tristi." He said as he turned his attention back to Clary. "Commodore is right cadet. Watch your words. Now I've heard your statement and I'm going to ask you this only once. You did nothing to provoke or give reason for Tristi to assault you?

Clary shook her head. "I spoke the truth and she didn't like it."

"Liar!" Tristi snapped from where she stood. "She is a liar! She pushed me first and when to hit me when i called her out on her fucking bullshit!"

Phoenix pulled her daughter back with a soft "you will get your turn" to her. And Phoenix hit her comm. "Captain Richardson to the Command Cabin please."

***Lalor-Richardson family tent***

Mattias was currently sitting with young Wlliam, after feeding him as his twin sister, Elizabeth, laid in her crib, watching her new father.

When Mattias's commbadge chirped, he reached up and, before he tapped it, he heard Phoenix's voice, full of concern and anger, call him to the command tent. "Miran!" He called out as he carefully stood, cradling William protectively in his arms.

After handing over her baby brother, Mattias quickly moved to get dressed in his winter gear, and practically sprinted to where his wife was.

===

Clary meanwhile gave Tristi a glower. "Nothing i said was incorrect. You are stupid, a Foundling. I have seen your grades, thus you are stupid." She replied coldly.

"Cadet, it seems Tristi disagrees with you and for the record, your comments are uncalled for and you show remarkably poor taste in expressing them. Poor grades are not a sign of being stupid. People process information differently. Learn differently. I have no doubt Tristi could teach you a great deal about fending for yourself out on the street. Now you may think you are better than her. I am here to tell you, YOU ARE NOT! Nor are good grades the sign of intelligence. If they were you wouldn't have made the comment you just did." Gary replied his tone as cold as their climate.

Clary looked at the captain. "So I am automatically guilty because some streetwhore says I am? Because she conned the Commodore into adoption, I am automatically in the wrong? " she asked him. "She attacked me. She scratched me. She should be locked up! But hey, because of who her family is, it's obviously my fault. So much for Starfleet honesty."

Tristi twisted out of Phoenix's grip, who truth be told was not holding that tightly, and this time Tristi made it to Carly with a right hook that sent the cadet sprawling.
"I may be from the streets but I am no whore, you Slut!"

Phoenix grabbed her daughter and hauled her back and pushed her to a seat with a stern, "Sit down. Or else."

Clary wiped her mouth as she half lay sprawled on the cabin's metal floor. She spat out blood and rolled to her feet and the look she gave Tristi promised a heavy retribution.

"Cadet. Spare me the sob story as well as trying to lay guilt at our feet. No one has said you were guilty. Your words and actions are doing a fine job of showing how you feel. So much for compassion and understanding." He paused as Tristi hit Clary with a right hook that knocked Clary to the floor. "I'd strongly advise you to engage your brain before you speak cadet. Better yet, don't speak. Stand there and listen."

As Gary was speaking, Mattias hurried into the command tent. "Commodore?" He called out her rank, as she had called him by his. Then he saw Cadet Clary on the floor and Phoenix putting Tristi into a seat with a stern look. Then he saw Tristi's injuries. "Tristi!" He started towards her side, then looked at everyone present. "Someone mind filling me in? Phee, why does our daughter look like she's been fighting?"

"Because she has been," Phoenix replied as she turned to her executive officer.

"Captain, I feel that there is more to the cadet's story than she is saying."

Gary nodded, "I agree Commodore." He answered his eyes on Clary. "How about it cadet? Time to come clean. Get the whole story out without the name calling or trying to play the innocent injured party or the laying of guilt trips. Because that isn't going to work."

As the two of them spoke to Clary, Mattias looked at his daughter's injured face. "Are you okay, honey?" He asked softly.

Tristi nodded though her face was scratched and her left eye had a shiner. She glowered at Clary past Mattias.

Clary meanwhile was assessing her options. There was no way she was going to get out of this. So she chose to speak. "She was wandering outside the shuttle area near the landing padd. We spoke, and she didn't like the truth I spoke, so she told me to piss off and when I called her on it, she told me I reminded her of the madam of the whore house on Rigel X, I believe, that she must have lived there as she could describe her so well. She said I was fat, ugly and had bad fashion sense. So yes, I pushed her into a snow drift. And then she pulled me into it and we started fighting."

"You forgot to mention that you called me names, and said I sold my body for sex" Tristi snapped from where she was sitting.

Phoenix took a breath. "So you confess to behavior unbecoming of a Starfleet officer."

Clary's face went blank, "I expect no fair hearing here"

"The truth?" Gary questioned. So, you admit to calling Tristi names is that correct cadet? Names that you knew would get a violent reaction from her. Correct? I'm guessing you wanted a physical reaction from Tristi because you felt you were superior and you could take her but she fooled you and you got more than you bargained for."

Clary scoffed. "She is a gutter rat who will never amount to anything."

"I would suggest, Cadet that you shut your mouth were my daughter's heritage is concerned."

"But she isn't your daughter Commodore. She is not genetically related to you or to your husband. Unless of course, he was the one who got her mother pregnant." Clary replied.

Phoenix made sure she was between Mattias and the Cadet "Captain Taylor, if the cadet does not shut up, I will not be held responsible for what happens to her." she warned.

Gary glared at Clary. "Cadet why do you persist on being thick headed? The more you talk, the more trouble you make for yourself. Your words and unrepentant attitude aren't making you any friends. Keep your mouth shut. Not another peep." He held his hand up to stop anything Clary might say. NOT ANOTHER PEEP." He warned.

Mattias saw Phoenix tense up and gently placed his hand on her shoulder to stop her from moving. The anger that was boiling up in him was quickly replaced by a dangerous coolness. Turning, he stepped over to the cadet, staring down at her with a silence that could make Death uncomfortable.

Clary had of course heard rumours about the man the Commodore had married.

"Cadet Harrison" he finally spoke, his voice holding a power that was unmistakable. "There are many things I am feeling in this moment. But the biggest one is pity. I pity you. Clearly, you did not have parents that cared about you enough to teach you any manners. I pity you for not knowing how to behave like an adult. Most of all, I pity you for clearly feeling threatened by my daughter. And yes, though she and I do not share any genetic material, I have fully and officially adopted her. So, she is my daughter for all of time. If this is how you chose to behave, as a cadet, then I seriously doubt there is any future for you in Starfleet. I would strongly suggest you keep your mouth shut for the rest of the time we are out here, if you want any chance of repairing your future." He gave her a look that showed her just how small she really was, then returned to his family.

The cadet was pale as she stood there. She had gambled and lost.

Gary tapped the desk with his hand to bring Clary's attention back to him. "Cadet Harrison. Needless to say but I will. I think it's clear that you have disappointed everyone here. As a Starfleet Cadet and hopefully one day a Starfleet officer. You are held to a higher standard than most and in this case, you failed to live up to that standard. Now, the question is what do I do with you? People make mistakes, we all do. However, the key is to learn from those mistakes. So, you will remain a cadet, but you will be put on probation until I say otherwise. This is your wakeup call Clary. Make the most of it." He leaned backed and studied the young woman. Now, as to your punishment." He let the statement hang in the air.

The Commodore watched Gary and the Cadet closely as The XO spoke.

"Cadet Clary Harrison, your punishment shall be as follows. You will pull four extra shifts a week for the next four months. You are also restricted to your tent when you are not on duty or eating." Gary spoke firmly but not harshly to Clary. He sincerely hoped she straightened up and learned from this incident. "In addition, you will write a formal letter of apology to the Commodore and Captain Richardson, for your thoughtless remarks concerning Tristi being their daughter. The letter will be completed and delivered to the Commodore here within a week from today." He paused. "It is my sincere hope that you use this incident to learn and grow and become the officer we all know you can be." Gary finished.

Phoenix watched quietly as Gary spoke. She nodded with approval. "Tristi will not escape punishment for returning fire at you cadet." She stated calmly. But they all knew it would be less. Phoenix looked at Gary. "We will take Tristi back to our tent Captain."

Gary returned the nod, "Of course Commodore." He turned back to Clary. "Cadet, go with security to the medical tent and get your scratches and eye looked at."

Clary saluted and stalked out with her security escort behind her.

Mattias put his left arm around Tristi's shoulders and guided her back out of the Command Tent, then took her back to their family tent. Any reprimands that Phoenix and he would give their daughter could wait until they were alone.

Phoenix nodded her thanks at Gary and followed her family from the cabin. She was steaming on the inside but she held it back.

~OFF~