The artificial starlight of the Kihtomer’s observation lounge streaked past the viewports, a dizzying blur of warp travel. Lieutenant Valerius stood with her back to the room, staring out at the shifting cosmos, her reflection tight-jawed in the transparisteel.
Behind her, Ensign Jax shifted uncomfortably. The young Deltan, usually radiating an effortless, empathic warmth, currently felt like a storm cloud of defensive anxiety.
“Lieutenant, I really think you’re overreacting,” Jax said, his voice smooth, trying to soothe the tension he could palpable feel. “It was a casual conversation in Ten Forward. Everyone shares stories.”
Valerius turned slowly. “Everyone shares their own stories, Jax. Not the confidential medical history of their superior officer regarding a failed coherence therapy session.”
“I didn’t give them the file specs,” Jax argued, stepping closer, his large eyes pleading for understanding. “I just mentioned you were struggling with the synaptic readjustment after the mission on Seti IV. I was expressing concern. My people, we believe in open burdens. Keeping pain locked inside is… unhealthy.”
“And among my people—and in Starfleet regulations—we believe in privacy and trust,” Valerius countered, her voice clipped.
The issue wasn’t just the gossip; it was the erosion of the mentor-mentee dynamic they had built over six months. Valerius had let her guard down, allowed Jax a glimpse of the trauma beneath her disciplined exterior, relying on his implied maturity.
“Look, Val,” Jax tried a different tactic, using her given name, trying to leverage their friendship against her rank. “I’m sorry it upset you. I truly am. But you have to understand my intent wasn’t malicious. You can’t hold a grudge just because my cultural baseline for sharing is different than yours. It’s just how I am.”
There it was. The deflection. The attempt to use his inherent nature as a “get out of jail free” card for violating her trust. He wanted the closeness of their friendship—the engagement—without owning the damage his carelessness had caused. He wanted forgiveness without acknowledging the fault.
Valerius took a step back, physically re-establishing the professional distance between them. The warmth of their previous camaraderie evaporated, replaced by the cold vacuum of space outside.
“Your intent is irrelevant when the outcome is a breach of my trust, Ensign,” Valerius said. “You want the privileges of my friendship and the access of a trusted subordinate, but when you misstep, you hide behind your species’ reputation for openness instead of simply saying, ‘I was wrong, and I will fix it.’”
She looked him squarely in the eye, her shields firmly back in place.
“I don’t accept engagement that bypasses accountability. Until you learn the difference between ‘sharing burdens’ and violating privacy, our interactions will remain strictly professional. Dismissed.”
WE&P by: EZorrillaMc&Co
Travel in Life 