Is This the Party to Whom I Am Speaking? (part 2)
Posted on Thu 18th May, 2023 @ 8:02am by Jaroth Dieklin & Renato Solis & Kya Adtanis
1,081 words; about a 5 minute read
Mission:
Neither Yours Nor Mine
Location: Brown Sector Community Center
Timeline: MD-5, 0900 hours
Previously, on Starbase 109:
"You've been calling for a bloody hour?!" Dieklin's voice sounded startled and annoyed. "It shouldn't have taken nearly that long. I'm bringing...Just a sec. It'll be me and Radak. That should shut iiJep up. Be there in a few. Dieklin out."
Kya regretted her tone and the exaggeration, she had called twice, but it was closer to a half hour. With only six or so officers, they were always engaged in something, it was hard for them too. Losing patience, she walked to the door again, "iIjep, listen."
From behind the door his whining tone rattled through, "It's iiJep, you don't even know my name, that's not surprising."
There was a moment Kya felt an old feeling from an old life wash over her. She could see in her minds eye, the path to take from here was to push down the door, and drag him out by the hair. Her long-gone Husband had encouraged her to pursue these carnal feelings, his wild side was complementary to hers in the wrong ways. There was a lot of damage to answer for in her past, and the knot forming in her stomach held Kya back. Water pooled in the corners of her eyes as she swallowed the urge, and simply tried one more time to be reasonable.
She said it carefully, "Iijep..."
He took a breath to cut her off, she didn't hear it but knew it was happening. She open-palm slapped the door, "iiJep, I'm not asking again. Do you really think this is at all sustainable? We are going to keep this pressure on you, there's people waiting for this room who have slept in a cargo bay the last month. There is a unit in the Souk, a bed, blankets, clothes, a locking door, solid walls-"
"Go away. I will keep my plans to myself and leave only if I am ready to."
Feeling the hot flames of murderous rage licking at her temples, Kya stepped away from the door. She didn't need to tell Tannis what to do. He just silently moved to stand at the door. It was up to Dieklin at this point, whatever happens, happens. She sent a text to Renato, updating him of the call. He replied right away, Set up the Nursery in the adjacent suite. Replace all food in fridge with baby mash, lower fixtures by six inches, add baby gates to every juncture. Tell the kids to call him "Uncle."
She laughed, a needed respite. It was a gift they gave one another, to be a rock when the other need the support. If Dieklin didnt get the job done, it was nice to have a Plan B.
Dieklin and Radak arrived about five minutes after Dieklin ended the call. They walked over to where Kya and Tannis were standing. "I'm guessing no progress?" Dieklin asked as Radak looked the place over.
Kya shook her head, “No. I’ve already begun clearing the area in case… yeah but … but I hate every second of this. I never imagined I’d be the one… I’ve been forced out of places before. It sucks.”
"Yeah, but you've been forced out of places when you had nowhere else to go. iiJep does have a place, and he needs to be living in it," Dieklin said. "Ready for me to try talking to him?"
Kya nodded, "Yes, just get him out of here."
iiJep had rotten timing, and started playing music loud enough to be heard well into the other rooms. The Talarians were a notoriously difficult people, but the mandate of Brown Sector was to house refugees, and iiJep had backed the Federation in a political scheme and lost. His asylum only granted him access to Federation space, nothing else. She hated this, he had no home and this was probably a fight for his life. Despite all she had put up with she still felt it necessary to add, "He has nothing, this is probably a fight he thinks he has to fight or he will suffer more loss. One can empathize."
Dieklin snorted. "He only thinks he has nothing because he refuses to see what he does have. I've seen people fight for their lives. That's not what this is. This is him being pissy. He's afraid of something, and I don't know what." He walked over to the door of iiJep's room and gave two sharp raps, both loud enough to be heard over the music. "iiJep, this is Dieklin. Turn the music down, or I will turn it down for you. We need to talk."
The music turned down, but the nonsense turned up. iiJep started to recite his legal standings for an as of now unknown number of times that day.
"I insist that my Citizen's Rights under Starfleet code (TBD) to occupy a space within the open floor plan of public sectors is enforced as this community center lies within the public floor plan structure under Starfleet Code zoned for refugees and no such tenancy terms can be established without consulting to my government first. As I have no other places to go, it can be considered criminal assault or cruelty to a person of Talarian citizenry which carries potentially an act of war in every transgression!"
Kya would hear it in her dreams at this point, and the Starfleet code was hazy on terms of what they were allowed to enforce with any vigor when it came to things like occupying specific dwellings. Within the Refugee zones no distinctions were recognized in records, many of their municipal guidelines had been copied or learned out of trial and error but carried little legal weight as it was not run through a Federation court when applied.
"I've heard it all before, iiJep; another repetition doesn't impress me. I would be impressed if you acted like a sensible grown man and told me what your real gripe is. Why don't you show me your room in the Souk and explain to me what's so awful about it?" Dieklin said. To his credit he didn't even roll his eyes, though Kya could see him almost start to a couple of times.
IiJep was rolling his eyes, “I haven’t seen it. I just know about it. It’s a metal can! There’s no bathroom, everyone there is a criminal-“
(To be continued.)
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