Sibling Rivalry

Posted on Mon 16th Apr, 2018 @ 11:18pm by

1,028 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Brushfires
Location: Dockside Cafe, Deck 215

"Henry," Suzuki called, waving. As the engineer came closer, she smiled and indicated the leg with the knee brace and the cane leaning against the edge of the table. "Forgive me for not getting up."

"It's OK my friend. How are you feeling?" Henry had looked over his friend after she had called his name. He was so happy that she was going to make a full recovery. At least physically. Over the years they had served together, Henry had seen how Suzuki carried the weight of command on her shoulders. And weigh on her it did. But, he also knew that weight came with an emotional cost. Not that Samurai's captain would ever say anything about it, but he could tell the moments when things took their toll on her.

Suzuki waggled a hand back and forth. "Some days are better than others," she answered aloud, before pointing to one of the chairs at the table. "Sit?"

"Of course." He said as he sat down with his friend and caught the eye of the waiter. "A Ginger Ale for myself." He said, then looked over to Suzuki. "Anything for you?"

Suzuki merely gestured at the mug on the table in front of her.

"Soooooo, Captain of a Starbase now?! Was that unexpected?" He asked as the waiter walked away from the table.

"Indeed," the Captain answered. "I had expected to be relieved of duty." She shrugged, and looked around. "Your sister was supposed to meet me here...."

"Oh?" The former Chief Engineer said with a little enthusiasm in his voice. "Have you read her file yet?"

Suzuki chuckled. "Henry, she's your sister. That tells me everything I need to know about her: she's hyper-competent, prone to blaming things on herself, and has a hard time relaxing."

Henry gave a chuckle so loud that other patrons of the cafe turned to see where the loud bellowing was coming from. "Oh my gosh. Is it like looking in a mirror? He asked with a huge smile on his face.

"You are right though. She will blame herself for things that go wrong. Especially when it comes to you." Henry leaned in closer to Suzuki.

"Although she had just gotten here, the death of Commander Drake surprised her. I wouldn't say she was rattled, but I don't thing she has ever had her commanding officer, someone she is responsible for die like that. It won't surprise me if she has created some new security protocols to make sure this doesn't happen again." Henry laughed again at this thought. "It wouldn't surprise me if you gained a new right hand."

Suzuki chuckled at the verbal jab and held up her right hand. "It wasn't the arm the roof fell on," she noted, levity dying.

Isabella made her way to the Cafe and saw her brother and new captain sitting at a table laughing at something. "What is Henry doing here?" She thought to herself with an uneasy feeling coming over. She knew her brother always had her best interest at heart, but for some reason she was not convinced that this was a coincidence. Nevertheless, she made her way over to the table where the two were sitting.

"Isabella Perry reporting for duty ma'am." She said as she presented herself straight as an arrow. Henry stifled a smile of pride as he watched his sister present herself. He knew every detail there was about his sister, but was always amazed by her professionalism and manner.

"Stand easy, Lieutenant." Suzuki pushed a chair out with her strong foot. "Better yet, sit easy." As Isabella sat, Suzuki watched Henry watching Isabella. "Now, Henry, I understand you already have a route back to Earth planned out, but I'm afraid you're going to have to cancel it."

A puzzled look came across Henry's face as he heard his former captain. "Oh?" He said. "Why is that?"

Suzuki dug in the thigh pocket of her trousers. "New orders," she informed him. She pulled out a PADD, glanced at its face to be sure it was showing the right file, and slid it across the table to him. "Commander Henry Perry," she recited from memory, "you are hereby requested and required to proceed to Starbase 109, there to accept cognizance over, and responsibility for, Pre-Commissioning Unit Samurai. Fail not, at your peril."

A wave of emotion cam over Henry and he did not quite know how to react to it. He looked over at Isabella and then back to Suzuki. Even Isabella was a little shocked to see her brother at a loss for words.

Henry quickly gathered himself and got his emotions under control. "Ma'am it would be an honor to accept this responsibility. Samurai has been of our home for years. She gave us shelter and brought us home after every mission. It will be my privilege to make sure she is taken care of properly."

Suzuki tossed the second thing she'd fished out of her pocket onto the table beside the PADD. A jagged-looking strip of metal with a wider head had a split ring threaded through a hole. Also attached to the ring was a flexible metal cord, and at the end of the cord, a six-centimeter representation of a Sovereign class starship. "I know you will, Henry." She paused. "What? You didn't know there was a key?"

"Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha. Of course there is a key." He said as he picked the key ring up. "I will let you know when it is time for the final walk-through Captain."

Henry stood and gave his sister a wink and bent over to whisper something in her ear. "Relax." He said to her. "You two will be fine. I promise."

Isabella smiled and was so thankful for her brother. He had always been there for her, even when she didn't know it.

Henry faced the captain and gave her a warm smile."Captain, now that I am gonna be here for a while, I would love to have dinner with you and your lovely wife when you all are up to it. "

"I'll keep it in mind," the Captain said with a smile.

 

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