From: MFielding@AOL.COM
Date: Mon, 7 Jul 1997 11:06:32 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: USS CHESAPEAKE: A Howling Good Time
MD 9.1200
Scene: Outside Murray's Office
Murray decided that she needed a walk. She simply couldn't concentrate
any more; she needed to think. She stopped, shaking her head, thinking about
her department. Especially Fielding and Sereh. Especially Sereh.
She knew that they weren't interested in hurting her. She knew that
Sereh was acting as she had been brought up. She knew that Fielding was only
trying to be nice. She knew all of that. It didn't help.
Finally, she couldn't control her anger anymore. Blindly, she swung at
the wall, the mettalic resonance making her feel a little better. The sudden
sound of footsteps behind her made her feel a little worse.
Murray spun around. "Er... th'Tellan. Good afternoon."
"Murray. <Pause.> That's just great. Is there a senior officer
present that DOESN'T want to do damage to the ship."
{Careful.}
Hey, you're back. How was vacation?
{I'm torn. On the one hand, I feel like I should have stayed longer. On the
other hand, I probably should have been present for those "let's attack the
other characters" posts of yours.}
Yeah, yeah. By the way, is Robert J Twanluffel really your name?
{Yeah, but you can call me Dave.}
Dave? How did....
"Excuse me," th'Tellan said. "I'd like to finish this post sometime in
the next decade."
Sorry.
Murray became flustered. "I've just.... I've had a hard couple of
days. Is that all right with you?" The look that th'Tellan gave her caused
her to back down quickly. "I'm sorry...."
"No, I'm sorry. I haven't had the best couple of days myself. Just a
few minutes ago, I had to chew out another officer. I hope I wasn't too hard
on her, it's just that the damage she did is one more thing for my department
to worry about. Plus, she was almost killed by rats."
"Rats?"
"Yeah, big white ones. She was hunting them. I gather you're supposed
to eat them. <Pause.> And I thought Klingon eating habits were disgusting."
Murray nodded. "Well, I must admit that I haven't needed to yell at
any of my staff about eating rats. Yet. <Pause.> I guess that I'm just a
little upset about the way things have been going."
"Would you like to talk about it?"
"I.... I don't think that would be necessary."
th'Tellan shrugged. "If you say so. I just wanted to help."
"Well, I don't need help!" Murray was shocked at her own tone. "I'm
sorry, it's just that.... Everyone on this ship wants to help. They have
suggestions, and they make changes, and God Forbid they should consult me
about
it. Considering my track record on decisions, that's probably a smart move.
Just now, the counselor decided to help by placing all the administrative
and
personel duties in the hands of Fielding. I mean, what would you do in a
situation like that?"
"Before or after the celebration party?"
"I take it administration isn't your cup of tea."
"I've never felt deep lust for it, no. Usually, I leave most of the
administration work to the staff."
"That's not something I usually like to hear from the OPS station. I
thought you were supposed to be the person with the best productivity
record."
"But not the best administrative record. The aOPS does the
administration, the workers get to decide how to fix a problem without
talking
to the supervisors, and if any person has a problem, they can go right to
their
higher up without fear of punishment. <Pause.> It's actually an interesting
set of 20th century earth theories called Total Quality. <Pause.> I just
went
into lecture mode again, didn't I."
"Yes, but that's all right, I mean..." Murray wasn't used to
standing in the corridor talking with a Romulan officer who also happened
to be OPS about theories of labor management.
On the other hand, she didn't think it was necessarily *bad*.
"Well... that might work in Operations, I suppose," said Murray
uncertainly, "and I am certainly not saying that it won't work in Science.
However, FIELDING? He's so... so... how do I describe him?"
"You tell me," suggested th'Tellan calmly. "I don't know him."
"Well, the minute I left my office, *he* stepped in... and, all
of a sudden, everyone is working at close to maximum efficiency. I come
back on duty, and they're not doing *anything*..."
"You think he makes you look inefficient in comparison,"
summarized th'Tellan.
Murray shook her head. "I don't know. I just...."
th'Tellan smiled. "You know, I can always help you. If you'd like,
I'll start lesson one right now."
"Lesson one?"
"You obviously need to learn some things. Here's lesson one. Just
follow me. We're going to relearn th'Tellan's first law."
Oh yes, Murray thought. th'Tellan's first law. Go insane as fast as
possible. The only way to save your sanity. I thought I already fulfilled
that. "Where are we going?"
"You'll see. It's a surprise."
"A surprise? Come on, where are we going?"
th'Tellan looked at her for a second. "You should also learn patience
as soon as you can. <EG> Come on, don't you like surprises? You aren't the
kind of person who reads the last page of a mystery book first, are you? The
kind who peeks at her presents? Of course not. That's why I'm not going to
tell you."
{Note to Masako: This is not to imply that you or your character doesn't
appreciate surprises. Not that there's anything wrong with that.}
th'Tellan finally walked to a holodeck, pressed a few buttons, and then
ushered Murray in. "This is ch'Havran, better known as Romulus." th'Tellan
looked at the starry sky, the sparkling lake, and the crisp green mountains.
"Underneath that mountain is our main power plant; we're big on ecology and
aesthetics back home. Usually, I come here to relax and enjoy the beauty.
Today, we're here for that." th'Tellan pointed to the large full moon.
{Oh, no. Not this. Dammit, Melvin, you promised.}
"You remember what I told you before about moon howling, right."
{NO! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!}
"Yeah, I'll never forget.... Wait a minute. You don't seriously
mean....."
th'Tellan lifted his head back and let out a howl that would chill any
blood and please any desert creature. When he finished, he looked at Murray.
"Your turn."
Murray started to back out. "Yes, well maybe next week. Gee, look at
the time...."
"Look, Anne. I can call you Anne, right. Look, I'm serious. You've
really got to loosen up, try to be spontaneous. If anyone makes fun of you,
they're making fun of me as well."
"It's just that.... Oh, I don't know if I should."
{Do it. Do it. Do it.}
"I'm not going to make you do it. That would defeat the purpose. So
if you don't feel comfortable.... <Mock EG> Or if you're chicken."
"Oh, all right Avi. If it'll make you feel better." Murray struggled
to get a little courage, took a deep breath, and let out a short sound.
"Oh, that's great. You sound like a mongoose. Come on, use the
diaphram. That's it, you're getting closer. One more time. Perfect."
Murray started to crack up. "I'm sorry. It's just that.... Well,
this is...."
She was glad to see th'Tellan was laughing too. "Don't worry about it.
From what I understand, it's the first time that you've laughed since you
got
here." th'Tellan howled again and Murray followed suit.
Murray began to realize that her problems didn't hurt so much. Not
Sereh, not the Counselor, not the problems in her department. Not even
Mallory. She was laughing and howling at the moon and going insane and she
didn't give a damn.
Finally, they both settled down. "Do you feel better?" th'Tellan
asked.
Murray nodded. "How about you?"
th'Tellan smiled wider. "Much."
Respectfully submitted,
Melvin Pollack
LCDR Avikar th'Tellan
OPS/2O
USS CHESAPEAKE NCC-31813
with some additions by
Masako Goto
LT Anne Murray, Ph.D.
CSciO
USS CHESAPEAKE NCC-31813
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