Finding Finchley Pt 1

Posted on Sunday November 27th, 2022 @ 7:44pm by Lieutenant Finchley Kerr & Lieutenant Commander Niali Deval Dr

Mission: Shore Leave
Location: USS Oberon
Timeline: Post shore leave

[ON]

Niali sat in her quarters for a while after Karadis had left. The more she sat the more she began to worry and feel responsible for encouraging Finchley’s dark mood. ~why the hell had she treated him the way she had when they had returned from their secret mission> Why did she not realise he had been demoted~ of course she knew. She still loved him and somehow had made him responsible for her feelings. ~what a cold bitch I have been~ she thought.She knew she had to find him before he hurt himself as, she thought no doubt the way he was feeling he easily could do. She quickly changed into a fresh uniform. The first thing to do was the easiest. She tapped her com =/\= Korial to Kerr please answer?=/\= she waited and waited and repeated the action to no avail. “Right!” She exclaimed to herself and tapped her com twice for a ship wide announcement=/\= this is Executive Officer Korial to all crew, please inform me if anyone has seen Lieutenant Finchley Kerr in the last twelve hours?=/\=

Finchley sat on the floor, phaser held loosely in his hand. He'd heard Niali call him across the COMM a couple of times but ignored her, he wasn't in the mood to talk to her. The next message was to the crew to ask if anyone had seen him within the last twelve hours, but he'd been careful to crawl through the Jeffries tubes but not before disengaging the tracker on his badge. It would still allow him to hear messages, even reply, but no-one could track him through the ship.

"You're too late Korial, you showed me how things were going to be at our return" and he set the phaser to heavy stun.

Somehow she knew that he had heard her and she slammed her hand onto the table beside her. “Blast him, if I have to crawl through every Jeffries tube in the bloody ship I will.” She tapped her comm again once “Finchley, it’s Niali, I know you can hear me. I am so sorry for the way I treated you, and I am not even going to try to excuse my actions. Know that seeing you again brought all the feelings I thought I had left behind rushing back. Let me help you, tell me where you are…….” She waited hoping. “Please Finchley, you can beat me up, anything I don’t care. I love you, let me prove it too you, forgive me my love?” She left those words hanging in the air and waited hopefully.

He tapped his COMM badge "Is your conscience getting the better of you Commander, I thought you Counsellor...even ex-Counsellor, types were meant to be able to rationalise your thoughts, compartmentalise them, not get emotionally involved? Didn't Command school teach you that the ship and the job comes first and everything second? Well, it seems you took all that in very well, very well indeed. I don't want to beat you up, and don't give me the 'I love you' crap, you knew exactly what you were saying and doing at that meeting. You saw how beaten and tired Karadis and I were, but you couldn't help yourself, you had to show who was boss. You could have said any number of things without being an Ice Maiden, but that was how you wanted to play it, and you wanted to play it that way. I hate you Niali, now leave me alone, don't try and ease your conscience now, you've burnt that bridge. If you're looking to save face to help someone, help Karadis."

“I know you don’t hate me Finchley and I have no excuses for how I treated both of you. I have made my peace with Karadis and now YOU need me. Where are you, tell me so I can come to you and you can tell me to my face.” She paused, she was beginning to feel scared about the outcome of this. Then, she had a thought.

Closing her link with Finchley she retapped. =/\= Lieutenant Commander Korial to ops com =/\= a voice answered, Bates here Sir. Niali continued. Lieutenant Bates I am having a comm conversation with someone and I do not know where they are. Can you triangulate their comm position so I can beam myself in?” There was a pause. “That would be quite difficult Sir, I’m not saying it can’t be done but, yes I could probably put a trace on the comm signature. You would have to keep that person talking though. “Thank you Lieutenant, I am about to contact them again so please try, Korial out =/\= Niali sighed. If he didn’t answer then there was only one thing to do and that was to find him.

The door to the room opened and Karadis walked in "So, you're still being an arse then?"

"Keep out of this Karadis, it has nothing to do with you" Finchley replied.

"Self-pity was never you're strong suit Bird" Karadis replied, using his familiar.

"Arrogance has always been yours though" Finchley retorted.

Karadis shrugged her shoulders and continued to walk over to him, turn and slide down the wall to sit beside him "What's this?" she said, pointing to the phaser "A last grandiose gesture that the universe is against you...again!"

"Something like that" Finchley replied.

She slapped his wrist hard, and the phaser fell to the floor "Get over yourself you ape, what the hell will it achieve except a foot note that nobody will care about?"

"Owww!" Finchley yelped "That bloody well hurt!"

Karadis cuffed him round the ear "It was meant to, you're being an arse as I said."

Finchley leaned his head back on the wall "I suppose you're right."

"And Niali, I heard what you said?" Karadis replied.

"I meant every word" Finchley said "And how did you know where I was.?"

"You'd go where it would be the last place anyone would look, I said so to Niali, so, the Counsellors Office was it because you never ask for help, you just pretend to cope" Karadis said.

"I'm that predictable?" Finchley asked.

"Yes Bird, you're that predictable, well, to me anyway" Karadis replied.

"So what now?" Finchley asked.

"You talk to Niali" Karadis said.

"Oh no, not a chance, she's burnt her bridges, she took.." Finchley began to say.

"She took her feelings out on you, yes, but can't you see why?" Karadis retorted.

"And she's allowed to do that, but I'm not?" Finchley said, beginning to sound annoyed.

"No, you're not!" Karadis said shouted "She still loves you, though I don't know why!"

"Well it's too late for that nonsense, she's made her bed and she can bloody well lie in it!" Finchley said.

Karadis tapped her COMM badge "Karadis to Korial, com to the Chief Counsellors Office, someone wants to speak to you."

"No I don..." was as far as Finchley got before Karadis right fist smacked into his jaw.

"Sorry for the interruption there Commander, we'll see you shortly" Karadis ended, closing the link.


TBC.....

Lieutenant Commander Niali Korial Dr
Executive Officer
USS Oberon

&

Lieutenant Finchley Kerr
Intelligence Officer
USS Oberon