Commander Ash MacKenna - Irreplaceable

[Marissa Jeffrey]

((Captain's Ready Room, USS Arrow))

There was much that could be taken from a single look between those who truly knew each other. That was exactly the case just a moment ago on the bridge, as he'd looked at her and already surmised the tone of what she had to say. As the doors hissed closed, she walked up and stood in front of his desk, her fingertips just resting on its surface.

MacKenna: It's true, isn't it?

Her voice was soft and unaccusatory, simply seeking confirmation or correction. Neither would come in that moment, at least not yet.

Shayne: Before anything else, please know I appreciate you bringing it in here.

Ash took the multi-edged reminder as just that. Never again would there be a compromising situation caused by her hand on the bridge of her fiance's ship. Above all, he was captain, and to remain that required more than just physical force. Indeed, the role maintained an aura that could not be matched by just anyone sitting in that center chair. There was a kind of mystery, and inherent unknown for any who would question the ultimate statement made, that came with the one who belonged there. 

Still, his lack of denial spoke volumes of the answer she was seeking. If emeralds could burn, that would be the feel of her gaze just then.

MacKenna: Your place is on the bridge, leading all of this. The captain is not replacable. 

Not to the ship, nor to her personally. Perhaps that was what fed the fire in her eyes and made her argument that much deeper.

Shayne: Commander, the mission is launching in a matter of hours. We do not have the time, and I do not have the inclination, to make major changes at this juncture.

Had he just been her commanding officer, she'd file a formal complaint and call it a day, but Shayne was more than that to her. At the end of the day, if anyone could help him see the other side of his actions, it would be her, and to that, perhaps it was her duty.

MacKenna: You mean you've made up your mind and you're going no matter what.

The statement had taken on a bit of an accusatory tone because it was the truth. There were few things that could come between a person and their truth.

Shayne: Response?

Ash was not loud, she was not one to fight, and in a confrontation, she'd normally back down and find the shadows from which to strike. With him, she'd found a voice, though it was rarely loud, and it was never something she used to say things she would later regret. She simply wished him to consider the other perspectives.

MacKenna: And in doing so, you risk leaving this ship without its captain. Without it's head. There are some of us who are utterly replaceable. If I die, SFI will assign another in my place and they will likely do just as good a job as I do. You are irreplaceable. 

Shayne: Response?

She raised an eyebrow at him.

MacKenna: That's just to the crew. To the ship. That's what matters in this equation and in this moment. 

But underneath, she was desperate to tell him that he was irreplaceable to her as well. Long ago she'd lost what was, perhaps, her first love to a death she didn't even have clearance to read about. The idea that she might lose another because he was stubborn and had to do things himself almost infuriated her to the point of terror. Fear was something they taught them to avoid and ignore, at least in the moment. She could be rightfully scared when all was said and done, but here and now, she focused on the ship and the crew.

Shayne: Response?

TAG/TBC

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Commander Ash MacKenna

Chief Intelligence Officer

USS Arrow

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