[JP] Samantha Richards & Fleet Captain Addison MacKenzie - The Weight of the World
Samantha Richards
(( Outside the Captain's Ready Room - Deck 1, USS Artemis - A ))
When getting word that the Captain needs to speak with you, it makes you automatically wonder what you did wrong. When it’s followed with the word URGENT, you typically start to prepare yourself to see the inside of an airlock.
Sam hadn’t done anything that would prompt any disciplinary action. Unless her sickbay performance had caused some disgruntlement among the poor crew that saw it happen.
It was an easy decision to take Aven and Leera with her to speak with the Captain. She wouldn’t airlock a couple of cute babies… Right?
With the babies in her arms, she took a deep breath and activated the door chime.
MacKenzie: Come in…
The door opened and Sam cautiously stepped inside. On sight of the children, MacKenzie tried not to let her face drop. It wasn’t that she didn’t care for them, but the subject of their meeting was particularly sensitive, and the commanding officer didn’t know how the new mother would react, especially with her children present.
Richards: Hey there Captain. ::Holding up the twins:: Hope you don’t mind I brought some friends along. I figured now was as good a time as any for you to meet them.
MacKenzie: ::pointing for Sam to take a seat:: How are we all doing? Looks like everyone is happy for the most part?
Richards: Oh yeah, they are doing well. They eat, they sleep, they cry. ::beat:: To be fair so do I, but all things considered we are doing pretty okay.
She moved forward to take a seat.
MacKenzie: Well, in the words of a book I read when I was a kid, everyone poops. (beat) Listen, Sam, I’m not sure if you have any idea why I’ve asked to see you…
Richards: Uh, no. I actually don’t have any idea… ::Scrunching up her face a bit:: Is everything okay?
MacKenzie tried to muster a courageous face. The reality was, both as a commanding officer and as a physician, she was often tasked with issuing bad news to patients or officers, but it was always different when there were children involved.
MacKenzie: I received word that Commander Dakora’s runabout never made it to Betazed.
Richards: I- what do you mean? Like… It was attacked or something?
MacKenzie shook her head.
MacKenzie: We don’t know if it was destroyed or not. The only information I have suggests that any attempts to locate it have been unsuccessful so far. Can I assume that means you haven’t heard from him?
Sam instinctively held the babies closer to her. She was confused, worried and underneath of it all, she was angry.
Richards: No… I haven’t heard from him since he left. ::Shaking her head:: What does this mean? Are they looking for him?
MacKenzie: Starfleet has been looking for him. They’ve had ships trace his filed flight path and they haven’t found any sign of him. We don’t know what happened.
It felt like there was a heavy weight on Sam’s chest. It was hard to breathe, hard to think and even harder to keep herself from crying.
Richards: ::Swallowing hard:: What am I going to do… What if they never find him? ::Lowering her voice:: What if he never comes back…
MacKenzie: Well I don-
With a sharp breath, Sam stood up and walked around the desk, all but dropping the twins in MacKenzie’s lap.
Richards: Can you just hold them for a second?
MacKenzie grimaced slightly as she looked down at the children, each of which occupied one of her arms, and then proceeded to bounce them slightly, hoping the contents of their stomachs remained there. Sam, in the meantime, paced back and forth across the room, flapping her hands and mumbling to herself.
Richards: What do I do… Talos you stupid– ::Looking at the babies:: I can’t do this. Where are you… Why…
MacKenzie: I mean, he has a track record of unreliability…
It was true - the Betazoid royal had ducked in and out of the first officer’s post on the Artemis more than anyone she knew. When he was plugged in, he was great, but the unfortunate reality was that he was unplugged more often than not. And now, there were two children left in his wake.
Richards: ::Through gritted teeth:: Don’t you think I of all people know that?
Sam's anger was horribly misguided. And she knew it, but unfortunately for the Captain, she was the only one in the room that the frustrations could be pointed at– once again helping clean up the mess of her former First Officer.
The children in MacKenzie’s lap started to make gurgling noises, and she thought she could smell a rancid stench starting to emerge from one of them.
MacKenzie: The reality is we don’t know any more at this point. So the question now becomes, are you going to obsess over it and let it be the thing that eats away from you or are you going to channel that energy into those who need you?
She raised each of the children slightly, as much as her arms would let her… also hoping that Sam would catch a whiff of the newly laid bomb and offer to take over.
Richards: ::Throwing her hands out to her sides and letting them slap down on her legs:: It looks like I don’t have much of a choice do I? ::Getting louder:: Can’t you do something?!
The commanding officer raised her voice slightly.
MacKenzie: What more do you expect me to do that hasn’t already been done?
Richards: ::Yelling:: I don't know!
The tears began to fall. Tears of frustration. Tears of hurt. Tears of betrayal.
She dropped down into the chair, covering her face with her hands.
Richards: I’m sorry… This isn’t your fault. I- ::sighing:: I shouldn’t be taking this out on you.
MacKenzie: That’s quite true.
Using her sleeves to wipe off her face, Sam sat back up, catching a whiff of what she hoped was one of her kids and not the captain. She stood up and took a regretful deep breath.
Richards: If you hear anything please let me know. ::picking up Aven and Leera:: They need me.
MacKenzie: Yes, they do. I don’t know what’s happened to him, or if we’ll ever find out, but they need you now, more than ever. In the meantime, you have an entire ship of people here who care about you - and their - well beings. Don’t forget that.
Sam sucked in a sharp breath and nodded.
Richards: Thank you.
As she left the Captain Ready Room Sam felt the weight of the world in her arms as she choked back her emotions. There would be time for her to fall apart later. They needed her.
END
Samantha Richards
Civilian Scientist
((OOC RANK: Lieutenant JG))
USS ARTEMIS-A
A240103SR3
&
Fleet Captain Addison MacKenzie, M.D., Ph.D., FASFS
Commanding Officer
USS Artemis-A
Executive Council Member
V239601AM0