Ensign Mi'shune sh'Sonora - The Shifting Attitudes of Generations
d.reinhart
Foster: I saw the reports, you had some fancy flying this mission.
sh’Sonora: Oh, that? Yeah! ::She begins to chatter excitedly.:: I mean, I did train at the academy flight school annex in Marseilles. Almost made fighter pilot too, but they only had so many slots and I was narrowly beaten out by one of the Vulcans. ::shrugs:: Still, most fighter jocks go through their entire career without any action, and here I was dogfighting pirates on my first mission! I bet they’d lose their minds to know I’m the first with a confirmed kill, much less two!
Foster: Did you enjoy it?
Alarmed, her antennae stiffened and pointed to the sky. The Andorian helmswoman was unprepared for Foster’s question, as she hadn’t fully processed the incident. She remembered the fear, the anger, the intensity, and the idleness that threatened to boil over here keyed up emotions like a superheated plasma containment bottle. There was also the joy of success, the adrenaline rush of high-g maneuvers, the firing of her imagination as she tried to outthink and outfight the enemy.
Her answer was simple. Answering it was not, as it all depended on the reaction of the person who asked her. Andorians were a warrior race, proud of their martial accomplishments. Terran attitudes were only a few centuries away from post-apocalyptic trauma, so celebrating ending the corporeal existence of another one of the gods’ creations was looked on with regret and shame.
She had to admit both attitudes warred within her for dominance. What did she really make of her dogfight?
Mi’shune decided on honesty.
sh’Sonora: It’s complicated. I’m still trying to process it. I’m aware that I may have ended lives and went through some incredible danger. But overall? Yes. I enjoyed it. I always enjoy a good fight, especially when it’s for a righteous cause. ::Her antennae sagged downwards as she looked at Wyn apologetically.:: I’m sorry if I disturbed you, but that sums it up.
He shrugged, not looking especially flustered by it.
Foster: I guess I’m pretty hard to disturb. I grew up on a starship and I’ve met all kinds of officers. I’d say you have an enthusiasm for doing what is right and I’m ok with that.
If there was one place that Wyn felt truly comfortable, it was Starfleet. A starship or starbase felt more like home than any planet he had been on.
Mi’shune, expecting to be either chastised or praised for her sanguine approach to the grim realities of her duties, was taken off guard. Foster’s matter-of-factly attitude was, for all his cultural upbringing, surprisingly Andorian.
sh’Sonora: I mean, don’t get me wrong, if I could do a non-lethal method of threat control I will, but during our mission I found I chose efficiency over safety without much thought. I didn’t want to frell around. I saw a threat, I wanted to end it as quickly as possible. It’s frightening, you know?
Foster: There was a lot going on with Capricalia. Pirates, Romulans, Starfleet and a new lifeform. It’s a lot to process.
What came to mind with the young Andorian ensign was the image of two Capricalians, floating in space next to their ruined runabout, dead from execution wounds, and the emotions that came over her. Shock, then anger, then a cold resolve to end the threat.
No doubt it colored her decision making process.
sh’Sonora: Especially for a first mission. But you know what really bothered me? It’s that I may not have a Starfleet attitude about it.
She paused to accept her order from the waiter, trying the Dirty Rakdejino Chai, savoring its spiciness as it hit her olfactory senses.
sh’Sonora: I mean, we’re taught to stay our hand, to show compassion, and always find a peaceful solution. At least, that’s what’s taught in the textbooks. And some of our older professors held that ‘60s and ‘70s attitude. Yet I was taught by Dominion War veterans, and they have a more… cynical edge. Frell, my generation has that cynicism. As a kid I hear about the Borg Invasion, the Romulan collapse, how the universe has turned into such a dangerous place. And our newer instructors know that. They taught us not to frell around, don’t give the universe a chance to be a danger, beat them before they beat you. And I saw that contrast, in myself, versus the views of Lieutenant Willow. And in retrospect… It's frightening. I found her views and methods to be too soft, but is that true, or am I being too willing to be hard, to be violent? Sir, I’m not sure.
Foster: ?
Ensign Mi’shune sh’Sonora
Helm Officer
Starbase 118 - Ops Department
O240208MS1