Some hours after transferring to the Ark Angel…

Ensign Waryn’s check-in with medical had gone well, and he was in the turbolift heading down to the Chief Counselor’s office. At this rate, I’ll have all these mandatory requirements out of the way early, which will let me spend extra time down in engineering learning the ship and the department.

The eager young ensign was already thinking about how that would go when the turbolift doors opened and his train of thought was derailed entirely. Ensign Tora Kelby?

He only caught a glimpse of her before she turned a corner. The tall, athletic, Andorian woman was a couple of years ahead of him at the academy. He didn’t know her personally, but she became semi-famous as the Captain of the Velocity team.

Tora’s younger sister was in Izak’s year group, however, and they were part of the same team during a Warp Core Dynamics midterm. Izak attempted a shortcut to fix their problem, and Cadet Quina Kelby got seriously hurt. She survived, but she ended up leaving the Academy.

A pit formed in Ensign Waryn’s stomach. How did I not realize Tora was stationed on the Ark Angel? Just the sight of Quina’s sister brought back some very painful memories of his worst time at the Academy. Luckily, she hadn’t seen him… he wasn’t sure how he would have handled it if she had confronted him.

Some days after transferring to the Ark Angel…

Ensign Waryn was eating dinner with Ensign Boras. The two engineers met during Izak’s check-in with the Chief Engineer and had become fast friends. The Arkarian’s calm demeanor helped balance out the Brekkian’s eagerness a bit.

Since the pair were just coming off of Gamma Shift, it was technically breakfast for most of the crew. Izak was never one to turn down breakfast, and was eating his second bowl of groat porridge drizzled in syrup.

“I can’t believe you’re heading back to Main Engineering. You just got off shift!” Boras said as he shook his head.

“I keep telling you…” Izak paused to shovel another spoonful of porridge into his mouth. “The pace is a lot different during Alpha Shift. Faster. More dynamic. I feel like I can learn a lot there.”

Boras snorted. “You’re the only engineer I know who volunteers to work double shifts.”

“I don’t work the whole shift-” Ensign Waryn paused midsentence when he saw Ensign Kelby sit down a few tables over. He swallowed what he was about to say and looked around nervously. He still hadn’t talked to her yet. Izak knew she would be angry that he got Quina hurt and wasn’t ready to deal with that. Certainly not in the mess hall during a meal.

“I should actually head to Engineering now.” Ensign Waryn said as he hurriedly picked up his tray and stood. “I don’t want to miss Lt Riley’s morning brief.”

Izak turned his back to Ensign Kelby’s table and quickly left the room while trying not to draw any attention to himself.

Some weeks after transferring to the Ark Angel…

Ensign Waryn boarded the shuttle for the away mission, providing emergency relief to an out-of-the-way outpost. The door closed behind him, indicating the shuttle would be taking off soon. He glanced around, and his stomach dropped as he saw the only empty seat. Or, more specifically, who the seat was next to.

Tora Kelby.

The young brekkian shook his head and clenched his jaw. It had to happen sooner or later. I guess I should just get this over with.

Izak walked toward the seat like he was walking toward his doom. Every step seemed to have the weight of finality. He sat down with a grimace, stowing his tool kit under his chair before he straightened up and looked her in the eyes.

He was startled to see that she was smiling. “Hey! I’m Tora Kelby. Seismic stabilization team.” She extended her hand, even though the angle was awkward as they sat next to one another.

“Uh… Izak Waryn, generator repair team.” He shook her hand as he felt the shuttle take off. She doesn’t recognize me? They didn’t exactly move in the same circles back at the academy, but he was sure Quina would have said something after the incident.

“I’ve done over a dozen away missions, but I get excited for each one.” She was just as confident as he remembered from the Academy. He’d actually forgotten that sense of unbridled optimism that seemed to infect anybody she was with. Though at the moment, that was at odds with the feeling in Izak’s gut that told him the other shoe would drop at any second. “Missions like this are what Starfleet is all about, you know?” Tora continued.

“Uh… yeah.” He couldn’t believe that she didn’t know who he was. Ensign Waryn certainly wasn’t going to bring it up. “This is my third away mission… and the first one planet-side. I guess I’m pretty excited too.”

Tora chuckled. “They sure like to keep you Engineering types cooped up down there… but I’m glad they let you out every once in a while. I’m not arguing, though… my replicator has always worked, and the sensors are always calibrated.”

“You’re welcome?” Ensign Waryn replied, still a little unbalanced by the situation.

“It might not be cutting-edge scientific exploration, but you spanner boys are the unsung heroes of Starfleet.” This was a familiar jab. Part of the friendly rivalry between departments. Izak couldn’t help but respond.

“I’d like to see you do all that science without those sensors you mentioned.” He said with a smirk. “And let’s not forget warp drive, for without it you’d be stuck conducting your scientific studies in your backyard on Andoria.”

Tora laughed again, and the banter continued until the shuttle landed a short time later.

The two split up to join their respective teams. The conversation had been entirely pleasant, if it weren’t for the pit in Izak’s stomach. Tora looked enough like Quina that he couldn’t help but think about her and what his actions cost the former cadet.

She didn’t recognize him, but he still made it a point to grab a different seat…or maybe a different shuttle altogether… for the ride back to the Ark Angel. He might have survived this meeting unscathed, but there was no use tempting fate.

Some months after transferring to the Ark Angel…

Izak took another sip of his Bajoran ale and still couldn’t wipe the grin off his face. 18 Forward was crowded and raucous as those in attendance celebrated the recent round of promotions onboard. Some sat at tables talking with a few friends, while others stood in large groups and swapped animated stories with one another.

“Congratulations, Lieutenant!” A new Security Lieutenant said as he walked by… it had become something of a mantra amongst the newly promoted.

“And congratulations to you as well, Lieutenant!” Izak replied with a raise of his glass and a broad grin.

The newly minted Lt Izak Warn sat at a large table with a bunch of fellow engineers. Lieutenant Junior Grade! I can’t believe I’ve been promoted already! Izak was one of three engineers promoted, but the other two were both transferring to other duty stations. Tonight’s celebration was more of a going-away party for them, but the young Brekkian didn’t care. He was flying high tonight, and nothing was going to bring him down.

“Congratulations, Lieutenant!” Izak recognized the voice as Tora Kelby almost instantly, but his brain immediately fell into the night’s mantra as he spun his barstool around and stood up. They had crossed paths a handful of times over the last few months, though he avoided contact if he could. She was always friendly, and Izak managed to be polite, but that was about all his nerves could manage.

Tonight, however, a handful of drinks had managed to improve his mood as it slowed his cognition.

“And congratulations to you as well, Lieutenant!” Izak said cheerily. Lt J.G. Tora Kelby was with a handful of other Science Officers who were all talking and laughing about a holosuite program they were about to try. Izak was feeling his cups, and started talking to fill what he felt was an awkward silence. “I heard how you identified the characteristics of that gravity anomaly and helped devise a means to reduce it so we could rescue that trapped freighter. I’d say your promotion was well earned, Tora.”

She laughed the compliment off easily as her companions tried to pull her away again. “Thanks. But seriously, though, well done. You were what? A year behind me at the academy, right?”

“Two, actually,” Izak replied without thinking.

“Two years behind me?” Her eyebrows rose… but her friends ganged up on her and started dragging her away by both arms. “That’s even more impressive! My sister Quina was in that year… I’ll make sure to let her know you’re doing so well on your first tour!” She gave a somewhat apologetic smile as she was pulled out of 18 Forward.

Izak wasn’t paying attention anymore, though; his thoughts had turned inward and gone down a familiar, painful spiral. I was wrong… I guess there was something that could ruin tonight after all.

He knew it was only a matter of time before Tora mentioned him to her sister, and then she would realize that Izak was the reason Quina got hurt. He was the reason she left the academy. And to make matters worse, he was excelling at the very career he stole from her.

Some days before the Ark Angel arrived at Sans III…

“Crewman Wendel and Crewman Trias… you’ll be checking the calibration on the EPS converters in section 11A.” Chief Engineer Waryn was in Main Engineering, watching as the Shift Leader handed out assignments for the morning. He had a senior staff meeting to go to in 30 minutes, but he liked to be on the deck plates whenever he could. It helped him keep the pulse of the department.

He caught a glimpse of science blue out of the corner of his eye and turned to see Lt J.G. Tora Kelby standing there. Her lopsided smile was nowhere to be found. In its place was an angry frown coupled with a mean glare. So. It’s time. It took a lot longer than I thought it would. Even though he’d been mentally steeling himself for this moment for months, he already felt hollow inside as he thought about the upcoming confrontation.

Since being promoted, Lt Waryn had thrown himself into his work. Even more than before. That left him little free time and a much smaller chance of running into Tora… and yet it still happened. A random away mission together. Crossing paths in the gym and chatting briefly. Sharing a meal in an empty mess hall when they were both up at an odd time. He knew he was playing with fire… forming a budding friendship that he knew would explode eventually… but he didn’t know how to stop himself.

His appointment as provisional Chief Engineer solved one of those problems for him. Izak literally had no time for anything except work. He wanted to blame the job for his failure to find a way to tell Tora the truth too, but Izak knew it wasn’t the case.

If Tora was seeking him out now, she must have just heard from her sister, Quina.

The Shift leader stopped his brief and looked at Lt Waryn, but Izak gave him the nod to continue. He gestured Lt Kelby toward his office and followed her inside.

He was walking around behind his desk, subconsciously thinking it would afford him some sort of protection. The door shut before he could get there, and Tora jumped right in, “All this time!? All this time, and you didn’t tell me!” She didn’t shout, but her voice was seething with anger.

“I tried-” Izak started lamely.

“Bullshit!” She snapped. “It’s been months. Months!”

Izak winced. “I know. As time went on, it just got harder. I didn’t-” Tora cut him off again.

“I even spoke about Quina! I told you how worried I was for her, and you just sat there. You didn’t say a word.” She stopped speaking, but her eyes were an accusation all their own.

His heart was pounding in his chest, and Izak didn’t know what to do. He failed to bring it up multiple times because he was afraid of this moment. Even though he realized keeping it secret only made her anger in this moment worse, he still didn’t know what he could have done. Or what he could do now.

“I should have said it… I tried to tell you dozens of times… but that’s the single worst moment in my life.” He shook his head, knowing that was the wrong thing to say. “I don’t think what happened is something I can ever forgive myself for… so how could I expect you to? Especially after we started getting closer-“

“Enough!” This time, she did raise her voice. “I don’t want to hear it! You like to pretend like you’re a nice guy, but you don’t really care about anybody but yourself. Certainly not the people you hurt! You’re selfish! And a coward that is afraid of the truth.”

Her anger had built, but now she had let it out. Tora’s voice was once again controlled, but it was still scathing. “We’re done. I don’t want to hear from you ever again.”

Lt Kelby stormed out of the office, and Izak just stood there and watched her go. He didn’t know what to say to stop her. He didn’t know if there was anything he could say. Certainly, nothing that could make it better. He fell into his chair, emotionally drained, and yet still hurting. Izak felt like that was appropriate somehow.

He’d just hurt somebody he cared about, so he deserved to be miserable too.

Lt J.G. Izak Waryn - Chief Engineer - U.S.S. Ark Angel