Posted by Lieutenant Faye Calloway (Mission Specialist) in CSO’s Office - Questions over questions

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Kiama Naim ((A) Chief Science Officer) in CSO’s Office - Questions over questions

Posted by Lieutenant Faye Calloway (Mission Specialist) in CSO’s Office - Questions over questions
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

“Thank you, Lieutenant,” Kiama said once Faye had stopped talking. She then turned the PaDD around once more and quickly added those items to her list. Looking up again, she continued, “Do you have any questions? Either regarding this mission or about anything else?”

~Lt.jg. Naim, aCSO

Calloway shook her head. “Nope. Now that I know you’re not going to kibosh my garden project, I’m good. And as long as you’re also good with my continued weird department access and people just let me get on with my work, we’ll get along just fine.”

~Faye Calloway, Data Scientist

“I will,” Kiama replied with a nod. “I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t wish I’d be able to know about it. And yet I understand that that isn’t possible and that you get your orders from higher up. And that’s okay. Just …” She hesitated slightly and then continued, “keep me in the loop where possible and while I don’t think that will be an issue: I’d rather hear ‘I can’t tell you’ than a lie. I know I’m a very curious person and not knowing something doesn’t always come easy to me. I’ll do my best not to get on oyur nerves or in your way. But if I do: tell me.”

~Lt.jg. Naim, aCSO

“Oh, you’ll know,” Faye said with some amusement. Huh, one of the 600 people on board who hasn’t heard that part about me, she thought, for a moment forgetting the woman before her was a telepath. Oops. Oh well. But there was no point in qualifying the comment as she had no idea if Naim was an ‘active listener’ as she liked to call them, but if she was, then she was going to learn way more about Faye than most people wanted to.

“Good,” Kiama replied with a slightly crooked smile. And as usual her mental shields were up so that she wouldn’t hear what everyone around her was thinking. Apart from the fact that that could get distracting and that one didn’t always want to know, it was important to her to respect people’s privacy.

“And I don’t lie. I might be a lot of things, but a lier isn’t one of them,” Calloway said more seriously.

~Faye Calloway, Data Scientist

Kiama nodded and said, “I didn’t think you were. I simply became more … cautious over the years, I guess.” She shrugged slightly while also smiling apologetically. She sometimes missed her childhood naivety and complete and unwavering trust in everyone. But of course she also knew that it was normal and healthy to change.

Faye snorted. “Don’t you worry yourself there Lieutenant. I was never much of the trusting kind, so I won’t take it personally. This time.” She was only half joking, though she kept a straight face.

Pursing her lips slightly, her eyes somewhat narrowed, Kiama looked at Faye for a few moments, deep in thought as she pondered whether or not there was something else that they should discuss. Eventually she said, “I think mission-wise that is it for now. Unless you have something?”

~Lt.jg. Naim, aCSO

Calloway shook her head and pushed herself to her feet. “Nope. But I call that a successful meeting. I’ll start gathering stuff for the away team.”

~Faye Calloway, Data Specialist

Mimicking Faye, Kiama rose to her feet as well. “Thank you, Lieutenant. I have a couple of things I need to finish first, but then I’ll give you a hand with that,” she said with a warm smile. Part of her wished Faye would stay a bit longer and they could talk some more. Yet she also knew that time was of the essence. And sure this wouldn’t be the last chance they’d ever get to have a conversation.

~Lt.jg. Naim, aCSO