Posted by Captain Molly Holloway (Chief Intelligence Officer) in Trouble in Paradise

Posted by Ensign Wiles Osten (Security Officer) in Trouble in Paradise

Posted by Captain Molly Holloway (Chief Intelligence Officer) in Trouble in Paradise
Posted by… suppressed (3) by the Post Ghost! 👻
His fists bounced repeatedly off the sealed doors of the Intel Chiefs Quarters as the Marine’s booming voice echoed out in all directions. “What the actual frack is wrong with you!? Open this goddamn door right now Molly! How dare you override MY fracking Access Codes! I said…” BANG “…open…” BANG “… this…” BANG “… fracking…” BANG “… DOOR!” The last strike to the door, still firmly sealed, was much louder and slightly lower on the entry. As Harris’ right foot kicked the metal followed by the pained cry from the Dresden’s CO. “Goddamn it!” With that, the Marine limped away from the door toward the nearest Turbolift to carry him back to his Quarters.

Harris, CO

The day had been mostly uneventful and mostly routine. She had done her regular Bridge shift hours, followed by her usual hours spent reading DH reports in her office, a drink in 8-Forward, a long bath, and a long needed call with Pete. Just seeing his smile made her day a whole lot brighter. Not to mention, after his short stay on board the Dresden, she knew he was as eager as her for him to return, and talking about it always made her feel better.

That was until a rather unwelcome voice made its way to her ears.

“What the actual frack is wrong with you!? Open this goddamn door right now Molly! How dare you override MY fracking Access Codes! I said…” BANG “…open…” BANG “… this…” BANG “… fracking…” BANG “… DOOR!” A last much louder bang echoed through the deck followed by a clear cry of pain. “Goddamn it!”

“What was that!?” A slight Southern California accent tainted Pete’s Received Pronunciation disbelief.

Amelia stared silently into her husband’s wide blue eyes, before her brain was even capable of forming a reply. Her own eyes as wide open as his. “Harris.” She finally said shaking her head.

“Is he still harassing that poor girl?” Came Peter’s words on the other side of the terminal screen. “You would think that she would have left him by now…!”

Amelia chuckled. “It’s not as easy as it may seem… They’re both quite…” She pondered for a moment before finishing the sentence. “… dysfunctional…” She sighed. “But believe me. There’s nothing ‘poor’ about her. If Holloway wanted him away from her, she would have had him gone for a long time. The last mission was… rough. I’m just glad you were not here when it happened.” A pained expression crossed Amelia’s face.

It was Peter’s time to smile. “No point thinking about what-ifs. I’m okay, and more importantly you’re okay. That’s all that matters.”

Amelia smiled sadly. “I know, I know.” She paused for a moment. “I should probably go see what’s happening. So I won’t get my own ship tomorrow morning after our CO’s found dead in a Jefferies tube.” She chuckled. “Same time tomorrow?”

Pete laughed before nodding. “Same time tomorrow. Although I mean… Captain Manning has a nice ring to it.” He said with a wink.

“Shush.” She winked back. “I love you Pete.”

“I love you, Ami. Have a good night.”

“Good night.”

A final blown kiss left her lips before she hang up the call. Standing up and tying her silk robe around her waist, Manning left her quarters towards Harris’s door.

It didn’t take long for a limping Calvin Harris to show up, as Amelia leaned against the door frame blocking the Dresden’s CO from accessing his quarters.

Crossing her arms, Manning cleared her throat in a scolding tone. “So… now that the whole ship has heard the headline, can I have the full length scoop?”

Lt. Cmdr. Manning, XO

Rumors of the incident spread quickly, especially among the security officers. Being on-duty at the time, Wiles heard the whispers and the accompanying reluctance of other officers to get involved in the colonel’s personal business. But some part of Ensign Osten worried about the Chief Intelligence Officer.

Despite his jurisdiction being the lower decks of the ship, Wiles took the turbolift to deck five. He hesitated for just a moment before he reached out and pressed the chime to Captain Holloway’s quarters with one gulp of apprehension.

(Ensign Osten, Security Division Three Officer)

OOC: Splitting the threads so that there’s no mix-up between the two different locations. I was definitely not expecting this, but I must say I love it!!! – Joana

IC:
Through the door, Osten would be able to hear a loud exasperated groan and the shuffling of steps moving towards the door. They were not hurried steps, but rather those one would associate with a teenager being dragged to somewhere they didn’t want to go.

Finally, after a short pause, the doors to Holloway’s quarters opened just enough for the CIO’s head and a phaser to fit through. “I swear to God, Calvin! If you don’t lea—“ The rest of the sentence never made it, as Molly’s wide eyes made it clear she had noticed her mistake.

Ensign Osten had stood formally outside of the senior officer’s quarters as he waited, hands clasped behind his back after ensuring that his pushed-back short blonde hair was in place and straightening his uniform. He shifted nervously as the door opened slightly.

The appearance of the phaser made Wiles stiffen even further, as the instinct to duck out of the line of sight of the barrel clashed with the shock of the threat from one of his crewmates. His green eyes widened and looked down at the weapon in disbelief. After a delay in which Wiles processed the situation, the security officer’s hands moved upwards in a surrendering motion.

“Oh… I’m sorry. I thought you were someone else.” The phaser disappeared almost as if by magic, but the door didn’t open any further. “What can I help you with, Ensign?”

Capt. Holloway, CIO

Only after the phaser was withdrawn could Ensign Osten recover from being stunned into silence. He slowly lowered his hands. “Is…” he glanced at where the phaser had been seconds before, “is everything alright, Captain Holloway?” Wiles’ voice had lost its formality and filled with genuine concern. Any pretense he had for investigating a ‘noise disturbance’ was forgotten, as it was clear that the situation was somewhat more involved than a simple lover’s quarrel.

(Ensign Osten, Security Division Three Officer)

Through the partly opened door, Osten would be able to see that no light came from the inside Holloway’s quarters. Although Molly’s red hair made it look like the CIO hadn’t gotten out of bed in the last few days, her freckled face made it clear she hadn’t seen sleep in a while.

The Ensign’s question hung in the air as a switch seemed to flip inside the Intelligence officer’s mind, before a determined look appeared on her face and her stance changed slightly. “Give me a moment, Ensign.” Holloway said before closing the door.

It couldn’t have been more than half a second before the doors opened again revealing a completely different Molly. It was not apparent how she had managed to do it, but as she stepped out of her quarters, Holloway was wearing her full uniform, immaculately pressed, her face was awake and alert, and her trademark ballerina bun was sitting neatly on her head as if it had never been undone.

“Walk with me.” The words were commanding but not blunt. And without another word, Holloway started strolling through the corridor in the direction of the turbolift.

Capt. Holloway, CIO

Wiles blinked at the quick transformation. It was at this moment that he realized that he had never had any one-on-one interaction with the intelligence officer before. Wiles had no idea what he was getting into. And from what he had witnessed of the first thirty seconds of being in Holloway’s presence, Wiles was beginning to wonder if it was a good idea to risk upsetting her further than she seemed to be already.

Ensign Osten turned to tail behind Captain Holloway for a moment, a bit bewildered by the unexpected direction this evening had gone. After a couple seconds in which he collected himself to recover from the phaser incident, Osten quickened his step to catch up. Wiles glanced at Holloway out of the corner of his eye, not daring to say anything yet.

(Ensign Osten, Security Division Three Officer)