Posted by Lazol (Chief Science Officer) in After Math of MPARs

(snip)

Casela walked across the room and pulled the knife from the target and she turned to look at Lazol, her mood just a fowl as his, but for totally different reasons. Or so she assumed. “Lazol, there is a chime on my office door for a reason. If I had walked into your office unannounced without paying the correct number of slips of latinum you would have sent me packing and made me pay twice as much to get back in. Think of my chime as your slips of latinum. You almost lost your nose.” She walked over to a wall panel and with a touch of her palm it opened. She reached in and then tossed him the tin of beatle snuff, without looking, her aim deadly accurate. She walked over to a chair and sat down, tossing the throwing knife in one hand from handle to blade to handle again. She processed his words. “Okay first of all I did NOT tell you it was useful. I told you that fowl smell coming from the chemistry lab smelled like it. Second if you had done your research you would know that sending him INTO the plant to get it gave you bad samples. It’s not ripe yet. You wait for the drool. And yes I know, I’ve been walking that ensign through getting over the ‘horrific’ event.” She tossed the blade higher this time, it flipping end over end several times before she snatched it out of the air, handle first. “Did that ensign a favor though. He’s not fit for ARU. I mean the thing only got his finger, and if he’d left the glove on he’d be fine. He’s incompetent.”

He had caught the tin of beetle snuff and put a decent amount into each nostril. After the sneezing was over he felt the quick rush of his heart before the euphoric effects took hold and he breathed a sigh of relief. He wanted to argue with her but the point bout the chime was painfully accurate. He took four slips from his belt pocket and placed them on the table. An understanding that he did break protocol and was in the wrong. He wanted to argue about he samples yet again, she was right. Was he really getting sloppy? “For what it’s worth, I was simply trying to find out the chemical composition, I wasn’t at the harvesting stage. And I suppose I should thank you as I agree, completely incompetent! I was very clear with my instructions as well as with my orders. The fact that he ‘couldn’t feel what he was doing’ and decided to take his glove off was his own damn fault!”

Casela nodded, “I’ve watched the video of the incident too. First of all the flower is a seedling so saying his whole body got caught is preposterous. He could stomp it under his boot. And he clearly took off the protective equipment. Even bragging that he knew better than you. So he won’t be around for long.” She inclined her head slightly at the slips. She’d return them the next time she appeared at his office for containment duty.

Lazol just nodded in agreement and said, “I surely hope he doesn’t last long, he truly is an outrageous fool.”

Then she drove the knife point down into the wooden arm of her chair and leaned forward, elbows on knees. “Now it couldn’t have been all bad. Raauhl has a nasty habit of always finding good things to say in any situation. He’s not wrong, but it’s not always necessary. Secondly he can’t do much to you, you are on officer exchange, so the worst that happens is that you get shipped back to where you came from. And no one, from Cobb and Raauhl down, can deny the strides the science department has made since you arrived. Raauhl is not the type to make someone comfortable and sneak behind them. That’s me, not him. You’ll see it coming if he’s going to remove you. Everyone sees the good you have done in your department. But you did decide to come to Star Fleet. We aren’t the Ferengi Commerce Committee. We don’t set you up to fail, so sto…what do you mean ‘slip up again’?”
Lt. Synthi-er, CNS

Lazol went about as red as he could for a flash before taking a gulp and working his way through the other comments first. “That XO of yours certainly does find a great enjoyment in finding the best in people. He did tell me that I’ve had the department running at it’s finest since the ship’s commission and the profits aren’t too shabby either.” Lazol for once kept his tongue tight, he wanted to say that the pockets of the CO and XO were being lines nicely but that would make it sound devious when in fact he had set up a method of banking that the ship could access and, in a rather non-Ferengi way, he put the balance of the profits in favor of the ship and it’s crew. Cobb and Raauhl were simply the executors of the account with Lazol the primary beneficiary for tax purposes. The FCA after all does love playing with taxes so the more he could write off the better. “As for my slip up? I um… Give me a moment on that one”

Lazol, CSO

Her face twisted in a momentary flash at the words XO of yours. He wasn’t hers, or was he? Well yes he was in....but the memory was far too raw and she had come to the very scary conclusion during her own meeting that she was not okay. Could she work professionally with him? Yes and that was all that was saving her. Could she go back to ‘their’ quarters and be fine? Probably not. She was flipping the knife again, over and over, the action rhythmic and hypnotic for her. She did grin slightly, “Do they know about the bank account yet? DaiMon Olash is going to have a fit when he sees how well Cobb can pay him next time. And I hope Cobb makes him sweat for every slip.”
She fell silent again. His connection to Ch’otok bring the big Klingon to mind. What she wouldn’t give to talk to him now. Even if he did tease her to the point of irritation.
“Lazol?” It was said softly but it was clear he would have to answer, she’d wait as long as it took but an answer was needed to his last statment. There was confidentiality in this room. Her position demanded it, but his connection to Ch’otok ensured it no matter what.
Lt Synthi-er, CNS

Lazol wanted to glare at the counselor but thought the better of it. “Of course they know about it. It’s an administrated account with all three of us on with the requirement that two of three need to agree to pull funds out. They were convinced that I was going to skim off the top and while I can’t blame them, I would be lying if I had hoped I would would be trusted by now at least in that regard.....” He paused wanting to run out of the room but she was trustworthy, if Ch’otok trusted her than he owed it to her to give an explanation. He took a breath and exhaled and said, “Casela this is not the first time I’ve tried to work with the ARU. You know I am the last of my family alive right? Well that isn’t totally true. I have a brother, Letezoc, who was the only one besides me to survive the anomaly that killed my parents and sister. Yes I said anomaly, it wasn’t a ship accident. My brother was locked at his mental age of 7 while I grew and watched as he stayed as a child. The secret that Ch’otok holds? The debt I cannot repay? Ch’otok was the one to save him during the war. He didn’t know it was my brother and had to track me down because I’ve gone to lengths to hide him away with the best care, but he is a liability. One I am responsible for. And Ch’otok made sure that Letezoc was safe and that I was assured of that.” Lazol said as he knew that his fate was tied with her now, there was no going back on that trust.

Casela stopped flipping the knife and took a slow appraisal of Lazol, looking for hints of deception. Why? because it was habit for people to make up horrible stories to trick a counselor, though she didn’t think that Lazol was the type, then coming to a decision. “Your secrets are safe here, Lazol. I have no reason to spread them, nor would I. Your brother may be physically a grown man, but he is still a child, in need of protecting. And for all the things I might be, I have never harmed a child.” She contemplated a moment more. “I’m not trying to force you into anything, but perhaps, one day, you could bring Letezoc here. Knox and McHarrie might be able to find a way to help him. It is their area of expertise. But first we would need to find the anomaly.”

Continuing Lazol said, “I contacted the ARU many years ago about hiring them to go after the anomaly that destroyed my family and they put me in charge of a ship. They used my research to develop the materials that are now used and summarily fired me from that post and blacklisted me from communications. It was only during the change of leadership I thought to try again. They used me Casela, they used my time, resources, research, and advancements and decided they were done with me. They waited for me to ‘slip up’ they waited for me to make one mistake and used that as the pretext to rid themselves of me. It’s taken a lot to get back here, and all I want to do is make sure no one else is affected. I’m scared here Casela, always looking over my shoulder.”

Lazol, CSO

“All of us, ever single one us are looking over our shoulder. You aren’t alone in that. I can’t tell you their stories any more than I would tell them yours, but we all share that state of being. I’m not saying you shouldn’t, but you aren’t alone in that. As for making mistakes, I understand. I’ve made more than my fair share. I can’t make you, but I can advise you to perhaps share this with Cobb. He’s not a bad sort, he’s really not judgmental, except of himself. But he would empathize with you and your situation. As for what ARU did to you, the Federation is full of ideals and good people, until you look at the government and what it does behind its own back. Here we might work at catching anomalies, we might be funded and stocked by ARU, but not one of us owes them loyalty. If you allow it, you will find your place and those you can trust. But, I more than anyone know how hard that is to believe.”
Lt Synthi-er, CNS