Posted by Captain Zachariah Cobb (Commanding Officer) in Side Sim- Holodeck- A rare moment of vulnerability

Posted by Lieutenant William Hampton (Chief Engineering Officer) in Side Sim- Holodeck- A rare moment of vulnerability

Posted by Captain Zachariah Cobb (Commanding Officer) in Side Sim- Holodeck- A rare moment of vulnerability
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Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

Hampton slammed his fist on the bar. “What am I doing?” He growled, the tears stopping. He looked up at the captain. “Sorry sir this is embarrassing, I have had a little too much to drink I think.” He nodded to Cobb as he poured another round. “I don’t have a habit of getting emotional cap’n, I guess our little conversation has brought it out of me.”
He wiped his eyes. “That’s won’t happen again sir.”

LT. William Hampton- CE

“Ah, it happens to the best of us, lad,” Zachariah shrugged, attempting to banish Hampton’s shame with a wave of his hand. “What is it they say? The problem with the world is that everyone else is a few drinks behind?” He chuckled, then picked at a frayed hem on the sleeve of his tunic, for a moment lost in the vast caverns of his own thoughts.

“What brought you to this ship, Will?” he asked after a few moments. “With your skill you could have been running some R&D facility planetside by now. Why space? And why anomalous space, of all bloody things?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

At Cobb’s question Hampton’s expression changed from one of embarrassed melancholy to deadly serious anger. “I did not have as many options as I deserve captain.” His voice returning to its normal stoic tone. “I have no home to go to, I have lived in space my whole life.” His voice lowered to a growl. “And people don’t appreciate me for the man I am.” His empty hand clenched into a fist. “People in this part of the galaxy like to think they are virtuous, enlightened, and most importantly,” he looked up at Cobb, “correct.” He took a sip. “People like me don’t fit in well with the society they have built on Earth or for the rest of Federation.” He took another sip.

Cobb shrugged. His entire existence thus far had seen him cast aside from society, demarcated into a no-mans land of suspicion and disgust, for no more heinous crime than doing things his own way. The trick, he had learned slightly too late, was to wear the mark as a badge of honour and to hell with all the rest.

“People around here tend to think that at their core the races of the galaxy deserve the benefit of the doubt. That most living creatures, are, at the end of the day, good. They believe this, because they want to see themselves as virtuous and noble.” His look turned to a glare. “They aren’t. They are just naive individuals who would rather stick their head in the sand then actually deal with the problems our galaxy has to offer.” He paused, “My existence reminds them of the reality they are so desperate to ignore. People like me point out that races like the Romulans are dangerous and should be put under the thumb of the Federation. To hell with treaties and negotiations, we are superior to them, the gall that race has to oppose us.” He shook his head. “And we let them do it. The Cardassians have the right idea, that’s how they became so powerful. They learned that in order to be strong, in order to ensure security, you must subjugate all that are weak and oppose you.”

For the first time that evening, Zachariah became acutely aware of the melancholia Hampton had weaved, tendrils reaching out to stab repeatedly at the old man’s heart. To hear such casual exultation of his former enemy was more than he had the strength to bear. But it seemed the eternal tragedy of the young that they should forsake the lessons of the past and forge their own road, no matter how many lives were demanded as sacrifice at the crossroads.

“You are mistaken, Mr Hampton,” he mumbled quietly.

He exhaled. “You all pretend your way is better, that somehow instead of destroying our enemies, we should hand out hugs like ration packs, and sign treaties to simply delay inevitable conflicts. But what you can’t stand, is the ever so rare person, like me, who comes along and points to history, who points to the inevitable result of interactions between civilizations, war. Instead of listening to people like me, Starfleet throws us away. Too many sensitive admirals and officers, who earned their stripes not through firing a phaser but rather signing their names on a document. ” His fist began to thump on the table. “They have no idea what suffering is like, they have no idea what real conflict is like. And the damning part of it all is, they don’t want to.” Hampton stared into this glass. “I don’t fit the federation mold, so I have to be dealt with in some way. I am labeled evil by some for my beliefs, I am not a “tolerant” or “open minded” man. I don’t believe in mercy and I damn sure don’t believe in diversity. Diversity gets everyone killed.” He held up his glass. “These beliefs make me a problem, because I remind everyone on Earth that they aren’t saints, that humanity is not a race of saints, and I will never be one in their eyes.” He shrugs. “So they put me out here, where I can be shuffled off, and never heard from again.”

He looked back to Cobb, “My existence is a reminder to the Federation that their organization is built off half truths and lies. For that reason, I must be swept away under the rug.” He chuckles. “So you see Captain, I didn’t have much choice at all.”

Lt. William Hampton- CE

He wept openly and without shame.

There had been a time when Zachariah might have marvelled at a soul far blacker than his, might have admired a life more saturated by hatred than his own. But now on the threshold, as he stared at the young man across from him, Cobb could summon no other response than devastating, omnipotent sadness.

“By the gods, Will,” he whispered, his voice hoarse. “What happened to make you like this?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

Hampton was taken aback by the reaction of his captain. ‘So much for that friendship.’ He thought to himself. He felt sympathy for Cobb, but a tidal wave of disgust overcame him, he needed to leave before he lost respect for his CO. He stood up from the bar, a little wobbly, but able to walk. “Life sir, the cold dark abyss of reality. I stared into it, and I didn’t blink. I’m a true misfit sir, I’ll always be.” He nodded to the Captain and staggered towards the door. He turned one last time to Cobb. The federation’s bright optimism is fine captain. But there are a few select people who have to make sure the light isn’t bright enough to blind the galaxy.” With that he hobbled out of the holodeck.

Lt. William Hampton- CE

Zachariah Cobb had been bedfellows with sorrow and misery his entire life and knew instinctively another tortured soul when he met one. And while he empathised to almost physical pain with the plight of the young engineer, at the same time he knew that one so lost, so utterly damaged, could not be allowed free reign on his ship.

Marching out behind the other, Cobb’s alcoholism lent him a steadiness that the other man lacked post-drink and it took him moments only to catch up. Then reaching out and taking hold of Hampton’s tunic, the captain slammed the engineering chief into the wall and quickly placed an arm across his chest to keep him there.

“Who the hell do you think you are, eh?” he roared into Will’s face. “I offer you my time, my companionship, my whiskey. And you insult me by praising those bastards? By pissing all over every Alliance man and woman who gave their lives so that you didn’t have to toil under a Cardassian dictatorship? Why, I should throw you out of an airlock myself, you damned traitor!”

His anger relinquished, Zachariah stepped back, although his hold on Hampton remained.
“I don’t care what disgusting thoughts go on in that twisted brain of yours and from now on, I don’t want to know. But you listen to me, Lieutenant,” he continued, his tone lowered but no less menacing for that fact, “I have a ship to run and a crew to protect. I need an engineering chief who I can count on, not one who might stab me with a Cardassian blade when my back is turned. Now you want to waste your time here wallowing in self-pity, you want to prove to every person who ever mistrusted you that they were right, then be my guest. But you can do it in the Brig. Or with Dave. I have no more time for your crap.”

“Or,” he concluded, moving fully away now, “you can stop with the snivelling, pull yourself together, get back to that engineering deck and show everyone on this ship exactly what you’re made of. Now, what’s it going to be, eh?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

As Hampton was forced into the wall and pinned, all respect, good faith, and trust evaporated. The captain was good on his feet, despite the alcohol. Hampton realized that should not shock him, since he was old drunkard with some clear underlying emotional problems that equaled Hampton’s. His eyes portrayed an unsettling amount of confidence that no man should when being physically assaulted by their Captain.

“Sir, you have illustrated my point perfectly. I don’t wish for the Federation to be dictatorship, I don’t wish to be under Cardassian rule. All I want is order for the galaxy. And simply pointing out that history has given us a blueprint is not an endorsement of that brutal regime. Pointing out a little more emphasis on military power equates to more stable political systems doesn’t equate to supporting concentration camps and dictatorships Captain.” Hampton said, a slight smile began to grow on his lips, not one of warmth, or compassion, but one of maliciousness.

“Now, as for my character, which you have just so graciously attempted to diagnose, I’m afraid you, like everybody else, misses the mark.” The smile grow larger. “I have been breaking my back to make sure your ship stays together. While you have had RTF members challenging each other to petty brawls, your second in command and counselor making googly eyes at each other and a doctor handing out cookies to the crew, I have been behind the scenes, in main engineering, working damn near 24 hours a day sometimes I might add. I haven’t asked for praise or accolades. I have been the ideal professional officer for you sir, I have gone above and beyond what is required to make sure this ship is at peak efficiency, for you sir. I just asked for respect and understanding, some things in short supply around here it seems. ” He looked up for a moment as if pondering, and then returned Cobb’s glare. “Yes in fact tonight was the first night I’d been able to simply try and take a little me time since I boarded this ship. I’m not on duty for the first time it feels either, and I’m not going back to engineering at 0200 hours sir.” His smile grew to almost a smirk.

“I have busted my ass for this ship, and I thought you understood that, I can see I was clearly mistaken. You captain, you barged into my free time to assert yourself, do not act like I forced my way into your life tonight, you made that decision. I just made the stupid mistake of opening up to you a little bit tonight, to express my pain. And you have quite literally thrown it back at my face. Believe me sir, I do not make the same mistake twice.” The smirk had now clearly formed. “But go ahead sir, through me out of an airlock, kill a man for his opinion that you don’t even understand to show how righteous you are.”

Hampton stared back at Cobb, the look of relief that had been on his face was replaced with one of contempt now. While the Captain had exceptional physical acuity while drunk, Hampton possessed the same amount of mental acuity. He simply waited for the Captain’s next move.

Lt. William Hampton- CE