Posted by Civilian Kenzo B’tren-Hyrushi (Governor) in Dasca’s Apartment- Intrusions

Posted by Captain Eela Dasca (Lt. Governor) in Dasca’s Apartment- Intrusions

Posted by Civilian Kenzo B’tren-Hyrushi (Governor) in Dasca’s Apartment- Intrusions
Posted by… suppressed (5) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

Eela grinned. “Happily,” she said, hanging a left into her hallway. The recessed bookshelves had just enough light to read the titles, with the poetry books hitting eye level. But there were books of all colours, bindings, even languages. These shelves were opposite her photo gallery, of which a notable photo was now missing and the hole yet to be filled.

She gestured to the shelves. “So this is all fiction for the most part, and the office has non-fiction plus the more valuable tomes because the office is locked when I’m not in there. I’m really glad Karilan convinced me to recess them. I wasn’t sure there was enough room in the wall, but with these high ceilings, having a narrow hallway actually would have felt claustrophobic.” She was positively giddy talking about her books and ever since she had returned to her apartment after her jerk of an ex blew through the place, she had been having the loveliest reunion with them.

~Eela

Kenzo looked at the cases with the critical eye of an engineer… and found them almost flawless. “These are… quite impressive. Your friend is a true artist with design and construction. And the lighting is just the right amount. The books are legible without filling the space with harsh light.” He stopped and peered closely at one shelf. “Climate and humidity sensors… clever use of the recessed hinges to hide them from sight.” he mumbled. Standing back straight he looked at Eela. “These are simply magnificent.” he said as he continued to follow her.

Kenzo

“That they are!” she said as she moved to the end of the hall and side stepped into the office. Gone were the plain walls and floor to ceiling windows. A new desk was in the corner (a standing desk that Dr. Erasus had suggested, and he had been right that the company was able to give her an option that looked just as nice and suitable for the cozy office.

The two interior walls were filled with more of the same bookcases, but at least one of them had a biometric lock on it. The windows still let in light, but there were specially designed covers that prevented any light damage to the books but made it still pleasant for her to work in there. A framed handwritten poem was on the wall behind her desk.

But the most eye catching part was the spiral staircase that led down to a reading nook with more books and a cozy chair.

“You know, even though I saw the drawing they had made, I still didn’t imagine.... this. I joked with Cort that he’s lucky I still make it into my office in the Tower at all now.”

~Eela

Kenzo’s eyes darted all around the room. The last time he had been in here, Eela hadn’t been home. He and Karilan had been looking for a book for her while she was at General Tenkiller’s house. This was… “Transformative.” was the only word he said. He looked down the staircase and nodded, seemingly making a note of something and then looking at the transparent display cubes on the windows and nodding. “It is simply amazing. The amount of space they garnered is marvelous. And it doesn’t make the space feel smaller… quite the opposite, in fact.” Heooked at Eela and said “Karilan outdid herself. You know that, don’t you?”

Kenzo

She nodded slowly, a swell of emotion flowing through her. “More than you know. A part of it I think is Karilan just being very gifted with engineering solutions, but the rest I know is a testament to the wonderful friendship we’ve developed.” She moved to the staircase and rested her hand on the upper railing, her eyes fixed on him. “The stairs are motorized, so that if I’m having a bad back day, I don’t have to struggle to get up the stairs. And, the nook doubles as a safe room,” she said softly. It was one thing to have thought about her physical needs, but the foresight to consider her personal safety was something she had not missed, nor took for granted. “Everyone keeps giving me these extraordinary and beautiful gifts. It’s a little overwhelming, but in the best possible way.” And a small part of her, the one that was still working to get out from under Cory Fletcher’s influence, was mystified by these gifts simply because somewhere along the way she had come to believe she was not worthy of them. But fortunately, it was a continually shrinking part of her, and the more people showed her such love in such beautiful ways, the more she was able to accept it without qualification.

~Eela

Kenzo slowly reached out and took her hand in his. He smiled at her and said “People are drawn to you, Eela. You have a light within you that lets you be a guide to others. And we, those of us who are close to you, know just how fortunate we are to have with us. So such gifts are a reflection of what you bring… not just of how important you are to us.” He squeezed her hand before he released it and then moved to a chair. “Do you mind if I sit? I had to walk the CCDA headquarters with Harris and Tenkiller.” and he chuckled.

Kenzo

While she didn’t normally have a second chair at the desk (because it was just her), she had brought one in from the dining room, since they were quite comfortable. “You need to exercise more,” she teased even as she gestured to the chair and moved around her desk (which was at a seated height setting) and sat down.

The movement gave her time to process his words, but it was that lingering feeling for the brief contact that did more to make them feel real. It was, as she was seeing more clearly, that right now in her life physical touch was the pathway to mental processing. She struggled in isolation to figure it all out some days, and she had inflicted it upon herself for too long.

She swivelled behind her to the small console table where she had a PADD sitting from earlier. Swivelling back slowly, she handed it to him. “So those are the projections, at least as far as I have gotten. The biggest problem is the power required. It’s going to require infrastructure that is in addition to to the atmospheric shield. We can manage it, but the whole operating system is complicated given we have orbital facilities that have to be factored into the equation. But, if we can get past that hurdle, I think Project Anvil Dragon is a go. That is, unless the cabinet freaks out, of course.”

~Eela

“That is a definite possibility. We will basically be telling them that we are a sel-” and suddenly there were footsteps in the hallway. Kenzo stood swiftly and instinctively put himself between Eela and the door, which suddenly slid open to reveal Eela’s CCDA Security Team. “Stop talking!” barked Hasid V’ter, the Cardassian Lead Agent. He pointed in the room and another CCDA agent came in with a kind of tricorder and who proceeded to walk around the room as Hasid held up a finger for silence. After a few mong and tense moments, the Agent with the scanner knelt down next to the new package next to Eela’s desk. There was loud chirp and the Agent opened the package and a moment later pulled out a small device that fit in the palm of his hand. Hasid moved and picked up the device, took vid of it, and then dropped it inside a small case. The other agent ran the tricorder around the case several times and then nodded. “Inert, sir. No broadcast.” Hasid looked at Eela and the Kenzo.

Her heart was racing from the sudden commotion from the agents, memory flashes of less than a week ago overwhelming her.

“You had been bugged, Ma’am.”

Kenzo / CCDA

Her breath caught in her chest and for a moment Eela was frozen. Swallowing she rose from her seat and eyed V’ter and then the package. She crouched and picked it up, resting the small crate on her desk. Her hand moved to her mouth and then she shook her head. “They wouldn’t try this sh!t with you,” she said with Kenzo, her anger flaring. She understood that she was still new enough that it was possible that something could slip past, but whomever was responsible was either incredibly stupid or had bad timing, because her security had been tightened immensely since Cory.

She looked back at Hasid. “I have a myriad of questions that I’m sure can’t be answered yet, but how serious is this?”

“Too soon to say, Ma’am,” V’ter replied. “We’ll have to analyze the device and see if we can trace it.”

Eela nodded and pulled her shawl tighter around her as she reached into the crate. “There’s multiple things in here that all came from different places. It was crated together for delivery to the apartment for ease. But how did it get past screening?”

“I don’t know, but rest assured we’re on it.”

She couldn’t do much more than nod.

~Eela