Coming To Terms

Posted on Sat Apr 25th, 2026 @ 4:30am by Lieutenant JG Riaothren (Ren) ch'Shaorhs & Lieutenant B'Lakkam Slichez

1,545 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Prologue: To Boldly Go
Location: Counsleing Office
Timeline: TBD

Jaric was in his room, with the security code set on his door to prevent entry. It wasn't as if he was doing anything wrong. He wasn't. He was just a teenage boy who wanted his privacy. His alone time. It wasn't even as if he'd been doing something risque, though it couldn't be said he hadn't been earlier. He was reading and didn't want to be bothered.

He set the book down /=\ Computer, dim the lights./=\ he said.

He'd just started to drift off around midnight, or 2400, he corrected, when he heard a muffled scream. He knew who it was immediately. It was Ren, his brother's husband. The man he was just getting used to calling dad. He was having a nightmare. Another one.

He unlocked the door with practiced ease and ran into the cabin's other bedroom. He found the Andorian lying half on and half off the bed, sheets tangled around his legs.

"REN, Dad, are you okay?"

The Assistant Operations Officer nodded.

"You're not. Not really. You need to go see a counselor. The ship has a new one.

The next morning, Ren reluctantly took the turbolift to the counselor's office and pressed the chime.

B'Lakkam had not yet had the time to design his office. In time, he would, but there was so much to do as a Chief that he needed to organize his department first. He seemed to have a good deal of capable help, so he was rather pleased that he could probably delegate much work to his underlings after they have recovered from their recent experiences.

The ringing of his chime should not have been much of a surprise to him, but it did make him perk up. Without hesitation, he said, "Come in."

Ren blew out a small breath and tugged at the corner of his uniform jacket as he stepped into the office.

The blue orion was nearly as surprised to see someone bluer than himself walk in. An andorian? I wonder what could be troubling one of them. Are they not fierce warriors that rarely seek assistance? It must be bad. With a welcoming voice, B'Lakkam stated, "Welcome! What can I do for you today?"

Ren paused as the doors slid shut behind him. His rignt antanne curled forward. He studied the other occupant's face. "Fine," he stated, "You're Orion, aren't you?"

"I am," B'Lakkam confirmed, mentally steeling himself for any potential stereotypical responses. "And you're Andorian, aren't you?" with a jolly tone that hinted at the ridiculousness of Ren's question.

Both Ren's anteanne tilted toward the counselor, and the corner of the left side of his mouth quirked up. "I am," he replied, "My name is Riaothren ch'Shaorhs. You can call me Ren."

"I'm sorry, I just wasn't expecting an Orion counselor. It's a bit surprising."

Well, the response could have been much worse, and at least it was honest. "It is nice to meet you, Ren." He smiled easily at the Andorian. "I have found that in this universe, it is better to expect the unexpected." He shrugged lightly and discontinued that line of thought. "I apologize that my room is not in order yet. I've only just arrived."

"No need to apologize. I didn't even notice."

He paused for a moment, "I wasn't attempting to be judgmental. Just surprised. My husband was Orion."

That last statement specifically caught B'Lakkam's attention, as his eyebrows lightly raised. What was another Orion doing here? How did another male get away? Was he green or blue? The questions continued to rampage through his mind as he patiently tried to sort everything out. He then caught on the word "was," and wondered if his husband was dead or alive. If he were alive, where in the world was he? Why was an Andorian married to an Orion? Would that not be problematic for the purposes of propagation?

So many questions...so few answers.... He finally asked, "Why do you say, 'was Orion'?"

Ren let out a long breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "I mean, he's dead. Well, MIA if we are being technical, but everyone is telling me there is no hope. He was killed. I am finally accepting that reality."

"Why would you accept that if he is listed as MIA? Why would you give up on hope?" B'Lakkam's tone was curious and had no hint of chiding in it.

"I don't want him dead. I want him alive. Here. With his brother and me. Yes, officially, he is MIA. But his captain, his handler, everyone I've talked to in his chain of command, says. the same thing. He's really dead, and Starfleet doesn't want to admit the truth. They say his mission, whatever it was, was off the books.. That he'd gone rogue."

"B' Lokum, my husband is, was never a perfect man. He was many things, but he would never do anything behind the backs of his superiors."

"If you are certain that is the truth, then maybe it is not. Maybe there is a cover-up of some sort," B'Lakkam's Orion brain started thinking of all the machinations that could be possible. Also, perhaps here was someone that might be able to help him search for his truth, though it would be much easier to find someone in Starfleet than someone like Lucy, who probably never hit the radar after abduction.

He put a calming hand on Ren's shoulder. "I do not want to give you false hope. Things may be as others have said, but there are no guarantees until you see a body or until you get actual facts regarding his death. Have you considered doing any digging?"

The Andorain gave a brief nod. "I'm not the spy in the family. If Starfleet is stonewalling, and frankly, it wouldn't surprise me if they were, I'm not sure where I would start, or who I would talk to."

Too early to trust him. Too early to share. Besides, he has to figure some of this out on his own. "Well, a little bit of investigation could never hurt..." B'Lakkam replied with an apologetic shrug. He immediately tried changing the subject. "Is that what brought you here tonight, Ren?"

"Nightmares brought me. I keep having them, and I'm concerned they are going to interfere with my duties." If he noticed the change of subjects, he gave no indication.

"Why don't you tell me about the nightmares?" B'Lakkam offered. "Then, we can see what we can do to assist you. Does that sound like something that you're willing to do?"

"They can vary, but the one that repeats itself the most is... strange. In the dream, I'm in bed with him beside me. Both of us are fully clothed. Nothing amorous. Then, still in the dream, I wake up, and he's gone. Not only that, but there is no sign of him. Not any of his clothes, not any holovids of us. Nothing."

"Then, when I go out of the room, I find myself in a maze and hear someone pursuing me."

"Do you know who?" B'Lakkam asked, interested. "Or any clues on who might be pursuing you?"

"Not anyone I recognize, but there is more than one of them. They're wearing uniforms, but not Starfleet. Something else. I'm just not sure."

"OK. Can you describe the uniforms or describe the beings in them?"

Ren paused, taking in a breath and holding it, his right anteanne curling away from the counselor. "Dark for sure. Black, I think they were humanoid, taller than me, or most of them. Pale skin, and using slug throwers. firearms. No phasers or energy weapons."

"Pale like Aenar or something else?" B'Lakkam asked, trying to put things together. Could this be a projection, or was it just a dream? "Who would use ancient weapons like that?" he wondered aloud.

"Very much like an Aenar," came the reply. I think Jairin was looking into some illicit weapon sales, but I'm not sure of the details, or if that is really what he was investigating."

"Do you normally dream this vividly?"
.
"Only a few times. Right after my Tharan killed my Charan when I was a teenager. Right after Jarin and I met. The first time we..were intimate. When Jaric came to live with us, and maybe one or two other times. But it's rare."

"So, how often are you having this particular dream again?"

"This is the third time, it keeps getting longer and more vivid, but I'm not sure how long I'm actually dreaming."

This is unusual. Yes, it certainly is a possibility that someone could have recurring dreams, but this is too vivid and too connected to just be that, is it not? "Do you or your husband have any psychic or telepathic abilities?"

"We have a strong emotional connection. I know what he's thinking sometimes, but I think that's more intuition than any actual psychic abilities."

"Maybe," B'Lakkam replied doubtfully. "Why don't we go to medical and have some tests done? We may even have to do the tests for a week while you're sleeping."

"I'm ready," Ren replied.


Lieutenant B'Lakkam Slichez
Chief Counselor
USS Fenrir

Lieutenant (JG) Riaothren (Ren) ch' Shaorhs
Asst. Chief Operations Officer
USS Fenrir

 

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