[Discovery] -- [Kirk's Office] -- [Open for Official Business]

Mar 02, 2010 10:13

It was so heavily backlogged. Messages, paperwork, reports, news - all of it was backlogged. Kirk had holed himself up in his office, trying to get through it all. Okay, the paperwork was at least not seriously backlogged and he saw Spock's hand in that. Spock was good at that sort of thing, even if Kirk wasn't entirely surprised to see some things ( Read more... )

hell is breaking loose, private communication, fuck fuckity fuck fuck fuck, holy shit the captain's in office

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original_fine March 2 2010, 15:42:21 UTC
In a strange blast of synergy, Jim had been on the point of sending a message to Jim. He went immediately, dressed in a gold command uniform and no pants. Crazy, what girls got away with calling a dress.

He buzzed for entry.

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original_fine March 2 2010, 16:58:54 UTC
"It's not about getting my way," Jim said grimly. "It's not about following laws, either. Do you know how many times I've been brought up on violations? What I believe in are the principles of the Federation. Of the ultimate good that's being attempted. I've been wrong before, and people have died, and I feel every single one ( ... )

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kirktastic March 2 2010, 17:14:04 UTC
"As long as Nero's alive, I can't Jim. I can't just... get past it. It'll always be there, in the back of my mind, the idea that he's out there and somehow he could get free. He could kill again, because I failed." Kirk shook his head, "He's like a rabid dog. I don't think there's a cure, and he can still hurt someone. That's all I'm really worried about in the end. More people being hurt. I don't care about what it does to me, or did to me. The Federation was fine with the knowledge that the Narada was destroyed until it reappeared. THEN it wanted a trial."

He leaned back in his chair, slumping. It was a topic that never failed to drain him of everything. "What can you tell me about the ship following us? I'm going to have to talk to Starfleet about it."

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original_fine March 2 2010, 17:23:23 UTC
"The rules of war, Jim," Jim sighed. "The heat of battle isn't the same as... well, anything else. You know that."

He offered a smile.

"The Narada is a hybrid, of sorts. She's made up of different ships, different technology, that, because she's sentient, she's found a way to integrate herself. She can literally consume material and improve herself in the process. Psychologically and emotionally, she's a child, rapidly maturing into her own autonomy. In the time I've spent with her alone, she's moved from blind following of orders to the acknowledgment that she is her own being and her decisions--and therefore the consequences of those decisions--are her own."

Jim found that significant. She was undeniably dangerous, but there was hope, there, too. For what, Jim did not know. But adaptation was key.

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kirktastic March 2 2010, 17:27:13 UTC
"I know, I know. Doesn't mean it isn't annoying to see one's own work get undone," He gave a small smirk at that, but listened closely about the Narada.

"Do we know what she is? No ship's ever been able to do something like that. Even the Enterprise still needs to be repaired by engineers, upgraded... hell, even the human body can't fix everything about itself. You're telling me she's accepting her own consequences... but does she still follow Nero's orders as her captain, or because she wants to?"

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original_fine March 2 2010, 17:33:42 UTC
Jim shrugged. "So far, neither, that I can tell," he said. "And I don't know what she is--she's nothing Spock or I has ever seen before. I do know that she is at least as concerned about Nero's well-being as she is about following his orders. And while that's also dangerous, it's something one can reason with. She knows she can't attack us. She knows we'll kill Nero before we let him kill again. That has to be worth something."

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kirktastic March 2 2010, 17:39:12 UTC
"One problem is that as soon as Nero's off this ship, she has nothing holding her back from destroying us," Kirk shook his head, "We can't match her technology. If she's integrating other ships... other weapons systems, long with being from some odd two hundred years in the future? That's gotta be why it's familiar but far more destructive."

"She might not even care we exist when Nero's off the ship as well. Only focused on his safety. She's not beyond damaging us... the Enterprise is going to need a new coat of paint thanks to her striking out at us," That had been in one of the reports. "She could go after more than us to prove she means business. In her full size..."

His fingers twitched. It almost felt like he could feel the tattoos on his left arm. "She destroyed eight ships without so much as a twitch in her systems. It took ramming her with a medium sized cruiser to do that kind of damage to her that she might back off."

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original_fine March 2 2010, 17:44:11 UTC
Jim spread his hands.

"No one's saying she's not dangerous," he said. "She might be one of the most dangerous things we've ever seen. But she's also aware. And to me, that means we have to be extra careful in taking steps against her. If we have any chance of convincing her not to move against us, we've bought time. And put safeguards in place in the meantime. If she's really as dangerous as all that, as difficult to defeat, then we don't lose anything by trying diplomacy."

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kirktastic March 2 2010, 17:49:01 UTC
"I'm not against diplomacy. In this case, we might not even have a choice. We couldn't destroy her, not with any ship I know. It took a black hole the first time," He rubbed his brow. "We just have to figure out the steps we need to take to make this work. I mean... Nero could end up being killed. Or in a penal colony. Or who knows where. What would you do with a huge ship that's devoted to him?"

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original_fine March 2 2010, 17:56:11 UTC
Jim nodded.

"That's what I'm saying. She's too powerful to deal with with strength. What we need to do is show her options. Show her what we can offer her, and Nero. Show her she's got potential elsewhere. She's able to create an entirely new body for herself. Is there any reason she needs to be a ship? How much of that is her identity, and how much has she moved past it? She has options. And she needs to know what they are--especially those that are acceptable to us."

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kirktastic March 2 2010, 18:01:34 UTC
Kirk's brows went up again, "You're thinking about teaching her to be something else?" He looked up at the ceiling, thinking about it. "...Vulcans might be good for that. They're logical as hell, might make the most sense to her. They're also very good at manipulating."

He smirked, just a little. Maybe they could work with this.

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original_fine March 2 2010, 18:04:28 UTC
Jim frowned. "Manipulating?" He didn't exactly disagree that they were clever, but he hesitated to characterize them that way. "It just occurred to me. That she does have options. And that they're limitless. That scary as hell, sure, but does it have to be?"

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kirktastic March 2 2010, 18:07:13 UTC
Kirk knew one from the inside out, and had already been manipulated by one old one. "We'll talk to Starfleet about it, if we can first convince her not to blow anyone out of the sky."

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original_fine March 2 2010, 18:21:36 UTC
"She's complied with all our stipulations so far," Jim pointed out. "Let's see how it goes. And work out what we're going to do, if it goes south."

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kirktastic March 2 2010, 19:17:29 UTC
"Not going to be easy, convincing her to do anything while her captain is being sentenced to who knows what," Kirk sighed, looking to Jim. It was weird still, seeing his counterpart and friend as a woman.

A tiny bit of professionalism went out the window when he asked, "...so what's it been like?" A gesture up and down Jim's new body.

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original_fine March 2 2010, 19:24:14 UTC
"No, it won't," Jim agreed. "But like you said, we don't have much choice. It's our best chance."

He raised an eyebrow at the other question. "Which part? Sitting down to pee is not as weird as you might think, once you get used to it." He smiled. "But really--I don't feel any different. Just... well, physically smaller. Less strong. More wardrobe choices."

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