<USS Avalon> Settling In

Settling In
by
Ens. Talea Genot Erridim, incoming Ops officer, /USS Avalon/
Sgt. Walker Texas Ranger, Security, /USS Avalon/

She then tapped a channel open."Erridim to Security. Anyone available to
clear weapons collections for the ship?"

"Ranger to Erridim. Weapons?" Walker's voice held curiosity.

She chuckled. "I'm Regellian. Most Regellians collect weapons. Surely
you know this." Her tone held a definitely saucy grin. She actually
considered remaining dressed as she was, but that would never do, so she
quickly changed into the more appropriate dress she'd worn briefly not
long before.

"Give me five?" Walker chuckled as he exited security.

She nodded. "Fair enough. Erridim out." Over the next few minutes, she
prepared herself for pretty much anything, expecting him to maybe overreact.

Surprisingly, Walker tapped the door chime fifteen seconds ahead of his
stated time of arrival.

Talea stated softly, "Enter, if you dare," with a low, throaty chuckle,
even though she was, in reality, incredibly nervous and actually a
little afraid.

"I better dare, or your weapons aren't being cleared." Walker grinned as
he stepped through the door.

She chuckled, but nodded. "Aye. True. And travel gel can do nasty things
to the metal if left on too long."

"You wouldn't believe the fun I had with mine," Walker grinned ruefully.

Talea shook her head. "I expect I wouldn't. Sometimes, getting approval
is," she paused for a long moment. "Difficult." She sighed. "And for
women, can require things a man is never asked to do." She began
shivering, as if she'd been thrown into icy water.

Walker arched an eyebrow but didn't comment, except for "Shall we?"

She nodded, still shivering. She was now blazingly frightened, even
though she sensed he had no intentions toward the "other" method of
obtaining approval. Rising, she went over and coded the locks on the
cases, but didn't open them.

"Well?" Walker looked ever so curious.

She sighed and opened the first case she'd unlocked, revealing a very
beautiful set of silver-chased chain mail.

"Wow." Walker looked to her for permission to kneel and inspect it. "I
knew I shouldn't have shipped my suit home."

She smiled. "Go right ahead. I may need your help to get it on the rack
over there." She also knew that given the right materials, she could
craft a new set for him, although it would take time and effort she
could little afford at present.

Smiling, he knelt, then inspected the suit with his tricorder and
visually. "Amazing craftsmanship."

She smiled. "I can't take credit for much of the work, I'm afraid. All I
did was repair the suit in specific places and add the silver accenting.
It's. . ." She paused and looked troubled. "It's blood-silver."

"Blood-silver?" He looked up from his inspection, intrigued.

She nodded. "On her death, my great grandmother deeded her blood-silver
to me. It had to be couriered in secret, or my brothers would have
st-stolen it and spent the money!" Like many Regellians, she believed
blood-silver, although relatively valuable for the metal, was never to
be used for money.

"Stolen it?" Walker was intrigued and a little bothered.

Talea nodded, unwilling to fully explain the real reason yet. She
allowed her hair to fall past her face, partially hiding it from his
view, frightened all over again.

Standing calmly, Walker looked over, concerned. "You ok?"

She whispered, "No. A-and after a childhood like mine, I d-doubt y-you'd
be all right either." She was now struggling to keep tears from falling.

Gesturing to the couch, Walker looked to her again. "Want to talk about it?"

Talea just said, "Let's just say it was not fun being a female in a
largely-male family and have done for now? That certain unspeakable
things were attempted more than once." She flushed, not having expected
to even give that much out. She sighed. "Five men, two females, counting
Mother."

"Understood," Walker smiled softly, although internally he was
struggling for composure.

She walked over to one of the shelves, which he noticed had a large
drawstring bag sitting on it. "I suppose you're wondering what this is,
and why I bothered keeping it, too." She sighed deeply and her shoulders
slumped, as she expected to be fussed at and halfway expected him to
strike her!

"Honestly?" Walker chuckled, "I hadn't even spotted it."

She chuckled, but the chuckle was weak indeed. "Ever heard of a
nymph-oak?" Now she fully expected him to call her crazy! The tree type
was not well known, even amongst those in the lands where they grew. To
most, they were, at best, considered to be mythological.

"Can't say that I have," Walker shrugged. "Then again, I'm not much of a
nature nut."

She sighed. "The content of that bag is all I have left of the one
nymph-oak my mother gave me when I was eleven Terran years old. It was
the only thing I ever successfully grew, too." Her vocal tones were
darkening as well.

"Oh?" Walker took a step toward her.

Her voice showed her screaming hurt as she said, "Until two of my
brothers, damn them to the eternal Pits, ripped the six meter tree out
of the ground four years later!" She closed her eyes, fell to her knees
and began sobbing wildly as the memory of finding the tree on its side,
dying, on returning from school resurfaced. Without knowing it, she was
broadcasting the image of the tree as she'd first seen it on that
fateful day.

"Ouch!" Walker growled softly. As the image blasted him, he reeled,
falling to his own knees as he missed the couch with his outstretched hand.

She was so lost in the renewed grief that she was unaware of either her
broadcast or its effect on the Security officer.

Struggling to lean against the couch, Walker thought. ~Talea?~

Her telepathy was still largely useless, but she thought she Heard her
name, extremely faintly. Mortified, she slammed up the fragile shields
she had, although the pain it caused made her curl up in a ball of agony.

Grunting, Walker called, "Talea!"

She was, however, now in so much pain that she couldn't speak on either
band. She was clenching her teeth, in fact, to keep the scream that
threatened to emerge inside. She had dishonored herself and knew it.

"Talea, /please/!" Walker struggled to work his shields and to get to
his feet.

She cried out, "I'm /trying/ to control it! Dear Creator, I never
intended to /hurt/ anyone!" Her tone was utter despair now.

Lunging for the replicator, Walker ordered two non-caffeinated calming
drinks.

The pain just kept growing, and Talea couldn't understand why. All she
was doing was shielding, yet the more she tried to shield, the worse the
pain got. She had forgotten the simple fact that those suffering from
stasis-lock couldn't use their psionic abilities at all outside
touch-range without severe pain.

Forcing himself to function, Walker took the drinks and moved to Talea's
side calmly. Offering one, he stated simply, "Drink."

She took a sip through the straw he'd replicated and promptly choked,
but it was more her body fighting the pain than reaction to the drink
itself. As the drink took effect, she uncurled, then swallowed heavily,
but couldn't speak for a time.

As the dual pain lessened, Walker moved to the couch and sat before
sipping his own drink.

She found she couldn't stand. Her reserves of energy were so low that it
was all she could do to crawl to the recliner. After dragging herself up
into the chair successfully, she breathed heavily for several seconds
before carefully finishing the drink. "I need food. And I need to make
this up to you, Walker. I had no right to inflict my grief on you like
that!"

"Wasn't intentional and I know it. The thoughts just overpowered me."
Pausing, Walker thought. "Computer, two high-energy meals."

She said, heartbroken, "I can't stop thinking about that tragedy. At
least. . ." She hesitated, uncertain she wanted to continue. "At least I
have the means to grow more of them, but at such a terrible cost! Why
were my brothers so /blind/ as to not see the tree was /sentient/?!"

"Some people are just overly cruel," Walker pondered as he placed his
drink on the coffee table, standing to retrieve their meals.

She gestured to the table. "That's terribly low." She sighed. "But it is
the only table in my quarters." She shook her head, not knowing what to
do now. Everything she'd done in the last few minutes had been just as
wrong as what her male relatives had put her mother and her through over
the first seventeen Terran years of her life!

Pushing the table toward her with his knee, Walker grinned and placed
her plate on it before sitting on the side of the couch closest to her.

She lowered herself to the area rug and sat cross-legged to make the
table work better, slipping slightly as she did so, barely catching
herself before she fell.

"Easy!" Chuckling to himself, Walker slipped off the couch onto his
knees. "How many more items do you have needing inspection?"

She smiled wanly. "A lot. Each of the next two cases contains four sets
of swords with displays, and the duffel contains odds and ends of other
types of weaponry. All properly documented, of course!"

"Planning to stock the security department, are we?" Walker grinned to
her teasingly.

She looked hurt. "A few of the oddments in the duffel, I'll have you
know, are the tools I use to build and decorate armor." Although she
tried to be arch, her attempt fell flat; her response to this man's
closeness was strange to her. Never before had she trusted a man this
much; he was so close that he could touch her if he wished, after all!

"Plus I don't think Command would allow us to arm ourselves with bladed
weapons, unless on a mission-needed basis." Walker chuckled.

She chuckled softly. "Not even with a monoblade?" She knew the sword
type had been illegal for centuries, due to how insanely dangerous the
swords were, but those in collections and kept closed were never
confiscated.

"Doubt it," Walker winked, "but then again, I've not asked yet."

She took a sip of her drink, then ate a little more, her appetite for
food suddenly secondary to another sort of hunger altogether, one that
made her deeply frightened once more since she didn't quite understand
it. She strove to conceal it, and hoped she was successful.

"Wouldn't happen to fence, eh?" Walker smiled.

She nodded. "Primarily the Greater Katana, but I've a few other
sword-types I practice with."

Walker snickered, "Good. We'll have to schedule a time a bit later."

She nodded. "Sparring in a dojo may be fun, yes. I'd hate to get into
even a mock duel. Too easy to get killed, especially with the katana
type blades." She then mentioned, "One of my secondary disciplines was
fighter-piloting, albeit through the Navy. If I recall, I'm still
current on the Katana and possibly Saber class fighters. Callsign of
Flame." The barest flicker of a grin appeared on her face before she
sobered again.

"Yeah. I don't think Command would be too happy about us getting killed
during a recreational activity," Walker commented with a grin.

She froze. "Oh, Lords. You're not going to get in trouble, are you?" Her
time sense warned it had been over an hour already since he'd entered
her quarters, unchaperoned.

"I'm inspecting weapons," Walker grinned. "My boss knows how to find me."

She was unexpectedly daring in her next remark. "At least I'm not
inspecting /your/ weaponry," and she blushed furiously as she realized
what she'd said and by extension, implied!

"You could. It's hanging in my quarters," Walker grinned. "Though my
dueling set is winging its way home."

She knew he was ignoring her remark, so chuckled a little at the reply
before whispering, "Thank you for trying to help me." She then stood
after taking her dishes up and walked to the replicator, stacking them
to the left. "We need to complete the process, and we'll dispense with
the formal ritual. Takes too long, oftentimes." She desperately wanted
the ritual, but the risk of touching him was too tempting to dare.

"No worries," Walker smiled as he stood and returned his own dishes
before cycling the replicator.

She frowned. "I'm alternately frightened to death and comforted in your
presence. Why? Am I insane?" One of the factors, as she had yet to
realize, was simply the fact that he cared about her as a person.

"I doubt it," Walker smiled softly. "Regelis Medical, Mental Health
Division, wouldn't have let you serve otherwise."

She briefly looked wounded at his words, which, although she quickly
realized were meant as a tease, were too close to what she'd heard her
clan say before she was accepted to the RSA, and before she'd left,
although they'd said the opposite, that they felt she was insane! She
hoped she'd never return, actually.

"Shall we?" Walker looked toward the suit of chain mail.

She smiled, so tempted to say something about modeling it for him, but
she closed her eyes, forcing herself to sanity before saying, "Yes, we
shall."

"The suit is already approved, so if you'll pardon me a moment?" Walker
edged toward it.

She chuckled. "Need help putting it on the rack?" Again, she felt like
she was daring, although she wasn't sure why or what she was daring.

"I've got it." Walker smiled to soften the statement. "Why don't you
locate all your cases?"

She chuckled and gestured to the case he was approaching. "Underneath
that one is another, and the other and the duffel are to one side of it.
Might be a couple of swords or a few sets of ninja stars in the bottom
of that case, too, incidentally." She also knew that in the duffel,
there was a full-size chakram with a surgically sharp edge. Most of her
weapons were combat-ready, but that one most of all.

Chuckling, Walker looked to her ever so ruefully as he went about
setting up the suit-display.

She noticed the rest of that case's contents and blushed furiously,
hurriedly hiding one set of clothing while he was distracted. It was a
set of leather armor that, strictly speaking, could qualify as other
sorts of clothing as well. She remembered the making of it and the
accessories, and the play she'd been involved in that had nearly ended
in disaster for the male who was the lead villain during the first showing.

Buffing the helm, Walker placed it on top the display, then stepped back
to view it.

She glanced back over at the display and smiled. "Somehow, I doubt it'll
stay on the stand all that often. I need so much cardio that it's
ridiculous."

"Hey, it's still gotta look good." Walker grinned.

She chuckled. "And so do I. Exercising without the suit in Earth-normal
gravity is, as you know, a bit of a waste; we're not permitted to run at
full speed except maybe on the holodeck."

"Yup," Walker chuckled. "And as I said earlier, I shipped my suit home,
so I've been running at 2.1g's."

She blinked. "Check the case the armor was in. May be a couple more
items." She brutally suppressed a yawn, her jaw popping hard as a
result. "Creator! I'm sorry." She waved at the other cases. "I don't
know why, but I'm so tired. . ." With that, she crumpled nearly
soundlessly to the floor, her head missing one of the cases by less than
an inch. The impact with the floor had, in fact, restarted her primary
heart, which had stopped.

Blinking, Walker slid to the floor at her side. "Talea?!" He reached
calmly to check for a pulse.

As he touched her wrist, she sent weakly, ~What's going on? Did I just
die or something?~ The questions showed just how disoriented she was.
~And I /hurt/!~

~Besides the fall. . .Say what?!~ Walker reached for his combadge before
stopping.

Talea Sent a chuckle his way via the touch-link. ~If I didn't die, then
what happened? It's not normal to collapse that hard that suddenly.~

~You've got me. Though in my non-medical opinion, I don't think you
should sleep. Yet! May I assist you to the couch?~ Walker paused and waited.

~Not sleep? Why?~ Her tone was high concern, although he noticed it had
a throatier quality than her spoken voice, even as shaken as she was.

~Possibility of concussion? Again, I'm not medical, but you whacked your
head pretty good.~ Walker looked to her, now becoming concerned she
might have caused head trauma.

Her tone held a great deal of worry as she Sent, ~Yes, please help me to
the couch. Actually, it'd be all I could do to help you, poor man.~ Her
tone was full of regret now.

~Don't worry. I can make it,~ Walker smiled as he still held back,
waiting for permission.

~Be like the Nike commercial and Just Do It.~ There was a clear mix of
amusement and still-present worry in the tone, though.

Chuckling, Walker worked to cradle her under the upper back and knees
before standing and moving to the couch.

~You're the first man who's ever carried me with more than a bare
modicum of respect. Did you know that?~

~Can't say that I did,~ Walker was teasing of course, although he hadn't
known.

She was so tempted to just curl up in his arms. For the first time she
could remember, she felt. . .safe in a man's arms.

Making sure she was comfortable, Walker looked down at her. "You ok?"

~Dear Lords, I hope so. Dying so young would be a pity.~ There was a
decided chuckle to the Send. ~Pity I can't request a bodyguard!~ There
was a 'pathed hard blush at the admission.

"Bodyguard?" Walker arched an eyebrow slightly, though with her eyes
closed, she couldn't see it.

~How many men do I trust aboard this vessel? I know of a grand total of
/one/ right now, and sometimes I'm not sure why I trust /you/. No
offense intended.~ She opened her eyes, which he noticed were a very
clear hazel. With the gold-highlighted red hair, it was a striking
combination.

"None taken," Walker grinned slightly. "As for your questions, I
wouldn't know."

~Drat. And try to keep me talking. I think you may be right, that it
wouldn't be wise for me to fall asleep. Not brain-injury, just something
weird my self-scan is indicating.~

"Maybe you can talk me through your collection as I inspect it?" Walker
chuckled slightly.

She chuckled, switching to vocal as well. "You've a deal, and I hope to
the Lords of Light I've not anything I'll be embarrassed to death over!"

"If I find anything, I'll just hide and ignore it." Walker grinned as he
moved toward the cases.

She snorted. "Considering some of my friends at Starfleet Academy, Lords
only know what's in my cases."

"I know the type. Why do you think I packed my sea-bag myself?" Walker
knelt at the cases.

She chuckled a little uneasily. "I tried to, but had help anyway."

"My unit was on maneuvers when I received the transfer orders." Walker
chuckled as he held one of the blades to inspect it.

She shrugged slightly against the couch's cushions. "Well, I wasn't
quite that lucky. My cases and a duffel or two have remained packed
since I left Earth after SFA graduation." She commented, "I came from
Regelis, though."

"I know," Walker smiled softly, but didn't comment otherwise.

She said, "I need to go to Healing Trance, but don't dare. I don't feel
safe enough to do it."

"Hmm?" Walker arched an eyebrow.

She sighed. "You know, I could use one of those heal-booster shots. You
know, the one with the mega-doses of the vitamins and minerals we
Regellians burn so much of during healing."

"Computer. Check database for Regellian Booster," Walker stood calmly.

The computer responded, "Dosage requirement? Item shows flagged as
non-prescription, entered in database via Starbase Capricorn Medical
Department."

At the computer's words, Talea said softly, "Check to see which it is;
there are two shots known as boosters. One is safe for me. The other is
a concentrated form of the restorative, and believe me, you wouldn't
want to see my reaction to it hitting my bloodstream!"

"Computer. Which form is in the database?" Walker paused, knowing he had
almost made a goof.

The computer paused for a full eight seconds before responding. "Two
shots, one a brilliant green," to which Talea shook her head violently;
it was the concentrated restorative, "and one that is a slate-blue."

Realizing he'd not seen her headshake, Talea warned urgently, "Not the
green!"

Walker looked to Talea. "Half dose for now?"

She said, "If it's the slate-blue, yes. Otherwise, even that would kill
me." She knew her body's reaction to the restorative was extreme, but
even Regelis Medical was puzzled as to why.

"Computer. Half dose of the slate-blue booster, as the dose would relate
to someone of Talea's mass." Walker stood calmly.

The computer chimed, then the replicator pinged as the single-use
hypospray appeared on the stage.

Leaving the couch and cases for the moment, Walker strode to the
replicator and collected it. Returning to the couch, he grinned. "Ready?"

She shrugged. "Ready or not, I've got to have the nutritional support.
You probably do too, considering what we both went through." Her voice
showed her chagrin at having caused him so much pain.

"I told you not to worry about that," Walker smiled as he tilted her
head slightly and pressed the hypo to her neck.

As the hypo fired, she shivered, but the nutrients improved her
condition nearly immediately. "Thank the Creator." She then waved him to
move so she could swing her legs off the couch.

Grinning, Walker returned the hypospray to the replicator stage.

She gestured to the case that remained open. "Let's get all this
settled, shall we?" She didn't want to be rude, but her need for privacy
had yet again asserted itself with a vengeance, and she didn't
understand why.

"Of course," Walker smiled and returned to the cases.

She commented as the next piece came out and he showed it to her,
"That's somewhere on the order of eight hundred years old. Relatively
new, compared to some of my other pieces." She flashed a grin at him.

"Ouch!" Walker returned the grin. "Most of my pieces would have this
beat on the newness scale." He first scanned it with the tricorder
before performing the visual inspection.

She shrugged. "My Clan is an ancient one, and we've been in exile for
thousands of years. At first, imposed by the High King, then
self-imposed isolation." Her tone was matter-of-fact. "It's caused a lot
of problems over the centuries, yet the Clan's leaders have never tried
to regain admittance into the greater society, because they reject
certain laws."

"They'd hate me," Walker grinned to show he was teasing, though he did
file the clan information away.

She smiled, but there was sadness to it. "Then you'd join the club,
since I'm not exactly welcome in my Clan anymore. Why? I do accept and
follow the laws, particularly the one requiring all able-bodied adults
to serve in the military." She didn't state that doing so had been one
of the few legitimate ways she could escape her oppressive home life.

"I'm a mil-brat, what can I say," Walker grinned as he examined the next
blade.

She laughed. "Almost everyone on Regelis is, with the laws that have
been in existence since before the Last War." This was a reference to
the infamous MacLeod/MacArran Clan war that had ended with simultaneous
nuclear strikes on both castles.

"And I'm being a wise guy?" Walker winked, "This one passes as well."

She nodded and asked, "Any more stuff in that one, or do I need to shift
it out of the way?"

"Looks to be empty, unless you've got concealed compartments," Walker
grinned again.

She nodded. "Good. And no, none of the cases have such to my knowledge,
however useful it would be if one did."

Walker returned the blade to the case and took a knee-crawl step away.

With that, she closed the case and latched it, then carried it to its
stowage position. There was one container in the second case that she
wasn't sure he'd allow, due to the biohazard emblem on it. She unlatched
that case and opened it, revealing a 3' diameter cylinder that was
almost 4' long, along with several smaller blade-cases. She smiled
slightly. "Just a friend in stasis." The Regellian word she'd used for
"friend" indicated an animal companion.

"Not too deadly, I hope!" Walker grinned slightly, although he still
continued with the small-blade inspections.

She smiled and ducked her head. "Only if you consider a Greater Leopard
as not too deadly." She then corrected herself, "Greater Black Panther."

"That'll be up to Command." Walker chuckled as he placed the small
blades back.

She nodded, feeling sadness. "Help me get it over to power. I'd prefer
to not use more battery than has already happened."

"Of course!" Standing, Walker collected the stasis unit. "Where?"

She chuckled. "Anywhere it'll fit as a table and can still be plugged
into power?" She half-grinned, with a sidelong glance at him.

"You're the decorator," Walker grinned as he returned the comment.

"Touche, Walker. However, I confess I do not know where the outlets are
yet." This hurt her feelings, since it showed she was very unobservant.

"Bedside stand?" Walker grinned.

She glanced over toward the bed. "Hmm. Has a nightstand to the right.
Wonder if we can shift that to the left side and. . ." She trailed off,
considering. "You do know that it shouldn't be realized it is plugged
in, right? Or indeed, what it truly is." She saw that the top bar wasn't
in position, but that was normal for shipping.

"Yeah, I know. We'll figure something out." Walker turned and started
into the bedroom.

Without realizing why, she was suddenly blushing furiously and muttering
something too low for him to make out clearly, but her intense
embarrassment was very clear.

"Coming?" Walker glanced over his shoulder.

She froze, terrified now. The only motion was her blinking tears back as
she fought not to run away. The statement seemed to validate her worst fear.

Stopping, Walker leaned the unit against the foot of the bed before
turning back. "Talea?"

She was shuddering and edging away from him now. "You-You're not
planning on. . ." She swallowed convulsively and gestured mutely toward
the bed, unable to continue.

Walker blinked, utterly confused. "Wha. . ."

She whispered, "You're not planning on raping me, are you?" Her words
were so soft he wasn't sure he'd even heard her, but the terror in her
tone and body language was crystal clear.

Walker cringed in utter fear to match her own. "And why in the Pits
would I do that?" In an uncontrolled fall to a seated position at the
bed's foot, he knocked the stasis unit to the floor before looking at
her in horror. "I'd get arrested and lose my commission."

She whispered, "Because it's all I've ever known. Men ordering women
around and treating us as if we have no rights. . ."

"What in the Creator's name!" Walker looked to her, eyes wide in total
shock.

She just started crying, her control overwhelmed, collapsing to the
floor in her misery.

"That's why your clan's been in exile?" Walker couldn't fathom it,
utterly couldn't.

She shook her head. "My Clan wasn't exiled for that. Our exile happened
due to a failed coup. Our current isolation is because my Clan's
leadership refuses to acknowledge a certain set of laws." She didn't
want to admit their genetic diversity was so low that it was critical
they not marry within the Clan.

"Far be it for me to insult a member's Clan leaders," Walker grinned
ruefully, "but Talea, your clan leaders are loco."

She nodded. "Why do you think I'm frightened of men? I've been raised in
an environment where men have all the rights, and women can be bought,
sold, bartered or even kidnapped and forced to wed their captors. . .all
of which the rest of the Alliance gave up thousands of years ago." She
didn't want to tell him that the rights of men even extended to the
excused murder of women, for fear he'd explode.

Walker shook his head, not only in disbelief, but also to try and clear
his thoughts and anger. "I give you my word that as it pertains to
myself, you're a free woman. I would never ask or force you to do anything."

She chuckled softly. "Asking is fine. Forcing. . ." She sighed, closing
her eyes for a moment, trying to calm herself. "Forcing your will upon
another is anathema." She smiled very slightly. "It is good you are one
of the majority. Believe me on that." She walked over to the container
and set it upright with a pat of near-apology before crouching beside
it, uncertain Walker would dare continue to help her.

"Ok. Let me rephrase. I won't ask for a very long time." Chuckling,
Walker looked to the stasis unit. "Isn't it missing a piece?"

She chuckled. "It is, aye. However, that's just the control-bar. This
container has a power cable somewhere." Her tone had gone puzzled as she
tried to remember where.

"You puzzle that out," Walker grinned teasingly, "while I muscle it in
place." Standing, he collected the unit again before edging around the bed.

As he rolled it around, she pointed. "There! See?" When he didn't seem
to be paying attention, she called it out again, more emphatically, not
having noticed the apparent order he'd given.

"Got it." Walker chuckled as he rolled it on its edge into place.

She sat on the floor cross-legged. "You'd enjoy Blackstone. He's a bit
of a cutup." She was referring to the panther, but wasn't making it clear.

"Hmm?" Walker arched an eyebrow as he settled the unit.

She pointed to the unit he was handling. "Blackstone. My
panther-companion. In the stasis unit?" She smiled gently. "He and I go
back a few years. Saved his life when he was a cub; Darwin shot and
skinned his mother. . ." She grimaced. "She was still alive when he
skinned her out, too. My brothers are often cruel beyond words."

"What the blazes?" Kneeling, Walker checked that the cable was facing
the right direction before making the proper connections.

"You could hear her screams of agony for miles. Run as I might, I only
got there in time to save Blackstone from a similar fate."

"Looks stable," Walker edged back toward the foot of the bed. "Think
your brothers need a MART, but that's only my opinion."

She nodded. "Even Father thought he'd gone too far. Darwin was forbidden
to hunt for a year and was sent to prison for eight months by our
father. Didn't endear him to any of my brothers. They considered the
punishment far exceeded the crime."

Walker grunted slightly. "Your brothers are freaks, then!"

She brought the control bar over and attached it temporarily. As she'd
hoped, on power, it was all green. She removed the bar, then paled as
she accidentally brushed up against him while headed back to stow the
bar away. "Oh! I'm sorry!"

"Hmm? Walker smiled softly.

She blinked. He'd not taken offense. . .it was a novel experience for
her. "You didn't take offense to my accidentally brushing up against
you." Her tone was soft wonder.

"Why would I?" Walker looked to her curiously.

She said simply, "It is forbidden for a woman to touch a man she is not
married to in my Clan."

"We already know my opinion of your Clan leaders," Walker smiled. She
nodded mutely. No answer seemed necessary. She was so tempted to reach
over and hug him, but her upbringing stopped her despite the apparent
approval by this man.

"Next?" Walker snickered.

She recalled herself then and headed back out to the living area and the
next case, her face burning with her embarrassment and shame.

~Talea?~ Walker stood and stepped toward the door.

She knelt and placed the control bar back in its travel place before
closing and latching the case, not realizing the rest of the contents
weren't fully cleared yet.

"Talea?" Walker looked on curiously.

She turned toward him, her face sad. "I keep fouling up. Nothing I've
done in the last week has been right." She blinked back tears again.
"What use is it for me to live?"

"Fouling up?" Walker leaned against the door frame.

She nodded. "I should have been able to avoid what hit the /Baron
l'Orange/, thereby avoiding being late and dishonoring myself that way.
And that was just the beginning of it all."

"Stuff happens," Walker shrugged slightly.

She sighed, not contented with that answer, but frowned as she realized
something. "No. No!"

"Hmm?" Walker looked to her confused, while thinking. 'Man, her clan
really messed her up.'

She just unlatched the case she'd just closed, then backed away, her
emotions in an uproar.

Chuckling, Walker walked forward before kneeling next to the case. "How
much is left?"

"Whatever's left in that case and. . ." She paused uncertainly. "I think
another case and duffel else."

"Good Lords," Walker looked to her teasingly as he returned to the
inspection.

She gestured to the cases. "I think I had three duffels and four cases.
. .or was it four duffels and three cases?" She was now uncertain of
herself.

"Didn't get a good look. Was more worried about cracking your stasis
unit." Walker smiled softly.

She nodded. "Actually, had you cracked it, I would have likely died.
Once in stasis, you must be brought out properly or you simply never wake."

Walker smirked, "I know the stasis routine."

She was growing more confused by the moment. Had she three cases or
four? The fact she wasn't certain bothered her greatly. "Let's get the
other case or cases done. I've kept you for so long now. . ."

"I think this is the last case, or next to last, maybe." Walker returned
to the inspection.

She laughed aloud. "You are absolutely /no/ help, Mister Ranger." The
fact that she'd laughed more with him than she had with any man in over
a decade and a half crossed her mind, but she shrugged it off.

"If it's not about tactics, I'm useless." Walker grinned teasingly.

She looked at him searchingly. "Do dating and courting not both take
more strategy than tactics?" Her question, while naive sounding, was
honest curiosity.

"They each have strategy and tactics in their own way," Walker grinned.

Her voice was bitter as she commented, "Not in the Exiled Clans. There,
courtship is a military term and equates to what is basically a chattel
raid."

"We won't even get to my opinion of your clan again," Walker smirked.

She just huffed, sharing his opinion of her own clansmen. She'd seen too
many of her clanswomen die for offenses so minor that in other
societies, they might get corporal punishment or minor fines for.

"This set passes," Walker smiled softly.

She felt a desperation she'd never even considered before at his words.
"You're finished?" She looked at him, her expression showing her alarm
and screaming loneliness.

"You've got one more case, don't you?" Walker scanned the room.

On the one hand, she was relieved that her collection was all legal, but
somewhere deep inside, she didn't want their companionship to end. She
replied uncertainly, "I'm not sure. Have you seen my chain making tools
yet?"

"Don't think so, which is odd. Weren't they in the same case as the
suit?" Walker stood calmly.

She shook her head. "No, those were two sets of swords, one a set of
Greater Katanas. I know you've not found the chakram, so there must be
one more case somewhere. . ."

"Could it still be aboard the /Baron/?" Walker scratched the back of his
neck.

She looked around, spotting the last duffel, since the others were
stacked on one another. "There it is!" The relief was a warm feeling
she'd never expected. In some ways, this would be the most difficult
one, since it contained her tools, the chakram and, apparently, one of
her largest swords.

"Time to get comfortable, eh?" Walker grinned as he pulled the duffel
into the center of the room.

She blinked. "Comfortable?" She looked surprised. "I /do/ feel
comfortable in your presence. Pleasant to feel that way around a man for
once."

Grinning softly, Walker gestured to the duffel. "Way you're talking,
we'll be here for awhile."

She heaved a deep sigh and unlatched the duffel, throwing the flap open,
barely keeping it from slamming into the wall behind the duffel in her
surprise and dismay at the top layer. Her hands flew to her mouth and
she whispered, "Oh, dear Creator." She blushed furiously, as the top
layer wasn't weapons, but a lovely set of very exotic lingerie!

"So this is where your Academy mates pulled their prank!" Walker grinned
as he nonchalantly moved the attire out of the way.

She could clearly recall the one time she'd seen it before, and while
she'd been certain she'd not given any indication of it, she'd fallen in
love with the set. Here it was, and all she felt was embarrassment and
mortification. Why was that?

Returning to the duffel, Walker glanced to her. "Talea?"

Her color still high, she carefully lifted out the circular case
containing the chakram before opening it and showing it to him. It was
identical to that used in the early episodes of the TV series "Xena:
Warrior Princess", and was every bit as sharp.

"Wow," Walker looked from the chakram to his tricorder and back.

"What?" Her voice was far sharper than she'd intended. "Expecting it to
be contraband explosives?

"No. Didn't expect it to be that sharp." Walker grinned.

"I've hunted with it more than once." Her voice was once again calmer.

"Remind me not to be on the receiving end," Walker winked.

She said darkly, "You won't be."

"I was teasing," Walker smiled softly.

She spied the sword in its sheath and wondered what he'd think of her,
or if he'd put the pieces together and wonder where the rest was.

Walker blinked as he spotted the sword. "Wow. I knew some of my swords
were big."

She admitted softly, "I played Xena in a play in my college freshman
year. After the run, some of us ladies had," she cleared her throat
significantly, "trouble."

"Trouble?" Walker looked to her, wondering how many times he was gonna
want to kill someone. Her family made at least three times.

She chuckled. "We were able to defend. Quite handily. We, um. . ." She
blushed deeply. "We handed what was left of our assailants to the
authorities. None of us three were injured." She commented offhandedly,
"Three-on-one, too."

"I'm guessing they were at least eight inches shorter?" Walker grinned.

She shook her head. "None of them were dead, no. They never repeated the
mistake, however. Nor were they injured so much that they required more
than minor surgery."

Walker chuckled. "Sounds fun."

Her eyes went slate gray as she said, "It wasn't pleasant. I was in
counseling for three weeks afterward, trying to reconcile my actions
with how I'd been trained. Problem was, the counselors were no help;
they had no data to go on other than our defensive moves, so deemed our
actions as proper."

"Cause it's likely they were?" Walker shrugged, "I don't have the data
either, so I can only make an educated guess."

She shrugged. "I haven't worn the costume or weapons since. Why, I can't
say. However, as you see, they're properly cared for."

He nodded, then after approving the last of her equipment, bowed and
departed for the time being.

Some time later, shaking her head at her own folly, Talea took another,
quicker shower before brushing out her hair and putting a terrycloth
robe on before padding into the bedroom. She knew it was early yet, it
being barely 22:30, but she felt she needed to check the sheets on her
bed. As she stripped the bed down, she flinched back at the feel of the
sheets. She looked at the tag in suspicion. 'Thought so.
Polyester/cotton blend. Someone wants me to die in my sleep, I think.'
With that dour thought, she folded the sheets just enough to fit in the
replicator, then ordered grimly, "Computer, recycle content of
replicator, then replicate sheets of the same size, except 170-count
cotton, same pattern and colors."

She knew this was a fairly typical thread-count; she'd wanted to specify
her normal of 200-count silk, but dared not, not yet. In fact, she
preferred to purchase real. It could wait. As the new sheet set
appeared, complete with pillow cases, she efficiently remade the bed,
this time to RSDF specs. To test it, she tried to bounce a
quarter-credit piece off the bottom sheet and it did. Not well, but it
did. The same problem of a natural/manufactured fiber blend occurred
with the light blanket, to her irritation, and she repeated the procedure.

The top sheet was much more satisfactory to her estimation; the
quarter-credit coin bounced high enough for her to catch it again. After
putting the new blanket on the bed, she realized weariness was stalking
her. Within ten minutes, she was so deeply asleep that she didn't detect
the illegal entry of someone who would continue to hide from her until
0745, when he made his move.

Other related posts: