Spookieness On The Bridge

Posted on Sun Nov 9th, 2025 @ 6:08am by Lieutenant Commander David Erickson & Lieutenant Commander Valerie Novis

1,112 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: ARYL 1X05: Nightmare on Ark Royal Street
Location: Ark Royal Bridge

The reports of the Gorn on board had been for naught, there were no other ships around, Gorn or otherwise, and the internal sensors didn't show anything that could even be remotely considered one. This custom of 'Halloween' that talk had been going around about was one of Earth's sillier ones, Valerie decided, and clearly the party in the lounge had gotten out of control if they were making a big deal about someone who was clearly in a costume. How they'd not been unmasked was a mystery, but that was for them to deal with, not her.

Valerie was happy that she'd volunteered to take the bridge watch for the duration of this party, this made her even more pleased with herself. While others on the bridge were here of their own volition as well, for a while at least, neither of the other two had been as thrilled at being assigned the duty, however, the luck of the draw had been against them, but every watch needed to have multiple personnel for redundancy's sake, not that she herself couldn't count, technically. She was taking another glance up from her tablet when she saw the figure coming in silently from the turbolift, first a smile, then a second look, a closer look and her blood went cold. She knew that woman in that outfit, it was...

The figure made a gesture towards the side room it had been walking towards and Valerie nodded in agreement even as she was transfixed in the chair. "Nav, you have the Conn," she managed to get out of her mouth while she stood from her seat. "I'm going to go review the map in the Ready Room." It was a poor excuse for sure, but no one else could see her here. If they did, there would be question that Valerie had no idea how to answer, because this woman was dead. She'd seen her die in person and there hadn't been anything she could do about it.

While she rapidly walked to the ready room, Valerie's mind was racing as she explored how... There had been instances of hosts seeing their previous symbiont incarnations, but that was a bad sign, a sign of insanity. Even when they performed the Zhian'tara, it was just personalities within other people. The door shut behind her as she faced Kyra Novis, the woman who was 'technically' her aunt by marriage according to every record out here, "Who are you?"

"Evidently, the most disappointed woman in the galaxy," Kyra said, annoyed. "And I would greatly appreciate you explaining yourself, young lady."

“What do you mean, ‘Explain myself?’” Valerie snapped back, “You’re dead! Even if you weren’t when we finally got back to the compound, you would have died when they transferred the symbiont to me!” She stopped short, this was ridiculous, this couldn’t be Kyra, but she was flustered, “If you are who you say you are, tell me something that only you and I would know, no one else.” That would be easy to disprove whoever this Trill made to look like her mentor was.

"Romulus," Kyra said. "The emergency code was 'rishan.'"

“Exac-“ Valerie cut herself off as she was about to call her out, but what ‘Kyra’ had just said… “But who, how, why in the living hells have you kept quiet before now? I can’t get a peep out of you aside from the screaming that finally died away, and now you’re here, now? What the absolute fuck?”

"And is that what you're afraid of?" Kyra said, irritated. "That I come back and everyone learns how you failed? That everyone learns the truth about who and what you are? What you did? What you failed to do?"

"I didn-" Valerie started, then stopped before going on, "It happened too fast and I couldn't get there fast enough." She gritted out, wanting to tell Kyra that she hadn't been able to get the table they had planned for, which put her out of position for her planned overwatch of the intelligence pickup from an informant, "It wasn't my fault.. You even said that, there..."

Kyra tilted her head, confused. "You're lying," she said. "You believe it was your fault. You're afraid people will find out. It terrifies you."

"No, but, I, It-" Valerie spluttered, barely able to hold back her disbelief, how had Kyra known? Had she always known? But there hadn't been any contact with her at all, aside from the faintest whisper here and there that was indecipherable. "I looked away for a second, two at most, I had to or else someone may have noticed...I should have." Her shoulders slumped. "I fucked up. I couldn't tell anyone. I tried at first, but they didn't believe me, thought I was being too hard on myself, but I knew the truth." She looked at the floor. "I got you killed."

"And what have you done since? You always fear it hasn't been enough, but you fear you do too much. Your fear is irrational. Why do you cling to it?"

"Because you would have done more, done better. Me?" Valerie gestured to the window, "I've been a customs officer and a junior tactical officer." She shook her head, "Hardly anything that matters. If I'd saved you? At least the Romulans would be less of a threat, if not something more."

"You aren't either of those things now," Kyra said. "And you have no ability to manipulate time. So why are you focused on fear? It's most confusing."

Valerie exhaled and turned to look out that window, "Because I can't HEAR you at all, that's not normal and I NEED to hear you, Kyra, or else I can't be whole." She turned back to look at her former self, but there was no one there any more. "Kyra?" She asked out loud, looking around the room then walked quickly to the ready room door and stepped out, looking around the bridge and seeing a new officer at the navigation console.

"Did you-" She started to ask, the head of the Nav officer turning towards her, "No, never mind, as you were." She slowly began to walk back to the center chair, a cold feeling in her gut once more.

The comm chirped again, and the Science officer's voice came over it, "Security to the Mess Hall, we got a ... giant-ass scorpion up in here."

Valerie tapped her comm, "Security team is on the way." She replied, keying in the proper re-route to the manned security station. What else weird was going to happen? This was just ridiculous.

 

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