Surefoot 87: Art of Being Broken

"No trouble, Wife of Mine, just a gesture of appreciation for all that you do for us... besides, life is so rushed of late, how often do we all get together as a family?" He caught Mru's gaze. "Yes, that includes you, Cub."

Kami smiled at Mru's reaction to the inclusion, before reading the words on Sreen's crown. "So, your title of Poop Queen is official now, eh?"

The toddler stopped chewing to hold out her stubby arms and declare in an operatic melody, "I AM THE POOP QUEEN!"

Kami smirked, looking over at Misha. "A gift from her Big Brother?"

Misha offered a Thumbs Up, before bringing extra chairs over for Sasha and Mru.

"That Kintsugi workshop was amazing," Mru noted, pouring wine for the rest of the adults. "It was very relaxing, and insightful; thank you for suggesting it, Counselor."

Kami sipped at her wine. "Well, I'm glad you got something out of it."

"I certainly did, when I took them," Esek noted, dishing out the stir fry into the bowls. "When I had the time to take workshops, and wasn't busy saving the sector."

"You still can take them," Kami suggested, teasing. "I can always make them mandatory. I have authority, even over Big Commodes."

Misha snickered, whispering to Sreen, "Commode is another word for Toilet."

Sreen looked to her father, pointing and asking, "Poop Queen?"

As they all sat and tucked in, Esek asked, "So, who's going to Tarot's Grand Opening tonight?"

"I am!" Misha replied, between mouthfuls of food.

"I believe Mr Latrelle told you not until you're eighteen," Kami reminded him, twirling the sesame-coated ninshoot noodles around her fork. "Well, he promised lots of snacks for Sasha."

"Yeah, he's gonna regret that," the human woman promised them, smiling. "Are you two coming?"

"Oh yes," Esek promised, "We'll get Gyver or Peter Boone to cubsit."

"Yes," Kami said dryly, "Because they're at our beck and call day and night, and don't have lives of their own. I'm staying in, I'm exhausted." She looked at Esek. "You should go, check it out, see what it's like."

"Are you sure? I don't want to leave you on your own."

"No, you don't, because it's not like I would appreciate a chance to relax on my own, put my feet up and catch up with the news from the Motherworld."

Esek stared at her, before leaning over to Sasha and asking in a stage whisper, "You think she's being sarcastic?"

"Hard to tell, she always sounds like that."

Misha guffawed. "Yeah, she does!" Then he stopped at a glare from her mother.

*

2130 Hrs:

Sreen gripped onto one leg of her plush, thoroughly-chewed shuris toy Babaloo, swinging it around for balance as she waddled from furniture to furniture. She had been put to bed, her exoframe removed by Mama, but Mama had been tired and forgot to switch it off, allowing Sreen to imitate her Mama's voice and order the exoframe to return, wrap around her once more and help her get out of bed and back into the living room, to get her other toys to listen to a new song she made up-

The front door slid open, and the purple winged Caitian sand newt that Misha had helped create today with the Magician flew in, dropping behind the kitchen island.

Then Mama appeared behind it, moving around quickly, examining several PADDs on the nearby desk.

Sreen smiled at Mama's trick. "Mama! I do new song! 'Babaloo, Babaloo, you no poop, Babaloo-'"

"Shut up."

The toddler frowned. Why was Mama being so mean? "Mama! Come here, you sad, I sing, you no sad!"

Now Mama looked over at her, baring her teeth. "I said shut up, you little bitch, or I'll smother you!"

Sreen's breath caught in her throat, and she began to cry.

Mama hissed and started towards her, claws bared- until she heard a noise in the bathroom, and rushed out the front door.

Mama emerged from the bathroom, immediately rushing up to Sreen and sweeping her up in his arms. "There, there, Daughter of Mine, what's happened? What are you doing up out of bed?"

Sreen kept crying, unable to express her terror at the monster that wore her Mama's fur.

*

Ange Boladede lay on his bunk, running through his academic PADD, staying focused. That was the key. Focus. The loss of so many of his credits was serious, but, as Commander Haluk and Counselor Hrelle had noted, it was not insurmountable.

It was a challenge. And in his young lifetime, he had proven repeatedly that he could face, and overcome, any challenge, whether it was winning the Mhabe Run at age twelve, or being the first freshman cadet to earn a medal in Advanced Marksmanship.

This will be no less difficult to overcome. And he was secretly grateful to Haluk and Hrelle for their discretion as well as their mercy. Had his... infatuation... with Lt Cmdr Hrelle had been made public-

The door slid open, and Macbeth's Squad Leader, Command Cadet Rachel Nash, entered, looking at him. "Ange, we're heading out now. Are you sure you don't want to come along?"

He heard the rest of their squad in their common room, impatient to head out for their expected debauchery. "No, I have work to do."

She nodded, smiling. "Okay, but the offer still stands. C'Riir says he's going to teach Denek how to do the Caitian Bolero."

"Another time." But when she started to depart, he added, "Rachel..."

She popped her head back in, her expression at his unprecedented familiarity clear. "Uh, yes?"

He thought back, back to the many times she had tried to help him integrate with the rest of the Squad, to make him feel a part of it, despite the superior, dismissive attitude he had displayed since transferring to Salem One to continue their studies. Perhaps, if he had not let himself stay so detached, he wouldn't have ended up in the situation he was in now? "You are a very accomplished Starfleet cadet... and you are a good friend.

I have not been a worthy example of either. But that will change. In the near future, I would like to speak to you confidentially about something that has happened. I need... I need to learn to trust. If you'll let me?"

Nash frowned in consideration, but quickly recovered. "Of course, Ange. Anytime you want."

Then he was alone again, as he heard them depart. That wasn't as bad as you had expected. If only Mother was there to see your progress-

The door chime made him rise and enter the common room to respond to it. It was no doubt a fellow cadet, looking for one of the others- "Ma'am! I was not expecting you!"

The Counselor stood there in the corridor, smirking. "No, I suppose not. May I come in?"

"Of course." He stepped back, aware that he was not fully dressed in uniform, and that the squad's common room was cluttered-

"I'm not here on a surprise inspection," she informed him casually, glancing around the interior. "I'm here to see how you're doing, after today?"

Boladede looked at her. "I- I must admit that I was feeling many things: anger at being confronted in that way, outrage at my privacy being violated, fear at what would happen to me... and then remorse, once I understood how wrong I was."

She nodded. "All understandable. And now?"

He breathed in. "Determination. Determination to prove your faith that I can remain in Starfleet despite what I had done." He indicated his PADD. "I have already started making plans whereby the loss credits can be re-earned through cross applications of voluntary-"

He stopped as she held up a paw. "A moment, please, Cadet." She dropped her paw again, an incredulous look on her face. "Is that what you took away from our meeting? That you really had a chance at staying?"

Then she laughed.

He stood there, thoroughly confused.

And she saw that, too, laughing again. "Oh, Mother's Cubs, I had forgotten how thoroughly naive you cadets can be!" When she recovered, she drew closer, her tail swishing behind her with glee, reaching up and patting him on the cheek. "Thank you for that. I'm due at the new club tonight, I wasn't looking forward to it after the day I've had, but you've lifted my spirits considerably."

He shook his head, eyes wide, wondering if he had fallen asleep in his bunk, and was still there. "I-I don't understand-"

"Don't you? Really?" She paced around him. "You're even more obtuse than you first seemed."

She faced him now, looking annoyed now having to explain herself to him. "My husband knows about your disgusting sexual obsession with his daughter! He has spies on the Security team! He's even seen the computer-generated fantasies you conjured!"

She drew in closer, disgust adding to her annoyance. "And while he can't be seen to be getting involved in Academy matters, he's made it clear to Commander Haluk and myself that you will not be successful. Work as hard as you want, but he has ordered us to find something, anything, to fail you.

And if you try to raise a formal protest, then your disciplinary matter becomes a public court martial. Your family back home will hear of your disgrace, of the shame and dishonour you brought to them." She shook her head. "Your poor mother..."

His heart sank, mired in incredulity. This wasn't happening. This wasn't happening...

"Oh, and he personally made sure that Sasha saw everything," the Counselor added with what seemed like malicious delight. "To warn her about you. She threw up. She literally threw up." Then she crossed her arms. "He wanted you to push yourself as hard as you can, and then at the end have you failed and kicked out. But for myself, I'd rather not waste my time with someone as pathetic as you. So, do yourself and everyone else a favour: resign. Or confront my husband. Either way, your life in Starfleet is finished."

Then she departed.

*

Zir sat in the Commodore's Office in Ops. There was nothing unusual about this; as his Adjutant, she would use his facilities and authorisation in the performance of her duties.

Now, at this time of night with the staff outside on the Late Shift, she was going above and beyond. Technically, she was breaking Starfleet Regulations, using Commodore Hrelle's authorisation to access Starfleet Security records, searching, searching.

And finding little of use. Starfleet's connections to Imperial Orion records were limited; only the Security records regarding Orion raiders, smugglers and slave traffickers who have committed crimes within Federation territory.

She did find some data on Surinh Dag, former Gamesmaster of the notorious Deathmatches... and former owner of Commodore Hrelle, when her commanding officer and mentor had been enslaved by her people. But there was nothing.

She had an identical lack of success trying to find out anything about her family, whom she hadn't seen for ten years, not since she fled Imperial Space to eventually join Starfleet.

Until a few days ago, when the holographic image of Surinh Dag appeared to her in her quarters, presenting images of her family, claiming to have abducted them, using them as hostages against Zir in order to make Zir do... something. She didn't know what yet, but she was smart enough to know that it wouldn't be good.

Surinh Dag also told her not to tell anyone, not if she wanted to keep her family alive. Zir had a duty, had taken an oath of loyalty to Starfleet. And she had remained loyal, even in the face of certain elements she had encountered over the years, who saw her green skin and heard all the salacious stories about Orions being criminal and untrustworthy. Her strongest, staunchest defender, the Commodore, had been the one who promoted her and awarded her this position of authority and responsibility. She couldn't betray him.

But why should this loyalty hurt her family, innocents who had done nothing to deserve this threat to their lives?

"Lieutenant."

Zir started, bolting to her feet. "Counselor! I didn't hear you come in!"

Counselor Hrelle smiled, leaning against the wall near the sliding door, arms folded. "I know; I said your name twice, then used your rank."

The younger female felt her cheeks turn a darker shade of olive. "I'm sorry, I was just lost in work, I didn't realise you were here-"

The Counselor held up her paw to cut her off. "No. You weren't lost in work. And I'm not here."

Zir stared at her, frowning in confusion. "I- I don't understand."

The Counselor glanced at the wall, working the controls to change the transparency, making it opaque to the rest of Ops, before drawing closer, her voice dropping to a confidential whisper. "I'm not here, speaking with you. And if you ask me outside of this office, I'll deny ever being here with you.

We know you've been looking into Surinh Dag... and your family. And we know that he has your family, as part of the plot by the Bel-Zon against us."

The admission made Zir's heart skip a beat, and her eyes widened in shock. "Y-You know? H-How-"

The Counselor raised a finger to the tip of her snout in a silencing gesture, her voice a whisper. "What's important is that we know, and are taking steps. But we can't let them know that we know. It's a very delicate balancing act, and we know that the Bel-Zon have made your family pawns in all this, and we are so sorry that you have been put into this position, and not assured before now of what we're doing."

Zir's heart seemed to kick back, race as if to catch up with the change of circumstances. "Y-You- the Commodore- you can help them?"

The Counselor smiled. "We have it in paw. But, when Surinh Dag contacts you again, you have to play along, give him the command codes and follow the instructions they ask for. None of what you do will do them any good. Okay?"

The revelation, this assurance, this hope, felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She offered a fragile smile. "Thank you, Counselor. And thank Commodore Hrelle. I'll never forget what you've both done for me."

The Counselor smiled back. "I'm sure you won't. Now, go, relax, maybe find Afrik Rhov and join everyone else at that new club."

"What? What about you?"

The Counselor grinned and winked, thumbing towards the door. "I'm not here, remember? And I'll deny ever being here."

*

Urad breathed in as he knelt on the floor of his quarters, deep in prayer, staring at his open hands resting palm upwards on his knees. He flexed each digit, one after the other, and then back again.

They weren't back at their former levels. They may never will be, despite the assurances from Comrade Doctor Masterson and all the wonderful, tireless staff here. He knew this.

But still, he couldn't deny what he did today, in that holographic workshop, under the guidance of that little human whose gentle, but uncompromising attitude, reminded him so much of his mother, and Comrade Counselor Hrelle, and Zir, and Dear Tori. So many wonderful women, loving him, supporting him. Telling him what to do.

He smiled to himself, for what seemed the first time in an eternity.

"Why do you smile?"

He reacted, looking up to see the Counselor standing there, arms crossed. "Comrade Counselor, I did not hear you come in!! He began to struggle to help himself up.

"Stay where you are. You look insufferably pleased with yourself."

Urad's words caught in his throat. "I- I did well today-"

"If you say so. Hopefully, we won't lose too many more people before you finally stop disgracing yourself with your weakness, your cowardice, and start making yourself worthy of your uniform, you family, your people again."

He felt a terrible chill at her scathing, unexpected words, so unlike anything he had heard from her before. "Comrade Counselor, is this- is this some psychological tactic-"

She uncrossed her arms, holding them out. "Counselor? I'm no Counselor. 'I am the One who stands on the All Rock. I stand and watch the Children of Hroch, from birth to death. I see all, and my judgement is never wrong...'"

The words, words he had read so many times in his people's Creed, reached inside him and clasped around his throat. "No- It can't be- she's just a story, an allegory-"

"Blasphemer." Light grew from around the figure of the Counselor, a light that erupted into coruscating energies that seemed to feed upon the lithe outline, expanding, reshaping as if in some arcane flask, becoming larger, broader, Hroch in size and shape, dressed in the ancient ceremonial robes and gold, clasping the first maapak, the gold measuring staff that help the first civilisations set standards for building walls, buildings, temples, whole cities. The Hroch female aimed it at him. "Suditi judges thee Blasphemer... and Coward."

"Suditi?" he breathed out, trembling. UIt had to be a dream, a hologram, an illusion, something, anything... No. no, no, no, no....

The light from his people's Celestial Assayer filled the room...

*

Sasha didn't think much of the new nightclub, though in truth she wasn't sure what to expect. The entrance was a set of red and black Gothic doors like some old Terran church, except these slid apart. Mru and she had missed the opening ceremony, and by the time they had arrived, the crowds waiting outside had flowed in, and they followed.

The dark colour schemes and ornate decor continued within, with velvet burgundy and dark alcoves leading here and there, and staff in old-fashioned clothes leading people to tables or the long, black bar lining one wall opposite a stage now occupied by the proprietor - Simon Something - was speaking to an enthusiastic group. "And you should know that everyone who crossed my threshold tonight was added to a special draw tonight, the winner of which will receive a personal card reading from me!" He drew out a set of colourful cards from his jacket, fanning them to Oohs and Ahhs.

Mru leaned in. "'Card reading'?"

She grunted, looking for Dad, or their friends, among the crowd... and avoiding the bar. "Tarot cards. People on Earth used to believe they could foretell the future."

"Really? And you people managed to make it into space?"

She smacked his rear. "Go find the others, I'll get us some drinks."

He frowned, glancing at the bar. "Maybe I should get the drinks-"

"And maybe you should do as you're told, or I'll ask for another Furburn from you?"

The Caitian held up his paws in surrender, and delved into the crowds, which were moving now onto the main dance floor between the bar and the stage, where the host had been replaced by a pair of male singers, one dressed in black and the other in white, belting out a dynamic ballad, enchanting the crowd into undulating waves of dance.

Glad to be some distance from that - getting too old for such juvenile stuff, Sash? - she moved up to the bar, putting in an order for a beer and a mineral water.

She felt a hand on her rear, and readied herself to give the one responsible a lesson in manners, when she stopped herself. "Kami? What are you doing here? What about the cubs?"

The Counselor sided up to her, smiling and winking as she drew the attention of one of the bar staff. "They're in bed, fast asleep. And I'm not staying long." To the staff member she ordered, "Two Scalosian Sunbursts, extra vodka." She looked around. "Nice place. Bet there'll be more than a few extra visits to the Hospital in the morning for hangovers."

Sasha grunted, as her order arrived. "That's one thing I don't miss."

The Counselor regarded her. "You know you can drink again, don't you?"

She looked at her, not sure if she heard correctly over the ambient noise. "Excuse me?"

"You can drink anytime. You've proven you can stop anytime. You're allowed to unwind and enjoy yourself, now and then."

Sasha blinked; this went against everything she had learned from Kami and others about addiction. "What in the Seven Hells- Kam, what are you saying? What about being ever vigilant to our weaknesses?"