nexus_sages | (no subject)

Exactly. Even an interior room would have been a better concession to security than you had. For a meeting of commanders in the wake of a bombing, it was careless, and whoever organized it deserves to feel a share of the guilt for those deaths.

*Some agreement and critical analysis of others might, hopefully, help alleviate some of the sting of this conversation. She takes another sip.*

That said, I'd urge you to take this as a lesson in the future about not assuming local security can tell its ass from its sidearm and keep your own people on alert. Maybe they won't catch anything local security doesn't, but that extra layer of attention and preparedness has potential rewards far beyond the cost.

"That part of protocol's so old, whoever wrote it could be dead by now. When I enlisted... Pike told me the 'fleet had fossilized. I guess he didn't realize just how much." Steering the topic slightly away from how much of the blame is on him is making him consider other options, other avenues with which to proceed. "Humans have a bad history of getting complacent and only fixing problems like this once people have died. There's no reason why regulations shouldn't be reviewed and updated periodically, not just when something happens to bring attention to one part."

He's not going to be able to change that alone, he knows. But he's fairly certain his crew will back him up on it, and he's going to have plenty of time to write up a detailed proposal on the subject. It's not like he has anything more important to do.

Jim does frown a little at her suggestion, although not because he disagrees. "If it wasn't Earth, we probably would've. There hasn't been anything like this there for decades at least." But like he said... complacency. He's not innocent of it either, and he knows it. "We could stand to be more vigilant. Even at home. If nothing else, it'd be good practice for other planets."

Humans also coined the adage, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it," and taken in balance that's not a bad idea. As you say, though, reviewing policy ought to be as much a matter of routine maintenance as reviewing hardware. That's somewhere your ship can lead the way: exceed regulations. If there's a way to make your ship and crew more safe than the rules require, find it and do it. No one can fault you for being more protected, after all, and as your policies are proven to work, they'll filter through the fleet.

Jim smiles faintly. "I'll keep that in mind." He's not sure his reinstatement will be permanent, as Command has had much bigger problems to deal with in the meantime. But he certainly hopes so.

Edited 2017-06-26 03:09 (UTC)

*She raises a brow.*

You're doubting something?

She's said she's not a mindreader, but damn she is perceptive. "The admiralty hasn't gotten around to letting me know if I'm going to keep command or not yet. I'm not fit for duty and the Enterprise isn't either, so we've probably been bumped down the priority list."

*Damn she is, indeed.*

The idea applies whether you're commanding your ship or working alone on something. Take the regulations and improve on them.

"I know that. It's just... on my mind." Understandably, he hopes. "No matter what, I'm going to have enough free time to start pursuing this. I'm on medical leave for a while and I don't... sit well."

*She offers a sympathetic smirk.*

I know that feeling. I nearly burned out the local net-node the last time I got a new skin.

He frowns a bit again. That's not the first time she's said something about 'new skin,' and he doesn't know if that's supposed to be slang for something or if it really is as gruesome as it sounds. "Do I want to know what you mean by that?"

I don't know. Do you?

*Her lip quirks in amusement, a brow climbing in challenge. How brave are you, Jim Kirk?*

Jim isn't even remotely thinking of it as a matter of bravery. They've already briefly talked about the terrible shared experience of radiation poisoning, and he's more concerned that he might've made a cultural misstep. After all, for all that she looks human, she's given every indication that she's not, at least not culturally. "Was that inappropriate to ask?"

*She laughs at that, amused and happy.*

No, but it sounded like you might be feeling a little squeamish at the idea. It's a routine surgical procedure in my Facet--most people do it for cosmetic reasons, but I start to have flexibility issues if I let scar tissue build up too much. So I get a dermal replotting from time to time, to mitigate that. If you don't want to hear the gruesome details, stop me now, but if you're curious, I'll continue.

It wasn't really what he had in mind for a reprieve from dissecting the events of two months ago, but what the hell, he'll take it. Besides, he is kind of curious. "That sounds really extensive. How long does that put you outta commission?"

About two weeks. That's two weeks floating in a tank of nutrient fluid while my old skin is dissolved, apart from nerve endings, and a new one grown in its place.

*She chuckles, that smirk still lingering around her lips.*

It's a good time to catch up on my reading, until my eyelids grow back.

Gross. And not having eyelids is kind of horrifying in a how-can-you-even-sleep kind of way. But interesting that her universe even has the technology to do that. "Yeah, I can see why that'd be... boring." It's a little odd that something like recuperation can be so dull, but it's something he knows a little too well.

*How much do you really want to know, Jim?*

Boring in a way, restful in a way... I wouldn't mind if it took less time, but I enjoy what I can of it.

He's not going to volunteer to learn all the gory details, but that's less about squeamishness and more about his probable lack of sufficient medical knowledge to really get anything out of it that'd be useful in the long run. He figures he's got the important part already, anyway. And the patient experience is more familiar, easier to empathize with. "Yeah, I hear you. On the one hand, it's good to get a break. On the other hand, a hospital's not really an ideal vacation spot."

*A fair reason not to inquire.*

Indeed. So: you took down the jumpship. Tell me about that.

*Whup, back to business.*

Well, that was abrupt. But the break was appreciated regardless, and he turns his thoughts back to the attack on Headquarters. "I got out of the line of fire as soon as I could. There was ground security posted outside so they were there pretty quick but they weren't equipped to withstand heavy-duty firepower like that. I picked up a dropped phaser rifle and moved down the hall to try to get at it from the sides, but it was a law enforcement jumpship so its armor was too strong. Ended up wrapping a fire hose around the phaser and threw it into the engine air intake. Pulled the whole emergency wall unit in."

*She considers that and gives a small nod of approval.*

Good. Inventive, made creative use of available resources, and I'm guessing he didn't expect it, genius or otherwise. Now... you said that your captaincy was reinstated, and you were ordered to pursue the attacker to the homeworld of a rival government, where your orders were to deliver an orbital bombardment?

Thank fuck, he doesn't have to recount the immediate aftermath. Jim nods slightly. "Yeah. Straight from the head of Starfleet."

That's... an insane order. Did he seem to be of sound mind at the time? Did he give you the order verbally, or actually run it through appropriate, documented channels?

With the benefit of hindsight, and grief that's dulled a bit with time, Jim can't disagree with her. "All verbal. Spock and I reported to him in person once Scotty discovered where Khan went. He didn't strike me as... unstable, just really focused."

Insane order, no documentation... was this Marcus the head of starfleet before a roomful of officers was assassinated?