Discovery Short- Rescuing the Guardian [edited]

[Gwenivive]

Part 1: The Rescue

1
The ship was small, a little dingy, a little antiquated, and perfect.

Jasmine smiled over the bridge of the scientific research vessel Yson with no small amount of satisfaction.  In front of the large diamond titanium window there were two control consoles, each with a gorgeous view of the silky cold blackness of space.  The ship was new enough to use the standardised infobook inputs, but old enough to have buttons and switches where the newer ships would have touchpads; Jasmine loved the feel of the switches and buttons and refused to have them re-fitted.

“You dreaming again?” Lemmi asked, wandering in from the main access hallway.

“No, just taking her in, you know how it is, right?”  Jasmine smiled, leaning against the bulkhead.  Lemmi was her first officer, a tall thin man with one iridescent black eye and skin the black-green color of a beetle.  His jaunty red eye patch clashed badly with the creams and tans he normally wore.

“I am aware of how it can feel to finally be home,” Lemmi smiled, leaning against the opposite bulkhead. 

“I see you changed already,” Jasmine smiled amicably.  As was often the case, once they had hit deep space, the crew changed from their uniforms to what was most comfortable for them; as the ship was from Aegis, the land of many people, sometimes there were widely differing opinions on comfort.  Lemmi was in traditional Insecti garb, little more than a loincloth and soft boots, leaving the glossy exoskeleton on his chest, back, thighs, and upper arms proudly exposed.

“I had expected that you would be in meditation silks as soon as we hit the star line,” He grinned back, the white of his teeth almost unsettling against his dark gray lips.  Jasmine was still in her uniform, tan pants specifically tailored for her tail, and a crisp white shirt with the captain rank shining in gold stitches on her right collar.  Even her hair was regulation, a neat red braid, drawing her brown, furred ears to the foreground.

“I’m trying to stay in Sapien friendly clothes more, the president is insistent that I one day become a good little ambassador,” Jasmine sighed, pushing away from the bulkhead and heading to the door, “You hungry?” she asked as the door whooshed open pneumatically.

“He’s never hungry!”  She heard a female voice yell from the common area at the end of the hall, “That’s why he’s so skinny!”  Jasmine eyed the ribs and sunken stomach that were the hallmark of the Insecti males.

“Naw, he’s about the same as always, just shy of a new shell,” Jasmine called back with a playful wink at her first officer who feigned indignance at the thought that he would grow too fat for his current exoskeleton.

“I haven’t needed a new carapace since I reached my full height,” He intoned proudly, following a step behind and one to the right.

In the common room Jasmine found two Sapien crewmen, Muhammad and Roxie, deeply entranced in what appeared to be a game of checkers, using spare nuts and washers as parts on a board made of an old tablecloth.

“We have enough common budget to buy real games,” Jasmine laughed, heading to the refrigeration unit for a drink.

“Hami loses the pieces too easily.  That’s why we can’t play Aviar poker, we’re short four cards,” Roxie sulked, pushing a red lip out as she narrowed her piercing green eyes at her opponent.

“Who threw the deck at whom?”  Muhammad asked smoothly, jumping a bolt over four washers in a single move.

“You cheated, I was simply retaliating, it isn’t my fault that the vents eat cards,” Roxie leaned back, swiping the makeshift board clear with a huff, “I’m pretty sure you cheat at checkers too,” She stood with a yawn as he reset the board, chuckling.

“Tell me I won’t find playing cards in the filtration system when I’m cleaning it,” A new voice joined the conversation, the ship's head engineer, Jin, looked harrowed as he entered.

“I’m just saying that if you do, it’s Hami’s fault,” She grinned wickedly.

“If one asked her why the moon affects the tide I daresay she would blame me,” Muhammad said, poetically.

“Undoubtedly,” was Lemmi’s chuckled response, earning him a flash of pink tongue from Roxie.

“How is one person supposed to keep watch over you vagabonds?” Jasmine gave a long-suffering sigh, hopping up to sit on a counter.

“We’re vagabonds?  Jin asked, fluffing his mane of red feathers in amusement, “You live on a beach when we’re planetside.  Not ‘oh isn’t that a quaint little cottage,’ live on the beach, more like, ‘oh look, some teenagers set up a hammock and a campfire so they could sneak out and drink at night, nevermind there’s a person sleeping there,’ live on the beach,” He smiled wickedly.

“You wish you could go two days without checking your ‘book to see what the newest engine technology was,” Jasmine grumped back with an easy grin.

“Like it’d do me any good here!  The newest tech this boat has--” Jin began.

“Oh, did you forget about the overhaul where we converted the engines entirely to the new fusion style?  Or are you still upset that my bridge has buttons on it?”  Jasmine cut in.

“But why again with the buttons?!”  Jin asked, exasperated, “The system is sooo much prettier if you just upgrade the whole thing, but nooooo, you have to have ‘tactile response,” Jin dropped the hands he had been using to gesture widely, “Do you people see what I put up with?”  The engineer asked the gathered witnesses, pointing at Jasmine.

“Yes, she’ll upgrade all the engine systems, but not add a single extra bank of Stolleanum lasers!” Roxie said pointedly.

“We don’t need extra Stollies, and the buttons are fine!  Next thing you know the scientists will be complaining about having last year’s model of miscroscopes!” Jasmine threw her hands up in faux outrage.

“Now that you mention it...” Muhammad’s eyes shone with good-natured mischief.

“Fine, I’ll go take a long walk in a short vaccuum, you people can deal with your problems yourselves,” Jasmine was laughing as she hopped off the counter.  Overdone pleas for her to reconsider made her laugh, “Oh you guys, I’m just going to make sure we don’t crash into any large, scientifically interesting rocks,” She teased in response.  She was smiling as she left the commons area; it truly was good to be home.

2
Three months had passed in their mission, and the crew, numbering just over 30, had fallen into a comfortable rhythm.  Every morning at ship’s time 0700 there was a combined breakfast/dinner where the day bridge and engineering crew traded off with their nighttime components, every evening at 1900 the roles reversed.  The ebb and flow of life on a space ship had come easily; though someone always complained about having to wash dishes or scrub walls, everyone shared the common jobs without enough fuss to make morale problems.

It had been an easy jaunt into uncharted space.  Star charts had been made by eager astronomers, some space junk had been pulled in and inspected by astrophysicists and geologists, and the SRV Yson was three months yet to the turning back point.  The security staff had won thousands of credits off the rest of the crew playing poker, and the medical staff were pioneering new forms of bone repair on a cellular level.

The distress call had thrown everyone out of their comfort zone. 

In the half hour since they had intercepted the missive, civilian attire had vanished, replaced by the tan pants and white shirts of the Aegis Navy; hair that had been allowed to swing freely was pinned back, beards were shaved.  Even Jasmine’s first officer had replaced his shining red eye patch with a subdued khaki.  They were a few hours out from the other ship, but the medical crew had already claimed parts of the science labs for triage, and the worried scientists were clearing tables and benches with haste.  The few security officers the small research vessel warranted were frantically scanning the nearby space for ships or communications that could give hint to the nature of the SOS received as the engineers gave them a bit more speed to get to the target faster.

Jasmine looked over the message again, staring at the words like they’d tell her something more this time through.  The message was simple, sent out on all frequencies in all directions, it was the date of transmission, the name and coordinates of the ship, and “Please help // SOS // stranded ship // under attack.” 

The Sapien vessel Guardian was disabled, and Jasmine and her crew were going to save her.
 
***
The Guardian was in bad shape when she slid into view.  The hypernuclear warbird was being circled by two smaller, obviously advanced ships, and was listing lazily; one of the engines was failing in a spectacularly terrible way, pushing the ship in slow, dizzying circles.

."Captain, they haven't seen us yet," Roxie said, she pulled on Chief Security Officer Stone as easily as one might pull on a pair of gloves; the teasing girl in the commons room was lost for now.

“Keep the shields at full, both sight and protective, I want to knock one of those ships out,"  Jasmine said, watching as her officers swiftly scanned the ships, found the weaker of the two, and locked on.

"Ready, Captain," First Officer Lemmi said gravely.

"Fire all, then skirt around the back of the Guardian, bearing 3-2.  Keep all shields up."  They were going to play cat and mouse.

The first ship's shields had been in a grave state already, the Guardian had fought back against the attack, and the unexpected barrage of weaponized lasers to key points of the hull rendered it dead immediately.  Jasmine swallowed useless emotions as the ship broke apart, and she fiercely ignored anything the released pressure of the atmosphere blew into space. 

The Yson was a smaller ship than the Guardian, and more maneuverable; they skirted around the back of the larger Sapien vessel, using her mass to further scramble any sensor readings the second enemy ship might hope to obtain.  They were fairly invisible with the new shielding technology the Aviars had produced and, unlike their second enemy, they were at full shields against attack.

"They're trying to find us, I think... yes, the other ship is headed to where we were, deploying torpedoes in an Anski maneuver, they’re trying to find us by hitting us." Stone relayed.

"Get us under the Guardian, by her main Stollie formation,"  Jasmine told the pilot who 'aye'd and began the maneuver.

"Ghost shooting?"  Lemmi asked her, scanning the ships.

"It could give us the upper hand." Jasmine said, "What the hell is out there, and why are they attacking Sapiens in a neutral area?"  She mused angrily.

'The best readings we have on it makes it... I think... I mean..." Stone sputtered as she stared at the security viewscreen, paling visibly.

"Spit. It. Out." Jasmine ordered.

"It looks like a Zeveran scout,"  Lemmi read over Stone’s shoulder.  The security officer nodded numbly in agreement.  Jasmine felt the hair on the back of her neck raise and her tail fluffing with anxiety.

"Well let's shoot it down, before they find us."  Her voice was, thankfully, still assertive and calm, "Ready Stollies and Missiles, fire Stollies on shooting solution."  Jasmine barked, sending the security team on the weapons panel into a fit of motion.

"Direct hit, their shields are down 30%, they're at 40% overall."

“Execute a Stray Cat, keep an eye on them, if they try to fire on the Guardian I want you to shoot their missiles down," She told the waiting security team.  "What are the Guardian's shields at now?"

"Still 5%, power level is dropping."

They were diverting everything into that damn 5%, they needed to evacuate now or sooner.  “Get us in between that ship and the Guardian, prepare to fire Stollies and on confirmation of broken shields I want all missile banks to fire."  As the Yson skirted between the two ships, the enemy ship turned and let loose a laser assault of their own.

“Taking laser fire, shields are dropping, ninety five percent--”  A security officer began as the ship shuddered, a groan coming from somewhere deep in the ship.

“Fire all Stollies at them.  When they’ve dropped to 25% I want missiles!”  Jasmine snapped, the crew rushed to action.

“They’ve stopped firing!”  Someone yelped.  “They’re trying to move away!”

“Keep on them!” Jasmine nearly growled.

"Captain they're headed away at... it's not even possible, they're going three times faster than our max... they're already outside of missile range!" Lemmi sounded amazed, and Jasmine was just angry.

"Get in contact with the Guardian, check survivor numbers, see if we can get them working or if we have to tow them in,"  Jasmine told the communications officer, wincing at the snap in her voice.

"Captain, the ship is too badly damaged, she can't be fixed or towed... and there are 200 people on board..."  Communications officer Ives replied, manipulating the scanners to check the ship and crew.

"How long could our ship maintain 230 people?" Jasmine asked engineering on the intercom.

"Two Hundred?!"  Jin's voice was incredulous.

"How long?"  She repeated tersely.

"It'd be tight, we have enough food for maybe a month, the fuel'd hold up against the extra power needs, air and water recycling and the like,"  Jin told her.

"How fast could we make it to the nearest outpost or planet?"  She asked the navigator who had already been busy plotting courses.

"If we can pull off Max speed we can be there in 5 weeks."  He said double checking his results, “5 at best, 6 comfortably.”

"Ives, patch me through to the Guardian,"  Jasmine stepped into the camera point on the bridge and faced the view screen.  With a tilt of her head she invited the nonessential security officers to leave the room.

"Guardian, this is Captain Carter," a familiar, but harrowed voice came through, the image followed a few moments later.  Carter looked frazzled but unharmed.

"Yson here, Captain Jakes," she replied with a smile, "how many people do you have on that behemoth, Buck?"

"One hundred ninety eight right now... I don't even want to know what you're planning, do I?" He ran his hand through his already frizzed hair.

“Do you have a couple week's rations that haven’t been blown off the ship?" Jasmine replied.

"How many is a couple?  For how many people?"  Still wary.

"We can get you and yours to safety in five weeks if we push the engines for all they have, six weeks is a more likely estimate.  Only problem is we have enough food for four weeks for two hundred thirty.  My hope is that your food stores aren't floating around in this big black vacuum," Jasmine replied, bending to smooth the fur on her tail to a more acceptable level.

"You want to carry two hundred people on the Yson?"  Carter was incredulous.

“Two hundred and thirty, can't forget my crew,"  She was positively Cheshire with grinning now.

"You must be kidding."

Jasmine got serious, "It will take a minimum of 3 weeks for a message to get to...” She paused, looking at the navigator.

“Aegis is the closest life sustaining object, Captain,” Ives read off the display; the navigator had left the bridge.


“Aegis, from there it would have to get to Sapien Earth to ask for a ship of your size, that’d be another week, tack on the time for that ship to get here, you’d be a sitting duck.  That scout ship took off at four times faster than max.  Either we get your people out of here or they come back for you before Sapien Earth even knows you’re disabled.”

"We have the supplies,"  Carter sighed with a ghost of his good-natured grin, “That shuttle bay of yours big enough for a couple hundred mattresses?

"I'll call down and see what we can do about fabricating bunks," she replied, and they began to plan logistics.

3
The first officers of the Yson and the Guardian had planned for nearly twenty minutes while each crew prepared for life on the smaller ship. 

The injured had been sent over first with the ship's doctors, and both crews were working in tandem in the science labs and the infirmary.  The remaining crew were sending mattresses, blankets, and clothing stores through the Particle Transporting Unit. 

Never before had Jasmine been so glad that early shuttle crafts had required so much space to land in another ship.  After jettisoning the 3-man shuttle there was enough space to house the other ship's crew with relative comfort, though they were working to make the space more efficient by mounting bunks one above the other. 

Most of her crew was accommodating the Guardian’s officers by sleeping two and three to a room to leave space for the senior officers to sleep apart from the rest of the crew; it was swiftly determined that bathrooms would have to be shared by all, as the only showers (aside from decontamination showers in the science labs) were in the crew quarters.

Within the hour the whole of the other crew, two extra months of rations, and enough personal effects for a small army were aboard the Yson; they took one last loving look at the Guardian and pushed back to Aegis.


Part 2: The Trip
1
“There you are!”  Jasmine heard a familiar voice as Captain Buck Carter walked up behind her.

“Here I am,” Jasmine smiled, holding a strut up while one of the seemingly thousands of engineers welded it to another to make another bed frame. 

“If the captain doesn’t mind, I would request a more private meeting,” Buck said softly, giving Jasmine a look she couldn’t quite read.

“There are still fifty bunks to be made,” She stated, reaching for another bar.

“There are also fifty engineers on the floor of the shuttle bay alone.” Buck’s tone brooked no arguments.

“Fine.  Let’s go to my office,” Jasmine tried not to sound petulant, but it was hard; the alarm had come in the middle of the ship’s night, and she was running on two hours of sleep and strong stimulants mixed with caffiene.

By the time they reached her office, Jasmine was certain that she never wanted to hear the word ‘Captain’ again.  Buck’s officers all smiled and nodded with the hated word as they passed; it was repeated seemingly ad nauseum through the halls of the small ship.  By the time they had reached the main hall, even Roxie and Lemmi had emulated it, seeing how it tweaked their captain’s ears.

She flopped onto one of the chairs in the office with a groan as the door to her office slid quietly shut, “Oh how I wish that I had remembered to bring booze,” She sighed, putting her hands over her eyes and willing herself to stay coherent.

“You okay, kitten?” Buck asked, sitting across from her.

“No.” She was in her own office, surely a little petulance was allowed.

“Tell me about it,” Buck asked.  She peeked through her fingers at him and he smiled at her.

“A hundred people, Buck.” She whispered.  She pushed back the emotions that tried to creep to the surface, pushing around the exhaustion and fraying her self control.

“Ninety Four.” He corrected softly.

“And the crew of the scout I blew up.” 

“You’d mourn Zeveran slavers?”

“We don’t know that!”  She hopped up, pacing the room.  She felt more in control on her feet.

“Where’s your tail ring?”  Buck asked, pointing to the end of her fluffed tail as it lashed in unease.

“I’m not centered enough, I’d rather leave it off then have it fall off,” She sighed, attempting again to smooth the frizzy fur back down.  She pulled the dull gold ring out of the pocket of her pants and dropped back into the chair to study it.

“I thought the ring centered you?”  He asked.

“I center it.  The ring is just a thing.” She replied cryptically.  Several moments passed in silence as she fought against her emotions.  “How do you do it?  How can you lose ninety four people?”  She asked softly.

“I remember what they fought for, why they joined the program, what we’re fighting for, and I mourn them when it is time,” He answered simply.

“There should always be time for mourning,” She sighed, tossing the ring in front of the door to her quarters. 

“There will be, it’s the moment right before life makes sense again, when everything is almost back on track, that’s when you mourn,” Buck told her, “Though if you really want a drink, I bet our science departments could make some drastically effective ethanol.”

“I thought having fourteen scientists on board was bad...  You realise that now they’re going to be studying us,” Jasmine sighed, giving Buck an almost grin.

“You have anthropologists too?”  He teased back, grinning in earnest.

“This is going to be their favorite experiment ever, one hundred ninety eight of your Sapiens with my ragtag crew of Sapien, Insecti, and Aviar people.”  She stretched as she stood, moving toward the door to the hall.

“There’s even a Felidan on board, just to make things interesting,” He teased, softly flicking one of her brown furred ears as he came up behind her.

“I wonder what they’ll call the papers,” She mused with a throaty chuckle.

“The effects of complete insanity on Sapien humans?”

“Or the effects of completely insane Sapiens on citizens of Aegis?”  They were both laughing softly as they headed to the bridge to find their plotting first officers.

***
“That is the most inane idea I have ever heard!” a loud voice proclaimed as the doors to the bridge slid open.  Inside the room her first officer stood on one side, facing off against a large Sapien man with a blonde buzz cut and muscles that bulged under his tan uniform shirt.

“And what idea would that be?” Jasmine asked curtly. 

The man looked over her and appealed to his captain, “Captain Carter, he is trying to tell me that the Yson’s crew should have priority in the shower schedule because the current bridge crew is made up entirely of Yson crew!” 

Jasmine bumped Carter with her tail, pushing back at his knees as she took a step forward, breaking the subtle contact.  She felt surprise then resignation flash through him before the contact was broken and took it as acceptance of what had to be done.

“Hello Officer Buzzcut, I don’t believe Captain Carter asked you the question,” Jasmine snapped, looking up defiantly at the taller man, “And now I’m going to ask you what you mean by the phrase ‘current bridge crew.’”  She was taking a risk, but she had to hope that Buck would understand her need to keep the Yson under her command.

“The Guardian’s bridge crew were unharmed, with the superior training of the Sapien Navy--” He was cut off by Jasmine’s raised hand and Lemmi’s snort of laughter.

“The Yson’s bridge crew was sufficient in the rescue effort, they will be more than sufficient in the simple task of ferrying the Guardian’s crew home.”  She spoke sharply.  Ives looked at her from behind the Guardian’s first officer, surprise plain on her face at Jasmine’s tone.

“This is ridiculous, that’s almost exactly what this guy said!  Where is your Captain?” He asked Lemmi, ignoring the bigger threat. 

“Petreski, I recommend that you shut your mouth before you lose your tongue.” Buck’s voice was cold behind her.

“Captain?” Petreski looked askance at Carter, shock on his face.

“Yes I am the Captain of the Yson, and it’s nice to meet you too,” Jasmine forced her voice out with a vicious smile.

“Wait... Captain Jakes?”  Petreski looked down from his formidable height to scrutinize Jasmine.

“You know, in the Aviar Navy we learn the ranks of the other armed services.  See how your shirt has three full circles on it and a half a circle?  That makes you a Commander in the Sapien Navy, but the star in the middle ups the ante to First Officer.  My collar has a bar, so you automatically know that I’m an officer in the Aegis Navy--”

“Ma’am I--” Petreski began, then stilled as she continued.

“The fact that I have a second bar though, whereas my First Officer only has one should tell you that perhaps I’m a touch higher in rank, because more is clearly better.  In answer to your question, yes I am Captain Jasmine Jakes.  What you weren’t aware of is that you’re leaving my bridge now, and until you can hold a civil conversation with my crew that doesn’t involve possible mutiny, perhaps I’ll accept an apology for your actions.”

The Guardian’s first officer looked confused for a moment, but jumped into movement when Carter barked, “Out.”

The exasperated groan that Jasmine had kept so fiercely locked down escaped when Petreski was solidly on the other side of the soundproof bulkhead.  Lemmi raised his eyebrows, gauging the situation.  He relaxed again when she began to pace; Aegis residents have a saying, ‘still and silent is deadly, but bluster and movement is safe.’

“I’ll talk to my crew, I had no idea that such an idea even existed,” Buck’s voice was soft as he turned to leave.

“Wait,” She kept her voice just shy of pleading with no small amount of effort.  Buck turned back, “We can work up a split bridge crew, keep the shifts evenly manned, if it will help your people adjust... The Yson’s crew, however, will be regarded as senior over the Guardian’s.”

There were a few moments of silence as the room absorbed the statement, “It’s a good idea,” Lemmi ventured, “Six weeks in space with nothing to do could be torturous for the Guardian’s crew,” He began typing something on the infobook he held.

“That’s... That’s very big of you,” Buck conceded.

“If they have to work together, they may begin to get along,” Jasmine sighed, “And I’m not letting anything stop us from getting everyone back to Aegis in one piece.”

“If the Captains have a moment, I have a tentative schedule for shifts, based on the information we gathered during the transfer,” Lemmi offered.

“You sure you can’t spare him for the Sapien Navy?” Buck asked with a wry grin as the chart appeared on the main viewing screen.

“That is one thing I cannot give,” Jasmine quoted an Aviar children’s story and they turned to study the schedule amicably.

2
In the shuttle bay there appeared to be a circus. 

Makeshift bunks lined the walls, with clothes hanging on the beds and suspended from clotheslines tied between the bunks.  Some of the crew had used sheets and clothing to make their bunks into a sort of tent to offer some privacy, while others had given up on the illusion and sat reading or playing games on personal infobooks.  Jasmine spotted her five engineers amidst an especially large group that were discussing something with gusto. 

Some of her security offecers prowled about, mostly looking ridiculously out-of -place; two Aviars don't blend well with two hundred Sapiens, but they were trying their damndest.

As planned, Jasmine called her crew to attention first, setting the tone for the meeting.  She and Carter stood on a raised platform on one end of the room.  "Ready?"  she asked him, her tail twisting the dull gold ring almost nervously at its end.  She had replaced it after an hour’s nap had helped to center her.

"As I'll ever be," he answered honestly.

Jasmine took a breath so large that it hurt a bit, and yelled, "Yson Crew!  Assemble for orders!"  Though the ship generally kept a lax view on things, her crew snapped to with the discipline a military vessel demanded.  A square formation became hurriedly assembled, white shirts and lab coats all in even lines.  Lemmi counted them, and turned to the captain, "All present except the medical staff and bridge contingent," he told her smartly.

"Your turn," She told Buck, readying herself for his signature piercing whistle.  With many of their crew gone, including a few of the senior staff, it took the crew of the Guardian a few minutes to get an accurate count on departments and form themselves into a rectangle that fit the space between the bunks.  Jasmine noted with satisfaction that her crew waited patiently at attention, neither talking nor fidgeting.  When Petreski meekly told his captain that the crew was accounted for and assembled, Lemmi turned on the ship's intercom system, and the blonde buzzcut joined him a step back from their respective captains.

"Crew of the Guardian, I am Captain Jasmine Jakes.  I and First Officer Lemmi would like to welcome you to the Yson, flagship of the Aegis Scientific Research Navy."  Jasmine smiled disarmingly.  In the stillness of the bay she could hear dissentful murmers, but she chose to ignore them.  "Captain Carter and I have begun finalizations on a work roster for the next six weeks, is there anyone among you who does not feel comfortable working on a Spirit class ship, or would prefer to use the next six weeks for rest or contemplation?"

No one moved.  Jasmine looked over to Buck, non-verbally tagging him in.

"You don't have to accept any duties aboard the Yson, but any duties you do accept you will carry out to the best of your ability,"  Carter told his crew, though again they stayed still.  Tiny murmers played across the crowd, but it was almost expected of a group that size, even a highly trained group.

"Well in that case, Captain Carter and I have finalized a duty roster, including a shower schedule and common chores roster, all of these can be accessed on one of the ship's infoboards, or you can queue them in your infobooks.  Captain Carter?"  She passed the floor again.

"Today has been a hard day.  We lost a lot of good men and women, we lost the Guardian, but we mustn't lose hope.  The medical staff has a number of trained counsellors available, including the Yson's Aegis-trained counsellors-- the best in the worlds.  If you need to talk you can find one of them, or come to the Captains office where you can speak with myself or Captain Jakes.  When on duty you will refer to the expertise of the Yson staff, they will be the senior staff on all shifts.  Again, if you have any problems you can speak with myself or Captain Jakes, we will be keeping an open door policy.  Dinner mess is in three hours, I recommend you check the chores roster to make sure you're not on duty." 

"Yson crew stand fast--" Jasmine started, letting Buck finish with a hearty 'disperse’ command for his crew.

Jasmine hopped down and walked nearer to her crew, speaking in a more hushed tone, the intercom turned off, "This is going to be a hard time for everyone, but I need you guys to be at your best, I'm looking to you to be the superior officers we always said we'd be."  the speech was short, but concise.  "Now go run my ship!"  She grinned broadly, releasing the formation to their duties.

***
"So the Captains will be sharing the Captain's quarters," Jasmine read off the info book she was holding, "Who will be sleeping in my office?  The First Officers are doubling up," the thought made her smirk, "What about the Chief Medical Officers?  I know Walter gave up his quarters," Her eyes narrowed in suspicion as Lemmi and Buck looked studiously in opposite directions.

“I thought--” Ives began from the comm desk.  Her jaw nearly snapped audibly shut as Lemmi glared at her.

“You thought what?” Jasmine asked, eyeing the men suspiciously.

“It was nothing, just... thought I heard something in space is all...” Ives looked distinctly uncomfortable and moved to flee the bridge.

Jasmine stepped in her way, smiling amicably, “What in space did you think you heard?”

“Um... I...” Ives looked at Buck and Lemmi, silently pleading for help.

“When Will told you he was headed into surgery earlier...” Buck began, then he faltered, wringing his hands behind his back.

“He’s a surgeon he goes into surgery all the ti--” Realization hit Jasmine like a sandbag to the chest.  She leaped out of Buck’s reach as he moved to catch her, and she ran.

3
"I'm going to lose my commission.  I'm going to lose my commission and then she's going to kill me," Lemmi's good eye was wide with panic and he was paler than Buck had ever seen an insecti, almost an olive color.

"Neither of those things is going to happen, there is no legal reason for Jasmine to revoke your commission--” Buck tried to console the first officer, but was cut off as he made a panicky noise and slid down the wall to a sitting position, holding his head in his hands.

“I have to transfer off the Yson... Can’t go to the Heart Of Gold, maybe the Forte will take me...”  Lemmi was completely introverted, rambling his inner thoughts.

“Lemmi.” Buck kneeled in front of the now silent Insecti.  “Look at me,” Buck commanded softly.  Lemmi turned his head like a wild animal, avoiding him.  Buck reached out tentatively and took the younger man’s chin, forcing him to meet his gaze.  “You didn’t lie to Jasmine.”

“A lie of omission is still a lie,” the response was a whisper, “And she’s going to be so mad.  Gods I’m tired.”  The bridge crew still hadn’t slept, and it was well into alpha shift again.

“William lied to Jasmine, for a reason, to keep her safe.  You kept your captain safe to the best of your ability.  She will see the truth in that,” Buck promised, knowing that he may have to ensure that fact personally.

“Dr. Charlesgate is okay, isn’t he?”  the ashen Insecti was slowly beginning to regain his color, standing to drink another stimulant cocktail. 

Buck smiled and clapped him on the back, “It’ll take more than a broken leg to kill a Charlesgate, they’re bred for long life and smarts,” He joked, declining a drink when Lemmi offered it.

“I hope you’re right about Jasmine,” Lemmi said softly, dusting himself off as they left the bridge together for sick bay.  Buck simply nodded.

‘Me too,’ he thought wryly, ‘Me too.’

***
Jasmine stood for a moment in the doorway of the infirmary, gasping for air that was too thin.  Doctors and nurses parted at the sight of her, leading a clear route to one of the few recovery rooms the ship had been equipped with; she was expected.  Beds lined the walls with sleeping or resting patients, but Jasmine knew immediately where the bed was that held William Charlesgate, Chief Medical Officer of the Guardian and one of her oldest friends.  Eyes were respectfully averted as she strode uncertainly into the small room, seating herself in the chair situated next to the bed.  Her throat felt swollen, as the door to the private recovery room slid silently shut.

“You think of everything, old man,” She whispered, a weak, watery sound in the silence.  Screens read off numbers and showed images that she didn’t understand, but the green lights and regular sounds assured her.  Antiseptic, blood, and adrenaline overpowered her nose, dulling the sense to uselessness.  She set her hand on top of his, avoiding the IV and weakly through the touch she felt relaxation and calm, dulled by sleep; no fear, no danger, no fighting for one’s life, just calm.  She grabbed the medical infobook off the side table and tried to make sense of the readings resting her tail on the bed, barely touching his fingertips.

“I’m pretty certain that’s secure information,” A wry voice murmured with amusement. 

Jasmine stared at the man in the bed with teary eyes, “Will?”

“Sure as shit ain’t the Easter Bunny,” He smiled as he stretched on the bed, his brown eyes sparkling with amusement.  He did not, Jasmine noticed, take his hand back, and amusement was trickling through the light touch.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” She demanded softly, laying the infobook back down.

“You didn’t need to know, Kitten, you would have just beat yourself up the whole time, and I knew I’d be fine.”

“Maybe I’m old enough to decide when I am and am not allowed to beat myself up?”  She pouted goodnaturedly as he scoffed.

“Sammy keeps saying things like that, he wants to be a spaceship surgeon, not just live on a floating medical school... can’t say I blame him, but...” Will abandoned the sentence, leaving his worries clear but unspoken.

“I could take him up with me, the Research Navy would never turn down a Charlesgate,” Jasmine offered.

“I tried to get him in to the research field, but he’s graduating as a trauma surgeon with a minor in clinic work.  I’ve kept him in as many labs as I could, and had him intern with as many emergency wards as I could get him in...  I doubt anything could stop him now, he’s set on enlisting next month after graduation...” wry amusement and pride ran across his face, wiped clear by exasperation as he rolled his eyes, “I remember being that age, nothing your parents say could ever possibly be right.”

“No Jasmine, don’t take pilot lessons, no Jasmine, don’t enlist in the Research Navy, no Jasmine, if you’re living on a plot of land you have to build a house there!”  the young captain intoned, clearly mocking Will.

“Yes, I imagine you have a much clearer vision of the late teens than I do, Will chuckled.

“Well it seems to have worked out for me, and if I have an opportunity to take Sam under my wing I will,” She promised.

“I know,” He smiled softly.

“What happened to you?” Jasmine asked, pushing herself up to look at him better.

“I got careless and a gurney fell on me, snapped my femur in three places and bruised up my torso something pretty,” He looked slightly embarrassed at the admission.

“Why did it take so long to get you fixed?  You were on the Yson for over an hour before you ‘went into surgery,’” She glared pointedly at him.

“There were other people with worse injuries than mine, frostbite and burns and punctured lungs--” He began.

“So you sat back and said ‘no no, fix everyone else first!’ Is that right?”  Jasmine interrupted with a glower.

“Something like that.  You can’t be mad at the Captain and your First Officer, I spouted off some pretty convincing medicalese to keep them quiet.” Will told her.

“Your medicalese IS impressive, I will give you that, but you forget whose boat you’re on,” Jasmine teased after a moment.

“Well then I hope you forgive the Captain for not seeing through her First Officer and Buck’s ruse, which I forced upon them,” Will grinned, but his face quickly sobered, “Buck needs you right now, more than either of you know,” He reached up a hand to mess at her hair; affection and sadness crept through the touch, “And you need him, too.”

***
Jasmine stepped out of the small recovery room and nearly collided with Buck and Lemmi as they waited impatiently outside the door.  She held up a hand to silence them as they both moved to speak.

“I am going to sleep.  You need to sleep too, Lemmi.  As for you, Captain Carter, I should remind you that I sleep lightly, so don’t make too much noise when you come in,” She turned on her heel and walked out, ignoring the slack-jawed faces the men gave her.

In her office, Jasmine devoured an emergency ration (ship-wide dinner was still in a half an hour) and headed into her quarters with a yawn and a popping, creaking stretch that left her exhausted.  She pulled off her uniform and threw it onto the chair that held most of her clothes, digging through the pile to find a tank top and a pair of workout shorts to sleep in.  She made sure the bunk was made for Buck, and crawled into the hammock that she had installed in her closet so long ago with a deep groan of appreciation.  She pulled a stack of silk scarves over herself like blankets and drifted into a dreamless sleep.

[Gwenivive]

Bump for edits, I remember wanting Jasmine to feel younger, but rereading it I realize I made her much more unpredictable than she would have been at this point.  I did quite a bit of cleaning up interactions and unexpected emotional outbursts from some of the crew.