Stardate: 61107.023
Title: About Sacrifice and About Friends
Author: Lt. Junior Grade Yonatan Levi
Time: During "The Young and the Relentless"
Scene: Relentless Mess Hall


Crewman Larisa's wounds were perhaps the most severe of all the injuries. In the Ferengi's panicked escape she bore the brunt of their attack. In talking to the doctor Yoni realized that she was another of their crew that would have to be transported to the Starbase for medical treatment.

Yoni realized that he didn't know the crewman as well as he should have and wondered if perhaps part of her struggle was because she felt as if she didn't fit in and did not have any friends within the tightly knit department. Yoni felt most regrets for not taking the opportunity to know her a little bit better. She was part of Junior's team, and was most quiet shy girl. Her father, a veteran of the Dominion war urged her to join the service, to gain some experience. She was a skilled technician trained as a shuttle systems-technician.

She hadn't been long on board but was already a favorite target of Ro'sat. The chief was constantly on her back pushing her and driving her. Yoni kept pondering himself if that was the reason why she wasn't with them anymore. If Ro'sat had been nicer to her, would it have helped? Ro'sat himself went into coma, and didn't appear to be coming out of it anytime soon. He was shot instantly when the intruders entered the shuttle bay and didn't even have time to cry for his men to take cover. With a heavy heart, Yoni decided to leave him behind on the Starbase to gain some needed medical attention. He wouldn't be helping them laying down all their next voyage, and he would be safest on the station.

Petty officer Nightwalker took over and was placed in charge as the crew chief. At first he seemed a little bit strange to the other hands, and he himself was more concerned with the stores more than maintaining the shuttles. Nightwalker filled in nicely knowledge he had gained previously helped him fill his new role and he was professional as ever. Soon enough he got used to his new position and ran the deck crew more smoothly, more efficiently.

With the opening of gaps in the department's chain of each of the department members had to take on multiple hats. Like the professionals they were, there were few complaints. Being short handed meant that they often had to split extra shifts and rely on other departments to fill in the gaps. Yoni became close friends with an un-joined Trill female named Teresa.

Teresa proved to be a valuable friend to Yoni, expanding his horizons and guiding and teaching where needed. The Trokarn presence in Yoni's seemed unaffected by the distance. Their relationship seemed to be developing on similar lines as to the one a Trill develops with the symbiosis. While they were not debating, the voice became self-aware, pondering around Yoni's mind, and when he started to get bored from that he moved to other targets and found a companion to bother.

Relly permitted this for the time being and he brought Yoni back some information he retrieved from her such as which hidden activity Relly was picking up on her internal sensors or some amazing facts she figured out data that helped Yoni from time to time.

Still it didn't tell Yoni what or who it was, what it wanted or why he picked him as a carrier. The doctor determined that there was no harm for the time being, and the Captain agreed to have the situation monitored for the time being.

In the evenings they senior staff of his department was gathered around at the crew mess hall or the operations office. Yoni, his crew, and Teresa were gathered in the galley. Because of their shifts, they normally met after it was closed. Grandhill always made an exception when it came to the Operations crew. She was especially fond of Teresa so any time she was with them they knew they were going to eat well.

It was their time at the day, to sit down, draw some cards, eat late dinner, and pretty much complain how hard it was to run a ship with a shortage in hands. Dealing with the other departments all day long and handling their own crewmembers who suffered most especially when they had to take a double shift.

Yoni tried never to miss one of those meetings. He was an officer and it wasn't right for the officers to mingle with the enlisted personnel. But they gave their best and he felt honored to sit around with the men and women who shared such a vast amount of knowledge and experience, who despite their age did their best to make a good use of their experience to lead their sub departments ahead not for the promotion but because that work had to be done. He indeed felt privileged. But it was their happy moment. They all waited for the open positions to be filled up as soon as possible, easing the burden, setting them away from nights with short sleeps due to work that had to be done at the office, the store and on the flight deck.

But until this reinforcement was to arrive most of them after the late dinner ended picked up their PADDs and headed back to their station, to catch some more work before they went to sleep. Yoni often pulled double shifts getting very little rest to take what stress he could from his department. Commander Winters had at one time ordered him to get some sleep. She did give him the choice however to sleep either in his quarters or the brig. Needless to say what his choice was, he sneaked back that night to finish the presentation he was due to show to the senior staff in the morning briefing.


========================
Lieutenant JG Yonatan Levi
Acting Chief Operations Officer
USS Relentless
NCC-11966
========================