Trust is a battlefield

Posted on Sat Aug 30th, 2025 @ 11:19pm by Lieutenant Kesden Lokn & Commander Aleshanee

906 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: A New Dawn
Location: Deep Space Nine

Like all Maquis raiders, it needed some TLC, and luckily, this TLC was coming from Starfleet in the form of a command chair being installed on the bridge, holographic communication being installed, along with some upgrades to all major systems. While all of this was being done, they were being given guest quarters on Deep Space Nine, "Lokn, Quarks one hour," Aleshanee said to her de facto first officer, or at least to her longest serving officer.

Kesden had watched the technicians arrive on the Bridge, quietly from a safe distance, the corner of his mind already alert to the coming work. Then moved in slightly closer without disrupting their preparations, his eyes studying every detail on the schematics: wire routes, interface points, the placement of new consoles. His thoughts flickered swiftly: They’re just getting started. I need to observe and see how they approach system integration. One wrong connection, one overlooked detail, and the entire system could fail, especially during critical moments in operation. Stay focused. Watch closely. Be prepared to intervene if necessary...

Then he heard her order and leaned his head back, the expression on his face giving away his disappointment. He kept the temptation, barely holding back, from intruding into her mind, Don't say that.

....

Aleshanee let out a sigh. She was exhausted, and all the change was finally catching up with her to the point where she hadn't even had time to check in with her longest serving crew, her chief engineer/os specialist. "Hey, ordered your favorite," she said, speaking of the type of drink. "I didn't mean to pull you off the ship while the upgrades were happening," she said with a soft smile.

"So you had a choice?" he asked, while walking up to her. One eyebrow was raised.

"....I did," Aleshanee said, taking a moment before continuing, "we need to learn to trust Starfleet, and also trust others to do repairs as we are not on our own anymore, and if we want all this to work, we need to learn to let go," she said pushing his drink towards him. "And, they have been given strict orders just to install the hardware, and nothing else; it'll be up to you to integrate everything," she added.

Kesden hesitated briefly, gaze drifting to the drink and then back to her. Trust. Letting go. Those words echoed quietly in his mind. His careful instincts immediately kicked in; he was anxious about the potential for oversight, about how system integration might go wrong if he was not there to oversee every step. Yet, at the same time, he appreciated her effort to reassure him and understood her reasoning.

He took a slow breath, accepting the drink but still feeling that familiar tension that came with relinquishing control. Keeping his expression composed, he took a drink and then nodded, managing a small side-smile in her direction.

"There he is," Aleshanee said, smiling as she took a sip of her drink, "....so we haven't checked in with each other in a bit, how are you with all of this, the idea of becoming a defense force," she asked knowing that a lot of the surviving Maquis were looking forward to going home.

Kesden’s gaze had lingered on the drink he held, the glass cool in his fingers, yet inside, a tumult of memories stirred. Relinquishing control, trusting others. The words echoed faintly, but they collided with the mental scars etched into his mind. He remembered the occupation, how Betazed had been seized, how he’d been there to see his brother, then captured and subjected to experiments by the Cardassians. His telepathic abilities, normally dormant or suppressed by the psionic inhibitor he’d worn since childhood, had suddenly erupted during one of those tests, killing laboratory workers and Dominion security alike. Even with the inhibitor reinstalled, he was a mess when he returned; Aleshanee welcomed him back, despite not knowing the real reason why.

As he set the glass down gently, his eyes met hers, revealing a flicker of vulnerability beneath his careful exterior. "I am unsure, but I'm willing to try," he replied calmly.

Aleshanee gave him another smile as she took another sip of her drink, "I'll take that, because right now I need someone I can trust to be my second officer, keep the crew on the straight and narrow, and keep us on mission," she added, exactly how it was during the war.

He nodded slowly, taking in a deep breath; he had a feeling this was coming, but there was no way he could let her down. Setting his shoulders with a quiet resolve, he answered, "Yes, I'll be your second officer."

Aleshanee smiled. "Thank you," she said, looking around Quark's. "This is gonna be a big change for all of us, but it is what we have been fighting for," she said, or at least that is what she is hoping for, and hoping they don't end up like all the other independent governments.

Kesden remained silent for a moment, the internal weight of trust settling within him. Trust is a battlefield too, he thought quietly. "That is true," he said, lifting his glass towards her, and smiled in return as she clinked his with hers.

Aleshanee smiled, a considerable weight lifted off as it felt things were getting back to normal.

 

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