“We’ve got a pretty extensive list of work to be done over the next two weeks, Captain Halsey.  We’re going to do a bow-to-stern check of the Mercy and make sure all systems are working as expected.  We, of course, will do a full computer core and system examination to make sure nothing remained from the incident at Charon Station.”

He nodded, looking through the PADD the Master Chief had handed him.  “I appreciate the attention Starfleet is paying us, Master Chief.  If you need anything, let me know.”  The man nodded and left the room.  Halsey leaned back in his chair.  The entire crew had been ordered off the ship, and his wife had taken time to go attend her counseling interview.  She had planned to be back for dinner tonight, so he was left to tend the Mercy and make any final checks he’d neglected to do.

He had been in command of her only days, and they had stumbled onto one of the most troubling and trauma-inducing away missions possible.  Yet they had made it out alive and had managed to prevent the station computer from continuing its dark mission.  The more he thought about it, the more he found it incredible they had escaped.  The station’s computer had nearly two hundred years of time to plot, plan, and power.

=^=Bravo Transport Office to Captain Halsey=^=

He returned to the present, “Go ahead.”

=^=We have a Captain Lillian Halsey here requesting transport to the USS Mercy=^=

He smiled.  “Confirmed Bravo Transport.  She has an appointment with me.  Transport to Transporter Room 1 on my signal.”  He stood from his desk and headed to that very room.

Transporter Room 1 – 1010

He tapped at the console and activated the signal to the transport office.  A moment later, a shining light erupted from the pad and revealed his sister, Captain Lillian Halsey. “You mad bastard!”  She lept from the pad and ambled down to embrace him, “They finally made you a captain and all!”

He returned the hug and pulled back to look at her.  She was 20 years older than Leopold but had never looked it.  She’d allowed her hair to grey, but she still got up early in the mornings to swim, work out, and face the day.  She’d made her name in engineering and enjoyed wandering around Starfleet from ship to station to help, train, instruct, and back again.  “Well, I eventually had to catch up with you, Lill.”

She cackled and glanced around the room, “It’s been a bit since I stepped onboard an Olympic class.  Give us a tour, eh?”  He smiled wide at her accent.  She’d grown up halfway across the world before he’d come along, and she’d never left it behind.

Ready Room – 1100

“She’s a right beauty, Leo.  Damn fine ship.”  Lillian sat on the couch, drinking a tall glass of hard cider, her feet up on the end table, “You think this’ll be your place for a bit?”

He swirled the cup of black iced tea as he took a seat next to her, “I think any chance to hold onto the center chair is worth doing for as long as they’ll let me, Lill.  You tried it once.”

She groused, “I hate it when you bring that up.”  She shrugged, “Not everyone is meant for command.  Some of us are good for a wander or two in our lifetime.”  She took a sip and nodded appreciatively, “Did you program that thing specifically for me, Leo?  Cause that’s…some damn fine hard cider, man.”

Halsey chuckled, “You and I don’t agree on much taste-wise…but on hard cider – you get it right.  I didn’t want to try any other settings when it came to that.”

They drank in silence until Lillian spoke, “Mum and Dad haven’t talked to me in a year, Leo.  I’m not sure what to do.”

He looked her in the eyes and found they shone with impending tears.  “I wish I could tell you what to say, Lill.”

She stood and refilled her drink.  She turned to him, “Do you think I did the right thing?”

He let out a long sigh and patted the seat next to him, and she slowly sat down, leaning back against the couch.  “Mom and Dad are…very traditional.  Divorce…just isn’t a word they can accept.”  He turned to face her, “I don’t blame you for it…and I’m not going to take sides on this – I made that clear two years ago when this all started.  I know why you did it.”  He thought for a moment, “If our positions were reversed…I don’t know that I would have been able to find a different path than you chose.”  He sighed quietly this time, “Aside from them freezing you out, how have you been?”

She sniffled a little and accepted the offered tissue, “Changing the subject, are we?”  He shrugged, and she smiled in thanks, “I got to play around on an Obena class last week – she’s a big ol’ beasty.” She nudged him, “You ever think of trading up, she’d be a nice one to call home.”  She tossed the tissue and gave him a look, “You happy here, Leo?”

The CO considered her question.  It had only been under a week since he’d assumed command, but it had felt like a long journey.  “I think I am.  I’ve got a competent crew with some talented leadership to back me up…there’s plenty of weird and whacky to go around.  They’re not a bunch of tightly wound perfectionists waiting to freak out at failure.  They all want to learn.”

Lillian smiled at her little brother’s pride in his crew.  She was proud of him and the path he had made for himself.  “How’s Theodora?”

He told her of the mission and what had happened both on the ship and on the station.  As he finished, Lillian kept shaking her head, “That’s…unbelievable.  I hope she gets the help she needs, Leo.  Always liked that girl.”

Leo glanced at his chrono, “You want to stay for lunch?  I’ve been practicing making spaghetti and meatballs.”

She groaned but smiled in the end, “You never could make that right.”

He nudged her from across the couch, “Then, big sister, you can show me.”

She stood and put her hands on her hips, “You’re damn right I will.  Let’s get to it.”