Round 6 Commander Kalianna Nicholotti - The Bane of History, Repeating

[Landau]

((Edited because the board screwed up the formatting. ))

((Turbolift, Enroute to Docking Ring Bay 7, Starbase 118))

::Rumors. From the beginnings of written history, it seemed that they alone

could be responsible for a rise to power, or a tragic fall from grace. In

the words that spread as wildfire through the social vine, were the power to

build up, and the power to tear asunder. Entire civilizations were created

and maintained on rumors of strength and power, or terror. Those same

civilizations fell easily under the weight of the words, and for eons, good

men fell victim to the sword that was the pen.::

::In pervasive whispers, men became consumed. Eaten from the inside out,

souls were devoured by the acts that sought to hush the voices of the crowd.

But the voices only changed. The blackness vanquished the good, and into the

abyss that remained, fell the hope of humanity.::

::It was a recurring theme, at least throughout the history of Earth; the

rise and fall of entire world powers on the whims of the rumors that were

always hanging on to the coattails of mere mortal men. Now Kali found

herself caught up in the same on her second day of command. It terrified her

to an extent, but that emotion would never surface. Instead, she would have

to find a sort of resolve and soldier through.::

Nicholotti: Eh. ::She paused carefully considering what she would say

next.:: Would you believe me if I said I don't know quite how to respond?

Daniels: Yes. Yes I would. I know don't want to cause any problems for you

with all these untrue rumors flying around...

::It was then, that Kali chose to turn and face him. She studied his face

for a moment, thinking of the choice she was making. It was something she

hadn't been prepared for, especially so soon after the heartbreak of losing

Makal for a second time, but the way she felt when she was near him.::

::She couldn't fight it. She wouldn't fight it. Rumors be [...]ed; she would

not let all that made life precious crash into the soul eating darkness of

whispering insurrection. It was what she had fought for when she stood

between the knife and Jaxx, what she refused to let be taken away from her

when she pulled Tressa from the mangled shuttle that day, and what she had

brought into the world only a short time before the crisis began.::

::It was worth fighting for, even if she faced a battle on many fronts; the

projectiles in front of her and the smoldering fuse of social ambiguity

behind.::

Nicholotti: I was thinking that maybe there could be some truth to what they

say.

::From the moment she joined the Marines and Starfleet, Kali had been known

for her passion for her team, for her chain of command, and for the sanctity

of life itself. And God help those who would put any of those in danger; to

incur her wrath meant meeting with a fury unmatched.::

::Again, she found herself studying his facial expressions. The seeming

cacophony of things made it all hard to read and she smiled. Maybe they were

both a bit unsure of things, but together, they could certainly find their

way.::

Daniels: I... I think there is definitely some truth to these rumors. I also

think we should do whatever makes us happy and to hell with what other

people think.

::Her smile only grew. It wouldn't be quite that easy, but she would let him

have his moment. He hadn't really spoken his mind since they had returned to

the life of the uniform and it was actually quite the sight to see him just

then. The filter was down and his thoughts spilled out into the silence of

the turbolift as they headed towards destiny.::

Nicholotti: I wish it could be that simple.

::But destiny would wait for a moment longer.::

Daniels: I care for you...a lot, Kali. ::He looked at the beautiful officer

next to him and tried to think outside of their Starfleet ranks:: I don't

know exactly where this is...::He paused and rephrased:: Where WE are going,

but I do know that I don't want to let a few gossipy officers and wild

rumors get in the way of us finding out.

::Kali had fallen before and the resulting crash made this even more

difficult. But in that moment, seeing the fire burn in his eyes, and hearing

the intensity of the words, she felt the weight of command, and the fear of

falling, melt away. For a single moment, the raven haired commander was no

more. In her place stood only a woman who craved more of the feelings that

his presence invoked.::

::Locking eyes with him, Kali conveyed the trust she had in him that he

would catch her and not let her crash. It was the sentiment that if this

road led to the hard fall she had suffered once before, it would be

different this time.::

Nicholotti: Then let's not let them.

::And with that, she jumped in.::

TAG/TBC

--

Commander Kalianna Nicholotti

Commanding Officer

Starbase 118 / USS Victory

Edited April 11, 2012 by Necessity

[Jordan aka FltAdmlWolf]

Link to original archive item: http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/sb118-ops/message/23078