[Round 6] Mikali "Banshee" sh'Shar - Happy Families, Pt I

[FltCapt. Sidney Riley]

(( OOC: This takes place after the Truth or Dare, the night after the

wedding reception. ))

(( Mikali sh'Shar's quarters, USS Independence, 0321 hours. ))

:: The words floated in and out of her head like the voices of a ghost.

Flashes and figments of the past, all coalescing into a cascade of imagery

that passed by in a blur. Mikali tried to sleep but the thoughts kept her

awake, sprawled out like a starfish on her entirely unmade bed, her left

hand wrapped around... ... she knew what it was. The room was dark, with

only faint lighting coming from the large window out to space. Dimly she

heard the remembered voice of Alex Somers, trying to console her. ::

:: "... little or no comfort, but I am of the belief that if you are meant

to find a partner, and have offspring, you will. But I am sorry for what you

had to give up..." ::

:: Mikali sighed slowly, placing her empty hand on her abdomen. If it were

just a matter of finding one partner she could deal with that. One was a

binary state... you had either found them, or you hadn't. But Mikali needed

three... a thaan, a chan and a zhen. They all had to get along, to like each

other, to be willing to all bond... to make a child. A child she would carry

for two months, then transplant into the zhen who would carry it to

adulthood. The breeding group needed four in total and they needed to get

along... ::

:: They had to tolerate her, something that seemed impossible. ::

:: Mikali was a broken bird. Damaged and flawed. Fit only for discarding...

for fighting endless battles, eventually being killed out here, stuffed into

a torpedo tube and blasted away like rubbish. That's what her future held

for her. ::

:: Now her own voice echoed in her head, pointing out simple truths. ::

:: "... by age 30 I'll be menopausal. If it's not already too late, that

is..." ::

:: Was it too late? Was there even a decision to make anymore? ::

:: The imagined, smiling forms of the women who'd attended ladies night

floated in her mind, smiling and encouraging. ::

Imaginary Riley: oO You can do it, sh'Shar! Oo

Imaginary K. Brice: oO Go on! Oo

Imaginary A. Somers: oO I believe in you- we're friends, right? Oo

:: Mikali, half asleep, knew that she had the answer in her left hand. The

one that remained a fist, clutching around the answer. A simple test,

contained in a device very similar to a regular hypospray. She could just

touch it to her muscle, press the big wide 'Go' button, withdraw a little of

her cobalt-blue blood and test it. The answer would be displayed instantly.

There wasn't even a wait time. ::

:: Hours ago she had read over the manual with trembling hands. ::

:: "Upon application, the unlit bar at the top of the device will glow. The

colour of the bar determines the fertility of the shen. A bar that is green

indicates a period of fertility. A bar that is red indicates prepubescence

or menopause. If you were expecting a green bar but instead see a red one,

see a qualified gynecologist specialized in Andorian physiology

immediately."

:: It was that simple. Green for yes, red for no. ::

:: Bolstered by her experience at the Truth and Dare party, she'd replicated

the device. Now she'd been laying there for so long, unable to complete this

simple action. Worrying for hours, stressing herself, crying... ::

:: sh'Shar would never admit it to anyone, but she cried. Cried and cried,

imagining the bonding group she never met. They would have moved on... she

was too old. Too old to be be a part of the bonding. Besides, she was a bad

person in every way someone COULD be bad. Bad to her friends, bad to her

enemies, bad to her subordinates and superiors alike, bad to perfect

strangers. ::

:: Bad for the ship. What kind of damage would she do to a child? ::

sh'Shar: oO Why don't you just press the [...] button and find out if any of

this is worth worrying about? Oo

:: It was impossible. She hadn't even considered it before today... she

didn't care less. In fact, she wanted it all to be over so she wouldn't have

to even entertain the *thought* of children. Now her crew... ::

:: ... her friends... ::

:: ... had inspired her to rekindle lost dreams. But she still couldn't do

it. ::

:: Mikali rolled onto her side, then slowly climbed back to her feet. She

shuffled over to her replicator, placing the device inside with a soft

*clink*. She stared at it, resting on the tray, unused. ::

sh'Shar: oO Herein lies the first answer to the questions you've been

kicking around in that stupid blue skull of yours all night, and you're just

going to quit and give up? Are you really that spineless? Oo

:: Turns out she was. ::

sh'Shar: Computer, recl-...

:: She couldn't bring herself to finish that sentence, choking half way

through. ::

Computer: Restate request.

sh'Shar: FRAK IT!

:: Snarling, sh'Shar snatched it out of the tray and pressed it against her

arm. Her thumb flew to the button located on the side of the device,

depressing it before she had any time to reconsider what she was doing. ::

:: Bright green light flooded the dark of her quarters. ::

TBC...

-----

PNPC Mikali "Banshee" sh'Shar

FA-150 Maul Pilot

USS Independence-A

As simmed by,

Lt (jg) Alleran Tan

CAG

USS Independence-A