Family Ties

Posted on Sun Jun 2nd, 2024 @ 10:23pm by Lieutenant JG T'lenn & Lieutenant JG Jason Williams III & Ensign Tyler Williams
Edited on on Tue Jun 4th, 2024 @ 3:34am

3,176 words; about a 16 minute read

Mission: The Menagerie: side stories & mischief making
Location: Deck 2
Timeline: Day 11, 1300 hours

Tyler had got his new orders: Security Officer about the USS Astrea and was set to come about once they arrived in Sauselito, but something just didn't feel quite right. Like he knew that the ship sounded familiar and all, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why. Either way, he was excited to take on this new job, it had to have been better than his old one for sure.

He took a small data padd out of one of the bags he had with him, typed in a few commands that brought up the crew listing and scanned through it. Captain Remira Johansen, yep, Lieutenant Commander Maxum Spello, yep... He continued on down the list until he saw the name that had sparked the familiarity: Lieutenant JG Jason Williams III.

His russet brown eyes twinkled as he smiled and knew now what he had to do.

[Half an hour later]

Tyler had completed the boarding process, put his things in his quarters and met the other guy he'd be sharing them with. Nice guy, talked too much though. Once he got back outside and into the corridor, he tapped his commbadge, "Computer, locate Lieutenant JG Jason Williams, please."

"Lieutenant JG Jason Williams is located in Starfighter Bay 2." came the automated voice of the computers reply.

[Five minutes later - Deck 27]

Tyler spotted Jason with his back to him and smiled, "Hello, Jay-Jay. It's been a while."

Jason had been directing the flight mechanics of his department e heard a voice, and the nickname one that voice was allowed to use, behind him. After sending his people off to do their duties, he turned and arched an eyebrow, his ocular implants focusing on the individual he hadn't seen in a few years. "So, Starfleet Academy seems to be scraping the bottom of the barrel these days, if you got a commission." He seemed annoyed as he stepped right up to Williams. For a few beats, neither moved.

Finally, Jason cracked a smile and grabbed the other man in a very strong bear hug. "Ty! What the hell are you doing here on Astrea?"

"Takes one to know one," Tyler grinned as he embraced Jason and ruffled his hair as they let go, "You know, I got some orders that I couldn't turn down: Security Officer," He shrugged and stepped back, looking Jason up and down, "And look at you, finally all grown up and a Squadron Leader, nonetheless! I never thought I'd see the day..." he trailed off.

Then Tyler noticed the rank, "I should really be callin' you Sir, aye." He mocked a salute.

Jason chuckled and playfully shoved Tyler. "Don't be a wise ass, Ty. I'm still me, just your superior officer now." He finished speaking with a satisfied grin on his face.

"Come on then, Sir, let's go catch up somewhere and you can show me around." Tyler said with a laugh. He knew how to rile his cousin up with next to no effort at all. Of course he would follow protocol when on duty and call him by his rank, but not when they were off duty.

Jason nodded and smiled, then paused. "Give me a few minutes first. I just got a new group of starfighters in, when we went back to Starbase 76. I need to finish getting things sorted down here."

"I'll leave you to it then." Tyler was slightly disappointed, but he understood nonetheless, so he let out a massive sigh instead, "Come find me when you're done, I'll be in my quarters on Deck 5, getting my life sorted out before I go and see... Lieutenant Mundy, I believe."

Jason nodded, then smiled. "It is good to see ya, Cuz. I'll see ya when I'm done here."

===Two hours later===

Once Jason was satisfied that his birds were all tucked in snugly in their respective bays, and his pilots were all beginning their inprocessing medical exams, he made his way upship to Deck five, tapping his commbadge as he did so. "Lieutenant Williams to Ensign Williams, do you read?"

"Loud and clear, you outside?" Tyler responded on his commbadge, figuring his cousin would be a few minutes if he was coming up from the starfighter wing. Giving it those few minutes, Tyler got up from his bed, chucked his jacket on and met Jason outside, "Did you get everything sorted?"

Standing out in the corridor, Jason grinned to his cousin. "Yeah, there's still much to do, but it's enough for now." He tilted his head down the corridor. "C'mon, let's go get a drink and something to eat."

As they walked down to the promenade, they chatted and caught up, "How long do you reckon it's going to take you to get the squadron up and running to the high as standards you've got? To be honest, I never actually pictured you as being the one in charge of a fleet. But here we are, I always knew I'd end up in Security though." Tyler said

Jason chuckled and shrugged. "Depends on the quality of personnel that HQ sends me. And to tell you the truth, I knew it would happen some day, just not so quickly. But, as Mom always says, 'It is what it is'. Let's just hope I don't screw it up."

"Nah, you won't. You'll be fine and you'll do great." Tyler had always had a massive sense of respect for his younger cousin and that side of the family and often thought back to the summers spent together. Jason had suggested a lounge they could go to so they ended up there, and both of them took a seat while they waited for someone to serve them.

"So have you spoken to Elizabeth and your parents lately? How are they going, I think it's been like four years or so since I last saw them?" Tyler queried.

Jason nodded as he replied. "Lizzy's doing great, was just named head pediatric surgeon at the Admiral Leonard McCoy Hospital, in New Berlin, on the moon! Mom and Dad are the same as ever, still running diving tours off the Florida coast." He took a breath, then asked, "How's your family doing?"

The waiter came over to give them a couple of drinks and food menus to go over and asked if they wanted a drink to start off with, "I'll take a lemon, lime and bitters to start off with, thanks." He waited for Jason to add his own order before saying, "Give us a couple of minutes to have a look at the menu and then come back, yeah?"

The waiter nodded, then looked over at Jason. "And for you, Sir?"

"A mojito, please," he replied. "Thank you."

The waiter nodded and smiled, then turned and left them, to go fill their drink order

As he watched the waiter walk away, Tyler looked back to Jason, "Mom and dad are good. Dad managed to fall from a massive tree and ended up in hospital with a broken arm, shoulder and ankle." He shook his head at how his father still managed to get those kind of injuries even though there were plenty of safety measures in place. "Mom is getting close to retirement now and I think she's starting to realise that, and I know she's going to miss being a teacher. As for Dan though, he's on the Firebrand now and loving it from what I've heard. Got himself a girlfriend as well, Rory, and I think he's punching above his level with her." Tyler had to laugh: Rory was absolutely gorgeous and Dan was above average in looks.

Jason shook his head and chuckled. "I don't know how you dad keeps doing this to himself. Remember when he was building that tree house for us? And instead of using construction bots, he did it himself, smashed the tip of his thumb with that hammer!" He loved his aunt and uncle just like they were second parents. "So now, she'll just have to start teaching him to be more careful!" He chuckled again.

"I'm glad your brother is doing well. I've heard a few good stories about that ship. Her CO is one of the good ones, apparently. And he found someone too? That's great!!" His smile suddenly fell. "Oh shit. Gimme a sec!" He stood up from the table, and hurried out of the pub.

Tyler quirked an eyebrow at his cousin suddenly hurrying out but then shrugged his shoulders and continued to sip on his drink.

Once out in the corridor, Jason tapped his commbadge. "Lieutenant Williams to Lieutenant T'Lenn."

"T'lenn here, go ahead Jason," T'lenn responded over the commbadge.

"T, I made a mistake about tonight!" He began to explain. "We were supposed to have dinner, but I got completely sidetracked. My older cousin, Tyler, just arrived! He's apparently one of the new security officers! It surprised me do much that I agreed to having dinner with him, which we are starting now, so we can catch up. I am so sorry for messing up our plans!" He paused a few beats, then suggested, "If you want...you could come join us? I feel awful for screwing things up, honey."

Although he could not see her reaction, T'lenn tilted her head curiously at the overdone apology. "There is no need for you to experience a remorseful emotional response. I will make alternate plans for the evening," T'lenn responded.

Jason paused a few beats, before asking, a worried tone in his voice, "Does..that mean you'll join us? Or no?"

T'lenn tapped her commbadge again. "I was electing to not join you this time so that you may continue to become reacquainted with your family member," T'lenn responded, recalling a time when Jason had mentioned he would want private time with his sister before associating with a group.

"Oh," he sounded disappointed. "I was hoping to introduce you to him. However, of you'd rather not...then I guess I'll see you later then." He knew he had messed up. Screwing up their dinner plans. And now, it seemed that T'lenn was was going to be logical about things and make his error seem even more noticeable. "I'm sorry," he said softly.

"There is no need to apologize. I assumed that the two of you would like the time to.. "catch up," as you have said before," T'lenn responded.

"Well, we do, but, you're very important to me, and I wanted him to meet you."

"Your messages are unclear. If you prefer alone time with your cousin, I have other things I can do this evening. If you prefer that I join you, then you need to state so, and inform as to where I should meet you," T'lenn stated.

"I want you to come down and have dinner with us," Jason finally stated plainly. "We are at Paddy's Loft."

"Very well, Jason. I shall meet you there shortly, T'lenn out."

Meanwhile, Tyler sat at the table, finished his drink and ordered another one. He eyed up one of the waitresses who was really pretty and gave her a nod and a smile but didn't pursue anything further. After he stared at the bottom of the refilled glass for a few moments, Tyler looked up and started to wonder where his cousin had disappeared to.

A few minutes later, Jason finally returned to the table. "Sorry about that, Cuz. When you mentioned your brother finding someone, I suddenly remembered that I had had dinner plans with someone else tonight, and I had to go apologize to her for messing things up."

Jason giving up dinner plans? With a woman?! Unheard of. Clearly Tyler didn't know his cousin anymore, after all, it had been a few years and they'd both grown up more. "You know you didn't have to do that just for me, right? We could've caught up another night, I don't want to intrude on your dinner plans."

T'lenn arrived in 10-Forward wearing navy pants that flowed around her body almost like a long skirt, and a fitted cowl neck top in the same material. She scanned the room for Jason who she expected to be sitting with an unfamiliar male.

Though Tyler's back was to T'lenn when she entered, Jason saw her and his face instantly changed to that of clear devotion. "In fact, here she is now," he said happily as he stood up, moving to pull out her chair for her. "You look great, T'lenn," he complimented her quietly as she approached. He then spoke aloud, "Ty, allow me to introduce you to T'lenn, the woman I was referring to." He turned his eyes to T'lenn and smiled at her. "T'lenn, this is my older, first cousin, Tyler Williams. His father and mine are brothers."

Tyler looked between him and her, and he could clearly see that Jason was besotted, "It's a pleasure to meet you, T'lenn. You've found yourself a good man in Jay Jay here." He gave her a smile and added, "I apologize for stealing him away from you to catch up and ruining your dinner plans."

"There was certainly no thievary involved," T'lenn responded. "I encouraged Jason that he was certainly free to spend the evening with you and that I was more than capable of entertaining myself for the evening, but he indicated a desire for us to meet one another."

Jason grinned as he listened to them talk. "Why don't we take our seats and order some dinner?" He held the back of T'lenn's chair, waiting for her to sit.

T'lenn obliged Jason's gesture by taking the seat he had offered.

After gently tucking her into the table, Jason moved back tobhis seat and sat down, smiling happily. He then looked over at Tyler, giving him a playful warning. "Now, don't you go saying something you might regret, Cuz'."

Tyler gave him a devilish grin, "Don't worry, I promise I won't say anything unless prompted." He then looked at T'lenn and added, "I'm sure Jason here can get himself into trouble just fine without my help."

Jason blushed slightly at his cousin's playful ribbing. In an effort to steer the conversation away from anything embarrassing, he asked, "So, Ty, how's life in Security these days?"

"Viviendo la vida loca, like always." It was one of the only Spanish phrases Tyler knew how to say, so he laughed. "It's always fun and games until someone turns the phaser to kill instead of stun. It's honestly not all it's cracked up to be, to be honest. There were a couple of missions in my previous posting that really lacked the fun factor, but you gotta do what you gotta do, right?" He then turned to T'lenn, "Might I ask what department you're in?"

T'lenn turned to Tyler, "I am in the science department. Through combined years of study on Vulcan and at Starfleet Academy my specialty is planetary evolution," T'lenn responded.

Jason smiled softly as he listened to T'lenn and Tyler spoke.

"And I overheard that you are with Starfleet security?" T'lenn stated to confirm.

Tyler nodded, "That's correct. I've always been more of the brawn side of the family rather than the brains like Jason here, so it worked out perfectly that I ended up in Security. You said planetary evolution? What does that entail? Studying the history of the planets and what is projected to happen to them in the future or?" It seemed like a really interesting topic.

"It has a variety of applications," T'lenn stated. "It is unlikely to be able to accurately predict the future for a planet that is inhabited with sentient beings. However, consultations for terra formation would be a potential use. Often with Starfleet, I am asked to reconstruct a world's history, particularly when it has not been accurately recorded and when the Prime Directive prevents us from making contact."

Tyler raised his eyebrows in response at how technical it all sounded, "Wow, that sounds extremely full on kind of work!" He wasn't dumb in any way, but hearing about this kind if work just blew his mind, "What made you get into a career path such as that? And into Starfleet? Was it a passion of yours, or an opportunity to further apply your skills and knowledge?"

He then looked at Jason with an apologetic smile, "Sorry to take over the conversation, I'm fascinated."

Jason grinned as he shook his head. "No need to apologize, cousin. This is why I wanted the three of us to dine together." He looked over at T'lenn and his smile grew warmer. "Please continue, T'lenn."!

"Being raised in the Vulcan education system provides one with certain advantages when it comes to academic pursuits. Parents and teachers begin by expecting children to be experts at every subject at the proficiency level expected for a child of that age. Most parents will add additional elective courses to supplement traditional coursework," T'lenn explained.

"Vulcan children learn nine languages in their first twelve years of life for example. My parents chose to have me learn fifteen in those same years. My courses of study at the Vulcan Science Academy were planetary science, geology, biology, and I hold advanced degrees in those fields. However, the Vulcan Science Directorate limits itself in what theories it will even consider as a possibility, even in this day and age," T'lenn admitted. "At Starfleet Academy the archeology courses, and archeological linguistic coursework was much more... enriched... than one might find on Vulcan."

Jason was surprised by what he heard. "That's amazing, T'lenn! I mean, I knew you were brilliant and all, but to hear just how much is very cool and interesting. Personally, I only know a few languages, and most of my studies are focused on making me the best starfighter pilot I can be."

"We have only known one another for one week, I am sure there is much yet to learn. Perhaps your cousin can enlighten me on some of your hidden qualities," T'lenn suggested.

Jason arched an eyebrow and smirked as he turned his gaze to his cousin. "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea afterall." He chuckled as he spoke.

"Are you concerned that Tyler would highlight your negative traits?" T'lenn asked.

This caused Jason to chuckle again. "No, just playfully embarrassing ones." He gave Tyler a knowing look.

Tyler winked at T'lenn, "I can't be giving all off those out on the first night of meeting you and catching up with him now, can I?"

For the rest of the evening, the three talked and joked. While Tyler certainly did reveal a few childhood memories he had of Jason, he kept most of the truly funny moments to himself, for now.

~OFF~


Ensign Tyler Williams
Security Officer
USS Astrea
(NPC - Andersen)

&

Lt(jg) Jason Williams III
Starfighter Squadron Leader
USS Astrea
(NPC - Spello)

&

Lieutenant J.G. T'lenn
Science Officer
USS Astrea
(NPC - Johansen)

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