Rukia was pretty embarrassed. This wasn’t how she wanted to start her new assignment. She could hear the Doctor and the Captain talking for a moment.

“Again, apologies, Captain. I had no intention of being late for our meeting.” he apologized.

“No Doctor… I’d say you did the right thing. The Commander is going to be ok?” she asked.

“Oh yes… she just had a pretty severe bout of space sickness. When I was younger, I got it pretty bad. Nothing a hypospray couldn’t cure. She’s just resting now… probably more worried about being late for her meeting with you.” he said laughing. The captain chuckled.

“Well far be it for me to keep you from your patient… I see medical will be in good hands.” she said.

“I hope so, Captain. This will be the largest medical department I’ve served in… other ships never had this much patient space… much less a completely separate area.” he said.

“I’m sure you’re up to the task Doctor.” she stated. Kael nodded.

“Well then, Doctor… carry on.” Sol stated, gesturing to the ward they stood in. She started to turn to leave, before the Doctor cleared his throat.

“Captain… while you’re here… how about we get your initial physical exam out of the way…” he prodded. There was silence for a moment, before the Doctor replied.

“Good… most Captains tend to avoid these like the plague…” he commented. The Captain had clearly acquiesced to the request.

Then their voices faded some as they both stepped away, leaving her to her thoughts. Her eyes felt heavy, whatever the Doctor had given her was certainly strong. She yawned as her eyes slowly closed, listening to the gentle hum of the ship and the faint voices from elsewhere in the ward.

When her eyes opened, she jolted up, looking around. Where was she again? She blinked, rubbing her eyes. Oh right, the Yamato. Her new ship. She blinked again. Her new ship?! She had to meet the Captain still and she had been late. She swung her legs to the side sitting up fully right as the curtain surrounding the bio bed opened.

“Ah, Commander, how are you feeling?” the Doctor asked. She looked up, slightly more panicked now that she was remembering just what her current situation was.

“Doctor, how long was I asleep?” she asked. The Doctor glanced at the chrono on the wall.

“Only an hour or so…” he replied, clearly awaiting a response to his other question. Her eyes widened.

“Oh the Captain isn’t going to be happy!” she said, hopping off the biobed. The Doctor sighed, placing his hands on the Trill’s shoulders, stopping her gently. He guided her back to sitting on the bio bed and held his hands in front of her to calm her.

“Before she left the Captain told me to tell you to take your time, and go to her ready room when you were feeling better.” he said, smiling. “She seems to be a very understanding woman… now, how are you feeling, Commander Shiro?” he asked again, crossing his arms.

Rukia tilted her head to the side, processing the information the Doctor had given her, then nodded slowly.

“I feel much better actually… I don’t know what you gave me, but it really did the trick.” she replied, placing her hands in her lap. The Doctor nodded, picking up the PADD that had been serving as her chart. He tapped a few buttons.

“Nothing fancy, just a cocktail of inaprovaline for the space sickness, and improvaline to allow your body to rest and let the inaprovaline to work.” he explained. He set the PADD down, dimming its screen.

“You shouldn’t experience any negative side effects.” he added.

“Well… it’s worked wonders, thank you.” Rukia said, moving to stand again, now a bit more calm.

“Of course. You’re free to go.” he said with a laugh. Rukia smiled sheepishly, but nodded.

“Thank you again, Doctor.” she repeated, stepping around the man. She was late, whether or not the Captain was understanding about it. She needed to freshen up and then report to the ready room.

When she arrived on the bridge about fifteen minutes later she looked much more put together. Her hair was tied back and her uniform was fresh. The bridge itself was quiet, various officers going about their tasks. She glanced about, looking into the lowered section at the rear of the bridge where a holotable sat, displaying their position docked with Deep Space 17. She moved across the bridge, running a hand along the tactical console, which currently sat unoccupied.

“The Captain is in her ready room, Commander.” a voice said from just below the tactical console. A woman was looking up at her, clad in command red with three silver pips on her collar.

“Yes, ma’am. Sorry…” she said, with a bit of a sheepish look. The other woman laughed, shaking her head.

“It’s fine… but I’m sure the Captain is eager to meet you.” she explained. Rukia nodded, , moving around the other side of the tactical station down toward the ready room. She tapped the buzzer, waiting patiently.

“Come.” was the only reply she got as the doors opened. The Captain was seated at her desk, sipping from a cup of tea, eyes buried in a PADD. She glanced up as the doors shut, smiling. She set the PADD down and stood.

“Commander!” she exclaimed, gesturing to a chair on the opposite side of the desk. “Are you feeling better?” she added. Rukia nodded, moving to the offered chair.

“Yes, Captain. Thank you.” she replied, sitting. The Captain also sat setting the cup of tea down in front of her.

“Would you like something to drink?” she offered, gesturing to the warm pot of tea on the desk beside her terminal. Rukia shook her head.

“No thank you.” she said. The Captain simply nodded, shuffling a few PADDs on her desk around, looking for a specific one.

“Ah here it is… sorry… far too many reports on this desk still…” Solaris commented, tapping a few controls on the PADD.

“So, you said you were recently joined?” she asked. Rukia nodded.

“Yes, its only been about a week… just before I left for this assignment actually.” she explained.

“That must be a unique experience? Gaining the experience and memories of so many other lifetimes?” the Captain asked. Rukia chewed her lip for a moment, actually having not had time to really consider it.

“Sometimes… I’m not even sure if I’m ‘me’ anymore…” she started, pausing for a moment. “I mean, I know who I am, who I was but… I also have these memories of things done in past lives. One of my former hosts was a pilot, another a world class musician… there’s like five lifetimes worth of memories in my head now… and it can be overwhelming.” she continued, picking at one of her nails a bit.

Solaris watched her quietly, letting the officer in front of her speak. She wondered how she would deal with suddenly having several lifetimes worth of memories just dumped into her head one day. Sure Trill initiates had intense training, but she didn’t think all the training in the galaxy could prepare someone properly for an experience like that.

“I think that you’re even able to realize and voice that is quite amazing, Commander. I’m not sure I could handle it even half as well.” Solaris admitted, taking a sip of her tea. She waved the PADD a bit as she did. “Your previous captains speak highly of you and your skills as a tactical officer. How do you feel about your skills now that you’ve been joined?” she asked. Rukia tilted her head.

“Completely confident in them, ma’am.” she replied.

“Really? Even with the jumble in your head?” Sol asked. Rukia nodded confidently.

“Yes, Captain. I trained as a tactical officer in the Trill defense force before joining Starfleet, and have served as a tactical officer for my entire career… I have complete confidence in my abilities, regardless of anything else going on with me.” she explained. Sol grinned, nodding.

“That’s what I wanted to hear, Commander. Anyone who can take on the gift you’ve been given, with all it entails and still be confident in themselves, despite everything else… is someone I would want on my crew.”

Rukia tilted her head to the side again. That was it? Even after being late, far more so that she had any right to be.

“Captain?” she asked.

“Welcome aboard the Yamato, Commander Shiro.” Solaris said, smiling, extending her hand. Rukia reached up and grasped it firmly. Sol withdrew her hand after a moment then passed a PADD across the desk. Rukia took it and saw a list of tactical systems that needed addressing.

“The ships tactical systems need checking out, and we don’t have out full complement of torpedoes yet either. Work with engineering and operations and get your department up and running.” Sol ordered.

“Yes, Captain… and thank you.” Rukia said, eyes scanning the list again. There was quite a lot to get done before the ship departed. Sol simply nodded, turning her attention to the terminal on her desk.

“Dismissed, Commander.” she stated.

Rukia stood and nodded, before turning and departing the ready room, still a bit unsure how she had secured the position.

Solaris watched her leave, studying the way she walked out of the ready room, with just a hint of confusion in her stride. She grinned, reaching for her cup of tea. Things had shaped up quite nicely, and the ship was almost ready for departure. The only had a few more days before they needed to launch.