When In Doubt, Choose Change
Posted on Sat Feb 19th, 2022 @ 11:35am by Commander Arianna Frost & Taskmaster
Edited on on Sun Feb 20th, 2022 @ 5:15pm
2,449 words; about a 12 minute read
Mission:
S1E5: Symphony of Horror
Location: Undisclosed
Timeline: MD 4 - Twenty three hours after departure from Deep Space Nine
Life seemed to have an ever-evolving definition of a shitshow, Arianna was coming to realize. At first the Dominion War, then the disastrous, albeit successful end of Castermer I, then the investigation of Memory Theta and the secret search for Joriel, aka Kazyah Linn and the desperate bid to make sure he hadn't been compromised. The addition of the insane element of Karna Zsan made it worse, sure. Before that Operation Donnager had been a clusterfuck of its own accord.
Nothing though, so far, in Arianna's long Starfleet career had compared to the Deep Space Nine debacle. Sure, they were successful in the end in saving the Admirals, securing Vaera Soderi and ensuring that Memory Theta stayed open, but getting to that point...
And then, as if to sweeten the already chaotic pot, there was that moment of self-indulgence. The kiss. Arianna still wasn't sure, nearly a day later if she'd initiated it or had Akiva? At the time she'd had the mindset of 'what's the harm?'. Now that her head and emotions have finally cooled from everything, she couldn't quite justify her reasoning anymore.
The harm was she couldn't get it out of her head. It had affected her. More than it should have. At first she denied it to herself, but as hours dragged on, she was coming to realize the truth. She had developed an attachment, feelings. Dangerous things both, though the former was easier to manage than the latter, especially considering the fact that it had been so long since she'd last allowed herself to feel things at this depth.
Luckily, she was getting back to work, the work that mattered, the work she had invested so much in. Though it pained her, she understood that the distance and the very likely lack of ever sharing space with Akiva again would help her cope in the long run.
Taking a breath as the lift came to a halt, Arianna adjusted her 'go-bag' on her shoulder and stepped out of the lift as the doors opened, ready to face the inevitable displeasure and consequences of her actions.
It was not often that Castermer operatives met in person, but it had been an unusual couple of days fraught with twists and turns nobody could have predicted. The Taskmaster sat to one side of the table, one hand resting over the other as if jealousy yet casually guarding his PADD. At the opposite end of the small table was none other than Commodore Xanthe Rahal, one of the movers and shakers of Starfleet Intelligence who kept the gears turning no matter which Admiral signed off on intelligence reports. The palpable silence hung in the air like meat on a hook until Ari took her seat opposite the Commodore and adjacent to the Taskmaster.
"Well, if it isn't our busy little bee," the Taskmaster quipped with a sullen disposition that he tried to cover with mockery. "You know, in the apiary world, when a honeybee gathers nectar for the hive, it flits from flower to flower in the process of pollination." The Taskmaster wiggled his fingers in the air in a pantomime of a bee's flight. "This act of carelessness is responsible for vegetation on many M-class planets. Yet, should the honeybee make one wrong move, such as making use of its stinger..." The long-faced stare from the Taskmaster was for Ari alone. "... it is disemboweled and left to die wherever it falls." He canted his head to one side and dropped any mirthful pretense. "Do you understand what I am telling you, little bee?"
Arianna had listened to the metaphor speak, though her eyes were more focused on the micro-expressions of both, the little subtle tells of things they weren't saying. Both the Taskmaster and the Commodore seemed to be saying different things and out of concert with each other. This was going to be interesting.
Then he finished his little speech.
There was a time to act and there was a time to act. In this moment, it was the latter. "I do, Taskmaster." She said with a deferent nod.
"Yet, such is life," Xanthe interjected. She understood that the speech, as unrefined as it was needed to be given, to a less experienced officer. Frost was not such an officer and considering everything, the HUMINT run was a success.
Xanthe was concerned for the Taskmaster, her once upon a time protege she needed to whip into his full potential. Now though, he was a trusted colleague and a friend. This level of emotion from him wasn't seen since...
Since the Beirut Evaluation. She hadn't ordered another evaluation for him and he answered to her directly rather than the others. Rahal doubted his odd behavior was due to that.
He hadn't shown any deviant behavior during Donnager, whereas Frost had, yet she seemed to be handling it better than he. Then there were the outbursts during and since her report. Now this. What was going on?
"Good work on apprehending Soderi, Commander." Rahal added, "we'll get a copy of the debrief once Cotopaxi is done with her.
Cotopaxi, another black site. Arianna nodded her acknowledgment, waiting for the actual debrief to begin.
"She will likely join her beloved General Arjuna in his penal colony for the duration of her natural life," said the Taskmaster. By his tone, he considered it a waste of resources. "Do you understand how you embarrassed the Admiralty, Persephone?" The use of her compromised callsign was another direct dig against her.
Xanthe glanced over at him rather than Frost.
"I do." Another deferent nod, "I assume I have the subsequent rescue to thank for not losing my pips?" She couldn't help but ask.
Rahal nodded at this, "by the scruff of the turtleneck, might I add. That being said, do we need to worry about Tau or Nyel being compromised?"
Frost shook her head, "not from the chances I've had to interact with them. I'd need to do a full eval if I were to be sure. They got too tight for their boots but they're just this side of growing too big. My assesment so far is Level 2 monitoring, we have bigger issues to worry about."
"In more civilized eras of humanity, whenever a warrior brought dishonor to their master, they would beg the privilege to fall upon their own sword," the Taskmaster cut in. "To regain their honor and spare their master, their peers, and all who came after them the disgrace of their failure." At last losing his temper, the Taskmaster pounded the table with his fist. "I had to call in favors, Frost. Long-held favors that I'd expected to keep for a rainy day. Instead I had to blow them on a former blue-chip operative who couldn't keep her mouth shut." The emphasis on "former" more than signaled what was coming next. "I'm cutting you loose from Castermer operations. The spotlight on you is too big and too steady for you to be useful in the field." He let that sink in for a moment before going on. "But I'm not done with you yet. Not by a longshot. The capital I've expended in order to keep you from compromising the rest of us is an investment that is best left unwasted. Therefore..." A sordid smirk came over his face. "You're being embedded. It won't be the most expensive confidential informant position I've had to pay for, but that would be a tall order to beat." His smirk turned to a grin. "Welcome to career purgatory, Frost. I'm sure you will find plenty of time to think about what you've done and your future." Not future in Starfleet. Just future. What was left unsaid hovered behind the darkness of his eyes like a lingering bad dream. "Do you have any questions?"
Rahal said nothing, though the look she was giving the Taskmaster spoke of curiosity mixed with...disapproval? Arianna couldn't quite tell.
The way he'd presented his threat, in her mind an overblown reaction to a situation that in no way actually influenced Castermer. Sure, she understood that she was in trouble and that people were angry for what she did. Arianna knew in her heart of hearts however that she'd done the right thing, come what may. If benching was the punishment for helping keep a blacksite in operation and apprehending a live, embedded TLA operative, then so be it. She'll take it.
Even if she got sent god knows where, she had things to do. Data to still analyze, solve the mystery that was the unknown but tangible connection between, Taskmaster and Akiva.
The memory of their illicit act flashed behind her eyes for a brief moment before she shot it down and refocused on the man across from her.
If anyone would have had to call in favors to keep her out of too much trouble, it would have been Rahal rather than Taskmaster. She was the face of Castermer, most brass didn't even know Taskmaster existed, much less his true name. So why was he spiralling so hard?
It can't have been Castermer. No, this was about something else. As the grin washed over his face, the realization hit her. This was not about the Project, this was about him! She'd hurt him!
Oh this was too good. The childish reaction and threat now made sense. What a show!
A deep, slow rumble erupted within her, first a chuckle, then a full blown laugh. "Damn...." another laugh, "that was well..." a gasp for air followed by another chuckle, "executed, Taskmaster. Did you practice the speech long?" She finished, finally containing her amusement.
Rahal's attention was now equally divided between both.
When Ari started laughing, the Taskmaster just stared at first. But when her chuckle turned chain reaction, he spread his lips and joined her. His chuckling was cold and soulless, as were his eyes, but his face was bright with his laughing. The dark brown of his eyes flashed when he arched his brow at the Commodore, both wondering whether she would join their chorus of laughter and subtly inviting her to do so. Laughing all the while, he looked back at Ari. If it had not been clear before, it was abundantly clear now: he was not laughing with her, but at her.
Rahal, however didn't join in. Her hazel eyes remained affixed to her protege more than his target.
"I look forward to the speech you prepare during your tenure at your next assignment," said the Taskmaster. He slid his PADD over to her. "You will have all the time in the world to prepare one because I don't anticipate you getting off the admirals' shit-list anytime soon."
He really is a sociopath. Arianna realized as she looked into his empty eyes. It was always a heavily dishartening feeling when she couldn't see the soul behind the person. In their job, it also meant unpredictable danger. Fortunately, her long career has prepared her to deal with people like that, much to her chagrin.
She said nothing as he further mocked her, keeping her expression neutral, casting her eyes to the PADD and her next assignment.
There it was, the other shoe. Fuck me! Her first thought, when she realized where she was being sent to. Then, a strange sense of relief, and almost peace. Then she remembered...oh, fuck me! Her mind screamed.
Rahal's face broke into a smirk, before she contained it, still saying nothing.
"I'll be sure to tailor it to your liking, Taskmaster." Frost said finally. Whose shitlist was she really on, she couldn't help but wonder. Theirs or his?
"Make sure it's properly penitent," said Taskmaster. "Compelling, persuasive, full of heart and feeling. Really sell the point that you know you fucked up royally and will never do it again." He smiled again. "I have faith in you. Continue updates and monitor local assets at your new assignment until you hear from us, knowing that it may be a good... long... while." The smile faded into a goading smirk. "Any questions?"
"What game are you playing, old friend?" Arianna couldn't help but wonder as he shook her head, "just one, when do I leave?"
"Immediately," said Taskmaster. "Nothing remains for you to do here."
Arianna nodded and stood up, PADD in hand, then glanced at Rahal who gave her a simple not. "Taskmaster, ma'am." With another nod and a tumult of emotion swirling inside of her Ari left the briefing room
After Ari left, the Taskmaster and Rahal shared a look of mixed feelings and reluctant agreements. "Do you have something to add, Commodore?"
Xanthe's eyes were still on him, "don't you think that might have been a tad of an oversell?" She said, referring to his angry outburst.
"I wasn't happy," the Taskmaster said coolly. "And I felt it important for her to know that. Her laissez-faire demeanor required a proportionate level of response. Would you have responded differently?"
Xanthe raised an eyebrow, "you know I would have." She said, recalling the few times over the years when she was angry at his reckless actions and how she had dealt with them.
"She never offered to fuck me," the Taskmaster quipped. "As I recall, that was often the basis for my backtalk when I was a lowly field agent. I never laughed in your face. Maybe I should do so now and learn from your example on how to respond."
"You deserved that laugh, losing your temper the way you did. You gave your hand away there, rather than gaining leverage, which I assume you were meaning to do." Rahal replied, "and you are still backtalking, right now." She pointed out.
Taskmaster grinned. "I asked a question without permission and you answered. But have you forgotten your Sun Tzu? Strategic positioning with opposite pairs can lead to victory without conflict." He looked back to the door Ari had left. "Frost wasn't going to get the point with me matching her droll with droll. No, she needed passionate persuasion. It is something she will be unlikely to get where she is going."
Xanthe observed him for a moment longer before finally averting her eyes. "Alright, we need to get back to work." She said as stood up and headed towards the door herself.
As she left, the Taskmaster's face twisted with a tic. It culminated from his mixed feelings of respect, irritation, and other assorted passions toward his old mentor.
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