The Restless Memories of the Past - Part One

Posted on Tue Mar 17th, 2020 @ 9:03am by Fleet Captain Racheal Yamaguchi

Mission: Mission 98: Building Our New Home
Location: Various Locations - Starbase Sixteen
Timeline: 0900Hrs - June 15th, 2393

Commander Rachael Yamaguchi sighed softly as she was sitting at the table in the lounge, she smiled as she grasped the slice of toast before she took a bite from it, she chewed then swallowed the mouthful of food in her mouth, she smiled as she finished off her breakfast when suddenly the com system beeped. "Commander Rachael Yamaguchi, please report to Ops." came the voice of the starbase computer.

The Starbase was a very busy place these times and Rachael Yamaguchi had spent more than her fair share of time on such places. Rachael Yamaguchi rose to her feet as she began moving towards the lounge entrance, she smiled as she thought of her overly large extended family, she had several children and all of those had several children apiece. Yamaguchi knew that her children had been close to her and their father as she let out a soft sigh.

Yamaguchi still missed her husband and she still quietly mourned the passing of the man who was the father of her children. Yamaguchi stopped as she came to her destination, a turbolift before the tall female tapped the display before her. The door slid open a moment later and Rachael was on her way to Operations a moment later, arriving shortly thereafter.

Yamaguchi looked around the Operations center, it had the usual, the large table in the center with several chairs around it, the commanders office was over to the far left and the lounge was off to the far right, there were three viewscreens along one wall but what was new was the holographic display over the center table which showed the base, the nearby planet and all the ships within ten million kilometers as emblems, the trefoil for the one Klingon freighter and the dozen or so combadges for the Federation ships present.

Yamaguchi turned as she noticed the base Chief Operations officer nearby, she turned and went over towards him. "Captain." she addressed him. "Commander Rachael Yamaguchi, I was ordered to report here?"

"Ahh." the man answered. "The Admiral is looking for you. I'm to send you to see him as soon as you showed up here," he answered. "He's in his office, go on straight in."

"Okay, thanks," Yamaguchi answered before she went over to the Admirals office door, a moment later she was inside, talking to the yeoman and a moment after that, she was standing before the Admiral. "Admiral Truscott, you asked to see me?"

"I did. have a seat Commander. It seems that nobody knows of exactly what to do with you." Truscott answered with a smile on his face. Yamaguchi sat down in one of the three chairs facing her across from the Admiral. "What do you mean sir?"

"Well, you were a Borg Queen, an acting head of state, for lack of a better word and you stepped down as the leader of the Free Borg to come back to Starfleet but we have no idea of what to do with you," Truscott explained as he sat back in his chair. "I was tasked with finding you something to do but I wanted to speak with you first and see if what you were interested in."

"I have options?" Yamaguchi inquired.

"You do." the middle-aged human answered in an even tone. "Some have called for closer relations with the Free Borg and see you as a means to an end in that regard," he explained. "Some wanted to make you a full Ambassador while others have wanted to make you a flag officer, as a former drone and queen, you were easily the equal of an Admiral of any grade. I can see why they wished to make you an Admiral." Truscott regarded her. "That's also an option that's on the table," he added.

"When I was assimilated by the Borg, I was a Commander, assigned to the Goodson," Yamaguchi answered quietly. "I never ever imagined I'd be sitting here, having this chat now."

"That's alright, I never thought I'd be here, having this chat with the mother of a good friend of mine," Truscott answered. "Heather speaks very highly of you. Now I understand why she does." he smiled before he sighed softly.

At the mention of her middle child, Yamaguchi's countenance brightened instantly. "I've missed my babies, now they all outrank me." she shrugged. "Being assimilated will do that to a person." she sighed. "I'm still unsure of how I feel about the subject." she paused. "Anything will feel like a demotion, of sorts."

"Fair enough. So, what do you want?" Truscott regarded her with a look.

Yamaguchi instantly chuckled ever so softly. "I honestly have no idea of what I want, really," she admitted.

"Fair enough. I see here that you requested reinstatement back into Starfleet at the rank of Commander but you were overruled on your rank." Truscott explained. "Considering you used to be a head of state for one of the most powerful nation-states in the galaxy."

"Yeah, I can see how that might be a distraction," Yamaguchi answered with another sigh."Anything would look like a demotion." she paused. "My present rank and an assignment in the field is sufficient for me. I do not need people showing me favoritism because I used to be a Borg Queen. That's one of a million memories I do not want." Yamaguchi explained with a nod. "I'm in Starfleet so I should act like I belong here."

"I wish others shared your candor and your perspective Commander. Very well. I will stick your name and present rank in for a command of a ship in the field. What sort of ship would you want?" Truscott inquired of her.

"A carrier first, if not then a capital ship of the line. Assuming there are any available?"

"Oh, there are plenty of ships in need of skilled commanders. I have more ships then I do people." Truscott explained with a gentle smile. "I expect a pissing contest with command about this as there are those who want to promote you to Admiral and assign you to a Starbase somewhere." Truscott regarded her in silence for a moment. "But. You do not wish for a Starbase command, you want to be out in the field, where you feel you can help make a difference."

"I do!" Yamaguchi agreed, a little too quickly. "I do," she added a moment later.

"Why?" Truscott inquired. "Why not just lead the Free-Borg, you'd be the equivalent of the Federation president. Able to work with our highest levels."

"No," Yamaguchi answered. "I spent a quarter of a century of my life as a Borg, without free will. I was a slave to the hivemind without anything of who or what I was, I want to catch up on what I've missed and I want to earn the right to become an Admiral, not have it handed to me as a trophy."

Truscott nodded. "Okay then," he answered with a simple nod. "Not what I was expecting but then I highly suspect that the counselors didn't have any luck in getting to you because you were not interested in therapy, you simply wanted to move on and stop being pestered about things that happened, you can't change the past but you can still change the future." he suddenly grinned at her. "How'm I doing so far?"

The sudden change left her flat-footed and surprised. "Well. I.. Ummm.. I'd say quite well."

"Like I said, serving with Rear Admiral Yamaguchi-Johnson was an educational experience. She has that mindset, as I suspect all of your children do." Truscott explained. "Very well. I wanted to hear in your own words why you wished to go back out. Alright. I'll stick in your name for a command, either at your present rank or that of Captain, whichever is available." Truscott added.

"Thank you, Admiral," Yamaguchi responded with a gentle smile.

"Your welcome. I suspect a response will be very quick, considering who you are so don't go too far. You are, however, welcome to enjoy the amenities of the base and the world below." he paused. "Dismissed Commander."

Rachael Yamaguchi rose to her feet and out the door she went, without question or comment.