JL - Empress Xue'Daio Nox, Captain Vokar | "Rise and Rise again"

Posted on Wed Oct 25th, 2017 @ 3:52am by Xue'Daio Nox Tr'Verelan

While his initial arrival had been hectic, with Stenellian Doctors and Nurses rushing to see to his every need and analyse every last inch of him, his physiology and the injuries he had sustained, Vokar now found himself in silence, something he coveted above all else in the quagmire that had become his mind of late. The thoughts of the terrors he’d been facing, the delusions and the hallucinations were all weighing heavily on his mind but here, amongst the people who had nursed him back to health from his last injury, he found some solace.

Xue had done her best to stay near and, parliamentary procedures as an aside, had been mostly successful. Watching the Vulcan, she'd always found herself lost in a sense of awe and wonder - so much knowledge and power tucked away behind that pocked and scarred facade. It was a hard thing to ignore, not to admire, but she knew that with such power came responsibility heavy enough to crush a man... Or woman. She felt it daily as the regent of the Ascendancy, the heaviness of ruling not only her people, but dictating to their protectorates as well. "Reports have come in that the Vindicator has gone missing not far from here." She spoke lightly, as if the news meant nothing and was simple tabloid fodder. In realty it troubled her deeply, and she knew that his response wouldn't be a light one. "I'd have saved it for an easier time, but you don't like having news kept from you." The albino reached to pat his leg.

Pulling himself up into a half seated position against the head of the bed, Vokar looked over at Xue with his good eye, half closed from the medication they'd given him and sheer exhaustion, the Vulcan was worn and weathered by time and endless battles, the psychological issues he'd been facing had only forced him to age even faster, he was a Vulcan in his 40s, facing ailments that usually only affected the elders of his race and looking as if he were ready to join them. "Where?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper before a light cough wracked his form again.

In a shimmer of silver and snow, Xue's head tilted and she paused to give him a chance to catch his breath and bring himself back from the brink of whatever illness it was that was plaguing him. The bright rose of her eyes took him in, holding him close without ever needing to reach out and touch him, "Look up at night, Vokar, the brightest points that aren't simply stars, are where they are. We warned Starfleet about the nebula." She sighed, "Even the Ferengi warned them... I fear we cannot get them back. One of our own vessels has confirmed that their trail stops cold."

"The Vindicator will be back." Vokar replied as he lay back in the bed and allowed a slight smile to cross his broken lips at the fond memories of his time spent on his ship, his Vindicator still flew but now under a new name and his own banner, the same ship he'd served on as both a Cadet and a Captain, but he still had a fondness for the name Vindicator and the history behind it, the deeds that had been committed in her name, "It's an impossible ship to keep down."

"Your... Certainty is definitely admirable, Vokar, but the concern is mounting. No one that has gone in and disappeared has ever returned." She sighed in spite of the small smile that mirrored the Vulcan's own, "You have great faith in them, and I find that comforting, but you also have to understand my concern given that our olive branch is aboard that vessel. Like it or not, she is directly linked to the heart of the Ascendancy. Losing her would be a great tragedy for our people. I don't blame Starfleet for her loss, but it is..." The albino paused, searching for the right word as she studied him for what he was worth, "taxing... On an already strained relationship. Especially given the name of the ship and her Captain. I fear that we'll be blamed seeing as the nebula is, technically, within our reaches."

"You won't" the Vulcan responded with a slight smile, "This is the nature of Starfleet, to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations." he parroted from his time in the academy, "They know what to expect and if they entered the nebula then they only did so because they believed it to be necessary."

Xue's eyes rolled, "After everything that has happened to you, you're still in a love affair with Starfleet." She chuckled with a smile. Vokar was an anomaly not unlike the nebula that had swallowed the Vindicator and her crew, and she knew that a simple wrong turn would leave someone just as lost within the aging Vulcan's entwined grasp - herself perhaps sitting in the most precarious and likely position of all. She wasn't afraid. "I'm almost certain that bringing our ambassador home would be a wise decision. We've done enough by putting her through the Academy and letting her serve on the front lines. Maybe now is the time to either strike up conversation with the Federation, or let it fall asleep forever." She waited now for his response, both out of curiosity and the way she valued his mind.

"A stable peace between the Federation and the Stenellian Ascendancy can only be beneficial for both parties," Vokar replied with a nod, ignoring the comment about his feelings for Starfleet, "However I would hesitate before bringing your little star-child back from the service so soon, she still has so much more that she can learn and in turn, bring back to teach you." that much he was certain of.

The sound of rustling silks answered him as the white Empress shifted in her seat and cast a sigh in his general direction. Winter was coming, and with it would rise strife and hardship that would leave her people in need of something more than fairy tales. Traders would come to Justifal and Apsha, with them would come word of the missing ship and, with it, the missing Ambassador. "Stable peace indeed, I agree, but..." She countered, toying with the fine beaded embroidery along her outer skirt, "The decision to bring her home will largely depend on her condition and thoughts when and if the Vindicator returns. Her loss would be a black cloud over the Ascendancy."

"I have faith that they will return, it's just a case of when rather than if." the Vulcan replied with a slight smile, another quick cough wracked his body and forced him to double over again, "I would assume that you're preparing to speak to the powers that be within Starfleet upon their return?"

"Sources tell me that a great many of Starfleet's admirals are headed to Cold Station Theta." Xue's response was almost flippant and she gave herself reason to once again check on his existence. Every cough was an alarming note of warning, chiming that something greater was wrong and dwelling within the Vulcan's biology. It was hard enough to keep her face devoid and blank of the emotion and color of concern leeching into her consciousness. "I believe it would be wise if I made an appearance as well, though I'm not ignorant of the dangers that lurk there. Fleet Admiral Red's near death was headline news here as well, as you well know." The albino's silvery lashes shielded the pretty pink of her eyes, "You know most of everything. I don't know how I feel about my ability to feed you news of the Vindicator's disappearance, but that's not what matters here." She conceded ever so demurely.

"That... is news in and of itself," Vokar replied with a slight smile, "A gathering of that size is a rarity, even moreso when you consider the fact that we're a long way from Earth." he added a slight chuckle as he withdrew a PADD from his jacket that hung on the post of the bed and handed it across to the young woman, "No doubt you have your own file on this, but you'll find information here on what happened the last time this many Starfleet Flag Officers gathered in one place, you may find information here that was not in the official reports."

"I'm aware." Xue sniffed, gingerly taking the PADD from him and thumbing through it, "I'm most certain that there won't be war unless they choose to provoke one." Her tone was bland, devoid of the warmth that had been there mere moments before, "It's my hope that they've found the Vindicator and we can expect her return to the station. That said..." She paused, setting the document down beside his leg, "I will be there."

"And I'm coming with you." the Vulcan replied with a sly smile as he forced himself into a full upright sitting position and reclaimed the PADD, "The Vanguard would be honoured to escort the Empress of the Stenellian Ascendancy into Federation space."

A wary eye cast over him and she allowed a hand to rest against the knee cap closes to her, "You will only have that honor should you be truly up to it, Vokar." She cautioned, leveling with him as she often did, "I will not have you dying just because you feel the need to babysit your favorite pet project. I assure you that I can handle myself with diplomacy if you're not up to it."

Vokar scoffed at her suggestion that she was his pet project, to him it had always felt like it was very much the other way round, "Really? My pet project? You know that I give you much more credit than that, Empress." he replied quickly, "I'll be fit to travel, my own doctors will see to that."

Those same practices, vibrant floral hued eyes rolled as she gathered her robes and found her feet, "We'll see." She replied at last, reaching to drop a quiet kiss upon his brow, "For now? Rest. If you're well enough to depart tomorrow than we shall do so. If not, I will go on my own." Of course on her own meant with the same retinue of guards and ambassadors that she'd have taken anyway. Nothing was a small affair when it came to the Ascendancy, and now that she reigned as Empress there were appearances to maintain whether she enjoyed them or not. This... Was an or not.

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Empress Xue'Daio Nox
Queen of Apsha
Ruler of Aleine
Stenellian Ascendancy

&

Vokar
Vanguard Commander
VCD Pendragon