Chapter Text
At 0015 hours, Taeyong finds himself sitting at the conference table in the USS Enterprise's Deck 1 observation lounge in a state of confusion and slight apprehension.
He's not sure what he's doing here. It's a very unusual time for a meeting, since they're not usually held during gamma shift hours, but for whatever reason this one is a rare exception. The incredibly short notice he got for it adds another layer of abnormality. Today he was stuck on beta shift compiling reports, and was nearly falling asleep on his PADD at 2300 hours when he was snapped out of it by his communicator chirping with a request from Lieutenant Commander Chaerin Lee for his presence at a meeting shortly after the end of his shift with no further information provided. (This was not an entirely uncommon experience, as Taeyong's presence is required at a lot of meetings and his combadge has been serving as an informal alarm more often then he'd like lately.) He'd assume the meeting had something to do with the recently completed mission he's been providing logistical support for, were it not for a few things: their meetings were held almost exclusively during alpha shift; Lieutenant Commander Chaerin was not involved in that mission; and there's really nothing further to discuss regarding it until these accursed reports are completed. Therefore, he's got no idea what to expect.
Taeyong doesn't like uncertainty very much. It was already difficult to focus on the brutally long documents packed with excruciatingly specific small details and hopelessly dense jargon (the lives of a starship's low-level Command division support officers are difficult ones), but it became almost impossible during the last hour of his shift. In the face of uncertainty, Taeyong's mind has a tendency to toss around worst case scenarios, and he can't shake the feeling that he's in trouble somehow. It doesn't help that the meeting is in the observation lounge rather than one of the Deck 14 conference rooms, as this particular location adds an air of extra seriousness to any meeting that takes place here. Taeyong tends to stick around for a few minutes after his shift ends to see if there are any last things he can do to help, but today he left the tiny shared office on Deck 22 he's been put in this week at the exact time beta shift officers cheerfully call 2400 hours and gamma shift officers miserably call 0000 hours and rushed up here as fast as he could. And now he's sitting here in the observation lounge. All by himself. With nothing happening but the movement of distant stars outside the large windows.
Taeyong's starting to wonder if Lieutenant Commander Chaerin directed him to the wrong place when the door swooshes open and someone stumbles in to flop down in the chair across from him. The person turns out to be a bleary-eyed science officer who looks over the table to give him one of the most judgemental looks he's seen in his life. After a few seconds of being taken aback, he recognises the officer as Ensign Kim — Doyoung Kim, if he's not mistaken — from the Stellar Cartography department. He's never personally interacted with Doyoung, but has crossed paths with him a few times both during their time at Starfleet Academy and aboard the Enterprise, when missions he was assigned to required a visit to the department. However, he's heard quite a bit about Doyoung. Save for his academic excellence, the quality of his cartographic work, his intelligence and his work ethic, none of it has been positive. The look on Doyoung's face is lining up with what he's heard.
"Hello," Taeyong greets him, with a tentative smile. He feels very uncomfortable right now, but he's a polite and diplomatic person so he's at least going to make an attempt at establishing a positive connection. Doyoung just keeps giving him that same look. Taeyong gets the feeling his attempt has fallen flat. He breaks their eye contact and turns his gaze back to the stars.
It's a few excruciating minutes before the door slides open again and someone else comes striding in. Taeyong instantly recognises him as well. Most people would recognise Ensign Yuta Nakamoto, but less from his actual job and more from his central role in the Enterprise's sports. He might wear a gold Security team uniform on duty, but he's more associated with the blue bodysuit of the ship's parrises squares team. He's been at the bridge's tactical station during a few of Taeyong's very rare trips there during gamma shift, and was in one or two of his larger classes during Academy, but that's been the extent of their happening across each other. However, Taeyong's seen him around quite a bit. Though he's not into sports and therefore has committed the heresy of never attending a parrises squares match, let alone soccer or anbo-jyutsu, he's spotted Yuta all over the ship. Yuta is a veritable social butterfly, and seems to pop up everywhere with various groups of friends. He was also infamous during their Academy years; despite his popularity there, all the cadets in their year were shocked Yuta was assigned to the Enterprise. This was based on his penchant for running afoul of the strict rules, pulling pranks that frequently got out of hand and taking a somewhat laissez-faire attitude towards academics. There's a reason they've never run in the same circles.
"Hi," Yuta says, with his characteristic radiant smile. Doyoung fixes him with the same bleary judgemental look. Yuta doesn't seem to notice, and places himself in the chair directly next to his. Doyoung glares at the side of his head. "I'm Yuta Nakamoto," he introduces himself, as if there were any chance they wouldn't know who he is.
"Taeyong Lee," Taeyong replies, with a small wave to both of them and a smile that comes off a bit shyer than he intends.
"I know who you are," Yuta assures him. This takes Taeyong aback as well. He has noticed that people tend to know him at a higher rate than he expects, but he's not sure why. He's not developed a significant place for himself in the Enterprise's social life, and he wasn't extremely popular at the Academy; he did get a disproportionate amount of love confessions from people he barely knew, and seemed to be universally well-treated by students and professors alike, but he was too focussed on his studies (and ensuring the completion of the group projects always dumped on him) to go to most of the social events he was invited to. Here on this huge ship with so many more established people he's just another face in the crowd, but even people he's not worked with or overlapped with at the Academy are somehow able to greet him by name. He assumes it's because the multi-functional nature of his job takes him all over the ship, making him a familiar face.
"Doyoung Kim," Doyoung says, in a voice that indicates he really, really does not want to be here having this conversation with them. Taeyong feels a small dispirited frown creeping onto his face, but then Doyoung muffles a yawn and visibly struggles to keep his eyes open.
"Are you okay?" Taeyong asks him gently, making another attempt to reach out. He's got a bit of sympathy now, because he's also pretty exhausted and just wants to go back to his quarters and collapse. The fact that he's got to report for alpha shift in less than 8 hours is looming over him, so he's not too enthusiastic about the timing of this meeting either.
"I'm fine, thank you, Ensign Lee," Doyoung says, with an icy professionalism laced with a hint of sarcasm. The use of Taeyong's rank and last name is a clear attempt to put distance between them, as standard practice aboard the Enterprise is to drop ranks between ensigns and use first names after the initial introduction, for the sake of economy of words and avoiding confusion between the many officers with the same surnames. "I'm sure you didn't choose your shift, so you've got nothing to do with the fact that I had to work half of gamma shift and all of alpha and now I'm here at 0000 hours because you were on beta."
Yuta snorts. "Someone really should've told you about naps by now," he says, with equal sarcasm.
Doyoung's eyes narrow, and he bristles. Taeyong looks back and forth between them, feeling a little like a pod caught in a tractor beam. He's growing increasingly worried he might have to get in the middle of something he really doesn't want to get in the middle of.
Thankfully, before that situation can develop, the door opens and two senior officers enter: Lieutenant Commander Chaerin, the Chief Intelligence Officer, and Lieutenant Seunghoon Lee, the Chief Science Officer. Taeyong can't help but give them a look of gratitude that must seem strange without context. The officers are engaged in a conversation in hushed tones, which they cut off a few seconds after they enter the room. Taeyong knows them both fairly well, but something about their presence in the observation lounge feels intimidating. Immediately, he and Doyoung and Yuta stand up to greet them with proper respect.
"At ease," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says, before any of them can speak. The abruptness concerns Taeyong further, but he nods in acknowledgement and sits back down along with the other two ensigns. His posture feels stiff and unnatural, with the way he's bracing himself for whatever's about to come. "And relax. You're here because you have our approval."
"Thank you, Commander. That's an honour to hear," Doyoung says, in a polite and professional voice that's a complete 180 from the tone he spoke to Taeyong and Yuta in. Taeyong can see Yuta rolling his eyes at the blatant display of fakeness, and it's clear that if the senior officers weren't here, he'd be calling Doyoung a kiss-ass. If Taeyong's honest, he's not too fond of that approach to dealing with people either. It conflicts sharply with his own personal ethos that everyone should be treated with respect, not only those in positions of authority.
Lieutenant Commander Chaerin and Lieutenant Seunghoon take seats at the head of the table, sharing the space where the captain would usually sit. She crosses her legs and laces her fingers together in a somewhat imperious position, somehow seeming to tower over them despite being a good deal shorter. She looks them over analytically, befitting her role as an intelligence officer, and her thick eye makeup makes her gaze seem a bit more haughty than it's probably intended to be. His posture is a lot looser, more relaxed, and the look on his face is friendlier, but his eyes are fixed on them with a similar intensity. Taeyong knows he's one of the nicest commanding officers on the ship, but shrinks under their combined scrutiny nonetheless.
"Thanks for making it on such short notice, Ensigns," Lieutenant Seunghoon says, setting his PADD down on the table and finally lessening the intensity of his gaze. "Do you all know each other?"
Yuta says "yes" at the same time Taeyong says "a little bit" and Doyoung says "no". Immediately, the three of them exchange a look that says what?.
Lieutenant Seunghoon seems to take the mixed messages as a cue to facilitate the icebreaking and offers some introductions, indicating each of them in turn. "This is Ensign Yuta Nakamoto. He's in the Tactical branch of the Security team. This is Ensign Doyoung Kim. He's in Stellar Cartography in the Sciences department. And this is Ensign Taeyong Lee. He's one of the junior mission support personnel in the Command division."
"It's nice to meet you both," Doyoung says to them, in that same artificially polite tone. This time it really irks Taeyong, but clearly not as much as it irks Yuta. In fact, Yuta's beginning to irk him a bit too, but for the exact opposite reason; Yuta doesn't seem to care much for controlling his reactions for the sake of professionalism. That doesn't fit with Taeyong's ethos either.
"Nice to meet you as well," Taeyong replies, keeping any negative sentiments out of his tone.
"Yeah, same," Yuta chimes in. It's far from reverent. Taeyong can't imagine speaking like that in the presence of commanding officers. It definitely rubs him the wrong way.
"I know it's late, so we'll jump right into the reason you're here," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says, and Taeyong's heart is flooded with gratitude. Not only does he want to be asleep as soon as possible, the anticipation of this meeting's purpose has been building until he's dangerously stressed. He really appreciates her direct communication style, but is a little less grateful for the way she gives each of them another scrutinising look. "We've got a mission on your level, and you're the right officers for it."
"We didn't choose lightly," Lieutenant Seunghoon continues. "We selected candidates based on their skill set, then looked at their performance — so you're right, Ensign Doyoung, you should consider this an honour. Our final criteria, though, was underutilisation."
Taeyong doesn't understand. It's obvious Yuta, the open book, doesn't understand either. Even quick-witted Doyoung looks a little confused.
"We mean that you all should be doing more," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says. The reaction amongst the three of them is instant, and finally their expressions match up — the best word for them, probably, is chastised. Taeyong's eyes lower to the table, and he can see the shame in them mirrored back on the reflective surface. It sounds like she's saying that out of all the eligible and high-performing candidates, they're the biggest slackers. That hurts to hear, especially since he feels like he's constantly running himself ragged trying to make sure everyone on his teams has whatever they need. He's sure Doyoung, a notorious perfectionist, isn't taking this well either. After a moment, though, she seems to realise the misunderstanding and clarifies. "No, not that you're not doing enough. Just that you're not being used to your fullest potential in your current roles."
"You're not getting to apply all your skills, is what we're saying," Lieutenant Seunghoon adds on reassuringly. "Ensign Yuta, you're not ready to rise up in the ranks yet, but you could use some additional responsibility and a chance to delve into theory. Ensign Taeyong, we'd like to see you take the lead on a mission, and this seems like the most suitable one. And Ensign Doyoung …" His voice becomes a bit quieter, the formality of his tone giving way to something gentler. "I know you were here for astrophysics. We want to give you the opportunity to do that again."
This time, their reactions sharply diverge. Yuta looks triumphant. Taeyong looks nervous. Doyoung's expression is unreadable to Taeyong for the first time during this meeting, but there's something incredibly raw in his eyes.
"I'm sure you're wondering what this mission actually is," Lieutenant Seunghoon continues, then laughs. The formality hasn't entirely returned to his tone, and although it's unusual, Taeyong finds himself relieved. "We're probably going to disappoint you a little."
"Is it boring?" Yuta asks, and Taeyong is shocked at the irreverence of the question, but both of the commanding officers laugh.
"Definitely not. It's actually really cool," Lieutenant Seunghoon says, with a small grin. "Unless you think space phenomena, difficult problem-solving and diplomatic intrigue are boring."
"Nope, sounds great," Yuta replies, with his brilliant smile.
"Good," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says, and she's giving them one of the warmest looks Taeyong has seen from her. He's heard that Yuta's charm is no joke, and it seems to be true — he's somehow managed to win over two of the most senior officers on the ship with an exchange that would get nearly anyone else scolded, and if Taeyong's honest, he can feel his slight distaste quickly fading as he looks at that smile. He has to resist the urge to laugh when he sees Doyoung's face, though. Doyoung actually looks more disgusted.
"The reason we might disappoint you is because we can't tell you too much right now," Lieutenant Seunghoon explains. "We've got to get Captain Seunghyun and Commander Mino's final approval on everything before we go into more classified information — but you can assume we will. It's just protocol not to give you all the info yet; they've pretty much already confirmed you, so all we need are those signatures."
"And for the ensigns to agree," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin reminds him wryly, then turns back to the three of them. "You decide whether to agree. You're not being ordered to take the assignment. We'd really like you to be our team, but this is a big responsibility and we won't push it on you if you feel like it's too much."
"Commander, Lieutenant, permission to request more information …?" Taeyong asks tentatively.
"Sure," Lieutenant Seunghoon replies. He picks his PADD up from the table in front of him, subtly turning it when he realises it's upside down, then swipes and taps on the screen for a few moments. He quickly skims whatever he's pulled up, Lieutenant Commander Chaerin leaning over to read along with him. After a little while, they look up in frighteningly perfect synchronisation. "Okay. Just had to review some notes. It's a pretty fine line between what we can and can't share at this point."
"So, as you're aware, we've not had any big shipwide missions for a while, just a lot of minor ones," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says. The three of them nod; Taeyong's all too aware of this, since in the past few months he's been funnelled through a dizzying array of short-term assignments. "We're about to undertake a new major mission. I can't say anything about where, but nearby there's an uninhabited planet Starfleet Command suspects has a valuable resource store. We'll need to confirm that, and if it's true, we'll have to preserve the resource from — well, there's a reason we chose someone with a speciality in astrophysics. If we succeed, then unfortunately it likely won't be long until others take an interest in it. That's all we can tell you for now, but hopefully it's enough for you to make your minds up."
The ensigns are silent for a while, mulling over the scraps of intelligence they've been provided. Finally, Doyoung says what Taeyong is sure all three of them have been thinking. "Commander, Lieutenant … with utmost respect, are you sure our abilities will be adequate for this mission? It sounds like a very complex and important undertaking."
"We might have oversold it a little," Lieutenant Seunghoon admits. "Not what it involves or what you'll have to do, that's all accurate, but we might've made it sound a little more critical than it is. Don't get me wrong, it's very important, but the Federation's not going to fall apart if something goes wrong." He grins. "We thought a lot about the size and skill level of the team in relation to the requirements of the mission, and we're confident in you."
"Of course, if as things progress you discover you need backup, we'll see what we can arrange. Sometimes the scope or complexity of missions can expand as you get deeper into them," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin adds. "When you head into the final stages, higher command will get progressively more involved, and we're planning for the last stage to be a shipwide endeavour. And, of course, Lieutenant Seunghoon and I will remain in touch with you and ensure you get any support you need. We'll meet with you regularly to monitor your progress and discuss any challenges that have arisen. You won't be alone in this."
It's quiet for another minute, and then Yuta nods. "Okay. I'm in."
"Commander, Lieutenant, I accept as well," Doyoung says, with great seriousness.
And then they're all looking at Taeyong. Taeyong freezes up. He's going to say yes, he knows he's going to say yes, but that doesn't keep a hundred thoughts from rushing through his mind all at once. He's still not convinced of his competence, he's not convinced he can handle this on top of his already crushing workload, he's not sure he can form a proper bond with this team, he's not sure the pressure of this responsibility won't be too much for him, he's not sure —
"Yes," Taeyong says, the word coming out of his mouth before he can fully process it. "Commander, Lieutenant, thank you for the opportunity. I'll do my best."
"Good," one of the commanding officers says, but Taeyong can't tell who. The other says "I'm glad to hear you'll be our team," but his ability to identify the voice fails again. There's a weird rushing in his ears, and one singular thought has taken over his mind: what have I done?
"Let's talk about how this will affect your day-to-day lives going forwards," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says, tapping her long nails on the table with an air of definitiveness. "We'll do what we can to get you all scheduled for alpha shift as much as possible. We want you all to be on the same schedule to make it easier to meet. Ensign Taeyong, since you're in a support position, the teams you're working with will have a bit of sway. And don't worry, Ensign Yuta, we'll make sure you still get some gamma shifts on the bridge. Obviously we can't switch those over to alpha, but they'd hate to lose you up there just because you can't take Lieutenant Junhwe's job."
Yuta smiles that beautiful smile. "Thank you, Lieutenant Commander." Taeyong's glad to hear he is capable of using proper respect when necessary.
"Once we get that final approval, we'll send files to your PADDs with everything we've got related to this mission, and additional relevant information to assist you in understanding some things you might not know much about yet. Read it all very thoroughly, at least ten times. Take notes. And don't try to scrape by with the bare minimum; we can ask to see your notes if we want." Lieutenant Seunghoon gives them an uncharacteristically intimidating look. Taeyong swallows hard, apprehensive, then casts a glance at the others. Doyoung looks unfazed. Yuta looks mildly horrified.
"From now on, it will be up to you to schedule your own meetings," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin continues. "We'll trust you to determine how often works for you, but you should meet at least twice a week for an hour or more in the beginning, and increase the frequency and length over time. And again, keep in mind that we can ask to see meeting logs as well."
This time it's Taeyong who's unfazed, Doyoung who looks horrified and Yuta who looks apprehensive. Maybe he should be more fazed, considering that he already has very little free time and is drowning in meetings as it is, but he's had that lack of free time for so long that he's forgotten what breaks are like and therefore has ceased to miss them.
However, Taeyong can already envision problems arising, and can guess what the other two are running through in their heads. He might currently feel fine with surrendering the last of his free time to an additional workload, since his brain is too tired to fully process long-term effects of major decisions, but he could drag himself out of bed for alpha shift tomorrow (or today, rather) feeling totally different. Yuta, who seems to be constantly involved in other activities, is likely doing a mental puzzle on how to fit these meetings into his already packed schedule of sports matches, practices, training, events and socialising. As for Doyoung … Taeyong's honestly not sure how much of his unwillingness to engage with them at the moment is due to exhaustion and resentment and how much is innate, but he's heard that Doyoung is shut in the Astrometrics lab most of the time and doesn't seem to engage with others very much. He feels like he remembers a point during Academy that Doyoung was known as a bit of a social butterfly himself, but it escapes him, and there's a good chance he could be misremembering anyway. Whichever it is, it's clear that when Doyoung doesn't want to be in meetings, he's not inclined to be polite and accommodating about it.
"Yes, Commander, Lieutenant," Taeyong says obediently, and nods. "We'll be sure to study the files and arrange a time to meet as soon as we can." He's got a sneaking suspicion Doyoung is giving him a displeased look for appointing himself to make that commitment on behalf of the group, but brushes it away.
"Good. We're putting a lot of trust in you, and this is important," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says. After a moment she leans in, those heavily-lined eyes gazing into their souls, and adds, "Keep one more thing in mind. We chose you because we have a high opinion of your skills, and you have reputations for doing exceptional work. How you do on this mission could make or break them. Since all that's on the line, proceed accordingly."
This time, it's Yuta who speaks. "Don't worry, Commander, we're going to do a good job. This mission will be a success. I guarantee it." He punctuates the promise with that dazzling smile that could convince anyone his cockiness warranted. Or, looking at the expression on Doyoung's face, almost anyone.
"In that case, I think we've got everything covered," Lieutenant Seunghoon says, and reaches out to shake each of their hands in an an amusingly outdated gesture. After the gravity of the meeting, still overwhelming despite the unusually casual manner in which it was conducted, the lighthearted joking is appreciated. "Welcome to your very own team. The Enterprise is lucky to have it. Now go get some sleep."
"Ensigns, you're dismissed," Lieutenant Commander Chaerin says, then gives them one last smile. This one contains a bit of humour, and a bit of a challenge. "Good luck. You're going to need it."
The commanding officers hang back inside the observation lounge, presumably to discuss the higher-level details of what's been set into motion by their agreement, which leaves the three members of the new team alone together in the hallway outside the door. Taeyong, Doyoung and Yuta linger there awkwardly, all feeling the sense that they should give their own personal meeting some kind of closure but not knowing exactly how to do it.
"Well, I'm going to bed," Doyoung says, after a painfully long stretch of silence. "Finally."
"I am too. I've got alpha shift tomorrow," Taeyong says with a rueful smile.
"And I am gonna go get some anbo-jyutsu training in and then hit the bar in Ten Forward, because I don't have another shift until gamma tomorrow when they give me the bridge again and take the risk that they might have to let me shoot things." Yuta grins and slaps Taeyong on the back. "Okay, see you guys at our next meeting."
Yuta saunters off in the direction of the turbolift. Doyoung makes an ugh noise, and Taeyong can't help but let out a muffled laugh. "Wow. He's unbearable," Doyoung says. "Fine, see you and him at the next meeting, Ensign Lee." Doyoung heads off to the turbolift as well, keeping his pace exaggeratedly slow in a clear attempt to ensure he isn't forced to share a lift with Yuta.
Taeyong stands there alone in the empty hallway, thinking three things. First, this mission is going to be very interesting. Second, it's going to be very taxing. And third … they never planned that next meeting.
Taeyong hopes this isn't an indicator of things to come. He's got a feeling it is.