Fight Club

Posted on 06 Oct 2016 @ 12:23am by Commodore Harvey Geisler & Lieutenant Commander Joey Geisler

5,051 words; about a 25 minute read

Mission: Click Three Times
Location: Security
Timeline: MD 8 || 1100 hours

As expected, the morale of the ship was about to match the lowest level Harvey had ever seen. It was one thing to have their lives flipped upside down by The Consortium. It was another to have a virus nearly kill the entire crew, and even another to face fellow officers blindly in a nebula.

But, being transported to an alternate reality and immediately losing friends and colleagues... That had to have been part of a special level of hell that was specially created for this crew. He did not want to think about how much more this ship and crew would take until their backs were broken. All he had to do now was find a way to get morale out of the danger zone.

That was not something he could really do at this time. There was a lot of preparation for what he was about to do, assuming this station even existed in the first place. He sighed, walking down the corridor, carrying a wrapped parcel. Harvey was tired of rumors and whispers. For once he'd just like to know exactly what he was up against. He had to be prepared for anything.

Which was why he'd gone so far as to schedule an appointment with Lieutenant Corwin. While he would have preferred to drop in on her, with things as they were, it was possible either of them would have become otherwise occupied. This kept the time slot in the clear.

Captain Geisler entered the security complex, seeing a few downcast officers in the main room. He nodded at them before tapping the door chime.

Joey sat behind her desk going over schedules. She was cutting back hours for her department hoping it'd increase morale while giving everyone the opportunity to continue on as normal as possible. Things looked good so far, and after some final adjustments, they'd be perfect. Before deciding to make this change, her department's people were pulling double and triple duty, but that was the norm for most people on the ship.

She was about to replicate a cup of coffee when the chime alerted her she had a visitor, and thanks to the schedule she just looked at on a second PADD, she knew it was the Captain. Butterflies started to form in her stomach at the thought of seeing him, and her pulse began to race. She found herself grateful there wasn't a biomonitor present to betray that a second time. She knew why she felt so giddy, but that was better kept to herself. Clearing her throat, she smoothed a hand over uniform and took a calming breath. "Come in."

The door slid aside, and Harvey entered with his parcel in hand. "Good morning," he told her as the door closed behind him. It wasn't the first time he'd told her those words today, after all, she'd spent the night in his quarters. He quite enjoyed the fact that her face was his first sight this morning, a ray of sunshine in an otherwise dark universe.

Joey smiled when she saw him. She had to admit that waking up next to him was probably one of the best things to happen to her on some time. "Good morning," she said, moving around her desk to lean against it. While she wanted to kiss him, they were both in uniform and she didn't want to overstep her bounds. "I was a bit surprised to see I had an appointment with the Captain this morning. Pleasantly surprised, of course. What can I do for you?"

Smiling, he approached the desk and set the parcel on top. "A couple things," he said. "First, I know your quarters didn't fare well in recent events, and I think I found something in my trunk that might go well in there." What he didn't tell her was that the parcel had been carefully wrapped and stored for years in his trunk, which had seen plenty of abuse.

She didn't want to waste time by asking questions, so with a raised brow she opened it and peered inside. Her eyes lit up at what she saw. Joey turned to look at him. "They're beautiful!" Unable to help herself, she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him soundly as a thank you. She never in a million years expected anything like that, so it came as a very pleasant surprise. "Thank you. I love them!" She couldn't contain her smile. "You had them for years?"

"Family heirloom," Harvey remarked. "Growing up, my parents were never around, so I spent a lot of time with my aunt. She passed away not long after the Dominion War. As she'd been the closest person to me, aside from Alison, in my life, I made it a point to get this shipped to me from Earth. I always loved playing with it in the light when I was a kid. But now, it's kind of silly to keep this boxed up when it needs to be enjoyed."

"I... I'm honored you would give me something so precious. It's absolutely beautiful, and I plan to take very good care of it," she said, turning to look at the gorgeous heirloom he'd just given her. She still couldn't believe he wanted to give her something so special, and now happy tears were starting to form in her eyes. With a sniffle, she asked, "What else can I do for you? Though there isn't much that can top your beautiful gift."

"That's the thing," Harvey replied, still embracing her. He hesitated, wondering if the two matters that prompted him to schedule the appointment really should have been combined. Deciding to go through with it, he said, "I wanted to take you up on your offer for a refresher course on hand-to-hand." Then, in a deadpan tone, he added, "I kinda want to come off this station in one piece."

"I want you to come off the station in one piece, too," Joey said. She fought back anger at the prospect of him , or anyone else, getting hurt while they were away. As a CPO, she'd taken lives before, but even though it was all part of her job to keep those she was assigned to protected, she didn't necessarily like doing it. In some circumstances, things had to be done. This time, though, she planned for things to go as peacefully as possible. "I will definitely help you brush up on your training." She gave him a gentle, yet reassuring squeeze.

"The only thing I ask," Harvey said, being brutally honest, "is that you don't hold back. Just because we care for each other doesn't mean you should take it easy. It could make all of the difference later on."

"I wasn't going to, and that's because it could make all the difference. We have no idea who or what we're going to be going up against, and I'm not willing to take any chances with your life or the lives of the others," she said, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "We can get started whenever you're ready."

"I think I'm as ready as I'm going to be," Harvey told her, releasing her from the embrace. He still didn't cherish the idea of being kissed one second and then attacked in the next by the same person.

Joey released him as well, then gestured to the door. "As fun as it might be, I don't think my office is the right place to do this. Let's head to the training facility. There's more room for us to throw one another around that way. And since you scheduled an appointment, no one will think anything of it," she said, making her way out of her office. "Don't go easy on me, either. First things first... once we're there... we stretch. On the station, there won't be a chance for that if things go south, but since this is considered a training exercise, it's necessary."

She thought about actually landing a hit on him and fought back a wave of nausea. This had to be done. It was important. "I'm training with my belt on. If you feel froggy, you're more than welcome to try to disarm me."

"It's interesting you bring that up," Harvey remarked. "I've been considering foregoing uniforms on Razmena. If we're right, and this is the first time humans have ever been in the Gamma Quadrant in this uniform, we're already going to draw a lot of attention to ourselves. Showing up without uniforms may actually help us."

"That might not be a bad idea," she said, stopping before she could get out of her office completely. Joey turned to look at him, walking back inside so the door would close behind her. The case of nerves she felt right now made the nausea she felt earlier seem like a cake walk. "Before we do this... I have something I need to tell you, and rather than beat around the bush, I'm just going to say it." She took a deep, calming breath and let it out slowly, but it didn't work as well as she'd hoped. Her heart felt like it was going to beat out of its chest any second, and she was sure he'd be able to hear it.

Joey swallowed back a lump in in her throat. "I love you, Harvey. I know it might seem too soon, and I can't explain that exactly, but I know that my heart chose you. You don't have to say anything, but I wanted to get that out just in case something happens." As a Security officer, her job was to protect the others, even if it meant with her life.

Harvey's eyes widened in surprise. He knew he was becoming quite fond of her, especially with all of the time they'd spent together in the last few days. He was even certain that his attachment for her was certainly turning into love. But, could he say that to her? Could he admit that he was not only developing feelings for her but also that he had no desire to experience life without her?

Before his voice could betray him, Harvey stepped forward and kissed her in one of the most passionate forms he'd ever done with her. When he finished, he pulled his head back and cupped both of her hands in his. "Nothing is going to happen," he told her, his boldness rearing much more for both crews as it was for the both of them. "Besides, there's a promise to see a real ocean on Earth soon. I expect you to keep it."

She returned the kiss with her heart poured into it. The way he kissed her left her breathless for a few moments. Joey held his hands in her own. She hadn't expected his to say it back to her considering he wanted to take things slow, and while she wanted the same thing, the need for him to know compelled her to make it known. "We'll get there someday, and when we do, it will be like nothing you've ever experienced. As far as what I said goes, though, I promise not to keep bringing it up. I do feel better for saying it."

He smiled at her, not really knowing what to say. Harvey was thankful she said those three very powerful words, and he was more thankful that he didn't need to say them back right away. When the time was right, and when he was sure, he'd say them back to her. "I look forward it with each passing day," he told her, regarding the promise.

"Let's head to the training facility now. I don't think it's in use at the moment. I've reduced shifts for the time being," she said, hoping she didn't come across as too eager. She needed to distract herself, and stressing her body physically was one of the many ways she did that. "You'll be in fighting shape in no time." With that, she removed her belt and walked out of her office again.

Harvey followed her without hesitation to the training facility. As they were now among the crew, he made no effort to maintain a personal conversation with Joey. For now, the public view had to be maintained that they were Commanding Officer and Acting Security Chief, nothing more.

Once they entered the empty training facility, Joey cracked her neck. Without hesitation, she spun on her heel and brought a closed fist a hair away from his temple as she pulled the blow. "First rule... always expect the unexpected," she said. If she would have actually hit him, he'd likely be knocked out considering the area she aimed for.

Harvey blinked suddenly, flinching at Joey's unexpected move. For a moment, he actually regretted asking her not to hold back. His conscience quickly returned, reminding him that if he hadn't, then he would not be prepared for what would be coming. "Sounds easier said than done," he remarked, straightening his posture.

"It's easier to know your surroundings. Who is where, what they have, their posture... it sounds more complicated than it actually is," she said, moving to an area where there were mats covering the floor. "Come at me. Don't hold back. I want to see what you know and what we should focus on." Instead of falling into a defensive stance, she stood where she was and waited to see what he was going to throw her way.

Harvey eyed her for a minute. This was an uncomfortable feeling indeed, but it had to be done. He'd followed her over to the mats, and after a moment's hesitation, balled his right hand into a fist and fired off a jab for her stomach.

Instead of attempting to block, Joey allowed him to connect with her stomach. She immediately doubled over and drew in a sharp breath. The force behind it was pretty impressive, and that was one less thing she needed to worry about. Drawing a hand to the area, she couldn't help but smile while she waited for the ache to pass. "That... was pretty impressive. I don't have to worry about how hard you can hit."

"Are you okay?" he instinctively asked, reaching over to place a hand on her shoulder as she was doubled over. He would never have asked her something of her that he was unwilling to do himself. First it was surfing, then hula, then balloons and now this, beating the crap out of each other. He hated landing that blow with everything he had, but if he would stand any chance, he had to let her know what he could do.

"Fine," she said, straightening up when she felt she was able to. "You did exactly what I wanted you to do, and I'm impressed. Do it again." This time, she took a defensive stance and gestured for him to bring it. If she was going to do this right, she needed to know what he was capable of. "Don't hold back... even if it means drawing blood."

Harvey reluctantly nodded, raising his fists in the air in an offensive stance. He quickly found himself worried, this time not because he could hurt her, but knowing she was quite trained and could probably very easily mop the floor with him. "All right then," he said softly. Then, with a deep breath, he lunged at her with a left hook.

Joey grinned when she saw him start to come at her. This was the moment she was waiting for... the moment she could show him some of the very training she could use to mop the floor with him. She knocked his arm out of the way with one of her own and gripped the front of his uniform. With a grunt, the Security officer threw her weight backward and used the momentum to propel him above her until he hit the floor opposite her, but she wasn't done yet. Since she didn't let go of him, the same momentum allowed her to move with him until she was straddling his waist. With a finger, she placed it under his chin and grinned. "If you were an enemy, you'd be dead."

Despite her cold stating of the fact, Harvey offered more than a grin at the sight of her on top of him. Reality quickly returned to his mind, and it was greeted by his lungs gasping for a bit of air and a sharp pain coming from his backside. Her display of force was immediately added to his growing list of why he liked her. "All right," he wheezed. "How do I not die, then?"

His grin didn't go unnoticed by her, and she couldn't help but return it. Before any thoughts could enter her mind, she rose to her feet, being mindful of how she did it, then extended her hands to help him up. "The best way to avoid that is to not allow a potential enemy get their hands on you like that. If you do, nothing good will come of it. Blocking is also key. If you can stick to a one arm block like I just did, then you can put the enemy in a situation like you were in. Let's try it. When you're up, I'll come at you."

Harvey caught his breath as he took her offer to return to his feet. It took only a few more seconds for his lungs to stabilize, though he had a feeling that wouldn't last long. He planted his feet into a defensive stance, and adjusted his posture accordingly. Finally, he nodded at her, indicating that he was as ready as he'd ever be.

The second he gave the green light, she braced herself and threw a right hook in his direction. Despite knowing what was coming wasn't going to make it hurt and less, but she planned to take as good as she gave. Even if it meant making an unexpected trip to sickbay. If her getting beaten and bruised voluntarily meant safety for him, she'd gladly deal with it. She might even let him be the one to fix her up.

Just as Joey had deflected his move, Harvey adjusted his stance so he could block the blow. He also considered trying the same move by grabbing his uniform, but he hesitated, worried that he might grab something and hurt her, and wound up miscalculating the move all together only for his hand to be unsuccessful in grabbing anything at all. Collecting himself quickly, he spun around, keeping his front facing her in case she's use the opportunity for another unexpected strike.

She knew what was wrong the second he'd missed her. Now, the girlfriend was gone, and the Security officer took her place. "I'm the enemy right now, and I want to kill you. You can't be afraid that you're going to grab something you might not want to. Or that you might hurt me. That's all fixable when this is over. Again." She came at him a second time, but the look on her face told a tale of pain coming his way.

You can do this, Harvey! his mind cheered as he quickly reset his posture for the incoming attacker. As he'd done before, he blocked the shot. As for the grab, he kept his eyes fixated on her abdomen in the event that she would use her arms for a quick strike as he told hold of her uniform. As he yanked, he tried to very quickly recount how she'd performed the move. They hit the floor, and soon Harvey found himself straddling Joey, but he was sitting on her stomach, and not her waist. At least he'd managed to perform the complex move.

Pain shot through her when she hit the ground, and the added weight only made it worse, but she did the best she could to keep her face a neutral mask. She grabbed hold of the wrist that would be holding the 'weapon' with her left hand and twisted it in a direction designed to snap bone, then brought her right hand up to connect with the elbow. The force behind the blow was enough to force the elbow to break leaving the entire arm useless. Of course with him, she didn't do any of that to cause him harm. Some blows in training were meant to be pulled, and that's exactly what she did. The objective of what she'd just done was to disarm the other individual and immobilize them. "That's how you keep from getting killed."

So much for having the upper hand. One second he'd had her pinned, but the next, he found his arm in pain, not nearly as much had she put her full weight behind it, but it was amplified enough with the shock associated with how quickly it happened. Harvey slipped off of her and shook his arm in a feeble attempt to dust off the imaginary damage. Sighing and chuckling at the same time, he reached down with his other hand to help her up. "I'm beginning to see how lethal you can be."

"It's what I was trained to do," she said, accepting his help. Once she was to her feet, Joey brought a hand to the small of her back and gave it a quick rub. She was quite proud of him, and now she found herself hoping he wasn't hurt. He didn't exactly let on that he was short of shaking his arm, but that was enough for her to be concerned. "Are you okay? I didn't hurt you too bad, did I?" She'd have a hell of a time explaining any injuries they got to the people in sickbay, but that was mostly because the Captain of a ship rarely signed on to be beat up voluntarily. Though... he gave as good as he got.

Harvey shook his head. "No, no, I'm fine. Just... realizing how out of shape I really am. I'll need to work in some time in the gym over the next few days." Noting that she was rubbing parts of her own body, he asked her, "How about you? You okay?"

"I'm okay. Probably should have taken my own advice and stretched a bit, but maybe it's just as well that I didn't. There won't be time for that once we get to the station," she said, giving her back one last rub before lowering her hand. "I'm going to the gym once my shift is over. I've been slacking in that department the last few days. My hope is that we won't need to use any fighting while we're there, but that depends on them and how they receive us. With that being said... do you want to keep going?"

"I'd like to know how you disarmed me so fast," Harvey replied. It didn't seem right that they'd be done so quickly, but he also knew there was much to do, and the last thing he wanted to do was see either of them get so hurt. "And I'll join you in the gym, if you don't mind."

"I can teach you how to disarm someone. The basics are to go for the two weakest parts of the arm which would be the wrist and elbow. Throw as much force as you have into it to break them. If those parts are unusable, then you can retrieve their weapon and use it yourself," Joey said. "As far as working going to the gym with me, I could use a workout partner. Now... disarm me based on what I told you." She grabbed her phaser and removed the power cell from it, then pointed it at him.

Harvey instantly stepped forward, grabbing a hold of the wrist that held the phaser. While he wanted to use as little pressure as possible, he didn't want to slip up doing this. Therefore, he pushed the wrist aside, twisting it as he did so, and brought his other hand across to strike her elbow.

Joey winced and immediately released the phaser she held in her hand. Nothing was broken, but it didn't feel pleasant. She shook her arm, but couldn't help but grin. "I'm impressed. You did a great job," she said, forcing her discomfort aside. The last thing she wanted was for him to feel bad for a job well done. "I think you can do just about anything you put your mind to."

"I think the same about you," Harvey told her. "Though I'd never be bold enough to take on a crew of a hundred and fifty." In his younger days, he was bold enough to take on viruses that could have decimated his body in a matter of hours. Times certainly had changed in his regard.

"I only do what I can to keep others safe," Joey stated. She often had to wonder if she'd taken too many knocks to the head over the years. "You'd be surprised what you could do in the time of need. Look at what happened with Kylar and Jackson. You knew your life was in danger, yet you still did what you felt needed to be done. It's admirable." It was becoming easier to deal for her, which was why she was able to bring it up.

"You should have seen me during the war." Shaking his head, he added, "I did more than a few things I wasn't proud of, but I hear war does that to people. There are times I wonder what kind of a Captain I would be if we never met the Consortium. I'm sure we'd be living a completely different life."

"I can only imagine what the war was like for you, and if the Consortium never showed up, we'd likely be exploring. Chances are... we may have never met," she said softly, knowing that was around the time he lost Alison. That combined with the mention of things he wasn't proud of said a lot about why he shelled himself away for so long, and she couldn't blame him for that. Still, he was making great strides as far as moving forward went. "You've come a long way, and you'll keep moving forward. We'll get through all of this."

"Indeed we will," Harvey replied with a smile. "As for never meeting, I believe that some things are just meant to be, and those things cross dimensional boundaries. I'm sure our paths would have crossed sometime. If this week has proven anything, it's that I find myself not wanting to be apart from you for long."

Joey smiled, and since the training facility was empty with the exception of them, they were able to speak more freely than normal. "I don't want to be apart from you for long, either. As a matter of fact, the second I get the chance to, I make my way to your quarters," she told him. "You do realize I've spent more time in your quarters than I have my own, don't you? The past few days... mine have been used as storage."

"Why don't you just move in?" The words escaped Harvey's mouth before his mind could even think them. Apparently his mind and heart were still in a stage of disagreement. With those words in the open, there wasn't much else he could do other than support them. "That is, if you want to. You don't have to bring everything over right away."

Now it was her turn to be surprised. Moving in with him was a huge step, but then she told him she was in love with him. That was a pretty huge step, too. She didn't even need to think about it. The thought of getting to go to bed with him at night and wake up with him in the morning... she couldn't think of anything more she'd like to do. "I will, but you know it would be me plus two, don't you?"

Harvey nodded, though he had forgotten about Rico and Pequeno for a brief moment there. "I'll have to move my sock drawer... but it doesn't sound like a terrible inconvenience."

"Thankfully, he hasn't mastered the art of opening a drawer yet, so your socks should be safe," she said with a grin. Joey did hope that Pequeno didn't develop the need to shred pants as he got older, but if she had anything to say about it, that wasn't going to happen. With the replicators back online, she'd be sure to get him some toys. "We should probably get back to work before we're missed. We can keep training when we go to the gym later."

"Fair enough," Harvey said, actually relieved to no longer having to fight Joey. He'd always do what he had to when his back was against the wall, but he never cherished or entertained the idea of hitting a member of the opposite sex.

Joey leaned in and kissed him softly. "I'll see you a little later. The training isn't over yet, but I'm proud of what you've done. We'll have you being able to take down a Nausicaan in no time," she said with a grin. "Try not to work too hard." With that, she offered him a smile. While she would have preferred to stay with him, she did have things to do. With that in mind, Joey turned and made her way out of the training facility.

Harvey waited for her to leave. Once he was alone, Harvey jabbed the air a bit, practicing a few punching moves. It was uncomfortable for him, a former medic, to be willfully inflicting harm on another. Alas, this was what he had to do. And, he would do whatever it took to get his crew back. Harvey didn't care what rules he had to break or whatever it would cost him. If it would save every life on the Cochrane, Harvey would gladly lay down his life for them.

He just hoped it wouldn't come to that.

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