In The Still Of The Night: Part 1/2

Posted on Sat Jul 11th, 2026 @ 7:26pm by Lieutenant Colonel Jesse Moriarty & Sergeant Jace Morven

1,666 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Pilot - "The Gate"
Location: Ground Forces Barracks
Timeline: The night of 'First Contact'

Jace Morven should have been asleep...He knew that, his body knew that, and the day had been long and violent enough to tire him. After the stand-down, he had seen Rook, then come back. Checked and locked weapons, gear, then a sonic shower. He had stretched out on his bunk in loose combat trousers and a plain dark vest, eyes closed, breathing even, listening to the low-lit barracks settle around him with the exhausted sounds of people who had survived the day. But...nothing came.

Eventually Jace opened his eyes and let out a slow breath through his nose, because there was no point staying down if his body had already decided it was still on watch. He sat up quietly, bare feet touching the cool deck without a sound, and for a moment he stayed there on the edge of the bunk, shoulders bare under the vest, skin still holding the memory of armour straps and crawlspace dust despite the sonic shower’s efficiency. The mint plants sat on the small shelf beside his bunk, narrow trays tucked close enough that he could check them without waking anyone. Jace touched the soil first, then the leaves, careful with the stems, before cutting a few and holding them in his palm.

The communal area of the Ground Forces section was deserted. Jace crossed to the replicator and ordered hot water with sugar, nothing else, then carried the cup to one of the tables and added the mint leaves himself. They darkened as they hit the water, green scent rising slowly through the steam, sharper and more real than anything the replicator would have given him. He sat down, bare feet flat against the cool deck, both hands around the cup as the leaves turned lazily in the water, and listened to the ship hum around him.

It was only five minutes later that Jesse Moriarty moved in. He looked just as tired, and just as wired. He just stood in front of the door for a long moment, as if he wasn't really sure what to do with himself now that he was there. But his feet had just brought him there. It was better than the silence of his quarters anyway.

Jace looked up, seeing his CO. He stood, not to go into attention, not to salute. He looked directly at Moriarty and then to the replicator, getting another mug and pouring half of his own drink into it before he held it out for him. "It's quiet."

Jesse took the mug with a soft chuckle, nodding to the observation. "Good. They need rest. So do you," he added pointedly, but moved to sit with him all the same.

"Tried," Jace sipped the drink for a moment and gave a small shrug. "Couldn't sleep, useless just lying there staring at the ceiling."

"It's the adrenaline....or something like it," Jesse realised he was stating the obvious, but was too tired to care. "It either flattens you or leaves you alert for three days straight."

Jace gave a nod, sipping the tea before he tilted his head. "Or maybe our bodies just remember it from the war. You don't rest in a warzone."

Jesse was silent for a long moment, just looking into the cup, glad the light in the room was dimmer than usual. "Not unless you're unconscious."

"We'll get to sleep again. Not yet. Soon. When we really need it," he said and sat back. "But not tonight...clearly."

"Maybe next June," Jesse chuckled, shaking his head before sipping the tea with a sigh. "Funny story...I heard this Sergeant was about to charge off to the school room by himself..."

Jace looked at him for a moment before he shrugged. "But I didn't. R'Valla and Vren came with to deck 10," he said as he looked away. Because he would have gone without anyone unless the Commodore had told him otherwise.

"Uh huh...but you were going to..." Jesse looked to him, but with a small smile, shaking his head. "I'm glad you took them though."

Jace looked at him before he nodded. "They did well," he finally said, before he let out a breath, shaking his head. "Colonel...next time, we should evacuate the classrooms. Or send troopers to guard them."

Jesse nodded, letting out a long breath as he rubbed his forehead with the edge of his hand. "If there's an attack like that again, I'm not sure where they'd be safe," he admitted quietly. "It would be better to send guards."

Jace nodded as he looked down, into his cup as he considered it. "Guards then. Someone...designated. That they know."

"Pick them," Jesse nodded firmly, meeting his eyes with trust as he sipped his drink. "And I'll add it to the red alert protocols."

Jace looked at him with surprise before he nodded, frowning slightly as he considered it. He realised he didn't have to do it straight away. He glanced at Moriarty, considering something. "How was it for you?"

"Well...I'm alive. Others aren't," he replied quietly, as if it said it all, tapping lightly against the side of the cup. "Those weapons...it could have been a lot worse."

Jace nodded in agreement, watching him for a moment before he let out a breath. "You saw it for what it was straight away. Saved lives that way," he said, and he meant it. And then he lifted the cup, holding it close. "Sickbay was only standing because Doctor Vale knows how to fight."

"It's our job to look after them," Jesse replied quietly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "But we can't be everywhere at once. No matter how much we want to."

"Agreed," he said as he looked at Jesse, at the way he was sitting. He frowned and reached out under the table, his foot hitting Jesse's. "It's not on you, Sir. It happened, but it wasn't on you."

"Of course it is," Jesse looked across to him, holding his eyes steadily. Whatever emotion might be connected to that statement was firmly locked away, but there was raw honesty in his eyes. "That's what the stripes mean."

"Not for when we get boarded. For a mission out there, one we've planned? Yeah. Maybe. But this was..." Jace let out a breath, thinking about it. "Meson weapons are like projectile weapons. They break you long before they kill you. A disruptor, a phaser set to max...kills you clean."

"There wasn't much the medics could do outside of Sickbay," Jesse agreed with a frown at the prospect, shaking his head lightly. "Our armour was useless out there."

"I took off most of it," Jace finally said before he gave a small shrug, finishing his mint tea, watching the leaves cling to the inside of the mug. "Would rather go out clean than...that."

"At least you could move quicker," Jesse nodded with understanding. They'd have to devise a better strategy for dealing with mesons. But that was for another day, after sleep.

Jace nodded and looked at him, before he put the mug down. "Want another?" he asked, already standing, picking up his own. It would have to be replicated, the walk back to his bunk was something he didn't want to do yet. His eyes went to Jesse, studying him for a moment. "Or something else."

"Let's stick to this," Jesse nodded with a small, half smile. It would be safer.

Jace nodded and went to the replicator, getting them both another mug. He walked over to him, offering it to him. "I saw Rell was fine."

"No, she wasn't fine, she was an absolute lemming..." Jesse assured him, leaning in so he could jab a fingertip against the tabletop. "The maniac ran out in front of them as a distraction."

Jace looked at him, frowning slightly. He was not sure what a lemming was. But he gave a nod, looking down as he thought about it. "She'd have seen it better to get hit than the warp core, or matter/antimatter chamber...or coolant system."

"Don't encourage her, not even when she's not here...she'll get to hearing about it somehow...." Jesse replied with all certainty, taking the cup from him with a sigh. "It was a miracle she remained in one piece."

Jace sat down as he looked at him, watching him closely. "She's fast," he said, because he knew that from training her. "And she's unpredictable and doesn't think in long term consequences."

"I vote we shut her in a locker next time," Jesse muttered, but with a soft chuckle as he ducked his head for a sip of his tea.

"Not the worst idea," Jace said quietly, giving a small nod. He didn't know that she had been doing that. It made something in him tense and sit uncomfortably, the worry about the future.

"How was the classroom?" Jesse asked quietly, leaning in on his elbows to him, cradling his cup in both hands.

"Teacher had broken a chair, was planning on using it as a weapon if the boarder managed to get in," Jace said as he glanced at his face, briefly, then down again. "One of them was outside, trying to get the door open. I killed it."

"I'd say I don't understand why people bring children on to ships, into danger," Jesse said quietly, watching his tea rather than the other man. "But we both know that it's dangerous for them wherever they are."

"At least here they...got their family. And us," Jace said as he looked at him, studying his face. "And we would do anything to keep them safe. No matter the cost."

"If there's no other option," Jesse replied firmly, meeting his eyes knowingly. "I won't swap one life for another. Not unless every other option has been exhausted."

To Be Continued...


Lt. Colonel Jesse Moriarty
CO Federation Ground Forces
USS Guinevere

Sergeant Jace Morven
Federation Ground Forces
USS Guinevere

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