I Didn't Expect To See You Here...
Posted on Thu Mar 6th, 2025 @ 9:58am by Lieutenant Commander Corin Layal & Lieutenant James Constantine
Edited on on Fri Mar 7th, 2025 @ 12:47am
2,132 words; about a 11 minute read
Mission:
Episode 2 - The Sins of History
Location: Mess Hall - Deck 5 - USS Artemis
Timeline: MD012 0600 hrs
Layal normally skipped breakfast for the large coffee to go, but for some reason she woke up starving today so she made her way to the Mess for something to eat. She had brought work with her, unanswered messages from her colleague on Earth who was scheduled to cover a couple of her cases in the coming weeks. She had just picked up her order of oatmeal and coffee from the replicator and was deciding on a seat when she thought she saw a familiar face walk in.
"James? Is that you?" She asked taking a few steps toward the officer. "I'm sorry, Lieutenant Constantine. Congratulations, when did that happen?"
Constantine looked with surprise at the sudden call across the mess. The expression softened to a smile as he made his way to the lawyer who had helped him out when he was still finding his feet in this new career. He was frankly flattered that she remembered him, considering how many people she must have dealt with in her career. He offered his hand out when he was close enough, chuckling softly. "A couple of years back now. It's good to see you again, Layal, it's been...wow, longer than I think, I'd bet..."
Layal balanced her tray awkwardly on her left arm so that she could shake James' hand with her right. "I know, time flies. I swear the years keep getting shorter the longer I do this," she quipped. "What are you doing now? Getting breakfast or on your way out?" She asked. "I've got a full day, but we could catch up for a few before shift if you have time."
"That sounds great," he admitted with a small but genuine smile. He'd often been accused of being a taciturn sort of man, but he'd always had time for people he liked being around. Especially when he'd only just joined the crew and it still felt like he was in strange territory. "I'll grab a tray and join you, if you don't mind?"
"Sure, I'll grab a table," Layal replied as she made a subtle gesture with her hand in the direction that she was planning to head.
Constantine made for the replicator. He tried not to be a man of habit, mostly because it had been seen as a liability in his previous line of business, but when it came to breakfast, he rarely changed on a working day. Porridge, walnuts, blueberries, honey and a black coffee on the side, because life without vices was dull.
Layal picked out a table near the corner of the room. She didn't like sitting in open spaces, though she didn't know many people who did. While she waited for James to return she took a drink of her coffee, enjoying the sting of it being just a tad too hot to drink.
"So what brings you out here?" Constantine asked with a small, knowing smile as he slid his tray onto the table and took up a seat next to her. The last time he'd seen her had been on Earth, and it was obviously work that had sent her out, but he was curious to see if he could get any details. He was still trying to get a grip on this ship and crew.
"This current case that they are working on," Layal said. "They have the suspect in custody. Well, it's a bit gracious to refer to him as just a suspect. It's Gul Vamcet, infamous war criminal from the Occupation who faked his own death to avoid prosecution," she explained.
"Artemis had a dedicated JAG prosecutor on board until a few days ago. I have no idea what happened there. Sounds like a sudden transfer. My current case load was all in pretty early pretrial, nothing that one of my colleagues couldn't grab up. I was intercepted on my way to court, told a little about the case and put on a transport a few hours later. With the defendant in custody, time is always of the essence. But, you know that." Layal shrugged. "The Captain seemed grateful to see me. I'm not sure about the rest of the crew."
"What about you? Are you assigned here long term?" Layal asked. "This must be a great assignment for an investigator. Maybe?"
Constantine couldn't help a slight smile as he nodded to her question. It was good to be out on a ship, on the move. Being stuck on a station, no matter how specialised, had just felt so claustrophobic. Of course, a ship was no bigger, but the sense of movement, the varying backdrops and destinations, it offered a sense of freedom. "I've just arrived myself, I'm here for the foreseeable. That case of yours though, sounds..." he searched for a word to do it justice. "Dark."
"Isn't that what Artemis is about? The worst of the worst crimes, I mean," Layal pointed out. "What sort of cases are you used to working on?" She asked.
"Nothing light and fluffy," he conceded, taking her meaning with a gracious nod. He glanced down, considering for a long moment, unsure if he should explain, or if it would be insensitive and patronising. He decided that honesty was the best policy, and if she was offended, she could rightfully rebuke him. "I suppose I thought it might cut a little...close to home for you."
"I mean, sure. But I was pretty young when the Occupation ended, it's not like I remember much of it," Layal replied. "If you spend enough time around me, you'd learn that any case that involves victims of violent crime can get me pretty worked up. I don't think this will be any different. I've just been more overwhelmed with information overload than anything. Coming at it from all angles, trying to make sure I understand all the facts of the case, and these weird procedural posture in with the Federation even handling it."
James let the words sink in, his gaze settled on her. He'd built his career on being able to read people, and not just from his half Betazoid heritage. And he believed her whole heartedly, that she was capable of feeling as much outrage for any single victim as her own people. "You want to do the job justice," he nodded with understanding. "And you will. I have no doubt of that."
"Yeah, that. And fighting for the victims." Layal took a heavy breath. "When a case involves working with them, I do get emotionally invested. Some say I'm empathetic to a fault. Fighting for justice on their behalf may not make them whole again, but it's a step in the process. And it feels like it's given my life some meaning."
James nodded gently; he could understand that. Just because he'd had to emotionally detach from a lot of his work over the years didn't mean he didn't understand it. Or even envy it. "Sounds like it's more of a motivation than a fault," he offered.
"To a point, maybe," Layal agreed. "But then there's burnout, compassion fatigue. I'm sure you probably know at least a little about that. Maybe it's something a little different than compassion fatigue, when you spend more time with perpetrators than victims. But you probably get to see both sides of it in your position I would think."
James nodded as he considered it, the words definitely striking a chord of familiarity for him. "I think for me.." he paused, wondering how to phrase it...or if he even should. "After so many years of seeing what people do to each other...it starts to not be shocking anymore. And realising that settled a layer of fatigue on me."
"There is that," Layal nodded in agreement. "And the dark sense of humor that only people in the field understand. Laughing helps, even if people on the outside find it a bit deranged." Layal looked over her coffee cup James and gave him a knowing grin.
He grinned back, unable to do anything but nod and agree with that assessment. "Gallows humour. It can seem such bad taste to others, and I get it, I do...but sometimes it's what keeps you sane, stopping you from being so weighed down you end up sinking."
"Ooh, you've thought about it a lot then. Maybe you should have been a counselor," Layal commented. "I usually just appreciate that it's karma providing the best material. Until I lose that is. I hate losing. The worst part is facing the victims after."
Constantine's smile weakened at that. Yeah, he could imagine how demoralising that had to be. He was lucky in that respect. He was caught in his own little bubble. That had its own challenges, the frustration of having to hand the fate of the investigation over to the justice system once their investigation was complete. But it also spared him from the post trial fallout. "Most trial losses can be chalked up to weak evidence or flawed investigations when you get down to it," he motioned to himself. "That can only make it more frustrating."
"It doesn't happen often. Not to me, and not since I started taking the big cases. But each one stings," Layal stated. "It's almost always all of those things." She lowered her voice. "When a defense attorney sees that an investigator dialed it in, or a victim maybe has their own credibility issues - could have nothing to do with the case, but the defense smells a potential win. That's when they'll work harder to coach their client. Get them all nice and shiny for trial."
"All that fake really pisses me off," Layal seethed, her eyes narrowing.
She sat back, her demeanor picking back up. "You know, being on this ship, you might get a chance to sit and watch some defense antics in action sometime. Investigators usually have a better perspective of how everything plays out when they can just watch and aren't under the pressure of being the witness stand," Layal suggested.
"I'd like that," Constantine replied quickly, meaning it. Getting a grip on the processes and patterns...getting under the skin of the nuances and unspoken rules...it could only help with putting together a watertight case. "Would you let me know? When you're up in court?"
"Sure, anytime." Layal nodded as she swallowed he last gulp of coffee. "You know you'd probably get the most out of watching another investigator like yourself under cross. Or an expert witness in just about anything."
Constantine laughed softly at the suggestion, but a slight grimace touched his lips with it. "A good idea, but also enough to give me nightmares for a month," he chuckled, arching an eyebrow. He still wasn't used to having to give account of every small decision he'd made.
"This was nice. Catching up. I don't know how long I'm here. Artemis I mean. I'm expecting a transfer back to the JAG officer after this case. But we should do this again. I don't know how much time we'll have when we make it to Bajor, but I'd love to show you around if we can manage a few hours. Probably some kind of welcome home celebration at my parents village. You should come," Layal offered.
"That would be great," he replied softly with surprise, his eyes honest as he sat back to watch her with gratitude. It may have seemed a small gesture, but it helped to make him feel less isolated here. "They must be really proud of you."
Layal blushed. "My brothers did well for themselves too. They are proud of all of us. Anyway, I should get going. It's crunch time for me with this case," she said apologetically as she collected her tray. "I'll let you know about dinner on Bajor if it looks like something will get worked out though for sure."
Constantine stood instinctively as an ingrained gesture of politeness to her standing to leave. "Thanks, I look forward to it. Good luck with your case, but honestly, I know you won't need it."
Layal stood as well as she replied. "Thanks. And good luck to you on this new position. I'm sure you'll love it here." Layal smiled and tipped her head slightly before walking away, dropping her tray off at the recycler on her way out of the mess hall.
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Commander Corin Layal
Judge Advocate General, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
Lieutenant James Constantine
Criminal Investigations Officer, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
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