The Squared Circle

[Kali Reyes]

"I don't-"

Eat. Don't have time. Maybe a snack here and there. Coffee's a good substitute. There were a lot of excuses ready to be fired on all cylinders, excuses she used to avoid wasting time better spent on coding or building an engine or whichever.

But Mahak with his patience with her and his sharp conviction stilled the litany of dismissals. And he seemed compelled to give her a go at something constructive to her well-being that didn't just translate to medicine or mental therapy. She closed her mouth and decided on gambling. She liked risk.

"Nah. I don't have plans," she admitted. "If you've heard anything from scuttlebutt about my dining preferences, you're going to be kind of disappointed." She wasn't oblivious about her social reputation, she just chose to let her subordinates have at it if it really amused them.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Gym]

"You do now." He was very confident. Mahak projected it from his head to his toes. "I know how many senior offices act when it comes to their health. Skipped meals. Eating on the run. Too much caffeine."

He narrowed his eyes. "I will not chastise you for your behavior before today. But your behavior changes now. Meet me in the Mess at 1945 hours."

[Kali Reyes]

"What? Yeah right," she laughed nervously. The look in his eyes was pretty withering. It was intense enough for her to lose the staring battle and avert her eyes. She wasn't exactly sure which part of her was enjoying the dominance - the over-the-top human or the neglected Vulcan.

I'm screwed. Somewhere inside, she was starting to panic. No one tells me what to do!

He was training her, okay, so it only made sense to follow his direction. There was no way in hell he was going to loom over her like some overlord and pluck at her strings until she was some kind of lean, mean person machine. She had her dignity, she had her independence-

"1945," she confirmed, albeit meekly. "Okay then."

Dammit.