"When is the Enterprise expected to reach the Kuppam system?" Captain Lasker asked through my quarter's monitor.
"In nine days, Captain," I replied.
Concern creased at the corner of his eyes, and he let out a sigh and quick nod.
"Did you tell Captain Picard that the colony might not live that long?"
"He has been briefed on the situation, sir. They do need to make quick repairs to the Enterprise but are leaving as soon as they may safely do so and will be traveling at warp 9."
Lasker ran his hands over his deeply lined face. Although he was no more than 50, the stress of years keeping the Iroquois intact and still a functioning starship among the fleet was taxing.
"Captain, perhaps it is time to tell them...." I began.
Lasker held up his palm to silence me.
"Kannara, you know I value your input. You are a thoughtful and creative diplomat, but we must allow the Kuppam colony to evolve at their own pace. They are not ready."
I felt my brows furrow together, and I ran my hand over them to smooth out the tension.
"Yes, sir. But with all due respect, if we lose the colony to radiation, what is the point? Do you not feel it is imperative that we figure out how these people got thousands of lightyears away from Earth decades before we developed the warp drive?"
He let out another heavy sigh, and he clasped his hands behind his back. A gesture that indicated that he was in deep thought.
"Very well, but only if the radiation nears deadly levels and with enough time to evacuate. I will reach out to Niko and make preparations." I let out a sigh of relief. "And, Commander? I hope you're being appropriate with the android."
I gaped at him and then bristled. "That comment is inappropriate to make as a captain... Father."
He gave me a knowing smile. "You are so much like your mother. An Orion through and through."
"Half Orion, thank you. I have enough human in my veins to know how to act around another commanding officer."
My father gave out a heartfelt laugh. "That you do... Just be careful. Both human and Orion hearts are fragile things, and Mr. Data, although is a fine officer indeed, is not human and is not capable of feelings."
"Dad, I love you. But please, I am not some lovesick girl out here on the Federation's flagship just to chase some emotionless android around. I have a people to save."
He gave me a resolved nod of his head. "I love you too. I look forward to our rendezvous in nine days."
The viewer went dark, and the emptiness that was my temporary quarters aboard the Enterprise seemed to close in on me. I shifted in discomfort and paced to the slanted, oval windows that looked out into the docking bay.
The starbase got to quick work repairing the damage to the Enterprise's hull. The deflector dish was being ripped into.
Good, I thought. We need that up and running at tip-top shape for our mission.
As I watched the dish dismantled and new parts installed, I let my mind drift to the mission at hand. Wishing I had more blood samples than from just one specimen on the planet for Dr. Crusher. My team, which was currently on a mission to try and uncover more anthropological evidence to solve the mystery of this population's arrival to this distant star system. And finally, onto Data - How oblivious this synthetic man was to my thrumming heart or the fact I was falling head-over-heels as he showed me to my quarters this afternoon.
My father was right. I could not let the Orion blood in me distract me from my mission. These were the best of Starfleet. There was no place aboard this ship or in this mission for me to chase this android hopelessly.
But I was half Orion, which meant that my body and heart would do anything for the man I desired. Once my mind told my heart that this was what I wanted, it became an addictive need to fill. I would do anything Data told me without question. I was his to own.
The thought made my green skin tingle, and I felt a tremor of need course through my body, settling low into my cunt. I absently traced my finger down the front of my uniform, feeling my hardening nipple through the stiff fabric. I was thinking about how Data would touch me, how he would ever so gently run the back of his fingers over my nipple before giving them a firm, dominant tug.
A chime sounded through my quarters, and I quickly pulled my hand away from my breast. I was aroused, my pheromones coming off me in a strong current and my skin deepening into a darker hue of green that signaled to Orion males that I was in heat.
As I tried to gather myself and calm my body, the chime sounded again. I straightened my uniform and walked toward the door. My folds were slick, and I felt wetness collect between my thighs as I moved.
The door to my quarters opened as I neared them, and I was met with the face I had just envisioned in my daydreams. My body gave an uncontrollable shudder and twisted my hands as I tried to pull myself out of that drowning sense of desire.
Data's eyes narrowed as he took in my condition. I could feel my skin tingling, and I knew that my color was all kinds of green.
His hands reached out and gripped my twisting hands. His contact sent shockwaves of need up my arms and rocketed down to my core.
"Commander," he said, his voice soft and gentle. "Are you still -- nervous around me?"
A small giggle escaped my lips, and I shook my head.
"It's not nervousness, Data."
Data sat for a moment, thinking about this. I watched his golden eyes travel from my hands that were now calm under his grip, up the front of my uniform where my nipples were straining through the fabric, and finally to my face where I knew I was blushing the telling color of jade.
"You are in heat," he said. "Someone on the ship has aroused you, and as an Orion, this means that you will need to mate soon... Curious, who is it that you desire?"