The Miscommunication
Posted on Sat Sep 11th, 2021 @ 11:06am by Lieutenant Rukil Vodaan & Lieutenant Elijah Mitchell
Mission:
Episode 05: "Deep Water"
Location: Corridor - Deck Seven, USS Vesta
Timeline: Day 3 at 0842
ON: [[Corridor - Deck Seven, USS Vesta, Day 03, 0942 Hours]]
After finishing his meeting with Doctor Sorek, Vodaan set out for his next destination - the diplomatic office.
From the moment he’d first made contact, the captain had been very explicit during their conversations about what he expected. He had requested Vodaan specifically, not only for his counseling background, but also because of his diplomatic experience. And yet, the Vesta already had a chief diplomatic officer (one with plenty experience of his own, it seemed).
The last thing Vodaan wanted to do was to make someone feel as if he were pushing in on their “turf”. If he could establish a good connection now, it would make working together (and surviving the upcoming voyage) a whole lot easier.
[Diplomatic Office]
A comfortable silence had fallen over the diplomatic bullpen that morning as the three officers who made up the Vesta's diplomatic staff caught up on overnight reports, news articles and anything else that may be relevant to their work that day. The CDO's office was rarely used, Eli preferring to work in the bullpen with his staff.
“Lieutenant Mitchell, I presume?”
Eli was startled from his work by the sound of an unfamiliar voice. He'd been so engrossed in his reading that he hadn't heard the soft hiss of the door as it opened and closed for the new arrival. "That's me." He made a note of the Rigelian's rank insignia and division colour; a Lieutenant in either science or medical. Standing and extending a hand, Elijah introduced himself more formally. "Lieutenant Eli Mitchell."
Vodaan accepted the offered hand, gave it a firm shake, and then released it. Judging by the more relaxed atmosphere in the room and the way Mitchell had responded to his arrival, he could tell the man likely hadn’t been expecting any visitors. “Lieutenant Rukil Vodaan, chief counselor,” Vodaan said, “Sorry to drop by unannounced like this, but the captain asked me to connect with you about a few things. I figured it was best to do so before we got underway.”
Eli nodded. "Why don't we step into my office." He pushed himself out of his seat and moved his conversation with the Counselor into the privacy of his office, activating the lights as he entered. "So," he began as he took a seat behind his desk, "what do you need to discuss?"
"Collaboration," Vodaan replied, "specifically, my involvement in the diplomatic department. The captain said he had already spoken to you about it..."
Eli shook his head slowly as he spoke, drawing out the vowels. "No." Why had the Captain asked the Counselor to get involved with the work of the diplomatic department? Didn't Vodaan have enough work to keep him occupied? The only conclusion that Mitchell could draw was that the Captain didn't trust Eli to do his job without the Counselor looking over his shoulder. His stomach sank at the thought. "I haven't spoken to the Captain since we were summoned here."
Silence. It didn't take a Betazoid to read what the man was feeling in that moment. Even a trained counselor, which Vodaan just happened to be, could easily have picked up on the signs. And yet, he was also confused. From what he'd experienced of captain so far, Drell hardly seemed like the kind of leader who kept his subordinates in the dark about such things. Vodaan could have sworn he heard the captain say everything had already been worked out. Now, he wondered if perhaps it was he who had misunderstood. Perhaps Drell had been saying he was going to talk things over with Mitchell after he had finished with Vodaan.
"I'm sorry," Vodaan said, "I may have spoken out of turn."
Eli waved the Counselor off. "It's fine." His terse tone no doubt belied the fact that that was a lie. "If the Captain wants you to supervise my work, so be it. That's his prerogative."
"As I understand it, the captain has every faith in your abilities," Vodaan assured him, "The scope of the mission, however, is likely to need a lot of diplomatic support. I'm not here to replace you or to supervise you. I'm here to help."
Mitchell let out a long breath through his nose. "What experience do you have in dealing with Diplomatic affairs?"
It was no surprise to Vodaan that the lieutenant wanted to know credentials. Any self-respecting department head would, especially in a situation like this. And Vodaan had come prepared to share them. "My first field assignment during the academy was to the Rajsek," he said, "That was in 2383, during the Romulan evacuation efforts. From 2386 to 2387, I did my clinical work with a field unit assigned to resettle refugees until the Romulan star went supernova. After that, I was reassigned elsewhere..."
Mitchell nodded. "That work would have involved a certain amount of diplomatic skill in dealing with the Romulans but that's hardly an offical diplomatic assignment."
"Yes, as far as official diplomatic assignments, those started about three years ago," Vodaan replied, "during my tour aboard the Spica."
Eli made a mental note to review the Lieutenant's service jacket. "What did your offical diplomatic assignments entail?"
“At first, it was mostly behind-the-scenes work,” Vodaan said, “putting together info packets for away missions, preparing the dossiers for diplomatic functions, coordinating logistics with the other departments. Pretty quickly, though, the captain had me getting involved with actual face-to-face meetings, providing real-time support. By the time I left Spica, I was participating in negotiations.”
It seemed to Eli that the Counselor's diplomatic experience was extensive. "Then why does the Captain even need me? Surely he can just call on you for all his diplomatic needs. I'm just surplus to requirements." Eli had been excited for his first assignment as Chief Diplomatic Officer but now it felt like the Captain was easing him out in a short space of time. 'Does he really think so little of me an my abilities?' He asked himself silently. 'If I'm not sure about my abilities, why should the Captain have any faith in them?'. That doubting voice in the back of his mind, that he usually did so well to keep boxed up once more reared its ugly head.
Another officer might have been taken aback by the lieutenant's seemingly brusque, accusatory tone. And, indeed, a part of Vodaan was tempted to respond defensively as well. But both his training and experience had taught him there were other options, namely to try to reframe the conversation. This wasn't about him. It wasn't even about the captain. This was about something that was happening inside Mitchell, and he needed to address it accordingly.
"You know..." he said slowly, "one doesn't get to be chief diplomatic officer of a ship like this without being qualified. The Vesta, especially, is a choice-pick assignment. Right away, that tells me you're worth something. Where were you before you came here?"
Mitchell held up a hand. "Please, spare me the psychoanalysis. If the Captain wants me to work with you, that's what I'll do."
...and with that, Vodaan knew it was time to end the conversation. He could see they had reached an impasse. There was no benefit to be gained from trying to push things any further, whether on the professional front or the personal one, at least not for the time being. To do so would simply have been inviting a greater risk of conflict. Right now, what the lieutenant needed was space.
The Rigelian nodded understandingly and rose to his feet. "Thank you for your time, lieutenant," he said, straightening out his uniform jacket, "I will let you get back to your preparations."
"Thanks." Eli replied, though it was clear the sentiment wasn't exactly heartfelt. "I'm sure we'll be talking again soon."
OFF
Lieutenant Elijah Mitchell
Chief Diplomatic Officer
USS Vesta (NX-94200)
Lieutenant Rukil Vodaan
Division Officer, Counseling
USS Vesta (NX-94200)
