Mind Over Muscle

Posted on 02 Apr 2012 @ 10:41am by Lieutenant JG Kestra Orexil & Ensign Im'er Mor'an
Edited on on 02 Apr 2012 @ 2:19pm

1,675 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Episode 01 - Project Sienna
Location: Security Office, Deck 2
Timeline: MD 02 - 1200hrs

Kestra sat at her desk, thumbing through the complaints that had been registered since the Galileo's deployment. Not too many, she was relieved to find. And those that were, weren't of a serious nature. It gave her a clearer view of the ship. Usually the ones you had trouble with right out of dock were the ones to keep an eye on. Fast fuses and slow burns, Klask used to say. There were always both. Sometimes the pressure got to the crew after a hard battle or a long while of silence. Warriors needed war, after all. But this was a research vessel, very different than either of the ships she'd served on. The only 'warriors' were her commanding officers and her security personnel. That didn't make their personal pressures and stresses any less, but there were fewer of them. As for the scientists and researchers on board... They were an unknown. She'd have liked to assume that they would keep themselves fulfilled and occupied with their work without causing trouble, but she hadn't had enough experience with them personally or generally to make any assumptions.

She tagged the two files that needed to be resolved as a priority and sent a report to Operations requesting the re-routing of one of the complainant's com calls and message relays through a pseudonym. She'd still get all the messages she needed aboard ship without delay, but her husband would no longer be able to send her threatening messages. Another message to the human female in question, alerting her to the fact that her complaint had been received, the method Kestra had employed to resolve the situation, instructions on how to contact the ship's counselor, and a request that she be informed should there be any further need of security in the matter. That settled, she read through the case files on the two complaints. They seemed like fairly simple resolutions, but solving them herself wouldn't do much good. She was the leader of a team now, which meant a whole new part of her job was managing her personnel. Which meant giving them tasks and seeing how they handled them.

She drew up a panel of her officers and reviewed their dossiers for the umpteenth time. Mostly humans, but that was to be expected as the ship had Earth origins. One Vulcan; they received excellent training and could be trusted to complete their tasks with expedience, if not compassion. She'd have to keep an eye on that. And one Tarkannan. Interesting. She'd never worked with them before.

Kestra tapped her fingers thoughtfully on the side of the console, then sent out a general request to her officers requesting they schedule a time for a one on one with her. They'd been doing just fine since they'd deployed, but the sooner they got used to answering to her, the sooner she could take some of the work off the Captain and XO and start creating a real unit.

At the appointed time, Mor'an traversed the short distance to the office of Lt. Orexil for their meeting. Kestra was a Betazoid. Mor'an found she liked Betazoids as a whole since they valued the mind almost as much as her own people did. There were more than one Tarkannan on Arun R'lantha who were so strong mentally that they could actually block out all emotion and no Betazoid could feel anything from them. Mor'an herself was not nearly that strong, but she felt that Kestra and herself were going to get a long.

Standing outside the door to the security office, Mor'an hit the door chime.

"Come in," Kestra called. She felt a wave a calm and looked up, smiling congenially and waving the Tarkannan in. "So you're the cadet."

Mor'an didn't respond as she touched her forehead with her first two fingers and twisted her palm outward. "I see you," she said in greeting. "Yes, I am Cadet Im'er Mor'an. We had a meeting scheduled, I believe?"

"We did. Come, sit. Would you like some tea?" Kestra asked, lifting the pot beside the mug on her desk. The mug was deep red, large, and lopsided, clearly handmade by a child or someone with very amateur skills.

"No, thank you," Mor'an replied, taking stock of her surroundings before looking back at Kestra. "I have been newly assigned to Tactics and Security," she went on, "I am ready and willing to learn whatever I must."

"That's good to hear," Kestra smiled, pouring herself a cup and sipping it in comfortable silence as she watched the cadet. She was young, a bit headstrong, but well-trained. Kestra could tell that much just by the feel of her. "I've been told that you're technically part of the command staff for your training. Red Squad. Very impressive. So, what are you doing in my department?"

"To be honest?" Mor'an asked. "I do not really know. This is where the captain decided to put me and here I will stay until she says otherwise. I did not ask for a particular place to be."

"Honesty is always preferred," Kestra told her. "Tell me, Mor'an - what do you think working in Security and Tactics means?"

Mor'an was silent as she pondered the question put before her. "Obviously it mean the well-being of the ship and her crew are in your hands," she said at length. "But it also takes an amount of critical thinking that plays with the psych of each one of us assigned to this duty. It means we must care for every single member of this crew so that they are able to put their lives in our hands. One faulty gap in security or one wrong firing pattern and it is over."

"Good. You understand." Kestra nodded her approval. "Is that Tarkannan training, I wonder, or do they teach you compassionate resistance in the Red Squadron?"

"My people are masters of combat and mental conditioning," Mor'an said. "Because of this people are surprised to learn that most of us hate to fight. It is used for protection, nothing more. We are here to protect the ship, not antagonize our opponents. Red Squad taught me a great deal of things, but love and compassion in war I learned from my mentors."

Kestra smiled over the rim of her mug. "I am pleased to find us in the same point of view, Cadet Mor'an." She sipped, humming softly. "Now that we know where we stand, is there anything you'd like me to know about you going forward?"

"Cadet Im'er," Mor'an corrected. "Im'er is my family name. Nothing that comes to mind," she went on in answer of Kestra's question. "Just that I have a lot to learn in Tactical, so I am at your disposal."

"Mm," she inclined her head, accepting her mistake. She had a lot to learn about the Tarkannans, it seemed. A lot of basics. Something new; that was good. "I appreciate your focus on the work ahead. Cadet Im'er." Was the calm a projection, she wondered, or did the evident concentration on Mo'ran's position here give her a kind of peace? "I find myself very curious about your training with your people. Indeed, your home culture in general. You display a great deal of mental aptitude, but I don't feel any psychic reach, is that correct?"

"Yes, I suppose you can say that," Mor'an replied. She studied Kestra for a moment. Though Mor'an could not feel emotions like a Betazoid, she knew what Kestra must be feeling from her. "The mind is the most important thing to train. That is where my peoples' inner peace comes from, where my own comes from. If you train your mind properly, you can feel anything."

Kestra agreed with the sentiment - up to a point. She'd been raised to think of emotions as a further coloring of thoughts, ideas, and communication. The idea that all that color and depth could be masked by one feeling - even one so soothing as the calm emanating from Mor'an - was slightly disquieting. But it wasn't masking, not really. It simply was; replacing whatever else might have been in its place. Being capable of controlling one's emotions was imperative, but doing so by rote? She drank her tea, considering the cadet. "At some point, I would love to hear about your training." She set her mug down. "I will be discussing how to augment your training in my department with command. If there are any particular areas of interest or any questions you have, now is the time."

"Thank you, m'lady," Mor'an replied, "But I have no preferences. As to questions, I am sure I will have a great deal of them, in time." She was glad to hear that Kestra was accepting of her ideals. Most people just didn't understand the Tarkannan teachings, especially the security officers.

"Very well." She thumbed through some of the files on her console. "You've experience in peace-keeping. I'd like to put you to work, if you're not averse to it." Kestra looked at the cadet expectantly and lifted her tea again. "It's a quiet ship so far and I hope to keep it that way. I've got a noise complaint here from Jennings in 502 and a rather uncompromising reply from the P'fwali in 503. See what you can do to resolve the situation and report back to me." She smiled. "I look forward to seeing what you can do. And if you have questions, you can reach me by com."

"I only hope I can deliver," Mor'an said, standing and waiting to be dismissed. She finally had something with which to busy herself and she would do it to the utmost of her abilities.

Kestra looked at her. "Go with your instincts. If they are as you've described them, I'm sure you'll do fine. Dismissed." She finished her tea and sat back to watch the cadet head out.


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[OFF]

Lt JG Kestra Orexil
Chief of Security/Tactical
USS Galileo

Cadet Senior Grade Im'er Mor'an
Red Squad Intern
USS Galileo

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