I Heard It Through The Grapevine

Posted on 28 Aug 2014 @ 2:43pm by Lieutenant Olsam Mott & Commander Scarlet Blake
Edited on on 28 Aug 2014 @ 8:08pm

1,759 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Episode 06 - Legend of Souls
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 2, XO's Office
Timeline: MD06: 1245 hrs

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Olsam had spent the morning and early afternoon wandering about the ship. To the casual observer it would have looked like an aimless stroll with stops at a few random, seemingly unconnected places about the ship. But in reality he was travelling along the ship's grapevine - six days in quarantine was six days worth of gossip he'd missed out on, so it had taken an entire three hours worth of very hard work to catch himself up. Apparently all manner of things had been happening both on the ship and on the surface of the mining colony, but there was very little he could do about most of it. However, there was one thing he thought he was eminently qualified to address.

The Executive Officer's door turned up predictably on the right-hand side of the corridor, and Olsam promptly pressed the door chime. He'd been pleased Commander Blake kept an open door policy for the crew, although the Bolian likely took it a bit more seriously than the rest. In fact, he probably thought of it as more of a revolving door - once one thing was cleared up, he'd just end up turning around to consult about another one.

Scarlet glanced up from her computer screen as the chime went. Frankly, she was enjoying the relative haven of her office with the tribbles making their presence known throughout the rest of the ship. "Come in..."

"Hi, Commander," Olsam said, bustling through the doors and flinging himself into the chair opposite Blake's desk. His posture was slouched and he was a bit skewed in the seat, giving him an overly casual air. "They finally let me out of that closet! Did you know the Master Chief got in a big fight with the Cardassians during the diplomatic dinner? I heard from Crewman Tolson who heard from Ensign Varris who heard from Cadet Ofiy that the Cardassian insulted the Master Chief's mother so he stabbed him with a butter knife in the hallway as they were leaving. I bet the newsnets will be all over that once they find out. Have you dealt much with the press?"

Scarlet blinked as she watched the energetic man, taking the whirl of words in as she just sat there for a moment. She had to just love the rumourmill. She finally cleared her throat and lifted a hand, shaking her head. "Okay, okay, let's slow down a little there. Nobody stabbed anybody. So let's just....take a breath...."

If Olsam hadn't heard that particularly phrase repeated to him so often over his lifetime he might be tempted to wonder where they would be taking the breath and why it needed to be moved at all. He fixed the commander with a skeptical look but finally seemed to relent, looking a little disappointed.

"So, he didn't stab the Cardassian? That's good. But there was a disagreement, right?"

"Dinner with Cardassians was not an easy affair," Scarlet replied, a simple statement that said little, yet said it all very clearly. She down played it purposely, not willing to feed the rumourmill.

"You know, this is really more counseling's responsibilities, but it's not the first time I've heard about the CoB having an anger management problem. As soon as I heard about the diplomatic dinner - I mean, the absolute moment - I thought to myself that I should come down here to see if you needed a little medical advice on how to handle the situation with Master Chief Quinn. Because believe me, I have dealt with a lot of angry people in my life. I seem to attract them for some reason."

Scarlet sat back as she watched him, tilting her head forward a little as she held his eyes. She genuinely, for a moment, wasn't sure whether to be amused or to throw him out with her own two hands. She took a breath, crossing her legs delicately. "As I'm sure you know, I was a counsellor here, so I can assure you if there ever were anything along those lines to deal with, I would be the first on it. Rest assured, Lieutenant, there is no 'situation' to worry about. The Cardassians left well fed and in one piece."

"Well, if you ever need a cool head for another diplomatic dinner, I'm more than happy to attend. I even like Cardassian food! And I'm an excellent conversationalist," Olsam said, sounding unintentionally boastful.

"I'm sure you are," Scarlet replied lightly, but she was actually pretty sure there was truth to the words, given their current exchange.

"But are you sure that I shouldn't start administering a sedative to Mr. Quinn, though? Maybe just a small dose? Air dispersed while he's sleeping? Maybe it would be good for crew morale if he was a little calmer during this mission." Olsam lowered his voice to a whisper for the benefit of no one in particular given that they were alone. "I hear he has some personal problems with Cardassians. You know, the War and all."

Scarlet lifted her hand quickly to stop him, shaking her head rapidly as she wagged her finger. "No. Mister Mott, we do not secretly drug or sedate our fellow crewmembers, understood?"

Olsam fixed her with a look that seemed to suggest he was hesitant to agree. After all, he had planned to enter it into his medical log.

"Um," he said, squinting in consideration. He finally nodded. "Yes, understood." Looking around from side-to-side, Olsam cleared his throat and finally spoke up. "Sooo... Anything left over from that dinner? It's probably nice and spoiled by now. I could just take it off your hands and dispose of it. You know, if you want."

"I'm afraid it's all been recycled," Scarlet assured, watching him in hopes that her expression didn't betray the thought of 'what in the universe does he want with that? "I assure you, Mister Mott, we really do have everything under control."

"Oh, I'm sure, I'm sure," Olsam said, nodding while looking around her office. As ever, it was unclear whether he was being patronizing or actually agreeing with her. After several moments of observing the personal effects in her office, he started a bit in his chair as if he'd only just now realized where he was and that he'd finished talking about what he wanted to talk about. But he didn't seem in any rush to get back to Sickbay. "Uh, well. I should probably get going then. I'm sure you're very busy with the mission and all. What have you got to deal with today? Maybe I could help. I'm really very good at managing people..."

The Bolian doctor stretched as tall as he could in the seat and leaned forward, trying to get at the proper angle to read some of the PADDs on her desk.

Scarlet turned them over firmly, looking to him with an arched eyebrow. "Mister Mott, you could assist me greatly if you went to Sickbay to ensure that it is under control with the tribble invasion. It's a key area."

Olsam bobbed his head up and down, agreeing, then stopped suddenly. "Sorry, what? The tribble invasion?" His eyes narrowed slightly, suspiciously. "Are you messing with me? Is this all some kind of joke? Oh yes! Let's all truss up Dr. Mott, stuff him in a closet for an ancient eternity and then take advantage of his fragile mental state to trick him into thinking there's a tribble invasion. Very funny. Like no one's tried to pull that one before..."

"No, seriously," she shook her head, watching him with a frown of concern. "We have a Level 1 tribble infestation onboard," she took a PADD, pulling up the notice before offering it over to prove it.

Olsam took the PADD and quickly scanned the information. "Hmm. Seems bad," he said, looking up from the document with genuine curiosity, "have you tried killing them, yet? Dr. Allyndra and I can probably engineer a tribble-specific virus in a day or so that would wipe them right out." He handed the PADD back to her and added for emphasis, "Right out, just like that!"

"Let's not start a slaughter quite yet," Scarlet shook her head with a slight grimace, taking the PADD from him. "Make sure that Sickbay is a secure and clear of them as it can be."

"Well, I prefer to think of it as more of a 'humanitarian action' than a 'slaughter,' but okay. We'll try it your way first," Olsam said, as if it was somehow optional to follow the executive officer's orders. "Right, okay. Clear and secure. Got it. Can do." His eyes went a bit unfocused as he started to think about how to clear and secure Sickbay; no better place to think on that than where he was, right?

"So... Are we disposing of them in a central area? How many am I allowed to kill? Is there like a hunting limit? Do I have to eat the ones I kill? How does this work exactly?"

"Lieutenant, we are not killing tribbles..." Scarlet said firmly, lifting her hand to him. She was considering making him repeat after her. "Speak to your chief about the current arrangements in Sickbay. For the most part, we're confining in cages and bags the best we can. Now, get back to Sickbay to make sure it's nice and clear. Dismissed," she added for good measure.

Olsam's mouth was still slightly open from where he'd been about to ask a litany of other questions. But "dismissed" sounded pretty final, so he snapped it shut and nodded as he heaved himself out of the chair. "Yep, okay. Cages, bags. Clear, secure. Dismissed. Got it." He fumbled around the chair toward the door and then stopped just short of the sensor, looking over his shoulder. "You're looking very nice today, Commander. I like your hair."

He smiled again at her - pleased as ever to put his co-father's advice into action ("Always end a business meeting on a positive note") - then passed through the doorway into the corridor.

Scarlet blinked with surprise at his parting comment, unconsciously reaching to touch her hair, bemused. She let out a long, slow breath, as if recovering. She wasn't quite sure what it was that she had just experienced...but it definitely was an experience...

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Lieutenant Olsam Mott, M.D.
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS Galileo

&

CMDR Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo

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