Every Action Has a Consequence (2/2)

Posted on 26 Mar 2016 @ 12:02am by Lieutenant JG Drusilla McCarthy & Chief Warrant Officer 3 Greg Mitchell
Edited on on 28 Mar 2016 @ 4:13am

2,386 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 10 - Symposium
Location: USS Galileo: Counselor's Office
Timeline: MD 23 - 15:00

Previously....

Dru hand had moved onto her table top as her fingers drummed against the PADD surface. She wasn't fooled for a minute and wondered did Greg take her for an idiot that he even thought it. "Did you sleep with the counsellor tasked with determining your fitness for duty?"

Greg opened his mouth as if to correct her, took a moment to realize that he was an idiot, and gave the only way out he could: "Well, I mean, when you put it that way it just sounds like I used her."

And now....

[ON]

A flash of anger moved through Dru's eyes as her hand came to rest on the top of the PADD. For a few long moments she just studied the man as she turned it all over in her head. "Do you realise what you've done...you've completely compromised your entire career within Starfleet. You've put it all at risk because of a...dalliance that's only lasted one day? What were you thinking?!"

"You mean what was I thinking in the long run? Or what was I thinking at the time? Because I don't think you want details...."Greg began.

Dru bit down on her tongue. Hard. She was of half a mind to call the man's superior to the office here and now...let Gyce handle this situation because you could be sure that she'd be just as upset. "Tell me why Greg."

"Alright, alright. Calm down. I.....I don't know, ok. It was a spur of the moment thing. I mean, I couldn't afford to wait to get back to duty. I was fine." Greg began, "I get back to normal easily after stressful events. But nooo, she wanted more evaluations. Well, I...didn't think that far ahead. She was attractive, and single. I am single, and wanted to get back to duty. One thing led to another and...." he trailed off. "I just needed to get back to work."

Standing up from her desk, Dru's hand went to cup her abdomen as she tried to stop the shake. Studying the man for a moment, the consellor said nothing as she made her way over to the replicator. She felt a still silence in the room as a minute passed, taking to time to seek composure. "I don't know what's worse...the fact that you thought it ok to manipulate a counsellor into getting what you wanted or the fact that you used sex."

Greg could feel the anger coming from the councilor and sat up straighter, into a defensive posture. "It wasn't a one sided thing. It was completely consensual. She told me as much. It was either that...." Greg rubbed his eyes, "It was either that, or another month of evaluations. I needed to get back to work. I didn't want to stay on a station longer then I had to."

"I don't need to be educated on the physical aspects of sex. I've no doubt that it takes two to tango but your as equally responsible for your actions as she is hers." Programming her request into the replicator, Dru watched as the glass materialised before continuing, "Your an adult and you could have said no but instead you choose to cheat the system instead of following it."

Greg stood up, rubbing his head as he did it. He was flooded with different emotions: embarrassment, anger, fear. He knew the consequences when he made the action, but at the time, he felt bad about it. He paced the opposite side of the room. "Look, without me, there is one less officer on the street. One less guard patrolling the halls. I had to get back on duty. I mean, the last time I didn't take something seriously something went wrong."

He turned around and looked at the counsilor. "The last time I let my guard down, a man took a shot at my partner! I cannot afford the same issue to happen again. I cannot afford to not be on duty."

Dru didn't accept it, she couldn't accept it. Turning on her heel, her knuckles were white from the grip on the glass. "And what about the people at risk should it prove that psychologically your not ready to return to duty?!? The pure fact that you see nothing wrong with what you did shows in itself your lack of capability to be able to analyse your actions and see the right from wrong."

"Psycholog...." Greg through his hands into the air, before rubbing his neck. "Lad....." He began but cut himself off before calling her 'Lady' as he probably would when getting into an argument with anyone who isn't his superior officer. He took a deep breath. "Ma'am, I know the difference between an innocent and a criminal. I know all about fair trials. I don't ever like using my weapon. I am not going to fly off the handle, all because I killed ONE green blooded...", he caught himself again, before saying an inappropriate slur about Romulans, "Because I made one mistake."

He walked over to the wall and leaned his back onto it crossing his arms. "The good Doctor was falling back on regulations. She didn't even try to see reason. I had to do something to get back on duty. And I am beginning to realize coming here to talk about my past was a mistake."

"Two things, if you walk out of this office I will call your department head and tell them what has happened. Call it blackmail if you like but this situation hasn't reached its resolution." Dru forced herself to take a sip of water as she felt her blood pressure raise. "Secondly, how would you feel if I went out there, picked up a phaser and walked the corridors, tackled offenders. Am I qualified to do your job?"

Greg exhaled and slid down the wall, to where he was sitting on the floor, his right arm resting on his right leg that he had angled. He was definitely at a stalemate. One that he couldn't talk himself out of like before. He rubbed his head. "You don't have years of training that I do." He rubbed his eyes again. "Look, what do you want me to say? I screwed up alright. A mix of wanting to get back to work AND being single for almost ten years can do that to a person. What can I possibly do to prove that I am fit for duty?"

Dru said nothing as the moments passed, she just watched Greg before finally the counsellor pinched the bridge of her nose. She couldn't understand his reasoning personally but she'd seen and heard enough over the years to understand how some matters could influence some more than others. "Just like I don't have the amount of training you have; you don't have years of the same training I do....You've made a mess out of something which should have been simple to sort from the beginning..."

Moving over to the wall where Greg sat, Dru moved to sit beside him as she pulled her legs under her. "Your not the only person in the universe who hesitated before killing...no matter how much training a person may have, it makes us human to hesitate before killing. If you didn't hesitate...then we become worried."

Greg felt a headache returning. One that popped up every once in a while when he remembered the incident. "That's the first time I ever actually killed someone period. I know I have to do it on my job, and I know I can do it again if necessary. Why do I keep remembering it? Why can't I get it out of my head like everything else that I push out of my mind?" The headache worsened.

"Because you need t learn to deal with the emotions and feelings killing someone for the first time brings with it. If you don't, they just build and build to exploding point." Watching the man, Dru could tell from his face that a headache obviously was building behind Greg's skull. "Have you killed since?"

Rubbing his temples to alleviate the headache, Greg responded. "No....I've shot people, that's the miracle of 'stun'. I've threatened to kill people, usually stronger species who are usually armed. But that was the first and only time." He rested his head in his hands. "Which is why I thought....I assumed that I could be ok."

He remembered in his head the events of that day, the aftermath when the back up showed up. "Where the hell WERE YOU!", he had yelled at them. "You were supposed to be here ten minutes ago! You could have seen this coming! Ted almost died, BECAUSE OF YOU!". His headache worsened and he flinched a little at the thought.

There was times Dru wished that she was a mind reader but during times like this the minute movements a person couldn't hold back told her what she needed to know. "How often does your mind go back to that point of your life? How often do you have to force yourself back from reliving it?"

Greg rested his head back on the wall. "Oh, I'd say about once or twice a day. I get these random moments throughout the day where I remember past memories. Have you ever had random moments where you remember an embarrassing thing you did and it just digs at you. Well, it's basically that times one thousand. I can be walking, not thinking about anything even remotely related and then it just comes back. I have to stop and force it away. It usually ends up with a headache that I have to take something for.

He scratched his forhead, thinking of what to say next. "Just to reassure you, it doesn't happen when I'm actually working. The job keeps my mind off of it. That's why I've requested to work security detail for the Symposium in a few days. It gives me something to do, and keeps me focused on what IS important: keeping people safe."

"No...what is important as you." Dru had carefully twisted her body so as she faced Greg directly, both still sat on the floor. "What kind of quality of life is it for you if you spend your life outside of work worrying about your next thought and if it will set off a cascade of events again in your mind that lead to headaches and heartaches?"

Greg thought for a moment, trying to remember the last time he truly relaxed. It had been a while, most of his time spent on work. He still socialized and hung out with the other guards, but it was just....different from before. "I don't know..." Greg mumbled. "I guess I just figured there would always need to be law enforced somewhere, so I could distract myself by doing that all the time."

"What about friends...girlfriends...socalising with work colleagues?" Dru's hand moved to briefly touch against Greg's arm as she saw that slowly he was beginning to realise that there was more to this than the life he had built around what had happened. There was more to his situation than just packing everything into a box and continuing with a life revolving around ignoring life changing events as if they were meaningless. " If you focus solely on work where does that leave the rest of your life?"

"I have friends, but I've never been good with personal relationships." Greg rested his head back on the wall. Well this is a fine situation you've gotten yourself into. There appeared to be only one way out this time, and it didn't involve sleeping with this counselor. "Alright, what do you want me to do?"

Watching him closely, Dru let out a long and slow breath as she thought over that question. It wasn't as easy to answer as it should have been. "You've made this situation worse by your lack of restraint and the actions you made with your old counsellor. You've risked both your integrity but also your career."

As she let out another breath, Dru leaned the side of her head against the coolness of the bulkhead as she tried to analyse the situation as a counsellor but also as an officer of the Federation. "You have to promise to work with me...help me establish if truly you are genuinely fit for duty. I can hide some of the facts but others I cant....Your department head will be alerted to concerns regarding your fitness for duty but at this point I am willing to recommend you be kept in your current position pending that you cooperate with me."

Mother f...., Greg thought. He rested his head back in his hands, rubbing his forehead for a few seconds before answering. ".....alright." He chuckled, not a joking chuckle but a 'I can't believe I'm actually doing this' chuckle.

"Greg...." Dru's eyes never left him as she carefully considered her next words, "...genuinely working with me. If you don't, or if you try to find a way around me or a way out...I will be forced to report what happened and have you pulled from duty. You can't keep running away from your nightmares and just hope that they will one day go away if you ignore them for long enough...they won't and it will all end horribly wrong."

"I know." Greg reassured her, looking at her for the first time since he sat down. "Trust me, I know. I'm going to do everything humanly possible to put this behind me and get back to work as soon as possible. Even if that means coming to counseling."

Seeing Greg's eyes for the first time since the truth had come out, Dru took only moments to place her trust in him. She wasn't certain what the future would hold for the man but she would do what she could to try right the wrongs and put his life and career back on track.

[OFF]

Lieutenant JG Drusilla McCarthy
Chief Counsellor
USS Galileo

&

CWO2 Greg Mitchell
Security Officer
USS Galileo

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