Step Up

Posted on Fri Aug 27th, 2021 @ 7:19pm by Lieutenant Commander Emni t'Nai & Captain Björn Kodak

Mission: The Place of Skulls
Location: Captain's Ready Room
Timeline: Mission Day 5 at 1300

[The Bridge]
[MD 5: 1300 Hours]

Deck One always felt important to Emni. The bridge, Captain's ready room, and briefing rooms were all there and sometime about their placement, at the technical highest point on the Sojourner made them feel important--as though anyone traveling to visit that deck were cresting a summit.

As she exited the turbolift, turning down the corridor to land just outside of the Captain's Ready Room, she found herself unaccountably nervous. She had sat with Björn in his ready room on plenty of occasions, discussing the aftermath of their last mission, the various health needs of crew members, or even just swapping stories. This wasn't a new thing. And yet, it was her first time here as the 2nd executive officer and she found herself worried that she was going to let her friend down.

Taking a breath she moved into the sensor that would announce her arrival.

[Ready Room
[Concurrent]

Kodak had eschewed his desk and sat, instead, on the sectional sofa. It was a comfortable place to read, complete with a coffee table for propping his feet up on. When the door chime sounded, the Captain looked up from his PADD and bid entry, quickly stashing his be-socked feet under the table to hide them from view. He thought, perhaps, the entrant might be another damned report to read, hand-delivered to ensure it got his eyes on. But in an elevating turn of events, it was Emni who sought his attention instead. He'd asked her to stop by at some point, though a time had not been set. There was, after all, so much going on to account for. But the Captain was glad to see Emni as the doors swished open.

Kodak waved the woman over, putting his feet up on the coffee table once again. His shoes --- real shoes, given their separation from his body -- shined glossily on the floor nearby, his feet clad in Starfleet-issue black crew socks. "Please excuse me for not getting up. I'm exhausted and kind of just want to plop here." He gestured Emni to take a seat, said tiredness flooding his mental landscape. The weariness washed off him in waves, rather like a gathering sea swell that had decided it was time to surge. But amidst the wash, Björn bobbed afloat in it all, though -- it seemed -- perhaps just barely.

"Feel free to kick your shoes off, too," the Captain offered a tight-lipped smile. "Don't worry: I won't tell anyone," the smile morphed into the slightest of smirks. "Thank you for dropping by. I know there's so much going on: how are you handling things?" he asked, concerned etched across his face.

The Romulan woman entered the space, a curious smile twitching up in mild amusement at the Captain's stockinged feet. Something about the casualness with which he greeted her seemed to dispel the lingering nerves and she found herself settling on the other edge of the couch, one booted foot gripping the back of the other and sliding it off before the now uncovered foot levered the other off with her toes. She settled one foot on the Captain's table, crossing her other over at the ankle. Her matching Starfleet-issue socks next to the captain's elicited a quiet chuckle.

The weariness that pervaded the room made her want to lay back into the couch and take a nap, but instead she set her hands in her lap, erected some light defenses to push back the temptation to lounge, and turned a serious expression to her friend.

"My immediate gut reaction is to tell you that things are going as well as they can be, and or course that is somewhat true. Dr. Ryan Walsh seems to have taken the events of the away mission rather hard, though, and I have... concerns... about his ability to act with a clear head right now." She frowned slightly. She didn't want to burden Kodak further and yet she knew she would be remiss if she didn't answer his question truthfully.

"What about you, Björn?" she asked, gently. "There are Chameloid remains on board. And artifacts if I understand Ensign Gonzalez's report correctly. For as many things that have happened in the last day have you had a moment to process any of this?"

Kodak appreciated honesty always, but especially so when it came to the health and fitness for duty of his crew. "I'm sorry to hear the Doctor is struggling. I can imagine how the events down on Ch'othil might be...difficult," he selected the word with care, "for some to deal with. Especially those on the younger side without a lot of experience under their belts." The concern Kodak felt over Ryan Walsh was palpable in his mindscape, though it seemed more intense than it otherwise might for some reason. "What are your thoughts on how we should proceed?" It felt as if the Chameloid were holding something back -- something he wanted to get out in the open but needed to resolve this particular matter first.

To Emni's question about processing, Björn simply shook his head. "From one crisis to another. We're up and on our feet but there's so much to keep my head in on right now," the Captain lamented. "Until we've had a chance to deeply examine those remains and artifacts, I'm trying not to dwell. Does no good until we know more," he explained.

Emni frowned. "I've relieved him for the day and sent him to bed with a sleep aid so he can sleep without nightmares and a promise to reevaluate tomorrow."

She turned her head to look at Kodak from where she sat, an expectant expression on her face. "Even if I did have my mental defences up it would be obvious you're concerned." She sighed, looking forward again. "Can you give me some more color to what happened on the surface? I want to help him, but it's hard to get through his panic and self-doubt to the root of the issue."

"Sure Emni," the Captain nodded, putting his padded feet down onto the carpet and sitting up straight. "It all started out rather fine...traipsing through the jungle, walking towards the ruins. But when we got there and started to spread out, that's when Takomi-san fell through the floor." Kodak's thoughts momentarily went to his old friend, who -- along with Nir -- had been deemed in need of a starbase's facilities to fully recover. "Well, we immediately went down there with him to try to help. And waiting for us there in ambush were the Orions." The Chameloid continued to recount the tale, including tidbits about Ryan Walsh trying to stop the fighting in order to attend to the injured and getting a gun in his face for the trouble.

"We repelled the Orions best we could and, when they beamed out," Kodak shrugged, "we went to work. The Doctor saw to Nir while the rest of us secured the area and got our next set of coordinates. But then the Orions began to fire on the surface and brought the whole ceiling down on our heads." As the Captain unraveled the yarn, his own emotions responded to the memories, though -- as evidenced by his senior time in Starfleet -- such emotions did not rule him. He reflected back without reliving the memories; perhaps owing to why he was not a mess himself.

"I'm glad to hear you've put him off duty for the day at least," Kodak sighed softly, "but I'm afraid we're going to need him more than ever. If he had to take over Sickbay himself for the time being, could he do it? Could he be this ship's Chief Medical Officer, with perhaps some assistance from you as needed? I ask because...well, I've just lost my XO. As this ship's Second Officer, you're next in line to take up that particular mantle. You did exceptionally well while I was on the surface, Emni. We need you as XO but I can't leave Sickbay in the hands of someone who isn't physically or mentally capable of handling it. Can he? Can you?"

Emni sucked in a breath, letting it back out the way it came in just as quickly. She wasn't entirely surprised by the Captain's question--protocol was clear in this scenario and taking time to pick up a new XO would severely delay them when it was already clear that others were interested in their search.

She nodded once, sharply, as if deciding something with the motion. "I can," she began, "and of course I will. Dr. Ryan Walsh..." She trailed off. "His anxiety surprised me this morning. I had hoped he was through the worst of it by the end of our shift yesterday, but I also know it doesn't always work that way."

She paused, considering her words. "Technically speaking, Dr. Ryan Walsh is a highly competent physician, if a bit young. His people skills are not his strongest suit, but he seems to be trying. This, though..." She sighed. "He'll either report for duty tomorrow shaken, but clearheaded enough to function, or we'll have a bigger issue to address."

She looked over at her friend again then, her features sad. "I wish Karim were here," she commented. "He would know how to push him through this."

Kodak just nodded, not really sure what else to say about Ryan Walsh. "You know him better than I do, Emni. I trust your judgment on this matter and on his care. But," he offered a slight smile, "you should know that I've asked Starfleet to assign us a temporary Counselor in Karim's absence. They'll likely pull someone from the Miranda -- apparently, they have a few different counselors and can probably spare someone for awhile."

Emni nodded thoughtfully a pang of regret that they were at this point. It felt odd to be talking about a counselor who wasn't Karim. "That does sound like a good idea. I can make seeing whomever they send a condition of Dr. Ryan Walsh's return to duty as well." She paused. "It would certainly put my mind at ease."

"Agreed, it will be good to have someone looking after the mental health of the crew again," the Captain said. With that agenda item out of the way, Kodak returned to the idea of Emni serving as acting XO. "I very much appreciate your willingness to step up here, Emni. I know medicine is your wheelhouse but, having passed the Command Test and given your performance the last couple of days," the Chameloid nodded, "I'm confident you'll do well."

So that was that. The Doctor was now the XO and her subordinate would take Emni's place. Kodak just hoped that he was making the right decision. He'd considered Chaali, who had more Bridge experience, but in all honesty, he needed to keep the Bridge Crew right where they were. It wasn't the time -- given limited people resources -- to pluck someone from Ops. At least with t'Nai, they had another Doctor to step in. And, of course, there was always the LMH...

Emni nodded, setting her feet back on the floor. "Thank you Björn," she remarked. "I'll do my best not to let you down."

Deliberately she toed her feet back into her duty boots, pressing down at the heels until they slipped into place. "I should go back and check on Sickbay, though. At least for today I'm still going to need to keep my focus there. It should be quiet, though, so I can start to set up some times to pop into other departments over the next few days. I'll update on you Dr. Ryan Walsh when I see him in the morning."

Standing she stretched, curling her toes in her boots as she did so. "If that is all?"

At the Captain's nod she smiled, heading out the door and down the corridor already thinking about what needed to be done next.

=/\= A Mission Post By =/\=

Captain Bjorn Kodak
Commanding Officer

Lieutenant Emni t'Nai
Acting Executive Officer