Balancing Act

Posted on Wed Jul 12th, 2023 @ 9:55pm by Commander Irene Vincent "Rally" & Lieutenant Commander May Hopkins & Lieutenant Commander Natalya Chornovil & Lieutenant Commander Damien Maillet & Lieutenant Kaal Eraar & Lieutenant Heather Honey & Lieutenant Scott Willis

2,665 words; about a 13 minute read

Mission: Season 1, Episode 2: War, Peace, And All That Jazz
Location: Deep Space Station K-9- Conference Room, Deck 9
Timeline: Stardate 1512.2- Approximately The Same Time As "The Corbomite Maneuver"

It had been a long road getting here, but with the station finally nearing completion, Rally could shift her attention to some of the more pressing matters at hand. Of course, the whole situation regarding the Dolphin probe was still nagging at the back of her mind, but given the... confidentiality of such a dangerous assignment, that discussion would have to be reserved for another time, away from prying ears. In the meantime, there was still the issue at hand concerning the arrival of their guests, who were no doubt en route to the station at this very moment.

Given the night-and-day ideologies of both the Eifie Republic and the Rheuysian Reich, careful coordination would be of the utmost priority if they were to pull off these talks without a hitch. Both civilizations played host a vast wealth of resources, and if at any time they felt they were getting the short end of the stick, they could very easily back out and deny the Federation critical access to some of those resources. To ensure that didn't happen, Rally had organized a senior staff meeting in the main conference room on Deck 9, across the way from her office.

At present, she was in the process of making some last-minute adjustments, to ensure the environment was both presentable to her senior staff and provided them with the information they would need in regards to these talks. This was, of course, her first time hosting a senior staff briefing, so she may have overthought it slightly when it came to the overall presentation; the trimonitor at the center of the table had been updated with all the latest information in regards to the talks; a pot of coffee, fresh from the food synthesizers, was set out on the table, along with a set of mugs- one for each member of the senior staff; a trio of flags- one for the Republic, another for the Reich, and a third for the Federation- were displayed with equal prominence in the back of the room, articulating themes of unity between the three powers; and pretty much every inch of this room had been deep-cleaned within an inch of its life. Even the carpet had received a thorough steam-cleaning, even though it had just been installed a couple of weeks prior.

Rally certainly wasn't a housewife, but as she stepped back and took stock of her handiwork, she had to admit she had done a damn fine job.

Right, now onto the briefing itself; you've got this one in the bag, Rally.

Reaching over to her belt, she unclipped her communicator and proceeded to flip it open.

=Attention, all Senior Staff Members,= She announced. =This is your Commanding Officer speaking; in approximately ten minutes, we will begin our first senior staff meeting. Please report to the Conference Room on Deck 9 at your first available opportunity. That will be all.=

She terminated the communication and sighed, hoping that announcement hadn't come off as too... brusque.

From the Deck 1 Communications Centre / Station Operations Centre, Damien Maillet sighed. He’d been expecting a senior staff meeting, but wasn’t sure when to expect it.

It took five minutes for another comms officer to come relieve him, and another five for him to get down to the Deck 9 Conference Room. As a result, he was not the first one to arrive, but he nodded to the Commander and poured himself a coffee before taking a seat.

Kaal had just completed a full report of his activities on board the Tigerfish when the call came. He checked the time, and he had a good amount of time to make the conference room on deck nine. He locked the report in his desk as was his custom, and left his quarters bound for the conference and whatever that might bring.

It had barely been 24 hours since Scott arrived, by shuttle, on the station. His quarter's were still in a chaotic state as he had yet to finalise where everything he had brought with him, was going to go. Still, he had to make a good impression. He soon arrived on deck 9 and upon locating the large conference room, he entered and took a seat and waited patiently.

May made her way upto the briefing room from the lower engineering decks. The room was a nice size and she remembered repairing the lighting only a few days ago.

Heather was in a huff when she arrived to the briefing room. She had gone to the wrong briefing room at first and been forced to hightail it back to the correct briefing room. It was the problem with stations so big, so many briefing rooms. Or maybe she had gone to a conference room and this was the briefing room. Either way, her face was red from running and she was out of breath. "Heather..." She wheezed. "Honey... Reportin' fir... duty..." She collapsed into an empty chair.

May waved at the doctor. "You get lost too?" she smirked.

"Lost? No, no, no, no." Came an Eastern European accent as Natalya entered the room. "A Slav never gets lost, and certainly never admits to it either."

As everyone was busy getting settled in for the briefing, Rally ran a quick headcount to make sure everyone was present and accounted for. The numbers checked out- Six senior staff members, one for each major department aboard this station- and yet she couldn't shake the feeling that someone important was missing...

...and then she realized it.

"Where's Lieutenant D'Sai?" She called out. "Is Lieutenant D'Sai here?"

"Unfortunately not " Scott spoke up. " I am Lieutenant D'Sai' replacement. I am Lieutenant Scott Willis. Lieutenant D'Sai was transferred."

Rally's eyes narrowed. "You're kidding me."

Unfortunately not, hence my presence here at this breifing" Scott replied.

Damnit... after all the effort Rally had gone to in order to make this presentation perfect, Starfleet Command had to decide now of all times that Lieutenant D'Sai was needed elsewhere? After, you know, he had spent the past couple of months researching the Eifie and the Rheuysians, and was perhaps most qualified out of all of them to be speaking about the two species?!

Sighing, Rally once again retrieved her communicator and flipped it back open.

=Vincent to Sciences,= she began.=If you could spare me a moment of your time, would you mind sending Lieutenant D'Sai's notes up to the Conference Room on Deck 9?=

=Copy that, Commander,= came the voice on the other end. =We'll have his notes ready for you in just a few minutes.=

With a nod, Rally ended the communication and sighed.

"Well, apologies for that little hiccup, everyone," she began as she turned her attention back to the sextet of officers gathered at the table. "Lieutenant Willis, since you'll be picking up most of Lieutenant D'Sai's slack, I'd like to speak with you in my office across the hall when we're done here. But for everyone else gathered here today, I'd like to formally welcome you to Sector 813. This is truly what you'd call a "frontier" region of space, for while the Federation's five-year plan for the sector calls for the construction of several mining colonies, relay stations, and even a full-fledged shipyard, all of our major operations in that time- trade, diplomacy, and even defense- will be conducted from this very station. All of you have been cherry-picked by Starfleet for this monumental undertaking, so it goes without saying that there are some high expectations riding on everyone's shoulders."

Scott nodded in acknowledgement of the request.

Kaal's eyes narrowed, furrowing his brow. Nothing like Starfleet overload. The Station was coming along, and repairs should be completed on schedule. 'New builds' were slightly ahead of schedule, meaning that the additional compartments that had not been completed prior to Starfleet reassuming the station were moving along. All look well for the moment. He smiled at the high-expectations comment. When weren't they high?

"Our first and foremost priority in this endeavor will be in establishing diplomatic relations between the Federation and the two major space-faring powers of this Sector," Rally continued, directing everyone's attention towards the trio of flags situated in the corner. "Both the Rheuysian Reich and the Eifie Republic possess relatively primitive warp capabilities compared to our own- in fact, the former only has 15 years' experience working with the technology, while the latter only has 13- but with the ever-looming threat posed by the Klingon Empire to the Northeast, both powers recognize they cannot afford to stand alone- an alliance with the UFP is necessary to maintain their ongoing independence. And to that end, a conglomerate of delegates from both sides will be arriving less than 24 hours from now to precede over Membership talks. Of course, they will have to abide by some of our principles, but we pride ourselves on a lenient system of governance- so long as we can convince the delegates to abide by our terms and policies, then we can almost guarantee them Membership to the UFP, as well as the protections it would provide against the Klingon Empire."

Rally shifted her attention back to assemblage. "Will there be any questions before I continue?"

"We're throwin' a fancy shindig fir some high uppers," Heather observed now getting excited at the idea of dressing up for such a shindig, having now recovered herself well enough to get herself all worked up again. "Swanky style. Puttin' out the fine china." She nodded and then paused. "So what's the problem then? If its just a fancy shindig, what are we sweatin' fir?"

"I wouldn't know. " Scott commented. "I am all new here so I am trying my best to catch up. But, I do like a good, shindig as you put it." He added.

"This isn't as simple as a fancy 'shindig', Doctor," observed Damien. "These people are not exactly friends, nor do they want to join the Federation for reasons of peace and love. Right now, they see alignment with us a preferable to conquest by the Klingons. Getting them to talk fully openly with us will be no easy task, not for the Eifie and especially not for the Rheuysians."

"Sadly, Commander Maillet is on-point," Rally remarked grimly. "The Klingon Empire has essentially forced their hand in this matter, so there are several unknowns regarding how they will react to us, let alone each other. Therefore, we have be diligent in proving to them that they have everything to gain from Federation membership, without compromising their respective cultures in the process."

"Compromising?" Natalya questioned. "Commander, have you read up on the Eifie and the Rheuysians? Because they do not sound the least bit compatible with each other, let alone us. The Rheuysians especially: I'm quite surprised that they're pursuing a relationship with us instead of the Klingons."

"Even if they wanted to, Commander, I think the Klingons would view the Rheuysians as assets, rather than equals," Rally explained. "And I think if there's one thing that both sides fear losing more, it's control over their own destiny."

"It is becoming more and more clear to me that I have so much to catch up on since only arriving in the last 48 hours. " Scott commented.

"I would say," Kaal began, "Having dealt with the Klingons on my home world, Capella Four, which was a business arrangement with them. They see no species as equals, very few as assets in the true sense of the word. Most are considered enemies."

"Or subjects," Damien added.

"Regardless, the alternative is far from desirable, so both sides, will have to be willing to bend a little on this matter," Rally summarized as she leaned over to activate the trimonitor.

The screen flickered for a second or two before snapping to a picture of two individuals; one, an amber-eyed brunette, with her hair carefully tied back in low-hanging twin-tails; the other, a purple-haired woman with long, cat-like ears extending from the top of her head.

"These two are the individuals appointed to represent both sides during the talks," Rally went on to explain. "Ambassador Gert'Rudd Barkh will be representing the Rheuysians, while Ambassador Tekina will be speaking on behalf of the Eife. Both ambassadors are held in high regard amongst their respective peers, so it goes without saying that if any harm comes to either of them while on this station, we are most certainly going to be held accountable for it."

"Ya don't say it like that!" Heather suddenly yelped slapping the table. "Yer gonna jinx it an' somethin' bad'll happen fer sure!"

Rally blinked in surprise at Heather's sudden outburst. "Uh... noted, Lieutenant," she muttered awkwardly.

"There's something very important you left out, Commander:" Natalya commented. "The Rheuysians' head of state, whom they call their 'Kaiser,' has only been for five years, and she rose to power after their previous Kaiser was assassinated at peace talks very similar to what is about to go down. So no doubt the Rheuysians shall be especially wary of assassination attempts. As such, I am requesting to deploy extra security assets to protect both diplomatic envoys."

"Ask and you shall receive, Commander," Rally nodded. "We want our guests to feel they are welcome here as prospective members of the Federation, and if it brings them peace of mind, I'm more then willing to lend them a few Security officers for their protection."

She then shifted her gaze back to rest of the officers gathered at the table. "Any further accommodations you'll need me to make, or does everyone here understand the nature of our assignment?"

"Ya, don't frig up this shindig and make sure the big heads stay happy and don't go t' war," Heather said with a sigh. She was beginning to think she was in over her head. But she also knew that she wouldn't have as big a role to play as the diplomats. She just had to smile and not kill anyone in sickbay. Sounded easy enough.

"Well, then," Rally began. "Seeing as you probably all know your roles and responsibilities at this point, I think it's safe to say that we can wrap up this meeting early. Consider yourselves Dismissed."

Considering himself dismissed, Damien pushed up from the table and headed for the door, ready to resume his duties.

Natalya followed suit shortly thereafter. Getting up from her seat and making her way towards the exit.

May simply looked over at Rally, gave her a little nod before proceeding out of the room.

Right as Heather and Scott we're getting up to leave, Rally moved over to speak with them.

"Er... Mr. Willis, was it? Would you mind one too terribly if I borrowed you in my office for a few minutes? I have a few things I'd like to discuss with you."

"Not at all sir. " Scott replied.

Rally then turned her attention to Heather.

"Doctor Honey, would you care to join us, please? I believe our discussion will cover some topics that'll be of interest to you."

Heather turned and nodded before following after. She wasn't certain what more she had to add, her specialty was far from diplomacy and that was what this situation sounded like it need.

---

Posting by (In order of appearance):

Commander Irene Vincent
Commanding Officer, Deep Space Station K-9

Lieutenant Commander Damien Maillet
Chief Communications Officer, Deep Space Station K-9

Lieutenant Kaal Eraar
Chief Operations Officer, Deep Space Station K-9

Lieutenant Scott Willis
Chief Science Officer, Deep Space Station K-9

Lieutenant May Hopkins
Chief Engineer, Deep Space Station K-9

Lieutenant Heather Honey
Chief Medical Officer, Deep Space Station K-9

Lieutenant Commander Natalya Chornovil
Chief Security Officer, Deep Space Station K-9

 

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