DL | Lieutenant Orson Odan, Chief Counsellor/Diplomatic Officer | "Better the devil you used to know"

Posted on 241403.09 @ 11:41am by Lieutenant Orson Odan MD, PsyD
Edited on on 241403.09 @ 11:41am

Mission: Where no man has gone before.
Location: Deck 4, USS Enterprise

Deck 4, USS Enterprise

“So did you hear?”

“Hear what?”

“He had a breakdown!”

“Ok, going to need some context here, who?”

“That Vulcan guy, you know? The supposed shrink”

“You’re joking right? A Vulcan displaying emotion… common”

“No word of a lie, Crewman Harris said he was outside the counselling suites waiting for an appointment before departure, poor guy, wife and daughter were killed in the Sol attacks. Anyway, he said he got there and there was this person in the room with the Vulcan and they were speaking. He didn’t hear it all but he swears he heard the words breakdown and emotionally unfit for duty…”

“Yeah, but he could have been talking about someone else… or the patient he was with?”

“Nope, apparently Harris said that they left the room and the Vulcan was escorted away. Like, left the ship escorted away”.

“Firstly, who the hell can tell if a Vulcan is having a breakdown… and secondly, does that mean we’re out here without a shrink?”

The gossip continued as the two crewmen headed down the corridor towards the mess hall for some much needed time off from duty. Walking past them, catching the topic of conversation, he wanted to interject but refrained. Social interaction with strangers was never easy. Turning a corner he stopped and looked around. It was almost identical to where he had just come from. Did he take a wrong turn? No… surely not. Well, it was possible he thought to himself as he turned towards where he had come from and where he thought he was heading with some confusion.

“Kellian, you would have never had this problem would you” he muttered to himself as the confusion mounted. “No! I know… it’s this way” he continued to no one as he took a sharp left turn and found what he was looking for. His quarters.

They had been previously occupied by the former Counsellor and Chief Diplomatic Officer of the USS Enterprise, Lieutenant Vanik. However, now they were his. The replacement. Frustrating it certainly was, he had only commented to the personnel officer that the Vulcan displayed signs of depression and was on the verge of a psychological break. That had resulted in a whirlwind of activity as he was shipped to the Enterprise to perform psychiatric testing, which had confirmed the comments and resulted in the Vulcan being relieved of duty while he took some time to return to Vulcan and get things under control.

This had, unfortunately, left the Enterprise short of a qualified counsellor and diplomatic officer in one fell swoop. He wondered if it had been punishment. Sure, he was qualified in both the fields and yes his performance record was better than the Vulcan but… working on the Federation’s flagship? No, this was all a little too much. He disliked change this extreme with no notice to prepare. He liked being on Earth. Apparently he had no choice though, even when he protested and made up a diplomatic crisis in Tahiti. So here he was.

Heading into the bathroom he looked at himself in the mirror. “Oh Kellian, what are we going to do eh?” he questioned. “No, you’re quite right. It was time for a change I suppose. It’s about time, and these people do need you”. He splashed some water on his face and headed back into the main room. It was still a mess of unpacked boxes and crates. He would get around to it eventually, maybe.

Deciding the best course of action to deal with all this was to launch into work he sat down at the desk and tapped away at the console losing track of time and place. Then he spotted it. An invitation for Lieutenant Vanik to have dinner with the Commanding Officer.

“Ah” he said aloud. It appeared the Captain had not yet been informed of the last minute change before launch.

“Was that my job Kellian?” he asked.

Shaking his head he decided that perhaps it was his job and he should attend if nothing more than to make himself known. As the ship had just launched and everyone, including himself, incredibly busy he hadn’t been able to and apparently Starfleet Personnel hadn’t bothered either. Closing down the terminal he hurried back into the bathroom.

Slightly long and messy hair, stubble and piercing blue eyes met his own. “Well Kellian, it’s not the face you’re used to, but I suppose it will do. I like it. I think”. He moved his head from side to side. The Trill spots the only visible distinction between him and any Human aboard the ship. His uniform was at least neat, mostly.

“Guess we better go meet the Captain” he said heading out of his quarters.

“Orson?!” came a voice from behind him.

“Orson Odan?” it added for some sort of clarification.

The Trill spun and looked at the astonishingly beautiful woman standing in front of him.

“Me? Oh… um… hello? Yes? Did you need a session? Not to make it seem like you’re mad by approaching a Counsellor, I suppose…”

He was cut off by the laughter of the woman who had now caught up to him. “Oh, you never change do you? It’s me! Natasha, Natasha Markov, from the academy? We studied linguistics and some of the psychology modules together? First day of class you fell up the stairs and I helped you with your books?” she said half-frowning, half-smiling trying to prompt him.
“Oh! Yes! Of course, Natasha, of course” he said all the pieces clicking into place. It was so hard to distinguish so many faces he had met during his, and their, lives.

“So good to see you. So you’re on the Enterprise too? That’s so good, you were brilliant” she said blushing slightly.

“Thank you?” Orson questioned. “It’s good to see you too. I.. err.. need to do something… I don’t mean that to get rid of you… I just… what was it? OH! Dinner with the captain!” he exclaimed remembering.

Natasha chuckled “I won’t hold you up; it’s good to see you perhaps we can catch up later?”

“Yes, of course, w… I’d like that” Orson stuttered as he waved and turned hurriedly so as not to be late. As he did so he walked straight into a six foot something Klingon who merely growled at him incredulously.

“Ah, err… sorry… sorry!” Orson proclaimed as he moved past the Klingon and towards the Captain’s private dining room.

=/\=

Lieutenant Orson Odan MD, PSyD
Chief Counsellor/Diplomatic Officer
USS Enterprise