For Good or For Ill

Posted on 13 Feb 2015 @ 8:03am by Chief Petty Officer Lyras Ueda & Lieutenant JG Wakeham Paul Alasia Ph.D.
Edited on on 13 Feb 2015 @ 6:01pm

2,580 words; about a 13 minute read

Mission: Episode 07 - Sojourn
Location: USS Galileo: Deck 5 - Intelligence Office
Timeline: MD 38 - 1710 hrs

ON

On the bottom right hand corner of Lyras Ueda's screen, a small green tab blinked insistently. A message in text came across the Vulcan's screen. "Chief Ueda, are you available to speak briefly?"

Enveloped in his own little Romulan-culture studies, the hybrid vaguely noticed the notification on his screen. Tapping the button, he frowned. "I should be able to, yes."

"Excellent, please establish a secure channel to 96-UFP-Paris-Delta."

Lyras' brow rose, but he cleared off his busy-looking desk and proceeded to call up the channel links.

The logo of the United Federation of Planets transformed into the logo of the Federation Diplomatic Corps. "Chief Ueda, my name is Jamie Rossitelli, this message is being securely transmitted via my office in Paris to the transport ship De La Salle where I am currently quartered. I am an investigative attache for the Office of the Inspector General and I'm hoping to speak to you briefly about Lieutenant Junior Grade Paul Alasia and his conduct following your ship's diplomatic contact with the CDS Aldara several weeks ago."

Investigation? In his excitement to uncover the 'secrets' of creating prime Romulan ale, Lyras must have missed the paperwork involved with such a hefty term. Nonetheless, he nodded as if he understood, to save face. "Of course, Mr. Rossitelli."

"After a brief conversation, I'm going to ask Lieutenant Alasia to join our us but I wanted to speak to you alone first. You are not under oath and there will be no record of this conversation. However, I am obligated to inform you there is an ongoing inquest into this matter and there may come a point in the future where you are put under oath and compelled to give a statement on the official record. It is further my duty to inform you that at any point you have the right to seek counsel under either or both the military code of justice and Federation Law. Do you wish to proceed?"

Ever curious, the Vulcan man narrowed his eyes. This investigation sounded more involved than misconduct involving taspar eggs. "Yes, I do." However, his curiosity was besting his better judgment.

"Chief, during your last mission, it is my understanding that the Galileo hosted a small gathering of Cardassian military officials. Could you give me a brief overview of the events of that dinner?"

Lyras' other brow rose. So it did have to do with the conduct at the dinner. "I was not present for the initial greeting of Gul Verrok and the crew of the Aldara, as I was aiding Lieutenant Alasia in the preparations for the gathering itself, which we both attended to see that said preparations were in order throughout. As you mentioned, there was a dinner involved, and it seemed to be going well for a time, but then the conversation turned to ah... more political turn, and both parties were quite unsettled by that point."

"Chief, I understand your reticence in discussing that night but please be advised, I'm fully briefed on what happened and, as long as you're honest, you are not in any trouble. There was an altercation, correct?"

Legalities. Lyras would have much rather sat himself down in the middle of a pile of books than have to argue with a lawyer about how a dinner violated a code in a book. He may have been a diplomat, but if they concerned themselves too much over a few rules, then no one was going to truly get anything done. But, if this was to be done by the book, the Vulcan would do it by the book, trouble or not. "Yes, there was."

"Could you describe for me please the nature of altercation and who was involved?" Rossitelli asked flatly.

Keen-eyed as Lyras was, the diplomat had put the whole memory of the incident behind him, and he had done so on purpose. Nonetheless, he sighed, and continued the tale to the best of his ability. "If you are referring to the altercation that occurred between the Chief of the Boat and the Cardassian Tactical Officer, then the incident was merely an outburst on the Chief's part, based on a statement-or two-made by the Cardassian about pregnant women and how the Cardassians saw them. Both made rather scathing comments, if memory serves, but in the end it was the Chief who was removed from the party on order of Captain Holliday."

Following an - admittedly cursory - review of your service record, I am to understand you have worked in a diplomatic capacity for more than two decades. Given your experience and knowledge, would you consider this altercation at this dinner routine diplomatic conduct?

"Routine?" Lyras paused, only briefly, to answer in as best a way he could. "Yes. The Corps handbook may not state specifically, but we are trained to handle any sort of altercation; including this one."

"I'm not... let me phrase this another way, Chief. Can you provide a rationale for why such an incident would go completely unreported to the Federation Diplomatic Corps?" Rossitelli's tone remained even but his phrasing was growing increasingly acerbic. "Is it the common wisdom of the USS Galileo crew that tense verbal arguments and outright fisticuffs between Starfleet personnel and members of the Cardassian military is completely immaterial to the United Federation of Planet's diplomatic interests?" Rossitelli took a long pause and sighed. "Were you aware that no report of this meeting ever found its way to Starfleet Diplomatic? Did Lieutenant Alasia make you aware of his decision regarding that matter?"

"Ah." Lyras frowned, reminded of the unnecessary, monkey-like antics of lawyers and their strive to have things in their language. "I was not present for the writing of the report itself, but I did receive a copy of it, that I had reviewed before it was sent to the Corps, but during our attempts to restore the ship after a tribble infestation. I must confess, the altercation itself was the last thing on my mind at that point."

"The tribble..." Rossitelli trailed off and sighed in exasperation. "Frankly, Chief, I don't think anyone on board the Galileo should stand tall and proud on the handling of that situation either but that's not my hill to die on. To phrase this as simply as possible: is it your belief that Lieutenant Alasia failed to report the Cardassian incident because he or you or both of you considered a fistfight between someone in Starfleet and a Cardassian military officer to be such a routine peacetime occurrence that it didn't rise to the level of requiring Federation attention?"

Lyras bristled at the other's commentary. He wasn't quite sure he was overly fond of the man's tone, as if he were fishing for answers to things he wanted to hear. Had he remembered there was a fistfight at all, he would have delayed the call, potentially reviewed the records so that he knew when the incident took place and how it occurred. Lyras had unwittingly played the wrong cards at the wrong time, and now he found himself stuck. He felt his jaw setting, but he had to come up with some response, especially now. "Mr. Rossitelli, I do feel the need to request a counsel at this point."

"Like I said Chief Ueda, this is not an inquest into your conduct - the target of this investigation is Lieutenant Alasia. However, seeking counsel is within your rights. But I have to warn you that that course of action will reflect poorly upon you in my report."

If anyone thought Lyras was going to bat an eye at a black mark on his report, they were sorely mistaken. He nodded solemnly.

"At this point I'm going to patch this into a threeway conversation with Lieutenant Alasia." Rossitelli pressed a button to summon Paul. Lyras' screen now bifurcated with his unwelcome interlocutor on the left and the UFP logo patiently sitting on the right. The men sat awkwardly while the chime of an awaiting commlink sounded rhythmically. Finally the visage of Lieutenant Alasia appeared.

"This is Alasia." Paul immediately turned his gaze to his Yeoman. "I'm so sorry, Lyras. I was under strict orders not to warn you this call was coming."

Though his expression remained unchanged, there was a slight humorous tone in his voice. "Warn me? I was waiting for a surprise call just like this to un-dull my day."

"Lieutenant, your Chief informs me that he wasn't even aware of fight incident with the Aldara. Did you feel it was necessary to hide this information from him?"

Paul bristled at the wording. It had been a long week of exactly this type of grilling. "No." Paul replied sharply. "'Hide' implies forethought, Mr. Rossitelli." Paul sighed wearily. "It is chaotic on a starship. I guess I assumed he knew." Paul said referring to Lyras. "It's not like a huge secret over here. But, I don't recall ever specifically discussing the matter with him."

Lyras narrowed his eyes, tempo regained. "Nor did I explicitly state that I was not aware that the fistfight had taken place. We were just getting to that part of the tale when I requested assistance."

"Your silence strongly implied either ignorance or a conspiracy." Rossitelli said hyperbolically. "Between obfuscation and ignorance, I'm choosing to give you the benefit of the doubt. Lieutenant your willingness to play fast and loose with key diplomatic information - from us, from your own staff - it astonishes me. "

"Mr. Rossitelli," Paul replied wanly, "I'm here to answer for a willing decision I made - a decision for which I am willing to accept the full responsibility. It's my understanding that how I conduct my affairs aboard the ship is a military matter and outside your purview. Am I wrong about that?"

"It speaks to a pattern of negligence, Mr. Alasia." Rossitelli fired back with an unctuous tone. "Chief Ueda, please characterize Lieutenant Alasia's conduct from your perspective as his subordinate. Please bear in mind that we may yet seek to obtain copies of your duty and personal logs. Lying here, while not technically perjury, will reflect very badly on you if what you say doesn't match your own official records."

Lyras quirked a brow. "I believe that is the third time you've reminded me of my rights, and I do believe you've-in some manner-asked my opinion of Lieutenant Alasia's behavior. As a subordinate, I find that disrespectful regardless of the circumstances. Is that what you're asking me, Mr. Rossitelli?"

"What you do or don't find appropriate, Chief, is completely immaterial to me." Rossitelli said hotly. "I am warning you of your rights because my investigation led me to the door of Lieutenant Alasia - I had no reason to suspect you of any malfeasance. But frankly, you have been evasive this entire interview and perhaps I have been casting too narrow a net."

Rossitelli paused momentarily to let his threat hang in the air and muted Paul's commlink. "Now. Chief. "he said slowly and tensely, "one last time - did you know about the fistfight between Master Chief Quinn and the Cardassian delegation; do you believe such an incident ought to be reported and if so, do you find Lieutenant Alasia's failure to report it to be part and parcel of a systematic disregard for protocol? This is your last chance, Mr. Ueda.

Paul opened his eyes wide and mouthed something but Lyras couldn't make it out.

Lyras had played the game in his head many times. He could have spent all this time pontificating with this Rossitelli on the conduct he seemed to be exuding, but there were times and places for that, and people he could have spoken with. Now was neither the time, nor the place.

He ignored Paul's attempt at a warning-whatever it was-and put on his best monotone, to appease Mr. Rossitelli's desire for 'facts.' "I was not aware, but if I had been, considering the circumstances, I would myself not have made a mention of it in such specifics. Starfleet would have been made aware that both sides had rising hostilities and multiple, extremely tense issues had occurred. I do not believe reporting such a specific incident as a 'fistfight' would not have changed my report any more or less than giving one of the attendees the stink-eye-which, might I add, happened on a grand total of 15 occasions during that event, one of which deflected off of one of our lieutenant's heads, if I remember correctly. So, based on the fact that I would not have, I would not see Lieutenant Alasia's failure to report it as a disregard of protocol."

Rossitelli sat quietly for what felt to all three men like a long time. He glanced at something off in the distance and then back to his screen. "I..." he started and caught himself. He sighed and again sat frozen, looking at the increasingly perturbed Lieutenant on his screen. "I'm not often surprised, Chief. But I find your attitude truly surprising."

Rossitelli turned his attention to Paul. "I'm going to have to start seriously considering the possibility that this behavior reflects a deeply ingrained institutional rot. Lieutenant Alasia, by the time I arrive onboard, I expect you to have a detailed record of all of your conduct since receiving your commission. Mr. Ueda, I want a summary of your time onboard the Galileo."

"Gentlemen, this is completely unacceptable. Starfleet is not free to conduct military or diplomatic business on its own. Your mission it to project the desires and the ideals people of the United Federation of Planets... There are accountability measures in place to see to to it that you hold true to that mission." Rossitelli's tone suddenly grew very tense. "If you believe that reporting the conduct of your command staff is below you -- if you think the civilians whom you serve don't need to be apprised of your conduct, I suggest you try to find an opening aboard a Cardassian warship, because here, we don't abide military dictatorship. I will see you both in 72 hours." With that Rossitelli's visage disappeared, leaving the two men in silence.

Paul ran his hands through his hair slowly. and sighed "Chief, can we meet alone at 1000 hrs tomorrow?"

Lyras' jaw set in a manner unlike his more Vulcan half; being told off as if he were fresh out of Starfleet may have been something he heard many times over, but it was not exactly one he was always prepared to hear. He leveled a stony look in Paul's direction, making a few quick motions on his PADD, as if he had a file detailing his full career in Starfleet on hand. "The sooner the better."

Paul wearily reached over to turn off his screen when he suddenly retreated his hand and glanced back at his Yeoman on the commlink. "I really am sorry about this, Lyras. One way or another - this is on me, not you."

OFF

Lieutenant (JG) Wakeham Paul Alasia
Diplomatic Officer
USS Galileo

Chief Petty Officer Lyras Ueda
Diplomatic Yeoman
USS Galileo
[PNPC - Kita]

Jamie Rossitelli
Inspector
United Federation of Planets, Office of the Inspector General
[PNPC - Alasia]

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