The Deltan's Roommate's Lament

Posted on 26 Oct 2015 @ 12:15pm by Commander Norvi Stace & Lieutenant Oren Idris Ph.D.
Edited on on 26 Oct 2015 @ 12:19pm

1,265 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 09 - Empires
Location: Stace's Office, Deck Two, USS Galileo
Timeline: MD04; 2125 Hours

ON:

"Commander Stace to Lieutenant Idris. Please report to my office immediately. Stace out."

Startled out of his thoughts, Oren glanced up at the ceiling as if Stace's voice came as some message from the beyond. He always found the comms a little disconcerting, no matter how much time he spent aboard starships. Tapping his commbadge, he told her he was on his way.

She sat back in her chair and crossed her legs childishly beneath her. She'd already spent a couple of hours in the office going over what the doctor and Jynn had divulged to her and now it was time to start investigating the periphery of what had have transpired. Jynn had admitted to the commander that he had already confided in Idris of his breach and now she needed it straight from the horses mouth. As her doorbell chimed, she bade him entry and then half-smiled his welcome.

"Lieutenant. Please take a seat."

"Commander," Oren said in greeting, sitting down and crossing his legs. Fidgeting slightly, he waited for the Trill to begin, assuming there had to be a very good reason he'd been summoned so suddenly.

"I've asked you here today," she began, "as part of an official investigation into Lieutenant Jynn's breach of oath that he swore when entering into Starfleet as a servant of the Federation. He has divulged that he confided in you this transgression and that you had urged him to confess it. For that, I am thankful and respectful of your duty. However, that is only half the facts. I now need from you a full account of what he confessed, and any other information you are in possession of pertaining to this. All information you give with be confidential, however, should this go to court martial, and it is very likely that it will, you will be called on as a witness. Am I clear, Lieutenant?"

Nodding as he listened, Oren uncrossed his legs and put his hands in his lap. "Yes, of course," he said immediately after her explanation. "I'll be as detailed as possible," he said, focusing.

"I went to Jynn's quarters at around 1900 hours. We agreed on a tattooing session when we met. The tattooing lasted over two hours and we got to know each other during that time. Just as we were finishing, he suddenly told me he has a secret," Oren explained, remembering the look Jynn had given him at his confession.

"This wasn't strange. People tell me lots of things, I'm El-Aurian, so I got used to it." He shrugged. "But he told me he'd broken his oath. I asked who with, and he said 'The tattooed doctor', which is what I called Dr. Voutilainen when we talked about body art and modification earlier. I asked his for details but he just said he didn't regret it. He seemed..." Oren's eyes narrowed a bit as he tried to recall the exact feelings he'd noticed in Jynn that evening. As he gave his explanation for the events, his voice took on a slighly airy, far away voice, as if he was tapping into some part of his mind and distancing himself from where he was. "Calm? Like, it was no big deal and he was willing to wait for it all to work itself out. I said that was irresponsible and I guess I got to him because he then started to feel bad and wanted to go right that second. But he couldn't. I guess he was too afraid."

"So how did you then persuade him to come to us in the end, Lieutenant?" Stace questioned quietly.

"I told him he could go tomorrow and that, if he wanted, I'd go with him. To be honest, that wasn't so much for his comfort as it was for my own piece of mind. I had already decided that, if he didn't report himself in twenty four hours, I would. He promised to go see Holliday the next day after alpha shift. Which, I'm assuming he did." After his explanation, Oren seemed to relax slightly, focusing back on Stace. "If you want the exact phrasing we used, I can write it down for you. I remember it word for word."

"If you could," Stace replied sitting back into her chair. "It's not something that I'll need immediately, but it could help the case as we progress further." Stace paused for a moment and looked away from Oren. This was surely a mess, and the lieutenant's own description of Jynn's calm, unsettling demeanor had triggered her own sense of injustice. "Do you think he was truly sorry for the breach of his oath, Lieutenant, or more worried about the consequences for himself?"

This was, to the Trill's mind, the crux of the issue. Whether Jynn admitted it or not, he had used an influence over someone who was lesser prepared than himself. Dipped his toe into the fountain uncaring of how else had to drink from it. And yet his primary concern seemed to be his own preservation and that, above all else, is what irked her.

Oren looked down at his hands, wondering the same himself. Sitting in silence for a few seconds, Oren recalled the feeling of slipping off his shirt that night in his own quarters, seeing both shoulders soaked from Jynn's tears, the front slightly stretched where he'd gripped it for what felt like hours until his tears dried out. Absent-minded, he reached up and touched his chest as the phantom touch of Jynn's hand appeared there.

"I think he didn't truly allow himself to think beyond the consequences for himself until that night. Even before, I don't think he thought much of the consequences in general. He's Deltan, they seek experiences and to make others happy. While I believe there is no excuse for his actions, I find it slightly unfair to lay all the blame on Jynn's shoulders." Oren linked his hands, looking at the Commander again.

"But for what it's worth, I can tell you that I believe Jynn genuinely regrets what he did. I stayed with him that night. Deltans are very emotional, and I didn't think it was a good idea for him to be alone in that state. What I saw from him that evening, wasn't the sight of a man who was just afraid of what would happen to himself."

Stace nodded slowly. This was an entirely different scenario to that with which she witnessed from Jynn himself. In fact, it was the opposite. To her mind, Jynn had seemed aloof and his only responses were of his own preservation. But then she had to reason with herself that she had asked only for the facts, and this report itself would only report them likewise. She sighed and then nodded once again to Iris. "Thanks again, Lieutenant," she said softly. "I appreciate your honesty. But if there's nothing further you think needs adding then you're dismissed."

Oren nodded. "For what it's worth, Commander," He said, standing up and staying there to look at the Trill for a moment. "My own feelings aside, this is an incredibly complex issue and I don't believe Jynn is in any way innocent. I trust that you and the rest of the command staff will do what is best for the group." Giving the woman what he hoped she understood as a supportive smile, the man finally took his leave.


OFF:

Lieutenant JG Oren Idris
Chief Research Officer
USS Galileo

AND

Commander Norvi Stace
First Officer
USS Galileo

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