Where Do We Go From Here?
Posted on Fri 4th Jun, 2021 @ 10:28pm by Commander Mikaela Locke & Commander Paul Graves PsyD
913 words; about a 5 minute read
Mission:
Waging Peace
Location: Orchids & Jazz, Deck 600
Timeline: MD 01, 1950
Previously, Commander Locke wondered ...
"I guess I'm feeling like I need to know where we're going - and what that means."
She looked up at him, unsure what she would see. Was she pressuring him into something he wasn't ready for? Had he given any thought to the implications of their relationship at all?
And now her questions might be answered.
Paul listened and gave Mikaela his full attention. She was full of uncertainty--which came as no surprise, for he felt the same, for some of the same reasons. "Ah, yes. I think the intricacies of our relationship are what Sherlock Holmes might term a three-pipe problem."
He leaned on his elbows and rested his chin on his interlaced fingers. "While you've been away, I've mulled over the idea of switching to a line officer position as a means of challenging myself and getting out of my comfort zone. I haven't discussed it with Commodore Suzuki yet for two reasons. First, I realized that I don't want to command a starship. Second, if I switched from staff to line officer, I could be assigned away from here for extended periods of time--years, even, if I were assigned to a starship." He shook his head. "I'm not without ambition, but my ambitions don't flow in that direction."
Paul unclasped his hands and sat straighter in his chair. "I do want a serious relationship with you. I don't believe that remaining as Second Officer will be consistent with that desire. Or, as someone from Earth might say, 'something's got to give.'" He smiled at her. "We need a Second Officer who is not me."
Jade stopped at Dr. Graves' table and set a bourbon and coke in front of the Executive Officer, and a glass of sangria in front of the psychologist. "It appears that conversation is somewhat ... complicated at the moment. Enjoy your drinks, and signal for Jenna when you're ready to move on to the business of eating," she said with a smile before moving off toward another table in the vicinity.
Locke offered a low, 'Thank you' as Jade turned away. She took a further few seconds to reflect on Paul's words before responding. "I know One-Oh-Nine isn't a typical assignment," she eventually offered, "But there's no guarantee that one or other of us won't be assigned elsewhere - whether or not you make the move to the command track."
"True," Paul said with a nod at Jade before returning his attention to Mikaela. "But it's less likely, in my case. While I haven't reached the end of the road as far as promotions go, Chief Counselor at a Starbase is pretty high up there, and of the counselors who reach this position, most go no farther. I might conceivably be promoted to Counseling Consultant, overseeing several Chief Counselors in this area of space. Or I could be assigned to teach at Starfleet Academy or a university here on 109 for a term or two. But aside from that, unless something odd happens and they need a Betazoid counselor somewhere urgently, I'm unlikely to be posted elsewhere for a while." He shrugged. "I might even become part of the 'up or out' crowd." He shot Mikaela a brief smile. "Of course, if that happened, our sticky situation would be solved. But I have a few years of time in grade before that becomes an issue."
"I suppose," Mikaela agreed, semi-reluctantly. "As long as you're sure that that's what you really want," she said. "I don't want you to feel pressured into a career decision based on a relationship that ...." She paused, almost not wanting to say the words. Eventually, she knew she had to be real with him. "That might not last."
For her own part, Mikaela had no intention of breaking the relationship off, but her fortnight alone on New Sydney had given her far too much time to overthink, second-guess and reflect on the fact that, historically, she had always managed to find a way to sabotage any good relationship that she had.
"Because you could be transferred or given your own command at any time?" Paul asked. "I get the sense that you're not looking to break up, but that something makes you uneasy. I'm not interested in breaking up any more than you are--but I've had enough of trying to squeeze two full-time jobs into the hours allotted for one each day."
She thought for a moment, contemplating her own career journey. "You see," she finally began, "I'm not sure I want to command a starship either. I mean, I loved my intel. career. I was really good at what I did and, in a lot of ways, I miss it. I applied for the XO job here because it was an opportunity to work with Colonel Drake and I stayed after his death because ... well, because this station is the closest thing I've had to a real home, pretty much ever ...."
She paused again, and took a slow sip of the bourbon and coke that Jade had placed in front of her. "I guess, at the moment, if I had to move on, I'd either want Grax's job ... or Commodore Suzuki's."
"I'm glad you stayed," Paul said. "Not just because of us, but because of Horatio. I think he'd have appreciated that you stayed."
“I think so too,” Mikaela replied with a nod. “I think so too...”
to be continued...
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