Lt. JG Kaito Moore - Sacrificed at the Altar Caution

[Lieutenant j.g. Kaito Moore]

  (( Level 3, Command Center, Amity Outpost ))

(( OOC: Opinions and thoughts are Kaito’s only, and not those of the writer. I do not think Robin is secretly a blood priestess sacrificing junior officers. ))

Hopper: Hiya Kaito – Come on in.

Kaito walked in, PADD in hand, and perhaps gave a too-formal greeting, but once again kept this — at least at first — business-focused.

Moore: Evening, Commander, thank you for having me.

Hopper: :Lightly::  Of course. Everything alright, Lieutenant?  Wanna grab a seat?

Moore: I’m well, and sorry for being overly formal, but I brought you my post-operation assessment — along with some of my… concerns.

Hopper: Concerns?

He walked over to her desk, putting the PADD down for her. He then took a seat. He was feeling anxious before, but as he looked at Robin, that anxiety disappeared, turning into more assured determination. He was the tactical expert, after all.

Hopper: Alright, I think I get the gist, but–  ::placing the PADD down::  –why don’t you walk me through the main points?

Moore: I’ll get straight to the heart of my concerns, as I don’t want to waste your time. When we went to arrest Norsel… we were armed with one phase pistol, fists, and pine cones. Against a force that outnumbered us. If they were armed with something worse than stun batons — such as a firearm — there was a high chance of casualties and/or capture.

He looked right at her, conviction in his voice, as he said the next part. Besides, once it was out, the hard part was over.

Moore: We broke long-established away team protocols, and it’s concerningly a trend that I’ve noticed for a while now.

Robin drummed her fingers on the edge of her desk, her lips pursing slightly on their own. For some reason, the drumming concerned Kaito.

Hopper: Hmm. ::Remembering her tea, taking a sip::  Alright, let’s talk about that… I’m sure it’s all laid out in your report, but since I have you sitting right here, I take it that you’re primarily concerned with deviations from established protocols when it comes to matters of safety and security? 

Moore: Yes, that is correct.

Hopper: And what was Commander Iko’s opinion on this? I assume you brought these concerns to Bec? She is, after all, the station’s Chief of Security and Tactical.

Moore: Unknown, but she has received the same report along with my concerns and recommendations.

Robin let out a sigh and started to pace. Kaito just sat there waiting. He was starting to grow concerned that maybe this was a mistake, and he should have just kept quiet — but no. He would be doing a disservice to his crewmembers, and Starfleet as a whole, if he just kept quiet.

Hopper: Well, Kaito, I think you have a right to be concerned. In fact, if you weren’t, I’d say you weren’t really doing your job. You are, after all, one of our more seasoned officers now, and you’ve been part of quite a few missions with the senior staff – providing your assessment of the risks posed by a mission, and how to mitigate those risks, is exactly what you ought to be doing.

She moved back to the center of the room, sitting herself on the corner of the desk, rather than in her chair, leaning one hand on its surface and crossing her legs, in a position that was both a little authoritative and yet still casual.

Hopper: Look, Amity’s a unique case. No doubt about it. Our mission in the Delta Quadrant is, officially, not one of scientific exploration or defensive in nature – it’s a diplomatic mission. All Starfleet command decisions have to be filtered through that lens. You’re familiar with the perception that a lot of our Delta Quadrant neighbours have about the Federation’s presence here?

Moore: Quite a bit, seeing as I run threat assessments on our neighbors and the potential danger we face.

Hopper: When we engage in missions like the one on Uwe, we have to consider more than just the safety of the crew. First off, there’s the Prime Directive to keep in mind – which, per official policy, takes priority, even over the safety of crew. Carrying advanced technology with us, especially weapons, is a major risk factor to our non-interference directive. Then there’s the matter of optics. If we aren’t careful, we could be seen as unnecessarily aggressive, hostile even, when we bring along weapons on missions with a diplomatic or observational focus. Especially if the crap does hit the fan…

That was a lot to unpack, and as Kaito heard more and more, it was clear his concerns were going to be dismissed, but truthfully he felt himself mentally deflate.

He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He hadn’t realized how little regard Robin had for the crew.

Yes, she was right — the way the Prime Directive was written, that it takes priority over the safety of the crew, was correct — but time and time again, Starfleet captains, commanders, and personnel have made judgments to protect their crew. Even the way the law was written, such as trying to avoid accidental contamination, there was wiggle room to protect the crew — because leaving an alien body or a starship blowing up in orbit could do more damage than good.

But it seemed Kaito was wrong to bring his concerns up. Why would they listen? He and everyone else were just sacrificial lambs to slaughter at the dogmatic altar of the Prime Directive.

Never mind the whole issue of running around defensively naked because a few minor powers and hack reporters would clutch their pearls.

Kaito just blinked for a moment, unpacking it all, and while he was sure he could argue the point — using various general orders, court cases, and examples from even the greatest captains, and even some of the most zealous of them — he knew that wouldn’t get anywhere. What’s done is done. The only real option was to keep doing his duty until it was his time for his neck to meet the altar… or start looking for a transfer. Truthfully, one of those seemed better than the other.

He nodded and finally spoke.

Moore: Understood, I’m sorry for wasting your time. I—

She held up a hand, cutting him off, and like that, he shut up and listened. 

Hopper: I know you know all this. The point I want to get us to is this: Given the need to balance our larger mission priorities – non-interference, non-aggression, diplomacy – what are your recommendations about how we can be better prepared for situations like these?

Maybe there was a little hope. Kaito had come prepared, and if she was willing to hear his argument, then he was willing to fight and die on his altar.

Moore: Simple. ::He reached for his jacket, producing a small Type-1 phaser:: We don’t disregard two hundred and fifty years of procedures and protocol when we have the tools to meet those standards already while maintaining our mission objectives.

He placed the small phaser on the desk — a tiny and reduced-power version of its larger cousin, but a classic design, one dating back to the 22nd century. At one point, it was standard issue for away teams, covert operations, and diplomatic functions. Sadly, it had fallen out of favor for the Type-2. Blame the Borg, Dominion, and many other threats that left Starfleet wanting more stopping power — but in this case, this was the situation the Type-1 was designed for.

Hopper: Response

Moore: These are not as popular among security teams, and most away teams carry Type-2s in the fleet, but if you are worried about diplomatic optics, these hide discreetly. They are lower-powered compared to our standard-issue phaser, but strong enough for a team to defend themselves. Much better than a science officer aiming a tricorder or a doctor throwing pine cones.

Hopper: Response

Moore: As for non-interference, I don’t mean to sound sarcastic, but unless we are willing to start leaving our tricorders behind, and forgo communicators, or resign ourselves to hiding on our ship in orbit, I think we should follow long-established procedures and our academy training. That being said, I do have an idea to cut down on the risks of contamination.

Hopper: Response

Moore: Give me access to an engineering research lab, maybe a small team, and I will design a Type-1 phaser that is biometrically locked to the assigned away team, so only they can fire it. And should anyone unauthorized try to fire it or open it, I can install a small feedback circuit to completely fry the phaser, rendering it useless. We can do the same with our tricorders too.

He could also lower the power down too, making it non-leathal like the popular Mark VIII NL, but Kaito wanted to avoid as many downgrades as possible. Then again, Anything was better than Pinecones and Fists.

Hopper: Response

Lieutenant JG Kaito Moore

Tactical Officer

Amity Outpost

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