PNPC Provisional Crewman Vhysa'lia - Where There's A Will...
Lich
((Counselor’s Office - Deck 7, USS Artemis-A))
Vhysa’lia’s first patient aboard the Artemis was a confounding one - a former Borg drone who remembered nothing of his time with the Borg. Solas, as he had requested to be called, wasn’t burdened with the memories of what he had done, but with worries about what he might have done. And it was their task to help him find peace, and put the horrors of Frontier Day behind him.
One of her goals when working with the new Kobali was to replace the narrative that they held in their memories of their deaths with one of their rebirths. Reframing what had happened in a more positive light, and emphasizing qualities of themselves that would help them in their new life was essential in helping them adapt. They were just tweaking this approach a little, trying to help bolster Solas’ confidence after the trauma of assimilation - as he said, he’d been able to alert the other officers to what was going on for him, likely saving them. She could lean on that, trying to bolster how he saw his time as a Borg drone.
Vhysa’lia: ::nodding, with a slight smile on her face:: I think that shows strong willpower, and sense of duty. Even when faced with something unknown and violating, like a sudden loss of control of your body, you were still able to focus yourself enough to try and combat it, saving the lives of the others in the room with you.
He was avoiding their eye contact - looking at the floor, and anywhere else beside them. She cocked her head, furrowing wrinkles into her forehead as she tried to glean more from his body language. Was that the right path to go down, or was he closing himself off from her?
Kel: I don’t know if I see it that way counselor. I mean if my willpower was really that strong, wouldn’t I have been able to throw it off completely? Not been a risk to anyone?
That was a pessimistic way of looking at it, Vhysa’lia thought. She’d said he had strong willpower - not that he was completely unyielding. Even the most iron-willed of individuals could find themselves falling to the Borg - anyone who’d grown up in the Delta Quadrant could have told you that. It was just the truth. The Borg had spent every waking minute of their existence pondering just how to wriggle through the cracks in one’s mental and physical defenses; withstanding them forever wasn’t possible. The numbers just didn’t work out, they couldn’t work out.
Vhysa’lia: ::shaking her head:: The Borg have been perfecting their assimilation for centuries; it’s not your fault that you eventually succumbed to it. What matters is those few seconds that you gave your crewmates, holding on as long as you did. ::she gives a concerned smile:: That’s your job, right? To protect your crew, and give them the best chance at survival?
Solas still avoided looking her in the eyes, but he had leaned back into his chair, relaxing a little. Good. This was progress - they didn’t expect to solve his problems right this second, but any steps forwards towards helping him were better than none.
Kel: Well I’m just glad Savel got away. I’m glad no one got hurt. I’m supposed to be keeping everyone safe right? I don’t know how I could live with myself if I’d gotten someone hurt.
Vhysa’lia: Exactly. That’s how you should be framing it to yourself - that while you were able to act, you did your best to minimize the harm to others around you, as is your duty.
Kel: Response
Vhysa’lia: What you should focus on is what you can account for - not what you can’t. I understand that not being able to recall what happened to your body while assimilated by the Borg is distressing, but you can’t blame yourself. You had your autonomy stripped from you, completely.
There was, of course, a bit of sad irony in her heart when she said that. Many other species saw the Kobali in a similar light - that their reproduction similarly stripped individuals of their autonomy. But in their eyes, the reanimation was what granted them autonomy that they couldn’t have as the dead. Would it really be better for them to remain lifeless, rather than to have another chance?
But that wasn’t the point. They were here to try and help Solas, and to give him a light tap onto the path of recovery. Or a large push, if that’s what was needed. But, as hesitant as he was to return her eye contact, it seemed to her that it was working, at least a little.
Kel: Response
Vhysa’lia: Solas, do you want to discuss some exercises that you could explore in your down-time to help with what you’re feeling? ::pause:: If not, we can continue to talk about your experience during Frontier Day, or anything else you want to talk about.
Kel: Response
Tags/TBC :)