LTJG Lhandon Joseph Nilsen - What Do You Think About Your New Captain?
Lhandon Nilsen
(( Souv-lucky Day, Promenade, Deep Space 14, in orbit of New Bajor ))
Lhandon had done what many ensigns and Junior Lieutenants wouldn't dare to do. He had marched right up to his captain and talked to her as if she were an old friend.
In some ways, they were. Lhandon, of course, looked up to Rounienchet, which was true, but they had been friends before she became his captain. She was one of the two people who got him home after the Alphe Brenkelvi II mission. He trusted her advice, asking her for guidance on how to fix his relationship with Etan, and when she spoke, he listened.
Rouiancet: (a little more serious) I hope you've been able to fit in some counseling time.
He listened, and made a mental note to do that.
Nilsen: Eh, it’s all good. I don’t remember much after the broadcast but some good stuff came out of it. It’s early days but…I’ve been working with Lt Martinson and Ensign Taggart, and I don’t know why, but purple feels right.
Lia had raised her eyebrow at him for dodging the question. As a result, he had mentally underlined said note and drawn a box around it.
Rouiancet: Diplomacy, huh? I could always use some more insights from good diplomatic officers.
The signs that Lhandon had been seeing over the past year or so had become clearer. The near seal of approval from Rouiancet confirmed to him that he had been going in the right direction.
Nilsen: But, I’m boring, and nothing dramatic has happened to me since the last mission…which is good I think (laughs) How you doing now cap? Is the big chair comfy?
Rouiancet: No. I'm thinking of resigning.
He let out a little laugh, as she walked on and Lhandon kept up with her.
Nilsen: You better not? I don't think i can deal with another transfer so soon
As she turned she burst into laughter and Lhandon joined in.
Rouiancet: Sorry, I couldn't help myself! No, truly, it's been fine. Not exactly what I expected, but then, what ever is? Our first mission seems to have been a success, and I suppose that's my most accurate metric now.
Nilsen: Yeah, I don’t think there’s a metric to measure and I guess, at least from the past year now, that no mission will ever go as expected.
Now, it seemed that she needed his suggestions, just as much as he needed her guidance ealier
Rouiancet: You might be better able to answer that than me, since you're one of my officers. What do you think about your new captain?
Nilsen: Well you're not Commander Norton, I had him in the academy, scariest man ever. I think you did damn good. We didn’t get blown up which is always a win. We gave the King's Path a chance, and you didn't take the words of the Intercessor at face value. Then after that, despite my erm…insistence at the time, you were right not to send me back into the mine. You gave us all a chance to shine. Maybe Peri and Yinn weren't the best choices for the UDP chat but that's not a stain on them, far from it. At that point, we were stretched thin with the refuges and they both did a damn good job too. and being selfish, I got so much to report to Project Fort, and that won’t get shut down now. So yeah, in short and you can quote me on this if the admiralty get grumpy, you did a damn good job and I like that I can just show up at the door and talk to you
Perhaps in that moment, he had shown what Etan had seen in him, perhaps what V’Airu had seen in him too, and maybe part of the reason why Toxin had made him his right-hand man. His review had been honest, but kind, he gave a clear assessment and became a sounding board of sorts. .
Rouiancet: (a smile) No, no, you don't get out of it that easily. What was that about looking good in purple? There's diplomatic, and then there's dodging the question!
Nilsen: :laughs: Alright fine ha, so. I mentioned Melvinson and Taggart. I’ve been taking tutoring from them, they’ve been teaching me some diplomatic techniques and I’ve signed up to a distance learning course.
Rouiancet: Response
Lhandon had greatly enjoyed the lessons; he found Martinson and Taggart very easy to get along with. The advice they had given him had been remembered, and he had tried to apply it wherever he could. He also found the distance learning courses really handy. He reached a unit that was focusing on diplomacy as a Starship captain. He found this fascinating and chose to go from a passive to an active learner. So, he started participating in the assignments too and planned an essay for this unit, comparing and contrasting the diplomacy techniques between Captain Picard and Captain Janeway.
Nilsen: Well it started when I was kid. Gault gets a lot of trade from Klingons, Federation, the Nausicaans and anyone else you can think of. So I figured out quite quickly how to talk others peoples languages. But I forgot about all of that when I was in the academy. Which was a bit stupid but, eh. Then you remember Alpha Brenkelvi II?
Rouiancet: Response
Most Gaultans are good with their words and good with the land. If operations had ever been a planet, it would have been Gault. While Gaultans were mostly humans, and many of them could trace their lineage back to Earth, like many other colonies near the borders of the Federation, they didn't consider themselves to be from Earth. They weren't Earthlings.
Nilsen: That restarted this whole thing. When I was in V’Airu’s mindscape, I ended up talking on the Bajorns behalf and helping to translate some of the meaning of their speech. Then when I got that ribbon from V’Airu, the diplomacy one, she said that I helped to bring justice to a long forgotten people and I dunno, things started to clicked.
Rouiancet: Response
Nilsen: Then I thought I could repeat that with the kings path mine. That ::small laugh:: …well you know what happened there. But…it lead to you assigning me to the UDP talks, and they by all accounts went well, I got to understand them a little more, Peri let me take the reigns there and we got them on side.
Rouiancet: Response
He soon learned from that mistake. Alto had strung him along, but there was still a part of him that had hoped there was good in him, that there was still good in the remaining members of the King's Path.
Nilsen: So yeah, purple might be a thing for me, though, gold also suits me. Purply gold maybe? ::smiles:: Gimme a couple years, I’ll be begging for Etan’s job ::laughs::
Rouiancet: Response
At that point, Lhandon didn't know about Etan's new posting, but he was finding himself. No longer the battered ensign who first joined the Oumumuma, he was now a Lieutenant Junior Grade who was starting to take control of his career, and his own destiny.
He had no ulterior motive for bringing Rouiancet here. It was as he said, she needed a break just as much, and he was going to make sure that she got that. He wasn’t thinking that this might show him in a good light as a potential XO in the future, nor was he trying to get a leg up. He was just the cheeky LTJG who could easily match up to a commanding officer and go get food for them. He didn’t intend to talk about his career, nor did he intend for this to be a chance for Rouiancet to get some feedback, but he didn’t mind.
Tags/TBC
Lieutenant JG Lhandon Joseph Nilsen
HCO & Acting Asst. Chief
USS Octavia E Butler
O240007LN1
He/Him/His (Both player and character)