JP: Capt. Rouiancet, Cmdr. Promontory, Lt Cmdr. Herrick, Lt JG Caras - Resigned Fate
Morro Caras
((XO Office, Deck 3, USS Octavia E Butler))
Lia, Avander and Josh, had set up shop in the first officer’s office as part of the formal mentoring program they’d set up for the second officer.
Today’s topic: succession planning… and how to manage the more ‘high-maintenance’ personalities in the chain of command such as Tobats and the ‘Three Amigos’
Herrick: And would an appropriate disciplinary action be for what was deemed ::reading the PADD:: ‘replicator roulette’ in the Writer’s Room?
A chime came from the far side of the room, signalling a visitor and parking their discussion. Saved by the bell!
Avander: Come!
Lieutenant JG Caras had made his way to the XO office. He felt like he owed them all an explanation. He felt like he owned them so much more than just a written resignation. So it was like his feet had automatically carried him here. He hoped it was the smart choice. Chances are they might try and talk him out of it. They hadn’t taken any measures against him. They could have possibly court martialed him for his recklessness. He answered.
Caras: Sorry to interrupt… It’s Lieutenant Caras.
Both Avander and Josh glanced at Lia, and she shook her head. No, she didn’t mind the interruption, especially considering the rumors she’d been hearing around Morro and his duty post recently…
Rouiancet: No problem.
With that Morro made his way inside. He was not his usual self. His pallor was lighter green hue than usual. Most of the joy and the pep in his step had been drained from him.
Josh offered a polite tilt of his head as a greeting toward the unusually-less-than-jovial engineer.
Herrick: Something on your mind, Morro?
There were one thousand things on Morro’s mind, things he’d rather be doing, but he knew they deserved a face to face reckoning with his choice.
Caras: I just hope I'm not interrupting anything super important. But I also might have something important to present… if that is ok.
Rouiancet: It certainly is.
Promontory: Of course, please.
Herrick: (nodding) We’re all friends here, say what’s on your mind.
Caras: Here on this PADD. I’ve tendered my resignation as Acting Chief of Exterior Systems and Propulsion. I’m sorry.
He blurted it out so quickly and as a matter of fact. Morro hit the button to send it to all of their PADDS.
Well, rumors confirmed. Lia glanced down at the PADD, and saw what Morro had just announced written up in much more detail, and in more official language. The result was the same, however.
Avander skimmed the contents and looked at the other members of the command team, with a raised eye.
Rouiancet: (gentle) Can you tell us more about why you made this decision?
Not that she would oppose it, if it was what Morro wanted, but – well, she couldn’t help but see it in parallel to the decision she was trying to make. In the moment, she even envied Morro’s decisiveness. It took a lot of courage to announce a resignation to a ship’s command team. She wondered, for a moment, what Commodore V’Airu would have said if, after Koreli, she’d shown up in V’Airu’s office and announced her resignation.
Caras took a deep breath. He really hated disappointing people, but he also hated making reckless decisions that got people killed as well. So he had to face disappointment.
Caras: I outline it in my resignation but, since you’re all here right now it’s just. My actions lead to the death of several prisoners and allies last mission. I do not think that level of recklessness is fitting for what should be upheld as an example of the engineering department, nor be a person that provides counsel to the senior staff of this ship.
Avander regarded the man carefully and thought for a moment. Few others on the ship had actual experience with the prisons in Goldie’s ship and her operations in that other universe.
Promontory: But what if you hadn’t acted?
That was precisely the question, wasn’t it? Lia had gone around and around the Koreli mission in her head – as she was sure Morro had endlessly circled his actions during the previous mission – considering every potential action and inaction.
Herrick: (leaning forward, voice steady) You look at the lives lost, and I look at the lives spared. That auction house, the trade of souls as collectables… ::shudders:: We aren’t oracles Morro, we have to decide what’s best in the moment. You’re holding yourself to an impossible standard.
It hadn’t happened yet to Josh, but he knew there would be a day when he, too, would be responsible for lives lost. He’d already debated giving up his own commission for lesser reasons; at least Morro was only talking about his duty role.
Caras: This isn’t self punishment. Any punitive measures, I would have fully accepted if you would have brought them down on me. You all read my mission report, my details were there, and if you would have found anything actionable I'm sure you would have done so.
Caras had the utmost faith in his senior staff. He had been at this almost a year, and they had never given him any reason to doubt them. Not one. They drove him to be better every single day with the example that they set.
Avander checked their after action reports. They had reviewed things and had approved a number of commendations and ribbons, in fact, for Morro and his efforts in the last mission.
Rouiancet: True. (beat) But you feel differently?
And wasn’t this exactly what she’d done, minus the resignation? V’Airu had denied court martial proceedings, so Lia had acted to punish – but not punish! – herself as V’Airu wouldn’t, and called her own mock proceedings.
She wished that she’d already made a decision and that she had something more useful to tell Morro, but the truth was that she still wasn’t even sure what to do about her case. How could she then tell him anything useful?
Caras: No sirs. I am grateful for the opportunity you all have given me as acting chief. And I’ll be honest, I hope to return. I just feel like at the moment, after my actions on the last mission, that I do not align with the outstanding leadership I see in front of me. That is not an action any of you would have taken. Starfleet is about the preservation of life, there are strategies I could have taken that would have preserved more lives.
Due to the excellence that was in front of him, Caras knew that if he was going to advise them to the best of his ability, he would have to be his best. He was not his best at the end of that mission. Z’Mat still had a hold on him. Until he could get rid of it, he was a liability to them.
Promontory: (to the others) I’m tempted to deny this request.
Rouiancet: (shaking her head) I’m not.
If there was one thing that she’d figured out from her own experience, it was that she needed the time and space to blunder around and decide for herself what her future would look like. She was still blundering – that wouldn’t stop any time soon – but as far as the decision immediately before her was concerned, staying on as the OEB’s CO or not, she needed to be free to make her own decision given all the information available to her. V’Airu had denied a court martial, just as she and the command team had denied to pursue disciplinary action against Morro – fine, but what did they do next? What did they, she and Morro, need to do next?
Rouiancet: This is his decision, not ours.
Promontory: Fair point. (to Morro) No one should lead if they don’t have confidence in themselves.
He gave another meaningful glance towards the Captain, which Lia took in the spirit it was intended, and returned a half-smile that couldn’t quite commit.
Herrick: (nodding) But being radically honest with oneself is a good first step. The academy… it can only prepare you so much for what you’ll face out here, particularly responding to real moments of crisis. That said, I think that it’s important that you continue to have this dialogue, whether it be with us or the counsellors aboard.
Morro thought it pertinent to apply to Salo under his own accord. It was usually always suggested that everyone seek counseling, especially those in leadership positions, but it wasn’t mandatory until an incident like this. He was getting out in front of it, but that wasn’t the reason why he was doing it.
Caras: Yes, I have applied for counsel with Lieutenant Salo. We will begin in the next few days.
Avander gave a look to the rest of the command team. It seemed that that was that.
Promontory: Very well. We’ll get the PADDwork started. It will be official in the next few days. (beat) And I hope this doesn’t preclude you considering a leadership position in the future. I–we all–think you have great potential!
–
Captain Lia Rouiancet
Commanding Officer
USS Octavia E. Butler
V238208LV0
she/her/hers (this character)
&&
Cmdr. Avander Promontory
Executive Officer
USS Octavia E Butler
O239910AP4
&&
Lieutenant Commander Josh Herrick
Intelligence Officer | Second Officer
USS Octavia E. Butler
O240005JH3
he/him/his (player/character)
&&
Lieutenant JG Morro Caras
Acting Chief of Exterior Systems and Propulsion
USS Octavia E. Butler
O240106MC1
he/him/his (player/character)