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Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

DAY 13 [0800 HRS.] INTRICACIES OF DELEGATION

“Your position never gives you the right to command. It only imposes on you the duty of so living your life that others can receive your orders without being humiliated.”
― Dag Hammarskjold

[ Captain Ives | Ready Room | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Ellen Fitz
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Staring out through the viewport of his Ready Room, Jien took a deep breath. "Thank you, V-Nine. Dismissed."

"Of course, Captain. I... wish I'd come with better news." Hearing the newly appointed Chief Surgeon retreat, with the quiet whirring of her stride and her metal feet tapping against the deck plates, Jien was left alone with his thoughts.

The news in question ought to have been expected, given the state in which Lieutenant Commander Rutherford had been found aboard the shuttle. Over the course of the past four days, during which the Chief Diplomatic Officer had been in stasis and evaluated for some kind of miraculous surgical intervention, the outcome thereof had been an unknown. The Surgical Android, whom had gained sapience by the Synthesis Code, had thus far preformed great feats in restoring the health of officers that had been in medical stasis for several months, utilising technical and medicinal solutions that were unknown to Starfleet Medical. Perhaps unfairly so, the expectations of the android's performance had been too elevated, and some may have begun to think that V-Nine could do the impossible, but as he stood there and looked at Qo'noS surface... Jien had just learned that some injuries were beyond her.

Since that fateful day in which Jien had lost both his Chief Intelligence Officer and the Head of the ship's Diplomatic Corps, the highest ranking officer among the diplomats had been Lieutenant Enyd Madsen, so she had effectively taken over Rutherford's duties from the start. As Assistant Chief, Madsen had preformed admirably, especially given the hard blow dealt by the news about Samantha. Preparations for travelling to the RNZ and making that rendezvous with Chancellor Martok were still underway, and Donatra's forces were expected to reach the Klingon border in one week. Until then, all diplomatic options had to be explored, all contingency plans made for the political fallout if Martok and Donatra fail to strike an accord. There was also the Reman factor to take into consideration, and whether or not they might aid in confronting Donatra's fleets.

In relation to the political situation evolving around Romulus declaration of war, Jien had tried to negotiate with the Voice in establishing some manner of communication with Commander Dewitt on Breen, but so far the Savi had been unforthcoming in that regard. With Thea locked out of the subspace relay network of the Federation's, and there being no reliable way to communicate with the Breen Confederacy from Qo'noS  - at least in no way yet provided to them by the Klingons - Jien had no way of knowing how successful Dewitt was in both keeping the Breen out of the development, and also aiding them in dealing with any Infested among their ranks. Jien's hope was that the Diplomatic Corps would be able to negotiate with House K'Tal about securing a subspace comms connection with the Confederacy, despite the history between the Klingons and the Breen during the Dominion War. Or, that they would finally get the Voice to find a loophole in the Code that would allow the Savi to use their Flotilla, but the refusal was made on the account that they were in the middle of a civil war, and that the Savi had a specific aversion towards establishing any kind of affiliation with the Breen Confederacy.

In fact, Jien had got the impression that Echtand - the Voice - had found his personal request insulting... emphasising the epithet of 'Aspect-Maker' when giving his denial for some reason.

All things considered, Jien knew what he had to do. "Thea, could you please summon Lieutenant Madsen to my ready room?"

[Aye, Captain.]

TEN MINUTES LATER

By the time the chirp was heard from the door, Jien had changed to her female form, and she was reading a report on a PADD at her desk. Thoughtfully, she put the data tablet containing the service record of the visitor away and stood up, adjusting her jacket. The personal account from Admiral Anderson had been more detailed, but Jien had already read that when the officer came aboard the Theurgy.

“Enter,” she said, and the sliding doors parted to show Lieutenant Enyd Isolde Madsen. Jien smiled faintly to her and gestured towards the sitting area. “How are you, Lieutenant?”

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #1 –
[ Lt. Enyd Isolde Madsen | Ready Room | D. 01 | V. 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan

It had been a matter of weeks since she’d transferred aboard this so-called renegade ship, and while certain elements of her personality and sense of self felt the same, there were other areas where Enyd felt assuredly altered. She’d lived through more than the average mayhem within those weeks, much of it not even associated with her position aboard Theurgy. Each incident survived, each mission achieved, and had worked together as a forge for her resilience. Her grandmother had already reminded Enyd that life didn’t get easier; you just either got dead or more resilient.

Still a bit groggy, awaiting that second cup of coffee’s magical kick to her brain, Enyd recalled a phrase from a 17th-century human poet, “My barn having burned down, I can see the moon.” With all that was happening in their reality—Infested, Romulan Civil War, Klingon upheaval, Federation rejection—they each had this choice of focusing on the burned down barn or acknowledging the beauty of the moon. Though her time aboard had been short in comparison to many of her peers, Enyd felt a kinship to many for their stalwart dedication to getting back up after every battle and going at it again, and again, and again, always being changed from the adversity but never being diminished in spirit by it.

Enyd’s heart was heavy for the recent losses, both the dead and those placed into cryosleep for—hopeful—future resuscitation. While she’d been serving as acting chief for the past few days with the hope of Rutherford’s recovery, this morning summons by Ives coiled a new reality in the pit of her belly. This brought a new steely weight to her mind as her family-bred resilience made war with any lingering sense of inadequacy. Some of the survived chaos of her time aboard had brought back old ghosts she’d thought she’d tamed into neat little boxes in her mind. But when had ghosts ever been content to remain in a box? These ghosts had haunted her sleep and, at times, left a bitter taste in her mouth as Enyd fought niggling irrational thoughts of imposter syndrome.

Drawing closer to Ives’ ready room, Enyd recalled how one of her favorite bedtime stories told by her grandmother—sometimes read from an antique paper book, and sometimes recited by heart—featured an enigmatic ruler who inherited a broken system of a country where everyone was scrambling against one another in mistrust and entitlement. Slowly, the ruler cultivated a new system through unorthodox and often unexplainable-at-the-time ways. A system where the people would stop and repeat the phrases they often heard and saw modeled by the ruler: there is no time for anger, there is no time for fear, there is no time to give up. Enyd had no misplaced faith in her abilities alone as being the maker or breaker of the diplomatic department, but she did hope that through her service to the department, to the ship as a whole, she could model the same resilience and dedication as that ruler.

Enyd stepped through the door leading into Ives’ ready room a moment later. She was dressed in the uniform slacks, fully prepared for the mission scheduled later that morning. It would be her first mission taken with the newest member of their department, Lieutenant Junior Grade Nysarisiza zh’Eziarath, and based on their conversations over the past few days, Enyd got the distinct impression that Nysari would serve as a ballast point between the naïvity of L’Nari’s approach and Enyd’s own pragmatic approach.

Nodding a greeting to the captain in her female more, Enyd took the seat indicated and settled against its cushions with a sigh. She didn’t answer the question right away, seeking to find precise words to describe her status before answering. It took only a few moments of silence before Enyd tipped her head to the side and answered.

“I am thankful for the forbearance and tenacity of the department members, captain. Each department member brings a unique and vital perspective to the table. Over the past few days, serving as the acting chief, I have witnessed even greater aspects of professionalism and personal care that they show towards one another and their crewmates. The recent successes mixed with our losses have been a heady draught for all of us to drink, the bitter overwhelming any semblance of sweet, but they have born up under the pressure of sudden change admirably. I am daily humbled when I work with them, as they are all masters of their craft, and to call them colleagues is an honor.”

Folding her hands together in her lap, Enyd took a deep breath and slowly let it out through lightly clenched teeth. She allowed a few more moments of silence before she continued.

“I also personally feel as if we are on the cusp of something monumental. Hovering in the ‘waiting room’ before an epic adventure. That sometimes manifests in an unwillingness to sit still combined with a desire to plan, plan again, and plan, yet my mind travels down at least twenty different scenarios for the coming weeks, with each scenario having a number of tributaries.” She chuckled, shook her head as images of some of the bedlam she’d maneuvered through came back to her mind’s eye, then sobered again to add, “I hope that the mission later this morning will go well. The Chief,” Enyd stopped, smiled, then started again, “Chief MacGregor will have a greater foundation for political clout if we can finalize the peace between herself and the rebels Ensign L’Nari and I negotiated with last week.”

All this out and set aside, Enyd lowered her head slightly as she regarded the captain. Enyd knew she hadn’t called Enyd to her office to talk about the mission, at least not exactly, and neither had she been really inquiring about Enyd’s viewpoints of the status quo of the department or the ship. The captain had a purpose for the meeting, and it was high time Enyd stopped stalling the purpose behind other matters of her duties.

“How can I help you, captain?” Enyd offered a half smile to the woman sitting across from her, waiting silently for her world to be further tipped sideways.

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #2 –
[ Captain Ives | Ready Room | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Ellen Fitz
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Hearing the Lieutenant's take on the current situation of the Diplomatic Department lent Jien some confidence in that Madsen had taken on her acting role as Department Head seriously. It also served to give quietude to Jien's worries that, with Rutherford gone, it may set back the preparations for Donatra's arrival at the Klingon border. As it were, it seemed that the officers in the Diplomatic Corps serving aboard the Theurgy weren't dependent on Rutherford, which was a positive sign.

As for what Madsen was saying specifically, Jien found herself remembering her own time serving as the Diplomatic Officer and later Executive Officer of the Vendetta during the Dominion War. The wartime tasks of diplomacy were so much different in manner of pace compared to the lull of peacetime. While you might otherwise have sufficient time to investigate motivations and cultural differences, thinking of so many more contingencies for every single meeting held, wartime diplomacy had one lodestar - to end aggressions with as little losses as possible, be such losses in souls, integrity or territory. The means through which to end aggressions, however, was a situational matter, fully dependent on available options and the cost-benefit analysis of each. Peace for the sake of peace, and non-violence for the sake of itself, was a pipe-dream conjured by wits that had yet to be stripped of their baby-fat. The galaxy, clearly, did not work like that. Even less so in wartime, wherein all guarantees were off.

Knowing what kind of position Chancellor Martok had put one of her Security Officers in - this Mickayla MacGregor - Jien had gret empathy for the personal challenges she faced. As a Klingon raised as a human, she didn't just have to contend with the cultural differences between herself and that of the Great House that Martok made her Steward for - all in the hopes that her father could be found and bring cohesion to what used to be House Mo'Kai. It had been a solution in which more Klingon lives would be spared instead of disbanding the entire House, making thousands of families getting their possessions taken away and given to others, not to mention how many dishonoured Klingons that would be turned into violent separatists with nothing to loose. Jien commended Martok for the solution in that aspect, though it was at a personal cost for Mickayla MacGregor, whom had been thrown into a position she wasn't prepared for. It was the flaw in Martok's solution, but it was fortunate that the Theurgy was able to support her.

Yet what if they don't find Mac’mon, son of Nenkor - Mickayla's father? Jien thought quietly. When Donatra came through the RNZ, the Theurgy would have to continue its mission, and they couldn't remain behind for Mickayla's sake. It was a cause for concern that stayed with Ives, and she hoped that Martok's efforts to find Mac'mon didn't leave any stones unturned. According to the Chancellor, it was one of the highest priorities of Councillor K'Tal - the Head of Imperial Intelligence - but the worry remained. What if Mac'mon is dead?

Without having made comment on what Madsen had said, since she seemed to have matters well in hand, Jien only spoke when she inquired as to the reason for the summons.

"I just received news from sickbay," she said, seated in an armchair across from Enyd with one leg folded over the other and her hands resting on the arms of the chair. "The diagnostics are complete, the assessments carried out, the simulations rendering a verdict. Lieutenant Commander Rutherford's injuries are of a nature in which the treatment of one individual injury requires too much time after she is thawed. Time, during which the other damages to her internal organs become fatal. A simultaneous treatment method was evaluated as an option, in which a coordinated effort between several medical officers might keep her body from failing before she could be stabilised... but apparently the overlap of the individual surgery approaches prohibits that option."

Knowing that the Lieutenant would have questions, Jien hardly paused as she continued, remaining seated as she was. "I was told that before they might save her from brain-death, four other essential organs would have failed, and if they were to preserve the function of her cardiovascular system, it would exacerbate the injuries - the internal bleeding too significant. For example, she already have severe haemorrhaging behind the blood-brain barrier, so the factor that may keep her from brain-death is the same factor that may compromise her. In short, if there is an increase in blood pressure, she either dies or suffer permanent brain damage, but if the heart isn't treated, her body fails her instead."

The House Mo'Kai separatists that had boarded Samantha's and Andrew's shuttle had been utterly vicious. Perhaps it was because the two Theurgy officers had been instrumental in undermining Gorka's rebellion against Martok. Given the brutality shown, it did seem like it had been personal. Jien fell silent there, since the loss of them both was a matter unresolved emotionally, her eyes falling to the deck plates beneath the table.

"This means... that without new means or a new method of saving her life, Rutherford will be kept in stasis on an indefinite basis," Jien continued to say eventually, shifting in her seat a little, "Subsequently... we find ourselves in a situation wherein I need to name a new Chief Diplomatic Officer."

Stopping there, Jien let Enyd give voice to her thoughts.

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #3 –
[ Lt. Enyd Isolde Madsen | Ready Room | D. 01 | V. 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan

Enyd received the news with a neutral expression. She’d been hoping for Rutherford’s recovery not out of concern for her own inadequate ability to carry the department but for a genuine hope that the woman would recover. While Enyd hadn’t always fully agreed with Rutherford’s tactics or assignment partnering, she’d found the officer competent and precisely the person needed for the position at this time and place. Facing the reality of no longer having the enigmatic woman greeting her in the office indefinitely left Enyd with a bitter taste in her mouth. She was curious if Rutherford had family that would like to know of the situation, the same for Fisher, as Enyd had heard the details regarding Fisher’s status already.

Taking a deep breath, Enyd slowly let it out with a polite nod toward the captain. It was time for the reckoning of reality, and Enyd was not about to run away from the moment or shy behind false statements of fear. She’d been trained for the eventuality of assuming this position and had looked forward to the day she could assume these responsibilities in full. Enyd just wished it hadn’t come about like this.

“Is there anyone we should inform about Rutherford’s status? Family or friends, we could get a message to?” Enyd stopped and inclined her head again. “Apologies, captain, I’m sure you have already addressed those possibilities and have a plan in place. I am very sorry that we do not presently have the ability to revive her, and I certainly hope we can successfully carry through the coming missions and get to a point and place where that ability can be developed and she is back on her feet again. Right as rain.” Enyd smoothed the palms of her hands over the fabric of her trousers. The tactile response necessary for her to gather her thoughts further. “With this new reality, how may I assist you at this time, captain?

She did not want to assume that her acting chief status would automatically melt into a permanent state. Ives could have arranged a transfer from the Oneida for all Enyd knew. She also had no reason to assume she was about to get any promotion. She’d only been on the ship for a matter of weeks, and as this was her first ship posting, Enyd would hope that Ives was the sort of captain who wanted to see his officers' mettle before offering out field promotions.

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #4 –
[ Captain Ives | Ready Room | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Ellen Fitz
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When the issue of informing the closest of kin that their children or loved ones had been hurt or killed in action during the mission came up, Jien simply nodded, since Enyd immediately touched upon how there were protocols for that in place. True, they couldn't ask "King" - Rear Admiral Anderson - to convey the information, since that may compromise him. Before they allied themselves with Martok, and since Thea had been shut out of the Federation subspace relay network, they had been less able to do so, but Jien had already asked the proper authorities in the Klingon Empire to deliver the news, along with Jien's personal condolences. How the authorities in the Federation reacted and relayed the communications, however, held no certainties, but she liked to believe that as screened and analysed as her words might be, they would - eventually - reach their intended recipients.

Instead, Jien addressed the true reason for her summoning of Madsen, raising her gaze from the deck.

"Naturally, Lieutenant, her duties will now fall upon you," she said quietly, without fanfare, "I say this not because of the lack of options, but because of the prowess you've shown since you came aboard. You made difficult decisions when you came to the aid of my away team in the Great Hall, exposing the threat posed by the Infested Kopek, and aiding in subduing him. You helped reunite the Klingon Empire under Chancellor Martok's rule, showing whom the true enemy were. Without your warning, Kopek may have killed not just Martok, but any Councilor that may have opposed Gorka's claim on the Chancellery. You might say that you were just the messenger, but be that as it may, you were still responsible for the execution of your duties. The manner in which you conveyed the message, and ensured that you got to the Great Hall in time. You brought Sarresh Morali there, so that me might activate the anyon emitters that Councilor K'Tal had placed in the vents of the chamber. You demonstrated that you were more than equal to lead... which I corroborated with the accounts from your earlier posting on Vulcan."

Jien shifted a little in her seat, gesturing with a hand as she spoke. "Your service record states that you served with distinction there, and were even recommended for a promotion by your superior officers on more than a single occasion. The notations say that if given a mission, Lieutenant Madsen would do whatever was necessary to ensure mission success, and she operates with the assumption that all her peers would do likewise. As crass as the phrasing of Vulcans may be, such fortitude does lend itself well when facing a mission such as ours - where any doubt of what needs to be done may undermine our ability to do the right - and most difficult - things, rather than just making the easy choices and blaming circumstances outside our control."

Raising her chin, Ives continued, being transparent about her reasoning. "That being said, you are a new officer under my command, and I have yet to gauge your capabilities in full, so while I will promote you to the billet of Chief Diplomatic Officer today, I will continue to evaluate your performance when it comes to a potential field promotion to Lieutenant Commander. Neither of the officers in the Diplomatic Corps hold your rank or above, so for the sake of the chain-of-command, there is no inherent need to let you take the bridge officer test just yet. Moreover..."

Jien looked out through the viewport from where she was seated, beyond the surface of Qo'noS. "...there is another officer that led the Diplomatic Corps prior to Rutherford. Lieutenant Commander Jennifer Dewitt was the Commanding Officer of the Black Opal before she came aboard, along with her staff. You already know about her choice to remain on Breen to deter them from joining the war," she said, and then turned back to Enyd with a faint smile touching her lips, "and no, I am not saying I will delay a choice to promote you in the hope that she may return. I mention her just because she also put the mission first, even to the point of committing mutiny against an emotionally compromised Acting Captain. So, in these weeks ahead of us, when the might of the Romulan Star Empire is brought to bear on the Klingon Empire and Fedration both by the Infested, I look forward to seeing if the Vulcans, and 'King' were true to their words in your regard."

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #5 –
[ Lt. Enyd Isolde Madsen | Ready Room | D. 01 | V. 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan

Enyd refrained from adding in the successful mission she and L’Nari had enacted, that of getting diplomatic relations with the rebels who’d been holding out against the Chief and in securing a meeting between them—the meeting that was to happen that very day. She didn’t mention it as, at this point in time, it would just come across as self-praise and was unnecessary as the captain had already made up her mind.

When Ives spoke of Vulcan, Enyd raised an eyebrow. She knew her record had been expunged of all wrongdoings after she’d gotten her act together and gone well above and beyond expectations. Still, there was always the possibility that something hadn’t quite been taken care of. However, with how Ives spoke of the commendations Enyd had given, Enyd inwardly sighed and nodded. Everything the captain said was the truth, she had been recommended for promotion and she had been goaded on to take tests for higher positions but at the time, she’d just been so delighted to no longer have Javec’s ghost haunting her, the routine life of her position had been good enough.

Enyd nodded in understanding when Ives explained why she wasn’t giving her the rank change and held up a hand as if to support her own words, “In all honesty, captain, if you had offered me the rank change off the cuff, I would have requested these next missions to be my training ground for you to see my mettle or lack thereof before giving me the promotion. I am pleased that we are of the same accord in that regard.”

Her gaze followed Ives’ as it listed out the viewport, then back again, reminiscing about Lieutenant Commander Dewitt. Enyd had read up on the woman and stood in awe of her prowess and ingenuity. Even if Ives had been stalling Enyd’s promotion in the hopes of Dewitt’s return, Enyd would have been content.

“Dewitt is an exemplary woman, and it is not my place to begrudge the captain whom she pleases to promote or place. I signed on to this mission to see to the end of the Infested and free the Federation from their clutches for good, cutting off all their malevolent proxy wars from spiking off from the galaxy falls into an abyss of disorder. If that means I am promoted, so be it; if it means I am demoted, so be it. I am tenacious and resilient and will do what is necessary to accomplish the mission. I will also ensure that all my department members remain up-to-date on all required training, including arms and defense, so when things go south, and we can assume they will, they can be an asset on the field and not a liability.” Enyd tipped her head to the side before asking, “Is there anything in particular you would like me to look into right away, captain?”

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #6 –
[ Captain Ives | Ready Room | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Ellen Fitz
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Glad too hear that they were on the same page in regard to the import of their mission, Ives nodded with a faint smile. Then she changed... into his male form, remaining seated as he was. The transition between his forms was becoming smoother after his treatments in sickbay, and he was grateful that his morphogenic matrix was becoming more limber after Gorka's attack. Merely the memory of keeping the Klingon from reaching Martok remained, along with the recollection of his straining grip around the handle and pommel of his katana, the painful bracing of his legs against the floor tiles of the Great Hall, and the long dagger embedded in his shoulder.

"The preparations that your department is already making are your top priority still, since we need Donatra to join forces with Martok if we are to have any chance of stopping Praetor Tal'Aura's fleets at the border. Given that Klingons and Romulans are vastly different in temperament, the task of mediating between them may prove difficult. For whereas Donatra and Martok has an understanding so far as the Chancellor having recognised Donatra's Imperial Romulan State late last year, that's no guarantee that the two will see eye-to-eye at the border. I would be surprised if some of the Klingon Great Houses wouldn't rather keep all Romulans beyond the RNZ, unwilling to see Donata as an potential ally in need. Moreover, there is the region of space in which Martok's forces are to amass. There might be House Mo'Kai separatists hiding there, along with other Klingon forces that have sworn off allegiance to the Klingon Empire."

Giving it a moment of contemplation, Jien thoughtfully added, "Perhaps it might be a good idea to ensure that all your diplomats are up to speed with negotiation techniques and methods of mediation, since some may never have faced this kind of situation before. When dealing with factions this diverse, it may prove beneficial to fall back on the basics, so that you are prepared for anything. Of course, Klingon and Romulan specific studies are well in order, but when failing to grasp the details of the moment, the foundations might ease any rising tensions."

It would, of course, also help the Lieutenant getting to know her officers better as well.

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #7 –
[ Lt. Enyd Isolde Madsen | Ready Room | D. 01 | V. 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan

Enyd couldn’t help the stunned blink. She so rarely saw the captain morph from one gender to another. To watch it happen up close was entrancing, making her fingers twitch to hold against bare skin while the phasing happened. But the likelihood of that ever happening was slim to none, and it would be well out of line to make sure a request of Ives. Curiosity had its place but asking, “May I touch your skin while you switch genders?” of the captain was probably not the best course of action at this time.

Coming back to the conversation, Enyd nodded as Ives spoke of the escalating tensions, or potential tensions, between the Klingon and Romulan forces.

“You have a diverse group of diplomats, captain. Some are very instinctually suited for the rough-and-tumble point-making of the Klingons, and others could go toe-to-toe with a Romulan in a debate on the legitimacy of their ancient pantheon. While Lieutenant Foval and Ensign Faye man the department from the ship, I’ll be returning to Qo’Nos with Ensign L’Nari and Lieutenant Nysari to finish up some business with the rebel leaders Ensign L’Nari and I were able to make contact with last week under Rutherford’s command. They have agreed to meet with Chief MacGregor, and we are hoping from this meeting, we may end all planet-side resistance to her leadership and make headway toward finding out where the remaining Mo’Kai separatists may be hiding. Call it a ‘field test’ of sorts. The rebels remembered Ensign L’Nari and me, and this will be Lieutenant Nysari’s first away mission of this type of magnitude since her posting.”

Enyd tipped her head to the side and took a deep breath before continuing, “Now that I am aware of the permanency of my position, I will put together a training session for the department as soon as possible. I agree with you, sir, that we should all brush up on the basics, and I would add that it is equally important that we know the core pivot point from which each diplomat functions. We are not all equally suited for every situation, and the more transparent we can be with one another, the more effective we will be when it comes to assigning duties for those high-stakes negotiations that are to take place.” Steadying her gaze once more to meet the captain's, Enyd added, "Is there any other advice you'd like to share with me, captain? Or any particular rabbits you'd like chased down?"

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #8 –
[ Captain Ives | Ready Room | Deck 01 | Vector 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Ellen Fitz
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The question Enyd posed was a pertinent one, and Jien gave it some thought. As it were, there wasn't anything specific that came to mind beyond what had already been discussed.

"No," he concluded after a second or two. "I will ask Ensign Henshaw to write up the announcement and it will be sent to all departments, detailing the fate of Commander Rutherford and the change in command over the Diplomatic Corps. It should be sent within the hour. I recommend you personally discuss the situation and the tasks ahead for your department at your earliest convenience, and both Commander Stark and I would like a full report on the current priorities of your people at the end of the day. Stark will follow up on the development on a continual basis with you, and you will be summoned to the next Senior Staff meeting when it's scheduled. It will likely be before we use the quantum slipstream drive and rendezvous with Martok at the border."

Rising from his armchair, Ives stepped around the table and extended his hand to Enyd. "Good luck on the mission, Lieutenant," he said with a faint smile, "and don't let us down. A lot is riding on your department, just like the rest of us, but the odds are slowly shifting in our favour at this point of our long mission. It is, however, important that we don't loose the opportunities we are given, and don't take anything for granted. There is still a lot to do before we've lifted the veil from the eyes of the Federation, and they see the enemy for what they are."

After shaking her hand, Jien would retreat towards his desk, unless there was ought else the new Chief Diplomatic Officer wished to talk to him about.

Re: Day 13 [0800 hrs.] Intricacies of Delegation

Reply #9 –
[ Lt. Enyd Isolde Madsen | Ready Room | D. 01 | V. 01 | USS Theurgy ] Attn: @Auctor Lucan

“Thank you for detailing how the update will be handled, captain,” Enyd let out a soft sigh, “I will compile a list of department-building questions I believe will help us work through any residual hiccups from past misunderstandings within the department as well as grow to understand one another better for moving forward. Walking into conversation strategically considering our circumstances will be most beneficial for the short amount of time we have to prepare for the rendezvous.” Enyd mirrored Ives in standing, tugging at her uniform in an old habit. “The report will be ready, and thank you, sir. I was raised to view the world pragmatically and never to look a ‘gift horse in the mouth, so we will definitely make the most of every opportunity.”

His hand was warm and firm in the handshake, and Enyd smiled at the physical reassurance of the captain’s integrity in his leadership.

“Thank you for your time, captain.” Enyd gave him one more nod before turning on her heel and departing his ready room.

She was still using her own office space in the department area and would wait for at least a day before she started to move things. There was also the fact that she needed to wait until the captain had things arranged for Rutherford’s belongings to be removed from the office and placed in storage until the –hopefully soon—day she was revived. Moving through the ship back towards the diplomatic department, Enyd was already working her way through the list of questions she’d like to ask her department, hope building that by seeking those answers as a team, they could overcome the past and prepare more strategically for the future.

- FIN
 
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