Pt 4, Counseling Session: LTJG Illise Hale

Posted on Sun Jul 19th, 2015 @ 8:30am by Lieutenant Arnon Barak MD, PsyD & Chief Petty Officer Markos Ileos & Lieutenant Illise Hale

2,094 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Deadly Diplomacy
Location: Arnon Barak's Office
Timeline: Current

ON

Arnon was in his office catching up on his treatment notes.

"...the rubber chicken seems to be the primary object in the fetish, while the ergonomic chair and the lasso are recent additions. According to the client, she wanted to spice things up. I would think the rubber chicken was spicy enough but who am I to say..."

Arnon's desk comm signaled.

"Yes?" he said.

"Doctor," said Chief Petty Officer Markos Ileos. "You're next appointment has arrived."

Arnon frowned. He couldn't remember who his next appointment was. He decided that he must be getting old.

"Remind me..." he started to say, but his assistant anticipated his request.

"Lieutenant JG Illise Hale, sir," Ileos said. "The Chief Science Officer."

"Ah yes," said Arnon. "Send her in."

"Thank you Chief." Illise said before entering the office. She smiled at the Doctor sitting at his desk. "Good-day Doctor Barak." She still looked a little tired, since there were always more reports to read, but she was nearly caught up. Perhaps tonight she would be able to get in a set at the gym before turning in.

Counselling had been mandatory for her in the years after Ajilon. It was not something she particularly enjoyed, but accepted. Her sessions had been reduced to one or two a year when she stared secondary school, and had stopped altogether while she was in the Empire. Her decision to pursue the exchange with the Klingons had initially caused some concern, and after returning to Earth she had undergone a rather thorough evaluation before joining Starfleet. The counselors at the academy and on the Coulson had always made sure to schedule regular 'check-ups' to assess her metal state. Illise never missed a session.

"Welcome Miss Hale!" Arnon said. "Please make yourself comfortable. May I offer you anything?"

Illise sat in one of the chairs opposite the desk, crossing her legs and leaning on the armrest a little. She considered for a moment, she's already had a raktajino today and that was more than enough caffeine. "Water would be nice." She replied.

"Certainly," Arnon replied, pouring her a glass of spring water. "How are you feeling today? I notice you have been promoted."

"A little stiff." Illise said, stretching her neck for emphasis. "Taking over a department really is mostly reading reports and filling out new ones." She'd spent enough time with counselors to know that a more in-depth answer needed to be offered, so she continued, "It was quite a surprise actually. I've only been here a short time and out of the academy a couple years."

Arnon handed Illise her water and sat down in a chair across from her.

"Yes," he said. "I find that many new officers are at least a little caught off guard by the first few promotions which tend to come quickly. In my own experience as a new doctor many years ago, when a patient in clinic would see me they would look at me as if to say 'Thank goodness, the doctor is here'. I felt the same way when the attending physician arrived."

Arnon smiled.

"All through my education I wanted to be a doctor," he said. "And then suddenly I was one and people were looking at me expecting me to know the answers to their problems. It took some getting used to. Slowly but surely though I got used to it and took on the responsibility more gracefully. That was a long trip just to tell you your reaction is normal, wasn't it?"

Illise chuckled. "Perhaps a little." She took a sip of the water and rested it on her lap. "But I appreciate the personal touch."

"So," Arnon said. "Do you feel as though you've been fitting in well here on the Calypso? No problems with officers or enlisted personnel?"

"I haven't really had much time to get to know very many people." Illise admitted. "But so far, no problems. In fact everyone seems quiet welcoming." She sipped at her water some more.

Illise knew that he was starting with the pleasantries; the initial get-to-know-you and how-are-you-settling-in questions that were typical with the first session at a new assignment. There was, however, something weighing on her mind. Doctor Barak, although Rigelian and not Klingon, might still be able to add something to her thoughts.

Changing the subject, Illise said to Arnon, "You handled yourself quiet well during the away mission."

Arnon looked at her a moment.

"I am not by nature a violent man," he said. "I regret my actions, but at the time I felt that after Sergeant Beckinsale's actions, I had to make a choice. Perhaps I made the right one. The only thing I can say for sure is that it was the choice I made. Now I must come to terms with it."

Arnon held Illise's gaze for a moment.

"I'm a sensory empath, Lieutenant," he said. "I can't read minds but I can, if I put mind to it, determine nearly exactly your internal physical and emotional state. If someone is particularly concerned about something, they project information to me unintentionally, such as you are doing right now. So, what is on your mind my dear."

"Sorry Doctor." Illise apologized, looking away from his gaze for a moment. "I did not mean to bring up any of your own painful thoughts." She looked back at him.

"I would not say that I necessarily am a violent person, but I also cannot say that I regret my actions. I have spent a good deal of time with Klingons, and therefore I have fought and killed when the occasion called for it. Taking a life is not what has caused me concern." She paused to collect her thoughts and the image of the man's face, frozen in surprise, flashed into her mind.

"My actions on the away mission, although they were necessary to save the life of another, cannot strictly be called honorable." It felt good to say it out loud.


"If you hadn't done what you did," he said. "I might be dead now. I am hardly one to condemn you for your actions. Let me say what I should have said before: Thank you. Thank you for watching my back. Thank you for saving my life."

Arnon smiled.

"Besides," he said. "It's not everyday that I get saved by such a beautiful woman."

"Thank you." Illise said while trying not to blush, but his compliment caught her off guard. To her relief she had never been one of those people who turned bright red, but her cheeks did get a little rosy. She offered him a small smile in return. "And you're welcome." she added.

"Of course," Arnon said. "Do you think there was something different you could have done?"

"Likely very little." Illise said in a low voice. "But that is not issue. Mercenaries in general have little honor, but it is how we approach a situation that defines ours. I gave him warning, no option to fight. I should have at least presented a challenge before dispatching him."

Illise rubbed her forehead in frustration. "I know that to do so would have presented him with the opportunity to raise the alarm, and therefore place all of us in danger..." She sighed. "If federation standards where all I had to concern myself with, then I wouldn't be. But Klingon honor is more involved, and there are those whose honor would be tarnished if mine came into question."

"So," Arnon said. "How will you reconcile the two standards? Will you always follow the Klingon ideals you hold dear, even if they endanger your crewmates?"

"Allowing one's crewmates to come to harm while it is in your power to prevent it is even less honorable." Illise responded with a slightly injured tone, not at anything Arnon had said but at the thought itself. "Like I said, it's all very involved." She shifted a bit in her chair. "My duties here come first of course." Feeling slightly uncomfortable was not new to her during a counseling session, actually it usually meant that they were making progress.

"I know there is much I don't understand about the Klingon concept of honor," Arnon said in a gentle compassionate tone. "But perhaps if we unravel this issue of your duties here and your honor, you will be able to find some peace within yourself. Would you like that?"

"I don't know...I doubt that I could really explain it. It's the sort of thing you have to live to understand..." Illise sighed again. Vathraq would be disappointed if he knew she was discussing such things with anyone else. "My duties should not cause any conflicts, so long as I do them to the best of my ability - which I would do regardless." She told Arnon.

"As for the away mission, if in fact I did dishonor myself , then only I can regain that honor through my future actions. Talking about it, although helping me to feel better, might not be the best course." She shook her head to clear it. "Sorry Doctor. Perhaps I should not of brought it up."

"Don't be silly," Arnon said. "If my job were simple they'd let anyone do it. So, rather than go through all of this angst about whether you dishonored yourself, why don't decide whether you did or not? You can always change your mind later. If you feel you did dishonor yourself, you can decide what you need to do about that. If you decided you didn't dishonor yourself, you can move on."

Arnon smiled at her.

"I admittedly can't tell you much about honor," he said. "But I can tell you about feelings and the way the mind works. Make a decision either way. You'll feel better and if there really is a problem you can fix it. Until you decide one way or the other you're just going to feel miserable."

Illise was silent for a while. "Yes, I will need to decide." She started thinking about hitting the gym again. A good workout always helped to clear her head, and she hadn't been able to go for some time.

"Good," Arnon said with a smile. "So, what are you going to do to help yourself make that decision?"

"Probably punch something." Illise smirked to show that she was joking, well mostly. "A good workout always helps clear my head, but I haven't been able to get one in lately. I'm looking forward to a good solid hour of calisthenics in the near future."

"Excellent," Arnon replied. "When in the near future? As long as you are getting something out of agonizing over this, you are going to try and avoid dealing with it. Better to make a commitment as to when you are going to deal with it than to simply say 'in the near future'."

"Well," Illise sat back more comfortably in her chair, "with the current situation and my recent promotion, there is little time. I spend most of mine reading reports. I'm nearly caught up though. Not today, or tomorrow, but I'm banking on having some free time after that."

"So, three days from now?" Arnon asked. "Good. Why don't we check in next week so I can see how you're doing?"

"If you would like." She replied. Then in a contemplative tone she added, "Do you know any good sparing partners? I haven't had the chance to ask around yet. On my last posting a few of the crew liked to spar; it always made for a better workout. Eventually I'd like to get back to doing that if possible."

"You could always track down one of the marines," Arnon said. "Or I could spar with you."

Illise looked at the doctor, "That might be the most interesting counseling session I've ever had." She laughed, but not mocking him. "If you're up for it, I'd like that. But I'll warm you, I fight to win."

"Of course," Arnon replied. "I would expect nothing less. Simply tell me when and, baring my profession getting in the way, I'll be there."

Illise thought for a moment, trying to visualize her schedule. "How about next Tuesday at 1900 hours?"

"Perfect," Arnon replied. "I'll be there. Why don't we wrap this up for today?"

"Alright," Illise stood up and placed the half-empty glass on a table. "Thank you Doctor."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," Arnon responded.

OFF

Lieutenant Arnon Barak, MD, PsyD
Chief Counselor
USS Calypso

Lieutenant JG Illise Hale
Chief Science Officer
USS Calypso

 

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