STF

Main Sim - Briefing Room - Senator Belgrande’s call

Posted Oct. 23, 2020, 7:36 p.m. by Lieutenant Commander Renveer (Executive Officer) (Ben Z)

Posted by Captain Molly Holloway (Commanding Officer) in Main Sim - Briefing Room - Senator Belgrande’s call

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Renveer (Executive Officer) in Main Sim - Briefing Room - Senator Belgrande’s call

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Renveer (Executive Officer) in Main Sim - Briefing Room - Senator Belgrande’s call
Posted by… suppressed (14) by the Post Ghost! 👻
<snip>
“Excuse me, Senator Belgrande,” Renveer interjected from over Molly’s shoulder with a disarming smile, “I hope you’ll pardon the interruption. I’m Lieutenant Commander Renveer, executive officer of the Dresden. I appreciate, as always, your vigilance in ensuring that the Federation is using its resources wisely and with good intent. I think we can at least assure you that this mission is indeed a special project in need of our immediate attention.” He hoped the emphasis he placed on the words would signal a desire to maintain a level of discretion while also allowing the senator to determine his meaning for herself through the double-speak she alluded to. Perhaps it wasn’t the straight answer she wanted, but maybe it explained why the straight answer wasn’t an easy one to give.

(Lt. Cmdr. Renveer, XO)

Belgrande opened her mouth to object, but something clicked in her expression and she stopped and paused, looking at both Dresden officers. Her head tilted slightly to the side and her eyes bore into Renveer.

“You don’t say, Commander… you don’t say.” she said thoughtfully and then her eyes snapped to Holloway. “Captain, is Tulo’t who I should be asking about this? Or did your orders come from elsewhere? That much you are free to answer, I would hope.”

GMT

“Uh…” For the first time in the conversation, there was a hint of nervousness in Holloway’s tone. Her pride was on the line now, as she had to admit to Senator Belgrande that she had been telling her to speak to the wrong person all along. Molly shot Renveer a quick yet menacing glare, before settling her gaze back on the Senator. “Our initial orders came from him, yes. And I am sure he would be able to direct you to the right person to brief you in more detail about the present situation, Ma’am.” She paused before working up the courage to ask what was on her mind. “What I don’t understand is why a Federation Senator is so interested on a mission that they would bypass the chain of command to gather information about it. Maybe you could tells us what is your particular interest in this mission? Because, as I mentioned before, I would not be doing my job if I was disclosing mission information to anyone who asks, including a Federation Senator.”

Holloway, CO

Belgrade’s lips twitched into a smile… a wholly unpleasant one, though. “My interest is in making sure precious resources aren’t being wasted on some Admiral’s pet project when they couod be put to better use elsewhere. And now that we ha e established that you are giving me the runaround and aren’t unknowingly obtuse or just plain dense, let’s drop the game of twenty questions. Who ordered the Dresden out, and why? One or both of you better start talking, or this will be the shortest mission in history.” The Senator looked away and said loud enough for both officers to hear “Get me the Star Fleet Inspector General’s office on the line.” and there was the sound of acknowledgment from off-screen. Belgrande looked back and said “Perk of being on the Sentae Budget Comittee, Captain. I can call for an IG audit any time I want. So I’ll leave it up to you: Tell me who ordered you out, or you are going to be docked again and swarmed with accountants and beaureucrats for the next three months. Your call.” the Senator added with a finality in her tone that left no doubt she was not joking.

GMT

And that was it. Just like that, things were starting to spiral out of control. Out of her control, anyway.

Molly’s lips opened into a smile. Although contrarily to Belgrande’s, hers was a polite one. Maybe even a little too polite. “You have made your position clear Ma’am. And if you’ll excuse me for a moment, I would like a few minutes to discuss this with my Executive Officer.” And before Belgrande could reply she placed the call on hold.

Breathing out she sat down on one of the chairs. “I’m not wrong in thinking that coercion is a crime, right?” She didn’t turn to Renveer, but it was clear that her words were directed at him. Instead she propped her elbows on the table and rubbed her eyes. “God, the Jem’Hadar were easier to deal with.” She muttered.

Renveer raised an eyebrow at the dark humor, wondering if he had heard Molly correctly.

Finally turning to Renveer, the frustration and despair behind Molly’s eyes were clearly visible. “I’m not tailored for this level of social interaction… that’s why I chose covert ops to begin with.” It was a little blurb about Molly’s time with Intel that the former Counselor might not know about. “I don’t know what to do… Do we even have a choice? I could potentially call Hallsley and let him know what’s happening… but do we even have the time for that? Or I can just tell her about him and throw him under the bus… or I can just let her audit us and hope Hallsley doesn’t like her accusation that he’s misusing resources…” Molly sighed and rubbed her forehead. “She’s bypassing the chain of command to know who we are working with… but why not going through the proper back channels? It gets me uneasy.” There was a pleading look in her face. “Am I just being paranoid? What do you reckon is the best course of action?” It was a rare feeling with Molly, but after the day they were having, she felt like she needed a drink.

Holloway, CO

Renveer immediately moved to sit beside Molly as he recognized the spiraling pattern of her thoughts. “Molly,” he said with a firm, yet gentle voice, “in any other circumstance I would agree about redirecting the senator. But this is a bit different. I apologize for the lack of communication on my part, I was reviewing the senator’s file as you spoke with her. I think this information is especially pertinent.” He scrolled to a portion of the report on his PaDD and placed it softly in front of Molly for her review. “Senator Belgrande is known for hounding almost all departments of Starfleet, like she was initially doing to us, except for the Special Projects division. Strangely enough, she has never called for an investigation into their spending or ethics, and it seems some of the cuts she’s advocated for in other areas of Starfleet have been used to redirect those resources to Special Projects.” Renveer paused for a breath. “I think it’s a safe bet to assume that she is a member of the senate committee that the Special Projects division reports to, and likely has seen the benefits of the division’s operations in the past. I’m almost tempted to say that it’s likely she has a personal relationship with Admiral Hallsley. Being honest with her now will hopefully get her off our backs and only slightly expedite the rate at which she gets all the information anyways. And, given her workings with the Special Projects division in the past, I think the risk of her not exercising the appropriate level of discretion is minimal.”

Renveer had maintained eye contact with Molly as he spoke, motioning to the PaDD intermittently. He spoke calmly and clearly, hoping to present his case in an efficient, logical fashion. He hoped his report would help ground the captain a bit and prevent the situation from imploding unnecessarily.

(Lt. Cmdr. Renveer, XO)

Molly looked at Renveer and then at the PaDD, as he explained his reasoning. “No. You had no way of telling me about this. Maybe I should have waited a little longer before opening the channel…” Now she understood why he had said what he had, when he interjected moments prior. Holloway chewed on her lip as she considered her Executive Officer’s words. “It still doesn’t justify her actions. She should have followed the proper back channels.” If there was something Molly was, was a stickler for the rules. And the rules dictated that the Senator should have not called the Dresden directly. It had always been that way with her, and when something was not according to what the rules should have been, Holloway often had trouble dealing with them.

Taking a deep breath, Molly nodded. “I guess you’re right. It’s worth the risk.” Still her mind kept pounding that the Senator should not be rewarded with what she wanted after the actions she had taken, but Holloway did her best to ignore it. “Thank you.” She finally said. Her tone meant business, but she shot a small smile to Renveer in acknowledgement of his insights.

“Let’s do this.” Holloway said, standing up and walking back to the comm console. “I don’t want to keep Belgrande waiting any longer.” Tapping the console, she brought back the call.

Holloway, CO

The vision of Senator Belgrande filled the screen, her arms crossed on her chest and a scowl on her face. There was a definite edge to her tone when she spoke, but she didn’t seem exactly angry at the somewhat unorthodox practice of putting her on hold.

“Welcome back. I trust you and your Executive Officer have conferred? So? Are you going to answer me or not, Captain?”

GMT

Molly took a deep breath, glancing at Renveer for reassurance.

“Yes, Ma’am. Our orders came from Admiral Hallsley, but that is all I am at liberty to say. I will direct you to him to answer any other questions you may have. I trust that you are familiar with him?”

There. It was done. Holloway felt as if she had betrayed herself. Her hand had been twisted and she didn’t like it at all. At this point all she wanted was the meeting to get to a close.

Holloway, CO

There was a slight pause and look of shock from the Senator, but she quicy recovered. She flanced down and seemingly looked at something, and then looked at Holloway and Renveer. In a flash, her disposition changed.

“Hallsley… yes. The good Admiral and I have worked together many, many times. If your orders xame from him, I have no doubt at all the Dresden is being utilized at its full potential.” and she leaned back and looked at Holloway.

“Captain, please do not take our first interaction as the rule for how we will interact in the future… which, if you are going to part of Special Projects, we most certainly be. I have the utmost respect for them, and the Admiral as well. If he saw fit to pull you and your ship into his operations, I am certain it was for a good reason. So for my…let’s say abrasiveness… I apologize. I am simply far to used to Star Fleet trying to keep me in the dark than, perhaps, I should allow myself to be.”

The Senator then leaned forward, a business-like expression on her face. “So… now that we have that out if the way, is there anything you or crew need from my end? Anything I can be of assistance with?”

GMT

Molly raised a quizzical eyebrow, taken aback by the Senator’s sudden change in attitude. Why had Hallsley’s name just changed the tone so much? She was sure it wasn’t just because she had finally given Belgrande the information she had requested. Glancing at Renveer wondering if he had anything he might have thought of anything they might request from the Senator, Molly finally spoke.

“Um, everything was quite sudden. But we are fully restocked, and ready to go. Now… I am very unfamiliar with Special Projects. In fact, this is the first time I will be working with the Department. Is there anything we should know about it? You know, from your perspective?”

Holloway, CO

Belgrande smiled a knowing smile. “Yeah, there is. I need you know and keep this in mind, Captain. Special Projects is unlike any other division in Star Fleet. You will have more logistical support, more operational discretion, more freedom to act and react than you have ever had before. But that freedom and support has a price. And that price is attention, and a lot of it. You are in the public eye now. What you do will be seen not just by the Admiralty and my comittee… but by billions of people at some point. The ripples of your choices will have far-flung reactions… so make good choices.” And she grinned broadly. “In short: don’t f$%@ it up.” and she grinned and winked at the two officers.

You will have more logistical support, more operational discretion, more freedom to act and react than you have ever had before. And yet, just moments before, the Senator seemed to be worried about misuse of resources. Seemed that she was only worried about it when it didn’t came to Special Projects.

And then, Molly’s mind processed the second part of the sentence. Attention… the public eye… billions of people… Holloway’s face went visibly pale. Almost sickly so. The thousands of freckles that covered her face now incredibly noticeable. For a moment, the world seem to spin around her, and she rested her hand on the table to keep herself steady. That was the one thing Molly hated more any other: the spotlight. It was a nightmare, right? It could only be. Slowly, she balled her free hand into a fist, and dug her fingernails into her palm hoping to wake up. To no avail. Someone, somewhere, had clearly found it funny to send her from one of the most secretive divisions in Intel, right into the middle of the public eye, and all Molly wanted was to throw up.

Renveer breathed in as discretely as possible in relief as the animosity evaporated from the senator’s voice. The gamble had paid off, it seemed. And even though Renveer was a difficult person to unbalance, the harsh looks he had gotten from the captain and the senator during the first half of the conversation had been uncomfortable, to say the least. He much preferred the expressions they wore now.

In response to Molly’s look, Renveer tilted his PaDD toward her out of view of the senator, showing a screen filled with reports of incoming calls directed to almost all departments of the ship. He was suggesting that maybe getting Belgrande’s advice (or assistance, even) for handling the cacophony of attention would be a good idea. But, for now Renveer was more than content to let Molly take the reigns with the conversation as the executive officer took the opportunity to decompress.

(Lt. Cmdr. Renveer, XO)

GMT

Looking at the PaDD Renveer had indicated, Molly nodded in acknowledgement. The calls… now it all made sense. Or at least Holloway thought they did. Looking back at the screen, Molly addressed Belgrande. “So… the public eye. I am assuming that is why the Dresden is currently being drowned in calls? Yours was just one in the middle of many others. Do you have any advice in how to deal with those?” Holloway’s tone had clearly changed. It was vacant, monotonous, almost as if she wasn’t all there.

Holloway, CO

Belgrande scoweled slightly and said “Calls?” and she turned from the screen and said something to someone off to the side. Turning back, she said “Captain, I would advise you to not say anything to the press or to anyone outside of the Admiral, his aides, or me and mt staff. There are a lot of individuals who think Special Projects is a waste of time and resources. Usually they are the same ones I am going after for the the exact same reason. Don’t give them any ammunition. It will end up just making your job that much harder.”

GMT

The press!? Molly was feeling physically sick now. She was realizing very fast the full meaning of the Senator’s allusion to them being in the public eye now. Were all those calls coming from reporters? When Holloway glanced back at Renveer, there was a hint of panic in her eyes. Turning back to the Belgrande, Molly continued. “Do you have any advice on how to deal with them? Cutting all communications might send out the wrong message and keep actually important calls from being answered. I can have all the comms past by me and Commander Renveer first, but that seems like it might be a poor use of our time…” At this point, Molly wondered what damage had already been done. She would have to discuss it and to look at the calls with Renveer after they had finished with Belgrande.

Glancing back at Renveer, she wondered if he would like to add anything to the discussion. Otherwise, the sooner they could finish this, the better.

Holloway, CO

Renveer was feeling a bit nervous now too, although he did his best not to show it. “Yes,” he interjected, “it’s probably best that we return to the bridge and order the crew to refuse contact with anyone from the media and directly encourage them to use discretion when discussing the mission with anyone not aboard, Senator. Unless there’s anything else we should know at the moment?” He glanced at Molly, hoping he wasn’t being presumptuous by taking the initiative to wrap up the call. But he was a bit worried about what conversations were happening parallel to theirs, and how those conversations may be violating the advice the senator had just given.

(Lt. Cmdr. Renveer, XO)

Belgrande actually chickled slightly before speaking. “Ok. Here’s your crash course in public relations. One: never confirm or deny anything you don’t want your name next to on all the scream-sheets from here to the Delta Quadrant. Two: ‘You’ll have to ask someone else’ or ‘Sorry, can’t help you.’ or ‘May I direct you to Star Fleet Media Relations’ are all really good, safe answers. And yes, absolutely no one on your ship should be talking to the press except one or both of you… and then only to say one of the previous answers. Trust me, no one is looking for either of you to be political or anything. They will just want to take advantage of your inexperience with the press. Sharks, the lot of ‘em. And right now they smell blood in the water. Undestand?”

GMT

bump

OOC: Ah, I wrote down the reply to this thread and then didn’t post it because I am smart like that. :P – Joana

IC:
Molly nodded. Her already pale face seemed to grow paler by the second, as the repercussions of the calls incoming across the ship started to dawn on her completely. She nodded, but her mind seemed to be somewhere else.

Thankful that Renveer had already set the tone to end the call, Holloway simply carried the action from there. “Yes Ma’am. You’ve been very helpful, but me and Commander Renveer should probably go back and deal with the calls before it’s too late. Thank you for your time. We’ll be in touch, either directly or through Admiral Hallsley.” Her gaze might have been set on the screen in front of her, but it was clear that Molly’s attention was on the Bridge. “Have a good day.” And with that, she terminated the call.

Signaling Renveer to stay back with her, Holloway tapped her commbadge. =/\= Holloway to Lot’l. Cut all outside comms immediately. Until the end of this mission, if an incoming call is not coming from a crew member, or from a family member of someone on the crew, I want it logged and told to try again later. We are busy and cannot take calls at the moment. I repeat, no one is to take any calls that are not coming from someone on the crew or a close family member. Just take their information and politely tell them that we will get back to them as soon as we can. Do not engage more than that. I want a list of the call logs on my desk now, and a new one at the end of the day. Holloway out. =/\=

The hint of panic was clear in Molly’s eyes when they met Renveer’s. The light brown in them contrasting with her pale skin much like the freckles covering it. It was clear that she was hoping for some sort of input from her First Officer, but she seemed to have forgotten how to use words.

Holloway, CO

Renveer blinked in surprise at the order to cut the calls so abruptly. It was certainly a more decisive action than he would have taken. He chose his next words carefully. “I can understand why an abundance of caution is appealing… but…” Renveer sighed and put a hand to his head, sinking into one of the conference room chairs as he thought for a moment more. “If the media knows about the Dresden’s deployment and we go radio-silent, that will raise suspicion… and therefore further speculation on our mission. Given that Julian Echo station is doing just fine as far as the general public knows, if they’ve already been told by somebody aboard that’s where we’re headed… it could give the impression that this is not a routine check-in. And until proven otherwise, that’s what this should hopefully be.”

Molly looked at Renveer, as she realized how the actions she had just carried on might be perceived. She had panicked and acted without a second thought on the subject. Nothing good ever came from that. She should have known better.

The first officer rubbed the trill markings on his right temple. “We should review the logs of conversations from the last hour, and get Lieutenant Forgrave involved as well. Until we know what’s already been said, we won’t know how much damage control we need to do.”

Renveer looked up with a renewed determination. “All this is to say, the media response to our deployment is entirely secondary to ensuring that the crew of the Julian Echo station is safe and accounted for. As long as we keep that in mind as our primary goal and don’t get distracted from it, that’s what will make this mission successful.” His voice raised in confidence to emphasize his point. He hoped that would re-center Molly’s thoughts and get both of them back to thinking about the actual mission at hand… rather than its side-effects.

(Lt. Cmdr. Renveer, XO)

“Yes.” Molly said absentmindedly as she sat down on a chair next to the Dresden’s First Officer. Renveer’s words had brought the mission’s goals back to the front of her mind. He was right, as it was becoming usual. They couldn’t allow themselves to be sidetracked. “You’re right… we need to focus on the task at hand and not on the media attention we will be getting, although I must confess it will be hard to know that we will be scrutinized every single hour of this mission. What if there’s a misstep that makes us the laughing stock of the sector?” What if I do something stupid that makes us the laughing stock of the sector? It was the real question that Holloway was too proud to ask. “Do you think that we should designate someone to deal with the calls that will undoubtedly come? Someone that could be the…” Molly chuckled slightly at how preposterous the thought even sounded. “… someone that could act as the public relations officer for the ship?” Holloway shook her head, before muttering softly in disbelief. “What did we get into?”

Holloway, CO

Renveer raised an eyebrow in thought. “Well, we did just have a new counselor come aboard who’s familiar with the art of discretion. She seems like the perfect vandidate to me.” Renveer shook his head. “A public relations officer is definitely part of a counselor’s duties, so we’d be putting her feet to the fire… but Lieutenant Gadi seems like she can handle it.”

(Lt. Cmdr. Renveer, XO)


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