Blowing Off Steam

Posted on Wed Nov 28th, 2018 @ 10:27pm by Commander Abigail Prescott
Edited on on Mon Mar 11th, 2019 @ 2:31pm

1,123 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Mission 1: The Return to Faltan
Location: Executive Officer’s Office
Timeline: MD07 - 1530

Sam marched into the Command building from the Intelligence Hub, his fists clenched tight at the nerve of M’Mira to try to derail his project and demean his rank. If she wanted to have a fight, he wasn’t about to engage in a protracted pissing match- he had been a Marine far too long to waste time with such things. In instances like this, it was time to utilize the chain of command. Striding past the guards, he made it into the elevator and released a breath that had been trapped inside his lungs. Pressing the panel, the lift shot upward in near silence. As it stopped, Sam took another breath and stepped out into the anteroom, making a beeline for Commander Prescott’s office and ringing the chime.

"Come in," Mint called, not looking up from the PADD in her hand. When the doors swished open, she barely peeked over the top as Sam walked in. "What can I do for you Major?"

Sam fought the urge to let words simply spew forth. “Ma’am, I’d like to request Lieutenant Commander M’Mira be removed from the MTAC project. I just came from the planning meeting in the Intel hub and at the risk of sounding disrespectful- she has the personality of a Tarkeelian Blood Leech with a temper to match. She practically screamed when I told her that this was my project to manage.”

Mint sighed as though this was not the first time she'd heard such words about M'Mira. "With all due respect, Major, I cannot remove her from the project, our people are stretched thin as it is, and I have no one to replace her. And no, Major, we will not replace her with one of your people," she placed the padd on her desk and folded her hands over it, leaning forward slightly. "While I appreciate that the Marines and fleet officers are to work together on this, the team will consist of equal numbers of marine and fleet officers. If we remove M'Mira and replace her with a Marine, this will throw off the balance." Leaning back now, she shook her head. "I will talk with M'Mira. However, keep in mind, as I gave the go ahead on this project, I can replace ANY member of the team, you included, if I find that they are causing issue. The whole point of this project is to work together."

Sam sighed and placed a finger against his temple. “Ma’am, I’d be absolutely capable of completing that overlying objective if the Commander was able to do so without dropping snide remarks towards her juniors and allowing what appears to be a massive hard-on for hating Marines override her rational decision making processes- I cant count the number of times she’s tried to overrule me using her position on this base as a trump card and that was during one meeting. I only asked if we could bring Captain Gregson in to assist with construction according to Lieutenant Tendai’s plans-nothing more, especially in light of a Luna project that’s in progress that has apparently taken priority. So I’m going to ask you, Commander- Do you want this project done on time or not?” He asked, placing his hands on the desk.

Letting the silence hang in the air, Mint stared at a spot over Sam's shoulder while she debated her response. "I want this project completed, without unnecessary delay," she said finally. "But I want it to remain equal," she added. "I didn't agree to this project for everyone to squabble over who's in control. I will talk with Tendai and M'Mira, however, from here on out, if you can't work as a team and sort your differences yourselves, I will not get involved other than replacing the lot of you. They will get the same warning as I'm giving you. Learn to work together, Major, can you do that?"

Sam looked Abigail in the eye, his gaze unwavering. “Ma’am, you and I both know that won’t work. She’ll constantly try to muscle in using her position and that is something I can’t abide. I need autonomy to lead this team how I see fit. If you allow her to run unchecked with a [i]warning[/i], especially because of your bias towards her, she’ll walk right out of here and continue to be a self righteous pain in my rear for the duration.”

"Excuse me, my bias towards her?" Mint stood up. "While I do make friends with my staff and co-workers, I do NOT have biases toward them. They get the same treatment everyone else gets. If you are accusing me of favouritism, you best have evidence to back it up. Now, I know you want this project to go smoothly, but life doesn't always work that way. You will keep Commander M'Mira on your team, for now. She will get a warning, and you will attempt to work with her as she will have to attempt to work with you. I don't know how warnings work in the Marines, but in the Fleet, they're not just words given passively. She continues this behaviour and she will have serious reprimands. This project will go nowhere if you throw everyone you have issue off the project the second you have an issue!"

Sam squared his shoulders. “You said it yourself, you made friends with her. My job is to point out problems and eliminate them [i]before[\i] they happen, not afterward. As far as your little crack about reprimands in the Marines- they aren’t just words. We don’t make friends with those under our command because of what’s happening right now- it affects our ability to remain impartial when there are things to be done. So make your call, can you make a decision involving your friend or will you just let her slide?” He asked before turning on his heel to exit the office.

"Wasn't a crack, Major, I honestly don't know how your department operates," she called after his retreating form, not really caring if he heard her. All she knew of Marines is that they thought the "Fleeters" operated too freely and she didn't have opportunity before now to learn more of them, having never worked with Marines before. "But you just keep on with your assumptions that because we're friends off duty that we can't put that aside on duty," she said at normal level, not caring if he heard her or not. "Damn it M'Mira," she added softly. "Why can you not get along with anyone here??"

 

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