Cause for Concern

Posted on Sun Nov 19th, 2023 @ 5:26am by Commodore Tohru Honda & Commander Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke

1,628 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Operation Tokyo Return
Location: USS Akina
Timeline: After 'Three Captains, One Problem'

Minna rematerialized on the Akina's transporter pad by herself after boarding the Myogi's transporter pad with Captain Zh'gero. After the rather uncomfortable meeting with Captain Takahashi, where she and Captain Zh'gero both treated her like the newbie in the room, Minna was glad to be back on her own ship, where she was respected for the authority figure she was.

Minna's executive officer, Commander Mio Sakamoto, was waiting in the transporter room for her commanding officer's return. Minna had alerted Mio to her imminent return and had requested that Sakamoto meet her in the transporter room when she did.

"Welcome back, Commander:" Mio greeted as Minna stepped off the transporter go. "How did the meeting go with Captains Takahashi and Zh'gero?"

"Not well, Commander." Minna sighed. "I was the only one there with three rank pips, and I was definitely treated as such. Both Captain ZHh'gero and Captain Takahashi shut me down at least once."

"No surprise that Captain Zh'gero would behave that way." Mio said. "What is surprising is that sort of behavior coming from Captain Takahashi: She always struck me as someone who valued the opinions of someone of lower rank."

"But wait, there's more, Sakamoto." Minna added, lowering her voice. "I'm technically not allowed to discuss what we talked about in Captain Takahashi's quarters, but she laid out a pretty elaborate plan to have us blow up the Myogi if Captain Aisaka were to 'try something stupid,' as it were."

"Blow up the Myogi?" Mio reeled back. "Captain Aisaka's the one you have a mutual friend with, right?"

"That's correct:" Minna said. "Captain Minori Kushieda of the USS Armitage, and that's what makes what Takahashi said so fucking strange: I've met Captain Aisaka before, and she doesn't strike me as the monster that Captain Takahashi is painting her out to be. You wouldn't happen to know of any incidents happening between those two that would be the cause of such bitterness, would you?"

"Actually, I do." Mio sighed as they entered the turbolift. "It was shortly after Alvatar: Miyahara contacted Felnoir and I to clue us into what was going on regarding Captain Aisaka's pending trial. When Felnoir asked how Captain Aisaka was taking it, Miyahara responded 'not well: She insulted me for the specifications of our brig before taking a pot shot at my first officer. Now, I've got her crying her eyes out in her quarters, my second officer down there comforting her, and I have no third officer to cover bridge duties.'"

"Do we know exactly what was said?" Minna asked.

"Unfortunately, Miyahara didn't elaborate. We didn't think to ask at the time." Mio explained. "If you want to know exactly what was said, you would have to ask Captain Takahashi or her security chief for the security recording from the Myogi's brig on the stardate in question. However, seeing how Captain Takahashi might not be in the best state of mind, I'd suggest you sidestep her either talk directly with her security chief or go through channels and have Commander Rumlow reach out to his counterpart on the Myogi."

"If Captain Takahashi keeps acting like this, it might be our best interests to learn exactly what affected her at this level." Minna said as the turbolift doors opened to the Akina's bridge. "Anyhow, you have the bridge, Commander: I have a call to make:"

Minna crossed the bridge to her ready room. She stepped inside and took a moment to take in her surroundings: Minna was still populating the shelves with her personal artifacts. Felnoir's had since been cleared out, to be packed up and sent back to Inuto to his family. Gone so too, was the portrait of Felnoir, which had been removed to be displayed alongside Felnoir's remains lying in state at Starfleet Headquarters as well as use at his state funeral.

Minna sighed at the room's current state, as it felt like the room had lost its soul, and Minna had been struggling to find a new soul to replace it.

"Computer, secure office:" Minna ordered. "deactivate all sensors and open a secure communications channel to the USS Zodiac."

The computer beeped in acknowledgement, and the doors to the ready room behind her locked with a click.

"Opening secure communications channel to the Starship Zodiac." The computer spoke.

Minna rounded the desk and took her seat as the screen rose out of the desk, displaying the insignia of the Federation before reaching the Ops station on the Sovereign class starship's bridge.

"This is the Zodiac." The on-duty Operations officer answered.

"Hi, this is Commander Wilcke of the Akina; I was hoping to get in touch with Commodore Honda." Minna explained.

"Sure thing; let me connect you." The on-duty Operations officer said before his face was replaced with the Federation Insignia once again.

About a minute passed of Minna staring at the Federation Insignia before the line was once again answered by the person Minna was hoping to talk to.

"Commander Wilcke." Tohru greeted. "I must say, I was not expecting your call."

"Likewise, I was not expecting to have to make this call, Commodore." Minna said. "But, I think we have a situation on our hands concerning Captain Takahashi."

"How so?" Tohru asked, raising a brow.

"Well, Captain Takahashi recently called me aboard the Myogi to brief myself and Captain Zh'gero on our mission." Minna explained. "And she did some really out-of-character things."

"Such as?" Tohru asked.

"Well, for one thing, she sided with Captain Zh'gero, which is surprising given how intense their recent competition was." Minna explained. "They both went out of their way to treat me like the new Captain in the room."

"Commander, you've only been in Command of the Akina for a few weeks." Tohru countered. "In the meanwhile, Captain Takahashi and Captain Zh'gero have been in command of their respective ships for longer than you have."

"That's still no excuse for them to treat me the way they did." Minna argued. "But, that doesn't hold a candle to the 'plan' she laid out."

"A mission plan?" Tohru asked. "Surely, you can't be concerned with a mission plan?"

"Oh, this was no ordinary mission plan, Commodore:" Minna said. "This was a contingency plan that Captain Takahashi laid out where me and Captain Zh'gero were to use the combined power of our ships to blow up the Myogi if our guest were to forcibly remove Captain Takahashi from command."

Several seconds of stunned silence passed before Tohru finally spoke.

"I see: Commander, did Captain Takahashi give any reasoning behind such an extreme contingency?"

"She did not." Minna sighed. "I got some half-baked speculation from Commander Sakamoto based on a call Miyahara made to the Akina shortly after the Alvatar incident, but nothing concrete. You wouldn't happen to have been in contact with Miyahara around the same time, would you?"

"Indeed I was." Tohru responded. "I was on that very call you just spoke of. It was a group call to myself and the Commanding Officers of Task Force Jomo. After the captains left the call, I pressed Miyahara for further information, as he had mentioned on the call that his first officer was crying her eyes out. He told me that Captain Aisaka had called him an asshole, and then took a pot shot at his first officer, shaming her for following his orders, and that was all he knew: He speculated that somehow those insults got under Maho's skin, but told me I'd need to speak with her directly. So, I did, and what I heard was not pretty. She barely held herself together, and didn't hold back: She refused to call Captain Aisaka by name, and instead referred to her as 'bitch from hell.' That was how I learned that she had recently found out that she was pregnant shortly before they took Captain Aisaka on board, and she was in a particularly vulnerable state when Captain Aisaka hurled those insults at her. Insults that normally wouldn't bother her instead affected her to her core."

"Mein Gott... (My God...)" Minna gasped.

"I can send you the transcripts if you want." Tohru continued. "I had the foresight to record the call with Maho, but I do warn you, it contains a lot of very raw emotions."

"Anything you can do to help would be appreciated." Minna said. "I don't think I'm alone when I say that I don't think Captain Takahashi is in her right mind."

Tohru sighed.

"I'll forward you those transcripts first thing in the morning." She said. "I'll also speak with my husband about this. He thinks his chief of security is ready to take the next step in furthering her career, and now might be the best time to recommend her for a command internship on the Myogi."

"Like I said, any help would be appreciated." Minna reiterated. "Anyhow, I'll go ahead and let you go. Hopefully we'll meet face-to-face soon."

Tohru merely nodded before ending the transmission.

Minna sighed as the screen folded back into the desk. Getting the transcripts from Tohru was a start, but if Tohru was going to get the full picture, she was going to need those security recordings Mio had talked about earlier.

"Computer, end ready room lockdown state and resume normal operations." She ordered.

The computer beeped in acknowledgement and the same click that had locked the doors sounded, indicating that they were now unlocked. When the doors unlocked, Minna tapped her combadge.

"Wilcke to Rumlow. Could you come to my ready room, please?" Minna asked her chief of security.

Posting by

Commodore Tohru Honda
Task Force Jomo Commanding Officer

Commander Minna-Dietlinde Wilcke
Commanding Officer
USS Akina

Commander Mio Sakamoto
Executive Officer
USS Akina

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