Posted by Commander Dr. Royal Sinclair (Executive Officer) in Psychiatry Suite - Checking In and Checking It Out (Tag Psych Chief)

Posted by Lieutenant Surra Almikaz (Chief of Psychiatry) in Psychiatry Suite - Checking In and Checking It Out (Tag Psych Chief)

Posted by Commander Dr. Royal Sinclair (Executive Officer) in Psychiatry Suite - Checking In and Checking It Out (Tag Psych Chief)
Posted by… suppressed (11) by the Post Ghost! 👻
The new Executive Officer walked into the Counseling Suite and approached the reception desk. He was very tall for a human, and very broad. When he spoke, his voice was low… but the Scottish brogue gave the tenor a rhythm that was quite appealing. He smiled and said “Good morning. Commander Sinclair. I am here for my boarding assessment and to speak with Dr. Almikaz if they are available for a chat?”

Sinclair, XO

bump

HARLEEN scanned the man for a moment then said, “Welcome to the Psychiatry suite..Commander Sinclair.” Even though Surra had wrapped up for the day, was busy charting medical notes on her PaDD, and had asked that she not be disturbed for a couple of hours, HARLEEN knew she would be upset if she turned away he new XO. “Yes. I think Dr. Almikaz is available for a chat. Follow me, I will take you to her.” She stiffly moved from behind the reception area and led him to her office. When they reached her door HARLEEN held out her hand toward the closed door. “I hope I was of service to you, Commander Sinclair. If so, it would be much appreciated if you can let Dr. Almikaz know how helpful I was.”
This gesture was important to the AI because Surra had gotten a number of complaints about HARLEEN’s bedside manner, one from Kane which she didnt consider valid, but from a number of others. As a result, Surra had threatened to deactivate her if her behavior didn’t improve.

HARLEEN

The XO nodded and said “I’ll bae sure ta discuss your attentiveness with the doctor.” he said and he pressed the chime.

Sinclair. XO

HARLEEN waited with him and watched him press the chime. Moments later Surra appeared at the door as it retracted open.

“Commander Sinclair!” Said Surra looking at them both, “This is a surprise. I wasn’t expecting anyone else to show up today.” She moved to the side so he could walk into the office. “Please come in. It’s an honor to finally meet you.” The door closed behind them leaving HARLEEN standing outside.

Almikaz, CoP

“Thank you, Lieutenant.” Sinclair said and held a hand out to the CoP. “It is nice to meet you as well. I was hoping I could do my boarding assessment, but if now isn’t a good time, I would be happy to comeback in a few days. Wholly up to you. I don’t want to keep you if you were about to leave.”

Sinclair, XO

She took his hand with both hers and gave him a firm shake. “You are the boss, you can do your boarding assessment anytime you like.” She walked to her work area, moved a stack of PaDDs to the side, and sat down. “Besides I really do not have anything else to do. I was going to go to check in with the medical staff regarding some consultations on a few overlapping patients. Can I get you some coffee? A donut? Water? Anything?” She asked.

Almikaz, CoP

Sinclair took a seat and said “No, thank you. I appreciate the offer, though.” with a smile. “How long have you been on the Ogawa, Doctor? How do like the assignment?”

Sinclair, XO

Almost in a nervous way she clasped her hands together. She knew better than to air her grievances to her new boss. Instead she smiled and said, “I have been on the ship…” she paused momentarily to think, “…for two years now. Was a counselor at Starfleet Headquarters before taking my post here. For the most part, I do like it here. However, it’s…” she averted her eyes for a moment then said, “It’s not what I expected. What about you Commander? How did you end up here? Where were you before?”

Almikaz, CoP

Sinclair’s head cocked to the side slightly, picking up on her hesitation. “Well, just prior I finished Command School at the Academy. This is ma first Command position an’ I have to say, when I found out about the posting I was a bit intimidated. This is a fantastic ship, and taking it on as my first Command post was shocking. But, I do love a challenge.” His Scottish brogue lent an air of humor and calmness to his words. “So what about it isn’t what you expected? You seemed a wee bit hesitant right there, Lieutenant. Part ‘a my job here is to help if there is a problem. An’ there’s no time like the present to talk, correct?” he said with a friendly smile.

Sinclair, XO

“Well, maybe you can help me with my issue later. Right now I want to take the opportunity to learn more about the Ogawa’s new XO. I am surprised that this is your first command. You seem to be a natural. Also, the Ogawa is not the ship that typically selects officers with no previous command experience to as part of its command team. So that tells me that your record in the Acadamy is exemplary or you know Captain Myqian personally and she did you a favor and selected you as her first officer. However, since I know Dira, I think the first scenario may be true.”

Almikaz, CoP

Sinclair smiled a knowing smile and said “Well, why it may be my first postin’ as a Command officer, I’ve been a Department Head more than a few times. Security, CNS, Tactical… I’ve had what ya would call a ‘varied’ work history.” and he chuckled.

Sinclair, XO

Surra nodded, “It makes sense. I think you need somewhat of a varied work history to work on a ship like this. So many personalities and moving parts in the daily tasks. Surra was vaguely aware of his background. She knew that he had no next of kin since his grandfather had passed away. “You have kept very busy since you enrolled in Starfleet.” She glanced at the tablet with raised impressed eyebrows and nodded, “Very ambitious. You excelled in all your training. Everything from the initial Security training all the way through Command. Seems like you were trying to keep busy and stay distracted.”

Almikaz, CoP

Sinclair looked at her for a moment and then said “That is quite the bold assessment.” with a slight smile. “I work a great deal, yes. But that is because I really like what I do. And the postings that I have been sent to, mind you I didn’t request any of my previous assignments, have been quite intensive when it came to time invested in them. But that was and is the nature of these assignments. Hard work is not something I shy away from. Never have. As far as ‘distracting’ myself… I’m not sure what I would be distracting myself from. Do you have any thoughts on what that may be?”

Sinclair, XO

“Is the assessment untrue, Commander Sinclair?” Surra asked. “I know you lost your grandfather before you enrolled in the Academy.”
She averted her eyes, trying to think if she should share the story of her father. “When my father died, I experienced a deep long depression at first. Then my mind went crazy. I worked myself nearly to death to deal with losing my father. He was all I had left. My mother had already passed away when I was umm…three, I think. I had to keep myself distracted or I would fall back into my depressive state.”
She paused as she clutched both of her fists closed to compose herself, she wasn’t going to cry in front of the new Commander. She forced a smile as she continued, “I was a young scientist, just graduated from the academy. I bet no one on the Ogawa, besides you, know that.” she said with a chuckle as she continued, “It was the field my father suggested for me when I told him I wanted to go to Starfleet and become and officer. He said I was tenacious, a problem solver, and resilient. I would be a good scientist. However even though I graduated from the science academy, just before he died, I didn’t want to do it anymore and I thought, I…I wanted to be an engineer like he was. To honor him, but I couldn’t do that. It was too sad for me. I quit after a week. To wear coveralls like he used to wear with the name…Almikaz attached to them.”
She cleared her throat and then said, “I decided to go into a field where I could talk to people because that helped me get through my grief.” Surra shifted a little because she’d never shared any of this with anyone on the Ogawa, not ever Dira. She didn’t like being vulnerable. Talking about her father always felt like someone had gripped her heart and was twisting it. She placed her right hand on her chest where her heart was as she continued talking and attempted to steer the conversation back on track and to Commander Sinclair, “We all do our own thing to cope with a loss. Distracting yourself isn’t always bad. However, I didn’t do it as efficiently as you did, Commander. I mean, look, you are crossfunctional in multiple departments. I know few officers who are. To me, I could be wrong though, it seems you worked your way through the various departments in Starfleet to keep yourself distracted and as a way to cope with the loss of your grandfather.”

Almikaz, CoP