Seeking Solace
Posted on Fri Apr 26th, 2024 @ 5:04pm by Lieutenant Junior Grade Narin Valen & Lieutenant Vura
Edited on on Sat Apr 27th, 2024 @ 8:10pm
0 words; about a 1 minute read
Mission:
Episode 15 - The Evil That Lies Beneath
Location: Chief Counselor's Office - Deck 5 - USS Pioneer
Timeline: MD002 1100 hrs
Narin paused outside the Chief Counselor's office door, knowing it was the final stop before officially beginning his duties. This visit, however, felt more daunting than the others due to his troubled history. Previous encounters with counselors often delved into his traumatic past, a topic he found difficult to confront. Yet, with a deep breath, he announced himself at the door and braced himself for the conversation ahead.
Vura's next appointment rang the chime just on time. She suspected that Nina, being the efficient assistant that she was, just allowed her consultation to come to the door as she often did. Because she was Deltan, Vura rarely came all the way to the door and opted to stay by her desk. After all, a mere touch from her could send pheromones into a patient setting off a series of unintended consequences. Already Hermia and Edmund had some, though with Edmund, they seemed to benefit him, opening a door. Hermia, on the other hand, ended up in a coma from a mere kiss.
Pleasantly, Vura told the person at the door, "Come in!" At the entrance to her office, she placed some blooming lavender plants, that gave off a pleasant soothing smell. On a wall, over a couch, she had put up a copy of Katsushika Hokusai's "The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife" above a periwinkle couch that swooped up and then down in the middle and then back up again. The couch had definite sensual innuendos written all over the convenient shaping.
The walls of her office were of a deep rose with hints of purple hues. From there, she opted only for a small desk, so the desk would not set a barrier between her and her clients. It was a semi-circle and she placed it carefully in such a way where she could swivel on a chair and quickly type something on a computer or PADD and not interfere with her relationship with her client. The color of the desk nearly blended into the wall but was more mauve on closer inspection.
Warm wooded mahogany chairs were available in case her clients did not prefer to be on the couch. There was a small glass circle table between the chairs. The table contained a small zen sand garden and rake for clients to manipulate.
"Please, come in and make yourself comfortable," Vura invited. There was a hint of a spider talking to a fly behind her voice, no matter how pleasant her voice might be.
As the door opened, Narin stepped inside. He was greeted by a thoughtfully designed space. A lot of consideration went into the placement of furniture, decor, and overall design of the office. The artwork behind the couch grabbed his attention. It was a unique piece. It wasn’t quite his taste, but he appreciated its artistic merit. The gentle aroma of lavender brought a sense of calmness over him. “Hello, I’m Narin Valen.” He said with a smile.
"I'm Vura," the counselor replied putting both of her hands against her chest and then placing them back at her sides. There was a certain amount of both nonchalance and grace to her movement. "Please, please, take a seat wherever you would like, Narin." She smiled warmly at Narin, waiting for her favorite part of any session, her patient's selection of a seat.
"The couch looks comfortable," Narin remarked as he approached it without much hesitation. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant," he added as he settled into the cushions, adjusting for comfort.
Vura was excited by the choice and a sly smile appeared on her face. Here is someone not ashamed of his sexuality. So rare. I wonder what fun we will have here. Her voice was light and friendly. "Please, Narin. Call me Vura. If you must, while on duty, feel free to call me Counselor, but Lieutenant is quite unnecessary and formal. I would much rather you see me as a person, not a rank or job title. So, again, please, just call me Vura." There was something about the way that she rolled her tongue around the "v" in Vura that was almost a purring sound.
Despite his discomfort with being informal with someone of a higher rank, he understood her reasoning. "Vura, it is,” Narin replied with a soft smile, attempting to pronounce the name the same way she had but finding it that he couldn’t roll his tongue the same way she did. His past experiences with counselors had been varied, but there was a distinct feeling about this encounter that hinted at it being unlike any other he had experienced before.
Vura sat herself on the other end of the couch from Narin, smiling all the while. "That actually was a pretty good attempt at saying my name the way I do," she cooed. "So, tell me about yourself, Narin."
"Thank you. I make it a point to learn how to properly pronounce someone's name," he explained. "As for myself, I'm newly aboard. I hold the position of Assistant Chief Science Officer. My Starfleet service spans 13 years, including my time at the Academy. My most recent assignment took me to the Gamma Quadrant on a five-year mission to explore uncharted territories."
"Ahhhh!" Vura exhaled. "That's Commander Maren's department. I've met her before. She cares a great deal about the people in her department. You are very fortunate to have her as a Chief. I like Alyssa. Anyways, enough of that.... Tell me about that assignment. Did you enjoy it? Anything unexpected happen? Of course, the unexpected seems to be normal in Starfleet."
Narin was taken aback by her sudden outburst upon mentioning Commander Maren. “I had a chance to meet Commander Maren earlier. She seemed like a good person, and I look forward to working with her,” he responded. “As for my time in Gamma Quadrant, it had its mix of ups and downs. Traveling between solar systems was often tedious, and uneventful. However, we did encounter some remarkable phenomena, several new civilizations, new plant life, and plenty of ruins to study.”
Vura nodded along with Narin, affirming his statements as he mentioned them. "I'm not an empath, but I do feel like there is something that you're not telling me. Am I right?"
Narin paused, not necessarily surprised by her insight. "There are always aspects of any mission that aren't capture in the official reports," he stated with a smile. "Some experiences leave deeper impressions than others," he added.
He looked around the room, gathering his thoughts before speaking. When he turned back to her, his expression softened. “There are personal matters I’d like to discuss, but I need to do it at my own pace,” he explained. “I’ve been carrying certain things for a while, and I think it’s time to start letting go of what’s holding me back, if that makes sense.”
"It does," Vura answered. "I'm here to help," she told him reassuringly. "Though, I have to ask, why were you looking around the room? Admiring my decor?" she asked, politely allowing Narin a way out of his discomfort if he wanted.
Glancing around the room once more, he nodded thoughtfully before turning his gaze back to her. “The decor is nice, and I do like it, but that’s not why I was looking around,” he began. “I just needed a moment to gather my thoughts. Before coming aboard, I had a conversation with my sister at Poseidon Station. She encouraged me to seek help, and honestly, I think we both realized it was time for me to stop running away from discussing what happened and how it had impacted me.”
Vura nodded patiently at Narin. She sat silently, waiting for Narin to continue. It was his trauma. He had to proceed in the direction that he wanted to start before she could help.
Narin took a deep breath, his expression revealing the weight of his words. “I lived on Betazed with my family…” he began, his voice trailing off for a moment as he grappled with the memories of that time. It was always difficult to articulate, each word carried a burden of profound loss. “When the Dominion attacked, my sister Liora, and I were the only ones to survive…”
"I see," Vura replied. Survivor's guilt, likely. Quite common but takes a lot to get through. "From your family? Or city? Or...?" Vura prompted.
Narin glanced at Vura. "My family," he responded.
"How did you manage to survive? Were you with your family or were they somewhere else?"
Narin took a deep breath. “On our property, we had an underground storage that wasn’t really used. My father instructed Liora, my sister, and I to head where they gathered Kaelan, our brother. He insisted on retrieving his favorite stuffed animal. We waited in the storage when explosions started to echo outside. There was one close to us. It shook the entire storage. I rushed to the entrance. Our house was gone.” There were tears running down his cheek at this point.
Sympathetically the counselor lowered her voice and her eyes. "That's awful. Being Betazoid, did you actually have to feel their deaths too? Hopefully there was only a moment of shock...."
Narin simply nodded finding it hard to say anything at the moment.
Vura wished that her aphrodisiacal touch would not likely send Narin into some sort of licentious behavior that could only end in misery for both of them. Such were the problems of a Deltan in Starfleet, constrained by the Oath of Celibacy. "I know that it may not be much comfort now, but at least they did not suffer." Her voice remained soft and consoling. "I certainly do not think that they would want you to suffer, either...."
Narin nodded, his eyes meeting Vura’s, the emotions he felt moments ago now subsided, leaving his features softened. “Knowing that they didn’t suffer does bring some solace,” he admitted.
"What does not, then?" Vura asked soothingly.
Narin reclined on the couch, tilting his head back to study the painting hanging on the wall. He wondered about her choice of artwork. The enigmatic "The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife." He speculated that she might enjoy observing her client’s reactions to it.
With a sigh, he returned to look at her again. He realized there was no turning back. Pandora’s box had been opened. He couldn’t simply ask her to forget everything he had told her so far. “Earlier you asked me about my last assignment. I suspect that my time in Gamma Quadrant had a deeper impact on me than I thought. It brought up emotions I believed I had dealt with.”
Vura smiled at the obvious deflection of Narin noticing her picture aloud. She was impressed that he knew what it was called. It was something to pick his brain on later. However, she was not about to interrupt his flow when he seemed to be on the verge of some breakthroughs. "Why do you believe that you had dealt with your emotions?"
"I suppose I thought I had dealt with those emotions because I had learned to compartmentalize them over time." Narin answered.
"So, in other words, you ignored them," Vura concluded. Her tone was not harsh but merely soft, understanding, and knowing. "And they sat and they festered until they could no longer be ignored...." She crossed her legs and placed her hands lightly on her thighs. "I'm very glad that you are willing to look at them now. It is not easy and it will not be easy going forward. However, you also won't get yourself in trouble or tossed out of the fleet because you emotionally break down, as long as you continue to be willing to walk along the path set before you with me."
Narin nodded slowly. “Yes, you’re right,” he admitted, his voice carrying a touch of vulnerability. “I suppose I did ignore them, thinking that if buried them deep enough, and with enough time, they wouldn’t affect me anymore.” He paused, considering her words carefully. “Thank you for your understanding and support, Vura,” he said sincerely. He made an effort to pronounce her name as she had earlier but smiled when it didn’t come out quite right.
Vura smiled at Narin. "You'll get the trill right soon enough. Don't fret. In any event, Narin, there's plenty to talk about and unpack. We can get to those things soon enough with regular appointments. Have you met anyone else yet on the ship?"
“I’ve spoken with Commander Maren, and Commander O’Rourke in Medical.” Narin replied.
"Hermia and Alyssa," Vura responded with a smile. "Good people, though Hermia can be a bit rambunctious." Vura's smile became more secretive and devilish at the mention of Hermia's name. "What did you think of our good doctor?"
“Our conversation was rather brief, but she appeared to be quite professional,” Narin replied.
"You should get her talking more. She's quite a hoot."
Narin nodded. "If we happen to meet outside of sickbay, I'll certainly consider it," he replied. "You must have known her for quite a while."
"Actually, no. I boarded during shore leave and met her then in After 11. I highly recommend that for food. It is rather secluded too, so a good place to have quiet meetings."
Narin nodded, again. “I had planned on heading there later this evening.”
"You should enjoy yourself." The Counselor paused, a natural conclusion to their meeting seeming to have arrived. "So, same time next week?"
Narin paused briefly, then gave a nod. "Yes, that should be fine."
"Wonderful!" Vura answered rising. "And if you ever need anything, don't be afraid to call." She gave Narin a sly, subtle wink, hoping that it would leave him uncertain whether he actually saw anything.
Narin smiled appreciatively. "Thank you, Vura. I'll keep that in mind," he replied.
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Vura
Chief Counselor, USS Pioneer
Lieutenant Junior Grade Narin Valen
Assistant Chief Science Officer, USS Pioneer
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