After the Briefing

Posted on Tue Mar 26th, 2024 @ 8:00pm by Sub-Commander T'shir & Commander Saul Whitford

1,456 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: First Deployment
Location: USS Unicorn
Timeline: After Mission Briefing

As the officers were dispersing back to their departments after the mission briefing, T'shir took a moment to approach Lieutenant Whitford. They had shared a discussion a few days prior about the differences between Human and Vulcan communications and culture, logically he was an appropriate person with whom she might speak to about her observations.

"Lieutenant Whitford, do you have a pressing matter in which you need to attend? I found the dynamics of the mission briefing. If you had a moment, I would be interested in your thoughts. Of course this discussion is not urgent, should you wish to schedule it for a later time. " T'shir had bowed her head slightly to the right deferentially as she waited for his response.

A troubled look passed across Whitford's face before he asserted a smile. 'No, Sub-Commander, nothing pressing.' He motioned towards the door, 'after you. Can I suggest the Mess if it's not specifically work related?' He was momentarily shamed by his reaction to the Vulcan's request. His not having truly interacted with Vulcans, and reacting purely on their reputed treatment of humans in the recent past was no excuse to his discomfort around the Sub-Commander.

"You may, Lieutenant," T'shir responded as she began walking toward the mess. "I found the dynamics of the meeting intriguing," T'shir stated as they walked. "Thus far my interactions with the crew have been somewhat limited, and primarily with the Colonel and First Officer. Do you perceive that the crew ... gets along with one another?" she asked.

Turning as the Vulcan Sub-Commander passed him, Whitford found himself having to catch up with her as they made their way through the corridor. 'It would depend,' he said lightly as he caught up with her, 'what would you define as 'getting along', Sub-Commander?' As they stepped through the door to the Mess, he caught a chair for her, 'take a seat - would you care for a tea? you can mull over my question while I requisition it.'

T'shir looked at the chair a brief second before taking a seat. "Tea would be... refreshing. Thank you, Lieutenant." She had tried to come up with a word that was more "warm" than the words typically used by her people when attempting an approximate translation for this occasion. She was aware the many criticisms that that Human's had of Vulcans, and while T'shir believed that Humans should apply more logic before reaching conclusions, a Starfleet officer she had worked with previously often urged her to "meet in the middle." Once the aphorism was explained, it did seem logical.

Nodding in response, Whitford went to the resequencers. Keying in the orders for two Vulcan teas - when in Rome, right? - he hoped that the recipes for non-human foods were getting better. He knew from experience that foods had occasionally been sequenced incorrectly. It was one of the few things he knew Vulcans struggled with, with their delicate palates.

Bussing the tray back, he placed the steaming mugs of tea down in front of T'shir, and took a seat opposite her. 'So. Tea. Did you have a moment to define 'getting along'?'

"The briefing for example," T'shir began. "There seemed to be more than one disagreement centered around emotional reactions rather than logical discourse.

'Uh, well,' Whitford blew out his cheeks as he thought of a response. 'I can see how that might seem like a team not quite getting along.' His brow furrowed, 'I know it's probably expressed differently on Vulcan vessels, but I'm sure that there are discussions about the best way to proceed if there's not an evidently optimal solution, or you've had to depart from established protocol.

'For the Unicorn, this is precisely one of those times. For humans, at least, we haven't had to fight a full-scale war in space before. This is all new for us, no established protocols. So we apply our training in the best way we know how - the MACO personnel know how to run a ground fight. Starfleet knows how to get us there. We'll clash, but from that emotional interaction, we'll come to the optimal solution.

'We haven't worked as a unit for very long, and as time goes by, as we learn each other's quirks and personalities, our interactions will likely improve, and our decision-making become more optimal.' He grinned, 'at least that's what I'm hoping.'

"The... 'clashing' that you speak of. This is purely an emotional response, is it not?" T'shir inquired.

'Not purely, no. Humans will all see the individual logic of their actions or reasons. When they're involved in an exchange where they don't feel heard, or feel their own logic train has been derailed, then our emotions come in to it,' Whitford answered after a moment. 'What happened in the briefing was a clash of two methodologies, one MACO, one Starfleet, and they grew frustrated with one another when their own logic was denied.'

"It seemed that both sides were rather fervent in their positions despite not yet having considered the relevant data," T'shir said naively.

'Yes - though we don't know what situations they've face in the past they were extrapolating from, however imperfectly.' Whitford smiled again, 'I take it that's not the way Vulcans work aboard their own vessels?' He was curious about how Vulcans went about their daily duties. 'There's no friction between crewmembers aboard?'

"Vulcan senior officers can be arrogant, however it is a battle of wills to not display any emotion at all when an issue is set forth for group discussion," T'shir explained. "Each recommendation is expected to follow with the scientific facts and logical reasoning behind the proposed recommendation. Airs of impatience or frustration are not permitted."

'I can imagine - I've run into a few Vulcan vessels in my time. There was a certain ... attitude from the Commanding Officers,' Whitford admitted. 'But it sounds like your arrogance can be similar to our gut feelings in their effect - wanting to be correct. It's a difficult thing to balance, but humans muddle through - look at the progress we've made since we made First Contact.'

"Yes, your race was still quite divided in that time period. It was risky for our people to make contact with your kind at all," T'shir responded.

He smiled, 'we were lucky ... even if Vulcans turned out to stick to rules that we incomprehensible to us as friends.' Shrugging he carried on, 'a lot of people feel we could be even further along if Vulcans had been more forthcoming with their expertise and knowledge while we were developing better tech.' Whitford paused a moment, then said without malice, 'who knows if we would even be at war if different choices had been made.'

"It was surprising to many that the people of Earth took such a risky approach to space exploration despite the cautionary warnings that the Vulcan delegates provided," T'shir countered. "Space was, and is still a dangerous place, Lieutenant. Our historical stance of quiet non-interference unless a direct threat is detect was born out of self-preservation, not cowardice."

'I'm not accusing the Vulcans of cowardice, Sub-Commander,' Whitford put up a hand in order to forestall the thought. 'Merely that the tutelage provided could have been a bit more ... flexible. Though I'm given to understand that the political choice has been reflected upon in recent times. Particularly since the Enterprise visited Vulcan.'

"Indeed. It would seem that despite what some might call polarizing differences, the Vulcan High Command was willing to acknowledge that it underestimated Human capabilities. And spirit," T'shir added. "Thus we are working together still today. I thank you for your conversation today. I am sure you have duties to return to. I hope I have not offended you, as it is my intent to use my time here not just to serve Vulcan and assist Starfleet. But I see it as an opportunity to learn more about your people. Your ways are still very alien to me, but this is to be my home for the foreseeable future."

'I suppose I should get back to some inventorying too,' Whitford replied with a nod. 'It's a pleasure to have you aboard, Sub-Commander.' Getting to his feet, he flashed another, more bashful smile, 'I'm learning not all Vulcans are alike, and that conversation with you is challenging, but pleasant. I hope the foreseeable future lasts a long time.'

T'shir stood up and bowed her head slightly as a sign of respect. "Thank you, Lieutenant. I shall look forward to future discourse with you."

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