SIM:Lael Rosek - In So Many Words, Part I (Victory)

Previous sim "Switching Departments"	Lieutenant Junior Grade Lael Rosek Operations Officer Starbase 118 USS Victory NCC 362447	Next sim "In So Many Words, Part II"
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((USS Victory - Deck 5 - Counseling))

::The counseling office was warm and calmly lit. Soft chairs and couches gave her patients a choice in where to sit, and a small desk was set to the side rather than centered in the office. The decor was soft and neutral, creams, browns and pale blues melding peacefully. An aquarium was set in one wall, full of brightly colored fish swimming gracefully around. The air tank made a soft bubbling white noise which Kaji found very soothing. She had chosen her favorite chair, a deep brown leather-style fabric on a solid, metal, rocking frame. It gave her good support for long hours and wasn’t cozy enough to encourage sleep.::

:: Kaji watched her patient carefully, trying to catalogue all the body language. Her own posture was deliberately open and relaxed, her eyes and body at a slight angle to appear passive rather than aggressive. She wasn’t in uniform, but wearing a soft purple sweater and black trousers, hoping to make the patient feel at ease. It had been a while, but she hoped her job would come back to her soon. She kept strong mental shields up, wanting to let her patients speak to her in their own words.::

Kaji: Would you tell me about your incarceration?

:: Janel’s elbows dug into his knees as he rested his weight on them and pushed his thumbs into his eye sockets, blocking out the room. He didn’t really want to be here. The events of his incarceration had never been far from his thoughts but the things they had done to him were terrible and humiliating. Difficult topics that he’d really rather keep private. A large part of him wanted to be awkward but he also knew if he did that he simply wouldn’t be cleared for duty, instead it would only make the process longer and more drawn out for them both. ::

Tarna: I don’t really know how long we were in the cells. There were no windows, the lighting was constant, you couldn’t get a feel for the passage of time. It was disorienting and the conditions were terrible. No food or water for days, no access to a proper toilet. I’ve never had to hold it in so long in my life but eventually… ::He cleared his throat nervously:: Well, worse than that. ::He stopped and took a quick, sharp breath. He’d been building up to the worse part, saving the hardest bit till last. Difficult as it was he had to say it:: The torture. ::It was all he could utter before clamming up. ::

:: Kaji bit her tongue in an effort to control her feelings. This was his session, not hers, though likely she’d be having plenty of her own with Krepok in the near future. Her next question wasn’t really thought through, just an effort to keep him talking so that her mind didn’t drift.::

((Rosek))

::Lael glanced around the room, her arms crossed in front of her chest, her twitching foot a betrayal of her anxiety. She hated shrinks. Had since the Academy. They were glorified manipulators who used your own weaknesses against you.::

Kaji: Would you tell me about your incarceration?

Rosek: ::shrugs:: Standard stuff. Tossed in a cell with no food or water with the looming threat of death.

Kaji: And how did you feel about that?

Rosek: ::sombers:: A helluva lot more than I should have...of everything.

((Tarna))

::Was it a trick question? How would anyone feel about that? If there was one thing about it though, it was easier to answer. ::

Tarna: Anxious… terrified! Guilty. Angry. Conflicted. Sad, upset… I felt sorry for myself and for Lael because we were in so much pain. ::He paused while considering whether he should mention Lael at all and decided to mention it, at least briefly:: I developed feelings for Lael really quickly too.

:: His comment felt like a bit of a diversion, but she let it go and followed his train of thought. They could circle back around to the issue of torture later. She shuddered just a little.::

Kaji: So what was it like having those feelings in such a stressful situation?

Tarna: Confusing! And you know, all of the emotions seemed magnified. Of course I now know it was down to that drug but at the time I couldn’t understand why all of these feelings I had were so strong. I thought I was going insane and it became harder and harder to cope – it was so overwhelming.

TBC in Part II

===

JP by

Lt Talia Kaji
Chief Counselor
USS Victory

&

LtJG Lael Rosek
Operations Officer
USS Victory

&

LtJG Janel Tarna
Medical Officer
USS Victory