There were two kinds of First Officers. The first type were the ones whom Captains relied on and trusted implicitly. They essentially ran the ship and handled most of the day-to-day decisions. The second type were what Dent called the "Vice President" style of First Officer. The Captain still ran everything and the First Officer didn't have a whole lot to do. Unfortunately for Dent this is the category he found himself in. The crew of the Spector referred to the Captain for most of the decisions and essentially ignored the Commander. They knew and trusted Captain Peterson, and were in tune with his moods and disposition. They had unconsciously picked up on the undercurrent of hostility he directed at Dent and were acting on it – to save face and keep operations running smoothly, they carried out their business as though the Commander was not there. Dent tried to rectify this by scheduling meetings with the staff, but the Captain, who felt it would be a waste of time, cancelled this idea. Peterson made it clear the Dent would only be on board for a short time. After awhile, with nothing to really do and his suggestions mostly ignored, Dent grew bored.
The only exception to this was the Vulcan tactical officer, who easily adjusted to the new First Officer. Most Vulcans naturally distanced themselves from their emotional and illogical human counterparts, and Venax was no exception. She was the only Vulcan aboard the Spector and while she preformed her duties without reproach, she was somewhat aloof compared to her fellow officers. Venax treated the new Commander with the same style and manner as she treated her previous First Officer. The actions of her crew confused the Vulcan somewhat, but she decided to make the best of the situation. Humans were, of course, illogical.
These thoughts were running through her mind as she headed for the Torpedo Launch, the small off-shift meeting place. There the officers and enlisted crew gathered to relax and discuss non-ship matters. Venax rarely engaged in the discussions, preferring her secluded table in the back where she could work in relative peace while at the same time enjoy observing the humans in their social environments.
Tonight was an especially busy night at the Launch, as the ship neared the Frontier and the crew were abuzz with the mission details. The Zardanians always made for good discussion among Starfleet, somewhat of a minor power but prone to aggressive and severe expansionist tendencies. They had been hampered because of their shared borders with the more technologically advanced Federation and other area powers. Debate had been growing on which side the Zardanian ruling council would ally with since the start of the Dominion War, as Zardanian territory was of strategic value and their mineral resources was abundant. So far, they had remained relatively neutral if not sympathetic to the Dominion.
Venax moved her way through the crowd, most of the crew making way knowing her dislike for physical contact. She grabbed her drink from the bar and headed towards her favourite table, normally kept empty out of respect for her but tonight the Launch was very busy. She noticed that as usual the crew kept apart from her little corner of the ship, and she shouldered her way past the last of the thick crowd. There she hesitated.
Commander Dent sat at her table, a small pile of data pads sitting next to him and a half finished drink in one hand. No one sat with him, and the crew kept his or her distance from him. Looking up briefly, he made eye contact with the Vulcan. Venax looked away and scanned the room, unsure of where to head next.
"This seat is empty, Lieutenant Commander," he said.
"I do not wish to disturb your work, Commander."
"No trouble. I'm just about to head to my quarters anyway. Just as soon as I finish my drink."
Venax moved over to the table, aware of the slight snickering going on behind her. She noticed that the Commander had been taking his time with his drink, not allowing the crew to make him feel uncomfortable. She sat down and sipped her tea, moving the seat around so her back would not be to the crowd. Dent picked through a data pad and silence covered their corner, the raucous noise of the bar taking up the space around them.
"So how long have you been aboard the Spector, Venax?"
"Almost one year, sir."
"You can call me Alex if you want," he replied, not looking up.
"How are you finding the role of First Officer thus far?"
Dent looked up, forgetting for a moment who he was taking to and thinking she was making a joke. Instead he found her staring at him, eyebrows raised. He thought for a moment he saw her corners slide into the beginning of a smile as he glanced up but that quickly vanished, if it had been there at all.
"It's been...peachy."
"You are finding it uncomfortable it seems."
"I'm just having a little trouble finding my role in the scheme of things, Lt. Commander."
"I see."
"It must be pretty noticeable for you to comment on it."
"I apologize if I made you more uncomfortable. I am not well versed in social mannerisms of humans despite my time with your kind."
Dent waved his hand dismissively, "If anything I should be thanking you. So far you are the only one willing to talk to me as a person. Half the crew feels the same hostility as the Captain is projecting and the other are uncomfortable because of my rank."
Venax said nothing, unsure of how to respond. Dent continued smiling.
"Sorry, Venax. I should not be dumping this on you. It is unprofessional of me as an officer. Let's change the subject, shall we?"
"Very well," Venax said, looking at the Commander expectantly.
Dent sat for a moment, and then laughed. He had trouble thinking of another subject. "So...you've been in Starfleet for about as long as I have. What made you want to join?"
"It seemed more interesting than the Vulcan Science Academy," she said flatly.
"Well, I have to agree with you there. It is a lot more hands-on. But you started as a security officer, correct? That's not the usual trade for a Vulcan. And your appearance is different than most of the Vulcans I have met."
Venax began to respond, used to these kinds of questions from humans. They were a curious people, despite the well-known Vulcan preference for privacy. Venax did keep her appearance more casual than the rest of her race and was a bit of an enigma even by her own people. She readied her usual vague response and figured she would leave for her quarters when the Commander cut her off.
"No need to respond, Venax. I know Vulcans like their privacy and are uncomfortable with talking about themselves. I apologize. This conversation hasn't been the best one has it?" he asked, laughing a little, "My social mannerisms are rusty as well, I guess. I'll just gather up my things and let you finish your drink in peace."
Venax shifted a little, as Dent gathered up his work and empty glass. He was the first human to acknowledge the Vulcan need for privacy and she was slightly taken aback. He was surprising for a human, she thought. She glanced down and noticed one of the data pads.
"You were studying the technical schematics for the Zardanian Expansionist Fleet," she observed. Outlined on the pad was a summarization of the more common Zardanian military ship.
"Yes. Just boning up a little in case the Zardanians have some surprises in store for us at the meeting."
"Do you believe they have ulterior motives?" she asked with genuine interest. Everyone on board the Spector felt as the Captain did – the Zardanians, being inferior in technology to the Federation would join their side and the meeting was just a formality. Her observations from the crew's conversations indicated the diplomats on board the Gorkon and the Spector's sister ship, the USS Phantom, shared this opinion.
Dent leaned forward in his chair, warming up to the subject and glad to share his thoughts with someone, "From what I understand of the Zardanians they like to lead by example. They are a brash and bold people that prefer to act first and think later. They have little use for bureaucracy or diplomacy and wouldn't even have a ambassadorial staff if not for the other powers in the region."
"Agreed."
"I can't think of a better way to get the Dominion's attention than to strike at the Federation envoy sent to map out an alliance with them. We've known for years they were getting annoyed with our border with them – it's hampering their territorial expansion but they simply do not have the military power to do anything about it. Nor do they have the inherent diplomatic capacity."
"They are similar to the Cardassians in this respect. They are regulated to a minor power in the Galaxy when they see themselves as superior. They are an extremely emotional species. They must view the sudden rise of Cardassia with envy."
"Exactly right. In their frame of mind, the best way to get Dominion attention is to strike at the Federation."
"But the Dominion has been experiencing some heavy losses in the war of late and have never shown any interest in Zardanian territory. Why would they want to ally themselves with them?"
"Maybe they do and maybe they don't. Right now the Federation can't afford to open another front, even if it is with a minor military power. Chances are if the Zardanian's were aggressive enough, the Federation would submit to their demands just to keep the peace. Especially if it meant the Dominion were about to have free range of their space. And both sides could use their resources right about now."
"It is an excellent situation for the Zardanian Colonial Empire."
"And look here," Dent dug through and pulled out another pad, showing an overview of the shared border, "the Zardanians constructed a series of listening posts along their side of the border the last few months. Starfleet intelligence thinks they are also heavily armed."
"The Zardanians stated these were only to facilitate communications along their space. Recent subspace interference was disrupting their ship-to-ship exchanges."
"Then why only build them on the Federation border? They haven't built any arrays elsewhere. And why have we noticed a drop in traffic along this same sector?"
Venax paused and looked at the map, then said, "Because this allows them to move their fleet elsewhere while monitoring our activity."
"The only place to move their fleet would be closer to the Dominion side – perhaps to support their war effort after these 'negotiations'."
"It is quite...logical."
"Yes, but it is also just a theory. However I like to be prepared before going into a situation. I brought some of this up to the Captain and he dismissed it so I decided to do a little research for myself. I've never encountered a Zardanian vessel so some study was needed," Dent reached for a previous pad and turned it towards the Vulcan. It was the schematic of the Zardanian military cruiser. Venax recognized the familiar shape of the ship, having patrolled here in her previous station. Zardanian ships were shaped like a T and Dent was indicating one of the nacelles; built into the underside of the wings of the ship, "See here? A torpedo strike, properly aimed, would completely destroy their impulse drive. The still haven't compensated for shield disruption from the impulse manifold and their defences are weakest in this spot."
Venax reached out and indicated a region just past the nose of the ship, "The also have a major power node in this area. A brief phaser burst would momentarily disrupt their ship's power."
Dent smile grew tremendously at this comment.
"I've done some research as well the past few days. I reached the same conclusions as you have when we were assigned this mission but the Captain dismissed them. As is his prerogative."
"As long as some of us are ready, Lieutenant Commander, we should be fine."
Venax sat back in her chair and asked, "Would you care for another drink, Commander?"