Confessional

Posted on 15 Mar 2026 @ 12:39am by Captain Bane Plase & Lieutenant Commander Raviran Dattek-Winters

2,206 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Shakedown
Location: Captains Ready Room
Timeline: Shortly after "Three "O"s? Or Four?"

ON:

The door chimed. Plase sat down his cup of Darjeeling tea and cleared the holographic screen he was working from. It was the dossier of Dr. Winters.

"Come in," he said, the doors hissing open on command.

Ravi entered and stood in front of Bane's desk, her eyes on the floor and her hands clasped in front of her. It was very contrite body language.

"Captain, I've come to report a misdemeanour." she began and then lifted her face to look him in the eyes.

"Do you have time for me to tell you about it now, Sir? Or should I come back at a more convenient time?" she asked.

Bane was still reeling from the conversation he had not just half an hour ago with Commander Rh’Vareth. He knew what she was about to say would have something to do with that, but her use of the word ‘misdemeanor’ threw him off. “Uh, of course I do, Doctor. Have you also reported this crime to Lieutenant Seitha?” He was surprised at this and surprised he was hearing about it from the Doctor and not his Chief of Security. Most curious, indeed.

"Ordinarily Sir, I would report my wrong-doing to Commander Bast but the Mission Advisor told me she would be visiting you to ask you to deal with me yourself so I came here to confess first and I hope that isn't yet another impropriety." Ravi explained quietly and with her eyes fixed on the front of his desk.

Now it all made more sense to the Captain. "Ah, I see. Yes, Commander Rh'Vareth was in here just shortly ago. Ordinarily, I would refer you to Mr. Bast, as you have already mentioned, but something seems to be going on, and maybe it needs the hand of the Captain to help resolve. Before we get into that, though, won't you tell me your side of things," he said, proffering his hand towards one of the two chairs in front of his desk, inviting her to sit.

"Thank you Sir" Ravi sat down and took in a deep breath. It was something that she had felt before but never put a label on but there was an aura about this Bajoran man that reminded her of a calm place in a universe full of chaos.

He watched her sit down, then waited for her to speak. He noticed she would not look him directly in the eye, and in fact looked at everything but him. Clearly she was struggling with what she was about to say. Was it what the Commander had told him to be completely true, that she was insubordinate, disrespectful and insolent? That was not the Ravi Winters which Bane knew, respected and loved, but then again, everyone had their breaking point. He waited for her to speak, not pushing her and not causing any more stress than she was already experiencing.

"It's good of you to see me Sir" Ravi began quietly. "especially over something so trivial and I do know and apologise for not taking this to the XO as was more appropriate, but...." she sighed. "At the risk of seeming to be 'telling tales out of school' as it were. I was told by the Mission Observer that she would be bringing this matter direct to you and I value your good opinion at such a high level that I wanted to confess what I did wrong in my own words and to your face so that you didn't think I was avoiding owning up to it and telling you myself." she explained apologetically.

The CMO waited briefly for him to say she shouldn't be here and send her away but when he didn't seem to be in a rush to do that, she took heart and continued. Her voice soft and sad.

"I have been disrespectful and behaved in a manner that was completely inappropriate for an officer, or anyone of any rank for that matter. I am ashamed to admit that I continued to speak when Commander Rh'vareth was directing me to be silent and I became angry with her when she was insisting that all my own numerous faults have been caused directly by Commander Bast and were a result of his 'incompetent leadership' and that is so unf.... " Ravi felt herself rising again and stopped.

She returned her eyes to the desktop again and blushed. "I'm sorry Sir, it all began because I was trying to suggest that her new Rostas are very efficient but they don't allow for consideration and give and take."

She looked up at Bane, defensiveness written all over her face. She seemed to have dried to an awkward silence but more was spilling out before she had full control of it.

"The Commander was in a hurry to go somewhere and wasn't prepared to hear my reasons, explanations or examples of how what I was saying would apply here and although I could take her disagreeing with me and my opinions, it was so hard to hear her attacking Commander Bast and making him responsible.... he has NO responsibility or blame for what she sees as wrong with me, Sir. She seems to blame him for everything that goes wrong everywhere and not in a usual overview or reasonable way. I hate that I've failed him this way, Captain. I was probably angry and disappointed in my own self rather than her but I couldn't make her understand that it's all on my own shoulders and she mustn't blame him, he's SUCH a gifted, trustworthy, supportive and patient XO, I can't bear to hear his kindness decried as weakness or mistaken and criticised for incompetence, Sir."

Ravi realised that the Captain had listened in silence to a diatribe from her without a word of response. She had "filled" the silence he had skillfully left her to utilise to tell all.

This time her own silence was brought to bear and seemed to echo until she kept it steady and waited for him to finally have a say.

Bane listened to his Chief Medical Officer, and one of his closest friends, basically word-vomit all over him. She talked so fast and so passionately that he could barely keep up. Had it not been for her taking a breath every so often, he would have sworn what she had said was one very long sentence. He was amused, but he could not let it show. At least, not right now. He leaned back in his chair and intertwined his fingers over his abdomen. "Ok, to make sure I got this straight, Commander," he said, referring to her by her rank instead of her title as Doctor, and very much so more than her given name, which he had done often, to remind her that she was in little position to protest or otherwise rebut.

"Commander Rh'Vareth came to you about the shift rotations, to offer you advice, to show you a different way of doing things. Instead of taking it under advisement, you gave excuses and invoked Commander Bast's previous acceptance of your shift rotation. When the Commander, whom, I might point out, outranks both you and Commander Bast, tried to explain what she was recommending, you interrupted her. Then when she ordered you to be quiet, you disobeyed that direct order and talked over her, and even more, yelled at her? Am I understanding that correctly?" Captain Bane knew Ravi had no idea he had just dressed down Commander Rh'Vareth. Still, he could not have officers usurping authority, nor showing any flavor of disrespect to higher ranking officers. He didn't yell. He didn't raise his voice. He asked the hard question, the one she was dancing around. He let his rank of Captain and his authority as Commanding Officer of this vessel lend the weight that needed to be had here.

"That describes how it will have felt to the Commander, Sir, I would guess, but....." she bit back on the fact that the Mission Advisor hadn't simply come to offer advice but had come in hot on the defensive at the very suggestion that this should even be discussed, let alone any kind of talk of amendment, compromise or consideration of the staff that it would affect.

Ravi also bit back on the thoughts she was having about how gently, politely and diplomatically she had personally tried to get a word in or a civil response, let alone any thought to the idea that there might be any reason to rethink. compromise or adjust the pointy parts of the dictate. She also knew that the woman ... no that wasn't the right attitude! she revoked herself, flickering a subconscious look at the CO to steady and calm her rising emotions.

Breathing deeply but not yet aware that she hadn't actually answered all these thoughts out loud, Ravi struggled with ~you you gave excuses and invoked Commander Bast's previous acceptance of your shift rotation.~ that stung. It hadn't been at all like that. That would have been closed minded and stubborn but how to explain that she, Ravi, had been incensed at the constant unwarranted, unfair and basically untrue attacks on Bast, verbally always but in front of everyone and deliberately undermining the XO personally.

~Breathe Rav~ she told herself and took more deep breaths.

"I think it's wrong of me to try to defend Commander Bast when he's perfectly able to do that himself and I also agree that - even if the Mission Adviser wasn't prepared to hear out and discuss my genuine concerns about the effects on the Staff of my Department that her ideas would have on them - on us as a team and the whole general goodwill and cooperation of their currently very loyal and willing natures, that I had no right to attempt to force her to hear me out despite her having no obligation whatsoever to debate or discuss it with me anyway.

"I also agree that as she's just an advisor, despite her seniority in rank, I had no right to contend the matter with her after she had commanded me to be silent and I had no business whatsoever, to get angry and shout no matter how aggressive, rude or provocative she might have chosen to be. I was more than just disrespectful, I was giving a disgraceful example to my own staff who were within earshot."

"I'm here to accept that I lost control, no matter how much I might like to excuse myself that I was seriously and in my humble opinion, provoked. I was still a Federation Officer; still on duty; still in a position of responsibility and STILL ..." another steadying breath at this final admission guilt. ...."in the wrong Sir.

Ravi felt exhausted, oddly, it was as if she'd been through it all again, only this time she'd been facing some cold truths and attempting to reconcile her behaviour - which in the end she could not excuse.

Her eyes rose to meet Plase's and she stood up and to attention.

"I have let myself down Captain. I have let my department down and worse, I have let you down." she thought for a split second and added "...and I have let Commander Bast down as well, despite my excuses that I was defending him, which I realise I wasn't doing when I exhibited the kind of behaviour that he has never encouraged, taught nor tolerated in his guidance of me.. and everyone." she sighed so deeply that it was apparent that she had no further excuses and no more resistance to the truth of her behaviour and failings in this matter.

"I am deeply sorry Sir and I fully understand that you will have to take back my promotion and perhaps more still, but I want to apologise to you first as it's inexcusable."

Having climbed the mental hill to look at her reactions from the eyes of an outsider on the scene as it unfolded, Raviren was descending down the far side at some speed now.

She realised she'd been talking much too long as she worked this all through, so she fell silent at last and was left to absorb her own regret while the Commanding Officer had his long-overdue say.

Plase stood to match her, and looked into her eyes. "Thank you for this, Doctor. I will take everything you said under advisement, and, when he gets back from the observatory, will discuss all this with Mr. Bast." He hoped that the look he was giving her would tell her more than just the words he was saying. He couldn't come out and tell her that he already had several complaints against Commander Rh'Vareth, but he also didn't want Ravi thinking she was on an island unto her own. "Dismissed, Doctor."

"Yes Sir" Ravi replied and turned smartly before leaving in silence.



OFF


A JP by:



Bane Plase, Captain
USS Cygnus, Commanding

and

Lieutenant-Commander Raviran Dattek-Winters
Chief Medical Officer
USS Cygnus

 

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