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Post by Jennifer Clarke on Feb 24, 2011 15:21:39 GMT -5
Jennifer surveyed the room with a small smile, noting the classy look that her new office had. She walked around the mahogany desk, putting her hand down on the activation switch to her terminal, an A.I.'s voice telling her in a smooth voice:
"Welcome Doctor Clarke. Please state your request." Jen had been curious about something...or rather someone's psychological make-up since he had arrived on the ship. Why not poke around? She had access to all the crew's files and possessed the power to make recommendations based on behavior and psycho-analysis. Jen smirked as she said:
"Access crew profile."
"Name?"
"Ezra."
"Pulled up."
As she sifted through the analysis, she realized that the kid(heh, kid) had gone through a whole lot in his previous life, but his past hadn't affected his performance here on the ship. In fact, Michael had allowed him to join the tactical division and submitted a request for him to be a commissioned officer. Michael had a lot of confidence in him...of course, he put confidence in most people until they break that confidence. Jen wasn't that trusting.
As she sifted through a few more profiles, her A.I. notified her of a visitor outside her door. Jen hadn't been alerted of any appointments...who was it?
"Let them in."
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Post by Blake Lucas on Mar 8, 2011 17:42:01 GMT -5
Blake wandered down the corridor intently studying and manipulating the tablet in his hands as he walked, looking up occasionally to be sure that he wasn’t about to run into a wall or a person. On it was a schematic detailing the layout of the ship that was currently helping him to navigate through the network of unfamiliar hallways. Uncertain of the ship’s protocol, his pulse pistol still rested on his hip, and it would stay there unless he was told otherwise. He stopped outside of the medical bay doors and confirmed his destination by reading a small plaque next to the door. He buzzed in for entry with a deliberate index finger and anxiously scratched at the implant behind his right ear as he waited for the door to grant approval.
He peered around the corner as the door swooshed open and stepped inside the medical bay. He turned a slow 360 as he walked inside, trying to take in all of the details- it was just the kind of thing you did when you walked into a room for the first time. He noticed a beautiful woman sitting behind a wooden desk that was probably worth about as much as he was, and suddenly he seemed to remember his purpose for being there in the first place. He headed for the office and leaned about halfway into the doorway, still holding onto the frame.
“Hey, you the doc?” he asked, releasing the door frame, but not giving her quite enough time to answer before speaking again. “They said I had to get a medical clearance or something?”
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Post by Jennifer Clarke on Mar 8, 2011 20:43:38 GMT -5
Jennifer gave the young man a smile, saying:
"Not necessarily, if you need medical help. Charlie can get you fixed up...but wait, you're not here for that, are you? I'm good with faces and you're not one I recognize. Another new recruit?" Jen looked at the various holographic projections that served as command prompts for various functions in the office. She pressed down on one that said "ID verification", causing the transparent monitor to emit a soft yellow light that quickly scanned over the man's face.
"Just stand still. This shouldn't take very long."
A moment later, information popped up on Jennifer's screen:
Name: Blake Lucas
Homeplanet: Orcus V
Personality profile: Showed enthusiasm for joining crew, but would advise caution. Has a tendency to be too much of an independent thinker. Can he mesh with crew?
Profile gathered by: Psych Officer Joseph Stanley
Jennifer chuckled at the information, knowing that most of the crew of the Venia were afflicted with some kind of psychological disturbance or had a nasty label attached to them(Loose cannon, free thinker, Hard to get along with,etc.) But those recruitment officers didn't know that those were the kind of people that seemed to operate well under pressure. Psychological phenomenon, indeed. She was most likely going to assemble some kind of presentation for the Alliance when the Helios would be up and running so that recruiters wouldn't discount extreme personalities. As for this one...
"Welcome to the ship, Blake. I'm Jennifer Clarke, the psychologist onboard. And before you ask, no, I don't give out your information to everyone who walks into my office. Confidentiality agreements are older than dirt, so if you ever need to talk about something, come find me." He looked like a nice enough kid. Maybe she should introduce him to Hollie...
Oh stop it.
"Any questions for me while you're here?"
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Post by Blake Lucas on Mar 9, 2011 15:46:41 GMT -5
His head instinctively jerked back a little as the yellow light began scanning him, but he complied and remained still while it finished. He cocked his head a little to the side as he watched her pull up his information at the interface. He had yet to go digging through the secure areas of the manifest and see what kinds of things they said about him, but in his experience he’d always found them to be just a little bit disappointing.
“They never get any of the good stuff, do they? Now what they should mention,” he said pointing a finger at nowhere in particular; he was always very animated when he spoke, “is that they should all be nice to me ‘cause it’s my job to keep the universe from collapsing, or exploding, or tearing itself into tiny little pieces.”
He didn’t think he’d ever actually met a psychologist before- in fact, he was quite sure that he hadn’t. He didn’t know what kind of doctor was worse for him. Physically he had about the same amount of medical history as a 20th century kid without health insurance and one of the worse immune systems this side of the galaxy (he suspected it had something to do with years of malnutrition). Mentally and emotionally he was all over the board. And off the board. And so far away from the board that you couldn’t even see the board anymore.
“A beautiful women that’s paid to talk to me? I think I might like the ship,” he said with a wry grin, clearly unable to help himself.
“I’m don’t have to call anyone captain, do I?” He asked with a hint of a whine in his voice that made him sound about half his age. It was he biggest concern with agreeing to come on this mission. Sure the quarters amazing and the food was a hell of a lot better than emergency rations, but he was a little concerned that they (the UGAP) would frown upon his somewhat unorthodox methods. He would be testing those limits soon enough, that was for sure.
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Post by Jennifer Clarke on Mar 9, 2011 16:28:12 GMT -5
Jennifer couldn't help but be slightly concerned about Blake not wanting to have an authority figure over him. Of course, initial authority to resistance was common place on the ship from the more forceful personalities, but they fell in line after a few days. She hoped he would do the same.
"On this ship, we do have a Captain. He's currently occupied with a few things, but I'm sure you'll meet him within the next few days. And don't worry: he runs a tight ship, but he's one of the best men to have in your corner when you need support." She never thought she would have ever said that about Michael, but he had proved himself to her over the past few weeks, which comforted her.
"You'll have to see our chief science officer so you can settle in and get your duties in order. So with that, you're done. Hope to see you around, Blake." She gave him a pleasant smile before pulling her terminal back to the home screen, pulling up a few more crew profiles she had to fill out. Something was gnawing at her though...a kind of curiosity that had always been a feature in her life. Orcus five...she had heard rumors of what the place was like before and after the destruction, but she had never met anyone directly from the planet.
"Blake...may I ask you something? Your home planet...how are the people there?"
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Post by Blake Lucas on Mar 9, 2011 21:06:57 GMT -5
He nodded as she told him about the captain. He wanted to think that she was right about him; he supposed that she should probably be a good judge of character. He distrusted authority until proven otherwise; it was one of those pesky signs of intelligence. But captains were often preoccupied. It was probably more important that he get along with the chief of science. He had started to step toward the door until her final question held him captive.
Blake laughed nervously when she asked him about home, and signs of anxiety replaced his confident demeanor. He shook his head and rubbed his fingers over the data port behind his ear.
“I- I don’t know…I mean- they’re slaves on their own planet, how do you think they are?” He rubbed his hand over his forehead and crossed his arms over his chest. More collected this time: “I don’t know what you’ve heard, but it’s all true and probably worse. They’re dying, starving, and fighting a war they can’t win. I had a chance to get out, and I took it. I had to.”
He tried not to sound too defensive, and he realized he’d probably just failed a little. He didn’t even mind her asking. She probably couldn’t help herself, being a psychologist and all. It was pretty obvious that he had a touch of survivor’s guilt, but he didn’t regret leaving, he couldn’t. He loved his home, but he was afraid to go back unless he had some serious assurance that he was going to make it out again. His mood did another 180 and the smile and twinkle in his returned to his eyes. “But hey, at least maybe now you’ve got some fun stuff to put in my file, right?”
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Post by Jennifer Clarke on Mar 10, 2011 19:12:59 GMT -5
"I don't know if everything is going into the file necessarily. It's not comprehensive...up to the discretion of those in charge of the crew's mental health." That was a fact: while most Alliance officers had pounded Jen with the concept of putting EVERYTHING into a file. Yes, that was something useful and yes it helped over the long haul, but there were some things that the Alliance didn't need to know. Of course, she would have to say SOMETHING about the guilt complex Blake was exhibiting, but she didn't feel the need to include everything. Some things just need to remain private.
She knew the truth of that all too well.
But enough was enough...he didn't need her rooting around in his personal history. It was good time to break off now, let him settle in. If things became an issue, he would get referred to her. Easy enough.
"Ok Blake, I'll see you around then." Just then she received a message that Michael wanted to see her up top. What could be the issue?
(I figure this is a good stopping point?)
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