<USS Avalon> House Cleaning <Log> Captain Ketchum/Counselor Roan

House Cleaning
--a log by
Captain Keith Ketchum and Lieutenant Felicity Roan

       Felicity was glad to have finally settled into to her quarters and 
was
prepared to begin the task at hand on the Avalon.  "Computer, please
recreate quarters, with light yellow walls, beige carpeting and several
Monet paintings."  She smiled as the computer complied.  She slowly made
the walk from her quarters to the Counselor's office.  She felt good about
this assignment for the first time in four weeks.  The Commander and Dr.
Moreya seemed genuinely nice.  As she made her way to the door, she smiled
and thought, 'I can handle this now.' What she saw when she opened the
doors left her totally speechless.

       â??What are these gizmos and gadgets? This is their idea of 
interrogation,
why this isn't even humane.  What could they possibly be thinking?  Admiral
Fitzgerald wants me to work here?!?"  All at once, she was almost certain
she didn't want to be on this ship, nice computer gadgets or not.  She was
positive that there was no mention of this equipment in the information she
had been given by the Admiral.

       With a determined look on her face, she decided it was time to meet 
the
Captain.  She entered the lift, "Deck Two." As if in harmony, as the lift
rose, so did her anger level and consequently, her blood pressure.  She
wasn't sure why she was so unhappy.  It's not as if anyone was asking her
to sit in the equipment and be subjected to the tortures she imagined were
possible that they could generate.

       She walked out of the liftwith a polite, but firm look, approached the
Captain's ready room and rang the chime. It seemed an eternity until she 
heard the reply. Taking a deep breath she entered and tried to start the 
conversation on a positive note, she didn't want to get thrown off the ship.

       Keith looked up suspiciously at the Lieutenant as she walked into the 
ready
room; he actually had a copy of her file on the PADD in front of him.
â??Lieutenant Roan, I presumeâ??, before she could introduce herself.

       She nodded, but couldnâ??t get a word in edgewise.

       â??Welcome aboard the USS Avalon.  Sheâ??s a fine ship, and I hope you 
enjoy
your stay with us, and that it will be a long one.  I see youâ??re the new
Counselor, might be quite a task with the current crew, but based on your
record, Iâ??m sure youâ??ll do fine.â??

       Felicity continued to smile politely, preparing her argument, "Thank 
you sir, I look forward to serving aboard the Avalon.  If you have a moment, 
I'd like to discuss the equipment in the Counselor's office.  I am not 
comfortable with those contraptions as part of any interrogation or counseling 
program 
that I'd offer."

       â??Ah yes, the equipment, well, err.  Thatâ??s a thorny subject.  The 
equipment
was requested specifically by Admiral Valdez, and we recently tested the
equipment to make sure it was in working order.â??  He watched her as he
talked seeing how far of an explanation he had to give, alas she was not
showing any backing down.  â??The equipment is to be used specifically for
interrogations, and they are to be monitored by you, at least one medical
personnel, and one security personnel.  Mostly it is there to scare a
hostile individual into talking, but will be used in extremely rare cases.
Remember we are a covert ship, so we will be dealing with beings not
usually seen in the mainstream of Starfleet.â??

       Was she buying his story, he wasnâ??t sure, so he figured he would guess 
her
next issue.  â??Our Chief Medical Officer has had concerns with the equipment
and requested that it be taken off ship.  Unfortunately, I would like to
comply, however the Admiral deems the point mute, but I will pose the
question to her in the near future.  The room in which the equipment should
have been sealed until needed, and it is not to be used during your normal
counseling sessions.â??

       Keith punched something on his PADD.  â??The room itself was to have 
been
sealed so that it would take at least two voiceprints to open the door, or
my own override, I will have Lieutenant Commander Sierra look into the
security system to see if there is a problem.â??

       She nodded and smiled to make him think she was reassured, but after 
hearing that the Admiralty actually wanted those contraptions used during 
interrogations, she was more frightened than before she walked into his 
office.  He 
was just trying to appease her by saying he would address the issue with 
Valdez.  But what could she do, orders were part of the Chain of Command.

       â??Again, welcome aboard, Lieutenant, enjoy your stay on the Avalon and
hopefully we wonâ??t need to worry too much about the interrogations portion
of your job.  I would like you to start working on updated psychological
records for the crew.  During the last mission, we had a couple of scares,
and I want to make sure the crew is ok.â??

       "Understood Captain, I'll get to work on that project as soon as the 
last of the crew is aboard.  I do appreciate your time and look forward to 
working with you.  Please have the Lieutenant Commander contact me regarding 
the 
interrogation chamber.  The sooner we get that sealed off, the better I'll 
feel."

       She turned and made her way back to her office.  Interrogation 
Equipment 1, Felicity 0.  She'd just have to keep fighting to get rid of that 
garbage.  She looked at the crew manifest and tried to decide who needed to 
speak 
with her first...

~~~ END LOG ~~~

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