Chief Counsellor's Log - Commodore Gregory Paladin #00

Posted on Wednesday August 21st, 2019 @ 5:05am by Commander Kanaka Shakura

423 words; about a 2 minute read

Chief Counsellor's Log, Stardate 70631.0.

This log will serve as my preliminary remarks on Commodore Gregory Paladin, Mission Advisor and Chef aboard the U.S.S. Poseidon, who I have scheduled to have a counselling session with next week after an impromptu meeting with him that I just concluded in his quarters.

Commodore Paladin is, by outward appearances, a calm and tempered man who has given a long time of service to Starfleet. A veteran of the Dominion War, he has suffered losses both in his line of duty and personally as well, having lost his parents, wife and children to an attacker some two years ago. While he carries himself well and shows a strong front, lingering very heavily below the surface is a man fraught with conflicting emotions of pain, anger, sadness and regret.

During our conversation I was able to perceive a vision from his mind: a man surrounded by flames, the remains of his loved ones there, and the man's face indistinguishable save for an eye filled with blind anger. I've so far concluded this could be a sign of his own self-hatred - perhaps guilt for what happened - or perhaps his attacker whose face he has chosen to repress? This will be a matter of most concern when meeting him next week.

I was also able to ascertain from him that, true to my suspicions, he has been the one instrumental in bringing the enlisted officers aboard this ship, which he himself commanded two years ago prior to the tragic events that befell his family. For what purpose I'm still ultimately very unsure, but I can't help but wonder that the two are in some how related, and that this leads to the Commodore's desire to 'find peace' over what has happened. I also learnt that Commander Johnson encountered him in Alpha Centauri not long after the tragic events he suffered; there's every possibility the two wounded souls gravitated towards each other, and bled together - so to speak - hence their perceived closeness in the present day.

There's still much that doesn't add up however: Why the unease that Lt. Freya Svanirsdottir shows towards him? What exactly is the role of each of us on this starship in this 'peace' he has in mind? It's still impossible to say, but something tells me that whatever awaits us out there, it won't be as routine as expected.

LCdr. Kanaka 'Kana' Shakura
Chief Counsellor and Second Officer
U.S.S. Poseidon

Tags: Pre-Poseidon Launch, Pre-Departure, Post-Meeting

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