Captain, USS Exploration.
There are parts of command that I loathe: the endless report writing, the duty roster, the lack of time for real scientific inquiry. Above all, I loathe the discipline, or more precisely, being in charge of discipline.
Our head of Life Sciences, Commander Kosher, had a run in with Commander Adlit, my Chief of Science and Second Officer. It seems that Commander Adlit had allocated the secondary sensor array and deflector taken off-line for several hours during our orbit around Kharans IV, a newly discovered planet in the Arucanis Arm. For a number of reasons (not the least of which was a persistent sensor “echo” during warp travel), Commander Adlit felt that the array and deflector needed to be realigned. She came to me and requested permission to take them offline, and I had granted her permission to do so.
Unbeknownst to me, Commander Kosher and his team in exo-biology had been planning to use the secondary sensor array to conduct a scan of the planetary atmosphere, which houses a remarkable form of microscopic life that thrives in the planet’s methane-rich mesosphere. When Commander Adlit informed Mr. Kosher of the planned downtime, he was not happy (and this is putting it mildly). Adlit and Kosher’s discussion became extremely heated, and words were exchanged. Being the professional that she is, Commander Adlit extricated herself from the situation to put an end to the arguing, and returned to her post at the bridge. Commander Kosher, apparently still in a state of some agitated, proceeded to Engineering, where he falsely informed our Chief Engineer, Mr. Laroche, that the sensor alignment had been ordered delayed for several hours, and that the array could remain online. He then proceeded back to the Life Sciences lab where he and his team completed their scans.
This might have been the end of it, had Commander Kosher been able to leave things be. However, after completing his scans, he proceeded to the bridge, where Commander Adlit was still on duty, to present the results of his scans and analysis to me. Commander Adlit, overhearing our conversation, asked Mr. Kosher how he had completed the scans with the array off-line. Mr. Kosher, with no indication of regret, told her of his communication to Engineering.
Needless to say, I took Mr. Kosher to my ready room where he and I had a long, and frank, discussion about his methods and his future aboard the Exploration. I’ve since placed a formal reprimand on Mr. Kosher’s record and relieved him of duty for three days, during which he will be confined to quarters. I am also seriously considering replacing him as head of Life Sciences.
He is a brilliant man, there is no arguing that. However, his personality and methods leave much to be desired. He drives the Life Sciences team hard – too hard at times – and I’ve been forced, several times, to ask him to be gentler and more understanding with the less senior members of his staff (Ensigns Ramirez and Ghendrix have both indicated to me that he frequently asks his teams to work well past their duty shifts, and that they are often berated for not working “to standard.”) Kosher is a definite asset to the crew, and his knowledge of his field puts him among the leading thinkers in Star Fleet. At the same time, I have to think about the crew and those people who have to serve with him. I’m hoping this reprimand will be sufficient for Kosher to get the message. If not, more drastic action may be required.
