A Meeting Of The Minds

Posted on Fri Sep 26th, 2025 @ 12:26am by Lieutenant Darius Korveth & Lieutenant Niami Troga

1,489 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: What was Lost is Found
Location: Counselor's office
Timeline: A week before Sole Survivor

The Universe was a fickle mistress. For months, it had treated him well; the last few counter-terrorism missions the Fernir had been on had been quite successful. In no small part to him. He'd even been awarded a Distinguished Service Medal, a promotion to one of the newer, more innovative ships in the Fleet.

But now, Ryan was on that same ship, and the XO had been killed. Murdered.

And he still had to be on-boarded. It was routine, and many officers did their best to avoid it. Especially counseling and medical. He didn't mind. The counseling he'd found helpful more often than not

Tugging on the hem of his uniform jacket, he stepped into the counselor's outer office.

Niami stepped out of her office and was heading out to take a walk when she spotted someone in her outer office. He was a tall man, with green-hued skin, his hair a forest green. What truly caught her attention was the shade of his eyes, a violet blue.

"Hello, I'm Counselor Troga. May I be of assistance?"

He smiled at her. Smiling came easily for him, even if he really didn't feel like it. "I'm Darius Korveth. I'm new to the ship and decided not to engage in avoidance behavior and come see you right away. You know, save you the trouble of trying to track me down."

"Oh darn, I will have to put away my hunter's cap then." Niami joked, having an amused smile. "Please, come with me back to my office, and we can converse." Turning and leading the way back.

She took a seat, motioning towards either a chair or the proverbial sofa. "Have a seat, and you are not the only one who practices Avoidance Behaviour," a warm smile. "Even I practice it from time to time, and I'm the counselor."

His smile shifted slightly as he sat, becoming more genuine, less forced. "I guess we all have our weaknesses," he replied as he got comfortable in his chair. "Have you had any other new arrivals coming in for their evaluations?"

"There have been a couple, not too many, as they have practiced their right to practice their Avoidance Behaviour," giving a wink to Darius. "You know that is going to catch on, your term," giving a chuckle. "As to your question, I am curious is there a reason why you are asking?"

"Just curi.." he started and stopped himself. "No, that's not true; it was not mere curiosity. I was wondering if you'd talked to Ryan Kellerman. I mean, I know you can't tell me details. I wouldn't want you to. But can you at least tell me if you'd met with him?"

Niami was catching a hint of something just dancing upon the edges of his question. "I've not seen anyone of that name, though I have seen his name on the manifest. You have my attention as to the reason for your query," smiling gently towards Darius.

His shoulders rose and fell, though it was hard to notice if you weren't paying attention, because the movement was slight and happened quickly.

His first instinct was to deflect, but that wouldn't do anyone any good.

"It's... complicated. Technically, we're married, but we've been separated for three years. It's my fault. I used to be in intelligence, and was on a deep cover assignment. I cheated on him to protect the mission. But it's not the only reason I wanted it at the time."

"The worst decision I've ever made."

He shook his head, "Sorry, that was probably oversharing."

"If you can't talk to me about it, who can you talk to? This is covered in the confidential clause. And you are not oversharing. Tell me this, what was your other reason that you wished to separate?" Normally, there were different layers to a person's reason to put distance between themselves and a loved one. Niami waited patiently for him to speak.

'I wasn't the one who wanted to separate. He did. I tried to talk to him out of it, but he wasn't listening. And I don't really blame him."

He leaned forward, folding his hands and putting them between his knees. "There wasn't anything else really. I mean, normal couple drama. He was, is, the neater one; he could snore really loudly if he slept on his back. You know little things."

"Does he want to get back with you? Will he forgive you for what happened? Is he willing to take the steps to the road of forgiveness and healing from the betrayal?" Niami paused for a moment as she regarded Darius, her eyes searching his face. "And are you willing to forgive yourself for what happened?"

Darius closed his eyes and held them closed for almost a full minute before opening them again.

"We talked about that, just before we came on board. He's not willing to just write off everything we built together before the shit hit the fan, and I think he has forgiven me. Partially at least. He's said he doesn't blame me."

"But he doesn't forgive me. That's probably fair. It is fair."

"What's not fair is that he doesn't want to try to fix it. I suggested counseling together, but he wants to just let things breathe

"Forgive myself? All I can tell you is it's been three years and I haven't slept with anyone else since then. Despite some temptation from time to time."

" When someone cheats on a spouse or a significant other, it is up to the other to open the way to allow trust to develop. It's heartbreaking when a person's trust is broken, though." Niami giving a kind look. "It can be regained, but you can't push too hard either. it will take time to earn that trust back. Not the same but a different sort of trust, something deeper and more rewarding."

Niami looked deeply in his eyes, "Patience is the key here. And also, both parties have to be willing. Willing to let go of the hurt so that it won't fester. He loves you, from what you are saying."

"I know he does," Darius agreed, meeting her gaze, "That's why we're separated, not divorced."

"I hear what you're saying about patience, and you're not wrong. But how do I exercise patience when he's unwilling to even really talk about it? He says he's forgiven me, but I'm not so sure he has."

"I don't know what to do. I don't know how to fix things."

"When did you find him once more? Was it just recently? I do need to know the timetable as to when you came across your love once more." Facts needed to be had before a possible resolution could be figured out, Niami thought to herself.

"Just before we came aboard," he admitted, "so less than a day ago."

"Conceivably, you can't expect him to just fall into your arms and everything will be alright. You are going to have to start from square one, so to speak, woo him, both of you getting to know each other once more. He may have forgiven you, but there will still be work to overcome the obstacle. And you can't force him to come see me, or to marriage counseling either. One step at a time, and most definitely communication is a big part of it." Niami gently stated.

"I didn't expect him to just fall into my arms," he replied a bit defensively, "and I know I can't force him into anything he's not ready for."

"I guess what I'm trying to figure out is what I do in the meantime. Be around him and just keep everything professional."

"I would suggest making certain you say hello, and when at work, be professional. Off work, see if he'd like to go on a date, and start the lines of communication with him. It will take some time to get used to being on the same ship. Most importantly, talk to him. Find out the boundaries and go from there. Once again, communication is the key factor here." Niami couldn't stress that enough when it comes to relationships, both romantic and friends.

"That sounds doable. It gives me a path to follow. I don't have anything more I need from you. Do you have anything more for me?"

Niami shook her head, "No I don't, not at this time." An impish smile formed, "And now I can make my escape from the counselor's office," raising her index finger to her lips. "Shhhh.... Don't tell her." giving a wink. Of course, she was the chief counselor, but at times, there needed to be some levity as well.

"Your secret is safe with me," he said, lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "I was trained to keep secrets."

---

Lieutenant Niami Troga
Chief Counselor

Lieutenant Darius Korveth
Chief Strategic Operations Officer

 

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