The door to the office parted and Crewman Simpkins wandered into the room, sidling up to the desk with a sheepish look on her face. “Sorry to bother you sir,” she smiled, “but there is a Romaes Anjin here to see you. He doesn’t have an appointment,” she concluded.

Ryke looked up from his notes, pen held lightly between his fingers. While he’d have to type everything up later, he preferred to put his thoughts down on paper. It helped him think.

“Of course, thank you, Simpkins,” Ryke said with a smile, closing his notebook and standing. “Can you list meeting room three as in use? I’ll take him through there.”

The crewman nodded and disappeared back through the door. Ryke collected a PADD to add to the growing collection in the crook of his arm and headed out.

The man in the waiting room turned. Ryke smiled, walking forward to offer his hand. “Mr. Romaes? I’m Ryke Ashfield… you wanted to see me?”

Rising to his feet, the visitor to the Counsellor’s office today offered a hand to Ryke. “Thank you for agreeing to see me, Counsellor. I know this is out of the ordinary, but I need to talk to someone…” the Bajoran smiled.

“That’s what I’m here for,” Ryke replied, shaking Romaes’ hand. “I’ve snagged us the good meeting room, the one with the snacks… If you’d like to follow me?”

He swept an arm out to indicate the corridor off the reception area, and they headed that way. The meeting room was only the second door on the right, a pleasant space with comfortable seating, a counter with a small replicator, and the promised snacks.

“Please, make yourself comfortable. Can I get you a drink?” Ryke asked, his easy smile hiding the fact that he was assessing Romaes as they spoke. The Bajoran moved well, with confidence, so Ryke was betting he was an officer, and relatively high level as well.

Taking one of the comfortable chairs around a small coffee table, the Bajoran visitor looked across at the Counsellor and nodded slowly. “I’d love a raktajino please, extra sweet.”

“Coming right up.” Ryke set the little stack in his arm down on the low table between the chairs and ordered the drinks. 

Setting his visitor’s raktajino down in front of him, Ryke settled himself into the seat opposite and smiled. “So… a question I always ask at the beginning of a session like this. Would you like me to listen, or are you looking for advice?” he asked in a calm voice. “Either is good.”

Smiling in appreciation of the beverage, Romaes relaxed into his chair. “Advice, Counsellor. Maybe a bit of both, to be fair?” he shrugged, looking more uncomfortable than he had before as they began to get to the crux of why he was there. “Maybe I should give you a little context of what’s been going on?”

“Of course, please do.” 

Ryke mirrored Romaes body language and sat back in his chair. It was both a technique counsellors were taught to get people to relax around them, but something he’d always done naturally anyway. Perhaps a reason why people had always felt like they could talk to him.

Sitting forward, the Bajoran put his elbows on the corresponding knees and clasped his hands together beneath his chin. “My name is Romaes Anjin, and until recently I was a task force commander at the rank of Fleet Captain,” the man told, finally exposing himself for who he was. He let out a sigh as he sat up again. “I voluntarily demoted myself following a disagreement with my superiors,” he revealed.

Ryke nodded. He wasn’t surprised that Romaes was a high-ranked officer, but he hadn’t expected the next admission. Not many people voluntarily demoted themselves.

“Would you like to tell me about that decision?” he asked, more interested in the thinking behind it rather than the situation. Right now, his focus was the man in front of him and his best interests, not the disagreement with his superiors.

“Honestly?” the Bajoran shrugged as he relaxed a little more, finding the Counsellor’s presence and tone to be quite therapeutic. “Sometimes, people make decisions that you aren’t comfortable with and you have to take a stand for what you believe in. With all that’s gone on in recent months, I’ve found myself increasingly at odds with some of the orders I’d been given,” he revealed, feeling a little more relieved with each sentence he unburdened himself with.

Ryke nodded. He couldn’t say he’d been comfortable with every order he’d been given, so he could definitely put himself in Romaes’ shoes.

“And how do you feel now you’ve made that decision?” he asked, taking a sip of his drink. Romaes’ body language seemed to indicate a lessening of tension, which was a good sign.

“I’ve set my career back by about a decade,” the Bajoran frowned in between sips of his beverage, “I’ve gone from commanding the greatest of explorers to floating cities in space, only to end up being positioned for command of a science vessel no bigger than the apartment complex I live in on Earth,” his relaxation disappeared momentarily as he thought about how low his voluntary demotion had taken him. “I’m working alongside the very people I used to lead… as equals.”

Ryke nodded, but it was more a filler movement than an agreement. He still didn’t have a good grasp of Romaes as a person, which wasn’t uncommon in a first meeting like this.

“It sounds like it’s been a major period of adjustment for you,” he replied. “Is a scientific command something that you saw in your career path?”

“An adjustment is an understatement.” Romaes scoffed and shook his head. “I’ve commanded Sovereigns and Galaxys,” the Bajoran told the counsellor, “so being given something small like a Rhode Island was not on my career trajectory.”

Ryke managed to keep the surprise off his face. 

“That is somewhat of a size difference,” he admitted. “But from what I’ve heard, those Rhode Island’s aren’t to be underestimated.”

“I guess it is just going to take some time to get used to carrying out missions that have less galactic significance,” he frowned, clutching at the arms of his chair. “I’m used to making a difference. There’s not going to be much difference-making on the Buran,” he conceded with a shrug.

Ryke tilted his head slightly. “Respectfully, I would argue the opposite. Differences come in many shapes and sizes. Yes, a Rhode Island is small, but it contains nearly a hundred crew for whom you can make a difference. No one exists in isolation. You never know, something you discover on this small science vessel, or something a crew member who takes their cue from you does, could make all the difference somewhere.”

His lips quirked in a small display of humour. “And after all, people have been saying for years it’s not how big it is, it’s what you do with it…”

Romaes’ lips started to form a word and his face screwed up as if the older man was about to refute the Counsellor’s words, but he suddenly found himself unable to speak. Was he… wrong? If he was wrong about this, what else could he have been wrong about?

Once he could again formulate words, the Bajoran divulged more regarding the position he had found himself in, and gradually felt the weight of the galaxy lifting from his shoulders as he spoke. As that relief finally took hold, the captain found himself ready; ready to move on and ready to take on new challenges.

“Thank you for the talk, Counsellor,” he smiled as he shifted to the edge of his seat.

Ryke inclined his head. Like a lot of the people he spoke to, Romaes had just needed someone to listen without judgment as he worked through things.

“You’re more than welcome,” he replied with a smile and gathered his PADD and notebook together. “And you know where I am if you need me in future.”

“I’ll be sure to bear that in mind,” Romaes nodded and offered his hands in thanks. “I’ll be sure to check in with the Counsellors aboard the Buran and they’ll compare notes I’m sure.” With that, the Captain vacated the office of Counsellor Ryke Ashfield, making a note to visit the man the next time he was in the area.For a Counsellor, he had been a pleasure to talk to. He just hoped those on the Buran would be just as easy to share details with.