The Weight She Carried

Posted on 08 Sep 2026 @ 12:25pm by Captain Jasmine Somers FCapt & 1st Lieutenant Gavin Ross Dr.

1,907 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: General Sim Postings
Location: USS Tomcat, Bridge, Captain's Ready Room
Timeline: Current

[ON]

1st Lieutenant Gavin Ross stepped off the turbo-lift with quiet purpose... the soft hum of the ship’s systems settling around him as he made his way toward the Captain’s Quarters...

He paused only a moment outside the door... one hand resting briefly against the frame while he gathered his thoughts...

Jasmine Somers was leaving the Tomcat... The news had settled heavier on him than he had expected... Over the months they had served together, he had come to regard her as more than his commanding officer... She had become a friend... someone whose strength he respected and whose quiet struggles he had seen up close in sickbay...

The nightmares... The lingering weight of what the Nausicaans had done to her... The way she had still carried this ship and its crew through every crisis even while the trauma clung to the edges of her sleep... He had treated what he could... He had listened when she allowed it... And now... before she walked away from the center seat for good... he needed to see her one last time...

Not as the Chief Medical Officer checking a final box on a transfer file...

Simply as someone who cared whether she was truly all right...

Ross squared his shoulders... the blue of his medical division uniform catching the soft corridor lighting... and pressed the chime...

- Captain's Quarters - Tomcat -

Jasmine was currently off duty and in her quarters packing her belongings; soon this ship would be the responsibility of another Commander. She was only halfway through when the doorbell chimed.

"ENTER!" She said

The door opened, and her CMO entered "Hello, Gavin. To what do I owe this visit?" She asked.

Ross stepped inside as the doors parted and offered a small, steady smile. His eyes held quiet concern... careful and measured... the look of a friend who had seen too much of what she carried yet remained determined not to push beyond what was welcome.

“Captain... Jasmine...” He kept his voice even, respectful of the moment and of the rank that still stood between them. “I heard you were packing. I wanted to see you before you left the center seat for good.”

He stopped a few paces into the room... hands loosely at his sides... posture open but restrained.

“Not as your CMO clearing a transfer. Just as someone who has watched you carry this ship... and a great deal more... through everything the Nausicaans left behind. The nightmares... the weight that never quite lifted. I treated what I could. I listened when you let me.”

He met her gaze directly... the concern still present in his eyes, yet tempered by the clear wish not to overstep.

“May I speak freely, Captain... as a friend and as your officer?”

He waited a moment.

Indicating a seat, "Please sit, and yes, you have permission to speak plainly," Jasmine said.

Ross sat down, elbows on his knees. He looked at her a moment before speaking.

“Thanks, Jasmine.” Gav's voice stayed quiet. “I’ve seen what you’ve been carrying since the Nausicaans. The nightmares… the way you still showed up for everyone even when it was eating at you. You never let the crew feel any of it.”
He let out a slow breath.

“I just needed to say it before you left. You’re allowed to set that weight down. And if it ever gets heavy again once you’re gone from here… you know where I am.” A small nod. Nothing more.

*Smiling* "Thank you, Gavin. It is nice of you to say. While you helped get rid of that implant, you also helped me lay those weights down, but my move to the Starbase as its Commander is pre-ordained by my actions, okay I got off lightly due to my state of mind at the time, but killing without reason is still taboo even today. My mental state got me a light punishment, but it still went on my record, and SFHQ seemed too eager to agree to my reassignment to command SB51. Something tells me they want someone who has gotten control of their demons long ago, but call it cause and effect or the laws of thermodynamics: for every action there is both an equal and opposite reaction, but soon the Tomcat will be under the command of another," Jasmine said.

He listened. What the Captain was saying to him was true. Starfleet Command acted with purpose and without blinders. The fact that the Captain had done what she did was self-preservation. Getting off lightly was a fallacy in Gavin’s mind… Jasmine was paying far greater a cost for what they had done to her. Jasmine was heroic in her efforts. This was never going to leave Ross…

“I will be keen to follow your Command of Starbase 51, Jasmine. Don’t think of it as a consequence of actions. I believe you have ascended to your position because of them, and that is what is needed at the top.” Ross was contemplative… He relaxed and clasped his hands together in the comfy executive quarters chair, glancing at the Captain’s belongings: sparse, logical, functional, with hints of personal relics here and there. Much like her personality, he had come to know fondly...

“I am glad you are doing well. I was concerned coming in, but I know you will do well. As what all Somer’s do. They survive, they move on, and they excel from their learned hardships.” He offered to keep it light… This wasn’t a goodbye; he would be visiting Jasmine. He was sure any time the Tomcat docked at Starbase 51, at least he hoped.

“Do you have any insight as to who will be in Command?” Ross cocked his head to the side. “And this is not a fishing expedition…” He had chuckled lightly. “Were you afforded a say in the matter?” He was just curious.

Giving what he said some serious thought, she decided to take the long route "Well, Gavin, I have commanded this ship for just over 18 years, so even if what I've done hadn't required current events, my time commanding the Tomcat was coming to an end regardless, but in all those years very little happens on this ship without my knowledge" she paused for effect.

"That is unlawful. Things are happening outside crew quarters. I know it involves a place where dead bodies go, but before the next CO takes over, refrain from smoking in the Morgue and keep it to your quarters, Lieutenant. The next CO is not as forgiving as I am," she said.

oO That son of a… It must be that damn override… Went right to the Captain… Oo Ross, in his calm, collected usual self, lent a slight nod. “Understood. Guilty as charged!” He shifted in his seat, readjusting after the sincere comment…

*with a nod* "As for the new Commanding Officer, you may have known her as Lieutenant Colonel Alexandria Somers. She was pretty high up in rank with the 95th Rifles; she recently completed her Academy training that would allow her to command a ship. This type of promotion hasn't happened since the founding of the Federation, when former MACO Officers were given ship commissions and played a big part during the Earth-Klingon Four-Year War. Starfleet was expanding, and we had more ships than Captains. Now, unlike then, a new Captain from another branch gets Academy Training. Colonel Somers has transferred over to Fleet and has the full rank of Captain. While she may frown more on smoking in the morgue or medical or anywhere outside of your personal quarters, she does have her pleasures. She has extensive Combat experience and some Command Experience, mainly on the Tomcat, so there is another reason she is being given command. As you are the CMO, I have authorised you to view her medical file, the parts that are above your CMO clearance level," Jasmine said.

"That's good news. We could use someone who's already been under fire and still chose the extra training... I'd rather a CO who's already learned what bleeding costs than one who only learned it from a simulation."

Jasmine gives him a look about the "under fire" Comment.

"I will read what I'm allowed to read and keep the rest where it belongs. I'll pass the word. Sick Bay will be ready for her." Ross acknowledged.

"There will be a part in there about a Black Ops mission, but not in-depth details- just what happened to her and a close friend and as that bit is medically orientated, it will be available. Not even I know the full story or details on the mission; it is classed above my pay grade too, but otherwise medically and emotionally she is stable. As for the mentally stable bit, that is open for discussion; I mean, she is a former Marine," Jasmine said with a smile.

Ross paused, witnessing the 'look' that Jasmine had flashed when he mentioned the under fire comment. This was in no way insinuating that she was not a seasoned, conflict-capable Captain. He knew Jasmine's full background, the whole line of the Somer family... Now and past. They certainly were a learned Family, of high Federation standing, and fought hand-to-hand and were in Federation conflicts...

"Captain." Ross tweaked his statement. "I hope you know. When I said 'under fire', my comment was not meant to downplay your historical service... I feel that Alex, having understood war and conflict, as well as you, that we have all greatly benefited from that aspect as a crew thus." Ross stated in his collected self-assurance.

"As for Alex. I digress. If she is a true Somers, then there is one thing I have learned. To expect the unexpected." He cocked his head with a slight grin.

"Oh, she is the original Somers in the Fleet, that is for sure. But with her, this is the basics of her former PTSD: she was a young Corporal in her teens; she went on a highly classified mission, lost her best friend, it was the first personal loss she had ever faced, and for years she blamed Starfleet Intelligence. She has since gotten over it, but there is not much more to her medical history than that, sadly; not even I have access to the full mission report. From what that bit tells me, Starfleet Intel screwed up badly, and lives were lost," Somers said.

Ross took that in… let the quiet sit. Didn’t reach for more.

“Thank you… for lettin me say it. And for tellin me what you could about Alex. I know that wasn’t a small thing…”

He stood… unhurried.

“I’m glad I came. Not as your CMO. Just… this. You’ve carried a lot for a long time, Jasmine. Glad you're setting some of it down…”
Small, steady look.

“Sickbay’ll be ready for her. And you know where I am if it ever gets heavy again…”

Paused at the door.

“Thank you for the conversation, Captain…”

"You are welcome, Gavin," Jasmine said and watched the CMO leave her room. She sighed and returned to packing her stuff.

[OFF]



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