To: CMDR Netal, T.
From: CAPT Zohl, K.
Subj: Post-Debrief: Further thoughts re Rhodolite Negotiations
XO,
Following our in-person debrief earlier, I wanted to commit a few further thoughts to record while the encounter remains fresh in mind.
The Atlantis handled the formal side of the negotiations with commendable precision. Captain Nimitz kept the exchange balanced, and Captain Tyrstoc’s diplomatic sensibilities ensured no inadvertent insult was given - whether by me or otherwise. Ensign Vemok proved invaluable in decoding the Rhodolite transmissions, and Lt. Commander Khet’s early insights into their appetite for idea exchange gave us an angle to open discussions.
Even so, the Rhodolites remain as opaque as ever. Their collective structure makes conversation feel less like dialogue and more like speaking into a vast chamber that replies only after internal debate. The consensus they reach is final… no dissent, no second voice. Their requests for material assistance, hydroponic reactors, and atmospheric processors could be read as pragmatic colonial support… but I can’t shake the sense that there’s something else beneath it. Their newer settlements lie beyond recognised borders, and they press for recognition not out of need, but as quiet annexation disguised as “balance” in my view.
Their talk of resonance, of harmony and equilibrium, sounds benign… until one realises it’s a form of control. A civilisation that thinks as one, feels as one, and acts as one leaves no room for individual will. There’s something deeply unsettling in that, Commander. It stirs old comparisons I would rather not make, but I cannot ignore them. A consensus that speaks for all is indistinguishable from a collective that consumes all. The Borg taught us what unity without individuality truly means, and yet here we are… dancing politely around another hive, afraid to disturb its calm surface for the sake of a few sensor buoys.
Starfleet will call this diplomacy, but I question how long we can afford to humour a civilisation that measures morality by enforced consensus. We’ll maintain our course under Operation Black Box in unaffected regions for now, but if these Rhodolite “colonies” continue to spread unchecked, we may find ourselves drawing whole new maps for a hive in bloom.
For now, keep the crew focused on cartographic calibration - I still haven’t wrapped my antennae around what we discovered recently… but ensure the Rhodolite encounter logs are stored with restricted access. There’s value in what we’ve learned… but there’s danger too, and I’d rather we recognise that before the rest of the fleet must.
//SIGNED//
CAPT Kyhid Zohl
Commanding Officer,
USS Tykera NCC-98701
This follows a live roleplay session featuring the Rhodolites, which can be found here: AAR: Diplomatic Disagreements