"What do you mean by "how long did it take from the start of the fight until your call to security"? Harris asked.

"Forty-five seconds approximately," she replied.

He wrote down some notes. She didn't see them this time either.

"Ensign Zhao," he said. "You have an excellent record. All of your performance reviews have been outstanding. You are ranked among the top engineers in your cohort technically," he said. "This is not a review of your competence as an engineer."

She remained quiet.

"It is about the relationship between Starfleet and the civilian population in this colony. The individuals who received injury are related to the extended families of the members on the Colony Council. They have formally complained to Starfleet Command and requested a review of the actions taken by the Starfleet personnel who were involved in the event at Anchor."

She sat quietly.

"All Starfleet personnel who attended the event at Anchor have been named in the complaint," he stated. "This includes you."

"You were not involved in the altercation," she stated.

"This is noted in your statement," Harris stated.

"I called security," she replied.

"This too is noted," Harris replied.

"One of these men may not survive," she stated and she hadn't meant to say it, however she said it because it was true and because it seemed important to express her thoughts aloud regarding sitting in this room discussing complaints and reviews while a man was lying unconscious in a hospital bed with a fractured spine felt wrong, no matter what it would do to her written account.

Harris looked at her. "Yes," he stated.

"I remember what I saw when I turned; I remember my assessment and I remember why I called security immediately and I can tell you that forty-five seconds was as fast as I could reach the communication panel from my position." She maintained eye contact with Harris. "I also know I reviewed that medical report and I will always be aware of what happened over those forty-five seconds. I want to make it clear to you, I'm not asking you to consider that within your review. I wanted you to understand that I am aware of that."

Harris stared at her for a lengthy period before she could determine what was behind his expression.

"What comes next?" she asked.

"The Review Board will evaluate all statements and available data and make a decision. You will be informed of their findings," Harris explained.

"And, if the Review Boards findings are adverse to me personally, despite my lack of involvement."

"Administrative separation is one of the potential outcomes," he said. "And other options."

She nodded.

It was silent then. She had provided an honest account. She had documented her non-participation. She had detailed each step she took within those forty-five seconds including the call and the timing and all decisions she made and the man in the coma continued to lie unconscious in a hospital bed and the Review Board would ultimately decide how much weight to give to her testimony versus the medical report Harris showed her and she already understood that they would place more emphasis on the medical report.

"Thank you for your time, Ensign." Harris said.

"Thank you," she replied, and stood up, leaving the office space.

She walked down the hallway until she reached a deserted area of corridor. Standing with her arms hanging loosely by her side, staring at the wall, she considered sixty stitches, and a fractured spine, and broken hands from attempting to protect a head that continued to be struck even after, and she considered forty-five seconds, thinking she would have made the same call again, simply because it was the right call to make and that making the right call and making the call that would result in saving her job were two different calls and that she realized this difference when she became a Starfleet Officer and had never imagined experiencing exactly how large that chasm would appear from inside.