One thing I notice in that exchange is that they're repeating each other's names almost constantly. He's constantly saying "Captain" and she's constantly saying "Rhodes". Generally that stuff kicks in once or twice at the beginning of the conversation, and that's it - except when it's used deliberately to acknowledge or emphasize the difference in rank. He might say "Ma'am" a few times, but even that would be as acknowledgement, in a sort of "I know I'm saying something you don't like or won't like, and so I'm specifically giving respect to your rank over me at the same time so you don't feel like you have to reassert it" sort of way. When an officer is *really* chewing out a subordinate, or in a particularly strong "I own you, and don't you forget it" mood, or just outranks by a *whole* lot, it can get to the point where about half of the words out of the subordinate's mouth are "sir" or "ma'am" respectively.
"Yes, Sir. Roger, Sir. Hua, Sir. Understood, Sir. No excuse, Sir." and so on.
In this case, even with the familiarity of a long and productive working relationship he'd probably spice in the occasional "Ma'am" (assuming a naval rank structure similar to the one we use) because, really, a Captain is really far up there, from a CPO's point of view (there are any number of plausible command structures where she'd be his boss's boss's boss's boss, and it would certainly be possible to slip another layer in there if you wanted to and not strain the bounds of credibility. If she's anything less than his boss's boss's boss, it's because something a little wonky has happened to the sommand structure. Also, naval captains tend to have that "total command over absolutely everyone on the ship" thing going on.)
She might restate his rank during her "What are you thinking?" moments, but would be unlikely to otherwise.
Likewise, the Captain would not both say "at your earliest convenience" (or moral equivalent) and be specifically waiting. If it's worth enough of her attention that she's specifically waiting for it, then it's worth enough of his time that he better be responding as soon as humanly possible, or, at the latest, as soon as safety permits.
I'm assuming here that you are not and have never been military yourself. If this is incorrect, and you're drawing from your own experience, then feel free to ignore. I'm also assuming a structure that's similar in rigidity and manning to the traditional Army/Navy. If it's a quasi-military organization that simply borrows the rough outlines of the rank structure, then it would, of course, be less propped about with formality. If it's more of a Special Forces situation, I really can't speak to that at all.
I guess one of the questions to ask when trying to construct the relationship would be how many people of his approximate rank she has working for her. If he's one of three, then that's very different from being one of ten, which in turn is very different from being one of a hundred.
"Yes, Sir. Roger, Sir. Hua, Sir. Understood, Sir. No excuse, Sir." and so on.
In this case, even with the familiarity of a long and productive working relationship he'd probably spice in the occasional "Ma'am" (assuming a naval rank structure similar to the one we use) because, really, a Captain is really far up there, from a CPO's point of view (there are any number of plausible command structures where she'd be his boss's boss's boss's boss, and it would certainly be possible to slip another layer in there if you wanted to and not strain the bounds of credibility. If she's anything less than his boss's boss's boss, it's because something a little wonky has happened to the sommand structure. Also, naval captains tend to have that "total command over absolutely everyone on the ship" thing going on.)
She might restate his rank during her "What are you thinking?" moments, but would be unlikely to otherwise.
Likewise, the Captain would not both say "at your earliest convenience" (or moral equivalent) and be specifically waiting. If it's worth enough of her attention that she's specifically waiting for it, then it's worth enough of his time that he better be responding as soon as humanly possible, or, at the latest, as soon as safety permits.
I'm assuming here that you are not and have never been military yourself. If this is incorrect, and you're drawing from your own experience, then feel free to ignore. I'm also assuming a structure that's similar in rigidity and manning to the traditional Army/Navy. If it's a quasi-military organization that simply borrows the rough outlines of the rank structure, then it would, of course, be less propped about with formality. If it's more of a Special Forces situation, I really can't speak to that at all.
I guess one of the questions to ask when trying to construct the relationship would be how many people of his approximate rank she has working for her. If he's one of three, then that's very different from being one of ten, which in turn is very different from being one of a hundred.