By Commander Salvek
Stardate: 80126.2200
About an hour after Honor Bound
Stardate: 80126.2200
About an hour after Honor Bound
The conversation in the Captain's ready room had been brief.
Salvek followed her in to present his suggestions for boosting the structural integrity field despite her "request" that he "save it" till the staff meeting. She sat behind her desk stabbing at her computer terminal. As Salvek spoke she increased the volume of the already piercing piece of music she was listening to.
Salvek was not the type to take a hint easily, but eventually he could get there. He set down the PADDs with his suggestions on her desk and took his leave of her.
"You have the bridge Mr. Blane." Salvek said, as he strode directly from Zanh Liis's ready room to the conference room behind the bridge. He spent the next hour reviewing the mission briefing to share it with the senior staff.
Salvek was going to need not only the department heads in this meeting, but also their second in command, as the Alchemy would likely see action on this mission so whomever was on the bridge of either ship would need to be brought up to speed.
To that end he invited Reece and Samson from Science; Lair, Breaux and Dengar from Engineering; O'Sullivan and Dalca from Security; Terasha and McKay from Medical; Blane and Ensign Ortiz from Operations; and Blakeslee and Ensign Papelbon from Tactical. February Grace and Ensign Toby Ellison would represent Flight Control.
TC Blane was the first to arrive. Salvek sat near the end of the table, reserving the last seat at the end for the Captain. TC sat clear down at the far end of the room. He folded his hands and looked out the window at the stars.
Salvek wasn’t quite sure what to make of Blane anymore. He made no attempt to exchange pleasantries. He usually only did so because it set humans and other species at ease to do so. If TC did not wish to engage in small talk, Salvek certainly wasn’t going to force the issue.
Blane could feel the First Officer's eyes boring through him as he stared out the window. Salvek could not understand Blane’s decision to rejoin Special Operations, because he had to know doing so would engender a feeling of distrust among his crew mates. What he did know from his actions in the mission to save Zanh Liis was that Blane was a good man and an honest officer. Therefore, Salvek concluded, the only reason Blane would have for returning to such a nefarious group would be if he had been blackmailed into doing so.
Still, the fact remained that Blane was a Special Ops officer, whether willingly or not. For that reason Salvek would be closely watching Blane for any sign of subterfuge. The uniform commanded a certain level of distrust, even if the man wearing it did not.
Salvek continued to stare down the table at Blane. No words were spoken between the two, but Salvek made his position perfectly clear to TC in that moment.
“Aww, Frenchy didn’t make any food for this party?” Dabin Reece entered the room, and flopped down in the chair next to Blane. The tension broken, Salvek returned his attention to the PADD in front of him.
The rest of the invitees filed in, each taking a seat. Zanh Liis was the last to enter. She strode stiffly along the edge of the room to the seat Salvek had reserved for her. She sat down and spun away from the table, towards the screen that would display the presentation.
“I believe you have a briefing prepared for us Commander, proceed.” Liis said simply.
“Of course, Captain.”
Salvek brought up the schematic of system Beta-626. He shared with everyone the information that Admiral Vox had given to them earlier.
“We may need to use the Alchemy to get a closer scan of the star without endangering the larger population aboard the Serendipity, that is why I have called for the command staff of both ships to be present.”
Salvek began going from person to person around the table, updating each with his expectations from their departments.
“Terasha. We are expecting high levels of radiation. We will be keeping the ship at a safe distance but if the worse should happen here or on the Alchemy, your staff should be prepared to treat the crew for exposure.
“Mr. Blakeslee, please run a level one diagnostic on all shielding systems, we cannot afford a failure at our proximity to this star. Mr. Reece, you know your role in this mission. Mr. Blane, the science department is going to be using each sensor array and several solar probes to study the star. Your duty will be to coordinate with the discipline leaders in science to ensure everyone has the time and access to the sensors that they require.
Salvek shifted his attention from the left side of the table to the right.
“Mr. O’Sullivan, I would like Security to work with the Science department as well. Use your knowledge of other species technologies to see if your recognize any of their fingerprints in the sensor data we collect.
"Commander Lair, you will need stay on top of the ships systems, especially structural integrity due to the fluctuating gravitational forces around the star. I have prepared a few modifications. Did you have a chance to review them yet Captain?”
Salvek looked down at Zanh Liis. “Salvek, if you and Kellyn feel they will help us out, then by all means, make the modifications.”
“Very well. Finally, Lieutenant Grace, your job will be to constantly monitor the stresses on the ships hull, and adjust our position accordingly to ensure we do not become trapped in the gravitational pull of the star.”
Salvek stepped to the viewscreen and tapped the control pad, turning the viewer off. He looked out over the room.
“We arrive in one day. Please submit department readiness reports to me in twelve hours. Are there any questions?”
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Commander Salvek
First Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
Commander Salvek
First Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012