Home Sweet...

Posted on Fri Jul 31st, 2009 @ 10:17am by Lieutenant JG Drew O'Connell & Captain Elsie Halliwell

1,565 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Behind the Mask of Familiarity
Location: Captain Lane's Ready Room
Timeline: Current

ON:

Drew stepped off the Covington's deck and set foot for the first time on his new post. The trip which had promised to be eventful had instead become boring. Two days at a truce with Shalie Montgomery had meant avoiding her primarily and though he didn't want to admit it, he missed the constant annoyance and diversion she provided. Drew nodded to Commander Fields.

Drew stopped off with the quartermaster first, arranging to have his and Ian's things sent to their quarters, and more importantly, discovering where those quarters were. The older Chief Warrant had directed him to deck two, not that she was a big ship. Gathering up the small duffel he carried and see to it that Ian followed, Drew set off for his quarters.

He spent scant moments getting Ian settled into their new quarters, dropping his own baggage off, and refreshing himself and his uniform before meeting the CO. He had already worked through the previous logs from the ship, so was caught up on the goings on. The Nova Class vessel had more problems than most Sovereign Class ships. Treason, saboteurs, peace negotiations, dying Trill and living awaiting joining, Borg...he wasn't quite sure where to start. Still, he smoothed the front of his uniform jacket, pushed the hair from his forehead and straightened his commbadge as he headed out the door to what was to be his new home.

In the corridor, Drew was interrupted by an unassuming young crewman. "Lieutenant, I have something for you."

Drew turned to the younger enlisted man and glanced him over. He wasn't part of the crew regularly, but Drew instantly recognized him. "Crewman Yates, you have a report for me?"

Handing over a PADD, Drew nodded as he continued on his way to the turbolift. Behind him, he heard the crewman disappear but didn't respond to the event. Instead, Drew continued on as though Yates had never interrupted him. Stepping into the turbolift, Drew queried, "Computer, location of Captain Coltan Lane?"

=/= Captain Lane is in his ready room. =/= the computer responded in that cool, feminine voice. Everyone in Starfleet had commented on its familiarity, but none could place the voice to either face or name.

Drew nodded as he ordered, "Bridge."

It was a short jaunt in the turbolift, allowing him only to peruse the report handed him by Yates, but it was a trip which wasn't without its own nervousness. Meeting new commanding officers could unnerve the greenest of officers and those with a healthy paranoia, the likes of which had been drilled into Drew over the years. When the lift stopped and the doors opened, Drew stepped out and nodded to the officer of the watch as he made his way around the aft stations. He passed the science station, engineering station, and tactical station before coming to the door to Lane's ready room. Taking a deep breath, Drew depressed the call button and awaited the response.

“Come,� Lane called out as he sat comfortably on the snaking couch, placing down his cup of coffee as the doors swiftly parted.

Drew stepped inside and met his commanding officer for the first time, though he had familiarized himself with the CO's personnel files. The first thing Drew noticed were the strikingly clear and expressive eyes which hid a world of worries, literally. The second things were the dark markings of the Trill species running down his forehead and neck. They appeared lighter than in his personnel photo which also divulged his stress level. Summoning his voice, Drew handed his PADD over to the CO and simply said, "Captain, Lieutenant Junior Grade Andrew O'Connell reporting as ordered, sir."

“At ease, Lieutenant,� Lane replied, looking the man up and down subtly with those same eyes, a smile fluttering across his jaw. As formal and detached as the Trill liked to keep things, the rigidity of some procedures and etiquette never really sat well with him. “Please, Mr. O’Connell, take a seat.� He extended a hand out and took the reassignment PADD from the Lieutenant, not looking at him as he spoke. “Coffee or something?� he enquired.

Taking a seat across from his CO, Drew politely declined. "No, thank you, Captain."

“Right, well, let’s make this transfer official for you, Lieutenant, and then we can get you settled into your office and bring you up to speed with the Intelligence side of things. Mission-wise, we’re hoping to wrap things up over the next few days so you may find yourself just crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s, so to speak. How have you found the Archimedes so far, Lieutenant?�

"Small, Captain." It was his first impression, but he also felt like more needed to be said. "However the reports I've gotten imply that she has big problems. I hate to sound pessimistic, sir, but do you really think I'll be dotting i's and crossing t's with a saboteur aboard?"

Lane angled his neck oddly, taking in the information that O’Connell had uttered. “Saboteur, Lieutenant?� he questioned, raising an eye with dramatic flair. “I don’t suppose we had locked down the information like we thought we had.� He took in a rather heavy breath and a smile, or a wince, broke across his face as he interlocked his fingers on the tops of his knees.

“Since you are my new Chief Intelligence Officer, I suppose I should be grateful that you have such talent. However, Mr. O’Connell, that information has yet to be filed. And it would serve no purpose for me to ascertain that knowledge from you, but your informant is correct. Our ship’s counsellor is currently in the brig. However, I will admit to you now that I do not believe that she is the one behind it. I have Lieutenant Shran and his assistant, Lieutenant Martin, sifting through the evidence we have to see if we can come to an alternative theory. If there is someone else onboard causing these problems, we will find them. As you say, she is only a small ship.

"You did ask my first impression, sir, and if nothing else I've learned that honesty in this field is a rare treasure. Still, as small as this ship may be, it creates new problems. My guess is that this crew is already tight-knit. I'm afraid learning whom the saboteur is may be more traumatic than learning why he or she sabotaged Archimedes."

“Exactly,� Lane replied with another sigh, “and I appreciate that honesty. However, first and foremost we just need to find that thread of information that unravels this whole situation. But, once you are settled and start your duty shifts, we can see which direction to head in with this.�

The Trill sank back in his chair further and turned to face him. “I have read the reports on what happened on the Rook and in the escape-pods. How are you feeling now about it? Do you think that you are up to the challenge of the Archimedes so soon from it all?�

Drew considered his response for a moment, the words of the transport commander returning to him unbidden, 'She doesn't give up so easily.' "To be honest, Captain, a little paranoia goes a long way in Intel. I'm afraid that whatever the end result of the trial was, to some, it may not yet be over. I almost feel like I have to walk on eggshells for the rest of my career. As far as the Rook is concerned, the matter is closed to my mind, sir. I don't feel I've done anything wrong."

Drew turned away from his CO's piercing gaze for just a moment. He wanted to reassure his CO that whatever the case, he could do his job. Returning his attention to the CO and matching his unwavering gaze, Drew simply said, "As far as the Archimedes is concerned, sir, both you and she will get my best effort. Regardless of the events leading to my assignment here, I intend to do nothing less."

“That’s all I needed to hear, Lieutenant,� Lane replied with a comforting smile. “I advise that you check in with our First Officer, Commander Arkham once you are settled. She has carved out her entire career through Intelligence, and it would be wise to seek her out as soon as you can.�

"Yes, sir," Drew responded out of habit. There were many people on this ship that he needed to seek out as soon as he could. Adding Commander Arkham to the list was an easy thing. "Is there anyone else you think I would benefit from speaking to, Captain? I already plan on meeting with Lieutenants Shran and Martin."

“No, Lieutenant. Not that I can think of at this moment.�

"Very good, sir. Then, if there's nothing else, I'd like to get to work immediately. There's a string of events that need to be unravelled and I hope a fresh set of eyes might be the key to doing so."

“I do, too, Lieutenant. I do. You’re dismissed, then. Report to me should you discover anything.�


OFF:

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Captain Coltan Lane
Commanding Officer

AND

Lieutenant (Junior Grade) Andrew O’Connell
Chief Intelligence Officer

 

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