Reconvene, Part 3

Posted on Thu Dec 8th, 2011 @ 1:55pm by Captain Elsie Halliwell & Captain T'mpest Michaels & Commander Cailean Fox, M.D. & Lieutenant Commander Dylan Blake & Lieutenant Cedric Shepherd & Lieutenant Jimmy Cooper & Lieutenant JG Leo Flynn & Lieutenant JG Myles Hane & Lieutenant JG Lucy Carter & Captain T'mpest Michaels & Captain Alexsa Kendrick

1,154 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Unmasked Miners
Location: Briefing Room
Timeline: Current

ON

[OLD]

The sweating lieutenant whimpered at the Captain's off handed remark putting all his previous thoughts that she'd understand his unnatural fear firmly out of the air lock. A little water - ha! She wanted to submerge the whole damn ship and run the risk for drowning the entire crew turning the elegant ship into a watery grave!

[NEW]

She looked back at Cailean, and if it were in her nature to wink, here is where she would have done so. But a knowing look was all that was needed to indicate his intervention should it be so requested.

"Ranger's sensors are better than anything a shuttle's got," mused Shepherd. "And rigging Ranger for atmospheric flight is trivial--how big a problem is it to adjust for oceanic travel?"

'Oceanic what now...?' Kendrick thought as in a rare feat she managed to catch her mouth in time of actually saying.

"To my understanding, with a few modifications to shields and deflector it's definitely possible. Federation starships are built to withstand worse then mere water." contrarily to Blake, Jimmy had been a water child to begin with, and he was getting quite enthusiastic of this new opportunity.

With a definite squeak in his voice that quivered as he spoke Blake shook his head as is it was already filled with water dulling his forward thinking: "Mere water," he choked. "If Starfleet wanted to explore foreign planets oceans they would have built something fit for purpose. Captain, please I beg of you, while we talk about extreme possibilities here, I don't think its wise to risk the ship and our crew on such a gamble. Water is notoriously unpredictable, one mistake and we'll flood and sink faster than the Titanic!"

"I agree this is too risky," Birsi said, the redirection of the stunned gaze she initially cast and locked onto Jimmy to Lieutenant Blake and his somewhat melodramatic protest indicating that she wasn't onboard with whatever prompted it. "If something happens down there or up here, there won't be much we can do about it until we come back. . .assuming circumstances even allow us to."

Birsi continued to be a sign to Alex that this crew had not completely lost the plot, and was the only one making perfect sense, even if her views missed some of the marks.

For now, Jimmy kept his tongue. He did, however, find the train of thought quite ridiculous. For one, having a hull breach in space was just as bad as having one in water, and there were bulkheads which could be closed in such an event. In addition, he thought a spacesuit would work just as well underwater as it would in space.

"I appreciate the concerns voiced," Halliwell started in a tone that indicated immediately that her mind was already set and the opinions would go unheeded.

'You won't...' Alex made a mental note to have words with the dear captain later. After all she was currently still an observer on this barge of the insane, and it was highly inappropriate in terms of due process, even for her, to voice her opinions now.

"But," she continued, "I believe this is our best chance to determine what happened here." She exhaled and looked about the room once more, feeling the need to them justify her position. "Our concern is, quite rightly, the planet and its inhabitants. The Romulans are secondary. We could," she paused, "keep a shuttle top-side to keep watch."

Blake moved his mouth wordlessly at the Captain's descion. How could she do this!

"I think we need a little more information before we take that action, Captain," T'mpest said. "Although there is circumstantial evidence to support the need to submerge the ship and have a look, I'd like to see if we can get better scans from the Ranger first, then decide."

Elsie nodded but it was clear in her steely determination that the path the crew had now set upon was already cast before them. "The Pelican will arrive in four days. That leaves one day for you to tinker with the sensors from orbit, two days to submerge and then another to be clear of the water before we await their arrival. We need to be clear what happened here before we, in tandem, head on over to the Romulans and accuse them of either causing this or taking advantage of a geographic and technological catastrophe."

"I'll start getting my people prepped," said Shepherd. "That said, I like the idea of trying the sensors from orbit first," he nodded at T'mpest, "and if we do find it necessary to," he searched for a word, deciding on "take a sea cruise, that we keep a shuttle in orbit, just in case," said Shepherd. "I'd even suggest a few. The Burton, Speke, and Baden-Powell are probably the best choices there."

"I'm still all for dipping the ocean, Captain," Jimmy said, probably a little more enthusiastically than professionally appropriate, "But I will keep gathering more information on your command."

It took everything in her will power for Alex to keep her mouth shut and her arms resting on the back of the seat at Jimmy's comment, and was almost the straw that broke the camel's back. While the Intrepid's were designed to be taken into the atmosphere of a planet, there was no logical reason why they should take it swimming, and it should certainly not be done as flippantly.

T'mpest wasn't as enthusiastic. She was all for exploring, but not without a good reason, and she didn't think they had enough of one. Yet. However, she'd voiced her objection and the Chief of Security agreed on an aerial scan. She hoped that would give them enough of a reason for the Captain to have a good look underwater. She hadn't been down to the bottom of the ocean before and it promised to be interesting.

"Then you're all dismissed," Halliwell nodded, not completely oblivious to the tone the meeting had taken. But she was sure in her conviction of approach and was eager to move forward.

Blake's entire frame was shaking as he stood, amazingly he made it out of the briefing room without either falling over or vomiting upon the fall. He grimaced at the thought, no that would come later.

As the others were filing out of the room to attend to their assigned duties, Alex approached Captain Halliwell. In hushed undertones as if there were others still present or in a position to over hear, she said plainly "A word in your ready room, Captain." It was not phrased as a question at all, and was cordial, but there was still no mistaking the disapproval in her voice, and most definitely conveyed a sense that she was not to be put off or ignored.

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