The 25%
Posted on 07 Sep 2021 @ 9:17am by Lieutenant Theodore Winslow & Major Declan Finn
Mission:
M2 - Sanctuary
Location: Main Promenade - Security Offices
Timeline: MD 06 15:00
1334 words - 2.7 OF Standard Post Measure
Declan had to admit, Starfleet knew how to do it up nice. He’d never once in his life served anywhere that was as posh as the Promenade of Obsidian Command. So many levels of shops, stalls, eateries and patrons of all kinds. It was like being back on Earth, wandering the streets of Paris. You could have literally found anything. But this was Starfleet’s schtick, not the Marine Corps. His job was combat, not babysitting. They’d done their combat job defending the station and now they were back to babysitting the population of it once more - a job not only ill suited to a Marine but one that was wearing on them as well. Not just his ego, but the morale of the marines under his command expected to babysit drunk civilians (and the occasional Starfleet Officer) and stand guard while patrons gambled and wasted away their latinum in the various places. It had to come to an end. Now.
It had been more than enough time since the battle for OC that Starfleet could have replenished the stations Security personnel. More than enough time to get fresh arms, and whatever other supplies they needed to do the job. To Declan’s mind there was no need at all for his Marines to continue to neglect their readiness drills and combat training to stand watch over ‘Whistlin’ Dixie’s Supper Club’ any longer, and he knew just the man to talk to about fixing it.
Captain Finn climbed the stairs between two of the levels of the promenade, heading for the security office he knew was a deck above. Normally he would have expected to be up in the CIC but the computer had indicated that Lieutenant Winslow was here. Hopefully that meant he was trying to do something at all related to his god damned job. Grumbling a bit still, he stalked through the doors into the security office, looking for Lieutenant Winslow and spotting him by the large terminal on the wall with one of his Marines, Staff Sergeant Aaron.
“Sir,” Aaron snapped to as he spotted Finn joining them.
“Pete,” Finn nodded. He looked past the man at the security rotations schedule and then gave him a tight smile. “Go grab a cuppa, I’ll have a word with the Lieutenant.”
Pete just nodded, turned and left through the front doors.
Theodore watched the Marine he had been discussing the change of rotations from Marine to Starfleet with walk away for a long moment before he looked at the Captain. They had not seen each other in passing much since the discovery of the Mk.VII - Repeating Phase Weapon so it was not like they had barely a professional relationship but Theodore had an idea that this was not going to be an easy conversation at all. “Can I help you, sir?” He finally ventured politely.
“I sure as hell hope so,” Finn replied with a half-smirk, “I wanted to talk with you about passing the baton on all this,” he said with a general wave. “Getting on with making Security your bailiwick, not mine, and getting my Marines back to Falkirk or on to their own training,” he explained, trying not to sound like he was being an ass. He was frustrated and overworked, but he figured so was Winslow.
“Perfect timing then. No need to send the request to have the baton passed to us.” Theo nodded thoughtfully trying to not take offence to another officer being just as frustrated as he was. They had all been on a long journey and the road was still not at an endpoint. It was what he had been trying to arrange for getting on for a week since the last of his new personnel had arrived but the Marine approaching him certainly had saved him a step.
“So then your lot’s ready to take it on? What do you need from my lads?” he asked hopefully. Could it really be this easy? Just walk down here, ask if they’re ready, then march on back to the barracks with all his Marines in tow? After everything that had and hadn’t gone right this whole tour of duty, he didn’t have a whole lot of hope there. But… did he dare be optimistic?
“They’ve been ready for a week but every attempt I have made to try and take the lead has been reputed so you being here just saves me a lot of time that I can use to draw up training programs and look into investigations.” The younger man moved to the console he had been standing at properly and brought up crew rosters. “They will need a week to hand over patrols and the stations… quirks as I am doing this properly but I can say that the easier routes of the crew only areas from today can be done by my people.” Theo explained. “That should give you 25% of your marines back today.” He said calculating off hand it could be slightly more, could be slightly less.
“Twenty-five percent now, the rest in a week’s time?” Finn asked in disbelief, not bothering to hide the smile on his face now. “You’ve got yourself a deal, Lieutenant.” Finn declared with a clap of his hands. “I’ve got the Major General still on station. He’ll be chuffed to hear we’re almost done with this bit of our deployment,” he added. Oddly enough, just as soon as he was feeling this wave of excitement to be done with this particular mission, he felt a strange pang of longing. Like he didn’t want to leave, when he knew for a fact that he did want to leave. He was ready to get back to Falkirk, and back to regular rotations. Regular training. Marine Corps surroundings. He was about sick of the slick, antiseptic Starfleet corridors; their pacifistic nature. The endless droning on about scientific details. He was ready to go home. Wasn't he?
“Unless something major happens I cannot see this not being achieved” Theo assured, passing him the list of requirements and where he had planned for this eventual change in process. “This is not the first time anyone other than the newest cadet or crewman has done this type of work and if they have not they have the very least training and someone experienced with them to show them the ropes.” It was not the first time he had run a department on the scale of obsidian command thinking of the colony he had left again. It was a pang of bitterness that he had felt brewing for the last week at not being able to do his job that had been bringing it up more and more.
Finn read quickly through it, his feeling of elation growing more and more. This was going to be great news to get to share with the Major General. MacTaryn had been in his arse about everything and the blanket excuse had and would have continued to be that he didn’t have the personnel to do it with them all tending to the security needs of the station. Now he could not only give the General a timeframe on when they’d be done and ready to be headed back to Falkirk, but he could immediately use the 25% return of personnel to get the rest of the Marine decks ship shape.
“I don’t see anything wrong with any of this,” Finn said finally, looking up from the PaDD. “I’ll let my lads know, and we’ll follow this rotation,” he said, waving the device with the breakdown. “Have you shared this with the Captain?”
"Not yet but I will be telling her as soon as you leave Sir," Theo assured quickly. He would take any flack that came from not telling her sooner but it had would all work out eventing.