Passing Report
Posted on 18 Jul 2022 @ 11:20am by Commander Thaddeus Zayne & Lieutenant Commander Cale Llewellyn, DSci & Senior Chief Petty Officer Lex Navine
Edited on on 18 Jul 2022 @ 12:18pm
Mission:
M3 - Into the Deep
Location: Runabout Nightwing/Starbase 201
Timeline: MD05 - 0711HRS
1936 words - 3.9 OF Standard Post Measure
On the Arrow-class runabout, Nightwing, Lieutenant Junior Grade Lyndel Kerns was at the pilot's station with a co-pilot named Lieutenant Cale Jayson Llewellyn, whom he was shuttling to the Obsidian Command in the mysterious Loki System. Cale was at the co-pilot's station currently flying the runabout while Lieutenant Kerns was stretching his legs and getting them both something to drink; a grande raktajuno for himself and a venti hot chocolate with extra Irish Creme creamer for the good Lieutenant Commander.
He had to keep using his new rank since taking the demotion back to it after leaving the USS Merlin for the last time. Dr Caroline Miller had pissed him off for the last time because ever since she had become an expert on everything under the sun, he couldn't take it anymore and being the XO, the Captain said it was for him to handle. He tried to in as diplomatic as fashion as he could. But, she was still dead set in her ways as Second Officer.
He tried his best but it was like two bulls locking horns, so he decided the best thing would be for him to leave once more. Captain Barstow had up until this point been an excellent CO. So, Cale assumed that he thought that he(Cale) didn't need any more 'training wheels' anymore. But after he could tell that there would be no satisfactory outcome, he decided to give her the victory and just stop. That was also the point he decided he wasn't cut out for command.
"Here's you Venti hot chocolate with EXTRA Irish Creme, Commander Llewellyn," Lt, jg Kerns said as he slid back into his seat and flashed a smile at Llewellyn.
"Thank you, Lieutenant. It's greatly appreciated," Cale said giving the slight of build junior grade lieutenant a smile in return.
"Commander, we'll be arriving at our destination within the hour," Lyndell said.
"Excellent. Are we close enough to hail then, Mr Kerns?" the pilot said. "I believe we are. Your station, your call, Sir."
Opening a channel to Obsidian Command, Obsidian Command...Starbase 201, this is Lieutenant Commander Cale Llewellyn aboard the runabout Nightwing hailing Starbase 201, please come in," Llewellyn said.
"He should be arriving in system right about now." Lex commented from his memory of the day's key arrivals. He made it his business to greet staff and senior officers and any key dignitaries and to see them off himself as well, so long as he happened to be on shift. His own personnel were perfectly capable, of course, but he knew how self important the officers and dignitaries could be and was amused to humor them.
"Chief Navine?" Petty Officer Gallinger said as she looked up at the Bovine SCPO "The USS Nightwing has just dropped out of warp in the outer system. Should I hail them?"
"Let Commander Lewellyn contact us at his leisure."
The comm lit up and Chief Navine waved one leathery hand, signaling Gallinger to put it through.
"Obsidian Command...Starbase 201, this is Lieutenant Commander Cale Llewellyn aboard the runabout Nightwing hailing Starbase 201, please come in," Llewellyn said.
The old goat stepped up to the holo display and his assistant put his visual comm signal through. On Llewellyn's side, there was the bovine face of a service-weathered Grazerite bearing the rank of SCPO, his calm goat eyes fixed forward and his long, half grey/ half sand colored beard wagging as he gave his reply. "Welcome to the Loki System, Commander Llewellyn. This is Chief Navine, Head of Air Traffic Control on Obsidian Command. Please send your authentication."
"Authentication: Starfleet Gamma 58-Gamma 1 9er," Cale said.
"Thank you." Navine said leaning back with contentment as the authentication was approved via the tower control check in system. The old man blinked lazily and cleared his throat. "Be advised, Nightwing, Obsidian Command is under a level sigma general alert. We are sending a fighter detail as escort per regulation." It wasn't a hot kind of alert, but the sort that just meant everyone was to keep their eyes peeled for trouble. Otherwise it was business as usual. "When within range of the inner system, adjust your approach as per the navigational recommendations being messaged to you presently. Shuttlebay Beta 19 is waiting to receive you."
"Yes sir, we'll be waiting for the escort, Senior Chief."
"When you disembark, Commander, please take your orders and report to Commander Zayne's Office. I will let him know to expect you."
They waited for half an hour and finally their fighter escort had arrived. Kerns gave the appropriate authorizations and they were one their way to O.C. Once they arrived, the two officers went to Commander Zayne's office. Cale pressed to call button and waited for admittance.
From the far end of the hall, a quartet of figures walked past on their way to other destinations. A moment after they passed, one came back and looked down the hall at the two men standing there. Thaddeus had half a mind to go on with whatever he was doing and leave them to figure out their way, but with the Captain off station, the management of Obsidian Command fell to him, no matter how mundane. He heaved a sigh and told the group he was with he'd catch up, then headed down the corridor.
"Is it important?" he called out once he was within a few feet of them. "I'm almost never in my office," he added, gesturing at the door.
"Well, sir, it's two new officers for your station so I would say that it's at least 'fairly 'important', but I could be wrong, sir," Cale added in hoping that it would get the XO of the station concerned with things that were most important to those left in command since he had been an XO himself.
Thad just stared coldly back at the man. Of all the things going on at the moment on top of the normal every day hustle of a station this size, the reporting in of two new non-station operation specific officers was so far down the list of 'important' things to deal with that it hardly moved the needle. In fact, it didn't even make the needle shake. But protocol was protocol. All new reports reported into the Executive Officer unless the Commanding Officer preferred to do it himself. As he was both at the moment, here they were. But that didn't make him like it.
"Orders?" Thad asked.
"Commander, I have Commander O'Malley on holo at the situation table," a voice called down the corridor, turning Zayne around.
"I'm on my way, Kurt," he replied back. The officer disappeared back the way he'd come, out of the end of the corridor. Thad took the offered orders from the two of them and waved for them to follow. "Captain DeHavilland is preparing for an away mission with the Pathfinder, one of our garrison vessels," he offered by way of explanation as they headed down the corridor towards where Lieutenant Van Staten had called out.
"And we are supposed to do what exactly?" Cale asked equally as cold as the Commander Zayne's comment hoping to evoke a response from him but it didn't. At least not yet.
"Follow me," Thad answered sharply, reading slowly through the orders handed to him. He had requested a Science department head some time ago but Starfleet had not approved his previous selections and since everything had hit the fan with the Admiral and Captain DeHavilland, he hadn't gone back to check on the status of his request. Clearly they'd found him someone, though his first impression was to send this catch back.
"Following you, Sir," Cale said as flatly as he could. And he nodded towards Kerns to follow along with him since he was still technically his pilot.
"Commander!" a woman called out, hurrying over towards the three of them. She offered him a data PaDD, matching step with them as they exited the corridor and headed for the stairs up to the CIC. "Admiral Sepandiyar's security requests. He should be here within the hour," St. John offered quickly, glancing back at Thad's entourage and then offering a quick smile.
"Thank you, Naomi," he replied. She just nodded and hurried off. He tucked the spare PaDD under his arm and kept walking, glancing aside to be sure his group was still with him.
"Lieutenant Kerns," Thad said, flicking through her service record quickly. "Please report to Senior Chief Petty Officer Navine in tower control. He's acting Chief until Starfleet assigns us a permanent department head," he ordered, tapping the PaDD. "I've sent him the orders. Dismissed," he said, nodding towards the lifts.
Lieutenant Kerns merely said, "Aye, Sir", and then walked to Traffic Control.
"Good luck Lieutenant, and have fun," Cale simply said as Kerns walked away.
At the top of the stairs, they could see the CIC spread out before them. A sea of stations and terminals around the huge deck with a wide view of the entire space around OC, particularly visible from the raised platform in the middle that gave an unhindered view of it all. The command table was near to that, a huge honorable currently surrounded by a plethora of men and women in all varieties of Starfleet uniform.
"The station is at yellow alert, and we're expecting Admiral Sepandiyar on station as you heard, within the hour, to take command," he explained, gesturing to the officers anxiously awaiting his arrival. "I'm sure in your previous commands, you had the luxury of greeting new officers, shaking hands and shooting the shit over a drink at the bar. But that's a luxury we don't have right now. Sorry to disappoint," he said, handing the data PaDD back to Llewellyn, "Right now, I don't need a Science Officer, but Captain DeHavilland does. You're to report to the docking bay and to the USS Pathfinder. I wouldn't even bother dropping your sea bag. They're due to leave any minute now."
"Then I suppose I had best hurry, bag and all. It was a pleasure of sorts meeting you, Commander Zayne," Cale said before rushing off to the USS Pathfinder. He would have to speak to the Counselor about this "XO's" general attitude about his job.
"New staff?" Lieutenant Ostergaard asked as Zayne approached the table alone now.
Thad shook his head, "Science officer," he replied, "Never have understood their type," he added, waving at the table. "What've you got..."
