Turbo Lifts Go Up and Down
Posted on 04 Jun 2023 @ 12:29am by Commander Calliope Zahn & Chief Deputy Marshal: Ridge Steiner - FMS
Edited on on 04 Jun 2023 @ 10:01am
Mission:
M3 - Into the Deep
Location: Uss Pathfinder - Turbolift Three
Timeline: MD 09. 0810hrs
1475 words - 3 OF Standard Post Measure
“Everything’s gone?” Steiner asked “All of it?”
Senior Chief Drummond looked up from the terminal and shook his head. “Everything, sensor logs, tactical logs, weapons logs, it’s been wiped completely clean, never seen anything like it…”
“So he just beamed right onto the Bridge?” Knowles asked for the third time, still sounding slightly in awe “Captain Carwyn Bowdler of the Alabama, on our Bridge?”
“Yeah, along with some Ops guy and a Romulan woman, then they dropped this Security Protocol Seven-Eight whatever on the Captain; ripped a chunk outa our data banks and beamed off again!” Steiner snapped, “Why is everyone going weak at the knees over this guy, who is he?”
“Captain Bowdler? Well, he’s like a real-life legend” Knowles replied “He’s like a modern Archer or Kirk or even Admiral Picard! He came and gave our commencement address at the Academy, afterwards everyone was lined up to shake his hand and try for a transfer to the Alabama he’s allowed to hand pick his own crew!”
Steiner and Drummond exchanged a look over Knowles clear fan-worship. “The Lieutenant’s right, he’s good at what he does” Drummond admitted, “Very good. Gets tough missions and delivers results, Looks after his crews and he’s going places, high places and fast”
“So, what’s this high-flier doing skulking around here in a cloaked ship?” Steiner asked, “And what about this Security Protocol, where did he get that from?”
“If he’s been given a classified mission, it means it’s a top priority for somebody, and that somebody would have to be at flag-officer rank. Starfleet command level, maybe even Federation Security Committee advisors, the very top.” Drummond replied “And I looked that Security Protocol up, the last time it was used was at the end of the Dominion War, to cover wherever they took the Changeling prisoner. They don’t roll it out for any old classified operation, it must come from people at the very top of Starfleet.”
“Nobody can talk about this? Not even Captain DeHavilland?”
“Nobody! I’m sure we will get instructions to update everyone’s Security Files with a Do not discuss order of some kind before we return to Obsidian.” Drummond replied, “Breaking that kind of thing will end your career and put you in a rehabilitation colony!”
“Oh great” Steiner muttered. “Alright, I need to go clean up and not write a report then.”
He made his way out of the office to the turbo lift. One arrived, the door slid open and there was Zahn.
Damn he thought suddenly feeling like a kid who’d been caught skipping school, recalling her face when he’d left her and jogged down the ramp. It had the same look now.
“Commander” he nodded, getting on the lift and pushing his deck. The lift moved and then she hit the stop button This is gonna sting
"Do the Marshals have a command structure?" She asked pointedly, already knowing the answer. "You call the shots and your deputies take your direction?"
Steiner nodded. "Yes Commander, we do and yes, junior personnel are expected to follow directions." He held his hand up "And yes, I know what you're- "
"You know what I'm about to say? Why don't you tell me." She crowded Steiner as if he wasn't twice her size. "You tell me, what you do when a guy under your direct authority countermands an order."
Steiner looked down as Zahn closed in on him, he tried hard not to smirk and looked away for a moment to compose himself, then said levelly. "I give them a chance to explain their actions, if it's reasonable I let it go. If it's not, we have a chat about it. If it becomes a habit, we start writing things in files..."
"You thinking about making it a habit?" She sniped back. It didn't especially make any sense. She'd be out of his CoC as soon as they got back to base. She just felt like she needed to have it out since he had left her standing in the rain. Since she'd leveled the ground with Lance, it was all still coursing in her.
"Yanno what, we're meant to have this wonderful Federation of Planets, peace, love and harmony, except it's all a damn lie! Underneath there's a nasty dark pool of hate, deceit, crime and corruption, where the powerful prey on the weak and the evil exploit the helpless.
I've spent twenty years wading through it and the last four of those chasing some slick bastards trading illegal weapons technology, that probably came from the Pyrryx. Then because we turn up at a planet the locals think it's a great time to start a civil war and that we'll join in!
And in the middle of it are supposedly four Federation citizens who've been held as slaves for years, that maybe I can go find and maybe get them out of there, before it all blows up. So yeah, I disobeyed your order to return to the ship, because I thought maybe I could find some people I could actually serve and protect!
And yeah, before you ask, I'd do it again! Now tell me you would have done anything different and if you would, then feel free to chew me out!"
She wanted to shove him for being right. Even while he'd been disobeying she knew she'd have done the same. She turned and slapped a hand into the turbolift wall. "Godddamnit Ridge. I thought you were going to get left behind. I thought I would have to tell Rod I lost his brother for him."
"Huh, he'd think I just took off on a beach vacation! Anyway I knew you wouldn't leave lil old tadpole me down there with the whales" Steiner blew out a long breath, looked at Zahn "Did you really just try and intimidate me?" He grinned "Kinda impressive"
She shook her head and smiled in spite of herself. "Look. If anyone asks, I sent you, okay? That's all. It was my call. No one else heard any differently."
Steiner shook his head. "I don 't lie Calli. If someone asks me a direct question, then I'll tell them the truth, but if they don't ask... " he waved his hand about "... then I won't tell them"
"I'll see about making it vague in my account too. Don't think because they scrubbed the logs of their own presence out that the Alabama's gonna get you out of debriefing the rest of the mission, prior."
"Oh I can be very vague in reports when needed" he winked, then reached over and restarted the lift. "What's your take on this whole super-secret-Captain Bowdler-to-the-rescue thing? I've had people pull jurisdiction claims on me, but nothing like this..."
Calliope put her hands on her hips and rolled her head to look at the lift ceiling. "I hate black ops. I get why they run 'em, but I hate them. There's always fall out or cover up. Or both. We got sucked in this time. I almost would have rather taken our chances with blowing our own warp core than be tangled in this. Almost."
"My team say this Security Protocol stuff can only come from the very highest level of Starfleet, top brass on the Federation Security Committee."
"Sounds about right."
"I'm just a cop, but sounds to me like somebody thinks the Pyrryx are a bigger threat than anyone is letting on..."
She shrugged, used to not being included. "No one tells me much of anything now, Ridge. I'm lucky I got read in for this mission." DeHavilland hadn't wanted her on it, she knew. She was probably going to be glad to get back to working with Thad. "When I get back to station and turn in my reports I don't know what I do. Apply for something else, I guess."
"You'd be leaving Obsidian Command?" Steiner was a little surprised to hear that. He had got used to working with her, he liked having bosses he could be open with.
Calliope didn't answer, just scratched an eyebrow. She'd already been trying to guess where the pieces would fall in the past few minutes. Corvus wouldn't work with Lance and she wasn't first officer and hadn't been for months. There wouldn't be a reason for her to remain. The lift door opened.
"This is my deck," she said. "We can catch up later. I'll need your help getting crew debriefings."
"Sure" Steiner watched her go, not asking her what was up, but it was clear from the way her demeanor suddenly changed that something was...
