" Briefing "
(Previous Post was Julian's "A Matter of Time")
==========
Stardate: 60323.1225
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Conference Lounge
The young woman sat in the chair reserved for the CO of the ANUBIS… which strangely enough was now her. Since the arrival of the crew onboard the Scarab-Class vessel, the redheaded woman had been sitting at the opposite end of the table looking down towards this end of the room, now she sat on the opposite end looking the other way. Although the room itself had not changed in any way since their last staff meeting, the room and its contents appeared completely different.
"Getting used to the *other side*?" The half Human, half Romulan hybrid inquired as she stepped into the room and saw their new CO sitting alone at the other end of the table. Serenna had also made quite a drastic move from the second seat to the right of the CO to the far end opposite Sabrina, a change of scenery that did not seem to bother the new ExO… than again little seemed to bother the hybrid. The young woman saw this constant calmness of her First Officer as a nice counter balance to her own over emotional tendencies. It was true that Enaii had always been there to remind her life-mate of when she had crossed the line, but Sabrina hoped that Serenna would be kind enough to warn her *before* that proverbial line would be crossed.
"If it was as simple as getting used to looking at a room from a different location… I wouldn't be feeling the way I am right now." The redheaded woman replied as she allowed a lengthy sigh to escape from between her pink lips.
"Sounds like you may need to schedule some therapeutic time with Ens. Mei." The ExO said in all seriousness as she sat down in the chair that Sabrina had claimed as hers up until only a few hours ago.
"Serenna… you and I are going to set-up some basic ground rules… the 1st of which will be that you will need to let me know when you are *kidding*, *joking* or in anyway *jesting*. Since the first day I saw you, I have never been able to tell when you are not being serious, so you have to come up with some sort of signal that I can pick up on." The young woman proposed as she rested her chin in the palm of her hands, her elbows partially spread apart on the smooth surface of the conference table stretching between them.
"Kidding, joking and jesting are not an efficient way of spending one's time or voice one's opinion… and as your ExO I am required to be as forthcoming and direct as possible. It would not be wise for me to *joke* while our lives may be at stake, as it would not be proper for me to be anything but entirely serious about why perception of your mental health and status." The former Ops officer offered from across the table, verbally hitting the woman sitting directly opposite her with what had felt like a full volley of quantum torpedoes.
"You mean you were serious when you said that I should speak to Susan?" Sabrina gasped, her chin having resumed its solo flight following the young woman's hands smacking down on the table pulled down by the force of the artificial gravity of the ship.
"I was kidding." Serenna countered with, adding a barely visible smile which immediately made the CO wonder if her ExO had been joking about the need for a visit to the Cns or about never kidding, which would have been a direct paradox to what the hybrid had just said. Before the young woman could even attempt to solve this complex game that the hybrid had been playing with her mind, the rest of the senior staff began trickling into the room just in time for the mission update.
The senior officers walked in and took their seats 1-by-1, offering their congratulations and support to their new CO and ExO, everyone appearing relatively pleased with the appointments. The entire feel of the room suddenly changed though when a towering figure appeared at the end of the room, no one other than Sabrina and Serenna having been expecting the CEO to show up to the meeting.
"Have a seat Lieutenant…" The young woman offered as she invited the engineer to take the seat that had always been his.
"You… you are not leaving us?" The CMO inquired as she looked at the man walking around the table to take the vacant seat that was directly across from hers.
"I'm only sticking around for this 1 mission." David dryly explained, not trying to hide the fact that he had been made to stay against his will. As the CEO sat down though, he shot a concerned glance in the direction of the CO and ILO, the nightmarish visions that had been haunting his dreams returning to his thoughts with full force as he watched them sitting there… one next to the other.
"Alright, let try to make this meeting as painless as possible… I am sure that you all have more important things to do than to listen to my ramblings. Enaii, would you care to get us started?" The CO offered before beaming a devilish smile in the direction of her life-mate who seemed unimpressed in having to be the one to get the ball rolling at is were.
"All of the ship's logs which includes personal logs, as well as flight plans and sensor data from the MERCURY were transferred to the NEW ALEXANDRIA's mainframe and uploaded to the ANUBIS. The crew had the foresight of sending a communication buoy just before being destroyed which transmitted their content of their core memory to the nearest starbase. Based on the information received and the flight path of the 1 escape pod launched, we have a general idea as to where the MERCURY was attack and destroyed. From there we will have to figure out where the crew was taken and currently being held captive." The ILO unemotionally reported, the fact that the single escape pod she had mentioned had contained the body of their CEO's younger brother apparently not carrying any weight in her report.
"Do we have a plan of action once we reach that location?" Cpt. Rikar inquired as she turned her attention towards the CSciO who would likely be the one responsible for picking up the trail once they got there.
"I have been working on a sensor upgrade that should enable us to pick up the ionization trail of ships that were in that general sector of space even after so many days, the problem is that in order for this upgrade to work though I am going to require a great deal of help from the engineering and operations department. If I try to bring all of the required modifications online by myself I fear that I may cause more harm than good leaving us at the mercy of whoever or whatever might be out there." The Shillian explained causing the eyes of the CO and ExO to fall onto the form of the imposing CEO.
"Looks like we are fortunate to have you back with you Lt. Dawson." The CO teased before shifting her eyes onto the form of the hybrid sitting at the other end of the table.
"With all due respect captain… I may be able to assist in some ways, but I am sure that Lt. Maya would benefit far more from having a full time Ops officer working with her on this project." The former Ops officer pointed out, her list of duties as the ship's new ExO having already made it difficult for her to do all that she had been expected to.
"Captain… if I may… what about Annie? She could take over the vacant Ops position for the duration of this mission, I would happily offere my services to take her place at the FCO's station." The towering Oltharian proposed, his presence at the senior officer's meeting having been originally deemed necessary based on the idea that Lt. Dawson would not be there.
The young woman seemed to deeply debate the proposed change of duty for their all too mysterious FCO, but given that she had obviously obtained the Oltharian's highest respect and admiration… and given that for the time being the position of Ops officer had still be unfilled, the redheaded woman figured that it might be the right thing to do.
"Alright, I think it will be a waste to have you at the helm… not to mention that it is going to make it difficult to see the screen… but I'm willing to give it a try." The CO agreed, seeing a somewhat approving motion of the head from both the ExO and ILO.
"Ens. Doratheva… what is the ship's combat readiness?" The half Human, half Romulan hybrid inquired of their new Sec/Tac officer, the ExO's experience in that field of duty clearly showing in her voice.
"All weapons have passed preliminary verifications… I am planning on running additional tests as well as combat readiness drills with the security personnel just to insure that we are ready for any and all possibilities." Eva promptly announced, not at all appearing as if she had been caught off guard by the ExO's query.
"Well done Ensign… the protection of the ANUBIS and her crew is your responsibility… how about our Marines though, are they ready?" Rikar questioned as she turned her attention towards the Enaran who seemed to be lost in his thoughts, probably still thinking about his earlier meeting with General Alvarez. "Everyone is ready and anxious to see some action Captain… all you have to do is give the word."
Sabrina could not help but smile at the enthusiasm of the MCO and that he and his men had been at 'her disposal', and additional responsibility that the young woman actually did not envy. To have the lives of so many people hanging on every decision she made created a situation that the former Cns found highly unpalatable.
"Looks like we are as ready as we'll ever be… return to your stations and let's get ready to hit the road in half an hour. Dismiss." The young woman announced as she leaned back into her chair thinking that her first senior staff briefing as CO had not been all that bad… that was until Sabrina noticed that Ens. Mei had remained behind after everyone else had left.
"How are you feeling captain?" Susan inquired as she leaned forward over the table, she and Sabrina being the only 2 people left in the conference room.
"Is this a personal or professional question?" The CO countered with as she mimicked the posture of the Cns. Rikar had not been unfamiliar with the techniques and methods used by members of the counselling profession having been 1 of them herself many, many years ago.
"I know that you know the drill, so I will spare both of us from wasting our time with the superficial chat. Your duties have always been to the ship and its crew, but these duties have taken on a completely different aspect now that you are the CO. I am simply offering you my time and ears should you need them. If you are stressed, so will the rest of the crew be, so it is in everyone's interest for you to not take on too much during your first run as the 'big boss'." Susan offered wondering only after she had said all that if she had maybe gone too far. It was true that her training and position allowed her to say what she had, but reality still had her as a simple ensign while her CO was a captain who had been a Cns during her career. Susan wondered if maybe she should have been content with leaving the young evaluate her own abilities instead of presenting herself as something that she likely was not.
"Thank you Susan… I remember giving my CO the general same speech when I was in your position… so I greatly appreciate the offer and promise you that I will seek out your counsel the moment that I feel it necessary." Rikar replied with a gentle smile caressing her pink lips making it seem as if her reply had been genuine.
With that Susan excused herself from the conference room and left the CO to her own thoughts hoping that their next mission would not test their metal too harshly.
==========
Sabrina Jones {sabrina_sweet@hotmail.com}
Captain Sabrina Rikar
Commanding Officer
USS ANUBIS, NCC-18501
"We are Grey, we stand between the Candle and the Star, between the Darkness and the Light" 2005 post #258
-Entilza Delenn, Babylon 5
