Genesis5

Genesis p. 6

Mansel was surprised that Fleury asked about the bridge, the question caught him off guard. More than usual, the engineers weren't too concerned about the bridge; Engineering was their domain and they left it at that. “We’re about done here,” he responded. “Look, if you have any time, we’re about to have a staff meeting, so if you could join us…”

“I’ll be there in a minute, sir,” said Fleury. “Fleury out.
***
When Fleury arrived, the meeting began.

“Alright,” said Mansel, who was starting to get more comfortable around Commander Vaughn. The rest, however, still made him feel slightly uncomfortable, especially the Science officer who was still staring at him. “Let’s begin.”

Mansel stood at the head of the conference table with his back to the projection screen that was on the wall. “First of all, welcome to the Explorer.” He still hadn’t called it his ship yet; he felt that he hadn’t yet earned the right. He continued.

“For the next seven years we’ll be stuck together traveling the galaxy. We need to be able to work well together.

“Let’s drop all the formal stuff,” he continued. “You can dismiss with all the ‘sirs’ and the ‘captain.’ You can simply address me as Mansel if that’s what you prefer. If you feel you must call me ‘sir’ or ‘captain,’ feel free. Understand, though, that I’m trying to loosen the atmosphere up some. We can’t work well together if we’re all stiff.” He glanced out over his small audience, seeing a few nods in understanding. He took it as a good sign.

“Let’s begin by introducing each other. I know it might be childish,” he quickly said as he heard groans from Vaughn and Fleury. He glanced at his chrono. “It’ll waste time until we have to go cruising.”
Vaughn beamed at Mansel. “You’re too late, guy,” said his Executive Officer. “We did that earlier today.”

“Without me?” Mansel asked, disappointed. “That’s not fair.”

Vaughn gave a casual shrug that would later become his trademark. “Neither is life, sir.”

Mansel instructed his staff to reintroduce themselves, starting with his Executive Officer and working his way down.

Commander Terry Vaughn was twenty-two, from the Philippines, which answered Mansel’s suspicions. He, also, had graduated the other day, like a few others in the room. Though he was the Executive Officer, his main concentration was in Engineering. That earned at cheer from Fleury, the Chief Engineer. Vaughn, it turned out, would be in charge of all away missions and reassembling the crew in case a shore leave got cut short for whatever crisis might decide to appear unexpectedly.

Lieutenant Commander Anthony Fleury was the Chief Engineer, lost in his own little world on the Engineering deck. At twenty-five, Fleury was the oldest one out of the senior staff. He had been kicked out of the UNSF Academy once, due to fights, but was reinstated because of his good grades. He admitted to having a cocky attitude, and also admitted that he didn’t plan on trying to alter it. Mansel appreciated the honesty. He was first assigned to the U.S.S. Storm, but transferred to the Explorer replacing Lieutenant Commander Lawrence Goldwire, who couldn’t be released to fly due to medical problems.

The shy and soft-spoken Lieutenant Jason Broadaway was next. Born in San Francisco, he was forced to go to the Academy because his grades in college were so bad. Soon, he learned to love it and majored in Navigation. There, he met Lieutenant Talaj, the Science officer who was also on the Explorer. Broadaway was twenty-one.

Lieutenant Commander Casey Ames came next. He was the Chief of Security aboard the Explorer and also present in most away missions. He had graduated from the Academy a few years before, and had been stationed on the U.S.S. Vision. At twenty-five, he was only a few months younger than Fleury was.

Lieutenant Bryan Lamb was the ship's Tactical officer, handling the weapons. Everyone in the room immediately took a liking to him and his somewhat goofy personality. It was apparent that he would work well with Commander Vaughn, who was just as jubilant and mischievous, as Lamb was. Lamb was twenty-three.

Next came Lieutenant Talaj, the Science officer that had been staring at Mansel since he first walked onto the bridge of the Explorer. She was a native of Venus, she revealed in her ever so stern and serious manner. It appeared to Mansel that most Science officers he had come across had been this way, with or without human qualities, such as pointed ears, for example. Talaj’s parents had been raised to hate humans, and her decision to go the Academy was not well received by her parents. She majored in Science Education, and graduated 19th in a class of thirty-three. Along with Broadaway, one of her few friends, she had been assigned to the Explorer. Lieutenant Talaj was twenty-two.

Lastly came Ensign LaTonya Hardy, the Communications officer. An African American like Captain Mansel, she grew up average. She went to the Academy with most of friends, and majored in Communications, the easiest major in the Academy. She was first assigned to the U.S.S. Stealthlon as a secondary communications expert, but was then assigned to the Explorer as main Communications officer.

It appeared to Mansel that he had a competent crew aboard. As long as they could all get along, things should work out pretty fine.

With five minutes left to go before the shakedown cruise, the staff had planned a mandatory social, still unsure of the date, and dismissed. They strolled back onto the bridge, seeing that the techies had completed their jobs on the bridge and disappeared. The bridge looked bright and new, ready to take on a whole galaxy full of adventures and misadventures. Mansel was going to love every minute of it.

A beep from the Communications console told Lieutenant Hardy that the UNSF was ready to give the go-ahead with the shakedown. Mansel called the crew to their stations, and stood behind his own chair. He flashed Commander Vaughn a quick grin as the countdown procedure started. Mansel recalled to his mind the chapter in one of his many books on piloting out of spacedock.