From: Masako Goto
Date: Sat, 5 Apr 1997 17:46:32 -0500 (EST)
Subject: USS CHESAPEAKE: T-Minus 100 and Counting...
SD 90405.2047
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Biological Sciences HQ
----------------------
MD 4.0720
"Mr. Stenford, these are the tests I want you to administer,"
said Anne, appearing rather suddenly at his office door. "I want the
red-coded ones to go to the Specialists, the yellow-coded ones to go to
the Researchers, and the blue-coded ones to go to the students. Clear?"
"Yes, sir," said Stenford, his expression betraying no surprise.
"Anything else, sir?"
"No, don't think so," said Anne carelessly. "I think I have
everything under control for the moment... after the exams are done,
please send deliver them to my office. If I'm not there, Mr. Fielding
will take them. Understood?"
"Yes, sir." Stenford watched quietly as Anne made her way to the
door. "Good day, sir."
"You better hope it is!" called Anne as she sailed out of his
division and on to the next stop.
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Computer Sciences HQ
--------------------
MD 4.0730
"Blue, yellow, red, *in that order*," said Anne briskly, not even
pausing in her steps. "Make sure you give the right tests to the right
people!" she added, flouncing out of the office.
"Yes, sir," said the rather confused Chairman of the Computer
Sciences division, barely having enough time to process the appearance
and disappearance of the Chief Science Officer. By the time she uttered
the words, however, the Chief was already long gone...
-------------------------
Mathematics and Logic Lab
-------------------------
MD 4.0735
"Understood, sir," said Serak emotionlessly, accepting the bundle
of exams as though crash review exams for all staff and students arrived
in his office every day. "We will endeavor to do our part, sir."
"See that you do, Lieutenant Serak," said Anne, almost out of the
door already. "We don't want any complaints about mistakes in grading!"
"Yes, sir," called Serak. He calmly stacked the exams on his
desk. He would memorize the answer keys in just a few moments; he could
see that this was going to be yet another, from his point of view,
completely wasted day. First, the bit about the tender chicken for the
replicators; then the strange request concerning probabilities of two
Anne Murrays turning up at the same school at the same time; and now,
being put in charge of grading the Science Department review exams.
Well... Serak was actually not expecting anything else at the
moment; his superior did not seem to have a good grasp of what exactly
the MLD *did*; perhaps he would speak with her later on today, after he
had graded the exams.
--------------------
Physical Sciences HQ
--------------------
MD 0745
"All right, so here they are," finished Anne, handing the final
batch of exams to Denise Oxmyx. "You know what to do with it, please get
on with it. You have less than ninety minutes until the exams are
scheduled to begin. I want *absolutely no cheating* among any of my
staff or student population, understood?"
"Crystal clear, sir," replied Oxmyx. She shrugged. "I doubt
they will, given the circumstances, sir."
"They had *better* not, for their own good!" retorted Anne,
dashing out of the laboratory as Karen Decker and Derek Fielding
entered. She passed them without so much as a hello.
"I don't like this, Derek," said Decker, staring after their
chief. "She's been to every single division HQ in the last twenty-five
minutes, and she's landed the MLD with yet *another* pointless task...
and she insulted my eating habits!"
"Well." Fielding coughed. "You do eat rather strangely..."
"*Derek*!"
"Sorry." Fielding began to flip through some of the physical
sciences exams.
"I think it's time for another complaint," said Oxmyx. "I went
last time... one of you better go this time."
"Hey," protested Fielding, "I still don't like going to the
Counselor about Anne behind her back, you know. It's not as though she
were being clinically insane, it's just..."
"Well, she was moody, then manic, then practically *depressed*
yesterday, and now *this*?" demanded Karen Decker. "I think I liked her
better when she was wallowing in her own thoughts!"
"*KAREN*!" said the two other officers in unison.
"Sorry." But she didn't sound sorry at all.
"Here." Oxmyx handed Decker a bowl of cereal, the color of which
Fielding was careful not to notice. "Eat it, and you'll feel much better."
Karen munched moodily on her cereal. Even as her expression
began to lighten, she went on with her complaints.
"I mean, she not only insults me, she insults the students at the
drop of a hat! How am I supposed to keep up morale when she's always
bursting into the place hurling verbal insults at them?"
"Well... Karen... they *did* blow up half the lab..." said
Fielding judiciously. "And after the run-ins with the Second Officer and
the First Officer..."
Decker and Oxmyx stared at him, apparently surprised by this
little tidbit.
"Don't you *dare* mention it to her, you two," said Fielding.
"I'm just saying that she's been in hot water with the top brass here
because of those kids, so we ought to expect a little hostility toward
the -- er -- younger element. As for yesterday afternoon..." Fielding
rubbed his ear, remembering the noise. "Look, we all know she went to
see the Counselor yesterday, right? Why don't we give her a couple of
days to work things out..."
"...and kill us in the process?" finished Oxmyx for him. "With
all due respect, sir, I think we should just... lock her up for a while."
"*Denise*!" Fielding glared at her. "If I had less understanding
of your current stress, I'd report you for insubordination! As it is,
however..." he sighed. "I'll just make sure she keeps out of the science
department for a bit, all right? At least for the morning?"
"How're you going to do that?" asked Oxmyx suspiciously.
"Bridge stations," said Fielding. "I'll keep her occupied up
there this morning -- and, by the way, you'll owe me *big* for this, you
two -- and you just cool your heels. Go to the Counselor if you *must*,
but don't bring me into it. I don't want to know."
Oxmyx and Decker nodded.
"Good luck, sir," said Oxmyx as Decker and Fielding prepared to
head back to the Main Science Laboratory.
"Thank you, Mr. Oxmyx," said Fielding. "I'll need it." He turned
to Karen Decker. "Tell me everything you know, Karen," he said, his
expression deadly serious, "about how to program an Emergency Holographic
Counseling Program."
Respectfully submitted,
Masako Goto
Lt. Anne Murray, Ph.D.
CSciO
USS CHESAPEAKE NCC-31813
<>
All I am saying about this post is that 1. it wrote itself from start to
finish (my mind being rather bombed at the moment) and 2. the junior
officers in the Sci Department *insisted* that their views be heard.
So... now you have the post. :)
James: Well... Anne may not see Stavay outside of a turbolift, but her
staff is certainly going to stop by... and I liked the EHCP idea, so
I'm going to have Fielding program it... any suggestions welcome. ;)
Also... I figured that the exec. group and the chairmen were
probably the best bets as complainers, since they have to deal most
with her in the first place.
Chris: I am starting to understand about PCs taking off without
warning... do you know how hard I had to try to keep her in one
place? ::shrink:: it didn't work. Gosh, sometimes I think she
should get Ritalin...
Melvin, Takako: I realize that th'Tellan and Brennan weren't giving her a
hard time about her students, but then again whoever said
that the aCSciO had to know *everything*, right? ;)
Amy: Don't worry, Anne will be back to haunt the Science Department after
all the (non)exciting review exams are safely collected and
corrected.
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