Command De-Briefing (Part 1 of 2)

Posted on 17 Jan 2014 @ 9:49am by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Captain Jonathan Holliday & Commander Scarlet Blake & Lieutenant Commander Dea Mialin & Petty Officer 1st Class Oliver Morris & Petty Officer 1st Class Victarion Jaqen & Command Master Chief Markum Quinn

2,041 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 05 - Solstice
Location: Starfleet HQ - 2nd Floor, Auxiliary Briefing Room #5
Timeline: MD 04 - 1320 hrs

[ON]

With Galileo's command change now officially complete, Lirha had thought it prudent to sit down with the ship's new captain and command department to discuss a few housekeeping items and let everyone get familiar with each other and their new roles. The suddenness of her transfer had no doubt left a few people scratching their heads, and she wanted to help alleviate any concerns and answer any questions the command staff might have. She also wanted to do her best to help ensure a smooth transition for John and Scarlet, and so she had sent out a message via PADD a couple hours ago requesting all senior red-collared Galileans meet in one of the HQ's small briefing room for a quick chat.

Punctual as always, Lirha stepped through the doors to the small briefing room when they softly swished open, then made her way to the opposite head of the table and took a seat in one of the comfy chairs while she waited for others to arrive.

John nervously played with the collar on his uniform as he headed for the meeting room within HQ. He still had not gotten used to having that fourth pip on his neckline and it felt as if it was prodding into his neck every time he moved his head. With PADD in hand, the Captain turned a corner and ducked into the meeting room, smiling as he saw the Commodore's face waiting for him.

"Am I glad to see you ma'am. This command thing is more complicated than I thought."

She smirked at John when he entered, knowing all-too-well the feeling of the first command. "How do you think I felt when you first met me?" she teased in return. "Do not worry, you will be fine. It is the paperwork which is the worse." Reports galore, that had almost been her downfall during her first month as a commanding officer. "Starfleet does not like late reports."

The Captain chuckled happily as he remembered the first time he had walked into the Ready Room and found his Orion CO buried under a mountain of PADDs. From that day forward he had made it his own personal mission to reduce the volume of paperwork that made it to her desk, but now found himself in the position where he himself would be on the receiving end of the work, rather than intercepting it.

"I remember...I think I nearly lost you that first day aboard Galileo. Hopefully Commander Blake finds her forte in paperwork."

Oliver Morris walked in carrying a PaDD with his transfer orders. It was quick notice that he was to become the Commodore's new Yeoman. He hadn't had a chance to meet with Lirha prior to coming on board Galileo but heard good things about her through the little community of CO's he had the luxury of knowing. The computer lead him here to the Auxiliary Briefing Room when he requested Lirha's location.

He saw her there sitting at the table next to the Captain . "Madam Commodore, I am Petty Officer Oliver Morris," he handed her the PaDD in his hand. "I was called in to be your new Yeoman. I know this is not a conventional way of meeting. But I figured I should meet you two before we got under way."

Lirha stood from her seat and approached the tall man, smiling up at him politely as she took the PADD then offered her hand for him to shake. She had learned only yesterday that she was being assigned her own personal yeoman, and the announcement had come with a good deal of relief. She wasn't overly fond of administrative duties but with her new assistant, she hoped everything would go smoothly.

"Yes, Mister Morris, it is good to meet you. Thank you for coming on short notice," she replied, noticing his rather chiseled physique and attractive features. "Please have a seat, we are just waiting for the rest of the staff to arrive."

She proceeded to motion towards John who had also recently arrived. "This is Captain Holliday, Galileo's new commanding officer and my former XO," she added, introducing the two men to each other while she quickly looked over Morris' transfer orders and signed off on them with a thumbprint.

"Captain congratulations on your promotion," Oliver said while proffering his hand.

"Thank you Yeoman. Welcome aboard. The Commodore is an excellent role model - follow her closely." John replied, shaking the young officer's hand as he made himself known to the command staff.

Dea entered the room next. Dressed in her red uniform with the new rank pins attached. So much had transpired in the last two days she still hadn't had a chance to wrap her head around it all. "Commodore, Captain," she greeted her two superior officers. Placing the PADD in her hand on the table, Dea took a seat. Nodding to the new crew member, "Lieutenant Commander Mialin." Not used to her new rank yet.

Lirha gave a courteous nod to Dea when she walked in, happy to see her in her new role and arriving on time to the meeting.

Scarlet moved into the room with a small smile, her step light as she held a few padds cradled in the corner of her arm. She wore her new uniform, red collar and all. She had wondered when she'd put it on if it suited her, having gotten used to counselling teal. "Good afternoon, everyone," she spotted the new face, nodding to him as she took her seat. "Commander Blake," the new rank still felt strange to say.

Quinn walked into the room and smiled at everyone. "Sirs." he said as he took a seat."

Victarion came in quietly, moving to sit down. He gave a small nod of greeting and looked over at Saalm's personal yeoman. He had enjoyed working with Saalm and hoped that the new person felt the same way. Quietly, unobtrusively, he took his seat.

"I guess we can get started, I do not want to take up too much of your time," Lirha began once everyone had arrived and was seated. Picking up her PADD and linking it to the large LCARS screen on the wall with a series of commands on the slim device, the Orion leaned back in her chair and began to read through the agenda. "First, Galileo obviously has a new chain of command now, so there will most likely be an adjustment period while you all get used to your different command styles. There might be some friction at times, but I encourage all of you to bring any matters to each other's attention rather than keeping silent. Communication is important to a strong command staff, and the crew will view your cohesiveness as a sign of strength."

Scarlet nodded in agreement; the last thing they needed was bottled up frustration and whispers.

Dea simply nodded allowing Lirha to continued. This would be a very different role for her even though she had stepped up to fill a hole in the command staff temporarily during the last mission.

"We also have some personnel issues to discuss, and I believe Captain Holliday as been informed of Galileo's arrivals. We have a new assistant medical chief coming on board as well as a new counselor, and with Commander Blake no longer the chief counselor, it might be prudent to consider merging medical and counseling duties within the Medical department. Your thoughts?" Lirha asked, wanting to get everyone's opinions on the delegation of duties.

Yeoman Morris spoke up, "That is an excellent idea. It is not often on ships this size to have an counseling staff larger than three officers. My father's ship the Tiberius has only two and they're an Oberth class."

"Agreed - a reduction in the size of the senior staff is likely to be more beneficial on a ship like Galileo." John nodded in agreement, taking a note on his PADD to follow up with the change on command structure upon his return to his office.

"Excellent." Lirha continued on with the next order of business. "Next, as you are probably aware, Galileo is in port for minor repairs and her yearly refit. I have been in contact with the dockmaster, and while no major systems are being retrofitted, there will be significant work done on each deck to optimize internal space on the ship." She tapped on her PADD and suddenly a large schematic of the Nova Class' deck blueprints displayed on the giant LCARS screen for all to see.

"As you can see from the diagram, the corridor layout is being adjusted, new quarters and science labs are being installed, and the turbolift system is also being reworked to give us quicker access to all areas of the ship...even Deck 8," Lirha continued. "Some important areas to note: the arboretum and observation lounge are being moved down to Deck 7 along with a new fitness workout room; Four escape pods -- two on each side of the ventral secondary hull -- are being installed down on Deck 8 for those crew unable to make it to the saucer section during an emergency; Our mess hall is being divided into two smaller mess halls on opposite sides of Deck 2 -- an officer's mess and an enlisted mess; And finally, Deck 1 is being expanded to now accommodate four new living spaces -- two VIP quarters, one of which I will occupy, and two quarters for the commanding officer and executive officer. The closer proximity to the bridge should be advantageous for all of us."

"Please be advised that non-essential personnel will not be allowed on board Galileo while the deck changes are in progress. The dockmaster anticipates being finished with the construction in about a month, after which the crew will then be allowed back on board. Also, there was some interest in installing a recreational bar/lounge on the ship, and I believe we can easily construct it down on Deck 7 next to either the arboretum or the new gym.

"In fact, any personnel wanting to remain on board during the refit will need to request permission from the command staff."

John added to the mix. During a refit there was never a safe place to remain on the ship, as at any moment a member of the engineering corps might suddenly appear and attempt to remove a bulkhead. If someone wished to remain on board, he wanted to know about it.

Scarlet couldn't help but be pleased to hear about the addition of a workout room and a bar. She'd be beating down the door. What she wasn't so sure about was the separation of officer and enlisted mess halls. There was often a wedge between them as it was, separate eating facilities could make it worse. She remained silent though; the way Lirha spoke made it seem that she was informing them on what was going to happen, not asking for feedback on it.

"Those restrictions during the refit are a reasonable security measure," Dea replied.

Quinn raised a hand. "As both Commodore Saalm and Captain Holliday know, I have a long history with the Dockmaster and, with your permission, I would like to suggest an attempt to...acquire the new holographic control consoles for the Bridge Stations. They are relatively easy to swap in, along with the extra holo-emitters that would be required to increase their functionality. All the new recruits from Boot Camp are starting to be trained on them now, and with the large amount of enlisted specialists we carry, I feel it would be worth the gamb...the conversation with the Dockmaster."

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

CDRE Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

CAPT Jonathan Holliday
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

LTCMDR Dea Mialin
Chief Flight Control Officer/Second Officer
USS Galileo

CMDR Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo

Command Master Chief Markum Quinn
Chief of the Boat
USS Galileo

PO1 Oliver Morris
Senior Yeoman
USS Galileo

PO1 Victarion Jaqen
Yeoman
USS Galileo
[PNPC - Markos]

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