All Hands on Deck (Part 7 of 9)

Posted on 06 Mar 2015 @ 6:13pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Lieutenant Min Zhao & Petty Officer 3rd Class Alika Mahone & Lieutenant Commander Dea Mialin & Chief Warrant Officer 2 Oliver Sylver & Crewman Ash Rowe & Lieutenant Commander Amynta Markos & Verity Thorne & Chief Petty Officer Lyras Ueda & Lieutenant JG Ethan Walker M.D., Ph.D & Command Master Chief Markum Quinn & Petty Officer 1st Class Rebecca Williams

2,793 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Episode 07 - Sojourn
Location: USS Galileo - Decks 4 & 5, Computer Core, Main Shuttlebay, Intelligence Office
Timeline: MD 44 - 0945 hrs

Previously, on All Hands on Deck (Part 6)...

As the rear admiral came to a natural pause after her crew had reeled off experiment and theory after one another, Stace stepped in and smiled, piquing an eyebrow to her superior officer with a knowing glance. "And that, Rear-Admiral, is why we have two senior officers heading up the Science department: with us being such a science-specific vessel, I simply wouldn't have time to orchestrate the day-to-day mission running of the department along with the Research. And that is where Commander Kohl picks up the reigns. We're lucky on the Galileo, us scientists. For her size, the space available to my crew is vastly disproportionate. And that allows us to push the boundaries of science much further than say, a Defiant class. We're allowed to indulge in the sciences here. And for that, we are ever thankful."

"Yes," agreed Lirha with a slight tease, "the Starship Design Bureau most certainly was biased towards the sciences when they designed the Nova-class. I am happy to see you are making good use of your accommodations." As long as the nanites don't get out of control and take over the ship, she silently added.

"Very well, then. Thank you Commanders Stace and Kohl...your science team is most impressive. Carry on," she said, pleased that all appeared to be well with Galileo's largest and most important department.

And Now, the Continuation...

[ON]

Deck 4 - Computer Core

After inspecting the multi-purpose lab up on Deck 3, the next stop on the tour was to inspect the heart of Galileo's electronic operations and one of the most essential areas aboard the starship, the computer core. Large and spacious, taking up two full decks in the center of the saucer section, was the central nervous system of the Nova-class. After inputting her security clearance code into the door, it swished open to all her and the command staff access, and she entered and stopped to look around.

As had been the case with the other departments, the ship's gold-collared Operations personnel had neatly assembled along the edge of the room and were ready to present. Lirha approached the head of their department and nodded politely to you young lieutenant. "Miss Zhao," she acknowledged. "How is our vessel's brain feeling today?" she inquired, referring to the computer core itself which was lit up with a plethora of bright lights and electrical component grids.

"Purring like a kitten Admiral. The upgraded deflector protcols and Starfleet's most recent systems update for the class went in smoothly." She paused. "Looking forward to seeing her in action."

"Good. I must commend you and your staff for performing the deflector software upgrade. Any chance we get to avoid Starfleet technicians meddling with our syetems is a relief," Lirha responded before looking back to the line of Operations officers. "Speaking of which...would you like to present your team?"

Min nodded. The department was a small but tightly knit bunch, many of whom had been aboard longer then she had.

"LT Da'kar and Chief zh'Erinov. Our Gamma & Beta bridge watches respectively."

Lirha looked at the half-Klingon and Andorian as they were introduced and gave them a friendly smile. "Lieutenant. Chief," she acknowledged.

"Petty Officer's Mahone, Loni and Hudson. They handle most of the operations tasks off bridge. Petty Officer is our Quartermaster.

"Ma'am." Alika gave a nod toward the Command Staff in front of her. She had remained perfectly still and relatively quiet, as she didn't wish to upset the perfect balance that the department seemed to maintain. If she was going to cause trouble, the Inspection wasn't the time or the place to do so.

Lirha gave another respectful nod to the three middle-grade enlisted officers who pulled most of the department's weight behind the scenes.

"Petty Officer Jameson. Our primary transporter operator."

Once again Lirha gave the introduced crew member a look-over and a nod of acknowledgement before turning back to Zhao to address her. "A fine group of personnel, I must say," she complimented. "Thank you for introducing them...as a former Operations officer myself, I know your department's duties are of the utmost importance. Even if they are sometimes monotonous."

"Very well, then," continued Lirha. The department's personnel didn't appear to be very chatty and everything seemed to be functioning well in the computer core. "Carry on, dismissed," she instructed the team before turning to head out of the secured area.

---

Deck 4 - Shuttlebay

Dea took another quick look around as her staff assembled in the shuttlebay. They would all be happy to get this visit out of the way. After that they could return to their normal duties.

Sylver smiled as he moved to his spot, brushing imaginary dust off his uniform. He looked around, rolling his shoulders. "It'll take them a moment to go through all the decks."

Never having gone through an inspection before Wintrow glanced around nervously,; he didn't even know where to stand or what to do. Just to do something, he walked over to the nearest shuttle and stood next to it. It was the shuttle he'd been working on the past days.

Ash appeared her same, casual self, whether that was for better or worse. She was leant back against a rail, ankles crossed and elbows on the bar. "I could crack open some cards and a bottle of beer while we wait?" she said lightly, but it was clearly only teasing.

"Seriously?" the teenage pilot asked, his dark eyes shifting to her. "You would consider drinking while on duty?" he asked, clearly missing the teasing tone in her voice.

"What? No!" Ash laughed, waving a hand in Wintrow's direction. "Kid, I am going to take you out for a night on the bars and clubs and corrupt you so badly....it's the only way forward."

"Nuh-uh, no thank you sir," Wintrow replied, shaking his had and throwing up his hands as if to ward him off. "I've had enough of clubs and drinking. I don't want any alcohol anymore, ever."

"You talk like you got a choice," Ash laughed warmly, shaking her head as she folded her arms comfortably. "Gonna have to educate you sooner or later, lad."

"I always have a choice," the teenager answered flatly, "I said no." The way he said it, it was obvious there was more to it than he was initially letting on.

Ash rolled her eyes and shook her head as she looked away, sighing. Damn. There was no one with a sense of humour left in the world. She was pretty sure of that now.

Listening to the exchange Dea didn't say a word. There was nothing wrong with a little humor while they waited. As long as her personnel did their duty properly that's the only thing that mattered.

At the aft-end of Deck 4, the large doors to Galileo's primary shuttlebay slowly parted with a loud hiss, and the rear admiral and her inspection part stepped into the expansive hangar. One of the Type-9s was happily situated on the main landing pad surrounded by the department's support craft and flight control personnel, and Lirha made her way over to them while also surveying the rest of the room with her head on a swivel.

"Commander Mialin," she nodded once she was within earshot. "How is our main shuttlebay this lovely morning?"

Shifting her focus to the entrance Dea called out coming to attention. "Attention on deck." Her gaze shifted to the Admiral as she approached, "Good morning Ma'am. Everything it going well this morning."

Wintrow straightened at the attention order, fixing his eyes on some point at the opposite wall. Standing this straight wasn't pleasant, but he figured it was a necessity.

"Excellent. No stray tribbles lurking anywhere in our support craft, I hope?" Lirha asked with an amused glint in her light green eyes. "Would you like to present your team?"

Dea nodded with a smile of her own, "There are absolutely no stray tribbles anywhere in this shuttle bay or our support craft." Her attention shifted to the flight control department, "Cadet Wintrow Paragon, Master Warrant Officer Lamar Darius, Staff Warrant Officer Oliver Sylver, and Crewman Ash Rowe."

Lirha glanced at each of the officers as they were announced and slowly began to walk down the line and do her customary uniform inspection. For a group of mostly warrant and enlisted personnel, they all seemed to be very professional in their demeanor and well-kept, much to her satisfaction. Of course, she'd expect as much out of any pilot considering the lives of the crew were often in their hands when they got behind the helm of Galileo or one of her auxiliary craft.

"How have the maintenance routines been proceeding? Are each of our support craft getting their due care?" she then inquired.

"Regular as clockwork, Admiral," Ash Rowe assured with a warm smile, being one of the pilots of the support craft in question. "Former Chief of Digging-Tribbles-Out," she confirmed with a semi-straight face. "We take great pride in our birds."

Wintrow nodded in agreement. "We do ma'am," he echoed, "and I'm trying to maintenance the craft I fly myself."

"Mmm," Lirha mumbled accompanied by a nod of concurrence. "A prudent idea, cadet. Each of our shuttles is essentially a tiny starship complete with all the same intricate systems and mechanics. It is excellent you have taken an interest in learning them. Perhaps one day you will transfer to Engineering or Operations to lend your expertise."

The boy beamed up at her, though he didn't really know how to respond to her praise. So, he said nothing and simply smiled shyly before looking away.

"Well I believe everything is in order here," Lirha said. "All of our equipment appears to be accounted for. Thank you, lieutenant commander. You are all dismissed," she added with a small smile before turning to head back out of the shuttlebay and continue her tour of the ship.

---

Deck 5 - Intelligence Office

Lt. Commander Markos frowned as she walked into her office, looking over at the other members of her department. "Rules," she finally said. Because she knew she had to. "I do not want anyone to make remarks when the inspection happens. You stay professional, no griping about it being 'a waste of time'..." she shot Tyrion a look before shaking her head. "It's irrelevant what it is, what matters is that we appear to be professional and firm. Yes ma'am, no ma'am...that sort of thing. Am I making myself clear?"

Verity gave a gentle nod to her, his small smile almost easy going despite the heaviness of her words. "Yes, 'Commander," he agreed softly."

Lyras and Paul chimed in with a "Yes ma'am" in a similar tone, though Lyras. mind was clearly elsewhere before the second syllable was out. So long as he stood at attention and did what everyone said, they would get through this as quickly as possible.

T'Vanna chuckled softly as Tyrion was somewhat berated in front of the rest. She'd barely interacted with the man but did know what he'd recently gone through. Unlike the Betazoid though, she didn't think the inspection a waste of time.

Tyrion gave a nod as he moved in position. "Yes ma'am," he replied without any sign of defiance. He was aiming to prove himself to her, and being anything other than compliant would not get him very far.

Father Walker just smiled patiently back and nodded. It wasn't in his nature to complain anyway, just to be there as support for whomever needed him. Clearly the Commander needed him now. He'd never participated in an inspection before and, if he was honest with himself, he was just glad he'd figured out where the heck he needed to be in all of this. Mustering with the general crew initially instead of with the Support Department was probably not sitting well with his 'Chief', but he'd only just arrived - he didn't quite know where he went. He was here now and, at least to him, that was what mattered.

Markos watched as the doors opened and she looked at her team. "Attention," she said, firmly, but not a shout. She felt beyond nervous but it didn't show. For Amynta, nervousness always looked like she was cross about something, so she did her best to ease her features into something less...emotional. Blank was a good word to use. Blankness.

Having made her way methodically through each deck in descending order, Lirha and her team now stepped into Galileo's small intelligence office which was no bigger than the size of a junior officer's quarters. "Good morning," she greeted to the assembled gray, black, and purple collared officers.

Quinn walked with hands clasped behind his back as he followed the trio of officers before him. Kids, they are all kids. Was I ever that young? he asked himself.

Paul attempted to maintain a firm posture at attention but when the Chief of the Boat passed before his sightline his eyes involuntarily narrowed slightly. The incidents with Cardassians aboard the Aldara had, so far, carried stronger penalties for him than anyone else and his resentment roiled layers below the surface. To Paul, the figurative distance between him and the command staff felt miles long.

Standing beside Markus, Rebecca had seen the reaction of one of the engineering staff when the chief had come near. She'd admit that her interest was peaked but her focus needed to be elsewhere right now.

The Orion made her way further into the room then stopped to look around for a short moment. Seeing everything appeared to be in order and there were no stray PADDs laying around unattended, she then looked at the tall blond department head and gave her a polite nod. "Commander Markos. How is your department doing today?"

"All good, Admiral Saalm," Markos said as she gave the other woman a respectful and polite nod back. "We are ready and refreshed after shoreleave." It was the best way to sum it up, really. She was eager to go, to get another trip underway. And if the people in her department felt differently...well, quite frankly, that didn't matter to her. "May I present the department. We have my Assistant Chief, Ensign Murray who just came back from maternity leave. Intelligence Officers Hex and Faye. Our Diplomat, Lieutenant Alasia and his yeoman COP Lyras Ueda. And our Chaplains, Lieutenant Walker and Petty Officer Thorne." There, it summed up the entire department.

"Hmm..." Lirha walked down the line and inspected each of the crew members' uniforms, and thankfully did not find fault with any of them. All appeared to be well and there was even a new chaplain who had come aboard, the fellow named Walker. It certainly couldn't hurt to have more moral and spiritual guidance considering the crew's increasingly diverse nature, she mused to herself.

"What work have you all been recently engaged in?" she asked the group, wondering specifically what they were up to on a daily basis. Being a former CIO herself, Lirha knew there was undoubtedly a bit of monotony involved in analytical intelligence work, but hopefully there was something interesting worth reporting.

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

RADM Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

CAPT Jonathan Holliday
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

Lieutenant JG Wakeham Paul Alasia
Diplomatic Officer
USS Galileo

Petty Officer 2nd Class Rebecca Williams
Commanding Officer's Yeoman
USS Galileo

Lieutenant JG Drusilla McCarthy
Assistant Chief Counsellor
USS Galileo

Ensign Jaana Voutilainen
Stellar Cartographer
USS Galileo

Lieutenant (J.G.) Tuula Voutilainen M.D.
Medical Officer
USS Galileo

Lieutenant Asahi Kita
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galileo

Chief Petty Officer Lyras Ueda
Diplomatic Officer
USS Galileo
[PNPC - Kita]

Chief Petty Officer Pax-Inyo
Masyer-at-Arms
USS Galileo

CMDR Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo

CN Ash Rowe
Support Craft Pilot
USS Galileo
[PNPC Blake]

Father Ethan Walker
Ship's Chaplain
USS Galileo

LCMDR Allyndra illm Warraquim
Chief Medical Officer
USS Galileo

Oren Idris, Ph.D.
Archaeologist/Anthropologist
USS Galileo

PO1 Pieter Van Zyl
Botanist
USS Galileo
[PNPC by Idris]

Lieutenant Commander Andreus Kohl
Chief Research Officer
USS Galileo

CMCPO Markum Quinn
Chief of the Boat
USS Gallileo

Lt. Jared Nicholas
Language Specialist
USS Galileo

Jonah Chaparral
Epidemiologist
PNPC Jared Nicholas
USS Galileo

 

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