58806.28-0800 "Coming Aboard"

"Coming Aboard"

Lt. Cmdr Shirik Lektar, Ops Manager
Lt. Cmdr. Greggory Griffith, First Officer

Location: Transporter Room 1, USS Vanguard
Stardate: 58806.28, 08h00

***

Shirik had just finished breakfast and was waiting at the turbolift to begin her shift when she got the notification from Utopia Planitia that the new XO was ready to beam aboard. As the doors opened the turned away to instead head down the hall to Transporter Room 1. 

It had been a year since she had last seen Greggory, or anyone from the Constellation crew, but it seemed much longer. She'd been engrossed in helping the Engineering crew with the refit, and had seen places on the ship she'd never thought to see. She knew the ship inside and out, knew all the upgrades, where and how they'd been installed and how they were supposed to work. It had always been easier for her to work with machines and equipment than people. 

As she moved to stand at the console and activate the controls, she thought about the new arrival. He was coming on board now not as her equal, but as her boss. She wasn't sure how to feel about seeing him again. She focused her attention on the controls in front of her as she signalled readiness to the planet, and the platform shimmered with the materialization, then suddenly there he was.

‘I’ve spent too much time planet-side,’ Greggory thought to himself as he walked through the halls of Utopia Planitia, readjusting to the smell of recycled air and the feel of artificial gravity. ‘I’m going to have to spend time in the zero-g gym. And if the ship doesn’t have one, well, I can always set aside some corner of the Jeffries’ tubes.’ His new position was something he’d have to get used to, as well. He may be used to leading teams, but being XO of a starship, even a small one, would take some adjustment.  ‘I know how every part of a ship functions, but communicating what I need to various department heads has a learning curve.’

He readjusted the satchel on his shoulder as he walked into the transporter room, letting the operator on duty know where he was headed. ‘Hopefully, doing my job well will finally allow me to drop the Lieutenant from my rank. That’s tedium I can do without.’
He had, of course, reviewed the crew manifest, such as it was, on his way over from Earth. One name stood out. He hadn’t seen her in a year, though there had been some brief correspondence in the first few months. He looked back fondly on their burgeoning friendship and hoped they could pick up where they left off, new position dynamic notwithstanding. Not like he needed to keep a close eye on her to run her department. He knew how capable and professional she was.

As the transport completed, he blinked his eyes and looked around, quickly finding the target of his thoughts standing at the control station.

“Shirik. Lieutenant Commander Greggory Griffith, reporting for duty.” He gave her a small smile.  “It’s good to see you.”

She inclined her head in greeting, the barest hint of a smile finding her lips. "Welcome aboard, Commander," she said. "Would you like me to show you to your new quarters? They're not far."

He nodded, gesturing toward the door. "Certainly. I appreciate the courtesy."

As they walked down the corridor he asked, "How have you been these last months?  Did you ever get the opportunity to meet with Voren and try some 'real food' again?" 

"No, I've as yet heard no word from my sister. But knowing her, it may be decades before she chooses to respond. I've been quite busy for the last year, I worked with the Engineering team on the refit of this ship. I look forward to seeing how it performs."

"Likewise. Always fun to play around with a new engine. Can't wait to see what our Chief can get out of it.

"Sorry to hear that he hasn't been able to come by. Maybe our meandering course will take us close enough to Drokari space to justify the visit from Drokar."

"I'm not sure she will even allow it. She's no doubt calculating whether she can derive some advantage from it." They stopped at a turbolift and the doors opened. There was a moment's hesitation, barely noticeable, before she stepped inside and waited for Greggory to join her before saying, "Deck 1." As the lift began to move, she added, "I doubt it would matter to her where we were located, if she decides to send a ship it will come, no matter how far."

The lift smoothly rose one deck and the doors opened once more. She led the way out to the right and a short distance down the hall. "Your office is to the right," she gestured, "and your quarters are right next door to the left. Just across the hall from your quarters is one of the entrances to the bridge. All very conveniently located."

Greggory stood next to her in the turbolift, occasionally glancing her way. "Perhaps, between the two of us, we can come up with a way to phrase the request so it sounds like something she'd benefit from."

Once they got to Deck 1, Greggory stepped out reading the room descriptions as they passed. "Convenient, indeed. Where's the Captain located? On this end or the far side of the bridge?" 

"Oh, I already made my request, which is why she's considering it at all. It would be best not to make any further contact until she's decided." 

She pointed down the corridor. "The next door down next to your quarters is the briefing room. The captain's ready room and quarters are on the other side of the bridge. You can continue around down this hall or go back past the turbolift or through the bridge itself to get there. There's also a turbolift directly to the bridge, so if you ask for bridge that's where you'll be taken rather than the one we came from."

"A logical approach for such a tight ship. Going to be a lot of long walks through the corridors, if only for an excuse to put some distance between me and the bridge when I'm off-shift." Greggory headed toward the door to his quarters. "Thank you for the tour. You're welcome to come in if you don't have any other duties at the moment." 

She considered for a moment. "I can join you for a short time, but won't you be simply unpacking? And about your walks, the ship is small but it does have a gymnasium and two holodecks. But unfortunately for me, no arboretum."

"I can unpack and talk at the same time," he said with a grin, walking into the (relatively) spacious quarters. "I'm sure we can find space in the Science lab, if you need a place to grow Tasmos." 

She followed him inside and the doors closed behind her. She looked aroun dthe room curiously, having never been in this particular room before. "That's what I was thinking. There are two configurable science labs aboard, not yet assigned. I could perhaps at least set up a small enclosure in one oth them to grow it. It doesn't need much, just a dark space similar to a cave. For that matter, I could probably just set aside a space in my own quarters." Her long braid swayed behind her as she moved, and her kemla was in plain view strapped to her thigh. She had her ever-present PADD in her hands.

"I'm sure we can come up with a reason for a low-light environment ecological study," Greggory said with a laugh.  As he pulled out some of his own mementos, he placed them around the room. "I'll probably have to convince one of our biochemists to help me come up with a way for me to join you for a cup safely." 
He reached into his bag and pulled out a felt exocomp with exaggerated ursine features, placing it at the head of the bed.

"If it's safe for you to drink, it's not klaas," she smirked. "But I can probably program the replicator to make a coffee or raktajino that *smells* like klaas...." Her attention was drawn to the stuffed creature. "What is that?"

Greggory rolled his eyes at the familiar argument. When she asked about the stuffed exocomp, he laughed. "A souvenir from the Constellation. I had utilized a number of exocomps, modified so they didn't have the adaptive programming that gave them sentience, to take care of janitorial duties and routine maintenance. It freed up my engineering teams to put more training into damage control exercises. One of our fellow officers suggested that I treated them like pets, hence the animal features on this one." 

"What became of them? Are they still on the Constellation?" she asked. "Who owns them?" She considered the devices. She knew that some of them had been declared sentient, which raised a whole slew of questions.

"I left them aboard the Constellation. They had been part of the routine for so many of the crew, it seemed a shame to take that away, especially on such a large ship. The next Chief could decide to get rid of them, of course, but that's their prerogative." 

She considered for some time in silence before speaking again. "If the exocomps were deemed sentient... how is it ethical to use them at all in that way? You said these had no adaptive programming, but if they are considered sentient like humans, isn't doing that sort of like... using lobotomized humans as servants?" she asked carefully. 

"These were never sentient and didn't have the capacity to be.  It isn't like I used the standard model and stripped them of that autonomy if they got too advanced. At worst, it'd be like using a lower primate as a beast of burden. I suppose it depends on just how fine a line you want to put on it, but I tried to navigate the ethical issues." He understood where she was coming from, given her own culture. 

"So you used... prototypes? The earlier forms?" she nodded, that made sense. She felt relieved for some odd reason. "That's good."

"The Constellation is a much bigger ship, likely they wouldn't be needed here anyway."

"Smaller ship, smaller crew.  If I feel like Engineering is underperforming, I'll bring it up with our Chief, but I'm going to try not to micromanage, since it's not MY department." Greggory sat on the edge of the bed as he finished unpacking.  "What about Ops? Anything you need approved or requisitioned before we set off?" 

"No, now they're ALL your department," she said with a small smile. "No, well one thing... but I really need to take it up with our Security Chief first, when we get one." She patted the kemla at her thigh. "It's the same discussion every time I board a new ship."

"Well, if you need it, I can put a good word in for you. I know you're responsible with that thing. As long as you don't go anywhere for shore leave," Greggory joked with a wink. 

That actually elicited a smile from her. "Nowhere with other people, anyway," she agreed. 

"I personally have no problem with senior staff being authorized to carry self-defense gear, rather than relying on Security for anything they can't handle unarmed. Even if it doesn't have a stun setting," he joked.  

She nodded. "We'll see what our security chief says when he or she comes on board. While you can override them, I dislike going over people's heads to get something I want. It's unprofessional."