"Meeting the Boss"
Lt. Cmdr. Shirik Letkar, Ops Chief
The entire Operations staff
Stardate: 58807.16, 16h10
Location: Holodeck 1
***
The room was set up like a standard lecture hall, but a small one. There were exactly 11 chairs arranged before a slightly raised platform with a small podium on it. Shirik stood behind the podium with her PADD before her, waiting for her staff to arrive. Most of Alpha and Beta shifts were already there except for a few stragglers and those from Gamma shift who were called in from wherever they were at that time of day.
Shirik had just come off Bridge duty and still had lots of work ahead of her, so didn't want to spend any more time than necessary on this task. She watched the crew file in, her gaze studying each one in turn.
The Operations staff filtered in in ones and twos through the holodeck doors. Casey Holloway arrived first, Alpha shift - punctual, the look of someone still running on the last hour of their shift but alert enough. Amber Garrison followed close behind, exchanging a quiet word with her before they took adjacent seats in the middle row.
The three Vulcans arrived separately but with identical composure. Kovik chose the far end of the front row. T'Lis took the seat beside him without apparent deliberation. Sovon, Beta shift, entered behind them and selected the back row with the efficiency of someone who preferred to observe.
Tanner Forsythe came in looking curious, Torin Beckett a step behind him. Beckett's eyes found Commander Lektar immediately, then moved away just as quickly to locate an available chair — second row, slightly to the side, not the front.
The Gamma shift officers arrived last, together, with the energy of people who had somewhere else to be. Vell's blue Bolian face was neutral but his posture said inconvenienced. Reval Raan took his seat without comment. T'Var, the half-Vulcan, was the most composed of the three.
Alara Hagen came in last, taking a seat in the front row. As Betazoid, she was already sensing the room.
Eleven chairs. Eleven bodies. All eyes eventually settling on the woman at the podium.
Was it his imagination, or did Shirik's gaze linger just a bit on Beckett as he came in?
She waited for everyone to be seated and began without preamble. "For those who don't yet know me, I am Lt. Commander Shirik Lektar, Chief of Operations and Second Officer of this vessel. I've called this meeting so I can familiarize myself a bit with my new staff, and you can familiarize yourself a bit with your new boss." She paused a moment to her her gaze sweep the assembled faces. "As members of the Operations staff, I expect your very best every moment you are on duty. I do not tolerate incompetence, laziness, or tardiness. I expect each of you to show up on time for every shift ready to work at the highest level you can. I also expect communications, both amongst yourselves and with me. We can only function together as a team if we all work together. My PADD is active at all times and all hours, and if I am needed for something do not hesitate to contact me."
She paused for a moment to let her previous words sink in. "Now, before there is any more undue confusion, I want to make clear that I am to be addressed as Commander, or Commander Lektar ONLY. Is that clear?" Her gaze slid over to rest for a moment on Beckett before moving on once more.
Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. The three Vulcans sat with the same expression they'd had coming in. Casey Holloway was nodding faintly along, the small professional nod of someone taking a mental checklist. Amber Garrison had her hands folded in her lap, posture straight.
In the front row, Alara Hagen watched the Commander with careful attention. She was getting something from the room -- the particular quality of eleven people deciding at once what they thought of someone. And from the woman at the podium, something else entirely that she filed away without expression.
The Gamma shift officers had straightened somewhat during the speech. Vell's hands were now on his knees. Reval Raan had stopped looking like he wanted to be elsewhere.
When the Commander's gaze moved deliberately toward Beckett and then away, Tanner Forsythe sitting beside him did not look at his colleague. He studied the podium instead.
"Understood, Commander," Alara said from the front row, her tone even. As Assistant Chief it was probably her place to answer for the room.
Around her, a quiet murmur of affirmation settled over the assembled staff.
"Good. Now then, do any of you have questions for me?" she asked.
A beat of silence fell over the room. Eyes moved without heads turning -- Bolian to Vulcan, human to hybrid -- the quick sideways looks of eleven people deciding simultaneously whether to be the first to speak.
Sovon, in the back row, spoke first. His tone was Vulcan - measured, direct, without inflection. "Commander. You mentioned communications at all hours. Are you also available in the event of a shipboard emergency during a shift when you are not on duty?"
In the front row, Alara said nothing yet. She was watching the room more than the Commander.
Tanner Forsythe had his hand half raised, then apparently thought better of it and lowered it again. He would wait.
Beckett studied his hands in his lap with the focused attention of someone who very much did not want to ask a question.
"I did say at all hours," she clarified. "In the event of a shipboard emergency I doubt I would be off duty for long in any event."
She addressed the room in general once more. "I am a person who believes in speaking plainly. That means I will speak my mind and not play games or beat around the bush, and always speak the truth as I see it. Sometimes that may seem offensive to some, even if no offense is intended. I expect the same from you. You never need ask me for permission to speak freely, I expect it from you at all times."
Her gaze shifted to land on Tanner. "Ensign Forsythe, you had a question?"
Forsythe blinked, surprised she had caught the half-raised hand. He straightened.
"Yes, Commander." He paused briefly, choosing his words. "I know we're already underway and heading into a mission. But going forward, will there be regular department meetings, or is this more of a -- one time introductory thing?"
Casey Holloway glanced at him sideways. It was a reasonable question. She had been wondering the same thing.
Vell shifted slightly in his chair. The Bolian had been quiet through the whole meeting, watching more than anything. He had a question forming but was holding it.
In the front row, Alara had relaxed fractionally. The Commander's declaration about speaking plainly had settled something in the room -- she could feel it. The particular tension of eleven people trying to calculate what their new boss wanted had eased slightly.
Kovik, at the end of the front row, had not moved or changed expression once since sitting down. T'Lis beside him was the same.
"Going forward, regular department meetings would be helpful in keeping open communications. However, with my increased duties my time will be at a premium. Therefor I expect Lt. Hagen to conduct these meetings and keep me apprised of any issues that require my attention." Her gaze slid to her assistant Chief. "We can discuss the details of arranging these meetings at your convenience," she said.
Then her gaze went back to the room at large once more. "I expect you to treat Lt. Hagen with the same respect and competence as you would me when I am not present. She will no doubt have the same high expectations of you that I do."
Alara held the Commander's gaze a moment when it landed on her, then gave a small, professional nod. "Of course, Commander. I'll make myself available whenever suits you."
She was aware of the room adjusting to this information, the subtle shift of eleven people recalibrating. Not just one authority figure to contend with, but two. She wondered how many of them had worked under a Betazoid before. The ones who hadn't would figure it out eventually.
Forsythe looked relieved to have his question answered so directly. He settled back in his chair.
Vell spoke up finally, his Bolian voice measured. "Commander. With the current mission underway, are there specific areas of the Operations department you would like us to prioritize?"
Casey Holloway had her eyes on the Commander. She appreciated the plain speaking. She had served under department heads who communicated in suggestions and implications. This was different. She found she preferred it.
In the back row, Sovon gave nothing away. But he had not looked away from the Commander once since she began speaking.
Beckett had not asked a question. He did not intend to.
"Now that the settling in of crew and cargo is settled and our mission is underway, our priority becomes supporting the other departments on this ship so they in turn can do their jobs at the highest level for their commanding officers. Our primary functions will be power routing and monitoring systems. The bioneural gelpacks and circuitry on the ship are new and must be kept an eye on for any malfunctions. It's important that power flows freely wherever it's needed, and balanced to the current demands of the ship."
She turned her attention once more to Alara. "Lt. Hagen, have the results come back yet on the analysis of the gelpack that failed?"
Alara reached for her own PADD, consulting it briefly. "The replacement unit has been installed and is reading nominal, Commander. As for the analysis on the failed pack -- I received a preliminary report. The cause appears to have been a manufacturing variance in the organic matrix. Not a systemic issue. Nothing to indicate we should expect additional failures from the same cause."
She glanced up from the PADD. "I've flagged it in the maintenance logs and forwarded the preliminary report to Engineering. Commander Achaea's team will want to know."
Amber Garrison was nodding. Alpha shift -- she would have been on duty when the gelpack had gone offline. She had seen Shirik handle it from her Ops station.
Vell had what looked like a follow-up question forming but held it, waiting to see if the Commander was satisfied with the answer first.
Kovik at the end of the front row had finally shifted slightly -- a very Vulcan version of attention sharpening. Systems analysis was his department.
The room had changed subtly from when everyone had filed in. The Gamma shift resentment had mostly dissolved. The Alpha shift fatigue was still there but secondary now.
Beckett had still not asked a question. He had, however, stopped studying his hands.
Shirik nodded. "The new automated rerouting systems came online instantly and routed around the malfunctioning gelpack as they were supposed to. Keep an eye on those systems, they are very new and will be vital to keeping the ship functioning if systems encounter issues."
She looked around now, waiting for other questions to arise.
T'Var raised her hand from the back row, the half-Vulcan's composure in place but her tone carrying genuine curiosity. "Commander. As Gamma shift is the smallest operations presence on the ship, and you will be commanding the bridge during that time, what is the protocol if a systems issue arises that requires your attention simultaneously from both the bridge and Operations?"
It was a reasonable question. Operational chain of command during a crisis when the department head was also on the bridge... not always a clear answer on a small ship.
Vell was listening carefully to this. Same shift, same concern.
Reval Raan glanced at T'Var. He had been wondering the same thing.
In the front row, Alara kept her expression neutral but she was already thinking through the answer herself. As assistant chief it would likely involve her regardless of the shift.
Casey Holloway and Amber Garrison exchanged a brief look. Alpha shift -- they would be off duty during Gamma. But the answer mattered to how the whole department understood its chain of command.
Forsythe was taking mental notes.
Beckett was listening now. Really listening.
"When a situation arises that I cannot directly address because I am occupied with essential functions on the bridge, I will expect Lt. Hagen to step in, I cannot be in two places at once. If I feel the need is justified, I will call upon her. If there is an emergency where I cannot be reached, you are to reach out to her if possible. After that, whoever present is the highest ranking officer is expected to take charge and handle the situation if you find yourselves cut off. That's standard emergency procedure, and each of you should be ready to step up and do whatever is needed in an emergency. That's what your training has prepared you for."
She paused for a moment, her gaze once more slowly traversing the room, taking in the features of each young face before her. "You never know when things might go sideways, when something unexpected may happen. Your life might rest in the hands of your crewmate, or theirs in yours. That's where you will be tested. Be there for one another, and for every other crewman aboard this ship. There will be times when we all must depend on one another."
The room was quiet after that.
Not the silence of people waiting for the next question. A different quality of silence. Something had shifted.
Forsythe was no longer taking mental notes. He was just listening.
Casey Holloway had looked down at her hands briefly, then back up.
Vell's Bolian face, which had been composed and professional throughout, carried something a little more personal now. He had shipped on two vessels before the Vanguard. He knew what it meant when things went sideways.
What most of them could not know was that those words had not come from a textbook. They had come from somewhere specific and real. From darkness, and a turbolift, and hands that had not let go when they could have. Shirik's voice had not changed. Her expression had not changed. But something in the words themselves carried weight that classrooms did not produce.
Alara heard it. Betazoid, she could hardly miss it, the faintest current underneath the composed surface. She said nothing about what she sensed. She only said, quietly, "I think that speaks for all of us, Commander."
T'Var and Reval Raan had both gone still in the way people go still when something lands.
The Vulcans gave nothing outward. But they had not looked away.
In the second row, Beckett had his eyes on the Commander's face. Not looking away. Not studying his hands.
Sovon, in the back, spoke for the second time since the meeting began. "Well said, Commander."
From a Vulcan, in a room full of people, at the end of a speech - that was something.
For a single moment during her words, the scene had flashed into her consciousness. The dark turbolift she would never forget. Then it was gone once more. "Are there any other questions?" she asked, her gaze once more on the move across the faces.
Alara had caught that moment. Whatever it was, it had been there and then gone, and the Commander's face had not so much as flickered. She filed it away.
The room had the feel of a meeting winding down. Not restless, not impatient -- just the sense that the important ground had been covered. Postures had loosened fractionally from when everyone had filed in.
Casey Holloway glanced once at Alara, briefly, with the look of someone making a quiet note about who this woman at the front of the room actually was.
Beckett had not asked a single question. He had listened to every word.
Nobody raised a hand. The silence this time was complete, no sideways glances checking if someone else had something. Just eleven people waiting to see if their new department head was done.
She nodded slightly to herself, satisfied. "One more thing before we adjourn. I don't want to see our department and others forming cliques. Ops at this table, Security at that one. Mingle with your fellow crew, regardless of where they work or what rank they hold. We are all in this together, remember that."
She paused for a moment. "If there is nothing else, this meeting is adjourned and you are all dismissed. If there is anything else you would like to discuss with me, just message my PADD."
Chairs scraped back as eleven people rose. The sound of a meeting ending -- the particular mix of Alpha shift finally free to go, Beta shift returning to duty, Gamma shift heading back to wherever their afternoon had been before this.
Forsythe said something quiet to Beckett on the way past him. Beckett responded with a word or two but his eyes went once more to the Commander before he filed out.
Vell and Reval Raan left together, the Gamma officers finding their footing with each other on the way to the door. T'Var followed close behind.
The three Vulcans filed out with the same composure they had arrived with. Kovik and T'Lis departed first, Sovon a beat behind. None of them spoke on the way out. None of them needed to.
Casey Holloway paused near the door, just long enough to turn back and say, simply, "Commander," with a small nod. Not quite saluting, not quite casual. Something in between. Then she was gone.
Alara did not immediately leave. She remained in the front row for a moment as the room emptied, her PADD in hand, watching the door close behind the last of them.
"I think that went well," she said quietly.
Shirik acknowledged Holloway with a nod before she was gone.
She turned to Alara as she picked up her PADD from the podium. "Indeed," she said. Some of the words she had said surprised her. They hadn't been on her PADD with the rest of the carefully prepared meeting. Something from inside had prompted them. From lessons learned along the way from the Sulu to now.
Her gaze rested on Alara then. "I am not comfortable around Betazoids," she admitted bluntly. "I have known a few over the years, and some of them had no concept of personal privacy whatsoever. I sincerely hope that you are not one of them."
Alara met the Commander's gaze directly. She did not look away or flinch from the bluntness.
"I was taught that what I sense belongs to the person who feels it," she said. "Not to me." She paused briefly, measuring her own words with the same care the Commander seemed to value. "You have nothing to fear from me in that regard, Commander. What I sensed in this room today stays in this room."
She held the PADD at her side, her posture relaxed but attentive.
"I appreciate that you said it directly. Most people either pretend I'm not reading the room or go out of their way to avoid me without explanation. It's..." She paused, choosing the word. "Refreshing."
She did not mention what she had sensed during the meeting. The moment behind the words about the dark turbolift. The thing that had been there and gone before anyone else would have caught it. She had filed it away as she said she would.
"Was there anything else you wanted to discuss before I get back to my shift, Commander?"
"To be perfectly honest, that was my first instinct, to avoid you. But that's not a luxury I have any more as a department head. I know that my biggest failing is my ability to connect with others in the crew. It's something I must actively work on. Hopefully I will get better at it over time." She nodded. "Go, you have duties to attend to. I'm glad I finally got to meet you and have this brief talk. As my assistant, I'll be depending on you as well."
Alara paused a moment at that, the unexpected candor of it. The Commander admitting a failing out loud, directly, to a Betazoid of all people.
She could sense the truth of it. Not performed humility, not strategic self-disclosure. Just... true.
"Thank you for telling me that," she said simply. She moved toward the door, then stopped just short of it and turned back.
"For what it's worth, Commander... the crew felt you tonight. Not just heard you. There's a difference." She let that sit for just a moment. "I'll be on the bridge."
She left without waiting for a response.
Shirik stood in the now empty room. When the doors slid closed once more, completing the illusion of the small lecture hall, her posture relaxed just a bit. That was done, and now she had a few hours to eat, get a little sleep, and prepare for her first bridge shift as Second Officer in 8 hours.
"Computer, end program."
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