Stardate 58806.27-58807.10
"Shakedown Cruise"
Lt. Cmdr. Raikon Achaea - Chief Engineer
Lt. Cmdr. Greggory Griffith - First Officer
Location: Shuttle Bay, Main Engineering
Stardate: 58806.29, 08h30
***
Raikon stepped out of the shuttle, the last shuttle that needed to be delivered so he decided to hand deliver it himself. The Vanguard was becoming a very familiar place. The last few months him and his engineering team have been busy refitting her and prepping for her shakedown. Pinching the bridge of his nose Raikon was trying to shake the tiredness. It had been long days as well. Picking up his bags he decided to go to engineering first...
Greggory was crawling along the inactive warp core, running a detailed scanner over the surfaces. Given his experience, he was pulling double duty, directing the engineering teams until the CEO arrived. Currently, he was in the middle of a level 2 diagnostic, making sure the core was intact and wasn't inadvertently damaged during installation. Wouldn't do to have the system break down mid-flight. His red collar certainly stood out among all the other engineers, but he moved with a familiar assurance.
Raikon dropped his duffel bags off in the engineering mess hall near his "desk". During the refit he used one of the tables as his unofficial desk. It was stacked with PADDs of various sizes and used coffee cups.
Grabbing a fresh cup from the replicator he walked over to the main engineering deck. The hallways were quiet at the moment but would soon be busy with various engineers from the Vanguard and Utopia Planitia getting the ship ready for her launch.
Walking in through the main doors of engineering he saw a lone figure and a flash of red shoulder of command near the warp core doing some scanning. Curious he walked over to the figure.
"Sir?"
Poking his head over the railing to answer another engineer that came up to him with an update, Greggory spotted a new figure walking into engineering. With a smile, he recognized his new CEO from the officer files he had been reviewing. "Commander Achaea, right? Welcome aboard." He shimmied his narrow frame out of the space and stepped onto the deck. "Just getting a head start on final checks."
Raikon nodded to the engineer as he walked past.
"That's right Sir, Lt. Cmdr. Raikon Achaea." He extended a hand towards the XO. "I hope she's passing your inspection Sir, me and the team put in some hard work to get her ready."
"Oh, you were part of the refit crew? Sorry, I was too focused on remembering everyone we were taking with us." Greggory firmly clasped the other engineer's hand. "The diagnostic hasn't revealed any major issues with either the hardware or the installation. I already made sure a copy of our findings was sent to your official account."
He gave Raikon a grin that carried a slight apology. "No doubts about your team's work, I just always prefer to have a second set of eyes review any major work. That, and I get a little anxious when I have too much down time, such as waiting for launch. I promise, once we're out there, Engineering is all yours, as long as you continue to maintain performance. I wouldn't want an overbearing XO scrutinizing every detail of my department, either."
Raikon smiled, releasing the commander's hand. "That's alright Sir. It's been so hectic down here I barely had the time to get to know most of my own team myself. But they are a solid bunch."
"I'll go over your reports as soon as possible." Looking around main engineering before returning his gaze to the commander. "We've got a few more diagnostics to run but she'll be ready, don't you worry Sir."
"Of that, Commander, I have no doubt. I can already tell she's got a lot of gumption. Just let me know if there's anything you need before we launch." Greggory smiled warmly as he looked around the bustling engineering. "Don't worry, I'll be out of your hair now that you're here to run everything. Just don't be surprised if I prefer to come down here for our regular check-ins, rather than have you come up to my office."
While they were chatting engineers were pouring in going about their day and getting the ship ready. He saw the commander looking around — there was almost a hint of something.
"Do you miss it Sir?" Raikon asked.
Greggory couldn't help the laugh that briefly escaped him. "Of course," he said, turning to Raikon, "but I also want to move on to bigger things. I did good work as a Chief Engineer, but I discovered I really enjoyed working on projects from the ground up." Greggory gave Raikon an amused smirk. "Catch me in the lounge sometime and remind me to tell you about the Wayfarer." His eyes again drifted over engineering, both the equipment and the staff. "I want my own ship where I can explore my own projects, not just those given to me. I've learned a lot about integrating and maintaining the equipment, now I'm learning how to do that with a crew."
"I can understand where you are coming from, Sir. I've been tempted a few times but I always return back here." He gestured around main engineering with his coffee cup. He finally remembered he actually made himself a cup and took a sip of it. "Where are you off to next, Sir?"
"Oh, I'll probably grab a bite to eat before my next department head meeting. Now that you're here, don't forget to schedule one so we can go over any department issues before launch." He held out his hand to Raikon. "Once again, welcome aboard."
Grabbing the commander's hand, "Thank you Sir, I will." Raikon watched the commander leave and took a sip of his coffee. Counting a few seconds in his head he finally broke the silence.
"Computer, who was the commander that just left engineering?"
The computer chimed. "The person who just left main engineering was second in command Greggory Griffith."
Raikon felt a bit embarrassed. "Shhhhhiiiiiittttttt," he cursed under his breath. He'd totally forgotten.....
An engineer nearby was shaking their head and giving him a look. Raikon looked at them seriously. "Tell anyone and I'll make you scrub the Jefferies tubes for a month with nothing but a toothbrush." The engineer turned away, suddenly very interested in their PADD.
Raikon gave a slight nod before raising his voice. "Right people, let's get to work and get this ship ready to sail!!"