3.2.a - Between Missions: A New Start

[steve]

The following is taken from the Starbase's message board. This is going to be a mini mission on ship just to get my move from the Vic to here done and for me to meet the crew. If you want to get involved then please do.
Normal missions will start when we have the new crew and the Captain feels we are ready.

[steve]

Posted by Commander Steve:


Steve sat in the Delta class shuttle, it had been years since he left the Victory, well it seemed that long to him anyway. He was in a hurry, what he had found out worried him and he didn't worry easy. The quicker he reported this to Starfleet Command the better.
Steve looked at his panel readout and saw that he was closing on the starbase.
=^= Commander Steve to Starbase Assaillant =^=
=^= This is Starbase Assaillant go ahead commander =^=
=^= I need to dock straight away, I have an urgent matter to attend to. I am transmitting my security codes now. = ^=
The starbase accepted the codes and gave Steve the docking information.
Steve exited the ship and was greeted by a young Lieutenant wearing a security uniform.
"Greeting sir"
"Lieutenant"
"Is there anything I can do or you need?" the officer asked.
"No thank you, I know what I am doing and where I am going." Steve replied.
"Very well sir."
Steve walked out of the shuttle bay and headed down the corridor.
"Steve!" he heard a voice call out and turned round
"Greetings my old friend." Steve answered but kept on walking.
"I heard you just arrived here, I must say I am happy to see you, its been a wile." Zoilip replied
"That it has" Steve said "But I am here on an urgent matter and must get going, if I have some time before I leave I will give you a shout and we can have a quick drink."
"That would be great sir, take care and talk to you soon." Zoilip stopped walking and watched Steve walk off.

Steve stepped out into the main operations centre of the base and headed to the commanding officers office
"Commander?" Came the voice from a Lieutenant Commander working at the Ops table.
"I need to see the Admiral right away."
"Sorry sir, no can do he is very busy at the moment." Came the reply.
"I see him sitting there and I need to see him."
"Sorry Commander but I have my orders not to let anyone in." said the Lt Commander sounding a little nervous.
"Out of my way" and with that Steve pushed his way past the officer and opened the Door to the Admiral's office.
"Admiral" The Lt Commander shouted "I told him you were not to be disturbed, shall I call security?"
"No that will not be necessary." Magellan replied "Shut the door on you way out."
"Aye sir"
"Hello Steve, Its good to see you. What can I help you with?"
"Sir" Steve replied "I bring you information of a possible threat to the Federation and I need it sent to Command right away." Steve handed the pad to his former CO and watched as Magellan read it.

[steve]

Posted by Admiral Magellan Lin:


The PADD was not especially long but the content was explosive.
"And your sure this is accurate?" Magellan asked gravely looking up at the end of the last paragraph.
"As I can be. It came right out of the submerged personality."
"I see. And the Victory, how was she when you left?"
"Not bad, they were engaged with the scoutship and a Keldon class crusier."
"Keldon." Magellan exclaimed knowing full well a Nebula class vessel was no match for such a warship.
"Yes Keldon, But Walkers back on the bridge, and if what this says is right they won't be interested in destroying the ship."
"They'll board you mean"
"Undoubtedly and that puts the advantage on Walkers side."
"Nevertheless I ll redeploy the Artemis and Royal Oak to reinforce them. They won't make it for a few hours, but I think Jeff canhold them that long if not longer."
"Aye Sir."
"This" He taped the PADD "does need to go to command, could you wait outside a moment while I make the call."
"Of course sir."
Steve exited out into Ops and began to browse around the room, watching the bustle of activity and the work of the crew.
He could see Magellan through the glass go to his terminal and open up a secure link.

A quarter of an hour later Magellan appeared at the door.
"Steve" He waved
Steve crossed over and re-entered the room.
"I really should get vack to the Vic"
"That can wait. You were a good First Officer you know."
"Thankyou sir"
"Well its true, I know you joined Intell but you ever consider going back towards the big chair."
"Well it is every officers dream."
"Good, What if I said I d found you a place as XO on a ship?"
"Thankyou I think, though what ship is it."
Magellan smiled wryly, despite most ships appeared superficially the same, some had better reputations than other and everyone had its own character.
"Its the Nevada, Her Captains a good man, he served here as my XO awhile, he needs a good FO and I suggested you. It would mean starting immediatly, but as Fleet Commander i can clear that, the question is - Do you want it?"
Steve took a moment to think . He had spent nearly his whole active duty on the Victory to be on any other ship would feel strange. But then there was the drive to improve, at one time he had stagnated on the Vic and enlivened his life by becoming a field rated Intell officer working undercover all over the galaxy, then that too had become stolid or rather he missed the stars.
"Yes Sir I do. I d like that very much."
"Consider it done. I ll square it with Jeff. As of now you are the new FO of the Nevada, obviouly unless Harrias objects, which I doubt."
"Excellent sir and Thankyou oncemore."
"No. Its nothing, especially after the service you just provided. Your report proves that you are command ability. Perhaps you d like to meet your CO, hes often inone of teh bars - you could try the Fishtank thats where all teh fleeters go but I reckon its more likely he'll be in one of the more questionable establishements down below. Check in the the Nevada they ll tell you. Dismissed"
"Aye Sir"

[Harrias Jira]

Leant back in his seat, alone at one of the tables in the Targ's Head, a small establishment on one of the lower decks of Assailant, Harrias took another gulp of his drink. The last time he had been in here, he had been sharing a drink with Robert Agalacticae, his XO of the time. He yearned for those times again, the comraderie between them. But unfortunately Bob had moved on. His replacement, Semia Cavit had now also been reassigned, and he was without a first officer once more.

He glanced up as he heard a bit of a commotion near the entrance. He saw a starfleet officer standing there, arguing with the barkeeper. Harrias nearly burst out laughing. The guy was stupid enough to try and get in wearing his uniform. Although Harrias was quite well known around the station, due to his stint as Chief of Base Operations, nobody made a fuss about him being there, so long as he wasn't in uniform.

Eventually, the commotion died down, and the officer was allowed to enter. He was talking with a few people, indeed, it looked like he was searching for someone, as people either shrugged, or pointed him to someone else who was apparantly more likely to know. After a while of this, the officer appeared at his table.

"Do you know where I can find Captain Jira?" he asked, his vioce sounding slightly desperate now.

"Captain Jira? Rank means very little in these places. Has he a proper name?" The officer thought for a while, trying to remember the name.

"Harrias. Harrias Jira." He said, still not completely sure.

"Aye, I know where you can find him." Harrias said, pausing to finish his drink. "Buy me a refill won't you?" The starfleet officer frowned at him, but went to the bar. A few minutes later he returned with a single drink.

"You're not having one?" The trill asked politely, taking a sip from the top of his.

"I'm not planning on staying long. As soon as you tell me where I can find Jira, I'll leave."

"I doubt it. I'm Harrias Jira." The starfleet captain replied. "Take a seat, and get yourself a bloody drink."

[steve]

Steve looked at the Captain for a moment.
"Bloody?" Steve said
"Yes commander it means..."
"I know what it means sir, just don't hear it used to often. I am born and bred in London, England, just surprised to hear you say it."
"And why's that?"
"Well by your spots I am guessing you aren't from England."
Harrias smiled and pointed to the bar "Now go and get ya self a drink and we can talk."
Steve walked up to the bar and ordered himself a glass of English larger and took a seat facing is new commanding officer.
"So what can I do for you commander?"
"Well sir, I think it is more like what I can do for you."
"Oh really?"
"Yes sir, I have just been in to see Admiral Lin and he has given me new orders. I am to be your new first officer."
Harris looked up "Aren't I meant to be the judge of that commander?"
"I am sure that the Admiral will speak to you about it but am I right in saying you used to be his here?"
"Yes Commander, but what does that have to do with you being my XO?"
"Well the reason I ask is because that is one of the only reasons I took this job. I have known Magellan for along time and consider him a good friend. You see I used to be his XO on the Victory and he told me that you were a fine captain and I would go far as an XO under your command."

[Harrias Jira]

The trill commanding officer took another sip from his drink, and then leant forwards over the table. When he spoke, his voice was a whisper, barely reaching across the table.

"As an executive officer on the USS Nevada you will be expected to give your total dedication to the ship and her crew. You will put them before yourself, before your friends, your family, and most definitely before your job. You do not take this job as a rung on a ladder, you do not take this job so that Magellan and I write good reports about you. You take this job because you want this job, you want this responsibilty, you want to do your duty. Let me put a few things straight. So far two people have sat in the seat that you want to sit in. The first was one of my best friends, and the best officer I have ever served with bar none. He was dedicated to this ship while he was here, he showed dedication beyond what I asked of him. The second was an officer who even though she had just given birth insisted on serving here, on doing her job. I expect that same dedication from you, Commander."

He slowly fell back into his seat once more, and wetted his mouth again. He wasn't sure how Steve would react to his words. He had probably been harsher then he had meant to be, but hopefully he had got the meaning across. Steve opened his mouth.

"Don't mistake my words Captain. I am fully dedicated to Starfleet, and will show that dedication in my duty to the USS Nevada."

Harrias frowned at him, and then nodded. "You're in. Report to the Nevada at 0900 tomorrow morning. I have to meet someone."

Steve nodded at him, and then took a drink from his lager. Harrias looked at him.

"Yes sir?" He questioned.

"I have to meet someone. Here."

"Yes sir." He repeated, the intonation slightly different. The trill officer mentally rolled his eyes.

"Very well." He raised his right hand, and brushed it lightly against his cheek. As he did so, a figure walked past him, drew up a chair and sat at the table, an identical drink to Harrias' cradled in his hands.

He glanced at Steve, and then looked towards Harrias for some kind of direction.

"This is my new first officer, Steve."

"Bob seemed nicer." The hooded man spoke.

"That remains to be told. Take that stupid hood off."

"The guy on the table two behind Steve, you see him?" The soft voice said from within the hood.

"Yes?" Harrias replied, slightly irritatedly.

"I short-changed him last week." Harrias sighed at him.

"How much by?"

"About, oh, I don't know... 200 bars?"

Again, the sigh from Harrias. The older trill noticed that Steve hadn't reacted, and wasn't sure whether this was a good or a bad sign.

"Fine keep the hood for now. How are things?"

"Oh, you know, good. I get by."

Harrias snorted at him. "You make more in a day than I make every year. Don't you sa that you just 'get by'."

"Fine, I'm doing great." Harrias could that the hooded figure was smiling. He turned to his new first officer.

"Steve, meet my brother. Tobias. He's a... merchant."

[Harrias Jira]

Steve nodded a hello. Tobias smiled slightly, just visible from under the hood, but then excused himself. The trill brother's stood up, solemnly shook hands, and then embraced.

"Make it a bit sooner before I see you again." Harrias asked, but Tobias had already disappeared into the background. The trill retook his seat, and took another long pull from his drink.

"So Steve tell me a bit about yourself, as I haven't had a chance to look over your service record."

[steve]

"Well sir, to be honest it is all rather simple." Steve started "I joined the Victory - B back in 2386.1001 as its Chief Engineering Officer under the command of Commodore Locutis. I worked my way up its ranks until I became the CEO with the rank of commander. After a horrible accident Locutis was unable to command the ship anymore and its then First Officer Magellan Lin took command and promoted me to the ships XO."
Harris looked up and took a sip of his drink as Steve did the same "Go on commander".
"Well I was the ships XO until the mid to late 2389's. I then took a transfer to Star Fleet Intel and became one of there field agents. After a number of months of doing that I realised I missed the way a ship was run, the friends and family you make on a starship and decided I wanted back in. So after speaking to Admiral he got me a place on the Victory as its Chief Intel Officer and today has asked me to become your XO."

[steve]

Steve looked at Jira who was taking in everything that Steve had just said about his past in Starfleet.
"Right commander let me get this straight, you..." The captain was interrupted by a beep from his comm badge.
=^= Admiral Lin to Captain Jira and Commander Steve. Report to my Office immediately =^=
Steve stood up, he had a feeling what this was about, he had told Magellan to transmit the information as soon as he could and looks like his former CO has done just what he had asked. Steve knew how important this information was and knew Starfleet would act on it right away.
=^= On our way Sir =^= Captain Jira replied and stood up. "Lets go commander"

Steve and Jira enter the op's centre and headed right for the Admiral's office.
I young officer looked up at them "He's expecting you sir's go straight in."
They entered Magellan's office and he looked up for his computer. "I see you two have met, take a seat, there is something we need to talk about."

[Zhukarak Hrisvalar]

The new pilots looked professional enough. Marine Captain Hrisvalar had joined Lt Tomlinson in welcoming the new arrivals. Actually Tomlinson was doing the welcoming while Zhukarak was doing mental notations, sizing them up and down.

They weren’t fresh from the academy, but they weren’t seasoned veterans yet, either.

After the pleasantries, Zhukarak returned to his quarters. There wasn’t going to be any training yet. The new pilots were checking themselves in and getting acquainted with the starbase.

Theel’zhiin gave a little squawk of a greeting. Of course he was hungry again. After getting an assortment of small meat pieces from the replicator, Zhuk proceeded to feed his little companion. It didn’t take long to become fond of him.

During the feeding, Zhuk noticed that a message was available for viewing on his personal viewer. He read it. It appeared that his temporary assignment was going to be cut short, and he hadn’t been able to fly any of the new fighters yet.

It seemed that the Nevada was almost ready for her next mission. Captain Jira just sent a short message in that regard, and he would keep Zhuk posted. It also seemed like there was going to be an almost entirely new command staff. This was going to be interesting.

For a moment, Zhuk felt a sense of satisfaction as far as hunger went, and yet he was actually hungry. It took a moment to realize that Zhuk was hungry and he had sensed from Theel’zhiin that his little friend was satisfied. This was going to get some taking used to.

[gracemitchell]

Grace was enroute to Starbase Assailant, what a strange sensation to be returning home to her first, well really second, ship. The USS Nevada-A and as far as she was concerned, the best ship and crew in the fleet!
"Speaking of crew, I wonder who is on it?" Okay, so Grace was talking to herself, good thing that she is the counsellor and no one else can hear her, they might really think she was crazy.
"Hmmm, Captain Jira, FO Commander Steve, Marine Officer Zhukarak Hrisvalar, Rex Bonner, Rick Sharpe (finally a name I recognize) and John McDuff. Oh he has taken an extended leave. Rats!!!"
"Well, it looks like I have some time on my hands so I can look over previous ship's logs"
"Wonder what they are going to do when I get a vision, probably take me to sickbay just like Rick did before"
At that thought Grace couldn't help but laugh uncontrollably, "It might be fun to pretend a vision just to see the reaction of the command crew" Grace laughs again.
"Alright time to get caught up on the latest missions of the USS Nevada-A".

[Harrias Jira]

OOC: This post is from the point of view of Lieutenant Commander Lani Talla, a male martian (human). He is a command line officer, and during the normal operation of the ship is the XO of the night watch. However, he is overseeing the Nevada's refit.

IC: Walking slowly through the bare corridors of the Nevada, Lani sighed. The sigh carried with it most of his feelings. The emptiness of the ship made his feel morose, the delays they were suffering, frustration. He knew that the captain and first officer were away for a while longer, but he had hoped to get the refit completed within the alloted period of time.

He reached his hand out, and ran it along the edge of the corridor. Instead of the normal corridor wall there were bare wires and conduits, these ones thankfully replaced already, but the plates of metal that acted as walls were still propped up against the opposite side of the corridor. He felt the smooth edge of the conduits, then the slight bumps when his hands came to junctions.

Pulling his hand back once more, he entered a turbolift.

"Engineering."

"Please confirm authorisation." The computer almost whispered back to him. He cursed slightly, having forgotten that during the refit period, nothing worked without authorisation codes. He gave his code quickly, and the lift started dropping swiftly through the ship.

A few minutes and a couple of authorsation codes later, the martian had arrived in engineering. The floors were messy, covered in old parts, new parts, wall plating, everything. But that wasn't the feature that drew your eye the most. That was the lack of warp core. The object that normally dominated the whole of engineering was conspicuous in it's absence.

Searching the room, Lani found the object of his search.

"Chief, I hear you've hit another delay?" He was talking to Chief Petty Officer Jason King, who was head of the refit team from the starbase.

"Aye, that we 'ave. Your last engineer sure did know how t' mess up the engines. We're tryin' to untangle th' mess he made."

"Any kind of guesstimate on how long it will take?" Talla asked desperately.

"Not a clue, last time it took us a couple of days, but the time before that, only a couple of hours. Yeh could get lucky, this one could take a couple of minutes, but it could take a couple of weeks."

"Well time is of the essence Chief. The ship is scheduled to leave in a few days."

"Aye, well I will see what I can do for ya."

Lani left engineering with no more hope than he had entered it. As he was walking along the corridors, making his way to the bridge, to check on the progress there, he was met by a familiar face.

"Grace! I thought you had left the Nevada?"

<tag Grace>

[gracemitchell]

Hello Lani! It is good to see a familiar face!

Yes, I did leave but have been reassigned to the Nevada. How have you been?

I have been better. I'm sure you can tell that I am a bit stressed. But never mind that, why did you come straight to the ship? The majority of the crew is on leave on the starbase.

I know I should have gone to the Assailant but I have to admit that I have been homesick and needed to come home first.

Would you mind if I stay on the Nevada, I promise I won't get in your way too much.

Not a problem, Grace! It is great to have you back home. Maybe when you get settled, you could come back and help. You know, get your hands dirty or at least hand me a tool or two.

You go get settled, we'll talk later.

Thank you Lani, and by the way, I could never tell that you were stressed. I'll come back later and give you a hand!

Great, I look forward to the help!

[gracemitchell]

Grace left Lani and went to a turbolift not exactly sure where she wanted to go. Since the ship was in the process of a refit it seemed a little messy everywhere she went, then she decided "the bridge". Grace gave the command to the computer plus her authorization code and proceeded on her way to the bridge.

As Grace stepped onto the bridge, she let her control of her mind go and let memories take over.

Grace walked to her old chair and sat down. In her mind she could see old friends and shipmates at their stations performing their duties.

Grace looked at the captain's chair and saw her two previous commanding officer's, then she looked at the xo's chair and saw the three person's she had know in that chair, as well. As Grace was seeing this in her mind, on her face were tears for the friend's that had been lost during missions.

Grace got up from her chaiir and went to the captain's ready room. She pushed the chime even though she knew the captain wasn't there she felt this was something she should do before entering.

As she entered the ready room, at first Grace only saw the previous captain's. She heard many conversations that had been in that room, then gradually she heard conversation's that she had not been present at. These were conversations the present captain (Harrias Jira) was having.

Grace decided to leave the room as she felt this was an invasion of privacy, but went she stepped back on the bridge, she heard more conversation's of the present crew, oddly this made her feel more welcome.

Grace decided it was time to put the control back on her mind, knowing to much in advance took the fun out of getting to know people.

Grace left the bridge and headed for her office. The computer informed her it was exactly where she had left it, only it wsn't in the same condition.

Grace proceeded to put the comfortable back into her office that helped crewmembers to relax enough to talk to her. As usual, when she was alone working, Grace began to sing very old songs out loud, however she didn't know that her comm had been activated and her singing could be heard all over the ship.

In engineering, Lani smiled and said "Yep, Grace is back"

[Harrias Jira]

Lani smiled. He hadn't really noticed how much he had missed Grace when she had gone, but now she was back, he realised how much happier things were when she was there. He started to hum in time with her song, one he recognised from her singing before, and kept working.

It wasn't his job anymore, but he liked engineering work, which is why he had volunteered to stay on the ship and oversee the whole process. Firstly, he had no reason to take time off. His family was back on Mars, and there wasn't time to go see them. Although some of the crew had taken temporary assignments elsewhere, he had always served on the Nevada, and before her, the Caesar, which had had the same crew and family, and he didn't have any desire to serve elsewhere, even for a few weeks.

So, here he was, getting his hands dirty again. He had served as an engineer before securing his transfer to command. He did like command, it gave him a new purpose in life, but he did miss engineering. The simple tinkering and playing was something that he would never get bored of. Now however, he was due a break.

He started to the mess hall, which had been the first part of the ship to be refitted, so they could keep using it, and on his way, he tapped his commbadge. =/\= Grace, I'm getting a drink, do you want to meet me in the messhall? =/\=

=/\= Sure, I'll see you down there. =/\= She replied cheerily.

A few minutes later they were sat across the table from each other, cradling their drinks.

"So Grace, what did you get up to after leaving us?"

[gracemitchell]

"As you may remember, my great, great, great, great granddaughter served with T'Shael on the Lonewolf. I went to Earth to find out more about my past from her family.
I can't say that in all I learned, I still can't remember anything about myself." Grace replied.

Lani looked at her sypathetically remembering how much remembering her past hurt her deeply, then asked "Is that all you've been doing?"

"No, I have also been at Starfleet Medical, studying how Borg technology works. When the Borg tried to assimilate me, their assimilation was unsuccessful, however it created a slow aging process.
I maybe in my 30's forever or maybe I can't die? If that's the case maybe I should be assigned to the most dangerous missions. You know the kind that we know someone will die, so I would be the best choice because I can't."
"Needless to say we still don't have any answers but the research continues without me"

Grace starts to laugh, and Lani gives her a funny look "What is so funny?"

"As usual, I seem to be doing all the talking. I should ask about the personnel on the ship, but you know that's not the way I work. You could tell me a little about the crew, especially the captain. Is he anything like Lirala?"

With that question, Lani remembered the science officer whom was a Trill and had served with them for a time. "I know the Captain seemed to adjust better than Lirala, but you may want to find that out for yourself."
"I had better get back to work. How is your office shaping up, are you open for business?"

Grace gave Lani a quizzical look, "How did you know I was in my office?"

Lani gave her a smirk "Your comm was open, I could hear your singing."

"Oh my goodness?" Grace was a bit embarrassed.

"Don't worry about it, your singing is good and it was a welcomed sound. I have always enjoyed listening to it., in fact I tend to humm along with you".

"Alright then, but I have finished my office and thought I would start on my quarters. I do have to wait and talk to the captain about my antiques, though."

"Don't tell me you still have that refridgerator and oven?" Lani asked in anticipation.

Grace looked on with a smile "Are you looking for an invitation to a good old-fashioned home cooked meal?"

Lani said sheepishly "Well, you are a good cook and it amazes me how anyone could use those antiques..."

"Consider yourself invited, flattery will get you everywhere. But for now I must go and get things organized. How does 1700 sound for supper?"

"Sounds good see you then!"

Grace headed in the direction of her quarteres and Lani headed for engineering. As she was walking, Grace said to herself that tomorrow she would check in on Assailant, and find the captain.

[Harrias Jira]

Watching Grace leave, Lani smiled slightly in spite of himself. He motioned to the waiter for another drink, and then sat in contemplation. The captain had said that he would be back within a few days, and the refit was now running late, beyond that of the captain's return. It was annoying, but there was no way to contact the captain to inform him, and no way to speed up the refit.

Well, there was one thing that would help. If he actually got on with work, rather than sitting in the mess hall drinking, then it would be a bit faster. It wouldn't make much difference, but it would make some, surely. Just as the waiter arrived with the coffee at his table, he started to stand up. He looked up at him with an apologetic smile.

"I have work to do. Put the drink on my tab, and deliver it to..." he glanced around the room until he found an unaccompanied and cute female. "Her." He pointed at one that he had located. "And give her my regards."

"Of course sir." The waiter replied with a slight bow, taking the drink away. Although Lani was tempted to stay and get some reward, he knew these things were longer term, and he didn't particularly want anything from it, it was a nice gesture.

Instead, he made his way to the bridge, and looked around. For the most part, the bridge had been completed, it was another key area on the ship to be refitted early on, but a lot of the panels were still loose. He looked through the rota, checking that there was nothing left to be done other than replacing the panels and the wiring, and finding he was right, he started work on replacing them.

A few hours later his commbadge bleeped. He tapped it, slightly annoyed at the distraction.

=/\= Lieutenant Commander Talla here. =/\=

=/\= Ah, Lieutenant Commander. I was under the impression you were joining me for dinner? =/\=

Lani looked at the time on his tricorder, and swore under his breath.

=/\= Right, I'll be there before you know it. =/\=

He heard Grace laugh, and then close the comm link. He quickly cleaned himself up, no more than washing his hands in the sonic basin just off the bridge, and then made his way to Grace's quarters. He pressed the door chime once, and the door slid open.

OOC: Feel free to post anything you did before the dinner if there was anything you particularly wanted to do Otherwise, what's for supper?

[gracemitchell]

Grace looked at Lani pretending to be annoyed "Well, it's about time you appear, and it's a good thing you cleaned up." At the look on Lani's face Grace couldn't help but laugh, which made Lani laugh in return.

"Now I know what I missed most about you Grace. Your ability to make me laugh" Lani said still laughing. "Next your going to threaten to poision me if I don't like supper. Speaking of which, what are we having?"

"A green leaf salad with raspberry vinigrette dressing, Braised Chicken, rice pilaf, asparagus in a cream sauce and baked apple for dessert." Grace replied knowingly.

"One of my favorite meals you've made before, but I am not surprised you remember." Lani said.

"How could I forget, the last time I made it you ate so much we had to go to sickbay for a stomache ache. Since that was the time the doctor's program was down and I had to take over as chief medical officer." Grace said as she brought food to the table.

Grace and Lani laughed and talked their way through dinner. Suddenly, Grace became very quiet, staring into space and began to whisper "Rex. Zhukarak." over and over again.


ooc: Thought I would leave ya hanging!

Grace

[gracemitchell]

Lani knew what that the look on Grace's face meant that she was having a vision. He became worried.

Grace came out of her vision, seeing the look on Lani's face she simply said "Don't worry it is good news, then more good news, but it is not my place to explain."

Lani said with a look of confusion "That was quite a cryptic vision. I also want to on record as saying how I haven't missed your visions. Your visions can be slightly un-nerving."

"Don't act diplomatic with me! I can read you mind, you know!" Grace replied, laughing.

"I almost forgot about that, since you block out people's thoughts. I just thought of something! Remember that time we were playing rugby on the holodeck, and you knew what direction I was going to go. Did you read my mind then?' Lani asked and continued not giving Grace a chance to answer "You must have or you never would have been able to get the ball from me!"

Trying to look innocent, Grace said "I can't believe you would think I would do such a thing." Then began laughing so hard, she just couldn't stop. Lani joined her in laughing and they continued talking well into the night.

[fthelev]

It must have been pure divine intervention that kept the rusty old transport from falling apart. Every time it made a creak or squeak he was sure his end had come. The metal was probably so fatigue it went into a deep coma a long time ago. At one point Frek was sure he saw a stabilizer tear itself from the vessel.
But they made it, without being blown into space by violent decompression and with a slight of the heebie-jeebies. With the same good manners the transport crew had made her own, they handed out the luggage to the three recently commissioned officers.

“Did run a scan on them?” Frek asked as soon as they were out of hearing range.
Melain shook her head. “No.”
“Why?” Danara wanted to know.
Frek shrugged. “Nothing important. I was just still curious if that creature was male, female, neither or both.”

On an information panel which listed all docked ships they quickly found what they needed. The current berth of the Nevada was listed as maintenance dock twelve. Danara quickly looked up the nearest turbolift.
Within minutes they were on the right deck. A few windows looked out over the inner docking bay. As Frek peered out he could make out the Nevada’s hull.
“There she is,” he said excitingly without turning around, “NCC-750074-A, USS Nevada-A.”
“The start of a new way of life filled with adventure and exotic destinations,” Melain said in a dreamy voice.”
“And get killed,” Danara said spoiling the moment.
“Shut up,” Frek said, “Let’s get onboard.”

As the doors parted they revealed what Frek called the most sacred part of the ship, the bridge. This is where he would spend a big deal of time, working. Heading out for the interstellar highway, looking for adventure or whatever would come their way. This is where he would make it happen. Frek felt as if he was born to be wild.
Getting himself under control again he followed his companion unto the bridge.

“Captain?”
A dark ginger headed man in command uniform turned around and looked at them inquiringly.
“Reporting for duty sir!”

[gracemitchell]

After Lani left, Grace was cleaning up. In her mind she said " Congradulation Zhukarak Hrisvalar and Rex Boner. Welcome aboard Frek Thelev and Lorre Melain"

Unfortunately, since she was tired her control over her mind was lessened and the message was sent accidentally to the individuals she was congradulating.

Somewhere on Starbase Assailant, Zhukarak looked around since he thought he had heard someone conradulate him, only no one was there. Likewise for Rex Boner. Very perplexing.

On board their transport, Frek and Lorre both looked at each other and then looked around, not sure if they had heard correctly.

Grace not realizing what she had done, went to sleep.

[Zhukarak Hrisvalar]

[Harrias Jira]

OOC: Strictly speaking I'm still off with Admiral Magellan, Steve and T'Val on another mission, but as everyone appears to be turning up now, we'll say that I have returned already, although I will keep simming over there too.

IC: Having returned from the mission, Harrias just wanted to collapse into his bed. He entered the USS Nevada, plugging his command code in, and setting the rest of the commands to accept his voice code, rather than his full code each time. He made his way slowly up to the bridge, deciding it was the first place a captain should ever go on a starship.

As he walked through the ship, he spirits fell even further. He had expected the refit to be complete by the time that he had returned, but he could see wires and panels strewn all over the place. He raised his hand to his head, feeling a slight ache in it, and realised that he was not going to get any near as much sleep that night as he wanted to get.

When he arrived on the bridge, he was pleasantly surprised to see that it had been almost finished. In one corner he saw Lani Talla fixing a panel onto the wall. The trill walked over to him, aware they were the only two on the bridge. He placed a hand on the martian's shoulder.

Lani jumped. It was quite some acheivement considering that he had been kneeling down, but he jumped almost a foot in the air, and then through some gymnastic manoeuver that Harrias didn't even want to contemplate, he was standing.

"Sir! I wasn't expecting you back yet."

"So I guessed. I see the refit is still on going?"

"Yes sir. We should be finished within the week sir."

"Lani."

"Yes sir."

"Calm down. We have no outstanding orders. Don't worry."

The martian physically relaxed, and Harrias smiled at him.

"Come on, you need a drink." He said, and led the night-shift officer into his ready room.

"When did you last sleep?" The trill asked him.

"I don't remember. A while ago." Harrias hummed at him, but said nothing, acknowledging in his mind that he hadn't slept for over 30 hours, and he was not someone who could give a lecture on getting enough sleep. He poured them both a small glass of Saurian Brandy.

As he took his first sip, the chime rang out, and upon his entrance call, three officer's stepped in.

"Captain?"

His eyes were frist caught on the andorian. He was about to ask him why he wasn't wearing his marine uniform, when he noticed that this andorian was a slightly different shade of blue, and had slightly longer antennae than Zhukarak Hrisvalar. His mind caught up with what he knew, and when he glanced across the other two, he knew who he was dealing with.

"Reporting for duty sir!"

This was soon echoed by the other two officer's at his side.

"It is good to see you all. Take a seat." He frowned as he said it, noticing that there were only two more seats. So, instead he led the group over to where there were two sofa's in the corner of the room. The three graduates sat down on one, while him and Lani took an end of the other each.

Harrias smiled at them. "Right, I believe I have already told you your assignments via subspace. Lieutenant Lorre you will be our Chief Medical Officer. It is a while now since we had one, the Assistant has been running the show for a long time now. I don't know what state everything is in, but it shouldn't be too bad. I beleive that most of the crew are up to date with their medicals though, so you shouldn't need to run too many of them." There was a slight edge to his voiceas he said that. He turned to the andorian. "Lieutenant Thelev, you will be our Chief Navigation Officer. Unlike Lieutenant Lorre, you have something of a reputation to live up to, as Commander Rick Sharpe has only just left us, but from what I have read, it is nothing you can't handle. And as for you Ensign Danara. I believe you will be serving in the security department. I have not been able to speak to Lieutenant Bonar yet, so if you report to him, he will give you an assignment himself."

[gracemitchell]

Grace was asleep in her quarters when the her computer came to life with the message that the captain had just arrived on the Nevada.

Grace got up went to the sonic shower and dressed. She asked the computer the location of the captain, the computer told her that he ws on the bridge.

Grace left her quarters and headed for the bridge. As she stepped off the turbolift she noticed that it was empty. Grace turned towards the ready room, took a deep breath and pressed the door chime.

The door opened , Grace stepped in saying "Commander 1st Class Grace Mitchell, reporting for duty!"

[Zhukarak Hrisvalar]

The training flights of the new fighter pilots had been, for the most part, uneventful. Zhukarak had to ensure that proper formations were maintained for their combat patrols.

Even during their defensive maneuver drills certain positions were required to maintain each pilots’ security by his or her wingman or flight leader. No pilot was to fly solo, unless he wanted to risk being shot down.

A week had passed. The animosities between Lt Tomlinson and Zhukarak had subsided some as mutual respect had been earned.

“Theel’zhiin! You have grown quite a bit.” Zhukarak observed of his companion firelizard. Theel’zhiin was now about 40cm tall, with another 40cm for his tail. Zhuk had grown quite fond of him, as had Theel’zhiin of Zhuk.

*Beep* A message came through in his quarters. Zhukarak went to his terminal to read it.

=> Major Hrisvalar! Please report back to the Nevada. We will be underway in about a week and preparations for our next mission are in need of completion. <=> You will be pleased to know that we have some new crewmembers among the command staff. A couple of new graduates and some seasoned veterans as well. <=> Oh yes! Congratulations on your promotion. Sorry we weren’t all available here at the Nevada for proper ceremonies, not that you care for large parties anyways. <=> Admiral Lin is aware of your returning to the Nevada. See you soon, Captain Jira! <=

“Well Theel’zhiin. It seems our services are in need back home.” Theel’zhiin squawked with excitement, knowing they were about to embark on a new adventure.