The First Night

Posted on 02/07/2020 @ 9:11pm by Lieutenant JG Salynn Oram
Edited on on 02/28/2020 @ 7:04pm

Mission: S1E1: Out of the Barn
Location: USS Crazy Horse - Personal Quarters
Timeline: Day 2 at 0600

It was a good thing the rousing alarm from the computer came from a nebulous place within her quarters, for if it had been issued from a device on the night table next to her bed, Sal would have broken the infernal device.

With a groan, Salynn Oram slowly arose from her rumpled bed, running a hand through her tangled auburn locks. If she was going to create a positive first impression on her first day aboard the Crazy Horse, she would need copious amounts of Klingon coffee to kickstart her mental processes. She had boarded late the previous night, not-so-fresh from the transport that had brought her all the way out to Starbase 614. Her communication with the on-duty security officer and quartermaster had been conducted in barely intelligible grunts, but it had gotten her and her belongings into quarters that she could now call home. There would be time enough to unpack and personalize the space, but for now she needed a strong sonic shower and even stronger stimulants, as noted before.

This need for stimulating drinks in the morning was still a new experience for Salynn, a gift to her from the Oram symbiont's first host, Bevin. Truth be told, Sal hated the taste of coffee, but with enough sweetener and dairy, it was palatable enough. For not the first time, she cursed Bevin and his caffeine dependency and drank back a steaming mug of the sludge.

Once the caffeine had kicked in and the sonic shower had sharpened her senses, Sal started to feel somewhat less zombie-like and was able to face the day proper. Sitting at the small desk in the spacious quarters afforded her as a departmental head on the ship, she pulled up the day's schedule on the monitor. First and foremost, of course, the helmsman had to officially report for duty. Slinking aboard the ship during gamma shift wasn't proper protocol for the arrival of a new officer, but Sal just couldn't stomach the thought of finding temporary accommodations for half a night on the starbase when her own new quarters were right within reach. She had an appointment to meet the captain first thing this morning, followed by the usual spate of requirements when reporting to a new duty station - medical, security, and so on. Somewhere in between Sal hoped to find time to explore the ship, namely the bridge and the Helm station there, the shuttlebay and her office overlooking it, and possibly the engine room to see the powerplant that would thrum massive waves of power at the command of her fingertips when she was flying this beautiful ship.

Sal stopped at a mirror prior to leaving her quarters for her meeting with the captain. Her uniform was crisp and clean, pips straight and in proper order. Her hair was tied back, looking professional enough if not fancy. There was no hiding the dark hollows of restlessness under her eyes, those would fade on their own after a couple good nights of sleep. All in all, she looked better than she felt, having traveled what felt like half the galaxy to get here. She scratched absently at the spots on the side of her neck, steeled herself for her first day, and hoped it would go better than the first night had.

A post by

LtJG Salynn Oram
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Crazy Horse