Starting Off On The Wrong Foot

Posted on 05/04/2020 @ 11:45pm by Captain Cian D'Anvers & Ensign Noah LeBlanc

Mission: S1E3: Visit to Starbase 375
Location: Transporter Room; Ready Room
Timeline: Day 1 at 0855

The transporter room came alive as the blue energizer beam bathed the pad in blue light. A young man emerged from the fog, sporting a yellow operations uniform. He sported brown hair, green eyes and wore a slight smirk on his pale face.

The only other figure in the room was the Andorian chief petty officer, he glared coldly as the young man fresh out of the academy. "Welcome aboard the Crazy Horse, sir," he said matter of factly as he finished the transporter sequence, “The Captain is expecting you, and you had better hurry if I may say so.”

"My orders only came through this morning," Noah responded in a thick Canadian accent. He stepped down from the pad carrying a small duffle bag and a PADD under his arm. “What about my valise?” he asked.

"Take it with you, you're scheduled for 0900," the Chief responded as he walked briskly into the corridor and towards the turbolift. He had been in the service for decades and this was just another junior officer without a clue

"Avoir son voyage," Noah muttered under his breath.

"I'm sorry sir, I didn't catch that?" the chief asked as the turbolift doors opened.

"Carry on, Chief," Noah responded, shuffling inside of the lift as the doors closed. Nothing like starting off an assignment on the wrong foot. He grimaced as he tried to compose himself, having rushed the entire morning. Come to think of it, he had forgotten to shave. Of course it wasn’t as though he needed to every day.

The doors to the bridge opened and Noah stepped out onto the upper area. The doors closed behind him. I suppose he’s not coming with me. He shrugged it off and walked across the minimally manned bridge. The blue lights reflected off each silver and glass surface. A more beautiful bridge than the Pioneer’s had been. He walked across the bridge to the ready room and rang the buzzer.

Surprise flashed across Cian's face as the chime sounded. He had figured, apparently incorrectly, that everyone would be off exploring the promenade on the newly built Deep Space 20. "Enter," he called out.

The young officer stepped into the ready room through the now open door. "Good morning sir," Noah said in his Canadian accent, "Ensign Noah LeBlanc, assigned to be your new Chief Operations Officer." He stood heels together and held out the PADD over the desk to the Captain.

Cian, whose own Syndari accent had softened over time and exposure to other worlds, nodded as he accepted the PADD. These days his accent was more prevalent when he was stressed; something he continued to work on. "Good morning, Ensign." He took the time to read through the orders before handing the PADD back. "Please, have a seat."

"Thank you sir," Noah responded before sitting down, "My orders came through this morning. I don't know if Command kept it under wraps, as they say, or if it was a last minute change."

"You made good time getting here," Cian said. "Our Chief transferred out unexpectedly so you were tagged as the next available. While we're here at DS20, you'll be free to explore the station on your off time." Cian paused for a moment as his thoughts strayed back to the ship's recent difficulties. "The outgoing Chief left a briefing packet for you in his ... your ... office. That will catch you up on what's been happening. If you have any questions after you've gone through the materials, we can certainly meet again."

"Understood sir," Noah responded, "I am not sure how much time I will spend over there, as I have become stir crazy over the past month waiting..." The young man nodded, "I will review the material directly," he said, "I would hope the department was left in some semblance of order."

Cian lost some of his pleasant demeanor at the implications of the ensign's comment. "Your predecessor was good at his job. I think you'll find that there is more than a ... semblance ... of order in the department."

"Yes sir," Noah responded briefly to put the subject to bed as he clearly has spoken out of turn. He glanced around briefly, to find a different subject matter. There were several imposing book shelves filled with all manners of reading material. He noticed several familiar works, "Did you enjoy Casino Royale, sir?" He asked, shooting an eye to the book.

Cian chuckled as his gaze fell upon the book crammed in among books on history, philosophy and culture spanning many of the Federation member worlds as well as a few that weren't. "I was at a conference on Risa. Over dinner, I mentioned that I was interested in reading about intelligence efforts and their contributions during wartime. One of the speakers sent me the book as a joke. I found it interesting though and it led me to books on the author's life ... like 'Man with a Golden Typewriter ... Thrilling Cities ... and what was the other one? Oh yes. Diamond Smugglers." He paused a moment, as though weighing his next statement, and added, "you're welcome to borrow it if you like."

"Ah thank you," Noah responded, thinking the Captain may have gotten some of the titles wrong, but he wasn't about to correct his new commanding officer, "I also pride myself in having a fine collection, although not nearly as expansive... I personally prefer books in the hand versus books on the PADD. It's a different experience, at least in my opinion."

"There's something to be said for the feel of a book," Cian said as he rose and walked over to the bookcase. He opened the glass-fronted door and pulled out, 'Casino Royale', and returned to his desk, placing the book in the front of the Ensign as he went. "Though there are times when I prefer the convenience of a PADD." He sat down behind his desk with the fluid grace of someone who has spent the majority of their life in motion. "Do you have any questions?"

"Agreed sir," Noah responded with a smile, reacting to the quaint charm of the book. He watched the Captain set the age old book down in front of him, "No sir," he asked before flipping the question, "Do you have any for me?"

"Not at this time," Cian said. "Enjoy the book and welcome to the Crazy Horse."

A Post by:

Commander Cian D'Anvers
Commanding Officer
USS Crazy Horse

and

Ensign Noah LeBlanc
Chief Operations Officer
USS Crazy Horse