An Invitation: Kiara Rahl

Posted on 11/25/2020 @ 1:23pm by Captain Cian D'Anvers
Edited on on 11/25/2020 @ 2:20pm

Mission: S3E1: Time of Change
Location: Exploratory Corps Offices, Federation Headquarters, Earth
Timeline: Day 92 at 1100

Because his decision had been made and the transfer was already in the works, Cian no longer felt comfortable working from his Ready Room on the Crazy Horse. In his short time on board, he'd come to feel very comfortable aboard the Luna Class vessel. Not a small thing when you considered both Leonie and Boudreaux had been killed in the performance of their duties. Still, they'd uncovered those faulty isolinear chips and that was moving in interesting directions. And now the auctioning of living beings. Something that resonated deeply with him and his own past.

Yes, he knew exactly how it felt to be owned.

The Crazy Horse wasn't his any longer. A team was already on board cleaning out his quarters and Ready Room, preparing those spaces for its new captain. Luckily, the Exploratory Corps provided him with a temporary workspace until his new Ready Room aboard the Sitting Bull was ready. Nice to be able to choose furnishings and a color scheme that suited him, personalize the decor a bit. Better to have a quiet space that didn't have a string of people contacting him.

His office had a view of the harbor, if one stood at a certain angle with one's head cocked just so, and was relatively bland and inoffensive. Being temporary, it had probably seen a number of individuals; evidence of their passing was clear in the assortment of scratches and scuff marks that the furnishings had accumulated. One cabinet even included a collection of mugs that hadn't made it back into the replicator. Still, it had the essentials including a daunting amount of reading material he had to get through.

Because his decision had been made and the transfer was already in the works, there were a number of tasks for him to complete. One of the most important was to start building his senior staff. He was in agreement with J.J. about keeping as many of the senior staff from the Crazy Horse as wanted to join them on this adventure. Unlike Starfleet, where he'd had to accept whatever they threw at him, here, he could make his own choices. He'd made that a condition of his acceptance and they'd agreed. So, he had a list and he was working down that list, one individual at a time. Next up, was Kiara Rahl. Brand new to the Crazy Horse but a capable officer. He set up the connection and waited for her to accept.

Kiara was in her temporary quarters awaiting news of her next assignment when the comms unit alerted her to an incoming transmission. She offered a warm smile as she greeted Captain D’Anvers.

"Hey," Cian said when he saw her face come into view. "Sorry to disturb your shore leave but there's something I'd like to discuss with you if you have a moment."

Kiara nodded. “Of course Sir” she smiled warmly. “What can I do for you?”

"Turns out, I was being considered for a position. Didn't know it, didn't apply, but as it turns out, I've been offered the captaincy aboard a Pathfinder vessel, the USS Sitting Bull. Which means two things. First, the Crazy Horse will be getting a new Captain and second, I'm interviewing candidates for the new ship." The words tumbled out, one over the other, and he resolved that he'd have to learn how to organize all it a bit better.

“Congratulations Sir” Kiara nodded. “If you’re asking then I’ll say yes here and now!” She smiled warmly. “May I ask do you have a Lieutenant Solpec on your list of those you’re asking? He’s a new transfer to the ship same as me.”

Surprised at the quick reaction, Cian shifted from what he'd expected to be speaking about to the matter of this Solpec. Odd name which was why he was able to place him after a moment or two thought. "Solpec, Operations? No, he's in the Science department, I think. And no, he's not on my list. Why?"

Kiara’s heart sank, “I’m sorry I know I’m not in a position to ask it’s just Solpec and I ... we’re ...” She didn’t finish the sentence. “He’s just arrived for the Crazy horse.” She was truly stuck as to what to do. “It complicates my decision Captain.”

Cian nodded. "I understand and you'll certainly have my recommendation to Captain Channe. Course," he added, shrugging slightly, "Solpec could apply directly to the program and request the Sitting Bull."

Kiara nodded. “I’ll tell him Sir. As for my decision, I said yes and I’ll keep to that for now. If that changes I’ll aim to let you know in enough time to find a replacement.”

"Thanks," Cian said. "Well, I'll let you get back to your shore leave. There's no point in filling you on the rest until you've made your decision. I look forward to hearing from you."

Kiara nodded. “Thank you Captain and good luck assembling your crew.”

"Thank you, Kiara," Cian said quietly. The connection closed and he sat quietly for a few minutes, staring thoughtfully at the EC's logo. Families would be permitted on board, of course, but this Solpec was probably not that. At least not yet or Kiara would have said something when she'd arrived on board. So new then. As a rule, Cian did not believe in nepotism and he seldom made crew assignments based on those kinds of considerations. He did that once for Admiral Cash and look where that ended up. The Crazy Horse had not profited by his acceptance of the son and his entourage and now, the Admiral was facing censure for blatant nepotism. One of many if Birdwhistle's article was any indication.

No, the choice of applying or not was best left up to Solpec. The decision on who would run the diplomatic department on the Sitting Bull was his and not something that could wait for long. Sighing quietly, he sat down to begin assembling a list of possible candidates. If Kiara chose to remain on the Crazy Horse, and that was her right, then he needed to keep looking. These were individuals who had already expressed a willingness to work as part of the Pathfinder effort so it was more a matter of reviewing applications and assessing their experience and ability to merge with his senior staff. It was going to be a lot of work.

And really, he should have realized that not everyone was going to accept. Maybe he'd do well to have backups for all of the positions.

A Post by:

Captain Cian D'Anvers
Commanding Officer
USS Crazy Horse

Lieutenant JG Kiara Rahl
Chief Diplomatic Officer
USS Crazy Horse