Senior Staff Briefing

Posted on Wed Nov 25th, 2020 @ 8:17am by Commodore Phoenix Lalor-Richardson & Captain Gary Taylor & Lieutenant Commander Aurelia Taylor & Commander Arrianna Salannis an Vantar & Commander Sthilg & Lieutenant Colonel Azhul Naxea & Lieutenant JG Gallia Norris & Lieutenant Victor Barclay de Tolly & Lieutenant Commander Alicia Kelea-Salik & Lieutenant JG Miraj Derani & Lieutenant Scott Gregory [Taylor] & Commodore Evelyn Mountbatten [ADMIN NPC]

Mission: Season 4: Episode 3: Guided by Starlight
Location: Captains Ready Room and Briefing Room
Timeline: MD1- 0900
3271 words - 6.5 OF Standard Post Measure

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"

"Captain Lalor, moderate your tone!" Commodore Mountbatten snapped at the very angry younger woman through the comm channel.

"No I don't think I will!" Phoenix replied. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?! No, the last time we were assigned to escort duty we wound up in the ANDROMEDA Galaxy and came back sans ADMIRAL!"

"Phoenix!" Evelyn snapped. "BREATHE" the Commodore had know this would happen. Phoenix Lalor had already argued her ship out of this silly escort duty twice since their return from Andromeda. But now, there was nothing more she could do. "I am sorry, but it is your turn."

"Three months, escort duty." Phoenix seethed.

"They only have 3 weeks until they reach their destination Phoenix."

"Yeah and then you send us to escort yet another group of colonists who refuse warp drive right?" sarcasm rolled from the Captain.

"Look, its your turn, take it with grace. Besides in a few weeks, you are taking Maternity leave so, it will be commander Taylor's worry."

"Yeah and he will just kill me." Phoenix muttered.

"You have your orders Captain. Good Luck" And the Commodore severed the connection.

Phoenix cursed in Erisian and summoned the Senior staff.

==

["Senior Staff to the Briefing Room, Lieutenant Gregory, Lieutenant Norris and Commander Vaii to the Briefing room"] The announcement went out across the Elysium as it sat in stable orbit around Pacifica.

The crew was filtering back on board and had, another 2 hours before their designated departure time.

["Senior Staff to the Briefing Room, Lieutenant Gregory and Commander Vaii to the Briefing room"]

Scott heard the message telling him to report to the Briefing Room and did a double take. However rather than question the order he headed for the Briefing room after promising Jade he would see her later.

Alicia was sitting feet up on the sofa in her office, at six months pregnant she was sporting a bump of a descent size and as such she tended to sit more on the sofa than at her desk. When the call for Senior staff came over the comms she picked up the pile of PADDs she’d been reading and got up to put them on her desk, grabbing a spare PADD for notes, and her small back support cushion before heading for the briefing room.

Miraj was sitting in her favourite place, the helm, watching the pre-flight data coming in, checking and double checking the flight sensors, and the astrogation array, and that stars were where they should be. It was largely a formality, the computer could run and verify the whole sequence in a few seconds if needed, but they'd been sitting in orbit for a fortnight, and she enjoyed the process, like meditation. She didn't pay much attention to the computer announcement, she still didn't link herself to the concept of senior staff. She sat there for a whole minute watching the star charts update, before she realised she was getting a pointed stare from a warrant officer who would take over, and made the connection. "Sorry." she told him with a weak smile, and dashed off to the briefing room

Lia was in the brig, she had decided to do a quick inspection when the call came through. *Oh bugger, what the hell has happened now?* She thought, turning around she headed for the briefing room.

=Briefing Room=

Arriving at the briefing room Alicia was surprised to find she was the first one to arrive. Walking over to the replicator she ordered a hot chocolate, walking back to the conference table she set her drink down and made herself comfortable with her cushion behind her back and waited for the rest of the senior staff to arrive.

The door opened and Arrianna walked in carrying a large PADD in her arms she sat down and began to take notes.

Not long after Arrianna arrived, Jess entered the room, and looked around. 'Damn, I don't belong up here in Senior Staff Meetings."

Alicia smiled at both, motioning to a nearby seat for Jess. “Come and make yourself comfortable Jess.”

"I'm not sure how comfortable I am up here, Counselor. I'm too used to the lower decks. Longer I stay up here, the more people would think I don't work for a living." She smirked. "This place is for important people."

Alicia grinned as she rested her hand on her bump. “You are important Jess! Even this little one agrees.”

"So does everyone else at Starfleet Command. They won't leave me alone. At least five ambitious CO'S have bothered me at midnight about being their XO." Jess mentioned. "I've been saying the word 'no' for the last two weeks, and they've been busy trying to butter me up." She shook her head. "Sides, you don't want me even close to the center chair. I might launch more tricobalts just to see them explode."

Alicia couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s fine provided you aim them at something we’re allowed to hit!” She pursed her lips as her baby gave her a good solid kick. “Ouch! I swear this baby treats my insides like they’re a jungle gym! She has one hell of a kick.”

Miraj slid into the room, slightly out of breath from running, seeing only the counsellor and the CAG present, and felt a little bit of relief that she wasn't late. "Doctor, Ma'am," she nodded to the other two women, and made a quick calculation on where the captain would sit, and figured she, as the most junior one present, should be as far away from that point as possible.

“Good Morning Miraj” Alicia smiled warmly as she looked in Miraj’s direction.

Chief of Engineering Lt. Victor Barclay de Tolly walked in as he gave each one a smile. "Hello all."

Wandering in Lia noticed that others had arrived before her, "Hi guy's, any clue why we've been summoned?" Finding a chair she planted herself, "Guess things have been to quiet for to long, here's hoping it's not to exciting".

Alicia picked up her drink and sipped it before putting the glass down again. “No clue Lia but no doubt we’ll find out soon enough.”

The door opened as the sleepy gorn medical doctor stepped through. He'd only gotten a few hours of sleep after being up all night assisting in an opration. Without saying anything his hands went to the coffee pot and poured him a large coffee which he downed in one go before pouring another.

Arrianna looked at the Doctor. "Doctor, are you fatigued?" She waited for an answer. Her second officer mode kicking in. She didn't like the fact that anyone on the crew was overworking themselves.

" I'm okay. Jussst very tired. Ensssign Zuzkago'sss placenta ruptured during the night and I've been up ssseven hours reattaching it and making sssure her unborn ssson is okay. I only got to sssleep an hour ago." The gorn explained.

Phoenix entered, her yeoman at her side, who, she had noted over the past few months had begun insisting on carrying everything for her. For triad's sake she was 7 months pregnant and due in under a month - Erisians had a shorter gestational period than humans - and she was carrying twins. She felt huge, though, she looked about 6 months human pregnant due to the fact that Erisians carry towards their back not their front. She took the PADD from the Yeoman as he held it out and she took her seat. A quick head count and she sighed. "We will wait for the others before we start."

Alicia smiled as she looked toward Phoenix, it seemed the ship was having a baby explosion with not only Phoenix but Heather and herself being pregnant. She looked towards her father offering a smile, she hoped he would have the time to get some sleep after the briefing.

Arrianna had to admire the Gorn doctor. His dedication was commendable, but a doctor was no good to the crew unless he was precise. "Doctor, after this meeting can you remain here for a moment." She was concerned for the Doctor. Even more so if he made a mistake in his duties.

Victor being the new guy on the ship, he was happy to be here. Feeling of his bazaar way of coming on to the ship seemed to be providence because he would eventually come into this reality, so by the fates above, he showed up on this one. "Hello Arianna," who was sitting next to him, "Good day to you. My daughter is enjoying working on the theoretical model she Purposed to your assistant Lt. McKay."

Gary was in his ready room, going over maintenance logs when the call came for a Senior Staff meeting in the Briefing room. Putting the logs to one side, he rose and headed for the briefing room. Arriving he saw the captain and others there. He nodded to Phoenix. "I apologize for being late, was going over the maintenance logs." He said as he slid into his seat.

Naxea walked in, carrying a cup of Raktajino in her hand, taking a seat in her normal spot.

Gallia walked in, took a seat across from Naxea, and waited for the Captain.

Once everyone was settled into their seats, Phoenix took a short breath and stood. "We have been assigned a new mission." she said calmly. "50 years ago, a group of colonists set out from the Sol system. Their destination is a colony planet near the Klingon Empire. This group, do not believe in warp drive and have been at impulse power for the past 50 years. Every 6 months, a Starship is assigned to escort them. Its our turn."

" Iss it a generation ssship?" the doctor inquired " And why don't they believe in warp travel?

"They are from an enclave of very religious people who lived in the mountains in South America for many centuries" Phoenix said. "They are followers of what is known as Opus Dei on Earth, though according to sources it is a more sever version. And believed that Earth has fallen from the light of their God. There are 4 ships in this convoy, each with about 1000 people. Yes there is generations on them now. But they are nearing the end of their journey and its our responsibility to make sure they get there."

Alicia looked at Phoenix. “Are there any prior reports from Counsellor’s regarding these people? If we’re going to have contact with them we will need to be careful not to offend them or what they believe.”

"If they're nearly at their destination then they've been cheating." Miraj's eyes glazed over as she consulted her mental star charts. "On a direct line from Sol, Kronos is a hundred and six ish light years away. The nearest border world is probably Valt at seventy five ish light years. Max impulse is only a quarter of the speed of light. They would have got at most 13 light years. They shouldn't be anywhere near the Klingon Border. Even if they hit max acceleration and were going at c by the end of day one, they should barely be at Starbase 12." She looked at the faces around the table and shrugged. "Space is big, we need warp drive for a reason."

Phoenix flashed her chief pilot a grin. "They are not cheating... Starfleet is." she said. "Some sneaky pilot about 35 years ago got sick of plodding along, so they suggested, that they 'link' the ships together for security on the night watches and then every so often, when all people sleep, they put the ships in tow, jump to warp 8 for a few hours and then back to impulse before day shift. They don't do it too often because they do not want to really be caught. I am pretty sure though that the leaders of the Colony know its happening." She turned to Alicia. "Our contact will be limited. In fact, Commander Taylor will be point person, and basically greeting them. Seems some have issues with unmarried mothers and such." She grinned at her XO. "I get to put my feet up."

"Yay me." Gary replied clearly underwhelmed by this opportunity. "Am I to beam aboard their lead ship with a small away team?"

Phoenix smirked. "Seeing I will be hibernating in my ready room, you will need to remain on the ship. Send someone if needed Commander, Delegation" she turned to the rest. "Medical may be required, we have yet to hear if they use the fleet medical personnel at times or not. This is going to be a quiet trip. I have been assured of it. That said, the last time this ship was on an escort mission, we wound up in the Andromeda Galaxy for nearly a year. If it happens again, I have sworn promises that I may shoot the people who assigned us to it, on the grounds of Starfleet HQ in Paris."

"Some people have all the luck." Gary quipped.

Jessica spoke. "I'd advise against that course of action, boss. It's far better for politicians to look stupid. In a way that's kind of like an execution to a Bureaucrat. Anyway, the less time you spend in Paris the better. I learned that the hard way after graduating, and no; I won't tell the story... ever...."

Arrianna spoke. "I'd advise bringing along some of our diplomats. A deft touch may be required in this situation, and given that an incident is already on record with this group, they may be hesitant to deal with us. Out of curiousity, what is the Klingon Empire's position on this group of people? I understand they are heading towards a world nearby Klingon space."

The gorn couldn't help but smile at the wool being pulled over their eyes. " Will an ancient gorn who's meet his own peoplesss goddessss be acceptable as a doctor to them as a doctor? " he inquired.

"The CMO of the ship we are replacing is half Klingon, i think they will be fine with you Commander, if not, send one of your junior officers, but only if required."

Naxea sighed in disbelief before taking a sip of her Raktajino. Great, an escort mission for a bunch of religious zealots, she thought as she set the cup back down onto the table. Another mission for the peacemakers. Good, let them have the babysitting job for these idiots, she continued her train of thought. "The Sixty-Second Detachment will be conducting training exercises as our presence will likely scare these poor...people," she spoke choosing a more tactful word for idiots.

"I appreciate that Major" Phoenix said.

“I wish I could volunteer to help but I think I’ll most likely be lassoed to the ship for the next few months.” Alicia grinned. “Plus I’ve been instructed to rest more.” She looked at Sthilg and offered a smile.

Jess spoke. "Well, escorting this convoy might be just the thing for my latest batch of flight cadets. Side, I'll have them for a good six months anyway."

"I am sure the ships will be slow enough for your cadets commander. Ensign Derani, I know you want to use the QSD, and you can, to get us to their location. After that any.. piggy backing we do will need to be the normal old Warp Core."

Lia started to giggle, "Never mind Commander, I'm sure any away team will find a nice souvenir for you. Oh and before you try and stick me for the team, I'm technically classed as an unmarried mother. Think Angel". Her face darkened slightly as she mentioned her daughter, but this was the first time she had been able to say her name without bursting into tears. A smile quickly returned, "Your fault I believe" she cheekily added.

Gary smiled at Lia, he nodded at her statement and the mention of Angel. He knew the pain it caused her to mention their daughter. However he was proud of her for being able to mention Angel and not burst into tears. "Now that you mention it, I do believe you are right Lia." He replied with a grin and a wink.

She returned his smile and blew him a kiss, "Now back to business, just how long do we shepherd this merry bunch?"

"Aye, how long then?" Gallia asked, she was definitely curious.

"3 weeks" Phoenix said "And then we shall see."

“Commander” Alicia looked at Gary. “I’d like to help out whenever possible. I’m married so my presence on the bridge shouldn’t offend anyone when you contact them.”

"Thank you Alicia. I'm sure your services will be invaluable." Gary replied.

“Thank you Sir” Alicia offered a smile.

"If there are no other questions, you are to get your teams ready for departure. We leave in 4 hours." Phoenix ordered.

Arri spoke to Phoenix. "Captain, if you need to hibernate in your ready room. I'll be more than willing to take a shift on the conn for you."

"I am sure Commander Taylor will be fine." Phoenix smiled. "He may need you on the away missions"

Lia looked straight at Phoenix, "Any special Security concerns I need to be aware of? And what Security level are they cleared to?"

"Just the basic level civilian and they wont be coming here," Phoenix said. "They will remain on their own ships."


As the rest of the staff filled out the doctor remained. He wanted to go back to his quarters and sleep, but he had to wait to here what commander Arrianna had to say. " What do you need of me commander? " he asked.

Arri spoke. "Commander, I'm exercising my right as second officer to relieve you and give you the day off." She noted with a smile. "I'd also like you to be more conscious of your limits, Doctor. Your position here is one of precision and skill, which cannot be achieved in this state. Make no mistake, I find your dedication to the health of this ship and crew commendable, all I ask is for awareness of your health, Doctor."

The old doctor began to think of an argument, but his brain wanted to sleep so it scrambled any reply until." Yesss commander. I'll go and get sssome sssleep. "

Outside Alicia was hanging around waiting for Sthilg, she’d noticed how tired he was and wanted to make sure he was alright.

" Hello my dear." the lizard said as he stepped outside of the room.

“Can I walk you home?” Alicia looked at her father offering a smile. “You look like you could do with the sleep and I’m going to see you get some.”

" Lead on." the gorn said as a smile came across his face. " How are you are you feeling alright?"

“Well if you count out the fact that I feel like a baby space whale, am tired most of the time, and my back aches, I’m just peachy!” Alicia grinned. “I know I’m whining! Something I really must stop doing.”

" Your pregnant my dear your allowed to whine." the old gorn said as he placed his hand on her shoulder.

Alicia grinned. “I guess but I’m not using it as an excuse.” They stepped into the turbolift. “Just promise me you’ll take care of yourself.”

The gorn gave his daughter a friendly hug. " I will my dear. I have you and my grandchildren to look after remember. "

Alicia smiled the biggest smile yet. “Indeed you do father.” She held onto his arm with a grin.

OFF