Turbolift Encounter

Posted on 04 Mar 2013 @ 5:39pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Ensign Jessica Wilson M.D.

1,102 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 03 - Frontier
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 4, Corridor
Timeline: MD 03 - 0015 hrs

[ON]

After a casual and entertaining midnight encounter with Galileo's newest counselor, Lieutenant Meridian, Lirha again found herself bored and wandering the corridors of Deck 4. She didn't often spend too much time in that particular area of her ship, and looked rather out of place with her green skin and red uniform undershirt. Staying close to the walls with her hands clasped behind her back, she slowly strolled down the winding hallway until she arrived at the turbolift junction, then let out a soft sigh and leaned against the lift's double doors.

Jessica was not pleased with herself, she was after all a full fifteen minutes late for the start of her shit. In all fairness she had been up pretty late with research following her extended shift the day before, besides, she had already commed the beta shift medical officer to let her know that she was going to be late, so at least she would hopefully not suffer the wrath of the CMO, after all hopefully she wouldn't find out.

Which of course made the commanding officer the last thing that Jessica wanted to see at a time like this. As a shy young ensign she wasn't particualrly thrilled at bumping into the CO but it could have been a lot easier. As the turbolift doors opened her heart skipped a beat, although she managed to recover in time to utter a respectful sounding.

"Captain."

Lirha was so preoccupied in her own thoughts that she didn't hear the turbolift come to a halt until the last second, and was genuinely startled as the doors suddenly swished open right in front of her. She blinked several times and took sight of a young looking ensign who was stepping out onto the deck. "Oh my...you startled me, ensign." Lirha finally answered with a sheepish grin. "Ensign...?" she asked, trying to place a name to the familiar looking face. She knew the woman was part of the medical staff, but for the life of her couldn't remember exactly who she was.

"Jessica Wilson, Ma'am," Jessica replied respectfully. "I'm one of the medical interns."

"Ah yes, Ensign Wilson." Lirha verified with a nod, then glanced at a nearby chronometer which read 0015 hours. "I trust your studies are coming along smoothly?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, hoping for a brief chance to chit chat.

"Yes Ma'am, I'm researching specialised routes at the moment, so I can make a properly informed decision on where I want to go on after my internship," Jessica nodded.

"I see." the captain replied thoughtfully with a soft voice. "And do you have any specific ideas as to where you would like to end up when you complete your time aboard Galileo?" she asked. "Are you thinking of staying in Starfleet or transferring to a civilian practice?"

"I guess that would depend on how my time in Starfleet goes," Jessica commented thoughtfully.

"Oh?" Lirha replied with a tilt of her head. She hoped that the ensign would elaborate a bit for her, but at the same time didn't want to discuss the issue if she preferred not to.

"If Starfleet is a good fit for me then I'd stay in, if not then civilian practice would probably be a better option," Jessica explained.

Lirha nodded in understanding. "That makes sense." she replied with a small grin. "Although...you probably won't get the opportunity to travel the stars as much if you choose the civilian route." she added, throwing out some food for thought to the ensign.

"Perhaps not," Jessica agreed. "Although the idea of settling down somewhere is attractive, albiet not yet."

"Yes, I know the feeling. I've often thought about my life after Starfleet but I am a career officer, and the opportunity to settle down probably won't be coming anytime soon." the captain replied with a shrug. "Well, in the meantime...how are you enjoying your stay on Galileo?" she wondered, hoping that the young intern was content with her situation aboard the starship.

"It's going alright ma'am, for the most part," Jessica replied, then instantly regretted adding the second part on, the last thing that she wanted was for either the Captain to think that she was moaning, or for the CMO to think that she was trying an end-run around her, so she hoped that the CO didn't push it, but was blushing regardless.

"Excellent, I am happy to hear." Lirha said with a casual nod. "Am I correct in assuming that this is your first starship posting?" she asked, curious to know if Jessica had served aboard any other vessels prior to hers.

"It is, I had a brief period of leave after passing out of SMA to do some background research, but this is my first posting aboard a Starship," Jessica nodded.

"And...?" the captain asked with a raised eyebrow and a tiny smile. "How are you enjoying the experience so far? I know we aren't exactly the most advanced medical frigate in the fleet, but we have more facilities than most other ships our size."

"It's much different than I though it would be, but in a good way," Jessica replied. "I've been kept busy, which is of course a good thing."

"I have always believed that a busy crew is a productive crew. Especially in space, where it can be easy to lose focus if we don't have a daily routine." Lirha said, then shifted her weight on her feet and leaned against the nearby wall. "Speaking of which, I hope I am not keeping you from your duties. If I remember correctly, you are the gamma shift medical officer on duty, yes?"

"Yes Ma'am, I was running a little late, but I'd cleared it with the Doctor I was supposed to be relieving," Jessica replied uncomfortably.

Slowly nodding, Lirha realized that she was keeping the young ensign from her duties, and didn't want to waste any more of her time standing around in the corridor. "Oh...well in that case, I don't want to keep you from sickbay any longer than necessary. Who knows, someone might have a severe case of Bolian rash..." she said light-heartedly.

"Oh I really hope not, it's a pain to get rid off," Jessica replied with a slight smile. "Good Night, Ma'am."

"Good night, Miss Wilson." Lirha replied as she returned the smile, then headed back towards the turbolift to continue her late-night roaming.

[OFF]

--

CAPT Lirha Saalm
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

ENS Jessica Wilson M.D.
Medical Officer (Intern)
U.S.S. Galileo

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