First Contact

Posted on 03 Jan 2014 @ 12:02am by Lieutenant Olsam Mott & Captain Jonathan Holliday

1,967 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 05 - Solstice
Location: Ready Room, USS Galileo
Timeline: MD 06 - 1100 hrs

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Olsam frowned. Why were yard engineers always in a bad mood? Did the Starfleet Engineering Corps screen applicants, diverting the most irritable among them to safeguard ships during maintenance, refit and repair? It had taken a discussion with three different officers and a solemn oath to stay off Deck 3 at all costs before they'd allow him onto the Galileo. He assumed they thought he was making up the excuse of visiting the CO in order to gain access to Sickbay, which for some reason was off-limits even to the Assistant Chief Medical Officer.

Rude, he thought.

When the turbolift came to a halt on Deck 1 and the doors parted to reveal the bridge, the silence seemed deafening. A bridge was never quiet so it seemed very eerie, as if the ship had been powered down and abandoned in deep space. Most stations were in standby mode, and there wasn't a single crewman to be found anywhere. Even the lights were dimmed.

Olsam took a tentative step forward and surveyed the command center of the ship, half-expecting a member of Species 8472 to leap out from behind the conn. He imagined it would be a rare opportunity to be here during missions, unless there was some medical emergency that required his attention and even then he wouldn't have the opportunity to just look around. Best to take advantage of the time he had to look around.

As he made his way down the right side of the bridge toward the Ready Room, he passed several of the ship's science stations. Eyes darting from side-to-side, he could hardly suppress his curiosity. He stepped toward the nearest one and ran a hand across its smooth, alluring display. Half the lights on the bridge suddenly brightened by 50% and Olsam yelped, furiously mashing the button again to re-dim the lights.

Looking around to make sure no one had witnessed the crime, he took the cuff of his uniform and carefully but thoroughly wiped down the display to remove his fingerprints. You could never be too careful with those watchdog yard engineers. He felt certain they'd be running a forensic sweep behind him the moment he left.

At the Captain's Ready Room, Olsam pressed the door chime on the keypad and waited patiently.

As far as the Captain knew, the ship was virtually empty, save for the small colony of engineers who were scurrying through the bowels of the ship in an effort to improve any system they could lay their hands on. With the ever-growing mountain of paperwork being left squarely on his shoulders since the departure of Commodore Saalm, the CO had retreated to the Ready Room to try and obtain some semblance of order. This of course, had appeared doomed to failure since it's first inception.

Putting down the PADD in his hand to rest on the desk amongst the dozen or so other ones that sat alongside it.

"Come."

At the verbal command the doors swished open in front of Olsam, and he stepped inside with some hesitancy. The information he'd gathered thus far seemed to indicate Captain Holliday was a very serious, no-nonsense man who'd only recently suffered an unthinkable degree of trauma. He hoped he wasn't stepping into an enclosed space with someone needing to lash out.

"Captain Holliday?" Olsam ventured, taking a step forward. There were enough PADDs on the desk that if stacked right they could hide the commanding officer entirely. "I'm Dr. Olsam Mott, the new Assistant Chief Medical Officer. Is this a bad time?"

"Doctor - when you take a command post for the first time, every time is a bad time. Nevertheless I'm sure I can find time amongst the armada of reports for you. Please, take a seat."

John resigned himself to the fact that this report on the efficiency of Galileo's waste extraction system during the last mission would have to wait. Starfleet Engineering would most likely be a little pissed at him for delaying their research, but the needs of the crew came first.

"What can I do for you?"

"Um, well, really I was just coming to introduce myself," Olsam replied, easing down into the seat opposite the desk from the captain with some degree of uncertainty. He stayed on the seat's edge, just in case he was quickly dismissed. "I've already met with Commodore Saalm and Dr. Allyndra, so it seemed...advisable...to come and report for duty with you."

He glanced at the PADDs on the desk and then up to his commanding officer, finding in his appearance everything one might expect from Starfleet's battle hardened officer corps. Of particular note to Olsam was the scar on Captain Holliday's left cheek; a pass or two with a dermal regenerator would have prevented such lasting damage, which meant he must have left it for a reason.

"Indeed..." John replied, taking a moment to look their new ACMO up and down as he sat ahead of him. The Captain had always been the stricter version of the two command staff during his time as Saalm's XO, but with his recent promotion it occurred to him that he was the one now making the lasting impression on the new recruits.

"Well I appreciate the honesty and the attention to detail. I respect an officer who follows protocol. Welcome aboard the Galileo. I trust you have been making yourself familiar with the ship?"

"Thank you, sir," Olsam said, trying to keep his eyes from darting around to avoid the captain's withering gaze. "I've been familiarizing myself as much as I can... The yard engineers don't seem too inclined to allow people on board at the moment. But I served a year on another Nova-class - the Pulsar - so I'm familiar with the basic deck layout and Sickbay configuration."

"Excellent - I suggest you log into the LCARS system as soon as it is back up and running fully and take a look at our upgraded layout - there are a few changes that aren't on the standard documentation." John replied, making a note to check that the Doctor had been successfully incorporated into their LCARS access system.

"Of course, sir, I'll do that as soon as possible."

Olsam shifted in his seat, suddenly reluctant to reveal the full extent of his agenda in visiting the commanding officer. He didn't want to start off on the wrong foot, and he felt like Captain Holliday might be the sort to resent nosy doctors.

"Um, Captain," Olsam ventured, "it's my understanding from conversations with Commodore Saalm that you were recently assimilated by the Borg."

John's facial expression dropped to nothingness, his skin becoming slightly paler at the mention of the Borg. Tensing his hands together in his lap, the Captain took a deep breath before continuing.

"Yes...you would be correct Doctor.....I was captured during our last mission...however that is now all in the past."

The Captain tried not to relive those memories as best he could - they were certainly not ones that he ranked amongst his favourite, or indeed his most enjoyable experience. The feeling of helplessness that he had experienced that day coupled with the damage he had done to so many of his own crew would no doubt haunt the CO until his final days.

"Temporally speaking, yes," Olsam said, giving a small nod of agreement. Ordinarily he was very friendly, informal and easy-going, but his joviality seemed to have taken a break for a moment. It had been replaced by a hard-nosed, serious, concerned doctor. If he'd brought one with him, now would have been the opportune time to break out his medical tricorder. "Physiologically and psychologically, I would beg to differ, I'm afraid. Even a Vulcan couldn't put trauma of that magnitude behind them so quickly. Have you reported for your post-deployment medical and psychiatric evaluation yet?"

John had to admit that perhaps he hadn't exactly followed procedure as far as making sure his psych eval was completed before returning to duty. He had decided that the best use of his time was on the Bridge of a starship, not lying on the couch of a psychiatrist.

"I have far more important things to be worrying about than satisfying a tick on some paperwork Doctor. I'll get around to it when I decide I have the time."

"Paperwork required by Starfleet Command within a specified time frame, if I'm not mistaken," Olsam corrected. "They usually prefer to do these things at the Fleet Deployment Clinic, but I'm sure they'll be happy to make an exception for the ACMO. My schedule is clear for the remainder of the day and week, so I can perform the post-deployment medical assessment at your convenience. Even on the ship, if that's better for you. Or, if you prefer, I would be happy to get in touch with Dr. Allyndra. I believe she's soon departing for Philadelphia but probably more than willing to drop by to tend to your medical needs."

Olsam paused pointedly and fixed the captain with a steady gaze that was neither challenging nor confrontational; rather, he was clearly concerned for his commanding officer's health, interested in performing his medical duties, and unwilling to drop the matter.

"Psychological assessments are not my speciality, but I have had the opportunity to lunch with our newest counselor, Lieutenant Mirr, and I believe his training in combat-related post-traumatic stress makes him well suited to speak with you."

"As I said Doctor...I will get around to it when time permits." John replied, asserting his authority over the situation. Mott was not the first member of Starfleet Medical to tell him to speak with a counsellor but as far as the Captain was concerned, this simply was not necessary.

"However...if you feel that I am in need of a medical examination before returning to duty - I will agree to such a thing. But counselling remains at my discretion - if I need it, I will seek it out. Understood?"

Olsam gave the captain a blank stare for a long moment while weighing his options. Captain Holliday's flat refusal to seek counseling seemed to only reinforce the need for it. However, Olsam recognized he was new to the Galileo, and he didn't want to force the issue on his very first meeting with the ship's commanding officer.

A strategic retreat on the point seemed in order.

"Very well," Olsam said, flashing a cheery, satisfied Bolian smile that belied the true nature of his response. "I'll set up an appointment for you through the Fleet Deployment Clinic and someone from the Galileo's medical staff will conduct the medical assessment."

"Agreed. Now Doctor if you would care to excuse me? This report is getting later by the second?"

John did not wait to begin work on his report once more, picking up the PADD and staring deeply onto the screen in front of him. In truth the Doctor's attempt to push him towards counselling had only helped to increase John's resistance, and instead he had found himself buried further into his work so as to avoid spending too much time on the couch of one of his counselling staff. Nevertheless, protocol did require him to have a clean bill of health.

"That said....I will take your advisement of counselling for consideration. Later."

"Of course, sir," Olsam said, getting up from the seat and exiting the ready room.

On the bridge, he took a deep breath, held it for a moment and then released it. That was just short of disastrous, but short nonetheless.

[ OFF ]

Captain Jonathan Holliday
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

&

Lieutenant JG Olsam Mott, M.D.
Assistant Chief Medical Officer
USS Galileo

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