The Ceremony (Part 3 of 4)

Posted on 31 Dec 2013 @ 11:17am by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Captain Jonathan Holliday & Commander Scarlet Blake & Lieutenant Commander Dea Mialin & Commander Allyndra illm Warraquim & Lieutenant Theron Rhodes & Lieutenant Ammar Fahad & Lieutenant Asahi Kita & Commander Norvi Stace & Lieutenant Jared Nicholas & Lieutenant JG Delainey Carlisle & Lieutenant Min Zhao & Lieutenant Olsam Mott & Command Master Chief Markum Quinn & Commander Luke Wyatt & Alexander Iella & Tarishiana Barel

1,711 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Episode 05 - Solstice
Location: Starfleet HQ - 1st Floor, Tertiary Meeting Hall
Timeline: MD 03 - 0755 hrs

Previously, on The Ceremony (Part 2)...

As the computer confirmed the transfer, the words echoed in John's skull, he was now the commanding officer of the newest Nova class in the fleet, one that had made a name for itself in the pages of Starfleet history, and one that would bring great fame and honour to her crew. Gulping again, Holliday took her hand warmly and returned her smile before uttering the words that completed his takeover of the Galileo.

"I relieve you Ma'am."

"I stand relieved," Lirha replied, then turned to face her former crew one last time before stepping back and allowing Galileo's new captain to address his crew.

And Now, the Continuation...

[ON]

Stepping up to the podium, John looked out on his assembled crew. He took a moment to savour the thought, his crew, the men and women that he would be ultimately responsible for in the depths of space, and the team that would depend on each other for the foreseeable future.

"Thank you Commodore Saalm. I realise that this may come as a shock to you all, please understand that it came as much of a shock to myself and the Command staff. Galileo is a fine ship, and one that I have felt honoured to serve on this past year. I only hope that I can depend on that same steadfast loyalty and honour that you showed to then-Captain Saalm to be shown to me."

Taking a moment to breathe, the Commander reached under the podium for his own PADD, and tagged his thumbprint against the extra orders that had been outstanding since his meeting with Admiral Hurin.

"Crew of the Galileo, with my promotion to Captain, it is my pleasure and privilege to announce the promotion of Miss Blake to the rank of full Commander, and her place at my side as my new First Officer."

Scarlet remained silent, having already been privy to the surprise shake up. She smiled gently, nodding to Holliday with both acceptance of the new task and respect for his.

Allyndra sat more puzzled than anything else, while it was a honour for Lirha to become a flag officer to be still on the same ship as an advisor was somewhat of a shock. She could only speculate as to what the actual 'advisor' part meant and that would have implications for what transpired once the ship was re-outfitted. She shook off her thoughts, and stood and clapped with the others.

Dea was shocked by the change in command. Pleased for Captain Holliday and his new Executive Officer. She continued to listen. Part of her had to wonder if something else was up for Lirha to stay on as an advisor.

This shouldn't have come as a surprise to Asahi, but it did. Just as he was getting to know the pretty Orion lady too. Not that he expected to cease contact with Lihra, but this was going to be a definite change. Hopefully Holliday didn't know any of his Starfleet instructors too well.

Whatever poker face Delainey had been able to maintain up to that point was now gone, the surprise clearly evident on her face. Though it only took a matter of moments to formalize the announced changes, and even though they weren't entirely uncommon in Starfleet, Carlisle understood it represented huge changes for the crew psychologically. Depending on how the transition was handled, the crew could either feel better or worse.

It also occurred to her that with Scarlet moving up, Delainey might be assuming the position of Chief Counselor, though she knew nothing was guaranteed. These changes meant the two of them needed to have a conversation, at the very least, ASAP.

Jared let out a small sigh. He had been able to repair the damage after the escapade that almost got him kicked of ship when he arrived. He was no longer infatuated with him either. Things were going to be different for a while. That was for sure.

"Furthermore." John continued, waiting for the hubbub to die down again before continuing.

"Galileo will be in need of a new Second Officer. It is therefore my decision to assign Lieutenant Commander Mialin to that post. Congratulations."

The Orion commodore moved up next to Holliday to formally echo the CO's sentiment. "Congratulations to Commander Blake and Commander Mialin for their promotions and I have the utmost confidence they will serve with distinction as we move forward. As I mentioned, I will still remain aboard Galileo and serve as mission adviser and a strategic operations consultant for our task force. You will all see me around but serving in a different capacity." She looked across the crowd again for a final time. "I realize it is early, so without keeping you waiting, you are all dismissed."

What Holiday said next caught Dea by even more surprise. Her new dress uniform felt strange with the new rank. That would take some getting used to. She wasn't at all prepared to her her name called as Galileo's new Second Officer. Turning to Lirha and her new commanding officer, "Thank you Commodore, Captain." It was safe to say on some level Dea felt a bit intimidated by her new role.

Stace pursed her lips in thought, her arms folded gently across her chest. She leant in to Mott and, with a raised eyebrow, said quietly, "Well, I didn't see that coming."

"Me, either," Olsam admitted. The rest of the crew looked like they ran the full gamut of emotions: elated, surprised, shocked, concerned. But he didn't know a single soul aboard the ship, much less have an understanding of the inner workings on its command, so it didn't signal anything in particular to him. The new commanding officer looked like the big burly sort, though. Olsam glanced down at his stomach, straining against the dress uniform, and silently hoped there wouldn't be manditory morning exercise routines. "Do you know them well? Captain Holliday looks...serious."

"Not at all," Stace replied simply. "In fact, I know less about the captain than I do about the commodore." She turned to face Mott and with wide, green eyes, said, "Serious, though? You don't know the half of it. Last time I saw him, he was a walking computer. Proper Borgified. Not pretty. Or fun. But I imagine he's lightened up a little since his extraction."

He opened his mouth to respond but the approach of Dr. Carlisle cut him off. Borgified? Walking computer? He cut his eyes from side to side, taking in the crew around him and suddenly not so certain of his place amongst them. Surely they wouldn't let some kind of liberated Borg command a ship, right? He'd read the latest studies on the removal of Borg technology and subsequent rehabilitation, but they weren't exactly 100% effective.

Delainey didn't want to interrupt Stace and Olsam, but she approached the two with the intention of saying hello to Stace and introducing herself to the new doctor.

"Ah, Doctor Carlisle," Stace then said, spying yet another teal dress uniform coming her way and ushering her in to their triple-fold conversation. "This is Doctor Mott... He's the Gally's new Assistant Chief Medical Officer. Olsam, this is Counselor Delainey Carlisle."

"Oh, hello, Dr. Carlisle. Just Dr. Olsam or Olsam will do," he reminded. He stole one last quick glance toward Captain Holliday to see if he could spot any implants before turning his attention back to his Trill and Human companions. "Pleased to meet you, counselor."

Ammar grunted quietly. It wasn't like Starfleet to leave a Commodore on a small ship like Galileo without having the command. Something strange was going on. And he didn't like getting involved with the brass, even if he was getting closer and closer to becoming them.

Alex approached Commander Blake as people started to file out. "I guess Congratulations are in order Commander, a promotion and a new position." He said as he extended a hand looking to shake hers. "From what I've heard about you, it was deserved."

Scarlet watched Alex with surprise at the assertion that she deserved it. She smiled as she took his hand, shaking it firmly. "It's kind of you to say, although I should, perhaps, be worried people are hearing things about me," she chuckled, a playful look in her eye for just a moment. "It's good to have you with us."

"Commander, I'm a bartender, I hear a lot of things about a lot of people." Alex said with a laugh as well.

Quinn walked up to Holliday and put an arm around his shoulder. "Congrats, Boss. You're a damn good officer, sir, and I'm proud to be serving under you and Commander Blake."

"Thank you Mr Quinn. I assure you the feeling is more than mutual. I must ask however, for your discretion with a specific task."

Taking a moment to look around him to ensure nobody was listening in, the Captain leaned in to the seasoned officer and returned the arm around his shoulder.

"I believe Commodore Saalm had an agreement with you regarding the brewing of...Orion Ale....could I suggest we look to continue the practice? As a mark of respect to the Commodore of course."

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

CDRE Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

Lt. Theron Rhodes
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Cmdr Allyndra illm Warraquim
Chief Medical Officer
USS Galileo

CAPT Jonathan Holliday
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

LT Norvi Stace
Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo

Commander Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo

LT CMDR Dea Mialin
Second Officer/Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Galileo

Command Master Chief Markum Quinn
Chief of the Boat
USS Galileo

Tarishiana Barel
Civilian Scientist
USS Galileo

Ltjg Min Zhao
Asst Chief of Operations
USS Galileo

LT Ammar Fahad
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galileo

Alexander Iella
Bartender/Chef
USS Galileo

LTJG Olsam Mott
Asst. Chief Medical Officer
USS Galileo

LT Delainey Carlisle
Counselor
USS Galileo

LT Asahi Kita
Engineering Officer
USS Galileo

CPO Luke Wyatt
Security/Tactical Officer
USS Galileo

LT Jared Nicholas
Linguist
USS Galileo

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