Earth Departure (Part 1 of 2)

Posted on 22 Mar 2014 @ 10:29am by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Lieutenant Jared Nicholas & Ensign K'os Beaumont & Lieutenant Jacob Pendleton & Command Master Chief Markum Quinn & Captain Jonathan Holliday & Lieutenant Commander Dea Mialin & Lieutenant Theron Rhodes & Lieutenant Min Zhao & Commander Andreus Kohl & Commander Norvi Stace & Commander Scarlet Blake & Petty Officer 1st Class Victarion Jaqen & Petty Officer 1st Class Oliver Morris & Rear Admiral James Hurin & Chief Warrant Officer 2 Arthur Willis & Lieutenant Asahi Kita & Senior Chief Petty Officer Keval zh'Erinov & Crewman Apprentice Sigrid Thelin

2,541 words; about a 13 minute read

Mission: Episode 05 - Solstice
Location: San Francisco Fleet Yards - Dock 34, USS Galileo
Timeline: MD 60 - 1830 hrs

[ON]

With the sun setting gracefully across the background of San Francisco's skyline, Starfleet's nearby planetary shipyard was a buzz of activity. Dock 34 had been Galileo's home for the past two months while yard engineers and dockworkers overhauled her systems and inner decks, and now the time had come for the tiny Nova Class to set sail once again into the cosmos.

Bright, white flood lighting from the dock structures shone magnificently against the ship's silver hull, and also illuminated a collection of departing shuttlecraft and workbees which had unloaded all of their last-minute cargo and personnel into Galileo in preparation for the starship's immanent departure. The dock's umbilical hardpoints slowly disconnected and swung free from the ship, officially signalling the beginning of the launch procedure.


Deck 1, Bridge

On board Galileo, the corridors were a flurry of busy crew members who were all hurriedly making their way to their stations after hearing the captain's launch command. No longer the commanding officer, Lirha had nonetheless moseyed from her quarters to the bridge in order to oversee the launch, and now stood near the center command chairs while she waited for the bridge crew to take their stations. The new bridge itself was remarkable, to say the least, and she looked around at the different stations while silently musing at the increased efficiency and open space it would probably present everyone with.

Jared stepped out on to the bridge and headed towards his station. He wasn't sure why a linguist was required for a launch, but he wasn't complaining. He loved being on the bridge and it let him be closer to the woman he loved.

K'os was already standing at his station with his hands clasped behind his back. He had literally run the entire way from the Enlisted quarters to the bridge when he got the call to report. He had arrived early and was already finishing the diagnostics on the power systems when the bridge started to become alive with the sounds of his fellow crewmembers reporting to their stations. The eagerness on his face was not hidden. He had not expected to be on the Bridge for the launch and he rocked back and forth on his heels as the built up excitement of the moment bubbled around inside him. His eyes darted across the readouts with a concentration that did little to stop the goofy grin on his face. From the helium plasma percentages in the fusion reactor to the levels of plasma power being channelled into the driver coils it was like a big musical symphony to him.

Jacob walked in, smiled and nodded to anyone who met his eyes. It was then that he knew he was back and back to where he belonged. He sat at his console and simply smiled. He just let his fingers glide over the screen and watch the data reports come through. He looked over where Lirha was and where soon John would stand and awaited orders.

Quinn entered the Bridge and walked to his station. While walking he nodded to K'os, "Petty Officer Beaumont. Look sharp on that engineering console. Keep an eye on the port ventral thruster. It lags sometimes."

"Aye, Master Chief." K'os said over his right shoulder. His left hand opened the thruster interface, resizing it and dragging it to the side of his monitor so he could watch it closely as instructed. He was ready to modify the driver coils output if needed. There would be no lag on this crewman's watch, he was determined.

Lt. Rhodes entered the bridge smartly and took up his station. Activating the tactical console with the touch of his thumb, the console showed his new configuration that he had been working on. He confirmed that all torpedo launchers were locked down and phaser arrays had no charge in the ionizing capacitors. Rhodes looked about the bridge confidently, awaiting the arrival of the Captain.

John took a last few deep breaths from inside his Ready Room knowing that when he emerged onto the bridge it would be his first appearance in command if an active starship. He had given the orders to prepare for departure from the safety of his office. But now, he had to step out into the world and earn the pips on his collar. With one last breath he stepped through the opening doors and into his future.

Dea was already at her station on the bridge. Out of habit she'd been running pre-flight diagnostics to ensure everything was ready for departure.

Jacob rose to attention when Captain Holliday entered the room and with his booming, deep voice said, "Captain on the Bridge! All Hands will comport themselves accordingly!"

Lt. Rhodes came to attention at the Tactical station. It was obvious to do so, since he was centermost on the Bridge. Setting an example is also important.

Jared had never cared much for pomp and circumstance and all the "Captain's On the Bridge let's all come to attention" kind of thing. But he wasn't a dumb ass either. So feeling a little guilty for caving into peer pressure, he stood up a little straighter

He didn't really come to attention per se. He left that to the more militant career seekers, ass kissers for the most part. He probably wouldn't have even done that except he had actually held a grudging respect for the freshly minted Captain.

At the LCARS Science station beside Jared, Andreus Kohl turned from his console to face the oncoming Captain. He dropped his hands by his sides to stand at attention, with a notable ass-kissing posture to the curve of his spine. Despite all the nervous or excited tension exuding from the officers around him, Kohl wasn't feeling it. He was disoriented, mostly, as if he were suffering from sleep inertia. He felt out of place. He felt like a fraud. Surely, he was supposed to be in Sickbay at a time like this, wasn't he? But, no, not any longer. The Bridge was his here now.

A bit slower than the others, Min stood up at her station, arms clasped behind her back, feet slightly spread. She'd made an unofficial alteration to the pose owing to some lower back pain, and really hoped it wouldn't be noticed, or at least overlooked if it was.

Quinn walked over to the Command Chair and patted his long-time friend on the back then gave a playful, yet discreet nudge. "Mornin Skipper. I'd like to officially welcome you to the Bridge of your first command, sir. The new holographic consoles are workin perfectly. Oh, as Willis bet me you'd put us in the Pacific, so don't let me loose that bet, sir." He said with a grin and another pat on the back. "Seriously though, congratulations."

John smiled for what felt like the first time in months at the sight of his Bridge crew coming to attention. He had worried for many a night that the crew would not accept him as their new leader, but to see them all stood perfectly to attention at his arrival warmed his heart. Taking a moment to look around, he patted the Master Chief on the shoulder in response to his jibing before stepping forward to acknowledge the respect from his crew.

"Thank you. Thank you everyone. As you were. We have a job to do, let's get this bird in the sky."

At the Captain's entrance Dea had come to attention at her station. She turned to face Holliday. "Galileo Flight Control is ready for departure Captain." It felt good to be back at her station.

"Thank you Lieutenant Commander. All stations report in."

John nodded to the conn before moving to take his chair in the centre of the hustle and bustle that was his Bridge. The chair was brand new, having only been installed a few hours before departure, and he was yet to try it out. Taking what felt like his thousandth deep breath, he turned and settled into the chair, feeling it's curves supporting his spine and hips as he gave it his seal of approval in his mind.

Gripping the arms tightly, he waited for his senior officers to confirm the ship was indeed ready to go.

Stace turned to Pendleton, Nicholas and Kohl and with a soft smile, nodded to them all. "Science department signed in and ready to depart, Captain," she called out, bringing the sensors fully online and relaying back to the labs below decks. "All sensors operating at peak efficiency. Relaying current atmospheric scans to navigation."

Lt. Rhodes spoke up from behind the Captain, "Sir, Ship's tactical systems have been disengaged for launch. All access points have been closed and secured."

Victarion stood back, watching what was going on with interest. He was here observing. That was his role. And he felt himself smile it with, with pure interest with what was happening.

Standing at his science station behind Victarion, Kohl's gaze drifted from Lieutenant Stace to Victarion. Kohl smiled softly. It hadn't occurred to him that his new duty station would mean he would be witness to the yeoman at work. Perhaps this was where he belonged after all, Kohl wondered.

Scarlet Blake leant back in her new chair at the Captain's side. She kept an eye on the reports scrolling across the screen at the arm of her chair, but nothing was showing up that contradicted the department heads reports of readiness. She looked across to Holliday, giving a small, almost colluding smile. She was pretty sure that what she was feeling about sitting in the First Officer's seat was close to what he was feeling too.

Oliver entered the bridge, at the request of Commodore Salm. He stood far alway form the flurry of activity as possible taking in the ambient conversations. The excitement that permeated the bridge was effecting. Here he was about to launch with a new crew and that alone made him both scared and giddy. The possibilities were endless.

On the Operations Console, an urgent incoming message indicated from Task Force Command.

Min glanced over the incoming message. "Captain. Incoming hail from Starfleet. Task Force Command wishes to speak with you Sir."

John felt a little perplexed at the state of affairs, it was not usual for TFC to contact them directly, especially during a launch. Looking towards the Commodore as she observed the goings on around the Bridge, he turned back to face the viewscreen.

"On screen Lieutenant."

On the screen came a youthful and bearded face of a man wearing a command red undershirt with the pips of a Rear- Admiral. "Captain Holliday, I'm glad I caught you before you shipped out. I wanted you to know that the Ninth Fleet End of Year Awards have finally come out and some pain in the ass on your ship won an award." Hurin grinned before continuing. "Oh, wait...that pain in the ass is you good sir. Even though you are now the Commanding Officer of the Galileo, you were once her XO. As Commanding Officer of Task Force Seventy-Two, it is with great pleasure to award you with the Obsidian Fleet's Executive Officer of the Year Award. Congratulations Captain. It would seem that your hard work and dedication has paid off. And tell Master Chief Quinn I appreciate his generosity the other night for cleaning me and the Harbor Master out in Five Card Stud."

John couldn't help but glance across at the Chief with a wry smile on the corner of his mouth. The gambling prowess of their ex-Chief Engineer was well documented aboard Galileo, and John often wondered why anyone was stupid enough to dare to play a game with him anywhere in the Alpha or Beta quadrants.

"Admiral. Thank you sir, I...I don't know what to say." John nodded gratefully at the image of the Vice-Admiral in front of him. It was a warming thought that as his last act as Galileo's First Officer he had been awarded the senior-most award available for someone in his position. A fitting send off as the ship planned to return to space with a new Captain in the big chair.

"You don't have to say anything, Captain. Just be safe out there Mister Holliday and keep my Deputy Task Force CO alive, please. Hurin out."

John nodded as the image of the Admiral disappeared from the screen. It had been a boon to his own confidence to hear that the Admiralty had finally given him credit for the job he had been doing all his life, and had given him even more hunger to perform well on his first mission in the Captain's chair.


***Below Decks***

Keval, in a fresh, crisp, newly replicated uniform, left his quarters and headed towards the Ops department to report in.

Willis was manning Main Engineering's master console, running secondary and tertiary systems checks; to be sure the ship's computer was feeding properly.

Asahi had decided to play supervisor, eyes glued to both PADD and the console in front of him. He vowed not to get in the way of anyone else's work, a task that was proving to be difficult for the antsy assistant chief, but he was learning. 'Everything's going to run smoothly.' His constant, internal chants would have been enough to make any curious mind-reader's head numb with aching.


Callisto Bar

Sigrid and the rest of the staff at Callisto bar were busy cleaning and preparing the bar for the crewmembers of Galileo to enjoy later. Everything was working correctly and she managed at the last minute to sort out a couple issues with the inventory, but all in all she thought the crew would enjoy the space very much. She couldn't wait to meet everyone.

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

CDRE Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

CAPT Jonathan Holliday
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

CMDR Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Theron Rhodes
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Galileo

CMCPO Markum Quinn
Chief of the Boat
USS Galileo

Lieutenant Andreus Kohl
Assistant Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo

SCPO Luke Wyatt
Security Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Teth Miir
Counselor
USS Galileo

Lt j.g. Min Zhao
Asst Chief of Operations
USS Galileo

Lieutenant Jacob Pendleton
Chief Research Officer
USS Galileo

Lieutenant Asahi Kita
Asst. Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galileo

Lieutenant Jared Nicholas
Linguist
USS Galileo

CPO Keval Grayson
Operations
USS Galileo
{PNPC Nichaols}

Lieutenant JG Elijah Williams IV
Geologist
USS Galileo

Lieutenant JG Victoria Crawley
Psychologist
USS Galileo

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

PO1 Victarion Jaqen
Yeoman
USS Galileo
[PNPC - Markos]

Lieutenant Norvi Stace
Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo

PO3 K'os Beaumont
Matter/Energy Systems Specialist
USS Galileo

PO1 Oliver Morris
Senior Yeoman
USS Galileo

Dr. Vincent Kramer, PhD.
Planetologist
USS <>Galileo
[PNPC - Rhodes]

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