Security Review, Part 1

Posted on 02 Oct 2016 @ 7:02am by Lieutenant JG Rayze & Lieutenant Amaranai Franklin
Edited on on 11 Oct 2016 @ 11:56pm

2,011 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 12 - Recluse
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 3, Security Office
Timeline: MD -05, 0800 Hours

ON:

Amaranai made her way to the Security office. She had a meeting with the Chief and she wanted to be on time. As she walked, Amaranai considered what she had learned over the years in terms of Security and Tactical training. She felt that she was very skilled and capable but she had never been an Assistant Chief before and that was the one thing that she was worried about.

She mentally shook the worry from her mind, though, as she approached the door and entered. Sitting at a desk - the Chief's desk - was the same person that she had witnessed almost assault the Admiral when they had beamed aboard the Galileo. Composing herself, she stepped into the office.

"Lieutenant Junior Grade Amaranai Franklin, sir," she said. "I'll be your Assistant Chief of Security and Tactical."

Rayze raised both hands in the air and waved them around, as if trying to ward off the woman's words, and his facial expression looked as if he'd tasted something sour, "No, no, no, that just doesn't sound right." He stood up and came around the desk, crossed his arms over his chest, took a deep breath, and let out an enormous amount of words for just that one lungful. "Everyone I've met on this ship so far seems so intent on this ranks business, yes sir, no sir, aye sir, right away sir. Is it really that important to people? Things like this, I'm gonna need your input on. I'll be relying on you for all sorts of stuff, I'm sure, but I want you to feel comfortable telling me anything you need to as well, Amaranai. What do you think it'd do to Security's morale if I made it a standing order to not call me sir, or lieutenant, or anything like that? I'll tell you, I'd bet it wouldn't be as bad as some people think it might. I mean, look at me Amaranai, I don't have any problems because of it!" His hand went to his collar, fingers fiddled with pips, completely unaware he was doing so.

Amaranai was caught off guard by the man in front of her when he said she was doing something incorrectly.

"It is standard protocol to address a superior officer that way, is it not?"

She didn't wait for an answer as she decided to continue answering his questions. She was still wary of him, especially now that he had commented on her introduction.

"I'll be happy to tell you anything you want, sir," she started. "As long as I'm comfortable telling you." She paused. "But believe me when I tell you that you will be able to rely on me for anything while I am on duty."

She wanted to say something else but held her tongue knowing that her words could still get her into trouble despite whatever the Chief said.

"Oh, sure, I don't doubt it," Rayze said. He leaned an arm against the console, took his ease. "I've read your file, you do a good job. You've served on a lot of ships since you graduated from the Academy. You bounced back from a couple of bumps along the way, right? How do you feel about coming to Galileo though? A tiny little science ship with an even tinier Security detachment doesn't leave a lot of room for advancement."

Amaranai knew that the lieutenant would have read her file once he became chief so she wasn't surprised by his comments. She was a little disappointed that he brought up her "bumps along the way", however, as she felt that those were behind her and did not need to be addressed. His question was definitely one that she had orginally considered, but when problems arose on the Gemini, Amaranai knew that it was time to go.

"At the moment, lieutenant," she started. "I'm just happy to be someplace that needs me. It might be a small Security detachment and our tactical needs might not be vast, but again, the Galileo needed me and I needed to get away from my previous post.

"Let's hope things go smoother here. But I think it's admirable you've kept working hard despite everything else that came up. Shows character." Rayze offered the compliment casually, not making a big deal out of it, but perhaps providing a different outlook on why he'd brought up her record. "So, what are your specialties, Amaranai? Something more illuminating than dry words on a file would be nice. And really, you can just call me Rayze."

She heard his comment but didn't say anything. She had lived with her mistakes and was slowly working to remove them entirely. If she had the ability, she would remove them from her record completely but unless she were an admiral, she had a feeling that doing so would be considered illegal.

"Thank you, Rayze," she finally said. "As for my specialties, I'm more suited behind a weapons console than I am in hand to hand combat." She paused. "I am fully capable of defending myself and doing the job," she continued. "It's just that I am more comfortable when defending the ship with its own armaments."

With more seriousness than he'd shown so far, Rayze looked at the woman intently with something close to disapproval. He waited quietly for a bit, but when nothing more was forthcoming, he spoke again and if he was disappointed with the answer it didn't come across in his tone. "Okay, it's commendable to know your areas that need improvement as much as your strengths. Tactical is no joke either, especially considering we're dealing with a ship that has limited options compared to other, larger classes." Rayze paused, working out the best way to continue to be diplomatic; to him, there was a lot more to Security than potential violence, but he didn't want to seem like he was talking down to Amaranai or belittling her skills.

"What about outside of combat situations? I ask because I'd like to make sure our team puts the best people to take we have to handle, and so you and I can work up a training schedule. Investigations, forensics, laws and regulations, diplomacy, that sort of thing. Do you consider yourself a people person, good at gaining people's trust and cooperation, or do you feel you work better at administrative tasks?"

"When I was on my previous ship, I was relegated to escort duty for ambassadors or guests. Not really sure why, but I suppose the Chief had his reasons, just like they all do."

She paused a moment to consider all that Rayze had been asking.

"If you would prefer me to handle more of the administrative tasks for the department, I can do that." She looked at him. "But I will not be a secretary nor will I be called a secretary."

It was one of the few words in the English language that she despised. Amaranai had pride in her skills as an officer and didn't want to demean herself by being a gloried secretary.

"You asked what kind of person I consider myself. If you asked my crewmates on the Gemini you'd get different stories. Some would say I'm a bitch and some would say I'm great to talk to. But since you wanted my own opinion, I'd have to lean toward bitch." She smiled at her own words. "But I can be great to talk to if I find the other person fascinating enough."

Another pause.

"I have completed several simulations on investigation but even I know I can do better. Like I said," she said. "If you would like me to deal with administrative tasks, I can do that."

"Oh, I'm sure we'll both have more than enough paperwork to handle without me putting more on you," Rayze explained. "There's always forms, sometimes in triplicate, wherever someone calls us because they lost their pet Tribble, let alone when there's something actually serious going on. I meant, by administration, the management, the leadership, of a group of people. Someone obviously thinks you're qualified, because you're here. But how do you feel about being in charge?"

A light dawned in Amaranai's brain as Rayze explained himself. She was so used to people trying to take advantage of her or using her for certain things.

A light dawned in Amaranai's brain as Rayze explained himself. She was so used to people trying to take advantage of her or using her for certain things.

"Well," she said after a moment. "If that's what you want to know." She paused to think. "I have no qualms about leading," she started. "I'll make the necessary decisions if I have to but I also won't hesitate to talk to you about certain situations that arise."

The smile Rayze wore at the response was big and genuine; he'd been concerned for a moment that they wouldn't be able to meet somewhere that their different personalities lead them. That they had their own ideas about how to do things was obvious, but he believed that could be a strength and didn't have to be a problem. "I'm glad to hear it. And you should feel free to tell me when you disagree with me, though let's try to keep that in private and outside of immediate situations."

Amaranai nodded her head.

"If I've learned one thing from all of my bumps in the road, it's to keep things private."

She paused as she thought about all of her issues from her past and just as quickly shoved them out of her mind.

"Thank you for giving me this opportunity. I might let you down, I might disappoint you at some point, but I will never question your judgement or your orders."

"Never?" Rayze asked with a sly expression. "Stop, you'll make me crazy with power." He chuckled and shook his head, "But seriously, I don't want some Borg drone to be my second, blindly following my will. If you disagree with me, if you have an idea, if you just know how to do something better than what I come up with, I want to hear it. I can't promise we'll do things your way, but I can promise I'll listen and hear you out, Amaranai."

He suddenly slapped his thighs with his palms and stood up straight, "Well, I think that about covers things for now though. Let's set up a meeting with the rest of the team soon, introduce ourselves, and give them some orders." Rayze gestured for Amaranai to come closer and join him at the display as he pulled up the schedules he'd been working on. "So, for training, I was thinking we could try..."

Amaranai nodded as he corrected her again regarding questioning orders if necessary and being able to offer her own ideas and suggestions if others existed. She was going to have to be more careful with what she said. There had been postings that she had been on that she thought were "open dialogues" between her and the Chiefs but they never turned out that way. She hoped Rayze would be different.

It was probably a good idea for the Security team to meet to discuss their plans and strategies since they were about to be led by two new officers on the ship. She stepped closer and looked at the monitor with Rayze as he started to explain his training schedule. After a few moments, she nodded again.

"It seems like a good place to start," she said. "So is finding out everyone's strengths at the separate meeting. That way, we can determine if a change is needed with your schedule." She paused. "Plus, if we think others could use a refresher or if you want someone to cross-train, those options would be more clear after the meeting."

[OFF]

Lieutenant (jg) Rayze
Chief of Security/Tactical
USS Galileo

&

Lieutenant (jg) Amaranai Franklin
Assistant Chief of Security / Tactical
USS Galileo

RSS Feed