Checking In [Backpost]

Posted on Wed Nov 28th, 2012 @ 8:25pm by Lieutenant Mikaela Breland & Captain Tobias Naros & Ensign Marshall Doering

Mission: Episode 1.1 - "MystiQue"
Location: Turbolift-En Route to Main Engineering, USS Yorktown
Timeline: Mission Day 0, 1524 Hours

::BACKPOST::

ON: [[Turbolift-En Route to Main Engineering, USS Yorktown, Mission Day 0, 1524 Hours]]

After arriving on the ship, Mikaela had made a brief stop at her quarters on Deck 4. Her belongings had made it safely, it seemed, and the quarters were decently spacious. Thus far, none of the ships she'd served on had been small, though while working in the Shipyard she had seen quarters on, for instance, a Defiant. After that brief stop, she had headed to the turbolift for a quick peek in Engineering before officially reporting in. It had been quite some time since she'd really been on a new, well nearly new, ship and she was anxious to see what she'd be working with.

It probably would have been more efficient to stop and check in with Captain Naros first, but she simply couldn't help herself. Besides, since they were still docked, it was likely she'd have a little time to get settled in before starting her first shift. Approaching the turbolift, Mikaela pressed the button and waited...but not for long. Moments later the doors opened and as she was about to step inside she noticed that someone was already inside. "Captain?" she asked, noting that the man was in command red and had four pips.

Tobias raised an eyebrow in an expression of what seemed to be momentary surprise at having been addressed directly before offering a small smile to the woman in services gold standing before him. "Lieutenant," he said kindly, shuffling toward one side of the turbolift car, "where to?"

Mikaela hesitated before confessing, "Well, sir...I was going to head down to Main Engineering to take a peek, but ultimately my plan was to find you so I could report in. I'm Lieutenant Mikaela Breland; I was just transferred over from Starbase 386 as your Assistant Chief Engineering Officer."

The lieutenant's name was immediately recognizable to the El-Aurian as one of many he had seen amongst the various transfer reports in the last several days. Just the fact she was to be the Yorktown's Assistant Chief Engineering Officer was enough to cause the memory of her file to stand out amongst the others. "Today must be your lucky day, Miss Breland," he remarked, "I happen to be headed that direction myself. If you don't mind having this conversation en route..."

Glad that he didn't seem upset that she had planned to visit Engineering prior to checking in, Mikaela smiled, "I don't mind, Captain. Two birds, one stone."

"Indeed," Tobias replied as the lift resumed its descent through the Yorktown toward main engineering, "Is this your first time serving aboard a Legacy-class starship?"

To help keep her mindset more formal, Mikaela clasped her hands behind her back, looking over at the man when he asked his question, "Yes, sir. I can't say I've had the privilege of even seeing one up close until now. From what I've seen thus far though, she's a beauty."

Tobias nodded in agreement. The lieutenant's response was similar to what many aboard the Yorktown might have said were they to have been asked the same question. Only a few Legacy-class starships had been completed and put into active service within Starfleet since the end of the Dominion War. In fact, Tobias knew he was somewhat of an anomaly in that the Yorktown was the second Legacy-class vessel he had served on in his career, his previous assignment having been aboard the Orlando-A. "I have a feeling she will be keeping all of us on our toes until we've had a chance to get to know her better," he said.

"Understandable, Captain. Is there anything about the ship and how she runs that I should be aware of from an Engineering standpoint? I plan on familiarizing myself with her, but if anyone has noticed something in particular, I can be sure to look into it," Mikaela noted as she tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. It was mostly a similar spiel to what she would give any Commanding Officer who was leaving their ship in the shipyard for her prior team to work on, actually.

"Not that I am aware of," Tobias replied as the lift came to a halt and they emerged into the corridor on deck sixteen, "The Yorktown is relatively young, only a few weeks out of the yard, so we'll have to take it easy on her for awhile."

Mikaela nodded, "I will do what I can to help with that...though I imagine whoever is flying the ship and our mission will be more of an initial determining factor." Her thoughts wandered briefly to Rhys (NPC) when he had been Chief Flight Control Officer on the Sentinel. "Have you received our next mission, sir?" As a non-senior staff officer she wasn't entirely sure how much she could be made aware of, but felt it would be a good idea to ask anyway.

The El-Aurian chuckled as they rounded a small bend in the corridor before continuing on their way toward main engineering. "Just this morning, in fact," he told her, "the Federation Diplomatic Corps has been working closely with members of the Detapa Council in hopes the council might pass legislation allocating supplies for the ongoing relief effort in Romulan space. Our job will be to help facilitate the final negotiations and, if successful, escort the supplies to Deep Space Four."

Considering the information, Mikaela slowly nodded. It seemed simple enough, but in her experience, missions rarely turned out that way. But maybe that was just the ships she'd been on. "How soon do we leave?"

"Admiral Tavez (PNPC) gave us thirty-six to forty-eight hours to get underway, but the Yorktown has been docked at Starbase 386 for almost two weeks now," Tobias answered, "I see no reason why we shouldn't be ready to depart in the morning."

"I will do what I can to familiarize myself with the ship before then, since that's the case," Mikaela replied, mentally adjusting her plans - unpacking would have to wait. "Is the Chief Engineering Officer aboard, sir?"

"I'm afraid we have not yet been assigned a Chief Engineer," Tobias replied as they stepped through the large double doors into the Yorktown's cavernous main engineering. He paused just inside the threshold to allow a moment for the entire scene to sink in. Personnel in services gold and technicians in gold jumpsuits were swarming all over the bay in an attempt to finish the last minute preparations for their departure. It was clear from the energized atmosphere why so many might have considered this particular section the heart and soul of any starship.

So much for introducing herself to the Chief Engineer then... Her afternoon was turning out quite different than Mikaela had originally planned. She was torn from her thoughts as they walked into Engineering, however. Quietly she watched as they worked for a few moments. "Quite a bunch of engineers," she said. "Shall I take it that I will temporarily be in charge until we receive a Chief Engineer, Captain? Or will someone else have that role?"

A short distance away, Marshall (PNPC) was hovering over the master systems display going over the list of tasks that needed to be finished before morning and trying to sort them into manageable assignments for each of the work teams. One might have thought the last two weeks had been busy enough, what with all the work they had been doing taking on supplies and personnel, but it hardly seemed comparable to the flurry of activity taking place around him at that very moment. He had even gotten so used to the sound of the doors opening and closing that he almost might have missed the two officers standing to one side of the main doorway if it had not been for his ability to recognize one of the two as being the Yorktown's Commanding Officer. "Keep an eye on those flow regulators, Gelvin (NPC), or we'll have to run the entire diagnostic over," the young operations officer remarked as he turned away from the 'pool table' and started to approach the two visitors.

"An impeccable sense of timing, Mister Doering. Your ears must have been burning," Tobias remarked with a small smile once the young man was close enough to hear them, "Lieutenant Breland, meet Ensign Doering, our Assistant Chief Operations Officer. Given all the work Mister Doering has been doing the last several days, perhaps it would have been more precise to call him our Acting Chief Operations/Engineering Officer..."

Marshall thought for sure his ears really were starting to burn after such a positive remark from his superior. The captain almost made it sound as if he were some sort of miracle worker, when in fact, it had taken nearly every bit of effort he had just to keep things from flying apart at the seams. "Pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant," he said with what he hoped was a welcoming smile and not one of those weird, forced grimaces.

"And you as well, Ensign," Mikaela replied with a grin. The Ensign seemed to be handling the duties fairly well, though he seemed perhaps a bit....ragged. Looking after two departments would likely do that to someone though. "Looks like you've been rather busy."

"Yes ma'am," Marshall replied with somewhat of a sideways glance in the direction of Captain Naros, "Most of our work here has been taking on supplies and personnel, trying to get everything organized, and sorting out any last minute hiccups before tomorrow's departure. She's made a pretty good name for herself so far and we're hoping to keep it that way."

Nodding, Mikaela said, "Always a good plan, though not always as easy to maintain. Any particular hiccups you've been dealing with?" She was interested to see what she'd be working with. However, she also noticed that Tobias hadn't specifically answered her question - perhaps this Ensign would remain Acting Chief for the time being after all.

"Oh, the usual," the young operations officer said, "the biggest struggle we've had since arriving has been manpower. I'd say at least a third to half of our work teams right now are a pretty even mix of engineering and operations personnel."

"Miss Breland will be taking over as Acting Chief Engineer for the time being," Tobias interjected by way of explanation, "which should help to distribute the work load a little more evenly for both of you."

Hoping the news would be welcome with the young man, she replied, "Officially I'm the Assistant Chief, but I'm told we don't yet have an actual Chief...so I'll be filling in. If you have some time later, perhaps you could bring me up to speed on our current status? I'm afraid this is my first time actually serving aboard a Legacy-class, though I have been doing some research since getting my new assignment."

"Of course, Lieutenant," Marshall said quickly. He had a feeling there would at least be some time for the two of them to talk once the lieutenant had gotten settled, even if they were in the midst of trying to prepare the ship for the next morning's departure. Certainly they did not need to take up any more of the captain's time with such details than necessary.

It was clear to Tobias that the three of them were quickly running out of room for conversation typically associated with such introductions. Ensign Doering had long been in the midst of coordinating their preparations for departure and Lieutenant Breland seemed to be quite interested in taking up her fair share of the load as soon as possible. "Sounds like the two of you will have things well in hand," he said with a small smile, "If there is anything you need from me, lieutenant, please do not hesitate to ask."

Mikaela smiled, "I would certainly hope so, Captain, and I will let you know if there's anything I need... For now the only thing that comes to mind is to just let me know if there's any news regarding a Chief Engineer."

The El-Aurian gave a short chuckle. "Trust me, Miss Breland," Tobias told her, "with the way things are going...you may very well know before I do."

OFF

A Joint Mission Post by:

Captain Tobias Naros
Commanding Officer
USS Yorktown

Lieutenant Mikaela Breland (PNPC)
Assistant Chief Engineering Officer
USS Yorktown
Played by: Lt Darvetti

and

Ensign Marshall Doering (PNPC)
Assistant Chief Operations Officer
USS Yorktown
Played by: Capt Naros