Judgement – Flyboy
by Lieutenant Bridget Stapleton & Chief Executive Officer Wayne Bradshaw
Post Details
::ON::
Edward Stapleton loved the smell of a shuttle bay. Machine oil and fuel and perspiration mingled together in a familiar, comforting aroma. The sounds, too... he closed his eyes, focusing on what he was hearing. Someone was repeatedly striking metal on metal, cursing it as he worked. That brought a smile to Edward's face, memories of doing exactly the same thing himself when one of his shuttles was down for repairs.
His past flooded his mind, images and sounds of days when he owned a shuttle taxi company on Earth. He loved every minute of it, and at the moment he missed it terribly. If he had to do it over again, would he have sold his business and gone with Bridget out into space? Between the memories, and the bay in which he now stood, he wasn't so sure. It would be a tough call.
He sighed and opened his eyes; it was a moot point to think abut that. His wife would come first. Always. So he leaned against the wall near a parts bin and drank in his surroundings, getting what little bit of a flyboy fix that he could.
Collin Bradshaw had just walked into the shuttle bay and was getting ready to do a preflight on one of the latest birds from the R and D department that was ready for testing. His time in the fleet had trained him well and he figured he could always spot a flyboy from about 50 kilometers. Today his senses were true to form as he spotted the older man leaning against the bulkhead watching the bay with what could only be described as a trained pilot's eye.
"Hey, you know this is a restricted area," said Collin with a grin and a twinkle in his eye.
Edward had seen the posted signs. He'd entered anyway, and hoped he wouldn't be noticed; worst thing could happen, they toss him out. So it was worth the gamble. He'd thought it would be a while longer before he was confronted, though. Darn his luck.
"I do. I just needed a bit of a flyboy fix. You know how it is to be grounded." Every pilot had experienced it, at least once. And hated it.
"Yah I know what you mean. Tell you what, you seem like an experienced pilot and I need someone to sit second seat on a new experimental shuttle we are designing. Feel interested in a spin, or do you just want to sit here and watch," said Collin calmly; he had a feeling he already knew what the mans answer would be.
In his head, Edward was doing the Snoopy dance; but outwardly, he just pushed himself off the wall and said, "Let's go." As they walked across the bay, Edward stuck out his hand. "Edward Stapleton. I used to own a shuttle taxi service."
"Collin Bradshaw. I helped design the shuttle we are going to be test flying today," Said Collin as he shook the other man's hand.
Collin led the way to a sleek-looking shuttle. It did not look anything like the other shuttles in the bay and literally seemed to float a few inches off the deck. Punching a couple of buttons on the side of the door Collin stepped aside to allow his guest to enter first. "Welcome to the X105 experimental shuttle," Collin said with a slightly over the top theatrical flourish.
"Nice," Edward breathed out as he entered, looking left and right down the center aisle of the shuttle. He walked toward the cockpit past plush seats with controls on the arm rests for personal holo-entertainment systems.
"These come standard?" he asked, meaning the upscale passenger seating.
"Actually, yes they do. You will also notice that the standard controls are not visible. we set it up so that the controls were on a holographic interface like the passenger area, only with a dedicated power system and triple redundant backups in case of power failure." He sat down in the pilot's seat and activated a small holoemitter.
Edward watched as the holographic control panel materialized before his eyes. He'd never interacted with a holographic control system before, and hesitantly he reached out his hand to touch the panel. It felt solid to his mind, just like it would if he were in a holosuite.
"Huh. Okay, pretty cool. But why the holographic controls instead of standard ones?" In his mind, he tried to calculate the cost of something like that, and figured the price had to be something like ten times what standard controls would cost. So there had to be a reason why this shuttle would be built this way.
"This shuttle is a test bed project so to speak, or at least it will be when we get things done. Right now it is just to see if something like the holo controls are viable. Same thing with the overall design. If no flaws are found, then it will go into production most likely with a standard control interface." Collin calmly strapped in and made ready to take the shuttle out for it's first test run.
Following suit, Edward clicked the 5-point harness in place and watched as Collin's fingers flew over the holographic controls. When they'd been cleared for take-off, Edward asked, "So you helped design this baby. Is it something you're pitching to Starfleet or will it be a public shuttle?"
"This model is, well, more of an executive shuttle. It will be put up to the public, but I highly doubt that many normal people will want a shuttle with a top speed of warp 8. However, business executives who have holdings around the federation and want to get there reasonably fast will likely be interested in this. As to who designed it, the initial concept was my idea; but the R and D department, of which I am the VP, were the ones that took the idea from paper to an actual craft," Collin said lightly as he piloted the shuttle out of the hangar bay and toward a flight lane that was intended for civilian craft.
"Interesting," Edward replied. "What company do you work for?"
"Bradshaw Intergalactic Incorporated. It is kindof a family owned company as far as the upper management is concerned. Though we are always looking for new people with certain skills," said Collin with a chuckle before he had a thought. "You seem to know what you're doing with a shuttle, so why don't you take the controls and put this baby through it's paces? She is a sports car shuttle, so don't worry about hurting her," he added, as he turned the controls over to Edward just to see if his own gut feeling was right about the man.
In surprise, Edward felt the shuttle pause as flight control was shifted to his panel. "Sure, you got it," he replied, a big grin across his face as his fingers plotted in a course that would take them on a tour around the eastern quadrant of the space station. He pushed the shuttle, weaving around orbit beacons and satellites. The shuttle handled just as Collin said - a sports car in space. Adrenaline coursed through his body as he took one turn a bit too close around a beacon, nearly clipping it as the engine whined at full capacity in the tight turn. "Handles like a dream," he said, bringing the speed back down to normal tolerances.
"Okay, got a question for you then. I know you work at the Box of Delights at the moment. I also know that you used to own a pretty successful shuttle taxi service back on earth. How would you like a Job with BII as a test pilot, as well as a personal pilot for the members of the management team? I am not sure what your salary would be at the moment, or anything like that. However, I can assure you it will likely be at least double what you are currently getting," said Collin calmly as he took the controls. He had expected the man beside him to do just exactly what he had done; the guy had some serious skills, even if he was a little rusty. "On a side note, you will likely get to fly this particular craft as well as get design input on other shuttles. Heck, maybe we would even throw in a shuttle or two for yourself," he added as he put the shuttle through another series of hairpin turns, before heading it back to the station docking bay.
Edward sat in stunned silence. The offer was the last thing he'd expected to hear from Collin. It was a dream job. And he should jump at the chance. Right this minute.
But...
Yolanthe was in jail. If he abandoned the kids at the Box... he just didn't want to do that.
As they approached the docking bay, Edward asked, "It's a great offer. How long do I have to think about it?"
"Ideally I would like an answer within 2 weeks. However, considering the nature of this job and the fact that it is short listed, I can give you as long as three months to think it over. There will likely be some travel involved, for which of course you are paid for; but the bulk of the job should see you stay right here on DS5," said Collin calmly.
"Okay, what about this? What if I worked part-time for you, during my days off from the Box?"
"I think we can make something like that work, at least for the short term. Ideally of course, we would like to see you come onboard full time, but I can understand where you are coming from. Tell you what: swing by the offices on your next day off, and you can meet the family. Since most of them will impact your job one way or another, it might be nice to know who they are. Keep in mind we are all former fleet and marine officers, so you might want to, as they say, dress to impress." Collin knew he was not exactly supposed to do it this way; his dad should be making the hiring pitch. But he was pretty sure that pop would not mind, considering the quality he was bringing in.
"I'm off day after tomorrow, so I'll stop by then," he said, as Collin smoothly settled the shuttle back into the bay. "So what exactly does your company do, besides design shuttles?"
"Alot of R and D stuff - shuttles, fighters, fast attack craft, weapons and the like. You will only have to worry about the shuttles, and maybe the fighters. Well those, and of course flying us bigwigs around. You will learn more at the meeting tomorrow though, as there are alot of things that I can not really go into without some papers being signed and the like." Collin shut the systems down and got ready to leave the shuttle.
Nodding his head, Edward unclasped his harness and stood. "Mister Bradshaw, it's been a pleasure. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow," he said, holding out his hand for the other man to shake it.
"Likewise, Mister Stapleton. I am looking forward to the meeting as well. I hope you like working with us, and will consider becoming full time eventually." He shook hands with the other man.
::OFF::
Edward Stapleton
Dabo Boy -and- maybe a pilot again?
(NPC by Charlene)
&
Collin Bradshaw
VP of R and D
NPC by David
by Lieutenant Bridget Stapleton & Chief Executive Officer Wayne Bradshaw
Post Details
| Title | Flyboy | |
| Mission | Judgement | |
| Author(s) | Lieutenant Bridget Stapleton & Chief Executive Officer Wayne Bradshaw | |
| Posted | Sun Mar 06, 2011 @ 1:16am | |
| Location | Docking Ring, Shuttle Bay 12 | |
| Timeline | SD37 - 0920 |
Edward Stapleton loved the smell of a shuttle bay. Machine oil and fuel and perspiration mingled together in a familiar, comforting aroma. The sounds, too... he closed his eyes, focusing on what he was hearing. Someone was repeatedly striking metal on metal, cursing it as he worked. That brought a smile to Edward's face, memories of doing exactly the same thing himself when one of his shuttles was down for repairs.
His past flooded his mind, images and sounds of days when he owned a shuttle taxi company on Earth. He loved every minute of it, and at the moment he missed it terribly. If he had to do it over again, would he have sold his business and gone with Bridget out into space? Between the memories, and the bay in which he now stood, he wasn't so sure. It would be a tough call.
He sighed and opened his eyes; it was a moot point to think abut that. His wife would come first. Always. So he leaned against the wall near a parts bin and drank in his surroundings, getting what little bit of a flyboy fix that he could.
Collin Bradshaw had just walked into the shuttle bay and was getting ready to do a preflight on one of the latest birds from the R and D department that was ready for testing. His time in the fleet had trained him well and he figured he could always spot a flyboy from about 50 kilometers. Today his senses were true to form as he spotted the older man leaning against the bulkhead watching the bay with what could only be described as a trained pilot's eye.
"Hey, you know this is a restricted area," said Collin with a grin and a twinkle in his eye.
Edward had seen the posted signs. He'd entered anyway, and hoped he wouldn't be noticed; worst thing could happen, they toss him out. So it was worth the gamble. He'd thought it would be a while longer before he was confronted, though. Darn his luck.
"I do. I just needed a bit of a flyboy fix. You know how it is to be grounded." Every pilot had experienced it, at least once. And hated it.
"Yah I know what you mean. Tell you what, you seem like an experienced pilot and I need someone to sit second seat on a new experimental shuttle we are designing. Feel interested in a spin, or do you just want to sit here and watch," said Collin calmly; he had a feeling he already knew what the mans answer would be.
In his head, Edward was doing the Snoopy dance; but outwardly, he just pushed himself off the wall and said, "Let's go." As they walked across the bay, Edward stuck out his hand. "Edward Stapleton. I used to own a shuttle taxi service."
"Collin Bradshaw. I helped design the shuttle we are going to be test flying today," Said Collin as he shook the other man's hand.
Collin led the way to a sleek-looking shuttle. It did not look anything like the other shuttles in the bay and literally seemed to float a few inches off the deck. Punching a couple of buttons on the side of the door Collin stepped aside to allow his guest to enter first. "Welcome to the X105 experimental shuttle," Collin said with a slightly over the top theatrical flourish.
"Nice," Edward breathed out as he entered, looking left and right down the center aisle of the shuttle. He walked toward the cockpit past plush seats with controls on the arm rests for personal holo-entertainment systems.
"These come standard?" he asked, meaning the upscale passenger seating.
"Actually, yes they do. You will also notice that the standard controls are not visible. we set it up so that the controls were on a holographic interface like the passenger area, only with a dedicated power system and triple redundant backups in case of power failure." He sat down in the pilot's seat and activated a small holoemitter.
Edward watched as the holographic control panel materialized before his eyes. He'd never interacted with a holographic control system before, and hesitantly he reached out his hand to touch the panel. It felt solid to his mind, just like it would if he were in a holosuite.
"Huh. Okay, pretty cool. But why the holographic controls instead of standard ones?" In his mind, he tried to calculate the cost of something like that, and figured the price had to be something like ten times what standard controls would cost. So there had to be a reason why this shuttle would be built this way.
"This shuttle is a test bed project so to speak, or at least it will be when we get things done. Right now it is just to see if something like the holo controls are viable. Same thing with the overall design. If no flaws are found, then it will go into production most likely with a standard control interface." Collin calmly strapped in and made ready to take the shuttle out for it's first test run.
Following suit, Edward clicked the 5-point harness in place and watched as Collin's fingers flew over the holographic controls. When they'd been cleared for take-off, Edward asked, "So you helped design this baby. Is it something you're pitching to Starfleet or will it be a public shuttle?"
"This model is, well, more of an executive shuttle. It will be put up to the public, but I highly doubt that many normal people will want a shuttle with a top speed of warp 8. However, business executives who have holdings around the federation and want to get there reasonably fast will likely be interested in this. As to who designed it, the initial concept was my idea; but the R and D department, of which I am the VP, were the ones that took the idea from paper to an actual craft," Collin said lightly as he piloted the shuttle out of the hangar bay and toward a flight lane that was intended for civilian craft.
"Interesting," Edward replied. "What company do you work for?"
"Bradshaw Intergalactic Incorporated. It is kindof a family owned company as far as the upper management is concerned. Though we are always looking for new people with certain skills," said Collin with a chuckle before he had a thought. "You seem to know what you're doing with a shuttle, so why don't you take the controls and put this baby through it's paces? She is a sports car shuttle, so don't worry about hurting her," he added, as he turned the controls over to Edward just to see if his own gut feeling was right about the man.
In surprise, Edward felt the shuttle pause as flight control was shifted to his panel. "Sure, you got it," he replied, a big grin across his face as his fingers plotted in a course that would take them on a tour around the eastern quadrant of the space station. He pushed the shuttle, weaving around orbit beacons and satellites. The shuttle handled just as Collin said - a sports car in space. Adrenaline coursed through his body as he took one turn a bit too close around a beacon, nearly clipping it as the engine whined at full capacity in the tight turn. "Handles like a dream," he said, bringing the speed back down to normal tolerances.
"Okay, got a question for you then. I know you work at the Box of Delights at the moment. I also know that you used to own a pretty successful shuttle taxi service back on earth. How would you like a Job with BII as a test pilot, as well as a personal pilot for the members of the management team? I am not sure what your salary would be at the moment, or anything like that. However, I can assure you it will likely be at least double what you are currently getting," said Collin calmly as he took the controls. He had expected the man beside him to do just exactly what he had done; the guy had some serious skills, even if he was a little rusty. "On a side note, you will likely get to fly this particular craft as well as get design input on other shuttles. Heck, maybe we would even throw in a shuttle or two for yourself," he added as he put the shuttle through another series of hairpin turns, before heading it back to the station docking bay.
Edward sat in stunned silence. The offer was the last thing he'd expected to hear from Collin. It was a dream job. And he should jump at the chance. Right this minute.
But...
Yolanthe was in jail. If he abandoned the kids at the Box... he just didn't want to do that.
As they approached the docking bay, Edward asked, "It's a great offer. How long do I have to think about it?"
"Ideally I would like an answer within 2 weeks. However, considering the nature of this job and the fact that it is short listed, I can give you as long as three months to think it over. There will likely be some travel involved, for which of course you are paid for; but the bulk of the job should see you stay right here on DS5," said Collin calmly.
"Okay, what about this? What if I worked part-time for you, during my days off from the Box?"
"I think we can make something like that work, at least for the short term. Ideally of course, we would like to see you come onboard full time, but I can understand where you are coming from. Tell you what: swing by the offices on your next day off, and you can meet the family. Since most of them will impact your job one way or another, it might be nice to know who they are. Keep in mind we are all former fleet and marine officers, so you might want to, as they say, dress to impress." Collin knew he was not exactly supposed to do it this way; his dad should be making the hiring pitch. But he was pretty sure that pop would not mind, considering the quality he was bringing in.
"I'm off day after tomorrow, so I'll stop by then," he said, as Collin smoothly settled the shuttle back into the bay. "So what exactly does your company do, besides design shuttles?"
"Alot of R and D stuff - shuttles, fighters, fast attack craft, weapons and the like. You will only have to worry about the shuttles, and maybe the fighters. Well those, and of course flying us bigwigs around. You will learn more at the meeting tomorrow though, as there are alot of things that I can not really go into without some papers being signed and the like." Collin shut the systems down and got ready to leave the shuttle.
Nodding his head, Edward unclasped his harness and stood. "Mister Bradshaw, it's been a pleasure. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow," he said, holding out his hand for the other man to shake it.
"Likewise, Mister Stapleton. I am looking forward to the meeting as well. I hope you like working with us, and will consider becoming full time eventually." He shook hands with the other man.
::OFF::
Edward Stapleton
Dabo Boy -and- maybe a pilot again?
(NPC by Charlene)
&
Collin Bradshaw
VP of R and D
NPC by David