Incommunicado – Hobnobbing with the brass
by
Post Details
OOC: It's great to be back!
ON:
It was not in Relma’s character to be nervous. He had ambushed Cardassian mechanised columns with only a handful of Resistance fighters, flown sorties against Galor class warships in outdated impulse-drive raiders, and fought hand-to-hand with Jem’Hadar boarding-parties; all of this and more he had faced during his life without even a hint of nerves. But now, as he sat in the middle of the paradise which was Earth, in the security of Starfleet Headquarters, this was when he felt nervous. Running his clenched fists down the sides of his legs, his pondering was interrupted when a young Betazoid Lieutenant Commander approached and spoke to him “Chief Relma?”
Springing to his feet and attention Meryn responded “Yes, Ma’am.”
Smiling, the woman gestured down the corridor form which she had come and replied “At ease, Chief. I’m Lieutenant Commander Dreia, Admiral O’Dwyer’s adjutant, if you’d care to follow me I’ll take you to the Admiral.”
“Thank you, Ma’am.” replied the Bajoran as he began following the woman, a step behind. At the end of the corridor they passed through the arch of a security-scanner before coming to a turbolift.
Having allowed the man to move into the lift and stand beside her Dreia said “Level 9, Starfleet Operations. Authorisation Dreia alpha-sierra-nine-seven-bravo.” Following the instruction the life started moving and, turning to Relma, she added “Sorry about all this. Most of this security dates back to the Changeling threat before the war.”
Meryn nodded to the woman in acknowledgement and, moving his eyes back towards the floor, swallowed to try and keep his mouth from filling up with saliva. As the turbolift began to slow as it neared its destination Relma breathed in deeply as he prepared himself.
“First time meeting an admiral, Chief?” asked the Betazoid with a wry smile.
Relma turned to the woman with a startled expression on his face “Yes, Ma’am, well… on a one-to-one basis anyway. How did you know?” In his head he was certain the answer would be her telepathic abilities, which made him more than a little uncomfortable.
Dreia opened her mouth to answer just as the turbolift doors hissed open and thus she paused for a moment to gesture Relma to exit the lift before her. He, in turn gestured for her to exit first: both on the grounds of general politeness, her rank, her grace, and her gender. After a moment she exited, with Meryn following alongside her, and resumed the conversation “I don’t need to be telepathic to tell you’re anxious - and you’re not the first officer I’ve escorted to a meeting with the brass. Don’t worry yourself, Chief, Admiral O’Dwyer doesn’t bite. He’s quite a fan of yours, actually.”
Meryn stopped dead in his tracks in the middle of the corridor, stunned. “Excuse me, Ma’am?” he spluttered.
Pausing herself, and turning back, she replied “Were you not assigned to Qualor II a couple of years ago? The Admiral asked me to pull up his inspection report from back then last night - from what I saw of it he was pretty impressed.”
Meryn thought back for a moment and, recalling that time, nodded. “Ahhhh, yes.” he answered “Yes, Ma’am. I recall there was an inspection during my first year there, but I was on leave when it took place.”
Gesturing down the corridor the Lieutenant Commander added “Very good, Chief, shall we continue then.”
“Of course, Ma’am, sorry about that.” He replied as he caught up the metre or so between them and continued down the corridor alongside the woman. After a moment or two they came to an open area with a reception desk and a number of officers bustling about, but continued straight on, past the desk, with an assured stride which made Relma almost certain that the Lieutenant Commander enjoyed the feeling of breezing past these people with a guest in-tow. Passing through yet another security arch they came to a further small waiting room in front of a rather grandiose door, which read ‘Starfleet Operations, Office of the Deputy Director for Operational Support Services. R./Adm. William Rufus O’Dwyer.’ Dreia walked straight up to the door and pressed the chime and a moment later, although Relma had heard nothing from the far side, went straight through the doors as they opened, and gestured for the Bajoran to follow her through.
As he stepped through the threshold he heard her address the red-headed man on the far side of the desk “Presenting Chief Warrant Officer Second Class Relma Meryn, Sir, as per your instructions.” Meryn barely had time to snap to attention before the woman gestured for him to sit in the right-hand chair opposite the Admiral.
“Chief, welcome.” said the Admiral, with a broad grin on his face “I’m sorry we never got the chance to meet at Qualor II. You did a good job there.”
“Thank you, Sir.” replied Meryn as he sat down “I‘m sorry I wasn‘t there to see you, but I‘d booked the leave long in advance of your visit being announced.” As he spoke he could see Dreia moving on the far side of the room gathering a number of PADDs and other materials together.
“Oh not at all, Chief, not at all.” replied O’Dwyer “I can understand the need to get away when you’re working alongside the Zakdorn all day every day. I’m surprised you lasted as long as you did. As much as I respected your request to transfer on the basis of your suitability for the role I honestly don’t think anyone would have thought any worse of you if you’d simply asked to get away from the Zakdorn.”
Meryn’s mouth parted slightly as he heard the Admiral’s assessment. It appalled him that his intentions had been so misread by his superiors, “Thank you, Sir.” he replied as the Betazoid returned to his side holding three PADDs and took her seat in the left-hand chair. “But I think you may have misinterpreted my intentions. I did request the transfer because of the nature of the work. When you work alongside the Zakdorn, although they may be obnoxious, you realise they are amazing administrators. The only reason I coped with the bureaucracy of the post for so long was because of their help.”
The Admiral’s brow furrowed “Oh,” he replied “I see, Chief. Well, I’ll pretend you and I never had this conversation then. I’m afraid your assignment on Deep Space Five will include a lot of bureaucracy as well - one of the reasons I passed your name for this assignment was that ability: you and Lieutenant Commander Freeman, the station’s Chief Engineer, will be getting a number of requests from my office in the coming 18 months and I will be requiring thorough reports. I hope that won’t be a problem?”
Relma shook his head and fought against the knot which was forming in his stomach at the situation to reply “Not at all, Sir. I’ll do my best, Sir.”
“That’s what I like to hear. Now, Chief,” continued the Admiral “I didn‘t just call you in here to discuss that - and indeed I‘m afraid the future schedule for the Dyson yards is no longer our most pressing matter to discuss. Twelve hours ago contact with Deep Space Five was lost: from what we can tell all is well on the station, but for whatever reason communications in the region are down. As you are heading in that direction anyway I need you to convey these orders to Captain Tahir personally. The orders are sealed, and for her eyes only.”
Dreia leaned across and passed Relma the first of the PADDs before adding “The second, here, contains your transfer details and orders.”
Relma took the two PADDs in his hands, the latter on the top. A moment’s silence allowed him to skim his orders and the transfer information. His eyes stopped as he reached the middle of the transfer orders and, looking up, he spoke to the Admiral “Sir, I think there may have been some mistake here. It lists me here as 1st Class.”
Dreia smiled as she stood up and passing the Admiral a small leather box from the side of the room replied “That’s no mistake, Chief.”
Meryn stood bolt upright at attention once more and spoke, as he felt his cheeks turning a pink-hue “Thank you, Sir.”
O’Dwyer smiled and, moving around the side of his desk, reached up and swapped the old rank insignia with the new one. As he sat back down he said “At ease, Chief. Regardless of your reasons for leaving or your paperwork, your service at Qualor II was exemplary and, as you haven’t shown any interest in applying for a commission, this really is the only way of recognising that. Sticking out that assignment - especially if you found the work challenging - for three years is most admirable.”
Sitting back down, Relma allowed himself to breathe out and replied “Thank you, Sir. I’m pleased my work pleases you and I hope to live up to your expectations when one of your assignments comes our way.”
“Speaking of which, Chief,” interjected Dreia as she passed the Bajoran the third PADD “this PADD contains the updated repair and maintenance schedule for Lieutenant Commander Freeman: it’s also contained on Captain Tahir’s PADD among the other information. Again, if you could deliver this, it would be much appreciated. Unless communications are fixed soon, or the problem makes us divert repairs away from the Dyson Repair Yard, it is essential that this information is delivered: our office is on a very tight schedule this year. We cannot afford to have the Dyson Yard not being ready for ships.”
“Aye, Ma’am,” answered Meryn as he took the PADD “I understand.”
O’Dwyer stood once more and, offering Relma his hand, said “Excellent, Chief, well: thank you so much for stopping by. I had hoped we could talk more in-depth about the future schedule for the Dyson Yards, but this communications business is more important for the moment. Commander Dreia will detail your itinerary for you as she escorts you out. Hopefully I‘ll speak to you on subspace in not too long. Oh, and pass my, and my brother’s, personal regards to Captain Tahir, if you’d be so kind.”
“Thank you, Sir,” replied Relma as he shook the Admiral’s hand “and I shall.”
With that the Admiral returned to his desk and, with Lieutenant Commander Dreia leading once more, Relma left the office. As soon as the door had closed he let out a massive sigh and took a couple of deep breaths.
“Surely it wasn’t that bad, Chief.” quipped the Betazoid as they began retracting their steps.
Meryn could not respond and just shook his head. He had no idea why the idea of speaking to the Admiralty had caused him such anxiety, but it was over - and he’d even emerged with a promotion: not at all bad.
His reflection was interrupted by Dreia who had picked up a further PADD from the reception desk and, thrusting it into his hand, began reciting what the PADD contained “You will report to the USS Bellerophon for transport to DS4 by 1500 hours at McKinley Station. You will disembark at DS4, and then take a runabout to DS5. You should arrive there in approximately 49 hours time. All the details are on the PADD. Do you have any questions?”
Relma quickly scanned the information as they continued down the corridor to the turbolift and replied “No, Ma’am.”
As they reached the turbolift Dreia turned and offered her hand to the Bajoran. “In that case, Chief,” she said with a smile “have a safe trip, and best of luck with your new assignment.”
Relma took the hand and, shaking it firmly, answered “Thank you, Ma’am, it was nice meeting you.” With that, he entered the turbolift, and made for the temporary accommodation he had been assigned on the nearby academy campus to collect his things, wrestle Jolan into his cat-carrier, and then begin his trip.
OFF:
Chief Warrant Officer 1st Class Relma Meryn
Chief Operations Officer
Deep Space Five
NPCs played by “Moose”:
Rear Admiral William Rufus O’Dwyer
Lieutenant Commander Leaxa Dreia
by
Post Details
| Title | Hobnobbing with the brass | |
| Mission | Incommunicado | |
| Author(s) | ||
| Posted | Sat Jun 02, 2012 @ 1:41am | |
| Location | Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco, Earth. | |
| Timeline | SD 55, 1400 hours |
ON:
It was not in Relma’s character to be nervous. He had ambushed Cardassian mechanised columns with only a handful of Resistance fighters, flown sorties against Galor class warships in outdated impulse-drive raiders, and fought hand-to-hand with Jem’Hadar boarding-parties; all of this and more he had faced during his life without even a hint of nerves. But now, as he sat in the middle of the paradise which was Earth, in the security of Starfleet Headquarters, this was when he felt nervous. Running his clenched fists down the sides of his legs, his pondering was interrupted when a young Betazoid Lieutenant Commander approached and spoke to him “Chief Relma?”
Springing to his feet and attention Meryn responded “Yes, Ma’am.”
Smiling, the woman gestured down the corridor form which she had come and replied “At ease, Chief. I’m Lieutenant Commander Dreia, Admiral O’Dwyer’s adjutant, if you’d care to follow me I’ll take you to the Admiral.”
“Thank you, Ma’am.” replied the Bajoran as he began following the woman, a step behind. At the end of the corridor they passed through the arch of a security-scanner before coming to a turbolift.
Having allowed the man to move into the lift and stand beside her Dreia said “Level 9, Starfleet Operations. Authorisation Dreia alpha-sierra-nine-seven-bravo.” Following the instruction the life started moving and, turning to Relma, she added “Sorry about all this. Most of this security dates back to the Changeling threat before the war.”
Meryn nodded to the woman in acknowledgement and, moving his eyes back towards the floor, swallowed to try and keep his mouth from filling up with saliva. As the turbolift began to slow as it neared its destination Relma breathed in deeply as he prepared himself.
“First time meeting an admiral, Chief?” asked the Betazoid with a wry smile.
Relma turned to the woman with a startled expression on his face “Yes, Ma’am, well… on a one-to-one basis anyway. How did you know?” In his head he was certain the answer would be her telepathic abilities, which made him more than a little uncomfortable.
Dreia opened her mouth to answer just as the turbolift doors hissed open and thus she paused for a moment to gesture Relma to exit the lift before her. He, in turn gestured for her to exit first: both on the grounds of general politeness, her rank, her grace, and her gender. After a moment she exited, with Meryn following alongside her, and resumed the conversation “I don’t need to be telepathic to tell you’re anxious - and you’re not the first officer I’ve escorted to a meeting with the brass. Don’t worry yourself, Chief, Admiral O’Dwyer doesn’t bite. He’s quite a fan of yours, actually.”
Meryn stopped dead in his tracks in the middle of the corridor, stunned. “Excuse me, Ma’am?” he spluttered.
Pausing herself, and turning back, she replied “Were you not assigned to Qualor II a couple of years ago? The Admiral asked me to pull up his inspection report from back then last night - from what I saw of it he was pretty impressed.”
Meryn thought back for a moment and, recalling that time, nodded. “Ahhhh, yes.” he answered “Yes, Ma’am. I recall there was an inspection during my first year there, but I was on leave when it took place.”
Gesturing down the corridor the Lieutenant Commander added “Very good, Chief, shall we continue then.”
“Of course, Ma’am, sorry about that.” He replied as he caught up the metre or so between them and continued down the corridor alongside the woman. After a moment or two they came to an open area with a reception desk and a number of officers bustling about, but continued straight on, past the desk, with an assured stride which made Relma almost certain that the Lieutenant Commander enjoyed the feeling of breezing past these people with a guest in-tow. Passing through yet another security arch they came to a further small waiting room in front of a rather grandiose door, which read ‘Starfleet Operations, Office of the Deputy Director for Operational Support Services. R./Adm. William Rufus O’Dwyer.’ Dreia walked straight up to the door and pressed the chime and a moment later, although Relma had heard nothing from the far side, went straight through the doors as they opened, and gestured for the Bajoran to follow her through.
As he stepped through the threshold he heard her address the red-headed man on the far side of the desk “Presenting Chief Warrant Officer Second Class Relma Meryn, Sir, as per your instructions.” Meryn barely had time to snap to attention before the woman gestured for him to sit in the right-hand chair opposite the Admiral.
“Chief, welcome.” said the Admiral, with a broad grin on his face “I’m sorry we never got the chance to meet at Qualor II. You did a good job there.”
“Thank you, Sir.” replied Meryn as he sat down “I‘m sorry I wasn‘t there to see you, but I‘d booked the leave long in advance of your visit being announced.” As he spoke he could see Dreia moving on the far side of the room gathering a number of PADDs and other materials together.
“Oh not at all, Chief, not at all.” replied O’Dwyer “I can understand the need to get away when you’re working alongside the Zakdorn all day every day. I’m surprised you lasted as long as you did. As much as I respected your request to transfer on the basis of your suitability for the role I honestly don’t think anyone would have thought any worse of you if you’d simply asked to get away from the Zakdorn.”
Meryn’s mouth parted slightly as he heard the Admiral’s assessment. It appalled him that his intentions had been so misread by his superiors, “Thank you, Sir.” he replied as the Betazoid returned to his side holding three PADDs and took her seat in the left-hand chair. “But I think you may have misinterpreted my intentions. I did request the transfer because of the nature of the work. When you work alongside the Zakdorn, although they may be obnoxious, you realise they are amazing administrators. The only reason I coped with the bureaucracy of the post for so long was because of their help.”
The Admiral’s brow furrowed “Oh,” he replied “I see, Chief. Well, I’ll pretend you and I never had this conversation then. I’m afraid your assignment on Deep Space Five will include a lot of bureaucracy as well - one of the reasons I passed your name for this assignment was that ability: you and Lieutenant Commander Freeman, the station’s Chief Engineer, will be getting a number of requests from my office in the coming 18 months and I will be requiring thorough reports. I hope that won’t be a problem?”
Relma shook his head and fought against the knot which was forming in his stomach at the situation to reply “Not at all, Sir. I’ll do my best, Sir.”
“That’s what I like to hear. Now, Chief,” continued the Admiral “I didn‘t just call you in here to discuss that - and indeed I‘m afraid the future schedule for the Dyson yards is no longer our most pressing matter to discuss. Twelve hours ago contact with Deep Space Five was lost: from what we can tell all is well on the station, but for whatever reason communications in the region are down. As you are heading in that direction anyway I need you to convey these orders to Captain Tahir personally. The orders are sealed, and for her eyes only.”
Dreia leaned across and passed Relma the first of the PADDs before adding “The second, here, contains your transfer details and orders.”
Relma took the two PADDs in his hands, the latter on the top. A moment’s silence allowed him to skim his orders and the transfer information. His eyes stopped as he reached the middle of the transfer orders and, looking up, he spoke to the Admiral “Sir, I think there may have been some mistake here. It lists me here as 1st Class.”
Dreia smiled as she stood up and passing the Admiral a small leather box from the side of the room replied “That’s no mistake, Chief.”
Meryn stood bolt upright at attention once more and spoke, as he felt his cheeks turning a pink-hue “Thank you, Sir.”
O’Dwyer smiled and, moving around the side of his desk, reached up and swapped the old rank insignia with the new one. As he sat back down he said “At ease, Chief. Regardless of your reasons for leaving or your paperwork, your service at Qualor II was exemplary and, as you haven’t shown any interest in applying for a commission, this really is the only way of recognising that. Sticking out that assignment - especially if you found the work challenging - for three years is most admirable.”
Sitting back down, Relma allowed himself to breathe out and replied “Thank you, Sir. I’m pleased my work pleases you and I hope to live up to your expectations when one of your assignments comes our way.”
“Speaking of which, Chief,” interjected Dreia as she passed the Bajoran the third PADD “this PADD contains the updated repair and maintenance schedule for Lieutenant Commander Freeman: it’s also contained on Captain Tahir’s PADD among the other information. Again, if you could deliver this, it would be much appreciated. Unless communications are fixed soon, or the problem makes us divert repairs away from the Dyson Repair Yard, it is essential that this information is delivered: our office is on a very tight schedule this year. We cannot afford to have the Dyson Yard not being ready for ships.”
“Aye, Ma’am,” answered Meryn as he took the PADD “I understand.”
O’Dwyer stood once more and, offering Relma his hand, said “Excellent, Chief, well: thank you so much for stopping by. I had hoped we could talk more in-depth about the future schedule for the Dyson Yards, but this communications business is more important for the moment. Commander Dreia will detail your itinerary for you as she escorts you out. Hopefully I‘ll speak to you on subspace in not too long. Oh, and pass my, and my brother’s, personal regards to Captain Tahir, if you’d be so kind.”
“Thank you, Sir,” replied Relma as he shook the Admiral’s hand “and I shall.”
With that the Admiral returned to his desk and, with Lieutenant Commander Dreia leading once more, Relma left the office. As soon as the door had closed he let out a massive sigh and took a couple of deep breaths.
“Surely it wasn’t that bad, Chief.” quipped the Betazoid as they began retracting their steps.
Meryn could not respond and just shook his head. He had no idea why the idea of speaking to the Admiralty had caused him such anxiety, but it was over - and he’d even emerged with a promotion: not at all bad.
His reflection was interrupted by Dreia who had picked up a further PADD from the reception desk and, thrusting it into his hand, began reciting what the PADD contained “You will report to the USS Bellerophon for transport to DS4 by 1500 hours at McKinley Station. You will disembark at DS4, and then take a runabout to DS5. You should arrive there in approximately 49 hours time. All the details are on the PADD. Do you have any questions?”
Relma quickly scanned the information as they continued down the corridor to the turbolift and replied “No, Ma’am.”
As they reached the turbolift Dreia turned and offered her hand to the Bajoran. “In that case, Chief,” she said with a smile “have a safe trip, and best of luck with your new assignment.”
Relma took the hand and, shaking it firmly, answered “Thank you, Ma’am, it was nice meeting you.” With that, he entered the turbolift, and made for the temporary accommodation he had been assigned on the nearby academy campus to collect his things, wrestle Jolan into his cat-carrier, and then begin his trip.
OFF:
Chief Warrant Officer 1st Class Relma Meryn
Chief Operations Officer
Deep Space Five
NPCs played by “Moose”:
Rear Admiral William Rufus O’Dwyer
Lieutenant Commander Leaxa Dreia