Mission 1.02 - And Not a Drop to Drink

[Mission Day 1: July 1, 2386]
[USS Wanderer Bridge, 0900 hrs]

Julian reclined his seat a bit, propping his feet up on his console, as he went over the various bits of "paperwork" on his PADD. He'd expected there to be a substantial bit more red tape than any of his previous duty stations, but he hadn't expected this much.

"Computer, it's too quiet in here. Let's get some music going."

"Please clarify."

"Hmm. Rhapsody in Blue."

As the soft tones began to echo through the Bridge, and likely the entire ship, as the hatch was open, he focused back on his duties. The rest of the crew were ordered to do their final re-supply on Kepler before the ship headed out into the frontier on further exploration detail.

His crew was down a Chief Engineer, but they were receiving a Specialist who could likely fill in most of that role, which was helpful. Julian couldn't exactly go down to Deck 2 and get his hands "dirty" in the warp core. The damn thing probably wouldn't work at all afterwards. A few officers were coming aboard as of this mission, specialized duty officers who the higher ups felt would be beneficial to a ship exploring the Frontier.

Their first duty assignment was to catalog and explore what appeared to be a water planet from all the brief "fly-by" surveys that had been done on it. Julian smirked as he though about what his Caitian crewmember's reaction would be to finding this out.

...and would the Wanderer float?

<tag anyone>

Corbet sat relaxing in the forward cargo bay, idly practicing her mandolin.
"Computer, Any word yet on what my new assignment will be?"

"No Ms. Smyth, you will be notified when your status changes."

"Bollocks." she said to herself. Being in a catch-all position on the ship, it was her job to fill any position not currently occupied, but until the new arrivals boarded, her status remained in limbo.

She resumed her rehearsal, one of the tunes Julian had recommended to her, awaiting something, anything resembling news.

Ayan walked onto the ship through the airlock and peered around for a few moments.It didn't take him too long to find the Bridge, and he dropped his bag just outside the hatch.

He hesitated for a moment at the hatchway, and then took off the rather ornate earring he wore and placed it into his pocket. He'd have to ask about wearing that on duty later.

He chuckled a little bit to himself at the figure leaning back in his seat. Given the description he'd gotten, this was clearly Lt. Durand.

"Lt. Junior Grade Retol Ayan reporting for duty, Sir," he said aloud, standing to attention.

[[tag lounging CO]]

Fletcher sighed quietly as he worked his way through the small medical space. They hadn't gotten approval for nearly half of the equipment he had requested.

"Need to be a medical doctor to process this request," he snorted, reading from the PADD. "Oh, thank you so much. Put me on the ship as the medic, and don't give me what I need."

He shook his head and continued cataloging the medical supplies, and restocking what they had used on the Romulans.

Rha decided it was time to unpack while waiting for their new crew additions and new assignment. The small footlocker was more then enough room for his few belongings. He hauled his large pack out from under the bunks and knelt by the footlocker.

The first item on top was his personal padd. His journal and some creative writing were contained within. It had been a gift to him from a co-worker and he treasured it almost above everything else he owned. He set it out on the bunk and unpacked civilian clothing, carefully refolding everything and putting each item carefully in the footlocker.

Last in his packs were several pieces of jewelry. Two of them, a silver colored bracelet and a claw necklace belonged to his mother and a second claw necklace was one he had spent time making with his father. He held these items close, smiling fondly before tucking them away in the locker.

He placed the padd inside as well, on top, so it would not get crushed and closed the lid. He frowned. That did not take nearly as much time as he had hoped.

Rha stood and stretched, putting his hands on the ceiling. He yawned as well and then went to wander the ship. He could not possibly be the only one that was bored.

The airlock doors whooshed and clicked as they came to a close behind her. She shifted the heavy duffel bag slung over her shoulder and gripped the old-fashioned metal toolbox where she stored her favorite tools. The red paint was chipped around the corners and the closures were rusty, but Hayley kept the box because it reminded her of home. Heavy, though.

The internal pressures equalized and the U.S.S. Wanderer's airlock doors slid open before her. Hayley stood in place for a moment and inhaled deeply. This new ship smelled clean and well-kept. She'd have to find engineering, where there'd surely be some little hollow for her to clutter up; any job worth doing is worth doing right, and there's a proper tool for every job. So yeah, that meant dragging around a lot of tools, and she favored an organization system that others often found inscrutable.

Hayley hoisted the duffel bag and tugged at the collar of her clean, pressed uniform. Form-fitting clothes were so stifling. The prospect of meeting new people was already making her apprehensive, so she took another breath and nodded to herself, steeling her nerves.

Stepping through the open doorway, Hayley emerged onto the deck of the Wanderer. Setting down her toolbox and absent-mindedly cocking her head to the side, she ran a lazy finger down the edge of the doorway, almost as if she were exploring a new lover. "Nice to meet you, sugar. I hear you like to wander. I'm a bit of a ramblin' gal myself," she murmured to the ship. "We're gonna be spendin' some quality time on the road together."

Hearing a distant sound, Hayley glanced distractedly in the direction of the bridge. She knew the layout of a Wallace class ship well enough. "You let me know if you need anythin', girl. I'll be settlin' in soon and then we can get to know each other better," she whispered. She stroked the doorway like a horse's mane and patted it gently, stooped to pick up her toolbox, and then made her way to the bridge.

As she approached the hatch she realized that she'd been hearing music playing from down the hall; sounded like a classical orchestra, but she'd never heard the song. She tugged at her collar again. Stupid uniform. Warily, she poked her head through the open door.

"Is that a clarinet?"

Lieutenant Eiri Ashshy stepped out of the airlock and onto the Wanderer. Retol Ayan had beaten him aboard the ship, but Eiri had insisted on grabbing some more real tea before he joined the Bajorn on their new assignment. He was glad that Ayan was going to be on the ship. It made transitioning into a new position much less jarring when he at least knew one person.

His first impression of the overall mood on the ship was interesting. People were surprisingly relaxed and open, if a little bit bored. He was glad that the compliment was small. At least he might be able to get some sleep on this ship. Oft times the sheer number of emotions running though a ship or a station was more then overwhelming for the half-breed.

Eiri wondered what this group would be like. He had not even finished a full crew review on the White Star. Of course, now he needed to remember he was not ship's counselor anymore. With a deep breath, he readjusted the duffel on his shoulder and headed for the bridge.

Julian sat up, instantly alert from the reverie the music had placed him into. Three new faces were staring at him, and he could tell at least one of them was trying very hard not to start laughing. He stood, stretching out a bit by hooking his fingers into the rafter above his station, and pulling upwards.

"Welcome aboard the Wanderer. To answer your questions: Yes, that is a clarinet, yes, I'm listening to Gershwin, yes I am Lieutenant Julian Durand, and yes this is the smallest official starship you've ever seen. I'd prefer if you would all get used to calling me by Julian while we're underway, and not in the middle of some kind of crisis, like an Admiral breathing fire down our necks. The rest of the crew calls me Jules or Julian. Either is fine with me. Stow your gear in the bunk room and meet me back topside once you're finished. Once we're all nice and settled in, we're going to have what passes for a staff meeting on this ship."

Eiri lifted one distinctly Vulcan eyebrow. "Thank you for the welcome..." It almost sounded like a question, as if Eiri was not sure if he was welcome or not. "Lieutenant Eiri Ashshy reporting for duty, sir. It is an honor to be aboard." He hunched his duffel up on his shoulder again, holding the strap tightly.

The feelings were filled with humor and friendly. The captain seemed relaxed and sure of himself. Eiri smiled a little, it came across as stiff. "Would someone be kind enough to direct me in the location of the bunks?"

Adam Carter walked through the Wanderer's airlock and stopped, somewhat at a loss. He hadn't been aboard a Wallace class before and while layouts on Federation starships tended towards a pattern, he wasn't 100% on whether to turn left or right from here to reach the bridge and report to his new CO.

Reaching into the pocket of his uniform trousers, he withdrew a small PADD, flicked it on and brought up a layout of the Wallace class. Marking it for future reference, he flicked the PADD off again, returned it to its pocket and set off towards the bridge.

Pausing at the entrance, he caught sight of a trio of uniformed figures - two engineers and a scientist, by the looks of their uniforms - and a fourth, seated man - presumably the captain.

Bugger, he was running late.

Walking up to the group, he stopped in front of the captain and squared himself up.

"Crewman Adam Carter reporting for duty, sir."

Julian looked at the four faces in front of him, and nodded. Pulling down on the front of his uniform, he took a deep breath.

"Welcome aboard, everyone. Bunk room is port side through the wardroom, and the replicators are right behind this bulkhead in the wardroom," he pounded against the bulkhead for effect with this last sentence.

"I have no illusions that a Wallace Class is a prime piece of real estate, and that everyone in the fleet has aspirations to serve on one. Usually in fact, the exact opposite is true. We're barely bigger than a runabout, it's cramped, no private quarters, and to top it all off, we're assigned to exploration, so it's long periods of time dealing with all of those issues."

He sat down at his station, and gave a beaming smile as the music began to swell through the bridge.

"But we have good spirits, and good music, as you can clearly see. Go get your gear stored in your footlockers, and if one of you would be so kind as to tap the young lady playing a Mandolin on the shoulder and ask her to report to the Bridge, along with our medic, the Cait, and the large Scotsman, I'd greatly appreciate it."

<tag any>

Ayan smiled at Julian as he picked up his gear. He was going to like this captain.

He gave Eiri a wave, and a nod. "C'mon, Eiri...Carter, right? And..." he looked at Haley and blanked. He chuckled. "and human whose name I don't know. Let's drop this stuff off and have a look around." He grinned broadly at the group, put his arm through the strap on his pack, and turned to head towards the door.

[[tag Eiri/Adam/Haley/Whoever feels like answering. ]]

"Yeah, yeah, thought so. You've got good taste in classical music, Cap." At the remark about the undesirability of the Wallace class ship, Hayley frowned, but nodded and bowed her head respectfully as she turned to make her way to the bunk room.

She twisted sideways, nodding to her new crewmates as she shimmied gracefully between the tall Bajoran and the waifish Vulcan--she'd known Vulcans in her time as an engineering student, but there was something about this one that piqued her curiosity. "Howdy boys, I'm Hayley. Looks like we're gonna be on a first name basis on this here boat. Cap says don't nobody wanna ride in one of these babies, but I'll take a Wally over a Galaxy class or an Exie any day." She adjusted her grip on the toolbox, and the tools inside clattered around. "Big bruisers like that ain't got no finesse, no style. Cozy little boat like Lil' Missy here's got personality!" She stressed this last word as though she genuinely believed it was the most important attribute a starship could possess.

[[tags all around]]

Adam grinned at Hayley's bright enthusiasm. Nothing like an engineer that loves her ward, he mused as the group made its way to the bunkroom. Privately, he had to agree with her about the stylings of the Federation's largest ships. He'd seen one or two from a distance and of course had seen pictures - they had no style. The Wanderer was a different kettle of fish, though. He could get to like the little ship yet. They stopped at the entrance - partially to avoid entering the room as a scrum, and partially because Adam suspected they wouldn't all fit inside the room standing up.

"Well," he said philosophically, "I've slept in worse. Actually, hang on..."

He stepped into the room and jumped experimentally, then grinned broadly when he landed.

"Yep, gravity. OK, yeah, good. I have slept in worse."

Ayan blinked at the Hayley for a moment, catching up with her unique way of speaking. He'd been exposed to humans for years, but every so often they'd find a way to confuse him.

He followed along with the others, and chuckled when Adam jumped into the room.

"There's gravity, there's a bunk," he shrugged. "I suppose it's like being back in the Academy. We'll adjust."

He turned to look at Eiri and the remainder of the group. "Top or bottom?" he asked his friend, pointing towards the bunks. "Better stake out your bunk...even though you have to share it with the other shift." He chuckled, and surveyed the room.

[[tag Eiri, all]]

Eiri chuckled softly at Hayley's comments. He had heard many engineers talk about the equipment as if it had life of its own. He found it endearing in a way.

When Ayan asked about the bunks Eiri turned and looked at him. Then looked him up and down slowly. "I would suggest that you take a lower bunk considering your height, whereas I should take a top bunk because I will be in less danger of cranial damage upon waking abruptly." He looked around the room again. It was small and not what he was used to. Eiri was shy about his body for the most part and in these close of quarters there was really no room for that.

Ayan laughed softly at Eiri's comments and .

"Of course, my friend," he said. "Right as always..."

He grinned at Adam and Haley and dropped his bag into one of the lockers next to a lower bunk. "Well, that solves me," he says. He looks at both the engineer and the intel officer and smiled. "This should be an interesting journey."

He would miss having private quarters to his own, but he was just glad to still have his commission. He'd adjust, and maybe he'd be able to get a transfer after a year....

Rha stood when he heard voices approaching. He leaned on the far back bunk, his paws resting on the top and watched them. These must be the new crew members because he had never seen them before. He waited until there was a pause in the conversation, his tail twitching.

"Welcome aboard the Wanderer." He grinned at the lot of them, toothily.

Crash-clatter-clatter-bang!

With an awful grating noise that made her wince, Hayley's toolbox smashed to the ground and bounced onto its side, tools ricocheting raucously around inside.

Recoiling in horror, Hayley cried, "Jumpin' Jesus on a hoverpogo! A talkin' cat!" Her jaw hung open and she ran her fingers through her curly red hair in shock. Suddenly noticing the monster's Starfleet uniform she blushed crimson, and managed to form a few seemingly random syllables before snapping to attention and stammering out, "Beggin' your pardon, sir. Crewman Hayley Griffith, engineering specialist, at your service. I apologize for any offense, I've never had the...pleasure...to meet a...person...of your..." Hayley's eyes shifted nervously as she struggled to find the right word, finally settling on "...stature." Lower lip quavering, she offered a pathetic excuse for a salute and then promptly sat down on the nearest footlocker and averted her gaze.

Still blushing, she remembered her fallen toolbox. She leaned forward and gathered it up, reached down between her knees and opened the footlocker, and set the tools inside. Still avoiding any eye contact with anyone, she tugged at the collar of her uncomfortable uniform and slung her duffel up onto the middle bunk, without another word.

Not-entirely-successfully concealing a grin beneath his hand, Adam cleared his throat as Hayley made her tactical retreat.

"Pleasure to meet you, sir," he said to the Caitian Petty Officer. "I'm Adam Carter, and this is Eiri and an engineer whose name I'm not too sure about. Sorry mate," he added in a wincing undertone to Ayan, "and Hayley's introduced herself already."

Scanning the room, he picked a lower bunk and planted his bag atop it.

"Oh!" he added as the thought occurred to him, "the Captain wants us to report to the bridge when we're done here, too. Know where we might find a mandolin player, a doctor and a large Scotsman?"

Rha laughed. "I'm a Caitian, miss Hayley." He stepped out from behind the bunks so she could get a good look at him. His tail bobbed up and down in humor.

He smiled at Adam. "Nice to meet ya all. It's good to have more crew. Some of us have been pulling doubles to cover what we need... and I'm your communications guy. If you ever need a translator I speak... well... let's just say it's quite a few languages."

Rha stepped toward the Teran engineer and bowed to her deeply. "Petty Officer 3rd Class Rha at your service, pretty lady." He winked at Hayley.

Lanzara was greeted with a solid wall of sound as the door to the bridge opened, if memory served it was Gershwin...perhaps Rhapsody in Blue...it made her skin crawl at the very thought of it. She stepped in, she could see the young man standing at the front of the bridge, with his back to the door...could you really call it a bridge, it was nothing but a glorified cock-pit. Her bathroom back at Starfleet Command was triple the size of this room.

She walked up behind the man, he was still unaware of her presence, “Computer player Walkürenritt” she whispered in flawless German. As the music changed the man spun around, and his eyes met Lanzara’s.

Julian stood, face to face with the Trill woman, attempting not to look somewhere hideously inappropriate, he glanced at her collar.

Fleet Captain. Shit, he thought.

Without thinking, he blurted out, in his best commanding tone, “Welcome aboard the Wanderer, sir. What can I and my crew do for you?”

Lanzara looked at the young man, he was younger than she had expected, the music began to move more as she stared at him in complete silence, “This escape pod has a name?” she said in an astonished tone, “And last time I looked I lacked the specific organs to be called Sir...Lieutenant...” she stated, asking for his name.

“My apologies, ma’am. They drill it into our heads at the Academy that all superiors are sir. I’m Lieutenant Julian Durand,” he said, in a much more serious tone. Clearly his winning sense of humor and impropriety would be lost on her. “She’s barely bigger than a runabout, but she’s seen combat, and she’s gotten us home safely. That’s all a man of my rank can ask for of his first command. We’re actually just preparing for a routine survey mission. What can the Wanderer do for you?”

'I believe you are heading to do a survey of Aquoriat III, I also have some business in that system." she said in an off-hand manner.

“Ah, yes ma’am, that would be our destination,” he replied cordially. “I’m afraid I don’t have much to offer you in comparison to what a standard sized starship would boast for amenities. We have shared bunks, and what passes for a communal head and sonic refresher aboard. If you’d like I can restrict access to one of the escape pods for the duration of the mission. They’re the 2 man variety, so you’d have a bit more room, and it would help foster the proper decorum amongst my crew.”

The thought of sharing a room, let alone hot-bunking with someone else made her skin crawl. She looked at the Lieutenant, “That will have to suffice” she looked around the bridge, “I will also require dedicated access to your computer systems routed there, and also one of your crew to serve as my aide during my stay.”

“Yes ma’am,” he said. It was clearly pointless to argue that he didn’t -have- the crew to spare, and that re-routing access to the systems to a simple escape pod would be a super-bitch. He’d leave that to his new engineering ingenue.

Rotating his neck slightly as the music moved into a loud crescendo, he grimaced, and asked “Is there any specific type of specialist you’ll require? I’ll need to know who not to count on for any of the finer details of the mission so that they can assist you with all of their attention.”

“I would like someone with either a Science or Intelligence background...for the duration of my stay on this...ship...I shall be granting them level 10 Security Clearance.”

“I see,” Julian replied dryly, attempting not to look put out by the fact that this was several steps above his own security clearance. He made a spot decision, and said “I believe Lieutenant Eiri Ashshy will fit your needs. He comes new to me from the White Star of First Fleet, and as I’m told is a competent and accomplished science officer. His expertise is Genome Manipulation and Terraforming. Will that be sufficient?”

Lanzara’s face remained impassive, she simply kept the eye of the Lieutenant, “That will suffice for the time being. I believe you have two intelligence personnel on-board also, I will be using their skills when I deem fit.”

“Understood ma’am. On a routine survey mission, I can’t imagine they’ll have much to do anyway,” he said in the most saccharine sweet cheerful tone he could. “I will warn you that Rha, one of the Intelligence personnel, is my communications expert, and is in that position due to his...unique gift of the gab.”

With this last statement, Julian stifled a smirk. It was the understatement of the year. He didn’t care for having a Fleet Captain jump aboard and demand ludicrous things of his crew. But then again, it was an inconvenience most Starfleet Captains had to deal with at some point in their lives, and he might as well get it out of the way early in his own career.

“I apologize, ma’am, but I’m about to convene a staff meeting with my crew. We’ve just received several new members for our voyage, and I’ve yet to meet with them on anything but a cursory level. You are of course more than welcome to join the staff meeting, as you will be accompanying us on the trip,” he said.

“I would like that Lieutenant, or do you prefer to be addressed as Skipper?”

“Lieutenant would be fine, ma’am, thank you. I’ll go russle up the crew then, and get started on the meeting. We’ll be meeting in the wardroom, which you passed through to get here. By your leave, Fleet Captain.”

"One thing Lieutenant." she said in a sweet tone, "I am not sure how you run your ship, but I am aware that on smaller vessels that a lot of protocols are neglected in favour of a more familiar and convivial atmosphere" she stared at him, "That will not be the case for the duration of my time on this ship, is that clear?"

“Crystal clear...ma’am,” he said, and quickly left the bridge.

As he rounded the corner to the bunk room, he pounded on the bulkhead with one closed fist. As the few crewmembers in the bunks whirled to face him, grins still on their faces, he straightened his own expression.

“Shape it up gentlemen, we have brass onboard. Staff meeting in the wardroom in five minutes. And someone really needs to go find Smyth, Ainslie, and McNeil. Now. Move it.”

Lanzara followed the Lieutenant, and when she entered the bunk room, after the Lieutenants rousing speech, she coughed slightly, "Generally it is accepted protocol for subordinates to come to their feet and stand at attention when a superior officer enters a room." she turned to the Lieutenant, "Am I mistaken Lieutenant?"

“No, ma’am, you are not. You heard the Fleet Captain,” Julian emphasized. “On your feet. This is Fleet Captain...”

Shit, you didn’t even get the woman’s name, Julian...okay, you know this. There’s only one Fleet Captain in Starfleet who has maintained the rank, and she is...

“...Lanzara Talem,” he finished, without too long or too awkward of a pause. “She’s the Deputy Director of SFI, and she’ll be joining us for our upcoming mission. So, as I said, get up, get moving, and get the 3 others to the wardroom so we can get this staff meeting underway and proceed with our directives.”

She looked at the ramshackle selection of crew in front of her, they seemed somewhat shocked by her presence, and she hoped that was the reason for their lack of military protocol... "Yes Lieutenant...your directives...they are something we will have to discuss." she then looked at the crew, "MOVE!" she bellowed in a voice that would put a SFMC Drill Sergeant to shame.

Julian put on the best poker face he could muster, and watched as his crew scurried like rats out of the bunk room to comply with their orders. He understood that various people had various styles of command, but he never believed there was any reason to take this tone with one’s staff. He just hoped by the end of all this that he wouldn’t be court martialled for dumping the bitch out the airlock.

She watched as the crew drummed out, Lanzara could read the Lieutenant as if he was an open book, as she followed him into the ward room, she spoke in a sinister whisper, “If you’re thinking I’m a Bitch...then you have a lot to learn about me, and how Starfleet really works Lieutenant.” she then spoke in her normal tone, “After you Lieutenant.”

“Not at all, ma’am. Just going to take a bit of getting used to...for all of us,” he said in the most even tone he could muster. He stood in the wardroom, his hands folded neatly behind his back, waiting for his crew to assemble.

A joint post by Lieutenant "What the hell did I do to deserve this" Durand, and Fleet Captain Lanzara "Bask in my frosty goodness" Talem.

Julian stood to the left of the newly arrived Fleet Captain, watching as his crew hastily assembled in the wardroom for their standard staff meeting. As they all packed in, it was clear that the tension was high. Most of his crew had never even seen someone of Talem's rank, let alone been in the same room as one. Now, she would be accompanying them on their current mission...if accompanying was the right word for it.

"We've been assigned to head into the Frontier. Our first stop is Aquoriat III, obviously in the Aquoriat System. This planet is an entirely aquatic planet, and the only Class M planet in the system. Naturally, Starfleet wants us to survey and catalogue as much of the planet as we can, in order to see if it is suitable for colonization.

"It is my understanding that Fleet Captain Talem has business to attend to in that system as well, which means that she will be our honored guest aboard the Wanderer for the duration. Crewman Griffith, you are to program access to all of our systems into Escape Pod 2, Deck 2, for the Fleet Captain's ease of access. Warrant Officer Ainslie, you are to program the escape pod's egress hatch to only open on the Fleet Captain's personal orders and to enable the security override to accept only a command code that she will input. Lieutenant Ashshy, you will be the Fleet Captain's personal aide for this mission, as your qualifications are the most concurrent with her needs."

Having said most of this in one breath, Julian inhaled sharply. He wore a grim, stoic face as he stared down his crew, hoping that the lack of the usual jovial smirk would ice them into the appropriate behavior.

"Are there any further questions, comments or concerns?"

Hayley snapped to attention and fairly barked, "Aye aye, sir! Shall I commence to reallocatin' the security clearances immediately?" She cast a furtive glance at the Caitian. For cryin' out loud, Cap, get me the heck away from that thing, she thought. This, her second look at the beast, made her wonder--Did some lonely outdoorsman mate with a snow leopard to spawn this unholy creature? And furthermore, Every time a human mates with a cat, do you get one of these things? If so, it's a wonder that this is the first one I've seen, considerin' all the lowlifes down home.

She glanced back to Durand with a Please help me! look and then back and forth to the Caitian, nervously.

He turned to Hayley, and said "Crewman Griffith, as I will need to be away from the ship for a bit to get that prepared, please proceed with the modifications immediately, you are dismissed from the remainder of the staff meeting."

Hayley choked slightly and thanked Julian. "Aye, sir! Wonderful, sir!" She stood up awkwardly and marched out of the room.

Eiri stood at attention. Having the Fleet Captain on board was a thrill for him. As much as he could sense the crew around him was nervous, he felt none of that. He even smiled a little as he stood at attention. He hoped that he would serve the Fleet Captain well. He sensed her to be a serious, no-nonsense woman, which was something that he admired.

Unlike the rest of the crew aboard the Wanderer, Eiri was used to people of higher ranks and coming from both Starfleet and the Vulcan Academy he understood the protocol. He was even more excited for the mission now. An aquatic planet and a Fleet Captain!

"I will be more then happy to assist you to the best of my ability, Ma'am."

Ayan took a deep breath as the briefing went on. At least Julian seemed just as tense and off put as he was. This must have been really important to put a Fleet Captain on a ship this small.

Prophets, he thought. This was definitely not the mission to ask about wearing the earring. Not the mission at all.

He was definitely more than off put. He had only just managed to avoid a court martial from his last post, and the last thing he really wanted to see here was more brass. On top of that, there's brass, and there's an SFI Fleet Captain.

He nearly opened his mouth to ask a question about how the ship would operate in water. He realized right before he did that it had little to do with his post in operations, and that it would probably just annoy the Fleet Captain. Just keep your mouth shut, Ayan, he thought. Keep your mouth shut, and no cute jokes.

Adam's surprise at the arrival of the fleet captain was only eclipsed by the shock that he knew this one, if only by reputation from his SFI days. Balls, he thought. This was one officer, he'd heard, not to piss off. His posture and expression had snapped into military perfection as soon as he'd seen her enter the bunkroom. Now he resigned to keeping them that way for the forseeable.

Still, a survey mission sounded interesting, if a little outside his area of expertise. He was about to open up and ask about the survey arrangements when the brunette he'd noticed earlier - Smyth, unless she was the medic or, more unlikely, the Big Scotsman - did it for him.

His expression remained studiously passive, but inside, he laughed. A Brit! This would be fun. Norfolk Colony had been, after a fashion, heavily rooted in Earth Australian culture and the former colony's love-hate relationship with the motherland had been a deep part of that. He wondered idy how she'd take some light ribbing. On a ship this small, he'd have to be careful it didn't backfire and earn him a reputation. Putting that train of thought on the backburner, he returned his attention to the meeting. No doubt he'd need to be finding out all there was to know about Aquoriat III in the near future. He resisted the urge to whip out his PADD and get started now - officers tended not to like him doing that while they talked.

Corbet stood at ease with a rigid posture. Her background gave her plenty of experience dealing with people who felt they were very important, regardless of whether they actually were. She was a little miffed that this many people had boarded the ship and no-one had bothered to tell her. She was especially irritated that brass was on board with no warning and no prep time. She hadn't enjoyed the scrutiny she received as she crossed the ward room with her mandolin to return it to her locker.

"Sir.." She said with the merest twinkle of a wink towards Julian. "If the planet is entirely aquatic, are we conducting the whole survey from orbit? Or are we getting wet?"

Lanzara watched the briefing in silence, she had made a mental note of all those in the room and had resigned herself to reading all their service files, as well as the classified files on them that didn't officially exist. She had to know what she was dealing with, and if any of them could be loose canons, that was the last thing she needed. She had a mission to complete, and she would be damned if she would let a crew of misfits would do anything to jeopardize it, it may be clichéd, but the future of the Federation did depend on what was going to happen in the next few days.

Why was one of them looking at her like that? Should she know that face? His was the first file she would read.

"I am not sure if you had planned to have the ship break the surface-water of the planet Lieutenant, but I am going to have to insist on the matter if my mission requires it."

Rha could not stop his tail from swishing nervously behind him and the ruff of fur around his neck was standing on end. He smoothed it as he tried to stand at attention. It was hard going when you had body parts that wouldn't obey you.

There were very few people he had ever met at this rank. Occasionally, at the training center, the "brass" had come to check on them, give reviews, rearrange people and give promotions, but they had never stayed to work on anything.

He also did not like the idea of a water planet and his mind was turning on ways to not have to get wet. Water was not something he enjoyed and ocean water played havoc with his coat.

Directing his attention more to Smyth than Talem, as she had asked the question in the first place, Julian said "We underwent some slight modifications while docked at Kepler, in preparation for this mission. The idea was that-Computer shut off the Wagner-the idea was that we would probably have no choice but to get our feet wet in order to complete our survey," he said. Corbet nodded at Julian before returning to her 'at ease' position.

Fletcher remained at ease throughout briefing, his posture a little stiff. The presence of the Fleet Captain made him nervous, but not as jittery as it seemed to make Rha. Having someone of that rank on board meant he'd probably be seeing patients on this mission.

"Sir?" the medic asked, the question directed at Julian. "Do we expect away missions into the water? If so, do we have equipment for carrying out those missions?" He made a face, thinking for a moment. "I'm concerned about the risk for hypothermia, and I'll make sure to read about its effects on the different species of the crew."

Julian turned to Fletcher, and said "We are equipped with dive suits for all crew members, should the need arise. Regrettably we weren't informed of Fleet Captain Talem's presence for this mission, so I will need to make a trip back to the requisitions office on Kepler to get one replicated for her."

...and let's pray to God that they have her measurements on file, because that is NOT something I'm going to ask.

Eying Ayan directly, he said "Lieutenant Retol, I've taken the liberty of looking over your previous service aboard the White Star, and I noted that your first request upon arriving was permission to wear your earring while on duty. As I'm sure you're aware this is a matter of Commanding Officer's discretion, as long as the jewelry is not ostentatious and does not interfere with your safety or your duty. At the prime core of my being I believe in the tenet of the Federation being 'Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations,' and you have my express permission to wear it whenever you so desire."

"You all have your assignments, and those of you that don't have specific duties are to assist the rest of the crew in getting the preparations made for departure as required. Petty Officer Rha, you will accompany me to Kepler. There are a few additional supplies we need to take on, and I need a strong arm. That's all. Dismissed."

With that, Julian nodded to Rha, and walked back through the hatch to grab his PADD from his station on the Bridge.

Ayan took a deep breath and nodded at Julian. "Thank you sir," he said. He had a feeling he was watching the Lieutenant trying out his boundaries with the Fleet Captain. He kept his mouth shut until he was safely out of the ward room.

"Prophets..." he said as moved up to the bridge, stepping around the Caitian to get out of the ward room as fast as possible. "I'll go ahead and get Ops ready and do a systems check, Sir..." he said as Julian strode off the cramped bridge with Rha.

Lanzara simply nodded her head at the Lieutenant as he mentioned the use of an aqua-suit. She then placed her attention on the person who had been assigned as her aide during the mission, and the Lieutenant as he permitted the wearing of some primitive talisman. She did not air her own views on the matter, but if it had been her ship she would not have been so...accommodating....

Once the Lieutenant finished speaking, she once again drew all attention in the small room her her as the Lieutenant began to dismiss the assembled rabble "My assigned aide and all intelligence personnel are to remain for a separate briefing." she gave no further indication as to the topic or duration, rather she let her eyes lock with the Lieutenant, "my being here is classified far above your grade Lieutenant, you and your crew are not to discuss it with anyone on the station." it was not a request or even a question, it was a pure statement of fact.

"Yes Ma'am," Julian said without turning back.

Corbet very happily excused herself from the ward room and made her way to the bridge. Unsure of what stations would be open given the new crew, she took one of the AUX stations and began double checking that the weapon systems would accept their new watery environment.

After making sure the door was closed, "Well, She's an Aussie-kissing, fanny-flapping, Minger!"

She experienced a brief moment of concern that her parents heard her talking like that, then remembered that was just her instinctive reaction. She quickly returned to her work before her parents could board the next transport off earth to chew her ear off. She knew they'd do it too.

Julian cast a wary glance in her direction, grabbed his PADD, and said "Tone, Smyth. you have the conn."

Hayley momentarily reached her destination, and she made her way over to the second escape pod. She pulled out her PADD and started interfacing with the pod. "Get it together, girlie," she said to herself. These are members of Starfleet we're talkin' 'bout here. They wouldn't promote a werewolf-cat-thing to Petty Officer 3rd Class if he made a habit of stalkin' and eatin' his coworkers. Her PADD chirped and Hayley turned her attention back to the escape pod. She tapped her commbadge:

"Griffith to Lieutenant Durand, Escape Pod 2 has been outfitted with systems access for the visitin' Major. Orders, sir?"

"That's Fleet Captain, Crewman. Finish the preparations for the departure. I'll be back shortly."

Rha followed Julian with no question. He was relieved to be away from the Fleet Captain and with Julian. Julian made him feel safe, at least for the time being. He would be more then happy to help with supplies.

Once they were far away enough from the meeting room Rha looked at Julian, then over his shoulder, then back at Julian. "Is it just me or is that new lady engineer a little jumpy? And why us? Julian? Is she ever going to tell us why she's here? Are we in trouble?" he rattled off the questions in rapid fire succession. His tail bouncing up and down behind him.

Julian snorted, and said "I think she's afraid of you Rha. Couldn't imagine why. As to Talem, I doubt we're in trouble, and she doesn't have to and probably can't tell us why she's here. Really, do you think a Fleet Captain would hitch a ride on a Wallace Class instead of taking out a Sovereign or Galaxy, if it wasn't pretty urgent? Anyway, let's get this overwith and get back to the ship."

((This joint post brought to you by Lt. Julian "Take that!" Durand, Crewman Hayley "OGOD WHAT IS THAT?!" Griffith, Crewman Adam "Hey...you look familiar" Carter, Petty Officer Rha "I AM A CAT WITH LOTS OF QUESTIONS", Crewman Corbett "PISS OFF YOU GRODDY LITTLE WANKAH" Smyth, Fleet Captain Lanzara "IM ON UR BASE, STEELIN UR DOODS" Talem, Petty Officer Fletcher "The only man on the ship who takes his job seriously" McNeil, Lt Eiri "Oh look, someone who knows what they're doing for a change" Ashshy, Ltjg Retol "I like to talk and talk, and have you heard about my pie? how about the time when I slid down that mountain? Do you like my earring?" Ayan. Not featured: Sir Not Appearing In This Film.))

Corbet blasts the sex pistols over the bridge speaker systems as she runs some combat tactics simulations.

Hayley swore under her breath and kicked the air, then quickly composed herself and tapped her commbadge again. "Yes, sir. Of course, sir. Apologies, sir."

Brow furrowed, ashamed of herself, Hayley made up her mind as she initialized the pre-launch sequence for the small craft. "Hayley Rae, this ain't a broke-down greasehole garage in Oklahoma, this is a daggone Federation starship. You are just a tiny, low-ranking cog in a gigantic, faster-than-light supermachine that makes the galaxy safe. Do your daggone job and keep your head on straight!" She raised one hand to her forehead and the other to the back of her neck and physically re-straightened her skull on its axis.

Her thoughts turned to her furry crewmate. Her failure to control her fear of his unfamiliar race had caused her to lose face in front of the higher-ups. She resolved to look up information on his species when she was done preparing the launch.