Getting stuck in...

Posted on Sun Mar 22nd, 2020 @ 2:29pm by Captain Jack Solomon

1,894 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Episode 106 – Stalemate
Location: USS Ark Royal, en route to Deep Space Six
Timeline: MD2 1000hrs

Having cleared the combat area, in which the Typhon Pact forces had descended upon Starbase 400 and her support fleet, Jack was both glad and concerned as the Evacuation Fleet made its ways to Deep Space Six as ordered. The Typhon Pact had sent an incredibly large fleet to either destroy or take down the station and now his home was aboard the Ambassador Class Starship…something he was ok with for now.

Knowing that he had been on duty for the past 48 hours without a break, due to the very possibility of having to defend the civilian ships should the Pact send a response fleet after them, Jack finally decided to take a small “break” and spend some time putting his skills to work, at least his Engineering skills and not his command skills.

Nodding to his relief, Jack walked over to his Ready Room and collected his toolkit before making his way toward the nearest turbolift and entered it when it arrived. "Sensor Dome," he instructed, as the doors closed. Something that he had checked whilst looking through the various department reports and to see where he could be of use whilst the Ark Royal was in transit. This helped him to identify where he could be of use and get to know some more of the new crew that were assigned aboard the Ambassador Class Starship

With all the recent action that had taken place in the previous hours, priorities had shifted in several different areas on board and Jack knew that the various Operations and Engineering teams did their best to keep up with the work.

This also reminded Jack that he needed to find time to catch up with Deela as well, something he needed to do once the Essex was back in range and they had met up at DS6. He was glad that they had sorted out several details already, now he just prayed for a quiet period to get the wedding finalised and hopefully one day completed so he could rightly call her his wife...Something he dearly wanted even more after recent events.

Once the turbolift arrived and he made his way down the corridor, Jack arrived at the access door to the Sensor Dome area. With several teams of officers and NCO’s making trips back and forth as regular maintenance and repair work was taking place. Checking the duty roster for any officers or crew working onboard from Engineering, Jack smiled as he recognised Lt Yosemite as being the officer in charge during this shift. He knew that the young Martian officer was a capable engineer from working with her back on SB400 and wasn't surprised to see she was assigned today.

He made his way towards the access door and saw the Lieutenant snap to attention as she spied him making his way over. "Commander Solomon, I wasn't aware that you were paying the Sensor Dome visit today?" she offered, already knowing herself that she was prepping the ship for his arrival.

"At ease, Lieutenant, I'm just here to make sure that I haven’t lost my touch as an Engineer and I’m looking for some good company to do that with," Jack explained as he met Yosemite at the access door. "I can see that everyone is already running their arses off, so it’s good for me to get involved at the ground level as well," he asked her. Jack knew that the young officer was an organised and efficient colleague who attended to her duties well.

"I like to make sure that the teams onboard keep each the old girl in tip-top condition, sir. It's good to make sure, just in case we see combat or need to escape at a moment’s notice," Yosemite explained.

Jack smiled. "Very well. I'll get started on the primary backups and make my way around to work through the various checklists I have, in the meantime, grab a toolkit and get started on the primary flow sensors from the EPS channels?" he asked. He wanted to make sure that Yosemite was nearby, to be able to have a conversation, otherwise the work would go more slowly. Quietly, Jack was still loving his role as both a commanding Officer once again as well as the Chief Engineer and the good feeling that came with the new third gold pip he was wearing and the privileges that came with it.

Pulling out his checklist and opening his toolkit, Starbase 400's Chief Engineer and one of its newest Department Commander’s began his inspection, knowing that the next few hours were going to be very busy for both him and Yosemite. Solomon noticed one of the young Ensigns nearby, looking a little bit lost and decided to step in by handing a coil spanner to him.

"Finish up the work on the ODN access and the LCARS interfaces outside this area and get started on the EPS conduits on deck 36. I will be back later to check on you."

The Ensign nodded and went off to get on with his work. Yosemite let out a small chuckle as she saw what her CO had done. “Morano will love you for that sir, he was looking a bit spare.”

Jack smiled at the lieutenant’s chuckle and knew that she wasn’t slow about coming forward. This was also a chance for him to get some maintenance done and get to know some more of his crew, however he could sense that Mr Sullivan had more questions to ask...

"By all means Mr Yosemite, if you have questions, please ask away, I don't bite..."

Knowing that this was a good chance to learn more about her CO and maybe look at a way of being more active member of the crew, Yosemite took the chance given to her. "How long have you been on board Commander?".

"Me? Hell, almost 7 years now, although it seems a bit longer to me in some respects with everything that’s happened whilst I've been here," Jack revealed. "I used to serve under Admiral T'Lar back when she was in command of the USS Essex A, the predecessor to the current starship assigned to the station and we found each other again...it’s funny how life has its ways of getting others back together again..." he mused.

"How long have you been in Starfleet?" he heard the young Martian officer ask and thought back to his first day out of the Academy as a junior officer, reporting to the USS Wildcat A...

"Oh, at least 20 years and maybe a few more than that I dare say," he began to explain. "I signed on with the USS Wildcat back in 2368 as a young Ensign, assigned to her as the Chief Operations Officer under Captain Wolfe back then...wow the adventures we had during her voyages were many of merit." Jack left it there as the Tactical console signalled completion. He headed over to the Science console and began a re-alignment of the lateral sensors from the station.

"How about you Yosemite? What brought you to Starbase 400 in the first place? What’s happened in your career to date to bring you to one of the most exciting posts in the Federation?" Jack asked, eager to learn more.

Yosemite smiled at the Commander as her Engineering PADD updated with the data from the scans she was running. She stood up and strolled towards the nearby wall console and begun to run a system check. It was a few moments until she spoke again.

"I have just under 10 years, Commander. I started out as a Warp Core Specialist on the USS Heron, an old Excelsior class." She gazed toward the now inactive viewscreen and tapped her fingers against the console as it lit up once more. The systems data started running again as she started working on the sensor flows.

"I made my way through the fleet, sticking with Engineering, however I’ve always had my eye on making it to the Command Division one day. I’ve seen other older and more seasoned officers make it and I want to follow that example. Before moving to SB400, I was on the USS Stanton, on patrol duty along the Cardassian Border. We were jumped by a Breen cruiser at the time and the Stanton took a lot of damage and was sent to the yards. I wanted a challenge and knew how busy Starbase 400, so I received orders here." She gave Commander Solomon a wink. "I like being where the action is, as they say.”

Jack listened to her previous career that led to Yosemite signing up to Starbase 400 and let out a little chuckle when he said about being where the action is. That reminded Jack of himself in many ways. "Aha, you have certainly chosen the best assignment for being in the thick of it," answered Jack, " It’s never boring! Especially of late, thanks to the Typhon Pact!"

Jack finished off his current task before opening his tricorder and starting to scan the operations of the primary backups to the main sensors and began a systems alignment program. "Well I have to say, you’re sure to enjoy this assignment and you’re a fine asset to the Engineering team. In fact, I’m pretty certain I need a full time XO on board the Ark Royal here... Interested?" He confirmed.

"Thank you, sir. I won't let you down on the Engineering side," She broke off as a chime caught her attention. "You need a full time XO... is that an offer?” she asked back, suddenly caught off guard. Yosemite took a moment and stood up before walking back to the access point she was working in. She entered a few keys and brought up a status display before smiling and moving to the next part of her job. "So, how long do I have to decide on this"

Jack smiled. "You have some time on your side. I’ll wait until we dock at DS6… make your decision by then,” he said. “Listen, I recognise talent when I see and it’s going to be a while before we’re back on SB400 so having a reliable and dependable crew on board the old girl makes life go a little smoother and I’m all for that.”

He looked up from his workplace to see her smile "Yes sir".

Jack was about to go back to work when he realised one thing. “If you’re going to accept my offer…because I know you will, I’ll need to know what your first name is…”
Knowing he could have looked that up on her file, Yosemite popped her head out from the access area she was now working from. “Its Rhae. Rhae Lanius Yosemite,” came the answer.

Several hours later when he had finished the work on the primary back systems to the Sensor Dome, Jack had made his way back to his Ready Room, long after Rhae had finished her work and moved on to the next task she had. He found a PADD waiting on his desk, accepting his offer to become the Ark Royals full time XO.

Jack smiled before ordering a Raktajino and taking a well-earned few minutes on his sofa to enjoy his drink.

RSS Feed