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DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

[ Commander Carrigan Trent | Deck 01 | XO's Ready Room ]  Attn: Brutus

Now that some time had passed since his promotion and appointment to Executive Officer and the reality of his new position on board, Trent found himself in his new office.  When he first stepped in, it had already been cleared of whatever possessions Edena Rez had in there and it had a pristine, untouched look.  And the first thing that came to Carrigan's mind was that he'd have to make this place his own, somehow, with the sparse possessions he had with him and his limited replicator rations. 

However, the privacy of having this space to himself allowed him to busy himself with the pile of reports he had to fully acquaint himself with.  This was the second time he was made a ship's first officer and he knew all too well just how much work was involved in getting up to speed with everything he had to be.  When he was first promoted to this post, he had a week of turn-over time to get used to the job and the load, to become fully familiar with the job at hand.  But on Theurgy?  He would be lucky if he'd get two days to do that.  But he was undaunted by the enormity of the task.  But there was one item he needed to address.  There was an away mission planned, using the Captain's Yacht and that mission had a designated commander already selected. 

And that officer he then called to his office by pressing a key on his console.  "Commander Stark to my Ready Room if you please."

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 Hrs]

Reply #1 –
[ Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | Bridge/XO-Ready room | Deck 01 ]  Attn: Carrigan Trent

A little over three hours had passed since Natalie had started her shift, and two since Captain Ives had pulled their stunt on (then) Lt. Cmdr. Trent. The promotion, as far as Natalie was concerned, had been necessary, given that Trent was then asked to be the ships XO as well. That part, she hadn't been in on, and before the shocking revelation of (then) Cmdr. Rez, a lot of the mornings events had made sense. Such as the Trill's state of dress. It was a sad situation. Like so many positions in the senior staff, the names and faces were constantly changing. Natalie herself wasn't the original COps for the ship - that had been her predecessor, Lt.Cmdr. Hendricks.

Painful pressure built in the pit of her stomach for a moment, a sudden ache as she remembered her mentor. She missed the man, and frankly missed having him as a blocker between herself and the Captain. But Hendricks was dead and Operations was her department to oversee. And reports to the captain or XO were her responsibility. She hadn't expected to be Senior staff any time soon. She hand't expected to be in charge of so many people. But that was life.

"Commander Stark to my Ready Room if you please."

Broken out of her reprieve, Natalie tapped her combadge, "Acknowledge. On my way." She took a breath, wondering just what the newly promoted XO wanted. It'd been a busy shift up to this point, but perhaps he did want a status report. Why, in person...Oh stop overthinking it and just find out. She chastised herself and stood, turning control of the main Ops station over to one of her junior officers stationed on the bridge. Taking a moment to adjust her uniform, she walked out of the main bridge and crossed over to the door. Fingers dancing across the chime.

Once the doors parted for her, she swiftly entered and looked around, looking for the familiar spots of damage, from where she'd been held, bound with Simon Tovarek during the mutiny. They'd already been repaired, but she could still see the scorch marks in her mind. She swallowed back the sudden acrid taste in the back of her mouth, bile threatening to rise for so many reasons, and instead stood at attention, facing the rooms new owner.

"You wish to see me, sir?"

OOC: edited a few typos and corrected the fact that though there was damage, it'd already been fixed, as per comments in the previous post about a pristine condition. Shouldn't require any further edits, but please let me know if anything was missed.

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 Hrs]

Reply #2 –
[ Commander Carrigan Trent | Deck 01 | XO's Ready Room ]  Attn: Brutus

There had been little delay between his call and the acknowledgement from Stark.  But between her acknowledgement and her arrival, Trent was not idle.  He had taken the time to bring up the mission profile that had been put together for the search and rescue operation that we set to leave in less than an hour.  Odds are, at this very moment the Captain's Yacht was being prepared for launch and stocked with the required supplies.  And he knew he would need those details on hand shortly.

When the Lieutenant Commander entered the Ready Room, Stark rose to his feet to welcome her.  Granted, she was coming into his office and by rights he could have remained seated but to come to his feet was a courtesy he felt he owed the Chief of Operations.  but something he did not fail to notice was how she stiffened before she came to attention.  This room, for some reasoned it bothered her and the need to put her at ease became greater than ever. 

"Miss Stark, Natalie, please have a seat."  As he gestured towards one of the chairs across from his desk, he himself sat down.  "First of all, how are you doing?  It's been a rough twenty-four hours, hasn't it?"

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #3 –
[ Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | Bridge/XO-Ready room | Deck 01 ]  Attn: Carrigan Trent

The sleep she had managed to snag that night wasn't so great that her nerves weren't at least a little frayed still. Coming into this room didn't help things, but none of that was Carrigan Trent's fault by any means. Managing a ghost of a sardonic smile, Natalie nodded and graciously took the offered seat across from Cmdr. Trent. "Thank you sir," she replied, easing herself into the chair, "And rough is...one way to put it."

'How are you doing?' was about as bad as 'And hows does that make you feel?'- one of those questions that everyone asked and sounded like a cop out from a counselor. Trent was the first officer now, and it would be his responsibility to check up on her. She could give the parroted, rubber stamp answer of 'fine, sir,' but she was certain that wouldn't fly. Her mind flashed back to being held captive here, in that very office less than a day ago, held at phaser point while a psychotic bitch threatened to rape her mind, and a - possibly - brainwashed man did his best to rape her body. To being rescued by Rory and seeing him die, and then the Cardassion CPO from the Harbinger who now replaced her friend Cale at the helm. The assault on the bridge. The attack, and aftermath. The back breaking work. She shook her head and let her eyes flash up to the Commanders.

"I'm managing, sir," she started off, raising a hand a bit to indicate there was more to come, and then promptly continuing. "I won't say I'm fine. I'm not at all right as rain," an errant thought - she hadn't experienced rain, real rain, in quite some time, "but then again I wager that applies to most of the crew. It's probably our default operational setting at this point - managing. If you're asking if I'm fit for duty, yes. If you're asking if I'll be sleeping easy through the next few nights...probably not. " She shrugged again, crossing her legs and settling back in the chair. She was surprised, first at how oddly easy it was to simply say that to the man she hardly knew, but was now her ships executive officer, or by how...calm, she felt, now that she had said it.

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #4 –
[ Commander Carrigan Trent | Deck 01 | XO's Ready Room ]  Attn: Natalie Stark

Trent knew his position would hardly be easy.  He had been on Theurgy for just a few days and went from a defector from Admiral Sankolov to Chief Intelligence Officer to Executive Officer in charge of the Tactical department as well as the smooth running of a starship that had just been mauled by sabotage, mutiny and battle.  While his actions during the mutiny were liable to have gone a long way towards securing the trust of the crew and establishing that his qualifications extended much further than flying a desk, he was well-aware of the growing pains he would face. 

And truth be told, part of him expected the Chief of Operations to be one of these.  Traditionally, that was the position of the Second Officer and who was most likely to be brought up to XO once the previous one moved on to other things for one reason or another.  Not to mention stealing her thunder right there on the Bridge, to the point of completely ignoring the phaser that had been pointed squarely at him when he cleared the turbolift doors. 

But when she spoke, those doubts volatilized.  To speak like that, there had to be a degree of trust on her end.  Most officers who aren't as confident as they ought to in their superiors tended not to be the most open with them.  And it also spoke of a great degree of professionalism and acceptance of her limits.  Something that would be just as bad as a lack of confidence from her would have been false bravado; especially when her newly-appointed superior did not know her nearly well enough to be fully cognizant of her limits. 

"I won't pretend I know or understand everything this ship and this crew has been through.  But I think you've got the right of it; managing looks like the standard operating procedure here."  Trent's voice was his customary near-whisper but there was warmth and understanding lacing his words.  And truth be told, had he seen the reports absent context and seeing the toll of those events on ship and crew he'd have been tempted to dismiss them as a script for an over-ambitious holo-novel.  "But it says a lot you're willing to admit this.  Takes some guts to admit you're being rattled to a superior.  And it also tells me you'll have an eye out for your people too and make sure they can at least manage.  And between you and me and these bulkheads, if you'd been sleeping like a baby I'd have some serious doubt as to whether you're all there or not."  And then, a faint smile.  It wasn't the best of joke; in fact, it barely counted as one.  But there it was.

"As you might know, Captain Ives ordered a SAR mission be launched to retrieve the lifepods from the Harbinger and as we speak a medical and security contingents are being put together and a crew is being assembled and the Captain's Yacht is being prepped to launch in less than an hour.  And they still need an officer in charge.  Well, they did, until just now."

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #5 –
[  Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | XO-Ready room | Deck 01 ]

There was a degree of trust, in Natalie, for Cmdr. Trent. Most of it was a subconscious gut feeling on the brunettes part. The man carried himself with an air of authority - he'd certainly had it when he walked onto the bridge, calm as could be during the mutiny. He'd been beaten about, roughed up, bloodied, and it looked as if he'd shrugged it all of and done his duty. So he took over when she had finally gotten herself worked up to do what needed to be done.  But that was what was important - doing what needed to be done, and Carrigan Trent probed he could. That alone had gone a long, long way to putting her at ease.

There were no toes for him to step on, either,  in his promotion. The thought that she might have been on tap for the XO position had never crossed her mind. True, Lt. Cmdr. Hendricks had been the ships Second Officer prior to his death. He had been a close friend of Jien Ives. But when Captain Ives promoted her to the position of Chief of Operations, Second Officer was never explicitly mentioned.  Her command experience was....negligible. It hadn't stopped her from trying to step up when the call came, but as a result, she'd had no notion what so ever that she might have been in line to succeed Edena Rez.

Not that any of those thoughts really congealed into something recognizable in Natalie's head. It was all more of a background impression on the Lt. Cmdr as she listened to her new superior gauge the crews overall status. Trent's a perceptive one. That thought did fully form, and she mentally hushed herself. He had hit the nail on the head though, and she was...pleased? to hear his confidence in her. She nodded in agreement with him, about keeping an eye out for her people. Hendricks has done the same for her, how could she do any less for him.

And sure, it was a crappy joke, but it was a joke all the same, and she managed a little laugh. Tiny one, but it was there. Not quite the gallows humor they were used to on the Theurgy, but it'd do. She hadn't really been prepared to be this relaxed and at ease with their new XO, but the day was full of surprises.

Quite a few surprises at that, it seemed.

"As you might know, Captain Ives ordered a SAR mission be launched to retrieve the lifepods from the Harbinger and as we speak a medical and security contingents are being put together and a crew is being assembled and the Captain's Yacht is being prepped to launch in less than an hour.  And they still need an officer in charge.  Well, they did, until just now."

Sitting up straighter in the chair across from Carrigan, Natalie became instantly more attentive. SAR was a big deal, period. It didn't matter who, what, or why - you didn't leave someone adrift in the deep black of space if you could help it. That the Captain was adamant about such an effort, to the point of sending their largest auxiliary vessel to do the clean up spoke well of her faith in the CO. That she, and her crew, had indeed backed the right officer in the Mutiny (not that there had ever been a moment of doubt in Natalie's mind. It was still nice to have tangible reassurance).

What did confuse her was the last sentence from Cmdr. Trent. For a second, she thought he was talking about himself, and she was wondering what any of it had to do with her. But then, it clicked in her head and her eyes went just a little wide. To her credit, she didn't squeak, or drop anything, like the poor Yeoman, Ens. Henshaw had earlier on the bridge, when she'd been assigned (deservedly) to Mission Ops. To be fair, Natalie didn't have anything to drop in her hands at the moment, or she might have all the same.

She chewed on the inside of her lip for a moment, and then the outside, for that matter. Less then a few seconds, really, as it all ran through her mind. But in the end there was no real hesitation, just surprise. "Well," she started, slowly, showing that surprise, but nothing more than surprise, "I can't say I have much experience on the Allegiant, but I can't think of a better ship to handle the SAR mission. " She didn't dilly dally or ask if he was sure about having her run it. He'd just said he was. So instead, she asked a more pertinent question. "Who all am I going out with, and whats our time table?"

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #6 –
[ Commander Carrigan Trent | Deck 01 | XO's Ready Room ]  Attn: Natalie Stark

Stark's surprise was pretty much expected.  According to the early reports, she had managed to free herself from captivity and she was the one who had led the raid on the Bridge at the end of the mutiny.  And while his impressions of her was that she was inexperienced in command roles of any sort she had the potential to develop into an adept leader.  Especially if she recognized the resources she had at her disposal to help her along that path and she wasn't too proud to pick the brains of her Chief of the Deck.  The man had been in Starfleet longer than a good number of members of this crew had been alive and his experience would be priceless to any officer who recognized his value. 

And also, as Executive Officer, Trent knew part of his job was to help develop people to their best potential and to ramrod training across the ship.  And that search and rescue operation, while delicate to begin with, would be a great opportunity to get Lieutenant Commander Stark some good experience with independent command.  "That was the thought behind using the Allegiant for the job.  She's bigger than a runabout, and you'll need the space.  So far as I gathered, you'll have Chief S'ithi at the helm and as a point of contact with Harbinger crewmen, Lieutenant zh'Wann to head up a security contingent and Doctor Maya on the medical side.  Those are the preliminary assignments, and as mission commander you are in a position to request other personnel as well if you think you'll need them."  Then, he passed the PADD with the mission details across his desk to the Chief of Operations. 

"I'd personally feel better if we could send a few fighters to escort you but I'm given to understand all of them need a good deal of maintenance.  Might I recommend you get someone from Tactical, perhaps Ensign Donovra to go with you and someone to keep a closer eye on long-range sensors for the duration?  And for an escort, we have a few runabouts in working condition; you should take them with you as an escort.  Odds are they won't be needed but I'd love to use the opportunity to give Ensign Henshaw a chance to get some practice at Mission Ops when we're not in immediate danger."

Trent offered a supportive smile to his junior.  She was about to head out for a mission that might last more than just a few hours and going to be picking up people who might either be brainwashed or voluntary parts of Vasser's plans.  And that was plenty dangerous to begin with.  "I don't have to tell you to be careful out there.  But before you go, is there anything I can do to help you accomplish your mission?"

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #7 –
[  Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | XO-Ready room | Deck 01 ] Atten: Carrigan Trent

Natalie began an immediate mental check list of the officers that were being suggested as she accepted the PADD from Carrigan. She didn't really know any of them all that well, on a personal level, but professionally she had seen both CPO S'ithi  and Lt. zh'Wann in action. The later had a rather checkered reputation with the crew, having some truly rotten luck to the point that she was willing to transfer away to the Harbinger. Then again, that had turned out for the best. Had the Andorian not been on that vessel, she likely would not have been able to ram it bow first into the Calamity and in the process save their necks. Natalie had no problem what so ever with the idea of Ida heading security for the mission. She'd be up to the task of keeping any survivors that had thoughts of continuing the mutiny in check.

The Cardassian helms-woman would also make a fitting choice. In so far as Natalie could tell, the grey-skinned non-com was the most capable pilot they now had - given the death of Cale Winterbourne. A small shuddered went down her back at that memory, watching, again, as he died in front of her. Her face hardened slightly, but beyond that she didn't dismiss the notion. While they could steal one of the fighter pilots from the Lone Wolves for the mission, Natalie knew - better than most - just how much was on their plate already. And she agreed that having someone trustworthy from the Harbinger's former crew would be needed. That was a very, very short list indeed.

"I'm not terribly familiar with Dr. Maya," Natalie finally said looking up to meet Cmdr. Trent's gaze as she continued, "But I understand, based on the briefing memo's from medical, that she's been instrumental in the recovery efforts for those affected by T'Rena's....special touch," she spat those last two words out the same way a Nausican spat profanity when they lost at Dom Jot. "If she's up for the mission, having her there on hand to help with the recovery effort would be welcome. I've no objection to the core team," Natalie didn't know just how taxing the memory re-modification work that Maya was conducting could be. As such, it was a concern from her view point, if the Vulcan doctor would be recovered enough herself to participate in the SAR effort.

"As for Ensign Donovra," Natalie said, after a long moment of consideration, "I don't know her all that well, but she seemed to hold it together. And we don't have much of a Tactical department at the moment, do we, sir?" Leaning back in the chair, she chewed it all around in her mind, tapping the PADD against her thigh absentmindedly. Weighing her options, whether or not it was a good idea...she glanced up at Carrigan and chuckled silently in her head. Its not just Ens. Henshaw that's getting a chance to practice.  "And yes, I like the idea of having the runabouts providing cover - and possibly, extra space, depending on how many survivors we actually have."

Sitting up straighter again, she set the PADD on Trent's desk and tapped her fingers on the top. He was doing his best to put her at ease and she appreciated that. She wasn't being given much time - once she left here she'd be rushing back to her quarters to pack an away kit, and review the mission flight plans, such as they were....

"Any advice? Earlier...yesterday, you walked onto that bridge like you owned it. If ah, there's a trick to that?"

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #8 –
[ Commander Carrigan Trent | Deck 01 | XO's Ready Room ]  Attn: Natalie Stark

As Stark gave her assessment of her team and of the suggestions he made, Trent nodded.  In the end, she was the mission commander and the roster she had been presented had but two slots cast in stone due to the nature and unique abilities of the people in them, it was up to her to decide who she wanted to accompany her.  From where he sat, the Executive Officer would simply facilitate what changes she wished to make, if any, and provide her with pre-mission guidance should she ask for any.  In this case, the Chief of Operations was going to get at least one training wheel knocked off and she would be in a brief but independent command for the duration.  And while Theurgy wouldn't be far if there was any trouble, she would be the sole authority while they were out there.

But then, she asked a question that brought a smile to his lips.  Was there a trick to looking like he had owned the Bridge when he walked right on?  There were so many answers to that, but he couldn't just laugh it off and let her figure it out.  Not when she was about to lead a sensitive operation to begin with.  "Yes and no," he started as he leaned back in his chair.  "Anyone who went through officer training was taught the basics of leadership and how to manage personnel, that's just part of the game.  But if you're going to command you need more than just rank and sitting in the center chair.  When I took the Bridge, I went directly for the center seat.  That's because everyone just knows that this is where the person in charge sits.  And what I said, that I was assuming command, was to get people's attention to what I was doing.  And between that and the red shirt and the rank, I knew I had a solid leg to stand on.  And considering that the Bridge was already secure at the time I knew I was surrounded by members of the crew loyal to the Captain and I could count on Starfleet protocols to back me."

"And one thing anyone in command needs to have isn't unshakable confidence; it's the ability to project unshakable confidence.  Yes, a good commander will ask for advice and recommendations from his subordinates but in the end the decisions are his and his alone.  When you give orders, even if you ask for advice, you absolutely must make it clear that it is your decision and not someone else's regardless of whatever courses of action have been suggested by others.  So, you wouldn't say 'what he said' if you agree with someone's suggestion.  You pause for a moment, run it through your head for a moment and then you give them the order to make it so."

"And I'll let you in on a little secret.  I wasn't nearly as calm as I looked.  That, mind you, a lot of it is just experience.  When you're in command people look to you for stability, that you have to always look like you're in control.  And eventually, you'll start feeling that calm and that confidence.  But regardless of what happens, there is one thing that is more important than anything else.  Make a decision, any decision.  If it's a bad one, adapt on the fly to straighten things out.  If it's a good one, follow through with it.  But in the end, you must be a hundred percent behind any call you make.  Commit to action, adjust as needed.  If you look indecisive at all, you'll be putting cracks in the confidence your people have in you and you're going to lose them."

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #9 –
[  Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | XO-Ready room | Deck 01 ] Atten: Carrigan Trent

Who to take with her, on the mission, what extra resources to ask for, all of it was certainly heavy on her mind. What to pack, and how much of it, for that matter, was weighing her down too. How long would they be gone? Would she need a change of uniform. How were they going to care for all the possible stranded crew. Would Hensahw - assuming she went that route - be up to the job of coordinating between all the craft deployed for SAR. And at the forefront - how do I get them to follow me. All of it took a backseat the moment Carrigan started to answer that most important question: how to keep her calm.

His answer snagged her attention completely. She tried not to lean too far forward, to be too obvious about it, but there was every chance that he'd read her like an open book. And she found herself nodding along with what he said. Part of it was simple common sense, something that, juts as he said, everyone that became an officer in Starfleet, and not a non-com, went through and, intellectually, understood. But that kind of course can only take you so far in the real world. What makes sense intellectually does'n't always translate to instinctual, and rarely comes off as natural, right from the get go.

True, Natalie didn't have command training, and her shirt collar was yellow, not red. She was confident enough with her own people (ok, not really, but she was getting there), and yet, solo command. She drank up his every word, because there were nerves for her....or him apparently.

The brunette sat back in her chair once more and blinked, showing the surprise on her face again. It shifted to a smile, soft, but welcoming. He was being honest and open with her, as she had with him. The two officers had not served together long by any stretch of the imagination and yet there it was again, her trust, mirrored back. And she appreciated it.

"Make a decision, any decision," she repeated the words back to him, tasting them on her tongue and trying to take them to heart. Intellectually, she knew that no mater how much input she got from the others - and she would be a fool not to consider the input - she could not, as the XO said, look indecisive. It was, as she'd thought earlier, committing that to instinct that would be tricky.

"Aye sir. I'll remember that." It wasn't much of an answer, not when compared to all the words he had had for her, and yet - it summed it up, perfectly, at least in her mind. Now the question was, what next? And for Natalie, that answer was  quick run to her quarters, to read, and re-read, and probably even give a third read, over the mission brief, pack up her gear, and then get her ass down to the captains yacht.

Looking once more to Lieutenant  Comm - no, Commander Trent, now, she reminded herself - she smiled again. "Thank you sir. I think I need to go and get ready and give this a few more once overs. I'll send you and Captain Ives a final pre-mission briefing before we head out. " She waited for his queue, and then started to stand. "And Commander....thank you. I'll do my best, not to let you, Cpt. Ives...or any of the Harbinger survivors down." Because when it came down to it, her insecurities about her first solo command had to take a second seat to finding those that may yet be clinging to life, stranded in escape pods. That, that had to come first.

OOC: First of many back owed posts. Sorry for the delay. Hopefully the flow still fits with the previous posts. I'm going on about 80 hours of work this week so far with not all that much sleep, but I wanted to get at least one of these up before I crashed tonight. If i need to make any changes, lemme know.

Re: DAY 01: Encouragement [1115 hrs.]

Reply #10 –
[ Commander Carrigan Trent | Deck 01 | XO's Ready Room ]  Attn: Natalie Stark

Something Trent was good at was gauging officers about him.  And when he spoke he observed the Chief Operations Officer.  From what he could observe, she paid close attention to what he had to say.  And that was a good start.  As Executive Officer, part of his duties would be seeing to overall crew readiness and training.  And seeing how department heads would see to their own slices of the pie, senior staff fell directly under his purview.  At least on paper.  And this SAR operation was a great chance to reinforce Stark's abilities as a senior officer and work on her confidence.  And given the circumstances, it was as close to ideal conditions to work on her professional development. 

But in the Executive Officer's mind?  The girl had potential.  And it was his job to get her to realize it.

When Natalie rose, so did Carrigan.  He could have remained seated and simply dismissed her but instead he shower her that much respect and courtesy.  When she voiced her concerns about accomplishing her mission and letting anyone down, he smiled.  "Miss Stark, the only way you'll let the Captain or I down is if you don't give this everything you've got.  And the same goes for the crew of the Harbinger.  Regardless of whether they were just doing their job, had been mind-raped or willingly followed Vasser's lunacy they are all Starfleet-trained and they all know that abandoning ship is less than a guarantee of survival.  Go out there and save as many as you can.  So long as you do your duty and maintain command and get the best you know how out of your people, that is all they can ask for; that is all I can ask for.  And if you can do that, when it comes to the final analysis I will fully support you at the end of the day."

Then, he extended his hand across the desk.  "Remember, your crew will take their cues from you; appear calm, project complete confidence and when in doubt, slow down and take a deep breath to clear your head.  Good hunting, Commander."


ooc: FIN?
 
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