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Day 29 [0700 hrs.] Into the Fire

Lt. Jg Akel Izavid | Deck 12 | vector 2 | Operations office | USS Theurgy ] @Brutus

After repairing his implant; Akel was able to return to his quarters, clean himself up, and sleep for several hours on top of his new bed.  He woke at 0500 to prepare to report into his new commanding officer.  Showering, shaving, and preparing himself Akel was ready before the 0700 hour time selected by him the night before. I took one last overview look at himself to insure his presentability and walked out the door with his PADD. 

As he preferred to query the computer by text rather than voice, while in the corridor, he typed ‘locate Lt. Commander Stark'.  The computer quickly located the commander inside the operations office on deck 12 and provided Akel with the most efficient route from his current destination.  As he began traveling, his mind started formatting the most diplomatic introduction statement. 

A few minutes, and a fun journey, later he arrived at the operations office.  He was right on in self proposed time and smiled to himself before stepping forward to trigger the door sensor.  As the opening reviled the interior he stepped inside and introduced himself to the receptionist sitting smiling at him.  He patiently waited for the receptionist to confirm Commander Starks’ availability he smiled and took in the office around him.  Once he was motioned to proceed to her office he walked through the indoor door, stood at attention and said “Lt. Jg. Akel Izavid reporting for duty as your Assistant Chief Operations Officer.”  He stood as the exemplary Starfleet model waiting for his new commander to reply.

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #1 –
 [Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Stark | Chief of Operations Office  | Deck 12 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]Attn: @JediMaster  
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It was early in the ships morning, and already, a still tired Natalie Stark was in her office. Much to do and not much time to do it in, she knew. Getting a call right before going to sleep last night didn't help. It wasn't all that out of the norm, of course. Even before she became the Theurgy Second Officer, as Ops Chief there would be something or another that would draw her from the depths of sleep, or in this case, stop her from falling to sleep to begin with as it had the previous night. She had, in fact, just stripped down and lain out in the bed, having lit a small incense stick to help her drift off, when the call came in. Not the first time, and not the last time it would happen.

Such interruptions had only increased, with her additional duties. She had to wonder if Captain Ives got any sleep at all, or if there was some sort of implant that anyone with that fourth golden pip had medically inserted upon promotion to help with sleep deprivation. Nat had to wonder what she would have to bribe Dr. Kobol  with to get early access to it.

Her terse reply of, "Welcome aboard lieutenant. Go get some sleep and see me during Alpha Shift," had probably not been the warmest welcome, but she had been done with a long day.  Getting the notification that he was right outside her door before she'd barely gotten things squared away and coffee replicated less than 12 hours later did not improve her morning mood by any stretch of the imagination. And did little to improve her impression of the man that she had yet to technically meet. Natalie sucked in a deep breath and reminded herself that it was not the fault of the eager officer that she was no morning person. Counting back from ten, she moved back to her desk, planted her coffee on the built in warming pad, and then called out to allow him in.

And in he strode. She had planted her rump against the edge of her desk, standing in front of it, one hand on either side, braced against the table behind her.One foot was crossed in front of the other, her skirt smoothed down, and one foot tucked behind the other. The Martian didn't realize she was drumming the fingers onf her left hand against the underside of the desktop as Akel came to attention.  Blue eyes took him in for a long moment, and then she nodded, stood up and strode forward. It was two steps, maybe three, from the front edge of the desk, to where the Betazoid man stood, just past the sensor that would have kept the door open. A small office, in short. Even on a ship like this, if you weren't the Captain or a counselor, your office wasn't all that much to write home about.

She wasn't nearly as awake as he deserved as she thrust her hand forward. "Welcome to Ops, Mr. Izavid. I'm Natalie Stark. Have a seat. Let's do this."

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #2 –
Lt. Jg Akel Izavid | Deck 12 | vector 2 | Operations office | USS Theurgy ] @Brutus

As he walked into his new commanding officer’s office he spent a few moments taking in the office and Commander Stark at the same time. He didn’t need empathic powers to sense how overworked she was.  He was fascinated by her standing position in the office, half expected her sitting behind the desk.  As his situational critique continued, he thought back to his first interaction with this ships crew and that he was looking like an idiot sitting there not saying anything for a moment.

When Stark welcomed Akel and told him to have a seat he felt as he did in basic school, being sent to the headmistress’s office too many times.  This feeling put him on the defensive as he sat down in the guest chair. Handing Stark the Padd he had brought with a copy of Admiral Anderson’s orders and his personnel file he spoke up. “Hello Commander, I understand how short staffed your operations department is at the moment.  I would like to promise to utilize all my skills in furthering the department through these times.  Admiral Anderson thought my system development, programming, and troubleshooting would be of Benefit to the Theurgy.  Is there anything you would like to know about me sir?”  With that said, Akel focused his full attention to Commander Stark

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #3 –
[Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Stark | Chief of Operations Office  | Deck 12 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]Attn: @JediMaster 
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With its hand drawn sketches mounted in frames on the wall, and its warm, inviting Martian-Navajo made blanket tossed over the back of her chair, the Operations Chief's office was hardly as barren or unpersonable as the officers last name might suggest. Natalie tried to make the place inviting, and if one liked the smell of roasted coffee beans, then the room was even more comfortable and welcoming, given that the Operations Chief herself had something of an addiction to the brew. Whether or not that was accurately conveyed to the junior lieutenant in front of her was another matter entirely, and although unfair to Akel, Natalie was not yet fully awake enough to spare the effort to sort that out. Bright eyed and bushy tailed, Nat wasn't.

Taking the PADD from the man, she gave it the barest of glances as she moved around her desk. "Can I get you anything to drink?" She asked, pausing next to the small replicator the offices' previous occupant had seen fit to install. Tired or not she did posses manners. Once she delt with his reply, and provided him with his drink of choice (if he so choose to have one at all), she settled herself into her chair opposite the Betazoid and resisted the urge to draw the blanket down around her shoulders and see if she could fall back into sleep.

Her lips quirked up into a small, bitter smile at his succinct summary of the situation at hand. Theurgy's Operations department was woefully understaffed, and she'd gone through entirely too many Assistant Chiefs since taking over the top role in the department.  Attrition was a bloody bitch, quite literally in course of fact, but she wasn't going to just throw that out at the young man the admiral had seen fit to send her way. "Captain Ives trusts Admiral Anderson's judgement, and so far the man hasn't given me any reason not to either. I'm grateful that you're here, Lieutenant. Because you are right, we are rather short staffed at the moment.

"To begin with however, please tell me what you know of our current situation. As you say, the Admiral believes that your talents would be of good use here. How do you see yourself fitting in and contributing?" As a junior officer, she had always hated questions like that, and the Natalie-of-Interviews-Past took a sort of malicious glee in being able to ask the question now. The Nat-of-Interviewing-Presently noted that it was actually a damned useful question, and Past-Nat aught to shut up and let Present-Nat focus. Clearly the caffeine was kicking in and sending her brain all over the place, though none of it showed in her expression, which was currently set to a neutral but interested demeanor.

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #4 –
Lt. Jg Akel Izavid | Deck 12 | vector 2 | Operations office | USS Theurgy ] @Brutus

You could tell a great deal about a person from their office / quarters and as Akel sat providing his brief history he noticed the warm inviting nature of the room.  The slight smell of coffee in the room reminded Akel of the small brewery he often frequented, which in turn made him miss his large black coffee, extra sweet.  It had been a very long time since he was able to have decent cup, the day before he abandoned his previous post.  He was almost wishing for a cup when Stark asked “can I get you anything to drink?”  For a brief moment he wondered if the offer was some sort of a test but decided the smell in the room was worth the risk “Yes sir, Black coffee, extra sweet please.”

After accepting the beverage gladly, realizing the last was not exactly correct, Akel listened to Commander Starks affirmation of Admiral Anderson.  Although she arrived at it in a round about way, Akel felt her acknowledgement another confirmation he had made the correct choice in moving to the Theurgy.  It saddened him to see the downtrodden expression on Starks face when he mentioned the short staffed nature of operations.

Continuing to listen to his commander, his attention was abruptly stopped when she asked for a summary for the current situation.  Truth be told he did not know much regarding the actual situation the Theurgy faced.  Taking a moment to organize his thoughts he tried to explain “To be honest Commander, I don’t really know much.  The Admiral wasn’t able to tell me much in the communication, I owed him a favor and he called it in.” 

He smiled for a moment before continuing to reposed to her questions. “As for fitting in, I have had a little chat with your ships computer and it has a few errors in it. I am ready and capable of maintaining the computing systems, update the inventory management system, and I am a great problem solver.  That is what I was doing before leaving to arrive here. Starbases and ships would request Utopia to dispatch a support staff member and I would go.”  Continuing in an almost rambling state “Actually, that’s part of why I arrived late last night, the Klingons kept me to fix a glitch in their computer systems, which are not my favorite systems by the way.” Realizing he was really starting to ramble, Akel stopped talking and looked it his commanding officer.  Taking another sip of his coffee in order to not look scatterbrained. 

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #5 –
 [Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Stark | Chief of Operations Office  | Deck 12 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]Attn: @JediMaster  
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One could make the argument, if one were so inclined to do so, that among Humanity's great contributions to the galaxy, coffee sat high upon its own pedestal. Culture, language, art, a drive for exploration, sure, all of that had been let loose when humankind set to the stars, reaching out past the boundaries of their own solar system and meeting the Vulcan's shortly after their nascent steps into the deep. But coffee, the ambrosia of the gods themselves, had traveled out along side humans, and was as wide spread and ubiquitous as the species that first farmed it.

Thus, Natalie was not at all surprised when the Betazoid man asked for a cup of the stuff. She'd provided it readily and then picked her own mug up once she had taken her seat, sipping from it. The cup was returned to its proper place on her desk, atop the built in heating pad, designed to keep the brew at her preferred temperature, based on the time to day. Lt. Izavid's choice was a mark in his favor, as far as Natalie was concerned, and never mind that it was a damned silly thing to take into account. 

Drumming her fingers lightly on the edge of the PaDD, Natalie watched the man across from her, and tried to get a read on him as he answered her question. She found it curious that he was here because he owed the Admiral in question, their staunch, hidden ally within Starfleet, a favor. Just how a junior lieutenant comes to owe an admiral such a thing was quite the curiosity indeed. Had the man given Akel a bump in the right direction at some point along the line to grow his career? Or was there something else at play. In any event, the lack of over all briefing from the admiral to the junior officer that was to be her left hand man was less than welcome. 

We'll manage somehow. We have so far, Natalie mentally concluded, though she worked hard to keep the thought off her face.  She listened to him explaining how he had operated in the past, and that was all well and good. In some respects, the story that unfolded reminded her of her own early career. Point her in the direction of a problem and she'd get up to her hips in some Jefferies tube or nestled into a nook in the computer core and poke and prod and tinker until it was fixed. One dark eyebrow arched up high on her forehead for a moment when Akel revealed that the Klingon's had kept him late. She sighed softly and made a note of it.

"They have a somewhat nasty habit of appropriating things that belong to this ship," she noted with dry amusement. "Though we would have been happy to loan you back out once we had you. Well, that's hardly your fault." The Klingon's probably considered it their just due, given that they had ferried the man here from wherever it was Anderson had found him. It sounded like the Utopia plane--Oh, hell.

The color drained out of her face as her brain caught up with what the man had said. This was what happened when she had a meeting too early in the morning, her mind wasn't running on full impulse yet and she was missing little things. Or almost, in this case, as she caught back up to the moment to tersely demand, "You worked at Utopia Planitia? How recently?"

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #6 –
Lt. Jg Akel Izavid | Deck 12 | vector 2 | Operations office | USS Theurgy ] @Brutus

It was at moments like this, sitting across the officer that would either use him for something valuable or not, when Akel wished his empathic powers were not inhibited by the implant on the back of his neck. As he spoke to the commander he, at times felt like she liked him, and at others that she was hesitant to trust Akel. He figured she would ask more questions if she wanted more clarification of his history as at times he was known for being too chatty. The coffee cup in his hand served to stop him from talking too much and gave him a few moments to process his thoughts.

Listening to Stark comment on the nature of Klingon self aggrandizement almost made Akel shoot coffee through his nasal passages. Lucky for him, he was able to contain said event.  Akel was not sure if her offer to loan him to the Klingons made him feel better or worse regarding his new situation. Resisting the urge to ask her not to by taking another sip of his almost empty coffee he kept listening waiting for the appropriate time to respond.

Akel was about to add his first meeting with Stark to his conversation win pile when he noticed a change in Commander Stark.  She looked as though Akel had been discovered to be Borg agent and it worried him very much. When she asked about his assignment to the utopia yards immediately after the mood shift he realized the possible reason. Admiral Anderson had told him in his brief orders not to trust anyone but the Klingon ship he arranged Akels transport on, or the crew if the Theurgy. Akel thought that someone would fill him in on exactly what was going on but decided not to push his luck and just answer the question as directly as possible.

“I was transferred to Utopia January 2080, but I have not spent much time there. As I became the resident holographic, computer systems expert I was given my own runabout and assigned to different projects.”  Akel paused for a moment trying to judge Starks mood before continuing. “About two weeks after arriving, I got a visit from Anderson, who gave me the runabout, and was assigned to an unnamed outpost by the admiral. It was in this assignment that I developed the Multi fractal- Holographic encryption technology still in use by Starfleet Intelligence.”  He took the last sip of his cup before continuing his story. “After that, My runabout the Steve Jobs became my official office and I went around to several bases fixing problems.” 

It was at this moment Akel decided to be a little forward and ask “Sir, no one has explained to me much of what’s going on, is there some reason why you are concerned about where I have been?”  Waiting for her to respond, Akel slowly turned the now empty coffee cup in his hands. He wasn’t sure why, but part of him felt like his questions were about to open Pandora’s box.
 

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #7 –
[Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Stark | Chief of Operations Office  | Deck 12 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]Attn: @JediMaster 
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For one small moment, a mote of hope had blossomed up in the pit of Natalie's stomach. But the more Akel spoke of his service to date - impressive as it sounded - the more Natalie's face fell. She tried to pull that back in, but it was impossible to hide a trace of disappointment from her features. She just wasn't that good of a poker player. Too young perhaps, not seasoned enough, or maybe she would never develop the skill of hiding her emotions, even years down the road. If she made it that far, which was not at all a guarantee . She'd come close to death more than once since joining Starfleet, as recently as a few weeks back, in the office of Yard Administrator M'Kish, no less.

A grim reality that only added to the weight pressing on her shoulders and the discontent in her spirit. As the man before her had done, Natalie used the coffee to keep from speaking right away, taking a sip of the brew and centering herself. January 2380. I had spoke to him after that. Too long ago, she thought to herself. The smile she gave the other man was a weak smile, and she was not at all sure that the expression would set him at ease. It did little for her own spirits. Still, he had asked a poignant question and he deserved to know the reason why she had brought up his service at Utopia Planitia with such keen interest.

"I apologize, Lieutenant, if I've given you any cause for concern. In point of fact, while we are at least somewhat concerned for the movements of anyone that Admiral Anderson has seen fit to send our way to help us, my question had nothing at all to do with matters of security or mission. Strictly personal concerns." A sheepish look passed over the young woman's features as she steeled herself to admit why she had let her heart get ahead of her brain.

"My father is a shift foreman at the dockyard orbital complex of Utopia Planitia, and I have not spoken with him since we fled the Sol system in January, 2381. Which is almost a full year after you last set foot at the yards. I...was hoping to hear word of him. That was all," she gave a little shrug, and another one of those small, sheepish smiles.  The man was the only family she had left worth mentioning, and the prospect that her new Assistant Chief might have spoke with him since Natalie had, might have seen him while on duty, had been too powerful to ignore. In short, through her own rampant imagination, she had got her hopes up for nothing.

Sipping from the coffee again, Natalie pushed her disappointment aside and replayed what else Lt. Izavid had told her about his previous posting and his assignment here. She cocked an eyebrow up, and noted, "Anderson didn't tell you why he was sending you here, just that he wanted you to make your way to us. A ship that has been lambasted across two quadrants by Starfleet Command and the Federation News Network as a boat load of piratical traitors. He's told you nothing of the nature of the threat we face?"

As she spoke, she fished out an isolinear data chip, fitted for a standard Starfleet PaDD. The yellow chip contained a copy of the standard 'welcoming' video, such as it was, that Captain Ives had used time and again, most recently as a way to inform, en masse, the survivors of the USS Dauntless and USS Bellerophon as to the true nature of the threat facing the galaxy, and the infestation of the upper echelon of Starfleet Command, as well as numerous other powers in near space. It was a doozy, and it still gave Natalie chills when she watched it, even having lived through it all.

With her frown deepening, she passed the chip over to the junior Lieutenant. "I want you to review the contents of that chip, Mr. Izavid.  I can promise you that everything you see on it is true. You will not like what you see. I didn't much like living through it. But it is something you need to see for yourself. The long and short of it, Lieutenant, is that our mission is to save the very soul of Starfleet. Not to mention the rest of creation itself.

"No pressure, right?"

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #8 –
[Lt. Jg Akel Izavid | Deck 12 | vector 2 | Operations office | USS Theurgy ] @Brutus

Akel was able to relax when Commander Stark explained to him why she was curious about his time at the ship yards.  As he thought back to his own family experience, he realized he had not spoken to his family in several years.  Now after the word of his runabout destroyed got to Starfleet and Starfleet told his family he would be assumed dead.  Having not thought about that before this point, he wondered why he was so willing to follow Admiral Anderson without too much information. 

Deciding to open up a little more to both himself and Stark he wanted to explain why Anderson had not given him any information and why he decided to follow is orders.  “Commander, I worked for over a year with Anderson and learned the hard way to trust him.  We developed a little short hand during our work.”  Pausing for a moment to think and give her time to process he continued.  “The holographic encryption technology he used to order me here, that I developed, is limited in the amount of data that can be included.  He had to give me enough information to get on the Klingon transfer ship so he couldn’t say much.  He did include his authorization code as well.”

When Stark handed Akel the chip and ordered him to review the data he was intrigued.  When she promised he would not like what he read he believed her immediately.  He felt rather bad for them having to go through it all and when she added they were saving the soul of the universe he was immediately dedicated to serving Stark.  “Pressure is the job of Starfleet last time I checked.  I will do all I can to help you.”  He took a moment to straighten up his form in the chair before continuing “I am ready and able to take over inventory duty Commander, and can help optimize your computer system a little.  With your permission of course Sir.”  He sat and waited for her response.. 

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #9 –
 [Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Stark | Chief of Operations Office  | Deck 12 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]Attn: @JediMaster @chXinya  
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Listening to her new subordinate, Natalie had to allow for the fact that Intelligence types would always follow their trope, secretive and saying nothing more than they absolutely had to. Akel Izavid did not strike her as a cloak and dagger type of officer at first glance. He seemed too forthright for that. This did not however mean that he could not be put to good use by such officers. Men like Carrigan Trent and Keval ch'Rayya were both the type that struck Natalie as more than capable of making the best out of a resource like the junior lieutenant and his technical skills. Given what he had told her about his encryption program she could understand why Anderson would take the man under his wing.

That Akel seemed to trust the Admiral just as much was...well, Natalie wasn't sure if reassuring was the word she was looking for, but she would make the most of the man that Anderson had sent her way. She needed someone competent in the position, after all, even if he was older than her, and in need of a long briefing on the nature of their mission. A part of her wondered how he felt about that, if he even cared. He has plenty of years on her, and he wasn't the only person in her department, or on this ship, that had more experience under their belt. She had the rank and the position however. In theory that was all that should matter. She had proven herself to Jien Ives, and anyone else would simply have to learn to live with her. 

Shaking those thoughts aside, the brunette Martian leaned back in her chair again, reaching up to rub the bridge of her shoulder. The caffeine in her system was working its way through her system, shaking out the cobwebs that her morning shower and rushed breakfast had not managed to dislodge. He took to her challenge readily enough, offering up his support. There was a sharpness in her blue eyes as she watched him for a moment, and then nodded. "Very well, Mr. Izavid," she said softly. "Consider these your first orders. First, review that chip. Watch it, understand it, and if you have questions about it, come to me. 

"Secondly," she folded her hands on the desk in front of her and tried to project calm reassurance. "I want you to check in with the Quartermaster, Chief. Savali. Abraham is good people, and he'll be glad to get you anything you need for your quarters as we as walk you through the ships general inventory." She fished out a PaDD from the drawer in her desk, and handed it over to him. "That has the current duty rosters for our department, and notations for planned crew that should be arriving. Some of them will have traveled with you, some on another vessel. Go over it, see if anything strikes you as out of place, or where someone might be put to better use. Have that to me by tomorrow. Consider that task three."

Natalie favored him with a small smile, and rubbed her hands together before tapping the tips of two fingers against the bottom of her chin thoughtfully. "Admiral Anderson feels you can help us with our computers system, give it a tune up. We've had a rough go of it, and I would appreciate the outside perspective. I would suggest you work with Ms. Selena Ravenholm. The Warrant Officer is one of our computer specialists. She's tagged toward Intel, but she possesses the ability to physically jack into the computer." Natalie tapped at the side of her neck, noting, "She's been outfitted with a Synaptic Translator and a Neural Transducer, among other things. She is extremely intelligent and capable and more importantly, to the best of my knowledge Thea trusts her." Natalie had been privy to some of the reports involving the work that Ravenholm had done with Thea, the ships sentient avatar, and by all accounts the young woman was in the holograms favor. 

"Which, I would also suggest that, before you go poking around in her computer core, you take the time to introdcue yourself to Thea."

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #10 –
[Lt. Jg Akel Izavid | Deck 12 | vector 2 | Operations office | USS Theurgy ] @Brutus 

Making a mental note to speak with the officers Stark had mentioned he was about to stand, salute, and leave the room when Stark mentioned Thea.  In all the hustle of getting onboard and getting to meet his new CO, he almost forgot about the ship’s artificial intelligence program.  Knowing that he was grinning like a primary school boy Akel couldn’t help but gush a little “Thea and I know each other commander, I was part of the team that developed her original learning processing system.  I should probably say hello though”. 

Knowing how much he was acting like a little kid for his new Commanding officer so he contained his excitement “I will review the data commander Stark, would you like a report on my findings?  Also, I promise not to do anything to damage the Theurgy’s computer systems, try not to step on anyone’s toes. And will provide assistance with inventory control and management.” 

Moving his coffee cup around he thought for a moment before continuing “My previous commanding officers asked me to tell them I carry a customized PADD around, it’s a bit stronger than the original.  It is encrypted to my access only.  Also, I brought several high quality, non-replicateable computer components currently stored in my quarters.”  He paused a moment to let Stark process his words.
 

Re: Day 29 [0700 hrs] Into the Fire

Reply #11 –
[Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Stark | Chief of Operations Office  | Deck 12 | Vector 02 | USS Theurgy ]Attn: @JediMaster 
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Of all the reactions Natalie might have been expecting, watching the junior officer's face light up like the Christmas Tree her mother would put out every year was not one them. And yet, there Mr. Izavid was, practically beaming with delight when she had brought up Thea. I think we have a fanboy, she thought, as the smile bled years off the other man's visage. Though perhaps fanboy was the wrong word, and old friend was more appropriate. She felt her eyebrows climb up high on her forehead again, and she nodded in agreement, a somewhat fond smile gracing her features. "I think she might like that, Lieutenant. I'll be curious as to your thoughts on how much she's grown. She's really come to be her own person."

Natalie wasn't just speaking metaphorically either. By all rights, and the general accord of the captain and senior staff at the time, Thea was her own, sentient, sapient being, with all rights there in. Which was probably the nightmare of some of the tech boys and JAG lawyers back at Command, but well, it wasn't like Command was giving reasonable orders these days anyways. What with reality bending parasites running the show. Yes, she would like to hear his thoughts on the matter, as messy a subject as that might prove to be.

"I'm sure you'll be on your best behavior while poking around our systems. I would like a full report on your findings." She agreed. He was being amicable enough, if a bit eccentric. Still he was less abrasive than her other current Assistant Chief, as well as the one that had fled the ship early on during their stay in the Aldean system. She put Shar out of her mind however, and tilted her head slightly as Akel spoke up. She bit her lip for a moment, sucking it up under her teeth, and then leaned forward, holding her hands around her own coffee mug, and drawing in it's warmth.

"What kind of components, Lieutenant? I assume it's nothing I should be worried about." There were plenty of things that the ship needed that either Thea could not replicate herself, or could not be obtained locally. Aldean and Klingon technology were both very robust and advanced in their own ways, but that did not mean that they were interchangeable with Federation components, and certainly not the more specialized parts that ran a prototype first of its class vessel like Theurgy. "Are we talking replacements for damaged sub systems or...upgrades?" Natalie was unable to keep the intrigue out of her voice. Curiosity was going to be the end of her. And her new subordinate, whether intentionally or not, was dribbling out tiny bites of information in just the right fashion to keep her interest and lure in her deeper. She was certain that anything truly harmful to the crew would have been caught when Akel boarded by the ships internal sensors.

Just what do you have in your bag of tricks, I wonder?

- FIN
 
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