Another Day, Another Pip! [Back Post]
Posted on Wed Mar 15th, 2023 @ 5:16pm by Fleet Captain Maxwell Culver & Lieutenant JG Aurora House of Kor
1,808 words; about a 9 minute read
Mission:
Good Will Tour: Mountain Home [Part Two]
Location: Triton Seabase: Mess Hall
Timeline: MD10: 2000 hours
Max had spent fourteen hours on the bridge as the base went from being stuck in dock for eight of those hours to well underway for six more. Even at top speed, traveling along with the current, they were going to miss an entire day of scientific studies of the deeper ocean.
After leaving the bridge, he had used the captain’s cabin to freshen up. A small room, about a meter and a quarter by two meters. Enough for a small bunk, desk and head with a sonic shower. Now, having cleaned up and changed into a fresh uniform, Max waited for Ensign Aurora, House of Kor, to join him as ordered.
He wanted to play the stern captain joke, but that just wasn’t his style. No one would believe him as stern captain anyway. He didn’t have that reputation. Sure, he could admonish her actions on the tide pool studies, but she was doing her job as she understood it. Unfortunately, the day’s orders were meant to come from their new Director, but even he had some lessons to learn in leading. ’Twenty eight years in Starfleet, I still have leadership lessons to learn,’ he thought.
No, he wasn’t going to play bad captain/good captain, but he might make her squirm. Just a little.
Aurora was pretty nervous, she'd broken like...well, ALL the rules on the first day...so she wasn't quite sure what her punishment was going to be.
"Well...let's get this over with," Aurora gulped as she rang the door chime.
Max stood and faced the door. “Come,” he called. A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
Aurora took another deep breath and walked into the Captain's Ready Room.
Max watched as the meek ensign entered, clearly sure she had done something wrong. “Have a seat, Ensign Aurora, I promise I won’t bite.” Max paused as a thought ran through his head. “At least not like those stingrays anyway,” he chuckled to himself. Was it a “dad joke”? Probably, but he didn’t really care.
Aurora couldn't help but chuckle as well as she took a seat, feeling a little better...but still freaked out.
“Care for a drink?” he asked as he approached the replicator. This late, coffee would do him not good. “Water with extra ice,” he ordered.”
"Um...mint tea?" Aurora asked, wondering just what the Captain was up to.
“Mint tea,” he ordered from the replicator as well. Retrieving the drinks, Max left his at his seat and, with sleight of hand, picked up the small, velvet box he’d left there.
Walking to Aurora, he left the mint tea and the black, velvet box at her place. Without a word, he returned to his seat without a word.
Settling down in his seat, he sipped his water for a moment before asking her, “Any idea why I’ve asked you to join me, ensign?” He was trying to keep his tone light but serious. He wanted to see how long she could make herself sweat before finding and opening the box.
Aurora nodded her thanks, went to pick up her cup to buy some time...and saw a small velvet box beside it.
"Wwhat's this, Captain?" Aurora asked, shakily picking the box up.
Instead of waiting for an answer, Aurora opened the box...and froze.
“This is your new pip, Lieutenant Junior Grade Aurora of the House of Kor. As the computer has now logged, as of this date and time, you are hereby granted the rank and privileges thereof for outstanding duty in your exploration of the Tide Pools of Golden Towers.
“In your exploration, you reminded us of our endless enthusiasm in the pursuit of exploring new life and new civilizations, a prime tenet of Starfleet. Despite a minor setback, you’ve continued to dive in and perform your duty with excellence.
“Along with the rank comes the position of Chief Cetacean Operations Officer. When they return from their duties, you’ll be responsible for debriefing our longer-tern oceangoing friends. Until then, you’ll continue to perform your biology studies with Director s’Lovok and Civilian Specialist S’tera.
“Well done!”
Aurora's jaw was on the floor in utter shock. She simply sat there for a minute, trying to process that despite her less than great start...she'd gotten promoted! In her first week at that!
"I...th-thank you, sir! This is...wow...I mean...ahem...I accept this responsibility and I'll do my best to live up to the trust you've placed in me!" Aurora shot to her feet and gave Captain Culver a sharp salute!
Max stood and offered a salute in return. It was old tradition, but not yet dead. “At ease, Lieutenant Aurora. Now,” he said with a short pause, “let’s talk about your new duties, shall we?” he suggested.
"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir! So...what would my new duties be?" Aurora asked as she sat back down. Aurora was both excited...and slightly intimidated by the new pip and the responsibilities they conveyed.
“You’ll be responsible for debriefing the bottle nosed dolphins and Orcas as they return with their reports. That won’t be for another six weeks time. “You’ll check salinity to make sure the tanks match the oceans, to reduce stress. Additionally, you’ll be providing them their meals each day, along with any vitamin supplements the doctor prescribes.
“Until their return, you’ll continue your duties in science as a marine biologist. As a senior officer, I want you to be on your toes, Lieutenant. You’ll need to know away team protocols by memory. There should be no deviations like the mistakes you and I made during our tide pool studies.”
Aurora was nodding and making notes as fast as her hand could write...resulting in a little bit of a headache/hand cramp.
"Aye, sir. I definitely don't want to make a mistake like THAT again! I know this might sound a little crazy...but all of that sounds awesome to me!" Aurora beamed happily.
Max smiled broadly. “I thought you would enjoy the opportunity. I’m going to be with you for the first two briefings, just to satisfy my curiosity, but you’ll be in charge of the debriefing,” Max assured Aurora.
“I’ll make any resources you need for the position available to you. Director s’Lovok should be able to assist you with your training as well. If you have any questions beyond his expertise, I’ll have Captain Messi available for training in the department, Gods know she wrote the book on Cetacean Operations,” Max assured her.
"Thank you, Captain I...C-captain Messi!? Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! She's she's...ahem...sorry, sir. I'll work on that," Aurora gulped as she sheepishly rubbed her neck. [Geewiz, Girl! Get a grip!] Aurora thought.
“Is there a problem with Captain Messi?” Max asked, catching her sudden burst of feelings. The two most obvious feelings at the top were nervousness and more nervousness. He wondered if she wasn’t fangirling a bit.
"Oh no, sir! She's terrific, sir! I've read everything I can get my hands on from her...and I'm fangirling a bit again aren't I, sir?" Aurora giggled softly as she blushed profusely.
Max had never seen such a shade of blue-green, it belonged as a new color on a color wheel. “Just be aware of your fangirling when she’s mentoring you, okay. I want you to absorb any information she’s sharing with you, I don’t need you off in la la land, wasting her time and energy trying to teach you.”
"Yes, sir...I mean no, sir! I won't fangirl, sir," Aurora nodded as she stretched out her claws and fangs to help her refocus.
Max chuckled and smiled. “It’s okay to meet your idols, Lieutenant, just be respectful about it. They’re just people, like you and me. Some of them wouldn’t even think of themselves as heroes or having fans,” Max explained. “I imagine Captain Messi is such a person and she would find your exuberance odd until she found out you are a fan, to which she would simply ask why?
If it comes to that, her asking why you idolize her, I would hope you have a good answer for her. Don’t fall into the ‘Leah Brahms trap’,” Max warned.
"I hope so, sir. The who trap? I'm not familiar with that," Aurora wasn't sure who that was/why there was a trap associated with her name.
Max resisted the urge to facepalm. “Dr. Leah Brahms was a propulsion specialist that worked on the Enterprise-D before she launched. Geordie LaForge used the holodeck and a holographically generated Leah Brahms to fix a problem. He fell in love with her.
“When the real Doctor Brahms visited the Enterprise about a year later and Geordi found the real Leah Brahms was not the same as the hologram he fell in love with. It drove a wedge between him and Doctor Brahms for nearly the rest of the visit.
“I’m just saying, don’t let your preconceived notions get in the way of the reality of the person that is real.”
"Oh...ouch. I most certainly don't want to have that happen! I'll be careful, sir. I guess the only question I have now is, when will she be arriving, and how long will she be here?" Aurora asked, not quite sure what else to ask.
“She’ll be arriving in a month, at the end of our Goodwill Tour. At that time, Triton Seabase will have finished her first mission and shakedown, so we’ll have multiple suggestions on how to improve the base’s capabilities that the Corps of Engineers will attend to. That all fits with our timeline for the Corps’ repairs to be completed on the Praetor’s Tower.”
"Alright...that makes sense. Is she expecting anything specific from us?" Aurora asked.
“Arrive on time, pay attention and ALWAYS take notes,” Max answered to the best of his ability. He hadn’t met Captain Messi, but he had hoped to. He shrugged. These was always something else Starfleet wanted you for when you pained four pips.
"Yes, sir," Aurora nodded, making a mental note to have at least two clean PADDs at all times while Captain Messi was aboard.
Max stood, for some reason it always caused Junior officers to stand at attention. He wasn’t going to bother to try to stop it anymore. He extended his hand, a very Terran gesture. “Unless there’s anything else, Lieutenant, congratulations once more and you’re dismissed.”
RSS Feed