New Beginnings

Posted on Mon Jul 25, 2016 @ 1:13am by Lieutenant Commander Alex Rho & Commodore Michael Aravan

Mission: An Orion to Die For
Location: Utopia Planitia Fleetyards, USS Triumphant, Deck 18
Timeline: MD 0 || 0900 Hours

Alex hadn't been up to Utopia Planitia Fleetyards since the investigation. He had expected the stares and the whispers and was not disappointed. Serving with Intel's Department of Internal Affairs brought it's own shroud. And sometimes, no, most times, that was all that people saw. Alex pushed those to the back of his Ullian mind as he stepped off the turbolift onto the Bridge. This was a massive, elegant ship and the Bridge reflected that superbly. Alex went to the Ready Room and pressed the door chime. This was it, he was meeting the Captain of this fine vessel. Period.

"Enter!" A male voice called out from the other side and the doors slid apart to reveal a room that could easily accommodate a dozen officers at the huge black surfaced table which dominated the center of the room with a dozen chairs around it. Plants were at the corners of the room and most of one wall was filled with shelves which contained over a dozen species of bonsai trees, some elaborated sculpted around tree houses, some made to look like homes built into the ground and others that looked like they were just starting. Another table off to one side held a decanter of strong black coffee with several cups around it, a bowl containing sweetener and another for some type of cream.

A tall man in Command red with black hair and green eyes came to his feet from the head of the table. "Can I help you?" He asked, uncertain of who Starfleet was sending him for a replacement crew.

Alex walked in just passed the doors so that they would close. The Ready Room was as splendid as the rest of the ship that he had seen up to this point. He couldn't wait to see what the Intelligence Department had. "Lieutenant Alex Rho reporting for duty, Sir, as your new Chief Intelligence Officer." Alex hadn't moved from his spot as of yet. "I must say, you have a fine ship here, Sir."

Rho. Intelligence. Michael thought. Of course, Intelligence would find me first. "Welcome aboard the Triumphant, Lieutenant Rho," Michael said. "Thank you. She's served me well the past two years. Have a seat and tell me a little about yourself other than the standard rigmarole which I can read in your personnel files." He ran his hand over a section of the table and it lit up to reveal a LCARS which gave him access to every part of the ship, crewman, officer, and department at a touch.

Alex took a seat and smiled, but in the back of his mind he couldn't help but wonder if the Captain was searching for something. "I enjoy a good swim and a good holodeck hand-to-hand battle scenario on occasion. Oh, and I go to the gym to keep up on my strength training." Technically, those wouldn't be in his files. "Two years you say, Sir? It looks like this refit has gone well, based on your table-LCARS combination."

Michael looked down at the table. "This? This has been here since the creation of the Triumphant, Lieutenant," he said. "Barring any major battles, she won't be due for a refit for another eight years. Would you like something to drink " he glanced down at some information on the table in front of him before he looked back up. "while you tell me why you've had permanent reconstructive surgery on your features?"

"I'll have a glass of water, please," he said. There it was. "I was fourteen years old when I watched some murders, who practiced telepathic memory invasion, torture and kill my father and two older brothers for valuables and the fun of it. And they never fought back when they were telepathically attacked. The next few months saw me deeply studying and experimenting with my abilities so that I could protect myself and others around me from the likes of those who murdered part of my family. The archivists didn't like what I was doing." He paused to take a drink of the water that was given to him. "I never knew why. Over two years later, at the age of sixteen, I had the surgery and they ostracized me for neglecting my heritage and the archivist ways."

The Captain listened after getting the man a glass of chilled water and a coffee for himself before he sat down at the head of the table again. "From what I know of your people, you're an gentle, honest, and friendly people. You have a great passion for your work, but did not wish to coerce other species into participating if they were not willing. With that being said, how did you come to be in Intelligence, which often involves doing things to other species against their will?"

Alex held his glass in his lap. "My genetic heritage is gentle, honest, and friendly, as you said. But they are also powerful telepaths to be able to retrieve and archive memories as they do. It is also true that they do not coerce or force unwilling participants. But when it comes to self-defense or the protection of those they love, their philosophies, ideologies, and gentle honesty can sometimes be a hindrance. As far as being in Intelligence, I decided to use my natural abilities for something other than memory archiving, that being, protection through knowledge. I sift through years of known and unknown memories and knowledge and know what others don't want me to know. How do I reconcile that with the characteristics and philosophies of my genetic heritage? I know my abilities and my boundaries. If the job or situation or orders require it, I will use my natural-born abilities to gather intel and protect those I serve with." He lifted his glass and took a drink.

"A very well thought out answer, Lieutenant," Michael said. "Is it one you've given before or one that you gave actual consideration to before you answered?"

"Actual consideration, Captain," replied Alex. "My past Commanding Officers seemed to have no interest in how I reconciled the two. I imagined that they didn't want to know. My last CO at Internal Affairs asked something similar at my first meeting with him. But it was more along the lines of would there be a conflict of interest with following orders to gather intel versus the Ullian philosophy against memory invasion. The reply he received was the last part of what I just told you. He was happy with that."

"I've discovered that Internal Affairs tends to be satisfied with standard responses on the surface and then dig deep under that," he said. "I prefer to go deep from the word go. I like a tidy ship and crew, Lieutenant, but I also appreciate deep feedback from the officers that serve on this ship, and that also includes blunt feedback. If you ever feel a need to speak freely, you may do so as long as we're in private. Do you have questions for me before I ask more of you?"

Alex nodded. "Of course in private, Captain. And yes, I do. Since you've had this new ship for two years and she isn't in the Yard for a refit, what happened that required her to be in the Yard and you to need a new crew?"

"For the second part, it was a return trip to Earth for the first time in two years," Michael said with a sigh. "The second part is more complex." He paused for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. "Our first mission took us to a Romulan controlled Cardassian world and we lost our Chief Medical Officer through the fault of the former Chief of Operations. He wanted to play Intelligence and it cost her life. I personally considered the mission a failure and the main culprit escaped."

"Our second mission found us up against one of the deadliest created viruses in recent history. It quite literally ate every bit of organic material it encountered in less than twelve hours. We had several members of our own crew get infected, but we found a cure in the last hour but not before tens of thousands of people had already died as a result of it," he said as he paused again, a painful look as the memories surfaced. "Would you want to stay on a ship like that, Lieutenant, or would you take the first opportunity to find a new ship?"

Alex sat there, looking his new Commanding Officer in the eyes. He would never breach the Captain's mind or memories unless asked, but he didn't need to. The look on his face revealed enough. "I'm sorry that these memories are difficult to bear. But to have someone 'play' at Intelligence is a dangerous thing, Sir. You need someone aboard this ship who does not 'play the game,' but lives the life. I will do what is within my ability and power as a Starfleet Intelligence Officer to protect you, this crew, and this technologically advanced ship."

Michael leveled a hard green-eyed gaze on the man for a moment and leaned forward. "I will tell you one thing right now, Lieutenant Rho. If you ever use your position against this ship and crew, I will take my rank and put it aside, then I will hunt you down and I will ensure you never do that again." He had a solid idea that it would never happen, but he also knew Intel types and while his last one hadn't done that, that didn't mean someone who served Internal Affairs wouldn't do something like that.

Alex didn't smile, lean forward, or physically react in any way to the Captain. "I would expect nothing less, Captain Aravan. You said you had more questions for me?"

The Captain leaned back and relaxed. "I do," he said. "I see you served on the USS Bretonia as a Psionics Officer. What's the difference between a Psionics Officer and a Intelligence Officer?"

"A Psionics Officer or a Psionics Specialist is an Intelligence Officer, only specialized," said Alex. Without going into too much detail, he continued. "According to Starfleet Intelligence, a Psionics Officer, like a Vulcan, Betazoid, or Ullian, is a specialized member of the department that can perform many helpful tasks. Such as giving a subtle mental nudge for an enemy to leave a room, or hiding an away team's mental energies from enemy telepaths. It is very rare that we are used to interrogate an enemy. For the most part, the Captain of the Bretonia used me as a form of a lie detector."

"I'm not certain of our mission yet, but I can assure you that you and your department will be used, Lieutenant," Michael said. "If you feel that something goes against your personal beliefs, we can discuss it, but if it falls under Starfleet's rules and regulations, I will order you to do it and you will have two choices: resign or go to the brig for refusing a direct order."

This time, Alex smiled. "As I see it Captain, I have third choice, follow your orders. As I said earlier, if the job or situation or orders require it, I will use my natural-born abilities to protect those I serve with. Sir, I believe my genetic heritage to be weak in that regard. I am not." Alex took another drink of his water.

"That's good to know, Lieutenant," Michael said with a nod of approval. "Other than that, do you have questions for me?"

"Yes, I do," said Alex. "I would like to meet some of the other members of the Senior Staff before we get to work. Are you aware of any that have already reported in?"

"Chief Petty Officer Barnes, the Operations Chief just reported in an hour ago," Michael said. "Commander Weisz is currently interviewing Lieutenant Smyth, the Chief Engineer. More are slated to come later."

Alex nodded. "Then I'll make my away around to the Operations Chief's office soon. But I think I'll pay a visit to Deck Forty-four first and see what the Intelligence Department has available on this ship. Oh, that reminds me, Sir. What kind of Intel equipment is available to us?"

"You should be fully stocked with all the latest equipment," Michael said. "Starfleet has spared nothing when it comes to the Triumphant. As for going to see Chief Barnes, I would suggest getting settled into your quarters first. Then again, you'll need to go to Operations for that, but senior officers are on Deck Twenty-two. Also, you'll be on Alpha shift which runs from zero eight hundred to sixteen hundred hours with two fifteen minute breaks and an hour lunch, barring alert situations."

He was looking forward to getting to the Intel Center even more so now. However... "That's a good idea, Sir, getting settled in before jumping into work. And thank you for the shift assignment information. That said, is there a console on the Bridge that I would man if the need ever arose for me to leave the Intelligence Center and be up there?"

"There is, but you'll have access to everything you need in your Intel Center," Michael said. "After you get settled in, report to Medical for your physical."

"That sounds good to me, Captain. And I will do that, report to Medical after settling in. Is there anything else you need from me?"

"That'll be all for now," The Captain said as he came to his feet and offered a hand. "Welcome to the Triumphant."

Alex stood, nodded, and shook the Captain's hand. "Thank you, Sir." He turned and head out of the office. This was a new ship with a new Captain and a lot of new beginnings for the Ullian. Well, Ullian by blood.

Captain Michael Aravan
Commanding Officer
USS Triumphant

&

Lieutenant Alex Rho
Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Triumphant