Briefing for the Rescue

Posted on Wed Apr 3, 2019 @ 5:32pm by Commodore Michael Aravan & Lieutenant JG Zander Devereaux & Captain Madelina Weisz & Lieutenant Martha Cusack & Lieutenant Commander Kelani Tetanal & Master Chief Petty Officer Thomas Barnes

Mission: On Slippery Ground
Location: Ready Room
Timeline: MD 1 || 1600 Hours

The Victorious hadn't been back an hour when Commodore Aravan sat in his ready room and opened a com. =^=Captain Weisz, Lieutenants Devereaux, Cusack, Tetanal and Master Chief Barnes, report to the Ready Room.=^=

=/\="On my way"=/\= Martha replied.

Minutes later Martha was outside the ready room. She pressed the button and waited for permission to enter.

"Enter," Michael called.

With permission granted Martha entered the ready room - standing a couple of metres away from Michael's desk.

Maddy had barely had a chance to gather her bearings before she was being summoned by the Commodore. What she wouldn't give for five minutes just to sit down and decompress, but that wasn't possible for a Starfleet officer. In fact, when they were told to jump, it was often expected of them to automatically know how high. This case was no different.

She made her way to Michael's ready room, and instead of waiting for him to grant her entry, she simply walked inside. After all, she'd been summoned, which meant he was expecting her. "Commodore, Lieutenant," she said in way of greeting the two occupants.

"Captain, Lieutenant, please have a seat until the others arrive," Michael said wit a gesture towards the large black conference table that dominated the ready room.

Lieutenant Zander Devereaux showed up a few minutes later and entered when he was given permission. "Commodore," he said with a nod.

"Have a seat, Mister Devereaux," Michael told him. "And don't touch my coffee."

Zander grinned but went to take a seat. "Yes, Sir," he said.

Unlike others, Tom had yet to depart the Victorious. He’d summoned an engineering detail almost immediately, and they’d started field stripping all of the vital machinery. There wasn’t time to perform a slow, thorough sweep. Given what had just transpired with the Apollo, it was entirely possible the little escort that could would be soon recalled to service. The crew had an hour, or so Tom led them to believe.

At the Commodore’s summons, Tom considered skipping the meeting, or even asking for an exemption just to make sure he could remain aboard and ensure things would be placed back in order. No matter what scenario he played in his head, there was not an ending that played out well for both him and his team.

With that in mind, PADD in hand, and armed with a travel mug of coffee, Tom tapped the chime for the Ready Room anticipating the worst.

"Enter," the Commodore called.

The doors slid apart, allowing Tom to enter the room. He immediately took note of the others in the room. With the announcement, he knew he hadn't been the only one called, but since not everyone had been on the Victorious, it was anyone's guess what was on the Commodore's mind.

"Master Chief, please have a seat," Michael said and gestured towards the table. "We're waiting for a few more people to show up."

Tom nodded, sliding into a seat next to Maddy. In a quick offside to her, he mumbled, "I got called here because I dyed an Orion purple. What'd you do to get called to the principal's office?"

Maddy cast a glance toward Tom, then looked at Michael for a moment before she leaned closer to her significant other so only he would hear her. "He discovered I replaced all of his coffee with space dirt."

He raised an eyebrow and stifled a chuckle. "Space dirt? Really? You know that stuff is radioactive. Makes the skin all gray and pale with dark crusty patches. How much did he drink?"she

"Does he look a little corpse-like to you? I'd say a cup or two," she said. "I hear space dirt can be a bit addictive, too. Must be why he won't let Devereaux have any."

Kelani has regained her composure after the news that Logan was missing. At the summons, she stood, took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and moved to the Ready Room and requested entrance. Once it was granted, she entered and took a seat near to the others.

After Kelani entered, Michael stood up and slammed both hands down on his desk. "Does anyone realize that our CAG is missing and one of our fighter pilots is dead?" he asked in a cold voice as he looked at Barnes and Weisz.

"As a matter of fact, Commodore, I do realize that," Maddy snapped, anger flashing across her face. They'd all been through hell and back... repeatedly, and if cracking a joke with Tom was a crime when it helped her cope, then she was guilty. However, the way he'd just come at her for finding a way to deal was the final straw. "Does anyone realize we've dealt with one shitty blow after another, and there's little to no chance it's going to slow down any time soon? You'll have to excuse me if my methods of dealing with tragedy don't fall within your realm of normal, but I'm not going to apologize for coping the way it works best for me."

Tom felt like he was no bigger than a thumb. During the battle and the after-action moments, he'd been solely focused on keeping the troublesome Victorious running. He had heard that Triumphant had its own set of woes, but he could only deal with one problem at a time. And, in the Badlands, he knew that of the two vessels, the Victorious was more valuable. Therefore, he hadn't the chance to hear about casualties of any sort.

Kelani had been sitting quietly with her hands on the tabletop. Now they clenched together so tightly her knuckles turned white. She spoke softly saying, “With all due respect, Commodore, we are all very aware of this.”

"We always get assignments like this," Michael glared at Maddy. "But I always look out for everyone and make certain we get shore leaves, too, so we can unwind. As I recall, we just got back from Pacifica." He glanced at Kelani, then at the others. "Does anyone else have two slips they want to toss in before I get to the reason you're here?"

Tom remained silent. He had absolutely nothing to say, especially since he'd been thoroughly chastised. There was nothing like learning that a fellow senior officer had gone missing to sober up and depress the mind.

Maddy had so much more she wanted to say on the matter, but chose to keep her mouth shut. She'd have her moment, but right now wasn't the time given the others present. For now, she would focus her attention on their missing CAG, which she assumed was their reason for being here.

Michael saw the look on Maddy's face and gave her an acknowledging nod, then turned his attention to the Chief Engineer first. "Mister Barnes, what's the status of the Victorious?" he asked. "We have a rescue mission and the Triumphant has to continue with the Apollo."

"She'll be ready to go in about an hour," Tom replied. "After being stuck without command functions and possibly looking at a warp core breach, I don't think we can afford any chances until we know the ship is in the clear."

"Get her ready in thirty minutes and use every Engineer on every shift if you have to," Michael told Tom.

Tom's eyes widened. He'd already pulled every engineer he could from Triumphant. Knowing that the Victorious was a small ship, and its Engineering section even smaller, he could only have so many people work on the ship. He'd have to think outside the box on this one. "I'll do my best," he simply answered.

"Do that," the Commodore said before he turned to look at the Chief of Tactical. "I want a full Tactical assessment done on the Victorious by the time Chief Barnes has it ready to go, Lieutenant."

Martha nodded. "It'll be done Commodore"

Michael turned his attention to Kelani and his expression softened. "Lieutenant, I know this is a hard time for you, but you've really been shining on this mission. I just need you to shine in a different way this time. I need you to use that formidable mind of yours to help us locate Hunter. How far does your telepathic ability extend?"

“I have never tested the limits of my abilities, Commodore”. She replied. “I can sense Lieutenant Hunter enough at this moment to tell you that he is not dead. I will do my utmost to help you find him.”

Michael favored her with a warm smile before he turned his attention to the other engineer. "Devereaux, I want you on the ship to keep an eye on the engines," Michael said. "You keep her together and I'll keep you supplied in coffee for the next five missions."

"Sold!" Zander said. "You got it, Commodore."

"I'll be leading the away mission," Michael continued. "Captain Weisz, you'll be in charge of getting the Apollo to the base. It should be smooth sailing from here on out." I

Maddy arched a brow. "Shouldn't I lead the away team, Commodore?"

Tom sat on the sidelines, using his padd to communicate schedule and priority changes to his engineering staff. If he only had thirty minutes, then he was going to have to use that time wisely. Still, he glanced up where the firework show seemed to be about to start. This mission had everyone on edge. It seemed to be the Triumphant's curse really; there was never anything simple anymore.

"You just got back from an away mission, Captain," Michael pointed out. "This one is one me. Besides, you need some experience to season that pip with."

The redhead simply nodded her head. What good would arguing against it do? None. So, why should she bother wasting her breath? It was just something she'd add to the growing list of things she'd talk to him about later. Right now, finding their CAG was important.

"Questions, comments?" The Commodore asked. "If not, dismissed. There's work to be done."

With the dismissal being given, Maddy rose to her feet and moved for the exit. She was needed on the bridge to see to it that the Apollo made the rest of its journey without incident. And, she hoped it would go smoothly the rest of the way. Time would tell.

With a nod to acknowledge her dismissal Martha rose from her seat on the couch - heading for the door. She had a small window in which to complete her task - but Martha was confident she'd have the tactical analysis ready to go in time.

After the others left, Michael went to his favorite bonsai tree and sighed. "It's going to be a long day."