STF

CSO's Office- Cadet Wisniewski Reporting for Duty

Posted Feb. 22, 2021, 10:20 p.m. by Lieutenant Alison Barr (Chief Science Officer) (Steve Johnson)

Posted by Cadet Stanislaw Wisniewski (Scientist) in CSO’s Office- Cadet Wisniewski Reporting for Duty

Posted by Lieutenant Alison Barr (Chief Science Officer) in CSO’s Office- Cadet Wisniewski Reporting for Duty

Posted by Cadet Stanislaw Wisniewski (Scientist) in CSO’s Office- Cadet Wisniewski Reporting for Duty
Posted by… suppressed (6) by the Post Ghost! 👻
OOC: My first post! I hope this is a good beginning.

IC:
Cadet Stanislaw Wisniewski stood in front of the mirror above the sink in his quarters. He ran the black comb through his short black hair. He looked at his reflection. He ran the comb through again. And a third time. He sighed, and put the comb down.

His hair was too short for the multiple combings to really make any major difference. But he’d gotten up earlier than he needed to for his first duty shift aboard the Challenger, and he’d already polished his boots and spent minutes adjusting his combadge and his cadet rank insignia.

He took a deep breath. There’s no need to be nervous, Stach, he thought to himself. You wouldn’t be here if Starfleet didn’t think you were ready.

But still, it was his first starship assignment, something he’d dreamed of since he was ten years old…He took another deep breath.

He looked at the chronometer. If he left now, he would be a little early for his shift, but not too early. He headed out of his quarters to check in at the Chief Science Officer’s Office.

A few moments later, he was there. He tugged on his uniform. He adjusted the collar. And then he rang the door chime.

I hope my hair is okay, he thought as he waited to get called in.

Cadet Wisniewski, Science Officer

“Enter!” Alison called out as the door opened. She was going through a stack of PADD’s on her desk, reviewing the upcoming weeks duty rosters. There was a steaming pot of coffee on her desk, and she picked up her cup and took a drink.

“What can I help you with this morning Cadet?”

Lt Barr - CSO

The first thing Stan noticed when he entered Lieutenant Barr’s office was the smell of coffee. His eyes quickly spotted the pot of coffee on her desk. A cup of coffee would be good now, he thought. Then he quickly second-guessed that, I don’t need anything else to make me jittery…

Remembering that he was in his Department Head’s Office for the first time, and not at a cafe, Stan swiftly moved his eyes from the pot of coffee to the face of the officer at the desk. He came straight to attention and, with a slight Polish accent to his Federation Standard, announced, “Cadet Stanislaw Wisniewski reporting for duty, Lieutenant!”

Cadet Wiseniewski, Scientist

“Please Cadet, at ease, before you hurt yourself. You aren’t at the Academy anymore, you have permission to relax a bit,” Alison said with a slight chuckle.

Pushing the PADD’s to the side, she set her coffee cup down in front of her, holding it between her two hands. “Please, have a seat, and tell me a bit about yourself, and what brought you to the Challenger. Oh! And feel free to help yourself to a cup of coffee while you are at. There is some cream and sugar there next to the pot if you’d like.”

Lt Barr - CSO

Stan smiled a little and chuckled; still slightly nervous but genuinely appreciating the Lieutenant’s reminder that he could relax. He wasn’t at the Academy. He was finally about to do the job that he had wanted since he was ten years old.

After taking a seat, he began speaking: “Well, I grew up on Earth, in Warsaw. My mother is a history professor, and my father is an analyst with the Federation Diplomatic Corps. I think he’s a major reason I’m here. We both share a love of learning everything we can about other cultures. But I always thought it would be more interesting to learn about them from visiting them out here,” stretching his arms wide, trying to indicate the expansiveness of space, “rather than reading about them in an office on Earth.”

Stan realized that he no longer worried that the caffeine from the coffee would make him too jittery. He poured himself a cup and began stirring in a spoonful of sugar.

Cadet Wisniewski, Scientist

Alison nodded. “It’s why I’m out here, even if flying around in these tin cans is not my favorite thing. I much prefer being on a planet somewhere, studying something. But it is what it is.”

Taking a sip of her coffee, Alison leaned back in her chair. “So after deciding that you wanted to go into the sciences, what did you decide to specialize in?”

Lt Barr - CSO

Stan took a sip of his own coffee before answering the Lieutenant’s question. “With my love of learning about other cultures, I was drawn towards anthropology, which is my main area of focus. I’ve also taken quite a few courses in archaeology, because it’s another way of learning about other cultures…just ones that may no longer be around to talk to us.”

Cadet Wisniewski, Scientist

Alison leaned forward in her chair, setting her arms on the desk. That peaked her interest. “What draws you to learning about other cultures? I’ve always been fascinated about exploring different life that exists in the universe, but I tend to focus more on the micro. My own specialty is in exobiology, and recently I’ve been studying how certain fungi adapt to new environments. I like seeing how different organisms adapt when put into unexpected situations.”

Lt Barr - CSO

Stan took another sip of his coffee, and pondered the question while swallowing. It was a good question, and one that he found somewhat difficult to articulate an answer to. Other cultures had fascinated him for as long as he could remember, ever since he first learned about some of the other Federation races that his father worked with in the Diplomatic Corps.

“Other cultures interest me because I have always been amazed by the diversity of intelligent life in the galaxy. There are such an astounding variety of social structures and values and belief systems…and, yet, there are also almost always some similarities that can be spotted, too. I love learning about the differences but also looking for the common ground,” he said.

Hopefully that made some sort of sense, he thought, and took a small, nervous sip of coffee.

Cadet Wisniewski, Scientist

Alison nodded as she studied Stan over her own cup. “Do you have a theory on why there are so many similarities between all of these different cultures?”

Lt Barr - CSO


Posts on USS Challenger

In topic

Posted since


© 1991-2024 STF. Terms of Service

Version 1.15.9