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Main Sim - And So It Begins...

Posted June 11, 2022, 10:51 a.m. by Captain Sara Kiernan (Commanding Officer) (Sage Pennington)

Posted by Lieutenant Patrick ‘Paddy’ McMillan (CNS) in Main Sim - And So It Begins…

Posted by Lieutenant Miranda Martel (Chief Engineer) in Main Sim - And So It Begins…

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Eulailia Dacascos (Chief Operations Officer) in Main Sim - And So It Begins…
Posted by… suppressed (14) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(sip)

“You’re never the same,” Shara said quietly, her gaze fixed on an invisible spot on the wall. For a moment it seemed like she wasn’t even there before she shifted her attention back to the group, and with a deep inhale the CIO rose to her feet and surveyed the table as she moved away from her chair. Gone was the hard-ass persona she had adopted so easily. Too easily, perhaps. For the moment, she was just herself, as odd as that was in this circumstance. Though she studiously avoided letting her gaze rest on Micah. She could not deal with her husband right now.

“Look, you’re all seeing this the wrong way. Yes, we’re going to make a statement, and yes there will be consequences for our actions. And yes, you might not like those later. This is not my usual shtick either, so before anyone gets in a twist over anything I might say, understand that I have twenty years of experience being on the other side of borders, of sticking myself in places I don’t belong and making everyone believe I was always there,” she said as she moved about the table, eyeing this group as if she was truly seeing them for the first time.

“I can only do so much, so help me I’m going to get us where we need to be. We need to be flawless and I don’t have time to make you into the people you need to be right now. This isn’t about being cruel.” Was she going to talk about it? She normally would never but times being what they were, she didn’t feel she had much of a choice. “It’s no secret that I was a member of the Maquis. When our colony invited them to use our settlement as a staging ground, we did so knowing that we were inviting trouble onto our doorstep. Do you think it was easy, for any of us, to join a fight knowing that at anytime we would potentially bring that destruction down upon our heads? We had families, children. My late husband and I had to look each other in the eyes and make an impossible decision to allow even the possibility of harm to come to our home, to our daughter. My own brother was a Lieutenant in Starfleet. As you can imagine when he found out what we were doing, it was not great. Do you think he relished the idea of taking down Maquis vessels knowing that at any time he could be killing his own sister?

Shara pounded her left fist into her right hand. “This is a WAR! Do you get that yet? There’s no official declaration. These people are fighting in the shadows with an air of confidence they get to have because they’ve been fighting before we even knew strikes had been made. They torture and maim. They kill and threaten without remorse. These people are anathema to our very way of life, to everything we fight to defend in the Federation. Take it from someone who was once on the other side, considered an enemy of the Federation. War sucks. It is hard, sometimes brutal. And we have been asked to fight this war on the behalf of those that can’t. And that means something.

Eulailia’s eyes widened and she put her left hand on her chest as the Commander spoke. She didn’t expect such strong emotions from her.

“You want the truth? Here’s the truth: I don’t want to be here. I’ve done my service to the Federation. I’ve sacrificed everything time and time again, because it was what was required of me, because I put on a uniform and made a vow to Starfleet, to the Federation. It’s a miracle I’m even standing here. The odds say I shouldn’t be. People who do covert work don’t tend to live very long. But I am here, and I stayed on this ship rather than staying back on that station because I knew you needed me. Everything about this sucks”-she let out a bitter laugh-“but so help me if any of you aren’t one hundred precent getting this situation, if you can’t understand the difference between fighting aimlessly and fighting for a purpose, you better stay the hell out of the way, because the rest of us have a really hard job ahead of us. And we certainly don’t need your indecision. And this isn’t a game. People have already suffered in this war. My job is to make sure that as few as possible going forward have to suffer, including us. But like I said during that first meeting, I can’t do this alone. I need your help. So make your choice and either help or stay out of the way.” It was to her credit that she managed to not swear, because she sure wanted to. They were supposed to be passed this point. And all she could feel about the whole damn thing was a well of anger that had been brewing since that day she walked into the ready room on the Manhattan and understood that someone had been messing with her daughter, and others and that lives were going to be ruined if they didn’t get a handle on the situation fast. Normally a woman of few words, she was almost more mad that she needed to make a goddamned speech here, again.

Commander Calloway, Pissed off CIO

Ryley fixed Calloway with a completely stoic look and seemingly ignoring her meaningful and important comments said in a gruff deadpan tone “You want a sedative there Calloway?”

Ryley
MD

Her head turned slowly, foggy blue eyes fixing themselves on Ryley. And then, perhaps unexpectedly, Shara laughed. She tipped her head back, hands akimbo and laughed. “Gods, how about right into the next year? Save you form having to fix a broken hand again, yeah?” She shook her head, letting measured inhales and exhales steady her. Her first time having a crew in twenty years and she was sure it was going to do her in entirely.

Commander Calloway, CIO

“Oh, she is crazy, crazy. I am starting to think I was put on this ship because no one else wanted to be here.” Eulailia thought to herself.

Dacascos, COO

“I get the feeling you’re enjoying this Commander,” Paddy said with a cheeky grin to Calloway.

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counsellor-

The look that took over her face was nothing less than the icy cold of Andor, and though her body was still, her chest heaved as she actually struggled to contain the rage that blossomed. She was supposed to trust this kid with her issues, to help her through. Someone had a terrible sense of humour. PADD in hand, she managed to still the other response that first came to mind and settled on the more measured one, relative though that was. “Eff you,” she said and strode to the door. If people were wise they would not intervene. Then again, wise was not a word she was associating with this group so far.

Commander Calloway, CIO

Eulailia gasped, put her hand over her mouth, and kept it there until the commander exited the room. When she thought she was far enough away so she couldn’t hear her words, she threw both hands up and said, “I am scared of her. I am not saying a word around that woman, I am not trying to get beat up on this ship.”

Dacascos, COO
OOC: Did she leave the room? I assume she did. My character hopes she did…lol.

Ryley watched Calloway with one eyebrow quirked. To Dacascos he said “Don’t worry kid, we’re all scared of her, that’s just your innate sense of safety kicking in. Trust your instincts they seem to be working. But bit if advice for you, don’t ever say someone scares you out loud like that again or someone somewhere will eat you for breakfast.”

Ryley
MD

Eulailia put her hand on her forehead and shook it, “Ugh. You are so right. That was stupid of me. Clearly an unnecessary burst of emotion considering the situation. I know better. Thanks for keeping me on my toes, sir.”

OOC: Okay, weird split that we’ll fix now. But I was trying to not assume she’d get out the door given that Blue and Piklesimer (and the CO) are between her and the door, so left it open. Though given that it’s unlikely that Shara and Micah will have have words right there, I assume he’d let her go (they’re too professional for a domestic dispute). So if everyone else is okay with her making it out of the room, so am I. :)
~Linds

Bethany rolled her eyes HARD and obviously, “Cmdr Calloway isn’t the one you need to be afraid of. She has too much self discipline and selfrespect to beat you up. She’s the one that will keep us all alive and safe. She’s not having fun, this isn’t fun or amusing or a game of pretend.” Bethany caught the eye of everyone in the room and then looked at the COO. “Only one person in this room is truly scared of her right now and it ain’t you pretty girl.”

This was insane, this was why Bethany worked alone. No wonder Elias was such a scary, twisted captain to his crew. How do you get them to listen otherwise?” That thought sent icy cold dread down her spine. NO nonono, she did NOT understand him....shoot me, now, kill me. I don’t want to be like him or understand him. She was loosing her mind.

Gadi, CoS

“I just know she did not…..She must think I am not going to say anything to her.” Eulailia thought to herself.

She moved behind the doctor a little before she said, “Let’s get one thing straight, my name isn’t “pretty girl” Eulailia is fine or if you want to be formal about it, Lt. Commander Dacascos, okay. Also, I am intrigued by your loyalty and how you defended her, but the woman has issues. I don’t know her all that well, but I can clearly see that much.”

Dacascos, COO

Dacascos was behind Ryley with Bethany sitting beside him. So she couldn’t see the new COO but she didn’t bother to turn around. She shrugged “THIS This right there. You all don’t get it. We are NOT Star Fleet anymore. There are no ranks anymore. You are NOT Lt Cmdr Dacascos anymore. Your time in Star Fleet is gone. Look around, no one is in uniform for a senior staff meeting. You have to let go of it. You have to get in character, live it, breathe it, become it. But you keep working on that indignant offense if you want. I suggest you work on a tougher skin, a stronger back bone, and practice slinging insults instead.” Bethany didnt’ wonder about Calloway at all, she did wonder what Blue and Picklesimer were thinking when they recruited this crew for this mission.

Gadi, CoS

Miranda spoke up, her tone was icy cold as well. “A reaction like that out there could get all of us spaced or vaporized. Or worse. A lot worse,” Miranda said, speaking up. her expression had turned hard, stoic. The set to her jaw and glint in her eye, the slight flush to her skin brought out the red tones in her hair, and for a moment it wasn’t hard to see that though it was buried, there was a simmering anger.... if one looked close enough. “Sheeple react like that. The soft, bleeding hearts of the Federation react like that. We’re murders, killers, mutineers, who’ve turned our backs on everything the Federation stands for. The strong survive, the weak perish. The only thing that still exists is cooperation, and having each other’s backs, because that’s what it takes. Not because we believe in any high-minded ideals about bettering ourselves and our fellow man. Go read the mission briefs again.”

Eulailia rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and shook her head at both Gadi and Martel words.

“This isn’t a game. People are probably gonna die. And if you have to take over in a tactical situation, fire the ship’s weapon systems, then it’s gonna be you taking out innocent lives, cupcake.” While it wasn’t standard duty for an Operations Officer to handle the ships weaponry in a battle, they could, in a pinch, serve as a backup tactical officer. They were certainly helping manage ship’s resources during those time periods, especially power management. “You prepared for that? Can you live with that? We’re out here to be sharks, hunting in the deep waters. Ruthless. Unfeeling.” She shook her head. “It’s no game. It’s no act. I dunno how you got this billet, but I pray you’re made of much sterner stuff and have ice in your veins, because we’re gonna need it.”

She glanced at the CE, and thought, “Cupcake …huh” she had the mind to call her “funnel cake” since she was getting all twisted up over what she said.

Was she out of line? Maybe a little. But Gadi was right, rank was pretty much meaningless. Only doing the job and getting it done. It seemed a good chunk of the senior staff still hadn’t gotten it. Hadn’t sunk in. She’d understood the assignment even before they’d made it to the tholian nebula. At least partially, but now, finding out that they weren’t actually going to have any kind of cover, successful or not… If she didn’t wind up dead, or in a brig, probably was going to be her last tour. And she was going to find the chucklehead who put her on this ship.

Martel, CE

Eulailia heard the rant or whatever it was but she still held the same position. Funnel cake and her friend could call it what they want, her not having a backbone or being too soft but she preferred the term non-confrontational. She was not a fighter and never have been. Sure, if something went down on the ship and she had to defend herself, the ship or one of her crew mates she could do what needed to be done but not when it involved innocent people.

“If you must know, I got this job because I am good with administrative, not tactical stuff and I am very much aware of what an Operations Officer’s job is. I can operate the ship’s weapons or any other weapon I need to, I wouldn’t be here if I couldn’t, but only for the defense of the ship or any of the crew who are in danger, anything beyond that well I just can’t.”

“Right lay off. She made a mistake and I guarantee it won’t be the only one made before we find our feet with this, it’s not like they write an un-rule book. Adversity inspires loyalty or mutiny so which one are we going to be? Because we either gotta stop at each other’s throats bemoaning the fact this isn’t a game or we gotta decide it is a game and we’ve got to be believable and play to win or…” he drew his hand across his throat.

Ryley
MD

Eulailia could not hide her smile as the doctor talked. He was someone to stay close to. The man was always sensible and clear-headed. Since rank didn’t matter anymore he was the only person she was willing to listen to.

Dacascos, COO

“That’s enough.” Sara said, her voice ice cold, still commanding. “We have enough enemies outside these walls. Including some of our old friends. We don’t need to make things more difficult. Some of us-“ she glared at Gadi and Calloway “have more experience in this line of work than others. I expect you to be mentors. Not critics. No matter what side of the law we’re on, we’re working as a team here. That’s the only way we survive.”

-CO

“I agree, Captain,” then she crossed her arms and looked at Gadi.

OOC: Shara has left. You can yell at her later. :P ~Linds

Gadi held up her hands in a sign of acquiescence and contemplated a moment. “Then captain, if you will, perhaps you would help me with a demonstration? Maybe it will help explain what Calloway and I are trying to mentor them in.”

(OOC: If yes. If not please delete.)

“Absolutely no offense intended Captain, but going back to Agent Blue’s comment. You have to sell it. So perhaps you can tell us the story. Tell me, why did I give up my loyalty to the Federation, something I am known for, to mutiny and give that loyalty to you and follow you against the Federation. Tell me the story, what you did, who this Cpt Is that inspires such a change of heart. What is the story of your new persona?”

Gadi, CoS

Now, this was something she agreed on with Gadi. What was the story? They definitely needed to make it make sense. “Yes, Captain, perhaps telling us the story can help. Maybe it will help provide a different perspective and help us better understand the mission.”

Part of Ryley had been ready to leave then, there wasn’t much he could actually add anyway at the present time, but as Bethany began he settled himself back down and faced Sara, eyebrows raised, and crossed his arms. His expression saying he too was interested in the story.

Ryley
MD

Make that three. Martel hadn’t budged. The real crux of the senior staff meeting hadn’t been met as far as she could tell, but like the others, she was interested in what the Captain had to say. She knew the kind of snakes they were going to be trying to impress and crawl in bed with. She’d been in their tender, loving care with all the scars one could see.. and the ones they couldn’t.. to show for it. While she had tactical training, and had been a fighter most of her life, she didn’t have the same intelligence and subterfuge training Gadi or Calloway had. But she understood it better than most. She’d grown up around a rougher crowd too, not that rough, but enough. So while her perspective wasn’t entirely unique, she had more direct experience than some of those aboard. And had an idea of what they were walking into, at least. And wha tit would take. How would this captain lead them through the dark forest without losing their souls in the process?

Martel, CE

“Throwing accusations at each other isn’t going to help any of us get through this any faster. The sooner we unite against our… outside demons as the Captain put it, the sooner this can all be put behind us.” Though he was well aware that this approach probably wouldn’t defuse the situation, Paddy felt that being the ‘counselor’ in any situation was the best he could offer.

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counsellor-

“Thank you counselor.” Sara said with a nod to McMillan. “As for your questions” she looked to Gadi. “In this instance, mentorship looks like crafting and going over the stories with each other until we can not just recite them, but retell them convincingly. As far as my path here… it starts like any good lie. With the truth. We were summoned for a top-secret briefing. Seeing the skeletons in Starfleet’s closet shook my faith. Finding nothing to prove me wrong and the long list of regulations becoming ever more confining, I abandoned my post. For me, it’s not so much a life of a criminal or a pirate, or whatever you want to call it. It’s closer to a maquis freedom fighter. I offered you the ‘real facts’ on Starfleet and an opportunity to make a stand for ourselves.”

-CO

“Yeah, that sounds pretty damn close. We’re burned anyway, and blacklisted. At least we got the Pelican out of it,” Randi said. There was no small measure of bitterness in her tone, her head tilting side to side a little as she said it. Being from a small colony world, more than once they’d called for aid from the Federation and had gotten the finger. The Colonial Defense Fleet back home, she imagined, would be pretty strong by now. Probably not really in need of the Federation’s help much these days. Though they were still likely to be cordial.

This whole operation stank in it’s own way. Whoever stuck her here had to have been out of their minds. Or maybe they were a special kind of crazy, like a fox. Either way, she didn’t feel like she had much of a choice. Either way she was likely to spend the rest of her life in a cell. Assuming she didn’t get vaporized before the whole thing was over. Which, that might have been preferable. At least that way it wouldn’t be an issue for her. It reminded her of something an anti-matter fueler once said when asked about the stress of the job. There wasn’t much stress. If a problem came up, either they would solve it, or it wouldn’t be their problem anymore.

The idea of spending time in a cell was less bothersome than the alternative. Her hands balled into white-knuckled fists, her jaw was clenched, and the muscles along it could be seen jumping beneath the skin. Her neck was tight and corded. Her neck and shoulders felt tight, and the back of her throat was almost shut. And despite the short sleeves and open midriff she was suddenly too hot. The engineer took a moment to close her eyes and focus, forcing her hands open, she put both hands over her chest over her heart. It wasn’t in a hurry, but in a controlled manner, but she pressed in, lips moving as she silently recited something to herself a few times, then seemed to settle.

Finally, she let out a long sigh which trembled a little. “Shiny. Let’s be bad guys. What’s our first target … or are we just going hunting?”

Martel, CE

Dacascos, COO

“One of our resident agents” sara said “already offered us two targets. A tellarite freighter, hauling weapons. And a ship full of VIPs. Let’s hit the tellarites first. We can keep some of the weapons, sell the rest. It might look suspicious if our first job out of the gate is too high profile. Like we’re looking to get noticed. Pull one off, then worry about stealing from the rich and powerful.”

-CO

Of course, a Tellerite freighter would be our first target. thought Eulailia. They were long-time United Federation of Planets members and have always had hundreds of freighters floating around the Universe. However, she wasn’t sure how easy it would be to take over one of their freighters. These creatures were hostile by nature, and she couldn’t imagine they could just board the freighter and take their weapons.
“Ohhhh, we are definitely in for a fight. Those pig-faced creatures are not going to part easily with their merchandise.” She paused then said, “Getting the merchandise is just part one. Part two is escaping with it. We are going to need a practical escape plan. This is a Brazen class ship correct? I suggest we use our deflector shields to ensure a quick retreat. We need to adjust them to produce an interferometric dispersion which will limit their or any other ship’s sensing techniques and allow us to remain undetected as we make our getaway.

Dacascos, Trying to be a team player

“The thing about Tellarites too is that besides being very obstinate, they’re masterful engineers. Even a freighter is likely to have nasty teeth.” With Dacascos’ suggestion about the dispersion she smiled a little. “I like where your head is on that. Unfortunately we’d have to stick around and keep the field up. We could drop a probe rigged up to do that though. OR… We drop chaff. But we don’t need to.”

Reaching out to the conference table in front of her she touched one of the LCARS panels on it and in a few short strokes, brought up a holographic display of the Rabid Pelican hovering in the air. A moment later it broke into various decks and sections with subsystems being outlined. Reaching out she touched the holo coming form the emitter inset into the table. One system lit up, and the rest of the ship configuration dimmed. “One of the early things we did while getting ready for this is went and picked up a little toy. Two, if you count our charming gentleman with the cane.” She jerked her head toward Ryley. The memory of that particular away mission was still pretty fresh in her mind. And then there was Ridad. Would be good to check up on him, she supposed.

The system showed it was labeled as a cloaking device. “That’s right, we stole ourselves a klingon cloak. I think we can steal a firmware update for it too. All the tests look good. So we can find our prey, de-cloak, smash, grab, and then vanish again.” She paused for a moment and sighed. “That’s one of our big playing cards. And it’s vital for us.”

Randi, CE

“I hope miminal casualty is still the aim?”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counselor-

“If if that’s true, we can’t let it look like we left anyone unharmed out of the goodness of our hearts…” Sara didn’t like where this thought was leading her. “It has to be that we’re leaving witnesses. To tell the tale to others. Spread word of us and our deeds.”

-CO


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