Posted Jan. 20, 2019, 3:21 p.m. by Lieutenant Commander Brad Walker (Chief Of Staff/Second Officer) (Brandon Irvine)
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“How can I help you, Commander?” Brad asked, after recognizing his visitor.
Lt. Cmdr. Dr. Brad Walker
Chief of StaffAmari smiled her friendly smile revealing a large set of pearly whites. He black puff sat neatly on top of her head. “I’m just making the rounds Commander Walker. Familiarizing myself with the ship and the various departments. Do you have a minute to talk perhaps? May I sit down?”
-Lt. Cmdr. Brooks, XO
“Sure,” Brad said, waving her into one of the seats opposite the desk while dragging his own back from where he’d kicked it out of the way at the beginning of his adjustment job. “That’s the curse of a job like this, plenty of time to do anything but what you originally signed up for.”
To illustrate his point, he grabbed a PaDD and looked at the subject before tossing it back on his desk with a scoff. “Yep, definitely can’t say I joined Starfleet to sign off on requests to restock our supply of one-size-fits-all, unisex sanitary surgical scrubs,” he said.
Lt. Cmdr. Dr. Brad Walker
Chief of StaffAmari laughed as she took the seat indicated. “Isn’t that the truth?” she said as she settled in. “Then, if I may ask, Dr. Walker, what did you sign up for?”
-Lt. Cmdr. Brooks, XO
“Back when I was young and stupid?” Brad asked, half-rhetorically. “To get away from home, meet new species and learn how to fix whatever was wrong with them, then get a ‘reward,’ if you catch my drift. The full Kirk.”
Lt. Cmdr. Dr. Brad Walker
Chief of StaffAmari’s head cocked to the side a bit. Typical young male, thinking. “Isn’t that what all young men want?” she asked playfully, catching his drift. “And let me ask you commander, did the stupid young boy grow up?” She didn’t know him well, but the familiarity of the conversation was refreshing. “Or are you still chasing green women in two pieces.”
-Lt. Cmdr. Brooks, XO
“Rather quickly,” Brad said. “Of course, a certain amount of growing up is bound to happen when your first ship is shot out from under you less than two months after you get there. Then, when her replacement went up a few years later, I decided it would be safer to be more stationary for a while. Then, stationary got boring, and here I am,” he said.
Amari nodded as she listened and felt a pang guilt making light of his past. She had unnecessarily brought up painful memories for the man, though he seemed rather well adjusted. That was par for the course for the star-fleet officer. Unspeakable horror, deal with it, do it again. She suddenly felt very young and inexperienced.
“Of course, if the green women in two-pieces offer, well, it would be positively un-gentlemanly to turn them down,” he said with a wink. You can make the boy into a man, but you can’t ever take the boy out of the man, after all.
Lt. Cmdr. Dr. Brad Walker
Chief of StaffShe laughed out loud, a little too loudly. It was a relief to know that he had a good sense of humor. “I’m fortunate. Other than a short stint as CMO on the USS Viking, I’ve been mostly on Starbases. Felt it was better suited to raise my girls. Now, I’ve got one in the academy and one…” she paused, not knowing exactly how to describe her youngest, “who isn’t,” she finished. It was apparent that her daughter was the source of a decent amount of frustration. “I felt it was time to get aboard a starship, accomplish my,” she almost said ‘my husband’s,’ “/my/ dreams.” They were now here’s after all. “I hear staying stationary too long, can get boring.”
Brad smiled as she turned his words back on him, though he heard clearly the frustration with the XO’s youngest child. Hopefully, she was at least less accident- prone than the Captain’s brother.
“What about you, Commander. Did you ever have children?”
“Knowingly? None,” Brad said. “Which is actually kind of amazing, since I may have accidentally formed a harem the one and only time I switched to Command red.”
-Lt. Cmdr. Brooks, XO
Lt. Cmdr. Dr. Brad Walker
Chief of Staff
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