Posted by Commander Mwezi (Executive Officer) in Main Engineering

Posted by Lieutenant Harry Archer (Chief Engineer) in Main Engineering

Posted by Commander Mwezi (Executive Officer) in Main Engineering
Posted by… suppressed (1) by the Post Ghost! 👻
<SNIP>

Harry looked up as he lowered the mug of tea, having just taken another sip. He did a slight double take when his eyes settled on what he could only describe as a cream coloured rug that was at eye height. He continued to look further up, eventually locking his gaze on to Mwezi’s face. A moment passed before Harry realised he was probably gaping at the Commander. He quickly regained his composure; whilst he was fairly sure the Commander would have noticed, he managed to recompose himself before any of the crew in engineering had spotted it.

“Sir, apologies,” he started. “you caught me by surprise. And yes, Harry Archer” he said by way of a, rather nugatory, introduction as he extended his hand.

“I was planning on heading up to the bridge, but the lure of engineering won me over.” he said with a grin.

Lt. Archer
Chief Engineer

Mwezi was not bothered by the staring, instead looking almost amused by the reaction, although it was difficult to read the expression on his alien face. In truth, he was glad the man’s reaction to his height was not one of fear… he had gotten worried looks from people before when they noticed his size, and particularly when they saw his mouth full of sharp teeth. He looked at the hand for a moment before touching his chest with a hand and dipping his head slightly. “Apologies, Lt., my people do not shake hands. Regardless of that,” he gestured to the room, “This is your Domain. It’s reasonable that you would feel its allure.”

Commander Mwezi
Executive Officer USS Asimov

Harry slowly returned the gesture, moving his outstretched hand on to his chest, making a slight head nod. “Well, it’s also my first tour as a Chief Engineer, so I have to admit to being a little excited… and a little apprehensive in equal measure.” he said. “I was going to do a bit of an unguided tour, would you like to join me?” he asked the Commander.

Lt. Archer
Chief Engineer

“Certainly,” Mwezi spoke with a nod, “I’d be glad to join you. So, what brought you to the Asimov? And I suppose engineering in general?”

Commander Mwezi
Executive Officer USS Asimov

Harry nodded, as he guided the Executive Office toward the center of main engineering. The warp core gently pulsed, casting a glow over the two as they moved closer to it.

“Well, I have to family to thank for the engineering aptitude.” He said with a grin. “I’ve always enjoying taking things apart, working out how they work, and putting them back together.” He continued.

“As for the Asimov, well…” he paused for a moment. “When the opportunity came up to work on one of Starfleet’s intelligence ships, how could I say no?” He said, smiling. “Oh, and then they threw in the offer of being Chief Engineer; sometimes you just get lucky!”

“How about you, what brought you to the Asimov?” Harry asked.

Lt. Archer
Chief Engineer

Mwezi nodded along with the explanation. Having an aptitude for something from an early age was familiar to him. He let out a short bark of laughter at the question about what brought him to the Asimov. “Ooh, isn’t that a fun story. And a long one. The sum of it is that I stumbled into a lot of secrets, and have a lot of secrets surrounding my service in Starfleet, so they thought it’d be wise to put me on a ship that specialises in Intelligence and the shadier sides of Starfleet, even if it wasn’t my passion to be there. Or rather, here.”

Harry studied the Executive Officer with curiosity. The amused smile that Harry had cracked when he had chuckled at Mwezi’s laughter had dissipated, and he now wore a more sympathetic expression.

He looked up at the core, a thoughtful expression on his face. “I have too many secrets around my history to risk putting me on a regular ship, where regular joes could see my record and question it. Unlike a human, I can’t exactly fade into obscurity, there just aren’t enough of my species in Starfleet. So… I ended up here, in a place where secrets are commonplace. I expect you’ll learn the details of my ‘tragic backstory’ if you serve here long enough. Most of the senior staff understands at least parts of it,” he chuckled.

“I was a junior officer for a while, but the previous XO went AWOL and after reading my file, the Captain thought I’d be a good fit for that mission and a field promotion. I did well enough that Starfleet decided to keep me promoted.”

Commander Mwezi
Executive Officer USS Asimov

Harry nodded slowly, but didn’t interject as Mwezi spoke. He hadn’t heard anything of Mwezi’s backstory, which was hardly surprising seeing he was the first of the senior staff that Harry had met. Whilst he was curious about it, he felt that hearing it second hand from the crew would miss both Mwezi’s perspective and a sense of his emotions around it.

“I’m not sure I’m a fan of hearing about other people from the crew,” Harry mused. “Having been on the other side, I find it usually lacks sensitivity, and people come to the incorrect conclusion.” He paused for a moment, briefly thinking back to his time at school, before continuing. “Maybe…” he paused, before continuing, “that’s if you want to, you can tell me about it over a drink.” he suggested.

Lt. Archer
Chief Engineer

“It’s both a very long and very short tale,” Mwezi chuckled dryly. “I might take you up on that offer,” he lifted one of his arms. His forearm was wrapped with what looked like braided leather. “Uri, please display Lt. Harry Archer’s classification rating.” A small holographic screen was projected from the strap, and Mwezi flicked his eyes across the screen before dismissing it with a flick of his wrist. “Alright, now I know what I can and can’t tell you,” he nodded solemnly.

“But for now, the tour!” he gestured vaguely towards the engine room.

Commander Mwezi
Executive Officer USS Asimov

Harry nodded toward the XO, before indicating toward a set of ladders in the corner of the room. “Those go up to Deck 7, but there isn’t really that much up there beyond the upper warp core assembly, and a few consoles. I expect the view is quite impressive, if you have a thing for heights.” he said. “Alternatively, I was going to check over the systems in the Secure Communications Centre and Astrophysics if you wanted a trip down to Deck 9.” This time he indicated back toward the turbo lift.

Lt. Archer
Chief Engineer