Posted by Colonel Calvin Harris (Commanding Officer) in A Surprise Arrival (Tag Amelia)

Posted by Commander Amelia Manning (Executive Officer) in A Surprise Arrival (Tag Amelia)

Posted by Commander Amelia Manning (Executive Officer) in A Surprise Arrival (Tag Amelia)
Posted by… suppressed (7) by the Post Ghost! 👻
The Executive Shuttle Manticore silently settled onto the deckplates of Hanger Bay 1 of the USS Dresden on Deck 30. A two-deck high space running the length of the Stardrive Section of the massive Dreadnought was beginning to fill with Templars and Compies, along with Hanger Bay 2 which took up Decks 31 & 32. The swirl of busyness was everywhere and no one seemed to notice the two silver stars on a field of Hunter Green beneath the Shuttle’s painted-on name.

With a hiss, the Shuttle’s main personnel hatch opened revealing two smartly dressed Marines… one a full-bird Colonel and the other a two-star Major General. The Colonel was female, medium red hair, and just a few inches shorter than the man beside her’s easily six foot plus frame. Though the party took a few steps forward into the airlock that separated the cabin from the personnel hatch, only the female continued right up to the edge before turning to face the Marine General.

“Ya know, Daddy…” The woman began in a crisp soprano. “… you didn’t have to bring me all the way out here.” A smirk crossed her face.

“Bologna…” The General huffed. “… the Dresden’s current patrol wasn’t very far out of the way at all. I haven’t the foggiest as to when I’ll get to see you again Pumpkin… let an old Marine do something nice for someone for a change!”

There was a giggle that escaped the woman. “Oh Daddy…” She rolled her eyes. “… I seriously doubt any other O-6 would get to ride in a Flag Shuttle all the way from HQ. So please, don’t give me that.” Pausing for a moment, she added. “But don’t think I don’t appreciate the gesture. Now…” She smiled widely. “… go bug some Battalion stuffed shirt somewhere and let your little girl do her job.” The woman reached up, hugged the man tightly as he returned the hug and kissed him on both cheeks. “I love you Daddy.” She said warmly. “And I love you too, Pumpkin. You be safe.” The older Marine smiled warmly. “You too.” Came the young woman’s response before she turned and stepped off the Shuttle, a large duffle now slung over her left shoulder.

“See ya soon.” She said, snapping a crisp salute. A split second after thumping the wall of the airlock, the Marine General returned his daughter’s salute as the Executive Shuttle Manticore rose once more silently from the deck and its hatch hissed shut.

Turning to what she assumed was the front of the ship, Colonel Devri Rae Hudson let out a long, slow whistle as she walked… her mouth agape at the sheer size of the warship. She wished it was going to be her permanent assignment… the ship was awe inspiring and beautiful. At least she had a couple months to enjoy this spectacular home away from home.

Col. Devri “Starbuck” Hudson, SFMC
Director of the Office of Aerospace Personnel

Amelia made her way to the lower decks. It had been Harris’s idea. Not that she cared, anyway. They had the room, and they had the specs, so it seemed only natural. The only thing that surprised her was how long the Marine had taken to make arrangements for the small fighter unit to be brought on board.

Of course, the person in charge of settling the new ships and pilots on the Dresden was also a Marine, and, logically, the Marine commanding the ship was not the one meeting them. Instead, he had sent Amelia, a very much non-Marine person, to greet them.

As the Dresden’s second in command reached the hanger doors, her eyes glanced at the new ships. From an engineering perspective, they were beautiful, so she wasn’t really going to complain. The person she was supposed to meet, however, was nowhere to be seen.

Amelia looked at her PaDD once more. “Colonel Devri Hudson” read the file. She let out another sigh. This was far above her pay grade. As she looked up from the letters on the screen, however, her gaze spotted a woman, around the same age as Amelia herself, moving through the deck in her direction. It was clear by her uniform that she was who she was looking for, even though there was no shuttle in sight.

Walking towards Hudson at a firm and determined pace, Manning shot her a welcoming smile when it was clear that she had gotten her attention.

“Colonel Hudson, I presume?” Amelia said, offering her a hand to shake. “Manning. The Dresden’s Executive Officer.” It would be impossible for the newcomer to miss Amelia’s thick British accent. “Colonel Harris asked me to come and get you. When did you land? I didn’t see a shuttle… I apologize if I left you waiting…”

Cmdr. Manning, XO

“That’s me sister.” Came the smiling response to the question of her identity as she took the woman’s hand. “Nice ta’ meet cya’ Commander.” Her accent was so distinctly San Franciscan it hurt. There was no response or change of expression to hearing Amelia’s own accent. As to the Exec’s remaining questions, Devri shook her head with a smile. “Nah… no wait’at all. My father’s Vice Commandant of the Corps… he dropped me off on his way out ta’ review the 21st Division out of Saganam. He cleared the Bay right after I hopped off. To the Bridge then?”

Col. Hudson, DOAP

There was something about her that put Amelia off from the start. And yet, she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. It might have been the casual sister, or maybe that obnoxious San Francisco accent. Or maybe the fact that she let surreptitiously slip her own powerful connections.

Oh, my dad is the Vice Commandant of the Marine Corps, so he dropped me off on his way out. Manning’s mind repeated in an annoyingly high pitch voice. She struggled not to make a face. There were not a lot of times where Amelia wanted to rub on someone’s face the fact that she was a part of the British peerage, but this was clearly one of them.

“Of course.” Manning said, with a polite smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “This way Colonel.” She motioned to the hangar doors that would lead to the corridors of deck 30. When Hudson walked past her, Amelia rolled her eyes. She had never wanted to drop someone off to Harris so badly. Manning was sure he would have something to say to Hudson about her attitude.

For a moment, she observed the woman’s back. Red hair, Marine, and a flight nut. Knowing her luck, he would probably already have slept with the woman. With a soft sigh, Amelia hastened her pace to catch up with the Marine.

Cmdr. Manning, XO

Hudson strode along like she owned the place, leaving in her wake staff members of the Dresden falling all over themselves as the stunning redhead with full-birds on her collar walked the path through the Hanger doors to the main Turbolifts with the same confident air as the ship’s own Commanding Officer. Reaching the doors, Devri hit the call button before turning to Manning and smiling, asked. “Quite an accent cya’ got there, Manning. Oxford, right?”

For once, someone who didn’t mock her for the way she spoke! Manning welcomed the change. Even though that certainly gave Hudson some brownie points, it didn’t change Amelia’s opinion on the fact that the woman was an arrogant spoiled brat with delusions of grandeur. But it made her appreciate her slightly more than her first impression.

Smiling politely, Amelia nodded. “Indeed. Born and raised.” She didn’t elaborate more than the few words, which for Manning was a rare occurrence.

Looking around as the lift arrived, the Marine stepped through the doors and said. “Beautiful ship ya’ got here, Commander… how long ya’ been aboard?”

Col. Hudson, Director - OAP

Amelia’s smile was wider as she followed the Colonel into the turbolift. “Bridge.” she ordered the computer before turning back to Hudson. “She is. And she behaves quite well too.” Manning added patting the turbolift’s doors appreciatively. “The Dresden is a beautiful feat of Engineering.” It was impossible not to feel the passion for the subject in Amelia’s voice.

“You ask the hard questions, Colonel.” Manning finally reply. “Phew… I came on board in… ’94, so two years ago.” A somber expression crossed her face for a moment as she realized that she had been away from Pete almost as much as they had been apart when she had first broken up with him over her mother’s ring that fateful night in Paris. She shook her head to clear her head.

“How about you, Colonel? How long have you been in charge of the Office of Airspace Personnel? It must be a stressful job…”

Hudson shrugged at the question. “Meh… not ta’ bad. More admin garbage than anything else. From a paperwork standpoint, Commander, yes…” The Marine chuckled. “… it’s absolute hell. But honestly, compar’d ta’ an active Wing command or frack…” She smiled widely as she walked. “… your job… no thank you. Been there, done that… got the migraines.”

“Being Executive Officer is not that bad. Especially not with Colonel Harris. Please don’t tell him I said that, though.” Amelia smiled.

As the turbolift doors finally opened over the Bridge, Manning motioned for Hudson to step off before her. “After you.” She said in a considerably better mood.

Cmdr. Manning, XO

A soft whistle escaped Devri as she stepped onto the Bridge. “Been a bit, Commander, let me tell’ya since I’ve been on the Bridge of a warship. God, they are beautiful, aren’t they?” Hudson’s emerald green eyes shimmered in the streaking light of the ship’s viewscreen of their Warp flight. “Which way to the Skipper, Ms. Manning?” The tone was warm but it was clear she was still taken in by the view.

Hudson, Director O.A.P.

“Indeed they are.” Manning said proudly. “There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t marvel at her beauty. Definitely worth the migraines.” She chuckled. “This way, Colonel.” Amelia guided the visitor through the Bridge and to Harris’s Ready Room. Standing at the door, she pressed the chime and waited.

Cmdr. Manning, XO

As the Colonel approached the Ready Room door and Manning hit the chime, the voice of the Dresden’s Commanding Officer echoed through the slider. “Com’on in.” The voice on the other side of the door had a distinct Okie accent and if Manning were paying attention, she would swear Hudson stopped breathing.

The door hissed open and the Marine behind the desk glanced up with his token charming smile that lasted about a half second before his expression froze. “Dev?!” Came the surprised squeak (?) from the normally composed former Aviator.

Walking in behind Hudson, Amelia raised an eyebrow. By now, Manning was used to the fact that Harris seemed to know a lot of people, and it was definitely not the first time that someone’s name had come up that the Colonel seemed to have been professionally involved with in the past. This however… this was different. Harris had never audibly ‘squeaked’ before.

As the Director of the Office of Aerospace Personnel stepped quietly through the door and it hissed shut behind the women, Manning would detect the woman’s pause before answering in an equally surprised tone. “Hey ya’ Raven… nice to see you.”

“You too Starbuck…” The Marine now smiling wider than before as he rose to greet the ladies. “… been what, five years.” The female Marine’s blush was unmistakable as she corrected. “Six, actually Skip.” Devri then turned to the Executive Officer. “Your Skipper was my Flight Instructor at Top Gun.”

Harris/Hudson

In the back, Amelia watched the interaction between the two Marines. She saw the blush. She knew what it meant. Smiling, Manning nodded when Hudson told her where she and Harris had met. But the smile never really reached her eyes, as she knew for a fact that if the woman made a wrong move, somewhere within the confines of the Dresden was a bullet with Hudson’s name written on it.

Cmdr. Manning, XO