Posted by Captain Zachariah Cobb (Commanding Officer) in Cobb’s Ready Room - Summoning Surda

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Surda (Chief of Security / RTF) in Cobb’s Ready Room - Summoning Surda

Posted by Captain Zachariah Cobb (Commanding Officer) in Cobb’s Ready Room - Summoning Surda
Posted by… suppressed (11) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Zachariah Cobb was a man nearing the limits of his endurance. Since agreeing to take command of the USS Leviathan, he’d found himself thrown headfirst into a world populated by anomalies and dangers at almost every turn; his ship had been forced out of drydock days ahead of schedule and sent chasing after an entity that claimed the lives of several of his crew; his scientists were harbouring ARU-endorsed secrets that could bring about the destruction of his ship; and his Counselor was being threatened by a shadowy figure just for doing her bloody job! And now, as if one of their most dangerous anomalies recently being out of containment wasn’t enough to deal with, Roebuck had reassigned his Chief of Security to another bloody ship! Why, it was enough to make any man desperate for a drink…or several. And currently, Zachariah Cobb was about finished making light work of his fourth.

But the situation could not be ignored for even a second. As the department responsible for not only the safety of his entire crew, but also the containment of all currently-housed anomalies, Cobb needed someone in charge whom he could fully rely on and trust. And after several hours spent pouring over records and files and incident reports, one name kept returning to the fore - Surda.

The Orion had only been with the Leviathan for a short time, but by all accounts had shown herself to be a thoroughly capable officer. Fluent in several languages and already a member of the RTF, it was possible that she could serve as the bridge between the Recovery Task Force and the rest of the crew that Zachariah had been missing. So, it was with an uncharacteristic level of enthusiasm, both to meet this young woman in person and also for another legitimate reason to reach for a drink, that the captain delivered his message:

=^=Ensign Surda, this is the captain. Please present yourself at my ready room within the hour. =^=

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

=^= This is Surda. I am on my way. =^= Surda took a deep breath the second the transmission was closed. What on Earth could the Captain need her for? She started walking despite the slight urge to simply avoid the situation altogether. Starfleet might be recalling her. They could technically do that, even though they had said they wouldn’t. Surda’s thoughts trailed off as she noticed that she had reached the ready room. She reached for the chime, halted, then nodded and pressed it.
-Surda

“Come in!” came a voice like warm milk over gravel.

Once inside the room, Surda would find the captain sitting behind his desk, a bottle of whiskey and two already-filled glasses before him. His uniform tunic was somewhat neater than normal and his long, silver-black hair was pulled back into a ponytail, matching the one shaped by his beard.

“Ah, Ensign Surda, come in,” he waved her towards a vacant chair on the opposite side of his desk, then pushed one of the filled glasses towards her. “Forgive me for having been a relative stranger to you until now. And let us drink to finally meeting, at last, eh?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

Surda blinked, somewhat surprised. It didn’t seem like he was going to tell her she was off the Leviathan. “It’s a pleasure, Captain.” She sat down. “I can hardly expect you to meet everyone, but I am always glad for a drink.” She smiled and held the glass out. “Salud.”
-Surda

“Salud,” Zachariah echoed, comforted to be in the company of one who would not judge his proclivity for drinking but instead join in with him. For a few moments he remained silent, his focus on the whiskey as he savoured the trail of warmth down his throat. Then finally he cleared his throat and continued to speak.

“We are both far too busy for idle chatter, so I shall get straight to the point. Your security chief, Lt Stone, has been commandeered by another ship. Oh, believe me, I would have stopped it happening if I could!” he snorted. Clearly the incident remained a great source of frustration for the Leviathan’s captain.

“But as you will have already learned, the security team is the most essential department on this ship, for not only does the safety of the crew rest in your hands, but so too does the management of the containment decks. I can not afford to have a single officer off their game. To that end, I need a new Chief of Security yesterday! And, well…after considering every individual in the department, it was your name that I settled on.”

He topped up both of their glasses in anticipation of her reply, then concluded with, “I know you’ve only been on the ship for a matter of days but I’ve read your record and have a good idea of what you’re capable of. So, what do you say to that, eh?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

Surda drank absently. “I think I need more alcohol.” She laughed, a little breathlessly. Promotion was the last thing she had expected. “I’m more than willing I just… by the great goddess, I never expected this.” She took a deep breath. “What are the expectations?”
-Surda

“Ah, that’s the spirit, eh,” the captain laughed, sliding the bottle into the centre of the desk, where it remained within easy reach of them both. He swallowed a generous mouthful from his own glass then sat back and steepled powerful fingers under his chin.

“Expectations? Well now, we both know that an ARU assignment comes with a vast swathe of additional responsibility. And as chief, every molecule of that would rest upon your shoulders.” There was no sense in lying to her. She had been here long enough already to have witnessed the unique demands of this department. “Starfleet regulations demand that you perform all duties relevant to a standard security chief, that is to ensure, as much as is possible, the safety of every man and woman onboard this vessel; to verify that all crewmembers are behaving appropriately to their rank and position and to administer consequences if they are not; to protect the physical and technical assets of both the Federation and the ARU that comprise this vessel and her equipment; and also to attend, or nominate another to attend in your stead, any away team operations that would require or benefit from the presence of security personnel.”

He paused for brief replenishment from his glass, with the knowledge that the Orion already knew, and followed, every directive he had given thus far. But what would come next was where he anticipated trouble and was where most officers would run from the room, screaming.

“Additional to this,” he continued, his tone authoritative but with a faint tinge of regret that he was forced to demand such duty from anyone at all, “the ARU requires your department to be the primary managers of the containment decks. This includes scheduling round-the-clock, physical monitoring by a single shift leader for each containment level and several other officers to be stationed as the shift leaders see fit. Miss, I…” he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, “…I must ask how much you know, at this point, on the things we have in containment? I mean, I can see from your record that your security clearance is sufficient to have been provided relevant details, but…how much have you actually read, or learned, since coming here?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

“I have read all information supplied, but I admit to spending some time looking for more.” It was technically against the rules, but Surda saw nothing wrong with furthering her own information. She sighed. “I may be new to the Leviathan, but I have spent nearly half my life in service to Starfleet. I may not have spent much time around anomalies, but I have been Black Ops for ten years.” She took another drink. “You expect anomalies to surprise your officers, but I have done things that would surprise you, Captain.” She had said what she needed to. “And besides, with the right incentive, some of your officers can be quite loose with their tongues.” She smiled, enjoying the sudden turn in the conversation. “You don’t need to be concerned. I had my choice. I made it. I knew what I was getting into.”
-Surda Cos

Zachariah chuckled. “Oh, I have no doubt at all that you know what you’re doing. But you can not afford to become complacent, not for one single second. You understand?”
He sat back again and nodded, satisfied that the Orion could handle the demands of the position.

“There is just one more thing,” Cobb added after a moment, “and this is more…off the record, as it were. Listen,” he emitted a deep sigh and ran a hand along his beard, “I’ll get straight to the heart of the matter. This crew is a divided one. On the one side, we have the Starfleet officers and on the other, the RTF. I’ve been trying ever since I took command here to unite the two groups but…I’ve had limited success. But you,” he waved his glass in her direction, “I have a feeling you might be able to succeed where I have, so far, failed. You are in a unique position, being the leader of the security team and a member of the RTF at the same time. What do you think? Do you fancy your chances of getting the two groups into the same room for more than five minutes without killing each other?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

“You mean, do I think I can coerce two factions that already work in close quarters into developing actual interpersonal relationships?” Surda grinned. Off the record, and slightly immoral? Her specialty. “I need three weeks, a holodeck, and an on-call doctor.” She took the bottle of whiskey and poured more for both. “You’re welcome to join us, Captain. Might do them some good.”
-Surda, CoS

OOC: OMG I LOVE HER! Send her to Casela RIGHT AWAY!
-Jenn

Cobb shook his head, momentarily lost for words. “Why, you are just as calm as a cucumber, Ensi…” he paused, then remembered one final thing. Reaching into the drawer of his desk, a wide grin began to creep across his face as he retrieved a small, black case. Rising to his feet, he nodded for Surda to mirror his action as he simultaneously opened the case to reveal a gold-bordered collar pip.

“Ensign Surda,” he announced, moving around the desk to stand face to face with the Orion. “I hereby confer upon you the rank of Lieutenant, junior grade, with all the rights and privileges that entails.”
Lifting the stud from its box, the captain reached out and gently secured it to Surda’s collar, before stepping back and reaching for his glass.

“Congratulations, Lt Surda,” he announced, draining his own measure in celebration. “Now, tell me when you would like that holodeck. I would very much like to watch,” he winked.

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

Surda drained her glass with him, then smiled, her face truly softening. A promotion was something she had believed unattainable. “Thank you, Captain.” Her grin changed to a mischievous one, more befitting teenagers than Starfleet officers. “As for the Holodeck… I’ll need to program something for it, so two days from now. I have to warn you though if you step into the holodeck, you’re automatically playing.” She had big plans, starting with something she had heard called “laser tag.”
-Surda, CoS

“You don’t think I can handle myself, eh?” Cobb teased, before adding with a wink, “I can take on a challenge.”

Reaching for his glass, he drained the final drops then wiped a sleeve across his mouth and beard.

“Well, do you have any questions for me before I release you to cause mischief on my holodeck, Lieutenant?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

“No sir. Although I think you should know, I would never cause mischief… if it wasn’t sanctioned mischief.” She was clearly lying, and not even trying to hide it. Surda smirked. “Holodeck, 2 days from now. I’m making it an open invitation. You don’t have to be security or RTF.” She was looking forward to it. Hopefully, Cobb would show.
-Surda, CoS