Posted by Captain Zachariah Cobb (Commanding Officer) in Side Sim - Boarding the Levi

Posted by Lieutenant Commander GLaDOS (Chief Science Officer) in Side Sim - Boarding the Levi

Posted by Captain Zachariah Cobb (Commanding Officer) in Side Sim - Boarding the Levi
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Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻

Zachariah frowned deeply and ran a hand through his long, dark hair. Every step he took through this ship, every corner he turned and every threshold he crossed, brought him something new and unexpected. And absolutely bloody terrifying. Borg. Or, at least, at one time she had been so. Would he be given a Breen as a First Officer? How about a Jem’Hadar for CMO?

But this one was different and, despite his initial faux pas, he had already been briefed on the one they called GLaDOS, had been told that she was one of the most accomplished ARU scientists in the Federation. Also that she would outrank him in matters of Abell research, something that Cobb was currently ignoring rather than wrestle to come to terms with. He’d had enough upheaval recently to last him several lifetimes.

“Almost seventy-two hours,” he laughed eventually, in answer to her question on his length of service in the ARU. Pitiful to speak it out loud. But he was not here for his skills in the sciences or his knowledge on random anomalies. He was here because, once upon a time, he had commanded a Starfleet vessel through one of the darkest times in Federation history. And it was the hope of the ARU and of Admiral Roebuck that he would either do the same again or, at the very least, die trying.

“I…have a lot to learn, still,” he offered in consolation, to himself as much as to anyone else in the room. “So it’s good that they sent me such an experienced Science Chief to make up where I might be lacking, eh?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

GLaDOS gave the man a once-over. He was discheveled, and her wide-spectrum sensors could sense some imbalances in his temperature and eye dilation. He didn’t seem like the sort of person who would be trusted to be in charge of a ship and yet… Here he was. She’d read his file. His history within the Federation. The war. He was a commander who kept his cool even is the stress of war. So despite his current apparent status, she could tell there was something else there.

“You give of an impression of incompetence,” GLaDOS commented, in a low voice so that her team wouldn’t hear. “But I know the people in charge of the ARU. I trust their judgement. And if they think you are the right man for the job…” She reached out with her natural hand and put it on his shoulder with a small nod. “I will be behind you.”

And she knew how important it was to have a senior staff who supported their Captain. Hopefully Cobb would be able to prove himself to everyone else soon.

Lt. Cmdr. GLaDOS, CSO

Zachariah emitted a roar of genuine laughter at the CSO’s comment on his disposition. “Ah, Miss, you certainly know how to make someone feel good about themselves,” he teased in reply. But deep down her comments had hit their intended target and already Cobb was self-consciously straightening his tunic and smoothing down his hair and his beard.
“Look,” he decided to level with her, figuring that her elevated clearance had probably granted her access to every minute detail of his life and career thus far anyway, “I don’t know why I was selected for this mission. I mean, I have my suspicions, and none of them concern my primitive skills in science or my lack of experience with anomalies. That’s your field and…well, I plan to trust that you know what you’re doing and keep my nose out of your business. But I would ask, Lt Commander,” and here he found himself straightening in stature a little, a small measure of that confidence of old returning like a burst of starlight in those aged blue eyes, “that you pay me the same courtesy. I know how to run a ship and a crew. I might not be able to do your job for you, but I’ll spend my last breath ensuring you have everything you need to do it yourself. Do we…understand each other?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

GLaDOS listened to Cobb with a blank expression, the resting expression that she usually held. “That is precisely what I said, Captain. I will be behind you.”

Cobb cast an uncomfortable glance over his shoulder, as if the thought of this particular scientist being behind him was a thing to be feared indeed.

“That means that I will support you as you do your job, trusting that your work will allow me to do my job unhindered by worries about the running of ship and crew. I am not a commander, Captain. I am a scientist, and I am happy within that role, and have no desire to be in charge of the operations of the ship, outside the purview of my team’s research.”

“You’re almost a Commander,” Cobb offered in reference to her rank, but then grasped at her true meaning and muttered a rather contrite, “Sorry.”

At that, she turned slightly to return to her work, although her posture was not closed off and suggested she was open to further discussion. She didn’t like standing around while talking, always had to keep her hands busy.

Lt. Cmdr. GLaDOS, CSO

He felt dismissed, somehow. But still, something about GLaDOS intrigued him and he wanted to know more about how she…well, conducted herself.

“So,” he began, retreating to the far wall and resting his body against it, “Do you have any hobbies, Lt Commander? I mean, what do you do for relaxation?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

She glanced up at him, then worked while she spoke. “I did not used to do anything for relaxation. I worked late and went straight to sleep. I was quickly informed that such behaviour is not regular. I took up reading, although I struggle to find things that are of interest for my mind. With my new clearance level, ARU containment documents have become somewhat of a renewal to the reading material that is available to me.”

“Other than that, I have no hobbies. If I am not working, eating, or reading, I ‘sleep’.”

Lt. Cmdr. GLaDOS, CSO

Cobb chuckled quietly. Why, she sounded like him as a young man. All work and no play had made Cobb a fine officer. But also a loner with barely a friend. Even now, long past the age to care for the opinions of others, he hated socialising, hated formulating banal and endless smalltalk - like the kind he was foisting on his Chief of Science right now. If GLaDOS wanted to focus solely on her work then who was he to argue. Perhaps he could even learn something, still, from that level of dedication.

“Well now, I must confess that I lie on the opposite end of the scale Miss…ah…Lieutenant. Right now I know as good as naught about the ARU and this containment malarkey. Perhaps some time, you might be willing to grab a coffee with me…or whatever it is that you drink…and bring me up to speed?”

• Captain Zachariah Cobb

“There is a lot to be brought up on. But I am certain I can figure out somewhat of a… ‘cliff-notes’ version of what you have clearance for.”

GLaDOS didn’t dislike socializing. She would do it when opportunity called for it, and could even enjoy being with other people. She simply… did not require it. Socialization was something expressly necessary for the human psyche, but hers? She didn’t quite understand, but it just wasn’t needed.

Around that time, a blue-skinned bald woman entered the lab. “Hey, G,” she said, waving to the ex-Borg. GLaDOS smiled and waved back.

“Alai. Glad to see you could make it.”

Alai didn’t reply directly to GLaDOS, instead letting out an excited squeal and rushing over to the rabbit enclosure. “Oh my goodness, is it really them?”

GLaDOS laughed. “One and the same. They’ve been all over the Galaxy by now, I think. They can’t get away from Nordic ships though, it seems. From the Viking to a Mjolnir class.”

Lt. Cmdr. GLaDOS, CSO