Posted by Ensign Julia (Jules) Chen (Engineer) in Main Engineering – Ens. Chen reports for duty

Posted by Lieutenant Robert Mason (Chief Engineer) in Main Engineering – Ens. Chen reports for duty

Posted by Ensign Julia (Jules) Chen (Engineer) in Main Engineering – Ens. Chen reports for duty
Posted by… suppressed (1) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Jules was nervously looking over her data pad as the transport captain announced their approach to Starbase 157 – bios of the CO, XO and the CE; specs of the Ogawa (did they really call her the Owie?). She had just found out that the ship was being overhauled on her transport to the starbase. She had had very little training in spacedock procedures. Most of that work was done by civilians, not Starfleet personnel.

She arrived at the base and found her quarters. She looked at herself in the mirror and squared her uniform away. She asked the computer for directions to the CE’s office on the station and headed out.

The CE’s office was not too far from her quarters. She rang the chime and waited – not at full attention but still rather stiffly. A NE walk by an informed her that the engineering crew was on board the ship making repairs. She relaxed a bit and headed toward the docking bay.

The ship was hot and there was dust in the air. As she turned into engineering she saw the engineering crew wearing work coveralls either over or instead of their Starfleet uniforms. She glanced around for the CE, hoping she could avoid having to ask someone to point him out.

bump

OOC: Sorry

IC: After a few moments of observation, it would be obvious who the chief engineer was; the one who was talking to the only group of people who were not actively doing something useful.

“No,” the man said to a NE from the starbase staff. “We are not replacing the matter/antimatter reaction assembly. There is no need to do that. We have other work in progress that is dependent on not changing that. Changing that now would set us back another month. We might as well throw the ship away, because the warp core is the only part of it that isn’t damaged in some way,” he said with the deliberate patience of a man who was trying hard not to express that he thought he was talking to a buffoon. He of course, had no idea at all that the decision had already been made to write the ship off as a total loss; nobody here did.

The Chief Engineer was not facing Jules, so he had no idea she was standing there. There was a moment of silence between him and the group of starbase technicians.

“Since we’ve cleared that up now, you can leave the ship, please,” he said somewhat more curtly to the confused group in front of him.

– Robert Mason, CE

Jules wasn’t that good with people but the identity of the chief engineer was almost immediately obvious. One thing you learned in four years of the academy was an intuitive sense of who was in charge, no matter what the surroundings or circumstances. She was grateful for that at least.

“GO AWAY!” the man eventually said more bluntly to the collected group of clueless starbase technicians. This time they all promptly scattered out of Engineering. Yep, there was no doubt who was in charge here anymore…

“Well here we go,” she thought as she swallowed hard. “Lt. Mason,” she said, hear voice mostly clear and steady, and as he turned toward her, “Ens. Chen reporting for duty, sir”. She willed herself to hold his gaze as she extended the PaDD containing her orders.

Ens. Julia (Jules) Chen

The man turned around and was indeed, Lieutenant Mason. There was a brief flash of annoyance, but it promptly faded as soon as it was clear to him who this new person was.

“Excellent,” he said calmly, taking the PaDD and reviewing its contents quickly, flipping past the transfer order and reading the file in detail already to see how he could use Ensign Chen in the most productive way, immediately. Systems design… he thought, as he saw that particular comment in her file.

“As you can see, things are a giant mess. This is your first space assignment though, right? Like, you’re straight out of Academy?”

– Robert Mason, CE