Posted by Lieutenant Gage Whitney (CE) in Pre Sim: CE’s Arrival - Shuttlebay
Children…

They had stuck him with a ship full of children…

Not a one over 35 years old, with the exception of the Captain…

Still, it was his own fault. He was the one that has waited until he was nearly 40 to enlist. Though if he hadn’t, the ship he was about to board may not even exist to be crewed by children. He once again mused at the wisdom of his decision to transfer to an active-duty vessel. He’d have likely been content to while away the rest of his career at Utopia Planitia and been all the happier for it. The engineer he’d nearly decked three weeks ago was right though… Who was he to decide the best way to operate and refine a design without serving on her himself? That reality may have been a painful pill to swallow, but it was all too true that for nearly 30 years he’d been designing and building ships and equipment for other people without ever actually spending a moment more than he had to aboard one.

He still remembered the rather abrasive cut down he’d gotten from Admiral Holson for even suggesting he get a transfer. They’d build 32 Kurtzman Class ships in a little over 10 years, it’s not like they were running short. He had no doubt he’d be missed, but this was more important. Spending a few months operating one of these ships after a long run in space was key to ensuring that the coming refit was everything that it could be. The Chernov had been the first Kurtzman off the line at Utopia Planitia, third in its class. That was just about a decade ago to the day. He’d watched it roll out of spacedock, the umbilicals falling away as hatches closed and it cleared moorings. A view he’d had many many times over the years. That was the first out of Starfleets newest orbital shipyard though. It had been a heady experience. New construction teams, untested engineers and staff. They’d come together beautifully over the last decade, but that first one, the Chernov… He’d half expected it to burst into flames the second it cleared dock and the warp drive came online.

Here he was again though, looking out through a shuttle window now as he cam astern of the ship he hadn’t seen in a decade. He’d studied her current specs, engineering reports, mission logs and notes, and he’d made similar trips to inspect drydocked ships dozens of times over the years. This was different though. There really was a certain extra sense of proprietorship that came with being a Chief Engineer. He hadn’t really appreciated that until now.

As the shuttle passed through the nacelle corridor and through the atmospheric shield protecting the Chernov’s shuttle bay, he felt a thrill of excitement at being here. Now. In this place. Maybe there was something to this line officer malarky after all…

Gage Whitney (CE)

OOC: Very nice post!

Krys