Posted by Lieutenant William B. Grey (CSO) in Main Sim - Briefing Room A - XO & CSO Talk
William waited until the door closed before speaking “Sir I’m going to speak rather quickly and very frankly so I wanted to do so directly to you as this is not!” He emphasised the ‘not’ “me calling your command style out” He looked at him like he wanted a reply but didn’t wait for one “Where and what do you think your doing Commander” He spoke in hushed tones “These aliens have done nothing to show hostile intent and out of the twenty legible words we’ve heard the universal translator managed four, Space, Trespass, Disarm and Surrender.” He counted at the top of his head “We don’t know how hostile they are going to be but to steal your words they have us by the proverbial balls” He pointed to nowhere “And in Ten minutes they are going to be right in front of us and we are not in a strong negotiation position, so you are going to have to decide what is best for the crew, your suicide mission making you a martyr” He put his finger against the commanders chest “Or you standing with us as a leader?” He looked serious yet strangely focused compared to before “If you leave with the Captain still impaired the only senior Officer on the Bridge until Stone or someone else more senior comes aboard is a Twenty-two year old Scientist fresh from the Academy” He sighed “This is a young crew that can’t afford to lose a senior officer, this is what the chain of Command is for”

CSO

Chris smiled at him.”I appreciate your candid view points. I really do. No offense, but I had no intentions of leaving the Conn over to you. There is also Lieutenants Dredge and Stone, who are older than you and have more experience in these matters. One of them, preferably Stone should be in charge. And the Captain is not incapacitated. He just has some minor rib bruising. Sure it hurts but not debilitating. He was a doctor before command. Just like I was and he’ll be back up on the bridge very soon.”

“You are correct in that we do not have a strong negotiating position. They can clearly see the blown up nacelle, dead bodies and broken pieces of the ship floating around us. They do have us by the short hairs. And by no means am I sherking my duties as the XO of this ship nor do I have plans to become a martyr. I am doing what I can to save you all from all manners of bad things that these people can do to us. I have other plans, options and ideas to get us out of here that you don’t know of yet. As of right now they want me and me alone. If they take me and leave then you’ll be safe and make repairs and go home. Tell command what happened and they’ll send a rescue party. “

“But I am going to make myself clear to you. They will not get this ship. I am doing my duty in order for that to happen. If it means me dying in the process, then so what. Someone will be there to take my place. Like you said, that is what the Chain of Command is for. Besides. Do you have any ideas to prevent them for attacking us? From shielding us from their endless barrage of torpedoes? From then boarding this ship and killing everyone? If you do I will listen to them. Because as it stands right now, by me surrendering and going over to them, is the only thing from preventing all of that. If that is all, then continue with my previous orders and send torpedoes out that ate daisy chained together and made to look like floating debris. Put dead people in the canisters if you have to to mask what they are. I don’t care. Just make it happen and give me the remote detonator before I and Mwezi go over.”

Commander Chris Taggart XO