Posted by Captain Chris Taggart (Captain) in Reid Reports to the Captain

Posted by Lieutenant Alex Reid (Chief Engineer) in Reid Reports to the Captain

Posted by Captain Chris Taggart (Captain) in Reid Reports to the Captain
Posted by… suppressed (11) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Alex had been very content at his last post, senior but not chief. Now the young, withdrawn Lieutenant was going to have to command. He fidgeted with the sleeves of his uniform as he walked towards the Captain’s office, hoping to find him there. When he arrived, his hand hovered over the door chime a moment. First impressions weren’t exactly his specialty. He pressed the button and waited to get it over with.

-Dr Alex Reid, CE

Chris was thinking the same thing as the CE when he heard the chime. “Fireblast! I’m not ready!” He muttered. Looking around he realised it couldn’t be helped. With a reluctant sigh he yelled “Come! At your own risk!”

When Alex walked in he would see the captain sitting on top of his desk in only his underwear. His uniform was folded on his chair and he had no right arm or left leg on. They were on the desk while he tried to adjust them. He had only one bright blue eye and the other covered by an eyepatch. The eyepatch was black and in white small letters said, “Kiss the Captain”.

The office was neat and tidy and had puzzle box cubes all over the place, each under a dome of glass. Most had signatures on them. One was covered with brown wrapping paper and had a red wax seal on it to keep it closed. That one was on his desk. Behind him was a four foot tall glass tube with what looked like a half eaten human leg that also appeared to have been ripped off the body in a clear water type solution.

“Ummm. Hello Lieutenant. I was having problems with my cybernetic limbs and they were hurting me. I took them off to adjust them thinking I’d have some alone time......I was wrong. But since you’re here, what can I do for you?”

Captain Chris Taggart CO

“Sir… um… I’m Dr Alex Reid. I’m supposed to be your chief engineer. I can probably fix your limbs. A nervous to circuit transition problem? If they’re not calibrated right, about once a week they’ll spark feedback and hurt. 12% of all prosthesis installations are calibrated without an engineer or technician present.”

-Dr Alex Reid, CE

“I’d get up to shake your hand but I can’t…oh! Wait!” He grabbed his other arm by the shoulder and held it out to the Chief. It reached him. “Pleased to meet you Chief or do you prefer Doctor? I’m Doctor Chris Taggart, M.D., but you can call me Captain, doctor or Chris. I don’t care. But since you are who you say you are then I welcome your assistance. Kane told me not to do it myself either but here I am.” After he shook the hand Chris put it back on the desk.

Reid shook the outstretched hand and then went to examine it. “Most people call me Doctor Reid or just Reid.”

His body was covered in scars like he was in a vicious knife fight or something and lost, horribly.

Captain Chris Taggart CO

After examining the limbs for a moment, Reid looked like a brilliant thought was going unexpressed. He thought to himself A minor circuit misalignment… there, would cause sporadic pain impulses. He started working. “Some people don’t like to call me Doctor because they’re Ph.Ds not an M.D.”

“Here’s your arm.” He casually handed the Captain his prosthesis, picked up, and examined the leg, assuming it was the same installation mistake, but making sure first.

-Dr Alex Reid, CE

“Thank you very much!” Chris said with a big smile. He reattached his arm and flexed his arm and fingers. “This is great! I’m coming to you from now on!” The leg was the same type of prosthetic.

Captain Chris Taggart CO

A few tweaks later, Reid handed the Captain his leg. “Reminds me of my thesis work. It’s fun. That should work for a while without any pain.”

-Dr Alex Reid, CE

“As my XO is fond of saying, Aces!” He put the leg on and walked a bit. “Just Aces!” He then put on his clothes. “That’s better. ” He said sitting back down. “So doctor. Welcome aboard. You come very highly recommended. What are your main areas of concentration?”

Captain Chris Taggart CO

“My first B.A. was in Mechanics, and I ended up getting my second Ph.D in Engineering, so I suppose finer work. Machine building and repair. But that overlaps with starship systems and subsystems. I have a B.A. in physics, but no specific training in warp field theory. But I did read all of Zefram Cochrane’s notes and journals on the way here as well as the ship specifications, so I should be able to get by.” It was only then that Reid realised he had been rambling. “Mechanics. Sir, that’s the answer to your question.”

-Dr Alex Reid, CE

Chris nodded and chuckled. “It’s fine doctor. I might have to call you Chief if there are medical around as to not create confusion but I will strive to call you what hou have earned and that is doctor. I’m impressed. Impressed by how you can read and retain so much technical information. “

Captain Chris Taggart CO

“Our conscious minds can process sixteen bits of information per second, our unconscious mind however, can process eleven million. Properly applied, you can use that to take in and retain large quantities of information very quickly. You know, you’re the first CO to refer to me as Doctor. Not ‘the freak’, ‘kid’, or the typical ‘Reid.’”

-Dr Alex Reid, CE

“Well that is good information to know. But how does one process information unconsciously?”

“Typically in a state of R.E.M. sleep. But the brain is perhaps the most versatile organ in the body. For instance, with reading, I’ve combined the concepts of skimming and standard reading. While I’m skimming and picking up key words and phrases, my unconscious mind is taking in the complete page. It’s part of the reason eidetic memory is so often referred to as photographic. It’s like a snapshot of each page.”

“Well Reid. When we’re alone I’ll call you by your name since we’re familiar. But in public I will call the title that you have worked hard to obtain for years. A PhD is not easy. I understand you and know where you are coming from. I spent 12 years in medical school and it irks me sometimes when someone will call me Mr. Taggart in sickbay. I’m not above you Doctor Reid. I am just higher ranking. We are the same. Just because you’re smarter than me doesn’t make me feel bad or insecure. You being smart is a huge bonus for all of us. We all have our strengths and weaknesses. It is all our jobs on this ship to see that and work with people who compliment us or we them in order to get the job done and survive. Just don’t call me stupid. ” He said with a smile.

Captain Chris Taggart CO

Reid smiled. “I won’t. You’re clearly intelligent enough to go through medical school and practice. While the average medical school only has a 4-6% attrition rate, applicants to medical school tend to be more dedicated to their field than most other postgraduate students. Plus the obvious command skills that lead to becoming a starship Captain.” While Reid appreciated the Captain’s words, very few people associated the idea of him being smarter with being a good thing. It was usually what made him need to justify his existence.

-Dr Alex Reid

“That is correct and thank you. Is there anything else you want to know?”

Captain Chris Taggart CO

“Only one. I’m not particularly good with a phaser. Well, I barely passed that exam. Is that something I’ll be needing often? On away missions and such?” Self-defense and phaser range were the only two classes Reid had ever come close to failing.

-Dr Alex Reid, CE