Posted by Ensign Lenore Mantis (Doctor) in XO’s Office - Hard Lessons To Be Learned

Posted by Commander Jason Reilly (XO) in XO’s Office - Hard Lessons To Be Learned

Posted by Lieutenant Fihnrilkk’Hob”ledn-ardol (Fin) (Chief Intelligence Officer) in XO’s Office - Hard Lessons To Be Learned
Posted by… suppressed (2) by the Post Ghost! 👻
Reilly sat in his office and drummed his fingers on his desk. His eyes watched the personnel files of the Wolverine scroll past the display in his desk and the sounds of an old Earth song ‘Take Back The Power’ by The Interrupters was playing low in the background. The files were certainly not typical of the vast majority of Star Fleet vessels… or even any Fleet ship. It was more akin to a space=based asylum than a Star Fleet Special Missions craft, but that was one of it’s strengths.

Reilly’s eyes lit up and the scrolling stopped. He quickly read and re-read a particular file and then a small smile played across his face. “Well… hope she has her ballet shoes on, ‘cause she is going to a dance.” and he tapped his comm badge. =/\=CIO to the XO’s office in twenty minutes, Lieutenant.=/\= and he then confirmed the location of his unknowing teaching aide.

Reilly, XO

The chime on Reilly’s door sounded exactly twenty minutes later. Fin wondered why he’d called her, as she wasn’t aware of any new situation that required the two of them to meet. He had addressed her as CIO though, so it wouldn’t be anything personal. Right? Fin shook her head slightly. “You never know with, Jason.” She said under her breath to no one but herself.

—Fin, CIO

The door slid open and the sounds of S.O.B by Nathaniel Rateliff and the Nightsweats came floating out. “Lieutenant. Come on in.” the XO said from behind his desk. He turned off the music and then motioned for her to take a seat. “Hey. I wanted to see how you were settling in and how you are coming along getting up to speed on everything. Any hiccups or bumps I can help smooth out?” His face was completely friendly and his smile easy. His tone was inquisitive, but not pushy. “And no, I’m not trying to peer in your business. But part of my responsibility is to ensure that all our senior staff has everything they need… especially the new ones.”

Reilly, XO

Fin’s head cocked to one side as she regarded him. It could be a genuine inquiry, she supposed, but it wasn’t like the man she remembered. As she took a seat, one brow raised with curiosity. “I’m settling in just fine, Sir. You don’t need to waste any effort worrying about it.”

One leg raised and crossed over the other. “As far as ‘hiccups and bumps’? I have a knack for handling any of those that come up.” Scanning the surface of the desk, Fin wished he would offer her a drink like the last time, but since this appeared to be a ‘professional’ meeting, the chances of that were probably zero.

—Fin, CIO

Reilly leaned back and said “Good. And I am quite sure you can handle… well… whatever gets thrown at you.” and he smiled slightly. “So… have you had a chance for a full tour of the ship? I want to make sure you are familiar. The Wolverine isn’t always just hanging about pleasure planets.” and he rose to his feet without waiting for an answer. “No time like the present. Shall we?”

Reilly, XO

Okay, that was unexpected. A tour. “Alright, but I’m sure I can find my way around a ship this size without help.” Jason didn’t slow down so she followed him. “Okay, I guess you insist.” Early on, he pointed out a couple of lockers with emergency equipment in them that she hadn’t found out about yet, so she decided to try and relax about his intentions and just go with the flow for once. Although she wasn’t keen on spending time with him, maybe this little tour wouldn’t be so bad.

—Fin, CIO

One thing Jason Reilly had an excess of talent in: reading people. He saw the small mannerisms change and the slight decrease in tension in her shoulders and stride. Smiling inwardly, they passed the access hatch to one of the Jeffries tubes. “That, in a pinch, will get form here all the way to the bridge. Hatch there opens just next to the Ops station.” and he chuckled. “Really hoping that fact doesn’t come to the attention of some of our more… ‘colorful’… crew members. Speaking of, have you had the chance to go over the personnel files like I suggested?” he asked nonchalantly.

Reilly, XO

Ohhhh, that was a good thing to know—access right to the bridge! “Don’t worry, I’ll keep that little tidbit to myself. No need for everyone to know about it. And as far as the crew files go, I’ve read about three quarters of them. I was planning on finishing up tonight.” She usually read files as fast as she could process the information, but it didn’t honestly feel that important on the Wolverine. Everyone appeared to be pretty respectful about minding their own business, so far, and it was nice to just relax for once.

Feeling more at ease by the minute, Fin actually wondered if she and Jason could get over their past misgivings about each other and be friendly.

—Fin, CIO

They rounded a bend in the passageway and came to a door and Reilly took them into the industrial replication area. A team of four Operations department officers were in the process of replicating and assembling something, and one looked up as the door opened. Elbowing another, he said “XO on deck.” and snapped to attention. Reilly smiled and said “No need ladies and gentlemen. Appreciate the gesture though.” and the four relaxed. Reilly looked around and then asked in a completely normal fashion “Is Petty Officer Marang about?”

The mood shift was instantaneous. All four went a shade paler and swallowed hard. The one who came to atention simply nodded and jerked his head towards the back of the space where the sound of metal on metal could be heard. The other three very suddenly had something else to do and made various jumbled excuses to start moving towards the exit.

Their reaction wasn’t lost on the CIO. The name Marana wasn’t familiar either, which meant she hadn’t read his file yet. That being the case, Fin prepared herself for some unpleasantness. If she was wrong, so be it, but it never hurt to stay on your toes when dealing with an unknown.

As the last one made his way out, a figure appeared from behind the large replication unit in the room. An Andorian… but a massive one. A good six inches taller than Reilly and half again as broad, his one antennae swiveled and locked on Reilly. He wasn’t in uniform, but was instead in a much soiled pair of coveralls. A look of pensive dishumor was splashed on his face and clear to anyone looking at him.

“What you want, Fleet?” he asked in a low growl. Reilly smiled and looked at Fin. “I told you once that this crew isn’t one you can just ‘plan on finishing’ at your leisure. Now I’m gonna show you why.”

“No, that’s not what you sa…” He continued as if she hadn’t spoken.

Placing a hand on her shoulder in a friendly fashion, he turned to look at Marana. “This is the new Chief Intelligence Officer, Mr. Marana. She’s a Lieutenant in Star Fleet and a highly decorated officer. Understand?”

Marana shrugged and said “So what?” and Reilly’s face took on a look of mock-innocence. He released Fin and took a step towards the door while he said “Just wanted her to know that you know exactly who she is.” and he reached the door. “Especially when I tell you that she thinks you don’t have the stones in your slacks to have done half of what you were convicted of.”

Fin’s head snapped in the Andorian’s direction but her words were meant for the XO. “You slimy son-of-a-bi#ch, Reilly!”

He tapped the door controls and the large panels slid closed as the Andorian bellowed in rage and pulled a very wicked looking blade from the small of his back and he charged the CIO.

Reilly took a few steps across the passageways and leaned against the far wall to listen to the war.

Reilly, XO

She heard two things at the same time—the doors closing, shutting off an escape route or getting help of any kind, and the lumbering Andorian closing the distance between them. She was already half crouched and dancing on the balls of her feet when his knife grazed her right cheek. With a motion as fluid as ripples in water, her hand dipped down to the pocket on her thigh and came up with a telescoping, titanium, baton. One flick of the wrist and it was fully extended before Marana even saw it.

In the corridor where the XO waited, muffled grunts and crashes could be heard from inside the room. Fin didn’t waste time with words. Threats were no good in the current scenario and yelling at Jason could wait. Instead, she brought the baton across the Andorian’s jaw with all her might and followed it with a strike to the bridge of his nose.

The fight continued in earnest for several more minutes but eventually there was silence. Fin took a moment to breathe while supporting herself with a bulkhead. She was pretty sure she had a concussion and her face and ribs would need looking after. Slowly, she rose to her full height and straightened her shoulders as much as possible. Then, with the bloody baton in one hand and the other hand protecting damaged ribs, she hit the latch release and the doors opened.

There was nothing but hostility in her eyes when the XO came into view. “You ever do something like that again, Jason, and you’ll wish we’d never met. EVER!” Without another word, she turned and began carefully making her way toward medical. As she moved out of the doorway, he would be able to see Marana, unconscious and bloody, on the floor behind her.

—Fin, CIO

Reilly looked at Marana on the floor, and watched the labored rise and fall of his chest… still alive. Good. Tapping his comm badge, he said =/\= Medical to Industrial Replication. =/\= =^=”On my way”=^= Lenore said into her com badge as she put down whatever she was working on and headed out her makeshift sickbay door.

Ensign Lenore Mantis [Doctor]

and he pushed off the wall and trotted down the passageway and fell in step by Fin as she moved slowly along.

“Our first meeting, I told you that you needed to watch yourself… that this crew wasn’t like the others you have dealt with.” and he put a hand out, gently, on her arm to pause her walking.

Looking at her, he said “You blew me off. When I told you that there were people here who would knife you just for pissing them off you said, and I quote -” and his voice shifted into a reasonable impression of Fin’s, “- ‘Seriously, Jason? Knife me in the back? Since when does Starfleet condone murder? And for the simple crime of pissing someone off?’… And then you snorted at the very thought.” He stepped back from her and leaned against the wall.

“I know you’re pissed, Fin. And you have a right to be. But you didn’t believe me. And I know you… you wouldn’t believe me if I kept telling you. And sooner or later, you were gonna set off the wrong one. Marana was simple, predictable… others here aren’t. And if you got on their wrong side… you just may not see it coming. Now… a good eighty-five percent of the crew is fine. But that last fifteen?” He reached in his pocket and pulled out a small square of red cloth. He handed it to her and pointed at her cheek.

“Well… I hope you get the idea now…”

Reilly, XO