Posted by Lieutenant Darklis Castle (Chief Science Officer) in Darklis - Checking in with XO

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Alita Claire (Executive Officer) in Darklis - Checking in with XO

Posted by Lieutenant Darklis Castle (Chief Science Officer) in Darklis - Checking in with XO
snip

Alita looked at Castle for a few long seconds. Here was a young woman newly promoted to Chief Science Officer. Funny, she somehow reminded Alita of herself. How had she risen so quickly? Nowhere in her record was the term Mission Officer used so obviously that wasn’t it. Connections, ability, Alita would decide to go with the latter, better to choose ability in any case unless it was blatantly obvious not to be the case. She knew that such things could be lonely and hoped she could help Castle find her place on the wolverine.

“First and foremost, I expect you to expect the unexpected. The Wolverine is a small ship and we do a lot of cross training here. You never know when you might need to sub in for another department because someone is injured or sick. I expect you to care for those in your department as if they were family or, at least, someone you don’t hate. I expect you to think out of the box and go above and beyond your training because that’s what we do here on the Wolverine. You may be put in positions you never thought you’d be put in 6 months ago but, again, that’s what we do on the Wolverine.”

• Alita, XO/MO

OOC: Oh I like that post!
IC:

Mentally Darklis recalled something about cross training with medical. She would have to see who had actually done that thus far and where they were at with it. A tic appeared at her cheek, not from her recovering condition but more so in that she tended to not do well around blood. Hers it seemed was okay. Anyone else sent her head swimming. At best. “I look forward to getting to know them, Commander,” she said. That much was true. These would be her friends and colleagues and perhaps more. She had an idea of how to break the ice on that. Six months ago. She was rather certain that six months ago would not be repeated. “One thing that I’ve found is that there are too many variables to anticipate what may come. Adaptation is key, whether on a ship or with others.”

“Commander, if I may ask, when addressing me. DC seems to work best with others, unless you prefer rank when addressing others. And second, as CSO do you prefer me on the bridge or the science lab?” It wasn’t that she minded to be called either name. Both were not precisely common names and came from the ancient gypsy heritage of her family and with her mother who was big on names and meanings of which her siblings were also blessed with. It just seemed to make things .. easier .. when communicating and added a bit of informality. Darklis knew she was in a military environment which was hierarchical and there were things that went with that, she was still young and there was something more .. personal about the use of her name, or at least abbreviations.
- Darklis, CSO

Alita had a feeling she was going to like this one.

“DC will do fine. I think the Captain will even find it acceptable. Anybody from outside the ship we can deal with later. Like I said, like a family. You will find any number of interesting characters aboard the Wolverine and nobody will mind. As for where you should be on the ship, that depends on the day now doesn’t it? I think aboard the Wolverine, you can be wherever you need to be most of the time. The bridge usually works. Do you actually prefer the science lab?”

• Alita, XO/MO

And here it is, Darklis thought, where the ion trail hits space. “Honestly Commander, I have no idea. I accelerated through the Academy. My only real posting prior to here was the Matrix. It was small and most of the time I was in the computer core area which did double duty as a lab, core and sensor nexus. Apart from the Academy I’ve not worked in both.” And really, much of that was at a Daystrom facility that took Academy all stars. Her ‘lab’ was a full fledged station laboratory or planet based as in the one at Okinawa. “Because of that I will split my time. I need bridge experience and I need to get to know the team and they me.” She hoped that was a good compromise. All the same her ship board experience - or rather inexperience - was shining through like a supernova outside the nearest window. But that being said, she was not a slouch in the science realm. And everyone was new to something unless they were afraid of that thing called ‘new’. Darklis adopted that old quote that said, “Don’t be afraid to suck at something new”. How else did one grow? How else did one learn?
- Darklis, CSO

Alita nodded and made it a quick notation.

“That sounds perfectly reasonable. You can pretty much set your own schedule, just clear it with me weekly unless something major comes up.”

• Alita, XO/MO

A tingle ran down her spine. This was real. A real job. Not that what she had done wasn’t. Taking sensor readings of storms and other phenomenon while belted into a seat as the ship shook around her and sounding like it was going to shake apart any moment while calibrating and focusing sensors, input feeds, directing computing resources and the like was a thrill and yes a job, but different. There she was alone, the sole analyst and technician and scientist and more. Here she was not in a cramped computer core surrounded by displays and interfaces wired by a neurolink headset talking to the Matrix’s AI system. Here it was different. But, she suspected, the same. So much had come easily to her. Would it be different here? She supposed that would depend on her team. Whom she would meat soon.

The XO, Commander Claire seemed amenable and flexible. Darklis was not disorganized but relied on her mind to keep track of things. She hoped that with a ‘team’ that she would retain that kind of order. That being said she had a fly by the seat of the pants leaning. Ordered chaos? someone had once said to her. Her mother just said she was as wild as the storms she chased. “I will submit a work schedule, Commander. I want to have a broad set of experience in life and career.”
- Darklis, CSO

Alita finished signing off on DC’s paperwork. She liked this young one and knew that she would go far on the Wolverine. Not so long ago, Alita herself was that young. It seemed like a lifetime away.

“I think a broad range of experience is definitely the way to go. People might decide to specialize in the end but I definitely think a broad base is the way to go. I think we’re done here too, if you need anything else I’m always available. Also, if you find yourself awake in the week strange hours of the day or night and find yourself walking The Halls chasing a phantom scent, it’s probably me. I’m the de facto ship chef and still find time to cook a seven course meal every once in awhile. So pull up a chair if you ever have the time.”

• Alita, XO/MO