Snip : : : : : : : : : Mike looked at him ” ya but the AI takes alot of power to run did you even stop to think that this old ship yards core even had the processing power to run your AI. I went over the files everything was going a whole lot slower because you’re AI was taking processing power just to run and I don’t care who gave you orders. I’m the chief engineer here you’re assigned under me do you not understand the chain of command I am your department head you report to me no one else but me.” Mike gave the captain 3 padd full of data showing how the AI slowed the repairs of the computer network cuz the lack of processing power even the shipyard power if mike didn’t get the solar panels working they would still be in the dark and the core would have crashed. : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : Lt. Mike Knight (CE) : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : Stout looked Knight and said through gritted teeth “Chief, enough. This isn’t ‘your’ station. It’s mine. And everyone on it reports to me in some sort of fashion. So pull your ego out of whatever orifice you have it in and then be quiet. I didn’t tell you to talk yet. I want to hear from Woods. When he is done, I will hear from you if I need to. Got it, Lieutenant? Good.” and he turned to Woods. : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : “Look, Woods. I don’t anything about any AI. And I don’t particularly like them to begin with. Too touchy. Show me the orders you were given, and what the prior CO was told.” and he looked at both of the Engineers. “No one speak till I’m done. Not a peep.” and he began reviewing the past orders and debriefings. After almost fifteen minutes of silence, Stout leaned back in his chair and pinched the bridge of his nose and shut his eyes. : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : “Ok. It looks like K’hal did give you, Woods, orders to install the AI. And he did debrief McCabe on it, although not as robustly as I think he should have. So for installing the AI, Woods did what he was told. If McCabe didn’t tell you about it, Chief Knight, then you need to have a word with him. As far as I am concerned, Woods followed the orders he was given and did what he was told by a Star Fleet Admiral. That being said…” and he released his nose, opened his eyes, and leaned forward to look at both of the two men seated in front of him. : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : “I know K’hal, and he is a class one, grade A arrogant piece of garbage and a crap Engineer. And, as he hasn’t bothered to tell me otherwise, I don’t see a need for an AI on the station. At least, not now. Once we start up to full capacity and have dozens of ships in various stages of repair, maybe the three of us can discuss a role for it then. For now, I want it out of all systems. If it is resistant to the idea, I want you…” and he looked directly at Woods, “… to tell it that it can, for the time being, assist the Lounge manager ONLY. She has a lot of water moving through that place, and a lot of people are going to be there. I don’t want a faulty valve releasing a metric ton of water in the place and drowning anyone. So… what is it it’s name? Pol? So Pol can do that. Or we yank her fully and completely. We have a bunch of cores sitting idle in the ships. We can jury-rig a central core from those until we get a new one sent out.” and he took a breath. “Woods, from here on you make damn sure that the CE knows EVERYTHING going on in this station. You go t lucky in that the failure to bring him in the loop wasn’t your doing. That is your freebie. You fail to tell your DH about something like that again, and you are done. Clear?” And then he turned to the Chief Engineer without waiting for a response from Woods. : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : “Chief, you need to realize that crap happens sometimes. And sometimes things fall through the cracks. Even big things like this. You are the Chief Engineer of this station. As such, you are entitled to a certain level of respect. But you need to remember that that respect isn’t mandatory. You need to earn it form your people every single day. And while you may be a great engineer, you aren’t perfect either. So cut your people some slack, Chief. And don’t hop down their throats because you got mad someone didn’t tell you something. That happens A LOT. You best get used to it. Clear?” : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : “That, gentlemen, is where we are at. Woods, you get the AI to choose. Once she has, I want you BOTH to make sure she is either COMPLETELY partitioned off from all systems outside of the Lounge… or she is gone completely. Am I being understood, gents?” he said sternly. It was obvious the Commanding Officer was more than a bit frustrated with both of them, and his tone indicated he did not want further issues. : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : : Stout, CO : : : : : : : : : : : : : : BUMP : : : : : : : : : : : : Scott opened his mouth to object several times, closing it shortly there after. The blood rushed from his face when Stout commented on his former boss before nodding again at the statement. Finally he stammers out a simple, “Yes, Sir.” : : : : : : : : : : : : Scott Woods, Eng : : : : : : : : : : “Good.” the CO said with a finality to his tone that brooked no further discussion. “Keep me posted on what it says, Woods. And don’t make me regret giving it a choice. Dismissed.” he said to the young Engineer. Stout kind of felt bad for Woods. He had been dealt a crap hand, played it as the rules of the game said, and got crap for it. But Stout also knew that that same crap always rolled downhill and usually ended up covering the poor sap at the bottom of the hill. It just so happened that Woods was unlucky enough to be that poor sap. : : : : : : : : : : Stout then looked at Knight. “I know you want to say something, Chief. And you can. Once we are alone.” : : : : : : : : : : Stout, CO : : : : : : : : Scott makes his way towards the door but stops just before it slides open and turns to face the CO. Mustering up the last little bit of courage the poor man had left he asks, “Can I let her into my quarters, too? I wouldn’t want her trapped with strangers.” : : : : : : : : Lt. (j.g.) Scott Woods, Engineering : : : : : : Stoout looked up at Woods at the question. Part of him wanted to allow it, but the Engineer in him overrode the emotional side. “Sorry, Woods. Lounge only, or nothing. And I am holding you responsible for making sure this extraction goes smoothly. I’ll help, if you need me to. But unless I am told otherwise, and NOT by K’hal, I don’t want it loose. Maybe we can find a role for her in the future, but for now I have made my decision. We clear, Lieutenant?” : : : : : : Stout, CO : : : : Scott nods and then mutters, “We are clear sir.” He doesn’t argue the point but does turn to leave. How was he going to break the news to her? How would she react? How was the boss going to react when he found out? : : : : These thoughts didn’t linger long, however. Having been dismissed he turns and heads out the door, off to have that difficult conversation. : : : : Lt. (j.g.) Scott Woods, Engineering : : Mike looked up ” sir I have an idea on how we can use her. We can use her as the stations civilian Communications as in getting in contact with civilian ships given them clearance to land at what Bay’s and so on and so forth I can get a few of those old ship Cores and jerry-rig something together until we can get something for more permanent solution. That is if it is ok with you captain” : : Lt. Mike Knight (CE) Stout shook his head. “That falls under Ops, and I don’t know how I feel about having an AI being the first point of contact with the station. For now, let’s see how it reacts to the news Woods is going to give. If that transition goes smoothly, then we may… and I am saying ‘may’… bring her out to handle some of the more rudimentary tasks. But I need to know how independent, how argumentative, and how cooperative this thing is. This is a good first test. Let’s see how it plays out first; before we go giving her free reign with docking procedures of passenger ships.” he replied. “Now then. Let’s get some ground rules laid out, Chief. I know you got your skivvies twisted with this whole thing, and rightly so. You should have been briefed, even before the thing was uploaded. That being said, you handled the situation with less… poise… than I want to see in my Chief Engineer. Your job here isn’t just going to be refitting and repairing star ships and this station, Lieutenant. You are going to be in front of private owners, company representatives, Fleet-level officers, and all other sorts. And you are going to have to be calm, knowledgeable, and professional. I know you got the second part; but it’s the other two that concern me. So I am just gonna ask you point blank: do you think you have the skills to deal with people as well as you deal with star ships?” Stout, CO