The Top Shelf
Posted on Tue Jul 30th, 2019 @ 11:35pm by Commodore Jane Saulitis
Edited on on Mon Aug 5th, 2019 @ 10:26pm
Mission:
For Whom The Bell Tolls
Location: USS Majestic, CO's Office
Timeline: MD04, 1100
1605 words - 3.2 OF Standard Post Measure
USS Majestic, Deck 2: Grand Hall
MD04, 1100
Okay Lily, just breathe.
The morning had been spent in a mad scramble, rushing back and forth to various departments, checking item by item of the checklist of errands that needed to be completed. Lieutenant Lilith Sullivan stood at the beginning of a new chapter of her journey - one that had brought her far away from her most recent tenure as an instructor at Starfleet Academy. Ever since her winging ceremony a decade ago, Sullivan's path had matched that of many of her colleagues. Four year fleet deployments attached to a starbase or starship capable of supporting a starfighter wing followed by two year stints as an instructor pilot back at the Academy was the norm.
Rinse. Wash. Repeat.
That was all before the loss of Lilith's close friend and mentor, Michael Garner, during her last fleet deployment. It had been over four years since that fateful day and despite the countless counseling sessions and endless support from her friends and family, that desire to be right on the bleeding edge, staring at the enemy eye to eye, was gone. But that camaraderie that came with being part of a crew was something she still craved. The past ten years had shifted her away from the accolades and achievements. In Lilith's view, Starfleet was about the people and the connections between them, and there was no better fit for her than being assigned to the Majestic's diplomatic mission.
And it was there, standing on the balcony against the railing overlooking the wooden floor below that the reality of the situation began to sink in. The Majestic was a blessing, disguised as some three hundred odd meters of tritanium.
"You alright, Lieutenant?" A voice came suddenly from out of sight behind her.
"Cheese and rice!" Lilith turned to shoot the person a look, only to stare at the empty wall behind her. "Whoa, okay, that was definitely weird," she gave a puzzled look. A quick search of the area revealed no one in the immediately vicinity, but the shock did break her out of the trance of thought she was in.
Looking at the chronometer on the wall, Sullivan saw that she had passed enough time touring the ship's facilities, and it was finally time to make her way to the bridge to meet the ship's commanding officer. She practically skipped her way back to the turbolift, whistling to the melody of the song that she had played on the computer just a moment before. It was a short, two deck climb to the bridge from the Grand Hall, which was a positive because it did not give enough time for Sullivan to get nervous about the upcoming event or think too long about the disembodied voice on the balcony. Thus far, the other two meetings with the senior staff had gone reasonably well, so it was Lilith's goal to make it a trifecta if at all possible.
As she exited the bridge, she took a quick look around and took note of where the various departmental stations were located. The helm was in its usual position, forward and left of the central command area. Influences from the Intrepid and Sovereign class designs from decades past were unmistakable, but modern starship interiors had more commonalities than differences. The USS Majestic had already undergone refit, increasing her size back to the original design, increased from the smaller pathfinding vessel of the late 2370s.
Taking a moment to collect herself, Sullivan made her way to the ready room door and keyed her presence.
Jane glanced up from the PADD she held in her hand and called, "Come in." It was rather amusing how many times she did that without even thinking about whether she wanted visitors. She always seemed to be interrupted in something whether she wanted to or not. There was a lot happening on the ship at the moment. Her parents were on board, Hak's mother was on board, people were excited for the upcoming vow renewal as if it were the first wedding they'd had. But then again it was the first wedding for everyone but Hak and herself.
"Ah Lieutenant, I see you made it on board. Did my parents drive you insane on the trip over or did you hide in a compartment so you couldn't listen to them argue the entire way?" She was teasing of course, starships were large places and there was no reason to believe that Lieutenant Sullivan had met either of her parents.
"Glad to finally make it Captain," Sullivan replied as she handed over the PADD containing her transfer orders. "I actually didn't make the originally scheduled transport due to some timing issues with my team back at the Academy, so I'm a little bit delayed getting here. But the Gatineau and her crew did a fine job making up for some lost time."
Lilith took a moment to observe the Captain's ready room. Everything about this particular starship had been much less utilitarian and sparse than the carriers she was used to. The office was no exception.
"I read a bit of the brief ma'am," Sullivan stated. "Am I to understand we are on the way to negotiate with the Claddin Empire? To what end?"
"To end their trade dispute so they can get back to doing their business and the Federation can get back to being friendly with them. They're non aggressive generally and like trading for resources that we find useful. It's really a win for both parties. I don't foresee anything being an issue for you in flight control, not if our chief diplomatic officer is successful. Should be just a routine in and out but you might want to keep the engines warm all the same."
"Yes ma'am, it shouldn't be an issue keeping the fire stoked. Whatever you need, we'll make it happen. That reminds me, I need to start buttering up engineering and operations so they don't hate me too much when we invariably break something," Sullivan smirked. "On a more personal note ma'am, I attended the ceremony a few days ago. I can't recall if I was able to say it at the time, but heartfelt congratulations again."
"Oh good luck with that. Mr. Murphy hates it when people break his stuff. And thank you." Jane gave her a small smile. "Only took us twenty years so I guess it was about time. Why we decided to bring our families into it though . . . not as clear." Jane rubbed her temples and wondered what her mother was up to now.
"Ah, reminds me of a joke my father tells much to the dismay of my brothers and me. 'You can pick your friends, you can pick your nose. Heck, you can even pick your friend's nose. But you can't pick your family.'" Lilith did her best imitation of her father's voice, features filled with pseudo-annoyance at the recollection of Mr. Sullivan's unique sense of humor. "Ah, you know - the other shoe just dropped, I think I did briefly run into your mother at breakfast. The hair must run in the family, it's very pretty," she motioned before pausing abruptly.
"Um, apologies ma'am," Lilith half-coughed into her fist. "That was a bit casual."
Jane, who had enjoyed the banter up until that point just smiled. "It's all right. Yes, my mother and I do share the same color hair. But not the same personality so if you come across her don't be surprised by her . . . uniqueness." Then there was Hak's mother, but she didn't even mention her. Both were likely to cause some kind of issue on the ship. What would happen if they teamed up? The thought made Jane shudder.
"Noted," Sullivan remarked, taking a breath as she reminded herself to relax. Her entire Starfleet career up until this assignment had found her under the command of a certain archetype of commanding officer. In the past, the more machine like she was on duty, the better she was judged to be doing. The Majestic was already different. It was already starting to feel like a family.
Like home.
"Captain," Sullivan began again in a more somber tone. "I, um, don't know if you had any conversations with Commander James Bastian at the Academy, but I certainly believe he had something to do with approving my request to leave the starfighter cockpit. I just wanted to say thank you for approving the transfer, and if there's anything I can do to help in the future, I'd be more than happy to. I guess you could say I'm happy to be here," she laughed.
"Oh please Lieutenant your record spoke for itself and with the departure of our last chief flight control officer . . . Asking the chef to drive really isn't fair. Besides, my background is in flight control actually, it was how I took the command track. Seems like a million years ago now but you never know where life might take you." Jane didn't wink, but thought about it. What was wrong with her? Lack of sleep. She shook her head. "I should probably get back to work, places to go and people to see."
"Of course," her counterpart nodded as she stood up to leave. "Thank you for your time today, will there be anything else?"
"No, I don't think so. Have a good day Lieutenant."
Captain Jane Saulitis
Commanding Officer
LT Lilith Sullivan
CFCO
