Rocks and Hard Places

Posted on Fri Dec 29th, 2023 @ 4:15pm by Commander Joren Tal & Commodore Samantha York

1,459 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Broken Mirror
Location: Ready Room
Timeline: An hour after the briefing

ON

Sam wasn't happy about how the briefing turned out. She knew she had some opinionated officers, and sometimes--or often--they disagreed. But she rarely had to work with someone who clearly didn't want her help, or that of her ship. Alex Knight seemed more concerned with telling them all the things they shouldn't do than he was in finding out who was behind the thefts.

Yes, he had a point that when--it was not an if in her mind--they crossed over to the Terran Empire, they would be scanning for information and keeping an eye out for the pirates or marauders, or whatever they chose to call themselves. She was fairly certain they would have to look for them in both universes’ if they were to be successful. And yes, finding out who has the technology now and where they got it from was key. She was happy leaving that part to the Knights and the Prowler. But she wasn't going to simply follow behind them until they chose to share information. She had been asked to take this assignment and Max knew her and her stubborn streak. She and Admiral Burke had been friends for years.

But she would not use that friendship, and the admirals knew that. She also wasn't going to simply wait to be told what she was allowed to do. Which gave her an ideal opportunity to see what sort of person her new first officer was by talking this over with him to see what his thoughts were.

"York to Tal," she said, tapping her combadge. "Please report to my ready room when you have a minute."

Joren had spent the last hour getting more familiar with the mission. Scouring over star charts around the location where the inventor went missing. Attempting to get any more information out of the guests on the ship - they were annoyingly tight-lipped for the fact that they were supposed to help them. The message on the comms, therefor, was a welcome distraction.

"On my way."

Not much later, Joren entered the ready room. "Commodore." He nodded respectfully, before moving to sit down.

"I wish I could say that briefing was uncommon, but I can't. They do their jobs well, but they also speak their minds." Sam wanted to get that out front first. "So, keeping that in mind, what are your thoughts on the meeting earlier today."

"With respect, Commodore, it felt unfocused. Messy." Joren shifted slightly, thinking. "It's not that I don't understand or respect their curiosity. But a briefings be focused on the task at hand. What are we gon'do. Where we gon'go. What're the known dangers. Not whether you met your mirror image and whether it tried to kill you. That can wait for the mess hall with some 'hol."

Sam sighed. "I agree. A few mild disagreements are allowed as I expect the senior staff to give me their honest opinions, but once a decision is made, I expect them to follow orders. But from what I've learned, there was an...altercation outside the briefing room today. I will need to address that soon."

"But the other..." She shook her head. "My orders are to work with the Knights and their team to find out who has been stealing tech and supplies and taking them back to the Terran Empire. Nothing points to the Empire itself, but we can't rule anything out without evidence. But to be accused of going on a pleasure cruise to see what our doubles are doing makes me wonder if he is going off his own playbook. I've put in a request to speak with Admiral Hunter about this, but until I can get clarification from him, we need to let them take the lead for now."

"At the same time, I'm half afraid Remy will try to steal information from The Prowler. He won't succeed, but I hope he won't try."

"If it comes to that, we'll have to take disciplinary measures. I can't speak for the whole crew, but as I see it, we have a mission to fulfill. The Knights are a means to that end. We might need some subtle coercion, if the Knights aren't willing to cooperate..." Joren trailed off slightly. "That won't be trivial though. We have little leverage. We need them more than they need us. I don't have ready answers at this point, Commodore, we might just need to ride it out for a bit."

"Yes, we do need them. And we need the flexibility to do what our assignment dictates." Sam sighed. "I don't know the Knights, but I know their attitude. I've worked with covert ops before, and they generally run by their own set of rules. I understand that, but my frustration is when their rules and ours conflict. For now, I'll talk to the Knights and I'll talk to Admiral Hunter and see if we can come up with a plan we can all agree to. In the meantime, keep an eye on the crew. I don't want internal politics to cause further trouble." She paused. "I'm not opposed to a night in the brig if it comes to it."

"Should I preempt an attempt, have a chat?" Joren knew he had the pips to, if it came to it, force any issue any of the crew might give. But the Commodore knew her crew better than he did, at this point. "Who do you expect the most trouble of, and how to best handle them?"

"From what I've heard, Remy Batiste, the chief intelligence officer," Sam said. "He's complained about our not getting to look at the tech that allowed The Prowler to pass between universes. He's also complained about not being able to get tech from the Terran Empire. I've learned that he and Damion Wolfe had an altercation before the briefing. Batiste doesn't like to take no for an answer."

"I'll keep an eye on him. While I'm not a huge fan of the way of working of the Knights, I do understand the dangers of this technology and the harm it could do in the wrong hands. And as I mentioned before, we need them for a successful mission." Joren thought for a second. "Any specifics on the altercation, or should I talk with the Lieutenant and the Lieutenant Commander?"

"Yeah," Sam said. "Computer, play the arrival of Rembrandt Batiste and Damion Wolfe to the briefing three hours ago. Show the view from outside the room."

There was a chime and the screen on the wall began to play the meeting outside the briefing room.

Joren watched the unfolding situation with raising eyebrows. "The Lieutenant should have a lesson in basic Starfleet tenets." His voice slightly lower and darker than usual. "The Knights and us are on the same team. Breaking their trust will not further our cause in any way." Joren looked at Sam. "It's clear." In addition, Joren's evaluation of Damion went up a notch. Not because of the anger - he should learn to control himself - but his loyalty and principles - two things dear to the heart of Joren - were clear.

"I'm not sure what to make of Remy's actions. He's been a bit obdurate, but I've never seen him this willing to go against regulations. And I agree about damion. He's a good officer, but he does have a temper. He worked with covert ops before coming here. In fact, he and Lieutenant Wolfe went on an assigmnet together, so he's also being loyal to Starfleet Intelligence. Do keep an eye on Batiste. I'll see if I can learn anything from Admiral Hunter. I'll keep you informed."

"Thank you, Commodore. Anything else I should keep an eye on?"

"Not that I can think of." She hesitated. "But be aware that the counselor is a hugger."

Joren's eyebrow raised slightly. "Ah, yes, I've read her file. I'll... keep an eye out?" A slight hesitation - for all the battles Joren had faced, for all the difficult challenges he had beaten - dealing with 'a hugger' was a new one.

"Just don't be surprised when she hugs you. She does that to everyone." Sam smiled. "She's mostly harmless, though. Other than that, I think we're good for now. Do you have any questions?"

"I think that'll be all, Commodore. I'll know where to find you if I do." Joren answered calmly.

Sam chuckled. "I'm sure you will. Then I will let you get back to your duties. Thank you."

Joren stood up, respectfully nodded, then turned and with a brisk gait near-marched out of the Ready Room, already with his head on the next task.

____
OFF

Commodore Samantha York
Commanding Officer

Commander Joren Tal
Executive Officer

 

RSS Feed