The Misfit

[Rachel E Garrett 0]

Rachel E. Garrett, Midshipman

Sky Harbor Aegis Engineering

The Misfit

Starfleet

Academy

2384

 

"Damn, she's good."

Lt. Colonel Daniel Brinks, a tall, lanky man in his mid-fifties glanced aside to the man who had spoken, his face dispassionate, then once more gave his full attention to the testing room a half-deck below him where several dozen engineering students worked feverishly on a complex technical problem, one of many included in final examination required for engineering certification by Starfleet Academy. Behind him a team of instructors and aides also watched the floor, some making notes on PADDs, others periodically glancing at consoles that monitored each student's progress while a few directed the equipment below, tweaking the parameters of the problem or redirecting simulations.

The man who had spoken was quite a bit younger, somewhat shorter and less battle-worn, but no less experienced an engineer than Dan Brinks. His name was Ed Savage, but most people just called him Doc Systems were patients, his patients. He treated them with great respect and care, especially when it came to preventive measures.

because he diagnosed systems the way medical officers diagnosed patients.

 

Brinks was a Marine and Savage a 'Fleet Commander, normally not the best of combinations, but they had worked together a long time and had a rapport that went beyond age and branch. Today they faced a tough decision, one that would affect the future of one of their brightest students who had repeatedly distinguished herself in knowledge, situation diagnosis, and divergent thinking.

When others came to an impasse, this student thought outside the box, often improvising with unconventional tools and techniques that sometimes threw her teammates off-stride. That in itself wasn't a problem. What really nagged Brinks was her lack of teamwork. She didn't seem to understand her teammates. Even to her instructors she faltered when trying to explain her reasons for diverging from the ordinary path, and she often left the rest of the class behind to work alone. She wasn't a team player, essential for an officer in any branch of the service.

Besides being a loner, she was a misfit. Socially clumsy, she tended to avoid eye-contact and fumbled over her words; she made ordinary situations awkward. And she seemed to think ranking officers were little short of Olympian gods. Anyone above captain easily threw her into a semi-catatonic state and actually caused one vice-admiral to call for medical assistance when he thought Rachel might crater any minute.

 

She had few friends. She talked to herself. She talked to her tools. She talked to her equipment and her systems. Aloud.

Reminds me of myself, mused Savage as he watched her on the testing floor. Brinks turned towards the back of the room and began to wander, something he did when he couldn't seem to come to a decision. Doc watched, biting his tongue, knowing anything he said might make matters worse, maybe throw Dan into an argumentative mood. Best let him mull it over; he'll come to the right conclusion.

 

What made the situation worse was the student's name: Rachel E. Garrett. Her parents would have done her a great service if they had not named her after her grandmother, Starfleet Captain Rachel Garrett. As CO of the USS Enterprise-C, she and her crew had given the ultimate sacrifice at Narendra III in 2344. With that name came great expectations: courage, determination, and, above all, leadership. There was no doubt that Rachel had determination, but as for courage and leadership….

 

A ledge extended the length of the observation window that overlooked the student work area. It gave instructors added workspace, but was now strewn with bits of notepaper, a few crumbs, and half-empty coffee cups. A junior officer moved aside as Dan Brinks wandered back, gave a heavy sigh and pressed his knuckles wearily onto the ledge, sinking down into a chair as he did so.

 

Savage slipped into a chair next to him. Carefully facing away from the others in the room and keeping his voice just above a whisper Doc said, "So she's not social. She's good. Damn good. Any skipper would give eye-teeth for an engineer like that. Hell, if I had her…." How many times had he thought that; how many times said it? If he had someone like her five years ago they might have averted the disaster that took out three of Starfleet's finest. Five years. Time to let it go.

 

Brinks grabbed a PADD and pulled up Garrett's record yet again. He read through it, scrutinizing the most recent points total from the day's project – including instructors' notes – and tossed the PADD aside, then leaned back and swiveled the chair to study the testing floor below. Most of the students had gravitated into natural groups. On the right, five clustered around a console; a group of three hunkered down next to an open panel in the center; another group exchanged tools as they deciphered a jumbled mass of coils.

 

Alone – at the opposite end of the room – sat Rachel Garrett on the floor. Legs crossed. Intensely focused. Talking to a set of isolinear chips.

 

Knowing full well what was going through Dan's mind, Doc turned away from the window. This was Dan's call. It was his team of instructors and the students were ultimately his to pass or fail. But he also knew Dan would have to have a darned good reason to fail someone like Rachel. Her scores were way above average – heck, probably the best to come through the academy in years. Gees, if only . . . .

 

"Probation," said Dan, interrupting Doc's thoughts and finally meeting him eye to eye. He tapped Rachel's record, still glaring at them from the PADD. "Conditional certification," he held up a hand to Doc's growing enthusiasm, "pending reports from her immediate superiors. Close watch. Temporary duty. No starships."

 

Doc nodded. It was a start. Rachel had a start, and he hoped she would pull a good mentor from the hat. There weren't too many bases calling for engineers, but there were a few under construction, and only a handful of those had first-rate engineers willing to mentor someone like Rachel. But he'd find someone, even if he had to go all the way to Cardassia.

Edited March 8, 2008 by Rachel E Garrett