"A Call to Arms"

[LeftEar JoNs 0]

04.17.08

USS Yellowjacket NCC-1609

“A Call to Arms”

Station keeping at the Mars Orbital Ship Yards, Sector 001

 

“How is she doing?”

 

Commander Adam Thrace, Executive Officer of the USS Yellowjacket, sat across from his captain in the small sitting area of the bridge ready room. The human lounged on the couch, gripping a Padd in his hand as he idly tapped the device against his knee.

 

“She knew we’d be recalled away from the search patrol for the Agincourt and posted again to the home quadrant eventually. But, I’d be an idiot if I didn’t attempt to understand how she feels about the whole situation. She’s upset. She wants her godchild back.”

 

Captain Zarathon Sh’Fasz reclined on one of two overstuffed chairs, across from where Thrace sat on the two seater couch. The blue skinned Andorian commander nursed a half empty glass of Altair water. “She’ll come out of it. I’m just happy I got her to take a few hours off to get some sleep.”

 

Adam smiled to himself. The human had always known when he had been in the process of lobbying to bring MVess on board the Yellowjacket as the second officer and security chief that the Caitian and Zar Sh’Fasz would work well together.

 

Eventually.

 

Sh’Fasz had easy going manner, and his approach to the command of his crew was very laid back as well. M’Vess JoNs on the other hand, was very strict when it came to her outward bearing and her handling of her crews. And the female Caitian had been even more straight and narrow since that Excalibur mess that she had barely managed to get out of with her fur intact. But, those first few weeks with the two of them working together had been downright dicey and still occasionally haunted Thrace in his nightmares.

 

The executive officer snorted into the silence. “How do you think she’ll respond to this little meeting of ours?”

 

“Ambush, how she’ll respond to this ambush, I believe is what you really mean. She’ll hiss and flare and then settle down.”

 

“I put ten credits on the flare up. No hissing.”

 

“You’re on Adam.”

 

The admittance chime to the ready room sounded, and the captain called out a “Come!”

 

Lieutenant Commander MVess “Left Ear” JoNs entered a second later, her rich brown fur glistening in the overhead lighting and sporting her trademark crumpled ear. She wore the gold of security, and wore the uniform with a quiet dignity. She always had. “Gentlemen. How goes it?”

 

The feline easily crossed over the area to take her accustomed seat on the couch next to Adam, so the two exec officers could both face their captain as they discussed ships business. What she had no inkling of was that the agenda for this meeting featured the Caitian rather predominantly.

 

The Andorian ships captain set his glass of water down on the low coffee table next two a small blue velvet box. He tossed the box abruptly at Left Ear, who took the development in stride and easily caught the incoming object. Thrace then slid the Padd he had been holding down the table toward Left Ear. The human winked at her. “There is the first promotion for your review.”

 

Left Ear took the small box in one paw while delicately flipping open the lid with her other paw. The three gold pips neatly contained within indicated a promotion to commander. The feline’s intense gaze went from Thrace to Sh’Fasz and then she placed the box back down on the surface of the table. The feline flipped an ear back as a paw now swiped the Padd from off the top of the table. The digital orders contained on the device outlined the promotion for one JoNs, MVess, to the rank of commander, effective immediately.

 

“No.”

 

Thrace just sighed. That was ol’ Lefty. Blunt, to the point, and a hard case to the bone. “Left Ear, we’ve always been straight with one another, even back when we were kids at the academy. I’m resigning my commission. I have an offer to teach, and I’m going to take it. I’d really like it if you were to step up as commander as well as take over as the exec …” Thrace trailed off, opting not to make any further remarks and deferring again to Zar on the matter.

 

The captain fixed JoNs with a look set somewhere between disapproval and understanding. “MVess. That away team mission was well over five years ago … “

 

“Five Excalibur crewmen and women were killed.”

 

“And you couldn’t have done any more then you did. Away team missions don’t always go according to plan. We don’t live in a perfect universe. Look, Commander, you paid your dues, as the humans say. You received a demotion in grade to lieutenant commander, a permanent note in your record, and a suggestion from the Fleet brass that you step down as executive officer and transfer off the Excalibur. I admit, when Adam first learned that you were a free agent and brought the possibility to my attention of you billeting here on the Yellowjacket, I was a skeptic. I had seen all the news feeds that had circulated about the Eden Four incident.”

 

The blue skinned Andorian paused to take a breath and exchanged a quick look with Thrace; MVess, meanwhile, had begun to pace the length of the room.

 

“Then, I looked past all that. I looked at your file. I looked at you MVess.”

 

Thrace gently picked up the conversation at that point. “Maybe you need to stop dwelling on the past and take a look again at the future again Left Ear.”

 

An indeterminate amount of time passed as the Caitian digested the whole situation. Finally, she turned to the two men and spoke in a deadpan tone. “You two work very well together as diplomats. Thank you both.”

 

Both Zarathon and Thrace feigned mock outrage at the diplomat crack – to which Left Ear merely smirked at, the playful smile somehow managing to look evil on her panther like features – and then the three officers settled down and began to plan out the details of the feline’s new promotion and position.

 

**********

 

“ … well, I think that’s about all we have for this meeting…”

 

Suddenly, the double doors to the bridge ready room slid open as they retracted into the bulkhead, overridden by an outside source. Lieutenant junior grade Biko Matubi came storming in. All three of the senior officers bolted upright to a standing position at the interruption.

 

Even with a soon to be former second officer who tended to be strict at the best of times, the general atmosphere on the Yellowjacket was very relaxed. However, it was common knowledge that to disrupt a command level debriefing in the captains ready room was a sure way to pull KP duty.

 

It was blatantly obvious that the African operations officer was agitated however. “Sirs! There is a general broadcast on the ship to ship wireless to anyone in the vicinity! It’s the Agincourt! They are warning the sector about a hostile Fleet! In the system sirs – Pluto, the warning signal is originating from Pluto orbit…they made it back to this sector on their own somehow … ”

 

Captain Sh’Fasz needed no further explanation, his dark blue eyes flashing ominously. “Red alert, let’s boot it all up and mobilize. We have a sister ship who needs our help.”

 

<TBC>