A breakfast update

Posted on Sat Aug 17th, 2024 @ 2:25am by Lieutenant Commander Joseph Sledge & Lieutenant Nixie Wilde
Edited on on Sun Aug 18th, 2024 @ 11:03pm

1,366 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Mission 2 - Death is Only the Beginning
Location: First officers office

Joseph had been sitting in his office for a bit, having needed to rest. He was going over status reports and crew updates since the accident. He had been avoiding falling asleep, needing to give his ship his best. He pressed his commbadge and spoke =^=“Commander Sledge to Lieutenant Wilde. Report to my office please?”=^=

=^= On my way, =^= the reply came after a moment. It didn't take long for the chime at his door to sound. Nixie let herself in when she heard the call to enter, taking in his appearance as she came to a stop. "You wanted to see me Sir?"

He nodded and waved his hand at the chair across his desk “thank you for coming Lieutenant. I just wanted to talk to all the department heads personally. Try to wrap my head around the situation as best I can. What’s the status of the ship and security from your point of view?”

"Of the ship, surprisingly good, all things considered," Nixie arched an eyebrow as she took a seat, her expression saying it all. Almost torn apart, in the middle of nowhere...they were lucky. Very lucky. "Weapons are in good shape, we have enough power back to the shields too. Security on the ship however? I'm still working through the murder investigation."

Giving a nod of his head, Joseph sat back a bit. He then spoke “Do you have any leads?” He was looking over a PADD and examining the crew roster for who might possibly be capable. Though considering the war, most everyone was capable of it.

"Not yet," Nixie's tone made it clear she wasn't pleased, and more than just a little frustrated, with having no lead to give him. "It's difficult to even pinpoint a motive right now. We're such a new crew."

"You aren't wrong there.." Joseph spoke before letting out a bit of an exasperated sigh. Finally he spoke "Well them Lieutenant. perhaps we should take the time to get to know one another."

Nixie nodded, understanding fleet dynamics well enough to know that was her cue to explain more of her record. She settled back in her chair, crossing her legs as she got more comfortable. "Well, I spent a good deal of my career in the Starfleet Rangers. But I did a stint as the Assistant Chief on the Harper, and then as Acting Chief on the Wellington."

Joseph gave a bit of a smile as he sat back in his chair. After a moment he stood up and headed to the small replicator nearby. He turned and spoke to the Lieutenant “would you like something to drink before we continue?” As he tapped on the screen for an iced tea sweetened

"Sure, whatever you're having...thanks, Commander," Nixie nodded as she folded her arms comfortably across her middle, her head tilting as she took the chance to glance around his office and take in what she could about the First Officer.

Adding a second tap for two sweetened iced teas, Joseph waited for them to materialize before grabbing them and bringing them back to the desk. He set one in front of Nixie before sitting down and taking a sip. While Nixie looked around the office, Joseph had barely decorated. A couple of accommodations sat hung on the wall, and a model sat on the shelf behind him. It looked like some sort of mechanical robot. Joseph smiled and spoke "I would ask how are you enjoying the Concord. But we've barely had enough time to answer that question..."

"And considering the circumstances, it's hard to tell," Nixie agreed with a wry chuckle, sipping the drink before sighing softly with the relief it brought. "To be honest, I'm used to being in the middle of nowhere. But it's different having the responsibility of all these others."

"That is completely understandable Lieutenant. Believe me I understand.. This is my first assignment as First Officer..." Joseph offered a wry smile before taking a sip of his tea, draining a bit more than a sip to be fair. Setting the drink down he spoke "I like the opportunity to explore as well... and to get away from that damned war..."

"Is this a case of being careful what you wish for?" she asked with a faint, half smile. Because this situation, no matter how treacherous, would technically be an answer to both of those wishes.

He nodded with a small smile “A bit of a monkeys paw on this wish, eh?” He spoke before letting out a soft laugh.

Nixie nodded with a weak smile as she sat back, sighing softly at the whole sorry mess. "Do we know the likelihood of getting the drive back up and running yet?"

With a subtle shake of his head, Joseph spoke in a slightly lower voice "No idea as far as I know. The ones that know the most of the device are working on it as we speak.."

"Hm..." Nixie sat forward as she watched him, both feet planted flat on the floor. That didn't sound hopeful. "Do we even know what caused it yet?" she asked quietly. Because from her counting, it was hard to put down both murder and a failed drive to coincidence.

Joseph gave yet another shake of his head before he spoke "No.. Not that I know of at least.. And I see what you are getting at..." He looked past Nixie a bit towards the bulkhead and door "A murder and the drive failing... Can't be just mere coincidence..."

"I mean, it *could* be," Nixie conceded as she hooked an arm over the back of her chair, watching him with an arched eyebrow. "But I don't figure two such massive disasters happening so close together don't have something in common. The thing proving hardest at the moment on the murder inquiry? Trying to find a motive. I get the feeling that could be the 'something in common' if it turns out they are connected."

Turning to his desk terminal, Joseph tapped on the buttons on the front. He then spoke “Why don’t we check the victims Career Service Vitae? Then see if we can cross match their assignments to other crew members on board?”

Nixie nodded to the plan, leaning in so she could see the screen too. "No one in his team has spent much time with him so far, let's see if he knew anyone else further afield. Computer, cross reference the service record of Ensign Tullos with all crew members aboard the ship. Highlight any that served on the same posting as him..." it only took a moment before the screen blinked to life, names scrolling across it before a lonely three names turned red and blinked.

Joseph’s brow furrowed a bit as he sat there and looked to Wilde. He tilted his head a bit and spoke “so we’ve got three names… Computer, bring up their career service profiles, highlight and cross reference any and all reprimands and put them on screen” the computer took a moment before it flashed only one of the crew members with a reprimand of disobeying a direct order. Joseph sighed and shook his head “only one reprimand. For disobeying. On a battlefield nonetheless..”

"I'll interview all three anyway," she gave the slightest of shrugs, her body relaxed despite her focus. "We don't exactly have anything to lose right now."

“You’re right Lieutenant. I know.” Joseph gave her a tired smile as he sat there. Finally he spoke again “alright. I think we’ve got an idea of what to do here. What do you think?”

Nixie nodded with a soft sigh, sitting back as she considered the bigger picture. "There's enough chaos being sewn here to spark panic. We'll need to make sure we run a tight ship to stop it catching fire."

“Agreed. You head up your part of the investigation, I’ll keep digging through our records and sensor logs to see if I can find anything” Joseph spoke with a light sigh at the end. He had been burning both ends of his own candle, something he had advised their resident Klingon against.

 

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