Backup Plans

Posted on Thu Aug 17th, 2023 @ 10:50am by Lieutenant JG Bobbi Katz & Lieutenant Michaela Holland

1,840 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Episode 1S: Shore Leave
Location: Engineering, USS Defiant
Timeline: Following 'Lifting Spirits'

Michaela had had every intention of following Captain Rhodes' suggestion to make the most of her first day aboard the Defiant, as well as Starbase Arcadia, its home port. She really had tried, but it just hadn't worked out. Her quarters were nice, but her nomadic upbringing had taught her the value and necessity of packing light, so the act of getting settled in had more or less been accomplished in a matter of minutes.

Most of the ship was near-deserted, with only a handful of officers and crew still aboard, and who could say where they even were. The mess hall was sparse, and the ship's lounge was all but deserted. She was not about to declare some sort of emergency to see who would come running, just for social interaction, though she was half-tempted to discover the hidey-holes from whence they came. Every ship, every crew had secret clubs, and even more secretive clubhouses that were usually labeled as cargo bays or fuel storage on the ship schematics. At least one of the deuterium fuel tanks was guaranteed to be a ersatz distillery in disguise. Michaela wanted to know where those places were sooner rather than later, as accidentally stumbling upon them was a great way to not make friends. But she wasn't going to find them on day one.

Unfortunately for Michaela, even Starbase Arcadia turned out to be a bust... or at least, the parts that were of interest to her. The spa she'd wanted to visit? Totally booked. The dance club? At capacity. That boutique with the super cute pair of boots in the window? Well, Michaela had spent most of her personal resource allowance on boots already. There would no doubt be alternatives if the engineer had taken the time to explore deeper than the main promenade, but after three strikeouts she was more than a little disheartened.

So, in the end, Michaela spent the remainder of her first day on the ship in her cozy new office, running even more diagnostics, and formulating an overwhelming to-do list of ultra-mundane tasks. Within ten minutes she had fallen fast asleep, boots tossed aside, head on her desk, with a small puddle of drool collecting on one of several datapads littering the work surface.

Bobbi had found her way into Main Engineering. She had snorted at the cleanness of the room. She had to check in with her Commanding Officer, a Lieutenant Michaela Holland. Finding out that she was in her Office, she head that way.

As Bobbi walked into the open door into the Chief Engineer's Office, she saw the woman, asleep. This didn't bother her, as the CEO on the Viz Night used to do the same. She was temped to give into her playful side, but decided against it, as she wasn't sure how she would react to it.

Bobbi stepped around the desk and gave the woman a gentle shake of her shoulder. "Lieutenant? Sir?" She said.

Though quick to doze, thankfully Michaela was equally fast to rouse, with minimal confusion or thrashing about on her part. She lifted her head, and was startled for a moment when a small datapad that had gotten stuck to her cheek clattered to her desk. She shook her head, mildly chagrined, before turning her attention to the one who'd roused her.

"Uhh... can I help you?" Michaela asked with a measure of distraction as she fixed her safety goggles back into their raised position on her head. She did like the goggles, but their release catch had gotten a bit too loose for her liking, as they were starting to slip down over her eyes even after minor movements of her head.

Bobbi's furry eyebrow shot up as one of her ears twitched. She was dressed in her Daisy Duke short shorts and a standard white sleeveless tank top. "Well yea... You are the Chief Engineer and I am to be your Assistant." She stated pulling out a Padd from a bag that she was carrying and handed it to the woman.

Michaela stared for a moment, as if still in the process of waking up. A part of her didn't look fully convinced with what the Caitian officer had said., but then again Michaela was still getting used to the fact of her being the chief engineer.

"Ahh... okay." Michaela said as she stood and took the offered datapad. Her voice seemed more convinced than her demeanor, which still seemed a little skeptical. She appraised the new arrival again, now that she had a better angle by standing. Who would wear that... to report in? The chief thought to herself. It wasn't that she didn't like the outfit, as she did have a pair of short shorts of her own, but it was not something she would have shown up to work in, if she could help it.

But maybe her assistant couldn't have helped it. Maybe her luggage had gotten lost in transit, and the ship's quartermaster hadn't had a uniform fitted for a Caitian on hand. Michaela shrugged with finality, deciding to give her new assistant the benefit of the doubt.

"I've only just arrived too. I hope you'll forgive me for not having a more welcoming reception planned." Michaela said, trying to inject a little humor into their exchange, which still felt a little awkward on her own part. She subtly rubbed at her cheek, which still felt a little damp with saliva.

"This looks in order." The chief said with a nod, handing the datapad back. "I see your last assignment was the Kelvin refit project. My first posting was a Kelvin-type... the Sol. What kind of work did you do there?"

"Mostly engineering stuff." Bobbi joked, with a light chuckle. "I worked on the Subspace Field Generator's on the Warp Nacelles."

Michaela almost sighed at the initial vagueness. It wasn't like she was just asking for the heck of it, or to make small talk. She could always read through the finer details of Katz's service record to see where she'd spent most of her time, but that still wouldn't tell the whole story. For all Michaela had learned in her several years as a reactor technician, there were days when it felt like she learned just as much volunteering her free time to shadow someone working another job. That stuff didn't always make it onto the service record.

"I remember those generators well." The chief mused, remembering her earlier conversation with the captain, where she'd mentioned having to deal with being quartered right next to the nacelle mount. Those generations had been notorious for the amount of vibrations and racket they produced.

Suddenly feeling the cool of the deck plating, Michaela looked down and realized she was standing there in her bare stockinged feet. She sat down and tugged on her boots in case her new assistant was in the mood for a tour.

"So whats your goal here, Lieutenant, if I may ask? Stick with propulsion systems, or learn something new? Do you see yourself as a specialist or generalist? Or are you just straight up after my job?" Michaela said the last with a subtle smile as she looked up from donning her boots.

Bobbi looked the other woman up and down before answering her. "All of the above." She said with a smile. "But I have time with becoming a CEO."

Michaela returned the smile, though she was a little confused by the response. It was kind of hard to be both a specialist and a generalist, unless you were an old hand with seven tours... someone who'd stuck around long enough to learn all there was to learn, without being promoted to a desk job. She had just started her second tour and had already found herself parked behind a desk. She'd had little time for mastery of anything with the amount of deskwork that surely awaited her once the ship got underway.

The chief finished donning her boots and stood. Thankfully the heels were recessed--the boots were easier to get on and off that way--not only would that make a walking tour easier on her feet, but it wouldn't give her new assistant any ideas on what her interpretation of 'working casual' attire was going to be.

"Let's hope." Michaela replied with a wry twist of her smile. Not because she didn't want Katz to get promoted, but because such a scenario might include something unpleasant happening to her first "Seen the reactor room yet?" She added, feeling the urge to move around a bit. Many engineers wanted to see the antimatter reactor first, as it was usually the most exciting place on the ship... aside from the rec hall, of course.

One of Bobbi's ears twitched. "I studied the ship's layout, payload, and engineering capabilities." She said. "I have a few idea's on how to modify the Subspace Warp Reactors, to get some more speed, for less fuel." She stated as she followed her Commanding Officer. "And sir, I have no issues with you walking around bare footed, and I do it myself." She smirked as she lifted her slightly larger feet.

Michaela nodded knowingly as her new assistant stated that she had a few ideas. Every engineer seemed to have new ideas for improvements, but unfortunately a lot of them ended up creating more problems than they addressed, once their impact on other systems was factored in. In that respect she usually took any new ideas with a good measure of caution. But even though she might be skeptical, Michaela certainly wasn't closed to suggestions. If anyone in her department had ideas on how to make things better, she would try her hardest to give them due consideration, despite whatever else she had on her plate at the time. But before she could say anything, her assistant changed the topic of discussion to feet.

The chief engineer looked near-scandalized, though much of the look was feigned for dramatic effect. Though Michaela liked to kick off her boots when she thought she had more than a little time to herself, she did not particular enjoy padding around in bare feet. For Caitians it was perfectly normal, but for Humans it wasn't professional. Plus she found herself wearing tights more often that not, and it was hard enough keeping them from getting torn to shreds, as engineering was full of catwalks and other less-than-smooth surfaces.

Unsure of what to say, it took Michaela a moment of awkward silence to realize that the Caitian engineer was more than likely just messing with her. She laughed, which may have sounded as awkward as the silence a moment before.

"Sure, you wait to say that after I get them on..." She finally replied, with a hint of humor. "Anyway, lead on, and tell me more about your ideas."

Bobbi snickered at her Commanding officer. She felt that she was going to have a good time working here. "Of course, sir. My plan entails doing...."

 

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