Fresh Paperwork

Posted on Fri Feb 10, 2017 @ 7:07pm by

1,351 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Silence
Location: USS Victory

The day had been long but felt as though it had only just begun. Willam had been awake most of the evening before procrastinating about the day ahead and not taking care of what he should have been doing at the time which was himself. Whilst on the bridge he had caught up with most of his work. The revelations of the day and the fact Summers had been caught out as a Romulan spy was all a bit much. She was the first person he had interacted with on the vessel and he was trying hard not believe what he had been hearing. Gossip spread like a fire and most of the time Willam was ready to engage in it but this time he was trying hard to only focus on the facts.

Following the path of the corridor, he approached a terminal which was connected to the bulkhead, keyed in several commands and then began to speak.

"Computer. Locate SWO Benjamin Gates"

"SWO Gates is currently on Starbase Theta." The computer replied.

"Advise him to meet me in Transporter Room " Willam stated. "Computer? Also remind him to bring his onboarding authorisation."

Willam didn't need the additional stress of having a new member of the team without the correct credentials. The amount of time wasted waiting for transport because of a dumb ass who couldn't get their cards in a row was insurmountable.

Benjamin, Ben to his friends, had been waiting for his escape from the space station and he was ready. He had his credentials and orders with him, had checked them twice, just to make sure they were in order. He slung a duffle bag over one shoulder, he held the PAaD he'd been told to bring and made his way to the correct Transporter Room.

Looking to make this a quick experience, after all, it was his excuse to leave the bridge for a few moments he came across the transporter room he had arranged. The room was filled with people going in and out some carrying supplies, others carrying sadness and despair on their faces. It was a tough time. Willam was hoping the next array of sparkles and light would bring a fresh and smiling face.

"Hello Chief," Willam said giving the transporter operator a nod.

"Lieutenant, how can I help you?" The officer replied.

"I have arranged for a Benjamin Gates to be transported here. Do you know if he is aboard yet?"

"Sorry for the delay, we have been sifting through cargo for the last hour." The transporter chief keyed a few commands into his terminal. "Ah yes, we are ready for transport. Standby"

"Energize when ready" Willam announced and turned his head to the transporter pad and awaited the arrival.

Ben was instructed to stand one of the pads, his ride was ready. He felt the familiar, slightly disorienting feeling overtake him as his molecules were taken apart and then reconnected and he found himself aboard his new home. As soon as he had finished coalescing he set his bag down and saluted.

"Staff Warrant Officer, Benjamin Gates reported as ordered," he said crisply.

"Lieutenant Monsoon, Chief of Strategic Operations. Welcome, Aboard!" Willam smiled as he introduced himself to the officer.

Willam took the padd from Benjamin and scrolled through to authorize his arrival on board.

"All seems good here. Just to let you know this isn't my normal duty but as you can imagine in times like this we all need to take on additional responsibilities. We have a few things to go through." Willam stated whilst tapping the data pad which was in his hand. The authorization of being on board the ship now revealed more information for Benjamin. "You will see that this has been updated and your crew quarters have been assigned. I will give you a brief run down of the ship and then take you to our XO Commander Hunter who will give you further instructions. Do you have any questions?"

"Not especially, but what things do we need to go through?"

"Ah, you know the usual....Orientation....where the nearest exits are.....how many times you should shine the Captain's shoes in a day!" Willam laughed to himself. "So let's walk and while we're doing that...Tell me about yourself?"


"Not all that much to tell really," Ben said as they walked, "I pretty much a by the book kind of guy. I like to have rules and boundaries and I respect the chain of command. I have known since I was in High School the course I wanted to take and being in Security, particularly investigating crimes has been my goal. I am a bit of a lady's man but I will do my best to restrain myself here and be good."

Willam laughed at Ben as they strolled down the corridors surprised at how honest and open he was being.

"At least honesty is the best policy," Willam replied. "How about we head over to the XO?"

"Sounds good," Ben agreed, "as I said, "I'm looking forward to it."

The two walked for a while chatting with the new member of the team. It was quite interesting for Willam to have the opportunity to speak with someone new and from a decent conversation with someone. The recent shifts had been long and rightly so, there was a lot to do but that didn't mean people didn't want or need some form of social interaction.

They walked some more and approached the location of the XO

From his seat, Alec looked over and watched as Monsoon accompanied by a new crew member approached his position. His face wore a neutral mask but inside he detested this part of his job. He also knew without a doubt that Rhea was having a silent laugh at his expense. Sighing inwardly he thought, * Best to keep it simple and get it over with.*

"Hello," Ben said extending his hand, "how are you?"

In response, Alec thrust out his right hand and gave the newcomer a firm handshake. "I am fine. Commander Alec Hunter, at your service and you, must be SWO Benjamin Gates. Welcome aboard the USS Victory." he answered getting his little welcoming speech out of the way. "Have you got your transfer orders with you, Mr. Gates?"

"Of course sir, " Ben replied flashing him a smile. He reached down and handed over at PAaD that had his official dossier on it and his transfer orders.

Alec took the offered PaDD and entered its contents into the ship's computer. "Computer recognizes Senior Warrant Officer Benjamin Gates as a member of Victory's crew effective this date."

"Acknowledged. Senior Warrant Officer is now a member of Victory's crew."

Alec turned his gaze back to Gates. "I see your field is Security and you specialize in Investigations. We may have something for you to look into in the near future." He informed Ben.

"Really?" Ben asked, "what is that?"

"We have someone on board who isn't what they appear to be. We need you to find out how they got aboard this ship as well as doing a background check into what friends they may have here and if they are what they claim to be." Alec replied cryptically.

"Okay, "Ben replied,"I will need to know some details. I can't do this blind. How long have they been aboard, do you know? How did you find out about him or her?"

"Of course not Mr. Gates nor would I expect you to. For now, go get your gear stashed away. I have some other work to do but when we meet again, you'll have all the information you need."


"Good enough," the warrant officer replied, "I could use some sleep It's been a long day. A long couple of days really."

"Then I won't keep you any longer." Alec replied, "Go get yourself some sack time. Get familiar with the ship before your regular duty shift starts. We'll have another meeting soon."


Ben, gave the man a quick salute, "Aye, aye sir. Will do."

 

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