Backpost: All Clear
Posted on Fri Feb 14th, 2020 @ 12:50am by Lieutenant Samantha Leyton & Ensign Michael Sloan
Mission:
Mission 2 - Fallout
Location: Forward Armory, Deck F
Timeline: Backpost, Prior to Launch
922 words - 1.8 OF Standard Post Measure
If there was anything about being the Chief Armory Officer that Michael hated, checking in the crew had to be at the top of that list. Being snubbed from the First Officer's spot meant that he could not delegate this task. However, this particular officer was one that he recognized. The two of them had helped defend Earth from the Xindi attack, not that they did much good.
He stood at the main console in the center of the room, flanked on either side by the Atlantis' torpedo launchers. He liked to meet in here as it reminded the new arrivals just what was at stake were their mission to the Xindi fail. As Michael waited, he scanned through Samantha's dossier to triple and quardriple check that he had not missed anything.
On her way to the Armory, Samantha was amazed at the size of the ship--it was far bigger and spacious than her previous assignments. And she was assigned to fly the newest and modern NX Class in service. It was almost overwhelming--she couldn't wait to get a chance to see what the Atlantis could do. As she neared the Armory, her thoughts changed to the task at hand. 'Who the heck checks aboard a ship in the ship's armory?' she thought as she approached the door and pressed the door button. The doors slid open a split second later and she took a step in, taking in the surroundings and spotting a man in uniform wearing the rank of lieutenant commander. "Lieutenant JG Samantha Leyton, reporting for duty aboard the Atlantis, Sir."
"Ah Lieutenant Leyton, I was told to expect you," Michael stated, closing out Samantha's Starfleet record report. Had she been a threat, this meeting would have taken place in drydock or in a corridor by the airlock. "You were at Earth during the Xindi attack, aboard the Monitor correct?" he asked. He too was there aboard the Valiant. It was a bigger ship than the Monitor but it was most definitely not an NX Class starship.
"Yes sir, I was," Samantha confirmed. She hated recalling that dark day, unable to stop the Xindi ship from killing seven million people before it self destructed. "Were you there as well?"
Slowly nodding his head, Michael replied, "I was aboard the Valiant." It was something that still gave him night sweats, seeing such a threat and being unable to stop it. "We will be making a trip to the Xindi homeworld, will you be able to face them with an offer of permanent peace?" he asked, his gaze falling into Samantha's brown eyes to gauge her feelings.
"I'll be honest, Sir," she began before pausing to collect her thoughts. "What the Xindi did was unforgivable but I'm also aware that peace would be a preferred option to an all out war where Starfleet would likely have to depend on the Vulcans and Andorians for support. We're not nearly big or strong enough to take the Xindi head on."
Nodding along, Michael replied, "Good assessment. The Xindi attack showed us that we aren't yet ready to stand alone." He was not here to pass judgment, he just wanted to put a face to the dossier before he gave her the good news. She could hear a few things not many outside of active duty Warp V ships understood. "We have been getting reports of another alien government trying to ruffle our feathers. Apparently, they call themselves the Romulans. The last thing we want is a two front war, if it comes to that."
"Romulans?" Samantha repeated. "You mean they're real? I had heard rumors but thought they were just tall tales."
Nodding his head a little, Michael stated, "We still don't have any confirmation on what they look like or their tech level, but we have had an uptick of United Earth sightings of ships matching a similar description."
"Great...What about the Vulcans, Sir?" Samantha asked. "Surely they have seen a Romulan by now." 'Either that or those pointy-eared bastards are keeping information from us,' she thought.
Holding in his breath a bit, Michael accidentally let a little frustration slip as he said, "They are just as confused as us, officially. Who's to guess what they really know about the situation, unofficially." Motioning toward the general direction of space, "Frankly, I'd trust the Andorian intel to be a little more, complete."
Samantha nodded in agreement--finding it hard to believe that two more experienced space faring races had almost no intel on Romulans--nobody could be that secretive...could they? "I agree, Sir. Somebody somewhere has to at least know what a Romulan looks like."
"Anyway, I better not keep you," Michael stated as he pulled a datastick from his uniform's pocket. Smiling a bit, he said, "This contains your duty roster, quarters assignment, and command codes for your station. Captain Morgan doesn't like me to hold up her crew more than needed. For this mission, Commander Leroux is joining us as our XO because of her linguistic abilities. They'll want to meet you and there will be a test afterwards." The last bit was more of a joke due to the amount of information he had just given Samantha. "You'll get used to everything quicker than you think."
"I hope so, Sir. This is a much bigger ship than what I'm used to," Samantha commented.
Lt. Commander Michael Sloan
Chief Armory Officer
NX Atlantis
Lieutenant JG Samantha Leyton
Chief Helm Officer
NX Atlantis
