A Fresh Start

Posted on 13 Dec 2022 @ 4:17pm by Captain Harvey Geisler & Lieutenant Zayna Ryler

1,020 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Regrouping
Location: Captain's Ready Room
Timeline: May 17, 2390

Fifty-seven.

Compared to the eight hundred plus souls on the last ship, this Black Hawk could support just over five hundred. And, of that original eight hundred, a mere fifty-seven would be making the transfer to the new iteration, including the Captain, the Chief of Security, and Chief of Intelligence. Harvey was left with little choice but to accept "forced" reassignments from Command, and then fill whatever holes that remained himself.

Fortunately, one of the departments Starfleet had left to Harvey's full discretion was Science. The largest percentage of the crew he was going to have to replace was the Science department, but there were a few key names that were being carried over to the new starship. Of his choices, Harvey was confident with promoting one of them to head the department.

Leaning back in his ready room chair, he tapped his badge. "Captain Geisler to Lieutenant Ryler. Please report to the ready room."

"On my way," Zayna stated as she looked up from the book she was reading. She had no idea what the captain would want with her. Everything was up in the air about ship happenings, she hoped this wouldn't be a meeting telling her she was assigned to another ship.

Finally getting to the ready room, she pressed the chime and waited.

The door parted quickly, revealing the Captain in the ready room. He was surrounded by crates of varying size, indicating that he was still in the process of unpacking and settling in. With no yeoman yet assigned to the ship, Harvey was taking the time to go through his own effects to determine what could go where. "Welcome, Lieutenant," Harvey greeted as he gestured towards one of the seats in front of the desk. "Would you like a drink before we get started?"

"Just some water, thank you," Zay said as she took the indicated seat. "Wasn't expecting a meeting honestly. Was just reading as a break from unpacking."

Harvey produced two glasses of water at the replicator and brought them over to the desk where he handed one to Ryler. "Well, I don't plan to keep you long, Miss Ryler. There are some... departmental changes that warranted a conversation rather than a message in your inbox."

Taking a sip of the water, Zayna raised an eyebrow. "Departmental changes? I'm not sure I understand. I figured someone would be taking over science that Starfleet decided to throw at us and I'd find out eventually."

“That’s the thing,” Harvey admitted, leaning back in his chair. “The amount of qualified scientists who are willing to be in the Gamma Quadrant, or the number of qualified scientists that Starfleet is willing to send out here is… well, it’s a small pool. Command is distributing what’s available among other ships. Meanwhile, they have left us with one of the best scientists in the quadrant.”

“One of the best…I don’t get it.” To Zayna, it wasn’t making any sense. There had to be people who Starfleet could send and she’d learn to work with them. “Strange that there aren’t a lot who are qualified, though they might not like being in another quadrant I suppose.”

“I don’t get it either,” Harvey stated. “Though to be fair, when I first came out here a few years ago, I was assigned. It wasn’t my choice. When I was referring to the best, however, I was referring to you.” To further emphasize the point, Harvey pointed a single finger at the woman across the desk. “Chief Science is all yours, assuming you want it.”

Just staring blankly for a few moments, it finally hit Zayna what was said. “Wait, seriously? I…I didn’t even know I was going to be up for the position.” She shook her head to clear it so she could give a proper answer. “If you’re offering, of course I want it.”

The Captain couldn’t help but smile and offer a soft laugh. “I am definitely offering. Then let me be the first to say, Congratulations, Chief Science Officer Ryler. You deserve it, and you most certainly deserve it.”

“Thank you so much. This wasn’t what I was expecting today, that is for certain.” She smiled, “At least now I don’t have to worry about who I’d be reporting to in my department, other than Starfleet. I take it I’ll get a list of people to sort through for my department as well?”

Having expected that, Harvey picked up two padds to hand to Ryler. “The first is a list of all assigned personnel, which I think makes up roughly sixty percent of your department. The second is a list of all available personnel in the quadrant, as well as the active transfer queue.”

Taking the PADDs, Ryler smiled. “I thought you might have these. Looks like I’ve got some work to do then. Do we know how long I’ve got before we are sent out?”

“I’d imagine a week or two,” Harvey answered. “And with this being a new ship and none of the supplies being correctly stowed away, I’d bet you’ve got quite the job ahead. Supplies can be stowed after launch, but definitely get any personnel requests submitted in the next two days. Otherwise, who knows how long it’ll take to staff up.”

“Personnel always take the longest. I’ll get right on these and hopefully those I pick can all work together. I’ve been in situations where they can’t, and it turns into more of a headache than it is worth.” She gave a smile. “Thank you again, Captain, seriously.”

Harvey returned Zayna’s smile. “You are welcome, Miss Ryler. Any questions for me at this moment?”

Zayna shook her head, “I think at the moment, I just need to familiarize myself with all this. New territory and all that. But if something comes up, I’ll be sure to let you know.”

He nodded. “When you do, my door is always open. Good luck out there, Lieutenant.”

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