Meeting the Captain

Posted on 05 Mar 2026 @ 3:25am by Lieutenant JG Aerie Mak & Commodore Harvey Geisler

1,788 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Epitaph
Location: USS Black Hawk
Timeline: July 13, 2390

Mak stood at the passenger side of the Type 9 shuttle-craft, Denmark. He viewed New Bajor from the screen as it became smaller. Just off the center was the USS Black Hawk B. Crossing his arms, he kept a stoic, unreadable expression. Thoughts of his past streamed as well as his vision for his future. Wearing the nice, shiny rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade, he anticipated the chaotic ops station. Keeping his muscular form tight and militaristic, he shook off the stray thoughts and reminders of his early years on Xenok Nor. The Gul who raised him was dead, murdered by his own compatriots. Mak felt nothing for the legacy that man had tried to imprint on him. It had failed. Whatever conditioning his father attempted to instill had long since broken.

The Denmark rumbled slightly with a thud as Mak quickly grabbed the bulkhead to steady himself. Looking out the view screen again, they had landed already. The pilot's voice echoed in the com, "We arrived, sir. Do you need help with your bags?"

Adjusting his gold black Starfleet uniform, he returned the comm, "No. Just beam them directly to my quarters. I need to report to the captain."

Without a word, Mak left the passenger cabin through the airlock.

Unbeknownst to Lieutenant Mak, the person he sought was already on the flight deck, not far from the Denmark at all. The consequences of recent events had put a strain on the Flight Deck's crew, and the chaotic evacuation attempt had caused undue damage. This particular moment found Commodore Geisler performing an inspection of the compartment with the Flight Deck Chief.

Out of the corner of his eye, Harvey took note of the lieutenant's arrival. Harvey had been surprised not just with Commander Marsh's reassignment, but also in that a replacement for Chief Ops had been found ever so quickly. The Commodore made no motion to get the lieutenant's attention as he thought this would be a good opportunity to test and see how observant the new senior officer was.

Exiting through the airlock of the Denmark, Mak looked around at the chaos. Repair techs at work, trying to move and reset salvaged components. He looked around, trying to find his path through. Tapping his com badge, he inquired, "Computer, locate the captain."

His com badge chirruped, "The captain is on deck."

"Huh," Mak mumbled, looking around. He noticed someone in red who appeared to be in command. Readjusting his tunic, he approached the red shirt and noted the commodore rank insignia before speaking, "Captain, or commodore? Apologies. I'm the new chief of ops. Aerie Mak. Lieutenant Junior Grade."

He exhaled, adopting a stand-by position of spacing his feet apart with one arm behind his back. He offered his other hand for a handshake.

Harvey couldn't help but smirk at the lieutenant's self-introduction, whereas the flight chief next to the commanding officer did a much better job holding in his opinion. The Commodore shifted the padd he held over to his left hand and accepted Mak's proffered extremity for a shake.

"Welcome aboard Mister Aerie," Harvey greeted. "Commodore Geisler. Technically, I'm just a Captain with a field promotion, just waiting to see if brass wants this boxed pip to stick."

After the firm, solid handshake, Mak placed his hand behind his back and looked around. He inquired, "So, what's happening, sir?"

With his hand now free, Harvey gestured to an area of the flight deck that exhibited a bit of charring. "Our last mission led to some... excitement. There were a lot of shuttles that hastily departed the flight deck. Chief Watson here was just walking us through some particulars."

“Understood,” Mak nodded, his hazel eyes scanning the damage across the flight deck. “If you need extra hands, I can run triage on the systems and flag the priority work. Just point me where you want me.”

"Nothing like getting used to the job while being on the job," Harvey remarked. "Stick close for the rest of the inspection. I'd like to see what you see."

"Fair," Mak replied, slightly amused, but kept his professionalism, "I can do that, sir."

Harvey turned to Chief Watson and nodded, giving him permission to proceed with the inspection. "Next up," the Chief stated, guiding the trio to the refueling station. "This actually was damaged during the salvage efforts at Unity a few weeks ago. Engineering fixed it up the best they can, but deuterium flow just hasn't been what it used to be."

Mak nodded, keeping his arms behind his back. He mentally checked out items in his head. While in the shuttlecraft ride, he read a small snippet of the briefing he received. Walking along the guided pathway, he noted the refueling station. Keeping a mental note, he flagged it later as a priority.

"What do you think, Mister Aerie?" Harvey asked, looking over to the newly arrived Operations Chief. "Any thoughts on improving the deuterium flow?"

Mak exhaled, thinking, "I would have to trace the line later. If the numbers are low, maybe rerouting from another backup tank. I'll have to keep an eye on it later and see why it's low. It could be venting from somewhere else.

"Possible," the Chief stated, looking towards the bulkhead as if he could see beyond it. "One of the shuttlepods was piloted by an ensign in panic mode, and the damage was caused by a collision. It's possible the impact did more damage than what was on the surface."

The Chief then looked over at the Commodore and nodded. "That's all of the notable issues, sir. Everything else is expected wear and tear."

"Great," Harvey replied, returning the nod. "Now that we have a new Chief Ops, you'll be able to coordinate repairs with engineering and the regular day-to-day and larger issues with Lieutenant Aerie here. We'll leave you to it for now."

"Thank you, sir," the Chief replied. He nodded at the Bajoran lieutenant. "I look forward to working with you, sir."

"Understood," Mak replied to the captain, returning the nod toward the chief, "I look forward to it, Chief." Keeping a mental check, he would have to try and remember the names. However, the feeling was mutual from his perspective. The crew of the Black Hawk remains new to him. Time will tell if anything changes.

"Let's take a walk, Mister Aerie," Harvey then said, gesturing to the exit that would take them to the corridor. "I have to admit that I only received your transfer notice this morning and I didn't have much time to review your personnel record. Your last assignment was the Dementer?"

"Yes, sir," Mak nodded, thinking back on his first shakedown cruise, the Nebula-class. He was a tinker, not borne out of necessity but of survival. The Demeter offered him a quiet place that grounded him in ops. Moving towards the exit, he added, "It was my first real experience in ops."

"Clearly you've done well," Harvey remarked as the doors to the corridor opened. "Not many go straight into a department head position after a first assignment."

Mak thought for a bit before responding, "I just notice the little things that no one else notices. I hope I can do the same here, sir."

Harvey chuckled, grinning a little as they walked. "I would hope you would, Lieutenant. Is this your first assignment in the quadrant?"

Still in motion, Mak nodded, "Yes. I’ve only served in the Alpha and Beta quadrants until now."

"It's been a couple of years since I went to the Alpha Quadrant for anything besides a vacation," Harvey admitted. "You'll undoubtedly find that things are a bit different out here. New Bajor and Gamma Command are the most like the Alpha Quadrant, but once we start getting out on patrol on the fringe sectors, you'll find that situations are a bit... interesting."

"I'll hold you to that, sir," Mak replied, thinking. He pondered his next question and asked, "How long has the Black Hawk been assigned to this quadrant?"

Harvey chuckled, finding only an iota of humor in the question. "This particular ship has only been out here for six weeks or so. But her two predecessors were out here for a couple of years. I took command of the first one in 2387, and wound up losing it in a crash landing on New Bajor during the final conflict in the Consortium Crisis."

"Ah," Mak nodded, thinking back, "I heard about it. My family lives on New Bajor."

"Oh." Harvey's eyes widened a little bit, surprised by the Bajoran's statement. "Well, I hope I didn't crash it through or in their backyard."

Mak shook his head, replying, "No, sir. They are fine, just shaken, not stirred."

Harvey found the Ian Fleming reference unexpected from the Bajoran, so he shook his head and finished the original question, "The second Black Hawk, the -A and a Century-class, barely lasted two years. She was forced to be decommissioned a couple months ago after being greatly contaminated by a rogue quantum filament that caused significant structural damage. Now we're back out here with an Akira fresh off the assembly line and putting her through her paces."

"Understood," Mak passed a few officers as he slightly moved to the right to avoid collision. He nodded at Harvey's explanation, "I'll do my best to meet your expectations, sir."

The Commodore chuckled, leading them through a corridor junction and shifting into a different section and direction of corridor. "My expectation is simple. Remain in command of this ship for years to come, and hopefully retire from it when I am no longer fit to serve. I expect you to help me do that."

Mak nodded, "Understood."

"Anything you'd like to ask regarding your new position?" Harvey inquired, coming to a stop next to a pair of turbolift doors.

"What's the current operational tempo? Are we expecting action soon?" He inquired, curious.

"Actually, we're expecting things to be quiet for a while," Harvey admitted. "We tend to get into missions where we have to save the quadrant or galaxy. Not that I don't enjoy such a thing, but it's nice to not always have to live up to constantly high standards."

Mak nodded, easing himself just slightly. He replied, "Understood, sir. I'll get ops fully aligned and ready."

Beside them, the doors slid apart, allowing the Commodore to step slightly into the car. "Excellent," Harvey said with a smile. "In which case, I'll leave you to get settled. Welcome aboard, Lieutenant." With that, Harvey stepped fully inside the turbolift and disappeared behind closed doors.

Watching him leave, Mak turned and continued his walk along the corridor towards his next destination.

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