Second Opinion

Posted on 22 Oct 2015 @ 6:58pm by Commodore Harvey Geisler & Commander C. Kos

1,108 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Rude Awakening
Location: Ready Room
Timeline: MD 6 || 1100 hours

Mac waited on the bridge for Harvey to finish his conversation with del Rosario. Even though she was the ranking officer on the bridge, she was in her own seat and not the big chair. She scrolled through the repair logs. Since Harvey hadn't let her remain aboard to oversee the work, and she'd ended up spending essentially all of her free time on the surface, she was playing a bit of catch up.

She heard a set of doors whoosh open. Turning towards the sound, she saw Geisler and del Rosario exit the short hallway to the observation lounge. The darker-skinned Security Chief promptly got into a turbolift car, heading for the Situation Room to meet with Walsh and Adan.

Harvey crossed the room and sat in the center chair. His Rigelan yeoman instantly came up beside him, sat in the chair to his left and handed over a PADD to the Captain, updates on his requisitions from DS11. "I can get a squadron, but not any of the basics," he muttered in a tone so low, not even Kos could hear him.

"Can I get a few minutes?" she asked.

Kos's question snapped Harvey back to business on the bridge. "Sure," he said, instantly returning the PADD to the young woman. Without a moment's hesitation, he led her to the Ready Room. Once inside he instantly ordered two drinks from the replicator, his usual black coffee and Mac's usual.

"Rosario wants me to make him Second Officer," Harvey instantly confessed, knowing that would be the first thing on her mind.

"Really?"

"You can't be that surprised, can you?" Harvey sipped his coffee and moved towards the desk. "Since he came aboard, Roget has made strides to be sure this ship is secure. And to protect us from the Emily's of the quadrant."

"You know," she started, "I've been thinking our need for one too. I was planning on recommending Doctor Kij, but when I tried to feel her out, she didn't sound interested."

Harvey had brought the mug close to his mouth and froze the moment he'd heard Doctor Kij wasn't interested. In fact, her name was the first that had popped into his mind the moment the security chief proposed the notion. She was, in his view, the antithesis of both him and Kos. Her personality alone would pull the ship out of whatever doldrums it was in and back to the nearest port of call.

Still, he collected himself and completed that drink of coffee.

"With his recent promotion, Walsh might be an option. Did you bring that up with del Rosario?"

"Didn't have to." Harvey set the mug on the desk. "He brought it up. Even said that Walsh has his hands too full with the squadron right now, especially having been recently promoted in rank and position."

Mac realized that the Security Chief had a point about Walsh. His new position would likely have him off the ship during those key times when a Second Officer might need to step into the spotlight. "I don't think it's a secret that del Rosario and I butt heads. But I think he might have a point. He might just be the best one for the job."

"Butt heads?" Harvey repeated, lifting the mug for yet another drink. It was a wonder that iron blood still ran through his veins. "I don't like the idea of my Executive Officer and Second Officer not getting along."

"We have different ways of doing things. That's not necessarily a bad thing," she admitted.

"Your impression then," Harvey said, standing and deliberately leaving the mug on the desk this time. "There's been enough of a shakeup with the crew, and neither you or I have spent more than a few minutes together this entire time in dock. del Rosario. Who are we dealing with?"

She took a sip of her coffee, enjoying the bitterness of the hat dark liquid. Although she hadn't spent much time with del Rosario, she had studied his personnel file after her first...dealings with him. "Like I said, he works differently than you or I do. He is very direct, painfully so at times, if the reports I've gotten from some of the security staff is any indication. But his record speaks for itself. He's very talented. A top notch computer security expert. He's worked Special Services doing diplomatic security. Been on several starbases and ships. Worked at Starfleet Command. Top recommendations from former COs, many of whom are now in positions at Command." She stopped, taking another rink of her coffee.

"He's got the experience. Twenty-three years of it. We may do things differently, but I think he's a solid officer. He'd be a good foil for my, and often your, more gentle leadership style. And," she added, "given the way our luck has been going, having someone like him waiting in the wings might be best. Both you and I have been taken hostage recently." At her own mention of her captivity, she was forced to fight off visions of Reza's and Braxus' deaths at the hands of the Syndicate.

"Let's not go there," Harvey muttered, not wanting to think at all about either of his incarcerations. "The red collar's definitely rub off on you, Mac," he said, now standing just a couple feet from his Executive Officer. "You're starting to give some sage advice."

"'Starting?'" she smirked. "It's your call."

"I'll sleep on it before I go through with it," Harvey replied, almost cutting her off. "If I'd known the man longer, I'd go through with it immediately. Besides, we've got a few days before we intercept O'Connell. I've got time."

"It'd be better to get it hammered out sooner than later," Kos chided. "But you know that." She finished off her coffee. "So, are we going to let Bast and del Rosario work through their little conflict over computer security themselves, or should one of us intervene?"

Harvey grimaced and reached to the desk for his cup of coffee. "They're grown men," he said. "I don't recommend you intervene. After all, it's my mess. I gave del Rosario permission. It'll only be up to me to settle it."

"We should get it out of the way. I don't want this getting in the way of our preparations."

He sighed, finishing his coffee. "I miss the simpler days." He stared at the bottom of his cup for a minute. "Let's just get this over with." The Captain tapped his combadge. "Captain Geisler to Commander del Rosario and Lieutenant Bast. Report to the Ready Room."


~To Be Continued in Territorial Dispute~

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