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Posted on 10 May 2014 @ 12:09am by Lieutenant JG Ivan Dash & Commodore Harvey Geisler

1,577 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Pursuit
Location: Shuttle Bay / Bridge

Ivan Dash stepped out of the transport shuttle and onto the deck of the shuttle bay. He took a long deep breath threw his nose, his eyes shut. He loved the distinct smell that each ship had.

He walked quickly over to the main computer terminal in the shuttle bay.

"Computer..." The tell tale tone of the computer rang out letting Ivan know that it had heard him and was waiting for instructions. " Show the schematics for the flight control system of the USS Black Hawk on Display 0384 in shuttle bay 1."

"Flight controls for USS Black Hawk are being displayed on terminal 0384" the computer replied.

Ivan stood there, his head nodding up and down as he looked over the capability's of the ship he was now standing on. He had looked over the same specs a dozen times since he had gotten confirmation that he would be taking over as Chief Flight Control Officer, but it never hurt to go over them one last time. You never knew what some engineer might add on or take off a system.

Once he had take a few moments to look over the flight controls, he pushed a few buttons on the slick black surface of the interface and brought up a map of the ship. There were important places that he would need to know how to get too. First things first, Ivan located the lounge. Most of them were in the forward most part of the ship and Ivan was not disappointed to see a large club type area on this ship as well.

Now, maybe it was time to locate the bridge...

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The Turbo lift hissed to a stop and the doors swooshed open to reveal the bridge of the Black Hawk. Ivan stepped across the thresh hold and again closed his eyes and took a long deep breath. When he opened his eyes a moment later, Ivan let them drift around the room. People were everywhere, rushing around with purpose. As his eyes moved over the room and people, they came to rest on his new station, Helm control. The seats look nicer then Excalibur's, newer at lest.

There in the chair just behind his new seat was Commander Harvey Geisler, Ivan's new boss. Ivan made his way over to the commander, saluted and said, "Ensign Ivan Dash reporting in for duty sir!"

Harvey had been on the bridge for only a couple minutes, having just debriefed his new XO and met the new Chief of Science. It was only a matter of time before the new members of the Senior Staff turned up. "At ease, Ensign," Harvey said rising to his feet. He then gestured to the pilot to follow him into the Ready Room.

Once there, Harvey invited Ivan to take a seat at the desk. He approached the replicator and asked, "Can I get you something to drink?"

Ivan took the seat that was indicated to him, "Thank you sir, Ill have what ever your having."

"Two waters, room temperature." The replicator complied, materializing two full glasses in the dispenser. He handed one to Ensign Dash and began to move behind the desk. "Tell me about yourself, Ensign. Aside from someone signing your transfer orders, what brings you to the Black Hawk?"

Ivan took the glass and took a long drink. "To be honest Sir, I'm just looking to advance my career. This was a great position to take to do just that. On top of that this ship seems to find its self in action from time to time and with you being a war hero and all...it just felt like the right fit." Ivan leaned back in his seat and gave the Commander his famous smirk "I cant wait to see what this baby can do, piloting a ship this size is nothing like the slow bulkiness of a galaxy-class ship. I'm very excited to get behind the controls."

Harvey shifted in the chair he just sat in. The war ended thirteen years ago and it was the first time he'd ever been called a war hero. "I'm no hero," he muttered, lifting his glass to take a drink. "I'm sure you'll find plenty of action out here," he replied, his tone back to normal. "Though it has been quiet for a couple of weeks. Your file indicates you're quite... creative when it comes to maneuvers. Care to elaborate?"

Ivan hid a smirk behind a sip of water and pretended not to hear the Captain. He had grown up hearing the tales of the men and women in the war, it was part of the reason he had joined Starfleet in the first place. He set his glass down on the desk in front of him and nodded " Yes sir...um, its hard to explain. Its almost as if when I get behind the controls of a ship in a tense situation I can feel the ship...if you get what I mean? Its like its just me and the ship...I don't know, you probably think that sounds kind of crazy. But its true, sometimes I think the stress of a situation makes me focus more and that combined with flying...its just a perfect combination and I can get the ship to do things that most cant." Ivan studied the Captains face, wondering how he would react to this fact about Ivan.

As he lowered his glass, Harvey's eyes locked onto Ivan's gaze. He admired the Ensign's naive attitude. Harvey himself was never ambitious, but he knew the rush adrenaline brought and the focus brought on by unique stress. The response reminded him of when he once wore teal with Ensign's pip as he cured a disease that nearly exterminated a Federation colony.

Harvey offered only a nod of acknowledgement to the Ensign. He folded his hands on the table and leaned forward, as was his nature developed years ago when he became a professional XO. "While I hope we would avoid tense situations, history tells me that such a wish is vanity. I would hope you take every available opportunity to hone your skills whether by practice or experience."

A smirk appeared on Harvey's face. "My only request is that you don't scratch the paint. Starbases are few and far between out here."

This time a full on grin parted Ivan's lips. He had a feeling that he was going to really enjoy serving under the Captain. " Oh no sir, I swear that any paint scratching that will be done will be done by someone else, or on your orders sir. I had better grab my things from the cargo bay and get settled, I only have an hour before my first shift." Ivan stood beside his chair and looks to the Captain to be dismissed.

Harvey too rose to his feet. Extending a hand, he said, "Welcome aboard, Ensign."

Ivan took the Captains hand in a firm hand shake and grinned again "Thank you Captain." Ivan turned on his heals and headed out back onto the bridge. He trailed his hand over the Helm controls as he walked by, throwing a wink a the blond female Bajoran ensign that was currently at the work station.

Once in the turbo lift, " Deck 6" Ivan called out. His things were transported to cargo bay 2. The turbo lift opened and he stepped out into the busy service way and made his way to the cargo bay. There was a small pile of things in the middle of the bay and after a moment of moving things around he had located his duffel bag. Slung on his back, Ivan made his way to his quarters.

The door opened with the familiar swoosh and Ivan stepped in. The lights automatically came on. Nice, standard quarters for an ensign. He had a bed off to the right in the corner and a desk all the way over to the left facing a small view port. The bathroom was small but big enough for anything Ivan would need if for.

************************************************************
A mere 37 minutes later Ivan was set. The lone picture of his parents on the desk, spare uniforms hung in the closet and normal cloths in the dresser. Ivan took the last few moments to send a message to his parents then jumped up and headed out the door.

************************************************************

The door to the turbo lift opened onto the bridge and Ivan stepped out. He strolled over to the Helm control station and relived the blond in the seat. He took his seat and ran his hands over the smooth control panel. He closed his eyes and took a long deep breath in threw his nose. He could almost feel the tingle from the ship threw his hands as he introduced himself to the ship. This was his favorite sensation he had ever felt, the first time he and a ship actually connected for the first time. He mumbled quietly " Hey baby, nice to meet you. You make me look good and Ill return the favor. Let get along huh?"
Ivan opened his eyes and for a split second had to remind himself where he was. Sometimes the connection to a ship was strong, and this was one of the strongest connections Ivan had ever made. He blinked and rubbed his eyes. Once they re-focused he punched in his access codes and took control of the ships controls. This was the moment he lived for...

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