UFP Deep Space 14 Space Station
6 - Home Sweet Home – An Impromptu Meeting
by Lieutenant Commander Julian Foley & Rear Admiral Dominique Lucatz
Post Details
Assuming that he still wasn't the butt of some major joke at the hands of Starfleet Admiralty, Julian was actually feeling pretty good. It all seemed on the up and up but, still, in the back of his mind he had some doubts. He would see for sure tomorrow, however, as he was supposed to meet his new commanding officer, Rear Admiral Dominique Lucatz. This would be the moment of truth, but the meeting wasn't until tomorrow at noon.
After changing out of his uniform and getting a light snack, he located the closest gym and decided to get a little exercise in to help de-stress.
Walking into the gym he noticed that there weren't many people there, only about twenty or thirty. The gymnasium itself was huge. It was two decks tall and was at least one-quarter the size of the decks it was on. There was an olympic-sized pool, two spas, free weights, courts for playing different types of games, areas for sparring any type of self-defense and almost anything else a person could ask for. After a good stretch he decided on getting some running in first, just to get warmed up.
He was never fond of running machines. They had treadmills for exercising on back on Earth in his younger days but he had always preferred running outside in the open air. He didn't have time to schedule holodeck time so he would just have to make do with the machine for now. He was pretty proud of himself for being able to keep up a six-minute mile at his age and got in eleven miles before deciding to go for a swim.
Even the locker rooms were extravagant. He went in to shower off before getting in the pool--honestly, who wants a bunch of sweat getting into the water? With his quick rinse and a change to trunks he grabbed his towel and headed to the pool for a few laps.
***
The subspace communications channel closed, leaving behind the customary spinning Starfleet logo. Nika leaned back in her chair and rubbed her eyes. The report from Commodore Chao had been disturbing at best. The Dominion activity along within the quadrant had begun to pick up. More and more skirmishes were being reported within the task force's area of influence. And it worried her.
She powered down the console, then stood and stretched. She grimaced as her muscles twinged as she did so. Not a good sign. She'd been neglecting her trips to the gym recently, and that was starting to show. Well, she thought as she strode out of her ready room and toward her quarters, it was time to change that.
***
With four laps under his belt, Julian stopped momentarily to check his time. Instead he noticed a woman that had walked in and had immediately gained everyone's attention. After a closer look he realized that she was his new CO. She walked past the edge of the pool close to him.
"Good evening, Admiral," he called. She smiled as she looked at him, he assumed she did this to everyone, but did a double take as she realized that she had never met him before. He thought she might have recognized him from his personnel file so he extricated himself from the pool.
Nika stopped as the man pulled himself out of the pool and reached over to grab a nearby towel of the public rack. His face seemed familiar to her, but she didn't believe she'd actually met him before. Then, as she juggled her gym bag to the other shoulder, it hit her. "Lieutenant Foley."
As he toweled off a bit, he smiled at her. "That's me," he said. "I didn't expect to see you until tomorrow."
"I'm not sure you can say we've actually seen each other now, can we?" she said with a smile. "After all, it's not exactly like this was planned." She swept her arm out around the gym.
He looked down and realized she was definitely seeing more of him than he was of her. He took a moment to realize that she actually was easy on the eyes, but quickly dismissed that thought. He couldn't take a chance of getting demoted all the way down to Crewman, or worse, getting barred from serving in Starfleet forever. For an El-Aurian, that's a really, really long time.
"No, ma'am, it wasn't. But very nice to make your acquaintance anyway," he replied. There was an awkward silence between them as they just stood there, looking at each other. "Ah...well, I guess you would like to get to..." he paused to see if he could tell what she was getting ready to do, but couldn't, "...whatever it was you came in here to do. I'll see you tomorrow at 1200 hours, sharp."
Nika watched her new XO stumble around a bit as he tried to make conversation with his new CO. She could sympathize with him, as she'd been there many times herself. And she still found it strange to have the situation reversed, as it was now.
"Lieutenant, I'm just about to start my workout, which, I hate to admit, I have been neglecting of late. I usually start it with a run. If you would care to join me, if running's your thing, perhaps we can get to know each other a little bit before we have to really put our Starfleet hats on. If you're agreeable I'll meet you in five minutes over by the holoroom?" She was referring to the small suite of rooms that were set up for those that wanted to do a bit of exercise, but the sterile atmosphere of a gym wasn't where they wanted to do it. But they still wanted the convenience of the gym's lockers and showers.
"Oh, running's definitely my thing," he said, smiling. "I'll meet you over there."
She walked away and he slipped back into the locker room to adjust his attire. He dressed in running shoes, shorts and an old gray Starfleet Marine Corps tank top and met her at the entrance to the holoroom. He hadn't actually been in a holoroom, only holodecks and suites. He assumed it would be able to accommodate two people, however, or she wouldn't have invited him.
"Running for time, distance or leisure today?" he asked as he approached the admiral.
"Today it's leisure." She turned and entered the room, ignoring the orange squares on all the surfaces. Once the lieutenant was in she closed the door, then tapped out the final sequence of the program she'd loaded into the computer. Instantly the room vanished, to be replaced by a brilliant day, bright sunlight beaming down on their heads as the French countryside rolled away from them.
Nika moved off the dirt road that had materialized underneath their feet to the grass beyond and began her warmup, stretching her body. Which, as she had thought, protested vigorously.
"I grew up around here," she said suddenly. "Just over those hills." A jutted chin pointed off to a set of rolling hills off in the distance. "This is a good 7 or 8 kilometer run, ending up at a nice little pub in the nearby town." She leaned into a stretch, holding it for a moment before releasing.
"That'll be a good bit to round out my earlier run," he said as he stretched just a bit more, not wanting to accidentally pull something.
"Right then. Let's get this show on the road." Without another word Nika started jogging down the path, letting her legs warm up to the task. She slowly built up her pace until she had reached a comfortable rate. She'd hold it there for a bit, then pick it up later.
As she ran, she savored the smell of the countryside. The vineyards were in full bloom, and the fragrances from the wild flowers and grasses that filled the ground around here revitalized her. Before long she was lost in the run.
They ran for almost a full two miles before either said anything. The pace was an easy one for Julian to keep. He made it a point to run almost every single day, for many miles. It was one thing he did religiously unless there was a very good reason keeping him from doing so. The distance varied from day to day, as did the routes or difficulty levels as he wanted to keep his body guessing and not get too used to the same old routine every day. Between the swimming and the running, he was able to keep his body in excellent shape.
"Grew up around here, eh?" he said, finally. "It's really very beautiful." They ran a bit more. "My childhood home was much different. Miami in 1918 was more Spanish influence...and much hotter," he said with a smile.
Nika half heard what he said as she ran, her mind mostly on automatic. It had been too long since she'd run and her calves were letting her know. Then his words sunk in.
"1918?" She looked over to see if there were any Trill markings on him. From what she could see there weren't any. Perhaps they were covered by his clothes... She snatched her thoughts away from where *that* was heading. "You look human," she continued, her words punctuated by the steady beat of her running shoes against the ground. "So how can you be born that long ago?"
They turned a corner and began following a path lined with perfectly manicured bushes. "El-Aurian," he said as they continued. "I'm 467 years old." He smirked a bit wondering how she would take the news that her 'young' lieutenant was actually almost 14 times her age. "I've been in and out of Starfleet and the Marines about four times now. It's been an interesting life."
She cocked an eyebrow over at him at his statement, but didn't comment further. After all, he could indeed be that old. She would have to talk with Janox... no, he was gone now too, wasn't he? Guess it would be Lieutenant Montoya. She made a mental note to find out what he knew about the El-Aurian later.
"467 years old, are you?" she finally replied. "That would be a long time indeed. I will bet life has been interesting for you. Have you had a chance to briefed fully on the situation here?"
"I've gotten caught up on what's happened to you all in the past few months, but that's about it," he said. "I got caught up while waiting for the station's return and Cmdr. Goodman gave me some more info earlier."
"Excellent. What Lt. Commander Goodman probably didn't tell you, as he didn't know himself, is that there's a whole world of shit coming down our way." She was pleased to find that she could carry on a conversation without too much effort to keep her voice level. Then the road began to curve, and she turned her attention back to it.
They ran across a small covered bridge that crossed a large creek, then started up Sheppard's Lane, which wound it's way up a series of hills until it fell on the other side down into the town of Provente. The road turned a bit rougher as they ran, and conversation stopped as they turned their attention to the road ahead.
After the intensity of the run lightened a bit, he said, "World of shit. Care to elaborate now or is this something that should wait until our official introductory meeting tomorrow?" Just as he got the words out, another rough patch of road came up causing the conversation to pause again. He was enjoying the hell out of this run, that much was certain. It was so much better than the run he'd had earlier. Boring, flat, no scenery...this was great!
"Certainly," she replied as they entered the town. "But how about we wait until the end of the run?" She slowed down to a jog as the streets started to become cluttered with the every day detritus of a small french town. "That pub I mentioned is only about eight blocks from here."
"Excellent!" he said as they passed several quaint shops, a bistro or two and a fresh meat market. "I could use a few pints to round out this day." He paused. "What was the name of this town?"
"Provente." She slowed to a stop outside a small biestro, then ran in place for a bit. She didn't want her muscles to cramp up.
He harrumphed his approval as he looked around a bit more. "Very nice," he said. Unfortunately his last words came out of his mouth as his new boss leaned over to stretch her legs some more. He immediately did an about-face hoping she didn't think he was referring to her figure, then changed the subject. "Do you ever get back here?" he said, then added, "To the real Provente, I mean?"
Nika caught the suprised look and his quick spin, and hid a chuckle. She hadn't meant to do that, but what was done was done. She stretched once more, arms extended towards the sky, then let them drop naturally to her side.
"Not in many years," she replied. "Shall we go in and get a table?" Without waiting for a response she turned and enterd the biestro.
She quickly found a table, old habits making her pick one in the corner where she could watch the two ways in and out, not even thinking about what she did.
A server quickly came over and asked for their order. "A glass of water and a pint of beer," the admiral said, followed by Julian's, "A pint of bitter and pretzels or peanuts if you have them."
"So," he said as they waited for their orders, "not to press the issue, but when an admiral says the words 'world of shit', I tend to take it very seriously."
"Okay, here's the deal. You know about the little problem we have with the wormhole, correct? Right. So those tractable little Jem'Hadar have decided that they aren't going to stay nice and quiet in their homes. No. They are coming out to harrass our people that are nearest the borders of our territories. It seems they think it's time to come out and play."
She stopped for a moment as the waiter came back and delivered their order. She picked up the glass of water and was glad to feel it was room temperature. She drank a bit of it then turned her attention back to her new XO.
"On top of that, there seems to be a multi-system band of privateers that think it's open season on the merchant shipping in the quadrant. They don't like us - they almost blew us up a few months ago." She took another sip of her water.
He had taken a few swigs of the beer as she spoke. He'd definitely had better, but it was good enough to hit the spot and for him to signal the server for one more. "Do we have any viable intelligence assets in the quadrant to provide some information? If not, we may need to plan on getting some of our people inserted behind enemy lines, so to speak." He paused as the second bitter came. "And did the little adventure between 'verses cause any major damage to the defensive systems of the station?"
"14's defenses are fine. Only minor damage here and there, and that's been repaired already. It was more messing with our minds than our equipment." She finished off her water, then picked up the wine and took a sip. A meaty red.
"As to resources inside, we have some. We're about to get more, though. A marine infiltration unit was doing some training on this side of the wormhole when it closed. So they're setting up shop here. I'm planning on using them to their fullest."
He nodded in agreement. "Excellent. We need to develop contacts and sources very close to the Jem'Hadar, or even the pirates for that matter. Someone feeding us information from the inside would be beneficial." He sipped from his second beer. "I have a background in intelligence so I could definitely work on getting that set up." She was about to answer when he was reminded of something. "Oh! And I read something about a few attached ships that we have assigned? Are any of them capable of being used as a recon platform or even a remote listening post?"
"Probably," she replied. "But I am not sure. The two that were here were rotated out, and the USS Victory was assigned to replace them. She's clear on the other side of the quadrant, though, so it'll be a while before we have use of her."
"No problem, we'll make due with what we have," he said, now beginning to wonder just where the hell his pretzels or peanuts were. "If it helps you to know, I like a good challenge. This whole ordeal, as dangerous as it could potentially be, is definitely a good challenge." He drained the second of his drinks and set the glass on the table. "So, how much of my personnel file did you get through? Or have you had a chance yet?" he added, thinking she may not have even opened it since she didn't know he was El-Aurian.
"I haven't had a chance to do more than skim it. It's on my list of things to do this afternon. I didn't expect to meet you until tomorrow." She grinned apologetically at him. "Not that it really matters, though. You're here, and it's the first time I've had you in my command. I make up my own mind about people, not let their jacket decide what I think."
He smiled. That was one check for the young admiral. He had met so many commanding officers that let a personnel field jacket define their opinion of someone. Write ups from years gone by, scathing letters from department heads over miniscule matters and the like were some of the things that COs had used as ammunition for keeping other officers from being promoted or advanced in position. He was sure she would look at his time in service and duty postings, but it sounded like he might get a fair shake from this woman.
"Well, when you're ready to look through it, you might want to clear your afternoon. Four years ago I updated BUPERS (BUreau of PERSonnel) on the missing years that they didn't have on me, starting from my birth until my first stint in Starfleet back in 2150." He chuckled.
"I will certainly do that, Lieutenant. But now," she said as she stood, "I've got a million and one things to do before dinner. As you don't officially report until tomorrow, get yourself squared away. I'll see you at 0800 sharp. Arch!" As she began to walk toward it she turned at looked at him. "It was nice to meet you, Lieutenant."
He didn't have a chance to even say "Likewise" as she left. The server came back to clear the table. "Wait--did she say 0800 hours?"
"That she did," the lady replied.
He had been expecting to see her at noon, but apparently she had moved him up. He smiled, then turned back to the server. "Hey...what about my pretzels?!"
by Lieutenant Commander Julian Foley & Rear Admiral Dominique Lucatz
Post Details
| Title | An Impromptu Meeting | |
| Mission | 6 - Home Sweet Home | |
| Author(s) | Lieutenant Commander Julian Foley & Rear Admiral Dominique Lucatz | |
| Posted | Thu Jul 22, 2010 @ 10:11pm | |
| Location | Deck 66 Gymnasium | |
| Timeline | 1800 hours |
After changing out of his uniform and getting a light snack, he located the closest gym and decided to get a little exercise in to help de-stress.
Walking into the gym he noticed that there weren't many people there, only about twenty or thirty. The gymnasium itself was huge. It was two decks tall and was at least one-quarter the size of the decks it was on. There was an olympic-sized pool, two spas, free weights, courts for playing different types of games, areas for sparring any type of self-defense and almost anything else a person could ask for. After a good stretch he decided on getting some running in first, just to get warmed up.
He was never fond of running machines. They had treadmills for exercising on back on Earth in his younger days but he had always preferred running outside in the open air. He didn't have time to schedule holodeck time so he would just have to make do with the machine for now. He was pretty proud of himself for being able to keep up a six-minute mile at his age and got in eleven miles before deciding to go for a swim.
Even the locker rooms were extravagant. He went in to shower off before getting in the pool--honestly, who wants a bunch of sweat getting into the water? With his quick rinse and a change to trunks he grabbed his towel and headed to the pool for a few laps.
***
The subspace communications channel closed, leaving behind the customary spinning Starfleet logo. Nika leaned back in her chair and rubbed her eyes. The report from Commodore Chao had been disturbing at best. The Dominion activity along within the quadrant had begun to pick up. More and more skirmishes were being reported within the task force's area of influence. And it worried her.
She powered down the console, then stood and stretched. She grimaced as her muscles twinged as she did so. Not a good sign. She'd been neglecting her trips to the gym recently, and that was starting to show. Well, she thought as she strode out of her ready room and toward her quarters, it was time to change that.
***
With four laps under his belt, Julian stopped momentarily to check his time. Instead he noticed a woman that had walked in and had immediately gained everyone's attention. After a closer look he realized that she was his new CO. She walked past the edge of the pool close to him.
"Good evening, Admiral," he called. She smiled as she looked at him, he assumed she did this to everyone, but did a double take as she realized that she had never met him before. He thought she might have recognized him from his personnel file so he extricated himself from the pool.
Nika stopped as the man pulled himself out of the pool and reached over to grab a nearby towel of the public rack. His face seemed familiar to her, but she didn't believe she'd actually met him before. Then, as she juggled her gym bag to the other shoulder, it hit her. "Lieutenant Foley."
As he toweled off a bit, he smiled at her. "That's me," he said. "I didn't expect to see you until tomorrow."
"I'm not sure you can say we've actually seen each other now, can we?" she said with a smile. "After all, it's not exactly like this was planned." She swept her arm out around the gym.
He looked down and realized she was definitely seeing more of him than he was of her. He took a moment to realize that she actually was easy on the eyes, but quickly dismissed that thought. He couldn't take a chance of getting demoted all the way down to Crewman, or worse, getting barred from serving in Starfleet forever. For an El-Aurian, that's a really, really long time.
"No, ma'am, it wasn't. But very nice to make your acquaintance anyway," he replied. There was an awkward silence between them as they just stood there, looking at each other. "Ah...well, I guess you would like to get to..." he paused to see if he could tell what she was getting ready to do, but couldn't, "...whatever it was you came in here to do. I'll see you tomorrow at 1200 hours, sharp."
Nika watched her new XO stumble around a bit as he tried to make conversation with his new CO. She could sympathize with him, as she'd been there many times herself. And she still found it strange to have the situation reversed, as it was now.
"Lieutenant, I'm just about to start my workout, which, I hate to admit, I have been neglecting of late. I usually start it with a run. If you would care to join me, if running's your thing, perhaps we can get to know each other a little bit before we have to really put our Starfleet hats on. If you're agreeable I'll meet you in five minutes over by the holoroom?" She was referring to the small suite of rooms that were set up for those that wanted to do a bit of exercise, but the sterile atmosphere of a gym wasn't where they wanted to do it. But they still wanted the convenience of the gym's lockers and showers.
"Oh, running's definitely my thing," he said, smiling. "I'll meet you over there."
She walked away and he slipped back into the locker room to adjust his attire. He dressed in running shoes, shorts and an old gray Starfleet Marine Corps tank top and met her at the entrance to the holoroom. He hadn't actually been in a holoroom, only holodecks and suites. He assumed it would be able to accommodate two people, however, or she wouldn't have invited him.
"Running for time, distance or leisure today?" he asked as he approached the admiral.
"Today it's leisure." She turned and entered the room, ignoring the orange squares on all the surfaces. Once the lieutenant was in she closed the door, then tapped out the final sequence of the program she'd loaded into the computer. Instantly the room vanished, to be replaced by a brilliant day, bright sunlight beaming down on their heads as the French countryside rolled away from them.
Nika moved off the dirt road that had materialized underneath their feet to the grass beyond and began her warmup, stretching her body. Which, as she had thought, protested vigorously.
"I grew up around here," she said suddenly. "Just over those hills." A jutted chin pointed off to a set of rolling hills off in the distance. "This is a good 7 or 8 kilometer run, ending up at a nice little pub in the nearby town." She leaned into a stretch, holding it for a moment before releasing.
"That'll be a good bit to round out my earlier run," he said as he stretched just a bit more, not wanting to accidentally pull something.
"Right then. Let's get this show on the road." Without another word Nika started jogging down the path, letting her legs warm up to the task. She slowly built up her pace until she had reached a comfortable rate. She'd hold it there for a bit, then pick it up later.
As she ran, she savored the smell of the countryside. The vineyards were in full bloom, and the fragrances from the wild flowers and grasses that filled the ground around here revitalized her. Before long she was lost in the run.
They ran for almost a full two miles before either said anything. The pace was an easy one for Julian to keep. He made it a point to run almost every single day, for many miles. It was one thing he did religiously unless there was a very good reason keeping him from doing so. The distance varied from day to day, as did the routes or difficulty levels as he wanted to keep his body guessing and not get too used to the same old routine every day. Between the swimming and the running, he was able to keep his body in excellent shape.
"Grew up around here, eh?" he said, finally. "It's really very beautiful." They ran a bit more. "My childhood home was much different. Miami in 1918 was more Spanish influence...and much hotter," he said with a smile.
Nika half heard what he said as she ran, her mind mostly on automatic. It had been too long since she'd run and her calves were letting her know. Then his words sunk in.
"1918?" She looked over to see if there were any Trill markings on him. From what she could see there weren't any. Perhaps they were covered by his clothes... She snatched her thoughts away from where *that* was heading. "You look human," she continued, her words punctuated by the steady beat of her running shoes against the ground. "So how can you be born that long ago?"
They turned a corner and began following a path lined with perfectly manicured bushes. "El-Aurian," he said as they continued. "I'm 467 years old." He smirked a bit wondering how she would take the news that her 'young' lieutenant was actually almost 14 times her age. "I've been in and out of Starfleet and the Marines about four times now. It's been an interesting life."
She cocked an eyebrow over at him at his statement, but didn't comment further. After all, he could indeed be that old. She would have to talk with Janox... no, he was gone now too, wasn't he? Guess it would be Lieutenant Montoya. She made a mental note to find out what he knew about the El-Aurian later.
"467 years old, are you?" she finally replied. "That would be a long time indeed. I will bet life has been interesting for you. Have you had a chance to briefed fully on the situation here?"
"I've gotten caught up on what's happened to you all in the past few months, but that's about it," he said. "I got caught up while waiting for the station's return and Cmdr. Goodman gave me some more info earlier."
"Excellent. What Lt. Commander Goodman probably didn't tell you, as he didn't know himself, is that there's a whole world of shit coming down our way." She was pleased to find that she could carry on a conversation without too much effort to keep her voice level. Then the road began to curve, and she turned her attention back to it.
They ran across a small covered bridge that crossed a large creek, then started up Sheppard's Lane, which wound it's way up a series of hills until it fell on the other side down into the town of Provente. The road turned a bit rougher as they ran, and conversation stopped as they turned their attention to the road ahead.
After the intensity of the run lightened a bit, he said, "World of shit. Care to elaborate now or is this something that should wait until our official introductory meeting tomorrow?" Just as he got the words out, another rough patch of road came up causing the conversation to pause again. He was enjoying the hell out of this run, that much was certain. It was so much better than the run he'd had earlier. Boring, flat, no scenery...this was great!
"Certainly," she replied as they entered the town. "But how about we wait until the end of the run?" She slowed down to a jog as the streets started to become cluttered with the every day detritus of a small french town. "That pub I mentioned is only about eight blocks from here."
"Excellent!" he said as they passed several quaint shops, a bistro or two and a fresh meat market. "I could use a few pints to round out this day." He paused. "What was the name of this town?"
"Provente." She slowed to a stop outside a small biestro, then ran in place for a bit. She didn't want her muscles to cramp up.
He harrumphed his approval as he looked around a bit more. "Very nice," he said. Unfortunately his last words came out of his mouth as his new boss leaned over to stretch her legs some more. He immediately did an about-face hoping she didn't think he was referring to her figure, then changed the subject. "Do you ever get back here?" he said, then added, "To the real Provente, I mean?"
Nika caught the suprised look and his quick spin, and hid a chuckle. She hadn't meant to do that, but what was done was done. She stretched once more, arms extended towards the sky, then let them drop naturally to her side.
"Not in many years," she replied. "Shall we go in and get a table?" Without waiting for a response she turned and enterd the biestro.
She quickly found a table, old habits making her pick one in the corner where she could watch the two ways in and out, not even thinking about what she did.
A server quickly came over and asked for their order. "A glass of water and a pint of beer," the admiral said, followed by Julian's, "A pint of bitter and pretzels or peanuts if you have them."
"So," he said as they waited for their orders, "not to press the issue, but when an admiral says the words 'world of shit', I tend to take it very seriously."
"Okay, here's the deal. You know about the little problem we have with the wormhole, correct? Right. So those tractable little Jem'Hadar have decided that they aren't going to stay nice and quiet in their homes. No. They are coming out to harrass our people that are nearest the borders of our territories. It seems they think it's time to come out and play."
She stopped for a moment as the waiter came back and delivered their order. She picked up the glass of water and was glad to feel it was room temperature. She drank a bit of it then turned her attention back to her new XO.
"On top of that, there seems to be a multi-system band of privateers that think it's open season on the merchant shipping in the quadrant. They don't like us - they almost blew us up a few months ago." She took another sip of her water.
He had taken a few swigs of the beer as she spoke. He'd definitely had better, but it was good enough to hit the spot and for him to signal the server for one more. "Do we have any viable intelligence assets in the quadrant to provide some information? If not, we may need to plan on getting some of our people inserted behind enemy lines, so to speak." He paused as the second bitter came. "And did the little adventure between 'verses cause any major damage to the defensive systems of the station?"
"14's defenses are fine. Only minor damage here and there, and that's been repaired already. It was more messing with our minds than our equipment." She finished off her water, then picked up the wine and took a sip. A meaty red.
"As to resources inside, we have some. We're about to get more, though. A marine infiltration unit was doing some training on this side of the wormhole when it closed. So they're setting up shop here. I'm planning on using them to their fullest."
He nodded in agreement. "Excellent. We need to develop contacts and sources very close to the Jem'Hadar, or even the pirates for that matter. Someone feeding us information from the inside would be beneficial." He sipped from his second beer. "I have a background in intelligence so I could definitely work on getting that set up." She was about to answer when he was reminded of something. "Oh! And I read something about a few attached ships that we have assigned? Are any of them capable of being used as a recon platform or even a remote listening post?"
"Probably," she replied. "But I am not sure. The two that were here were rotated out, and the USS Victory was assigned to replace them. She's clear on the other side of the quadrant, though, so it'll be a while before we have use of her."
"No problem, we'll make due with what we have," he said, now beginning to wonder just where the hell his pretzels or peanuts were. "If it helps you to know, I like a good challenge. This whole ordeal, as dangerous as it could potentially be, is definitely a good challenge." He drained the second of his drinks and set the glass on the table. "So, how much of my personnel file did you get through? Or have you had a chance yet?" he added, thinking she may not have even opened it since she didn't know he was El-Aurian.
"I haven't had a chance to do more than skim it. It's on my list of things to do this afternon. I didn't expect to meet you until tomorrow." She grinned apologetically at him. "Not that it really matters, though. You're here, and it's the first time I've had you in my command. I make up my own mind about people, not let their jacket decide what I think."
He smiled. That was one check for the young admiral. He had met so many commanding officers that let a personnel field jacket define their opinion of someone. Write ups from years gone by, scathing letters from department heads over miniscule matters and the like were some of the things that COs had used as ammunition for keeping other officers from being promoted or advanced in position. He was sure she would look at his time in service and duty postings, but it sounded like he might get a fair shake from this woman.
"Well, when you're ready to look through it, you might want to clear your afternoon. Four years ago I updated BUPERS (BUreau of PERSonnel) on the missing years that they didn't have on me, starting from my birth until my first stint in Starfleet back in 2150." He chuckled.
"I will certainly do that, Lieutenant. But now," she said as she stood, "I've got a million and one things to do before dinner. As you don't officially report until tomorrow, get yourself squared away. I'll see you at 0800 sharp. Arch!" As she began to walk toward it she turned at looked at him. "It was nice to meet you, Lieutenant."
He didn't have a chance to even say "Likewise" as she left. The server came back to clear the table. "Wait--did she say 0800 hours?"
"That she did," the lady replied.
He had been expecting to see her at noon, but apparently she had moved him up. He smiled, then turned back to the server. "Hey...what about my pretzels?!"