Piping the Side Again

Posted on Mon 13th Nov, 2023 @ 12:45am by Commander T'Venderath & Commander Paul Graves PsyD & Lieutenant Commander Dallas Briggs & Renato Solis & Captain Gordon Francis & Sundae

1,426 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: O' the Cardiff Rose
Location: Docking Bay 1, Terminal 5
Timeline: MD -1, 0730 hours

This piping the side ceremony for the new CO would be much simpler than it had been for Captain Navarra, Paul thought as he waited at the docking terminal for Captain Francis, 109's new commander, to request permission to board 109. Navarra had arrived and departed so quickly that it felt almost too much to raise all that fanfare again so soon. It didn't seem fair, though, to not give Francis an equally elaborate welcome. Paul hoped that at least the respect and professionalism shown him by the department heads would make up for the lack of bells and superfluous whistles. He nodded to LTJG Verex, the Officer of the Deck, and waited.

Samurai had departed earlier in the week on its new mission, which Paul had not been made privy to. He missed his friend Henry Perry already. Henry's first love, though, was designing starships, and Paul knew that Henry would be in his element on the refitted ship.

On the other side of the observation windows, the transport ship Charon was making small, precise maneuvers to connect to the airlock. Moments later, with a metallic bump and a faint hiss, it was done. Another minute or so went by as routine arrival and shutdown procedures were completed on the other side.

airlock doors motored open. Immediately, the small welcoming detail that had assembled snapped to attention, and the boatswain standing next to Paul piped his whistle.

"Commander, Starbase 109, arriving," a voice announced over the station-wide address system.

The Captain took his first steps onto the station with rigid confidence, eyes hidden behind glaring, archaic goggle eyeglasses, clearly scrutinizing everything around him. He was short in stature, with a near-bald head barely wrapped by closely-cropped white hair, a nose that looked swelled by years of use, and a rigid jaw, no doubt made that way by his sharp, pearl-white, gritted teeth.

He looked around at his new crew, and for a moment, it was unclear whether it was his turn to speak, or if someone else had forgotten a line. From somewhere in the docking bay, the only thing that could be heard was something resembling a cat's meow.

Lt. Verex walked forward. extending a hand for Francis' orders.

Francis handed over his isolinear chip. "I suppose you're looking for my part in the script... Captain Gordon Francis, reporting to take command of Starbase 109, effective immediately. Permission to come aboard, sir?" he said to Verex and saluted.

Verex scanned the chip and returned it to Francis, then saluted back. "Permission granted, sir."

Paul walked forward from the group of assembled department heads. "Welcome to Starbase 109, Captain. I'm Commander Paul Graves, acting CO. I hereby relinquish command of the starbase to you. It's good to have you here, sir."

Francis smiled and gave everyone a curt nod. "That's fine and good, everyone," he said in a loud, reassuring, and friendly baritone voice to those gathered. "I'm here now, no need for any more hubbub. You all look like an able and ready crew."

"They are, sir." Paul smiled back and then began to introduce the department heads. "Allow me to introduce you to Commander Entaaro Nasz, Tactical Officer."

Francis nodded, but curiously did not extend a hand. "It's good to meet you, Mr.... Nasz?" He said, trying to emulate the way Paul had just said his last name. Despite being fluent in their language, he had begun having trouble pronouncing Klingon consonants.

Captain Francis was not nearly so tall as the looming Klingon, so when Entaaro noticed the lack of human greeting as well presuming it was due to the image. With a small bend of the waist in a manner reflective of bowing, he maintained a pleasant affect in his facial features with a grin.

“And I am pleased to meet you Captain.” Pouring on the charm, he used the baritone in his voice to sway low tones into long syllables. “Please do not labor over my palatial approximant… I was told there is a human word for eating… to ‘Nosh,’ is it?”

Francis laughed at that. "I've heard the term. Where I'm from we call it 'chowing down!' We also eat a lot of what we call 'comfort food,' which involves anything coming from a chicken or a pig, and bonus points if you include both!"

Entaaro had a flash of confusion as the translator made a literal translation along the lines of “We enjoy eating chicken or pig with great honor for eating them as one!” The true sentiment was conveyed thankfully, but the ad lib for a joke was unmistakable so he grimaced slightly.

“Surely the chicken and pig do not take comfort at the process of being joined as one?” He allowed a subtle wink to underscore the ploy at humor.

"No, but a good bacon and cheese omelet gives me plenty of comfort!" Francis replied.

The tenor of the docking bay seemed to brighten, and Francis was glad to see some of the crew smiling.

A small retinue of additional officers appeared through the airlock, each in turn reporting to the Officer of the Deck. They mostly comprised the captain's administrative staff. Leading them was a tall Vulcan woman, chin raised and arms crossed casually behind her back. She stopped to offer a nod to the assembled crewmen and said, "Detail, dismissed." The ranks broke without complaint. She then proceeded and stood respectfully behind and to the left of Francis as he spoke to Graves.

Paul glanced at her. "Commander?" he inquired.

"T'Venderath. Station Exec," she replied. "Pleased to make your acquaintance." Her even tone, however, had little warmth to accompany the sentiment. It was a courtesy delivered in respect for a culture that placed great emphasis on small courtesies.

Paul kept his tone equally businesslike. "Paul Graves, Second Officer and Chief Counselor. I'm delighted to welcome you aboard, Commander T'Venderath. Welcome to Starbase 109." And he was delighted. One week of being acting CO had taught him, as if he hadn't already known, that he had no desire to be a starbase commanding officer.

"Thank you," the Vulcan replied. Then she nodded politely to Entaaro and the other gathered officers before adding, "There is an animal running loose on this deck. Pets are forbidden in work areas."

Pet? Paul extended his senses. "Ah, thank you for alerting me. I've seen that cat before, in the Promenade area. I'll ensure she gets back to where she belongs."

"Meow," the cat, Sundae, remarked. She'd managed to go unnoticed at Graves' feet for about a minute. More than enough time.

Paul blinked upon seeing the calico cat right next to him. How had she gotten there without him noticing? "The cat moves in on little fog feet," he said to Sundae before speaking again to Gordon and T'Venderath. "Her name is Sundae, should you ever encounter her elsewhere."

Francis crouched down near Sundae, who glided gracefully to him, the way cats do. She purred as he gently pet her. Francis noticed that she wore no collar or tag, which was peculiar. Strays on a starbase usually weren't in these parts, and were definitely not permitted.

"I see we've got a station mascot!" Francis remarked. He smiled as he picked her up and stood. "I'm glad you're familiar with her, but she still shouldn't be in this part of the station. I'm assuming you know her owner?"

T'Venderath eyed the feline with mild disinterest, then blinked as she noticed there seemed to be something more behind the eyes. A hint of deeper intelligence. She tilted her head in curiosity.

Some of the Ambassadors had taken time out of their busy schedule to meet the new Command Team of the starbase.

A tall Klingon in an Ambassador's cloak followed by Commander Kiara Lena and a female Vulcan also in an Ambassador's cloak along with their aides approached. "Captain Francis, Commander T'Venderath, "On behalf of the Consulates and the Diplomat Department, welcome aboard SB109." Krell extended a hand to Captain Francis.

Francis switched the cat to his left arm and took Krell's hand, giving it a brief but firm shake. "Thank you, Ambassador," he said with a friendly smile and a nod.

After they shook hands, Krell introduced the others from the Diplomatic Deportment that had come to welcome the new senior staff. "May I introduce, Commander Kiara Lena, the Chief Diplomatic Officer, T'Vala, the Vulcan Ambassador and our aids, Tessanna Valeri and Lieutenant Lissi Regos." Krell stepped to one side and gestured with his arm.

[TBC...]

 

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