Lower Ranks

Posted on Fri 10th Feb, 2017 @ 4:55pm by

728 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Wrongs Darker Than Death Or Night
Location: Fighter Hangar Maintenance Office
Timeline: 2200

O'Malley had recently found that she enjoyed a nightly stroll along the fighter areas and the base in general. Things seemed less hectic during second and third shifts. Lights were often dimmed in corridors and work areas to give the impression of nighttime. She was dressed in green athletic shorts and a black SFMC t-shirt. In her hand was a PADD that held procedures and knowledge in commanding a fighter command and control center. Her head was beginning to swirl with the acronyms that she needed to learn. Captain Wellington was crazy to think she could handle such a large responsibility. She wondered briefly how the other pilots and ground crews saw her considering she wasn't a pilot or even that well knowledgeable of the starfighters and transports that MAG-10 operated. She looked away from the PADD with a sigh.

Looking up from her PADD, she heard some commotion coming from the Maintenance Office as she passed by the corridor. Curious, she strode down to the corridor and pressed the chime. Opening the door was a young man, she recognized as one on the ground crew, with his maintenance coveralls unzipped with a black SFMC t-shirt underneath. "Oh! Um, can I help you, lieutenant?" Behind him were several others from the ground crews that appeared to be off duty, sitting around a table, holding playing cards who were now looking at O'Malley, their banter having fell silent.

O'Malley wasn't expecting to find a card game going on. "What's going on?" she asked, stepping in.

"Just a late night game of Poker, ma'am," replied a bolian in maintenance overalls. "We can go elsewhere if you want."

O'Malley grinned. "No, keep playing. I was just seeing what the commotion was."

An andorian male laughed at the end of the table. "I'm just cleaning these worthless scum clean of their credits, ma'am!"

"You're just lucky!" the young man near the door called back.

O'Malley placed her PADD down on a nearby desk. "Got room for one more?"

"Sure! Come on in, ma'am!" the andorian who had boasted recently replied.

O'Malley knew she had to put the others at ease being the only officer there. "Since we're off duty, just call me O'Malley for tonight." To be honest, Rose always disliked being called ma'am, yet having enlisted call her by her first name was too informal. It made her feel old for some reason.

Rose sat down at the table, smiling at Corporal Smith, whom she spotted across the table. "Mr. Smith, I didn't expect to see you here. Shouldn't you be with your wife?"

Smith shrugged. "Well, she's not real happy about be starting training to become a pilot. So I'm kinda in the dog house, as it were. I'm giving her some time to cool down."

O'Malley nodded. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Why would you want to be a pilot?" questioned the young man who had answered the door. "So you can get lazy and eat in that nice officer's mess?" He immediately regretted the last part as he turned to O'Malley. "No offense."

"None taken," O'Malley replied as the cards were dealt to her.

"Because I've always wanted to fly and there's nobody better to teach you than Captain Wellington," Smith answered.

"Got that right!" the andorian said from the head of the table.

Curiosity got the better of Rose as she studied her cards and the other players' faces. "I've heard she's good, but is that just talk?"

The andorian at the head of the table was now quiet as he studied O'Malley for a moment. He tossed her ignorance up to youth. "She's a two time ace during the Dominion War and personally downed two Jem H'dar Battlecruisers. During the second battle of Chin'toka, she bought enough time for her squadron to retreat while she herself was shot down and captured, spending 6 months as a Breen Prisoner of War. It's a hell of a lot more than just talk, O'Malley."

O'Malley was quiet as she processed the information. She had no idea about all of that of her CO. "Damn," was all she said as she folded her cards.

"Folding already, O'Malley? I thought you were going to be interesting," the andorian smiled.

"I'm just getting warmed up," she replied with a wink and a grin.

"Outstanding!" Smith called with a laugh as the game continued.

 

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