Who Did What, Now?

Posted on Sun 22nd Apr, 2018 @ 12:20am by Lieutenant Jacen Miller

759 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Brushfires
Location: CO's office, SB 109
Timeline: MD 5, 11:00

"Captain," the communicator said in Mr. Mejia's voice, "Your eleven o'clock is here."

"Thank you; send him in," Suzuki said, glancing around her office to be sure it was ready. As the doors opened, the Captain waved. "Mr. Miller, welcome." she gestured to a chair across the desk. "Please, be seated, and forgive me for not standing to greet you. It's... inconvenient at the moment."

Jacen paused a moment, trying to size his new commanding officer up. He then plopped himself down into the chair she had indicated. "Understandably so, Captain...though I am surprised to find you back so soon. I was lead to believe your injuries were quite...severe." He allowed himself a small smile before continuing, "Merely being here today is a testament to your resilience."

Suzuki sighed, and turned to look at the wallscreen which showed a view out over the inner harbor, with the wreckage of Samurai in clear view. "Not resilient enough." After a moment, she turned back to view the Intel officer. "I have two tasks for you, Lieutenant. Would you like the large one first, or the small one?"

"I suppose whichever one you feel deserves priority." Miller replied.

Suzuki nodded. "Let's go with the smaller one first," she answered. "It should be quicker for you to get out of the way. As I understand it, there is a diplomatic delegation from the People and Senate of the Republic of Home cooling their heels somewhere down-station, awaiting a meeting with the Officer Commanding." Suzuki spread her arms. "C'est moi. But despite having served the last few years with an extraordinary group of hypercompetent young Besm, I know next to nothing about their government, and what this delegation might desire. I'd like you to figure that out before I meet with this 'Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary,' Corundum Jewel."

Jacen frowned, visibly. He quickly regained his composure before speaking. "Not that I'm unappreciative of the work, Captain...but is that really something for the Intelligence Department to be handling? It seems to me that the task would be better served in Operations, or perhaps an Ambassadorial Liaison?"

Suzuki chuckled dryly. "It should have been handled by the diplomatic detachment," she agreed. "And Colonel Drake should have handled the situation. But if you should in one hand and poop in the other, which one fills up faster?" The question was clearly rhetorical; she didn't pause for an answer. "You have the resources to do the job, so I'm asking you to do the job. I won't ask you to personally meet with the Envoy; that's my job."

Jacen let out a melodramatic sigh, then grinned impishly. "I understand Captain. The situation we have here is far from Ideal. I will humbly put my skills to the task you have set before me. Out of curiosity, what is the other thing you wanted me to look in to for you? I may be able to knock out the proverbial birds with one stone."

"Thank you," the Captain said dryly. "I doubt the two are in any way connected, but you're the intel officer. I want you to look into these pirates operating in the triangle. Who are they? Who pays for ships? Who's selling them weapons and cloaks? Where are they selling their cargos of plundered goods? The last transmission my Marine detachment commander made indicated that, despite the manufacture, the crew of the two Romulan ships which attacked were not Romulans. How did hundred year old RSE light cruisers end up as pirates? For that matter, how did a late-model Lyran battlecruiser end up in the triangle? I have questions and no answers, Mr. Miller, and I do not care for that situation one bit."

"Now, that is interesting..." Jacen mused, "It just so happens that LT Ildaran, formerly of the USS Hermes has expressed an interest in checking in on our...boisterous neighbors. He's skulking around the lower levels of the station, getting into some trouble and making contacts. I was going to wait until he had some more concrete evidence, but since you want it looked in to..." he trailed off, leaving the sentence hanging in the air.

Suzuki nodded. "Keep me apprised of what you learn," she answered. "If there's nothing else...?"

"No, I think that's everything. Unless you had something, unofficial that you wanted me to look in to?" he replied.

Suzuki's eyebrows rose, and then she chuckled. "We don't know each other that well, Mr. Miller. Thank you for your time."

 

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