Wingmen

Posted on Mon 7th Nov, 2016 @ 11:42am by Warrant Officer Moklor of the House Karn

1,051 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Cloak & Dagger
Location: Fighter Shuttlebay One
Timeline: MD3 - 1800 Hours

Warrant Officer Moklor had been in one of the station's shuttlebays for almost two hours. He had spent the time standing over the shoulders of the various mechanics. He hoped his presence would intimidate the mostly enlisted crew into working faster. He never said anything rude or mean. He just stood there and watched them. Occasionally he would have a few suggestions. At one point he grabbed a spanner and helped adjust one of the fighter's harmonic resonators. Of course some of the mechanics were commissioned officers.

The Klingon wanted to establish a good working relationship with his mechanics. They were his lifeblood after all.

But mostly he observed. The mechanics were getting a lot done in a short period of time. Two of the fighters were coming along better than the others. They'd be ready to take out before 2000 hours.

He even made brief conversation with the female Bolian Warrant Officer who seemed to be doing exactly what he was. She was a fair bit more bubbly and charming though, occasionally tossing jokes at the crew. Whereas Moklor was mostly quiet and gave a few bits of advice, WO Hiaxea Tragg was a complete chatterbox.

She was full of advice. Some of the mechanics took it well. Many of them wished the pilot would back off a little. If so they didn't realize it was just her Bolian nature. They were a very meticulous people. Moklor watched her and how she interacted with the crowd. This was the kind of officer the Klingon wanted to associate with.

A sandy-haired marine wearing the pips of a Lance Corporal approached Moklor as he stood behind the fighter that would be his with his arms crossed. "Sir, I have those reports you asked for." He handed a PADD over to the Klingon.

Moklor nodded and grunted. It was a report on his squadron sent from SFMC Fighter HQ. The first record he jumped to was the Bolian. Just as he thought, her flying style was just as meticulous as any Bolian's should be. She had high marks in aerial gunnery and aerobatics. Combined with what he observed about her, he knew he wanted this, Hiaxea Tragg, to be his wingman.

PADD in hand, he approached the Bolian female. She smiled when she saw him approaching. Moklor looked emotionless, his "poker face" of sorts.

"Greetings, sir. You're looking cheerful."

Moklor grunted, trying not to chuckle at the sarcasm. "Please come with me to the briefing room. I want to go over the roster with you."

Tragg's eyes perked up. "Ah, excellent. I'd love to meet the new crew. By the way, one of the crewmen told me their runabout should get in by 2030. So maybe we'll be in space when their ship arrives."

Moklor smirked. "I look forward to it. Now please, the briefing room." Moklor turned and the pair followed the path out of the shuttlebay. The briefing room was little more than a medium-sized classroom. The two made their way through one of the rows of desks and stood, staring over the same PADD.

"We'll come back to your file at the end. I just want to go over the other two pilots with you and tell you my plans."

"Sounds good."

"Up first, we have Warrant Officer Othramit Sh'kylras. Andorian." The two scrolled down her file on the small screen. "She's a real gunslinger. Her gunnery skills are fairly high. But her aerobatics are not that great. She has a lot of room to improve. But she can shoot."

"There is a mark for bravery here." Tragg had one hand on the PADD, as did Moklor. "Looks like she helped put out a fire and save someone's life after a training crash."

"We can help her improve her formation flying and aerobatics. But I think she shows promise."

Tragg nodded. "What about the next guy?"

"It is another woman." Moklor took a deep breath. "I am the only male in the squadron."

Tragg put her hand over her face and fought to stifle a laugh with partial success. Moklor ignored it.

"Where to begin... Read this."

"Poor marksmanship skills?" The Bolian looked at the screen wide-eyed. "Low aerobatics scores? Anger issues? What is the standard at the Academy now?"

"Easy, Tragg. She is a work in progress. We can't let her know we think so poorly of her combat skills... We must...", Moklor sighed. "Build her confidence."

"She'll fly in the four spot for sure", said the Bolian.

"Yes", concurred Moklor. "And I want you to be my wingman."

"But sir, I think I would make a good flight lead. I could teach Warrant Officer Eza. I could..."

"I want you to be my wingman", interrupted Moklor. "Let's look at your record."

Moklor had looked over these records quickly before they went over it and he had especially read Tragg's. "High gunnery, high aerobatics. You've been called meticulous... efficient."

"Thank you", beamed Tragg.

"But look here. They say you are predictable. You follow maneuvers to a tee. Certain opponents would have a field day."

"If you doubt my skills, you could-"

"No, it's not about that. I am the only pilot in our squadron with real experience. I want you to learn to..." Moklor paused as he often seemed to, "improvise. Besides, there may be times when we send just two fighters. If so, I want the best two. So I chose you. The Andorian will do well with Warrant officer Eza. We'll keep an eye on them."

Tragg looked a bit deflated, but she mustered a smile. "Well if you put it that way, then I accept."

"I hoped you would. Besides, we're going out at 2030. Be in your suit and on the deck by 2000. Just giving the refurbished fighters a shakedown and flying a sensor sweep. You want to go out, don't you? I could wait and take Eza."

"No, I'll be glad to be your wingman." The Bolian did hope for a leadership role, but could see the positives of working with the squadron leader.

"Right, I'll see you then."

Tragg nodded and turned to leave the briefing room. Moklor waited for her to exit before he left and went back to his quarters. He needed to organize some of his gear and then prepare for the flight.

 

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