Junior perspectives.

Posted on Sat Aug 1st, 2015 @ 2:48pm by Captain Elijah Michaels

OOC Elijah: Hey man hope you do 'to mind a JP with me. Thought it would be good for us to do one together without everybody else.

Elijah walked down the Halls of the USS Victory, his Ship may have been outsmarted by the Dominion but he felt she put up one hell of a fight. Seeing the Repair Teams fixing her up meant he could continue with his oldest hobby. Firearms.

The Commander entered the Weapons Locker in the Security Offices and looked around. "Hello anyone around?" He asked before approaching the Phaser Locker.

Kevin was so deep into his concentration of the weapons check in the armoury that it took a couple of seconds for his brain to register that someone had spoken. Replacing the type two phaser he'd been checking over back into it's cradle, he stepped out into the main area to see the ships CO standing there.

He immediately snapped into an upright posture and said "I'm sorry for my slow reaction there Captain, I was concentrating on the check of the weapons here, how may I help you Sir?"

"At ease Ensign." Elijah said with a smile. "How are the Phaser Checks going?" He asked before approaching the Phasers Station.

Kevin relaxed into the 'at ease' position as requested by the CO and replied "On the whole they're ok Sir, though we do have a couple of the mark two's with slightly low power cells, I'll have them replaced by the shifts completion."

Elijah nodded. "I don't think we will have to use them in firefight this time Ensign, but it can't hurt to be safe can it?" He asked before examining the Phasers. "This takes me back to the old days.

Kevin looked at his CO and guessed he was around a dozen or so years older, but didn't say anything about it, instead replying "No Sir, safer is better than being sorry indeed. We do have a few compression rifles in the locker that I've yet to check over, if you have time, can I tempt you into joining me in the maintenance check?"

He realized that such a request could be deemed as a breach etiquette between a low ranked officer and their CO, however, Kevin had a 'hunch' the CO wasn't here purely by chance, he could have been doing a hundred plus other things in their approach to the Starbase, yet here he was, in the armoury, so Kevin took the chance and made the offer...

The Commander nodded. "By all means, I was going to do it myself for when I hit the range but I can spare some time."

"Please, be my guest Sir" Kevin replied as he stood to one side and offered the CO the opportunity to walk in first.

The Commander entered the Locker and took one of the Compression Rifles off the Rack. He checked the settings and then the custom targeting system. For a guy who was running a Starship his old training never seemed to leave him. "This one is good, log into the System as we go."

Out of the corner of his eye, Kevin listened and watched as the Captain checked and logged the rifles as he went. As they neared the end of the check, he broke their silence and asked "Sir, if you don't mind me asking, what brings you to the armoury? I mean, it's not that I don't appreciate you being here, I do, and it's wonderful to see the ships CO take an interest in what goes on on their ship, but I can't help feeling you came here for a reason other that just to ask how the checks were going, or that you were just 'stretching your legs' and happened to be passing?"

The Commander chuckled. "Ensign I spent most of my Career as a Security and Tactical Officer, I have a unique fondness with this Department." He said examining another Phaser. "As such I like to take an interest in how the Weapons function and are maintained because without it we may as well be throwing rocks."

Kevin laugh out loud at the thought of throwing rocks that had come into his minds eye as he said "I think if you did that with a Klingon Sir, you'd only succeed in making them more angry!"

Elijah chuckled and nodded with the Ensign. "Reading your file, you come from a very different upbringing than most." The Commander said to him. "Why Starfleet? Why Secruity and not as a Diplomat or Ambassador?"

Kevin was quiet for a few moments as the memories of his time with his father, mother and tutors came flooding back. Shaking his head slightly as if to dislodge the thoughts he quietly replied "I wasn't cut out to be a diplomat or Ambassador Sir. It's not that I didn't have the savvy for it, or the wherewithal but I knew that I wanted something different to what my mother and father did. One evening we sat down together, had a real heart to heart about where I saw my future and where they saw it, and we all agreed that Starfleet was my calling. As for why I chose Security...to be honest Captain, I see the protection of others before protection of myself as how life is. I don't mean that in a selfless way, but more as a matter how I think" he finished.

The Commander nodded. "I understand Ensign, it is a tough task trying to step out of the shadows of a legacy you may seem obliged to inherit." Elijah commented to the young Security Officer. "But I think you made the right call and have proven to be a valued member of our Crew."

"Thank you Sir, I'm happy to know that I'm fulfilling my duties as best I can" Kevin replied to the compliment given him. He paused before adding "You know Sir, though I have chosen the path of becoming a Starfleet Security Officer, I am still willing to help out in any way with diplomatic situations if you want me to. I mean, I do still have all the diplomatic contacts my father and mother have made over the years, I've stayed in contact with them just in case this Security career didn't work out....no point in burning bridges already built is there?"

"Not at all, I think given how small our Diplomatic Department is then any assistance will be greatly appreciated." The Commander said with a smile and a nod, greatly considering the usefulness of the Ensign under his Command.

"Glad to be of service if I can Captain" Kevin replied as he placed the last of the hand phasers back in the rack.

"That's the phaser check completed Sir, was there anything else you needed?" he asked.

Elijah shook his head. "No that will be all thank you Ensign, if you need me I shall be on the Range." He said with a nod before collecting a Phaser.

"Yes Sir" Kevin replied, accepting the nod by bowing slightly forward from the hip. He watched as the CO made his way towards the range, then turned away to carry out another task in the armoury.