‘Briefing’

Posted on Wed Apr 12th, 2023 @ 12:53am by Commodore Finchley Kerr & Lieutenant Commander Jaal Jaxom & Lieutenant Kell Asaa Dr & Lieutenant T'Lira Sh'Karra & Lieutenant Commander Isabelle Savette

2,299 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Investigate the Chintoka Shipyard Buildup
Location: Captain’s Conference Room.
Timeline: Current

Shon had been released from sickbay, showered hurriedly and had felt much better after a quick meditation and something to eat. It was good to get the dust off the shipyards off her and was eager to move their investigation on. The Captain had asked her to call a staff meeting and so she did.

=/\= XO to all senior staff briefing to be held in the Captain’s conference room at 20.00 hours. =/\=

She sat studying the PaDD with the information from the Chin’toka shipyards. She looked to be studying it, however her mind went back to the discoveries they had made about each other and the recovery of the virus.

Kell looked up from her continuing analysis of Shon and Isabelle's medical scans, as well as her observations. She would have to keep an eye on them for a bit, just to be safe. At the announcement she checked her chrono, set a reminder and acknowledged the meeting request.

The newly promoted Lieutenant Jaxom walked in to the conference room somewhat cautiously. He'd never been in a senior officer staff meeting before. The Trill wanted to make a good impression and at the same time, not over-do it. He offered a curt nod to greet those present and took the seat farthest from the head of the table. He tried to calm himself but still looked a little nervous as he pretended to read something on his PADD.

Isabelle stepped into the conference room without her uniform jacket, the implants that were on her skin irritated if under cover so she had little choice until after the briefing when she’d need to return to Sickbay for them to be surgically removed. She wasn’t quite so lucky where the implants imbedded in her spine and brain stem were concerned, it looked like they were going to have to stay.

Shon looked at Isabelle and noted that she still looked pale and her implants were still in place. “When do you get them removed Lieutenant?” She asked.

Isabelle looked towards Dex. “As soon as possible after the briefing, it’s going to be a surgical removal so it’ll take time.”

She then looked at the nervous looking Lieutenant Jaxom who had seated himself furthest away. She smiled to herself as he reminded her of herself when newly promoted. “Lieutenant Jaxom, welcome, we are glad to have you with us.”

Jaal looked up from his PADD, "Thank you... It's good to be here... Commander Dex I presume?" he asked with slightly narrowed eyes. He'd had little time since coming aboard but he take a cursory look at the personnel files so he could at least recognize most of the officers.

Shon smiled ruefully, “Yes, that is me Lieutenant, I am sorry I thought you knew. Do you always sit the furthest away?”

"I tend not to presume until I know for sure," Jaal answered with one side of his mouth raising slightly. "And yes."

There were two reasons for that. One, he was lowest on the totem pole seniority wise and that's where he felt he should sit. Two, it was the best way to see the entire conference table and other's reactions to what would be presented. This would be an excellent way to get to know the rest of the officers on the ship.

“I’m Isabelle Savette, Chief Counsellor,” Isabelle smiled warmly at Jaxom. “Welcome aboard.”

Jaal turned his attention to the new speaker. "Thanks," he smiled back. He wondered if he'd be asked to clarify his one word answer to the first officer. Instead of going back to pretending to read his PADD he gazed around the table readying himself for any more questions.

Finchley entered the room and purposely strode up to his seat at the head of the table. Setting the PADD he had with him down, he looked around the table at those who had already assembled.

"You...Lieutenant Jaxom" he said pointing at Jaal, "Out your seat, sit up here, next to Commander Dex."

This was unexpected. Jaal could feel his face redden a shade. He 'ahemmed' lightly, swallowed and replied, "Aye Sir." He stood and moved to the seat indicated by Captain Kerr.

Once in the chair next to Commander Dex his eyes darted around with trepidation. He wasn't accustom to this kind of attention.

Dex turned towards him and winked.

Jaal only offered back a confused, miserable little smile that said something along the lines of Really?

Kell moved along the corridor slower than her usual gait. Her thoughts ran amok in multiple directions... Isabelle... Dex... bones... Capt Kerr... This mission. It was never boring around this captain, that was for sure, and this new development was...

Kell's thought was interrupted as she sighted the man in question, just ahead of her, turning into the conference with his usual focus. 'Just in time,' she thought to herself. As he turned to head for his customary chair, addressing the new Chief of Operations on his way, she turned slightly the other direction, heading straight for the nearest empty chair. With all eyes on the intrepid captain, she wondered how many even noticed she had arrived...

“Doctor,” Shon greeted her. Still feeling out of sorts she had decided to ask Kell for a stimulant after the meeting.

Kell nodded, not surprised the XO noticed. She looked a bit tense, but the vulcan part of her kept that tightly under wraps so she was sure no one likely noticed, maybe the counselor since she was a betazoid but still, Kell had noticed the XO strove to keep things under control. She decided to follow up with the commander sooner than later after the briefing.

Isabelle offered Kell a warm smile as she sat down, she wasn’t sure how Finchley would take the news about the internal implants she had. No doubt she’d find out.

Kell was almost wishing the counselor did cover up the implants until she could remove them later, she didn't wish her any undue stress so soon after the mission, but then again, she was the counselor, she knew how to handle pressure, and reactions... and no doubt they were probably uncomfortable enough as it is. She smiled back at her warmly as staff continued to arrive.

Isabelle sat back wondering whether her decision not to wear her jacket was a good idea. Picking it up from where she’d put it behind her she put it on to hide away the implants.

"Everyone, this is Lieutenant Jaxom, our new Chief Operations Officer, Lieutenant Jaxom, this is everyone, make him welcome, there, introductions over," Finchley said.

Kell held back the snicker that wanted to come out at the young Chief's stricken gaze. 'He'll learn,' she thought to herself.

"Right, let's get to it. Commander Dex, take everyone through our trip to the 'yard. Right up to the meeting with the second Vorta. I'll take it from there," Finchley said.

“Good morning everybody,” Dex said. The Chin’toka shipyards are still in disrepair, we saw no evidence of re-building although we did not see all the shipyards. We discovered a surgical suite lab that had some evidence of ….” Her voice trailed off as her vision became impaired, like looking down a long tunnel, and she began to perspire. “Errm, the lab looked as though they were conducting experiments on….on.” She began to have a lightening pain in her abdomen..” perfecting the perfect soldier we also discovered…discovered a virus that we later found that just one drop of the compound released in an M class atmosphere will destroy the ….” Her vision began to darken and her legs buckled..she looked towards the doctor. “Help meee,” she whispered as she collapsed her heart stopping.

Kell's eyes narrowed as the XO's voice began to falter. She was tapping on her forearm PADD when Dex started to sway.

Jaal was about to keep Dex from falling our of her chair, with his hands centimeters away he immediately pulled them back when he heard…

"NO ONE TOUCH HER!" Kell yelled as she actually launched across the table, up-ending and bringing her foot around to roughly shove the commander back into her seat so she wouldn't fall all the way to the floor. She held her in place with her boot for a moment while she pulled gloves out from a pouch on her belt and slid them on with practiced ease.

"Captain... Isabelle... is this similar to what happened at the lab?" She asked without looking over at either. The ever-present medical probe appeared in her hand as she watched for any respiratory distress while she scanned, then managed a controlled slide that laid the XO out on the floor.

“Dex never passed out on the planet that I’m aware of” Isabelle looked at Kell. “She did complain of dizziness, plus visual and audio disturbances. I think she was considering the fact that maybe we were infected with two halves of the same virus, as the two didn’t meet it didn’t become the fatal virus it should have.”

Kell nodded, that matched up with Dex's report earlier. She risked a glance as the counselor, "And you're feeling alright at the moment?"

"Fascinating," T'Lira said watching the events unfold.

Jaal was watching curiously, “That is a lot more than just fascinating.”

Finchley looked at T'Lira, he couldn't believe their comment, that would be dealt with at another time, right now, the important thing was to follow what the Doctor required to happen next.

He quickly got up and moved round to where Shon and Kell were and said "What can I do to help Doctor?"

Jaal hazarded a suggestion, "Shouldn't we get her sickbay?" His inexperience was showing, he realized, once the words left his mouth and he felt embarrassed. Being on a starship was a lot different than Utopia Planetia.

"Permission to beam directly to sickbay. They're already prepping for our arrival." Kell said aside to the Captain.

Finchley watched as the Doctor beamed herself and Shon to sickbay. He was obviously concerned for Shon, but knew she would be in the best of care.

Standing up again, he moved back to his seat and said "Ok everyone, settle down, we still have a job to do, I'm sure Doctor Asaa will keep me informed of the Commanders condition and I'll relay that to you all if necessary."

He cleared his throat, "As Commander Dex said, we discovered a lab where we believe experimentation of creating 'super soldiers' were taking place, plus the discovery of a virus, so severe, that a single drop could kill of an entire 'M' class planet...life, vegetation, water supplies, the lot. We also discovered that there were two different factions on the 'yard. One appeared to be a scavenging party, the other, Vorta with Jem'Hadar soldiers alongside. The second one faction is the more dangerous obviously...plus, and this is where it gets more interesting, we've discovered communications between the Vorta and what sounds like a surviving Founder, one that didn't return to 'The Link' at the end of the war. We don't know exactly where they are, but we do know that they're somewhere in the Paulis system. When we set out on this mission, our orders were to follow up on any information that might lead us to conclude that there is indeed truth in the rumour that the Dominion are rebuilding their forces in an attempt to begin another war. With that in mind, we're going to the Paulis system to find out where this Founder is, and how far their plans have got in rebuilding. There's a complication, well, a couple, we're going to be heading into former Dominion held territory, that in itself is going to be hazardous, but there's also information that a civil war 'within' the remaining Dominion groups is going on. We won't have any backup, we won't be able to call on any help, it's just us. Just before I came in here, SFIHQ contacted me to say that this 'is' deemed a 'Black Ops' mission. There's going to be no record of us going to the Paulis system. 'All' of you will have your personnel files have a redacted insert from now, till when or if we return. There's to be no communication with anyone you know, that includes family, friends, loved ones, your cat, dog, budgie or any pet you have off ship, anyone doing so will be placed under arrest and put on the brig. Your careers will be over, and that includes me. I know this will be tough on us all, but we have a duty to perform and I can't reiterate how crucial it is. Are there any questions?"

“No questions Captain” Isabelle shook her head. She was worried about Dex and why she’d relapsed. “We need to find answers, we may need them to help Dex.”

Jaal swallowed hard. He'd never been on black ops mission before. Outwardly he looked calm but inside there was some turmoil. He reminded himself he was an officer in Starfleet and he would have to perform his duties flawlessly and resolved to do just that. And now the fun shall commence, he thought to himself.

Finchley looked around the table, there didn't seem to be anymore questions forthcoming so he rose out of his seat and said "Right, you all know what's required of you and your departments. I don't have to remind you of the seriousness of this mission, a lot is at stake, and we have a responsibility to get things done and done right, dismissed."

 

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