When Finn Met Fenn

Posted on Wed Apr 28th, 2021 @ 12:00am by Ensign Kateyo Fenn & Lieutenant Commander Finnley Keating VII

Mission: By Artemis' Bow
Location: Main Engineering
2019 words - 4 OF Standard Post Measure

Kateyo was late, again. It really wasn't his fault, not that anything was. His roommate wouldn't get out of the sonic shower, then there was a queue for the replicators, and everyone knew that breakfast was the most important meal of the day, right? Teyo had mentioned this to a Commander once when he had been late for his shift on the Venture. The First Officer either didn't agree or wasn't in the mood to be lectured about nutritional values by an ensign, an engineering ensign at that, but he had been in the Commander's bad books for months after that. Teyo had even tried to get a medical note from the CMO backing up his claim so that he could show Commander No Personality, but the doctor had laughed so hard he needed to inject himself with a hypospray so that he could breathe again, some people. Long story short, he never did get the note.

Kateyo finally reached main engineering, 20 minutes after his shift had started. He looked around the room and everyone seemed preoccupied with their own duties to mind what the new ensign was up to. He let out a little sign and headed for the nearest station trying to make himself look busy and as though he had been there all along, when he heard someone approach him from behind.

Finnley had been tapping her fingers impatiently for the past ten minutes inside her office. Although she always kept busy reviewing reports, Finn kept looking at the clock, watching it tick farther and farther past her scheduled meeting time with the newest engineering officer. Most officers were punctual, a characteristic which she appreciated in her fellow coworkers. Perhaps he had just forgotten? Finn wondered as she pushed away from her desk to search for the missing Ensign.

"Ensign Fenn?" The CEO inquired of a man that seemed to match the profile picture on the report she had read earlier this morning. "You were supposed to meet me in my office twenty minutes ago. Did you just get too carried away with...." She looked at the console which the Ensign was typing into. "A testing simulation of the waste management system?" Finn asked with a raised eyebrow.

Teyo tried to hide he look of surprise on his face, of all the stations to log into, waste management? Really? Damn. "You know what they say, a ship can't operate without an effective waste management system," he said with a slight smirk. Then he remembered her other statement, he was late for their meeting? He wasn't aware he even had a meeting to be late to. "Sorry, I didn't realise we had a meeting scheduled for today, but I'm here now, this can wait," he added as he pressed a few buttons on the screen and the console went dark.

Finnley almost couldn't help but smile as Teyo closed the obviously useless simulation. He was confident and a charmer, she had to give him that much for sure. "Oh, well I'm glad it can wait. Shall we?" She motioned towards her office.

"Please, have a seat," Finn motioned towards a chair as they entered the sparse workspace. "Can I get you anything to drink?" She asked as she made a stop by the replicator in her office.

Teyo followed the beautiful blonde into her office and took a seat. "Is it too early to ask for a beer?" He asked hopefully. "Or morning bump as I like to call it."

"A water then. Got it," Finn replicated two glasses of water and set one down for him on the table. She hoped that he had been joking, but based on his tardiness and the simulation he was running when she finally tracked him down, she wasn't sure. "So tell me about your last posting on the USS Venture. What made you want to leave and give the Athena a shot?" She asked, already wondering if he might want a transfer back.

Teyo took the glass and smiled, "thanks." He took a sip and placed it back on the desk as he tried to think on how to answer her question. She didn't come across as too serious, like his last commanding officer, but he was sure she had a line, the question was, did he want to find out how far it stretched? "The truth, me and Commander Rekk didn't really see eye to eye, it got to the point where I couldn't sneeze without being threatened with a formal reprimand. It wasn't a nice atmosphere to work in, so when I saw the Athena was looking for a junior engineer I jumped at the chance, and he was more than happy to authorise the transfer." Teyo wasn't sure how much she knew with his dealings with Rekk, but at least he had this opportunity to get his side of the story across.

Although she hadn't experienced him firsthand, she had heard about Rekk. He had a reputation for being an unyielding hardass. In some ways, what she had heard of him reminded Finn of her own father. At least her father had a kindhearted streak, something she had never heard of when Rekk's name was thrown around. "I see. Well, I've never dealt with Rekk personally, but I've heard some stories. I did see his complaints in your profile. Mostly speaking to tardiness and unprofessionalism." She paused for a moment. However, you have a clean slate as far as I'm concerned. Whatever your previous quarrels, I won't hold it against you. Everyone deserves a chance to prove themselves on a new ship." Finn said honestly. Although Teyo hadn't made the best impression so far, everyone deserved a second chance.

"That said, I expect a lot from my engineers." Finn raised an eyebrow slightly, indicating that she would be watching and that it wouldn't just be easy sort of slide under the radar type job. "In addition to the regular expectations such as showing up on time for your shift, I expect my personnel to have a keen eye for detail. I also value their opinion and expect reports that list both problems and suggested solutions. I also look highly on those that can find ways to improve the ship's systems or streamline processes to make them more efficient." She looked directly at Teyo. "Is that something you think you can handle?"

Lieutenant Keating was definitely marking his cards, she may be willing to give him a clean slate during his time on the Athena but she was making it clear to him that regardless of her personal feelings towards Rekk or his reputation, she wasn't going to stand for any nonsense here. Teyo understood, he had heard this speech enough times in his life to know when to nod and when to say 'yes Sir/Ma'am'. He knew he was getting a reputation for himself, and he did care, he just didn't care enough to kiss ass or change who he was. There was an unwritten law during the academy that cadets need to change, to conform, to the will of Starfleet. Teyo had never believed in that practise. The Federation was all about bringing people together and working in unity despite their differences and backgrounds, so why should Starfleet be any different? Why do they get a pass?

"Can I be frank Sir," Teyo asked. "I have zero issues with having a keen eye for detail, or coming up with solutions, or even being a team player," he said once he had been given the go ahead by the Lieutenant. "But if I'm being honest, I'm a smart guy, that's not me being vain it's just the truth. And when I try and help out the older officers dismiss me because I'm only an Ensign and I get given the grunt work. I don't want special treatment, but I also don't want to be treated like a child, like I don't know anything because of my rank. I'm happy to put in the work if you're happy to take me seriously?"

Finn smiled, she knew his struggle all too well. How many ships had she served on where she was given menial tasks, like scrubbing plasma conduits? Worse, it was always just because she was the low man on the totem pole, rarely based on skill. "I take everyone on my team seriously. You know, my right-hand man is an Ensign actually, Ensign Paxton." She paused for a second to let that sink. Sure he was a lower rank and was sometimes reserved, but he had shown his dedication and hard work, and his engineering mind was rivaled by only a handful of others in the department.

"I understand where you're coming from. Maybe I just haven't been in the CEO chair long enough to have forgotten what it was like, but ever since I was in your shoes, I vowed to never run a department that way. Here you'll be judged by your work, not rank," she said truthfully and with conviction. "Don't get me wrong, the chain of command still applies and you'll be expected to follow orders. And I should note that we all have to do the grunt work here and there. It's not fun all of the time," Finn warned. Truth be told even she had drawn the short straw on purging the impulse manifolds last. "However, I like to think that the team here is welcoming and the majority of them are excellent mentors. They'll listen to your suggestions, as will I, and we'll expect you to do the same. Seem fair enough to you?" She asked as she leaned forward on the desk with an inquiring brow.

As she leaned forward Teyo couldn't help but get lost in the depth of her eyes. In any given situation he would have made a move, if you didn't ask you didn't get, right? But this didn't feel like one of those moments, and even he knew where the line was, sometimes. "That sounds fair," he said. "But don't expect me not to complain from time to time," he added with a grin.

"As long as you get your work done while you complain, that's fine me with," Finn retorted with a smirk. "You should already have access to duty shift schedules. Work is assigned on various intervals depending on the project. If you have questions or if you find any of the 'older engineers' aren't using you to your full potential just come and find me." With that, she stood and extended her hand. "Welcome aboard Ensign, glad to have you on the team."

Teyo took her hand and shook it. It was going to be an interesting ship and assignment, he wasn't sure he was ready for the Athena but he was completely sure they were not ready for him. "Thank you Lieutenant," he said. He made his way to the door, stopped and turned. "Do you have any objections with going for drinks with junior officers?"

"Drinks?" Finn thought for a moment, it was an odd request for their first meeting. Though maybe she shouldn't be surprised based on his request for a beer in her office. She assumed he'd meant as a friend. A romantic relationship was out of the question for anyone in her own department, but she'd had drinks before with Paxton and other people whom she had come to count as friends within engineering. "No, I don't have any objections to drinks with friends. Regardless of rank." She answered.

Friendzoned. Ouch. Not that Teyo minded too much, someone as beautiful as Finn probably had drink requests all the time. Anyways, all the best romances started out as two people who were friends first, and he didn't mind playing the long game, at the very least he'd get to see what she was like on a night out. "I'll drop an invite to your calendar, look out for it. And please be punctual, I hate tardiness," he added with a smile and he left the room before she had a chance to change her mind.