Greetings and Salutations

Posted on Sun Feb 5th, 2023 @ 2:54am by Lieutenant JG Kirral Nagata & Lieutenant Alexis Ryan

Mission: Character Development
Location: Science Department
3438 words - 6.9 OF Standard Post Measure

Kirral's trip from the shuttle bay to her new quarters had been almost as uneventful as the crewman she'd been travelling with was likely having. She might as well have been a new janitor, a simple shift change for all the activity on the ship over the Captain's situation. But she didn't mind. She'd shouldered her bag of personal belongings, and pressed on with only her memory of the ship's schematics to guide her, briefly stopping to query the computer as to her new resting spot's location.

Part of her mind was grumbling, offended even. She had a whole new pip on her uniform, surely someone should recognize that and acknowledge her? But she pushed that growling monster down as she always did. Usually, when she was feeling overly emotional or in a new situation such as this, Kirral turned to those Vulcan methods she'd studied to contain herself. This was not one of those situations where unleashing the energy might get her what she wanted, and so she embraced her inner officer and pushed everything else on her mind to the back to wait in line. She'd hardly taken the time to investigate her quarters before she was once again on her feet and on the move.

"Computer, directions to Lieutenant Ryan's office." With no bag on her arm, neatly bobbed hair covering her ears, she barely got any looks from frantic personnel moving about. That was an odd feeling to say the least, but she wouldn't let that distract her. She moved like a woman with a purpose. A few hallways and a brief trip up a few decks later, she was there. She checked her uniform one last time, her posture, and hit the button to chime the Chief Science Officer while waiting at parade rest outside the door.

"Chief's in the Central Hub." The information, from a helpful Ensign on their way through, held no other indicators of intent or reason. If anything, it sounded like a message that was relayed often, an anticipated redirection that relied on no additional explanation because, apparently, anyone who was anyone would have understood the implications. The junior officer hadn't exactly looked harried, though they had appeared preoccupied, which may have accounted for the lapse in manners, or at the very least a deficiency in awareness.

The Science Department's 'Central Hub' was mostly comprised of the massive display console that dominated the middle of the room. The desk just inside the main doors acted as the first point of contact and served some administerial function, whilst terminals dotted about the room allowed for break-away research, but the room's secondary function was to act as a conduit between the various sub-sections and their allocated office spaces, laboratories and conference rooms. Whilst not a vessel predominantly concerned with scientific endeavour as its first priority, the Athena had a sensor array that alone warranted significant floorspace allocated to its upkeep. Command and Heads of Section offices were slightly removed, with a secondary access that was far more direct, as Nagata had just encountered but one only had to step into the Hub to instantly understand where the heartbeat of the entire Science Division rested. Everything came together in this one space, a convergence of ideas and information and expertise.

It made a more logical choice for leadership to reside, or at least that was Ryan's excuse. Her office was...storage. Mostly.

Currently, the projection that cast a 3-dimensional interpretation of recently logged information on a slow rotation was surrounded at various points by several personnel. In the midst of the discussion, eyes scanning the points of reference currently highlighted, the redheaded Chief had a deep frown on her face but spoke with a typically even tone. "Is there a way to tidy up that noise?" An amplification of the problem zone revealed a blurry, partially-extrapolated representation of what appeared to be a nebula.

Stopping shy of the Vulcan favorite of a raised eyebrow, Kirral's eyes narrowed momentarily, annoyance biting at her nerves somewhere below the surface. But that expression didn't survive long and neither did the feeling. "Thank you, Ensign." A pointed answer came with eyes following behind followed by the rest of the new Astrometrics Officer. The sights were certainly something to take in, and Kirral's mind wasted no time in analyzing what the layout and the use of space said about the staff she'd soon be working for, the Chief she'd be working under.

As she approached the hub and sharp, green eyes took in the central data, Kirral's hands remained folded behind her back while all the gears turned. Pointed ears twitched, threatened to poke out of her hairline, and once she had a solution, she stepped forward. At the Academy, she might have given other cadets the chance to see it first, but this was the fleet, this wasn't some quiz, and Lieutenant Ryan was not just another instructor. "If I may, Ma'am?" Of course she paused after asking, but it was just a period of courtesy, and Kirral stepped up to the console, fingers dancing over the keys while her eyes coordinated with the image above. Fifteen or so seconds passed, and then the image began to sharpen, come together as less 'noise' and more a celestial object. "The Athena's sensor arrays are state-of-the-art, but their sensitivity can be a double-edged sword. Sometimes it is necessary to set stricter filters on incoming data so that the chaff is separated from the wheat, so to speak." A Vulcan may have stood there, expecting nothing in return. A Vulcan she was not, and so Kirral's eyes and courteous smile met those around her before settling on the Chief Science Officer. This, in Kirral's book, was about as effective of an introduction as she could think of, and she looked pleased with the attempt.

There was a distinct lull in the conversation, a silence pervasive enough that it intruded into consultations that weren't even directly contributing to the main point of discussion. In the staff's defense, none of them had been working with the new Chief very long, and had suffered the instability of several short changes in leadership over the past year. Ryan, who was squinting up at the display, was doing her usual trick of giving nothing away whilst simultaneously appearing absolutely oblivious to any preconceived expectations of her behaviour. Some of the more hesitant junior officers were prone to wonder if Ryan just didn't pay attention, and it almost seemed as if she hadn't noticed at first that the solution had come from a veritable stranger that none of them could name. The more seasoned officers simply stood back and allowed the Chief time to process.

Eventually, Alex screwed up her nose.

"Unfortunately, a clearer image of nothing-helpful is still unhelpful. Not really a surprise, there was a reason they sent Avalon into that nebula."

It had been a long shot, the other vessel's superior sensor suite, despite being a top-security prototype, outmatched Athena's by a considerable amount. Ryan had spent enough time retrieving the data to have a thousand images slowly degrading in integrity bouncing around her memory and no corroborating evidence to refer to to assist with permanent recall. Not that she was meant to remember any of it. It was just a far better distraction than everything else that was going on.

"Archive it," she gave the order to the Lieutenant standing directly across from her. It was time to finish her final report and put the last mission to bed, at least for now. As the order was met with a single nod, Alex turned finally to face the newcomer and scrutinised her carefully.

The Chief's demeanour was enigmatic in several ways, a similar casual and task-driven focus having peppered most of her interactions since arriving. Ryan wasn't unfriendly, that was the first confusion. Very focused on whatever she was doing, efficient, liable to fixate, and yet she appeared to have a sense of humour and wasn't particularly big on throwing her weight around. The staff hadn't been able to unearth any lack of confidence either and yet most of them had never felt so consulted, so listened to, even if the eventual decision didn't fully support their recommendations. For a group of scientists who had come to expect instability, the Lieutenant's level-headed willingness to be there had thrown them entirely for a loop.

Alex permitted her newest officer a faint smile. "Welcome aboard, Lieutenant."

Kirral's processing of the situation as things unfolded... unexpectedly seemed to take her aback, if not noticeably so, all the luckier for her. A simple fix to a problem that hadn't really existed, eager new officer offering help that was not needed. She'd have to remind herself later of the fine line that enthusiasm presented in such situations, temper it. Her jaw tightened, her eyes tried to find anywhere else to be while she regained her composure and redoubled her efforts to look presentable, useful rather than just another blue shirt to decorate the area like a new potted plant in a greenhouse.

Thankfully, this sort of personal awkwardness and miscalculation was something she was used to, one side of her assured that she was in the right no matter what, the other in constant doubt and fumbling over the slightest imperfection. But she had learned to take it all in stride, readjust, compose herself anew and keep on moving. Her hands renewed their folded position at her back, and she watched Lt Ryan finally size her up on her own. The others dispersed, incident done and brushed aside. She looked back, chin held high. Pride, maybe? Neither half of her was a stranger to those feelings. But one thing was certain; she was not anxious or afraid of the scrutiny. She welcomed it, in fact.

"Lieutenant Junior Grade Kirral Nagata, ma'am. Reporting for duty as the Athena's new Astrometrics Officer. I wanted to check in with you, first and foremost." She stopped herself there, smile given in return as more of a mirror to gauge her new Chief's reaction than anything else. A statement of facts, context left off intentionally to let Lt. Ryan draw her own conclusions. And besides, Kirral felt more might have been taken as brown-nosing, and that was one behavior she absolutely loathed in others and always strove to avoid herself.

Gesturing to the now-dormant display, Ryan remarked, "Well, your timing is immaculate, it's just a shame we didn't have better base data for you to work with." A nod towards the crewman at the front desk conveyed some sort of message that didn't require verbalisation, and then Alexis gestured towards one of the many doors leading from the hub as an offer for the new arrival to fall into step with her. "Have you been on board long?"

The compliment did more to inflate Kirral's mood than she would have ever publicly admitted, that bit of extra puff in her straight posture making sure she stood at her full 5'10", not a worry in the world despite being in a new environment and surrounded by looks that by all rights should be judging her every step. "Apparently not immaculate then, ma'am? I can certainly take a closer look once I am officially on duty if you wish." She followed along at a practiced distance, just behind and to the right of the Chief Science Officer, settling into the proper pace with relative ease. "Only just arrived by shuttle with another crewman for Engineering. I thought it prudent to report as soon as possible, given the ship is currently on mission."

"Unfortunately, this time we were just parked a little too far away and fending off interference that proved too much to mitigate." Romulans counted. Ryan was content that Bailey had done her level best to grab what was possible, and if anything they were lucky to have the data they did. It wasn't a region of space any of them were in a hurry to return to. Leading the way down a short corridor, Alex flexed her shoulders back until there was an audible 'pop' and considered the progress of a simulation being run in one of the labs as they continued on. "As for the mission, I think it should provide you plenty of opportunity to settle in." The Lieutenant's tone was dry, and the implication that sat between the lines was that there wasn't going to be a lot for Science to do directly, at least not from how the orders read. "Is there anything about your workspace you're particular about? We're still moving a few things around, there's probably some capacity to accommodate special requests."

Kirral's posture stayed remarkably straight through their tour, her eyes only ever briefly on the Lieutenant's back. There was so much workspace to map out, to be curious over. Seeing the schematics for a generic Prometheus-class were one thing, but getting to the know the unique eccentricities of the Athena and its workspaces and people would be key to her success moving forward. "Lieutenant, have you read my file as of yet? I could explain my assignment and research in greater detail if you have not. Suffice it to say, I do not believe I will need any special accommodations at present. I will be doing extensive work with the sensor arrays and will need to coordinate with Engineering eventually to study our warp core for inclusion in my calculations. Any aid in making those connections would be most helpful."

"I've read your research," Ryan confirmed, despite it actually being far different to what the younger woman had asked. It wasn't a confirmation of having understood all of it, and Alex would have been the first to outline exactly where her expertise in the field ran dry, but it was the first hint of a particular brand of transparency that the rest of the Department were still trying to come to grips with. They certainly felt lead, there was just not much of a sensation of being commanded. "Engineering has just undergone a change of leadership, so it might be wise to prod that direction ourselves rather than wait for them to follow up on the contact alert I placed on your file." Turning sideways inside a doorway to usher Kirral in first, Alex regarded the other woman with raised eyebrows; a query more than a judgement. "I can come with you but it's not a requirement. I've already lodged Departmental approval for you to speak on behalf of Astrometrics." With a faint smile, Ryan nodded towards the room beyond. "It's all yours."

There was no small amount of prideful readjustment of her stance when her new CSO mentioned that she'd read Kirral's research. That was good, that was great in fact. It meant any scrutiny she could deal with upfront, but Lt Ryan's tone and mannerisms spoke volumes to Kirral when she said it. She'd read it, but had no serious concerns. The younger officer offered a smile and a slight bow of her head. "That means a lot, Lieutenant. If there is a new Chief Engineer, then I will take the initiative as you suggest, but I thank you for the alert.

Kirral waited for the invitation into the room, catching that look. She waited until she had moved inside and found herself a good spot to stand until instructed otherwise to speak again. "That will not be necessary, Lieutenant, but I again thank you for your open support." It was only then that she realized this was her office now. Astrometrics. She slid behind the desk present like a child unwrapping a Christmas president, hand tracing along the edge. She'd had her workspaces back on the Zenith, sure, but it had been a small ship with a crew used to sharing everything, even bunks during shift changes. Her own office though... that smile she gave Alexis was above and beyond what her previous reservations might have suggested was even possible. "I will not disappoint, ma'am. My duties to the ship will always come first, and then my research. I very much look forward to working with you and the rest of the crew."

"You've joined us at a time of upheaval, Lieutenant. Hopefully not the unpleasant kind but there are shifts happening within the Department and adjustments underway to draw us back into a functioning unit. You may still encounter some remnants of fractured practise." It was the most significant thing Ryan was trying to combat; the segmentation of her Department into its sub-categories, with inefficient collaboration to unite under a common banner. She understood the necessity at the time, unstable leadership left no conduit for cooperation, but it couldn't remain that way. "But our goal is to work collectively and make the most of the resources we have, even when the focus may be on Athena's offensive capabilities."

The Chief looked her newest recruit directly in the eye.

"Nobody here should feel like they have to do everything on their own."

Kirral was aware of the circumstances of the ship's current upheaval, but she was not so callous or morbidly curious to give into questions and rumors. Captain Kane's guilt was not hers to decide or even begin to ponder on, and until such time as it was proven otherwise, she felt it imperative she treat all of the crew of the Athena with the trust and respect due all Starfleet personnel. So she didn't pry, she simply nodded, allowed her new Chief to run things as she saw fit. If this was the course she wanted to take, Kirral would fall in line. One of the many similarities she'd found in studying Romulan culture and her own Human one on Earth; the concept of filial piety meant a great deal to her, and just because the Athena and her crew were not yet known, did not mean they were not her peers, her family in this context. "I understand completely, Chief. Anything I can do to help in this course, you need only ask. I will make it a top priority to get to know the rest of the science department and foster cohesion where I can. No... playing cowgirl, so to speak." Had she gotten that right? Close enough. Despite being by what was now her own chair, Kirral did not sit yet, instead choosing to remain standing and properly addressing her superior officer.

The sentiment earned the younger woman a smile, though there were layers of fatigue and weariness to Ryan's expression that spoke clearly enough of the strain of trying to promote 'business as usual' in a climate where nothing was as it should be. "I'll leave you to get settled in," she concluded, pushing up from the doorframe where she had slouched for a minute to spare her back. She'd been on her feet for almost a full shift. "And you know where to find me when my office is empty." With a parting nod, the Science Chief left the Astrometrics lab in what she anticipated would be the capable hands of someone who actually knew what to do with it.

"Very good, Lieutenant. Thank you again for taking the time to bring me in. And might I suggest you find some time to get some rest when you are able?" The request was as it should be, a well-meaning suggestion with concern in the younger officer's voice. Were the roles reversed, it might have been a politely given order, but as it was, it came with a smile and another bow of the head.

Finally left to herself, Kirral let herself fall into the seat behind the desk. Her desk. It was the first time she'd taken to herself since leaving the Zenith, and that thought quickly caught up with her. But it wasn't quite yet time to relax. She set to work getting her work terminal set up just as she wanted it, linking all of her work to her personal datapad. Once she had those familiar tethers to keep her occupied while she unpacked her things or just cleaned herself up in her quarters, only then would she allow herself a bit of respite. No matter the state of the Athena now, Kirral was determined, new officer or not, to do her part to make it a ship and crew Starfleet could be proud of.