The Call

Posted on Wed May 12th, 2010 @ 12:43pm by Vice Admiral Iluvar

Mission: Episode 1.2 - "A House Divided"
Location: Main Bridge, USS Intrepid
Timeline: MD15, 0900

ON: [[Main Bridge, USS Intrepid, MD15, 0900]]

Kelsey (NPC) uncrossed her legs, stretching slightly as she did so. She glanced at the display between herself and the empty chair she normally occupied to check the ship’s chronometer. They still had three hours before the next shift change, which meant three more hours of reviewing scans of the Neutral Zone.

Sighing, she rose to her feet and took a few steps forward so that she could lean against the railing that separated the main level of the bridge from the lower area where one of the Intrepid’s flight control officers sat monitoring the curved console that was the ship’s helm. The young man glanced over his shoulder when he sensed the Kelsey’s presence, but she just gave him a reassuring smile which he returned before going back to whatever task he had been working on.

The faint background hum of the Intrepid’s impulse engines and the occasional chirp of the various bridge workstations were about the only thing that could be heard. It was yet another reminder of just how long they had been on patrol. The captain seemed in better spirits, now that they were back in the field and Kelsey figured that if it made him happy, she could do her best to get the most out of it.

[[Ready Room, USS Intrepid]]

Ben lifted a single PADD from his desk and surveyed its contents. Despite the apparent lack of activity on the border in the past two weeks or so, he couldn’t help but feel a little freer out here than he had on Cestus III. It had been an honor to be serve as the executive officer of the 11th Fleet, but when it came down to it, Ben had realized that he wasn’t comfortable behind a desk, even if that desk was on the frontier of the Federation.

So far, the crew seemed to be handling the assignment quite well. Ben knew that some of the younger officers were probably wishing that they had been assigned to some exciting mission of exploration, and he couldn’t really blame them. He also knew that border patrol was a necessary, if undesirable part of Starfleet’s mission. There were those at Starfleet Command who were becoming concerned about the level of internal strife going on within the Romulan Empire and Ben could see why it would be in their interests to have a tested vessel and an experienced crew keeping an eye on things.

His thoughts were interrupted by the chirp of his desktop terminal as it came to life with the familiar Starfleet emblem before being replaced by the stern face of Admiral Blackwell. In the time that the Intrepid had been operating along the Romulan Neutral Zone, Ben had gotten used to interacting with her on more than one occasion.

“Admiral,” he said with a slight smile as he lowered the PADD, “What a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t expecting to hear from you until the weekly report.”

=^= Charming as always, captain =^= she replied, clearly not in the mood for their usual banter. Based on the tone of her voice and the fact that her demeanor didn’t seem to soften at the remark, Ben figured that there must be something going on. Whether she would be telling him about it remained to be seen. She shifted slightly in her chair before continuing =^= I’ve just spoken with Admiral Tarcek of the Romulan Star Empire. One of their warbirds, the Seras, was supposed to rendezvous with the USS Pandora to escort her on a tour of the border defenses near the Elyshan Empire. Apparently, the Pandora failed to appear at the designated rendezvous coordinates as scheduled. =^=

Ben frowned. He didn’t know the Pandora all that well, nor was personally familiar with her captain, though he had heard something of the man’s reputation. The fact that the Pandora had not arrived at the rendezvous could just have been a mere delay or it could have been something more serious. “You want us to swing by and check up on them,” Ben deduced from the admiral’s short explanation.

=^= You are the closest vessel to their location =^= Blackwell replied with a sharp look =^= I understand that the de Gaulle is also operating in that region. If you feel it necessary… =^=

“I’m sure there’s a reasonable explanation, admiral,” Ben interjected, “The Romulans are our allies and they are the ones who invited us.” He paused a moment to glance toward the most recent patrol report laying on his desk and sighed. Turning his attention back toward the monitor, he added, “We’ll swing by and take a look. I’m sure it’s nothing, but it never hurts to be certain.”

=^= Better safe than sorry, captain =^= Blackwell said. A moment later, she vanished from the screen and the display went dark. Ben leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh. It was true what they said, to be careful what you wish for…you just might get it. Well, here they were, a little excitement on their docket for the day.

“Edwards to the bridge,” Ben called, tapping his commbadge.

=^= Bridge here, captain =^= Kelsey’s voice replied =^= A bit early for a status report, isn’t it sir? =^= A small smile crossed the man’s face as he admired the woman’s wit. In her own small way, she was trying to make light of the monotony of the day.

“Perhaps,” he said, “adjust our heading to course three-zero mark eight, warp three.”

=^= Planning a little sightseeing =^= Kelsey asked.

“Just think of it as a change of pace,” Ben replied, “Alert me when we have arrived at the following coordinates.” He tapped the sequence into the control panel on the surface of his desk and transmitted it to the bridge station. A moment later, the stars outside the large viewports of his ready room shifted as the Intrepid altered its heading. He watched the stars blur until they became streaks of light, racing past at warp speeds. Hopefully he was correct and their concern would prove to be premature.

OFF

A JP by

Captain Benjamin Edwards (NPC)
Commanding Officer
USS Intrepid
Played by: RAdm Iluvar

Commander Kelsey Peters (NPC)
Executive Officer
USS Intrepid
Played by: RAdm Iluvar

And

Vice Admiral Margaret Blackwell (NPC)
Starfleet Fleet Operations
Deep Space 4
Played by: RAdm Iluvar