A Disaster From The Bridge

Posted on Mon Nov 15th, 2021 @ 4:56am by Captain Calypso Skyie & Lieutenant JG Jenna Jade & Lieutenant JG Faith Vianelli & Master Chief Petty Officer Samuel Ross

Mission: The Dexic Negotiations
Location: Bridge

The viewscreen was on and getting the feed from the shuttle bay as the Dexician shuttle landed. Most of the senior officers left on the ship were up there, waiting for the initial ceremony to conclude so the reception could begin.

Jenna wasn't one of the senior officers, but she was still on the bridge as the duty engineering officer. It sure looked boring, but she stifled a giggle from when she saw the Captain and Ambassador do what almost looked like a little dance with their hands.

Faith sat in one of the seats on the bridge, really unsure as to why she was there other than the fact that she had no where else to be. More than ever she felt like a little girl dressed in Daddy's uniform, playing dress ups. Still, she remained silent, watching, waiting.

There was a movement among the three security Dexicians from the Dorje contingent before guns were suddenly in view and bright spots of flame erupted from the chemical fueled weapons and bodies began to fall, including both of the Dexician envoys, the Federation Ambassador... And the Captain.

Yellow alert lights began to flash throughout the ship as the computer sensed the weapons fire and automatically increased the alert level.

Faith glanced back across the bridge uncertainly. "What's going on?" she asked. "What's happening?" Her voice was filled with every ounce of uncertainty she felt.

Jenna watched the screen, unable to look away. She was frozen as the leadership of the ship fell, as the dead mounted. The Captain... She had to be dead. She opened her mouth and shut it again.

It was only about twenty seconds of a firefight, they were in close quarters and few shots missed. The back and forth shooting stopped, two of the Federation honor guard moving forward when the screen nearly overloaded as the rearmost Dexician shuttle exploded. Fortunately, it was far enough away that while the flames reached many of the downed bodies, it didn't actually look too bad.

"Oh Christ..." Jenna gasped as several lights on her panel changed and she automatically reported them, "Fire in the shuttlebay, moderate damage detected, damage control teams en route already." She looked up at the center of the bridge where Faith was in her dress uniform, "Ma'am, what are your orders?"

There was a solid minute before Faith realised that Jenna was addressing her. She turned toward Jenna eyes wide and uncertain. "Me?" she asked. "Why are you asking me? I..." She looked back toward the front of the bridge. "I'm not Command..." she whispered, feeling anxiety welling within her.

The Ensigns at the Helm and Operations stations, even the one at Tactical all looked at her, quiet, shocked, waiting. It was Jenna that spoke for them, apparently. She looked around herself, "Ma'am, with Lieutenants Vallery and Wayne on the ground, Lieutenant Syrial is goin' to be needed in sickbay and Lieutenant Maurnier for damage control and and and the Captain and Exec..." She swallowed hard, "Dead... You're in command of Chimera." All she could think of was 'Thank God it's not me.'

In the back corner, Gabrielle sat, watching, observing. She was dismayed by what had happened, but she had no standing here. She mouthed the words, 'Be confident, be decisive." towards Faith.

Faith looked back at Jenna, eyes wide. "Command?" her voice echoed every amount of uncertainty that she felt. She couldn't be in command. Command took extensive additional study. It took being an officer in the first place. She glanced around, eyes widening. She could feel her chest tightening and her palms starting to sweat.

"Alright... so..." She paused, taking a deep breath. What are our options?" she finally asked, opening it up to the rest of the bridge staff.

"Ah've got damage control teams already movin' in towards the shuttle bay." Jenna reminded her.

The helmsman spoke up next, "We're in a solid orbit, ma'am, the explosion didn't affect it at all."

Operations was next, "We don't have any systems out, Lieutenant, no computer disruption, some minor power fluctuations, but nothing concerning."

"No intruders still active, ma'am." The Security officer sounded off, "Security teams are entering the scene now." He pointed at the screen where two teams, one of security personnel, the other of marines doing a sweep of the shuttlebay, gathering weapons from the fallen.

Jenna looked nervous as well, sweat beading on her forehead that she finally had to reach up and wipe off. "Ah, um... God, ma'am, Ah've got no clue... Maybe... What about our away teams, ma'am?"

From the corner, Gabrielle Kennedy brought herself to her feet and made her way over to the seat next to Faith, "Just remember, do what you feel is in the best interests of the ship and crew, Lieutenant." She said firmly as she sat next to the young counselor. Tradition of observing be damned. "It will all sort its way out in the end."

The turbolift doors opened and Sam came rushing onto the bridge, an intense expression on his face. He glanced at the screen before looking about at the officers and crew present on the bridge. Most were cadets or junior officers with Faith as the ranking bridge officer at the moment. He stepped over to the Mission Ops console and brought the initial casualty and damage assessment on screen. He turned to Faith. "Your orders Lieutenant."

Faith stood on the bridge, aware of every set of eyes on her. She could feel her hands shaking and clasped them behind her back firmly. 'Your orders Lieutenant' - Sam's voice echoed in her mind, each repetition sounding more urgent than the last. She hadn't done command training, she wasn't prepared for this, but these decisions were falling on her shoulders, and she had to make decisions that could ultimately impact the lives of everyone on the ship. The only thing that felt more overwhelming than this was the day she was left in control of the entire two year old playgroup while the other mothers that were supposed to be helping her went for coffee. If she could herd ten two year olds for two hours and survive the great sippy cup war she could get through this.

Turning toward Sam, she cast him a cautionary glance. "Don't push me or I'll put you in time out," she warned before she looked back at the screen. "Operations, scan the surface, try and find Lieutenant Vallery and his team. We need to know where they are. Use transporters and bring Lieutenant Wayne and his away team back. Have a security detail meet them in the transporter room, just in case. As soon as they're back, take the ship to red alert and make sure shields are up. Lock down all secure areas including medical, engineering and sciences and have security stationed at each location." She drew in a deep breath as she stepped backward, sinking into the center chair, hands moving to grip the arm rests tightly. "And when this is all over, the purple sippy cup is mine," she muttered quietly.