The Call of the Warp Core

Posted on Sat Jul 6th, 2019 @ 11:28pm by Captain Abigail Laurens

Mission: Getting To Know You
Location: Main Engineering - USS Astraea

Engineering had always been a location that fascinated Abigail. The colours, the movement, the noise, it always seemed so hands on, so involved, a far cry from what she had been used to in Security. That said, she was definitely glad she opted to be a little less hands on, but none the less, standing there now, in the Engineering department of her own ship, watching the colours swirl and flow within the containment field, listening to the soft, barely audible hum that it made, Abigail couldn't help but feel relaxed, so relaxed she was completely oblivious to the fact that the Chief Engineering Officer had walked in behind her and was now watching her with some level of amusement on his face.

With a smile on his face he walked up to the woman staring at the colors in the containment field, "She's pretty isn't she?" he asked knowing how mesmerized the woman must be. "Hard to believe that something that beautiful, could be so deadly, it's like look into the heart of a dragon. The heart of the Astraea is good one," Hans said thoughtfully.

"Yet in the right hands, she creates miracles," Abigail turned, casting a glance over the newcomer who had spoken to her. "I guess you're the one I'm entrusting the heart of my baby to?"

"Yes Madam Captain, I am Lieutenant Tudor, but my friends call me Hans" he said politely. "Were you an engineer Captain?"

Abigail shook her head. "Gods no, I couldn't keep one of these functioning if i tried... I've just always loved the call of the warp core," she said with a smile, finally tearing herself away. "How are we looking for launch? Everything in good shape and ready to go?"

"I believe we are, everything looks good. The maintenance logs are in order and up to date. I believe we should have a fairly uneventful launch when we leave port tomorrow.. It's one of the better looking engineering departments I've been, though I do think with a little tinkering we squeeze an extra .5 out of these engines.," Hans said excitedly.

"Just remember, you break her and I'll have your head," Abigail cautioned with a smile, though it wasn't entirely clear how much of words was to be taken seriously and how much was just joking around.

Hans laughed cautiously, not really sure quite how she meant that last comment, "Aye Captain," he said simply. "I will do my best to ensure that she does not break, a lady never likes having her heart broken."

"How are you finding your department?" Abigail asked. "Any issues with crew that you see coming up?"


"It's a bit premature to answer that honestly, I came aboard this morning, and immediately began the pre-launch engine procedure checks. It's usually handled by the ACEO but I prefer to do them myself especially after a refit. I'e met some of the team tomorrow and plan on having a departmental meeting over lunch, something less formal more of a meet and greet. Do you know when we will be launching Captain?"

Abigail smiled. "Actually, our orders just came down this afternoon, so I expect we'll be departing within the next 48 hours at most. We're just waiting on a few final checks and balances and for our guests to be coming aboard."

"We will be ready to launch ma'am, do we have an idea yet of where we will be heading?" Hans asked inquisitively.

"Trion 8, we'll be returning some delegates to their homeworld so it should be a very straight forward job, just get them there, drop them off and leave again. Starfleet Taxi Service seems like such a suitable use of our time and equipment after all," Abigail smirked.

"Ahh yes the needs of Starfleet outweigh the needs of her people or her mission," Hans teased. "I've not been to Trion 8 before so I will definitely do a little research when I get a chance."

"We won't be going to the colony," Abigail explained with a smile. "It's safer for all of us if we don't. Once we're in orbit we'll transport them down and leave."

"Ahh just a drop off then, still it doesn't hurt to be familiar with the system. Have you had any issues or problems since coming aboard Captain? No faulty lights or replicators," Hans asked just to make sure there were no issues.

"No, nothing specific, but while I do have you here, I want some modifications made to my quarters, can I get a list to you and have them taken care of?" she asked hopefully. "Nothing major, mostly just a change of downlights, a couple of lamps I want tied into the environmentals and maybe one or two other things."

"Sure thing, just give me a sec to jot all of that down," Hans said as he picked up a Padd and quickly made notes on the Captain's request. "We can get right on this it may be a couple of days though, since we're focused on launch prep down here; but as soon as we are safely underway you will be our first priority ma'am."

"That's perfectly fine, I'm more than happy to wait, it'll give me time to see if I can think of anything else," she said with a smile. "Thank you for your time Lieutenant, and your indulgences, but I won't bother you any more. If you need anything though, just give me a shout okay?"

“Understood Captain, I will see you around. Thanks for coming down here.” Hans saved his notes on the Padd and continued the checklist to verify everything was ready for launch.

With a nod, Abigail turned away from the warpcore, heading out of engineering to make her way back up to the bridge. She still had a lot to do before they could depart.

=/\=

Commander Abigail Laurens
Commanding Officer
USS Astraea

&

Lieutenant Hanson Tudor
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Astraea