Stardate: 2365.03.28
USS George Washington Carver, Deck 2 - Stark's Quarters, 2045

Lieutenant Thomas Stark swore violently as the replicator finished the stew he had ordered - but did so in an upside down bowl.  Oh, sure - the joes back on the USS Choctaw acted like he had gotten some enviable posting aboard a prototype vessel, but the reservations Tom had felt seemed to have been well founded; so far, little oddball instances like this were far too commonplace.  The Chief Tactical Officer did his best to dab up the mess as he ordered the computer to recycle the contents.  Hopefully, that ozone smell didn't indicate any serious electrical damage...

The incoming message indicator wouldn't be ignored any longer, so Tom opened the missive.  Commander Cole wanted what amounted to a joint threat assessment report with Engineering and Science.  That was well and good, and made plenty of sense.  But how, exactly, did the Commander expect a joint effort to be completed in time for a morning staff meeting when he made the effing request the NIGHT before? 

Safe in the confines of his own cabin, Tom unleashed a litany of curses directed at the request itself, officers in general, and Commander Cole the Hinge in particular.   It didn't matter where in the Fleet one found themselves, BOHICA was simply going to be the standard order of the day from the Cake Eaters. 

Somewhere in the middle of his tirade, Tom found himself chuckling at the absurdity of railing against the Cake Eaters, considering that he was one, himself... had been now for three years.  Fifteen years of good service enlisted in Starfleet, all the way to rating as Senior Chief, only to start over as a damn Ensign after he'd bought into the nonsense that the CTO and Captain of the USS Jericho had been selling. 

But at least he hadn't been a true Zero.  With the real world experience he brought to the table, Tom had been far more useful than some hotshot Academy grad.  He had the skills, he had the know how; now, he enjoyed a bigger cabin, a bigger paycheck, and a place significantly higher up the food chain than he had ever known.  Hell, he might curse the replicator, but it hadn't been that long ago that he'd have had to hoof it to the Crew Mess to get chow... let alone be able to enjoy it in his own private quarters.  So, all told, Tom had a good life. 

Even if he was stuck on a Science and Survey boat, where the most action he'd likely see would be from someone tripping over their equipment or leaving some pencil neck device on for too long.  Ah, well.  It definitely beat drilling the Menden rock for the next twenty years, that was for sure.

So he grabbed a PADD and started a response. 

Commander Cole,

I am already working on some threat assessments and contingency plans, as well as considerations for proper security of our survey and scientific teams, and for our vessel in general.  I will be happy to put together the joint report that you are requesting, but I must regretfully bring to your attention the fact that there simply will not be enough time to complete the requested report prior to the morning's staff meeting unless you choose to order Lieutenants McGinty and Wilhelm to put in some late hours tonight. 

Would it be acceptable if I were to present a few bullet points in the morning, and to coordinate with Engineering and Science as a take away assignment after?  Or will you need me to ask them to return to duty now, instead?

Regards,

Lieutenant Stark

The tone probably could have used a little more flowery language, but truth be told, Tom was proud of himself for deleting the reference to the "regretful lack of the Space/Time Continuum Editor necessary to complete these orders, SIR" (with the first letter of the "sir" pronounced as a "c").  Satisfied, the TAC hit "send" on the message, then turned back to see if he could figure out a way to coax the replicator into creating dishes with the correct vertical alignment. 

Thanks for the welcome. 

Hey all,

Looks like I'm coming aboard as the CTO.  I went ahead and recycled the last name of the last character so that the XO doesn't have to edit his post.  That way, it's easier to retcon things.

I just sent youa PM with a character concept.

I just sent youa PM with a character concept.