Security First

Posted on Mon May 15th, 2023 @ 10:25pm by Lieutenant Commander Rhiana t'Aegis & Lieutenant Tor Ezzo

1,456 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Prelude to Rebirth
Location: USS Firebird
Timeline: 29 January, 2396

[ON]

Lieutenant Commander Rhiana t'Aegis had arrived back aboard earlier that day and had not even taken the time to unpack before starting to work on her sheer endless list of tasks - all of them urgent and all of them important. The vessel that had brought her and Xavi back from Earth had had delay upon delay which had resulted in them arriving five days later than scheduled. Rhiana had begun to work in transit, trying to update herself as much as possible on all the new systems and crew that was being assigned (back) to the Firebird, but not everything could be done from a distance.

After reporting in to the captain, she had begun working through the list of personnel, starting with the newly assigned crew first. Normally, she would have had them come to her office, but she took advantage of this task to do a quick walk-through of the ship at the same time, taking mental notes of differences, of repairs that had been done or configurations that had been changed. The first officer on her list was the new chief flight officer.

Lieutenant Tor Ezzo was just sitting in the mess hall on Deck 5 to eat a quick lunch after another long morning of odd tasks before getting to his shift on the bridge. A hot plate of ratamaba stew, one of the first Bajoran dishes to be replicated by Starfleet, sat in front of him. As he waiting for the stew to cool taking in the aromas of the meal. He looked up from his empty table at the room a jumble of activity spread through the room. It appeared the crew of the Firebird was glad to be back on her and they were all coming back together and happy to see their friends again. Day after day Ezzo watched as friend groups reunited in this room and he sat and ate alone.

For Ezzo, this was just fine. He reached down for a spoon and took the first sip of his stew. It was savory with a hint of spice and it tasted of home and comfort. Ezzo's mother would argue that this wasn't ratamba stew it was some human stew that had the same flavor profile, but to Ezzo this was as close as he got to being back there. Since he had arrived the ship starting filling it self out and Ezzo had spent most of his time on odd tasks helping get the ship ready for mission or in the holodeck on his own running flight sims of all the modifications of the flight systems. Mostly just keeping to himself, but that was just fine for Ezzo.

It was strange for Rhiana to be back aboard after six months and to see the familiar faces again. It felt like coming home which was something she would never have expected. She had no time to dwell on those feelings, however, and forced herself to concentrate on the task at hand - find the new chief flight control officer.

The mess was a busy place, but in the end, he was easy enough to spot since he was the only solitary eater.

"Lieutenant Tor, I am Lieutenant Commander t'Aegis, chief of security and tactical," she introduce herself after having arrived at the Bajoran's table. "May I join you for a few minutes?" she continued, unsmiling and business-minded.

What could this be about?, thought Ezzo. Looking up from his stew and almost standing, his bottom rising from his seat about an inch, "Of course commander please join me." Ezzo set his flat ware down and gestured to all of the empty chairs at the table. "How can I help?"

Rhiana pulled out the chair directly opposite from Ezzo and sat down. "You have recently joined the Firebird and according to the records, you have assisted in several tasks outside of your immediate field of expertise. Why is that?" She did not quite sound accusing, but her tone was not very far off. Or maybe that was just the impression her unsmiling face gave.

Ezzo didn't like the question. As if he couldn't be trusted, and that was understandable, for a long while he found that he understood computers more than the rest of his crew. It had been a long time since he had become close with anyone that served with him. He felt tension build up in his shoulders and took a deep breath before answering the chief security officer.

"Well commander when I came on board the captain told me it would be a while before the rest of the crew would be on the ship. On account of the ship being short staffed, I was just trying to help in anyway I can to make sure the ship is mission ready. I'm not scared of rolling up my sleeves and getting my hands dirty."

"This is not a question of cleanliness, Lieutenant," the Romulan stated with a piercing gaze as if she dared him to make fun of the situation. "By accompanying Petty Officer Fhiri, you managed to access parts of the ship your security clearance was not valid for." Again, it was not exactly a reproach, even though it almost sounded like one.

Ezzo eyes went wide. Security clearance? As a department head he'd imagine he was cleared to go almost anywhere on the ship, but he hadn't been read on as this was the first time he met with a security officer. "I wasn't aware I had been in any restricted area. Honestly I was just trying to help and I guess stay busy," Ezzo said softly.

Commander t'Aegis did not roll her eyes at that answer, but her seconds-long silence and the way she looked at him, unblinking and with her head cocked just so, said more than words.
"I will send you an exhaustive list of the restricted areas of the ship including the required security access levels," she stated dryly. "In your case, you received a temporary security clearance when you came aboard. It should not have given you access to sensitive areas. However, it was improperly set up which allowed you access to these areas. I will not bore you with the potential implications of such an incident, but assure you that this has been rectified. You have now been given the proper security clearance which will grant you appropriate access to all sections to the vessel in accordance with your status as senior bridge officer. Do you have any questions?"

Ezzo sat and listened to the chief security officer. All business, no emotion. He understood that a breach of security is serious business, but it had been good intentioned. Ezzo was just trying to stay busy and help the ship get ready for mission. Of course, Ezzo would respect his chain of command and avoid restricted areas, even when he had just started to gain an affinity to the ship. You really get a feel for the ship you were serving on getting into it's guts, crawling through it's jeffries tubes and seeing her inner workings. Perhaps it was better this way, thought Ezzo to himself.
"I understand commander, I apologize for any inconvenience I may have caused. I'll stick to my assigned tasks for the time being unless of course I'm ordered to assist in other areas," Ezzo said plainly and sincerely. "Is there anything else you'd like to discuss commander?"

"You are misunderstanding me, Lieutenant," Rhiana replied after a second. "You are not at fault here. I am simply informing you of this incident and ensuring you that this will not happen again." She did not add that the responsible person had been dealt with appropriately, but her tone implied it. "You are a senior officer aboard this vessel. I should not need to tell you what you are allowed to do." She rose to her feet and slightly inclined her head to Tor. "Now, if you will excuse me, Lieutenant, I have a number of other matters to attend to."

Ezzo looked down at his food as he watched the commander walking away. If anything the Firebird definitely had a interesting crew. Ezzo took another spoonful of his stew which had already cooled during the conversation and decided it wasn't worth reheating. Taking his tray to the replicator he left the mess hall with a sigh.

[OFF]

Lieutenant Commander Rhiana t'Aegis
Second Officer/Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Firebird NCC-88298

Lieutenant Tor Ezzo
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Firebird NCC-88298

 

RSS Feed

Comments (1)