S6 E4 - The Dead and the Gone

[Calindra Hejaran]

[Ensign Calindra Hejaran - USS Challenger - Personal Quarters]

Feeling human again, Calindra shut off the sonic shower, put on her bathrobe, and headed for the replicator. "Yorkshire tea, hot, with milk please," she ordered before the replicator hummed to life and provided a quaint little tea service, complete with a creamer of milk.

Calindra sighed, getting replicators to get the order customized was the worse transition period one could go through, but once the computer knew what you wanted it was golden. "Computer, adjust replicator Yorkshire Tea Settings to include 50 millilitres of partially skimmed milk in the tea, not as an aside tea service unless tea service is specified, also adjust tea portion to a total of 500 ml per serving."

The replicator set off again, this time replacing the tea service with one large mug of beige liquid, that was steaming ever slightly in the brisk cabin air. Calindra took the glass cup -- a fair size compared to the tankard she had been offered the other day -- and gently blew on the surface of her drink as she cupped it with two hands.

She could feel the warmth radiating from her cup and into her hands, and she gently took a tentative sip from her cup. Perfect. With her eyes closed, she sipped from the chalice of the gods as the warmth of the tea magically warmed her up from the inside out, sending small tendrils of pleasure coursing through her. "Why is the first sip always so heavenly?" she wondered as she sat in a chair near the coffee table.

She spent the following quarter of an hour with her eyes closed, enjoying the sensation and warmth; all in quiet stillness as she imagined the sun rising slowly over an imaginary horizon, her cup slowly emptying as she savoured the moment. Once the cup was finished, she sat there, enjoying the peaceful floating sensation that came with her first cup, before finally getting dressed for duty.

Refreshed, she squared off her uniform in her mirror before cheerfully heading for her first Operations Section Meeting.

[Alexander Wu]

[  Restaurants - Promenade]

From what Ardy had read, the restaurants here at K-7 were pretty well-rated. After putting Maddy's stuff away in their quarters, they had made their way down here.  Slipping her hand into Alex's as they walked down to figure out what was open and also served Maddy's favorite food, she gave Alex a grin," "Let's eat."

[K-7 - Promenade - naDev ghoS Eatery]

While Starfleet had staggered out the arrival of their ships so K7 wouldn't have to host a dozen starships at the same time, the station was still significantly busier than usual with several transiting Klingon crews celebrating their victories as well. Maddy had always been a fan of Klingons ever since she'd gone on her little excursion on Starbase One, and the rambunctious warriors feasting around them offered endless entertainment. Alex casually held onto the arm of Maddy's chair with one hand as she knelt on the seat, leaning forward against the backrest.

Keeping an eye on her so she wouldn't tumble off while making enthusiastic war faces at their neighbours, Alex picked at a krada leg, one of the few menu options that was both dead before serving and appetizing to his less adventurous palate. "I wonder if Klingons do babysitters." He commented to Ardyn, leaning closer so she'd be able to hear without him shouting, though that wasn't very effective. So next he tried something they'd been working on. If there's anything that makes me realize how lucky I've been, it's the two of you.

-----72 Hours Later-----

[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

The downside Alex had found after switching to Operations was that every other department had a space on the starship to call their own. Flight had their shuttlebay, engineers had main engineering, medical their sickbay. Even the scientists had their labs to retreat to, whenever they didn't want to interact with their lesser colleagues. Operations however was responsible for systems across the ship, with no assigned scrum area for meetings or gatherings. Still, there were upsides. His office was attached to their quarters, which definitely helped with babysitting when Maddison was off school and he could work from home when Ardyn was stuck on the bridge. It also meant he generally got dibs on reserving group spaces, like the highly desirable observation lounge with it's expansive sweeping windows offering a spectacular starfield view and upscale replicator that somehow made better coffee than the ones in crew lounge. On being the first one there, Alex had immediately taken advantage by making himself a steaming mug of raktajino.

Today's meeting was going to be about their upcoming mission, or rather, the expected burden their department would be responsible for. The details were still vague, but Alex reckoned they'd soon be fielding alot of requests from Jyur and his science teams, which was precisely why he had asked Jettis to come by and let them know ahead of time what they'd need. On his own end, asides from Cheizex and Greenway, he had also asked for the new officer, an Ensign Hejaran, to join them. Alex didn't expect her to help much with the planning process, she was likely still getting to know her way around a starship as large as Challenger, but he wanted to put a face to the name before assigning her to a subdepartment. Sitting back with his coffee in hand, Alex waited for the others to arrive.

[Ian Galloway]

[Captain's Ready Room USS Challenger]

It had been yet another long haul to reach the Talinos system. Ian was in his Ready Room when an alert sounded. It wasn't a problem, it was just a position notification he'd set up on the computer that told him they were one light year from the targeted system. He stood and went to the bridge and took over the center seat.

"Evan, full scans on all bandwidths. Part of our mission is ta figure out what was causin' the increase in background radiation, I'll get friendly with a Denebian slime devil before I let any Romulans surprise us."

[Calindra Hejaran]

[Ensign Hejaran - USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

It was a smiling and humming Calindra that had made her way to the observation lounge. She was eager to get started and serving her first mission, there were a lot of firsts for her to be happy about -- at least for now. She slowed the pace as she saw the doors to the Observation Lounge, adjusted her tunic one last time, and then stepped forward with a determined step.

The doors hissed open and she stepped inside, noticing the lieutenant. "Gooood morning!" she said cheerfully as she stood at attention "Calindra Hejaran, reporting for duty, sir," she announced, before going 'at ease' with her hands behind her back, waiting for permission to enter the room right and proper.

[Alexander Wu]

[Ensign Hejaran - USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

The doors hissed open and she stepped inside, noticing the lieutenant. "Gooood morning!" she said cheerfully as she stood at attention "Calindra Hejaran, reporting for duty, sir," she announced, before going 'at ease' with her hands behind her back, waiting for permission to enter the room right and proper.

[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

When the doors opened to reveal the next arrival, Alex wasn't displeased to see that it was the new ensign, certainly bright-eyed and bushy tailed. It was an eagerness that had been surprisingly common onboard Challenger with their unusually large compliment of cadets, though it was noticeably muted as of late. The Kinshaya had seen to whatever was left from their disastrous first contact mission with the Landsers. Alex hadn't realized how much he missed that youthful zeal until he saw it on Hejaran's face.

"Please, come in." Alex rose from his chair to meet her, offering a hand in greeting. "Alexander Wu. You're the first to arrive, so first pick of seats. Anywhere you'd like." Being already up, he made a quick detour to the replicator. "Can I get you something to drink?"

Once she was settled, Alex returned to the table with a plateful of cookies which he set in the centre within easy reach of most spots. "Maple cream. Controversial choice for nine in the morning, I know, but they do pair so well with all hot beverages." Taking a sip of his coffee, he offered a wane smile. "I'd like to apologize for not meeting with you earlier when you first came onboard, I reckon it might've been a shock to be welcomed by the XO. Our last mission was a combat patrol, so all of Challenger's non-combatants and family members were offloaded at K-7 for the duration, including my young daughter. Her mother is also a serving officer onboard this ship, so as I'm sure you can imagine, we were quite anxious to be reunited."

"How have you been settling in?" Alex asked conversationally, reaching across for a leaf-shaped cookie which he then precariously balanced on the edge of his cup. "Any questions or concerns thus far?"

[Ardyn Jaeger - Wu]

[Restaurant]

The restaurant was  bustling, given all the varying Klingon warriors coming back, feasting in honor of their dead. For the grim times it had been losing as many people as they had, it was certainly lively here. A nice change of pace from thinking about the ones they had lost.

"Rawr!" yelled Maddy as she watched the party of Klingons behind their table, who certainly looked amused at the sight of a tiny (mostly) human girl trying to mimic them and their war chants. Or a dinosaur. Probably both.

She was glad Alex had a hand on the precariously-balanced chair Maddy was leaning on. "Sit down Maddy, before your food gets cold."

Maddy was barely listening, but she seemed to be having fun.

Leaning over to Alex, she barely heard him over the ruckus. Something about a babysitter? If they could find a Klingon one who'd be willing to hang out with Maddy, that would be ideal. "Good question. I don't know." she said, really struggling to hear over the chaos.

Ardy wasn't too surprised when Alex moved to their other form of  "communication" to be better heard. It was something both of them had been working on ever since they had accidentally found out they were each other's Imzadi a few years into living together.

She smiled at the thought.  She would have to agree.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." she smirked , poking her fork into her   spicy barbecued Targ ribs, and watching  the antics going on.

It was hard to imagine that she was actually going to  get married, but here they were, actually making this official coming up very soon. They still had a lot of things left to plan before the big day.

" Speaking  of babysitters, I think we're going to need one for when we go to Risa on our Honeymoon  if you know what I mean." Ardy  gave a playful nod of her head to Alex at the suggestive hint as Maddy seemed to perk her head in questioning.

"What do you mean, mommy? What do you do on a honeymoon?"

[Current Time - 72 hours  later]

[Shuttlebay → bridge]

Ardy came up to the bridge for her bridge rotation. It looked like some weird radiation was here, and looking at all the potential stellar cartography she could see, asides from a solar system in the distance, she could see nothing that could have been causing any normal type of radiation. "I can't make any heads or tails of that background noise, does anyone have any idea?"

[Neva Cordon]

[ACEO Lt.JG Neva Cordon|USS Challenger|Deck 5 Impulse Engines & Engineering Support]

Neva was whistling softly, albeit tunelessly, as she stared at the screen of her PADD. While the Computer did a Level 1 Diagnostic of the Impulse Engines, she was studying the
Deck scematics of Challenger. Neva realized when she'd gotten back aboard, she had to ask where this area was. To her, that just wouldn't do! Hence her desire to relearn the layout of her Iron Lady.

Suddenly,the Computer gave the "Bad" chirp. Grumbling at the Computer's answer to the chirp, Neva pulled tools out of her kit and got to work.

She hated that Shore Leave ended so soon, knowing her family's departure meant...Neva sighed, shaking her head to end that Rabbit Hole's direction. It was wonderful seeing Aunt Gilda and Maiora, even with the embarrassing stories.

Getting the "right" sounds and answers on her work, Neva closed her kit and left the Control  Room. She looked down at her PADD for the next task, smiling at what she found. Deck Six-Impulse Reaction Drive Systems. Purge System and Harmonize Impulse=>Velocity Output

"One deck down, across the hall, one cross each..." she murmured, remembering the movie she'd watched while home, waiting for..."That's a nope!" she reminded herself and headed for the Turbolift.

[Calindra Hejaran]

"Please, come in." Alex rose from his chair to meet her, offering a hand in greeting. "Alexander Wu. You're the first to arrive, so first pick of seats. Anywhere you'd like." Being already up, he made a quick detour to the replicator. "Can I get you something to drink?"

Once she was settled, Alex returned to the table with a plateful of cookies which he set in the centre within easy reach of most spots. "Maple cream. Controversial choice for nine in the morning, I know, but they do pair so well with all hot beverages." Taking a sip of his coffee, he offered a wane smile. "I'd like to apologize for not meeting with you earlier when you first came onboard, I reckon it might've been a shock to be welcomed by the XO. Our last mission was a combat patrol, so all of Challenger's non-combatants and family members were offloaded at K-7 for the duration, including my young daughter. Her mother is also a serving officer onboard this ship, so as I'm sure you can imagine, we were quite anxious to be reunited."

"How have you been settling in?" Alex asked conversationally, reaching across for a leaf-shaped cookie which he then precariously balanced on the edge of his cup. "Any questions or concerns thus far?"

[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

"Thank you sir, I've had the equivalent of two cups of tea already, I'm afraid I'll be spending my time at the head if I drink anything more. I'm excited to be part of the team, and I think I'm settling well. I did meet a few of the people at the shindig on the station, but I'm afraid that's all a blur," she said as she adventured into the room, somewhat uncaring about the starfield.

She had to admit the Lounge would offer a very wonderful view, starfields however got boring after a while. She did see a perfect spot for when the field coalesced into a planetary view, or even the view of a nebula bursting with all sorts of colours. "That must have been terrible, being split from your families so," she said with a frown before sitting in one of the centre seats facing the starfield. She then considered the maple leaf-shaped cookies, "Oh! How nostalgic! My grand-mother -- rest her soul -- used to love these with a medium double-double! I'm more partial to the maple cones myself. Or maple butter on a hot buttery croissant. I absolutely regret having tea before coming now," she giggled.

[Jettis Jyur]

[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

The downside Alex had found after switching to Operations was that every other department had a space on the starship to call their own. Flight had their shuttlebay, engineers had main engineering, medical their sickbay. Even the scientists had their labs to retreat to, whenever they didn't want to interact with their lesser colleagues. Operations however was responsible for systems across the ship, with no assigned scrum area for meetings or gatherings. Still, there were upsides. His office was attached to their quarters, which definitely helped with babysitting when Maddison was off school and he could work from home when Ardyn was stuck on the bridge. It also meant he generally got dibs on reserving group spaces, like the highly desirable observation lounge with it's expansive sweeping windows offering a spectacular starfield view and upscale replicator that somehow made better coffee than the ones in crew lounge. On being the first one there, Alex had immediately taken advantage by making himself a steaming mug of raktajino.

Today's meeting was going to be about their upcoming mission, or rather, the expected burden their department would be responsible for. The details were still vague, but Alex reckoned they'd soon be fielding alot of requests from Jyur and his science teams, which was precisely why he had asked Jettis to come by and let them know ahead of time what they'd need. On his own end, asides from Cheizex and Greenway, he had also asked for the new officer, an Ensign Hejaran, to join them. Alex didn't expect her to help much with the planning process, she was likely still getting to know her way around a starship as large as Challenger, but he wanted to put a face to the name before assigning her to a subdepartment. Sitting back with his coffee in hand, Alex waited for the others to arrive.

[ USS Challenger - Observation Lounge ]

Jettis was ecstatic to learn that the mission of the week didn't involve throwing themselves directly into certain death or combat that they, for all intents and purposes, should have lost. Not that Jettis had any doubt in the ship of course. No, he was certain Dylan would materialize to throw him from the airlock if he suggested she was anything but capable. Galloway might too.

Still, when the biggest concern he had was scans, he was happy to take some time when called upon by Wu. Getting some preliminary setup out of the way to make both of their jobs easier in the future.

When he arrived, someone else was already there, so he detoured to grab himself a drink before joining the pair. "Vanilla chai, hot."
By the time he'd meandered over to them, it seemed they'd settled into a pleasant conversation. "Good day, Wu." Accompanied by a polite nod, before turning to the newcomer. He didn't recognize her, but that seemed to be a common occurrence ever since Frontier day. Crew got moved around more than shuffleboard pieces. "Good day. I'm Jettis Jyur, Sciences." If the color coding didn't make that clear...

[Alexander Wu]

[Restaurant]

"Couldn't have said it better myself." she smirked , poking her fork into her  spicy barbecued Targ ribs, and watching  the antics going on.

It was hard to imagine that she was actually going to  get married, but here they were, actually making this official coming up very soon. They still had a lot of things left to plan before the big day.

" Speaking  of babysitters, I think we're going to need one for when we go to Risa on our Honeymoon  if you know what I mean." Ardy  gave a playful nod of her head to Alex at the suggestive hint as Maddy seemed to perk her head in questioning.

"What do you mean, mommy? What do you do on a honeymoon?"

[K-7 - Promenade - naDev ghoS Eatery]

About to make his own coy suggestion that they didn't have to wait till Risa, Alex held his tongue as that was the unfortunate moment Maddy decided to stop paying attention to the Klingons. Looking down at the innocent face peering inquisitively back, Alex quirked an eyebrow. "Miss Maddison, have you eavesdropping?"

"I didn't drop any E's!" Came the indignantly squealed reply, and Alex pushed a bottle of grapok sauce towards her. "Eat your gagh, dear. And remember to chew ten times every mouthful." The last thing he wanted was another visit to sickbay to get rid of stomach parasites. Exchanging a look with Ardyn, he could only smile at their predicament. Alex had entertained thoughts about having children in the past, though he could never have imagined how it actually happened or with whom. Having a child who was an empath was something he hadn't even considered, especially one that was apparently as instinctive and astute as Maddison.

"Was it like this when you were young?"He asked Ardy, reaching over to wipe sauce off Maddy's face and somehow getting more on his hand than the napkin. "And you had siblings! Your poor mother."

-----72 Hours Later Present Time-----

"Thank you sir, I've had the equivalent of two cups of tea already, I'm afraid I'll be spending my time at the head if I drink anything more. I'm excited to be part of the team, and I think I'm settling well. I did meet a few of the people at the shindig on the station, but I'm afraid that's all a blur," she said as she adventured into the room, somewhat uncaring about the starfield.

She had to admit the Lounge would offer a very wonderful view, starfields however got boring after a while. She did see a perfect spot for when the field coalesced into a planetary view, or even the view of a nebula bursting with all sorts of colours. "That must have been terrible, being split from your families so," she said with a frown before sitting in one of the centre seats facing the starfield. She then considered the maple leaf-shaped cookies, "Oh! How nostalgic! My grand-mother -- rest her soul -- used to love these with a medium double-double! I'm more partial to the maple cones myself. Or maple butter on a hot buttery croissant. I absolutely regret having tea before coming now," she giggled.

[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

"I heard it was quite a party." Alex chuckled, recalling seeing many a bleary eyed crewmember stumbling through the airlock the morning after. The fact that they were only half an hour late departing was nothing short of a miracle. "You can thank Ensign Zalos personally if she makes it to this meeting. Her shingdigs are making her something of a local legend."

"The alternative would've been worse." He admitted, dunking the cookie a few times into the coffee until it was warm and softened, but not quite soggy. "At least she was safe on the station and I could focus on my job here. I tell you, whoever set the precedent of placing families on frontier starships..." He paused, suddenly recalling something from reading Hejaran's file. Dad's an Admiral, probably best not to say anything else. "Well, nevermind." He abruptly changed the subject, covering up his lapse by chewing on his sweet treat.

"Speaking of nostalgic, now that is a term I haven't heard in a long, long time." Alex smiled broadly, filing away her mentioned preferences into an obscure corner of his brain. It didn't make any actual sense, but there was a tiny part of him that felt fiercely proud of his homeland, and their number one contribution to the rest of the world. "Was your grandmother Canadian?"

When he arrived, someone else was already there, so he detoured to grab himself a drink before joining the pair. "Vanilla chai, hot."
By the time he'd meandered over to them, it seemed they'd settled into a pleasant conversation. "Good day, Wu." Accompanied by a polite nod, before turning to the newcomer. He didn't recognize her, but that seemed to be a common occurrence ever since Frontier day. Crew got moved around more than shuffleboard pieces. "Good day. I'm Jettis Jyur, Sciences." If the color coding didn't make that clear...

"Good Morning." Alex raised his mug in greeting and waited for the Ensign to introduce herself. "Hey, it sounds like Theresa really stepped up with helping out the younger kids on K-7, Maddison thinks the world of her now." They had been regaled with stories about the best blanket forts and 'camping' trips in the arboretum, so much so that their next family vacation was already planned in Maddy's opinion. "Is there anything I can send as a thank you?"

[Malik Grippen]

[Captain's Ready Room USS Challenger]

It had been yet another long haul to reach the Talinos system. Ian was in his Ready Room when an alert sounded. It wasn't a problem, it was just a position notification he'd set up on the computer that told him they were one light year from the targeted system. He stood and went to the bridge and took over the center seat.

"Evan, full scans on all bandwidths. Part of our mission is ta figure out what was causin' the increase in background radiation, I'll get friendly with a Denebian slime devil before I let any Romulans surprise us."

[USS Challenger, Deck 1, Bridge]

The quick layover at Deep Space K-7 had been refreshing. Malik had taken the time to carry out personal admin, checking up on the family tourist business back home on Risa, and catching up with his parents and sister via subspace calls. The Risan had said his farewells to the Discovery crew after what would be his final mission with them. It was bittersweet, having spent so long with the same crew through all sorts of adventurers and Frontier Day. They would always hold a special place in his heart.

Change was part of life and what made it entertaining. The opportunity had arisen to progress his career and he took it with both hands. The extra pip to commander he wore with pride, whilst acknowledging that without his comrades he wouldn't be here today.

The tall, immaculately dressed and presented Risan entered the bridge of the Challenger. A ship his sister, Taja Grippen had briefly served on.

He presented his padd to the captain containing his official transfer papers.

"Captain. Commander Malik Grippen reporting for duty. I hope your stay at K-7 was enjoyable?"

[ShranLahr ch'Verret]

CPO ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger - Deck 1 - XO Office] (first day back from shore leave)

He didn't know whether or not Lahr was telling a lie or just a half-truth. Either way Kyan could tell he was still feeling the effects of his drinking. Now that he could see his eyes that much was clear. And since he'd come to the party on K-7 by himself and already drunk, it looked like the Andorian had been drinking alone. Among humans that alone was a red flag. Klingons too now that he thought about it, and Ferengi. The Onlie didn't know how Andorians preferred to tackle the creature, but he'd have guessed it was in groups like everyone else did. And thirty hours, if true, was a long time for a hangover, especially in someone who hadn't yet had his thirtieth birthday.

Kyan didn't drink. He had been drunk before, but that was only a few times and because Klingons weren't selective about with whom they shared their blooodwine. He didn't like the taste or the effects. But he'd spent several lifetimes witnessing grups getting sloshed. Younger ones, like cadets did it for fun. Some older ones too. But they always did it with others. The ones who did it by themselves did it for other reasons, none of which were good.

"Well." Kyan answered after a few moments. "I canna say what Sunik kens or don't." He paused and put his feet on the deck. "But you do look like a right boozer ta me the now, the which you dinna look like before. An since yer not a cadet, or a crewman who is gettin arseholed wif his mates all da time...it's gotta be sommat else. An since yer not a crabbit ole wanker, I'd be after seeing ya not get in trouble so I would. So tell me what's the problem and we can be after fixing it."

Sitting on the uncomfortable bean bag chair, with his knees pretty much parallel with his chin, Lahr frowned towards the Only First Officer as the Commander stated that he looked like a boozer.   Worst thing, was Kyan wasn't wrong - Lahr knew he looked like crap.  He'd been feeling like crap since learning that Ruth was missing.  The fact that the Commander thought this was a new problem that could be 'fixed' only proved how little the Commander, or anyone else, paid Lahr any real attention.

Ruth had been missing nearly a year and a half - and everyone expected him to just accept that she'd been killed during the Frontier Day chaos at the Academy, and move on with his life.   Well, screw that!  Lahr had tried for nine months to find her himself;  then when all his available leave had run out, he'd had no choice but to return to enlisted service and instead use his meager wages to pay for a professional investigator to find her for him.  With no success so far, but there were leads which kept Lahr hoping.  No, there was nothing Kyan could fix in this situation.

Lahr shook his head. "There's nothing you can do.  If you feel I can't do my job as I am, I'll go to Medical and request an anti-intoxicant shot."

[Aarwendil Cheizex]

[Deep Space K7 | Lounge 2B]

Calindra looked at the lieutenant's dark curls and resisted the impulse to muss it up, and ended up deciding to clench the tankard with both hands so that her hands would not stray. She did however give him a smile from behind the cup of ale, "I thought it would be rude of me to start drinking before the person who provided the drink shared a toast, no?" She looked towards the Andoran and then turned to consider her interlocutor. There was a twinkle in her eye, as if she were considering him: "Name's Calindra by the way, latest Ops addition, fresh from the boat. What about you? Why aren't you getting a tankard?"

[USS Challenger, Deck 1, Bridge]

The quick layover at Deep Space K-7 had been refreshing. Malik had taken the time to carry out personal admin, checking up on the family tourist business back home on Risa, and catching up with his parents and sister via subspace calls. The Risan had said his farewells to the Discovery crew after what would be his final mission with them. It was bittersweet, having spent so long with the same crew through all sorts of adventurers and Frontier Day. They would always hold a special place in his heart.

Change was part of life and what made it entertaining. The opportunity had arisen to progress his career and he took it with both hands. The extra pip to commander he wore with pride, whilst acknowledging that without his comrades he wouldn't be here today.

The tall, immaculately dressed and presented Risan entered the bridge of the Challenger. A ship his sister, Taja Grippen had briefly served on.

He presented his padd to the captain containing his official transfer papers.

"Captain. Commander Malik Grippen reporting for duty. I hope your stay at K-7 was enjoyable?"

"You are right." the young Betazoid said, before smiling at the Ensign. "Nice to meet you, Calindra. My name is Aarwendil, from Ops too. It seems that we are going to work together." it was always nice to meet new colleagues. He turned to look at the tankard. "I think that I'll pass. I don't like drinks that are that strong, unless I don't need to get up from my bed tomorrow."

Unfortunately, their small break from duty came to an end. The Challenger crew was called back to the ship, their new assignment was going to start. The young Betazoid was grateful that he didn't drink the Klingon tankard. He would be feeling terribly during the rest of the day.

[Bridge - Deck1 | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

After stopping briefly in his room, Aarwendil went to the bridge. He wanted to help with any way that he could. The Betazoid arrived right in the moment Lt. Commander Grippen was talking with the captain. "Excuse me." he said, before approaching them. "I was hoping to see if the bridge needs some help from Operations."

[Calindra Hejaran]

[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

"At least she was safe on the station and I could focus on my job here. I tell you, whoever set the precedent of placing families on frontier starships..." He paused, suddenly recalling something from reading Hejaran's file. Dad's an Admiral, probably best not to say anything else. "Well, nevermind." He abruptly changed the subject, covering up his lapse by chewing on his sweet treat.

"Speaking of nostalgic, now that is a term I haven't heard in a long, long time." Alex smiled broadly, filing away her mentioned preferences into an obscure corner of his brain. It didn't make any actual sense, but there was a tiny part of him that felt fiercely proud of his homeland, and their number one contribution to the rest of the world. "Was your grandmother Canadian?"

"I believe her father was Canadian, and grew up near the Federal Capital. Speaking of families on board a military vessel, my father felt the same as you did, I believe. He insisted my mother take me on her Trade Missions instead of having us both under foot and in harm's way," Calindra confided. "Unless both parents are part of the crew, he didn't see why he would accept civilians on his own vessel and often insisted that children be of a certain age before even considering having their family aboard."
.
.

[ USS Challenger - Observation Lounge ]
By the time he'd meandered over to them, it seemed they'd settled into a pleasant conversation. "Good day, Wu." Accompanied by a polite nod, before turning to the newcomer. He didn't recognize her, but that seemed to be a common occurrence ever since Frontier day. Crew got moved around more than shuffleboard pieces. "Good day. I'm Jettis Jyur, Sciences." If the color coding didn't make that clear...

"Good Morning." Alex raised his mug in greeting and waited for the Ensign to introduce herself. "Hey, it sounds like Theresa really stepped up with helping out the younger kids on K-7, Maddison thinks the world of her now." They had been regaled with stories about the best blanket forts and 'camping' trips in the arboretum, so much so that their next family vacation was already planned in Maddy's opinion. "Is there anything I can send as a thank you?"

"Pleasure is all mine, sir. I'm Calindra Hejaran, latest transfer to Ops," Calindra said with a friendly smile from her side of the table before scrutinizing today's agenda on her datapad.

She whistled appreciatively when she noticed that Commander Mackenzie was being transfered and that they were receiving a new commander called Malik Grippen. Things were starting to get interesting, with a lot of changes for everyone. As to their mission: they were being sent to the Talinos system to figure out what was causing an increase in background radiation.

She wasn't sure how she would fit in with that type of particular mission, but she figured that Lieutenant Jyur would provide more context as the meeting progressed.

[ShranLahr ch'Verret]

NPC PO2 Grelek
[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

[USS Challenger - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge]

Today's meeting was going to be about their upcoming mission, or rather, the expected burden their department would be responsible for. The details were still vague, but Alex reckoned they'd soon be fielding alot of requests from Jyur and his science teams, which was precisely why he had asked Jettis to come by and let them know ahead of time what they'd need. On his own end, asides from Cheizex and Greenway, he had also asked for the new officer, an Ensign Hejaran, to join them. Alex didn't expect her to help much with the planning process, she was likely still getting to know her way around a starship as large as Challenger, but he wanted to put a face to the name before assigning her to a subdepartment. Sitting back with his coffee in hand, Alex waited for the others to arrive.

The Vulcan petty officer arrived exactly on time for the Operations meeting.  He eschewed the lounge replicator and headed straight for where the Department Head and others were already gathered.  He nodded blandly to the group before taking a seat and folding his hand neatly on his lap to await the start of the briefing.