A Fledgling Career

I - Limbo

[Starbase 90]
[Sector Kilo-Indigo – Crew Quarters]
[2249 Hours]

“Ensign Mathis, report to Engineering Briefing Room A.”

The young Ensign let out a frustrated sigh as he reached out for his commbadge, which sat on his bedside locker. “On my way.” He climbed out of bed and quickly pulled on the uniform he’d been wearing just a few hours earlier. ‘This can’t be good.’ He thought as he pulled his clothes on. ‘Being summoned this late is never for anything good.’

Three weeks ago, newly commissioned Ensign Logan Mathias had arrived on Guardian Station to await assignment to a ship operating in the region. He had expected to be onboard for a few days, a week at the most, but somehow that had become three weeks. The first thing he did every morning upon waking up was to check his correspondence for new orders; every morning there was nothing. He was beginning to feel like he’d never escape Starbase 90, stuck in a kind of limbo.

In the meantime, he’d been assigned duties within the station’s engineering department; Starfleet wasn’t about to let him sit around doing nothing while he waited for new orders. This, however, was the first time he’d been summoned to a briefing room after his normal shift had ended. ‘Maybe they finally have new orders for me.’ The thought cheered him, and he arrived in the designated briefing room with a spring in his step.

“Come on in, Ensign. Have a seat.” There were five people already gathered; three women and two men, Logan made six. The young engineer hated being the last one to arrive, but he didn’t let it show. The fact that there were others gathered caused him to relax a little, it was unlikely that such a diverse group of people had been summoned for mass disciplining. Quickly moving towards a free chair, he took a seat as instructed and, being the last to arrive, didn’t have to wait for the briefing to begin.

The Lieutenant sitting at the head of the table sat forward, leaning on the table’s surface. “The Kobheerian freighter Graxtu was on her way to Bajor when she started experiencing a number of malfunctions in systems completely unrelated to one another. She’s now completely stranded about a day and a half away and requesting assistance. The five of you will take a Runabout and assist the freighter.”

“Lieutenant Kyzir,” he indicated the female Bajoran Lieutenant sitting to his left, “will command this mission. Ensign zh’Kore,” this time he motioned to the female Andorian in a red shouldered uniform sitting opposite Kyzir, “will pilot the runabout while Ensign Rexx,” he motioned to the female Bolian Ensign, “will provide security. Ensign Mathis and Petty Officer Belmont will work with Lieutenant Kyzir to get the freighter moving again. Any questions?”

The Bajoran Lieutenant looked towards the briefing officer. “Sir, wouldn’t it be quicker to just send a starship or a tug and tow the Graxtu back to the Starbase?”

“It would be,” the briefing officer replied while nodding in agreement, “but there are none available. On top of that, these malfunctions have compromised the Graxtu’s structural integrity field so even attaching a tractor beam is out of the question. You’ll need to diagnose the source of her malfunctions and find a solution. Any other questions?” He looked around at their faces, but no-one was forthcoming with any more questions. “Alright, you leave at zero hundred hours. Runabout Lagan, Shuttlebay 3. Dismissed.”

“Make sure to pack an overnight bag and don’t be late.” Ensign Kyzir reminded them. It would be at least a day before the Runabout, with her limited top speed, would be able to reach the freighter.

Logan planned to use the time to collect a fully stocked engineering kit, change into a fresh uniform and to grab a few spares as well as his toothbrush. While the Lieutenant suggested an overnight bag, it could take a few days for them to diagnose the freighter’s problem and correct it and it never hurt to be prepared.

The young engineer could feel the excitement bubbling up deep within him. This would be the first time he’d been off the station since arriving; his first away mission. Never one for slacking off anyway, Logan resolved to give 110% on this mission. Kyzir may only have been a Lieutenant, but she was the mission commander and would be the one writing the after-action report and a glowing mention in that report would be a nice little boost to his fledgling career.

[Sector Charlie-Gold – Shuttlebay 3]
[2340 Hours]

With his duffel slung over his shoulder and an engineering kit firmly in hand, Ensign Mathis arrived twenty minutes before the Runabout was due to depart. The Lagan was one of the older Danube-class Runabouts and had been in service almost thirty years. ‘Longer than most officers.’ Logan mused as he moved towards the Runabout’s hatch.

Ensign zh’Kore was already onboard working her way through the pre-flight checklist and running diagnostics on all the primary systems. Hearing Logan step onboard, she half turned to address him. “You can stow your gear in the aft section.”

“Hello to you too.” Logan mumbled sarcastically as he made his way to the aft section. He hadn’t expected a warm welcome, especially from an Andorian, but had hoped for at least a hello. The cool welcome couldn’t dull his excitement at going on his first away mission and it was enough to take his mind of the fact that after three weeks, Starfleet still hadn’t seen fit to give him a permanent assignment.

Upon reaching the Runabout’s aft section, Logan stowed his gear in a free footlocker and settled into his new surroundings. The aft section consisted of four bunks, a rectangular table with found chairs around it and a computer work terminal on the starboard side with another chair. Five large windows on the aft bulkhead allowed a good view out the back of the Runabout. Through it, he could see Lieutenant Kyzir striding towards the Lagan.

A few minutes later she entered the aft section, finding Logan resting on the port bottom bunk. When she walked in, Logan stood up and snapped to attention. “Ensign Logan Mathis, reporting as ordered.”

His crisp, formal manner amused the Bajoran Lieutenant, evident from the smile on her face. “At ease, Ensign. No need to be so formal around me. I’m not a Captain.” She dumped her duffel on the starboard top bunk before turning to face him again. “How long have you been onboard, Ensign?”

“I graduated just over three weeks ago and arrived onboard soon after, ma’am.” He replied, standing at parade rest. “I’ve been waiting for my first permanent assignment ever since.”

That seemed to surprise the Lieutenant because her eyebrows shot up. “Wow. Three weeks? It’s almost like Starfleet’s forgotten about you.”

Without trying, the Lieutenant had hit upon a fear that had been slowly worming its way through Logan’s mind with increasing persistence for the past two weeks. Had he been overlooked? Forgotten about by the bureaucracy? He’d never heard of it happening before but that didn’t mean it had never happened. Logan could only muster a weak smile. “Yes, ma’am. It’s starting to feel a little like that.”

“Once the others are onboard, we’ll get underway.” Kyzir said, quickly switching gears after seeing the Ensign’s reaction to her joke. “Why don’t you head forward and see how Ensign zh’Kore is getting on with her diagnostics.”

Logan nodded, grateful for something to do. “Yes, ma’am.” He moved forward through the Runabout and emerged in the cockpit just as Ensign Rexx arrived onboard. They shared a smile and nod, a silent greeting, before going their separate ways. Logan took a seat at the engineering station, just behind the pilot’s position, and began checking on the progress of the diagnostics the Andorian Ensign had been running.

The diagnostics of the primary systems were complete, and ones now being run on the secondary systems were about three quarters of the way done. All the primary systems seemed to be fully functional. Seven minutes later, the last member of their team arrived. As every else had done, he stowed his gear in the aft section before returning to the cockpit.

With the team assembled, they each took their place. Ensign zh’Kore took her place I the pilot’s seat, Lieutenant Kyzir took the co-pilot’s position, Petty Officer Belmont took the science station, on the opposite side of the runabout from where Logan was sitting and Ensign Rixx stood at the freestanding console toward the aft of the cockpit.

“Control, this is the Runabout Lagan. Requesting departure clearance.” zh’Kore announced over the comm.

“Lagan, this is Guardian Control. Departure clearance granted. Standard departure vector.” Came the reply.

“At this time of night, the space lanes should be much less crowded.” Ensign zh’Kore told them as she fired the thrusters, lifting the Runabout off the deck and pushing her towards the forcefield that maintained the atmosphere on the Shuttlebay’s flight deck. In seconds the Lagan had passed through the forcefield and her nose was sliding twenty degrees to port as Ensign zh’Kore brought the Runabout to the desired heading.

“Take us to full impulse, Ensign.” Lieutenant Kyzir ordered.

As the Runabout accelerated, Logan monitored the performance of the fusion reactors while double checking the intermix ratio of the matter/anti-matter reactor. Propulsion systems weren’t his specialty, but Starfleet made sure all of its engineers, no matter their speciality, were well enough trained in other areas.

Half an hour passed as the Lagan sped towards the point where she could engage her warp engines and stretch her legs. Upon reaching that point, Ensign zh’Kore pushed the Lagan past the light speed barrier. “Warp Four,” Ensign zh’Kore announced once the Lagan had reached the desired cruising speed, “estimated time to the Graxtu is thirty hours.”

Lieutenant Kyzir spun her chair slowly around to look at the members of her team and with a smile asked them, “So, did anyone bring a pack of playing cards?”