True Intelligence

Posted on Tue Apr 20th, 2021 @ 4:58pm by Captain David Hawkins & Lieutenant JG T'Rylea Rochelle

Mission: A New Legacy
Location: Captain's Ready Room - U.S.S. Arcadia
Timeline: BACKPOST
1588 words - 3.2 OF Standard Post Measure

The shuttle trip from SB 357 was at best long and tiresome not to mention boring. T'Rylea supposed that it was better than taking some stupid transport and space jumping from one stop to another taking even longer to get to the Arcadia.

It was not like T'Rylea to take a shuttle but SFI wanted her on the Arcadia ASAP. They had given her all the information she would need on the ship and her crew and passengers. Sifting through the dossiers, she put a call in to Marcus, now that he had finally surfaced after the Pathfinder incident. She was going to get him transferred out to the Arcadia with her as she was sure of his background. T'Rylea was not a trusting person right off the bat. She had to talk and speak with you in order for her to see into you.

Now on forward to her new post, a brand new ship, Odyssey class. SFI had their eyes glued to T'Rylea since she returned to active duty after her last mission. That mission was probably one of the worst foul ups on the part of SFI. Someone fouled up the information packet that was supplied to her and the end results were almost a disaster. T'Rylea almost lost her life at the extraction point which was breached by the Orion syndicate. Hopefully now, SFI will realize that when she asks for the information to be verified by another source, they will listen to her and not some pencil pusher.

As the shuttle approached the Arcadia, she took a look and what she saw was something short of a marvelous piece of engineering. The Arcadia was a Odyssey class ship and the first one she had ever seen up close and personal. She was impressed by its sight and size, but knowledgeable of its capabilities. SFI made her aware of the class ship before she was transferred but to see her was awesome.

Once the shuttle was aboard she had to close her mind as the sudden minds overwhelmed her at first. Regaining her composure she picked up her duffle and headed to report in with the captain of the ship. As she was walking through the corridors, she was impressed with how simplistic and functional the ship was. Efficient use of space, few families aboard, which was a godsend, hologrids on each of the deck for the ease of the EMH to do his job. It would make going over the ships roster faster. Even the engineering of the ship itself was definitely a plus as it was sleek and aerodynamically perfect for speed. Warp 9.999 was her top speed and a feather in anyone's cap, were she captured. That in itself was something she would have to coordinate with security on protocols incase of intruders.

Finally finding her quarters, she set up shop quickly and grabbed a shower before she got into a clean uniform. Having done this, she replicated a plate of food and quietly ate, while reading up on personnel files. Flagging two or three, she tossed the remains of her food and plates into the recycling cycle of the replicator and headed out for the bridge.

Arriving on the bridge, she walked across it and hit the door chime of the captain's ready room and waited to be admitted.

The door to the ready room opened and David paused as he looked up from his tablet was looking over to busy to even notice the chime. He looked at the female before him and pondered why he was face to face with a stranger he hadn't met yet. But then again most of his crew he hadn't been able to take the time to meet them one on one. "Lieutenant? Did we have an appointment I didn't know about?"

"Lt. Jg. T'Rylea Rochelle reporting in and for duty. I am your new CIO. My orders sir," she said and handed him the PADD that contained her dossier.

Taking the padd before even looking it over, he blinked before he started to speak out loud. "C.I.O... Oh yeah the Chief of Intelligence or Chief Intelligence Officer. Umm..." He looked into his office and gave his dog a warning of a new arrival in the office before he waved the new officer in. "Don't mind him, he is a working dog, and my pup. How was your trip to Arcadia, Lieutenant?"

Bending down to prt the dogs head and scratch his head, "Good looking pup there. There's a good boy," T'Rylea said as she continued to make friends with the dog. "Well Captain, boring, tiresome, but upon seeing her, a thing of beauty. Sleek and aerodynamically well built. Love animals myself. Was wondering about how you felt if I were to ask you if I could bring my companion bird along," she added.

"I wouldn't mess with him if I were you. Again, he is a working dog. He is trained to not allow strangers to touch him without my express permission," David warned as he looked at his dog and the officer. "So if he bites, it's not my fault. Plus it's probably not the smartest thing to do to walk in and touch a dog without permission, Lieutenant."

T'Rylea kept looking at the dog, her eyes never leaving the dogs head, not fearing him, only respecting the fact he was a working dog, slowly withdrew her hand, never once showing fear or flinching. Once her hand was back at her side did she take a step towards the Captain, " Well disciplined dog. We will make friends as I felt no malice from him."

"These types of dogs aren't trained to make friends but be cautious and protective of its handlers and pack. But if you earn that position in his eyes, he will not second guess his place to do what he can to protect you," the captain explained as he looked over the intel officer. "Tell me, Lieutenant, tell me about yourself."

"Long story sir. I guess maybe when I was small, I had a certain fascination with mysteries and spies. I would sneak around the house and investigate everything and return it to it's place exactly. I got so good that dad would have to really hide his files to keep me from finding them," she said chuckling. "Mom would shake her head when I produced the well hidden files. Dad would have a fit, and mom would tell him that I most likely would become an intelligence officer. Dad would look at her and say, 'Damn it woman, you know she will. Don't make her head swell,' and both of them would burst out laughing. Well, dad got me into the academy when I was 17 and breezed through it and met my buddy, now my Imzadi, Marcus Aurielius, who by the way is slated to transfer here to be my assistant Chief Intelligence officer. We are a team and a damn good one. Between the two of us we get the job done and everyone comes home. I refuse to leave anyone behind," T'Rylea said smartly. After a few minutes she continued, "I have a very photogenic memory and can blend well in any given situation. Being a strong empath and telepath has it's advantages and of course disadvantages. I standcon one rule though, I will not read or invade anyones memory or mind unless specifically ordered to. I have been there in that predicament and should I get that order, the results could be a bit.....well....un-nerving to some," she added.

"Well how about you let me be the final judge of that on my ship. You never know how differently things can be when it comes to new leadership and a new deployed location. I have no doubt that you have the skills and capability for taking on this position. What I care about most is your ability to take care of one another on the ship while getting the job done," David replied as he looked the officer over. "There is no need to try and show off for me. At least not in that way. So tell me, what questions do you have for me?"

"I would never show-off to begin with. The least you know the better for me. I would ask you what my duties are, and what do you expect from me and my second officer. I will say this, captain, I will give my life gladly to protect this crew," she added.

"Well no one is taking a bullet today, Lieutenant. So don't stress to much out about it. As for your work load. I want your intelligence gathering skills and field work to be what you need it to be. If there is information out there, I expect you to find a way, any way, to get it. Even if its on the edge of the line, I expect you to do it. But if there is something I need to know of I can get you to make your work as easy as possible, let me know. Sound fair?"

With that, the lieutenant nodded As David stood up and reached over the table. "Welcome aboard, Lieutenant. Get settled in and I look forward to working with you." As he watched her walk out, David made a mental note to make sure that his Intel shop was given the best possible communication lines that they had on the ship, even better than his own.