Preparation

Posted on Fri Jun 18th, 2021 @ 9:18pm by Lieutenant Commander Emni t'Nai & Commander Satoru Takomi

Mission: The Place of Skulls
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: Mission Day 1 at 1900

[Sickbay]
[USS-Sojourner]
[MD1 - 1900 Hours]

Emni sat behind the desk in the small office space, a PADD laid out before her and next to it a small disc-shaped item--the mechanism via which she had transported the Adelphi's LMH from their original ship, to Earth, then Risa, and finally to the Sojourner. She hadn't yet decided how or when to go about integrating the LMH with Sickbay. It struck her as a particularly significant task and one she did not want to do without care and appropriate gravity.

The last time that someone who was not the LMH, himself, would control his activation or deactivation. She had wondered numerous times since she had last spoken with the LMH what consciousness was like for him, exactly. Was he simply dormant at this moment or had he, over the weeks and months, been aware--considering the change in his circumstance even as he waited for that next step toward freedom.

She picked up the disc, turning it in her fingers as she did. Considering what it must be to be reduced to a space so small.

Setting the disc back down she picked returned to the PADD settled before her. It had been present in Sickbay when she and Dr. Ryan-Walsh had arrived--a request for drills and a preparedness review from their new XO. She had only met Takomi in passing as she exited the Bridge after their briefing earlier that day and hadn't yet had an opportunity to form an emotional fingerprint for him. But his demeanor exuded calm consideration and she looked forward to meeting him more informally.

She had dismissed Nurse Lal, Nurse Dogrov, and Dr. Ryan-Walsh an hour ago, eager for some time alone in the new space to get familiar with it and start to review medical records for the many crew members she had not yet met. And so it was that she was aware of someone in the Sickbay before that person announced themselves.

"Pardon me, Lieutenant." Though concisely delivered, the sentiment was nevertheless entirely genuine as The Commander took a step forward. He had been standing in the entrance to the Sickbay, the door waiting, with the patience only the truly non-sentient could achieve, for him to move. It obediently closed behind him with a swoosh, and though he approached her office, he stopped at the precipice. There he presented her with a warmly kindled smile and a brief bow of his head. "I hope I am not intruding." His gaze flickered to the small disc before returning back to her features once more.

Setting the PADD down and folding her hands on the desk in front of her, Emni smiled warmly at the owner of the calmly curious emotional signature. "Not at all Commander. Please, come in."

She stood then, deciding at the last moment to come around the desk and remove the physical barrier between them to avoid any misconception of a power dynamic. For a brief moment she flashed back to when she had first met Captain--then Commander--Kodak. She had been putting away something... what had it been? For the life of her she couldn't recall. That version of herself felt quite far away at that moment.

As she came around the desk, the smile in his eyes tightened just a fraction, almost imperceptibly. It set a small twinkle into the left, a small string of amusement lightly plucked that hummed pleasantly there and then slowly faded back into his otherwise amicably placid exterior. Did he understand the deliberate intent of that maneuver? If he did, he made no overt mention of it. Instead, he accepted her permission to enter, and did so slowly.

Once within the confines of her office, he stepped carefully, moving about the small space as he spoke, his gaze wandering across the surface of the desk, traversing the walls, taking in the signs of life that would perhaps mark this otherwise clinical space as uniquely... hers. Despite this potential intrusion, he moved unobtrusively, as a careful observer in the space, not a domineering presence. "I always find it interesting," he mused, "to see how one makes a place their own. Especially a place that has been replicated... time... and time... and time..." He drifted off, chuckled, and shook his head before concluding more swiftly, "and time again." Finally his attention shifted back to her, his head swiveling so that he could regard her fully. "It can tell you much about a person."

"My apologies, allow me to introduce myself properly," he explained at last, and when he did the rest of his body turned and aligned fully to face her. Then he bowed, the inclination specifically measured. "Commander Takomi Satoru. Your new Executive Officer." Only when finished did he straighten, his smile undisturbed by the formal gesture. "I am impressed with what I have read, and I look forward to working with you. Captain Kodak also holds you in high esteem."

Emni inclined her head in acknowledgment of the bow, unsure of the correct greeting, but feeling that doing nothing wouldn't be appropriate either. She didn't sense any strong emotion attached to the motion beyond openness and respect.

"Welcome, Commander. It's a pleasure to meet you," she replied. "You will have to teach me the appropriate response to your bow. I am afraid I'm not fully versed on greetings from your home, but assure you I am a quick study."

Indicating the two chairs in front of the desk she settled herself into one. "Your compliment is very kind. Your own record is quite impressive. We're lucky to have such an experienced officer onboard."

Takomi smiled gently as he settled into the offered chair. His hands came around to perch comfortably on the arm rests, though one of them held itself aloft with a polite dismissal for a moment before it did. "If you truly wish, I would be happy to. Though the warmth of your greeting is more than appropriate." He continued to observe her as she came around to claim a chair of her own, and did not speak again until she had. "You have had time to go over my requests, I hope? I know it might seem a bit excessive... Inventory, drills, updated physicals... But there is no detail too small when heading off into the unknown. Do you have any questions for me?"

Emni reached across the desk to pick up a PADD. "I was with the Adelphi during our last mission in the Delta Quadrant, sir. These measures seem most appropriate to me for an untested ship and new crew. I assume a ship-wide announcement will go out so that all personnel are aware of the mandate for an updated physical?" she inquired.

"There will," acknowledged Satoru, "though that is probably the lowest priority and can be handled largely en route to our destination."

Offering the PADD to the Commander she continued, "Luckily Lieutenants Lal and Dogrov spent time confirming the inventory en route to Risa. Their work is only a day or two old. Will that suffice or would you prefer Dr. Ryan Walsh or I oversee an inventory?"

Takomi accepted the PADD and took a moment to browse through it as Emni spoke. There was little to be read on his features, his brow furrowing in concentration as he scanned his way down through the information. If anything, it accentuated the already existing lines of his face, a fact that somehow only made him more inscrutable. At her question, he looked up, peering at her over the top of the PADD. "I shall defer to your judgement, Lieutenant. If you believe that the records are up to date, then I don't see a reason to do twice what has already been done well once." Woven within that statement was another message, however. One that placed the responsibility on her... should it prove otherwise.

Emni kept her expression neutral at the Commander's words and the corresponding spike in the gravity of his emotional fingerprint. "Naturally I will review the list myself to ensure there are no gaps or questions. I do like to place trust upon my team, though, and they have assured me that they were quite thorough."

The Romulan woman paused then, considering. "We will, of course, undertake the standard drills for a sickbay on deep space assignment, but..." she paused briefly as she spoke, turning her question over as she did so. Seeming to decide upon something she turned to more openly face the Commander, her body language preceding the idea she had been toying with since her team's meeting earlier that day. "I'm sure you're familiar with the details of our last mission. I realize that we're not yet headed to the Delta Quadrant, but I would like to devise some drills beyond those Starfleet Medical has created. Drills that take into account some of the unexpected circumstances of the Delta Quadrant. If you agree, of course."

The mask of his features broke quite suddenly into a smile, and his head inclined in acknowledgement. "I appreciate your initiative, Lieutenant. And I do, indeed, agree." The PADD she had presented to him was then turned in his own hand before it was extended back to her. "We would do well to prepare ourselves for the oddities and... difficulties... that our eventual journey into the Delta Quadrant will place in our path." He rose from the chair then, and made sure his uniform was in proper order as he did so. A tug here, a smoothing of the planes there. "It appears you have things quite well in hand here. Good hands to be in." He punctuated the sentiment with a chuckle then and turned to go.

Before he did, he paused, and once more his expression grew solemn. "I understand the circumstances of your last venture into the Delta Quadrant were... particularly trying." He sighed. "Special attention should be paid to the Viidians in your preparations. I somehow doubt that encounter will be an isolated incidence. There are harsh realities to face in the distant parts of the galaxy. But facing them means not shying away. Make sure your team understand the totality of the challenges posed by their species."

Emni nodded, acknowledging the Commander's statement. She couldn't help the troubled look that stole across her face as a certain panic-striken Vulcan/Bajoran shot across her mind's eye. "Of course sir. There is a misconception that the danger one faces with the Vidiians is merely physical. But the mental and emotional toll of an encounter with them cannot be understated. I'll make sure our team is well prepared."

"Excellent." Takomi was already rising as he spoke, hands busy tugging at and adjusting his uniform to maintain crisp planes and clean lines. "If there is anything else you need from me, please do not hesitate to ask. Otherwise, I look forward to reviewing your readiness report," he began, but paused as he prepared himself to leave. He took a moment to don for her a kind and genuine smile, a thing born of gentle warmth that kindled in his lips and crackled pleasantly in his eyes. "And to working alongside you in the coming days. Carry on, Lieutenant." With a last inclination of his head, he turned to depart.

It was impossible not to match the XO's smile with her own even as he turned and made his way out of sickbay; his genuine kindness as clear in his emotional signature as his expression. Turning back to the PADD, Emni brought up a crew manifest and began the task of scheduling physicals, starting with the senior crew and working her way down the list. She took care to split the load between herself and Dr. Ryan Walsh, but made it a point to schedule some of the newer senior staff with herself. There wasn't really a better time to get to know them, so might as well make introductions now. As she worked she leaned back in her chair. Sickbay was quiet around her and she kicked her feet up to prop against the edge of her desk. It was going to be a long evening.

=/\= A mission post by =/\=

Commander Satoru Takomi
Executive Officer
USS-Sojourner

Lieutenant Emni t'Nai
Cheif Medical Officer
USS-Sojourner