Time To Go!

Posted on Sat Jan 30th, 2021 @ 6:42pm by Captain Tobias Bach & Commander Ayda Muldowney & Lieutenant Kiam Aax & Lieutenant Commander Timo Schaefer & Lieutenant Charlie Caspian & Lieutenant JG Tobias Jackson-Sanders & Lieutenant JG Ovrora Sh'rholok & Ensign Kevin Ibanez & Ensign Sturnack

Mission: 28 Days
Location: Main Bridge
Timeline: Mission Day 8 at 1405

 

"Computer, lights!" Captain Tobias Bach tugged on the bottom hem of his uniform and then fixated on his cuffs even as he strode the hallway from his Ready Room to the Bridge. The anemic white blink of Condition Gray, its rhythmic pulses, sprung to life as the overhead lighting came on first and cycled through the console underlighting and finally, the consoles themselves. He sauntered past Mission Operations, rounded to his chair and stared with a squint at the console controls on the chair. He found the shipwide comms and touched it, arms crossing his chest.

"Bridge here," he breathed in and sighed, tapping his chin with a finger, "Alright folks, fun time is over. Get to your stations. We'll sort out the chaos later. Clear all moorings and standby." He punched the comm key off and switched channels, "Bridge, Engineering," he paused again. "Start your engines. The guys in the next slip over challenged us to a drag race."

"Aye aye Captain, full impulse power available in," there was a pause on the line as the Chief Engineer, no doubt, double-checked his figures. "Twenty seconds and warp power in forty-five. I've never seen a Denobulan warp drive exceed Warp 7, but we will be ready just in case," Timo added jovially before severing the connection.

With a smirk of amusement, Ayda and Tobias shared a look. "Lets hope they aren't cheating with something special under the hood."

Despite having opted to remain aboard during the ship's brief stop over, Toby had enjoyed the brief period of quiet as most of the Ulysses crew had headed to what most had considered the more exciting environment of the starbase. Their immediate future was also something that the Ops officer was looking quite forward to though, so he was quick to react once the call to stations came through.

Quietly taking his station and offering those in command a nod and a smile, there was genuine excitement from Toby to get back underway.

At the tactical station, Caspian worked diligently and quietly as she attempted to make her preparations for departure without attracting the attention of the captain or the XO. She transferred tactical control back from the command duty officer to herself and initiated a level ten diagnostic of the phaser and torpedo systems. The bridge turbolift doors opened once more to deposit another handful of Ulysses crewmembers who moved swiftly to take up their departure positions. Caspian spotted Ovrora amongst them and studiously ignored the Andorian woman as she moved in the direction of he combined station which Tactical and Science shared.

Tobias Bach tapped off the comm again, this time sidling himself into his chair. He pushed his back into the cushion, eyeing Ayda Muldowney who'd come up beside. "Anything to report? Were the..." his brows flexed, leaning on his elbow. "News reporters any problem?"

"Aside from a territorial Tulian who slapped some hands... no. No issues. They're put up in the VIP quarters."

Tobias snorted muted derision over the notion. "Mmm, cushy," he jiggled the seat, brows still knitted. "Just... keep them out of my hair Ayda. That's all I ask."

Ayda smiled cryptically, raising her brow, "Oh I know. Doctor's orders as well."

Tobias frumped and grunted, "Oh really now." Tobias frowned, stood up and strayed past Helm to turn back and look at his chair. He tilted his head. "What'd she say?" He asked with a glance up at Muldowney. Bach searched the space before him with an epiphany, "THe Doctor you say..." he whispered.

"Just to keep your blood pressure down until the regen's had it's full time," Ayda said, "Captain, is there something wrong with your chair?"

Tobias glowered and sat back in the Captain's seat, "No. Alright, let's get moving people." He circled a finger over the comm key again, "Bridge to Sickbay."

"Sickbay, Aax here." a familiar voice chirped.

"Get up here," Tobias grumbled, bending close to the speaker with a false smile. His eyes bat, with pseudo-saccharin intent. He stabbed the comm channel closed.

---

Ensign Kevin Ibanez ran down the corridor towards the turbolift, boots tucked under one arm while the other tried zipping up his uniform jacket while he was in motion, without much success. As the doors slid open, he rushed inside but accidentally dropped his boots, one falling back into the corridor just as the door slid shut. "Oh for fu—" he swore as he slammed his palm against the keypad to reopened the door. When it did he quickly grabbed his boot before it shut again and finally breathed a sigh of relief as he leaned against the inside of the lift.

"Bridge," Kevin said as he hopped first on one foot to get into his right boot, and then the other to fit the left boot. By the time he was done he had just enough time to zip up his jacket before the turbolift doors opened onto the bridge. He stepped out quietly and calmly, heading towards his station, unaware that his hair was tousled in several directions.

Ovrora made her way to the science station with head held high and antennae perked forward as if listening for something. She offered Caspian a companionable smile as she settled into the science station next to her and brought up the displays. They weren't, strictly speaking, needed to leave the station, but she would feel most confident with them at the ready. As she worked she made it a point not to let her eyes stray to the engineering station where Sturnack was settling in. It wasn't that she wanted to avoid her friend, per se, so much that she really did not want to take a swipe at his smug irritation with her while on the bridge.

As shadows crossed, his eyes fixed on their owners. "Our Resident Pugilists reporting for duty, I see?" Tobias swung his gaze toward Security as well, to the Tactical station, and then to Muldowney.

Ayda glanced at him sidelong, a bemused one. His brow was raised in questioning. "I released them on their own recognizance. They won't be humiliating Zenith anymore today." Ayda's voice, while a velvety bemused tone, came with a sharp gaze toward the Vulcan, the Andorian, and the Human.

"I believe we have fulfilled our fisticuffs quota this trip," Sturnack replied, sounding almost-but-not-quite snide as his eyes flicked to Ovrora. Younger Vulcans always professed to have their emotions 100% under control but clearly, they did seep through the cracks at times. This was often a point of confusion for outside observers who decried a lack of canonical consistency where Vulcans were concerned. However, for Vulcans, age and continued practice eventually brought reality into line with the mental version they had of themselves. Perhaps, someday, Sturnack would be as impassive as he saw himself but that day was clearly not today. Stepping up to the Engineering console, the Ensign signaled down to Schaefer that he'd taken his station and would liaison as ordered.

Ayda's mouth twitched in restrained wish to vocalize but refrained. Her brow arched, "I'll submit some personnel roster changes for your review on the Isonzo Away mission. I've had a rethink."

Bach nodded, "I understand. We'll talk later." Ayda nodded, turned, and assumed her station at Mission Operations.

It was a deliberate effort on Ovrora's part to control her facial features as she overheard the conversation between Muldowney and Bach. She wasn't sure what, exactly, Ayda had rethought, but her mind instantly dropped over to the problem of the ion storm blocking their way to Isonzo and the still unknown puzzle of the strange striations that had been presented at the initial science briefing regarding this mission. Her stomach gave an unpleasant twist at the thought of not getting to look into such unique scientific phenomena.

Kevin tried not to make it too obvious that he was picking up bits and pieces of the conversation as he signed into his station and began to check all the readouts and status updates of the flight control systems. He was still curious just what exactly went down at The Hole In The Wall and would have to get the full story out of one of them sometime.

Captain Bach leaned his cheek on his hand, "Mr. Ibanez, let off the parking brake, and let's get moving. Mr. Sanders, clear all moorings with Yardmaster Control and request permission to depart. Mr. Ibanez, standby reverse thrusters. Then set course for the Isonzo system, warp factor six."

"Aye, Captain," Kevin acknowledged, his fingers tapping the controls as he disengaged the external inertial dampeners and put the thrusters on standby. "Parking break off, sir. Reverse thrusters on standby. Setting course for the Izonso system. Ready to engage at warp six on your mark."

Toby opted to ignore the conversation going on around him and concentrated on the task at hand. Sending all their requests as instructed, the Ops station responded quickly and before long the Ulysses was free to depart once more, "Moorings cleared and we're free to leave, Captain."

"Thank you Mr. Saunders," Bach said, seeing movement of white and green in his peripheral. Bach glanced up to see the black-eyed Betazoid, "What'd you do to my chair?" He vocalized very slow. Kiam's face split into the most impish, classic Troll meme grin. When Tobias saw it in double-take, he flushed, "Mr. Ibanez, reverse thrusters." He tugged on his tunic, "I'm gonna kill you slow. I'm gonna break every bone in. Your. Body." Tobias menaced in a private not-so-private exchange with the Doctor.

"Blood pressure Captain," her hand gently fell on Bach's shoulder and drummed fingers. "Would you like a tranquilizer?"

"Oh ho, it is so on, Aax..." Tobias chuckled darkly. "Fix my chair or find a spacesuit."

"Aye, sir," Kevin responded, his attention back on the job at hand. "Reverse thrusters engaged. Warp engines are standing by."

"Let's get moving," Tobias said. He lifted himself from his chair and sighed, "Ayda you have the tilt o' whirl," he said, chin jutting to his chair with brimming sarcasm. Bach pointed at Kiam, "Fix my chair," he tugged on his uniform. Behind him, the Ulysses was on the move. It jumped to warp, the streak of lights filling the screen.

Next stop: The Isonzo Star System.