Phaser Certifications

Posted on Sun Jun 21st, 2020 @ 3:46am by Lieutenant Kalin Brennan-Griffin PhD & Commander Owen Nash & Cailus Griffin & Lieutenant Van Kolbeck
Edited on on Wed Jun 24th, 2020 @ 6:55am

Mission: New Moon Rising
Location: Deck 17 (Security)
Timeline: Before "Sail Away"

"To: Lieutenant Kalin Brennan, Lieutenant Van Kolbeck, Lieutenant Commander Owen Nash.
From: Ensign Cailus Griffin

Your phaser qualification recertification is set for 0900 tomorrow. Please report to Deck 17 on time. Reminder: per Starfleet regulations, all department heads are required to have completed this certification before departure."

The following morning after the message was sent, Cailus waited on Deck 17 in the large room he had somewhat unimaginatively labelled as Security HQ. The deck was still relatively empty, with more than half the department due to arrive in the afternoon. The central hub beyond the turbolift was oddly large, with a dozen desks surrounding an open, unmarked area. Doors dotted the bulkheads around the Hub, leading to the various facilities such as the Brig, Armory, and Firing Range, while the curved outline of the EPS conduits in the ceiling hinted at the fact that they were in the belly of the ship itself, below even the engineers.

As he waited, half-sat on one of the desks with a PaDD in hand, Cailus looked around with poorly concealed satisfaction. He had inspected the deck before, of course, but the more time he spent here, the more impressed he was. The Pandora's Security and Tactical personnel couldn't ask for a better workplace.

Shae arrived promptly, having the benefit of a reminder from Cailus before he left her quarters this morning, so there was no forgetting about the phaser certifications. As a Science Officer, she wasn't required to have a vast proficiency with firearms, though she did, but Officers in her position were at least required to have the basics down, so she understood the need for these regular tests, and since she hadn't been called to recertify while on the Tornado, she couldn't avoid doing so now. She wasn't really looking forward to this, and she had a feeling Cailus realized this, but thankfully he was being tactfully silent on the subject so as not to draw attention to what was still a very raw subject for her.

"Good morning," Shae said simply as she entered Security HQ. She had no problems treating Cailus like an equal even though he was only an Ensign; after all, he had once worn the rank of Lieutenant same as her, and he was still a department head which carried a substantial weight of its own, although she did wonder how long he would have to stay an Ensign before he could regain his former rank...

"Good morning," Cailus said curtly, remaining on the desk. "You're the first to arrive."

"I noticed," Shae replied with a nod. "Would you mind if I borrowed a desk to catch up on some reading while we wait for the others? Or would you rather we get started?"

Cailus shrugged. "It's easier to do a synchronised test. All of these workstations have full computer access, so feel free. The others should be here in a few minutes." Dropping the formality for a moment, his expression softened. "I'm sorry for leaving before you woke up, by the way. I didn't want to disturb you."

"It's alright," Shae simply said as she sat down at one of the desks and accessed the computer terminal. From her duty jacket, she pulled out a set of thin rimmed glasses and a small PaDD to make some notes on; strictly speaking, Shae's eyes were just fine, but the weren't designed with excessive amounts of reading in mind, and the glasses she placed on her face were simply to help reduce eyestrain. "I know you have things to do, you didn't hurt my feelings," she added with a smile as she accessed an article she had been reading earlier and began to take down some notes on her PaDD. Although, she did miss seeing him this morning, but she still understood he couldn't be there to greet her every morning.

Kolbeck was certain he would do well in the Security Department’s Phaser Re-Qualification program. As Medical Officer one would think he rarely had to be concerned with a weapon. His career was spent helping people. There were times where a phaser in the Medical Department was warranted. Having to secure the Sick Bay during boarding incidents, having to force the compliance of unruly patients or above all having to guard others and his self on away missions.

Van entered the large Security Department. He could see lots of large work stations scattered across the deck. One officer sat on the side of the desk talking to another.

“Lt. Kolbeck reporting as ordered.” He nodded gesturing to his PADD with the date and timing of his phaser qualification required. Held in the same hand was his silver stainless mug of hot coffee. He looked around and wondered where they would be completing the test.

Hopping off the desk to stand up, Cailus acknowledged the CMO with a cursory nod of his own. "Welcome to Security HQ, sir. We didn't really get a chance to meet properly on the Boulevard; I'm Ensign Griffin, Chief of Security. I'll be administering the recertification."

"I'm Lieutenant Brennan, Chief of Science, and I'll be re-certifying along side you," Shae said in kind from where she sat at the desk. Her voice was soft and somewhat subdued as she usually didn't care for doctors; it wasn't anything personal towards Van, but with her history, a fear of doctors was almost unavoidable.

Owen made his way into the Security HQ area as requested after having received the message from Ensign Griffin and noticed several other officers already there as well as the Ship's Chief of Security.

"Hi, apologies for being the last one in...last minute checks in Operations have kept me occupied," he explained as he reported to Ensign Griffin. Owen could see Lt Brennan and the ships new CMO as he checked out where he needed to be.

"It's no problem, sir. If you'll follow me, please." With that, Cailus made his way to one of the doors in the room's perimeter labelled 'Firing Range'. The doors opened to reveal a small, bland circular room, with three tables arranged in a triangle at the center. On each table were various types of phasers. Maintaining a sense of formality, Cailus entered the triangle by raising a small flap on one of the tables.

His expression even, Cailus kept the flap raised so that the others could enter. "I will remind you all that while this range is a specialised holodeck, the weapons are quite real. Please treat them as such."

Owen stepped forward and cast a glance over the various weapons on the table, some that he was already familiar with and had used in various missions previously.

He looked over at Griffin to find out what he needed to do. "So we select a phaser and then proceed to the programme?" He asked

"In essence, yes," Cailus affirmed simply. With all four of them in the triangle formed by the three tables, he placed his hands behind his back as he stood in the center. "The program isn't much different to what you will have all used in the past. Different coloured targets will appear in your zone of fire. A green target requires a heavy stun, a red target requires a kill setting and a blue target requires vaporisation. You will all start using the standard Type II sidearm. The other phasers are for if you wish to attempt the advanced test afterwards. It's all just as you remember; the only difference here is the setting." Glancing up at the ceiling he called out, "Computer, activate Standard Phaser Qualification Program, variant Pandora 3.0. Random setting. Set for three participants."

At that command, the grey walls transformed. In an instant they were standing atop a small sand dune in the midst of a burning desert. The sand beneath their feet shifted at their weight and even the temperature jumped to an almost unbearable level. Looking around, Cailus nodded in appreciation as he pretended not to notice the sheen of sweat that had spontaneously formed on his brow. "Looks like Vulcan. Is everyone ready to begin?"

Owen nodded to signal his readiness for his part of the test to begin.

The last time that Kolbeck had hunted in essence was back on Earth, in one of the remaining bio reserves he and his Far had hunted bull moose calves in the season. The reserve was a sustainable generational resource in the resurgence of Earth’s biodiversity. He and his Far would skin and have the meat butchered. They would eat the moose calf on special occasions over campfire and family birthdays celebrating fertility.

Securing his hold Van’s large index run underneath the cool metal of the phaser. The bright light of the sunny desert prompted Van to slide on his pair of IV protective shades. Satisfied he gave a slight nod he was ‘ok.'

Despite all the fur, Shae didn't seemed to be phased by the change in temperature. As soon as the test began, she picked up the Type II phaser, checked the power cell, then set the phaser to stun, holding it low but ready as she waited for the colored dots to appear, and appear they did. Shae was quick and decisive, raising her phaser to fire in rapid succession at several targets that appeared in her view, carefully weighting her targets and grouping them so as to change phaser settings as few times as possible, but she was also assessing them tactically, with red and blue targets being deemed the more dangerous targets, watching how they moved over the dunes to better predict their movements and when to fire. The only 'fault' in her execution of this test was that she seemed to be hesitating with the red targets; Shae was partially colorblind, red was quite dull to her and those targets blended in with the orange and red sands of Vulcan, and her eyes were designed to track movement, she couldn't accurately target the red dots until they moved. In fact, throughout the whole test, Shae only received one mark against her, she never missed except for the one red target that never moved so she never saw it.

Kolbeck held a gaze that utilized his peripheral vision. A 360-degree kaleidoscope of colors managed to overwhelm his senses, at the same time prompted his senses to fire at will. The energy levels within his phaser actively paralleled each collective pulse of plasma. As best Kolbeck could manage to fire when the phaser azimuth has been pointed in exactly the right place, taking into account dozens of variables, including the wind, shake and distance to the target he did his best.

Along the way, he could hear the back call of the computer simulation recording down targets positive and negative.

Owen checked over the phaser he had selected and made sure it had a full power cell before taking aim in the programme area. He managed to keep his aim flexible and his aim true, however keeping track of some of the faster blue targets was a bit harder than he imagined.

Owen cursed a little as he missed two targets before regaining his composure and getting back on terms with the simulation. As he found himself comfortable with his weapon again, Owen's aim improved, but he reminded himself that he needed more practice.

As the last targets were speared by orange fire, the computer gave its bland assessment. "Lieutenant Commander Nash: 76.2. Pass. Lieutenant Kolbeck: 81.4. Pass. Lieutenant Brennan: 93.6. Pass. End of assessment."

With that the glaringly red desert vanished to be replaced by the bland grey walls, although the heat took somewhat longer to dissipate. "Well, that's that," Cailus commented with formal finality, his arms still folded. "Your certifications are up to date; thank you for coming promptly. I usually have to chase down at least one officer." Glancing at the door, he said "You can all go now, although you're all welcome to stay and attempt the advanced tactical certification if you wish. Be aware that if you haven't tried the ATC before, it's much harder to pass then the standard certification."

Owen was happy with his pass rate after the assessment had ended, however he was well aware that he needed to practice more and reminded himself to book in some more time once the ship was underway and he had his next off duty chance. This would come in handy one day and he knew that in the moment, this was vital.

Shae pouted ever so slightly when the computer said her score. 93?! How many had she missed?! She set down her phaser and looked to Cailus. "Would it be possible to get a detailed readout of my test?" she asked, concerned with where her technique had failed her.

"A detailed readout with a score above 90?" Cailus replied skeptically, raising a customary eyebrow. He had to rein in a smile at Shae's pout, instead maintaining his preferred neutral demeanour. "The computer can give you the statistics, but it'd be simpler to just tell you. It's a relatively minor fault, but I did notice it in all three of you." Hesitating, he added "Commander, Doctor, if you're interested..."

For a split moment, Van had felt that he was back in the Academy. Scores were being tossed around, and values were being placed on them, at least as to what he could tell from Lt. Brennan. Her score she did not seem satisfied.

“With a 93.1. I congratulate you min venn.” He smirked at Lt. Brennan.

“I am interested, Mr. Griffen.” He nodded to the Chief.

"Very good, sir," Cailus replied. Glancing between Owen, Van and Shae, he asked "Could you all assume a firing position, please?"

It wasn't that Shae found her score unsatisfactory, she just wanted to know where she went wrong, was that so much to ask? And she didn't really want to do the Advanced Tactical Certifications; she could pass this thing on her own without their help and she wasn't really ready to let a bunch of strangers know that! But it seemed this was happening anyway, so she stepped up with her peers to support them for the certifications.

Kolbeck leaned his neck towards the right side flexing it till he felt his vertebrae crack. He then flexed in relief, he eased his posture back tall and assumed at the sighting of the program.

Eyeing his phaser over he set the energy plasma discharge setting to that of a variant. Van had no idea what to expect.

Owen took his standard firing position as instructed and made ready as if he was about to defend himself. Standing forward on his right foot with his weight balanced by his left.

As the three of them readied their weapons, Cailus took a moment to examine them again from behind. Without warning he then hooked his foot around Kolbeck's ankle, extending the doctor's stance slightly before squaring the doctor's shoulders an extra inch. Swiftly he then shifted to Nash, straightening the commander's stance, before raising Shae's elbow another few centimeters.

"We may not be using projectile weapons," Cailus said as he worked, "but a phaser beam's trajectory and stream stability are still affected by your stance, if only by a smaller degree. When you fire a phaser several times in sequence, your stance becomes exponentially more important with each shot. Hopefully none of us will be forced into a circumstance like that in the Expanse, but..."

"But if the situation arises, better to be prepared," Shae said. As an experienced archer, she knew the importance of proper form, although given her 'other' experiences, she didn't feel like she really needed the correction, but she chose not to say anything about it.

Owen took note of the improved stance shown to him by Griffin. "So by taking this position and posture, we'll be better able to defend ourselves when it comes to action?" He asked, making sure to understand.

"It isn't a spectacular improvement," Cailus admitted. At a passing thought, his expression darkened somewhat. "In the long run, however, it could save your life."

Owen smiled a little. "Well that's always a good thing...perhaps I can arrange for some extra practice once we're underway?" he asked.

Kolbeck had nodded and taken in the information about the importance of his stance. He had likened it to back on Earth; his days spent every chance at Miklagard Golf.

“I try and remember that, yes.” He let his right ankle flex and grind inside of his duty uniform boot.

As it turned out, the four officers were there for another half hour. It was hard work (except for Shae, who cleared the next test with somewhat irritating ease), but the job was nevertheless done; all three officers were officially able to use sidearms, and all had displayed a marked improvement. There was still the determined hope that nobody would have to fire a weapon of any description during the Pandora's mission in the Expanse. If the time came, however, Shae, Van and Owen would be ready.