Late Comers

Posted on Tue Jun 23rd, 2020 @ 4:43am by Captain Nycolas Temple & Lieutenant Nicholas Boucher & Sasha Vieers (Deceased) & Katya
Edited on on Fri Jul 10th, 2020 @ 5:28pm

Mission: Death in Paradise
Location: Bridge / Valkyrie

ON:

"THIS IS TOTALLY INAPPROPRIATE!" Screamed the Traffic Controller from Paradise outpost. The squat, round little alien, with the bushiest eyebrows in the quadrant, was protesting loudly to the Pandora's Bridge crew.

"With respect, sir, this is normal operations." Ensign Vieers was explaining. She would have much preferred to still be on her date with Lieutenant Vicuno, but duty had called. She sighed into the view screen as the Controller scoffed sarcastically.

"WE HAVE NO REQUEST FOR ADDITIONAL DOCKING!" Haj was barking now, spittle foaming at the corner of his mouth as he pounded the desk in anger.

Ensign Vieers groaned as she tried to explain again, "But it's not additional docking for Paradise. They're going to be docking with us!"

The doors to the Ready Room swished open and Captain Temple appeared, pulling down at the hem of his jacket as he entered the Bridge. Even from the privacy of his office he could hear Haj yelling at his crew so he came to investigate. With only a slight nod, he gave the signal for Vieers to close the view screen and silence the Traffic Controller's tirade. The Ensign did so with incredible speed and it quickly went black. Nyx stood at the Ops console with a bemused smile.

"Trouble with the locals, Ensign?" He asked.

"I find that Haj most impertinent." Vieers remarked, trying to withhold her frustration. "We've had the Starfighter Squadron sent from Starfleet arrive at the exclusion zone but he is not letting them through. He thinks we're trying to smuggle in ships or something."

Temple smirked a little. The station's Traffic Controller Haj had been rude and officious from the very beginning, it seemed his only job was to yell at people trying to visit Paradise. The Captain shook his head, "Put me through to the Starfighter's commander."

"Aye, sir," Vieers replied, her hands dancing across the console. In a moment the view screen changed to the cockpit of the lead Valkyrie fighter.

***

When Nicholas Boucher’s comm board lit up at an incoming transmission, he almost jumped out of his seat.

He and Alpha Squadron had been waiting in a holding pattern at Paradise Station ever since they dropped out of warp almost an hour prior. It had already been a long trip to reach the station, the fighters could only hit Warp 4 safely and the USS Palatine hadn’t been able to ferry them very close, so the aggressive welcome they had received hadn’t exactly been enjoyable. He had attempted to negotiate with the Traffic Controller himself, but had been stonewalled repeatedly and so finally he had contacted the USS Pandora to do the talking for him.

It had been a whirlwind few weeks since he had been accepted for a shipboard transfer. The USS Palatine was an impressive vessel and his arrival had been highly anticipated, as they had recently been assigned a flight of Valkyrie-class fighters and had needed a flight leader. Before he had even had a chance to settle in though, he’d been assigned a mission off-ship: To escort the USS Pandora back to Federation territory. The political situation in the Inconnu Expanse had become volatile, to say the least, and Starfleet wanted to ensure that the Luna-class vessel had adequate back-up in case it ran into any trouble. Nick had taken off with a flight of six Valkyries and had made his way to Paradise Station where the Pandora was docked.

“USS Pandora, this is Alpha lead,” he acknowledged the hail. “Do you have good news for me? Are we clear to dock?”

"Greetings, I hope you've had a safe journey from the Palatine." Nyx replied, a pleasant smile on his face. "We're attempting to gain clearance from Paradise still. They are especially protective of allowing ships to dock."

Nick suppressed a sigh and forced a smile back. Seemed like they may be in for a longer wait.

"The bureaucracy is expanding to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy," he stated dryly. "We've had a fairly uneventful journey thus far, yes sir."

The smile faded and was replaced by a concerned look. "I know this was all fairly last minute, Captain, but am I correct in assuming that, once docking clearance has been received, there is space for us in the hangar bay? I know the Pandora wasn't originally designed as a fighter carrier, so I hope it wasn't too much of an inconvenience."

"We've had to place one of the shuttles into the maintenance bay, but it should work." Nyx replied with a faint sigh. Juggling resources while in the midsts of a mission was part of the job, but they were trying to fit nine craft into a Shuttle Bay that could only house eight. "I hope we will get this situation sorted soon, so you and your squad can relax in comfort."

"Here's hoping, sir, " Nick answered, truthfully. A nice, long sonic shower and a bite to eat would certainly be appreciated, before he launched into mission duties.

"Captain, Chief Katya is hailing us." Ensign Vieers interrupted.

"Hopefully with good news." The Captain smiled. "Just a moment, Lieutenant."

"Aye sir," Nick replied, his view screen going dark. He quickly fired off a message to the rest of the squad to update them on the situation.

The Pandora's view screen flipped from the Valkyrie cockpit to the office of Station Chief Katya. Her bright orange hair flouncing as usual as a grin permeated across her lime green lips.

"Captain, you've gotten Haj most upset." She remarked.

"I think he prefers to be upset." Nyx replied with a shrug. "But I am going to need to call in a favour."

"So soon?" Katya demurred, as if she was enjoying the Pandora's predicament. "I see you have more ships joining you, Captain. You've already had extra crew arrive earlier."

"Yes, we're a deep-space vessel, Chief," Nyx explained. "We rarely stop for provisions or crew replacements, so now that we're docked at Paradise, we're trying to make up for lost time."

"Those ships you have out there... what are they?" Katya asked carefully, though she was clearly looking at a view screen. The Valkyries would have been scanned and assessed as soon as they were within the exclusion zone of Paradise, but she wasn't asking to be told what she already knew.

"Scout ships, Chief." Nyx replied. "They are escorting us back to Federation territory once our aid mission with the Irokari is complete."

"They carry firepower." She stated.

"Of course." Nyx said with a smile. "As you said yourself, these are dangerous times, Chief."

Katya looked off side to her screen then back at Nyx again for a few moments, the neon tattoos on her face moving and folding as she furrowed her brow in contemplation. "They will make people nervous."

"You have my word that their weapons will be powered down and deactivated and the ships will be docked within Pandora until we leave orbit of your station." Nyx quickly replied.

Again moments of consideration passed. Katya seemed to tilt her head, as if listening to someone, until finally giving a nod. "Very well, as long as you comply with those conditions."

"Of course." Nyx beamed, "I thank you for your assistance, Chief."

"Our debt to each other is repaid." She said firmly, before the screen disappeared.

Nyx let out a deep sigh before indicating to Vieers to switch back to the Valkyrie cockpit. "Good news, Lieutenant, we have been able to secure your passage to dock with the Pandora."

Nick grinned enthusiastically, his hands starting to move over the controls, powering up his engines. "That's wonderful news, sir. By your leave, I'll advise the squad and begin docking procedures. Can we convene for a face-to-face later today?"

"I'll see you as soon as you're ready." Temple replied with a nod. "Pandora out."

Nick gave his squad the rundown and guided then in through the heavy traffic slowly. He didn't want to spook anyone and start an interstellar incident out there. Alpha Squadron made their way to the Pandora and he led them into the hangar bay gingerly. It wasn't quite set-up for fighters yet, but from what he saw, the crew had done an admirable job jerry-rigging it temporarily.

Their craft landed and stowed away, Nick quickly obtained quartering details for the squad and dismissed them to go get cleaned up. He made his way to his quarters to do the same before his meeting with Captain Temple.

***

Nyx waited in his Ready Room for the Lieutenant to arrive. His second new senior crew member to arrive this day. It was getting busy on the Pandora, clearly signs of Starfleet's concern for the vessel. They still had a long journey back to Federation territory and while it should be comforting to think the extra staff and Valkyrie squadron were 'just in case', it was quite obvious that they were expecting trouble. These thoughts plagued the Captain's mind until the door chimed.

Sitting back at his desk, Temple called out, "Come."

Nick had showered and changed into his duty uniform quickly. After the long trip, he was looking forward to a rest, but had to meet meet with the Captain before that could happen. He had made his way to the Captain's Ready Room in short order.

He chimed the door and hearing the Captain's acknowledgement, he entered the door as it opened and stopped a few feet inside the door at attention.

"Sir, Lieutenant Nicholas Boucher reporting," he said.

Nyx stood and extended his hand, "Come in, take a seat. We're glad to have you onboard, Lieutenant."

Nick shook the Captain's hand firmly and sat across from him. "Happy to be aboard, sir. It looked a bit touch and go for a bit there. You were right earlier, the station certainly is wary of its guests."

He leaned forward slightly. "Almost seems like we're a bit unwelcome, a growing theme in this sector, which brings me to my squad's mission: When will we be underway? We're here to help make sure the Pandora makes it back to Federation space safely. It seems like the longer we delay, the riskier that becomes."

"The Alrakis Pact has scared many people in the region, they are seeking shelter at Paradise." Nyx replied, "So they resent us for jumping the queue due to our mission. Speaking of, we have made contact with the Irokari and we're currently fulfilling the aid side of the mission. However, we're still trying to investigate Paradise for any potential intelligence on the Pact. We're working on leads now, but haven't found anything substantial as yet."

Nick leaned back in the chair. "I see. In the quick turnaround, I was never advised that you had a mission to investigate the pact here. I assume that means we'll be staying awhile?"

"Not too long, hopefully." Nyx replied earnestly, "We've been tasked with finding some specific information about meetings between the Breen and Ravagers. Hopefully we'll find something soon and be on our way back to the Carnwennan Corridor."

Nick nodded. Seemed like his mission just got extended a bit and became a fair bit more dangerous. If they missed the deadline the Pact had given the Federation to leave the Expanse, his squad may very much be needed for more than just a few patrols.

"Understood, sir," he started. "I imagine Alpha Squadron is more or less grounded while we're here at Paradise, so our duties will be limited. I served in the Marines during the Dominion War, as you've probably seen in my record, and after my service, I helped run my family's mechanic shop. I'm not averse to using any of the skills I acquired during those times to help speed along the mission."

He shrugged. "If we miss the deadline, Alpha Squadron is prepared to do whatever it takes to get the Pandora home, but if we can avoid that potentiality, I'll do what I can to make sure we do."

"I appreciate that. And I'm very glad you're here to see us home safe." Nyx replied with a smile. "We will still need your Squadron on alert should things turn south on Paradise. In addition, if you were to visit the station, I need you to keep an open ear to any possible information you may gain from traders, staff, or other visitors. Anything could be of assistance to our mission."

"You'll have two pilots on standby at all times, sir," Nick stated. "8 hour shifts. And should the need arise, the other four can be scrambled within five minutes if we use an emergency site to site transport. We've trained for situations like this. As well, I'll advise my pilots to keep their ears open if they take leave on the station."

"Very good." The Captain replied, relieved that the Lieutenant and his crew had come prepared and ready to jump right in. "Once we're on our way to the Carnwennan Corridor, we'll have more time to get to know each other. For now, I'd like you to speak with our XO, Commander Nash, on organising your Squadron's accomodation and anything else you need to operate. Then liaise with Lieutenant Griffin on the best methods of defending the ship if need be. Griffin is our Security and Tactical Chief."

"Roger that, sir," Nick replied. He had quite a bit to get to with regards to getting his squad squared away and set-up on the ship. "If that is all, sir?"

Nyx thought for a moment before finally giving a nod, "Yes, thankfully. That is all for now. I am planning to visit Paradise again soon, but we'll be in touch when I get back. If you ever need anything, please let me or Commander Nash know."

Nick stood. "Thank you, sir."

He left the Ready Room. The Captain seemed a straightforward enough man, they'd work together fine. He had a few more meetings before he could turn in for the day, the XO and the Security Chief first among them. He may as well get started on those.

The Captain remained bemused at the earlier conversation with Haj from Paradise Outpost, and after all the fuss from the Valkyrie's arrival, he had forgotten to say 'Hello Nicholas, I'm Nycholas' to Lieutenant Boucher. The Captain hated a missed opportunity to display his terrible sense of humour, though he knew there would be many more opportunities to come while the Wing Commander was stationed on Paradise.

"Hello Nicholas, I'm Nycholas." He said aloud and then laughed heartily to himself.

OFF