02-10-2025, 02:26 AM
==0100 Hours, the night of the Commissioning Ceremony==
The beeping coming from Jenny's terminal became more insistent the longer she ignored it. The fact that this was now the third time someone had tried to contact her only served to darken her mood even further as she stormed out of the bedroom, quickly wrapping her naked form in a silk kimono. It had been far too long since she'd enjoyed any male company, and after Bryan had made the journey to the ass-end of nowhere to support her at the Yeager's commissioning, she had hoped that she would be able to take her time to truly make the most of the experience.
Someone had decided that was not to be.
That meant someone was about to die.
Dropping heavily into the chair behind her desk, she slammed her hand down on the console to activate the communications terminal. The screen flashed to life, the brightness causing her to flinch away briefly as her eyes adjusted.
"This had better be good."
The officer on the other end of the communication, a young Bajoran woman, seemed unphased by Jenny's appearance or mood, and seemed more intent on working on filing her nails than holding any conversation.
[Please hold for Ambassador Langtree.]
The screen immediately flashed to a generic government wallpaper, and Jenny could have sworn she heard cheesy piano music and a condescending voice telling her that her call was important to them. Her simmering anger was rapidly coming to a boil, and Jenny could feel her cheeks heating as she waited. For a seemingly-endless amount of time, Jenny waited for the Ambassador to appear so she could return to her warm bed and even warmer husband, and she was about to close the monitor and rip out the cables so she could get some peace and quiet when the Ambassador's face appeared.
[Did I catch you at a bad time, Captain?]
Langtree had a kind face with deep-set green eyes and hair that was rapidly graying from its dark brown. The antithesis of what many would consider a career politician, Langtree had served for twenty years in the Starfleet Marine Corps prior to entering the Diplomatic Corps; he'd served at AR-558, Chin'toka, and had helped evacuate Romulan civilians under fire during the exodus from Romulan space. He was a man for whom Jenny held great respect, but that didn't change the fact he was the reason for her current state of coitus interruptus.
"Well, actually..."
[Just over a month ago, long-range probes detected the presence of a warp-capable species in your area. The Yeager is to...]
"Now hold on a minute, Ambassador. I work for Starfleet Command, not the Diplomatic Corps; you don't have the authority to give me orders, otherwise I'd be talking to an Admiral. What it sounds like is you're asking me to volunteer for something."
[I'd like you to volunteer for something. While we have not compiled a full dossier on the species, we know that they are called the Wairara, and they inhabit a binary star system with a unique temporal anomaly; a chroniton particle stream, which is of great interest to the Department of Temporal Investigations...]
"I'm not interested. Send the Titania, they love the temporal crap."
[Furthermore, our probes have indicated that whatever technology they use to travel around their system is far more efficient than our own impulse drives, and have been recorded as routinely accelerating to velocities of point-four cee. I don't need to tell you, Captain, that having an acceleration advantage over our rivals without the time-dilation effects would be vital should another armed conflict arise. The Theoretical Propulsion Group at Utopia Planitia are very keen to get their hands on this technology.]
"So send a SCE ship with a diplomatic team."
[That's the issue,] Langtree rubbed his hands together, [from our intercepts of their media, it seems like the Wairara have little use for the posturing of career politicians. Their primary religion is that of The Great Race; competition to complete a task in the fastest and most efficient way. Can you guess what their tradition is when meeting a new species?]
"No."
[They challenge them to a race. The Wairara take their racing very seriously, their entire star system is organised into one giant racetrack. Pilots and engineers are first-class citizens among the Wairara; they are the equivalent of old-Earth rock stars, with properties, titles, and media endorsements to go along with their fame.]
"Sensible. Let's make that Federation policy."
[So we believe that a pilot is the best person to talk to these people. We know they're aware of the Federation, and despite the misgivings of The Powers That Be, you're one of the most famous pilots in Starfleet since Tom Paris. We believe that the Yeager's...unique...design, will also appeal to the engineers among the Wairara.]
"I'm not a diplomat."
[We're assigning a diplomatic advisor, they will report aboard tomorrow. I believe Commander Crawford recently boarded for a visit, he will act as security for our advisor. I trust you and he will have plenty to keep you occupied between diplomatic functions.]
The smirk on Langtry's face didn't soothe Jenny's mood much, but it was a start. It was a hell of an opportunity for her, and for the crew of the Yeager; her last First Contact mission had almost resulted in a shooting war with the Tholian Assembly, it was a surprise that she'd be offered a second chance so soon. Not that it was anyone's first choice; she was simply the person who ticked the most boxes and was closest. Plus it got to mean that Bryan would be remaining aboard for an extended period of time; Carly was still on Earth, which meant the family wasn't quite fully reunited, but it was a start.
"Well then I guess I volunteer, Ambassador."
[Good! Your orders will be sent in the morning. Enjoy the rest of your night.]
Jenny managed, barely, not to give Langtree the finger as she noticed the mischievous twinkle in his eye; he might have left the Corps, but he'd certainly not grown up any. Shutting down the monitor, Jenny rose and moved back towards the bedroom. Bryan had since wrapped himself in a robe and was standing in the doorway, opening his mouth to enquire what the conversation was about. Before he uttered a word, Jenny put a finger to his lips and unbelted her kimono, letting it slide off her shoulders as she pushed him back into the bedroom.
It was shaping up to be a good night, after all...
The beeping coming from Jenny's terminal became more insistent the longer she ignored it. The fact that this was now the third time someone had tried to contact her only served to darken her mood even further as she stormed out of the bedroom, quickly wrapping her naked form in a silk kimono. It had been far too long since she'd enjoyed any male company, and after Bryan had made the journey to the ass-end of nowhere to support her at the Yeager's commissioning, she had hoped that she would be able to take her time to truly make the most of the experience.
Someone had decided that was not to be.
That meant someone was about to die.
Dropping heavily into the chair behind her desk, she slammed her hand down on the console to activate the communications terminal. The screen flashed to life, the brightness causing her to flinch away briefly as her eyes adjusted.
"This had better be good."
The officer on the other end of the communication, a young Bajoran woman, seemed unphased by Jenny's appearance or mood, and seemed more intent on working on filing her nails than holding any conversation.
[Please hold for Ambassador Langtree.]
The screen immediately flashed to a generic government wallpaper, and Jenny could have sworn she heard cheesy piano music and a condescending voice telling her that her call was important to them. Her simmering anger was rapidly coming to a boil, and Jenny could feel her cheeks heating as she waited. For a seemingly-endless amount of time, Jenny waited for the Ambassador to appear so she could return to her warm bed and even warmer husband, and she was about to close the monitor and rip out the cables so she could get some peace and quiet when the Ambassador's face appeared.
[Did I catch you at a bad time, Captain?]
Langtree had a kind face with deep-set green eyes and hair that was rapidly graying from its dark brown. The antithesis of what many would consider a career politician, Langtree had served for twenty years in the Starfleet Marine Corps prior to entering the Diplomatic Corps; he'd served at AR-558, Chin'toka, and had helped evacuate Romulan civilians under fire during the exodus from Romulan space. He was a man for whom Jenny held great respect, but that didn't change the fact he was the reason for her current state of coitus interruptus.
"Well, actually..."
[Just over a month ago, long-range probes detected the presence of a warp-capable species in your area. The Yeager is to...]
"Now hold on a minute, Ambassador. I work for Starfleet Command, not the Diplomatic Corps; you don't have the authority to give me orders, otherwise I'd be talking to an Admiral. What it sounds like is you're asking me to volunteer for something."
[I'd like you to volunteer for something. While we have not compiled a full dossier on the species, we know that they are called the Wairara, and they inhabit a binary star system with a unique temporal anomaly; a chroniton particle stream, which is of great interest to the Department of Temporal Investigations...]
"I'm not interested. Send the Titania, they love the temporal crap."
[Furthermore, our probes have indicated that whatever technology they use to travel around their system is far more efficient than our own impulse drives, and have been recorded as routinely accelerating to velocities of point-four cee. I don't need to tell you, Captain, that having an acceleration advantage over our rivals without the time-dilation effects would be vital should another armed conflict arise. The Theoretical Propulsion Group at Utopia Planitia are very keen to get their hands on this technology.]
"So send a SCE ship with a diplomatic team."
[That's the issue,] Langtree rubbed his hands together, [from our intercepts of their media, it seems like the Wairara have little use for the posturing of career politicians. Their primary religion is that of The Great Race; competition to complete a task in the fastest and most efficient way. Can you guess what their tradition is when meeting a new species?]
"No."
[They challenge them to a race. The Wairara take their racing very seriously, their entire star system is organised into one giant racetrack. Pilots and engineers are first-class citizens among the Wairara; they are the equivalent of old-Earth rock stars, with properties, titles, and media endorsements to go along with their fame.]
"Sensible. Let's make that Federation policy."
[So we believe that a pilot is the best person to talk to these people. We know they're aware of the Federation, and despite the misgivings of The Powers That Be, you're one of the most famous pilots in Starfleet since Tom Paris. We believe that the Yeager's...unique...design, will also appeal to the engineers among the Wairara.]
"I'm not a diplomat."
[We're assigning a diplomatic advisor, they will report aboard tomorrow. I believe Commander Crawford recently boarded for a visit, he will act as security for our advisor. I trust you and he will have plenty to keep you occupied between diplomatic functions.]
The smirk on Langtry's face didn't soothe Jenny's mood much, but it was a start. It was a hell of an opportunity for her, and for the crew of the Yeager; her last First Contact mission had almost resulted in a shooting war with the Tholian Assembly, it was a surprise that she'd be offered a second chance so soon. Not that it was anyone's first choice; she was simply the person who ticked the most boxes and was closest. Plus it got to mean that Bryan would be remaining aboard for an extended period of time; Carly was still on Earth, which meant the family wasn't quite fully reunited, but it was a start.
"Well then I guess I volunteer, Ambassador."
[Good! Your orders will be sent in the morning. Enjoy the rest of your night.]
Jenny managed, barely, not to give Langtree the finger as she noticed the mischievous twinkle in his eye; he might have left the Corps, but he'd certainly not grown up any. Shutting down the monitor, Jenny rose and moved back towards the bedroom. Bryan had since wrapped himself in a robe and was standing in the doorway, opening his mouth to enquire what the conversation was about. Before he uttered a word, Jenny put a finger to his lips and unbelted her kimono, letting it slide off her shoulders as she pushed him back into the bedroom.
It was shaping up to be a good night, after all...