05-30-2024, 12:15 AM
Departments all ready. Systems all green. Aside from a few calibration tweaks, the new-and-improved Yeager was ready to depart, as was her crew. Her Captain, on the other hand, wasn't so sure any more; she looked between her officers, going about their duties and daily lives as if her actions hadn't threatened to ruin them, and in some cases probably had. She'd never apologise for what she did, she'd had the moral high ground and had been right in the end, but the way things had gone down on the Philadelphia was regrettable - she should have trusted Jensen, he should have trusted her. Or she would have been better off casually deleting the message, any log of its receipt, and then ordered the ship to turn around anyway. By giving the crew an out, she'd put them in a terrible position, one she knew she might be called upon to put them in again.
Is it worth it?
Not for the first time, Jenny's malaise clouded her appreciation of the big picture; she did what she did to protect people, not the vocal minority who lambasted her every choice, but the silent majority who would never know her name or the acts she'd been forced to commit in the name of their safety. It wasn't fair to say that the young Captain had become jaded, her viewpoint had always been that the Federation was a bloated bureaucracy with too many people in the top ranks and too little interest in the little people, but recent events had shown that despite everything, the rot at the top still existed. Maybe not in the CinC or Presidential Offices, but certainly in the upper echelons that reported to them.
Maybe it's time to force the issue of retirement; I can't be that vital that I can't be replaced...
Pushing such thoughts from her mind, Jenny sat back in her chair and let out a calming breath that she almost succeeded in preventing coming out as a defeated sigh; here she was on a brand new starship about to take her on her maiden voyage, and all she could think about was how it was time to move on. That did a disservice to her crew, who deserved the best she could do while she occupied the centre chair.
"Theresa, ahead one quarter Impulse until we clear the docking slip, then set course one eight zero mark zero five and go to full Impulse."
She didn't know their orders, all she knew was that they were going "south" down towards what had once been the Talarian Republic and was now the most recent addition to the Cardassian Union, despite bitter resistance from the Talarian military and several enterprising "private forces" made up of mercenaries and adrenaline junkies looking for adventure. The Federation had, allegedly, been providing discrete assistance to the Talarian Resistance, but that was based on unsubstantiated rumours; more likely she was going to be tasked with preventing smugglers entering the warzone and thus protect the peace the Federation had with Cardassia.
Peace that the Cardassians had broken. Repeatedly.
"When we leave the system's gravity well, set course for Starbase 214, Warp Six. We'll give the engines time to warm up before we really push them. T'Lari, keep an eye on your sensors; if you find anything you'd like to blow up to calibrate your weapons, let me know."
Is it worth it?
Not for the first time, Jenny's malaise clouded her appreciation of the big picture; she did what she did to protect people, not the vocal minority who lambasted her every choice, but the silent majority who would never know her name or the acts she'd been forced to commit in the name of their safety. It wasn't fair to say that the young Captain had become jaded, her viewpoint had always been that the Federation was a bloated bureaucracy with too many people in the top ranks and too little interest in the little people, but recent events had shown that despite everything, the rot at the top still existed. Maybe not in the CinC or Presidential Offices, but certainly in the upper echelons that reported to them.
Maybe it's time to force the issue of retirement; I can't be that vital that I can't be replaced...
Pushing such thoughts from her mind, Jenny sat back in her chair and let out a calming breath that she almost succeeded in preventing coming out as a defeated sigh; here she was on a brand new starship about to take her on her maiden voyage, and all she could think about was how it was time to move on. That did a disservice to her crew, who deserved the best she could do while she occupied the centre chair.
"Theresa, ahead one quarter Impulse until we clear the docking slip, then set course one eight zero mark zero five and go to full Impulse."
She didn't know their orders, all she knew was that they were going "south" down towards what had once been the Talarian Republic and was now the most recent addition to the Cardassian Union, despite bitter resistance from the Talarian military and several enterprising "private forces" made up of mercenaries and adrenaline junkies looking for adventure. The Federation had, allegedly, been providing discrete assistance to the Talarian Resistance, but that was based on unsubstantiated rumours; more likely she was going to be tasked with preventing smugglers entering the warzone and thus protect the peace the Federation had with Cardassia.
Peace that the Cardassians had broken. Repeatedly.
"When we leave the system's gravity well, set course for Starbase 214, Warp Six. We'll give the engines time to warm up before we really push them. T'Lari, keep an eye on your sensors; if you find anything you'd like to blow up to calibrate your weapons, let me know."