From jrbowman@kih.net Tue Jun 23 22:51:41 1998 Date: Fri, 12 Jun 1998 18:58:37 -0600 From: Gershon To: INDIGO FLEET List Serve Subject: [INDIGO] USS CONSTELLATION: Greetings and Salutations ---OFFICIAL INDIGO FLEET TRANSMISSION--- Date: Fri, 12 Jun 1998 20:55:28 -0400 (EDT) From: Gershon Subject: [INDIGO] USS CONSTELLATION: Greetings and Salutations FMD 7.0730 Deck 9 -- Security/Brig It had been the first time Yeoman Calloway had seen the Captain without his daughter. She wondered if she even knew he was down here. The Yeoman placed her PADD on the table next to the components of her phaser rifle. "Captain Paraskevopoulus! What are you doing here?", she said. However, for some unknown reason, she righted herself, threw her shoulders back, standing tree-trunk tall, and stated with a ringing clear voice, "Sir! Welcome to Security!" "Thank you, Yeoman." The chair wheeled itself over to the table. "Might I ask if LTJG Kzar is in?" "No, sir! Lieutenant Kzar is roaming the ship! Shall I contact him, Captain?" Paraskevopoulus smiled. "He has you disassembling phaser rifles?" "Yes, Sir! To reassemble blindfolded!", she quickly answered, as if she were on inspection. Demis wondered if high blood pressure was not in the Yeoman's future. The place certainly looked clean, to almost spartan standards. Even the tables were marked: Demis could read the word, "CALLOWAY" faintly etched at her bench. He thought it was more appropriate to a Marine deck, but it would be something he wouldn't mention to either Kzar or Kraltz. There was no time for further observations as Kzar entered. Calloway tensed immediately, her hand moving toward some component on the table. The Kzin sniffed about, as Demis's microbrained wheelchair wheeled itself over to the Kzinti. The Captain had to crane his neck to look up. "Lieutenant Kzar...I have an important word to share with you. A duty of Commander Bochu, which I have shamelessly appropriated. Consider this an order. If we may?" Kzar barely nodded. Calloway's head turned directly toward Kzar's as he stalked towards what might have been called his office, as it was a room with a desk and a very large chair. Demis noted the industrial decor. "Well, Kzar? Aren't you going to invite me to take a seat?" Of course, Demis was already seated. The Kzin looked puzzled, an odd look for a usually fearsome Kzar. "There... seemed little point. The crew is about to gather for the address from the Captain. Areas aboard the ship must be secure." "Well, before I confuse you any further, I've been studying the famous Kzinti sense of humor -- the Kzinti Joke Book is a best seller in the Beta Quadrant." "The Kzinti Joke Book is written by Klingons...and...with respect to our OPS officer, the bottom-feeder who wrote that execrable waste of quantum memory shall someday be treated to what you humans call a 'roast'...he will be the guest of honor, so to speak, and we will see if his remarks are...in...good *taste*." Demis nodded. "Hmm...my text on Kzinti humor was right. You are thin-skinned." "What?!?", growled the Kzin. "Cool your nacelles. The text stated that self-deprecation is a completely unknown concept." "To subject one's self to ridicule -- deliberately -- is an unimaginable act of self-contempt. Permission to speak freely, Sir?" "Go ahead." "I wonder who writes these texts of yours. As I am in Starfleet, I might be more forgiving, only by necessity...but I suggest that you do not debate the subject of humor with the Kzinti...unless your enemy is at the end of a leash, or you are about to deliver the death-strike. Perhaps I should choose your future reading material." "All right. Of course, I'll do the same. Now, Kzar, I want you to kneel." "What?!?" Kzar glared at the Captain. "This is an order, Kzar! Do it!!" Kzar, staring daggers at the captain, kneeled. "Head down, Lieutenant!"" Growling, Kzar lowered his head. Demis could read the tattoos on Kzar's ears quite easily now. The Captain, however, took no time to admire them. "By order of Starfleet, I hereby promote you to the rank of O-3, full lieutenant in Starfleet in recognition of your skills and in particular, of your great skill and effort in adapting to our strange human customs." Bending over, out of the wheelchair, he removed Kzar's half-pip and replaced it with a full one. Kzar understood. The reason the Captain needed him to kneel was so that the Captain could pin the full pip on him without standing. It seemed part of the reason, at least. The Kzin did not understand human custom completely, but felt it appropriate to stand without waiting for the order. When he did, he found Demis waiting for him. "Congratuations, Lieutenant. It seems you are truly worthy of the rank of O-3." "Was that a test?" "Well...I'm just trying to adapt to the Kzinti sense of humor. Don't take too much offense from a poor human. I've already noticed the changes in your security logs. With the war coming to us, we might all need to be a bit more flexible in our thinking. Once again, congratulations. If you'll excuse me...." Kzar sense the faint scent of motor oil as the chair wheeled itself out of his office. He didn't know if the captain's madness had prompted such a strange scene, or if Demis's recovery was not yet complete...but the Captain had left him with a promotion to O-3. It was more that just small satisfaction. ************** FMD 7.0810 Captain's Quarters: Deck 6 "I'm sorry, Captain, but 'gung-ho' types of personality don't suit me. Not personally. Commander Bertoli seems...enthralled by his authority." Joe listened to Stef hold court in the captain's room. The bottle of Bombay Sapphire had loosened them all up. "It wouldn't suprise me," Joe remarked, "if he *slept* in his uniform." "Didn't you once tell me, doctor," Demis asked, "that *you* slept in your uniform, once upon a time?" "That was during my internship. 'Hell year'. Working ninety to one hundred hours a week for a full year. Sleep was a luxury, and changing uniforms was an unnecessary one. I figured I could get three days wear out of a uniform, so I slept in it. That shaved a good thirty seconds off my day, not having to change clothes." "Your patients must have appreciated your skill, more than your scent, Doctor," Demis answered with a laugh. "Well, then," Stef answered, "you would fit in well with Petty Officer Dutton, down in AUXDET." "'Dumpy' Dutton?", answered Joseph Bradford. "The man's a shipboard legend. New lows in personal hygiene. I understand he's been a PO/3 for seven years now. Scores lower than a tribble in noncom efficiency. I had to give him an exam once, and I tried to lecture him about personal hygiene." "Well, 'Commander'," Stef answered, trying to get used to Bradford's new rank, "you should have tried harder. Sir." "I thought we were talking about Commander Bertoli," Demis answered, wanting to get to the point. "Honestly, Captain, I'd rather not," Stef answered, enjoying the warm glow. "I'm suprised that our 'efficiency expert' doesn't know we're talking behind his back," said Bradford. "He's down in engineering now, probably tuning the engines by hand." "In engineering?", gasped Demis. The two other officers nodded. "With my new ensign?" Before Stef or Joe could answer, the chair wheeled itself out of the Captain's quarters. The two were left with a panoramic view of the warp shift and a half-empty bottle of Bombay Sapphire. ******************************* FMD 7.0830 Engineering - Deck 38 Ensign Verchek Alion was a man one could recognize quite easily. He was an officer, and he was bald. If he had been female, it would have been a much easier matter. From what Demis had read about Deltans, Demis's wheelchair would have found Alion by itself, Deltan pheremones being so strong. Alion stood alone near the warp core, calculating rapidly. The chair wheeled itself over, and Alion turned to face the noise. "Sir! Ensign Verchek Alion reporting for duty." "At ease, Mr. Alion. Hello, I'm Captain Paraskevopoulus, and I welcome you to the USS CONSTELLATION. I'm sorry I didn't get the chance to greet you, but I was a bit...indisposed." "No problem, Captain Paraskevopoulus. I was informed of your illness; I apologize for not seeking you out earlier. I've been reviewing the somewhat eclectic logs left behind by Lieutenant Kalturak. Very... strange." "How are you finding your first day aboard?" "Very...puzzling," answered Alion. "The crew has had to acclimate itself to me. I'm not very comfortable with the last Chief Engineer's free-for-all style. Commander Bertoli also made a very strange visit." Demis feared the worst. "How so?" "Well, it wasn't so much an official visit as it was an attempt to boost morale. Commander Bertoli gathered some of Alpha Shift together, and introduced me to the crew. He said he had great faith in my abilities as an engineer, and that my addition to the engineering staff would improve matters greatly. Oddly enough, morale seemed to drop, not decrease. My Assistant Chief Engineer has also been avoiding me." Undoubtedly, the Combat Advisor had sent the wrong message. "I hope your crew doesn't hold it against you." "Well...perhaps the men. The women do not." Alion said it as matter of factly as possible, a problem the Deltan was used to. Demis could hear giggling in the background, wondering if Alion would appear in the fantasies of the female contingent of Engineering tonight. "Ensign, let's get to an important matter. Have you read the Dalridian specs?" The Captain wanted to know if the Ensign was on the ball. Alion's fitrep reports from the Academy indicated the ensign was a promising engineer, but apparently not from the cream of the pack. "Indeed, Captain. During the trip, I've determined some defensive strategies that might serve the ship well?" "Would they?", Demis asked. Alion handed the Captain a PADD. Hoping he wouldn't come off as arrogant as Bertoli, Alion answered, "Yes, sir. They *would*." *************************************** FMD 7.1645 Bridge -- USS JOHN PAUL JONES Captain S'kar R'haal returned from the Flag Gymnasium to the bridge. He had been waiting for the CONSTELLATION to arrive, and his patience was wearing thin. "Commander Szydlowska, on screen." Commander Mudoro Bochu's face filled the space of the JONES's viewscreen. "Captain R'haal...the USS CONSTELLATION is reporting for duty." "Thank you, Commander, we thought you had lost your way. You will be meeting with the other Captains of CruDiv7 in approximately two hours. We are at our rendesvous point, and are awaiting orders from CINCINDIGO. Captain R'haal out." ***** Bridge -- USS CONSTELLATION "At ease, Ensign Ares," Bochu answered. "Captain R'haal has never been an easy man to get along with." Ares seemed to be burning under the slight that she had lost her way. "Commander Kraltz...if Captain Paraskevopoulus arrives, tell him that I have left the CONN station in your hands. Commander Bertoli's genius can be left on the holodeck. I don't want him at the helm of this ship. Understood?" "Understood clearly, Sir." Kraltz agreed with that much. "Tell him that if he wishes to dispute the orders, he can take it up with Captain R'haal, Commander, CruDiv7. Maybe R'haal can put the Commander to some good use." Bochu sensed that he wouldn't be that lucky. *********************** FMD 7.1730 Holodeck C - Deck 14 While Commander Bochu prepared for his meeting with the CruDiv7 command staff, Alion, Kzar and Paraskevopoulus watched a display. "As you'll observe, Captain," Alion reported, "our data on the Dalriadan gravity shields is well established. The "I" shaped design of the hull allows the gravity wedge to function exactly like that...a wedge. You could think of a Dalriadan vessel as being fixed between two gravity wells, firing its broadsides from in between the wells. "The shield capacity is quite effective...on the other hand, I believe that with the equipment on board the CONSTELLATION, we can make our torpedoes gravity sensitive. On any other vessel, this would not work, as the universal laws of gravitation consider one ship's gravitation attraction to another nearly non-existent...and fired near a planet, torpedoes would be attracted planetside with disastrous results." Kzar immediately interrupted. "However, with the artificially large gravity well, a torpedo with the correct equipment would swarm to a Dalriadan vessel nearly instantaneously." "Heh," answered Demis, "not much of a fair fight, is it?" "On the contrary," answered Kzar, "they had the opportunities to create similar weapons. If we take advantage of their weakness, it is too proper." "For once, I agree." "Furthermore," continued Alion, "the gravitational aspects of Dalridian technology allow for some interesting tactical innovation. The Dalridians can't generate a gravity forcefield without counterbalancing the laws of gravitation somehow. Normally, the opposite plate does that, but both plates, when close to an object of large enough mass, will begin to drift toward that mass." "That's not much of a conclusion, Ensign. The CONSTELLATION will also drift towards large masses, such as a planet. It's called 'gravitational pull'", answered Demis with a sigh. "Yes. But the artifically heavy gravity allows for some interesting effects. In a comparable size armoured cruiser, gravitational pull affects Dalriadan vessels more severely. With a hypothetical Delta-size Class M planet, a Dalriadan vessel would face inescapable gravitational pull three meters further from the surface than a CONSTELL -- " "There are too many hypotheticals," grumbled Kzar. "Three meters means nothing." "Near a planet, or another ship, it means nothing. Next to a super-large object...say, a sun...a Dalridian vessels faces the dangers of gravitational pull 10,000 kilometers closer than a Federation Armoured Cruiser such as the CONSTELLATION." "Which helps only in limited circumstances," snarled Kzar. Kzar, however, committed the information to memory immediately. "Well, if we can get close enough to a star in case of a Dalriadan attack, we have a safe haven. Of course, we won't be able to use those gravity torpedoes there," Demis remarked. "It seems your innovations are strictly offensive or defensive ones. But they are much appreciated. Any comments, Mr. Kzar?" "Yes. When can we field test one of these gravity missiles of yours?" Before Alion could answer, Demis replied, "As soon as we can find some Dalriadans to fire at. I suspect we won't have to wait long." *********************************** FMD 7.1845 Ready Room: USS JOHN PAUL JONES Commander Bochu was there early. He suspected that R'haal would convene the meaning at exactly 1845 hours, and he was right. The other three captains of CruDiv7 were waiting. The CORNWALLIS's commander sat to Bochu's immediate left. Captain Hitek Madala sat next to his commanding officer, Commander Nodiah Shil-Madala. They were husband and wife, perhaps the only married couple serving as the command staff of a Federation vessel. The exception was made in that they were both Deltans, and that they were both quite able. Bochu was immediately attracted to the Commander. Perhaps she noticed that, as she smiled, perhaps channeling some thought he was broadcasting. In charge of the BONHOMME RICHARD was Captain Walter Baresi, known as "By-the-book Baresi". A stickler for detail had served him well, and he was considered something of a tactical genius, despite his utter lack of skill in innovation. It was said that he had a photographic memory. *He probably knows everything about everyone in this room,* Bochu reminded himself, *and I'll bet his subordinates know he never forgets a mistake*. The man looked decidely unfriendly. Completing the group was Captain Andre Grondelaers of the USS EAGLE. Many in Starfleet had him pegged to make Admiral sometime in the next ten years. Grondelears had written a position paper on the uses of the old Galaxy-class frames for Starfleet that had caused the ancient vessels to enjoy a renaissance. He was known to be rather silent, but inevitably right when he opened his mouth. Bochu felt better with Grondelaers on the team. And of course, if Paraskevopoulus were active...he'd outrank them all. Bochu wondered how the Parrot would deal with such a diverse group of individuals. "Gentlebeings, we shall abriefly rrive at Terebellum to catch up with the rest of the fleet. Any questions?" "Yes," Hidala asked. "Have you heard anything from OMEGA? Anything at all?" "Not a word," R'hall answered. "I'm sure that Admiral Brooks will let us know when he needs us." "If he hasn't forgotten about us at all," grumbled Baresi. "I assure you," R'hall answered, "that with the Dalriadans located at Terebellum...or rather, *formerly* located there, the Admiral has not forgotten about us. He shall call us when he needs us. "This is the order of battle, if CruDiv7 is called to action. The BONHOMME RICHARD and the EAGLE will take the flank positions. We will be in a formation similar to a Dalriadan division. It will be a modified formation, however, as the JONES and the CONSTELLATION will serve as the front of the "pentangle" and the CORNWALLIS will bring up the rear. "I expect the CONSTELLATION to mirror the JONES closely. I don't want to see the Dalriada 'crossing the T' on any Federation vessel. If anyone here has doubts about their flight control, I want to hear them now." Silence. Then, Grondelaers spoke. "I was supposed to receive a new Flight Control Officer, but his shuttle never arrived. My flight control crew is inexperienced. The EAGLE would be honored to take flank, but we are weak on my side." The other captains listened. For Grondelaers to admit a weakness -- any weakness -- was somewhat upsetting. Many thought the man was invincible. Bochu knew that the EAGLE needed to be shored up. He had already lent the worst part of the Flight Control staff to the PROMETHEUS. However, those were shuttle pilots. The fleet needed as many excellent Flight Control officers as it could get, and the EAGLE had come up short. Bochu knew that Ares was an excellent officer...he would never have thought of sending her off the CONSTELLATION, but he also knew that Kzar was also an excellent pilot. Kzar could move to the CONN, but that would leave Bertoli at TAC. The impression Bochu got from Kzar was that Bertoli's idea of tactical skill relied entirely on positioning: whereas Kzar prefered to get his hands dirty if it meant the ship had to take some heavy knocks. He could hear Kzar howl now if he were moved to Flight Control. On the other hand, he couldn't send Kzar to the EAGLE, either. He had no proof, but Bochu suspected that Kzar would be dynamite at TAC -- a trained killer instinct and a warrior's mind was what the CONSTELLATION needed. He wanted Kzar on board. He debated a question...should he speak up? Or should he keep who he had on board? There would be a moment of silence before Bochu had to answer one way or another.... ****************** MD 7.2030 Transporter Room A - Deck 5 Captain Paraskevopoulus waited for his former XO to arrive. There was a lot he had to tell him. Forty-eight hours and this damned collar would be off him. He felt fine. He hadn't suffered any memory lapses, none he was aware of. However, it would be up to the Doctor to release him, and never had he so hungered for the Captain's seat than now. Bochu transported aboard the CONSTELLATION. The chair zoomed to the edge of the transporter pad. "Welcome home, Captain. I think you might be interested in some new innovations we've come up with. We've not run them by our new tactical advisor, but -- " "Thank you, Captain Paraskevopoulus, but I might not have time to listen. We've been called back to OMEGA. All ships. By order of CINCINDIGO. Now." Bochu looked grave. "Mud," asked Demis softly, "is this it?" "I can't say. I have to get to the bridge." "I'll go with you." Demis stood up and an alarm went off in the chair. "Go screw off," Demis barked to the chair. "I intend to be on that bridge, if only as a paperweight. And," he told Bochu as the chair tried to follow, "no chairs allowed!" *********************************************************** Respectfully submitted, James Bowman CAPT Demis Paraskevopoulus USS CONSTELLATION jrbowman@kih.net AND JBowman489@aol.com **************************************** FMD 7.0730 Demis promotes Kzar to O-3 James FMD 7.0810 Gossip in the Captain's Quarters James FMD 7.0830 Captain meets Engineer James FMD 7.1645 Preparations to meet CruDiv7 James FMD 7.1845 Bochu meets the other four captains James FMD 7.2030 The order is given -- CruDiv7 to OMEGA James ***************************************** All: Forgive me in taking liberties here: I had to run short of some approvals from Tom, David, and Chris -- particularly Chris, the "new guy" -- in getting this post out. On the other hand, we need to catch up with Indigo Fleet, and I've been straggling along. Mike: What do you intend to do about the EAGLE's situation? Speak, or remain silent? Margaret: Nice post, and more in NRPG later. Tim: Maybe Demis can learn something about the Kzinti, in about 50 years.... Tom: We finally got to split the bottle! Don't worry, we've left some. David: Thought you might like a sip yourself. Mark: Just checking. Chris: Welcome aboard! I hope I've used your character okay. We can retcon any mistakes I have made! ************************************************************************* For our bothersome junk-mail friends who cull e-mail addresses from posts: uce@ftc.gov jquello@fcc.gov sness@fcc.gov "As with everything else in life, I prefer to frolic to my own little kazoo." -- Masako Goto ***This message sent by an official member of Indigo Fleet*** Are you also posting your message to the newsgroup?!!! ---END TRANSMISSION---