LtCmdr Sky Blake, "Avoid the forward path."

[Deliera Jay]

((Captain's Ready Room))

Blake: My report, sir.

::She took a step back, standing up straight and ready. She wasn't sure what for, just that she was preparing herself.::

Delano: At ease, Commander.

::Her shoulders relaxed a little, but ultimately not by much. Delano picked up the PADD, scanning through it.::

Blake: The Borg drones have been dealt with. An analysis of the sensor dome is underway, as well as ongoing repairs to the ship. The engineering staff seem to think Rahman and Rosek may . . . have some words to say when they return, but that's something to deal with when they get back.

::He nodded, composure seated at neutral as he looked back at her.::

Delano: You look like you want to get something off your chest.

::She took another deep breath.::

Blake: I've spent the last day analyzing what I could have done better. Part of me keeps coming back to the excuse I have always fallen into - that I don't have the experience or the training necessary for the position. But that's not true - in fact, it's probably a little insulting to Rahman. She put me here and told me to work, not to come up with excuses as to why I couldn't do the job.

Delano: I don’t intend to help you make excuses, but I can certainly empathize with the way you’re feeling. If it helps, I think every security chief goes through this at some point.

Blake: A sense of inadequecy against a foe we thought wouldn't set foot near our area of operation?

::Inappropriate sarcasm.::

Delano: The fact is that security is a nearly impossible job on a starship. Especially when you're trying to get ahead of potential threats. I'm not saying you shouldn't try, but there’s no accounting for the unknown, and Starfleet makes it a point to fly nose-first into every anomaly we can reach and every newly discovered race's back garden.

Blake: That's just the thing. The Veritas spent most of it's time around Meridian before Rahman took command - we'd only just recent branched out to Shadow's Edge. There are no overly strange anomalies out along the border - that we came across, at least. Now we're facing Borg, Omega molecules, and frequent visits by a small Valtese man. This isn't exactly my definition of 'normal'.

Delano: I was security chief of the Garuda for about three weeks before it was taken over by a hoard of sentient house plants. My first mission as a security officer involved an alien intelligence bonding to my ship's warp core and forcing us to crash land on an uncharted world. Trust me, I understand what it feels like.

::She blinked.::

Blake: Sentient . . . house plants?

Delano: Response?

::It totally defied her definition of normal. To the point of absurdity, even. And now she had to go and throw out her potted plants - both the alive and false ones currently sitting in her quarters.::

Blake: That makes me feel a little better. ::She nodded her head.:: The deeper we go into the Shoals, the less I know about what we're going to find. After what happened, I can't say I'm overly comfortable with the idea of pressing forward. The Bajak Laut sector was safe. The further we pull away from that area, the longer it takes to go back for help if we need it.

Delano: Response?

Blake: Well yeah, but . . . my experience with the marshals has been that they see us as the unwelcome cavalry. Individuals may be more inclined to assist, sure, but the organization as a whole? Honestly I'm surprised one of the Coalition planets hasn't yet declared independence. There was rumbling about that a little while ago, but we've been too out of the loop to hear about it since.

Delano: Response?

Tbc . . .

LtCmdr Sky Blake
Chief of Security
USS Veritas

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