[Mission Start] Lt. Cmdr Robin Hopper: Fangirl Patriotism (Part 2)
Robin Hopper
((Chief of Mission's Office, Level 15, Copernicus Center – Amity Outpost))
With Kizat handling the President and her staff, and Keehani tackling the Talaxians, Hopper and Carter had just been tasked with showing the visiting delegation around the Science & Research Center and the Medical Center, respectively.
Robin was grinning. Not only would it mean getting to show off her department to the visiting Talaxians – but her gal pal Keehani would be along for the fun too! oO Shoot. I wonder if that means Keri will be coming. Oo If anyone could derail a perfectly good tour, it was her sister.
Iko: If we're gonna do a tour I'll want a full schedule of places and times that we make sure to stick to.
Ylvor: Response
Robin nodded, brought out of her momentary worries, and made a note of the suggestions from the security experts on her PADD.
Continuing on the subject of security, Vaje raised a concern regarding the prolonged visit of President Narala – an unexpected turn of events that hadn’t even been announced in advance, coming swiftly on the heels of their fraught first contact with the Paak.
Kizat: We need to handle this as quickly and efficiently as possible. Their being here is not a good thing for any of our future prospects. It has to go off without a hitch. Can we get any sort of direct emergency line to you all from their rooms, just in case your men at the door can’t respond?
Robin couldn’t help but notice how worried Vaje was about the President’s safety. First, he had mentioned the threat of “accidents” occurring that necessitated additional security. Now he was talking about emergency lines and door guards. Hopper couldn’t help but wonder if there were additional security threats she hadn’t considered, or if Kizat was just being overly-cautious – Amity had always struck her as remarkably safe.
Then again, perhaps this was simply a manifestation of his upbringing on Cardassia. Robin remembered how dubious her college roommate, Niska Preloc – an exchange student in astrophysics from Cardassia Prime – had been during their first few weeks sharing a room. It had taken quite some convincing to reassure her that their bathroom mirror was not hiding surveillance equipment, and that their built-in communicators were not being monitored by Federation Immigration officials. Robin still chuckled when she thought about Niska staring into the mirror, inches away from its reflective surface, looking for minute signs of “insidious observation”.
Iko: We can get something going I s'pose. Kai, Tor-Vor, can I leave you guys with that?
Moore: You might hate this, Torvi, but... ::He looked back at Kizat:: Our apartment is in the Paxau district, only a moment's walk from the Talaxi Palms. We could keep a full set of our gear ready in the apartment and act as a quick response, should something arise when Ylvor or I are off duty.
Ylvor: Response
Robin hadn’t realized Ensign Ylvor and Moore were sharing a place. Or even that Moore was living in the Paxau district. She was getting out of touch… Looking down at her PADD once more, Robin made a note to drop by their place to drop off some sort of ‘housewarming’ gift at some point.
Kizat: Can we put together some sort of demonstration, not just for the Talaxians but the President as well to show the good the mission here has done?
Wil quickly nodded.
Ukinix: I think an emergency readiness demonstration could be the way to go, to show that in the case of say a hostile threat from someone we have many contingencies.
Robin bit her lip. oO Sheesh, what happened to dinner and drinks? Oo The thought of running a simulated emergency felt risky. On the one hand, it could highlight the readiness and training of the officers aboard Amity. On the other hand…
Keehani: Yes, but as long as we don’t shut down people’s movement on the station like we did for the last exercise.
Exactly. oO I liked your first idea better… Oo
Robin still made a note on her PADD to schedule a simulated emergency drill in the SRC that afternoon, just in case. Might as well identify any areas for improvement ahead of time.
Ukinix: ::To Harrison:: Ensign, could we also schedule some shuttle runs to allow delegates to take a tour of the solar nebula, and include the Hawlat angels as part of the tour?
Blackwood nodded in response to the proposal.
Blackwood: Happy to, sir. :looking back to Wil: I’d appreciate someone to spare to help put it together. I’m not the best tour guide and I don’t know a whole lot about the Hawlat.
Now that sounded fun! Robin had still been posted to the Wall Street when that incident happened, shortly after Amity’s establishment in the Delta Quadrant. But she had heard much about the Hawlat, their divine Stellae creatures, and “Emissary Ukinix”... In fact, she’d oncc found herself cornered by a chatty old Hawlat by the name of Prarim, who’d only left her alone after she’d started to inquire too curiously about the chemical properties of the “Angel’s Milk” she’d been reading about.
She’d have to put herself down for that shuttle trip – schedule allowing!
Ukinix: Response?
Kizat: Are there projects in either of your departments we could make a show of?
With Vaje’s prompting, Hopper straightened up – clasping her hands in front of her on the table, and tilting her head towards John as he answered first.
Carter: Katy and I have set up an anti grav chamber in Medical. You can moderate it so that a client feels as though he or she were floating on the water. A counselor can be in there with them, or allow them to use the chamber by themselves. It's quite therapeutic.
Hopper: We have quite a collection of Alpha, Beta, and now Delta Quadrant plant varietals in our Botany lab at the moment. Bright, colorful, edible – that would make a fun demonstration. And our Stellar Cartography lab is second-to-none. I’m sure they’d be impressed with a presentation on Federation space.
Honestly, at the drop of a hat, Robin could probably come up with several dozen ideas. Each level of the SRC had its own dedicated foci, all of which could be incredibly fascinating to the right audiences. Of course, the majority of the space was dedicated to working labs – but with the complete holographic integration throughout the SRC even much of the ‘routine work’ could still be made somewhat showy.
Vataix: Response?
Keehani: I also suggest a state banquet for the President to host, Ambassador. I can make tentative arrangements with the Lighthouse Restaurant to ensure no bookings are made for say... tomorrow evening?
Robin gasped, lifted her hands (still held together) off the table and tilted her head excitedly. As a devoted Narala voter and (being honest) fangirl, the thought of dining with the President was almost like a dream come true.
Ukinix: Have fun with that.
Her elation turned into derision, as she turned to look at Wil and scoffed. Keehani, it seemed, felt similarly.
Keehani: ::Turning to Wil:: Senior Starfleet officers *will* be in attendance, Commander. In full dress uniform.
Vataix: Response
Carter: I guess we have no choice…
Hopper: Come on, you guys! We’re talking about the elected President of the Federation here. ::To Keehani:: Sounds like a great idea to me, Envoy Ukinix. We’ll have fun! Dress uniforms notwithstanding.
None of the other assembled officers seemed to share in her enthusiasm. oO Unpratriotic cynics Oo she thought to herself, judgmentally, while she folded her arms in front of her chest.
Ukinix: Then we’ll need a security detail for the event. ::slightly clears throat:: In dress uniform.
Moore: Yes, Sir. Should we serve as an honor guard standing, or undercover, mingling with the dinner party? If we're undercover, maybe we could bring a plus one? That would allow us to double the Starfleet personnel or bring in people cross-trained.
It was an interesting thought. Robin briefly considered who she might bring along as a plus one. As the Chief of Operations, Nate would certainly be there anyways. She glanced across the room at her sister, briefly. Was that crazy?
Iko: Yes, but plus-ones mean that's plus one person to keep an eye on.
True. Doubly-true if Robin did in fact bring Keri along as her plus one.
Ylvor: Response
Blackwood: I can make myself available also, sir. To render operational assistance, so other senior staff can make themselves more seen and heard for the banquet.
Moore: Well, I guess you can be my plus one, unless ::He looked over at Bec and Torvi:: one of you two wanted to take him.
Ylvor/Blackwood: Responses?
Robin held up a hand to cut the banter about ‘plus ones’ off. She loved planning parties – and these details were often the kind of fun hypothetical she relished in – but there were more pressing matters to decide than ‘who was going to invite Harrison Blackwood’.
Hopper: I think we should consider ‘plus ones’ after the FDC staffers work out the arrangement with the venue. Given that all this needs to happen shortly, let’s focus on ‘bigger picture’ items, shall we? Aside from dinner, should we sort out some sort of… ::Shrug:: Cultural performance?
Blackwood: With such a short time limit, should arrangements be made for some entertainment? From Idustrix, maybe, or perhaps some of our musically talented personnel?
Iko: From Idustrix. I don't want to risk dragging the President or anyone there with what we've encountered in the past.
Robin stifled a smile, flattening her lips together tightly. oO Fair enough! Oo All the same, there was no shortage of Betazoid royalty– no, “nobility” – around Amity because of that planet. Maybe they would have something to offer.
Vataix/Keehani/Kizat: Response
Carter: I like to play the blues, but I sure can't sing it or play an instrument. ::looking at Wil:: Didn't you have a band of some sort at one time Commander?
Robin turned to Wil, not able to stifle her shocked expression. Was that true?! How had he kept that a secret?! She had to know more. She would know more.
Ukinix: response
oO There’s recordings somewhere… Oo she thought to herself, making another urgent note in her PADD. oO Maybe footage! Oo
Vataix/Keehani/Kizat: Response
Moore: ::Half-seriously:: I could always play the bagpipes.
Iko: What?
Bec’s face was in her hands, obviously unimpressed with the suggestion – but it sounded perfect to Robin. What language was more universal than music, after all?
Hopper: ::Grinning, nodding:: Great idea, Kaito!
She leaned over to John, seated beside her, and whispered.
Hopper: ::Quietly, to Carter:: What are bagpipes?
Any: Response
Moore: ::Saying mostly to himself:: Or classical piano, or jazz.
All sounded lovely to her, so long as they had sufficient time to prepare. She supposed they maybe ought to ‘vet’ the performances to prevent any enthusiastic but, ultimately, sub-par representations of Federation musical talents… To her, anyone who could play an instrument was impressive (after all, she’d been hopeless at every one she’d ever tried), but the same might not be so for the Talaxian delegation.
Ukinix: response
Vataix/Keehani/Kizat: Response
Iko: ::shrugging:: Okay, so impromptu concert it is?
Vataix/Keehani/Kizat: Response
Hopper: Maybe we can have a… ‘talent night’. Pick a few ‘top performers’ to follow up at this dinner? ::Shrug:: Just a thought.
Ukinix/Carter: Response
Moore/Ylvor: Response
The spitballing eventually brought them back to the primary question they were tackling.
Iko: What did we wanna do with this “tour” anyway?
Vataix/Keehani/Kizat: Response
Ukinix/Carter: Response
Moore/Ylvor: Response
Bec rubbed her eyes before pushing her hands through her hair. To Robin, she seemed stressed… which made sense. Hopper recalled how she’d felt the first time Lt. Montgomery had left her in charge of the Science Team while on an away mission… It had been thrilling, but the weight of responsibility had also been a hard burden to get used to.
oO You’ll get there Iko. Quicker than you think. Oo
Robin added yet another note to her PADD, right beside the one to swing by the Moore/Ylvor household: // Invite Bec out for a stiff drink… //
Iko: I wanna try and find the balance of Security presence, but also not overwhelm anyone. Especially the Talaxians. They see too many guards, they start wondering why those guards are needed.
Moore/Ylvor: Response
Vataix/Keehani/Kizat: Response
Ukinix/Carter: Response
Hopper: I think we can all agree, the Delta Quadrant has its fair share of threats – even with the diminished Borg presence over the last twenty years or so. Surely, ‘security’, in a broad sense, is one of the reasons the Talaxians are interested in Federation membership, right?
She smiled at Bec, trying to look encouraging.
Hopper: Why not make the additional security part of the tour? Show ‘em what Starfleet’s made of.
There was a brief pause as the myriad suggestions and perspectives bounced around inside a bunch of different skulls.
Iko: I do like the idea of a tour, especially for our Talaxian friends, but there's a whole lotta security shenanigans to get through for that to happen. Where’s the president going to be? Where is security going to be? Are we going to have people follow the president like a hawk or switch out on the regular? How’s this going to affect daily activities? Are we going to have to shut things down?
Moore/Ylvor: Response
Bec sighed. Robin gave her a sympathetic look.
Iko: I guess I just want things to be perfect.
Vataix/Keehani/Kizat: Response
Hopper: “Perfect” or not, we should be seeking an honest representation of what benefits Federation membership would provide, no? After all, the last thing we want to do is paint a false picture, over-promise, and then under-deliver on our first Delta Quadrant member species!
Ukinix/Carter: Response
Robin patted the table in front of her.
Hopper: Has anyone, um, asked the Talaxians what they’re most interested in? ::To Keehani:: Do we know what their priorities are? Do they have any sort of, um… ::Not sure of the right word:: ‘Manifesto?’
Keehani/Vataix/Kizat: Response
Ukinix/Carter/Iko/Moore/Ylvor/Blackwood: Response?
TBC
