LtCmdr Jovenan – Learn from the mistakes of your elders; or, why you should always wash your hands after making spicy food
Jovenan
((Sensor pod, USS Artemis))
Jovenan: Yes? What is it?
K’Wara: There’s some subspace interference that I’m having trouble getting a clear read on. ::hums:: These scanners are getting a lot of data in.
Good, they’ve realised the change in difficulty level. The scanners would have indeed registered something interesting, but just receiving data wasn’t enough; this was an exercise not only in operating the scanners but also analysing the information they compiled. As interesting as it would have been to throw the new Chief of Ops in the deep end and watch them splashing around in the pool, Jovenan wasn’t quite that cruel even if the Lieutenant interrupted her reading time.
Jovenan: Just take it easy and imagine the Captain’s here. ::smirk:: She doesn’t really care about the details of what you see, does she? Give her a brief explanation of what you see so that she understands it, and then your expert analysis of the possible explanations.
K’Wara: Makes sense - she seems like the ‘no-nonsense’ type. ::considers::
True. The Lieutenant had learnt that much in the short time they had known the Captain. Moreover, it was a matter of prioritisation of information while commanding the bridge. As Jovenan had learnt herself a couple of missions ago, the person occupying the central seat didn’t have the privilege of spending half an hour to read a full report in the newly discovered scientific phenomenon that ends in words “will likely destroy us in 31 minutes”.
It took a short moment for the Lieutenant to consider what they were seeing. So far, they had kept their distance, which was something Jovenan had hoped to see. Being too careless and coming too close was the primary criterion of failure at this particular target, so at least it wasn’t looking like the test wasn’t going to be cut short.
K’Wara: At first blush, it seems like a normal interstellar body, but there’s a low-level band of unidentified particles around it that are resisting traditional scan settings. I recommend adjusting scanners for a multiphasic sweep to get more information before approaching.
Jovenan: Proceed with the appropriate actions based on your analysis. Just a reminder, the drone doesn’t have weapons or shields beyond navigational ones.
Was that too obvious of a hint, or would it throw them off? Eh, either way, after a moment of consideration, the Lieutenant was preparing for a multiphasic sweep to get a better picture. Jovenan couldn’t tell how they felt about the Beholder or the exercise, but they had at least not told her about feeling uncomfortable about the device or taking the test as unfair or unbalanced. Not running away from a challenge was certainly a character trait Starfleet appreciated… although, in this case, turning away from the simulated cloaked vessel and leaving would have been classified as a success. She just waited for them to realise that.
K’Wara: Still nothing…
Jovenan: That’s okay. You could take a closer look or try the process of elimination. What is it not?
Jovenan heard the Lieutenant have a deep breath. She couldn’t tell if they were getting frustrated, bored or nauseated. Despite diligence and patience being virtues in their service, she hoped that they knew that they are allowed to pause the exercise if they weren’t feeling well. If it was annoyance, then she hoped they’d rather used it to lock in and focus instead of ramming the drone to the target.
K’Wara: It’s not EM radiation, it’s not ion particles, it’s not quantum energy, it’s n-
Oh, you got this. Just think for a second and say it out loud.
K’Wara: ::annoyed sigh:: Tetryon emissions. I'd want to doublecheck with a tachyon scan, but it’s a cloaked Ship…
Jovenan: Perfect! Took you a minute, but you got there without a mistake.
K’Wara: I need to send an old drill chief of mine an apology note and a fruit basket now. She’d never let me live down taking this long to find it.
Jovenan chuckled. She might not have known that specific drill chief or the circumstances of such a lesson, but the experience was probably universal. Not for scanning for cloaked ships, but for a whole host of other things. Who wouldn’t have had a teacher who didn’t let you use a calculator, a parent who insisted you looked both ways before crossing the street, a friend who wanted to solve the limit of Mäkelä-V’ress equation before moving to the orbital rotations or anything else in that effect? Those people had a profound effect on an individual; Jovenan wondered how many apology notes she ought to have sent over the years.
Jovenan: Sounds like she taught you well. It spared you from a simulated diplomatic incident. In the Borderlands, we’re surrounded by fleets that regularly use cloaking technology, so it’s a lesson worth remembering. Which reminds me, Klingon or Romulan?
K’Wara: Response
The Lieutenant had already redirected the drone towards the next target. If they were careful, it might have been the easiest of them all, but it was also the least forgiving one: a pre-warp vessel that monitored the space for the types of radiation that their level of advancement recognised. An active scanner in a wrong frequency, and the scenario turned to another lesson worth remembering. Not that there was anything wrong in making a mistake in an exercise, but it would have been unfortunate for the new Ops Chief after such a flawless performance.
Jovenan: Believe it or not, I’ve needed to interact with Romulans more often than with Klingons, although they’re just behind the border. In fairness, that was decades ago and also never… What does the next target look like?
K’Wara: Response
Jovenan: Mm-hmm. Can you tell me anything further? Something about the configuration, perhaps?
K’Wara: Response
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Lieutenant Commander Jovenan
Chief Science Officer
USS Artemis-A
E239911J11