Lieutenant Commander Christopher Caldwell: A Logical Rebuttal to an Illogical Reality
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Chris M
Aug 12, 2025, 5:04:08 PMAug 12
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((Corridor, Deck 10, USS Astraeus))
Caldwell walked the perimeter of Deck 10, his eyes scanning the quiet, empty corridors. He spotted Ral’s silhouette standing before one of the large observation windows. He slowed his pace, approaching cautiously so as not to startle the engineer. In reality he knew that there was likely no reason for him to do so, as a half-Betazoid, the Chief Engineer had likely sensed his presence, still it felt appropriate.
He came to a stop beside him, not speaking immediately, but joining him in looking out at the star-streaked void. After a moment of shared silence, he spoke, his voice low and even.
He did his best to keep the flash of irritation from his voice.
oO I know everything Ral... with the exception of the boring stuff... that's what we have blue shirts for. Oo
Caldwell walked the perimeter of Deck 10, his eyes scanning the quiet, empty corridors. He spotted Ral’s silhouette standing before one of the large observation windows. He slowed his pace, approaching cautiously so as not to startle the engineer. In reality he knew that there was likely no reason for him to do so, as a half-Betazoid, the Chief Engineer had likely sensed his presence, still it felt appropriate.
He came to a stop beside him, not speaking immediately, but joining him in looking out at the star-streaked void. After a moment of shared silence, he spoke, his voice low and even.
Caldwell: ::Nodding his head towards the viewport:: Pretty good view especially at this warp factor.
He was about to describe how, what appeared to most as streaking stars, was in fact a combination of relativistic aberration, the tidal disruption of interstellar matter and Cherenkov radiation. Rather than it being the ship actually moving past so many stars it was more a combination of matter vaporisation and exotic radiation. Quickly he decided that there was no need for such an explanation, the Chief Engineer would be fully aware of the physics of the ship's warp bubble.
Caldwell: Wanted some space from the... festivities?
He kept his gaze fixed on the viewport, giving the engineer space to answer without the pressure of direct eye contact.
Ral: I’m sorry. I had intended to stay, it was just a bit overwhelming. Lael has been like a rock for all of the staff and it’s going to be a big loss. But then so is everything else that’s coming.
He listened to Ral's explanation, hearing the genuine pain and exhaustion in his voice. He couldn't blame him. Losing a First Officer, especially while being worried about what else you might be losing in the not too distant future made sense. He knew far too well the pain of losing that which had become familiar.
Caldwell: ::Dismissing the apology with a slight head shake:: No need to apologise, certainly not to me. Overwhelming certainly is a word for it, it's a big change. It will mean different things to different people but you've worked alongside Lael for a long time now, far longer than me. I don't think anyone could blame you for not being able to stand there and smile through it.
He fell silent again, letting Ral lead the conversation. The engineer's final words hung in the air.
He was about to describe how, what appeared to most as streaking stars, was in fact a combination of relativistic aberration, the tidal disruption of interstellar matter and Cherenkov radiation. Rather than it being the ship actually moving past so many stars it was more a combination of matter vaporisation and exotic radiation. Quickly he decided that there was no need for such an explanation, the Chief Engineer would be fully aware of the physics of the ship's warp bubble.
Caldwell: Wanted some space from the... festivities?
He kept his gaze fixed on the viewport, giving the engineer space to answer without the pressure of direct eye contact.
Ral: I’m sorry. I had intended to stay, it was just a bit overwhelming. Lael has been like a rock for all of the staff and it’s going to be a big loss. But then so is everything else that’s coming.
He listened to Ral's explanation, hearing the genuine pain and exhaustion in his voice. He couldn't blame him. Losing a First Officer, especially while being worried about what else you might be losing in the not too distant future made sense. He knew far too well the pain of losing that which had become familiar.
Caldwell: ::Dismissing the apology with a slight head shake:: No need to apologise, certainly not to me. Overwhelming certainly is a word for it, it's a big change. It will mean different things to different people but you've worked alongside Lael for a long time now, far longer than me. I don't think anyone could blame you for not being able to stand there and smile through it.
He fell silent again, letting Ral lead the conversation. The engineer's final words hung in the air.
Ral: Well, I’m sure you’ve seen the orders too, as second officer.
A flicker of annoyance and concern passed through him. Was he out of the loop on something important? He knew that the ship had been scheduled for some time in drydock, Astraeus had been returned to service as quickly as possible after Frontier Day and now that the fleet had been retrofitted to address vulnerabilities exposed during that dark day, Starfleet was now in a position to give some proper care and attention to ships like Astraeus. Simultaneously there had been an increase in transfer activity with Starfleet Command seeing fit to redeploy a number of members of the crew even during their last mission.
Caldwell: Well the only constant is change... life is change... to improve is to change... to be perfect is to change often.
oO Phrases. Oo
Ral: It’s the not knowing more than anything. If they’d said I’m being reassigned to a specific ship that would be easier, at least I would know. And of course, this business of the ship being mothballed.
Caldwell: Well the only constant is change... life is change... to improve is to change... to be perfect is to change often.
oO Phrases. Oo
Ral: It’s the not knowing more than anything. If they’d said I’m being reassigned to a specific ship that would be easier, at least I would know. And of course, this business of the ship being mothballed.
He turned from the viewport to face Ral fully, his attention now completely focused.
Caldwell: We're going into drydock for an extended period of time, we're long overdue for some proper work, you know better than anyone that they practically kicked us out of the yard last time so they could make room for half of the fleet. I wouldn't read anything more into it than that.
Ral: Well… I… just assumed you would know.
Caldwell: We're going into drydock for an extended period of time, we're long overdue for some proper work, you know better than anyone that they practically kicked us out of the yard last time so they could make room for half of the fleet. I wouldn't read anything more into it than that.
Ral: Well… I… just assumed you would know.
He did his best to keep the flash of irritation from his voice.
oO I know everything Ral... with the exception of the boring stuff... that's what we have blue shirts for. Oo
Caldwell: Like you said, I'm the Second Officer, Ral. If a decision had been made to mothball the ship, I'd know about it- the Captain would have addressed all of us.
Ral: There was an addition to my message. A list of protocols that need to be initiated by the time we reach Earth. They're not standard protocols. We’d usually only do them if we were going to decommission a ship, not just have it in dry dock for repairs
oO Nope, not happening. Oo
Caldwell: Oh come on, Wyatt. You know what Starfleet are like, it's some bureaucrat desk jockey somewhere that can't tell the difference between a... warp... matrix... flux capacity and a... self-sealing... stem bolt. Or it's some know-nothing know-it-all that's decided to make some procedural changes without a clue as to what they were doing.
Ral: Response.
Caldwell: Think it through. Following Frontier Day, Starfleet are getting as many new officers through the Academy as they can, they can't launch ships fast enough to keep up. The Astraeus might be a bit long in the tooth but she's a perfectly fine ship, she's also the command ship for this region. Starfleet is hardly going to pull resources from the expanse whilst the Valcarian's are in the middle of a military buildup, plus the Al-Leyan Exiles are looking at Federation membership and will need support, especially given that La Tirano entity is still at large. It makes no sense at all.
He laid out the strategic situation as he saw it, a logical, point-by-point rebuttal to an illogical reality. He watched Ral's face, hoping to see his own certainty reflected back, hoping the engineer would see the clear, cold logic and dismiss his own fears.
oO Listen to me with my logic, Spock ain't got nothing on me, I'm Vulcan as a motherfu- Oo
Before he could finish his thought Ral responded.
Ral: Response
Caldwell: Wyatt, come on, I'm telling you. Even if you ignore all of the reasons why this makes no sense whatsoever, if... if they were actually thinking about mothballing the Astraeus the Captain would have told us, right?
oO Am I trying to convince him or me? Oo
Ral: Response
Ral: There was an addition to my message. A list of protocols that need to be initiated by the time we reach Earth. They're not standard protocols. We’d usually only do them if we were going to decommission a ship, not just have it in dry dock for repairs
oO Nope, not happening. Oo
Caldwell: Oh come on, Wyatt. You know what Starfleet are like, it's some bureaucrat desk jockey somewhere that can't tell the difference between a... warp... matrix... flux capacity and a... self-sealing... stem bolt. Or it's some know-nothing know-it-all that's decided to make some procedural changes without a clue as to what they were doing.
Ral: Response.
Caldwell: Think it through. Following Frontier Day, Starfleet are getting as many new officers through the Academy as they can, they can't launch ships fast enough to keep up. The Astraeus might be a bit long in the tooth but she's a perfectly fine ship, she's also the command ship for this region. Starfleet is hardly going to pull resources from the expanse whilst the Valcarian's are in the middle of a military buildup, plus the Al-Leyan Exiles are looking at Federation membership and will need support, especially given that La Tirano entity is still at large. It makes no sense at all.
He laid out the strategic situation as he saw it, a logical, point-by-point rebuttal to an illogical reality. He watched Ral's face, hoping to see his own certainty reflected back, hoping the engineer would see the clear, cold logic and dismiss his own fears.
oO Listen to me with my logic, Spock ain't got nothing on me, I'm Vulcan as a motherfu- Oo
Before he could finish his thought Ral responded.
Ral: Response
Caldwell: Wyatt, come on, I'm telling you. Even if you ignore all of the reasons why this makes no sense whatsoever, if... if they were actually thinking about mothballing the Astraeus the Captain would have told us, right?
oO Am I trying to convince him or me? Oo
Ral: Response
==========/\==========
Lieutenant Commander Christopher Caldwell
Mission Specialist & 2nd Officer
USS Astraeus, NCC-70652
A240101CC1
Lieutenant Commander Christopher Caldwell
Mission Specialist & 2nd Officer
USS Astraeus, NCC-70652
A240101CC1
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