LTJG Josh Herrick: New Beginnings

[Mark P]

((Chief Engineer’s Office, Main Engineering, Deck 10, USS Octavia E Butler))

Josh set down a duffel on the desk in front of him. He’d, like most of the crew, had transferred to the Octavia E. Butler; his emotions had been all over the place since V’Airu and Rouiancet had let him know of the transfer.

Excitement at the prospect of a new ship, a chance for him to make his mark and become the official engineer of the OEB. Trepidation at the shared responsibility of running a relatively new class of starship, interwoven with Borg and Starfleet technology, and the surprisingly strange feeling of so many familiar faces in a new setting. Loss from a home he’d finally made on the Oumuamua.

A soft chime and pleasant chime emitted from an invisible speaker source.

Herrick: Computer?

Computer: You have a pending delivery, please acknowledge if you’d like to receive it now or if you’d like to defer it too later.

The engineer was caught a bit off guard by the computer; it seemed to have a more ‘human’ personality.

Herrick: Uh… Sure?

The computer seemed to understand his non-specific reply, and a pile of PADDs materialized on his desk, along with a model of a Luna-class starship. Inscribed on the lower portion of the model was USS ‘Oumuamua • NCC – 81226.

W. Herrick (father): ::appearing on screen:: Greetings son! Congratulations on your new posting, and ::holding up a PADD:: not getting killed. Your ship makes for some interesting reading. You never forget your first posting… or any other for that matter. I haven’t had a chance to work on those Sagan’s yet, so I expect you’ll be sending me reading material versus the other way around. But, for now, this’ll get you started. Good luck, your mother and I are very proud… Lieutenant.

His dad’s beaming face marked the end of the message and Josh turned to the stack of PADDs, and flipped through covers of each one:

·         Assimilating the Borg, the Federation’s Latest Efforts

·         Nanites and You, More than Fashion Accessories

·         Remembering Octavia

He knew the ship was named after a notable individual, like many other vessels, but he hadn’t learned much about Octavia Butler since he’d gotten the news — and oversight he remedied. He took a seat behind the desk and looked out the wrap-around windows. From his vantage point, he could see both warp cores, and the ‘main area’ of engineering where most of the team would be during the day.

Leaning back a bit, he closed his eyes and savored the moment; this was his office and his team.  Having come up rapidly under Kammus, and then stepping in to fill his shoes as he transferred to the Ronin, it had seemed daunting to replace the man. But this new beginning might shake off some of that imposter syndrome and let him properly settle into his new role. A smile crossed his face, a burst of confidence filling within.

Herrick: I got this.

[End scene] 

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Lieutenant JG Josh Herrick

Acting Chief Engineer

USS ‘Oumuamua

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