LT Herrick, LTJG Nilsen, Ens Caras, Ens Lahl, Nurse Miash - JOPA Bridgerton: Prologue
Lhandon Nilsen
((OOC: This JP happens before the awards))
((Corridor, Deck 8, USS Octavia E Butler))
This shore leave had not been restful for Lhandon, he could feel that something was happening between himself and Toxin and yet he couldn’t put his finger on it. All that he could say was that there was a feeling of anxiety with himself, a sense of dread, and he couldn’t place it. Maybe it was the stress of this shore leave getting to him and Toxin had kept his distance. It might have had something to do with Lhandon getting falsely accused of murder, although he was grateful for his shipmates rallying around him and helping him mount a defence.
Today felt like the first normal day he’d had in a while. This was also when the ship saw first was Nilsen had been up to on his break, which he was afforded after the trial. Lhandon had slipped away from the OC, and as he walked the corridor, he saw Josh a few steps ahead. The flyboy caught up with him, slapping the engineer on the shoulder and resting it there as they walked.
As Josh turned to see who was beside him, he was greeted with a ‘different Nilsen’. He’d changed his hair which radically changed his appearance. Gone were the curly locks and in was closely cropped hair, neat all his sides.
Herrick: Nice look!
And he truly meant it; while it seemed to give Lhandon a harder edge, it looked decidedly more professional.
Nilsen: Really?
Lhandon thought about what to say for just a moment. He wondered if he should take the compliment, be self-deprecating, or just move the conversation along.
Nilsen: Mate, JOPA. It’s going to be your last one. I’m going to fracking miss you there.
He figured that hosting JOPA would make him feel normal again, or at the very least give him a sense of normality. JOPA also seemed to be the only time Herrick and Nilsen hung out. This brought some sadness to Nilsen as he really liked Herrick and he made a promise to himself to spend more time with the chief. He had grown to trust him and was grateful that Herrick was willing to put the past behind him after his explosion last year.
Herrick: It’s all a bit surreal; things seem to move at Warp 15 around here.
Lhandon had joined the OEB about two months after Josh, but certainly saw more action and had more success in the field. The engineer had expected Lhandon’s promotion before his own; being able to play nice in the sandbox together was something that seemed effortless to the Gaultan. While he had a temper, the assistant chief of ops certainly had more likeability.
Nilsen: Yeah, it’s all moving too quickly, Promo was in my first meeting and now he’s our XO, Tox graduated last time, he’s Ops chief, and now it’s you graduating with an entire warp core to look after.
Josh reflected on this ‘right of passage’ for earning that second pip; there had been so much change. He’d never expected to be leading an engineering department on the newest starship class so soon out of the academy. It wasn’t unwelcome, but there were days when it felt overwhelming. A ‘junior officer’ no more meant getting kicked out of the ‘cool kids’ club.
Lhandon certainly wanted to make this special for Herrick. He couldn’t quite pull off what he wanted to do for Toxin, he wanted to make Toxin’s last JOPA something special, something where Lhandon could express his gratitude for that Toxin had done for him but recovering from that mission took priority. Looking back, Lhandonwondered if that was the point it started to go wrong between them.
Herrick: I feel like your time’s coming up soon ::nudging Nilsen a bit playfully:: Then you’ll need to pass on the JOPA crown..
Nilsen: Ha! No, I bet I’m destined to be in junior grade forever.
Herrick: (adding more weight to his voice) I wouldn’t be so sure of that. I mean… unless you’re the one driving it. I think it’s clear that you’d make a great senior officer. (more lightly) Just don’t keep getting mixed up in homicides, otherwise it’ll turn into an image issue.
Lhandon gave a slightly forced laugh, it was all he could do, even if he did appreciate the darker side of humour offered by Josh.
Nilsen: Oooh soon…too soon.
He then shot his own joke back.
Nilsen: I’ll stop the homicides if you stop the explosions. ::Almost giggling:: Deal?
And Lhandon held out his hand, and Josh returned the shake.
Herrick: We’ll to be fair, I don’t exactly cause them ::rubbing the back of his head:: and I suppose you don’t either. Let’s try to stay out of trouble going forward, at least as best we can.
He also took Herrick’s kinder words to heart, despite the falling out of himself and Toxin, Lhandon had his friends, he had something on the OEB and in starfleet, something that he couldn’t quantify but now didn’t want to give; It was like Salo had told him, to remember the good, more than the bad.
Nilsen: That reminds me, cos you know, this brain is screwed and getting into trouble and all that, how did you end up meeting Lahl? I’ve heard the most unhinged stuff. Did she just show up in the port like some kind of secret agent?
Herrick: Well, we were all undercover, so that includes me, Toz, Max, and Xaivis. You could say we were all living out secret agent fantasy while we were at the port. All of us had different identities, one of them even went by Eli.
He punctuated the last bit with a wink.
Nilsen: Wait, so who went by Eli?...you know what I don’t know if I want to know.::beat:: You reckon we should invite Lahl? Would she be happy to hear about our little organisation after what happened?::
Herrick: Well… I already did! ::rubbing the back of his neck a bit awkwardly:: I may have mentioned its existence when we were repairing the transporters, and that she should stay tuned for an update.
Lhandon’s eyebrow raised for just a moment. o0 what have I missed? 0o
Nilsen: I’m going to invite Caras, I read the ops reports after they were in the OC on the way to that sodding system, I once ripped up half the bridge on the moo moo just to transfer the power. Clearing the mess was a pain but I’m dead impressed with him.
Josh had heard that the pair of them were getting closer; spending a lot of time in the ship’s gym — which had been on Josh’s to-do list for an inappropriate amount of time. His excuse had been the activity level of their recent missions, but he wanted to avoid the ‘senior officer bulge’ he often saw.
Herrick: Nice. It makes sense to all the ki-
He stopped himself; they were not kids, they were adults and roughly the same age. They just seemed so ‘junior’.
Herrick: -all the new arrivals take part in JOPA. (slightly frowning) Though I won’t be able to see them. At least there’s tonight..
Nilsen stopped in the corridor, and as Josh caught this in his peripheral vision, he stopped as well.
Nilsen: Wait, I’ve had an idea. ::quieter:: pranks are a part of our organisation, so…what if we introduce our new members in the most JOPA way possible?
Josh raised an eyebrow, in a fashion that was not too dissimilar to the one Lia had raised when they were on the Dow. Lhandon took the sign to elaborate further.
Nilsen: Just something harmless. This time round, I’ve got this escape room, murder mystery thing program set up, Ironic, after you nearly killed me and I was falsely accused of murder right :laughs:: I think we'll call this something like…I dunno, “it's like my life is written by someone who enjoys torturing me for their sadistic kicks.”
Herrick: ::raising an eyebrow:: You’re a glutton for punishment. Is that the latest program from Quarks?
Nilsen: Yeah, that's the one. :Beat:: So introducing them in the most JOPA way possible::beat:: what if we tell them that we demand a dress code? Like full-on dress robes?
Herrick: I like it; a memorable induction into the group!
Nilsen: And maybe give them a list of items to wear that is as long as his arm, like :beat: a helmet made of tin foil and other funny things, and of course when they turn up, everyone is just in casual gear and then we fully induct them
While Josh was visibly excited, nodding enthusiastically, he also felt pangs of sadness. This was going to be his last JOPA.
((Some time later, Running Track, Deck 9, USS Octavia E Butler))
Lhandon and Morro were on the running track with loops around the edge of deck 9. Lhandon was quietly glad that he found in Morro, someone who cared as much about fitness as he did. They were on mile 2, and Lhandon moved the conversation to matters about Morro.
Nilsen: How ya settling in mate?
Caras: Really can’t complain. The ship is everything I imagined when I first saw StarFleet.
Lhandon liked that line; they were, after all, on one of the newest, shiniest ships, with carpets in the Federation. They were pretty much the envy of the fleet.
Nilsen: Well, we are the best ::smirk: The senior officers giving you any grief?
Caras: I was originally worried about the head of Security, but since she transferred now I’m on the lookout for the interim chief. Just… Orion instincts.
Nilsen: Yeah, we…avoid that one ::slight laugh:: or rather avoided that one.
And yet, it was hard to move forward in life without Sherlocknow, her presence looming over him at all times, ready to eat him for lunch if he put a hair out of line, yet teaching him the lessons to get things done, to cover his own back, and to protect himself. He just wished he had kept that lesson in mind at that port.
Nilsen: Listen, every so often, me and a bunch of the lower deckers get together to watch each other's backs and eat too much food. Come by Holodeck 3 on Thursday at 13:00, I’ll make sure you’re off rotation.
Caras: Really? That’s usually in the back half of my shift. I don’t want to make Lieutenant Herrick angry with me.
Nilsen: HA! Don’t worry about Josh, you won’t get into trouble
Caras: That’s a relief, It’s the last thing I want. I’ve narrowly avoided getting into trouble so far. Not sure what you mean by “watch each other’s backs” but I’m always looking out for my fellow junior officers.
Nilsen: It’s more for when stuff hits the fan.
Caras: Do I get to know what is going on or is it a surprise?
Nilsen: Nope, full-on surprise; you’ll love it though. Here’s what you need.
Lhandon passes Morro a PADD with a list of equipment that he needs.
Caras: Good. Looking forward to it.
Nilsen: Oh and one last thing ::beat: the first rule…we don’t talk about this.
As Lhandon walked off, he walked in a dichotomy. On the outside, he seemed like himself again, setting up a prank for Caras; but on the inside, there was an aching feeling he couldn’t place. This feeling had appeared from the moment he was proven innocentin the trial, and his team more than proved that Lhandon didn’t kill that person on Port Coray.
((Some more time later, Sickbay, Deck 5, USS Octavia E Butler ))
Mr. Nilsen had joined Miash with another of his minor cooking burns, now under the care of the dermal regenerator, so of course, small talk and common discourse were the matters at hand. Miash hadn’t interacted much with the Lieutenant since joining the OEB, beyond the infrequent sickbay visit.
Miash: What were you making tonight dear?
Nilsen: I was making a Double-Duty Layered Enchilada Casserole
Miash: That sounds quite delicious.
Nilsen: It really is? I can send some down if you want.
Lhandon’s face almost lit up at the thought of sending food to someone else around the ship
Miash: No no dear, no need, I can replicate some and try it.
Nilsen: I don’t mind, you’ve done a lot for me, I enjoy cooking, I’d almost insist.
He really wanted to insist or make sure that some of it arrived at her workplace when she was least expecting it.
Miash: I’d hate to be a bother, but if you ever feel like dropping some off, I don’t get out much these days outside of Yoga, studying, and work.
Nilsen: You’re not a bother at all…you heard of Bridgerton.
Miash: What’s Brigerton?
Nilsen: It’s this old earth program. Set in the 18th Century…or 19th, I think. Fancy dresses, over-the-top balls, getting the entire group together.
Miash: Oh that sounds fascinating, but I’m not completely sure the female Ferengi attire if what you’d call the classical time would be completely acceptable at such an event?
Nilsen: Maybe. I don’t quite know, but give it a search, everyone dresses over the top. This one will be for::beat:: a little group called JOPA; don’t Talk about it, but I’ll explain all when you are there.
Miash: I mean, I supposed it could be interesting, definitely fun.
It had been some time since Miash embraced Ferengi culture, but being cognizant of her roots in order to improve on them rather than completely reject them was a lifelong challenge she’d accepted. Now she had to just decide if she’d go traditional female attire or lack thereof or male attire, with all its bells and whistles.
((OOC: Herrick was recruiting at the same time as Nilsen, here's Lahl's invite to our cult friendly club - https://groups.google.com/g/sb118-butler/c/DFnnXsB07Qo/m/eSMHLo69AQAJ We intended for that to be part of this prologue but it also served as a great sim to show that the transporters are now fixed, so we posted it early.)
Lieutenant Josh Herrick
Chief Engineer
USS Octavia E. Butler
O240005JH3
he/him/his (player/character)
&
Lieutenant JG Lhandon Joseph Nilsen
Assistant Chief of Operations.
USS Octavia E Butler
O240007LN1
He/Him/His (Both player and character)
&
Senior Chief Petty Officer Miash
Head Nurse
USS Octavia E Buttler NCC-82850
Writer ID.: O239910TA4LT
&
Ensign Kimonzi Lahl
Engineering Officer
U.S.S. Octavia E. Butler
O240107KL4
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Ensign Morro Caras
Engineering Officer
USS Octavia E. Butler
O240106MC1