[sb118-ops] Ensign A'Mayri - New systems to explore!
A'Mayri Y. Stark
(( A’Mayri’s Quarters – StarBase 118 Ops ))
A’Mayri’s quarters were always set to the highest temperature she could within her quarters' climate control system. She hadn’t spent time or much thought into looking at other potential lodging situations as she kept her surroundings rather simple and practical. A meditation station, her slightly modified bed with Starfleet electricity safety checked pull over warning capsule, and a shelf full of her old academy engineering projects and scraps she’s kept despite knowing they are physical representations of attachment to worldly physical impulses.
Her daily schedule outside of mission parameters was always the same. A soft melodic wake up chime at 0400, followed by an hour and a half of meditation, then self grooming to include refreshing her uniform and reorganizing her tools until it was time to depart. Today was a new variable to her schedule, an introduction and visitation to the crew's new USS Aurora-A. She allowed herself a small moment of visible excitement, a small green tinted shade dusting the tips of her ears as her fingers flew over her datapad.
Food consumption at 0620.
By 0700, she was far from her quarters and most promptly on her way to Main Engineering of a new ship she wished to witness the schematics of personally, and a golden warp core she suspected would take up much of her internal processing for the day.
(( USS Aurora-A – Main Engineering ))
Her first impression of the ship was that it appeared clean, sleek and minimalistic. Her second impression was that every visible aspect of said ship had been planned so meticulously that she only strived to be able to draw up such plans of her own so efficiently some day.
The double doors hissed open, breaking Alok’s focused workflow. A’Mayri stepped into the room, her posture immaculate, her dark eyes catching the golden glow of the core as she spotted him already deep at work at the main console. The new rank sat neat on his tunic collar, and she remembered basic etiquette.
A’Mayri: ::immediately coupling her diagnostic pad to an accessory console:: I believe greetings and a good morning are in order, Sir. ::not looking up from the console::
Alok blinked, momentarily caught off guard before a dry, long-suffering sigh slipped past his lips. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, shooting her a deadpan look.
Munshi: A’Mayri, please—we've been on board for all of twelve hours, and I've barely had time to process that I'm wearing a half-pip now. Save the formal inspection routine for when Commander Foster actually walks through the door.
One emotional anchor she was able to cut clean from her list of mediating adjustments—Alok had not found himself displeased with her after his internal miscalculation with Lyra. He also seemed to be genuinely centered and steady compared to when they last spoke.
A’Mayri: ::glancing up at him, one lifted an eyebrow at his deadpan and plea before looking back down:: A reasonable request. Your posture is less than optimal for long term diagnostics and systems review Alok. Ergonomic positioning is just as important to the quality of inspection as the instrumentation is.
Munshi: Slouching? I was running a complete optimization sweep of the primary manifold. That is the exact opposite of slouching.
A’Mayri: Hm. ::swiping over the data collected so far:: I had not used such wording, but yes that vocabulary would suffice….Sir.
A tease of sorts, if a half Vulcan following technical protocol could count as one.
Alok’s left eyebrow raised in surprise and awe.
Munshi: ::chuckling:: You are actually enjoying this, aren’t you?
There were many things A’Mayri had found herself enjoying in this moment. First, the sheer human term ‘eye candy’ the engineering room was to an engineer was as close to exhilarating as she could get. Second, the smooth surfaces that interfaces most of the consoles felt more bearable against her sensitive hands. Third, all her friends were enjoying a new ship—including the one right beside her.
A’Mayri: ::small pause before softly sighing:: I am not displeased by this situation, no. Everyone seems quite pleased by our new ship arrangement.
Munshi: Noted. And for the record, my euphoria is entirely justified. Have you looked at these plasma flow coefficients? It's poetry in motion.
A’Mayri: Your euphoria is noted. As for the plasma flow coefficients— ::tapping and enlarging the data:: the content variable for flow resistance and threshold capping is refreshing.
The small tell sign of excitement dusted green over the tips of her ears again.
After what looked like more internal adjustments, Alok cleared his throat and leaned against the edge of the console as the playful banter settled into a more comfortable, familiar rhythm.
Munshi: Seriously though, drop the 'sir' when it's just the two of us. It feels like my own PADD is talking back to me in regulatory mode. We survived the Drakos Cluster and a bunch of rogue trade seals together—we're past formal titles in an empty engine room.
It was interesting to see in real time her most similarly minded friend display the most direct and easily communicated feeling of intent she had seen amongst all her friends so far. The honesty was welcomed, even if she had been compared to a useful computer adjacent device.
A’Mayri: Who am I to defy such social logic. ::turning her body to better face Alok, hands neatly folded in front of her and not behind:: how are you fairing since the awards ceremony?
Munshi: I'm holding up. The new engines are a hell of a distraction, which is probably exactly what my internal operating system needed right now. No phantom heart-rate spikes from auxiliary climate controls today.
A’Mayri: Phantom or not, there is no shame in registering such spikes from internal perspectives. ::gaze flicking to the door and him for a moment before turning back to casually pulling up power bank status::
The double doors hissed open once more. Commander Foster strode into the room, his Andorian antennae twitching briskly as he took in the pristine, golden-hued workspace. Alok instantly straightened up, smoothing down his tunic and shifting into professional gear.
Foster: Lieutenant, Ensign. How are your checklists coming?
Alok offered a sharp, professional nod, his posture reflecting the confidence of his newly earned rank.
A’Mayri offered a professional small bow of her head.
Munshi: Diagnostics are currently running at one hundred percent efficiency, Commander. The plasma flow through the primary injectors is remarkably stable compared to the old Narendra class. We've just finished calibrating the structural integrity fields.
A’Mayri: The ships internal repair and maintenance database seem to have key data points from our systems diagnostics prior to the ships hand off sir.
Wyn tilted his antennae forward.
Foster: Yes, and Admiral Taybrim made all the data from the test flights for the Aurora available to us. Did either of you have any concerns?
Alok glanced down at his PADD, reviewing the dense streams of test-flight telemetry data he'd been pouring over all morning.
Munshi: Nothing structural, Commander. The thermal dissipation curves on these new warp coils are incredible. Though, if I'm being entirely honest, the reaction time on the manual manifold bypass is a fraction faster than what standard Starfleet specs indicate. I'll probably write a quick macro script to buffer the input so nobody accidentally spikes the core pressure during a hard turn.
A’Mayri: A good precaution, though I do suspect that so long as one of us are present, those variations are manageable. If such an event occurred where the core pressure spikes, we should be able to course correct rather quickly.
Another nod, Wyn rocked a bit on his feet.
Foster: Of course we’re going to do a little stress testing. But moreover, we want everyone to feel comfortable working with the new ship. I’m sure it handles a bit differently than the Narendra… or the Maximum Thrusters.
Alok let out a quiet, dry huff of amusement while A’Mayri lowered her gaze to the secondary console.
Munshi: That is putting it mildly, Commander. Trying to keep the MTF's jury-rigged propulsion systems from tearing themselves apart during covert runs felt more like emergency containment than actual piloting. Operating this vessel is going to feel like driving a luxury hover-car after spending time dodging space debris in an armored garbage scow.
A’Mayri remembered the first moment she had laid eyes on the MTF. Even in its state she was able to gleam that intent and eagerness had been put into its modifications. Her admiration for it’s engineer and its patched together functions was comparable to perhaps someone’s fond relationship with the ragged street cat that you witness in the neighborhood every so often.
A’Mayri: All pre-test documentation and log formatting will be submitted shortly to the station and your posting for final flight verifications and warp core start up past standby, sir,
Foster: Excellent. I am excited to see these engines in action!
Alok grinned, feeling a genuine surge of professional excitement.
Munshi: You and me both, sir. The warp signature on paper is breathtaking, but seeing it translate into actual subspace output is going to be the real test.
A’Mayri: ::Expression calm, hands neatly folded behind her:: My interests and investment are mutually aligned to the Lieutenant’s.
Foster: Any other thoughts either of you have?
Alok tapped a final sequence into the console, locking down the engineering diagnostic logs before looking back up at Foster.
Munshi: Just one, Commander: when do we get to take this magnificent machine out of space dock and push her past warp nine?
Alok having asked the one question that was most prominent on her mind, she remained silent and just to the side of the human male and watched her Commanding Officer with quiet and eager attention.
Foster: Response(s)?
Alok glanced at A’Mayri, a brief, synchronized mental calculation passing between them before he looked back to the Commander.
Munshi: Pushing past standard parameters while still tethered to the space dock umbilical is asking for a localized containment flux, sir. I’d strongly recommend decoupling and clearing the immediate sector grid before we start dialing past warp threshold.
A’Mayri: ::turned her gaze to the main console:: The ship is ready to be fully independent and disconnected from shore power. Primary and secondary power are steady and at 100% capacity. Life support systems are fully online, and the warp core engine is keyed in to be removed off standby.
Foster: Response(s)?
Munshi: Coordinates logged and ready, Commander. Whenever you give the word, Main Engineering is standing by to initiate launch sequence.
Her senses were overrun in all the best ways. The smell of a new ship, a new work environment to adjust to, and the ability to work on said ship with a fellow engineer who understood the physical thrill of applicable sciences. In addition to that, it was an honor to have a Commanding officer so invested in his crew and a fully skilled and qualified team to work alongside. If they needed more power, speed or a quick bolster to weapons, she would execute all possible outcomes to get there. A’Mayri pieced together that the science and exploration focused vessel would be compliant, however.
A’Mayri: ::carefully straightening the edge of her sleeve:: I must comment sir, that I find the assignment of this ship to our operations department almost unexpected from my point of view—but that may very well be because I have only spent so much time stationed here so far. Do we often follow through with missions outside of the Starbase?
Foster/Munshi: Response(s)?
A’Maryi carefully listened and was both curious and momentarily surprised. She hadn’t fully adjusted to the grandeur of it all—starting from when the Rear Admiral announced the USS Aurora-A as their new ship.
A’Mayri: I see, yes sir. It was a welcomed surprise to see that even being assigned to a station, we are still able to be utilized elsewhere.
Foster/Munshi: Response(s)?
A’Mayri carefully moved to stand beside Alok again, properly poised with her arms now relaxed at her sides and not folded away. She had grown more familiar with her leadership- which now included the other engineer due to his higher rank. A’Mayri was always content to follow orders, finish her tasks and follow all instructions so long as they were reasonable, logical and lawful.
A’Maryi: Commander, Lieutanant. ::a small bow of her head to the both of them:: An honor to work for you and alongside you.
Foster/Munshi: Response(s)?
--
V/R,
Ensign A’Mayri Ych’a Stark
Engineering Officer
StarBase 118 Ops
O240303A11