Lieutenant Commander Addison MacKenzie - Come What May
Addison MacKenzie
((Bridge, USS Resolution - Immediately following MacKenzie’s departure from the party))
MacKenzie made her way back to Deck 1 of the Resolution. She had opted to sleep in her quarters rather than take temporary housing on Starbase 118 because despite only being stationed on the ship for a very short time, there was already a familiarity with the quarters that had embedded itself in her brain.
As the turbolift doors opened revealing the Bridge of the Resolution, Addison slowly strode out of the lift wearing a slight smile - the smell of saltwater, even if it was fake, still brought a great sense of joy to her nostrils as she recalled the celebratory nature of the crew’s gathering and their many accomplishments in their short time together.
Addison smiled again and took a deep breath in as if to inhale the last of the salty ocean air and made her way in the direction of her quarters. As she walked, she took note of the skeleton crew keeping an eye on things. While most of the crew had opted to take advantage of the time on Starbase 118, a few crewmembers took shifts keeping an eye on the Resolution.
As MacKenzie was inches away from the door of her quarters, the duty officer called out, stopping her in her tracks.
Pel: Commander MacKenzie…
Addison exhaled and closed her eyes, before turning around.
MacKenzie: What is it, Lieutenant?
Pel: We have a priority one communication from Starfleet Command.
Any recollection of the salty ocean air from moments ago suddenly dissipated.
MacKenzie: In my office…
Addison changed direction and, instead of heading for her quarters, she headed next door to her office. As the doors closed behind her, she sat down at her desk and activated the monitor. The image of the Starfleet Command logo was quickly replaced by an older Trill male with pale skin and dark spots down. He wore the rank of a Vice Admiral, but MacKenzie didn’t recognize the man.
In that moment, she was immediately self-conscious about being out of uniform, but was moderately consoled by the fact that she was technically off duty, and the request for shore leave had been granted by Starfleet Command.
Bartameus: Commander MacKenzie - I’m Admiral Bartameus. We recently received a disturbing message from the Da’al homeworld. The Da’al are a non-violent warp-capable species with a few colonies throughout the Borderlands. The Federation is on neutral terms with them, but they’ve made it clear that they have no immediate interest in joining.
Addison sat back in her chair and held her hand with her chin. She searched her brain, but couldn’t recall anything familiar about the Da’al. Bartameus continued.
Bartameus: The Da’al Prime Minister managed to get a short message to us appealing for help. She said that several Klingon ships had entered orbit, and she believes they’re intending to annex the Da’al colonies. That transmission occurred three days ago. Any attempt to re-establish contact has failed - surely the Klingons are jamming their communications at the source.
Addison sat forward and rested her arms on the surface of the desk. Her brow furrowed.
MacKenzie: For what purpose?
Bartameus: We’re not sure. The Da’al homeworld is closer to the Klingon side of the Borderlands, but we’re not sure if the Da’al have something they want, or if they using this as an opportunity to assert their dominance in the region - possibly retaliatory for Starfleet’s increased presence in the area.
Addison nodded slowly.
MacKenzie: What do you need from us?
Bartameus: We need the Resolution to head to the area, assess the threat and the reason behind the Klingons’ actions and find a way to diffuse the situation.
The man paused, his eyes heavy as he sat back into his chair. The situation had obviously been weighing on him for most of the day.
Bartameus: Shore leave is canceled effective immediately. Recall your crew and get to the Da’al home world.
MacKenzie: Aye, sir. I’ll get Captain Nicholotti brought up to speed and the crew recalled immediately.
Bartameus: And Commander, under no circumstances should the Klingons be allowed to annex those colonies.
Addison took a heavy breath in and out before answering in a serious, assertive tone.
MacKenzie: Yes, sir.
Bartameus: Bartameus out.
Addison sat back in her chair and took one more deep breath in and out before pressing the comm panel on her desktop.
MacKenzie: =/\= MacKenzie to bridge - yellow alert. Captain Nicholotti to your ready room.=/\=
TBC…
(OOC: Time to wrap up shore leave and get to work! Use the next day or two to wrap up any outlying shore leave scenes. Captain Nicholotti and I will send out a JP in the next day or so with more instructions for your characters concerning this new plot. We’ll also have several MSPNPCs for this mission, so be thinking about whether you’d like to write for one!)
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Lieutenant Commander Addison MacKenzie, M.D., Ph.D., FASFS
First Officer
USS Resolution
V239601AM0