Lt JG Tess Evinrude - Which one is Humpty...

[Tess Evinrude]

((Deck 14, Corridor, USS Ronin))

Evinrude checked the PADD one final time, then closed a window showing the crew quarters assignment memo. He checked the current time on the handheld device, reaching up to run a thumb and forefinger down his jawline. The short, barely longer than stubble-length beard that he usually cultivated had grown a centimeter longer, as the officer hadn't bothered to shorten it during shoreleave. Before coming back aboard the Ronin, he'd shaped and trimmed it, but kept its length.

He couldn't quite put his finger on why he had decided to let it grow from "neat five-o-clock shadow" into something that could be considered the first step across the beard barrier.

Evinrude: ::Quietly, to himself.:: Okay, so that's berthing assignments resolved, personal effects either loaded or...unloaded.

Alyndra's belongings were packed up, her quarters empty for the moment as there had been enough space to accommodate the new arrivals. Her absence would be felt for a while yet, by a lot of fellow officers.

Evinrude: ::Continuing to talk himself through what the rest of his shift should look like, he opened up the work queue..:: Woah, looks like sensor relay AO486 is due for a EPS buffer hot-swap. We're running short range arrays at full bore...

One new arrival had already caught Evinrude's interest. Jino Esot, a Cardassian ensign in Science, had been deployed to Operations almost as soon as she transferred up from The Farm. He noticed it was her authorization to boost short range sensors.

oO I'll take care of that now, a fresh buffer might give Esot more juice to-- Oo

Tucker: =/\= Lieutenants Evinrude and Nemes report to the flight deck immediately. =/\=

The lieutenant's eyes looked up from his PADD and gazed down the corridor at nothing in particular. He tapped his combadge to reply directly to Tucker.

Evinrude: =/\= Acknowledged. =/\=

oO Alright then, time to delegate. Oo

He tapped his badge again, switching to a new channel, and turn on his heel to walk briskly towards the nearest turbolift.

Evinrude: =/\= Evinrude to Cousteau and Thakuri. =/\=

Both crewmen responded, their receipt of the call coming back to Tess just moments apart.

Evinrude: =/\= Check your work queues, I've bumped up hot-swapping a buffer on sensor relay AO486 to top priority. It's performance is down forty percent. =/\=

The critical job sufficiently delegated, the ops officer wondered what awaited him on the flight deck.

((Short Timeskip - Deck 09, Flight Deck Aft, USS Ronin))

Before he even reached his destination, his curiosity at the comm call was redirected to another small mystery.

oO Sybil Nemes? Wearing gold? Oo

He'd been privy to her return to active duty, having seen the order granting her some of the mundane authorizations that made up daily life aboard a starship. He had actually made sure she received a mess hall assignment that matched his own, hoping it would give them the chance to catch up. The order for her to transfer departments, however, had been above his pay grade.

There wasn't any time to chat, though they exchanged friendly nods after Tess' double-take at her uniform. Wordlessly, they entered the flight deck together, and Evinrude's eyes narrowed as he took in the shocking scene.

Debris was starting to accumulate into strangely familiar shapes, forming an overall silhouette he didn't yet recognize. Hover-trolleys pushed by engineering crew carried jagged material about, as still more of the melted stuff shimmered into existence.

oO It's...a runabout? Oo

It was definitely of Federation make, that much was certain. Ishani Singh's voice came into earshot, sounding tense but confident.

Singh: … It's significantly limiting our effectiveness and slowing the recovery.

Tucker: ::he nodded:: Welcome, Lieutenants.

A short moment of silence followed, with both lieutenants waiting for an explanation, or at least instructions.

Singh: Lieutenants...this is the wreckage of the Kurosawa, the Captains Yacht. Shortly after transiting into this system by means currently unknown, Fleet Captain Niac and Commander Raga attempted to send the Ronin a message. Less than ten seconds later the yacht experienced a catastrophic core breach, destroying the vessel. All aboard are presumed dead. Our responsibility...our duty...is to find out exactly how this...::she gestured hatefully towards the debris::...happened.

Evinrude stood there dumbfounded, taking in the Major's words but not really comprehending their meaning. Suddenly, as a large chunk of scorched duranium was lowered into place, everything clicked.

oO That shape...it is the Kurosawa. How could this be possible? Oo

Nemes: ::almost whispered:: Oh my god. They are both…

Tess' eyes were wide, unblinking, until some movement out of the corner of his vision took his attention away from the sight. Sybil had turned to look at him, and as he met her gaze he forced his expression to soften.

oO She's just back after leave, and this happens. Now's not the time to let shock get the better of me. Oo

Evinrude: ::He turned to Tucker.:: How can we help, Chief?

With a surprisingly warm smile, Tucker held up a hand.

Tucker: I know we’ve all got questions, but now is not the time. Right now, our job is to go through the wreckage of the Kurosawa with a fine-toothed comb and retrieve the black box. It hasn’t been found yet, and we may have to go out and look for it.

Singh nodded and gestured towards a few teams of technicians assembling stationary sensor arrays all around the wreckage.

Singh: I've asked my people to setup supplemental sensor arrays that you'll be able to direct from your tricorders. You will be able to study this wreckage molecule by molecule until we understand exactly what has occurred. If we are able to recover the yachts flight data recorder, it should help us reconstruct at least the last few minutes of the Kurosawa's flight.

Sybil nodded and reached for her tricorder, looking to still be in shock. Tess watched her connect to the fine-pattern sensor arrays, her motions deft despite the turmoil she was clearly feeling.

Nemes: Yes, link has been established. ::she looked at Tess:

Evinrude: ::With an approval nod to Nemes.:: Great. I haven't had much experience with these stationary arrays, can I see how you're setting up your scans once we get started?

Though his request was earnest, he was also hoping the request would give Sybil some comforting distraction. Tess pulled out his own tricorder just as a particularly large piece of debris was beamed in.

oO Is that...a chunk of warp core? Oo

He noticed two EV-suited crewmembers rush in to scan the misshapen object, small for a warp core but still taller than any of the figures bustling around it. They finished their safety sweep and gave the okay, backing away from the shattered powerplant through the maze of debris as carefully as their suited feet would allow.

A sharp clap from Marty drew Evinrude's attention back with a start.

Tucker: ::clapping his hands together:: Are we ready to put Humpty Dumpty back together?

Singh: By all means, Commander...::she flipped open the tricorder and began scanning but under her breath she whispered.:: May cool winds forever guide you, Toryn.

Nemes: ::looking at Tess slightly irritated:: Humpty Dumpty?

By now, Tess was familiar with Marty Tucker's sense of humor. Sometimes, the man seemed dso unflappable, so cheerful that it was jarring. Other times, their chief engineer's emotions ran deep, as Tess had seen when Marty was faced with a moral dilemma, or self-reflection on a potential mistake.

Evinrude: Earth phrase, from a poem. Commander Tucker means no disrespect. ::He brought his tricorder close to Sybil's, observing the link she had established between the handheld device and the forensic sensor arrays.:: We're on it, sir. ::He said, with a glance back up to Marty.::

((OOC: No tags in this one. It is getting long, so I'm splitting it into two parts.))

[TBC in Part 2, "...and which one is Dumpty?"]

--

Lieutenant J.G. Tess Evinrude

[he/him]

Operations Officer

USS Ronin

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