[BACKSIM] Ensign S'tek - From the Aurora to the Ronin

[Shakeel Hussein]

((OOC – Sorry for the delay, I’m still trying to get used to all of this again, and thanks for the tags!))

 

((Cargo Bay 6, Deck 11, USS Ronin))

 

Nerves had been building within Ensign S’tek from the minute he’d boarded the SS Aurora. The old, beaten-up transport vessel – which he had assumed was held together by pieces of duct tape and sheer will and determination – had done the job; it had ferried him, along with many others, from Earth to Lolagi IV. More specifically, it had transported him to the Ronin. It was his assignment on the Akira-class starship that was making him nervous, and those nerves grew so much stronger as the Aurora dropped to impulse power and neared its destination.

 

The Ronin, while not exactly what could be described as top-of-the-line, was still a hell of a ship. It was all he could read about from the minute he knew where he’d been posted, and he couldn’t help but look forward to what might happen once he, the newly-minted Tactical and Security officer, got himself settled; deep-space assignments, missions with the fate of the sector, and the fate of countless lifeforms, hanging in the balance; he just hoped he was ready. It was the kind of posting that his father had dreamt of and may well have ended up with if it weren’t for the arrival of baby S’tek all those years ago.

 

Transporting over to the Ronin had done very little to settle the worries that had built up within S’tek. He may have been split apart atom by atom, directed across the cosmos and put back together again, but the newly formed version of himself still carried all of those very same troubles. If he was being honest with himself, S’tek had hoped that the nerves wouldn’t have rematerialized with him, even though he knew that wasn’t possible. In the end, after trying to shake those childish thoughts from his addled brain, he left Transporter Room 3 after sending a quick cursory nod to the Transporter Chief. That was how Ensign S’tek – both familiar with the corridors of the Ronin from all he had read and completely astounded by the sheer size, scale and busyness of the ship – eventually ended up on Deck 11. Checking in with his department chief, or any other senior officers, had to go on the back burner, and checking his belongings had been safely transported to Cargo Bay 6 just seemed like the perfectly mundane task that could keep his mind and his hands busy.

 

The chirp of his combadge forced Ensign S’tek to stop dead in his tracks and his thick eyebrows flickered as the unfamiliar voice crackled into existence. He’d seen the name in the crew manifest, but surprise still surged within him – S’tek had no idea that a conversation with Lieutenant JG Evinrude would be one of his first on board the ship.

 

Evinrude: =/\= Evinrude to Ensign S'tek. Just confirming that your berthing assignment has been processed. Check your PADD or any duty station for more info. =/\=

 

With a slow exhale, his features softened as he squared his shoulders, standing at near enough his full height as he tapped the gold and silver emblem emblazoned on his chest.

 

S'tek: =/\= S’tek here, Lieutenant. I’ve only just come aboard. I didn’t realise the Ronin would be underway already. ::pause, clears throat:: I’m still getting myself orientated.  =/\=

 

Evinrude: =/\= Agreed, glad getting aboard wasn't too difficult. Not often we push to maximum warp right out of shoreleave. Any personal effects missing? =/\=

 

S’tek shook his head, then stopped once he realised that the Lieutenant wasn’t actually there to see him doing it.

 

S'tek: =/\= Um… no. No, Sir. I don’t think so. ::pause:: I’m just in Cargo Bay 6, checking that the Aurora sent over the right containers. I’m hoping my belongings are inside… we warped away from Lolagi pretty quickly. =/\=

 

Evinrude: =/\=  ::Cheerfully.:: Well, things will settle down soon. And, welcome! You're in good company in Security and Tactical. Tell Chief Kessler congratulations for me; that Medal of Valor suits him. =/\=

 

S'tek: =/\= Thank you, Sir. And I’ll be sure to let Lieutenant Kessler know. =/\=

 

As the comm channel fell silent, Ensign S’tek tapped his combadge once more, the first three fingers of his right hand pressing against the emblem on his uniform to make sure the channel to Lieutenant Evinrude was well and truly closed. He let himself rest against the nearest container, forearms braced along its edge, before lifting his PADD closer to his face. His fingers moved quickly across the screen as his deep brown eyes scanned the text as it flashed by.

 

S’tek: ::to himself:: Right, Lieutenant. Let’s see where you’ve put me…

 

Finally, his darting eyes came to a stop.

 

S’tek: Room 05-1721? I suppose I better check it out.

 

[End scene for S’tek]

 

 

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Ensign S’tek

Tactical and Security

USS Ronin NCC-34523

A240012CM1