All I Ask Is A Tall Ship...

Posted on Tue Apr 28th, 2020 @ 4:51am by Captain Mikoto Misaka
Edited on on Tue Apr 28th, 2020 @ 4:52am

1,102 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: New Beginnings
Location: USS Ermiana

Captain Mikoto Misaka stood staring out of the front view of the type six shuttle as it weaved through the crowded space lanes of Utopia Planetia Fleet Yards. She ran a few fingers over her collar, four gold pips seemed a little heavy. It was something she would have to get used to. Today she was due to take command of her first ship, a brand new Galaxy Class the USS Ermiana. The young Captain hadn't expected to gain her own command just yet, so her heads were still a little bit in the clouds.

The shuttle banked to port to bring the large spacedock into view. There she was, the Ermiana. The large vessel towered high in its dock. Mikoto could only smile as the tiny shuttle was dwarfed by the much bigger starship. Its smooth lines and metallic hull shining and gleaming in the bright lights.

"Would you like a fly over of the ship Captain?" the pilot of the shuttle asked. Mikoto looked over to the young Betazoid pilot. He was eager to please, fresh out of the Academy. She had looked up his file, he had been doing shuttle runs between the Ermiana and the shipyards for the last week.

"Go ahead Ensign. Lets see what she looks like a little closer" Mikoto replied. This would give her the perfect opportunity to take in what her ship looks like externally. The shuttle banked again to set over the large oval saucer section. The name and registry number came into view. The smooth hull plating seemed flawless as the shuttle glided over silently. The large phaser arrays showed the ships power and armaments as the shuttle ran close past to the very top of the saucer and the bridge module.

Lights shone from the windows as the shuttle passed. A few work bee's and shuttles ducked in and out of the three shuttlebays. Mikoto could spot a few crew members already on duty in the large main shuttlebay behind the forcefield. No doubt they were unloading supplies and personnel. With a crew compliment of just over a thousand officers, enlisted and civilians the Galaxy Class was more than just a starship, it was a community in space. A community in which Mikoto was now head of.

The Engineering Hull shaped a bit like a chevron was beautiful to look at, its gliding curves leading to the two large nacelles. At the moment the ships engines were powered down and greyed out. The shuttle banked again and sported up the 'neck' section of the hull. It levelled off to enter the main large shuttlebay located in the saucer section of the vessel.

Slowly and softly the shuttle touched down on a landing spot. Mikoto couldn't help but notice that several officers and crew had lined up around the area. A small podium had been erected. She took a deep breath as she opened the hatch, it was time to take official command of the ship.

Mikoto slowly walked off of the ramp. She was the only senior officer on board at the moment. The Ermiana wasn't due to leave for a good few days in which she had to await the arrival of the senior officers she had selected. Stepping upto the small podium she picked up the large rectangular PADD awaiting her. She cleared her throat before speaking.

"By orders of Starfleet Command on this date, I Captain Mikoto Misaka takes command of the ship, the USS Ermiana" she said simply placing a thumb on the PADD's scanner. She passed it to the yeoman standing next to the podium. "Please enter this into the ships log" she ordered. A bosun whistle echoed around the shuttlebay as she stepped down. She wished that some of her senior officers were there so she could meet them, however she wanted to get aboard and see what was needing to be done.

"Dismissed" she said simply. Luckily the Ermiana was pretty much identicle to her last assignment the USS Venture. She walked over to the nearest turbolift. "Bridge" she said as the doors swished closed. It didn't take much time for the turbolift to reach its destination.

The bridge was quiet, only a few officers working on the consoles and installing the last upgrades.
"Captain on the bridge!" someone announced. Everyone seemed to snap to attention on the announcement. It was one thing that always made her a little uneasy. "As you were" she said simply. The bridge still had that new car smell. She wandered over to the tactical station set into the wooden hourseshoe which wrapped around the command chairs, slightly raised by a platform overlooking the forward helm and operations consoles.

She ran a hand over the wooden horseshoe as she made her way around and down to the command area. Stepping up the couple of steps she approached her chair. The large smooth cream leather chair awaited her. This was her chair now, she had only ever sat in the Ventures as the Executive Officer. Slowly she lowered herself down into it. It seemed to swallow her, she felt tiny as she sat back in it. Strangely it felt familiar to her, yet oddly alien. Shaking it off she pulled herself up and simply smiled.

"Crewman" she said stopping one of the crewman passing the operations console. "What is the status of the ship?" she asked. The crewman seemed to hesitate slightly at the question. He seemed a bit shocked at being called out right away by the Captain.

"Most supplies are being transferred aboard as well as personnel. Most of the ships major systems are online right now with only a few being brought online in the next few days. A full report has been prepared for you in the ships computer sir" he explained nervously. Mikoto smiled, she could sense that this was making him feel a little uneasy. "Very well, thankyou crewman" she responded to him. She stepped down from the command area and crossed the front of the bridge to the ready room.

She took the seat behind the desk, its smooth glass surface cold to the touch. This all felt strange, she was the Captain now. She had to be the one to make all the decisions, to do what she thought was the right thing to do. She couldn't make any mistakes anymore. "Right Mikoto" she said to herself "Lets see what we've got". The computer terminal on her desk clicked on. "All I ask is a tall ship, and a star to steer her by..."

Posting by

Captain Mikoto Misaka
Commanding Officer

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