Chapter Three

Captain Berganmister Portinmire was the Commanding Officer of the Stargazer Squadron, as well as the Commanding Officer of the USS Indefatigable, an Excelsior Class starship. Squadrons were normally named after their principle ship. Generally that ship's Captain was the Commanding Officer of the squadron, but Washington didn't have much seniority, and by her own admission did not have the knowledge or tactical ability to lead such a diverse group of ships. Portinmire was a old warhorse Captain who had served in the Second and Third Federation-Cardassian War, as well as the recently completed Ninth Klingon-Federation War. It showed in his hard lined face, and pure white hair.

The room that Marrissa had been summoned to meet the Captain was a reflection of his hard personality. With clean blue-gray walls, a picture of General Robert E. Lee astride his horse behind the desk, which had a stack of PADDs inside an old-fashioned metal in and out trays. It simply screamed traditional military of one of the oldest types.

"Lieutenant Commander Marrissa A. Picard reporting as ordered, sir," Marrissa announced, as the door slid closed behind her.

"Sit, Lieutenant Commander," Portinmire ordered, gesturing to a solid metal chair in front of his desk. Marrissa took a seat in the hard chair. "I'm placing you on a temporary detached assignment away from the Stargazer. You'll be escorting a visitor from the Romulan Navy, a Sub-commander Saavik 'cha Praetorium for the next three days. Any questions?"

"May I ask why I was picked for this particular assignment?" Marrissa asked.

"You were the best person for the job," Portinmire replied. "Sub-commander Saavik arrives in an hour. I expect that you'll be there in dress whites to greet her."

"Understood, sir."

"And one other thing, Lieutenant," Portinmire said. "Sub-commander Saavik is not the sole reason that I've called you here. Your battle station while on board the Indefatigable is the bridge, opposite my First Officer. I want you two to work together to improve our tactics. Commander Liciani is beginning to get a little predictable."

"Aye sir," Marrissa said.

"Dismissed." Portinmire returned to his work. The acting Squadron Commander job was really beginning to pile the paperwork on his desk.

...

Marrissa arrived at her temporary quarters to discover that her dress uniform was already laid out for her. The quarters on the Excelsior Class starship Indefatigable were bigger than her two room office quarters combo on the Stargazer, done in the white and silver that were in favor when the class was designed.

She stopped briefly to look out her new window, through which she could see the Stargazer. Her ship of record sported several scorch marks on what was once a pristine blue gray hull. No fighters were issuing from her forward facing fighter bay at the moment, but from experience she knew that could change quickly.

Her eyes caught her dress whites on top the silver and red spread on her bed. Showing around another officer from another star fleet ... her career had hit a new low. She hadn't had that duty since she was a newly commissioned Ensign on the old Enterprise. Of course, no one liked being lead around by a preteen, so she'd quickly been relieved of that job. At the time she'd been a little angry that she'd been taken off that assignment, and wanted it back. Now she knew better, and was about to get it again. She flung down her communicator as she began to undress so she could put on her dress whites.

At least this time it was a military ally instead of a grumpy old ambassador. That guy had been a real bore, to tell the truth. She'd need to get some briefing on this Sub-Commander Saavick Praetorium. She thought that Saavik was a female name. As for the last name of Praetorium, she wondered if that meant that this Sub-Commander was related to the Romulan Praetor somehow.

Her duty uniform off, Marrissa folded it before she turned to put on the dress whites. She was a Star Fleet Officer, she could handle anything. Steeling herself, she picked up the uniform pants, black, with the gold strip. She didn't need praise. With force, her left leg entered her pants. She didn't need thanks. The right leg went on. She didn't need friends. Up and fasten. She didn't need help. Uniform jacket, left arm in. She didn't need to be liked. Right arm in, and where is that zipper? She didn't need a place where she could shine. Zippered up, communicator on.

Who was she kidding? She needed praise, thanks, friends, to be liked, and a place where she could shine. Here on the Indefatigable she had none of those. Marrissa slumped down against the foot of her bed, and began to cry.

...

"Lieutenant Pizarro, do you know why you're here?" Captain T'Gwen Washington asked the Hispanic human as she looked down on his foot and a half shorter form. She was standing behind her desk, and he stood across from her. Jay stood by her ready room door, having just escorted Pizarro there.

"Captain Portinmire said he wanted me to become familiar with Carriers," Pizarro said.

"Yes, that is true, but your temporary posting here is not just for that," T'Gwen said, sitting down. "Please, be seated. You too, Jay."

Pizarro sat down across from Captain Washington, while Jay found a seat on the sofa on the Captain's right, just beyond the desk.

"Captain Portinmire runs a very tight ship," Washington said. "And you, following in the footsteps of your Captain run the Captaincy Candidates that you've been given responsibility for even harder. Perhaps too hard. That's why you're here. Jay?"

"Mr. Pizarro, you'll find that the Stargazer is run quite a bit looser than what you're used to," Jay said. "You're not here to change that, you're here to learn how that works. The Stargazer is a large extended family. It is not uncommon for people to greet each other by their first name. Our regular First Officer, in fact insists that everyone call her just Marrissa. I likewise insist that my pilots call me Jay. Lieutenant Gordon was what I heard my father called, until recently. The Captain is perhaps the only one who isn't called by someone by her first name, but she's the matriarch, if you continue the comparison, of the family."

"For the duration of your assignment, you will be serving as Second Officer of the Stargazer," T'Gwen said. "You will study with Jay, who has been bumped up to First, the fine art of recent fighter tactics, and learn how another command style works. If you're lucky, we might even have time to put you in as part of one of our Command Wing fighter squadron in Jay's persistent innovation tests. Jay, who is ahead to challenge the Command Wing at the moment?"

"Tie between Red and Black Wings at the moment, sir," Jay said. "Dukat has really turned that wing around."

"Oh, yes, that brings up another point," T'Gwen said. "No harassing Lieutenant Dukat. We know he's a Cardassian, and we know who his father is. It is not your concern. I shouldn't have had to say that, but experience has taught me that such a warning is most unfortunately a necessary one. Any questions, Lieutenant?"

"No sir," Pizarro said.

"Very well, Lieutenant," T'Gwen said, standing. "Once again, welcome to the Stargazer. Jay will show you to your room."