RP Log: Talking About The Test
| Roleplay Log | |
|---|---|
| Participants: | |
Location(s):
| |
| Stardate: | |
| 2024-08-26 17:33 | |
- Executive Officer's Office <USS Kestrel NCC-97802>
- Not as elaborate as the Ready Room, this small office does provide the XO a private space to conduct meetings and for paper work. The primary feature of the office is a wooden desk with a high-backed chair behind it. Upon the desk is a desktop terminal. To the fore of the desk are two additional chairs.
- Upon the opposite bulkhead from the desk is a viewscreen, in direct line of sight from someone sitting behind the desk.
- The carpeting is a soft beige with the walls matching in a slightly darker tone.
- Out the viewport: The yellow hue of the nearby star can be seen.
[Worthington's Commbadge] Communications channel to Lieutenant Hauser open - audio only.
[Worthington's Commbadge] Hauser says, "Hauser here."
Worthington says, "Can you come up to my office lieutenant?"
[Worthington's Commbadge] Hauser says, "Yes sir. On my way."
[Worthington's Commbadge] Lieutenant Hauser double taps her commbadge.
[Worthington's Commbadge] Connection to Lieutenant Hauser terminated.
Knock from Out: The Door chime sounds.
Lieutenant Hauser arrives from Deck 3 - Forward Corridor.
Worthington is seated at his desk, a padd in front of him, at which he is staring when the door opens.
Hauser comes in and stands to respectful aatention. "Reporting as ordered, sir."
Worthington smiles and looks up. "Please, take a seat lieutenant," he says. "I wanted to discuss what I just received from you."
Hauser finds some of her usual humor. "So not about the weather, sir. It's black and cold outside." She sits.
Worthington smiles back. "Make sure you're properly dressed before heading outside then. I hear the vacuum of space really sucks." He pauses. "Overall," he says, picking up the padd again, "I think you did a good job. I'd like to discuss a few things though, pick your brain a bit more."
Hauser nods. "Yes sir," she says, straightening up and awaiting the first question.
Worthington nods back. "On question 6," he starts, "I'd like you to expand a bit more if you could. Consider the types of ships you might get for a first command. Think a little beyond the Kestrel here, and consider how that might change your thinking when responding to a tactical situation like that. How might your tactics change to achieve the desired outcome?"
"Can you remind me what question 6 says, sir?" She asks. "I don't have Vulcan-like memory." She grins. It should be noted that she did not come in with pad in hand.
Worthington looks down at said padd and begins to read. "6) Starfleet has learned of an attack at an outlying system. No ships are in the immediate vicinity. Describe your response as Officer of the Deck."
"O that one!" Hauser says. "Yes." She relaxes, giving the question its due consideration. "I think the big principle involved here sir is, protect the civilians, and don't use more force than necessary. So I didn't want to make assumptions in my answer about what I would find. But supposing I had a ship that packed a bigger punch or had stronger defenses or faster engines, and I knew, knew, that nothing short of a firefight was going to do the job. Well, it's like I did in my command test, sir. I could tell helm to warp in and drop us, say if they're very good, between the agressors and the civilian ship or station or whatever, with shields up, of course. Then, we make it very clear that shooting at our civilians is a costly decision that we won't tolerate. We take out their weapons and engines without apologies, because the overriding principle is that we would rather them shoot at us, not our civilians, until we make it so they can't shoot anymore. The how of that, well, it just depends on more details. If it's a freighter they're shooting at, and the freighter can run, we make sure to tell them to run while we take care of business. If it's an orbital firefight, that changes how we can maneuver as opposed to open space, but we make sure that the civilians don't take anymore fire. That's what I was going for, sir."
Worthington smiles. "That's all well and good," he says. "What if you had something like, an Equinox class cruiser?" he asks. "Or, something like the Hadfield or similar? Something with minimal defenses and weapons, where you might be outgunned or outclassed by the agressor?"
"On the one hand, sir, that doesn't change my obligation," Hauser says. "We still have to pull the bad guys off our civilian friends. So, while I'm telling Starfleet about it, say at the start of my answer there when I said I would advise, I'd also tell them that we would need help and would do what we could until the help got there. Depending on who is attacking, what their motives are, we could go diversionary." She leans forward. "Ooooh, what if we routed holoprojectors outboard and created the illusion of a squadron that we were coming in with. Then if that scares them off, or they start shooting at phantoms, we have a little extra time to hit them where it hurts and deal a crippling blow. The name of the game in that case, sir, is buying time. It might be one of your no win scenarios, but we have to gain time either for help to arrive, or for the civilians to flee. The best case scenario in hat situation, I think sir, is that we scare hem off with psychological tactics, like the holo-projectors, combined with what muscle we do have. See what I mean?"
Worthington nods approvingly. "Yes I do," he says. "That's the sort of thinking I was looking for." He looks at something else briefly. "Number 7 is similar," he says. "Looking for another way to breach shields, I like the thinking there, because often, torpedoes are needed to do that job effectively. Take those raiders we've seen. They have sturdy shielding." He pauses again. "Towing capacity being what it is, you'd have to see what your vessel could tow, assuming the disabling was a success, and what you'd need to call a tug out for. All and all, I think you have a good grasp of tactics in those scenarios." He puts the padd aside. "Great work overall lieutenant."
Hauser nods. "Couldn't tow something the size and mass of the phoenix with this ship," she says. "Thanks, sir. You have other questions for me?"
Worthington shakes his head. "No Jessica, I do not," he says, using the lieutenant's first name. "You did a good job, and I was impressed with your performance in the practical simulation. I think you're ready. It'll now go to the captain for approval and final sign off, but I think you know what you're doing and can make a tough call without freezing."
Hauser smiles. "Thanks sir. I really appreciate that. I really do." A beat. "I guess if the captain approves, it has to go to command, and then I wait for a letter in the mail?"
Worthington nods. "Precisely," he says. "Then you get what every officer your age dreams of. More paperwork." He smiles again.
Hauser grins back. "Can I have real paper? Maybe it's good they don't use real paper anymore. Thanks, sir."
Worthington laughs. "Definitely a good thing," he says, moving his padd aside. "Are you ready for this lieutenant?" he asks.
"To be a line officer, sir?" Hauser asks.
Worthington shakes his head. "No. Didn't you realize, all of this training was to prepare you for full time mess hall duty?" he says with a smile. "Indeed, to be a line officer."
Hauser grins widely. "I thought you were getting ready to pull something out of your desk drawer there for a minute!" She nods slowly. "I think I'm as ready as training can make me, sir. If I said I thought I was fully ready for anything, that'd just be arrogant of me. You think?"
Worthington nods and smiles. "I'm ready for whatever might be out there. Famous last words, or so I've heard," he says. "Yes, that sort of an attitude is definitely errogant, but you don't strike me as the errogant type. Save that for brash tactical officers who go into command." He pauses. "I believe you will handle yourself well. I hope you never give captain Anewan or myself a reason to question this. We don't think you will, which is why we picked you for second officer in the first place."
"Don't know if I've met any tactical officers like that. Unless that's all of them." Hauser smiles. "Thank you, sir, and thank the captain for me. I won't let you down. Assuming Starfleet agrees that I passed."
Worthington rises and nods. "I will pass that along," he says. "And lieutenant," he pauses, "Good luck."
Hauser stands as well. "Thank you sir. Looks like I could use some."