Byron sat in his office, it had been a few hours since he had met with Isabel Robinson, his first officer. He had been busy with paperwork but he felt the need to take a walk, get to see his ship, get a feel for the command that Starfleet had given him.

Nothing could have made him happier than when he discovered he had been assigned a ship that would be serving out of OverWatch Station, which was assigned to his wife. It meant he would see her and their daughters, frequently and possibly the girls might go on a mission with him from time to time.

As he took his walk through the decks , the ship sounded eerily quiet. He knew that crew would be arriving soon and be and Isabel would be interviewing them to make certain they were a right fit. Byron liked to lead with strength but he also wanted the ship to have a feel of family. In order to do that, the crew had to be like minded in some ways. If someone didn’t fit, there could be issues in times of trouble. He had been relieved when he met Isabel. He could tell they had similar command styles. And she would be honest with him and would give her opinion, even if it went against his own thoughts or beliefs.

Walking in to the engineering department he was surprised to hear some pounding and then a string of curse words. Byron assumed one of the crew from the Corp of engineers was on board doing some last minute adjustments. He followed the voice and came across a pair of legs sticking out from under a large drum. It didn’t sound like they were very happy with someone.”

“Can’t count on anyone.” Lila growled as she worked. “They don’t train them engineers like they used to, put one of them under me for a week I’ll straighten them out!”

Byron grinned as he listened to her, she didn’t sound all that mad and it gave him insight to her personality.

“You poor baby.” The female voice continued. “You have been treated poorly but now that Lila is here I’ll take good care of you!”

Byron almost laughed but held it back. After a moment he spoke. “Excuse me.”

“Wha…” Lila smacked her head as she was startled. “Least you could do is warn me your here!”

“I thought…” Byron began.

“We don’t have time for your excuses.” Lila continued. “Rumor has it the captain is coming on board and he has a reputation for running a tight ship.”

“Is that so.” Byron raised an eyebrow wondering if she was going to come out from underneath there soon.

“No time for talking.” Lila continued. “Go around the other side and tighten all the sockets. Make certain you don’t strip any of them, just tighten them.”

“I..”

“That’s an order.” Lila continued with frustration. “I don’t have time for games, I’ll report you to the captain.”

“Well I wouldn’t want that.” Byron murmured as he went around and started to tighten the sockets. They fell silent and a few minutes passed and she spoke once more. “Are they tight?”

“Yes..ah..” Byron started. He had a feeling he knew who she was but he wanted verification,

“Ensign Davies.” She growled. “Chief Engineer on board.” He straightened as he heard her slide out the other side. Lila turned and she spoke. “And you would be….” Her face paled as she recognized the pips on his uniform.

“Captain Coleman.” Byron said a humorous glint in his eyes.

Lila slapped the side of her head and sighed. “Captain…I didn’t know it was you or I wouldn’t have….”

“Ensign.” Byron interrupted her with a grin. “I am quite certain your reaction would have been otherwise and frankly I prefer to get to know my crew for who they are and not when they think I need to be impressed.” He decided to change the subject. “How are the engines in terms of readiness.”

Lila was still feeling a little embarrassed but the was relieved that he was moving away from what had happened. “She is in fine shape, Captain, but she needs some fine tuning, tender loving care if you will.”

Byron raised an eyebrow. It never ceased to amaze him how engineers tended to refer to the engines as a living thing. He supposed he did so in his own way as well. “I would like a timeframe in terms of readiness to leave dock to the first officer, Lieutenant Commander Robinson tomorrow at the latest. He needed to know where they stood before he started having any meeting or receiving orders.

“I will get right on it.” Lila assured him. She still felt badly about earlier. “Captain,

I want to apologize for earlier.”

“There is no need.” Byron assured her. “Honestly, it felt good to give you a hand. Consider it forgotten, Ensign. I have read your file and I am happy to have you as our engineer.” He paused. “What I am curious about however, is my reputation as a captain.”

Lila felt her face flush a bit. “That was just bluster. I thought you were from the corp and I wanted to get the job done.” Her eyes met his and seeing the humor in his eyes she continued.  “I checked your record out too and you have an excellent record. I wouldn’t be here otherwise, Sir.”

Byron folded his arms over his chest. “I believe we will work well together, Ensign. I’ll let you get back to work, make certain you meet with the first officer tomorrow with an update.”

“Yes Captain.” Lila said as she watched him walk away. Lila swore she heard a laugh as he left, shaking her head, still feeling embarrassed at her assumptions. “First day and there I go, putting my foot in my mouth.” Lila went back to work, determined to have a good report for the first officer when she met up with her.

Byron continued on his way, he couldn’t wait to meet up with Isabel and give her his analysis of their Chief Engineer.