Addison walked the cool halls of his soon-to-be former ship. For a first real post outside the academy, it had been a good one but brief. He took a breath as he paused outside the transporter room. He gave his tunic a nice pull then walked inside. He had been assigned as a tactical and security officer but after 6 months of what he felt was torture, he was being reassigned. It was the work that bothered him it was the so-called chief who believed in a more lax approach to management. He looked around the room and it was just him and the transporter control officer. He made his way to the platform and looked back around at the room before nodding that he was ready.

One moment the room was there and the next he was gone. He blinked his eyes a few times taking in the transporter room aboard the USS Altai. The room was nothing special, in fact, it looked like most others but it was a new start, and maybe just maybe this time he could do his work to the standard he felt was right. He stepped off the path and made his way out of the room and towards the turbo lift. He started to feel uneasy but the change was part of life and to get where he wanted he would need to get used to it.

He stepped into the turbo lift and then spoke. “Bridge” moments later the turbo lift started moving. He didn’t have a duty station on the bridge he wasn’t even sure what his job would be here. The turbo lift came to a stop, “Ok let’s make a good impression” he said to himself before the doors opened to the small but tactically designed bridge. He stepped out and turned left heading for the captain’s ready room. He rang the buzzer and waited to see what new adventure was about to begin.

“Enter,” Streth called. A few seconds passed and he was greeted with the sight of the new Chief of Security & Tactical. The human was one of a good few recent transfers from the USS Don S. Davis. Streth was happy enough for the infusion of personnel from the Corps of Engineers vessel. The more construction and maintenance experience he could muster from his crew, the better. This particular officer, though, had a very different set of skills. Yes, Streth was sad to see Lieutenant Olafsen go, but the Don was the bigger ship. It was only natural that an officer might want to pursue that avenue for career advancement.

“Mr. Blake,” Streth rose from his chair and, as was becoming his custom, walked around the desk so that nothing now stood between the two humanoids, “welcome to the Altai. I’m sure Captain Walker’s very sorry to be losing you. His loss I guess. It’s good to have someone on board with your kind of tactical experience.” He shook the Ensign’s hand, “So you’re interested in the assignment all the way out here?”

Addison smiled as he shook the captain’s hand. “Honestly sir, Captain Walker may be relieved I was transferred. ” He uses the moment to get a mental picture of his new boss. Sometimes looking at a person told you more about them than a conversation. “It might sound odd sir but this could be an adventure as much as it could be a tedious routine. Either way, I’m sure the department will be squared away”

The last comment was more of a promise than it was a statement. This was his chance to do things a little different than in the past but now the pressure was right on him. If he failed it wouldn’t fall on someone else it would be on him. Sometimes life gave you a chance and you had to take it before it passed you by. It wasn’t often an ensign was given a shot at a Department head position.

“Good optimism there,” Streth replied, “I’m sure we’ll all need plenty of that to get us through the next few weeks. This base setup is going to be a lot of work. I want you over there as soon as we arrive. It’s been automated for years, and anyone could have paid a visit for all we know. There’s a chance they may have left behind some surprises. I want you to organize a forward recon team. Scour the areas we’re heading into with the engineering teams and make sure they’re clear of anything suspicious. Breen, Kzinti, you name it, if there’s anything unfamiliar I want it gone. Understood, Mr. Blake?”

“Yes sir. we will make sure the station is clear and safe. Sir has there been any recent enemy activity near the station? that would determine if they had time to hide something more concerning or it would be a more simple trap or weapon in a reasonably easy place to reach” His voice was calm but he knew that depending on the answer it could be a much harder task.

Streth recalled the reports, “We’ve had word of increased Breen activity in the sector, yes. That’s part of the reason why Starfleet now wants a permanent presence on the base. As far as we know, there’s been no direct interference with the base itself. Although, I should add, we have no real way of knowing for sure. It’s geared up for long range sensor sweeps. If someone were to come in cloaked, or maybe even tachyon shielded, they could theoretically have beamed in.” He knew this was not the answer the Ensign wanted to hear.

“Understood sir, we will make sure no bulkhead goes unchecked. This will take some time to do thoroughly but we won’t miss a thing, sir.” This was not turning out as he wanted, this was going to be painstakingly slow but even more important than he had first anticipated. He smiled at the captain and tried to give him a look of confidence.

“Good to hear it, Ensign.” Streth smiled, “You’ll need to co-ordinate with the the Don S. Davis. They’ll want to send a team down too, no doubt. The Hazard Team is also at your disposal. Ensign Vogler runs them like clockwork, so make sure you run any deployment plans by her. She’s got them in training exercises daily, so they’re really gonna hit the the ground running when you need them.” His antennae swayed slightly as he thought of anything else he might have missed, “Is there anything else, Ensign?”

“Nothing else sir” said Addison before coming to attention.

“That’ll be all then.” Streth concluded, confident that the young man had a good head on his shoulders.

Addison nodded and then left the room he had a lot to do now and it was you by to be a long road but this is what he always wanted.