“McCain“
Written by RJ Hubbard, David Moody and Jeroen van Rijn
Lieutenant Talnar Ray, Captain Lenti Utex and Lieutenant Commander Catherine McCain

Lieutenant D’riel Galah heard the door shush open behind her. She glanced over her shoulder, eyes still focused sharply on the viewscreen ahead of her, when her peripheral vision made that concentration break. She turned away from the screen, unable to help herself. She lowered her voice and spoke conspiratorially to the woman in the black and maroon uniform. “Lieutenant McCain,” she said lowly.

The tactical officer nodded. “Yes,” she quickly and surrepticiously regarded the blue woman for half a moment, before continuing. “Where’s the Captain,” she asked, sizing up the state of the Bridge, and the forward viewscreen which was displaying an image of the LaGrange and the two mauled fighter craft that seemed to be in recession from the Victory. She knew that in fact, the Victory was slowly backing away from the scene, however.

Galah gracefully pointed toward the conference lounge door, then stopped the man in tow of the Lieutenant. “Your new quarters,” she told him, her accent lilting softly across the scant space between the two of them, “will be in the primary hull,” she told him. “Deck four.”

Jeffery nodded and followed his wife.

Galah tapped a quick command into her board, and told the man, “Until those children arrive,” she said.

Jeffery silently wondered to himself how the blue lieutenant would have known of his wife’s pregnancy as he crossed the threshold into the conference lounge, a mere second after Lieutenant McCain.

=/\=

Talnar Ray opened his mouth to speak once more, and as luck would have it, was interrupted once more. The door behind Lenti Utex slid open with a pneumatic hiss, and the six eyes watching the Chief Engineer turned to fall upon a tall, ruby tressed woman who stood in the doorway. She was joined a moment later by a man whose stance belied the closeness of the pair.

"Hey there... nice party, mind if we join?" Catherine McCain said.

Jeffrey grinned like the madman he was considered by most except his beloved.

Captain Lenti Utex straightened, taking a step backward as Lieutenant Commander Revos quickly stepped up next to him. "Lieutenant," Utex said, waving Revos off, who remained rooted to his spot. "I don't think we've met."

Revos remained tense, protective of the Captain from whomever this was that the bridge crew had allowed to enter the briefing.

"Commander, the correct address would be,” she corrected, “and I would be Lieutenant Commander McCain, your new Chief Tactical Officer. And that smiling idiot is my husband Jeffrey who will try and cook for us."

Utex smiled broadly. “What a surprise. I thought that idea had gotten slapped down permanently months ago,” he said, peering at Revos.

Revos looked slightly pale as he watched Utex head onto he Bridge. “So why did no one let me in on the fact that we were getting a new transfer,” he asked Lieutenant Jackson. “Did you have the Bridge.”

Jackson stood from the center seat, saying, “I was going to let you know when,” she stopped as she spied the new tactical officer standing behind the Captain. “I didn’t know she was up here yet,” she admitted, crestfallen.

Galah spoke up, “My fault, that is.” She bowed slightly. “I sent the Commander ahead in the assumption that she would be of some assistance during your briefing, Lenti,” she told the Captain.

Utex nodded. “Have a seat,” the Trill told Jackson, gesturing at the command chair. He headed back into the conference lounge, the officer that had been there with him previously in tow, with the addition of the vessel’s Chief Tactical Officer and her husband.

"Cooking the concept that had been slapped down?" Jeffrey jested.

"No, I'm sure the Captain means my position, love... go and be quiet for once while the ones that did graduate do the talking," she chided him.

"Oh, that, again!" Jeffrey said, semi-pouting. "I know I was kicked out of the Academy, do you have to keep reminding me?"

“Mister McCain,” Utex said plainly. “We’re about to conduct a briefing,” he told the man, looking toward the door as obviously as he could.

"Ah well, just meant to introduce, no harm intended... I'll be off finding myself the galley and seeing if it will do for my cooking skills." With that Jeffrey left.

"Well, now there's all serious people here, feel free to hold the meeting," Cathy said, "unless you'd rather I wasn't here too for this particular get together."

The meeting proceeded smoothly, and Talnar Ray’s expert explanation of the processes involved in shunting single individuals off from subspace to render them impotent relayed itself as fluently as if the man had been born to teach.

Talnar, pleased that he would have no further interruptions, decided to begin again.

"Well Captain it would seem that this type of happening is very rare as we believed before this, that in truth subspace was not a place you could enter or exist like a room but more similar to a warp bubble merely created amongst all items that travel at warp one or faster."

Talnar pushed a couple of buttons and the ships diagram came up with a blue grey hue around the ship. "You see we create subspace emissions that push us through the void some ships like this one in front of us must have access to a subspace generator to move or interact in a manner other than floating aimlessly,as they are not equipped with the propulsion nacelles most starfleet vessels carry. Now, I can reconfigure our tractor beam to emit verteron particles." He paused, taking perhaps the first breath Utex had ever seen him take when he was speaking. "I know Captain that is not how I originally had it planned but our time is limited I am afraid that prolonged time with in this "bubble" will start to effect both ship and crew in negative manner, stabilizers will be the first to go and in subspace the vibration of this particular bubble may shake us to death."

The Chief Engineer’s hands moved over the shifting images on the viewscreen. The Betazoid succinctly explained the manner in with the Victory crew could warp the ship itself in order to return to normal space. His explanations were simple, as if tailored to those with an elementary education, assuring that all gathered (even Jeffery McCain, had he been present) would easily understand.

"But here is the good news using the same principle as a radiation treater to emit a tetryon particle I can have us out of here quicker than we came."

"Now the only problem this will present is disorientation I was incorrect in underestimating the resourcefulness of the Mistress power levels will be fine but when we pass back to our space we will be passing through a transwarp conduit and past the warp barrier you do not interact with normal or subspace."

" I know this may not clear up a lot of questions but it is the safest and fastest way to get us out all we will need is another ship, one of the fighters or even the LaGrange would work perfectly but they will have to stay at impulse power until we were out of this damned subspace bubble it would seem that going to warp could cause major problems .Probability of warp core breach as a result of our travel here is approximately.......Talnar looked at the PADD in his hand and pushed it a few times mumbling to himself ; well 88% sir and than we would have to isolate a verteron pocket here with in subspace to see us safely through a man made tear in space, and believe you me that would not be fun."

"I estimate time before stabilizer failure at approx ..." Talnar stared off into space for a moment. "Mistress can we stay a float for another 20 minutes, lovey?"

As everyone looked at the Lieutenant oddly the ship chimed back in it's monotone female voice: Yes Tal, we can the XO may be transported in twelve minutes.

Ray cleared his throat and looked around the room, "Captain all modifications can be done in twelve minutes as the computer stated I will need the help of one other to take remote commands for recalibration of systems and I can not promise that those beings can't piggy back our transporter signal I recommend a security team standing by."
The gathered crewmen nodded at the appropriate times, and when he was complete, he simply shut the viewscreen off, and gestured a palm facing upward toward the captain.

“Let’s get this done then,” Utex said, looking around at his crew. “McCain,” he said, looking to the lofty statured woman. “I’ll want you in the XO’s spot for now, if you would.”

"Am I cleared in the system already, like to familiarize myself with all crew... should only take 3 minutes or so to memorize all there is to know with my clearance," she sort of asked.

Utex shook his head, “No,” he told her. “I haven’t prepared to have you specifically aboard, but we are set up for a Chief of Tactical,” he told her, as the two headed down to the center bench.

Lieutenant Jackson saw them coming and headed to the upper section of the Bridge, next to Revos, as Galah headed back down toward the OPS chair.

McCain stopped in her tracks, noticing the absence of an OPS console, as well as the conduits and indentations where it had been. She found the fact that Galah was seating herself in a chair that faced nothing, to be quite out of the ordinary.

"Okay... this will work wonders... where are all the consoles exactly?" She informed of all present.

Lieutenant Sito Jaxa turned halfway around to face the Lieutenant Commander. “Helm’s present and accounted for,” the Bajoran told her, sweeping her arm across her board. “It’s those ‘operations’ folks with the problem,” she mocked, gesturing to Galah with her chin before turning back to the console before her.

McCain sat down in Kennit's spot and swung the module toward her, tapping out some commands, quickly reading and memorizing all personnel records.... "Done!"

Utex smiled softly and was about to lean back, when he noticed what was happening on the viewscreen.

Galah, her head turned obliquely toward the tactical officer, admitted clearly, “There was a problem.” Her head dipped a bit, “The operations chief was injured when this panel,” she gestured at the open air, “exploded toward him.”

"I know, I just read all personnel records," McCain said... "S'Konn, Chief Ops, Vulcan, Male, 90 years old, born in the Gol mountains in the year 2288 is in sickbay."

"Perhaps, then," Galah told her, "I did not understand your--"

Utex was watching as the scene ahead receded from view. “Sito,” he said, “stop the ship! Where are you going?”

McCain overrode engine control from her panel. "All stop!" she reported.

Sito turned sharply in her chair, “I –“

Utex stood, “Why were we in retreat, Lieutenant,” he demanded, advancing toward the bajoran.

Jackson spoke up, “I ordered it,” she said.

Utex turned and peered at Jackson, then looked down and rubbed his eyes, turning back toward the Bajoran, who finished, “Was ordered to, sir.”

Utex, eyes still closed, head still bowed, pointed toward the viewscreen, and spit his next words in a rush, “Shieldsupredalert,” he sighed. “Take us back in, Lieutenant,” he told the Bajoran Helm Officer.

McCain gave Sito back control of helm "Sito Jaxa, you may take us back in now, you have helm control again." she said. "Shields are up, we are at red."

Utex stood between the conn and – the conn and – the space that would have been the OPS console, and spread his hands, leaning on – the helm console, looking odd, as if he were posing for something. He moved his left hand to his hip, then straightened his uniform with a tug, using both hands. His hands went to his sides. “Lieutenant Ray,” he called over his shoulder, “are you ready?”

"Aye, sir", the Engineer reported.

"Tactical ready as well, sir" McCain added.

“Let’s do this,” Utex said boldly. “On my mark . . .“