JDL | CDR Satie, LCDR Stacker | "To Be Determined"

Posted on Thu Oct 12th, 2017 @ 4:13am by Captain Jacob Satie & Commander James Stacker
Edited on on Thu Oct 12th, 2017 @ 4:26am

Mission: The Round Table
Location: XO's Office | Cold Station Theta
Timeline: After Check in With CO

The second stop on Stacker's one-man extended tour of the command levels was the Executive Officer's office. He had, in truth, weighed his choices for a few seconds after leaving the captain in Operations. With his department's marching orders in-hand there was an argument to be made in favor of skipping what was little more than a formality. Yet he could understand how that would set a very poor tone that could - would - affect the starbase's command structure.

So despite the urge to find his way to the intelligence department, and from there address the deficiencies in his situational awareness that had come to light in his meeting with the captain, like the good soldier that he was he queried the computer for the man's location. The intervening walk had been put to good use in burying whatever reluctance he had as to diverting elsewhere. Because he was a good soldier, at the end of the day, he told himself as he reached out to key the door's control pad and squared his shoulders.

Reports, reports and more reports. Some had come up, some needed to go down, others still needed written. Jake was sorting and compiling when the buzzer to his office door sounded. "Enter." He said not looking up from the pile of PADD's on his desk. This was the life he had signed on for when he stepped away from the Judge Advocates Corps in favor of a command path. He would have liked to know he would be giving up his staff of associates, secretaries and paralegals and gaining the work they would have been assigned were he still a lawyer. As the doors hissed open his eyes slowly focused past the PADD he held. The black uniform gave him pause. "Commander, what can I do for you?" Jake asked setting the PADD down on the desk.

There was a small - albeit very small - twitch at one corner of the individual's mouth. Possibly in recognition of the pause. Whatever amusement the black-uniformed newcomer in the doorway felt was put aside as he stepped through. "Lieutenant Commander James Stacker, reporting, sir." No sooner had he said that then peripherally some small part of his mind noted the plethora of PADDs on the desk. It appeared the Commanding Officer hadn't been idly joking when she spoke of how busy the engineers' work was. If anything, the Executive Officer seemed to have it worse at-a-glance.

"New Chief of Intel?" Jake asked as he held his hand out to point the man into a chair. "I expected you a bit earlier, Commander. You have quite a team to build. This area of space is warming up from what I gather from the upper echelon. Keeping tabs on the Romulans, Ascendancy, the unknown out there beyond that cloud of star stuff. You are going to be a busy man. I'm glad you're here though, I always feel safer when I know what's going on and your record tells me you are more than capable of the demands that are going to come your way." Jake pulled a PADD from the stack. "You are getting your own deck, seems Starfleet wants you to have every new toy they can offer. Which reminds me, in a week or two you may be getting a pretty sweet addition to your arsenal. I can't really say much more about that because the Captain hasn't approved the request yet. When she does you will be the first to know."

Jake pressed a few buttons on the PADD and transferred the data it contained to Stacker's own PADD. "That information is the trivial stuff, quarters location, among other tidbits you will need. There is an Alpha code in there as well which will let you access your deck as well as the Sector and Quadrant levels." Jake smiled easily as he went through the contents of the file for Stacker. "Tell me what your goals are, Commander. Not the standard crap but what you are really after."

The data pad in the holster on his hip gave a soft tremble, in muted acknowledgement of the transfer of electronic files. Stacker put that momentary discomfort aside and leaned back slightly in the chair, hands and arms on the armrests, thinking for a quick moment as his brow furrowed in thought. Unconsciously, his right thumb rubbed itself against his index and middle fingers while he did so. The pause was, in the end, brief but noticeable. "Thank you sir. As to my goals ... saving lives, sir. I've seen when shit goes sideways based on bad intelligence. And I've seen the coffins come back too." His head tilted slightly, a firm look to his face. He considered adding to it, but in the end decided against.

"Well, that is a goal we both share, Commander. I will work with you in what ever capacity you need me to to accomplish that goal. I know that Intel has a well earned reputation for keeping secrets sometimes even at the expense of lives. I don't have time for those kinds of political games. I hope you understand, this sector, we are isolated here. Our lives depend on each other not on a fleet from Starfleet coming to save us in two days. When the "shit goes sideways" the first line of defense is knowledge. Can I count on you, Commander?" Jake folded his hands on his desk. He had his eyes on Stacker using his years of experience as a prosecutor to look not at the man but into him. To detect his guilt or innocence as he gave his response.

It was an interesting moment, which if frozen in time would have been fit for a painting. On the one hand the former prosecutor, falling back on years of the courtroom, used to operating inside the lines. Sitting across the desk from him: the commando-turned-intelligence-officer. Two different worlds with vastly-different life experiences, squaring off at this single place and instant. Regrettably, such moments cannot be frozen in time. Not even for paintings.

Stacker gave the man a small nod, thumb ceasing its circular rubbing of his fingers. "Aye sir."

Jake raised his eyebrows and let his gaze fall back to the stack of PADD's on his desk. "Good to know, Commander. If there is nothing else you are dismissed." Jake was sure the man had been trained well because he betrayed nothing. He was a soldier and his record had said there had been valor and bravery in the man. His ability to remain stoic when Jake had grilled him proved he had intelligence. Now all that remained was to see what his teamwork dynamic would be with Captain DiAgessi and himself. Jake waited to see if the man had anything else before returning to his work.

The chair creaked as the freshly-minted lieutenant commander stood, giving him a slight nod - again. Nothing more needed to be said. Nothing was said. Soon he was gone, like the grey-collared figure that he was.

Jake watched the man leave and then went right back to work on his requisitions and receipts.

---

Commander Jake Satie
Executive Officer
Cold Station Theta, SB-1170

&

Lieutenant Commander James Stacker
Chief Intelligence Officer
Cold Station Theta, SB-1170