Fighter Deck Discord

Posted on 11 Aug 2020 @ 10:52am by Commander Marcus Wilcox

979 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Ab Intra
Location: Flight Deck

Marcus removed himself from the cockpit of his fighter. He spent the better part of an hour going through a detailed inspection of the plane, both for his own satisfaction of having not forgotten anything during the coma as well as regular preventative maintenance. It occurred to him as he saw one of the technicians walk by that he needed an adjustment done to the preventative maintenance cycle for his bird. While still on the ladder back down to the deck he called out, "Petty Officer."

The being inside Lorelei was still getting used to...everything. The way this brain was structured and the way this body functioned. There were enough similarities to let her manipulate it but enough differences to keep it from being perfectly smooth. There were also many names and terms that she wasn't precisely familiar with.

Hence, she had no idea that "Petty Officer" was her, and she kept on walking.

Stepping down on deck he looked to see his salutation was ignored, which garnered a raised eyebrow. While the crew here was a bit more relaxed than other vessels, they were certainly never not attentive. He began to walk with a faster gait to eventually catch up with her. “Petty Officer,” He said, slightly more loudly and sternly.

Something about the tone and the other noises made her stop and turn. His voice and bearing did not look like it would be a positive turn for this body, so Not-Lorelei had to think fast. She stared at him for a moment, ransacking this body's memory, and came up with what was outwardly a passable salute. "Sorry..." Quick search. "Sir."

Marcus stopped in his tracks to return the salute, which he found rather sloppy, before taking a couple more steps. His eyes looked all around the Petty Officer. The face did not look familiar, though he had to admit he didn't know all the technicians. He contemplated whether it was a mistake to grab a random one instead of finding a chief petty officer, but reasoned no major issue. It should be an easy fix. "Name?" He finally asked. His eyes eventually settled on hers, his face his normal neutral expression as he assumed an at ease posture.

The body blinked twice as she once more ransacked this brain. "Lorelei Romanov," she finally replied a bit woodenly, "Petty Officer Third Class. Fighter technician."

His left eyebrow twitched for a second, intrigued but confused by the response. The answer he assumed was factually correct, but he was having trouble with the tone and cadence. What had happened while I was in a coma? He wondered. Something wasn’t right. “Qualified on Valkyries?” He asked cautiously.

There was another long pause as the body blinked twice again. Not-Lorelei was desperately trying to find a way out of this because this wasn't good at all for her. She had yet to find any other companions among this group of people, so she needed to get out into the ship more--this USS Odin--to see where they all were!

"Yes, sir," the body finally said. Since she knew that the original inhabitant was indeed qualified on these smaller machines.

“Diagnostic shows out of normal return for the power conduit to the port RCS thrusters. It will need a scan and calibration,” Marcus stated, after a moment’s hesitation. The body language, the hesitation in the PO’s voice, there was something off. The hair on the back of his neck raised as the subtle inside voice got louder raising the alarm.

"Right," not-Lorelei replied with a slow nod. "I'm sorry...sir, but I was just on my way to..." Oh, what was that word that that other woman had said? S...sickk....bab? Bay. Sickbay. "I was just on my way to sickbay. I am...not feeling..." Word. "Well."

Marcus stared at the person, his eyes narrowing momentarily as his mind process the person, the actions, the body language, the verbal language. He had no disagreement that the person was not well, but too many red flags were flying hard enough for them to flap hard like in a gale wind. “Indeed,” he finally said, pausing for an extremely long moment, “Do you require assistance to Sickbay?”

"No." This was the quickest reply she had managed so far. She shook her head slightly, dredging up a memory that this was a gesture of negation. "I know the way. I'm...sure I can find my way there."

Marcus hesitated because he didn’t know what the right answer was in this situation. She said she was fine to find her way, but on the flip side she was obviously not okay. He opened his mouth to talk but closed it again second guessing his answer. He opened it again, deciding his answer, “Dismissed. Report to sick bay.” She was a Petty Officer, and as such should be able to handle herself he reasoned. Still something in all of this didn’t sit right with him.

Not-Lorelei nodded. "Thank you, sir," she managed a little more smoothly before turning to walk away. She paused and looked at the various paths before choosing one for the door out and hurrying to it.

Marcus made a mental note to check with the Deck Chief about the Petty Officer. He was concerned in more than one way. The would have to wait until later though, as he had paperwork to catch up on.

Finally escaped, Not-Lorelei reached the corridor. This body was proving to be more trouble than she had originally contemplated, but oh well. It was the one she was in now, and she could feel the discord in the rest of this...ship they had found. Or had found them, really. She had to find the others.

Quickly.

=/\= End Log =/\=

Commander Marcus Wilcox & Petty Officer, Third Class Lorelei Romanov (apb Bella)

 

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