Supply Run

Chapter 46

[Deck 1 Bridge]

Six hours later “Captain we’re approaching Starbase Sierra” T’Sol stated.

“Good. Drop out of warp then one half impulse please Mr.T’Sol” James ordered glad to be at the base.

“Aye Captain dropping from warp….one half impulse” came the reply.

“Lieutenant SanChez open a channel to Starbase Sierra please.”

“You’re on Captain” Maria responded.

“Starbase Sierra, this is Captain James Lake of the USS Vigilant arriving for a supply fill” he stated.

“Welcome Captain Lake. I’m sending you the coordinates for docking slip twelve. When you’ve docked we’ll commence with the loading of you ship; it should take about three hours to complete” the Base responded.

“Understood Sierra…..I’ll notify you when we’re in place” Lake replied “Alright Lieutenant take us in.”

“Aye Captain….making my approach now” T’Sol responded. Several minutes later “We’re in place Sir….they can begin loading any time.”

“Thank you Lieutenant” then tapping his comm “Lieutenant Nox I’d like your Team to oversee the loading in the Cargo Bay. Please make sure everything is secured when they're finished” came the orders.

“Understood Captain; we’ll make sure the load is secured before we leave the docking slip” Nox replied.

Tapping his comm “Lieutenant Herek place the warp core on standby while we get loaded” Lake requested.

“As you wish Captain” Daniel responded.

[Deck 3 Cargo Bay]

Ensign Yesrin opened the Cargo Bay hatch where she was greeted by a Lieutenant “Well hello gorgeous I have a whole bunch of supplies to be loaded onto your ship” he stated.

Meanwhile Lieutenant Nox and Ensign Benna walked over as Nox spoke up “Ok Lieutenant cool you hormones and lets get on with the loading” she stated staying stone faced.

Looking at Nox the Lieutenant thought [What a bitch!] “Of course Lieutenant Nox as you wish.” instructing his people as the supplies started coming into the Bay with Mark directing them.

“Ok guys let’s keep the weight distributed evenly on both sides of the Bay as much as possible; don’t want the Ship to be traveling lopsided” Mark instructed with a light chuckle.

One of the loading Crew responded “Sure, no problem we can do that.”

[Deck 1 Bridge]

Turning to his Crew “While we have some downtime why don’t we get something to eat while we can” Captain Lake suggested.

“You won’t hear any arguments from me “Commander Reese replied with a grin.

Looking towards the SCI “While we get something to eat would you mind taking over the Bridge while we’re gone.”

“No problem Captain Lake since I do not eat” Venus responded with a smile.

[Deck 2 Mess Hall]

Walking into the Mess Hall the Bridge Crew each grabbed a meal from the replicator then sat together at one of the tables.

While eating Racheal spoke up “I have to stay so far I’m rather impressed with SCI Venus so hopefully that continues.”

“Ya she does seem to be on top of things, wouldn’t you agree T’Sol” Maria commented before taking another mouthful of food.

“Indeed Lieutenant. Logically being a computer program I would not expect anything less” T’Sol responded.

“I agree as well, I think she’ll be a real asset to the ship and crew” James replied before taking a drink.

[Deck 3 Cargo Bay]

A couple of hours had passed and the supplies were all loaded and made secure. Tapping her comm “Captain Lake we’re all loaded and the supplies have been secured” Nox informed Command.

{Excellent Lieutenant thank you and your Team. We’ll be getting underway shortly so why don’y you all go and grab a meal.}

“Thank you Captain and we’ll take you up on that” Nox responded.

Yesrin had the hatch secured before turning to Mark “That Lieutenant was a real jerk; he doesn’t even know me to be saying something like that.”

Mark grinned before replying “It’s seems that assholes are everywhere no matter where you go.”

“They sure are” Yesrin stated with a big grin “Let’s go eat…..you going to join us Nox?”

“Right behind you” she responded trying not to feel like the third wheel.

[Deck 1 Bridge]

Walking back into command Lake ordered “SCI Venus report” as he grabbed the Captain’s chair while the others went to their Stations.

“Nothing has changed since you left the Bridge Captain Lake” Venus responded with a smile.

“Thank you. Lieutenant SanChez open a channel to the Base.”

Moments later “You’re on Captain” Maria replied before switching back to Tactical.

“Traffic Control this is the Vigilant requesting a departure vector” James requested.

[Vigilant depart on vector two five mark nine…..safe travels Captain….Traffic Control out.]

Turning to Helm “You heard the man, take us out at one half impulse until we clear the outer markers if you would Mr. T’Sol.”

“As you wish Captain….vector two five mark nine going to one half impulse” T’Sol responded as the Ship began to bank to port. Moments later “We’re approaching the outer markers Sir.”

“Good. Lay in a course for the Muratus Sector; planet Draylax…..we need to get those supplies delivered…warp nine point five.”

“Aye Captain, course laid in going to warp nine point five Captain.”

< One Hour Later >

Captain Lake was getting a little antsy and wanted to get to Draylax sooner than later. Tapping his comm “Lieutenant D’Nall is slipstream available” came the request.

“Absolutely Captain ready and at your disposal” D’Nall answered.

“Thank you Lieutenant we’ll be going to slipstream momentarily” Lake responded then turned to Helm “Slipstream Mr T’Sol?” As Jame sat grinning.

“On it Captain in 3..2..1..initializing slipstream” as the stars turned into just streaks of light passing by. Turning to James expected arrival in four hours Sir.”

“Thank you Lieutenant” Lake responded then sat back in the command chair looking over the cargo manifest to see what they were transporting in case he needed the information.

< Four Hours Later >

“Captain we’ll be approaching Draylax soon Captain” T’Sol advised command.

“Drop us out of slipstream then proceed to full impulse until we get closer” Lake ordered” Tactical be alert I don’t want any surprises like pirate ships.”

“We are now at full impulse Captain .”

“On it Captain” Maria answered as she started scanning long range before anything else.

“Science scan the planet, I’d like to know if there’s anything we should be concerned about before we land.”

“As you wish Captain” Reese replied.

As they navigated closer to Draylax “Captain I’m picking up a non Federation freighter size ship heading towards us” Lieutenant SanChez stated.”

“Throw it up on the screen” James ordered which was centered on the Bridge's fore window showing their location as well as the approaching ship. Turning in his chair “Hmm….looks like a pirate ship to me” as he looked to Venus “SCI can you confirm?”

Seconds later “Yes Captain I do believe you are correct in your analysis….Might I suggest raising our shields” Venus responded.

“Yes but don’t put on us Red Alert just yet.”

“Understood Captain Lake….shields are now engaged” Venus responded.

“Ms. Sanchez hail the approaching ship please” James ordered with some concern.

Moments later Maria gave him the ‘thumbs up signal’ that she had made the connection.

“Approaching vessel, this is the Federation Starship the USS Vigilant, Captain James Lake commanding. What are your intentions.”

 While the next chapter to our saga is being written I'd like to share what Deck 3 looks like on the USS Vigilant:

This is Main Engineering which is Lieutenant Daniel Herek's domain. Even tough the Ship is small the Warp Core provides more than enough power for the Ship and weapons. Using the latest technology this area rivals those of much bigger Starships.

This is the Computer Room which is Lieutenant Zebot's area of expertise. The Computer Core runs all the ship's functions as well as their newest Crew member Ship's Computer Interface Venus. Everything is state-of-the-art equipment.

This is the Infiltration Room headed by Lieutenant Nox. Besides tactical gear this area also boasts the latest in Intelligence Technology giving the Team every possible advantage before starting an OP. Also a one cell Brig is included in this area.

Next is a secured Armory containing weapons and all the various Infiltration gadgets ever needed for a successful OP.

Last but certainly not least is the Cargo Bay holding extra supplies for the Ship but also a place for supplies for other things such as humanitarian aid. The overhead lift helps move large heavy objects easily.

So there you have it....my vision of all three decks of the USS Vigilant; hope you enjoyed the tour over the past several months. Next installment I'll show what the exterior of the Ship looks like.

All images were created using Chat GPT AI.

Quick Week

Chapter 45

The time seems to fly by and before anyone knew it the Crew was back aboard the Vigilant ready for the surprise the Commodore had promised previously.

[ Deck 2 Mess Hall ]

Everyone assembled in the area as per the Captain’s orders by zero eight hundred hours. James walked in with Racheal as he greeted his Crew “Good morning everyone. I thought we would meet here so you had a chance to grab something to eat before the Commodore arrives with our surprise at zero nine hundred hours; so please help yourselves to whatever you’d like.

Several minutes later they all sat around talking as usual. Maria spoke up “So what did everybody do with the week off” she inquired curious as to how  they all spent their off duty time. “I’ll start. Relaxed during the day and slept in most days then hit the Clubs in the evening. I did find a sweet young thing and we spent a few evenings together. So who’s next.”

T’Sol spoke next “I competed in a 3D Chess Tournament and won second place overall; that endeavor absorbed most of my time” he explained.

Mark inquired “Lieutenant how is it you only took second place; I’d thought you would have won the whole thing.”

“The final match my opponent played a very illogical game and managed to best me” T’Sol responded straight faced.

“Lieutenant D’Nall and I spent our evenings at a Casino at the Dabo tables; we both did quite well I might add” Daniel commented with a smirk.

“Yes the Lieutenant is quite good at gambling and gave me some pointers” D’Nall commented.

“I spent some time relaxing with a certain platinum haired young lady” Mark commented as he looked at Yesrin with a smile. “Yes that was quite nice” Yesrin interjected with a smile.

“I relaxed like everyone else and found a book I’ve been looking for forever and spent most of my time reading and being lazy. Compared to the rest of you it may sound rather dull but it was very enjoyable” Nox commented.

Finally Katlyn figured she’d better say something “Like Lieutenant Nox I spent most of my time reading some books on computers and relaxing.”

James knew he had to participate in the conversation “I relaxed as well and Commander Reese and I went out for dinner and dancing, actually did some rock climbing, and hung out the rest of the time. “Yes we had a nice time and recharged” Racheal added to the conversation.

By the time everyone was finished Commodore Chi walked into the Mess Hall “Good morning everyone” as some started to stand “Please as you were. I trust you all had a restful week” Rebecca commented with a smile as the Crew all nodded yes.

“Good. Let me preface the surprise with an explanation…..yours is the first ship to have this up and running. Now Lieutenant Zebot was made aware of what I’m about to show you since she will be heavily involved in making this a success; and yes I asked her to keep it to herself. So without further chattering….SCI Venus Mess Hall.”

Moments later Venus shimmered into existence then took solid form. The entire Crew was stunned as to what this was “May I present SCI Venus, she’s the replacement for the old style EMH, she’s your new Ships Computer Interface” as Rebecca turned towards Venus “This is your Commanding Officer Captain James Lake.”

Venus smiled and extended her hand “Captain James Lake it is nice to meet you.”

James was a little reluctant but shook her hand anyway “SCI Venus welcome to the Vigilant and the Crew” surprised her hand was soft and warm “Let me introduce you to the rest of the Crew” as James went around introducing everyone and Venus shook hands with everyone.”

“Captain, SCI Venus is now part of your command team and can be anywhere on the ship and is also your Medical Officer” Rebecca explained then with a grin “Surprise!”

“I have to admit Commodore this certainly is quite the surprise” as he addressed the crew “Everyone please make SCI Venus feel right at home and please don’t be afraid to interact with her since she is part of the Crew now. Everyone nodded an affirmative response towards their newest crew member.

“Excellent! I knew this Crew would make her feel welcome and I’m excited to see how well this works out for everyone concerned” Rebecca stated “Captain if we could adjourn to your Ready Room I do have a new mission for all of you.”

“Sure right this way” Lake replied as they left for deck 1.

[ Deck 1 Ready Room]

The two Officers sat at the round meeting table as Rebecca began “I’m sending you to Starbase Sierra to pick up supplies. Then you’re to travel to the Muratus Sector to a planet known as Draylax to deliver some much needed supplies. But be aware there has been a lot of pirate activity in the area and they would like nothing better than relieving you of your cargo. Use whatever means necessary to make sure they get those supplies” Chi explained.

Thinking for a brief moment “As you wish Commodore, we’ll do everything in our power to get those supplies to the right people” Lake responded “So when would you like us to leave.”

“Sometime today is fine but the sooner the better would be preferable” Chi replied.

“Ok we should be able to leave in a couple of hours plus this assignment will be a good test for our newest Crew member” Lake commented as they both stood.

“Safe travels Captain and I look forward to your report. I have a meeting shortly so I’ll be on my way” Rebecca stated then left the ship.

[ Deck 2 Mess Hall ]

Since the Crew was still finishing their breakfast James decided to do the briefing there. Walking in he grabbed a hot cup of coffee, since his was now cold, then sat at the table.

“While you’re finishing your meal we have another mission I want to bring you up to speed on. 

We’re being sent to Starbase Sierra to pick up supplies. Then we’re traveling to the Muratus Sector to a planet known as Draylax to deliver some much needed supplies. We’ll need to stay sharp as there has been a lot of pirate activity in the area and they would like nothing more than relieving us of our cargo. We are to use whatever means necessary to make sure they get those much needed supplies. I’d like to get underway in two hours or less if we can mange it” Captain explained as he concluded “Any questions.”

“So we may get into a fire fight I take it” Commander Reese inquired.

“Possibly but we do have Lieutenant T’Sol and his fancy piloting skills so that’s a plus. Lieutenants Herek and D’Nall we’ll be using slipstream during the entire mission; they need those supplies as soon as we can get then there” Lake explained.

Then SCI Venus spoke up “Captain Lake would you want me on the Bridge during this mission” she asked.

“Actually yes I would; nothing wrong with you being front and center since this is what you’re programmed for and another opinion is never a bad thing.” Seeing everyone was finished with their meal “Ok let’s get cleaned up here then report to your areas to get ready for departure. Commander could I see you in the Ready Room” as Lake stood he and Racheal headed for Deck 1.

[ Deck 1 Ready Room ]

After they walked in James shut the door behind him then turning to Racheal “I just wanted to make sure you’re on board with Venus being on the Bridge; this is what she was designed for.”

“If you didn’t utilize our new asset I’d think there was something wrong with you James’ she responded with a grin “Plus should things go sideways she’s close by and can help with any scans.”

“That’s what I was thinking as well; glad we’re on the same page Commander.”

“Always Captain. We should probably get to the Bridge and get ready for departure” Racheal suggested as the two Officers left the Office.

[ Bridge ]

Walking onto the Bridge Lieutenants T’Sol and SanChez were already at their Stations “So we ready to get out of here” Lake inquired with a smile.

“Tactical’s ready Captain” SanChez reported anxious to get going.

“Helm’s ready as well Captain; just waiting on Engineering” T’Sol responded in his usual manner.

Seeing Venus at the Auxiliary Station “SCI Venus consider that your station when on the Bridge” the Captain stated.

“As you wish Captain Lake…..that way I can also keep better track of the Ship and her systems” she replied almost sounding like a Vulcan.

Tapping his comm “Lieutenant Herrik are we set down there” Lake asked.

“Yes Captain, the warp core is online and the slipstream drive is on standby; anytime your ready Sir the Ship’s all yours.”

“Thank you Lieutenant” then turning to T’Sol “She’s all yours Lieutenant; you know the drill” Lake ordered with a grin.

“Indeed” T’Sol answered as he proceeded to get the Vigilant underway.