From under a pile of stacked PADDs, Admiral Johnson carefully pulled one out and began reading along as he turned in his chair towards the sweeping window that looked out onto Hawkeye Island. He had received in no  uncertain terms that he was to relinquish his command of the USS Devastator. Starfleet’s presence in the Raeyan Triangle was deemed as not needing a capital ship such as the Dev. She was needed elsewhere.

Since the Mars attacks, things had changed in terms of strategic deployments and operations. The local Raeyan civilian government had invited Starfleet back into the area as they begin to consider again what their future might be.  Not to mention, he could feel the winds pushing him out to pasture.

The chime to his office rang. “Come in.” Johnson said as he turned around towards the door, placing the PADD back on the glass desk. Commander Leo McGinty entered with a coy smile. “Admiral, I trust you know that time is up.” He handed over another PADD to Johnson.

Taking it, the Admiral scrolled through quickly. “I see the decision has been made. What do we know about this Scotto?” He asked.

Commander McGinty swiped the information from the PADD up into the air next to them, creating a display. “Solid commanding officer with assignments in several areas of operations. A stint in the Delta Quadrant was short-lived. His command, the USS Washington, was called back this way after Mars and he was given a desk job at Starfleet Intelligence. HQ thought that the ship needed a more seasoned commander on a capital ship after the losses.”

Leo swiped the screen to the left, showing only the face of a middle aged man with pointed features and dark hair. “As of yesterday, HQ has chosen Captain Charles Scotto to take command of the Devastator and send her back into front-line service.” Said McGinty as he turned back his gaze to the admiral. Leo continued, “He declined the offer to meet you, preferring to get right to work on board , sir.”

Johnson couldn’t help but show displeasure as he shifted in his seat. “I suppose this Archanis thing is nothing to stick up our noses at, Leo. I will try my best not to be offended.” The admiral swiped the display away before leaning back in his chair. “When does Captain Scotto arrive in the sector?” He asked.

Shuttlecraft Denali maneuvered its way into the large shuttlebay of the Sovereign -class starship before turning 180 degrees and making a soft landing. The bay was busy with staff milling about, getting the Devastator ready for transit to the Meronia Cluster in the Archanis Sector.

The back doors swooshed open and Captain Scotto was greeted by several officers standing at attention with their hands behind their backs. “At ease.” He commanded.

Here we go.