USS Mercy – Security Station – Deck 28 – 1150

James O’Shea looked down at the console in the security station on deck 28 and frowned when he saw the time. He had lost track of time re-reading the former Chief of Security, Lieutenant Commander Caswell’s latest reports on the ship and the major incidents that had taken place while she was on board. “Shit. Lost track of time.” He cursed as he stood up and adjusted his uniform’s jacket, checked his phaser holster, and grabbed his PADD. “Time to go met the new Captain ..though I guess we are all new to the Mercy…” he said as he walked out of the small office inside the security station.

As he approached the turbolift, he thought back to what he knew of Captain Halsey. ‘Really wish I had been able to meet Halsey before this, especially with the full briefing in only a few hours.’ When he had received his orders two weeks earlier, he boarded a transport from Earth, where he had been finishing up his year of medical leave, and came to Starbase 4 as soon as he could. He had reviewed the records of Captain Halsey, and he seems, on paper anyways, to be a solid commanding officer. ‘Time will tell, I guess…’ he thought to himself as he stepped on the turbolift and approaches the Captain’s office. As he did, a dull ache in his right leg began, and he rubbed it without thinking as he stopped and pressed the door chime.

USS Mercy – Ready Room – 1200

Halsey’s desk was looking more organized by the moment, and he was pleased with himself.  His last meeting of the day was coming up, and he hoped it would indeed be his last.  The door chime rang. “Come on in.”

O’Shea pressed the open panel on the door after the invitation and walked into Captain Halsey’s office. He stepped up to the desk, and his eyes flicked over the room, taking in every corner before coming to rest on the man behind the desk. O’Shea stopped before the desk, “Sir, Lieutenant James O’Shea reporting for duty. My orders Sir.” He said as he then handed his PADD to the Captain and waited.

Halsey accepted the PADD, “Welcome aboard the USS Mercy, Mr. O’Shea. Drink?” He motioned to the replicator.

O’Shea smiled, “Appreciate that, Sir,” and walked over to the replicator and tapped the activation key, and spoke. “Peppermint Tea, hot.” A moment later, a mug of hot tea appeared before him, and he picked it up and turned back to Halsey.

The captain motioned to the chair and took his seat, “I understand you were able to meet with the previous security chief.”  He took a sip from his own drink, “Hopefully, it was a helpful meeting.”

Pulling the chair out, he sat down and took a small sip of the tea. “Met her before she left; always best to discuss such things in person. Glad I arrived in time,” O’Shea said with a shrug and took another sip of tea. “The Lieutenant Commander was very helpful. Basically, the main thing she wanted to discuss was the differences between my previous postings on Starbase 3 and the Radiant Storm and the Mercy. A hospital ship adds or well changes some of the security concerns that other ships don’t deal with as much. Additionally, she discussed the systems on board, most have now all been updated, which is nice to see, but I will need to keep an eye on them to make sure there are no glitches.” He paused while he took another sip. “All in all, a good meeting. I have summarised the meeting and attached as full of a security report that I could given the time on the PADD,” he said, gesturing to the PADD Halsey had accepted.

The CO accepted the PADD and reviewed it carefully.  Security was one of those roles on an Olympic class that ended up having to be more utilitarian in application but necessary given the many different missions they would find themselves.  He tapped at the PADD, “Report looks good, lieutenant.  I’ve given you access to your two security officers – both lieutenant junior grades.  Iziraa is one, and the other is Dougal MacDonald.  He is married to our Chief Medical Officer.”  He returned the PADD, “I’d recommend meeting with each of them to get to know them a little and then put together a short staff meeting.”

O’Shea nodded along as Halsey spoke. “Iziraa and Dougal, I will check in with them once we are finished here.” He said and made a mental note to check through their records as soon as he was able. Last thing he wanted was to get caught out by something he should have been aware of. O’Shea frowned slightly as he ran a few numbers in his head. “Will we have any crew or NCOs assigned to security? Generally, I don’t think we will need many, but if something does come up, I would like to have a team that has trained and drilled together.” He said as his hand drifted down to his right leg, and he used his knuckles to rub at the tingling feeling he felt. 

Halsey thought about the question for a moment, “I would say a security team of ten would be an acceptable number for the moment.”  He tapped at his PADD, “You, Izirra, Dougal, and your choice of seven with a mix of crew and NCOs.  As the Mercy continues, we can evaluate our needs from time to time.  That work, lieutenant?”

O’Shea nodded in agreement, “Thank you for understanding, sir. That should be plenty. I will work with Izirra and Dougal to identify the individuals.” O’Shea paused for a moment as he clearly thought through something. While he did, he flexed his right hand and continued to rub at his legs absently. “Sir, I also wanted to thank you for accepting my posting here and as Chief of Security especially given my medical leave and injury. I wanted to reassure you that they won’t impact my duties.”

The CO nodded to the leg, “The reports on the incident with your leg are pretty intense, lieutenant.  I may be a doctor on this ship, but I’m not the chief medical officer.  You will need to see her for a physical and final certification to return to full and complete duty.  I know Starfleet Medical has made their notes and recommendations…but I’m a doctor as well as the captain.  I want to make sure Doctor MacDonald has full and complete awareness of everyone’s situations.  Helps her make the decisions and offer support to those who need it.”  He tapped at his PADD, “I’m also going to ask you to schedule a session with our new Chief Counselor, Lieutenant Choi, within a few days.  We all carry baggage and have metaphorical and literal scars from our time in Starfleet.  How we handle them is what matters.”

“Perfectly understandable; I already had planned to speak to them both today or tomorrow given time constraints. Though I was cleared by Starfleet medical, I figured it would be a good idea to touch base, so they are aware of my past if anything does come up…” O’Shea paused for a moment and smiled, “…though I do not think that will be the case but one never knows.”

Reaching for his now cool tea, O’Shea finished it off and smiled. “You won’t be disappointed in my work here, sir. Of that, I am certain.”

Captain Halsey made a note on his PADD and stood, “I have full confidence in you, Lieutenant O’Shea.  Welcome aboard the Mercy.”  They shook hands, and the CO dismissed him, watching him walk out the door and onto the bridge.  Time would tell with his crew and his ship…but he had the highest of hopes.