Harris sat at one of the spacedock viewing lounges, a mug of Earl Grey in one hand and a PADD in the other.  The ship’s moving in and out were a sight to behold – all kinds of classes dotted the bay, and he found contentment in it.  His past Chief life had been filled with studying ship classes and the engineering that powered them.  Two ships coming through the main dock doors caught his eye as he accessed his PADD.

There had been a change in ship assignments, it appeared.  The rumors he’d heard for a few weeks were true.  The USS Wolf and USS Akira were entering the dock.  They were both sleek ships: one Akira, the other Diligent class.  He admired them both and wondered who would get command of either ship.  His assignment to the Mackenzie was still a surprise to him, even five months later.

“Captain?”  He turned to see his executive officer, T’Saath, hovering nearby.  

He waved her over to the padded couch, “Commander, join me.”  She did, hesitantly.  She had a PADD in both hands and held an unusually tight grip on the device.

“I have a mission…request.”  She was pensive, and she wasn’t enjoying the sensation.  Her sessions with Juliet had been helping, yet there was a need to work, and they’d been docked at Starbase 72 for a few days.

Harris sipped at his tea, “You have my curiosity.”

She went on to explain the situation facing many of the colonies in the area and the mixed feelings held towards the Federation.  There were good and plentiful reasons for these deeply seeded-emotions.  She countered that taking the Mackenzie full speed into the situation might cause more harm than good.

Ambrose inclined his head and examined her mission plan as she spoke.  She had put considerable effort into the mission proposal, and it was a different side of her he was seeing.  “You’re suggesting we take the two New Atlantic runabouts with a three-shuttle escort to bring relief supplies and engineering teams with a minimal security presence.  A bold choice, Commander.”

The Vulcan indicated she understood with a slight nod, “There is a logical amount of risk associated with this mission, but after evaluating each side of the issue, I expect minimal issues from the population.  I’ve noted the top three colony choices for the mission along with the rationale underpinning each.”

Harris chuckled, “You don’t need to convince me, T’saath.  You were right, however, to complete a full workup of the mission.  Task Force Command will be looking at us closer since we’re one of the newer assignments to the fleet.  This will go a long way to giving them continued confidence in our talents.”  He leaned back on the couch, “Proposal approved.  Choose your crew and set your timeline.  Chief Okada isn’t available as she’s working the Starbase dock operations.”

T’Saath stood to attention, “Thank you, sir.  I appreciate your confidence in me.”  He lifted his cup in response, and his XO walked away, her mission now her sole focus.  Ambrose continued to sip his Earl Grey slowly and watched the ships continue to pass through.  He wondered who would get the Akira and the Wolf.