Renovations across the ship had taken some time to complete during the ship’s recent repair period, but even now, with the ship on manoeuvres again, the renovations to deck fifteen were still incomplete. Granted, most of the structural work had been completed, but merging two shuttlebays into one much larger hangar bay to accommodate the fighter wing had been no easy task. Still, at least the unit was functional even if the hangar was still changing. It wasn’t easy swapping several shuttles for a dozen Valkyrie-class starfighters.

The turbolift halted as it finally reached deck fifteen, the doors swooshed open revealing the ongoing construction on the deck. Mason smiled as he walked by the several engineering teams as they worked, and finally came to the main hangar entrance. The doors closing behind him, he moved towards the center of the deck, initially looking for the squadron commander, but also to see the new Valkyrie fighters they’d taken aboard. It had been several years since he had seen or piloted one of these fighters, and he was looking forward to the small reunion. He rested his hand on the hull of the fighter as he leaned over, looking into the cockpit at the familiar controls.

“Make sure you don’t press anything,” a stern voice from behind surprised the visitor to the deck, “Lieutenant Varru is pretty particular about the settings on her fighter.” Standing there, watching, a tall Andorian with silver hair had his arms folded and a grin plastered across his face.

Mason smiled as he heard the voice from behind him, “Oh I wouldn’t dream of it. Pilots become quite attached to their ships, I wouldn’t dare infringe on that relationship.” Still smiling, he got down from the fighter and turned to meet the Andorian squadron commander. He held out his hand and said, “Good to meet you, Commander. I’m Lieutenant Commander Henry, Chief Flight Ops.”

“Orys Ch’tosrik,” the Andorian introduced in return, shaking the hand firmly before letting go.

Mason looked around the hangar, “Well, the work is progressing, albeit slowly. Not exactly easy work re-configuring the bay for starfighters rather than the typical shuttlecraft, I suppose.” He smiled as his eyes fell back on the Valkyries, “Though I will say, it’s nice to see these beauties again.”

“You flown them before?” Orys asked, running his hand along the fighter’s frame before gesturing towards the flight deck briefing room.

“Oh yes, I have quite number of flight hours logged on the Valkyries, but it’s been some years since I’ve flown one.” Mason smiled and let out a small sigh, “I mostly stick to piloting starships these days.” He looked around at the ongoing refit in progress, then back at Orys, “Does engineering have any estimated completion date for all of this?” He said, motioning to the hangar around them.

Orys was impressed. It was increasingly difficult to find starship pilots who understood the intricacies of flying fighters these days. At the shifting of the conversation, the Andorian stopped and looked back into the bay. “I’m told it should be complete in the next couple of days. The Captain wants a launch and retrieval test so it better be ready by then,” the man smiled, folding his arms across his muscular frame.

Mason smiled and started to chuckle, “I hope so. I don’t know the Captain very well, but I’d hate to see his impatient side so early in our assignment.”

Orys nodded in firm agreement. He knew the captain more than most, and getting on the Bajoran’s bad side was never advisable. “I’d like to liaise with your department to ensure the smooth running of the bay, and any launch procedures. The Captain always says something about ‘singing from the same hymn sheet’ if that makes any sense to you?”

Mason nodded in agreement and looked to Orys, “I’ll be sure to have a copy of the launch procedures sent to your attention. I’ve made some updates to those procedures to account for all of the extra fighters and pilot personnel that aren’t normally stationed on most Federation starships. It’s mostly straightforward stuff, especially for seasoned pilots like us.” 

“As for flight deck operations, I’ll just need regular updates on fighter maintenance and your personnel. Of course, your team will be under your command, and you’ll report to me and my department. But you have my word, I won’t interfere with your people or your personnel decisions; you manage your team as you see fit Commander. My oversight will mainly be administration and mission assignments.” Mason said, offering a friendly smile.

“I can work with that,” Orys nodded along slowly, and then offered a hand to the flight operations officer in agreement, “if you can agree that in tactical scenarios we’ll have priority over all resources and personnel required for mission operations, other than on the bridge?”

Mason took the Andorian’s hand and nodded, “Agreed, you’ll have priority, especially in those situations. If there’s ever anything you need or require, please don’t hesitate to ask and I’ll see what I can arrange.”

“I’ll bear that in mind,” Orys nodded turning to depart before stopping and offering the Human a grin. “And if you ever fancy getting back in the cockpit, let me know. You should always keep your skills sharp,” he offered.

Mason grinned and nodded, “I will take you up on that, Commander, you can be sure of that.” He chuckled slightly, looking back fondly at the Valkyrie fighters.