Staff Briefing

Posted on Monday September 29, 2025 @ 4:46am by Captain Yoralig Gearev & Commander Diane Westlake & Chief Warrant Officer 3 Makan & Lieutenant Commander Halli Bann Dr (PhD) & Lieutenant Commander Drayton Hunt & Lieutenant Commander Monoc Drurio & Lieutenant Commander Freya Score

1,567 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Episode 1: A New Frontier
Location: Observation Lounge
Timeline: 2424.06.18 0800 Hours

Captain Yoralig Gearev stepped into the conference room with the deliberate stride of a man both accustomed to command and wary of first impressions. The space was quiet, save for the faint hum of the ship’s systems and the subtle lingering presence of the yeomans who had set the room in order. Data slates and PADDs were neatly arranged around the long table, stylus pens aligned with precise attention to detail, and a carafe of water gleamed under the recessed lighting. He let his green-flecked gaze drift across the room, taking in the empty seats and the broad viewport that offered a silent backdrop of stars. Though outwardly composed, he allowed himself the smallest exhale—a moment of stillness before the weight of leadership pressed in.

For an instant, the scene conjured an unwelcome memory: the smoke-filled boardrooms of Coridan’s underworld, where power had been brokered with threats instead of trust. He could almost hear the echo of hushed deals and the scrape of ore-dusted chairs across stone floors. The thought tightened his jaw, but he forced it away with cold defiance. That life is behind me. This is who I am now. He placed a steady hand on the back of his chair, grounding himself in the present. Here, aboard the Vanguard, he was not a survivor of a syndicate’s games but the captain of a Federation starship. The ridges across his brow caught the light as he straightened, waiting for the first of his officers to arrive and begin the ship’s future under his command.

Freya entered and took a seat towards the viewport out of the way but still able to listen, yet speak if need be.

Lieutenant Commander Monoc Drurio walked into the Conference Room quietly, quickly looking around though to decide where to sit. He almost went for the chair to the Captain's right - an automatic response from his career history - but stopped himself and went for a chair near the middle of the room. Sitting with his back toward the viewport, he nodded in greeting to Commander Score after sitting down.

Halli rushed in, her cheeks a bit flushed from the jog from the Turbolift here. She'd had a busy morning, setting up Jobom with his school stuff and getting herself ready. She was the executive officer and needed to appear so. She wasn't late-yet-and quietly slipped into a chair, placing her PADD and a cup of coffee on the table. "Excuse my tardiness. My son was having a bit of difficulty getting himself together this morning," she said. He had gone through three shirts, declaring each one "stupid" until Halli had, in a fit of frustration, replicated him one that looked like one of his fathers'. It had been the key. She should see the Counselor later about it, but for now, she put it in the back of her mind. "Good morning, people," she said.

The doors opened as Drayton Hunt entered into the room. Spotting the empty seat to the left of the Captain, he took a seat. Along with a cup of tea, the second officer had a recent report of movements along the Tholian border.

Monoc nodded, politely, to the XO after she entered and then turned toward the Captain.

Halli nodded back. "Hello, everyone. I am Lieutenant Commander Halli Bann, your Executive Officer. I am aboard from the USS Rosewood, and was the Chief of Science there," she said. "I am looking forward to meeting everyone," the Trill said.

The Captain leaned forward in his chair. He wasn't the biggest fan of pleasantries, but he allowed his crew to do it. He had grown accustomed to not getting close with crews. Not only does his past haunt him, but he had lost a lot of people he considered friends. Now in a command position, he made a private pact that he would remain professional.

"Thank you all for attending." The captain's stoic voice filled the room. "As you all know, there is a rising tension with the Tholians. Starfleet is worried that we will be in a cold war in less than six months and full war in less than a year. They are moving us close to the border to renew our presence near the border. While we are there we are going to map out the Dran’kora Expanse. Because of the proximity to Thomlian space, Starfleet has never sent out a ship to chart that expanse. We will be the first.

Yoralig paused as the crew's eyes were locked on him, "There is a high chance that the Tholians will intercept us and try to intimidate us to leave the sector. I will be clear on this. We will not. Starfleet has given us orders to not back down. We will maintain yellow alert status for the majority of the mission. We are not taking any chances. I have sent the relevant data to your PADDs."

Freya pulled out her PADD, tapped it a few times, and raised her eyebrows like she’d just discovered a plot twist.

“Captain, here’s the thing: let’s keep one squadron up at all times. Rotate ’em like laundry—because let’s be real, the Tholians are gonna get pissed no matter what we do. It’s their cardio. So instead of waiting for them to knock on our hull screaming, ‘Surprise, bitches!’ we might as well already have a welcoming committee in space.”

"Agreed." Yoralig said to Freya, "One squadron deployed at all times and one or two others on standby." The captain said moving his gaze to see what others had to say.

Halli nodded once. "I agree, Captain. Maintain negotiations, but don't budge on our mission here," she said. "While the pilots are doing their thing, I will work with Science to see if there's a way to work with them on a more...interpersonal level. What I mean is...we can lure these spider people out with some kind of prey, maybe. It might take a bit of time to figure it out, but I have confidence we can," she said. She looked around; she was always open to constructive criticism or other input if anyone had a better idea.

"We don't want to antagonize them." Yoralig said to the group. "We still have Starfleet protocols to follow." He glanced at the XO, "But it would be a good fall back plan in case we need it." Hinting his approval to her plan.

She nodded. "Well. We can at least make plans," she said, understanding. "But yes. Not annoying anyone is the best course of action, I think. What do we know right now?" She asked.

"Prepare for departure. Report department readiness by 1100 hours tomorrow. Starfleet has expedited our departure time to 1300 hours tomorrow." Yoralig looked around the room, "With or without a full senior staff. They need us out there now."

Halli nodded in understanding. "I'll issue the recalls. Whomever we have will report here by 1100." She made herself a note to issue the order tonight. Any junior officers and Enlisteds should know now so they wouldn't go out and party too hard.

The captain looked around the room once more. "Prepare your deparments. We don't know what to expect. Be ready for anything." Yoralig said with a stern look on his face. "One last thing, Starfleet wants us to check in on a scientific outpost. They have lost contact. So we will be doing that.

Makan spoke up, "Captain, should engineering and ops be ready for repairs ont he station?"

Nodding, "Yes. Until we know why, lets assume the worst." Turning to Commander Hunt, "Prepare security teams. We don't know what we will run into."

"Security will be ready to go upon our arrival," Hunt assured the Captain.

Diane sat there quietly watching the crew. She was making notes of what the captain said as well as the crew, what she assessed was their strengths and weaknesses that she could see. She had no questions, her job was to make sure that the crew ran smoothely. She sat back majestically and clasped her hands on her lap and looked around the room at the other crew.

Monoc Drurio had stayed quiet during the briefing, listening intently to what the Captain and the other members of the Senior Staff of the Vanguard had been saying. It was definitely an interesting assignment already, and he was looking forward to the potential that they would be exploring, but he wasn't exactly a fan that it was essentially a cover to prepare for war. Having the combat air patrol deployed would certainly be antagonistic, but he hoped that it didn't become a shooting war. While he was more defensive oriented than most of his species, he still didn't relish the prospect of war.

"Sciences will be ready," he finally said from his seat.

Drayton looked around the table. "What we know of the Tholians, confrontation is in evitable. I recommend running several drills from to our arrival. The crew is still very much unfamiliar with each other. Would be good to see how everyone operates and would out any issues before hand."

Yoralig stood to his feet. "Like I said. We depart at 1300 tomorrow. Reports and final crew rosters by 1100. Dismissed." The Coridanite stood there while the rest of the officers stood up and left the room.

 

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