A New XO

Posted on Sat May 9th, 2020 @ 3:14am by Captain John Theisman & Lieutenant Commander Ryssa Toric

1,175 words; about a 6 minute read

John had finally managed to find the time to visit his ready room. Having never been on an Intrepid class, he was impressed by the small ships and their clear capabilities. The original ships of the class had surpassed every hope of the design team, but the improvements of the Intrepid IIs had gone beyond that. The new Hyperion was sleek, fast, and powerful. A sure match for almost anything the ship might find herself going up. As he sat down behind his desk, John allowed himself to relax just a little.

Ryssa straightened her uniform as she stood outside the captain's ready room. This was her first posting as First officer and she was nervous. She took a keep breath and rang the door chime.

"Enter," John called as he remained relaxed in his chair. For their size, the Intrepids were comfortable. The Luna class ship had been luxurious by comparison, but John was used to older ship classes and had so far been impressed by his new ship.

The door opened and she walked in, pausing to salute the captain. "Ryssa Toric, reporting for duty, sir."

"At ease commander," John said as he sat up in his chair. "Toric. You're my new XO, correct?"

"I am, sir. My background is science, so I'm looking forward to this new assignment."

"As XO on one of Starfleet's most cutting edge exploration cruisers that's heading into unknown space, I bet you are," John chuckled. "I have to ask, how much experience with Romulans do you have?"

"I'm familiar with the language, history, and culture of the Romulans," she said. "Most of it is historical, but I've worked with a few Romulans."

"Good, then you have a basic understanding of what we're up against," John said. "What do you know of the joint exploration treaty and the history of the previous Hyperion?"

"I've read the treaty, and the public reports on the mission. So, I have a basic understanding of what happened up to their last report. I'm glad the Romulans are letting us continue what they started." She cocked her head to one side. "Do you think they're still out there somewhere?"

"I wouldn't have pushed so hard to get this position back if I didn't," John said as he waved the commander to sit down. "I've had to call in a lot of favors in order to keep a few ships on the search, which is part of the reason I'm pushing so hard to get us out of drydock. I want us on the search, at least for a while."

Ryssa took a seat and nodded. "Good. I'd hate to think that you'd simply leave them to their fate. I know ships occasionally disappear, but most are eventually found. I'm glad we're going to look for them."

"Off the record, we don't have official or unofficial orders to search for the Luna class Hyperion," John said. "But we have a free hand on our exploration mandate, so I'm using that as a basis for our search for them. I'm hoping that a few of my contacts in the Galae will have something for us when we get to the Neutral Zone."

Ryssa smiled. "Sounds like a good plan. So, why did you leave the old Hyperion, if I may ask?"

John winced at the question, a cold shiver of anger and shame running down his spine as he hesitated for a moment while he formed an answer to the question. Finally, he spoke. "I violated Starfleet regulations and issued a few orders that Starfleet Command was embarrassed or worried about. I was transferred to Romulus as a representative and a liaison officer."

Ryssa raised an eyebrow. "So, was it a real violation, or did they simply not like what you did?"

"A little bit of both if I can be perfectly honest," John answered. Watching her closely, he continued. "I marooned a Romulan exile on an asteroid where an abandoned research lab based on the Genesis project after she tried to capture the Hyperion."

"A Romulan exile attacked your ship, and you chose to maroon said exile on an abandoned research facility? Was it to let the person die?" That was the only thing that she thought might get him in that kind of trouble.

"We left provisions for her and her crew, and the asteroid had the capabilities to support them for quite a long time," John said. "The Romulans understood, but Starfleet Commander didn't. They didn't see my actions as falling in line with regulations, even after she had crippled my ship, murdered a quarter of my crew, and forced us to take drastic measures in defending ourselves. We managed to destroy her ship, but I had intelligence stating that she and her family head a modest sized criminal organization. If nothing else, all we did was set her out of the way long enough to escape." Jon clenched his fist and nearly slammed it into the desk but forced himself to calm down. Even after nearly a year, Ael'isha T'vek and the hell she had inflicted on the Hyperion then under his command still haunted him. He finally turned towards his new XO. "If you would rather not serve under my command because of what I did, I'd understand," he said.

"For that?" She shook her head. "I think someone wanted to make an example of you for his or her own purposes or held a grudge. I don't think that should warrant more than a slap on the wrist, if anything. All that does is make me want to stay and help you prove that they were wrong to take away your command."

"I certainly appreciate that, Commander," John said with a nod. He was glad that she seemed to be someone who he would be able to count on. Reaching out, he tapped in a command into his desktop controls. "I've authorized you to read the complete file, and there's a lot of information on everything the Hyperion did up until she vanished."

"Thank you. I appreciate that you trust me enough to give me access," she said. "I look forward to learning what you found and what happened." And, as a scientist, she was curious to read what they discovered while they were in Romulan space. "Is there anything you want me to do?"

"Get settled in and prepare for a long wild ride is all I can think of," John answered. "The Romulans will be watching and if they can get away with it, they'll be testing us every step of the way."

'Yes, sir," Ryssa said. ""I'll do my best." She stood. "It was good meeting you sir. If there's nothing more, I'll take my leave, then."

"Very well," John said with a nod as he stood. "Get familiar with the ship, and I'll see you on the bridge in the morning."

Ryssa nodded. "Aye, sir." Then she turned and walked out.

Lieutenant Commander Ryssa Toric
Executive Officer
USS Hyperion

Captain John Theisman
CO USS Hyperion

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