Voluntolding
Posted on Mon Dec 21st, 2020 @ 7:07am by Captain Luka Mahone & Lieutenant Commander Sofia Nikedoros & Lieutenant Gunnar Arnason
Edited on on Tue Dec 29th, 2020 @ 5:58am
1,458 words; about a 7 minute read
Mission:
Frizzle
Location: Medical Conference Room, Haumea Medical
Timeline: MD - 04 : 1235 Hrs
Luka's love of lunch-time meetings came as no secret to his closest staff. One could not interrupt a lunch-time meeting with business that was not an emergency. It was simply rude to do so, as it would both disrupt the meeting's proceedings as well as a mid-day meal. And lunch happened to be the Captain's favorite, another not-secret to just about everyone on the colony. Whenever he did not have a meeting, he was always found descending upon the newest 'hot lunch spot' within the colony's flourishing economic centers.
But today was a special lunch meeting, which came with a meal full of finger foods and little comforts. And, while there was a spread of nuts and dried fruits in the middle of the table, each of the three meeting-goers had their own small plates of little nibbles, each curated by a chef wishing to impress the hygiene-minded doctors within Haumea Medical.
Luka's even came complete with tiny portions of pipikaula and pineapple, both of which had since been consumed over the course of the meeting.
"... And I hope we'll be able to find a chief of medicine who isn't using his vacation time," Luka stated, eyes pointedly on Gunnar as if the man's charity had been caught red handed inside a cookie jar. "Or maybe finally get you that proper transfer. Though, hopefully we'll have someone else who can do the administrative stuff. I'm sure that's not going to get any better."
Gunnar ducked his head, slightly embarrassed. "I'm not using leave anymore. I'm on temporary duty assignment now," he explained. Serving on Haumea was hardly a hardship, and while he had loved being on Dosad, now that the t'Leiyas had relocated to the colony, it had become even more attractive as a long term posting. "If it becomes necessary to make it permanent, I don't object, but I do think an actual Doctor with more experience would be better suited for CMO."
"Nonsense. We could use more physicians, but you have more than met the needs of the position," Sofia insisted. Knowing he tended to be uncomfortable with attention, even praise, she did not point out how vital his leadership had been during the unexpectedly harsh winter and the virus had struck at the same time. "There's little outside surgery that you can't do, and even if it's the standard on starships, no reason to require that for CMO."
"I appreciate the endorsement, but CMO has never been one of my ambitions," Gunnar demurred. It meant a lot that Sofia had judged him up to the task, even if just for a short term staffing crisis, and felt he had met it. As much as he'd liked seeing T'Ango's homeworld, he was well aware that the embassy posting to Dosad had been a compromise to allow him to avoid a discharge for unresolved PTSD symptoms. Least that come across wrong, he looked at Luka, offering a smile. "I have enjoyed this posting though. Once we were past the crisis, assisting with exploration and cataloging the local ecosystem has practically been an adventure vacation."
Luka chuckled. "I think I speak for myself and my little four-legged monster child when I say we'll be more than happy to have you here long-term." There was an absence of the pup today, likely due to the number of incidents the now-near full-sized dog had within the Command Center. While he was sure neither Gunnar nor Sofia minded the sight of the dog, Lugh was turning into a growing distraction for meetings, which would have been... less than ideal. "A full-time department head could easily be handcuffed to the chair behind the big desk, I can see where that is not ideal."
The Captain leaned forward. "Though, come to think of it, if you're into the idea of exploring, those caverns that opened up a week or so ago caught enough interest that one of the teachers approached me the other day about a field trip some of the students desired to take. Just to the surface areas, nothing unexplored, so it should be safe, but... I felt a little hesitant telling her we'd okay it without a couple of Starfleet officers to go along with them. Perhaps... that would something you'd be interested in helping out with?"
Gunnar had chuckled quietly at the reference to Lugh - the dog was nearly adult size now but still very much a pup in terms of maturity having hit what amounted to the testing-limits tween stage for canines. Which meant that a table at nose level would be an occasion for exactly that, though Gunnar wouldn't especially mind; losing a tidbit of cheese or smoked fish would be worth the company. In fact, one of the things that weighed toward staying here was the idea of getting a dog himself.
Those thoughts were over ridden with the Captain's next statement. Normally his response might have been 'you had me at exploring' but pulled up short at destination.
"Caverns..." He'd never been a big fan - having grow up on a island prone to volcanic tremors, being underground never felt entirely safe - and that unease had become exponentially worse after being held captive in a small cell underground. Now, such spaces made him intensely uncomfortable. Even surface caverns would be ...confining...He swallowed. This was a request from the Captain. To chaperone school children. He was a Starfleet officer. He couldn't let a little prison-born claustrophobia stop him. "It would be a good precaution, so if you need..."
"I'd love to go," Sofia cut in before he volunteered for something she knew would horribly stressful just because he was terrible at saying 'no'. "Forgive me, Mr. Arnason, but I used to go spelunking when I was young and would love the opportunity." She smiled at him. "Can't let you have all the adventures here, eh?"
"No, of course not," Gunnar agreed, casting her a grateful and relieved glance. "You've taken so much of the administrative work for me, I'll be glad to cover that so you can get more time to explore."
"Oh. Excellent!" None the wiser, Luka beamed. "I will make sure to send word to Lieutenant Commander Bray. She was eager to help guide the students through the caverns. Mentioned something to me about a root system the initial team stumbled upon that we may want to have fresh eyes on... But I also do not want to find out that a child's curiosity could unearth a potential toxin. Then that would be a whole different mess entirely. Thank you, Sofia. This puts me much more at ease."
Yes. Thank you, Gunnar thought gratefully. "I'll put together a first aid kit for you, just in case. It also might be a good idea to provide comm badges for the students in case one of them wanders off," he added, thinking of certain little Romulans.
"That is a fantastic idea." Luka grinned at the thought. "Lieutenant Commander Bray is insistent there is nothing harmful, save for a few root structures, but I know Lieutenant Harrison has begun his structural scans as well. Who knows what could be open when the kids are there. I honestly can't wait to take a look myself, but it sounds like I will have to wait in line behind everyone else." He adds a laugh. "This is a positive. If we can get everyone to agree on how we're going to examine this space, we can continue onward through the planet without so much intervention from anyone off-colony. I still have people latching on about that shuttle..."
"It was for the best that experts take that over," Sofia said, having caught another small uncomfortable shift in Gunnar's posture. An artifact had caused quite a lot of ...difficulty... at the posting where they first met. "As to the caves, with children along, I'm sure we'll keep to areas that have been thoroughly assessed. The main concern will be keeping the children together so they all stay 'in bounds'."
"Mm." Luka nodded in agreement. "That is why I wanted at least a Starfleet Officer or two along. If something went awry, you could have contact to a rescue team swiftly. With how Lieutenant Harrison has it all blocked off, I expect we anyone who decides to wander from the group will have to work a little harder to get past those barriers. The caverns that are open are surface level - I will get you in touch with Lieutenant Commander Bray for a better description." He added a small smile. "She is undoubtedly excited to have something to explore at all, I am sure she'd be happy to share the information."
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