24150203 CO Duty log PI

Posted on Tue Feb 3rd, 2015 @ 11:59pm by Captain Alistar McKeon
Edited on on Tue Feb 3rd, 2015 @ 11:59pm

720 words; about a 4 minute read

The stars streaked past the viewport as the Endeavour warped towards the Alteran Expanse. Sitting at the desk in his quarters, Alistar stared out the viewport as he took a break from reading the evening report. The CO quarters on Intrepid class ships were large and luxurious and the view was impressive. For a full commander who had previously served on an older New Orleans class ship for almost seven years, being CO on the Endeavour was still taking some time getting used to. Turning his attention back to the report, Alistar leaned back in his chair and started reading. He had read two paragraphs when his commbadge buzzed.

"Bridge to Commander McKeon."

"McKeon here, go," Alistar said as he suppressed a sigh.

"Sir, incoming transmission from Starfleet Command, it's admiral Greer."

"Put it through to my quarters," Alistar said. Switching to the comm screen on his desktop, Alistar frowned as it lit up with the image of an older human male sitting on the bridge of a starship. Alistar wasn't familiar with Admiral Greer, but there were a few flag officers who commanded from flagships across the Federation and apparently he was one of them.

"Commander McKeon. I hope I didn't wake you," the admiral said.

"No sir," Alistar said.

"Good. What do you know of the standing situation on the Klingon and Romulan empires?" Greer asked.

"Very little," Alistar answered. "I know a little about the Klingons but I'm lost on the current workings of the Romulan Empire. Ever since the Reman Uprising last year I haven't kept a close eye on it.”

"The Romulans have been rebuilding their government and trying to hold their territory, but the Remans did a good job of wiping out the Romulan fleet. In fact, the Romulan Galae lost over 72% of their forces when the Remans staged their coup.”

Alistar whistled softly. "I didn't know they had taken that kind of a hit," he said.

"No one does," Greer said. "The Romulans have less than twenty capital ships with roughly thirty cruisers and other support ships. They're in no condition for any kind of conflict with anyone. Through the treaty they signed with the Federation last year after Shinzon was defeated, Starfleet has permission to patrol and assist Romulan efforts in defending their borders. Now, the Klingons are a different story. There's a chancellor Kurvagh who has been preaching that the Klingons should expand with an aggressive military strike. Since they have a treaty with the Federation, there's only one other place for them to look."

"The Romulans," Alistar said.

"The Romulans," Greer nodded.

"Sir, with respect, the Endeavour still has her shakedown to complete, and the Beta quadrant is technically under the jurisdiction of Second Fleet...."

"Second fleet is currently tied up with a different problem," Greer said. "In fact, the entire fleet is roughly ten ships. This recent cutback the president has been pushing down on Starfleet has us facing shortages all over. I'm trying to get more ships drafted to the Second fleet under the emergency clause, but the president is Hell bent on insisting that we appear more as an exploration branch rather than a military one, and that means cutting back on the number of ships assigned to a standing fleet."

"Again with respect sir, Starfleet is the Federation's military arm," Alistar growled.

Greer nodded. "See what we have to deal with at command? I know the Endeavour has her shakedown to go through. But I wanted to give you a heads up that once you pass your shakedown; I'm probably going to have you temporarily assigned to my flag until this situation is dealt with. It'll be temporary, but you're one of the closest ships to the region and I’ll need every ship I can get."

"I understand," Alistar said. "Is that why our shakedown cruise is close to the Romulan border?"

"I was warned that you were a smart cookie," Greer said. "Yes. We're quietly moving ships in closer so when we get approval we can just slide you on in and get you on station as quickly as possible. I'll keep you updated on the situation, but for now, keep this information to yourself. The fewer people who know, the fewer rumors that'll be going around."

"Understood," Alistar said.

"Good. Greer out."

TBC....

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