NAZGUL #24: Informing

Posted on Thu Jan 16th, 2025 @ 6:26pm by Commander Sean Loewen & Lieutenant Commander Sheyla {MD} & Lieutenant Griffon Resch "Nazgul" & Lieutenant JG T'Pri

Mission: NAZGUL: {CD&MISSION} Return to Basics
Location: USS NAZGUL
Timeline: Current

ON:

Commander Sean Loewen returned to the USS Nazgul, now his command by right and regulation. It bothered him slightly the way this came about, but considering what he knew of the circumstances surrounding Ainkara and her refusal to disclose relevant data to Starfleet Command he could see no other options for HQ. They had to make an example of such callous disregard for Starfleet regulations. Penni was found in an operable Iconian gate facility, and she had been seen to by forces unknown, who had yet to be revealed. Whether they were Iconians or something else was beside the point. Lieutenant Kara had redacted important information for personal reasons, and had admitted to doing so for the protection of her new ward, Penni. All of it caused turmoil within Sean's spiritual core, his emotional balance now torn between malevolence and benevolence. He could feel both, but who was the villain? And, more importantly, why? What was Penni's purpose? Kara herself had said that Penni had not been created in that lab, but had been moved there for further study according to her own research and investigations.

Entering the Ready Room, Loewen was too worked up to be able to sit, and even using the Force to calm himself did not alleviate his need to move around while thinking. To remain standing to burn off anxious energy. He tapped his combadge. "Lieutenant Resch, Lieutenant Sheyla, Loewen here. Report to the Ready Room immediately. Loewen, out." He heard the channel close and after that he reached to his desktop and took up a PADD there. Spinning in place he leaned-sat on the front edge of his desk as he tapped at the device to set it up for this meeting.

Griffon Resch arrived first, having been in the stellar cartography lab a deck below. Upon entry he saw Sean doing the leaning on the desk, the man's face showing that he was all business right now. "You rang, Skipper?"

Loewen looked up as his hand fell to his front with the PADD in hand, polite enough to give his Security Chief his full attention. "I did, Griffon. Thank you for being punctual."

As that was said, Sheyla came in next, seeing the two men standing a few meters apart as they looked at each other. This meant that Resch had arrived just before she did. "Good evening, gentlemen. You needed to see me, Captain?"

Loewen stood up straight from his lean. "I did. Thank you both for coming." He hesitated a few moments to gather his thoughts, then continued. "There's no easy way to say this, so I'll just get it out there. The runabout carrying Bjorgo and company has disappeared. By disappeared, I mean it has gone missing--completely. Starfleet has a starship looking into it, but according to them, there are no traces, as of yet, as to what may have happened to the small starship."

Resch and Sheyla matched each other in their actions. Each of them walked up behind the two guest chairs angled and facing the Captain's desk. Their arms rested on the backs of the chairs even as they both were fully invested in what was just said. Sheyla's antennae were a clear indication that the news was not taken well emotionally, but her body and face remained cool and collected. "No trace whatsoever, Sir?" Sheyla asked.

With the sorrow for her plain to see in his expression, Loewen shook his head slightly. "I'm afraid not, Sheyla. The USS Normandy is continuing their scans and their investigation but, so far, they haven't come up with any hints or clues as to what may have happened."

Resch, his own mind reeling, maintained his composure as the Security Chief. Being eyes deep in his own investigation he knew that these things take time, especially when one considers the vastness of open space between this sector and Earth. It could take weeks to come up with clues, or possibly, never. A vision of Penni glitching and doing something nefarious entered his mind, which he quickly pushed aside rather than dismissing it. "That's suspicious, Captain. Deep in Federation space, heading from here to Earth, and they disappear. Smells like fish and bullshit to me, Skipper."

Sean gave the man a nod at that, his own internal feelings matching Resch on the matter. However, his eyes went to Sheyla, who had gone quiet, the emotional rollercoaster clear in her eyes even as they looked down at nothing in thought. "Sheyla? Are you okay?"

The blue face came up, her gaze meeting his, the wave of confusion and sorrow emanating from her being felt by Loewen through his connection to the Force. Through Sense, he felt her suddenly steel herself, her eyes clearing up and returning to the focused orbs he had come to know. "Yes, Sir. I'm fine. It's hard news to hear, but people die every day in Starfleet. I have to set my personal feelings aside for the good of the crew, Captain."

Wishing she had not said that, Loewen moved forward a pace, between the two chairs, and close enough for any of them to reach out and touch the other. Even as he began to speak to Sheyla, his eyes on her, Resch moved over to stand with him. "Sheyla, you're not alone in this. It's a tragedy that affects me too. Though you are correct that we must carry on, it doesn't mean you have to do it alone."

"He's right, Sheyla," Resch added. "It's not weakness to talk to others to keep yourself grounded. My door will always be open."

Sheyla took in a breath and let it out slowly, her eyes looking to her two comrades and friends. "I know, gents. I know. But, that's not how Lieutenant Sheyla operates. I will internalize what has happened and come to grips with it in a positive way. As a physician, I know just how to assuage my own sorrow. If I need an ear, Len is always there and has proven to be a friend despite having to work with a wild card like myself." She gave a weak grin.

Loewen gave a grin, not only at what she said, but a part of it was due to hearing the name of his lover mentioned in such a positive way. "There's a reason why I made her your successor, Sheyla. Keep in mind, there are others aboard who can do the same for you."

T'Pri came walking in, having been texted to show up at her convenience. She saw the trio and casually sauntered up to stand among them. "You asked to see me, Captain?"

The other two glanced at Loewen before their eyes turned to T'Pri and she was greeted. Sean spoke up once their salutations were completed. "Yes, Lieutenant T'Pri. I don't know if you have seen the directive sent to you by Captain Green. Bjorgo and his party are missing in action with Starfleet looking into it. With that said, you have been assigned to Nazgul as the Science Chief, no longer borrowed. This is home for the time being."

Taking the news in stride, T'Pri arched an eyebrow, giving a brief glance at Resch before addressing the CO. "I find the assignment agreeable, Captain. This ship is...colorful, in its history."

"That's one word for it," Resch responded with cynicism and a grin. When T'Pri sent another sidelong glance his way he gave her a grin and a wink.

Loewen did not miss the antics between them, trying to fathom when they had had time to create such a dynamic between themselves. "I just wanted to let you know, Miss T'Pri. Sheyla, I have been given command of the Nazgul, and you will remain my Number One, but only if I know that current events will not affect your performance."

Sheyla stood tall as he said that. "I'm fine, Sir. You'll have my best."

"Mister Resch, do you concur with the choices made for Science and Exec?" Loewen asked.

Griffon gave a silent chuckle and grinned. "I do, Skipper. The crew better grow a thicker skin, though. Just sayin'."

T'Pri chose to ignore that particular barb tossed her way by Mister Resch, seeing it as yet another volley fired in their private little war of words. ~Challenge accepted, Mister. Challenge accepted~ she thought.

Sheyla gave a grin. "I am tongue-in-cheek, and often straight up cheeky, but I'm not horrible by any means."

"That remains to be seen," Sean said, backing his friend in his observations of the two women. "But, since you will be Number One, Sheyla, you're out of uniform, Lt. Commander."

"Out of uni...?" Sheyla began to say in a questioning tone before what he said actually penetrated her brain. "Oh! Well...I better remedy that."

Loewen smiled. "That would be a good idea. I'll be doing a video message to the entire crew in a few minutes, letting them know what has transpired and why all the changes. Sheyla, I need you to gather some crew and see to packing up the personal items from the quarters of the three missing officers. All of it gets stored in packing crates, then lock it down Griffon in a cargo unit in the crew section of the cargo bay."

Both officers acknowledged the orders. "Miss T'Pri, I want you to look into the sensor logs for a blip that was detected by Tactical yesterday morning. It was in an area of ionic disturbances in this region, with warning beacons placed around it by M-69. We need to determine if it was a sensor shadow, glitch, or a ship that strayed off course and got lost in the ion particles."

T'Pri gave a slow nod. "I will investigate, Captain."

"Good." Sean said, his eyes dancing around between them. "That's all then, people. Dismissed." The three walked out together, with Resch and T'Pri closer together as they did so, while Sheyla remained slightly aloof. Time would tell where she ended up emotionally but there was nothing negative in the air right now so Loewen turned to his desk to take care of ship's business.

As he had said, Commander Loewen activated a live stream of himself sitting at his desk, addressing the crew. He offered as much disclosure as possible, informing the crew of why Bjorgo and company had been recalled, minus any mention of Iconian tech by order of Starfleet. Too many junior officers were not privy to command level information, so he had had to be creative with his description of events. Enough to show that Ainkara had withheld information on an official report, and since Billi and Bjorgo had gone along with it, they had all been called to Earth, along with the android/cyborg Penni. Again, he gave as much detail as regulations allowed, and as much as classification of data was allowed. Many Iconian references were considered classified so it was a dance to be able to explain anything without embellishing. But, Sean had accomplished it and, once done, he leaned back in his chair and rubbed his face and blew out a breath. In his personal opinion, hiding anything from crew unless absolutely necessary was below the belt. For him it was akin to lying to them. Not something he cared for. But, that was the price of being a starship commanding officer. There would always be those things that not everyone aboard should know about. Deciding he had had enough of the Ready Room, Sean got up and left the chamber. He needed a long walk through various corridors to clear his mind and relax.

OFF: