Pomp and Circumstance
Posted on Wed Apr 1st, 2020 @ 11:31pm by Captain Liarra Von & Lieutenant Alana Tovan & Commander Walter Prescott
Mission:
After the Storm
Location: Station Commander's Office, Starbase 332
Prescott stood in front of the holographic mirror in his office. With his hands, he worked at straightening the hem of his dress uniform jacket. His thoughts, however, kept drifting back to the events of the past few weeks.
Life aboard the station since their return had been almost a blur. There'd been damaged systems to repair, wounded personnel to treat, and questions that needed answering. Prescott's work had started the moment they got back and continued at a rapid-fire pace every day thereafter. In fact, had it not been for the support of repair teams from the Dreadnought, they probably would not have been able to restore as many of the primary systems as they had. Despite their progress, a lot of the structural damage was still visible in several areas throughout the station. Every hole where those creatures had burrowed their way in served as a constant reminder.
Physical damage was, by and large, something that could be managed. It was the mental and emotional fatigue that seemed to take the most out of folks. Being attacked by a swarm of giant, space-dwelling insects seemed like something straight out of one's darkest nightmares. As if that wasn't enough, they also had to deal with the absence of their friends and colleagues who'd been killed. In his department alone, Prescott had lost nearly two dozen officers and technicians. While it might not have seemed like much compared to the station's total population, it still had an impact on those left behind.
The sound of the door chime pulled Prescott from his thoughts. He made one last attempt at fixing his uniform, turned to face the doorway, and called for whoever was on the other side to enter.
The doors slid open and Lieutenant Alana Tovan stepped in. Unlike her department head, she was still in her duty uniform. It wasn't her ceremony, after all. But she was sure to make herself presentable: her uniform pressed and neat, and her hair hanging loose around her face. "Commander," she said to Prescott as she stepped deeper into his quarters. "Are you ready to go?" She was nervous enough to be accompanying Prescott for the ceremony, but even more so because they would be meeting with the captain.
"As ready as I'll ever be."
Alana simply nodded. He was probably still more ready for his own promotion than she was. Not that she really had anything to be ready about. But she was still nervous. There was a reason why Prescott had selected her to accompany him, but she had no idea what that reason could be. Despite all of her best efforts and her constant late nights, she still found it difficult to believe in herself, even if there were plenty of people telling her she should. It was those ghosts that still haunted her, those voices from the past, that made her think otherwise. Still, Prescott saw something in her that no one else had. She just didn't understand what.
Prescott smiled. He was glad Tovan had agreed to come, even if it had taken some convincing. There'd been no reason, in his mind, this promotion needed to be some sort of major affair. Still, it was nice to have someone there with him. His family were all too far away to attend in person and having all his division chiefs there would have felt perfunctory. Tovan had seemed like the perfect choice.
"We probably shouldn't keep the captain waiting, sir," Alana added gesturing out into the corridor.
[[Station Commander's Office]]
Promotions were always one of Von's favorite moments since she became commanding officer of the station. whether they were simple affairs, or full of pomp and circumstance, promotions were an exciting time in an officer's career. She had only wished that her promotion to captain had been under better circumstances. But the death of her friend and mentor was not on her mind when the door to her office chimed to announce the arrival of her expected visitors. "Come in," she replied.
The door opened. Prescott entered first, followed by Tovan. Neither of them were surprised to find the captain already waiting. "Apologies for the delay, captain," Prescott said as they took up position opposite Von, "There were a few last-minute things that needed...straightening."
Von smiled as she stood from her desk. She too had changed into her dress uniform for the occasion to match with Prescott. It was a minor thing, but she felt that she should be taking the ceremony seriously as well. "I understand complete, Commander. I'm convinced that Earth fashion has decided that the fanciness of the clothes is inversely proportional to the comfort. Maybe for once the Vulcans had it right by wearing ceremonial robes."
Tovan stifled a giggle at the captain's remarks. Although she's often tried to fake her heritage as being part Vulcan, she couldn't help but be amused by the implication that they were stuffy. And growing up on Earth, she had had to deal with the human ideas of fashion as well. She began to wonder what formal dress on Trill looked like when she realized that she should probably be paying much more attention to what was going on in front of her.
"I wouldn't be opposed to robes," Prescott said.
Von smirked. "Maybe one day Starfleet will consider the suggestion." She reached around and picked up a small box that had been sitting on her desk. "Lieutenant Commander Prescott, since coming aboard this station you have demonstrated nothing but the pinnacle of professionalism. Operational efficiencies have more than doubled, and on countless occasions you have gone above and beyond what has been expected of someone in your position. Do you have anything to say for yourself, Mr. Prescott?"
The engineer straightened up so that he was standing at attention. This was the part they’d all been waiting for, the reason they’d taken time out of their busy schedules to have this little get together. It wasn’t the first time Prescott had been through the experience, of course, but that didn’t make it any less significant. “Just that I’ve tried to do my best, captain,” he said without hesitation, “and I plan to continue doing so, for as long as you’ll have me.”
"Good to hear." The captain opened the box, which contained a single gold pip. "By my authority as commanding officer of this installation, and with the blessing of Starfleet Command, I am privileged to hereby grant you the rank of Commander, with all the privileges and responsibilities thereof." She removed the pip from the box and sat the box aside. Carefully she removed the hollow pip from Prescott's collar and replaced it with the third solid insignia. Von took a step back and smiled. "Congratulations, Commander."
”Thank you, captain,” Prescott replied, accepting Von’s hand shake. After all they’d been through in the past several weeks, it was nice to be celebrating something. The fact that it was his own promotion was simply an added bonus.
In a rare display of emotion, Alana beamed in support of her supervising officer. "Congratulations, sir. Well deserved."
"Well deserved, indeed," Liarra replied, nodding at each of them. "I expect nothing less than your continued excellence."
Prescott bowed his head slightly in a sign of gratitude. Already, he could feel the back of his neck starting to flush a little. He wasn't normally one to seek out attention or accolades, preferring to let his work speak for itself wherever he could. Collaboration and getting the job done was more important to him than getting the credit. Besides, overseeing an operation this size took a lot more effort than he could ever have mustered on his own. The support he continued to get every day from Von as well as his staff were major factors in their success. "I appreciate your confidence in me...in us, really," he told her, "it means a lot knowing you're there to back us up, captain."
"And you can always count on that, Commander," Von replied. "I will always have my crew's back, because I know that they have mine."
Captain Liarra Von
Commanding Officer
Starbase 332
Commander Walter Prescott
Chief of Operations
Starbase 332
Lieutenant Alana Tovan [P: Von]
Chief Shipwright
Starbase 332
