Butting Heads

Posted on Mon Nov 18th, 2013 @ 7:22pm by Commander Jordan Gunning & Lieutenant Commander Sean O'Connell & Major Alexandria Somers

Mission: Picking Up the Pieces
Location: Security Centre [Deck 13]
Timeline: After Gunning's Arrival on station

[ON]

Sean grimaced as he received the list of casualties and wounded from his clerk. He had been working no stop since the attack on the station and knew he was short handed at the moment. He shook his head. Normally he had three shift leaders. Lieutenant Berry was dead, Lieutenant Masterson was missing and Lieutenant T'vur was in the hands of the medical staff.

Several of his senior NCOs were dead, wounded or missing. In short he was up a certain creek without a paddle.

"Jennings, get me a cup of coffee! Also get me Griffiths and anybody from Strategic Operations. " He sat down on the couch in his office. Half his office was destroyed.

"Aye-aye, sir, I am Jones, sir, Jennings is still missing, sir." The woman said as she headed out of his office. "I also have several requests from Starfleet awaiting your approval, sir, the sector chief was one of the casualties and it will take a while till they send a new admiral our way."

"So I get five systems, three research stations and five colonies under my jurisdiction again. Get the Marine CO and anybody strategic operations can miss ASAP. We got some work to do." Sean shook his head and sat back and closed his eyes.

Jones walked towards a makeshift comm station and sent a message to the Marine CO and Strategic Operations that Lieutenant Commander O'Connell would deem it it vital if they could attend him in his office. She decided that 'ASAP' and 'requesting' would be more of an order.

[A Few Moments Later]

"I imagine you're not a dabo girl here to whisk me away to Risa, but either the marine CO and/or whom ever strategic operations deigned to send down to what used to be my office." Sean said not moving and not opening his eyelids.

Naomi arrived at the briefing, she could not believe all the casualties they had suffered, while they put up a good showing, the Marines were also hit hard and as such a little demoralized.

"Griffiths get a cup of coffee and a chair, So Ensign 'I'll have to ask' from Strategic Operations time to earn that non-existent pay check. We got work to do." Sean stood up and rolled his head." Best nap I had in 72 hours, back to the grind stone." Sean looked like hell and felt like it too.

"Yes Commander" Griffiths said to O'Connell and grabbed a mug of tea and took a seat.

He raised an eyebrow as he gazed at the Strategic operations officer. "Bloody hell, they sent down a Commander, are they running out of ensigns up there? I usually get a wet-behind-the-ears ensign who has to double check everything when I make a request."

The Human/Bajoran hybrid was suddenly aware of someone sitting down next to her, Naomi looked over and her eyes widened a full Commander was sitting next to her, but one she had not met properly yet he answered O'Connell.

"As far as I'm aware, there isn't anyone in the department below the rank of Lieutenant any more. Although most of them were probably Ensigns up until most of their superiors span off this mortal coil." Gunning took a seat next to the Major before nodding by way of an introduction. "Jordan Gunning. It's a pleasure."

After this he turned his attention to Naomi, who turned to face him properly.

"Please to meet you Commander, Marine Captain Naomi Lapayna Griffiths currently Marine adviser slash observer, I have a feeling that my role will change after this meeting we are attending Commander" She said with a smile.

"If you leave this meeting without a knife between your teeth, Captain, I'll be surprised." Gunning's face widened into a wry smile.

"What kinda girl you take me for Commander?" She asked with a smile "just because I am a Marine, does not mean I am prone to knife between my teeth" She added, then with a mischievous smile "But I do have my Commando knife handy, just to be on the safe side" she finished.

"I would rather suspect that you'll leave rather depressed. Well, I could start with the last name of the attending Strat. Ops, but I am a busy man with way too much responsibilities. At the moment I have 100 active security officers which means I am 200 short. I need strategic operations to move in 80 officers serving on several planets in this sector, Still I will be 70 short who are still in sickbay or coming in later." O'Connell looked at gunning.

Gunning hadn't expected the snort of laughter which escaped his mouth as O'Connell made his request. "Eighty security officers, you're having a laugh. I'll get you what I can but most of them have already either been seconded to Cestus Three or dragged back onto Federation Starships. It's amazing how quickly outposts get forgotten when the big brass knobs think someone's going to turn up in their front garden and lob a hand grenade through their window."

"Does it help that the security sector head has passed away and I'm still the acting sector head? I already made a list of officers. Also 80 officers is like 5% of everything stationed in this sector. It's as much as we can move around without endless paper work and the brass not getting on our case." O'Connell looked at Jordan with a small grin on his face.

"I suppose that I can assign two squads of Marines to Security, its time the Marines on this Starbase earned their way, this okay with you Commander Gunning?"

"I can live with that, provided you two don't end up in a fistfight on the Promenade."

"Yep, those last 70....... We will need the marines to fill in for them. So if the marines will be assisting security they'll have to do under my rules and as head of station security and under my command." He looked at the major and raised an eyebrow.

"I can supply you fifty Marines Commander to work under you and within your rules, all other Marines are out on operations and the last twenty I want to make into a S.A.Rs team. But fifty Marines are yours to command" She said.

"I'll do my best to make up the numbers but I can't make any guarantees." Gunning had only been on the job five minutes and already the requests were flooding in. "You make sure that the station doesn't go to pieces and I'll make sure that we don't end up in the middle of Sojourner space by the end of the week."

[OFF]

Commander Jordan Gunning
Chief Strategic Operations Officer
Starbase 332

Marine Captain Naomi Griffiths
Marine Commanding Officer, 14th Battalion, UFP Marine Corps
Starbase 332

Lieutenant Commander Sean O'Connell
Chief of Station Security
Starbase 332