A View From The Top

Posted on Thu Dec 15th, 2011 @ 5:12pm by Major General John Thompson & Admiral Lucius Hawke & Admiral Ricky Wegener

Mission: Sections of the Delta Quadrant
Location: Conference Room, SB900

As far as the Task Force was concerned the political situation on Archadia was of utmost importance to it's senior officers. It was their permission that allowed Starbase 900 to reside within the system and should the Government decide that they not like the Federation any more they held the right to ask them to leave. That is nearly what happened when S31 agent Mr Lynch set off a bomb hospitalizing and killing most of the Archadian Senior Government. With the Arizona crew being blamed the Melbourne, her CO fresh out of the CO course, was sent in to resolve the situation. Now the cumulation of the Melbourne's crews work was to be seen as the Task Force Senior staff prepared to receive the first communication with Archadia since S31 hijacked the lines.

For Captain John Thompson this was to be his first formal duty in that position and after getting his dress uniform on he gave it once over in the mirror before leaving to the conference room which would be linked to the planet. Making his way through the corridors of the base on the short journey he reflected how he had managed to get behind a desk on a base so quickly and in his head began to ponder moving to a ship to run his side of things. Before he could get far down the list however he arrived and seeing no-one else yet present he moved to the replicator and grabbed a coffee.

Lucius as well was on his way to the conference room. Life had not let up for a single second since his not one, but two, promotions. Now he was on his way to his first face-to-face meeting with the remaining officials of Archadia III, along with his new XO, John, and Ricky. Never before had the phrase 'hanging on your every word' been more fitting. He was certain that this would end up with a trip down to the surface for him and several key members of the staff here. So much was still to be put right, and a lot still to be discovered, given what had occurred. Finally he reached the conference room and stepped inside.

"Good to see you John. Ready to be put on the spot?" Lucius smiled to his fellow officer as he moved over to the main table.

"Sure am. Hopefully this headache will be sorted soon. Though I believe Ricky will have had the biggest one in this respect. I assume you got the same report I got from Warrington?" He moved and sat down on at the table.

"I did. Which is why I am already making plans for a trip planetside. We'll get it sorted, sooner rather than later, though it may be tricky going." Lucius took a seat at the head of the table, his hands empty, no notes. He wanted this meeting to be as comfortable as possible, and to him that meant being at ease, talking to them, not reading from notes. In matters of diplomacy, appearance was everything.

"Sounds like a good idea. Will you be wanting me to join you on that one?" John asked as he finished his coffee setting the empty cup on the chair beside him so as it was hidden from view from the screen.

"I'd rather not have both of us in the same place in case there is trouble, especially with Section 31 involved." Lucius smiled at his XO. "Besides, a little bird tells me you are getting itchy feet to get back on a ship. We can discuss that after we finish up here."

Rick walked in and nodded at Lucius and John. "Fellas," he said, nonchalantly, as he sat down. "Lucius, I want you to take the lead on this, as you probably already knew. While I know you place restrictions on your use of your Betazoid talents, I think now is the time to utilize them as much as possible. We need to know what they're thinking, get ahead of the game, keep them happy as a protectorate and, above all else, keep Task Force 38 right where it is."

"I could not agree more. I want this meeting to go smooth as butter. I intend to stick to assuring them the troubles were unsanctioned, and given what has been discovered, that should be simple enough. I'm going to arrange a personal visit to really get down to work with them. I'll be taking a few along as well, namely Intel and Diplomacy, and whatever else may be needed once I have a good feel for what's going on down there." He glanced at his watch. "Ten minutes, gentlemen."

"If it's all the same to you, I'm not going to get involved until you say you need me involved," Rick said. "I'll stay here and listen but I won't be on the screen with them."

"Very well." Lucius gave a distracted smile as his mind jumped several leaps ahead. He had a few aces in his pocket that might come in handy. "I suspect things will go just fine."

"They should do. Considering the Melbourne crew stopped a hospital from getting leveled. If that doesn't get us brownie points not much else will," John commented curious as to whether it actually would or not. "I would guess that we would need to bring up the matter of the Arizona as well. They may still be touchy about the jail break."

The beep of the computer preceded the voice of Ensign Sarkozi. "Admiral Hawke, incoming transmission from Archadia III."

"Thank you, Kai." The internal channel closed and Lucius looked to his fellow officers. "This is it gentlemen." A female face filled the screen that hung beside the table, facing the three men. Lucius rose out of courtesy as the lady appeared, and smiled. "Greetings, Prime Minister Maline. I am Rear Admiral Lucius Hawke, Commanding Officer of Task Force 38. This is Vice Admiral Wegener, Bravo Fleet's Executive Officer, and Captain John Thompson, my Executive Officer. It's an honor to meet you."

The Prime Minister nodded. "Thank you. It appears that there is quite a bit of brass on here today," she said. "I'm hoping that our lines of communication won't be interrupted as they apparently had been in the past."

Lucius nodded slowly. "That is my hope as well, and the steps taken by others of the Fleet have helped to ensure that. I also want you to know that we deeply regret the attempted hospital bombing and the misguiding actions that were made to appear as the actions of the Fleet. They were heinous acts, done without regard for the lives of so many. None of it was sanctioned by Starfleet in any manner, but rather the work of rogue agents." He paused, taking the time now to get a sense of the Prime Minister's emotional state.

She was still somewhat angered by many of the problems that had plagued their planet recently. But she attempted to move past it. "So, you are here to ask permission to come down and straighten thing out further, yes?"

Lucius smiled, appreciating her inclination to cut to the chase. "I do indeed. My team and I will be ready to beam down at your earliest convenience. I will send the team's particulars once they have been briefed. Any requirements you wish to ask of us will be included in that briefing."

"No unnecessarily armed personnel," she quickly shot back. "I'm sure you will have a protection detail, Admiral, but other than them I would prefer no other people in your party be armed." She looked down, as if reading from something. "Also, while you are all free to leave the planet at any time, it is requested, at least for the time being, that your whereabouts are fairly well known while down here." She looked back up. "It may sound a bit ridiculous to you, but after what we've been through--the lies and deception, we would like to make sure we're dealing with those that we are supposed to be dealing with. If we know where you are, and something else happens, then we know for sure."

"Understandable. Are you prepared to guarantee the safety of my unarmed personnel?" Lucius paused a moment. "I am aware things may be tense, and as such I do not want them in any situation where they may be in danger and have no way to defend themselves if someone takes issue with their presence after recent events."

"Am I to understand that our standing as a Federation protectorate has changed that you will be coming to our planet armed now?" She was starting to get agitated. "There are no members of this world that will harm your personnel. The only reason I do not balk at your own escort is because I know it is the Federation's policy for admiralty. Otherwise, our own law enforcement and security personnel should be able to accommodate your...concerns."

"Thank you. Your guarantee is all I need. It will take no more than two days to have my team prepared. After that, we will arrive at your convenience, Madame Prime Minister."

The PM was a bit concerned that her question about being a protectorate had been dismissed, so it was something that made the top of her list of questions to be addressed. "Two days," she replied. "Quite a long time to prepare for an away mission, but we will await your signal. We are prepared for your to arrive at any time."

"Thank you for your understanding. We are dealing with our own explosion here on the station, as well as an attempt against the Chief of Security, so we have a few loose ends to tie up. We will see you in two days' time. It will be my great pleasure to meet you in person." Lucius smiled once more. "Your time is appreciated, Prime Minister Merline." He remained silent as the transmission ended.

John looked around after the screen had gone blank having not said a word. "Well she seems nice. Though a very defensive stance at times."

"Sounds like a bitch to me," Ricky said from his corner of the room, glad he hadn't been seen and didn't have to speak to her. "Watch her, Lucius. Closely. She may just be an old coot, but I have a weird feeling about her."

"She's wary and not at all pleased for being played the fool. I purposely let her question regarding her planet's staus as a protectorate go unanswered. I think it will make her far more likely to be on her best behavior and willing to work with us if she's uncertain. Yes, Section 31 played hell down there but I sense more than a little embarrassment that she was fooled and no one discovered the ruse." Lucius looked from one to the other. "I'll get the away team together and we'll be away in two days. I'm including my Security detail, one from Intel, one from Diplomacy, and Kai will go along as well."

"Sounds good to me," Rick said as he stood. "Make it happen and keep me informed." With that, he nodded to Thompson and left the conference room.

*********

VADM Ricky Wegener
Bravo Fleet XO / SB900 CO

RADM Lucius Hawke
Task Force 38 CO

Captain John Thompson
Task Force 38 XO