Post by Scribe on Sept 12, 2009 22:51:30 GMT -5
SS VANGUARD – GAIA ORBIT
1.02.2169
"He retired to grow kumquats?" Starfleet Marine Lieutenant Ray Rigby stared at the commanding officer of Starfleet's SS Vanguard with surprise. Captain Diane Houser was a tall, gorgeous woman, with legs that went on for light years and approaching forty-two, she didn't look a day over thirty-five. Had she not been his mother, Ray would be having dreams about those legs and found her seriously hot. Disturbing. But true. Leaning back against the counter of her quarters kitchentte, he crossed his arms. "Christ, Shay. I go on vacay for a week and come back to find you've run off Dupree. What'd you do to my CO?"
Only in private, such as here in Shay's quarters, did he even dare to address her like this. Outside this room, she was his Captain and not his adoptive mother. She was Captain Houser, he was Lieutenant Rigby and anyone who thought his rank and MACO (Marines - ughs) career were due to Shay's rank and not his own ability could kiss his ass.
Rolling her eyes, Shay thrust two plates at him, making him take them or get it in the gut. "I did nothing to Captain Dupree," she retorted, accent hinting at a New Zealand childhood. "Perhaps it was all those trips to haul your bum out of the brig. Set the table."
Ray frowned and carried the plates over to the small table where they had their weekly dinner. "But.. "
"But what? He's allowed to retire, Ray," she said, smiling over her shoulder at him as she stirred a pot of stew.
"Yeah but to grow vegetables? Where are you going to grow vegetables on Hadley's Hope?"
"Not HH. Gaia." Diane spooned the stew into two bowls. "And that man saved my life more than once and yours, so I think he can retire to teach…pole dancing to Bajoran Vedeks if he wants to, as long as he's happy." Craig Dupree was a haunted man, more so than most and Diane was one of the few who knew why.
With one last frown, Ray let out a sigh as he took the bowls of stew from her. "Alright," he said, in that accepting manner he'd adopted while a teenager under her care. He still didn't like change, but at least he dealt with it now. "So who's his replacement?"
"Captain Jacob Mercer, from the Enterprise. He's coming on board tomorrow," Shay said, joining him at the table with a steaming bowl of rice. "I'd like you to meet him, show him around a bit. Doesn't have to be a dog and pony show but I think you should be the one to greet him."
***
Captain Jacob Mercer. A guy with a reputation as such a hard ass, he made Dupree look like.. Mickey Mouse. Shay hadn't known much about Mercer. That or she wasn't giving up anything to help Ray. Probably the latter. As much as he didn't want people thinking he got where he was on her coattails, she was fully expected him to carry his own weight as well. Sometimes, he wondered if she was twice as hard on him for that reason.
"Lieutenant, the Captain's ready to beam aboard." The transporter tech smiled at him but Ray ignored the pretty look, the batting eyes or the sigh the tech gave when her flirts went unnoticed by the handsome Marine. "Beaming now."
"Thank you." Ray nodded at her, lost in his own thoughts as a shimmer began over the transporter pad.
***
Jake Mercer didn’t know much about the Vanguard.
What he did know was the fact that it was one of the few ships that didn’t get blown to complete crap during the battle of Azati Prime. The Vanguard was on the handful of other ships that survived the battle to which he and Sloane McRae had a front seat, managed to survive when so many others had not. In Jake's book that was proof enough that she was captained by someone who knew what they were doing. Not that it meant that those who died hadn't but fools didn't survive battles like that unscathed.
Now that the war with the Xindi war finally over and done with, thanks to the unexpected arrival of the Organians who sent the fuckers running back to their own space, the alliance worlds of the newly formed Federation was licking its wounds and getting their houses in order. The Romulans had withdrawn back to their own space and the Federation was being drawn up even as he waited on the transporter pad at Starfleet Command, by Admiral and soon to be Federation President, Jonathan Archer.
Closer to home, Gaia was putting its house in order. Admiral Mesu had been lost at the battle of Azati Prime and with Admiral Archer now President of the Federation, the new Commander in Chief of Starfleet in its entirely was Charles Tucker III. Hayes had been promoted to Brigadier General although he was still Governor of Gaia itself, while pulling double duty as the commander of the Starfleet Marines. In all the reshuffling, Starfleet and the Marines were also redistributing its depleted armed forces across the remaining fleet and territories causing Jake to be transferred out of Lt. Colonel McRae’s command (hmm, let’s not go there Jay) and given his command of his own team for the first time.
It should have been something to be appreciated but Jake only felt ambivalence. For the last twelve years, he had little need for ambition. He gotten to where he was in the rank structure simply because he got things done and kept people alive doing it. There was little in him that related well to others and he was no diplomat but the Corps had seen fit to give him a command and Jake was honestly a little overwhelmed by the appointment. His manner rubbed people the wrong way and Jake didn't know how to pad things for superior or juniors for that matter. This has all the possibility of turning bug fuck ugly. Yeah Jake should have every reason to be pleased but he was not. Being in charge of people did not suit him. He preferred have someone else dealing with the day to day business of running a squad since he was only interested in fighting where they sent him.
Unfortunately, the choice was out of his hands and he was now the commander of the Sharks on the Vanguard for better or for worse. Not that the Vanguard was a bad assignment either. On the contrary, he knew guys who’d give their eye teeth for a plum assignment like this. She was one of the newer ships in the fleet and her captain had a good reputation for being someone who knew her stuff.
Thank Christ for small fucking favours, he thought as he found himself transporting on the pad of the ship for the first time.
When the shimmer of the transporter diminished at last, Jake found himself in the middle of the transporter pad, atoms all in place, pieces still intact. No matter how many times he used one of these things, he just wasn’t all that trusting of the entire concept.
“Welcome aboard the Vanguard Sir,” a kid who couldn’t be older than the shoes he was wearing, greeted him from the controls.
“Yeah thanks,” Jake said abruptly, not offering the boy a smile or anything. He didn’t do smiles. Instead, his gaze fixed immediately on the other Shark in the room. What the hell was the protocol in these things? Fuck he hated this.
"Captain Mercer." Ray nodded once, noting how the one tech's greeting was basically dismissed. Told him something at least about this guy.
"Lieutenant Rigby, sir, your second." He saluted, traditional greetings first because even the guy's direct manner would not steal protocol from Ray. From his position, he could see the face the transporter tech made, something along the lines of 'man that guy is wound tight'. Ignoring it for now, Ray continued. "Welcome aboard."
The salute bugged him, largely because he was so used to giving them and also on the line, you didn’t salute because that would more or less get your ass shot when the enemy figured who the ranking officer was. Thus when it was presented to him, Jake had to fight the urge to tell his new 21C to knock it off because the guy who didn’t seem like a rookie (more like a fucking linebacker actually) was just doing what regs required. Reminding himself that being in charge meant having to put up with these kinds of displays and remembering that in the other guy’s shoes, he’d be doing the same thing, Jake tried to relax.
As much as he could anyway.
He returned the salute, not wishing to get off on the wrong foot with his second in command on the first day. “At ease Lieutenant.” Can’t keep calling him that, Jake told himself. It just sounded too much like Fleet. “And thank you.” He acknowledged the effort.
Not replying, because he wasn't a kiss-ass, Ray only nodded. "Captain Houser sends her apologies for not being here to greet you. She's on the Beaufort, in conference with the other COs." That and she asked him to be here. "She asked me to show you around the ship as well. When you're ready," he said.
“Sure, why not,” Jake nodded, guessing that was expected from a new commander and went with the flow until he ran into something he didn't like. Of course, he also had a few things he did want to do and supposed this was a good a time as any to voice them. “I’d like to see the squad too.” He added, wanting to see what he had to work with. As it was, when Rigby had said that Captain Houser wanted him to show Jake around, it was all the MACO captain could do to say ‘you mean your mom asked you to show me around? '
Jake had an inkling that would not have gone down well.
"We can do the squad first, if you want," Ray offered, not sure if that was a smirk he saw or what. "A handful of them are off the ship currently, on leave or training. Shark Bay is on this deck." On this ship at least, everything MACO was lumped together with the exception of the common places they shared with the Fleeters. "Your bags were sent up earlier and I had them taken to your quarters, which is on this deck as well. I think the Fleeters stuck everything Marines together on purpose," he added with a smirk.
“Probably so we don’t break anything if we play too rough with them,” Jake deadpanned, his eyes dancing with bemusement. “What do they call you anyway, when you’re not being a Lieutenant?”
That sense of humour was a good sign. "Rigby works.. or Ray," he offered, leading the man out into the passageway. From one direction, there was a shout of 'make a hole' and Ray instantly stepped back to the bulkhead as a man jogged by. This one was even bigger than Captain Rickman. "Sergeant Ka'ana," he said to Jake.
“I thought it was an eclipse,” Jake remarked, watching the tall man continue down the hall, grateful that the guy hadn't stopped and they had to go through that whole saluting thing. “I suppose for the sake of protocol you can call me Captain but no saluting, okay? I’m not a fucking general. You can call me Jake…uh Ray, I don’t really care that much if you’re on a lower pay grade then me. Just stay alive and keep the squad alive, that’s my only rule.”
Ray actually grinned. Hot damn, someone who cared about the team and not about numbers. "You got it, Jake," he nodded. "Glad you're not one of those," he said, knowing he wouldn't have to elaborate about the uptight officers who ran around Starfleet Command shoving their rank in your face all day long. Dupree hadn't care for those types either and he and Ray had gotten along just fine. "This way to the Cage," he said.
The Cage, Jake nodded with approval. Sharks needed to be kept behind cages, to have chips on their shoulders and be set apart so that they’d stay mean and hungry. That’s what separated them from Fleet. “I have no fucking idea what I am but I don’t have any patience for playing politics. Keeping people alive is what I can do.”
Ohhkay. "Good." Ray nodded. That was.. interesting. Little different. "So. We call the entire MACO area Shark Bay. The common area is the Cage. Everyone under sergeant shares quarters, two to a room in what we affectionately call The Bog. You, me and First Lieutenant O'Connell have our own, private rooms across from the Bog. And don't look at me about the names, thank your predecessor for that."
There was another shout of 'make a hole', this one decidedly feminine and even though it lacked the deep bass of the first one, Ray still stepped back to the wall. "Sergeant..." he said, nodding to the red-head that jogged past.
"That's Dee," Ray explained as he continued walking, as if they hadn't stopped. "Corporal Sheridan." Who was stacked with a great.. oh. Right. Tour.
“Close your mouth Ray,” Jake said with a bemused expression as he watched the same jiggle as she walked away. “Shark Bay,” he mused, liking the title. “Dupree was a creative guy.”
Making no apologies, Ray grinned at Jake in only the way that guys could. "He was," he chuckled. "Had some god awful jokes but yeah, he was creative." Leading the way further down the hall, Ray stopped him in front of a door and keyed it open. No sooner had one leg cleared the threshold when a basketball bounced off the wall right next to his head. Ray levelled a look at the various characters sprawled over the common room's furniture and then at the sheepish looking private that came to retrieve the ball. "It's like herding cats," he told Jake, loud enough to be heard.
“Its okay,” Jake glanced at Ray with a slight shake of his head, “no need for a dog and pony show.” Jake took a few minutes to observed his squad who looked in good shape and typical of Sharks he had served with in a past. Not total jarheads but definitely set apart from fleet. He got more out of studying them right here then any line up or inspection. "I can meet the squad after dinner or something.”
"Before might be best," Ray replied, the pride in his eyes as he surveyed the marines was unmistakable. "They start eating.. and there's this vortex of wind and suddenly the galley's demolished..." he chuckled.
"Right," Jake said with a smirk, thinking that Spacers on the NX-01 were a bit more restrained, mostly because they had been on a fleet ship longer than any other shark, he supposed. "Okay, what's next?"
"How about your quarters?" Ray indicated the passageway behind him. "Across the road," he said, leading Jake back out and to another door. "We got your bios from the Enterprise and keyed everything already," he said. "So you're good to go. You hungry?"
" I could use some chow," Jake replied, feeling a slight growl in his gut. "Been running around all day, getting shit together."
"Then the galley's next. Two decks up, just outside the lift," Ray offered. "Decent food but don't ask the chef for ketchup..." He gave Jake a sheepish look.
"Yeah the Chef on Enterprise was the same way too," Jake gave him a look of understanding. Walking towards the room that Ray had indicated was his own, he stepped inside and looked around. It was larger than what he was used to but he supposed as CO there were some perks to the job. "Nice."
"Yeah, we do okay," Ray began but was interrupted when his communicator went off. "Rigby."
"Lieutenant." Shay's voice was rich and strong over the device. "I'm back from the conference. As soon as you're done with the Captain, I'd like to meet him."
Ray glanced at Jake. "Yes ma'am. Gonna get him fed first and I'll bring him up, if that's okay." "That's fine. Houser out." The connection cut and Ray replaced the unit back on his belt. "Well, we've got our orders. Come on, let's eat."
Jake stared at him for a moment, wanting to comment and then left it. "Lead the way Ray."
Well, he didn't say anything about it.. Ray supposed that was a good sign. Appreciated it even. Surely the man knew his relationship with Shay. Everyone else seemed to. "Medical is one deck up, then Fleet quarters, engineering, that kind of thing. You need supplies, see Lieutenant Marlowe in Logistics. Fleeter but decent enough guy. Also, we just got a new batch of marines, fresh out of training. You familiar with Captain Rickman?"
"I've seen him around." He knew Rickman by reputation, supposedly the head DI at the Barn and while they'd encountered each other at Beasts, though they hadn't exchanged more than a word or two since Jake was much not a social animal even around other Sharks.
"Yeah he's alright," Ray added, meaning that. "He's always open to hearing about his 'maggots' are doing," he chuckled. "You wouldn't think it to look at him but his twin brother is the head xeno at Starfleet. Anyway, my point is if you feel the training needs attention in any particular area, just let him know. He's good about that." Fucking a movie star probably helped that disposition some too. "Anyway, I uploaded the files for our squad to a padd that's on your desk if you want to read them. If not, just ask me if you have questions. I've served with most of them for at least a year now. Blood and guts," he grinned at Jake.
"I'll do that," Jake absorbed that information, especially about Rickman.
Leaving the conversation at that, Ray lead Jake to the lift and up to the galley, where the smell of food met them right off. "Lasagne day. You're lucky... unless you're allergic to dairy or something," he chuckled.
"Nah," Jake shrugged. "Cast iron stomach from too many sea rations...."