((Captain’s ready room, USS Sacramento))

Opposite Commander Eickhoff sat an overwhelmed officer in operation yellow reciting from her PADD. Lieutenant Amanda Shin, Sacramento’s fresh new Chief Operations Officer, was tasked with overseeing the repairs and replenishment that the Sacramento was undergoing. Eickhoff, resting his head in his palm, was drifting off. The final report was long, boring and repetitive. “Medical Stores are still waiting on a shipment of bolamite and kayolane; however I have been informed that Starbase 21 are just waiting to board them,” said Shin in a monotone voice. Neither the Commander nor the Lieutenant had bothered to look at each other for half an hour. Just as Shin was about to move onto her next item she was interrupted by an alert at the door.

Relieved, Eickhoff shot up “Come in.” After suffering through such a tedious report any interruption was welcomed. The door opened to Lieutenant Singh holding a PADD, he stood with a sense of urgency. “What is it, Lieutenant?” 

Singh entered the ready room, placing the PADD on the desk. “Sir, an encrypted communique from Starfleet Command. You’ve been requested by Starbase 21.”

Alert, the only thing that Eickhoff could think about was why? He was a fresh Command Officer, he still hasn’t put on his spare red’s yet. There was a stunned silence as Eickhoff stared ahead. Shin and Singh made eye contact and shrugged in confusion as they waited for a response from their Commander. Eickhoff shook off his silence with “Right, thank you Lieutenant. Please send in Commander Sh’raleq.”

“Yes, Sir.” responded Singh as he bowed his head, about turning and marching out of the ready room office soon followed quickly by the shuffling Operations Chief.

((Bridge, USS Sacramento))

The Bridge of the Sacramento was bare, occupied by Ensign’s overseeing the key operations of the ship whilst in dock. Ensign Loren was a second year academy graduate given the coveted responsibility of manning the conn. Irrelevant scanning and the twiddling of thumbs was what kept the bridge of Ensign’s occupied during their shift, whilst Loren stared forward fantasising about her command dreams. “Report.” instructed Loren, knowing there was nothing but taking any chance she had at ordering her peers. 

Just as the Ensign manning the operations station began to report that there was nothing of note, the turbolift opened. The entire bridge complement immediately darted their eyes as Commander Tavana Sh’raleq stepped onto the bridge. Loren was the first of the officers to rise to their feet, promptly followed by the rest of the bridge.

“As you were.” Sh’raleq announced while staring at the floor. This was atypical of Tavana, the crew became accustomed to an unwanted conversation whenever they had the pleasure of walking into her. She knew whatever she was being summoned for was important. 

Just as quick as the Ensigns saw her enter the bridge they saw her enter the Captain’s ready room, where she remained for the following hour. 

The tension on the bridge had grown unbearable by the time that Sh’raleq left the ready room. She entered into the centre of the bridge whilst Eickhoff quietly, and with a bowed head, strode to the turbolift. “Ensign…” Tavana was normally fantastic with names but she was preoccupied and the only thing she was drawing was blanks.

“Ensign Brady, Sir.” cut in the young anxious officer sat at the operations station.

Tavana, embarrassed but focussed, responded “Yes, of course, sorry Ensign Brady. Can you please inform the Senior Staff that Commander Eickhoff will be absent and I will be assuming Acting Command indefinitely.”

Brady was a little overwhelmed so it took him a moment to process the order however the second he understood it he began tapping away at his console. Unfortunately for him, Tavana did not have a moment for him and she had made her way to the turbolift as he blurted out “Uh! Yes, Sir. Of course.” He wasn’t sure if the Commander heard him but either way he was embarrassed. 

((The Outpost Bar, USS Sacramento))

The Outpost Bar, a lower deck multi-story converted cargo hold, was a dark, moody and gritty feeling speakeasy. The atmosphere created made for a perfect social hub for the crew of the Sacramento. At the bar was an elderly Welsh man, seasoned with experience and always lending an ear, a sage former officer, Daffyd Jones. Typically the bar was a busy, loud and talkative environment however since being docked only the odd officer sat inside. Daffyd was wiping down the bar as Lieutenant Singh entered, looking stressed and exhausted.

“What can I get for you boy?” said Jones in a thick, calming Welsh valley accent, barely understandable to the Canadian born officer. 

Singh sat himself on a stool at the face of the bar. He swivelled on the stool while contemplating what he wanted. “I’ll have a… hmm” replied Singh with uncertainty. 

“Hows about, I get you a pint of bitter. I know it’s not your style, mate, however, I think you could do with something more relaxed.” the bartender interjected. 

It took a moment for Ezra to make a decision. After a brief silence he nodded “That’ll do just fine, Sir. Thank you.” 

Jones, pouring Singh’s pint of Earth beer, could tell that there was something playing on the young officer’s mind. Placing the pint onto the bar in front of Singh, Jones asked “What is it? What’s playing on your mind?”

“Oh it’s nothing.” Singh responded, almost instinctively. It didn’t take long for his obvious lie to be questioned by Jones with a simple eyebrow raise. Singh added “It’s just. This is my first time in leadership. It’s a lot of work, I don’t ever get a moment to myself and even when I do I am worrying about an endless list of things.” 

The sage bartender listened to the officer attentively in silence. Nodding at his words. He gave a moment before responding, comprehending everything Singh had said. “In times like this, it is important to remind yourself why you do what you do. You make the sacrifice in exchange for the opportunity to explore the universe. You had a reason to join Starfleet, and you still believe in it. Make sure you remind yourself. And trust me, it gets easier with time.” enlightened Jones.

Singh sat in reflection, thinking over these words. It was almost clear the moment that the words set in, Singh’s face lit up. He remembered why, and that was enough. This moment, although slow, did not last more than a few seconds before it was interrupted by a message over the ship’s com. “Lieutenant Singh to the Bridge immediately.”

Just as Singh was about to roll his eyes, he stopped himself. “Thank you.” said Ezra as he got himself ready to head to the bridge. Jones nodded and gave Singh a kind smile as he left the bar.

((Bridge, USS Sacramento))

The Turbolift opened to a bustling Bridge, filled with Lieutenant’s. Sat at the conn was Commander Sh’raleq. Singh marched over to his station with a new sense of purpose. “Ready to set off, Sir.” reported Lieutenant JG. T’pre, sat at the helm station. 

Commander Sh’raleq sat uncomfortably and responded “Understood, bring us out Lieutenant.” The ship slowly moved away from Starbase 21 as the clamps were released. “For those who need to be brought up to speed, we have received a distress signal from a vessel who have reported they have limited life support remaining. They do not have a lot of time, and so neither do we.” 

This was the first true test for the crew of the Sacramento, even for Sh’raleq. This left an uneasy feeling on the bridge, anxiety and excitement coursed through each of the officers. The ship was now prepared to set off for warp, T’pre turned around and sat waiting for the order to set off. There was an awkward silence for a few moments before Sh’raleq embarrassingly let out “Oh right, umm. Take us to warp!”