Reporting as Ordered

Posted on Thu Jan 27th, 2022 @ 4:05am by Lieutenant JG Karen Lamont & Captain Ivan Petrov

Mission: S1 Episode 1: Caretaker, Part I
Location: Transporter Room 1
Timeline: MD 4, 0815 Hours
603 words - 1.2 OF Standard Post Measure

For most of her career, Dr. Karen Lamont had cultivated an image as the consummate professional. She had pointedly declined to take bridge officer training or testing, feeling strongly that senior officers shouldn't have to have it in the back of their minds that their doctor might have an eye on their position, and had spent much more time and energy into expanding the growing list of specialty certifications on her wall than to filling in that second pip. Those included psychiatry. She wondered how Ensign Igarashi would feel about that. She was interested to meet that young officer. But first her superiors and then her staff. In any event, the consummate professional was how she liked to think of herself, usually, mostly. She found it abandoning her, as it always did, as she materialized aboard. Something about a new captain to impress or not, a new set of eyes looking over her record in judgment or otherwise, kicked in those terran hierarchical instincts. Perhaps, at some level, as much as she liked to imagine otherwise, she was her father's daughter after all. She stepped forward crisply. "Dr. Karen Lamont reporting for duty as ordered," she said, waiting for formal permission to come aboard before stepping off the transporter pad.

"Welcome, welcome. And long live the Empire." Came the voice of Captain Ivan Petrov as he gave the Terran salute to the new arrival. She was young and attractive, like almost everyone on his crew, it seemed. He was starting to feel quite outdated around these people, or at least he would if he didn't have experience in leaps and bounds. "Dr. Lamont, I'm sure your junior medical officer will be extremely extremely happy to see you."

"Long live the Empire!" She returned the salute before stepping off the PADD. She smiled warmly at the captain and still being attractive fairly young, though actually older than most of his Senior Staff, she moved with a comfortable grace in the far from modest female imperial uniform. "You've already appointed an Assistant Chief then, captain?" she asked, misunderstanding his comment.

"No, Doctor. Your Gamma shift doctor is a Cadet in her senior year at the Academy; my daughter." he said seeming amused by the slight misunderstanding. "Mika has been doing your job for four days, and I'm sure I've never seen her so anxious. She needs a leader and, if I may be so bold to ask, a teacher."

"I'll certainly do my best for a promising young cadet," Karen said with a grin, as she would for any Cadet. But she wouldn't pretend it being the captain's daughter didn't add a certain impetus.

"Good, good." he said with a smile. "She's a good girl...that's her problem. You know how you Doctors have big hearts. Help her to...get tough. We are in the middle of a war, after all."

"I'll do what I can," Karen volunteered. "Medical is, perhaps, the best place for a big heart, but when it gets down to it, we must all be willing to make hard decisions for the Empire."

"I'm glad you see it that way, Doctor Lamont. I'm sure we'll have more time to get acquainted once we get under way. For now, check in with your department and I will have a briefing rundown sent to you for our upcoming mission. Your assignment is very sensitive, so please use the upmost care." The older man said, looking down at the shorter woman. "Have you any questions?"

"Not yet."

"Lovely...lovely." the Captain responded, and gave yet another Terran salute. "Long Life to the Emperor. Dismissed."