Third Time's a Charm
Posted on Sun Apr 5th, 2020 @ 10:59pm by Captain Gary Alexander & Lieutenant Audrey Chester
1,426 words; about a 7 minute read
Mission:
Mission 0 - Pre-Sigma Iotia II
Location: Sickbay
Timeline: 2167/07/12 1145
1900 hours had come and went yesterday. As long as Gary could remember, he had not been stood up. Where was Fiona #2? He had looked for her on the manifest and nothing showed. Was she a spy? An intruder? A mistake? And how in the world could she have stood him up?! That was an impossibility, wasn't it?
He made no mention of it to KAT that morning. He did not want to worry her or make her feel ineffective. He knew more than anything, she was extremely effective. He grinned momentarily. However, more than a little confused and somewhat befuddled, he headed over to the Sickbay and started calling out, "Doctor? Fiona?"
Lt Audrey Chester, MD, looked up from her computer screen in confusion, "Captain?"
She swiftly stood and came to attention. "How can I help you, sir?"
Gary swiveled around to Audrey and said, "As you were. I am just searching for the Chief Medical Officer. Can you tell me where I can find her?"
Audrey frowned, moving into an 'at ease' stance.
"Lieutenant Commander Murphy? I think she's in Philadelphia, Sir. She sent me a message about getting a cheese steak sandwich before joining a nunnery."
"What?!" Gary asked, shocked. "And what about Fiona Stanzel? She was here just yesterday."
"Who?" Audrey wracked her memory... there was a new face in the sickbay yesterday, missus came in and started dropping orders, then vanished. "I don't know that name, but if you're talking about the person I'm thinking of, from what we've heard she was supposed to be on the Artemis. Got on the wrong shuttle and didn't realize until half the day was gone."
She shrugged and indicated around the quiet sickbay, "I imagine they're sending SOMEONE to fill Murphy's spot before we go, but they're taking their dear sweet time."
"We're supposed to be leaving tomorrow," Gary told Audrey. "And I hand picked most of the Chiefs," he said with a heavy sigh. "Now, may I ask who you are? I usually remember my personnel. I do review records before we depart."
Audrey brought her heels together. "Lieutenant Chester, Medical Officer, R41 002 535."
Gary shook his head lightly. "Again, at ease, Ms. Chester." He gave her a winning smile. "Why don't we sit down and you tell me a bit about yourself?"
She flashed a kind smile back and stretched out an arm to invite the Captain to sit in the comfier of the two guest chairs.
"Well, sir, this is my third ship I've served on now, though its been a good decade since I was last out of atmosphere - I was posted to the Academy as medical staff there."
Audrey settled into her seat "I kept busy there for the past while, but I'm hoping to see a bit of forward movement in my career path, so here I am. Back on the boats."
Now that Gary had Audrey more comfortable, he smiled more warmly at her. His eyes subtly took notice of her physical features as he glanced back to her eyes to make sure that he never lost that important eye contact. Hm. No wedding ring. Attractive. Possibilities.... "What have you been busy doing? You do realize that we will be gone up to five years, right? This could be a rather long haul."
Her jaw tensed, and a slightly pained look crossed her face. "Yes, it was a hard decision to make, and I won't lie - I've been wondering every day since I came aboard if I've made a mistake."
She exhaled and rotated the screen of her computer towards him, pulling up a picture of herself with two beaming children. "Here's what has been keeping me busy for the past nine years - Oscar and Olivia."
"Children...." Gary blinked a number of times. Well, at least we know she puts out. "That would definitely keep you busy. Are you certain you are ready to leave them? They seem younger. Who will be taking care of them while you are gone?"
"No, I'm not certain, but I didn't have much choice. It was either a posting here or Mars - and while Mars would have been more stable, low risk means low rewards. If I can make Lieutenant Commander and be CMO on a starship for at least two years, I can get a teaching position at the Academy."
Audrey sighed and smiled at the picture. "In the meantime, my Mother-In-Law has moved in with us and is helping out with the kids. Thank goodness."
"How about yourself, sir?" She asked, shifting her tone from reflective to curious, "Do you have any kiddos?"
Mother-in-law. *shudder* Married. Well, that is not going to work out well. His smile faded some. "Well, that was very kind of her. No, I do not have any children. Just an ex-wife."
"Ugh" Audrey grimaced, "sorry to hear that. But that must make life a lot easier in your position, no ties and all that."
She turned her screen back towards herself and dismissed the photo.
"I am looking forward to a bit of a break from being mommy, though. I haven't had a life in almost ten years - my alcohol tolerance is shot, and I don't even know if I can dance on a speaker anymore," she winked at the Captain, thinking about how many of the young students' ankles she'd had to fix up on Monday mornings after partying at the campus bar.
A wink? Is she flirting with me purposely or just being cute? What about her husband? Of course, she won't be seeing him for several years. Hmm. This could be interesting. "Yes, lack of ties makes things easier, so will the distance." Then, with a hint of innuendo, Gary added. "Plus, all the new experiences that wait for us out there rather excites me."
Is he hitting on me? Audrey blinked. No.... well... maybe? No. no?
"Hah, yeah, I can stand for a little adventure - I might even have time for my side hobby - photography!"
"I'm more than a little certain that you will see sights that nobody here has seen before." Well, that did not come out as intended, but who is going to argue? She's a coy one. Playing it safer for now. Seems that things were not so good on the home front.
"Excellent sir - I'm looking forward to a whole bevy of new sights and experiences." Audrey smiled, obliviously. and maybe a damn promotion "with a decided lack of medical emergencies."
Gary gave Audrey a sly smile, stood up, and walked over to a computer console. He punched in some keys and looked up Audrey's record and then the record of the entire medical department as it stood. He made a few hemming and hawing sounds while he considered what he saw. After a few moments, he made a decision. Turning to Audrey, he said, "Well, it seems that I am short a Chief Medical Officer with the abdication of the Fionas. So, I'm going to name you the Acting Chief Medical Officer. If someone comes to replace you before we leave, and I'll discourage Starfleet from doing that then you will take the position of Assistant Chief Medical Officer. How does that sound?"
Audrey's jaw nearly hit the floor, and she could only imagine her eyes were the size of saucers. well fuck! Wishes do come true! "That sounds fucking awesome," she said shakily, with a nervous laugh, "pardon my French. I, ugh, I will do my best to cover off until another doctor arrives - or in the case one does not, I will certainly rise to the occasion!"
She stood up and came once again to attention. "Thank you, Sir."
Gary laughed at Audrey. "I like French." Just ask Ci. "And, you were definitely given leave to be at ease, so I would not concern yourself. And from your record, I'm sure that you're more than capable of rising to whatever challenge confronts you. So, barring any surprises, I will expect to see you at the Chief's briefing before we leave. Make sure that this place is all in order. Lord knows what happened with the prior CMOs."
Audrey kept her eyebrows in order, in spite of their desire to climb up her forehead oh, we all know what happened to the prior CMOs, bud she chuckled inwardly.
"Sounds like a plan, Captain."
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