Not Your Normal Wayfarer Monday

Posted on Sat Jul 11th, 2026 @ 1:44pm by Captain Akeno Misaki & Captain Elias McEntyre & Commander Mashiro Munetani "Shiro" & Lieutenant Commander Raelyn Mckenzie & Lieutenant Commander Mark Johnson & Lieutenant Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok & Lieutenant Charlotte Averis & Lieutenant Gil’an Tyris & Lieutenant Koko Nosa

2,737 words; about a 14 minute read

Mission: Hunted
Location: Conference Room

The conference room felt sterile and clean. Its tones of silver, grey and blues seemed colder. The LCARS console with its brightly coloured interface also seemed to be less welcoming. The weekly morning senior staff briefing, held every Monday at 0900 hours, was sometimes the highlight of a tedious week.

Fresh pastries, coffee, jams and fruit juice had always been as much a part of the Monday briefing as status reports and mission planning. Once business concluded, officers lingered, talking, laughing and enjoying each others company long after the meeting had officially ended.

It was always more than a meeting for Akeno. This had turned into family time. Her fanily time. The only family she actually had.

However, this morning. It was all gone.

No pastries. No sweet jams and spreads. No coffee. No idle chit chat. It was cold, mechanical, sterile and as void of emotions as a Vulcan master.

Akeno sat at the head of the table, armed simply with a single PADD. The chronometer showed 0850 hours. She was early, on purpose. Her uniform looked pristine, as if it had been professionally pressed and hung.

Her chair was straight backed instead of slightly reclined. She sat bolt upright, rather than in the relaxed posture her senior staff had Her usual smile was absent. In its place sat a stoic, guarded expression. Her bright blue eyes, usually full of life, love and energy seemed a little dimmer as they occassionally checked between the door and the chronometer.

Her XO, comparatively, was something of a mess, though thankfully not in so far as physical appearances were concerned; like Akeno, her uniform was neatly pressed, her hair neatly combed, and her expression rigid. But it was the little details that betrayed her true state of mind, from the distance in her eyes to her stilted body language; it was by all means a good effort, but those who knew her like Akeno did knew she wasn’t all there, and for very good reason.

For the Wayfarer's new counselor, whom had heard about all the usual sweet treats and coffee, walking in to find the conference room as sterile as sickbay was a surprise, and with the expressions of the Command staff as she entered the room, Koko still felt underdressed. Even though she had shown up in a clean, pressed uniform, the mood of the room read as if she had been expected to show up in dress whites and she hadn't gotten the memo.

"Is everything ok, Luna?" Eclipse asked, watching Luna get ready to head to the conference room...and not be excited about it.

"No, Little One, but it will be...in time." Luna placed a soft, sisterly kiss on Eclipse's forehead, then headed up to the conference room. Ice caressed Luna's cheeks as she stepped into the conference room, and even HER stout Klingon heart broke.

Doctor Mark Johnson paused outside the conference room doors for a moment longer than usual.

Mark adjusted his grip on the cup of tea he held in his hands and exhaled slowly before the doors parted with a soft hydraulic hiss.

The atmosphere hit him immediately.

Cold.

He nodded a couple of salutes to the presents then sat at his usual place trying to probe the crew for hints of what was actually going on.

Raelyn entered just after the Doctor and was immediately hit with the chilling atmosphere. Something was off. The colorful atmosphere was depleted. Did someone die?

The Chief of Security was trained to look out for these details. This didn't sit right with her. She took her spot across from Shiro and turned to Akeno. "Is everything alright Captain?"

"Perfectly fine Lieutenant Commander," Akeno replied. She didn't smile, neither did she seem like her cheerful self. She was doing a better impression of a Vulcan than an actual Vulcan master.

This raised even more concerns to Raelyn but she decided against responding. She nodded professionally and waited for the meeting to start. Not only was Akeno not acting like her usual bubbly self, but she was acting more formal than most officers acted on non-formal occasions, unless they were a Vulcan, an Admiral, Captain Jellico, or some weird hybrid between all three.

Charlotte slipped into the conference room as quietly as she could, doing her very best not to gather the attention of anyone there. That was her modus operandi, not being seen or noticed. Of course, that was countered by the bright gold of her uniform that was unzipped to halfway down her front and the heels that still made just a little bit of noise as she moved. She didn't make eye contact with anyone in the room as she came in, then reached for the flask she kept in her tunic, unscrewed the top, then took a quick swig before sealing it again and putting it away once more.

Gil Tyris was understandably nervous. Having completed the abbreviated OCS training seven months ago, the Wayfarer was his first assignment as a department head. His sandy blonde hair was immaculately styled, his two gold pips shined to perfection along with his boots. He had one chance to make a good first impression on this crew, and that time was now. He entered the Conference Room with a dramatic flourish, nodding crisply to all present.

Akeno sat there as people entered, the only person to arrive was Captain McEntyre. She didn't speak as she sat there waiting patiently, the chronometer on the wall now showed that it was 0859.

At precisely 0900, the hulking Caitian captain entered the briefing room. PADDs in one hand, Coffee mug in the other. He nodded to the assembled before sitting across from Commander Munetani and besides Captain Misaki. The Caitian was a tall, broad, hulking Caitian in a tailored uniform that barely contained his muscles. He stuck an imposing figure, which probably didn't help the situation.

Luna usually wasn't thrown...but the Caitian was just SO intimidating!

"Good Morning." Akeno finally spoke, her back straight and her shoulders firm. "I call this meeting to order. Lets start off with some basic introductions." She said. She motioned to one hand at Captain McEntrye. "This is Captain McEntrye. He will be... evaluating both myself and Commander Munetani on our next mission. Starfleet is... interested in how we operate here on the Wayfarer. You are to all show him your full co-operation."

[Excuse him!?] Luna thought, her hands balling into fists in her lap. Luna could tell something was WAY wrong...but was unsure what or why.

"Thank you, Captain." Elias nods before addressing the table. "I'm Captain Elias McEntyre of Starfleet Special Operations. I am here to make sure that the ship is being ran to the standards of the Space Service. I am not here to take over, obstruct or interfere in the current command." Elias elaborated and introduced himself.

"As you may have noticed, there are new faces with us this morning." Akeno continued. "Our first new department head is Lieutenant Charlotte Averis. She is joining the Wayfarer as chief engineer."

Charlotte's eyes glanced around the table as she flashed a small smile, "Hi." She said simply. The news that there was another Captain aboard told her that she'd be under more scrutiny now than ever before.


Akeno gave him a polite nod. "Also, Lieutenant Koko Nosa has joined the ship as our new Chief Counsellor." Akeno told them all, indicating with a hand to Koko across the table. "Please ensure she is welcomed aboard as I would expect from you all."

"Thank you, Captain." Koko nodded. "And yes, I am that Koko Nosa; starred in a little holo-movie called Last Ride at Black Canyon. Well, I wasn't top billing, but I like to think I stole the show from my costars, and-!"

[Pffff! She's gonna have an interesting time on this ship!] Luna mentally chuckled, some of the gloom lifting.

"Thankyou Counsellor." Akeno said, cutting her off before she could ramble on more. There was a slight pause.

"Lieutenant Gil'an Tyris is our next new face. He is joining us as our new Chief Science Officer," Akeno said indicating to the nan dressed in the teal science uniform.

“Thank you, Sir,” said Tyris in a clipped and efficient tone. He turned his head slightly and gave Elias a small smile. “Call me Gil, please.”

Elias gave Gil a loving smile and put his paw on the table, palm up for Gil.

Although he usually shied away from public displays, Gil was particularly nervous and was grateful for his paramour’s support. He placed his hand gently in Elias’s, massaging the sensitive pads of his paw.

Luna unconciously cocked her head, unsure what she was watching as she'd not had an opportunity to brush up on Catian culter "in a hot minute", as the saying went on Ancient Earth.

"Our first order of business. The ship should have by now received all supplies that we were expecting. Provide your departmental status reports." She turned to the Chief Medical Officer. "Doctor, I want to start with you."

The doctor cleared his throat softly before speaking.

“We received the requested medical supplies earlier this morning. As you know, I usually inspect the shipment personally, crate by crate, but docking operations ran longer than expected.” He glanced briefly down at the data PADD in his hands. “My staff is still completing the inventory as we speak.”

His eyes moved quickly across the scrolling report, searching for any late updates or discrepancies. Nothing.

“So far, everything appears to be in order,” he continued, looking back up at the table. “I don’t anticipate any issues.”

"Thankyou doctor," Akeno said. She then turned her attention to Luna. "Lieutenant. Your report from Flight Control?" She asked.

"Everyone has folded into the rhythm of the Wayfarer and each other's different personalities. There are of course misunderstandings, anger, and hurt feelings, but we always work it out and come out stronger BECASUE we are not the same." Luna kept her voice calm, silently hoping Captain Elias would understand her Captain and crew.

Raelyn pondered the information as it was discussed while waiting for the Captain to ask for her security report. A Captain sent from command to evaluate the crew. That explains it, the blonde officer thought. Though deep down, something felt worse. She couldn't put her finger on it. Was the atmosphere in the briefing a part of this? Only time would tell.

Elias would not the tenseness of the meeting. He was the only thing that had changed on the ship. He noticed everyone (especially the XO) was uneasy.

"Does anyone have any coffee?" Elias would speak after the Klingon...No...Hybrid Klingon.

"There is a replicator just around that corner Captain." Akeno replied polietly referring to the rear exit of the conference room which curved around secluding the exit to the rest of deck one.

Elias nods, standing as he walks to the replicator and returns with a large pot of coffee and enough cups for everyone at the table before sitting once more and pouring himself a cup.

“There’s enough for everyone. I find caffeine makes these meetings more enjoyable”

Something in how Captain Elias looked at her made the hacks on Luna's neck go up...as if he were judging her heritage. Not usually a coffee drinker on accout of the bitter taste, Luna took a cup and gulped the scalding liquid down, never taking her eyes off of the other Captain. It was most likely gonna get her into some deep trouble later, but she wasn't about to let this...Peacock, harass her family for Kahless knew what. Luna made a mental note to ask Akeno why Star Fleet thought the Wayfarer wasn't running smoothly.

Elias looked at Luna with a cat-like curiousity. She was from the House of Martok. He wondered how she was related to the greatest general the Empire had known, their Chancellor. Elias had served with many klingons, he considered them his friends and some of the finest warriors in the galaxy.

Charlotte glanced up from where she was, raised an eyebrow by a single millimeter as she looked suspiciously at the large coffee container, then looked back to the PADD in front of her as she shook her head millimetricallly.

"Commander McKenzie. Your security report?" Akeno continued.

"All tactical systems are operating at peak efficiency" Raelyn began. "All of our security qualifications are up to date, and we are as ready for anything as we can be."

Elias turned to McKenzie. “I’d like to schedule some drills with your section if that’ll be ok with you, Commander”

Raelyn nodded professionally. "Of course sir."

"I'll send a preliminary schedule to you after this meeting." Elias nods as he types on his PADD.

"Good." Akeno said as she looked around her staff. "Counsellor. Your report on the crew. I understand you haven't been onboard very long. However you should report on your department."

Koko nodded.

"Counselling received our supplies alongside Medical." She explained. "Like Doctor Johnson pointed out, receiving operations ran longer than usual, so in order to make a good impression, I worked overtime to help sort Counselling's supplies from Medical's. According to my latest count, most of the supplies that were ordered are accounted for."

She moved her attention to the next of the newbies. "Lieutenant Averis. How is Engineering looking?" she asked simply.

"Engines have passed all tests and simulations with flying colors, but we won't know if there are any genuine issues until we fire them up for real." Charlotte keyed her PADD to life, "Full power tests of primary systems show a minor glitch in the main deflector, but it'll be resolved within six hours, it's a known issue and the solution is just time-consuming, not difficult. Weapons are the same as engines, all tests and simulations show optimal, but until we use them, I can't guarantee anything. All in all, we're in good shape." She paused a heartbeat, "Oh, and I've got some critical spares on order with the starbase, they say they'll be ready at 0400, but that's just because they're being difficult and want to give them to us at an inconvenient time."

"Thankyou. Ensure that all your supplies are loaded and stored before departure." Akeno added. She then looked over towards the rather nervous new science officer. "Lieutenant..." she paused for a moment. "Gil... I know you've only just come aboard. However I gather you have something to add to the reports. Is our Sciences department stocked up and ready?"

“Yes Captain,” he said, pulling up relevant data on his PADD. “We have a full complement of probes, as well as enough spare components to construct a dozen more should the need arise. The sensor pallets are fully calibrated, and some specialized equipment is being set up in the main science lab. A software update is in progress for the astrometrics suite, but will be completed within the hour. It looks like we are green across the board.”

After all the reports were in, everyones attention turned back to Akeno. "The Wayfarer will depart from the starbase at eleven-hundred hours. Our mission is to head beyond the Tamong system. Its three days warp from here at our cruising velocity. We will be mapping and charting beyond that system." She explained to them all. "We will be the first Federation Starship in the area, so it is imperative that we chart and map the area properly. We will be looking for areas of scientific discovery, first contact with warp capable civilisations as well as potential future colony locations."

"I expect you all to be at your best as usual." She added giving them a small inkling of a smile before snapping back to her emotionless mask. Her eyes darted to the Chronometer. "Prepare your departments for departure at eleven-hundred hours. If there's nothing else, dismissed."

Posting by:

Captain Akeno Misaki
Commanding Officer

Commander Mashiro Munetani "Shiro"
Executive Officer

Lieutenant Commander Raelyn Mckenzie
Chief Security/Tactical Officer

Lieutenant Commander Mark Johnson
Chief Medical Officer

Lieutenant Luna Eclipse of the House of Martok
Chief Flight Control Officer

Lieutenant Charlotte Averis
Chief Engineer

Lieutenant Gil’an Tyris
Chief Science Officer

Lieutenant Koko Nosa
Chief Counsellor

Captain Elias McEntyre
Mission Advisor

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