Opportunities For The Future MISSION END

Posted on Thu Aug 13th, 2020 @ 10:07am by Captain Reuben Gregnol (Mirror) & Executive Officer Jake Ford

Mission: Mission 11 - Prospecting
Location: Captain's Ready Room
Timeline: MD05 12:00
824 words - 1.6 OF Standard Post Measure

With everything that had happened over the last few days, Jake felt pretty damn tired. His natural instinct to fix the problem and get Gregnol back had been a little more excitement than he'd been used to for a very long time. With that in mind he'd been ready to head for the bar and grab a drink, or catch up properly with Eden. Instead, before he'd made it even halfway he'd been summoned by the Captain himself. Maybe it was to figure out what had happened, or pull some kind of report together, though this wasn't exactly Starfleet so 'reporting' was hardly the norm.

He tapped for entry to Gregnol's office and entered.

Gregnol looked up from the massive old fashioned table he had and offered the man a bit of a smile. He was still trying to recover from what had happened on the planet below as well as get Starfleet off their case as they suddenly appeared out of nowhere to save the day when things had looked really dire in the escape attempts. "How are you doing?" He asked sounding rough despite looking better than he had been the previous day.

"Tired. But relieved, to be honest. And very glad I don't have to try to figure out how to console Jeassaho. That whole counselling thing isn't really me." Jake shook his head, feeling probably not far off how the Captain sounded. "Is she giving you a hard time?"

"I can imagine she was difficult." Gregnol knew his wife and how difficult she could be under stress. Whether she was a civilian or a Starfleet officer did not change her reaction. "I bet you are tired." Gregnol indicated one of the chairs across from him, it really was a homely room like The Collector had actually spent money of the set up there. "I woke up to her putting a laser spanner to my neck threatening to put a tracker in parts of my body that I would miss if I ever do that to her ever again." The man admitted with a small smirk at his fiesty wife.

"I'm on her side," Jake shrugged with a little grin. "If only for my own safety." He paused. "Seriously, though. I get how she feels. If anything happened to Eden...I don't know, I'd probably want to move heaven and earth too. Jea was really desperate to get you back."

"She has lost me more time than I care to think on. I wish I could have avoided this time but it was not going to happen." Reuben would never let that guilt get him down but sometimes it did haunt him that they had not got the wedding or time together that they had wanted. "I bet you are wondering why I asked you here?"

Jake shrugged. "Double date?" he suggested. He wasn't really sure what else Reuben would want. The prospect of Jake and Eden joining Reuben and Jea for dinner was the only thing that really crossed his tired thoughts.

"Well maybe once I am better and we are all rested, but I was thinking more on the ship and how well you have led the crew whilst I was not here. I need a new first of... I need an Executive Officer or whatever you want to call it." It could not have been easy after Uhin had disappeared with nothing other than she had been recalled to Starfleet. It was really disheartening to see the changes in his crew in the four days he had been missing. Jake was the logical choice over everyone and he really did not want his wife as XO. It would just end his marriage in a week.

"Yeeeah-what?" Jake wasn't sure whether to laugh. He had to stop and think about that. Gregnol did have a bit of a point; people seemed to have looked to him for leadership when the Captain was missing. He figured it was because he was the armoury officer or something. "You're asking me?"

"Yes," Gregnol said simply. It was the only choice he had as the man was the only one step up and organise to find him. He had considered Michael but the man seemed not interested or just there for the opportunity to blow things up which was fine by him.

"All right." Jake took a few moments to process and think about it a bit more. "Works for me." He extended his hand. Seemed somehow 'right' to shake on it.

Gregnol stood up and took the offered hand. It was such a human thing to shake on it, that the man had nearly forgotten it was a thing. "You get better quarters with it. I am sure Eden and Stan will love that." Reuben said unable to not tease him. It was too good of an opportunity.

Jake groaned a little. "Let's not be too hasty with that, Captain..."