Catching up with an old friend.

Posted on Mon May 16th, 2022 @ 6:50pm by Lieutenant Commander Finchley Kerr & Captain Sandy "Ghost" Shannon

Mission: The Chase Into Danger
Location: Captains Ready Room
Timeline: Current.

Finchley silently peeked round the open doors of the Ready Room and saw the Captain sat at her desk, a tall unread pile of PADD's to one side, a much smaller pile of read PADD's on the other.

Stepping silently round and leaning up against the door frame with his arms crossed over his chest he said "All work and no play does make Sandy a dull girl..."

Sandy was so busy she did not hear or sense the presence of her former XO. Standing there was Finchley in all his splendour. "Oh my god! Thomo! How? When?," she croaked, getting up and hugging him tightly. "It's good to see you my friend," she whispered.

Finchley hugged Sandy back just as tightly and said "Well, the 'how' was Intel telling me you were needing a nobody to fill in for finding out the 'Secret stuff'" he laughed "and the 'when' was about ten minutes ago. I didn't want to have you disturbed to say I was back, so I just thought I'd drop in and see how you're doing. Looks like they have you flying a desk now as opposed to a fighter like you should be" he added, nodding at the pile of PADD's on the desk.

"Well you know how Starfleet is. They love to mess up peoples lives and after you left, we got turned around and back to DS9 for this mess. However I am glad to see you. I would rather have you here to get the scoop on the poop from SFI than them making a mistake making me look like a big buffoon," Sandy laughed.

"I'd never let that happen, not on my watch" Finchley replied. He took a slightly more serious tone and asked "It's just you and me here Ghost, what's really happening, are we in over our heads, do you think there's something Starfleet aren't telling us? They had the pick of the fleet ships to send on this mission, why the Liberty, and why was I recalled to be Intel officer, did you ask for me personally, I can't imagine for a second they'd send me back to my old ship if it weren't something they can't fathom."

"I don't know Thomo, it just doesn't sit right with me at all. It sounds like we are the bait in this game of hide and seek. At one point we were supposed to go to the Chintoka shipyards and destroy their base. Now we get told to return to DS9 for more crew and additional orders sending us back to Chintoka. I need to know what the hell is going on and fast. I won't loose people to a stupid order!" Sandy said angrily bringing her fist down hard on her desk. "And no, I did not request you personally, but I wish had!" she fumed, turning red with anger.

"Well, one's things for sure, staying at DS9 isn't going to get us any answers, what's the plan then Ghost, what are we getting ourselves into?" he asked his old friend.

"I don't know Thomo but I have to follow orders and get the ship out of here and to the Chintoka ship yards. We need to know what is going on and must do it as quietly as we can. That means we go in two days time. I hope we have more information from Intelligence.

"Well, I was pulled out of my last mission at short notice" Finchley replied "I'm sure I can dig out more information. Let me see what I can find out. Chintoka was a deep space launch platform for the Cardassian cruisers as Jem Hadar troop ships if memory serves me correctly. At the end of the war, the shipyard was meant to be getting dismantled, at least that was the last report I read on it. I wonder why it wasn't dismantled by Starfleet, surely it can't have been an oversight?" he asked Ghost

"Either that or someone higher up whitewashed it!", Ghost said angrily. "And we have been given the task to find it and destroy it because someone screwed up, and they want us to erase the mistake!!" Ghost said with a sigh.

Finchley walked over and hugged his old friend, saying "Hey, none of this was the fault of you, me or anyone on this ship. We're going back to clear up the mystery...or mess, depends on who's point of view you take."

He stepped back, looked at Ghost and said "If there's nothing else Mon Capitaine, I'll get to work?"

"Dinner later?" Ghost said to Thomo as he headed for the door.

"Sure thing Ghost, make it at your place though, I haven't finished unpacking and my place looks like a tornado's hit it!" he laughed as he left.

Captain Sandy "Ghost" Shannon
CO USS Liberty

&

Commander Finchley Kerr
Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Liberty