At Least We Haven't Been Sacked

[Rebecca Talon]

- June 20, 2375 -
Stardate 52467.87

Rebecca sat at the helm on an empty bridge. The bi-level command center was mostly built similarly to that of any Federation bridge.

The helm was cresent shaped having been inspired by Voyager. Behind the helm were the Captain's chair, XO's position, and observer's seat. Above and behind the captain's chair was a stainless steel railing with the tactical position flanked by operations to starboard and, a new position, Auxiliary Craft Control to port. Silence, engineering, and the other stations lined the back bulkhead.

Rebecca's fingers danced over the controls as the ship banked, and pitched up and down as it flew through an asteroid field at speeds that any sane person would call suicidal.

An asteroid slammed into the ship shaking violently. Rebecca used the edge of the console to help steady herself.

"Shields holding a 63%."

"Tough ship," she muttered as she rolled hard to the left narrowly avoiding a asteroid half the size of Earth's moon. But unfortunately she dodged right into another asteroid which sent her slamming forward into the helm, and knocking the wind out of her.

"Shields at 23%," the computer announced dispassionately. And then they were out and into the normal vastness of space. "Elapsed time: four minutes, twenty-eight seconds."

Rebecca took a deep breath, "Okay that was almost perfect. Computer adjust the height of the console by 5 centimeters, and the display angle by three degrees positive angle."

The computer beeped, and the whole helm disappeared and replaced by a consol with the new specifications. Rebecca also tweeked the layout of the helm configuration screen. "Okay, computer reset simulation and start timer once there's forward movement.

The computer beeped and damage to the ship was gone, and the asteroid field loomed ominously before her on the viewscreen.

[Natalia Ryder-Singh]

Natalia walked in with a padd on her arm and a tricorder in her hand. "Hmm... Rebecca... you might want to add a 5mm pitch to the central grav plating matrix as well." she glanced at the updating schematic. "You were losing balance. But that was a lot closer than the previous run. I think we also need to speed up helm reaction time, there's still a point 218 millisecond delay between RCS and Impulse thruster reaction times. I think we need to add a secondary processor to cut down on the lag from the computer switching between thrusters and impulse engines. You get thrusters to work faster, you won't hit asteroids, especially with a ship this size."

Walking up behind Becca, Natalia put her hand on her friend's shoulder. "One more run and then I buy you lunch?"

[Rebecca Talon]

Rebecca sighed, "It's fine Natalia, we can go now. Not that we're in a rush anymore more. Starfleet has canceled the project, and ordered the hull that has been constructed to be scrapped." She shrugged, "I was in a rush to get the final designs of the bridge completed so Boeing could build the bridge module, but I guess that's pointless now. I've been transferred to the Sovereign production as a systems integrator. "

[Natalia Ryder-Singh]

"Hey Boeing is still building it, you and I didn't have how many dinners with those guys just to give up." Natalia said with a half smile. "Besides, this project may have been cancelled but don't give up on it. We're going to finish this bird one way or another. Nick's Independence has been half scrapped too, but that's why you joined the ASDB, even scrapped projects have a tendency to get to happen one way or another." she pulled a long red hair off Becca's uniform and chuckled lightly. "Also helps when you have some civilian interest in a project. I do love when people think I'm 'just' a pretty girl that does these silly science shows. That I don't hold a Ph.D or that I'm connected to some very interesting and influential people because of that 'silly science show'. May not have the fortune on my own to make things like Erebus happen but I know enough people that do." she sat on one of the other bridge chairs. "Plus, this whole thing has been a great way to get my mind off Josef and finding out he was sleeping with ten women behind my back before he broke up with me and took 'our' apartment. Although jokes on him, he's gotten three of those women pregnant and is on the hook for child support now." she said with a wicked laugh. "Speaking of... your goddaughter Angel sent you this."

Natalia reached into her blazer pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper with a very crude child's sketch of the Erebus. "Nick must have had a rendering padd of the Erebus out, she drew this. Pretty good for a pre-schooler. She's got the Kellow artistic gene for sure."

[Rebecca Talon]

Rebecca smiled, "She is talented I'll give her that. Of course when I was her age I was drawing unicorns and rainbows. Yes, I was that annoying little girl. Pink bows, dolls and the whole nine yards."

[Natalia Ryder-Singh]

"I'm still that annoying little girl. You've seen my closet." Natalia said with a laugh. "Oh she's into the whole Princess thing too. That may have been my doing. When you're the 'single pretty aunt' you kinda have to. Jenny keeps giving her medical toy sets. That girl isn't going to be a doctor, at least to people. She's going to be like you and Nick and me. She's a creative. Livvy on the other hand, she's her mother's daughter. Tough and takes no shit." she winced. "Something we sometimes both have to remember to do. Although I like what you called that one Admiral that told you the Erebus was cancelled."

Natalia sighed and looked at her padds. "I still think we can get it built. Boeing's got a lot of excitement toward it, been a long time since Starfleet had a through deck carrier with a fighter focus. Sovereigns have big shuttle bays, but you can't take in and launch fighters like the Erebus could."

[Rebecca Talon]

Rebecca shrugged, "It's a first. At least as far as I know. 22nd and early 23rd centuries are not my expertise. I get the argument. I really do. This war is going very badly. Especially after the complete butt kicking we got at the Second Battle of Chintoka, and the Breen attack on Earth. Starfleet needs ships, and they need trusted designs. But, if we are going to use fighter wings, we need a support system for those fighters, and none of the ship's currently in service fulfill that function adequately." She sighed, "But not all is lost... yet anyway. Nick is going to get Scotty to talk to the Old Lady. If Nick, Scotty and T'ver can't get Starfleet to reconsider nobody can."

[Natalia Ryder-Singh]

"T'Ver and Scotty are able to convince anyone of anything... well except me, I wouldn't accept a commission. I'm just not military minded, but I am a designer and I would rather support you folks in uniform than wear one myself. I also like the flexibility I have, even my producers don't seem to mind if I tell them I need to work on some other project. Just gives them more time to beef up what we already filmed." Natalia said as she looked at the MSD. "Speaking of beefing up... you know... if we put another layer right here..." she expanded the view on the side monitor. "We can get rid of that shudder in the launch rail. I think it's because that's where the curve in the hull makes the side supports a bit less firm, but we put another layer, we'll get rid of it. It just came to me when I was in the shower and I was looking at my shampoo bottle."

[Rebecca Talon]

Rebecca looked over and nodded, "Yeah, that could work."

[Natalia Ryder-Singh]

"I'll have to flirt a little but... you know those fighters you've been drooling over. I think I can get you them at cost. We really do need to get that launch system set up and working so we can test it on actual fighters. After all, this proof of concept has legs, it just needs to get built. And I think the brass need to realize that they're going to need something like this sooner than later. Dominion is just one threat out there. The Borg are always looming and who knows who may try to take advantage of the aftermath. That's providing the Dominion doesn't win this..."