Subject: Grail: "Unexplored Space" - Roakin' the Boat

1st Lt. J'hon Roak walked through the corridors of the Grail,

soaking up the atmosphere and getting a feel for the ship and its crew.

There seemed to be a lot of activity, despite the fact the ship was at

General Quarter's. There was also a certain indeterminable tension in the

air, and a hard edge to the crew members he passed. Like they had been

undergone some extreme ordeal. Or were about to.

J'hon made his way to his quarters, nodding pleasantly to the

people he passed. By force of habit, he sketched a mental map of the path

he took, taking special notice of obscure side passages, Jeffrey Tubes,

and other hideaways. He reached the door of his new quarters and entered

cautiously.

"Lights."

The lights were a little bright for J'hon's preference. "Computer, lights at ½ intensity." The room dimmed considerably. In the past, J'hon's teammates had often complained that he must have spent half his life in a cave, not knowing the ironic truth to the statement.

Sitting in the middle of the room was a pair of small suitcases.

Some on-the-ball functionary had pulled his personal belongings out of

storage and delivered them to his quarters. He rummaged through one of

the cases and pulled out Lily, a well-worn polycarbon push-dagger, which

he tucked into his boot.

J'hon's stomach growled, reminding him that he hadn't eaten in a

while, since they didn't allow you to eat anything 24 hours before

cryostasis. He walked to the replicator. "Replicator, I would like two

pieces of moba fruit, four blueberry muffins, and a large cup of Jumja

Tea." The items materialized like magic. J'hon picked up the food and

examined it as he carried it to the table. Even years after leaving the

backwaters of Bajor, he was still fascinated by this wonderful Federation

technology.

He set down the food and bowed his head, offering up a silent

prayer of thanks to the Prophets. While he ate, he took out his personal

PADD and downloaded the ship's logs onto it. It was going to take some

studying before he was completely up to speed on the Grail's voyage thus

far. He also noticed that he had totally missed the Peldar Festival. He

would have to arrange for a private ceremony in way of penance.

After eating, J'hon shrugged on a Marine cargo vest over his

jumpsuit. He liked having more pockets than the regulation Marine uniform

provided. He took the two remaining muffins and slipped them into spare

pockets, subconsciously storing emergency rations should this be his last

meal for a while, a habit he had formed growing up under The Occupation.

He pulled several items out of his luggage to decorate the room.

Incense pots took their place on a small table. A hand-crafted wood frame

went on a shelf, displaying his most prized possession, a matched Daisho

composed of well-worn Daito and Shoto swords. The hilts were ivory,

carved with images of ancient dragons and forgotten heros. The polished

black scabbards concealed blades of layered steel, honed to

razor-sharpness. In the corner of the room he leaned his wooden Bokken

and bamboo Shinai. J'hon carried the rest of his meager belongings into

the bedroom and quickly stored them away.

He returned to his PADD and looked over Omega Company's roster.

It looked like a competent team, although with an inordinate number of

malcontents and rogues. The commander of Squad One was a grizzled, old

Chief Warrant Officer by the name of Jebediah Kirby III. J'hon was

anxious to meet the rest of Omega Company, but until the GQ ended, he

would have to settle for his XO.

He stepped in front of a view screen and addressed the computer.

"Please patch me through to Chief Jebediah Kirby III."

Kirby's short, fitful nap was interrupted by the chirping of the

communications system. Jerking awake, he rubbed his eyes, then tapped the

'receive' key. "Kirby here," he said to the face of a young Bajoran.

"Chief Kirby, my name is Lieutenant J'hon Roak. I will be taking

over command of Omega Company with your assistance. I have just been

awakened from cryostasis, so I was hoping you could provide a report on

our current situation and the disposition of Omega Company."

Kirby straightened in his chair. "Of course, sir," he said.

"Currently, under the General Quarters order, we are only able to meet for

approximately five hours per day. However, we are assisting the Grail's

security forces whenever our other duties are not infringed upon. The head

of security, Lieutenant Logan Castle, is a former Marine himself, and,

more specifically, one of my former disciples. However," said Kirby,

realizing that he was straying from the point, "I've kept the men in a

ready state. Scuttlebutt says that we'll be called into action once we

reach the planet Kerestia, but the Captain or the Lt.Maj. would be more

suited to tell you about that than I would, sir. As for the detachment's

disposition, well, we're ready to shit lightning and crap thunder, if the

Lieutenant doesn't mind the use of a colorful metaphor." Kirby almost

regretted the words as soon as they left his lips, but regret wasn't

something he entertained. Hopefully, this officer wouldn't be a tech nut

who was too high and mighty to work out with his men every once in a

while.

J'hon smiled. Kirby reminded him of an old sergeant he had once

served with. "Not at all, Chief. I think you'll find me pretty relaxed

when it comes to formalities. And call me J'hon if you're so inclined.

So, has Omega been involved in any recent engagements?"

"Thank you for your candor, sir, but if you don't mind I'll stick

to Lieutenant. Old habits die hard. As to your second question, sir, we

have already been in action. The detachment went on an away mission when

we were attacked by a Romulan Warbird. We were used in a mission to

procure the Romulan's cloaking device. We were successful, although we

lost one of our snipers."

"Are there any personnel problems I need to be aware of?"

"Not anymore, sir," replied Kirby as his normally loud voice

dropped in volume. "There was a double agent onboard the Warbird,

reportedly working for SFI. He was brought back with us once we had the

Cloaking device, but a few days later, he turned on us, killing our former

Lieutenant and making an attempt upon the life of a doctor before he

himself was incapacitated."

"Incapacitated?" questioned Roak.

"The Emergency Medical Hologram intervened and cut the Romulan's

spinal cord with a laser scalpel."

"Interesting. Anything else?"

"Not at this time, sir."

"Well, Chief, thanks for the sitrep. I look forward to working closely

with you. Let the men know that I'm online, and when it comes to shitting

thunder, I've got the runs. J'hon, out."

Lt. J'hon Roak

CWO Jebediah Kirby III