Chapter 3 - Drydock Three
Aboard the drydock facility, Jack and Mei-Wan each held a PADD containing a copy of their orders. They'd received them the moment they stepped onto the thirteenth level of Drydock Three. Dock Security scanned their DNA, tested their molecular structure, and gave them each a retinal scan. And Jack was certain one of the security guards was a Betazoid who had done a surface reading of their thoughts. Security during the Dominion War had not been this involved.
Their luggage, what there was of it, had been sent ahead of them and was supposedly on its way to their quarters. Jack knew it was more than likely on its way to the other side of the Galaxy by now.
Finally Jack and Mei-Wan found a map of the drydock facility in what appeared to be the main concourse. Hundreds of people walked back and forth through the fifty foot wide walkway. Along one wall was a huge set of windows showing the dark side of the gas giant the Shipyard orbited. Occasionally flashes of Earth-sized lightning arced across the atmosphere of the mammoth planet.
Jack turned to Mei-Wan. "There was supposed to be someone from the dock to escort us to the ship."
Mei-Wan smiled. "Anxious?"
Jack grinned. "A little."
Mei-Wan glanced up at the huge map.
Destracted by his anxiety, Jack noticed a group of six maintenance workers, none of them taller than four feet, walk past arguing amongst themselves. He watched them until they sauntered around a corner.
"It looks like we can get aboard four levels down. There's a boarding tube that connects to the Port Side Gangway," Mei-Wan said.
Jack turned back to the map. "That sounds good."
They walked toward a collection of six turbolift doors at the far end of the concourse.
***
The Dock Supervisor had called Commander Lak Negev ten minutes ago and informed him they were unable to have Captain McCall escorted to the Chamberlain and suggested if he wanted his captain to get aboard anytime soon he had better send someone to go find McCall himself. Idiot human bureaucrat, Negev thought. Bureaucrats of any species were bad enough, but Negev always thought that humans were the worst of the whole terrible lot. On his homeworld of Andoria, they kept their bureaucrats in line and away from any real power.
Negev looked down the long line of boarding personnel lined up at the Port Side Gangway. He decided this was the most likely place Captain McCall would try to board the ship. Just to be safe, he had sent officers to the other boarding areas to search there for their new Captain.
Captain McCall's service record impressed Negev. The only point of concern he found was the notation that his former Exec aboard the Beaumont had refused to the point of resigning to be McCall's First Officer again. Negev had tried to contact Commander Harold E. Darnell, but the man would not return his messages. Perhaps Darnell had been through too much in the Glazyalan prison camp.
Commander Negev saw two humans step up to the back of the long line and recognized one of them as his new captain. The Andorian walked quickly past the others waiting and approached Jack and Mei-Wan.
"Captain McCall, Commander Lak Negev, your Executive Officer," Negev said.
Jack extended his hand which Negev heartily accepted.
"A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Negev," Jack replied. He turned to Mei-Wan. "My wife, Lieutenant Mei-Wan McCall."
Negev turned and nodded to her. "Lieutenant."
"Commander," Mei-Wan said.
Negev took a deep breath. "My apologies, sir, but there seems to be a communication problem between sections of the Drydock Commander's brain. I regret there was no one to meet you when you arrived."
Both Jack and Mei-Wan grinned as Negev continued.
"If you'll come with me sir, I will get you past the security check-in up ahead. There is an admiral from Starfleet Command waiting for you in your Ready Room."
"I was hoping the captain wouldn't have to stand in line to get on his own ship."
Jack and Mei-Wan stepped forward, but Commander Negev didn't move. "Captain?"
"Yes?"
"I'm afraid that the container your wife is holding will have to go through the security check point."
Jack and Mei-Wan both looked at the juice container she held in her hands. An amused look came to Mei-Wan's face.
"Go on ahead, Jack. I'll meet you later in our quarters."
"You sure?" Jack asked.
Mei-Wan nodded. "Yeah. I'll be fine."
Jack kissed her and then turned following Commander Negev who had already started to walk back toward the gangway. Jack looked at the personnel standing in the line. This is my crew, he thought. Well, at least a part of it.
Negev stopped at the entrance to the ship and spoke to a security officer who looked up from a display. Negev and the officer exchanged a few words and then the young lieutenant came around his desk and walked up to Jack.
"Sorry about this, sir, but I have orders directly from Admiral Turgidson himself to check the genetic pattern of everyone coming aboard."
"Carry on, Lieutenant."
The nervous security officer quickly waved a tricorder past Jack and then walked back to his station and touched a few controls. Several moments later, his display flashed various screens full of information. He looked up and smiled.
"You are cleared to go aboard, sir. And sir?" the Officer asked.
Jack stopped. "Yes?"
The officer smiled wide. "Welcome aboard, Captain McCall."
Jack grinned and followed Negev into the corridor of the Federation starship, U.S.S. Chamberlain.
Jack took a deep breath and held it as he walked for the first time onto his ship. Negev led him down an expansive corridor with a color scheme friendlier than most of the ships Jack could remember. He let the air out of his lungs and took his first breath aboard the new ship.
A thousand things rushed into his mind-- the heavy smell of newness that seemed a part of every manufactured item mankind had ever produced, the mild coolness of the air, the soft hum of the lights above him, the low pulsing heartbeat of the Chamberlain's power systems, and something new. He barely noticed it, but it was there. An organic smell, almost a taste. The only thing his mind could even begin to relate it to was the smell of honey on a bright spring day. He couldn't tell if it came from the carpet, the wall, or the life support system.
Commander Negev turned and entered a turbolift to his right. Jack followed him in.
"Deck One," Negev said to the lift.
The doors closed and the turbolift accelerated up into the heart of the Chamberlain.
***
Mei-Wan looked toward the front of the line and frowned. It seemed the same length it had been ten minutes before. She glanced down at the container of juice Jan Stuart had given her and smiled. It was worth it, she thought. Jack needs to open his culinary horizons and this juice will be the first step.
"I can't believe this!"
Mei-Wan turned to the source of that statement and found a very irritated female officer with blonde hair, wearing the rank of lieutenant commander. The woman shook her head. "This is absurd! There are almost two hundred people in this line!"
She turned to Mei-Wan. "How long have you been here, Lieutenant?"
There was something about this woman troubling Mei-Wan, but she couldn't figure out what.
"About ten to fifteen minutes, ma'am."
The woman folded her arms across her chest. "The Federation will fall into oblivion with organizational skills like this."
Mei-Wan grinned. "Hopefully not in our lifetimes."
A smile fought its way across the woman's face. She turned to Mei-Wan.
"Lieutenant Commander Melissa Vargas."
"Lieutenant Mei-Wan Mc…"
A Security Officer walked past them interrupting, "Attention. Please have the PADD you received when you came aboard the drydock ready when you reach the check-in point. It will speed things up for everyone."
Mei-Wan looked at the PADD in her hand. She was ready.
Melissa Vargas held hers up to the passing security officer who appeared less than impressed. Vargas turned back to Mei-Wan as five more members of the Chamberlain's crew took their place in line.
"I was hoping the operations officer wouldn't have to stand in line to get on the ship," Vargas said.
"You're the Ops Officer?" Mei-Wan asked.
Vargas smiled wide. "Yes, and I was lucky to get it. My last captain and I didn't exactly get along and I was afraid my career was headed into the garbage dump. Two months ago when I got my orders the only person more surprised than me was my former CO." She lifted an eyebrow and grinned devilishly. "I loved his reaction."
That was it! Mei-Wan finally noticed that this outgoing woman had the upswept eyebrows of a Vulcan. She had never met a Vulcan with blonde hair before and certainly not one with the obvious emotional makeup of Commander Vargas.
"I was so glad to get off that ship, but getting second officer on the Chamberlain was more than I could have wished for."
Mei-Wan nodded. "It's quite a ship."
Vargas grinned. "Getting an Oceana Class assignment was great. Getting the Second Officer's slot was better yet, but when I heard Jack McCall was the CO I thought I had died and gone to the Q Continuum."
Mei-Wan tried not to smile, but she couldn't stop herself.
Vargas continued. "You don't know how lucky we are having him as our captain."
Jack McCall's wife could no longer resist. "You think he's that great?"
Vargas looked at Mei-Wan with surprise. "Are you kidding? He fought harder for his crew in that prisoner camp than probably any captain in recent history would have. He does what's right, and throws the consequences to the wind."
Vargas lowered her voice. "Too many captains see their crews as expendable these days. I'll sacrifice my life for a planet of people, the Federation's existence, or even a small colony of aliens I've never met before, but the idea of dying just so some diplomat can put a star next to his name makes me sick. There were actually a couple of those idiots who'd negotiated with the Glazyalans who thought it would have been better for the Federation, politically, if the Beaumont's crew had all died and been forgotten in that prison camp."
"I know. I heard that a couple of weeks ago."
Vargas grinned. "Captain McCall won't ever sell this crew out like that."
Mei-Wan did her best not to react.
Vargas looked at her. "You don't think he's a great captain?"
"He's okay, I guess."
Vargas shook her head. "That's all? You got something against the guy?"
"Well, he could do a better job of picking up his socks and keeping track of his rank pins and comm badge, but he can be really romantic."
Melissa Vargas stood confused for several moments and then smirked. "You're Mei-Wan McCall."
A grin came to Mei-Wan's face. "A pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant Commander."
Vargas laughed more heartily than Mei-Wan would have expected from most humans let alone someone who appeared to be at least part Vulcan.
"You know, you could have stopped me at any time," Vargas said.
"I like hearing people praise Jack."
"I'm glad I didn't say anything about wanting to date the guy."
"Oh, I would have said something then," Mei-Wan replied.
Vargas pointed to the container Mei-Wan carried.
"The captain's personal brew?"
"No, it’s a gift from the Chief Medical Officer of the Providence. It's Kaferian Apples and Jaldeza Fruit juice."
Vargas smiled wide. "I guess we're going to have a very happy CO."
"What?" asked Mei-Wan.
"That juice is from Risa and it's supposed to cause… well, certain effects on the human libido."
"Thanks, Jan," Mei-Wan murmured.
***
Jack McCall and his new executive officer exited the turbolift into a large conference room. Windows at the back of the room gave Jack a rear view of the ship where various shuttles and workbees finished up the last of their work on his ship.
"This is the main conference room. The bridge is through that door and down the corridor. This door leads up to your Ready Room," said Negev.
Jack nodded as he looked about.
"Though this is technically the second deck on the ship, its still listed as Deck One, with your Ready Room listed as Deck Zero. I'll be down in my office on Deck Two if you need me, sir."
"I'd like to meet the senior officers here at 0700," Jack said.
Negev nodded.
"Any word yet on our Tactical Officer?" Jack asked.
"I believe that was one of the topics the admiral wanted to discuss with you, Captain."
Jack entered the door to his Ready Room. He took a deep breath and prepared himself. Admirals never brought good news.
His Ready Room was larger than most luxury suites Jack had seen at vacation resorts. The forward section had a chair that looked out a wide window giving an unobstructed view into space. Jack shook his head in disbelief.
"Something else, isn't it, Jack."
Jack spun about and saw sitting behind his desk, not Admiral Turgidson who he had expected, but the most devilish grin to ever sit on the face of a Starfleet Officer. Admiral Christopher Hancock rose to his feet and walked over to Jack.
"Admiral, what in the world are you doing all the way out here?"
"Some idiot insisted I come along to see his kid off," replied Hancock.
A door next to the desk Hancock had been sitting at opened and out walked another admiral, a man who looked like an older version of Jack.
"Chris, you've got to see this bathroom. It's…" Admiral Jeremiah McCall looked up and smiled. "Jack, how are you son?"
Jack walked up and warmly hugged his father who returned it with the type of bear hug only a father could give.
"Dad, it's great to see you. I should have guessed you'd be here with Admiral Hancock."
Hancock smiled. "He threatened to tell all the dirt he had on me if I didn't come along."
"You kidding? I'm saving those files for a special day," Jeremiah said. He laughed as he took a step back and looked at his son. "You're looking good. Your mother sends her love."
Jack nodded as Jeremiah looked around the room.
"Where's my beautiful daughter-in-law at?"
"Probably still in the line down at the Port Side Gangway."
Jeremiah shook his head. "You'll never keep a woman like her if you do things like that."
Hancock took a step forward. "Why don't you go rescue her. Give Jack and I a few minutes to talk."
"I'll have to ask Mei-Wan why she puts up with my foolish son."
Jack laughed.
"And send that other officer in too, would you, Jeremiah?" Hancock asked.
Jack's father walked down the entryway out of the Ready Room.
Hancock pointed to the chair behind the desk. "Try it out. You've earned it."
Jack put his hand on the back of the chair and felt the texture of the its covering. It felt almost too soft to the touch. He turned it around and sat down. Jack took a deep breath and relaxed. He watched Hancock as the admiral sat in a chair across from him.
"You know much about the Kel-j'na Region?" Hancock asked.
Jack thought a moment. "Isn't that about thirty thousand light years away, deep in the Alpha Quadrant?"
Hancock nodded. "We've been sending ships and colonists there for the last two years through the Tartarus Wormhole. We've established over fifty colonies and a number of diplomatic outposts and there are several worlds already seeking Federation membership."
Jack listened knowing there was another part still to come. Hancock handed him a PADD.
"I'm sending you there on a mission."
"We're supposed to head out on a shakedown cruise."
"You can go through shakedown procedures on the two week trip to the Tartarus Sector. Any major problems and you can come back here," Hancock stated.
Jack touched a control on the PADD and looked over the information scrolling on the display. "The planet Hel'yra?"
"Its about three weeks travel after you enter the Kel-j'na Region."
"Investigate and survey." Jack looked at Hancock. "Any reason this particular planet is the one you want us to check out?"
"We have received a request to investigate it."
"Who made the request?"
"There are some things you're better off not knowing about."
Jack frowned. "I've known you for almost twenty years, Admiral. I think you should be able to trust me by now."
"It's not a matter of trust."
Jack looked down at his desk trying to decide if he should push the issue any further.
Hancock rose from his seat. "You may receive a communication asking you to meet those who made the request. If contacted do exactly as the message instructs you."
Hancock walked toward the exit. "You're the only one I do trust to do this, Jack." Just before reaching the first step, Hancock stopped. "By the way, I've assigned to your crew the man who discovered the Tartarus Wormhole. He knows the Kel-j'na region like the back of his hand."
Jack stood up to protest, but held off when he heard footsteps coming up the entry. An officer entered the Ready Room.
Jack McCall smiled wide as he walked toward the grinning man in his late fifties wearing the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Hancock stood near the man. "Jack, I present your Tactical Officer, Hank Evans."
"If it isn't Jack McCall," Evans said. He laughed as Jack stopped in front of him.
Jack offered his hand to Hank Evans. "It's been what, ten, eleven years?"
"Seems like a lifetime," Hank said as he shook Jack's hand. "Would you look at you! Who'd have thought that the snot nosed kid who came aboard the Bonifacio would ever make captain!"
Jack laughed. "I thought you retired."
"Tell that to Admiral Knucklehead over here."
Hancock frowned. "Hank was destitute, no friends. I felt sorry for the guy."
"In your dreams, Chris." Evans turned to Jack. "What do you think of this guy, kid? I open up a whole new part of the Galaxy and this is the thanks I get."
Hancock smiled and glanced at the chronometer on Jack's desk. "Well, I have a ship to catch. Knowing your father, he's already grabbed the window seat on my shuttle." Hancock looked at Evans. "Take care of him, Hank."
"Aye sir," Evans replied.
The admiral went down the entry way leaving Jack and Hank Evans alone. Jack motioned over to the desk.
"Discovered a wormhole. My, my, quite the explorer you've become."
Hank frowned as he sat in a seat in front of Jack's desk. "I wasn't exploring at the time. I was actually running for my life from a couple of Norgan Traders. I noticed a space-time disruption on my sensors and thought I might be able to lose them in it. Next thing I knew, I was thirty thousand light years across the Quadrant."
"Norgan Traders? A little rough aren't they?" Jack asked as he sat in the chair behind the desk.
"They're not so bad as long as you don't intrude in their trade negotiations."
"And you intruded in their trade negotiations."
Hank smirked. "They decided to take it that way."
Jack laughed and looked closely at Hank. He had been Jack's Department head when he came aboard the Bonifacio as an Ensign. They'd gone through a lot together. There was no one in the Galaxy, aside from Mei-Wan, that Jack trusted more than Hank Evans.
"When did you rejoin Starfleet? You told me you'd have to be dead before you'd even think of being part of this again."
"I sort of got talked into it during the war. With my contacts and connections, especially on Kel-j'na, Starfleet Intelligence thought I was useful."
"But the war ended, why not go back to the life you had?"
Hank leaned forward. "I was about to when Hancock came and asked me to go looking for you."
"I thought Starfleet had officially listed the Beaumont as destroyed."
Hank laughed. "When does Chris Hancock ever pay attention to anything 'official'?"
Jack nodded.
Hank took a breath. "I was close too. I knew those Glazyalan back-stabbers had taken your crew somewhere near their home system. Another month and I would have found you." Hank grinned. "But you couldn't wait. You had to break out on your own."
"Sorry about that. I never was the type to play the damsel in distress."
"I hear you're married. The woman's got to be either a saint or insane."
Jack stood up from his chair. "Why don't we go see if your security officers are still keeping her imprisoned in that long line outside the Port Gangway?"
"My transfer isn't official for another hour. They're your security officers, Captain," laughed Evans as he stood to his feet.
Jack chuckled as he and Hank made their way down the steps out of the Ready Room. He hoped Mei-Wan wasn't too furious at him for being stuck in that line.
