Welcome Aboard

Posted on Saturday October 4, 2025 @ 3:00am by Lieutenant Commander Halli Bann Dr (PhD) & Lieutenant JG Ramat'iklan

1,146 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 1: A New Frontier
Location: XO's Office
Timeline: MD-02: Afternoon

After the staff briefing, Halli returned to her office. They would disembark soon, and she had to finalize staffing and duty rotations.

She was at her desk, looking through her messages from Command about such. They were getting a new crew member. Their Doctor. A Jem'hadar, no less. Interesting. She tapped her Comms.

=/\= Will Dr. Ramat'iklan please report to the XO's office? =/\=

She clicked off, and then sat back to wait a minute, placing the files neatly to the side.

=/\= Lieutenant Ramat'iklan speaking. I will be there in six minutes; I am currently attending to a patient who requires immediate treatment.=/\= The reply came back, crisp and without fanfare. That's what you get when asking a medical officer to take their attention away, then - the risk that they might be in the middle of something else that's arguably even more important than most other ship's business.

Five minutes. That's how long Ramat'iklan took to come up to her office. When he walked through the door at last, it was abundantly clear that he'd just made a valiant attempt at scrubbing his hands clean - though nonetheless, tiny flecks of what was most definitely some kind of blue blood remained on the cuff of his sleeve.

"I apologise for my tardiness, Commander. I was attending to an urgent case of a... badly injured arm." He stated, plainly, and honestly pretty deadpan for someone who'd just saved somebody from their own idiocy. Probably.

Halli nodded once.

"I understand," she said. "Have a seat! Anything to drink?" She said.

"No drink necessary, Commander. Thank you." Ramat'iklan sat stiffly, hands resting lightly on the arms of the chair.

"Just wanted to meet with you quickly, to welcome you aboard," she said. "I won't take too much of your time. You appear...busy," she said, noting the blood on his uniform.

"So. Medical. Great. We're just about to round out the Command team, then. Captain has tasked me with the onboarding stuff. Have you found your quarters yet?" She asked.

"My patient is in stable condition, Commander, and in the capable hands of sickbay staff. If there are any issues that arise they will handle it and notify me accordingly." Ramat'iklan stated plainly.

"As to my quarters. Yes, I have located them. Rest assured that they are quite adequate for my needs." He added with a nod. "Though I have asked Operations to remove the sunlamp for cold-blooded reptilian crew that was also included. I do not require it." Yep, he'd first come into his quarters to the sight of it installed across from his bed - as if whomever had outfitted his quarters had thought he was a Gorn, perhaps. Whatever the case, it was a mild bit of wasted space at best, and now that it was gone the room felt quite a bit bigger.

Halli simply nodded. "Well, I am glad they could accommodate you," she said. "Now, don't stand on ceremony here. I hate it," the Trill replied. "I am glad, though, that the patient is stable. We need as many hands as possible. We ship out tomorrow," she said. "So you've come right on time. Now, down to brass tacks. How do you see the CMO's role here?" She asked. Mostly, she was nosy. But she really did need to integrate the crew as best as possible. "I only ask because I want us to be a cohesive team, and I think that it's best if we can all share similar visions," she said, with a smile. "Later, we will have some get-togethers and such, but since our orders changed, we don't have time for the usual onboarding bashes and such," she explained.

"I view the Chief Medical Officer's role as one who is far more experienced and practised than I, and therefore far more qualified to guide and coordinate the rest of the department." Ramat'iklan replied plainly. "And so I place my trust in them."

"Great," she said. "I think you'll be assigned as the Assistant chief, at least for now. Do you think you can handle that sort of task?" She asked.

Her admission seemed to land with weight. Despite his still rather stony expression, there was a softening of the look in Ramat'iklan's eyes that suggested no small amount of surprise. Yes, even Jem'hadar can be surprised by some things, evidently.

"I-" Ramat'iklan swallowed thickly. He looked mildly embarrassed, poor genetically engineered lizard man.

"-my view on the role of the Chief Medical Officer remains as is. To coordinate and guide with my own experience - by showing that I am capable of doing most of, if not all of, what those under me must do, and more. To lead by example." Ramat'iklan finished.

Halli smiled lightly. "Excellent," she said. "Then I think we can work together well. Because that is my vision, as well. We-myself and the Captain-aren't looking for perfect little Starfleet officers. We're looking for leaders, and we're looking for a crew that can coalesce into a family. It will take time, I know, but that's the goal." She paused a beat.

"Is there anything I can do to make your first few days easier? Are you finding your way around the ship ok? I have an open door policy here. If anyone ever needs anything at all, you can come to me," she said. "I do have my son onboard with us, but he's a good kid and understands that I need to work..." Halli was working on not just divulging her entire life's story so she stopped before she said more. "Anyway. Except for 6-7 PM, when I dedicate to family time, I am here." She left it at that.

"The ship is easy enough to navigate, Commander. I am finding little difficulty in traversing it." Ramat'iklan replied. "Elsewise I am adapting fairly well." Following a brief pause he added, with a hint of wry humor, "At least here no one has tried to kill me yet."

Halli shrugged lightly.

"Well, that's good news," she said. "Why do you think they'd want to kill you? You're wearing a Starfleet uniform. I admit it's...new to have Jem'Hedar with us but as far as I am concerned, you've earned your spot here. If anyone disagrees, they can take it up with Command," she said. "And come to me if anything pops up. I'll take care of it. Any thing else?" She asked.

Oh, she had no idea. Ramat'iklan declined to mention who exactly might want to do just that - it wasn't relevant to the current conversation after all.

"No, ma'am." He replied, plainly. "But rest assured I will sound off promptly if anything... goes wrong."

"Excellent. You're free to go; I've taken enough of your time. Thanks for coming by!" She said. She stood up to see him out and into the corridor.

 

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