Loading Begins (Part 1)

Posted on Wed Oct 22nd, 2025 @ 11:29pm by Commander Eila Juutilainen 'Illu' & Lieutenant Commander Lurath, Son of Grogori & Captain Mikoto Misaka & Lieutenant JG Kenneth Hunt & Lieutenant JG Erskin Mon
Edited on on Wed Oct 22nd, 2025 @ 11:32pm

1,211 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Preparations

After consulting the master systems displays and locating where all the Ermiana's cargo holds were located, Eila had decided that the most optimal place to load the weapons would be in cargo bays 7 through 12 located on deck 11. Those locations offered multiple benefits- for one, they were still located within the saucer section. So, in the unlikely event that the stardrive section were to take damage, the munitions couldn't get jostled and start a chain reaction that would destroy the ship.

Being located lower down in the saucer section also had the benefit of not being the obvious choice. Bays 1 through 6 up on deck 4 were higher up in the saucer section. Not only would munitions being stored there come up more readily if the ship were to be scanned, but the bays' location placed them right in the middle of habitable decks where people not only worked, but lived and slept as well. In the interest of keeping everyone on the ship safe, storing munitions near where most of the crew slept was simply not an option.

The cargo bays down in the stardrive section were also a bad place to store munitions, given that that particular section of the Ermiana would be targeted in any attempt to cripple the ship. If a lucky hit were to land in one of those cargo holds when they were full of munitions, it would spark a chain reaction that would cause catastrophic damage to, if not total destruction of the ship.

Having gone over her justifications for selecting this location to store the munitions with Commander Lurath, Eila had ordered Lieutenants Mon and Hunt to configure cargo bays 7 through 12 to receive their special cargo, and had arrived in Bay 7 to personally oversee the beginning of this critical process:

"Ermiana, this is Operations control Starbase 375. We're ready to start loading the first shipments of cargo when you're ready." The voice of a young man came through the comm.

Standing at the control console for the primary cargo bay, Lieutenant Erskin Mon was checking over the final preparations. Tapping the control, "Control this is Ermiana, please standby." Looking up from the controls, "Final thoughts before I authorize transfer?"

"All non-essential cargo from Bays seven through twelve have been safely relocated to other bays?" Eila requested a confirmation that her orders had been carried out.

The Trill listened intently for the answer so that he could authorize the materials transfer.

"Lieutenant?" Eila asked again, waiting for the confirmation from Mon or Hunt that her orders had been carried out.

"Apologies, Captain, we're ready down here," Lieutenant Mon answered. Tapping the appropriate button, "Control, this is Ermiana, please begin transfer when ready."

"We're ready down here as well," Hunt spoke up.

The cargo bay doors opened as Lurath stepped through. He was in uniform and, for a change, his hair was hanging loose behind his head. The Half Klingon was also sporting a slight scar on the side of his right cheek. As he approached Mon, he gave the Lieutenant a nod, before looking to the PADD in his hand. "Did I miss anything important?"

"Not as much as you'd think," the Trill answered as he typed on the control console. "We're just beginning the cargo transfer now. Things are going as planned," he left out that the Captain had to confirm twice. Best to leave that out for now.

Lurath let out a slight grunt before saying. "May I confide in you with something, Lieutenant?"

Mon, who had been comparing the reports of what they were supposed to receive with the AI of the Ermiana's computer system, glanced up from his datapad. He wondered if he admitted that he hadn't really been paying much attention, as he was focused on the cargo transfer, or if he should pretend that he'd been paying attention. The symbiont was sharing its own opinions and, due to its relative youth, Erskin was trying to ignore its counsel. He was curious though what the Security Chief was going to share.

He looked over to Erskin and said firmly. "A part of me feels we should trust in Starfleet and stick to their orders." Lurath crossed his arms over his chest and bared his teeth slightly. "However, the other part of me, the Klingon feels if these weapons are of great importance we should not be carrying them alone. One ship is a target. We should split the weapons between two or three ships. Adding protect from attack and securing, at the very least, a portion of the weapons still make it to their destination. Unless it is our purpose to lure them to us, we should not be traveling alone and with everything they need. This plan is... stupid." He let out a slight groan as he looked away again. "The peta'Q who came up with this plan should be thrown out of an airlock."

"I agree." Eila nodded. "In spite of everything we're doing to mitigate the risk, this whole assignment is one big risk. One ship hauling a bunch of weapons might work if it were a less conspicuous class. But, considering we're the same class as the former Federation flagship, it kinda paints a target on the entire class. I'll breathe easier once we get to Deep Space 9."

Lurath looked over to Eila and replied. "I can assure you, whether the former flagship was this class or another, will make no difference. Our class will only matter when it comes to strategy. I've seen many ship, both Starfleet and Klingon, brought down regardless of how much their crew boasted about their power or size." He looked away before adding. "A good strategy and cunning crew can take down any ship no matter the size with the right amount of information and patience. Still... we're vulnerable. I don't like it."

"Correct me if I'm wrong," the young Trill interjected, "but since you're the Security Chief isn't making sure we have a good strategy to combat that cunning opponent part of your job aboard the ship?" It was a bit more pointed a question than he'd meant for it to be.

Lurath immediately looked to Mon. A slight insulted looked on his face, however his Betazoid sense would quickly reveal there was no ill intent with the question. The insult look settled, although the feeling lingered a bit, as he replied firmly. "I would be glad to form a strategy and move it up the chain of command, but without the information gathered from our secret Intelligence Chief, I have nothing to work with. Starfleet Security records give me possible hostiles and safe routes, but that information isn't always up to date. I can prepare us for an attack. However, without the who and where they may possible be, a surprise attack could still catch us off guard."

The Trill typed on the datapad as he listened to the Security Chief. He commented, "I'm not a Security Officer, but couldn't we attach a probability to each of the potential threats to make a reasonable assumption of who the threats are? Cardassians, Dominion, Maquis, Nausicaans, Orions, Romulans," he paused before saying the last part, "Klingons." He quickly looked back down at his PADD.

To be continued...

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