Missing Pieces

Posted on Thu Nov 17th, 2022 @ 8:53pm by Lieutenant Etan tar-Lexros

Mission: Evacuation
Location: Science Labs
Timeline: ???
Tags: operations,science

Etan had looked high and low through the labs where Paige had reported that her commbadge had gone missing. While some Operations officers might have been annoyed to be taken away from prep work for a high-pressure Away mission and an incursion into enemy territory, Etan didn't show that at all. Instead, he applied himself to the task of finding the small device with the same determination he would when hunting down potential failures in a shuttlecraft's hull. Tricorder in hand, he'd swept entire rooms, looking through them carefully. Though he did wonder, in the back of his mind, just how the woman could have lost the device. It seemed so ingrained in his mind that the commbadge was part of the proof of his service in Starfleet that losing it seemed outside the likelihood. But he had to remind himself, Miss Bryant wasn't a Starfleet officer, she'd never been through the Academy, or been told there would be demerits if she didn't have her badge on at all times. She'd never had a stickler for regs as a Captain before this. On the other hand, Etan wasn't unaware of the presence of civilians on Starfleet vessels - he'd been one, since his parents were in the Diplomatic Corps.

Still, he walked back into the woman's officer and shook his head with just a bit of self-directed frustration. "Miss Bryant, I apologize, but could you show me again where you last had your commbadge?"

"It was before I went to clean out lab 14, and I had it here at the office desk." Her voice was sharp with frustration, mostly at herself for mislaying the damn thing. "I had it in my wrist holder, but I am not yet used to wearing it."

The woman's sharp tone was jarring to Etan, but he resisted the urge to remind her that he was trying to help. Even if she was angry at his inability to locate the misplaced device, he couldn't let that get in the way of his actual job - finding the missing device. He shrugged at her comment about being unused to wearing it. "I have been told that this happens to first-year Cadets as well at the Academy. My personal experience is different. Can you explain your procedure for cleaning out the lab, Miss?"

Her head jerked up at the comparison to a first year cadet and shaking her hair Paige snorted. "Right the protocol. "Twirling one curl around her finger absently, she spoke "Normally, a standard decontamination cycle is done on the pods and lab surfaces. Then depending on what the previous occupant was using for their experimentation, additional protocols are used. Some of the stasis pods and aquariums/terrariums are quite noxious."

Etan nodded when she started talking about the bio labs. He wasn't intimately familiar with Science department protocol - but he'd realized that needed to change. With Paige being a civilian, other members of the senior staff would need to fill in the official parts of her job. Being a newly-minted Lieutenant, the true weight and meaning of 'Starship Operations' had just begun to sink in. "I've been told that's true, Miss. I don't have first-hand knowledge, as I've not yet had reason to visit this ship's bio labs. I know some of the maintenance staff are deployed in this section; if you need help in the future, please, ask one of my team." He smiled thinly. "I've found that they, um, 'don't bite', if you get the meaning. Assisting others and performing basic maintenance on the ship is their job." He started thinking about the ways the woman could have lost the device, and in the moment of silence, he had a small moment of brilliance. "Miss Bryant, which hand did you use to reach into the tanks?" Given that she tended to wear her commbadge in a wrist holder rather than the standard placement in the location of the human heart, if she reached into a tank and scraped it against something, it would be possible for the commbadge to fall out.

"I am extremely tight sided dominant, so I reach in with my right. I wear my comm badge and scanners on my left. " She gestured to the bracelet that had a small display screen and removable stylus and scanner.

Etan nodded. "Well, that removes one of the concerns."

"I did throw myself away from the tanks because of some noxious fumes that were erupting from it. I hit the ground fair hard.".

When she mentioned that, he thought for a moment - there was the piece of the puzzle he'd been missing. "Well, I hope you've been to Sickbay in the meantime. Your safety is more important than a commbadge. But..." He thought for a moment, bringing up a display on his PADD of the layout of the lab. "If you struck the ground at this point, with your left hand, then it could have scattered. It may be under one of the other tanks - have you had anyone move the tanks against the opposite wall?" He highlighted the three most likely tanks in red, showing her the display.

"Uhm, no i have not." Paige answered the inquiry without responding to the comment about going to sickbay. That would simply have delayed her from her duties, and she wasn't injured. She was sore where she'd struck the ground but not injured. "I wasn't injured in the process, else I would have done."

"Understood. I trust that you know your own needs." Etan nodded and considered where the device could have scattered to. Rather than try to run another remote scan, he'd have to go in and actually find the device by eye. Thankfully, he hadn't yet succumbed to the optical disability that ran in his family. The moment it happened, he'd be on a list for a VISOR and the matching implants. The idea of that upset him, but he had more pressing matters now. He pulled out a mask and goggles, putting the safety equipment on to go into the lab - if the fumes were that bad, he'd need protective gear. With that, he knelt in front of one of the tanks which would have been behind Paige's left hand, and pulled a flashlight off his belt. A moment later, he was both pleased and frustrated - there was absolutely a glint of metal, which was likely the commbadge, but getting it out would be difficult, since neither he nor Miss Bryant were particularly strong. He knelt, glaring at the device that was now frustratingly out of reach. "Miss Bryant, I believe I've located the device. If not, I've found something of similar size." He thought for a moment about how he'd get it without moving things. Normally, he'd grab a long-handled spanner and bring it out that way; but he didn't bring one of those down with him - he wasn't in the habit of carrying heavy tools around without a job to be done. After a quick scan of the biolab inventories, he found something that would (hopefully) work. "Would it be possible for you to bring a 'snake hook' over? If at all possible, I would prefer it to be without a snake."

"One Snakeless snake hook coming up" Paige giggled as she walked to a small cabinet and screwed two pieces together and added a handle. She had a hook ended piece about 18 inches long and handed it to the man with a little flourish. "Will that do?"

Etan nodded as he politely took the device from her, managing a smile. It was time to get to work, and that always made things easier for him. "I sincerely hope so." With that honest answer out of the way, he crouched a bit lower and swept the hook slowly, his other hand with the flashlight following. It took a few minutes, but slowly the commbadge started to get into range. The crash to the floor had done a number on it - the backplate was loose and the battery was out of socket. That would explain succinctly why he couldn't find the thing; it had deactivated itself. Of course, that made it seem (to him) like Paige was absolutely underselling her fall; but that was because he thought of a commbadge as 'belonging' on a person's chest. To have the device fall off like this from that position meant something had gone gravely wrong.

When he had it fully in hand, he sat back, pulled out his tricorder, and looked over the readings from the device. "I believe when I reset the battery and reattach the backplate, the device should be functional. May I suggest that in the future, you make an attempt to keep the device on your torso? As the new uniform design includes a jacket, I find attaching it there helps, since the same jacket can be worn multiple days in a row if you are not performing strenuous labor."

"I am not a member of Starfleet. I do not, and will not wear the uniform. I will consider differing placement of the device." She conceded softly as she sighed. "I do not wish this to happen again."

Etan looked at her, and thought for a moment. This was a situation that didn't make any sense to him, being outside his expectation of the way the galaxy worked. This was one of the challenges of a civilian in charge of a department on a starship. He considered the situation, then turned to a PADD. After a moment, he looked back up at Paige, obviously a bit 'lost-at-sea'. "In the past, Miss Bryant, civilians have been invited to be part of Starfleet under extraordinary circumstances - they're granted a... warrant. I think the Captain would have to do that. But, well, civilians aboard starships, especially in Science service, regularly do wear Starfleet uniforms, so as not to make themselves priority targets if the ship is caught in the unfortunate possibility of a, uh, combat situation."

He was obviously unconvincing, but, at least he was doing everything in his power to try and help her - at least he saw it as help.

"I wonder what would be circumstances extraordinary enough for the Captain to offer me such a thing, and have me accept..." Paige mused aloud, with a little smile. "Things would have to be dire indeed for such a thing. I am currently of the opinion that wearing the uniform is an assumption of a greater knowledge of the Starfleet Way than I possess. Such a thing is misleading at best."

Etan thought for a moment, then shrugged. "I don't really know, Miss Bryant. I would think they'd be less extraordinary than for Starfleet to approve someone who's not an officer of the Fleet to command a department aboard a Galaxy-class ship. I would certainly suggest you consider it. And, uh... I'm pretty sure there are training programs, in the holodeck. If there's something missing that you might need, I can request it from the Quartermaster General and have it installed. That might help too."

"They might but I am not certain that I want to do so.". She shrugged eloquently. "I'm interested in the protocol, but not enough to be a participant."

That much now thoroughly confused the Ops officer, so he looked at Paige, befuddled. "Then, I apologize for asking this, Miss Bryant, and I mean no disrespect, but, why are you on a Starfleet ship?"

"Because they asked me to." She answered simply, without elaboration. When opportunity knocks, you answer the door.