Assuming direct control.

Assigned the USS Kevin II, I am the acting Captain. Don’t look at me: it wasn’t my decision: I was simply the second highest ranking offer after Captain Jek. My requests upon departure from the USS Pier for the crisis was two-fold. The first: to have with me the officers Lieutenant-Commander Cami and Commander Tabakk; the latter as my commanding officer, my number one. The second: to shut down the holo decks unless a senior officer granted said user permission of use in advance.

Surprisingly, both terms came across as approved.

And thus, there we were here: the USS Kevin II, holding position just outside the Katamara system: a small, but vital solar system for the war.

I hate war. Or “strongly dislike the prospect of armored conflict”, as if that’s any better.

You only reside to physical violence when you’re out of words.

Lieutenant Nydark is the one I asked to cover for the “night shift” of the ship, but I keep my officers rotating to get a feel for the chain of command – under the impression that I’m watching their every move from afar.

That’s wrong, of course: I have to sleep sometime.

With six shuttlecrafts filled with combat troops awaiting to drop into my position at the nearest sign of trouble, understandable it made me lacking sleep. They keep to themselves, being a different kind of breed than Starfleet. Yet Starfleet they all are.

Lieutenant Cr’risss is acting chief engineer, and practically out of the academy: a few years back and he’d be a happily serving under the chief engineer. Instead, he IS my chief engineer.

So, where you have it: the USS Kevin II, acting Captain Nomi - my second command ever -  with the first officer Tabakk  - I put Lieutenant-Commander Cami (I still tease her about the slip stream episode) as the ship’s chief science officer – the rest of the ship remains as it was.

I’m fully expected to receive complaints. The only one indirectly to reach me is the lack of a good security officer (but that one existed aboard even before I was assigned command). Somehow, that doesn’t unnerve me one bit. Not worrying about it worries me.

I can’t shake the feeling that this is an elaborate and unexpected Kobayashi Maru.