Warning Given
Warning Given
Summary: Wherein a warning is delivered and opinions on regs exchanged Captain to Captain
Date: 155 ACH
Related Logs: Rumblings
Players:
Maerker..McKenzie..

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Hangar Bay B Genesis - Deck 7
155 ACH 24438 Souls


The hangar deck is where the Genesis' Viper squadron, and its Raptor detachment are stored, repaired and maintained between missions. Ships land on the flight deck, one level above, and are brought down via massive elevators. Tow vehicles move the ships around the deck, their shrill alert beeps causing an almost constant cacophony of noise. The floor itself is a light gray in color, but wear and tear has left marks and scratches everywhere. Numbered sections are marked off with paint to house the various spacecraft.
The place is surprisingly tidy, with tool chests, machine parts, diagnostic equipment, and even the occasional spare engine or chassis scattered all in their appropriate place. Stairs lead up to other parts of the ship. The fourth side has a large sliding door leading to the flight deck elevators. On the port wall, Vipers are loaded into the launch tubes to be catapulted into space. Raptors take off from the flight deck.
---—< Condition Three - Restricted Area >----
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After several nights of almost round-the-clock work on the deck, repairing and refitting the salvaged Solaris Vipers, the Hanger Deck is finally quiet. There's still work here, obviously, but the fever and fury of the past few days has subsided to an almost-normal duty load. This much-needed lull is exactly what Captain Josh Maerker needed to get caught up on paperwork from the deck and other various areas… Life, as it is, goes on. Sitting quietly at a work table is the LSO himself, doing exactly that; The paperwork of his station, and the very bane of every commissioned officer in the fleet.

The shuttle that flies over from the Hera was announced, cleared, and is now expected. It lands with a whoosh and a clang, the pop and hiss of heated metal probably telling the snipes more about the shuttle's condition than any records ever could. The hatch opens, lifting from the inside. McKenzie steps out, pausing to thank the pilot who flew the trip. Stepping down onto the deck, the woman takes her gloves off, hits them together once, then tucks them into a pocket. Lifting a hand, she runs her fingers over the waves in her hair, tucking a bit of a stray lock back into the regulation bun she wears. Turning, she motions to one of the snipes, "'Scuse me, lad. Where'd I find yer LSO, then?" The man salutes the Captain, then points. Returning the salute, she nods, "Right, then. Thanks." Moving off, she approaches the man's desk at a brisk pace.

The gold pen glided effortlessly over the papers being reviewed and signed by the LSO as the young woman approached briskly. Her footfalls upon the deck could be heard by Maerker, who looked up from his work at her approaching, then looked back down to sign the last few documents sitting before him. Signing those, he then sets the pen down and watches the approaching woman.

When she reaches the desk, McKenzie stops and nods, "Hey, Cap. Dunno if you r'member me. I'm Captain McKenzie, XO'f th' Hera. You gotta quiet place where we c'n have a bit'v'a chat?" Though her gaze is friendly enough, there is a certain serious edge to her tone and her manner is more formal than not.

A friendly smile is given to McKenzie as she addresses him. "Of course, Captain, I do remember you. I never got to thank you for being so accomodating to me aboard the Hera," he says as he stands and extends his hand to shake. "Sure, we can use the tool room… My office is still being repaired, and it's not really private at this point," he says with a chuckle. He could feel the seriousness of the talk in her words… Knowing he'll know why soon enough, they walk off to the nearby tool room, entering it and closing the door behind them.

McKenzie's handshake is firm enough, though brief. She nods once, "No trouble, Cap. We were glad t' have y' o'er. It's nice t' see folk enjoyin' their work…" Turning, she nods, "Oh, aye. A tool room's fine." Clasping her hands behind her back, she follows along. "What happened t' yer office? Didn't think there'd been too much damage on th' Gen…" She keeps the conversation light, her smile easy until the tool room is reached.

Maerker chuckles and opens up the hatch, waving the Captain in. "Well, there wasn't that much damage, but one of the secondary O2 lines for the entire Hangar Deck runs through my office in the overhead, and it blew in the last engagement we had… Godsdamn damage wasn't severe anywhere else but in my office, and that certainly ruined my day." Smiling on, he dogs the hatch down and walks over to a nearby tool-chest, leaning on it as he begins. "So what's up? Admittedly, I was curious when I got your memo in my inbox." It's not all the time that he gets a memo asking for a talk, and nothing more.

McKenzie steps in, then waits until the hatch is closed. She moves to a tool chest opposite the one you lean against. Rather than lean, however, she stands easily enough. "I spoke with th' Commander, Captain an' 'e said I should bring this t' yer attention. I b'lieve y've a problem with th' frat rules on yer deck. I've been asked t' fill you in. Now, seein' as what I witnessed ain't enough t' c'nvict nobody. Just 'nough t' raise flags…"

His attention is now fully perked up as she mentions a frat issue on the deck. How could that be? Maerker's reputation as the decks CO, in addition to his high expectations from his people prevented problems like this, or so he thought. "Fraternization problem? Okay, you have my attention now… Nothing goes on on my deck without me knowing about, and I've always told my people that what they do off this deck is their business, but what happens on my deck is fair game… Can you be more specific on this, Captain?"

McKenzie watches you as you speak and one brow lifts slightly, "Thin' is, Cap… Frat regs apply whether folk're on th' deck're off. An' if one've yer folk's breakin' 'em, yer goin' t' have t' answer too. So… Might wanna make that more clear." Then, she inhales slowly, and begins, "Y've a Specialist Yama under you, aye? She'n I had a wee talk th' other day. B'fore she came t' meet me, though, one've th' pilots came down t' work on 'is bird. Her eyes lit up like stars'n th' black've night, Cap. When he went unner 'is bird, she ducked down t' speak t' 'im. I lowered t' see what 'e was workin' on. She carressed 'is cheek. It wasn't just a touch, Cap. Now… I know that ain't enough t' convict no one. But, it's enough t' say she should be spoken too. An', enough t' trigger an investigation've 'er an' everyone she's been seen with. So… Since I ain't big on ruinin' someone's career? I'm bringin' it t' you."

Maerker nods slowly, knowing the who that she was referring to… He inhales and sighs deeply as he begins. "It has to be Phelan… I told her it wasn't a smart move to do that… In any case, I had a feeling myself, but I never pursued it since it was just that; a feeling. Now, for the record, I do agree with you about the frat rules under regular circumstances. Hell, I'd be the first one to throw her to JAG if the damn Cylons hadn't have attacked. The fact is that we're less than 25000 people left. Survival of the human race is important, and that's why I said what I said. What happens on my deck is per regs… When they're off-duty? I can't control them off-duty, but you /are/ right… I won't tolerate that on my deck," he says quietly, and factually. The human races survival was dependent on every man, woman, and child left. Was it wise to turn the cheek a bit to try and give the kids a chance for a future? Maybe, maybe not. The fact that Adelaide Yama and Phelan Rhodes showed their affections on /his/ deck though was something else entirely.

You say, "Shoulda stopped it, Cap. Now, th' Commander's aware that there's a problem down 'ere, though not who. As f'r when they ain't on yer deck? She's in yer command, Cap. You don't deal with it, it'll bitecha in th' ass. No joke. On or off. Savvy?" She lifts a brow slightly, a smile touching her lips to soften things. "Oh, b'lieve me. I know how y' feel. But, at th' moment all we've got keepin' us from bein' savages? Th' regs. We're headin' f'r a planet where we c'n start over. Once we're there? Folk on planet c'n do whatever th' frak they want. Us? We're military, Maerker. It's th' life we chose. Either live it're leave it.""

Maerker shrugs and remains quiet in their talk. "Captain, I can't stop something if I don't see it. I knew Adelaide had /something/ there with Phelan, but as for what, I had no idea until you told me about that little show under his Viper. I'll have a chat with Adelaide, rest assured. Now, once again, on-duty, I will kick ass and take names. Off-duty, I can't be expected to control what my people do unless it directly involves what goes on on my deck. No commander can be expected to do that. All we, as leaders, can do is just what I said I would do. I'll talk to Adelaide and tell her it needs to stop. Conversely, you might want to have the same talk we're having with Cag. I'm not sure if she knows anything about it, but she needs to makre sure that Phelan gets wind of things as well." Standing back on his feet, he sighs once more. "Captain, you're right, we're military… We're also human, and we're also the first and last line of defense the future of mankind has. We're no different than the people on the ships in this fleet…"

McKenzie listens, then nods, "Oh, I've 'n appointment with th' CAG too. Jus' found you first 's all." She lifts a brow slightly, then shakes her head, "What'cha do… Or, what I do, as a leader's this. I tell my folk that on'r off duty, their b'havior r'flects on th' service. I tell 'em that th' regs're there f'r a reason an' we follow 'em. Then, I make frakin' sure that I give 'em a good example t' follow." Her expression shifts as the man stands and she continues to meet his gaze. "Aye, we're th' first an' last line'f d'fense. That means, Captain that we'd frakin' better be different. Cause there's no way'n frakin' hades I'd trust my future t' th' civilians. Oh, they're good't their jobs, aye. But, we're soldiers, Captain. We'd frakin' better be able t' act it on're off duty."

"Oh, I don't trust my future with the civvies either, but without them, there's no us. That same rationale works on the opposite, too. Now, once again, for the record, I do follow the regs we've sworn to adhere to and I expect my people to do the same, but we still have our own humanity to contend with. I'm not trying to argue this, please understand. What I /am/ trying to do is ensure that my deck and my people do have a tomorrow to see. None of us may live to see todays end… If that's a crime, then I'll place myself on report and have the MP's come escort me to the brig," he says quietly.

McKenzie shakes her head, "It ain't a crime, Cap. Least, not that I know 'f. I'm jus' sayin' that you'd best un'erstand that on 'r off duty, if one'f yers breaks regs, it'll come down on yer head. F'r not givin' 'em proper d'rection. Seein' t'morrow? Havin' a future? If any'f our folk think that they c'n pick an' choose th' regs they obey an' th' ones they don't, it could kill us all. It ain't a question'f followin' th' rules when it's c'nvenient. Yeah, we have rotations an' shit, but we ain't never off duty. Not really. Th' cylons could attack any time. If we ain't ready? We're all dead. So, when yer choosin' how t' live, an' tellin' yer folk that it don't matter when they ain't on yer deck? Think 'bout what y' said. We're it. If we can't be counted on? We're all dead. I ain't arguin' with y' neither, Cap. Just tellin' y' how I see it. An'…? I'm bettin' apples t' oranges c'mand sees it this way, too."

Maerker sighs softly as her words are listened to. "My deck is always ready, and I don't accept any less from my people. They follow the rules set forth, no discussion and no ambiguity… I'm certain command sees it your way too, and I'm not going to question that in the slightest. The question I do have is when will command see that survival for /all/of us outweighs the regs?" It was this moment that he thought back to a similar conversation he had with Drusilla on his deck some time ago… Were the regs of the Colonial Fleet above the need to survive?

McKenzie nods slowly, "I ain't questionin' yer deck, Cap. Ain't seen no reason to. Yer folk do good work." She laughs at the last, however, the sound rich, warm and quiet, "We're headed f'r a planet, Maerker. Someplace we c'n call home. When we get there, I'm sure there'll be some kinda 'repopulate th' galaxy' push. Until then? I'm 'n th' military an' I won't let m' behavior on 'r off duty r'flect badly on th' Service. F'r my creds, if y' don't like how shit's run? R'sign an' go be a civvie. Then y' c'n frak anyone y' want. If y' stay? Follow regs."

The facts were all there, and Maerker knew it. She was right. "There's going to be a shitstorm and a half going down once I talk to Adelaide… Okay, Captain. I'll talk to her and see whats going on. I'll contact you when I hear more details… In the meantime, might I suggest that we keep this between us. As much as Adelaide and Phelan's little show pissed me off, I can't risk losing my best deckie, not over something like this, and I'm certain Cag won't be too happy with the thought of losing a pilot over it either."

McKenzie nods, "Aye, there'll be." She steps from where she was standing and turns toward the tool shed's door. Pausing just before reaching it, she sighs, then turns to speak once more, "I'd like nothin' better, lad. Cap. But, I didn't know who y' 'n th' CAG were, so had t' ask. Th' Commander'll be wantin' a r'port on how it's handled. I'm sorry 'bout that. But, I ain't up on staffin' o'er here. Ain't how I wanted t' handle it… But, I sure's frak won't mention it t' anyone else."
Huh? (Type "help" for help.)

Maerker extends his hand out to shake McKenzie's. "In that case, I think we're done… I'll get back to you as soon as I hear something."

McKenzie's hand lifts to accept the shake. Her touch is; again, firm though brief. "Aye. Sorry, Cap. Had t' be done." She shrugs once, then turns to make her way out of the tool shed. She leaves the hatch open and angles a brisk walk toward the shuttle that will take her back to the Hera.

With a sigh, Maerker runs his hand through his hair… "Godsdamn motherfrakking,' he mutters as he follows suit, exiting the tool-room and to the nearest Wireless… Adelaide was going to give him some answers.

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