The New Regime

Posted on Tue Oct 7th, 2025 @ 8:51am by Colonel Ashaan Vhau & Lieutenant Rune Thul & Lieutenant Commander N'Tgni Creon & Lieutenant Akaar Zuul & Captain Three of Five & Captain Hadrian 'Sunshine' Palamas
Edited on on Tue Oct 7th, 2025 @ 2:04pm

1,199 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: UnderMind [4]
Location: Various linked holographically, DS13
Timeline: Morning - MD01 (After [✱1])

The senior officers comprising the intelligence, marine and aerospace fighter wing all sat around their respective departmental meeting tables. Security and Tactical were also tuned in. The connected contingents consisted of the senior and deputy officers, accompanied by their squad leaders and senior enlisted. They were each linked holographically with security, tactical and the other two tactical support departments, and the image of Lieutenant N’Tgni Creon, sitting in her chair.

The holographic projections combined to make it seem like everyone was in the same room, the tables all together.

“Hello, everyone. I’m N’Tgni Creon. Those few of you who come to earn my favor will know me as Tig. To the rest of you, until told otherwise, I am Commander Creon or ma’am. As Strat Ops director I will be responsible for overseeing and utilising your decision making. That means I'm now supervising all of your departments, and I'll be representing you on the senior staff. I don’t want to interrupt your day-to-day, but when it hits the fan, you’ll all be taking orders from and reporting to me unless someone more senior asks you first.”

“Are there any questions?” She asked openly to the five departments watching.

Hadrian Palamas let a short snicker slip before reining it in. This place just kept getting stranger by the day. In all his years, he’d never seen anything quite like it; a Strategic Ops Officer dropped in over such a scattershot collection of departments. How was Creon supposed to do her own job with half the station hanging off her chain of command?

Intelligence, sure. That fit under the SOO’s umbrella. But fighters and marines? Those were specialized assets, deserving their own voices at the table. To shunt them under Strategic Ops wasn’t just inefficient; it was insulting. Looking around the holo-conference, Palamas could see the unease written on more than a few faces. He was sure he wasn’t the only one who found it offensive.

“Are you any relation to a Drusilla Creon? Tall Romulan woman, lives around here. Nice hair. An Ambassador, I believe.” Colonel Vhau asked, hoping to ease any tension in his relaxed, dry way, while also asking a question that was no doubt on their minds. It was certainly on his.

"We have the same father. I met her for the first time a decade ago. That's about the limit of our relationship." Rhianha explained casually, matching Vhau's tone.

He didn't know if Creon wanted the whole family thing influencing her Starfleet career, Rune wondered, but he knew he didn't and since there hadn't been an actual question posed he decided to ask one. "Commander, with most of our duties having us in Operations we'd be near our CO and XO, do they plan to give you full command during crisis times without their direct input? Since they would be in the same room and all." He asked, a little confused, as a third command officer would put a delay in orders relayed across the station.

Hadrian gave a measured nod, biting back the urge to echo Rune out loud. This was bureaucracy at its worst; layered nonsense that, in his line of work, could get people killed. He knew that danger firsthand.

"Normal bridge, uh... CIC protocol won't change. For security and tactical that's already laid out, because as you've rightly observed, you'll already be there. My job is to make sure the Captain doesn't have so much on his plate. Most logical way to do that is to make sure tactical support is doing the needful without him having to ask for it. Not to say we don't trust you, but one head is better than three."

Rune nodded. "Oh no, that's okay with me," he smiled. "Let me know what you need when you need it, and I'll get it done, Commander."

The newly placed Chief Tactical Officer, Lieutenant Akaar Zuul rolled his eyes at his friend. "That said, you did say Tactical Support, that does include Tactical itself no, Commander?" Akaar inquired. "If so, then I too agree it is better to have one head than three."

"We're looking for efficiencies across the board. Communications and Counseling will also be yielding their representation on the senior staff. I believe it's best for a single individual to represent security and tactical. If you could decide between you who that will be, I would appreciate it." Creon asked the two men.

Rune and Akaar shared a glance, but Akaar raised both eyebrows and inclined his head a bit at Rune. That's when Rune sighed and offered a smile back at his friend before turning back to Creon. "I will Commander," the Betazoid lieutenant supplied.

Hadrian couldn’t hold it in any longer. “Alright, just so I’m clear, ma’am; am I sending my reports to the CAG, to you, or both? Because I’ve never seen a Strategic Operations officer wedged into the chain of command like this before.” He let out a quick, uneasy laugh. “So you’ll have to forgive me if I ask for a little clarification.”

Three of Five watched the ongoing discussion dispassionately. To her it was a simple equation, there was a new individual serving as adjunct to the commander. She did not understand why they did not simply comply, but she accepted there was a lot about individuals who had never known the perfection of collective thought that she did not understand.

"Major Nhan remains your department head. As I said, your day-to-day doesn't change, but the lines of reporting now go from all department heads present to me." Creon explained.

“Remains my department head, but no longer on senior staff. Aye aye, ma’am. Understood.” Hadrian leaned back in his chair, arms folding tight across his chest. Red tape and a crooked chain of command; two things guaranteed to rub any pilot or marine raw.

"That's right. Are there any further questions?" Creon asked, hoping to bring some finality to the meeting. Palamas just sat silent, arms crossed slowly shaking his head back and forth.

Rune spoke up again. "Commander, will we be using this holoconference setup for those crises?"

"We'll play it by ear, Lieutenant." Creon told him.

When the holo-feeds blinked out and the meeting dissolved, Palamas turned to Major Nhan with a shrug. “Sorry to hear about your abrupt, quasi-demotion, sir. Yanking you off senior staff for no damn reason isn’t just insulting; it’s dangerous. If the CO’s ‘too busy’ to hear from their intel, marine, and fighter wing leads, maybe they need a better cacking yeoman.” He gave a thin smile, already rising. “Anyway, I’ve got a Glider to test-fly.”

"Language, Captain. Remember your uniform." Nhan cautioned. "If I am no longer on the senior staff that means several hours a week not spent in meetings. If she's going to handle my bureaucracy for me, I'm all the more in favor of it. My posterior is meant for a seat that ejects, not a conference room."

Three left and returned efficiently to the simulator, maintaining an informative social conversation with a neighboring cadet from the nearby dormitory.

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