Meeting The Troops
Posted on Tue May 26th, 2026 @ 8:04pm by Lieutenant JG Thava zh’Reth & Lieutenant Lorek
1,419 words; about a 7 minute read
Mission:
Prologue: Taking On Crew
Location: Security Auditorium
Timeline: MD004-0900 Hours
At precisely 0900 Lieutenant Lorek entered the large Auditorium hosting all eighty four of his people. Walking to the podium he placed his duty PaDD on the top bringing up his notes which included the ones from Lieutenant zh'Reth.
Taking a breath he cleared his throat quietly then he began first in a loud voice to get everyone's attention "Good morning and thank you all for being here" looking around the large area Lorek had a sense all were present "If you are not here, please raise your hand" he stated trying to cut the tension. Seeing a lot of blank stares he continued "Apologies, this is what happens when a Vulcan attempts to be amusing" as he saw quite a few of light chuckles "For those of you who do not know I am Lieutenant Lorek your new Sec/Tac Chief.
With the room feeling a little less tense he continued "This is not my first assignment as Chief.....I held the same position on the USS Endeavor for four years before being transferred here; although this ship and department are somewhat larger the basics remain the same. To put your minds at ease I will not come charging in here changing everything all at once.....that only causes confusion and unneeded stress so I will be changing things slowly as time moves on."
"Having said that there are a couple of things we see that needs to be changed immediately. The first is shift overlap.....when you are relieving a person from their shift, be it security or tactical, I expect at least a five minute conversation highlighting any situations or concerns that happened during your shift. That will go a long way towards a smoother transition and hopefully negate any problems before they become even larger" he stated scanning the room for facial expressions.
"Secondly, I expect all of you to be armed with a phaser whenever you are on duty and set to stun unless we say otherwise; of course something like a hostile force being aboard would negate that order" Lorek stated now having everyone's complete and undivided attention. "Are there any questions thus far."
Seeing a hand go up in the back of the room "Yes Ensign."
"Chief do we have the phaser showing or would you like it concealed from view" the Ensign inquired hoping the question wasn't stupid.
"Yes and no; let me explain. If you are on the bridge at the tactical station I would suggest having your phaser in your thigh pocket out of sight. If you are on a security detail then yes I would expect your phaser be holstered on your hip. However, especially when you are doing security, the phaser is to be deployed as a last resort. Talk to the person or persons involved for a peaceful resolution and you are all trained for close hand-to-hand confrontations should that fail" Lorek concluded "Lieutenant zh'Reth anything to add?"
Thava rose from where she had been seated near the front, her antennae angling toward the room as she took in the faces looking back at them.
“Only this,” she said, voice clear without needing to push it. “The five-minute handover is not busywork. If something felt wrong on your patrol, say it. If a console response lagged, say it. If a crewman was agitated but did not cross a line, say it. Small things become large things when we decide they are too minor to mention.”
Her gaze moved across the auditorium, steady rather than severe.
“Shift leads will make sure those handovers happen. Keep them short, useful, and honest. No speeches. No polishing bad news until it looks harmless.”
A faint dry edge touched her expression.
“We are Security and Tactical. If we are surprised, it should not be because we failed to talk to each other.”
With that, she gave Lorek a small respectful nod and sat again.
"Thank you Lieutenant; those are words to remember when you are on duty" Lorek stated pausing a few moments allowing everyone time to absorb what had been already stated. "I have read over all eighty four of your personnel files looking for experience as well as years of service in Starfleet. That being said the shift leads will comprise of six of the most experienced among you; one for each of the three shifts and three of you to cover days off and/or sickness, injuries.....those type of instances. Also each security team will consist of two people; an experienced person and the other with one year or less experience. Learn from each other and watch each other's backs.....become well acquainted with one another as well as help one another" as he concluded "Any questions?"
Lorek scanned the room as a hand went up in the middle of the group "Yes Lieutenant."
"Chief so when do these changes take effect" a Lieutenant inquired.
"The duty roster will be available to be viewed this afternoon for both Security and Tactical; everything that has been shared with you will go into effect tomorrow at 0800 forward" Lorek answered "Any other's have a question" as he scanned the room once again but no hands were raised.
"You all know the regulations and protocols for both areas of this department so there is not any need to go over those. Also the door to my office is always open to any of you regardless of rank so if there is a situation please come to me and let us discuss it before something small becomes something much larger. Going back to what Lieutenant zh'Reth shared a few minutes ago.....communication; that concept goes both ways."
"Lastly let me share my philosophy as I perceive this department. When at tactical your duty is to assist command in keeping the ship safe against any and all threats thereby keeping the crew safe. Conversely when working security your duty is to keep the crew safe thereby keeping the ship safe" he shared with fervency.
"In conclusion I am looking forward to working with every one of you. We are a team and with everyone's dedication to your duties we will be the best Sec/Tac department in Starfleet. Dismissed" Lorek stated excited to be the Chief here.
Thava remained standing near the side of the auditorium as the room began to move.
There was always a particular sound to a dismissed security department. Chairs shifting, boots hitting deck, low voices starting up in clusters before people remembered they were still in front of the Chief. Eighty-four people made more noise than most civilians expected, even when they were trying to behave.
Her antennae tracked the room almost without conscious thought.
Some faces were thoughtful. Some looked relieved. A few junior crew were already glancing at one another, no doubt wondering who they would be paired with under the new arrangement. That was good. Let them think about it now rather than complain about it later.
Lorek had handled them well.
Not perfectly, perhaps, but Thava did not trust perfect. Perfect usually meant rehearsed, polished until the bones vanished. He had been clear. Practical. Willing to set expectations without sounding as though he had arrived to conquer the department in the name of his previous posting.
That mattered.
The line about tactical keeping the ship safe to protect the crew, and security keeping the crew safe to protect the ship, had landed better than she suspected he realised. Thava had seen it in the way a few of the older enlisted stopped looking merely attentive and started looking interested. They knew the difference between a Chief who understood both sides of the department and one who treated security as tactical’s inconvenient cousin.
As the last rows began filtering toward the exits, Thava collected her PADD and gave the updated notes one final glance. Shift leads. Pairings. Handover discipline. Armed posture. Nothing dramatic. Nothing foolish.
Good bones.
She looked back toward the podium where Lorek stood, still new enough that the room had not decided what stories to tell about him yet.
'They may have chosen well.'
Thava let the thought settle, then tucked the PADD beneath her arm and started toward the front. There would be questions later. There always were. But for now, the department had its first shape under him, and it was not a poor one.
A Post Written By:
Lieutenant Lorek
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS Resolute
Lieutenant JG Thava zh'Reth
Security/Tactical Officer
USS Resolute
RSS Feed