Reporting In (Part 1)

Posted on Thu Jun 5th, 2025 @ 1:10am by Ensign Sung Jin-Ah & Lieutenant Megosho Gehente

1,200 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: ARYL 1X01: Bound for Cold Frontier
Location: Deck Six - Office Complex

"Stupid Starfleet procedure..."

Jin-Ah was annoyed: First, Starfleet couldn't make up their mind on whether it was the West Point or the Ark Royal she was being assigned to. Then, when Jin-Ah had found out that her brother had also been assigned to the Ark Royal, time had seemed to slow to a crawl, and the formalities of reporting into her new department head seem like a chore.

Frowning over a large PADD, Meg was surprised to hear the chime for her office door to warble. She put the PADD down, and stood to receive her visitor, re-fastening her jacket shoulder-strap, proudly showing her shining lieutenant's insignia. She tugged at the uniform, making it sit better. It's still so effing snug, she grumped, and looped a stray lock of her purple hair behind her ear.

'Enter!' she called.

The doors snapped open, and Jin-ah stepped through.

"Lieutenant Gehente?" She asked.

'That's me,' Meg replied as she caught sight of the shorter, purple-haired human who walked in through the door. She favoured the Ensign who entered with a bright smile, ponytail nodding along with her head as she confirmed that she was indeed Lieutenant Gehente.

"Ensign Sung Jin-Ah, reporting for duty as ordered." Jin-Ah introduced herself.

'Thank you, Ensign Sung,' Meg replied, leaning against her office desk, she pointed to the seat in front of it. 'Would you care for some refreshments? A drink? Some food perhaps?' The Orion urge to look after people came naturally to Meg. 'You're one of my Comms Officers, aren't you?'

"That is correct." Jin-Ah nodded. "I'd... Rather not waste your time, but if you insist... Is there anything you would recommend?"

'What would you like?' Meg asked, 'I've not been aboard long enough to assess the skills of the cooks adequately.' She chuckled and patted her toned midsection. 'No Orion enjoys going hungry, believe me. We love our food. So please, name your choice so we can see how well they can do aboard.'

"Okay..." Jin-Ah put a finger to her chin. She was hoping to get introduced to something new for her troubles, but perhaps seeing how the chefs prepared an old favorite would probably be a good benchmark. "Well, in that case, have you ever tried Korean Barbecue?"

'Only once!' Meg replied, clapping her hands in delight. 'Not in Korea itself. Out on Alpha Centauri. A Korean family had moved their with some of the first colonists, and their descendants have kept the barbecue place going. But it was very good! Two lots of Korean barbecue it is! Any particular side dishes with that?'

"Well, that depends on the kind of meat," Jin-Ah explained. "If it's beef, you gotta go with the good ol' fashioned cucumber salad. Pork, I prefer some sweet and tangy cabbage salad. But chicken? Oh, man- if you don't have spicy coleslaw with it, you can't say you've had proper Korean barbecue chicken."

'Pork with sweet and tangy cabbage it is then,' Meg replied with a wide smile. She was looking forward to her lunch. It was lucky Jin-Ah had turned up when he had so she had a better option than the standard ration kit she would have picked otherwise. 'So please, while we wait, tell me a little bit about your career to date?'

"Well, there's really not too much to speak of." Jin-Ah admitted, rubbing the back of her head under her ponytail. "I'm a recent Academy graduate, and the most notable thing has been a mix-up over which of these relics... Er, I mean, Constitution class ships I'm supposed to be assigned to: First they wanted me assigned to the West Point, then they changed their minds and decided it was the Ark Royal instead. Not like I'm one to complain, especially since rumor has it my super amazing step bro is also on board."

'Relics!?' Meg asked rhetorically with a squeak of a laugh as she covered her mouth with a hand. 'Well. Relics might be a harsh description, but I suppose when you're a recent Academy graduate you want something more glamourous - those Excelsior or Centaur class ships perhaps.' She sighed, and smiled at the younger Comms officer. 'I'm old enough that when I graduated from San Fran, the Constitution was still the premier class of ship we had. The Excelsiors were barely out of R-and-D.'

Meg waved a hand dismissively, 'anyway. Enough about my reminisces, I'm just saying I know how you feel. I wanted the big, shiny ship. I got the Miranda-classes. And I guess that worked better in the long run.' She leaned down from her perch at the edge of her desk, and smiled, 'but I never had to serve with a sibling, step or otherwise. How are you feeling about that?'

"Ecstatic, if I'm honest." Jin-Ah replied. "I've always admired my step bro and his want to follow in our father's footsteps, and it's what drove me to join Starfleet myself. The only problem is, I don't think he quite sees me the same way I see him. He keeps insisting that we're blood-related, but I'm pretty sure I was the child of an affair."

'I see,' Meg responded, then broke off as the door hissed open and a yeoman carrying a tray walked in. She indicated they should leave it on her desk as she shifted to make room for it, then waited for the yeoman to leave before carrying on. 'That is a ... complicating factor, Ensign, for sure.' Meg motioned towards the food, unsure of how to address her statement. 'I'm glad that you feel positive about serving with your step-brother. It will make things slightly easier when serving aboard.' Falling silent a moment, she then said. 'Orion kinship systems are based around clan arrangements, rather than blood family. Being a step sibling, even one born from an affair, is not something we look down upon. I hope it is the same for you and your family.'

"I hope so, too." Jin-Ah muttered as she reached for the food. "Same as I hope this doesn't fatten me up too much..."

Jin-Ah proceeded to grab her chopsticks and grab her first bite. The taste could be described as Korean barbecue for someone uninitiated, but for Jin-Ah, she could clearly tell that whoever made this had never been to Pyongyang, as the spices that had been used gave the taste a flavor more in line with barbecue that would be found in Seoul instead.

"Not bad for some Seoul style pork..." Jin-Ah noted. "But, as I always say, you've never had it until you've been to Pyongyang."

'Apologies, Ms Sung, I wouldn't know the difference,' Meg replied contritely as she sat opposite her junior officer and watched her manipulate the chopsticks for a moment, before picking up her own set. 'I'm not entirely familiar with the history of your people, but I would like to learn some more if you're to serve with me on the Ark Royal, if you don't mind?'

To be continued...

 

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