Cat had been pleased to find that the auxiliary kitchen was well suited for her needs. The fact that it hadn’t even seen any significant use since it was tested before the ship was launched was mind boggling to her. But then again the people aboard were used to replicated foods and not only were they convenient and easy to make but they tasted good enough for what they needed.

But she wasn’t satisfied with just good enough, and she knew how real food could make a huge difference at the right time. She’d done a test run with some of the equipment and made a simple meal, or rather something that counted as simple to her; authentic chicken parmesan with real cheese and real chicken. The scent of cooking food had drawn quite a few curious onlookers to her corner of the mess hall but sadly she didn’t have enough to make them for everyone. It was a delicious lunch though, and definitely worth all the effort she took to make it.

However, her focus now was something else. She’d been mindful of the time and knew she had just enough to make it to her scheduled appointment with their Chief Helmsman. She had no idea how it would turn out considering how he was during the briefing hours ago but she hoped they could have a productive meeting.

Cat helped herself to some freshly brewed coffee from her French press, and left it out on the nearby sidebar where there was a small plate of donuts and an extra cup with real milk and sugar for if the man wanted some. She’d just sipped from her own cup and sat down when she heard the door chime ring.

“Come in!”

Darion had no idea what the new XO wanted to see him about. It could have been anything from his insistence in the briefing about leading the team through to his current flight performance, or even just a ‘getting to know you’ speech all execs seemed to like to have. Regardless, he wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to see what was going on with the search for Murphy.

At the ‘come in’ from within, the door slid open and he walked into the XO’s office. The scent of freshly brewed coffee assaulted his senses but he didn’t let his expression alter.

“You wanted to see me, Ma’am?” he asked, schooling his voice to neutral and polite.

“Yes I did, Commander,” Catriona greeted him warmly. “Thank you for being prompt.” She gestured towards the coffee and snacks at the sidebar. “Feel free to grab whatever you’d like and have a seat.”

She sipped her coffee as she subtly watched him. Cautious. That was the impression Catriona got from their Chief Helmsman, but then again since she was new and he had a bit of an outburst earlier during the briefing, he couldn’t be blamed for being wary of her and the reason why she wanted to see him.

When he finally took his seat, Cat set her cup down and regarded him with a gentle smile. “I won’t beat around the bush, as they say. I’m sure you already have an idea why I asked for a moment of your time. So why don’t you tell me a story?”

Darion shook his head. “I have no idea what you mean, ma’am. And I’m not very good at telling stories, I’m afraid.”

Cat was was unperturbed and leaned forward a little over the desk, speaking in a slightly softer tone of voice. “I’m talking about what happened in the briefing. I may not be a counselor or a psychologist, nor do I know you or Captain Murphy in the least, but anyone with eyes and half a brain can tell you were agitated earlier. So why don’t we talk about that?”

Darion smiled. It was practised and didn’t reach his eyes. He didn’t trust this new command team, not at all. In his experience, when a new team was brought in like this, it was generally to audit and apportion blame for whatever had happened.

“I was agitated, yes,” he answered in a level voice. Just because he didn’t like the game, not unless he was running it anyway, didn’t mean he didn’t know how to play. “Captain Murphy and I have been friends from childhood. His family are my family. I am naturally very motivated in getting him back.”

“I see,” Catriona murmured as she studied him openly. Clearly he was trying to play it cool, which she couldn’t blame him for. Considering what she was bringing up, even she would have been eager to avoid reminiscing a lapse in professional demeanor in front of a new superior who unceremoniously replaced the one everyone else knew well and potentially liked.

“I respect that,” she said. “In a way, I can relate. But I’ve never been in your position as you’re in right now so I’ll avoid patronizing you. But then that’s what I’m concerned about, or rather who; you. I understand that you don’t know me in the least, and my assignment here was abrupt to say the least but I am here now and I do care about the people I serve with.”

The she shrugged. “But if that doesn’t sit too well with you, then maybe just imagine how you would feel if you were in my position, busy doing searches and investigations all over the sector to find a missing officer, and the best pilot and navigator you have might not be in his best state of mind.”

“Indeed,” he inclined his head. “The situation was a tense one. But you can be assured that my state of mind is perfectly fine, ma’am. I am well aware of where my talents lie, especially when an actual hazard team leader is being brought aboard.” His smile didn’t reach his eyes, but it was there, fully formed and functional on his face. “I’ll leave the combat action to them, and I’ll concentrate on the flying.”

“Okay,” she said with a nod. “I won’t push. If you say you’re okay, then you’re okay. So I guess you’re affirming that you’re inclined to just simply focus on doing your job, right? Leave everything else to whoever’s tasked for other matters?”

The smile again, but he widened it. Just slightly. Added a subtle inclination of his head.

“Indeed, ma’am. It was just hotheadedness in the heat of the moment when it appeared nothing was being done to find Za–Captain Murphy,” he corrected, then put his hands on the arms of the chair, signalling his intent. “If there’s nothing else, ma’am, then I’ll get back to my duties? The comms breakdown has been causing some issues with the navigational array that we’re working with engineering on.”

Catriona smiled pleasantly in turn as she picked up a PADD after taking another sip of her coffee. “Alright, I just wanted to check in and see if you were okay. I did have something I was going to ask you about regarding some information I received from a typically reliable source I know regarding our current mission, but it’s all navigational data and some of the information is a little outside my wheelhouse. But if you’re busy, it’s okay. I’ll just look it over before I talk to Captain Thorne about my findings.”

She made a show of rummaging through a few other PADDs on her desk, murmuring to herself. “Now where did I keep that stellar navigation handbook? I swore I kept it here somewhere.”

He sat back down. “That’s fine, ma’am. I can take a look.”

“Really? That would be weight off my shoulders then,” she declared as she tapped her desktop terminal a few times and turned it around to face him. “Keep in mind though, this isn’t verified so at best this could just be a clue and at worst it’s a ruse to send us on a… how do you say it? A wild goose chase?”

He frowned, keen gaze already scanning through the data. “There’s a lot here. I’m going to need to look over this in more depth. Can you send the file over to me and I’ll get on it?”

In the blink of an eye, as if she were already anticipating his question, she produced a shrouded isolinear chip and handed it over to him. “Here you go. Sadly the comms issue has also cut me off from my source just before I received this so what we have now is all we have to work with. Let me know if you find anything, no matter what it is, okay?”

“Of course, ma’am.” Reaching out, he took the chip. “You have my word.”

She smiled and waved as he quickly left, but as soon as the doors closed behind him, Catriona picked up her coffee cup and took a leisurely sip to savor the flavor. “That was easier than I thought,” she murmured to herself. Then turned the terminal around to face her again, and after tapping the controls a few times, her brow furrowed as she analyzed the reports coming in from everywhere, especially engineering and double checked her severed connection to her source. “Now, what exactly is going on out there?”