A Calamity of Crew

Posted on Sat Apr 18th, 2026 @ 11:08pm by Lieutenant Shawn Lao & Captain Alistar McKeon

1,708 words; about a 9 minute read

Utopia Planitia's gangway onto the USS Helvetia felt narrower and more confined than it needed to be. The commotion of people dressed in uniform, some not, but all jockeying for position in somewhat of a line or two, jostling around. It felt like middle school all over again; people pressed up against you in a toe to heel balancing act as someone from behind pushed forward abruptly.

Shawn Lao’s boots clacked as he finally stepped aboard with a cluster of officers and specialists fresh from Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards. The air inside still carried that sterile, unfinished scent. It was the odor of new bulkheads, fresh circuitry, systems that had yet to be worn by routine and mission.

He slowed just past the threshold which caused others file around him as though he were a fork in a road. A new ship. Untested systems. Untested people, but all this commotion was certainly testing his patience.

Shawn adjusted the cuff of his uniform and continued forward, posture straight, pace deliberate. This wasn’t simply a posting, it was a responsibility. Every corridor he walked was a future emergencies waited to happen.

Lao exhaled slowly, grounding himself. He stopped by a panel along the corridor. Ig illuminated with an interactive internal mapping of the starship. “Computer,” he said, voice even. “Direct me to Sickbay, please” he said kindly to the computer. He had no idea that one of the men he had stepped aboard with was the Helvetia's Commanding Officer.

Alistar had made a conscious decision not to announce himself the moment he had crossed the gangway. He had learned that there was value in seeing a ship before the crew knew the captain was watching. The stream of officers, specialists, and yard technicians moving through the Helvetia’s pristine corridors gave him exactly the kind of first impression he wanted, which was the unfiltered one. There were new officers trying to learn how to apply what the Academy had taught them and learning quick that there were things they were unprepared for, nervous excitement mixed with professional impatience, the soft murmur of half formed introductions between officers trying to figure out how they were going to fit in on a new ship. Over it all, the faint sterile scent of newly installed systems still settling into their first duty cycle filled the air.

Everything somehow reminded him of his first day he had stepped aboard the Endeavour, his first command, years ago except this time he was older, wiser, and far more burdened with the mantle of command than he had been then. He moved with the crowd rather than against it, his broad shoulders angled just enough to slip through the bottleneck without drawing attention. There were no clipped orders, no commanding bark, no demand for the corridor to clear, and it was how he wanted it. He wanted to board the Helvetia with everyone seeing him as just be another officer in the flow. Unlike most of the officers around him, however, his expression was composed and his eyes kept moving everywhere. He already knew the layout of the Helvetia, mostly because she was an Intrepid II class, the same as the Endeavour had been. He was sure that he could move through the ship by memory even if he had been blindfolded.

Ahead, he noticed as one officer slowed at a wall panel, allowing the traffic to split around him. Alistar noted the officer's posture first, upright, deliberate, and composed despite the chaos pressing in from behind. He quickly guessed that the man was from medical if from nothing else than from the careful way the man seemed to take stock of his surroundings. Deciding to help the officer out a little, he stopped after overhearing the request for directions to sickbay.

"There's an easier route than what that thing will show you," Alistar said quietly. "You'll want to take this corridor straight ahead, take the first right at the junction. The turbolift will be on your left. Head to deck five, and sickbay should be directly in front of you when the doors open.”

Shawn looked at the man, his eyes expressive, lively, but his tone curt. It was not rude, but it was brief and to the point. "They install these things to help up navigate, and yet they never provide the most direct route to where we need to go. Thank you," replied Nurse Lao.

"Captain," Shawn addressed Alistar. "Thank you for the directions."

Alistar allowed a faint hint of amusement to touch the corner of his mouth as he stopped beside the wall panel, glancing at the glowing schematic with open suspicion as if the ship itself had already committed some minor offense. “It's no problem. In my experience, those panels are designed by engineers who’ve never had to move anywhere in a hurry during a crisis,” he said dryly.

"Engineers," scoffed Shawn. "Unless the warp core is about to explode, you won't find them in much of a rush" he agreed with the man. "It would be nice if they designed these routes with other people in mind."

His gaze returned to the lieutenant, sharper now as he openly assessed the officer. He seemed to carry himself in a way that seemed as if he was steady under pressure and somewhat short with words, not the sort who hid behind bedside pleasantries. There seemed to be a practical edge there that Alistar appreciated. He extended a hand. “Captain Alistar McKeon,” he said.

Shawn observed the man's hand, a friendy gesture. He accepted it with a firm grip, and shook it briefly. "Shawn Lao, Nurse Practitioner. Critical Care," he summarized his whole life's work in the briefiest way he would muster. "I will be Helvetia's Head Nurse. A pleasure bumping into you, Captain. Do you know if the Chief Medical Officer has arrived yet?"

"I'm not sure, as I'm just now coming aboard Helvetia myself," Alistar said as he glanced towards a group of passing officers who looked to be arguing over a map displayed on a padd. Turning back towards Shawn, he thought for a brief moment. "It's entirely possible that there hasn't been a chief medical officer assigned yet, as that's usually one of the last positions to be assigned out by Starfleet," he said.

Nodding, Shawn understood. "It is plausible. I did not see one when I was looking over medical department manifest. I was hoping you'd possibly have some insight. If we are indeed without one momentarily, I will see to it that Sickbay is ready, Captain."

Shawn had been carrying a PaDD in hand and pulled up information. "As a nurse practitioner, Sir I am qualified to treat patients, prescribe medications, and diagnose with autonomy aboard smaller Federation starships. Should you need. However, if you would kindly authorize this" he said presenting the PaDD. "Just reporting to duty, Captain."

Alistar raised a single eyebrow just a fraction of an inch as he accepted the padd and glanced through the contents. It contained Lao's service record along with his current orders which transferred him to the Helvetia as a senior member of the ship's medical department. Satisfied that everything was in order, he tapped a command and then held his thumb to the sensor, formally and officially accepting and approving the transfer. Handing the padd back, he offered another bare hint of a smile.

"You are now officially assigned to the Helvetia," he said. "Once I get settled in, I'll check in on whether or not they have assigned a chief medical officer, however I do appreciate your understanding if we need you to take charge of medical for a while. I do have just one question for you though, in regards to the tasks that there are waiting in order to getting sickbay ready for deployment."

"Let's not say the D word," Shawn commented with a stern but receptive tone. "The last time that got thrown around It was the war, and I was serving aboard the Nobel" he said of the Olympic class hospital ship. It had taken a beating during the war suffering casualties in the proccess including its Captain and First Officer during one encounter with the Dominion.

He looked at McKeon. "Captain, any task you need, just let me know. I will make sure it gets done. If we don't have Chief Medical Officer yet, I'll have sickbay in order and ready for them."

Alistar nodded gravely. He had heard of the Nobel, as well as the other three Olympic class hospital ships that had served along the front lines during the war. There had been few ships that hadn't come out of the Dominion War without taking a severe beating from Cardassian or Jem'Hadar engagements, and few officers who had served through the hell that had been the front lines ever spoke much about it.

"Thank you," he said to Lao. "I do want to ask one favor when you check on sickbay's status. Make sure we have an EMH other than the Mark I or II. If we have to request an update, I'll sign off on it."

"I would certainly hope they haven't stuck us with one of those outdated versions" Shawn replied. "I will check, and reach out to whatever medical personnel we have aboard."

"Very well," Alistar said with a nod. "It seems that we both have much to do. Please let me know if you need anything in getting medical squared away."

Shawn nodded. "Of course, Captain," replied Nurse Lao. If Shawn felt busy, he dared not fathom what the starship's Captain was feeling. "Thank you" he added with some politeness.

Alistar gave a final measured nod. "Anytime," he said before he started off down the corridor, walking with an unhurried but measured pace. Around him, officers hurried about as they tried to find their place. It would take some time before everyone found their way around, but he was certain that everything would work out.

The Captain seemed a reasonable man with a good head on his shoulders. That was at least the first impression that he left on Shawn. Hopefully, an accurate one, but only time would tell if that were the case.

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