Watching the Captain's Address (Part 2)

Posted on Wed Apr 19th, 2023 @ 11:18am by Commodore Tohru Honda & Captain Maho Takahashi & Commander Elisabeth Churchill & Lieutenant Terrence "Terry" Johnston & Lieutenant JG Takumi Fujiwara 'Tak' & Lieutenant Commander Brennyn Scott M.D. & Lieutenant Karen Kujo 'Union Jane' & Senior Chief Petty Officer Victoria Aries
Edited on on Wed Apr 19th, 2023 @ 11:19am

1,718 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Insurrection
Timeline: After 'Watching the Captain's Address (Part 1)'

Previously, on Star Trek Myogi:

"I'm sorry," Maho began. "Not just for the inconvenience, but I'm sorry for the reason we've delayed, I've delayed coming out to speak to you. I initially was going to address the recent threats from the Klingon Empire, but all of you... All of you have been watching what I've been watching... At this hour, our democracy is under unprecedented assault: Unlike anything we've seen in modern times: An assault on the citadel of liberty; Starfleet Headquarters itself. An assault on the people's representatives and Starfleet Security, sworn to protect them, and the public servants who work at the heart of our Federation. An assault on the rule of law like few times we have ever seen it. An assault on the most sacred of Federation undertakings; the doing of the people's business."

"Let me be very clear:" Maho stated. "The scenes of chaos at Starfleet Headquarters do not reflect a true Federation. Do not represent who we are: What we're seeing are a small number of extremists, dedicated to lawlessness. This is not dissent, it's disorder. It's chaos. It borders on sedition, and it must end: Now! I call on this mob to pull back and allow the work of democracy to continue. You heard me say before in different contexts; the words of an admiral matter: No matter how good or bad that admiral is. At their best, the words of an admiral can inspire... At their worst, they can incite."

Maho stared directly at the cameras and took a breath. This was the point she was leading up to, and she was hoping Miyahara, wherever he was, was watching:

"And therefore, I call on Tanaka Miyahara; to go on Federation television now: To fulfill his oath to defend the constitution, and demand an end to this siege!" She declared. "To storm Starfleet Headquarters; to smash windows, to occupy offices, the floor of the Federation Council, rummaging through desks. On the grounds of Starfleet Academy, threatening the safety of duly elected officials, it's not protest; it's insurrection!"

"The galaxy is watching." Maho continued. "Like so many other Federation citizens, I am generally shocked and saddened that our Federation, so long the beacon of light and hope for democracy, has come to such a dark moment. Through war and strife, the Federation has endured much, and we will endure here and we will prevail again; and we'll prevail now! The work of the moment, and the work of the days, weeks, and months to come must be the restoration of democracy, of decency, honor, respect, the rule of law. Just plain, simple decency."

And now, the continuation:

"The renewal of the politics: It's about solving problems, looking out for one another, not stoking the flames of hate and chaos!" Maho said. "As I said, the Federation's about honor, decency, respect, tolerance. That's who we are: That's who we've always been! The certification of JAG case verdicts is supposed to be a sacred ritual, whose purpose is to affirm the majesty of Federation democracy. But today's reminder; a painful one, that democracy is fragile, and to preserve it requires people of good will, leaders with the courage to stand up, who are devoted not to the pursuit of power, or their personal pursuits of their own selfish interest at any cost, but of the common good. Think what our children watching television are thinking: Think what the rest of the galaxy is looking at: For nearly two and a half centuries, we, the people, in search of a more perfect union, ever kept our eyes on that common good. The Federation is so much better than what we've seen today."

"Watching the scenes from Starfleet Headquarters, I was reminded as I prepared other speeches in the past, I was reminded of the words of Jonathan Archer, in his annual message to the Federation Council, whose work has today been interrupted by chaos. I believe he paraphrased an old American president, Abraham Lincoln. Here's what Archer said: He said 'we shall nobly save or merely lose the last best hope in the galaxy.' He went on to say: 'The way is plain, peaceful, generous, just. A way which, if followed, the galaxy will forever applaud, and must be forever blessed.'" Maho analogized. "The way is plain here too: That's who we are: It's the way of democracy, of respect, of decency, of honor, and commitment as patrons to this Federation. Notwithstanding what we're seeing today, I remain optimistic about the incredible opportunities: There has never been anything we can't do when we do it together. And this god-awful display today, is bringing home to every conservative and liberal and moderate in the Federation that we must step up. This is the United Federation of Planets: There's never, ever, ever, ever, ever been a thing we've tried to do that we've done it together and not been able to do it."

"So, Senpai; step up." Maho used the name she had affectionately called Miyahara. "May god bless the United Federation of Planets, and may god protect the men and women of Starfleet, and all those folks at Starfleet Headquarters who are trying to preserve order. Thank you, and I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"I don't know about you, but diplomacy didn't do us a whole hell a lot of good when we were trying to appeal to the Dominion's better graces..." Karen whispered to Elisabeth.

Bree entered the lounge quietly, spotting an open table with Takumi and the others. She also spotted Commodore Honda, but all of them were fixated on the impassioned speech being presented. Scott knew it was going to take more than words to straighten all of this out, but she more than anyone understood the power words could have. She nodded to everyone at the nearby table, not wanting to distract or disrupt, but simply wanting to show some sense of solidarity.

Victoria shook her head as she took another sip of her cola and placed it on the bar and turned to the Commodore with a sigh. What was happening on the ground was precisely there, on the ground, they were stuck on the ship, no one on, no one off as per the Commodore. She was going to stick her neck out, but someone had to do it and as a Senior Chief, she did have at least a modicum of seniority, "Commodore, ma'am, we are aware that the ship is a crime scene, however we have some critical combat damage as well as a significant amount of structural damage. Much as I would like nothing more than to take some R and R while we await investigation, I also would prefer to not have Myogi leaking air and venting bodies from a sudden decompression because we aren't handling the problems we know are there. Perhaps if the Commodore would be willing to share with us the nature of the investigation, we could assist in obtaining whatever she needs so that we can be getting on with the repairs?"

Tohru shook her head.

"Petty Officer, it is my understanding that yourself and many of the officers and crewmen aboard were brought aboard in the aftermath of the trial of Captain Aisaka, so I'll forgive you for not being in the loop, but if you must know, then this ship, from her recommissioning under this name until the trial, has been associated with the man who used to command her." She explained. "A man who, as that screen there shows, has invoked an attack on Starfleet Headquarters. As such, it is my duty as Commanding Officer of this vessel to report to the office of the Starfleet JAG that the Starship Myogi, an icon of the kind of the people who are currently attacking Starfleet Headquarters, and her crew, have no part in this plot, and it's a job that I can only perform once I have the reports that all personnel are required to file to serve as their accounts of the crime. If you would like to assist so you can get on with repairing the ship, I'd suggest you and the other engineers who insist on continuing repair work take some time to get those reports across my desk."

“The trial of Captain Aisaka was well covered throughout the Fleet, ma’am, as is the reputation of Admiral Miyahara.” Victoria wanted to be clear with the tone of her voice what she thought of the whole ordeal, given that she was indeed a new arrival, “If submitting a report that allows me to get this starship back into being a safe place to live is all you need, I’ll have it in your queue within the hour. But, ma’am, if we are truly under suspicion of treason, your biggest problems are already dirt side, not up here trying to put the ship back together.” All she was doing was stating the obvious: A good portion of the crew, the ones who wanted to be in on the action, were already off the ship. “If there’s any other way I can assist you in your investigation, just comm me, ma’am. And Commodore?” She paused a moment, meeting Honda’s eyes from an advantage of seven inches, “It’s not ‘Petty Officer’, it’s Senior Chief, ma’am.” Perfectly respectfully, no hint of disdain, she hid it so well.

"Very well." Tohru nodded. "As you were, Senior Chief."

A mission post by:

Commodore Tohru Honda
Task Force Jomo Commanding Officer
Temporary Commanding Officer

Captain Maho Takahashi
Commanding Officer

Lieutenant Commander Elisabeth Churchill
Assistant Chief Diplomatic Officer

Lieutenant Karen Kujo
Squadron Leader

Lieutenant Brennyn Scott
Chief Counselor

Lieutenant JG Terrence "Terry" Johnston
Engineer

Ensign Takumi Fujiwara
Flight Control Officer

Senior Chief Petty Officer Victoria Aries
Computer Systems Specialist

RSS Feed