Sensor Maintenance

Posted on Fri Jan 10th, 2025 @ 3:32pm by Lieutenant Moon Ji-hee

741 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Captains and Contraband
Location: USS Myogi, Deck 3, Primary Sensor Maintenance Node 4
Timeline: 1030 hours, Same day as 'Enter Pallis!'

=/\= On =/\=

Moon Ji-hee was the new Chief of Operations on the USS Myogi. It was a New Orleans-class starship assigned to deep space exploration. She crouched by the junction panel outside the lateral sensor array. The ship's astrometrics had been unreliable for three days. It was her job to fix the system as soon as possible.

Sometimes Ji-hee wondered if she should have gone into Engineering. Starfleet always needed more Operations officers. There was more room for advancement in Operations because critical positions always needed to be filled. There was just something about working on a starship's advanced propulsion systems that Ji-hee always romanticized. Operations focused on a starship's other critical systems outside of propulsion. She still loved her work.

Her toolkit rested on the deck. Ji-hee selected a multiphasic spanner and adjusted its power level to handle the delicate ODN relays. The sensor relays were fried. She used a micro-induction driver to remove the damaged isolinear chips. Crewman Yu Xiaoli handed her a replacement.

Xiaoli was an energetic enlisted technician with cropped black hair and a youthful face. She wore the practical uniform of an Operations specialist. Her sleeves were slightly rolled up. She was fidgeting with a plasma torch, trying to look busy.

"Ma'am," Xiaoli said brightly. Her accent softened the hard syllables of Standard. "Do you think it’s gremlins again? I read once that warp plasma can attract, um, subspace entities."

Ji-hee glanced at her and shook her head. "No gremlins this time. Just a blown EPS manifold." Her voice carried calm authority, though her tone was gentle.

Xiaoli giggled and crouched beside her. She offered her tricorder to assist. "I still think gremlins are more fun. I mean, boring EPS conduits can’t be blamed for everything, right?"

Ji-hee allowed herself a small smile. Xiaoli’s enthusiasm reminded her of a younger version of herself. She focused back on her work and inspected the EPS manifold with her own tricorder. The readings showed a power fluctuation caused by misaligned flow regulators.

"Xiaoli, hand me the plasma regulator tool," Ji-hee said.

Xiaoli fumbled through the kit and handed over the tool with both hands. "Here you go, Ma'am."

Ji-hee carefully adjusted the plasma flow nodes. Each turn of the tool brought the readings closer to stable levels. When she finished, she re-checked the power flow to the sensor array.

"The manifold is stable. Let’s recalibrate the subspace emitters next," Ji-hee said as she stood.

Xiaoli looked at her with wide eyes. "You’re going to make me crawl through Jefferies tubes, aren’t you?"

Ji-hee nodded and handed Xiaoli a gravitic caliper. "I’ll be right behind you. Think of it as cardio."

Xiaoli groaned but climbed into the tube with exaggerated reluctance. "You’re lucky I did yoga this morning. Otherwise, I might get stuck and ruin your perfect timing."

Ji-hee followed, carrying a harmonic phase discriminator. The narrow tube vibrated faintly with the hum of the ship’s systems. When they reached the compartment housing the subspace emitters, Ji-hee opened the panel and got to work.

She used the gravitic caliper to measure the emitters' resonance. Xiaoli handed her the harmonic phase discriminator, Ji-hee used it to realign the system. Xiaoli’s hands were steady as she held the calibration matrix in place.

"I feel like I’m in one of those holonovels," Xiaoli said in a playful voice. "The kind where the plucky ensign saves the day while the Lieutenant gets all the credit."

Ji-hee raised a brow and smirked slightly. "Do you want the credit for crawling through a tube and not breaking anything?"

Xiaoli gasped in mock offense. "I think I deserve a medal for staying cheerful."

The subspace emitters soon matched the ship’s resonance frequencies. Ji-hee double-checked the diagnostic interface. The sensors were fully operational.

As they crawled back out, Xiaoli wiped imaginary sweat from her brow. "Mission accomplished, Ma'am. Do I get extra rations for this?"

Ji-hee shook her head but her expression softened. "You get the satisfaction of a job well done."

Xiaoli pouted dramatically but grinned. "I’ll take it."

Ji-hee allowed herself a small laugh as they returned to the corridor. The sensors were fixed and the Myogi was ready for its next mission. For Ji-hee, working with Xiaoli brought a surprising sense of ease. It reminded her that teamwork mattered as much as technical skill.

=/\=Off=/\=

Lieutenant Moon Ji-hee
Chief Operations Officer
USS Myogi

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