"Mount Up" #8&9 - "About First Impressions and Emotions"

-={On}=- USS Pegasus, Deck 8, Main Engineering

Chief Engineer Black took a moment to wander around the engine room again, this time in uniform. Though a logical part of her brain knew that the ship was small and the engines needed work, she still felt as though she'd been given the biggest, best engine room to be found in the entire fleet. She touched a console here and there, wondering what it would be like to find these consoles familiar, to be accustomed to being in charge. She wasn't sure that would ever happen. Still, her grandfather had told her that it would. "Once you walk in there, Kitty, you Will Be the Chief, no matter how you feel about it." Kitty Black looked around again, having stopped her wanderings near the main console, and for just a moment everything seemed completely strange, frighteningly unfamiliar. Her heart was pounding. She had no clue what to do here! They'd send her back! She was going to fail! She stood still for a minute that felt like an hour, fighting her fear, taking deep breaths until her head cleared and she was aware of the slight hum of the engines at idle again. Again she frowned as she listened to the tonals, with ears trained by distinguishing the nuances of whale song. She knew that the engine hum should be a half-tone higher. She knew how to tune an engine. Maybe she wasn't sure how to be a Chief Engineer, but she knew how to tune an engine. She sat down at the console, so similar to the one she'd seen her Chief use in her previous position, and started to work. Pretty soon, barely realizing what she was doing, she started giving orders. Never snapping them out, never insisting on 'sir', just speaking as if she was making a request. The crewmen did everything she asked, without hesitation, just as if she had authority. That was still strange to her, but now it was becoming exhilarating. She smiled as she continued to work, then her smile brightened as she heard the engine hum begin to change, the tone slowly pulling up into its proper range. She was Chief Engineer, just like that. And it was working. Her grandfather had been right, after all.

OFF:

Lt JG Kathleen Black Chief Engineer, USS Pegasus

(And I sure hope I did this right! - Joy)