Read Online Dremiks by Cassandra Davis - Free Book Online

met, in person, with the commander to review their assignments and provide status reports. Normal status updates were provided through electronic communications on a more regular basis, sometimes even hourly. The captain and his second-in-command, however, felt that personal interaction was the only way to properly monitor the progress of their subordinates. The captain attended the briefings whenever he felt the necessity, but generally left the chore to the commander. She preferred the meetings to be brief, on-topic, and to the point.
    “Engineering”
    Lieutenant Guttmann always had detailed notes ready for meetings. O’Connell was far less likely to spend minutes grilling him on minutiae, but Swede believed in being prepared for any contingency. He rarely had anything untoward to report regarding the crew assigned to him. The status of the Hudson was another matter. He usually had a list of minor system problems to report. For once, that was not the case.
    “All personnel at normal activity status. Loa and Sunni completed the condenser repair in the aft science bay at 0600. Nothing else to report.’
    O’Connell nodded. “Thank you, Lieutenant.” She turned her head to the other side of the table. “Price. Civilian relations?
    Tony hit the transmit button on his tablet to send his hastily scrawled notes. He resented being stuck, as he saw it, with the job of liaison to the civilians aboard the Hudson . His resentment showed in his work.
    “Two disputes over laundry facilities between colonists and crew. Both resolved with mediation. Chancellor Trell lodged a complaint about excessively forceful vacuum tubes on E deck.”
    Ensign Chi snorted with amusement then quickly looked abashed when the commander’s green eyes glared at him.
    “And Marissa Hill wants the drinking water tested and the system flushed.”
    O’Connell sighed. “Why?”
    “She says it has a metallic taste and is tainted with lead.”
    This time it was Swede who sighed. “Impossible.”
    “Impossible or not, I want it checked out. The crew involved in the laundry dispute, any disciplinary action required?”
    “Not in my opinion, ma’am. It was a silly matter solved by a good lecture on common sense.”
    “Send me a detailed write-up all the same. If Trell goes to the captain, I don’t want to be left twisting in the wind.”
    The co-pilot looked disgruntled but replied with a dutiful “Yes, ma’am.”
    Ensign Chi was the next to be questioned. As supply and logistics officer, it was his responsibility to oversee the food and fuel stores aboard the ship. While Lieutenant Guttmann’s engineering department kept the water running and the fuel recycling systems working, Chi still had to monitor the usage of all materials aboard. Once they reached Dremiks, he would also be tasked with ensuring that all supplies were safely and properly delivered to the new colony.
    Chi’s notes, to the annoyance of his superiors, never followed any predictable pattern. The ensign was always very precise, sometimes tediously so, but his penchant for tangents drove O’Connell insane. This time, his presentation was brief and bland, as was the report from Ensign Robertson who was in charge of ship communications.
    “Please be sure to relay to all personnel and colonists that communications traffic between the ship and Orion station beacons will be terminated twelve hours prior to the jump. All channels and signals will be tied up with official communications at that time.”
    Robertson looked flustered. “I… I was not aware of this ma’am. It was not in my briefing papers, and I don’t know…”
    O’Connell hadn’t mastered the art of raising one eyebrow to show her displeasure. She relied, instead, on a steady, tight lipped, stare. Her look brought Robertson’s stuttering to a sudden stop.
    “This is a directive from ISA command and Captain Hill. There will be no discussion or debate. If any of our guests have any comments, they can log them