Executive Arrival

Posted on Sat Jan 3rd, 2026 @ 11:36am by Commander Narell Teya & Captain Inara Valérian

1,577 words; about a 8 minute read

Captain Inara Valérian sat at the desk in her ready room, reading over reports while a cup of mint tea slowly cooled in her hand. The crew transfers from the USS San Carlos had been underway for over an hour, with some crew from the Endeavour leaving and nearly twice as many officers arriving. Everything was proceeding at a rapid pace, perhaps not as quickly as Starfleet Commander would have preferred, but quickly just the same. The need for such urgency normally would be questioned, but with the recent events involving the Federation President's death and the rising hostile instability along the Demilitarized Zone, it was well understood.

Narell Teya had taken a few minutes to find her assigned quarters and drop her bags off as well as check to make sure that the shipping crates with her personal items had been delivered before going to find the captain. Walking along the corridors of the Endeavour, she briefly ran a finger along the three solid gold pips on her collar. The rank of a full commander still felt strange, not wrong but definitely different. It was the same with her new position. She had been surprised when she had been informed that she had been selected to be first officer of a Sovereign class starship. The fact that she had achieved it at such a young age had not been lost on her, either.

Finding the captain was easy enough. Although she was reluctant to disturb her new commanding officer while she was in her ready room, her presence on board needed to be known to the captain. Still, Teya paused outside the ready room door and braced herself. Whispering a quick, silent prayer to the Prophets, she reached out and tapped the door chime.

The chime sounded softly through the ready room. Inara set the PADD down alongside her tea, her posture straightening in a smooth, practiced motion. The last few hours had been filled with logistics, officer transfers, mission updates, and coded briefings from Command, and she was grateful for the interruption. “Enter,” she said, her voice calm.

The doors slid open with a whisper and Teya stepped inside, pausing just beyond the threshold. She wasn't hesitant, but composed as though grounding herself in the moment. Her uniform was as immaculate as she could make it considering the circumstances, her dark hair neatly tied back, and her presence disciplined but not rigid. Teya clasped her hands behind her back and straightened. “Commander Narell Teya, reporting for duty, Captain.”

Inara stood and stepped around her desk, her eyes studying the commander as she did so. She was young, Inara noted but not inexperienced. There was a steadiness behind the Bajoran woman's eyes that came only from years of hard service. She recognized that this was a woman who was young but clearly capable.

“Welcome aboard the Endeavour, Commander,” Inara said, breaking the silence with a tone that was warm but formal. “It’s good to finally meet you in person," she continued as she stepped forward towards the commander and extended her hand.

Teya accepted the gesture firmly. Even after her years in Starfleet, she still felt as though the gesture was strange, odd, and completely human. "Thank you, Captain," she said in return.

"I trust you're transfer has been as smooth as anyone can hope for, considering the circumstances," Inara said.

"It has," Teya said. "I do apologize for my delay in reporting to you, but I wanted to find my quarters and ensure that my belongings had arrived."

"I think we can do away with formal charges this time," Inara said with a small, slight grin that tugged at the corner of her mouth. "And I really can't blame you, either. I would have done the same." Motioning towards one of the chairs before her desk, she stepped back towards her own chair. "Please, have a seat."

Teya hesitated only for a brief moment before she sat down in one of the chairs.

Inara returned to her own chair and sat down, folding her hands in her lap as she did so. “I’ve read your service record,” she began. “More than once, actually.”

Teya's brow shifted slightly, not in surprise, but curiosity. “I hope it was acceptable reading material, Captain,” she said, her tone carefully measured.

That drew the faintest smile from Inara. “Impressive is the word I would use,” she replied. "I know how difficult it's been for Bajor and its people the past few decades, and I can't imagine how you've struggled with being one of the first Bajorans in Starfleet. That added to the manner in which you've conducted yourself throughout your career, even in some of the most difficult situations, only made me understand your assignment to the Endeavour even more."

Teya nodded silently for a moment, mostly to acknowledge the compliment. "I'm aware of the expectations that come with being first officer, specially on a ship such as the Endeavour. I take my position and my duties and responsibility seriously, Captain. I try to learn from my mistakes, and I won't lie to you. I'm afraid that I may make mistakes."

"Everyone makes mistakes, Commander," Inara said. "I understand that, and I don't have a problem with people making and learning from them. You've earned your place here, at least as far as I'm concerned. The hard part is going to be learning how to create a team, in both the crew and between the two of us."

Teya nodded, a sharp motion that carried a statement of both understanding and resolve. After a brief, quiet moment, she spoke, changing the subject. "After the crew transfers are complete, what are our orders?"

Inara's expression shifted to something between an uncomfortable tense grimness and annoyance. "The Federation has just lose its president, and the investigation into the circumstances surrounding that is still ongoing. There will be political aftershocks that are going to ripple through the Federation for months, if not years. On top of that, there are regions that are seeing heavy unrest in quite a number of ongoing unstable situations," she said.

"Such as the Demilitarized Zone?" Teya asked.

Inara nodded. “The situation along the Demilitarized Zone is deteriorating faster than most of the public realizes,” she said. “Civilian unrest among the colonists, hostile criminal opportunists, independent dictators with well armed militias stepping into power vacuums. On top of that, there are rumors that an organized faction is slowly taking control over a number of independent worlds. Starfleet Intelligence has reported that the leaders of this faction may be survivors of the Maquis.”

Teya blinked. "I thought that the Maquis was wiped out by the Jem'Hadar during the Dominion War," she said.

"That was the official report," Inara nodded. "However, it's possible that a few individuals or even a cell or two managed to survive. If not founded by the original members of the Maquis, this new faction may be a newly formed group with the same ideals."

Teya's jaw tightened. She had grown up on Bajor during the Cardassian Occupation, and knew that sometimes there were extremists who would never give up. Those individuals often inspired others to take up the same path of disillusioned violence, and the outcome was never a good one. "Captain, if the Maquis has returned, then Starfleet needs to know where they stand as far as their ideals and their position. If the group's leaders can be reasoned with, then diplomacy has a chance. If not..."

"Then the Endeavour is going to be the group's primary target," Inara finished Narell's thought. "I've come to a similar conclusion. It's not something that I'm happy with, either. Our orders are to patrol along the Demilitarized Zone and assess the region for any signs of instability or terrorist activity."

Those orders are very broad ranged and open to interpretation in a number of ways," Teya observed neutrally.

"That's what I'm mostly concerned about," Inara nodded her agreement. "I want to proceed with caution. With Starfleet spread thin as it is, the Endeavour will most likely be on her own. The San Carlos has orders to report to Starbase Five Five One, and there are no other ships nearby except for any present at Deep Space Nine or Starbase Three Five One. So, we're it."

"That information could embolden any criminal elements we are likely to encounter, and that could lead to a dangerous situation for us," Teya observed, concern creeping into her voice.

"Agreed," Inara said. "Once we're underway, I'll call for a senior officer briefing. In the meantime, I want you and the other new officers to get settled in. I'm going to finish going over the update reports. Hopefully, by the time we're underway we'll have a better idea of what we're getting ourselves into."

"If the captain will allow an observation?" Teya asked as she stood.

"Commander, you're my first officer. I always welcome your input," Inara said.

Teya nodded, pleased that her new captain welcomed her thoughts. "It has been my experience that things never go according to any plan and that we should always expect the unexpected," she said.

Inara smiled warmly at Narell's words. "From what I've read about the Endeavour's history, truer words have never been spoken," she said. "Dismissed, Commander. And welcome to the Endeavour."

Teya braced herself to attention briefly before offering a stiff, formal nod. Being dismissed, she turned and exited the ready room.

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