Transfers and Check Ins ptC

Posted on Mon Aug 18th, 2025 @ 10:41pm by Lieutenant JG Christian Rogers

1,212 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Below Decks
Location: Junior Officer Quarters, Valkyrie
Timeline: prior to departure

If the others were confused about Hannah’s status, it was nothing compared to the young man himself. He was trying not to think about it, but everytime he was referred to as “petty officer” it was weird to him. Not sure why, he remained a petty officer even as he was in the FMF, but there it seemed odd, strange and somehow like a cute pet name when the Marines called him by rank.

Now, it was “normal” and appropriate. As he said, it seemed odd. But he had to put that out of his mind for the moment. He was told Lieutenant Rogers was looking for him and he was trying to steel himself for bad news. He worked hard to earn his status as a combat medic and now that the entire squad were Fleet, he was afraid that his assignment with the squad was going to come to an end. Rogers previously told him that nothing was said to him about removing Hannah from the squad but even the Lieutenant had some question if he was going to stay.

He was transferred along with the rest of the squad and hoped that was a good sign. But the day showed that there was a ton of confusion with the new program. The hassle getting everyone authorized and onboard the ship today proved that. Which means that orders that shouldn’t have been cut were and now things were being put right. At least it would be done before the ship pulled out. He’d be stuck here at Utopia Planetia until a transport was arranged to take him to his new assignment.

He stopped for a moment. He knew it was possible he’d be removed from the squad but it still stung. He’d grown to consider this group like his own brothers and didn’t want to leave them. But that was the nature of military service. He squared his shoulders, settled the pack on his back. Then rang the chime to the Lieutenant’s quarters.

“Come,” came the typical gruff and curt reply. The door slid open and Hannah entered.

Rogers was next to the bed, standing and staring at the door. As soon as he saw Petty Officer 2nd Corvus Hannah, he felt a tightness leave his body. He took half a hopping step and had a barely controlled fall to sit on the bed. “Hannah,” he said, sounding relieved.

“Lieutenant,” Hannah said as he quickly entered the room. He saw the Lieutenant’s face, the mild sheen of sweat and slight pallor to his skin as well as the unsteadiness as he sat on the bed. He had the pack off and on the end of the bed without much thought. “Your knee?” Hannah asked. It wasn’t hard to guess, he saw the way it pressed against the material of his uniform trousers.

Rogers nodded and grimaced as he tried to resettle himself.

“Here, let me help,” Hannah said, working to lift the leg without manipulating the knee joint and turning it so it was on the bed. Once settled, he pulled his tricorder from his waist and ran it over the limb. After a few seconds, the monitor began flashing information. “I told you two weeks ago to go to Medical and have this fixed. You were building up scar tissue then and all this running around the last few days couldn’t have helped.”

“I know,” Rogers said, his dark brown eyes flashing a moment of irritation. “And I told you I’d rather you take care of it.”

“I’m not a surgeon, Lieutenant,” Hannah said. “I have limits to what I can do.”

“Well, do what you can. I can’t be out of commission right now.”

“Fortunately it’s just some inflammation, but there’s six percent more scar tissue than two weeks ago. You need to get that fixed otherwise there won’t be anything I can do.” He reached into his pack and pulled out the hypospray and med generator. “I also told you you can’t be sliding into second either. If you listened then you wouldn’t be in this position now.”

“I wasn’t going to let the station Security team win that game,” Rogers growled. “It’s a matter of pride.”

“Well, your pride is going to cost you if you don’t get it under control,” the medic said. “I’m going to have to log this, you know? Medical will know about this.”

Rogers sighed. “Do you have to? I have some pull with Security if you get in trouble.”

Hannah glanced at the Lieutenant and shook his head. What most people might have taken as someone asking a NCO to commit a regulatory crime that could lead to a court martial and dishonorable discharge, Hannah understood to be Rogers’s very dry and flat sense of humor. He removed the hypospray and pressed it against the swollen joint. The air was filled with a muffled but distinct ‘hiss’.

“You’ll be good to go for the briefing tonight, but stay off it until then. And then come straight back to your quarters and rest it until morning. Understood?”

“Yes, Mom,” Rogers said.

The typical response from the squad when Hannah got “bossy” with his medical care hit him hard considering that he was on his way here with the thought he was being reassigned. He refilled the hypospray with a mild analgesic and, without asking permission or giving Rogers the chance to deny it, hit the Lieutenant’s arm.

“You’re not going anywhere,” Rogers said, though he was scowling at the medic’s boldness. It was also a sign of his physical condition that he hadn’t kept up his strict shielding to keep from ‘hearing’ the thoughts around him.

“Thanks, Lieutenant,” Hannah said, replacing his gear. “See Medical, get this fixed. You can’t afford to be on a mission and have it go out again.”

Rogers looked at his chrono to see how much time he had before he had to arrive at tonight’s briefing. Then tomorrow he needed to start the new Security department PT and weapons training program for the ship’s security. Along with training for his team, it was scheduled to be a full first day for the squad and department aboard the ship. He still had to do the formal check in with SecChief. There was too much to do and he couldn’t afford the lost time to have surgery on the knee.

Not for the first time he cursed the injury that sidelined his college career and kept creeping up at the worst times.

“Alright, get comfy on the bed for the next hour and a half, let the medicine work. Here’s your PaDD, you want anything from the replicator?” Hannah asked as he closed up his back and slung it over one shoulder.

“Cheeseburger and fries,” Rogers answered.

“...and a pitcher of iced tea,” Hannah said with him. “I’ll get it, so you don’t have the excuse to hobble around.

SWAT/S Squad

LTjg Christian Rogers
SWAT/S Squad CO (prior to position promotion)

Petty Officer 2 Corvus Hannah (NPC)
Combat Medic

 

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