<hr/><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Date/Time:</strong> March 11th, 9:30am</span><br/><hr/><hr/><br/>The Shuttle engaged it's thrusters in short little bursts as it adjusted itself for final approach on the Odyssey. Carefully adjusting it's precise speed and vector as it matched velocity with the orbiting ship, almost seeming to slow down as it slowly maneuvered closer and closer to the orbiting Leviathan. Until, finally, the massive organic ship was just creepy-- meter by meter- into the main hanger deck. It was a routine enough maneuver, of course, handed by a talented hand and the guidance of no few dedicated systems.<br/><br/>All of which resulted in the merest slight 'tap' as the shuttle itself slotted into one of the berth's--<br/>--at which point the Odyssey's docking mechanisms kicked in, grabbing the ship and moving it into position.<br/><br/>...after which, everything was still and serene..<br/><br/>A few people were gathered out in the berth in front of the shuttle. One of them was the ship's XO, Alexander Cole, who had shown up at the shipyard the night before (along with the small skeleton crew assigned to Hydroponics, Navigation, and a few other departments) to oversee the launch of the ship and was not only more than eager to meet his captain... but also nervous about such..<br/>(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/db/27/f3/db27f3ef3b9b0a1c647a2824eb9e95a3.jpg)<br/>Legionnaire, Officer,-- Veteran of Khataze Lu Ge where he and his unit had racked up an impressive kill count against the Abbies,- 'Alex' was perhaps one of the toughest bastards on Earth and he'd been somewhat annoyed to be pulled off the 'front lines' for a glorified scouting mission. That's how he'd felt right up until he'd gotten out of his briefing with Proxy Solveig Larssen.<br/><br/>The Australian still wasn't sure if this particular berth was going to be a boring yet important cakewalk or the worst and most desperate flustercuck that he'd ever presided over...<br/><br/>...but, either way, he was on board..<br/><br/>With him, at his side even, was the somewhat excitable American who couldn't seem to look away from his minicomp's holographic projection. Jordan Timothy, of the Interstellar School for Research and Advancement, was the Ship's Navigator and Pilot and Alex knew full well just how important this man was. More important than his captain, in some fashions, since he was the one that would allow them to actually travel across the vastness of space.<br/><div style="text-align: right;">(https://i.pinimg.com/564x/3c/51/35/3c51359b90c11769c64923127dcd6707.jpg)</div>Timothy seemed, as was typical for ISRA, a bit of a "head in the clouds" sort... He claimed that he was certified on the sidearm at his waist, and even that he'd used it in combat situation, but Alex had a hard time imagining any ISRAn out in the field-- and even more so, this one in particular,- but at the end of the day that didn't make him any less vital. He'd be making sure that everyone on the Leviathan got in some regular time on the firing range and was hoping he'd be able to talk the Captain into some additional training for the various non-combat personnel.<br/><br/>He had enough Legionnaire's on board with him to put everyone through a rough impromptu boot camp.<br/><br/>"Sybil, you have another of those cookies?" Jordan asked the third 'big name' present on the receiving deck at this time.<br/><br/>...when the "girl from Hydroponics" had first shown up asking about setting up a 'sampler' for the Captain and the various Officers, Alex had been tempted to tell her no and send her back to her department. He'd been about to order exactly that when she'd shoved something into his hand, and he'd eaten it, finding himself reminded of the importance of food to any army. She seemed eccentric, but, if she could improve the quality of the grub served on the Odyssey that much when she was nearly as mission critical as the Clear.<br/><br/>So, he'd given her permission to do her set-up as long as she didn't get in anyone's way.<br/><br/>"Stow it, Timothy," Alex commanded, roughly. "Shuttle Doors are opening."<br/><br/>...and, just like that, the various officer core-- some of their more important personnel,- began to disembark from the shuttle. He recognized some of the figures from his briefing documents. The people that he'd be serving next to for the foreseeable future. Whose dossier's he'd been familiarizing himself with over the past few days. The only person he<em>didn't</em>see, at least for the nonce, was the Chib who was serving as his Captain. Elizabeth Monroe.<br/><br/>"Be sure to try the cookies!" Jordan, helpfully, supplied to whomever was first off the shuttle.