<div class="floatleft">(http://th01.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/f/2011/316/9/4/the_madrid_returns_by_thefirstfleet-d4fy4f5.jpg)</div><hr/><strong>Name:</strong>Natalie Drake<br/><strong>Position:</strong>Captain<br/><strong>Status:</strong>Monitoring bridge operations<br/><hr/><em>Captain's Log, Stardate 2254.8.  After a brief layover at Vulcan we're heading for the colony of Serenade V to drop off supplies and check on the well being of the colonists.  After that, we plan to head towards Station K-2 for a duty patrol around the outer territories.  Ship and crew are functioning well, and no problems have been reported.</em><br/><br/>The bridge of the Madrid hummed, beeped and chirped with life as the ship moved at warp 5 through space, the Vulcan system disappearing into the backdrop of stars behind.  The<em>Miranda</em>class vessel was actually one of the newest vessels in the fleet, a destroyer built for patrol duty and ferrying supplies to and from various Federation outposts.  There were larger capacity vessels, certainly, but some components were needed between the large haul runs the convoys ran.  And so the<em>Madrid</em>had put in at Vulcan to pick up a spare computer core for starbase K-2 after theirs went down because of a glitch in the system.<br/><br/>"Helm, what's our ETA?" Natalie said, glancing up from the clipboard she was reading.  She was dressed in a gold minidress, standard issue for women on Starfleet vessels, and her long brown hair hung freely down to just past her shoulders.  One slender leg was crossed over the other, the stockings that were also part of the uniform coming up from the black boots on her feet.<br/><br/>"Estimating about a week, ma'am.  Shouldn't see anything nearby except for one or two star systems... we're traveling a rather sparse track."<br/><br/>Natalie nodded.  She'd plotted the course personally after Starfleet Intelligence reported they suspected the Klingons might have used an agent to sabotage the K-2 computer core, and they didn't want the Klingons to know about the<em>Madrid</em>'s arrival with a spare or her duty of taking up another patrol route.  The cold war between the Klingon Empire and the Federation was getting warmer, but so far both sides were limiting their movements to prevent open war.  For now.<br/><br/>"Maintain course and speed.  Let me know if we spot anything passing those systems," Natalie ordered, standing up.  She walked to the communications station and asked the lieutenant seated there, "Anything new from Starfleet command?"<br/><br/>"Negative captain.  All quiet so far."<br/><br/>"Very good.  Mr. Shariel?  You have the bridge, I'll be in my quarters," Natalie said, leaving the bridge in the more than capable hands of her Vulcan first officer.  She had plenty of paperwork to catch up on and he could keep the center chair warm while she was doing that.