Cam and Went

Posted on Sat Oct 12th, 2024 @ 2:14pm by Lieutenant Billson Portillo & Chief Petty Officer Chip Lauder CPMV & Candice 'Candy' McCarthy

1,221 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Boys of Summer
Location: Gregory House Memorial Hospital ER, Santiago Bay CBD
Timeline: Mission Day 2, 1200 Hours

ON

Lauder sat in the waiting room of the city hospital's sterile ER, where a doctor had sombrely advised him and Portillo of Cam Bath's confirmed death. The Chief hadn't moved from his seat for hours, Billson had counted three hourly newsbreaks which played the news of the accident on repeat. The Lieutenant returned with some refreshments, but Lauder just stared into the blue carpet,

"So, how did you know Cam?" Billson asked, sitting down, passing Lauder a cup of steaming and guaranteed awful cup of coffee.

"He was a crewmate on the Saber. The kid was one of the best," Lauder replied. He held the hot cup in his hands, the heat stung his palms as he stared into nothingness. "I trusted him with my life, he did anything I asked of him."

"It sounds like he was a good colleague," Billson smiled, siping her cup, "And a good friend."

"Yeah," Lauder smiled. "When we were lost, I would sometimes be working so hard to plot a course or fix something, that he'd bring me a meal or something to drink, even a change of uniform. He anticipated every need, why he became a technician I'll never know, he would've killed it as a hotel manager or something. Man, that kid was loyal."

Billson pursed her lips and considered Lauder for a moment. She reached out to place her hand on his shoulder but got halfway there and refrained as Lauder continued, her hand returning to her cup.

"All that's gone now," Lauder choked. Tears welled in his eyes and he brushed the back of his hand against his nose. "Y'know, I'd been meaning to contact him for ages, I'd heard he'd been... suffering. One of his workmates in cargo handling on the orbital complex called me and asked if I'd help him out a few months ago. I was 'busy', you know how it gets?"

"I do," Billson smiled.

"When I saw him this morning," Lauder sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes for a moment, "It was like I was talking to a different person, Billson, I don't know what to tell you. He wasn't well."

"How so?"

"He was rambling, incoherent, talking of conspiracy theories and bent recollections of the past," Lauder said. "I just... I just wish I could've got to him in time to save him."

Billson finally reached out her hand and placed it on the Chief's shoulder. She smiled reassuringly, "You were right there, Chief, even with the medics getting to Cam as quickly as they could, there was nothing they could do. You couldn't have--"

"I don't mean with accident. But... the way this is all playing out, I may as well have pushed him in front of that car," Lauder grumbled.

"I understand this might be difficult to understand, but this isn't your fault, Chief," Billson reminded him.

"No, it really is," Chip retorted.

Billson rubbed the Chief's shoulder, trying her best to comfort him. There was something telling her it wasn't particularly appropriate, but she was watching a great man crumble before her. Her heart sank when the news break rolled around again.

"Chief," She spoke, her eyes darting toward the screen in the corner of the room, "Perhaps we should go and get some lunch? Maybe call your wife?"

Lauder's eyes drifted toward the screen as footage of SBPD investigators swarmed the scene, accompanied by Starfleet representatives. The pair discarded their cups on side tables as they headed to the exit.

In news this hour, we continue to cover breaking news from April Gardens, where a 22-year-old Starfleet Crewman has been mowed down in a tragic hit-and-run.

The victim of this horror accident has been identified as Crewman Cameron Bath, a cargo specialist assigned to the Sagan Prime Orbital Complex. Shocked colleagues have paid tribute to Crewman Bath hailing him as a "quiet achiever".

We have reached out to the command staff of the Santiago Bay Starfleet Facility. They have refused to comment on the matter until a full joint investigation has been carried out by SBPD major crash investigators and the Starfleet Criminal Investigative Service. They, however, expressed their heartfelt condolences to Crewman Bath's family, friends, and colleagues. They praised the efforts of first responders including members of the police, fire, and ambulance services.

Amongst first on the scene was Christopher Pike Medal for Valor recipient Chief Petty Officer Chip Lauder, who has also received praise for his bravery from Sagan Remembers Committee President Franklin Uzi, who took to socials this morning to say "this is an unfortunately-timed incident that reminds us of the sacrifice of all our personnel, which we have been doing today at Sagan Remembers. Great to see the heroic efforts of Starfleet hero Chip Lauder. I've known his father for many years. #RSVPCumBath."

In other news, Michael Weatherly Senior is still missing, his shuttle--

|Office of the Editor, FNS Building, Electric Avenue
|Mission Day 2, 1203

Candice deactivated her screen with a scoff. More sensationalism. She looked over to her researcher and personal assistant, a squat, foppish Italian with thick-rimmed glasses and a 5 o'clock shadow so consistently maintained that one would've assumed the clock was stuck at 5 pm.

"Michele, I really wish the TV department would refrain from this sort of overly sentimental sensationalist dross," Candy grumbled. "I'll be speaking to Denobulan Alan about this, he needs to pull his weight as Human Alan does over in the radio department."

"Denobulan Alan's style is starting to cloy a little," Michele commented. "Very old fashioned."

"That's right," Candy replied, stepping towards one of the windows of her corner executive officer, taking in the panoramic vista of the CBD below. "I don't know who he thinks he is quoting that Uzi prat, I guess Denobulan Alan wants to cash in on the Chip Lauder angle-- wait."

"Mi scusi?" Michele questioned, watching Candy rush to her computer terminal.

"Cameron Bath," She muttered. Candice searched her mail and showed Michele her screen, displaying a message from Bath, "Same guy?"

"Si."

"Shit," She whispered. From the corner of her eye, she watched Michele eyeing his boss suspiciously as the woman began to read her computer screen like she'd stumbled across a treasure map that would lead her to a Kurlan Naiskos. "Shit. Shit! Michele, I want everything you can find me on the USS Saber and Cameron Bath. I'm sending you a document. I want a computer summary of it in an hour."

"Very well," Michele nodded, rushing off to do the Editor-in-Chief's bidding.

"And cancel my meeting for the rest of today! And get a hold of Human Alan!" Candy called after the pink-panted Italian as she dove into the hundred-and-twenty-page document sent to her, allegedly by Cameron Bath, the message timestamped moments before he was mowed down. Candy narrowed her eyes, "Alan's been sent this too. Why?"

She scrolled through the data, skimming the very surface of what was presented. She and the Head of Radio Productions Alan Joers knew the Saber story better than almost anyone; they'd covered it together in agonizing detail for the FNS eighteen months ago. Already, data she knew like the back of her hand was contradicted by what had been sent to her by a deadman. Now she had to work out if he was a madman, too.

OFF

 

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