After his new Chief Engineer had left Zach dropped into the chair behind his desk and looked at the chaos there with a sigh.

“Computer, analyse contents of the padds on my desk and colour code them according to murphy’s law seven.” He ran a hand through his hair and rubbed at his face.

Lordy, he was going to need a bucket of coffee for today. The computer cheeped to signal it had completed its task and he leaned forward to start sorting the padds into piles dependant on the colour they were now displaying on the top right. He needed a yeoman for all this. But, like an XO, there hadn’t yet been one assigned. Zach wasn’t sure if that was an oversight on his father’s part, but he didn’t care.

He finished the padds and pulled a small group toward him. Admiral James Edward Murphy might have made a second career of meddling with his kid’s lives, but one thing his father forgot was that Zach had been on the other side of that particular battlefield all his life. He knew how to play this game.

A small grin quirked his lips as he opened the file and started to read on his division ship. He’d never been sure what to think of the Rhode Island class. It wasn’t a defiant, but it was almost punching in the same class… with a better paint job and carpets. But it wasn’t the kind of ship he’d have expected to see out in 17’s area. Unless, of course, linked with a larger ship, which the Canterbury was.

The captain, Mason, seemed solid though. Zach flicked through the man’s personnell file, his eyebrow winging up at certain points as his grin widened. Several of these mission reports definitely detailed actions that deviated from Starfleet protocol—letting his own engineer blow up parts of the ship to get them away from the Devore Imperium and using a civilian transporter to help with evacuations—but damned if they hadn’t worked. Mason was a wildcard, and there was always room for one of those in a pack.

He read through the notes on the division and sat up straighter. “Computer, open a channel to Captain Mason on the USS Resolute.”

He just had time to lament the lack of coffee on his desk when the computer cheeped and the logo on the console screen in front of him cleared to show a bearded man in a captain’s uniform. His shoulders were wide, almost filling the screen and blue-grey eyes locked onto Zach.

“Captain Murphy,” he nodded by way of greeting. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Captain Mason. I know you’re already underway,” Zach said leaning back in his chair. “But I have reassignment orders for you. Effective immediately, the Resolute has been assigned to the Canterbury Division.”

Mason’s left eyebrow quirked up slightly. “Canterbury division? I thought we were with the Interceptor division?” he asked as something cheeped off screen and he looked slightly to the left. No doubt opening the reassignment package Zach had just sent over.

“You were, but the Interceptor was reassigned to a developing political situation.” He didn’t say anything more on it, mostly because he didn’t have any more information, but he didn’t miss the slight shudder of Mason’s shoulders.

“Political situations not your thing?” he guessed, offering a small smile. He needed to work with Mason, which meant that he needed to get to know the guy. Not easy when he was reacting like the cliff of granite he appeared to be carved out of.

“You’d be surprised,” Mason said mildly. “I much prefer combat where you can tell who your enemy is because they’re shooting at you.”

“Sir, captain, sir! We’ve been taken off your sister and reassigned to some admiral’s brat’s division.”

Zach blinked at the garbled announcement. Mason’s expression flicked sideways and became so forbidding that Zach seriously worried for whoever was on the receiving end of that look.

“Rennox, I’m on a comm call with Captain Murphy.” He didn’t need to add ‘that admiral’s brat’, that came over loud and clear.

“Oh, right… shit… sorry sir.”

Mason nodded. “Go and see if Commander Zale needs any assistance with the departmental safety reports.”

“Yessir, right away sir. Oh! I did that filing you wanted.”

This time Zach didn’t miss the wince from the big captain.

“I do apologise for that,” Mason said as he looked at him again. “My yeoman is… enthusiastic at times.”

“No worries,” Zach waved off the apology. “You’re lucky to have a yeoman. I need to find a good one to get all this organised,” he said, waving his hand at his crowded desk.

Mason snorted, the sound deep and soft. “Yeah… let’s just say Rennox’s talents lie elsewhere. Definitely not in administration.”

Zach blinked in surprise but didn’t get chance to comment as Mason spoke again, “So, it looks like not much has changed. We’re still heading out to check subspace relays in sector delta-zero-four-nine and checking in on the trade outpost out that way.”

Zach nodded. “And we’ll be stopping by the Helanis system as well. A ship out that way reported some odd readings coming from out that way that command want the Canterbury to take a look at.”

Mason nodded and frowned, his gaze flicking to the side again. “Okay, well we’re already on route to the relays, so we’ll complete those checks and wait for you to rendezvous with us.”

“Sounds good. We’ll be with you in a couple of days,” Zach nodded. “Thank you, Captain. Murphy out.”

Cutting the comm, he leaned back in his chair and studied the screen for a while. The logo had reappeared, spinning slowly. Mason was… interesting. He wasn’t sure what to make of him.

“Oh well, no doubt it’ll come out in the wash,” he murmured and levered himself out of his chair. He was going to need coffee before he tackled the rest of what was on his desk.