General On Deck

Posted on Sat May 16th, 2026 @ 6:38am by Gunnery Sergeant Gaagii & Staff Sergeant Shayla Kunadt & Lieutenant Colonel Cornelius Tremble & Major Edmund Merrick & Sergeant Audie Fitch & Lieutenant Mira Jayna & 2nd Lieutenant Diska Wooz & Warrant Officer Mercy Ryan & Sergeant Major Lachlan Barr & Sergeant Adélaïde Moreau & Sergeant Azure Thompson & Sergeant Andrew Shy & Sergeant Tyrigus Fry & Sergeant Miranda Schultz & Brigadier General Seamus O'Rourke
Edited on on Sat May 16th, 2026 @ 6:59am

3,260 words; about a 16 minute read

Mission: Episode 18 - The Edge of Darkness
Location: The Snake Pit - Deck 9 - USS Pioneer
Timeline: MD002 2000 hrs

Fortunately, Audie had been able to wear her Marine dress uniform for the inspection in Sickbay, so she hadn't had to change as she scurried to make it to the Snake Pit in time to have a chance to relax a couple of minutes before the next inspection.

As she stood at attention, Audie couldn't help but wonder if the General would realize he'd seen her before. Honestly, she'd be more surprised if he didn't, and for now, she was grateful that she wasn't in the front rank.

Once again, Jayna was running between the SCIF and The Snake Pit. She was still in her dress uniform. She hadn't seen Neil all day as they'd both been busy in other places, but this was the last formal inspection--at least the last one scheduled. And, since the general was a Marine, it would probably be a more formal one. Not something she was looking forward to. What she was looking forward to was seeing Neil and getting a read on how he was holding up after a day of catering to the VIP.

Miranda slipped up beside her and grinned. "At least you won't get yelled at if your boots aren't shined. You're a fleeter, so you get a pass."

Jayna grinned back. "Ha. I'm still a part of the Cure. If the general doesn't find something amiss, Neil will. However, I'll pass inspection. At least this time." But only because she knew it mattered to the commodore and she wanted the Cure to look good.

The Snake Pit had been cleaned within an inch of its life, which somehow made it look more suspicious than if it had been left alone.

Lachlan stood near the front of the compartment in full Marine dress, posture easy but sharp, hands clasped behind his back as his eyes moved over the assembled Cure. The room still had its usual bones — the racks, the corners where Marines tended to gather, the little signs of life that no amount of inspection prep ever fully erased — but tonight it had been dragged firmly into regulation. Boots shone. Collars sat straight. Awards and ribbons were aligned with the sort of care that made even the most cynical Marine look twice.

He caught Miranda’s comment to Jayna and let it sit for half a breath before turning his head slightly.

“Careful, Schultz,” he said, dry but not loud. “Keep temptin’ fate like that and I’ll find a reason to inspect your boots twice.”

There was the faintest twitch at the corner of his mouth before his gaze moved across the rest of them again. He didn’t need to bark. They knew the score. The General was due any minute, and while Lachlan had no interest in turning the Snake Pit into a parade square for the sake of theatre, he did care that the Cure looked like the unit they were.

“Right,” he said, voice carrying just enough. “Last one of the day. Stand easy until the doors open, but don’t get sloppy. If anyone’s still breathin’ too loud after the morning we’ve had, keep it dignified.”

He stepped down the line, stopping briefly beside one Marine to adjust a sleeve seam with two fingers, then moving on without comment. Another got a look at his collar that made him fix it himself before Lachlan had to say a word.

“That’s better,” Lachlan murmured.

He glanced toward Jayna, then Audie, then the others scattered through the formation. “General’s Marine, so he’ll see the wee things. Don’t give him any freebies.”

Then he returned to the front, settling into place as if he’d grown there.

“And for the love of all that’s holy, if anyone’s hiding contraband in here, I don’t want to know until after he leaves.”

One side of Jayna's mouth twitched. Briefly. She didn't have contraband this time.

Wooz walked up the corridor from the armories, Morgue and offices, nervously pulling at the hem of her tunic and looking everything over. She was trailed by Sergeant's Shy and Fry who'd been detailed for the last sweep up the Gauntlet as the passage was affectionately named. Both sergeants now moved to take up positions near the entrance to marine country and the Lieutenant Wooz took up a post off to one side of the entrance, near where the infamous gift shop normally rested.

The shop had been dismantled and put in storage.

Diska new Lachlan had things well in hand without her muddying the waters, so instead she kept her peace and mentally ran through her checklists for the millionth time.

Audie hated being stuffed into a dress uniform. She hated standing still, unless it was in the line of duty and there was an actual point to it. Silently rolling her eyes, she shifted her weight, wishing there was a way they could all just break into the 'Can-Can' and have some fun!

Shayla stood next to Gaagii both wore their dress uniforms. Gaagii seemed to wear his with pride and without issue. He had two raven feathers intertwined into his hair. It was a symbol of his beliefs and faith. He had a dispensation from the Corps that allowed him to wear it with his uniform. Both stood in silence and seemed to be as ready as they would ever be for the General. Shayla enjoyed being in Gaagii's company. There seemed to be a calm about him.

Mercy stood stone still, 'Ruby' over her shoulder. She hated the dress uniform, it was too restrictive. The less she moved the better.

Azure moved up to her. "That General O'Rourke is interesting to say the least, soft spoken, yet commanding, now I know where the Doc gets it." She smiled. "According to scuttlebutt, he likes to get in on the action and leads from the front, and he's described as harsh, but fair."

"Got a bit of a crush on him, have ya, Sergeant?" Mercy teased.

"Purely platonic, Warrant. He has the wrong equipment." Azure replied.

Right before the General arrived, Edmund came into the Snake Pit, giving a once over those gathered. He gave a cursory nod.

"Marines." he said. "Good work on making things put in order before the General arrives."

Edmund walked up and down inspecting the marines. When the word came that the General had arrived he adjusted his dress uniform, standing at attention.

At the entrance hatch a Sentry noticed the Brigadier General's party approach. "Attention on Deck!" He called.

Miranda immediately stood at attention. The best she could hope for was to be overlooked, so she made sure there was nothing in her stance or dress worth commenting on.

Next to her, Jayna also stood at attention, but as she was Starfleet, it was not quite as rigid as the Marines around her. But she, too, preferred to be inconspicuous and so mirrored those round her.

Standing at attention for long periods was just a mental exercise, and compared to the real work they did, at least for Audie, it was just an annoying cake-walk. And the arrival of Himself just marked the coming of the end of the torment! Once the inspection was over, they could relax and get comfortable.

Piece of cake!

Then she saw it! A flash of yellow fur, sashaying in with the General's party, as if he was just part of the entourage... a one-eyed yellow cat, who plopped his butt down right beside the general, as if he was waiting for his own chance to inspect the troops!

No, no, no, no....

Jayna caught the movement out of the corner of her eye. It took all her control not to turn her head, or smile. At the same time, she sincerely hoped the general had a sense of humor.

Neil saw several heads twitch and he glanced to see Audie's cat decide to make an appearance and his jaw muscles tightened. He cast a withering glance toward Lachlan before smoothing out his visage. He would have to have a talk with the COB about the Pioneer turning into a zoo.

Edmund caught the arrival of Buster, in his peripheral vision. In the back of his mind, the major was amused and also worried about the feline's arrival. It was going to be a bit of a trial but they will get through this.

General O'Rourke saluted the sentry and he and his Aide-de-camp entered what was referred to as the Snake Pit.

Walking behind the general, Neil took in the detachment critically (pointedly ignored the cat) for a few beats then said, "General. May I present The Cure. Major Edmund Merrick Commanding. Lieutenant Wooz, is the detachment XO and first platoon commander. Sergeant Major Lachlan is the ships Chief of the Boat, detachment first sergeant and second platoon commander."

Brigadier General Seamus O'Rourke looked at those assembled. "Colonel Tremble, this is my Aide-de-camp, Captain Feren X'tal."

Neil felt his eyes nearly widen as he'd been in the transporter room and escorted the party to marine country, but he recovered and said, "Yes sir. We've met."

Lachlan stood at attention near the front, eyes fixed ahead, face set into the sort of disciplined calm that had survived inspections, firefights, and several admirals with opinions. The arrival of the General was expected. The aide-de-camp was expected. The faint shift in the room as everyone collectively decided not to react to a one-eyed yellow cat strolling in like it held brevet rank was very much not expected.

He saw it, of course. Hard not to. The thing had entered with more confidence than half the officers he’d served under.

For one dangerous second, Lachlan felt the corner of his mouth threaten mutiny.

He killed it stone dead.

When Colonel Tremble made the introductions, Lachlan remained still until his name was given. Only then did he give a crisp nod, not breaking posture. “General. Captain,” he said, voice level and respectful, the Greenock edge softened but still there. “Welcome to the Snake Pit.”

His eyes stayed forward, though he was painfully aware of the cat sitting near the General like it was waiting to check collar brass.

A beat passed, just long enough for the absurdity to become part of the room rather than an interruption.

Then Lachlan added, dry enough that it barely moved the air, “Detachment present and accounted for, sir.”

Once the announcement was made by Lachlan, Edmund stepped forward, turning towards his Marines.

"Marines, At Ease!" Merrick then turned to the General.

"Welcome to the Snake Pit, General O'Rourke. If you will follow me we can take you on a tour of the facilities." Edmund was wanting to get this visit over as soon as possible as there was indication of some of the faces threatening to crack from their serious expressions.

"Thank you, Lead the way, Major." O'Rourke said.

Audie let out the breath she'd been holding as they were given the 'At ease', although she resisted the temptation to rush over and snatch up the errant cat. That was, until he flopped over onto one hip, then raised one hind leg over his head and started to lick his...

"Buster!" Audie hissed, then closed her eyes with a sigh.

Shayla and Gaagii stood shoulder to shoulder as the General and his party entered the Snake Pit. Neither had seen a General before. In fact, Shayla used to joke that a General was something that you heard about but never actually saw. Yet here they were. As O'Rourke reviewed the troops both remained at attention. It wasn't until the order to at ease came that they both seemed to breathe again.

Neil kept a stony visage as the visitors and Merrick moved toward the back of the pit. Then he glanced to Lachlan and said, "I don't recall a cat being on the TOE, Sergeant Major." Then he left it there.

Tyr glanced at Andrew and bit off half a snicker, leaving a quirk on his lips.

For his part, Andrew just bit his top lip and shook his head back slightly back at the rifleman.

Wooze caught both reactions and said, "Stow it, marines. Or we'll be running all day tomorrow... with the cat." She was amused but this wasn't really the time and place.

Edmund gently but firmly directed the General in the direction, away from the rest of the marines. He passed by Lachlan, and said to him in a low voice,

"Take care of this situation," pointedly looking at Audie as well as Buster. He disappeared from view going after the General, to quickly finish the tour. The sooner it got done the better is what Edmund thought.

Miranda hid a snort of laughter once the General was out of earshot. Then she controlled her expression. "I need to get out of here before Barr gives me twenty."

Jayna nodded. She had more experience in keeping a mask on, but she had to admit, Buster was hard to ignore. And the bathing was epic.

She walked over to Neil, her expression still neutral and commented, sottovoce, "Maybe the Cure needs a pit bull as a mascot. Would be better trained than the cat--and better disciplined." But probably not as colorful.

Lachlan kept his face still as Merrick passed him the problem like a live grenade with fur.

“Aye, sir,” he said quietly.

Only once the General and the inspection party had moved on did he let his eyes drop to Buster, who had chosen that exact moment to continue his deeply personal maintenance routine in the middle of Marine country.

Lachlan stared at him for a second.

“Bold choice,” he muttered.

Then his gaze lifted to Audie.

“Fitch,” he said, calm as anything, which somehow made it worse. “Retrieve your… tactical animal before he commissions himself.”

He glanced briefly toward Tremble, then toward the still-snickering edges of the formation.

“And nobody says mascot. Nobody suggests paperwork. Nobody makes eye contact with the cat like he outranks you.”

Buster looked up at him with his one good eye and gave the long, unimpressed stare of an admiral reviewing a failed cadet.

Lachlan pointed at him.

“Don’t start with me.”

A beat passed.

Then, without looking away from the cat, he added, “And Schultz, if you laugh, it’s thirty.”

"Aye, aye," Miranda replied. It would almost--almost--be worth the thirty, but she'd do her best to hold it.

Adélaïde had managed well enough through the inspection party’s arrival, mostly by fixing her eyes forward and pretending she had not noticed the one-eyed yellow cat stroll into the Snake Pit like he had been personally invited by the General.

That had been difficult.

Watching Buster begin his little public grooming demonstration had been worse.

By the time Lachlan warned Schultz not to laugh, Adélaïde’s mouth had already pressed into a thin line, not from disapproval but from the sheer effort of keeping her expression where it belonged. She turned her head just slightly, enough to look toward Audie without making it obvious to anyone still pretending this was normal.

“I mean,” she said softly, barely above a murmur, “he does have command presence.”

Her eyes dropped to Buster, who looked entirely untroubled by the chaos he had caused.

Adélaïde gave him a tiny nod, like one professional acknowledging another.

“Terrible uniform standards, though.”

She shifted her weight back into something closer to proper at ease, still trying not to smile too much. There were worse things than a cat derailing the last inspection of the day. There were also, admittedly, fewer things that could do it quite so efficiently.

"Buster, stop it!" Audie didn't need to be asked twice to rush over and snatch up the cat, and as she cradled him against her chest, she was having a hard time scolding him as she tried not to laugh. "How'd you get out? I thought you..." Well, with a cat you could think what you wanted, and then they would do what they wanted, unless you locked them in a cage, and even then, they'd find a way! "Good thing you're a civilian, or you'd be demoted!" The cat was nonplussed! Or was that 'non-pussed'?!

Gaagii allowed himself a small smile as the General and his entourage left. The cat was the Great Spirit personified. At least it was in this moment. It was rare that he got to witness something such as this. It was rarer still that a smile crawled across the usually stoic face of the Navajo.

Shayla could not help but feel somewhat embarassed for the Colonel and Major. This was the first and perhaps only time that they could impress O'Rourke and a cat, A CAT, had put a blemish on the situation. "I certainly hope the General has a sense of humor." She whispered to Gaagii.

"He may not, but the Great Spirit certainly does." Gaagii replied.

As the General, his aide, the Colonel, and Major Merrick continued their tour Lachlan stepped in front of The Cure. "Company Dismissed!" He gave the order that he knew everyone waited for. The sooner this was over, the better off he would be.

A Joint Post By

Lieutenant Colonel Cornelius Tremble
Executive Officer, USS Pioneer
Battalion Commander, The Cure