===== Begin log ===== Time is like a golden fly. For one time there is a plenty of it .... the other time not enough even to breath. Bad times usually last for an age and in oposite good times speed like a horse. There is not much to tell about good and nice times, but a good story is most made upon bad times. The two weeks that the Chimera was docked on SB Bragg passed like a wind. Later, Shane could not believe how fast the R&R ended. Just imagine .... you have a great time with the woman you love and just one nice afternoon you will realise that there are only 48 hours left till departure. Thats the time where the story will begin .... ===== Holodeck 2, USS Chimera, 48 hours till departure from SB Bragg ===== Shane was never too fond about martial arts. Sure, the bare arms fighting skills were quite popular among fleet cadets for the last 2 centuries, but Shane felt not much attracted there. During his time on the academy he learned for a medical degree and commision in the tactical field ... so there was little interest left for things like martial arts. As an addition to that, Shane had always plenty of other sporting activities, so his condition was quite well and therefore the need for training any battle 'art' was not big. Anyway, bare hand fighting course was a requirement for a starfleet officer wearing a golden uniform and Shane's got some skills in Tai-chi style. Lately and especially since Shane was promoted to Executive officer he neglected his physical training a bit and midly said ... his athletics was a bit rusty. The last drop that drove Shane to renew his physical training was the long run through SB Bragg when beeing late for a meeting with General Bretam. Remembering his old training days @ the academy, Shane started with light stretching. To his unpleasant surprose he realised that his figure wast the same then 5 years ago ... less muscles and more fat. Not that he would be a 'fatball' but the weight of some 95 kg could hardly please him. After the stretching Shane tried some kata exercises. Shane remembered the words of his academy instructor explaining what a kata is: " Kata contains in them stances, blocks, strikes and combinations of techniques that must be used with out the slightest hesitation in order to insure your survival. Mind and body must be one when you have a sword that can shatter wooden armor sweeping toward your neck, welded by a man trained from childhood in the arts of war." This words were supposed to origin from Earth ancient easten history, but when you change the sword to a distruptor and wooden armour to a light combat armour and its still apllicable. Another words of the instructor were like: " Kata helps us to focus our minds, and relieve stress. Kata strengthens our bodies and minds into a single unit able to accomplish more together than apart" It took Shane long to understand that in both cases the instructor was very true. Martial arts are not a mere fighting style. A fighting requires mainly physical attributes like strenght or dexterity but martial arts add to the sole fighting the spiritual degree. A matter of fact is that the greatest 'warriors' were not boxers or wrestlers, but masters of martial arts. Shane was of course far from beeing a master by himself. He could remeber only two katas and he had the slight feeling that that were the 2 most easy and short of the dozen he knew 5 years back. Nonetheless ... after doing the two katas 10 times each, Shane felt a bit weary. That was not a good sign. Katas were not meant to be hard exercises ... but the oposite. They were meant to ease one's mind and to keep one's condition. Sighing about the not pleasing performance of his body Shane sat down on a towel, crossed his legs, stretched his back and closed his eyes. This was a basic position for light meditation and the instructor on the academy insisted on ending every lesson by a 5 minute meditation ... so Shane made it to an habit on his own. During this meditation one was supposed to think about the lesson, about one's performance and new things one has learned. A funny thing was that Shane found out that after a training session he was well able to think about duty matters as well. That was what he was now performing ... thinking about the latest ship's business. As expected, Shane found quite a heap of messages and PADDs upon his return from the base for him waiting. One of them was the actual crew roster and Shane spend almost an hour studying it. There were many changes to the roster he was used to know during the last mission. A happy news was the fact that the former CEO LtCmdr. Nick Quayle returned to the ship. Even when the CEO post was not free anymore, Shane was sure that Nick will fit into the engineering team very easy as AEO and possibly dig his way up soon enough. There were some other changes in Engineering as well. Apart from the DCEO McTaggert who was a starnger to Shane, there were some more fresh AEOs like Ens. Rodgers. Several changes were in the Science department as well, naming only a fresh cadet Terek Weranis. There was a note that more changes were still pendling. Instead of LtJg. DeSoto came a new AMO to strenght Rangi's team - LT. Gannsen. All those new names were unfamirial to Shane and he made a mental note to meet them personally as soon as possible. It was always an advantage in deep space to know one's crew and their abilities. Shane could only wonder about the fast and unexpected roster changes SSF Comm was ordering almost every day. He could only suppose that its some SSF special feature ... something he didnt approve much. {I have to meet this Commander Palmer} Shane thought. {Lets see what new devilry SSF brewed for us. I wish i knew what the EXACT orders of the dear Commader are} ===== End log ===== Cmdr. Shane Guzman XO USS Chimera