The Spectacle (Crew) }{ (Hanson,Tucker,Patricia)

[tigh]

Officer Lounge, Esteem; Feburary 26th 2523

The crew had spent the last few days getting everything ready for the big event. it wasn't something Tigh wanted to have happen on his ship, but at this oint there was little he could do about it. about 2 weeks prior Duke Rider had been confirmed as the new Chief Council of the Nobles Court and he had decided that he was going to recognize the Esteem for its efforts on Perpehone as well as use the ship as a medial platform for the annoncing his appointment of a Deputy Chief Council of the Nobles Court.

Tigh would have much rathered that he used some other ship and allowed him to continue his normal routine, but his protests fell on deft ears. Rider was set to arrive and he had send Commander Inaka and Commander Fairchild to greet him at the shuttle bay. Lieutenant Commander Tucker and Commander Hanson were with him in the Officers lounge where the whole event was to take place. They were there for the cameras along with the Patricia, even Ensign Park was there.

The others would bring the Duke up to meet with Tigh then they would be off on there way to conduct their business. As soon as thr Duke was there Commander Inaka would have the bridge and be in charge of the Esteem while the Admiral attended the event. Media crews had already made their way on the ship and were snapping pictures of the Admiral and the others.

Tigh leaned in toward Sibil and spoke quietly so none of the media could hear him. "Any chance you could arrange some sort of emergancy so we can call this all off?" He said jokingly to her. They were stuck in this situation and there was nothing that could be done about it. They just had to wait it out, but nothing says they can't enjoy a bit of humor in the mean time.

[Nicholas Park]

Ensign Park knew all about political maneuvering and the workings of the Alliance government. His upbringing and education had largely focused on such things, perhaps giving him insight into the event that was a bit clearer than most of the other military personnel there. Eugene Rider had just jumped up in the ranks of alliance government to become the head of the Nobles Court, below only the prime minister and his deputy. It was all quite a bit of luck. The Deputy Chief of the Nobles Court rarely ever had to actually replace the Chief.

Now it was Rider's turn to name his own deputy and he decided to do it on the Esteem. Why the Esteem? Politicians aren't known for shying away from any chance for the media to see them interacting and supporting the troops and the Esteem was on the front-line of reinforcing Alliance control in the 'verse. Being in orbit over Persephone also probably helped seeing as how the Duke supposedly had business connections there.

The last few days, or the first few days for new arrivals like Nicholas, were fairly hectic. Park's days had been filled with rushing work through the admiral so that they had his schedule cleared and ready for this event. It also of course included an even heavier workload because of the event itself and all the surrounding arrangements to be made.

The event having finally arrived, Park's job was still not over. He stood in the officer's lounge by the admiral as guests started to filter in. The ensign had a talent for remembering faces and thus was able to aid the admiral whenever some dignitary arrived that the commanding officer didn't appear to know. Either he would whisper to the admiral at their approach or he himself would intercept and then make introductions between the two.

In addition, there was another aspect to the job that kept him alert. Not only was he scanning the growing crowd for dignitaries but also of course for threats. Sibil and the security detail had to watch over the entire event. Nicholas just had to watch over the admiral's safety in the event that anything got through. A large group of non-Alliance personnel on board was an much increased threat compared to the remote possibility of a disgruntled soldier taking a shot at the admiral.

[Patricia Redman]

Gracefully Patrica weaved through the people and made her way toward Tigh. She nodded and smiled at the people around her, gently shaking hands, though always moving. She never thought that something like this would be on an Alliance ship, it was also something she had been looking forward to avoiding.

Trying to maintain her appearance she glided over to Tigh and stood on her toes, whispering in his ear. "Everything looks wonderful, I didn't think you had it in you." She kissed his cheek softly, for good measure. She enjoyed teasing the Admiral, and she took it upon herself to do it fairly often. She didn't think he had many people that were willing to try. Lowering herself she wrapped her arm around his and looked out over the crowd. Yes, this was like most parties, one she seemed to fit into despite herself.

[Sibil Tucker]

Sibil was less than excited today, she was on duty like usual but it was a different task. Play nice and look pretty for the media, something she actually made known to the Admiral she wasn't happy about. Still there wasn't much to be done other than be a good officer and play along. The Lieutenant Commander hadn't brought with her too many options as far as civilian clothing so she had to make a trip down to Persephone. Refusing to wear a dress she purchased a nice pair of pants with a top, shoes too of course. Standing in front of the mirror of her room she sighed, toying with the ring that as always was on a chain around her neck. Today would be the first day it was visible though, her uniform normally hid it's presence.

"You look nice Chief, don't worry about it. I'm sure time will pass quick enough and you can get back to normal." Adamala smiled at Sibil as she straightened the pins on her own uniform. Unlike her partner and room-ate she was on official duty today, she'd be one of the officers keeping security for the event. Sibil had made sure as usual that the ensign would be close by, she was thankful for the learning experiences offered by her partner. "Don't hide in here too long, the Admiral will be wanting you around to help keep him sane." She teased Sibil as she walked out the door and went to the Officer's Lounge.

She just grinned at Adamala's comments. Tigh was as un-excited about the situation as she was. Sibil quickly finished up and dragged herself from the room, making way in the same direction that Ensign Secore had left. Before entering the lounge she double-checked her pistol, making sure it was secure and not noticeable. Just because she was off of her normal duty didn't mean she wasn't armed, she just couldn't make it obvious.

Sibil had quickly taken a close position standing near Tigh, hoping to not draw any attention by the people with cameras. When the Admiral leaned in and made his joke she smiled. "If that's an order sir I can just have Adamala shoot someone in a craze, then we'll be forced to take her away. We could all escape that way." Her voice was joking of course and she winked at Adamala who was giving her a joking glare.

When Patricia made her appearance Sibil greeted her with a nod and smile. It was odd to her that the Companion would greet the Admiral in such a way. She had said she wasn't servicing crew, but despite that did the two of them have something going on?

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Outfit

[tigh]

More and more people began to flood in to the lounge as time passed. It was going to be a crowded event. Tigh was glad though that Sibil was going to be there. He knew her best out of the whole crew and trusted her. He laughed at her reply about having Adamala shot someone. "Sorry Ensign orders are orders." He said with a bit of a laugh. Tigh smiled at Patricia and her greeting her presence as well would be most welcome at the event. She was the exact type of person that was expected at these kind of things and hopefully would help draw a bit of attention from him.

"Well I can't take all the credit for how this looks. I tried to avoid it all myself." He told her. It was true he had done everything he could to keep himself away from this event but he had to be here for the big show that was soon to come. Over the comlink that him and Sibil, along with the rest of the security on the ship came the call that the Duke's shuttle had landed in the shuttle bay. It wouldn't be much longer at this point and he would be up there with the rest of the party goers.

Tigh walked up on the stage they had set up in the lounge to announce the impending arrival. "Excuse me." There was a pause as the crowd settled down. There were flash after flash from the cameras. "Our guest of honor will be here in a matter of minutes please find yourselves a seat and we will get this show moving." He was direct and loud when talking so that the whole room would hear him. As soon as he was done speaking he walked back down off the stage and back over to the group of people he was standing with. He was stopped every few steps along the way to shake hands with one person or another trying his best to keep a fake smile on his face. Those who knew him though would be able to tell the smile was only for the cameras.

[Nicholas Park]

The Admiral and Commander Tucker joked about having to attend the function. Many chose to be military officers rather than politicians specifically so they could avoid such events. It's the difference between selfless sacrifice and public service that gets your face plastered everywhere. It was abundantly clear that most of the officers were uncomfortable here.

Patricia, the companion, arrived to speak with the admiral as well. Nicholas only knew her by briefly flipping through crew files to attach names with faces. She moved and spoke as one would expect for a companion. She even perhaps got too close and too intimate with the Admiral but it seemed the two had built up a relationship because the commanding officer didn't respond negatively. Still, Park kept a close eye on their interaction. He hadn't fully checked her background so in his book the companion was not above suspicion.

It wasn't long before word came in that the Duke had landed and Tigh made an announcement that the event proper was about to begin. Park had subtly cut a path through the crowd to and from the stage for him allowing the admiral an avenue to move though. Of course it did not prevent the others from closing in to get a word in with the man but it did speed things along and allowed an added check of security, sending the ensign in first.

"You're a very popular man, sir." Nicholas remarked as they reached their starting point where they had left Sibil. "Even among all these civilians."

[Patricia Redman]

As Tigh started to settle back into his group Patricia intercepted a couple of reporters. She had delt with their types before, making non commitle comments about the Admiral and the gathering, offering them suggestions on where they might get a better shot of the Duke as he entered, but mostly she was trying to buy the Admiral some time.

She had to smile though, he was trying his best, but he did look a bit out of place. He would have felt more at ease in a combat situation. She smiled at that thought, he was an interesting man to sat the least. She returned to her side and smiled up at him. "You did well." Her arm wrapped around his again gently.

[tigh]

Tigh gave off a chuckle at the words of Ensign parker. "A bit more pouler then I would like really." Then stopped when he was back over with the rest of them "Thank you Patricia." He said in reply to her comment, not that he had really said much. Short and sweet thats what it was about. Now all they had to do was wait till the Duke arrived.

The crowd had grown quiet thick at this point. An almost overwhelming number of people. Especially in comparison to the six security in the room. They were the ones woking hard with this job, and they would be recognized for their efforts here today. "now to just survie the rst of this. Well for a first tour what do you think Parker. Can you handle all of this?" It was quiet a start that was for sure.

[Nicholas Park]

Safely back in their starting position, Ensign Park now watched the companion again. She deflected some of the crowd away from the admiral but again she came close to the commander and touched him. Whether those touches were affectionate or simply meant to be calming, the ensign did not know but it was still puzzling. He'd heard many laments from crew members about how the companion was not servicing crew yet it appeared that she now had a relationship with the admiral and of all places was showing it in the most public event on the ship. If he was to do his duties as Adjutant he'd need to speak with the admiral about the exact nature of the relationship after the event was over.

"I don't know, sir." Park replied to the admiral's question. "I wasn't exactly prepared to be attending parties everyday with plenty of great food, fine drink, and beautiful women. I don't know if I can take much more of it, sir." he jested.