General Conway's Office

[Jason Conway]

1000
Conway's Office
Meropis

Moving the laptop to one side, satisfied he had what he needed to progress the day's meetings, General Conway then shuffled the papers on his desk. He adjusted the series of cardboard-bound classified files, straightening them up by tapping them against the glass-top surface, then placing them down carefully the other side of the desk, leaving a neat gap in the middle. There was a lot of work to be done today, best they got started sooner rather than later he thought as he glanced at his watch. Jason was due to gate to Earth alongside the newly-commissioned SM-1 in the morning, and he had to get through the last of the personnel reviews before he presented himself to the international oversight advisory and to home world command in light of the recent alien attack on the city. He was thankful that he only had to review those that were staying in the city, a good portion had transferred out for various reasons and subsequently been replaced by a new crew. Aware that his personnel were on a trial contract, he hoped more of them would choose to stay this time... It only reflected badly on the leader if his people ran from the fight.

There was a light tap at the door and the General waved his hands over the wall sensor fitted near his desk, causing the panels to slide sideways and allow entry to the room. With a smile he looked up and gestured to the leather upholstered officer chair in front of him, "Please, take a seat. You're right on time... Let's get this thing started shall we?" He smiled and placed his elbows on the table, clasping his hands under a welcoming smile, "Why don't we begin with the basics? Your name, role or rank and why you joined the expedition..." Conway swiped the sensor to close the doors again and allow the pair some privacy, as the person the other side of the desk began to speak...

<Tag whoever jumps in first!>

[John Callaghan]

1000
Conway's Office
Meropis

Following the attack, Captain Callaghan had spent most of his time in sickbay, recovering from the wound he sustained. Apparently, continueing on with the wound had made it worse. Oh well. If he hadn't done so, who knows what would have happened? In any case, he was up and running again, and was now cleaning his rifle in the armoury. Just as he was putting the rifle back in it's place, he was requested to report to the Commanding Officer.

John figured he'd receive his punishment now, and that he'd possibly even had to pack his things. The Captain straightened his cammies and walked up to the office. He knocked, and entered when the doors opened. John sat down, as ordered and then proceeded to answer the General's question. "Captain John Callaghan, uhm, Commanding Officer of the Marine contingent that has mostly left for home. As for reasons of joining the expeditions, I have only one: I received orders to," he said without showing any emotion on his face.

[Jason Conway]

1002
Conway's Office
Meropis

Jason reached over to the water jug in the middle of the table and poured himself a glass, taking a quick sip before carefully placing it back on the table. He slid the first restricted file from the top of the stack down in front of him as the man introduced himself. In truth, he was already well aware of who this gentleman was and had wanted to talk to him first above all others. Reading the file was just the General's style, an attempt to make John feel nervous. Yesterday he had spent the day talking to most of the members of SM-1, so it was quite fitting in his mind that he would start today's meetings with the lead member of SM-2. He flicked through the first few documents within the file, tilting it to make sure John couldn't see what it was, before closing the file and placing it down gently on the glass surface.

"You are here because you have orders to..." he repeated John's opening statement, "several of the marines you just mentioned had orders to be here, they then had the option to go back home after the devastation the battle of Meropis saw. You... Mister Callaghan, chose not to." The General simply sat in his chair, wearing the stars on his shoulder, hands clasped together on the desk, projecting the air of authority. He looked John in the eyes, the man said nothing in reply just yet, sensibly letting the expedition commander finish.

John looked like a man walking to the firing line, knowing he had dis-obeyed a blanket order to all personnel not too long ago, and Jason could tell John had been nervous about this long-awaited meeting. He broke the tension, or increased it further, Jason wasn't really sure how this would go down,
"For a man so dedicated to following orders that he will stay at station when he is given the option to return home, fully paid, with all of his friends and colleagues..." John was clearly waiting for the bombshell to drop, "Why, Brevetted Major Callaghan," and he emphasized the Brevetted part, "did you dis-obey a direct order to evacuate the city." The General stared John in the eyes, he had his next play lined up but he wanted to test the man sat before him, wanted to see what he was made of, before he told him how he really felt.

<Callagham you're up!>

[John Callaghan]

1002
Conway's Office
Meropis

John patiently waited for the General to speak. Which took some time. It seemed that he was using textbook ways to make John nervous. Things like reading a file while the subject was waiting, among them. Things his former commander used to do, back when he was still the XO of SG-21 operating from Earth.

The man repeated what he had said, and then proceeded to say that several of his Marines had gone home. He knew this already. They had even announced this to him, like he had asked. Now the man was wondering aloud why he hadn't gone home, even though he could have. There was little to go home to for him. His father would not be able to understand why he was away, and he could not simply lie to the man. His brother was deployed too, and his sister was in college. He had no girlfriend or children, and most of his friends were in the stargate programme. "Well, sir. There isn't anyone waiting for me back home, and my old team has been taken over by my former XO. I figured I might be of some use here," he said with a grin.

Then the man touched the long-awaited subject. John didn't understand, though. He was being promoted? But he disobeyed a direct order and what not. He could be kicked out of the corps, but he wasn't. The Captain immediately answered the General's question of why. "Why, sir? It was a judgement call. I believed that the city could be saved. I volunteered for the Stargate program some five years ago because I felt that I could really make a difference. For the first time, I thought that I really could make a difference," he said.

[Jason Conway]

1004
Conway's Office
Meropis

The General let Major Callaghan finish, "Why, sir? It was a judgement call. I believed that the city could be saved. I volunteered for the Stargate program some five years ago because I felt that I could really make a difference. For the first time, I thought that I really could make a difference." He leaned back in 'the chair' and gave John a thoughtful look, picking up a pen and holding it to his lips for a moment. Then came the reply, perhaps one that John wasn't expecting,
"Callaghan..." he paused, then went for it both barrels, "You dis-obeyed a direct order, you put yourself in harms way and you could have put your team in harms way." Then his expression changed and broke into a smile, "And by God I wouldn't be here saying this to you if you had listened to me. John Callaghan, you are a credit to your team, a credit to the SGC but most importantly, you are a credit to this expedition. I'm proud to have a man like you on board." He let the words sink in, then followed up with the kicker, "That is why we pushed through your promotion. That is why you will lead the newly commissioned SM-2 military support unit in the field and that is why I approved your request for Gene Therapy." A smirk flashed across Jason's face, "I saw how much you wanted to fly one of those Jumpers during the battle." He clicked the pen in his hand and opened Callaghan's file before signing the bottom of the first page. He paused to look John in the eyes, making sure he understood the situation, before clicking the pen again and closing the file, "I trust you are happy with life here in Triangulum... If all is well, please send the next person in on your way out." He placed John's file to the right of the desk in front of his laptop, starting a new pile. It pleased him, one down and... The rest to go.

<Tag John Callaghan>

[John Callaghan]

1004
Conway's Office
Meropis

John was a little worried when the General repeated what the Captain had done. In hindsight, it seemed even worse than it actually was, and John was actually a little afraid that he was still being dragged to a Court-Martial. When the scorning was over, it turned to praise. He was glad about his request being approved, and was happy that he would have a team of his own again. "Thank you sir... On all accounts. I could do with some shoreleave to Earth soon... I've received a somewhat disturbing letter. But, I assure you that it won't get in the way of my duties."

Then the Captain... Erm... Major, stood up. He nodded at the General and stepped out of the office. He signalled the next person and went back to his quarters to think about what the hell just happened.

[Tom Chambers]

1005
Conway's office
Meropis

The Lance Corporal had been somewhat puzzled when he had been summoned, well invited to meet the General, he could only guess at why a general would want to talk to a Lance Corporal, but then again the general was a general so he got a fair am mount of freedom, especially as an international, intergalactic expedition leader. However he could want a different perspective on the repairs to the city or any numbers of things which began to flow into Tom's mind.

When Tom was signaled to go in he tensed up a little before standing up, he couldn't help it, the fact he had only really met a general or equivalent two times before this and this was his first American General it was somewhat understandable, the last time he had been told of the stargates, space vessels and everything else that was now his reality.

After standing up and walking into the General's officer he stood behind the chair and gave the man a crisp open handed salute which only ended once the Conway had returned the military courtesy. "Lance Corporal Chambers." He said as his hand went down to his side, deciding it would be prudent to introduce himself, after all it was doubtful the man would be able to pick him out by looks.

<TAG General Jason Conway>

[Jason Conway]

1006
Conway's office
Meropis

"Lance Corporal Chambers." A fine salute to go with it. General Jason Conway returned the salute and both men took their seats either side of the glass topped desk. Conway removed the next file from the stack to his left and placed it in front of him. It was labelled Chambers, Thomas and the first page displayed and I.D photo next to an Australian flag. He took a few moments to peruse the file and locate the bits and pieces of information he required before addressing the Lance Corporal sat opposite him,
"Chambers, thank you for coming. I'd like to put your mind at rest and just state that this is an informal meeting for me to get to know who I'm sharing this base with, nothing serious." He could see the man relax slightly, "That being said, it's good to finally meet somebody from the combat engineering team. How are things going with the structural repair of the city? We took quite the beating before you guys arrived." As Tom gave his answer Conway reached over to the glass of water he had poured and set down next to the jug. He took a sip and listened to what Tom had to say.

<Tag Tom Chambers>

[Tom Chambers]

1007
Conway's office
Meropis

After the General had returned the salute Tom took a seat and looked aver as the general read a file, presumably his it was certainly unsettling for someone like him to be sitting across the table from a general and having one read your file only made you that extra little bit more tense.

"Chambers, thank you for coming. I'd like to put your mind at rest and just state that this is an informal meeting for me to get to know who I'm sharing this base with, nothing serious."Well that certainly was a relief, for the most part. A almost spiteful joke came to mind, but pushing it down he nodding acknowledging the Generals words.

"That being said, it's good to finally meet somebody from the combat engineering team. How are things going with the structural repair of the city? We took quite the beating before you guys arrived."&nbsp;The General continued.

General Conway sure had a point the city had taken a beating before he had arrived a pummeling was perhaps more correct. "Well the main structure of the city isn't in too bad of a shape, the Ancients didn't do a bad job at all building these city ships, that being said it would have fared far better with Armour, but skipping the obvious. The City is still structurally sound, As fragile as it might seem the Meropis held up reasonably well." Tom paused briefly making sure he had everything correct and began on his next sentence. "Most of the remaining problems are non-structural however that's the expertise of the technicians. Not that we wouldn't like to help, a basic course for us in at least fiddling with door controls would free more of them up and slow us down Less having to wait." Tom was sure the technicians would be both mortified of giving them lessons in ancient systems but also somewhat happy they could go back to tinkering with their favorite systems."A few places are still using temporary supports and a few others largely unsalvageable, but given enough time most should be fixed, though I think a few rooms now without roofs might make a good spot for some rail gun AA emplacements." After all engineers also build and overcome field defenses and usually knowing how to build a castle allowed you to understand how to take them down.

<TAG: Jason Conway>

[Jason Conway]

1008
Conway's office
Meropis

Jason Conway sat back and took in the city's status report from Chambers, it tied in with the little bits and pieces of information he had received from other personnel. He folded his hands on the desk and observed the man's face as he spoke. Pausing only to collect his thoughts, the General replied,
"Very good! I leave it in your capable hands..." he smiled slightly, "See that is why I chose you and your colleagues for this expedition. I would never have thought of suggestions such as that. Go right ahead... Railgun where the roof fell off, brilliant!" He took Tom's folder and closed the file carefully, placing it on his right atop Callaghan's in the 'done' pile. Although the meeting was not over yet. He could see the look on Tom's face, the uncertainty over whether he should stay or whether he should leave, Conway decided to put him at ease...
"And so Tom Chambers, it is with honor that I ask you... Would you like a spot on an off-world team?" He beamed a smile at Chambers, Conway certainly felt the man had earned it.

<Tag Tom Chambers>

[Tom Chambers]

1009
Conway's office
Meropis

General Conway had listened rather intently to the combat engineers words, the explaining of it all had been packaged into a neat packet of information fit for the man's consumption. Tom had always had a hard time trying to explain these things to officers, and had never done so with a man of the general's rank, the fact he was here in another galaxy was still fresh in the lance corporals mind.

"Very good! I leave it in your capable hands..." The general smiled slightly, "See that is why I chose you and your colleagues for this expedition. I would never have thought of suggestions such as that. Go right ahead... Railgun where the roof fell off, brilliant!" A little less brilliant and more opportune and perhaps a little lazy it was but still it was a sound idea, you probably couldn't have enough railguns after the damage this place had seen before his arrival.

As the General places what was still presumably Tom's own file onto a smaller pile, he was torn between leaving but he was sure the general could understand his hesitation after all, he doubted many if at all excused themselves from a genera's presence.

"And so Tom Chambers, it is with honor that I ask you... Would you like a spot on an off-world team?" Well that was certainly rare, being addressed by his first name, admittedly he was a little more tense as the sentence was finished than when it began.

The combat engineer went to open his mouth to speak but stopped, the self critical words he almost said weren't probably what he wanted to hear. "Uh...." Tom swallowed the last time this had happened he'd been told about all this. "It wound be my Honor sir." Tom then looked towards his boots. "If you don't mind me asking General, Could I know which one if that's been decided yet?"

<TAG: Jason Conway>

[Jason Conway]

1010
Conway's office
Meropis

Chambers wasn't exactly a thin man, it was quite obvious he wasn't afraid of a gym. In a way the General was glad it was good news he was passing, what he didn't expect was the surprise.
"It wound be my Honor sir. If you don't mind me asking General, Could I know which one if that's been decided yet?"
"I appreciate that you're keen Lance Corporal Chambers, but that can't be decided yet. In any case, it isn't entirely my choice." He could see this had deflated Tom a little, so he continued, "We've got space for a third off-world exploration team I just... Haven't found the right people yet. But if a space comes up on SM-2 I'll be glad to refer you to Major Callaghan for his approval." A warm smiled crossed Conway's face, he honestly wanted the best for his people, and in turn he hoped he would get the best back. They'd proved that so far in the face of extremely incredible dangers, the defense of Earth. He leaned back in the chair once more after Tom's reply,
"Well, that'll be all Mr. Chambers. You'll appreciate that I've got a fair few people to get through so please, by all means take your leave and don't shut the door just yet" he glanced at the top of the left hand stack, "this next person should be... interesting..."

<Tag Tom Chambers then tag anyone to jump in!>

[Tom Chambers]

1011
Conway's office
Meropis

He wasn't sure how the asking of what team if that was known was going to help him out but in the end it didn't. &nbsp;"I appreciate that you're keen Lance Corporal Chambers, but that can't be decided yet. In any case, it isn't entirely my choice."Tom nodded acknowledging at the general, after all taking people away from their base meant the leader of the team had to be able to know you, most likely trust you.

"We've got space for a third off-world exploration team I just... Haven't found the right people yet. But if a space comes up on SM-2 I'll be glad to refer you to Major Callaghan for his approval."The Genera's clarification was largely unnecessary but Tom certainly appreciated the gesture, after all it wasn't every day you got offered a job like he had just been.

"Thank you Sir, much appreciated, I was just trying my luck, asking if it was known, that's all." After finishing that sentence there was a feeling of 'time to go now you silly lance corporal' in the Combat engineer's mind and it was rather quickly confirmed.

"Well, that'll be all Mr. Chambers. You'll appreciate that I've got a fair few people to get through so please, by all means take your leave and don't shut the door just yet" Indeed the general did have a fair few people to go on with, if the people waiting outside were any indicator.

Chambers stood gave the General a slaute before leaving the room and as he walk out he gestured for the next in turn that it was his turn at the crease.

<TAG:&nbsp;Jason Conway, next one up.>

[Blueberry Yagami]

1012
Conway's Office
Meropis

Blueberry slipped in quietly as Tom left. She strode over to Conway and quietly took her seat. She didn't wait for permission, he had asked her here after all. Perhaps it wasn't typical Japanese social skills but Blue never had typical social skills. She'd always been perfectly happy playing with a computer of some kind quietly in the corner.

She didn't understand why the general had asked to see her in person either. They could have made a VOIP call or used the base wide messaging system, but no the general had insisted that they have a face to face meeting. Not something that Blue understood nor was happy with.

Tag: Jason Conway

[Jason Conway]

1013
Conway's Office
Meropis

General Conway clicked his pen a couple of times and examined the 'complete' file list. Brevetted Major John Callaghan and Lance Corporal Tom Chambers done, the rest of the base to go. He rubbed his forehead, anticipating a long day ahead, but worth it in the long run if he got to know his team. Know yourselves and you will not fear loosing a hundred battles or something? A Sun Tzu quote. His thoughts drifted to the deep space carrier drifting in planetary orbit, how aptly named. He cleared his throat and then looked up, wondering where the next person was.
"Oh! Hello there err..." He checked the pile of files to his left for the name, Blueberry Yagami, a Technical Analyst currently assigned to Stargate Operations, "Blueberry." He smiled offering a hand to shake and doing his best to pretend that he hadn't been surprised by her somewhat sudden appearance.
"Please relax, help yourself to a glass of water if you need it." He opened the file on the center of the table and skimmed a few of the notes he'd made, "Okay, lets get started. I must insist that this is informal and relaxed. This is just a meet and greet for me to get to know you but more importantly, for you to get to know me. I want you to feel free to approach me at any point in the future if you need anything." He tried to gauge her reaction but found her body language a little more difficult to read than the last two to step into his office, "With that being said, how are you settling in here on Meropis? I understand you are part of the third wave to arrive?" He did his best to portray a warm smile as he listened to her reply.

<Tag Blue!>