Drop Ship

Posted on Wed Jan 15th, 2025 @ 11:08pm by Lieutenant Irynya & Ensign Mei Ratthi

Mission: Mean Green Queen
Location: Holodeck
Timeline: Mission Day 11 at 1600

The bottom went out of Irynya's stomach first, serving her just a moment of weightlessness before the drop shuttle literally plummeted out of the hanger of the liner. Close enough to the atmosphere the drop ship lived into its name, literally dropping toward the planet in a wild freefall that pressed the two women tightly into their seats while lights and alarms sounded around them making sure they knew exactly how much force, heat, and pressure was being exerted against the outer hull.

Hands white knuckling the two heavy nylon straps that held her in her seat Irynya whooped with the joy of the sensation. Adrenaline coursed through her and, as the heat shield did its work, flaring bright orange and then white as they entered atmosphere, she unclenched her hands and fought the G forces to settle them on the drop ship's controls.

"Initializing reverse thrusters," she called into a microphone that was tight by the edge of her lips -- a necessity against the sheer enormity of sound as the ship fought the forces seeking to pull it apart. "Hold tight, we're almost there."

Mei nodded or tried to nod. It was hard to tell if the gesture was affirming Irynya’s statement or a response to the effects of inertia. It was also hard to tell if her grin was an effect of the inertia. “How long?” her voice was shaking; that was definitely due to the bone-shaking results of entering atmosphere. Neither of them could argue with the view as the curve of the planet started to fall away and the greenish-brown hues of the land started to come into view, speckled by puffs of pale cloud.

Eyes focused on the controls, Irynya missed Mei's possible, but not definite nod and grin. She didn't, however, miss the sound of her voice that shook in the same way her own did, and for a quick moment she flashed a broad, almost fanatical, grin. "90 second," Irynya answered, hands still moving as she informed the systems on the drop ship that she wanted the reverse thrusters to engage greater force to slow their decent. A warning flashed across a dial in front of her making it clear that the heat shield was reaching the max temperature range and her fingers flew again to try to apply internal cooling. Even a few degrees cooler would be worth the effort.

Before them the patchwork of the ground was beginning to shift from hazy blur to something resembling clarity. They were well into the planet's outer atmosphere now and soon approaching the boundaries of the next level within which they would, theoretically, reboot the engine and shift from falling to flying.

Mei mouthed an “okay”. If she actually said it aloud, it was lost in the rush of air around them. And the shaking. There was enough of that that it seemed like their teeth would rattle right out of their skulls if they didn’t reach the next layer of atmosphere soon. At least the temperature leveled off. It wasn’t cool, but it wasn’t awful.

They rattled on downward for the next minute, the dial in front of them beeping every thirty seconds to mark their progression. The air grew clearer, and the first wisps of cloud started to appear around them. Far, far below, the ground started to grow clearer and more detailed. The bluish veins of rivers ran through green expanses. It was hard to tell yet if it was forest or prairie, though hills were beginning to rise over the leveler ground.

Just when it seemed as if the ship might shake itself apart at the seams a bright warning light flared to life on Irynya's dash, and she slammed the butt of her hand into a button below it, compressing it until it met the plasticene display beneath it. Several things happened at once. The warning light shifted from yellow to a bright green and with it a growling grumble of engines sputtering to life and immediately working against their fall could be heard. Slammed forward against her safety harness, Irynya gritted her teeth and turned her attention to her controls, flipping toggles and gripping a control rod designed to enable manual piloting of the craft.

The engines whined, disliking the forces they were contending with, but after only a few seconds the shuddering stopped. Thirty seconds after that the engine roar reached its crescendo and then slowly died to a gentle hum. The drop ship leveled out, now well within the secondary atmosphere, and seemed almost to coast, the blue green world below them rushing past in even clearer definition than before.

"There," Irynya said with a sigh of satisfaction, setting an autopilot and taking the opportunity to unhook her safety harness. A spot on her shoulder ached where the harness had dug in and she absently reached up to rub it turning to look at Mei as she did. "You ok?"

“Yeah!” Despite her assertion and the grin on her face, Mei did look a little green. “Though it’s kind of a case of my brain saying one thing, and my body saying another. My brain knows we’re safe and having a great time. My body thinks the world’s about to end. Gimme a bit to breathe. I’ll be okay.” And indeed, after she took a few deep breaths, her color returned to normal. She unhooked her harness and moved to get a better look at the landscape below. “So what’s next? Do we just keep flying like this, or are we heading to the surface?”

With her eyes fixed on the view ahead of them it would have been easy to assume Irynya was distracted, but in truth she hadn't missed a thing Mei had said. Her heart still raced, the adrenaline of the drop ship entering atmosphere taking its time to cool off. It was a feeling she liked even if it was one that her body fought to bring back under control. "Maybe we set the autopilot and enjoy the scenery for a bit?" she said, though it was phrased more as a question than a distinct answer. "And then we can go down and explore a bit? There's supposed to be some sort of old ruins on the other side of the planet, assuming that the holodeck has good renderings of them. They could be fun to check out."

She sat back in her chair and turned to look at Mei, letting her head fall back against the headrest before rolling it sideways. "Wanna hear something ridiculous?" she asked, feeling a bit of mortification rise up even as she asked.

“Yes, yes, and yes,” Mei said, ticking the answers to Iry’s questions off with her fingers. She watched the landscape roll past below them for a moment longer, then sat back and turned her full attention on her companion. “I’d love to see the scenery, I’d love to explore some ruins– anthropologist, after all– and I’d love to hear what you think is ridiculous. Because knowing you, it’s not ridiculous at all. Unless you’re actually going to tell me you and Noah were arguing about, like, trading cards or collectible toys or something like that. That would be ridiculous. But anyway. Spill it. We can pause the program if we need to.”

Irynya chuckled at the thought. Though she'd come plenty far in understanding Noah's hobbies she definitely couldn't win an argument with him about them... yet. The chuckle, of course, was followed by a pang. She both loved and hated the solitude of her new room. She'd reminded herself she'd really barely moved into the new quarters at least 7... no... 8 times already that day, and that it wouldn't make sense for it to feel like home yet. The last time she'd had a room all to herself they'd been on Risa awaiting assignment to the Sojourner. And that had been her childhood bedroom.

"Ok," she said, huffing out an embarrassed breath. "Yesterday someone at the next table over had JELLO with their dinner and I legitimately had to compose myself for a moment. It's... too close to the Peters creature... thing... whatever it was in consistency and just... Ugh. I don't know. Is it weird for an alien encounter to ruin random foods? That feels like a stretch to me..."

“Oh my god, yes! That is totally a thing. Some of the stories my anthropology professors told in class about cultural mishaps? So many of them were about food. All the weird food stories,” Mei said, her eyes glazing over for a moment in remembered astonishment. “For myself– we lived on Bi Xiu for a while when I was thirteen or so. I was at a classmate’s house for… something, and I went into the kitchen and there was this ball of leaves on the table. I thought it was some weird lettuce, but when I poked it, it started screeching at me like I was going to kill it. I couldn’t eat salads for over a year after that, because what if the spinach started screeching at me like that thing did? Ugh.” She shuddered, then offered Iry a commiserating smile. “So yeah, I think it’s completely normal to be weirded out by something that resembles another something that tried to eat you. So . . . are you okay after all that? Like really okay?”

In front of them a gloriously green plain stretched and far below a herd of something could be seen galloping across it. Iry caught the commiserating smile and gave Mei a soft smile of her own, but then turned her eyes ahead, chewing on the inside of her cheek for a moment as she considered how to answer. "Yes," she finally said, though the assertion was weak and followed immediately by a small sigh. "And no." She turned back to look at the scientist again, lips twisting to the side and nose wrinkling in self-deprecating uncertainty. "I mean... it's not even the first time an alien has found its way into our... I mean..." she stumbled, frowning. "Into my old quarters. But also it was going to..." she struggled to remember the exact word used to describe what had happened, "...absorb me. Become me, I guess. I don't even really fully understand how that works. Just... I keep thinking about being digested."

The Risian opened her mouth to say more and then shut it self consciously. "Sorry, that was more of an answer than you probably expected."

Mei’s answering smile was unsteady. “Honestly, I’m not sure what sort of answer I was expecting. What you said makes sense, though. Your brain tells you one thing, but your body’s telling you something else. Sounds a bit familiar.” She let out a nervous laugh, and sighed. “Have you talked to a counselor yet? I mean, I’m glad you’re talking to me, but I’m an anthropologist. I wasn’t exactly trained to talk people through traumatic situations. And really, I’m not very good at talking with friends about traumatic situations. Lack of experience and all.” Her already wavering smile fell away, and she sighed and looked away.

For a moment, all was quiet save for the thrum of the dropship’s engines. Then Mei gathered herself, took a deep breath, and looked up at Iry. “What can I do?”

Iry was no stranger to silence and so when the conversation hushed for a moment she let herself sit in that space, appreciating Mei's reinforcement and considering her comments about traumatic experiences and friends. When the anthropologist spoke again, Iry was already smiling at her, unable to miss the appreciation she felt for her friend. "You're pretty much already doing it," she answered, warmth creeping into her voice--verbal confirmation of the appreciation she felt. "I mean, just... listening... and reassuring me I haven't lost my mind. And... you know... hanging out. It's... just being really."

She wasn't sure she'd explained that well, but she hoped the idea came across. Really, when Iry had decided she wanted to pilot an old drop ship in the holodeck, she'd known that she was seeking the feel good reactions she could get her own body to make in those kinds of activities. But it was better yet to share them with a friend and though she was sure adrenaline-junkie activities might not be top of Mei's list the other woman had been willing to go along with the plan.

“Oh. Good. Glad to hear it.” Mei’s smile was a slow-kindling thing, like she was an uncertain student receiving unexpected praise from a teacher. “I can just sit here and be all day. I probably won’t stop talking, though. That’s, you know. A thing I do.” She laughed at herself for a moment, then quieted with a sigh. “Do you want to talk about it, or do you want to get your mind on something else? If something else, I have plenty of subjects I can rattle on and on about. I could probably find something to go on about that’s so dull you’ll fall asleep right here, if you need a nap. Like conflicting theories of field survey procedures? Dull, if you’re not invested in it all. I could put you right to sleep.”

Irynya's answering laugh was bright and sharp. "I've no doubt you could regale me about the ins and outs of scientific procedures. At least as much as I could regale you with all of the intricacies of flight protocols." She grinned, but as she contemplated what she wanted in that moment her face fell slightly, worry worming its way back into her head. "I didn't think moving to new quarters would be this hard," she said and then quickly amended her own statement. "No, that's not true. I knew it would be a change and change can be hard. But I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to love having a room all to myself now. And instead, I just miss Noah and Sheldon. Just... so much happened there all at once and it feels like Peters came and exploded everything and then... I never got to go back to normal. Normal doesn't even really exist anymore."

She shrugged slightly, reaching forward to tap something on her control panel as she did that adjusted their course bringing them a bit closer to the foliage below them. She hadn't exactly answered Mei's question and hoped she wouldn't mind that. She did want distracting, but... maybe she also just wanted to talk to someone who cared and wasn't one of her former roommates.... Or the ship's counselor.

“Is there really such a thing as normal, though?” Mei asked, glancing outside to see what Iry’s adjustments would do. She watched for a moment as the surface loomed closer and details started to come into focus, then looked back at her friend. “From everything I’ve read about Risians– and I’ll admit that it’s not a huge amount– it seems like your people are quite community-oriented. And what I know about you in particular is that you are happiest when you’re around other people. So even though ‘normal’” she made air quotes with her fingers at the word, “people like having their own quarters, it doesn’t automatically follow that you’re supposed to. And anyway, you’ve gone from promotion to being attacked by a mimetic being for no reason we know of to moving to new quarters in not very much time. It’s a lot. It’s no wonder you’re out of sorts. Maybe you should see if Noah and Sheldon want to go out some night, or have a sleepover.”

Despite herself Iry could feel the immediate excitement that welled at the idea of a sleepover. She pictured her friends strewn about her bedroom or the shared main room, wrapped in blankets or sleeping bags and enjoying snacks and laughter. Even thinking about it made her heart squeeze with excitement. "That's..." she said slowly, as if considering each word before saying it, "really insightful." She turned grateful eyes on Mei. She was used to being the one who saw things in others and less so to others really and truly seeing things in her. "A sleepover would be some kind of ridiculous fun. Maybe Noah could project a movie on the wall and we could all have popcorn and..." her grin broadened, the coziness of the idea sinking into her bones. "Would you come to a sleepover if I had one?" she asked.

It was almost like a light had been switched on over Mei’s head, as much as she brightened. “I would! That sounds like a lot of fun. Eekit– my roommate– is usually pretty good company, but she’s been kind of grouchy while she’s on this later shift, so I wouldn’t mind getting away from her for a night. Don’t tell her I said that. I do like her. But a grouchy Cardassian is certainly something.” Her laugh was genuinely fond. “Just– leave me out of any sexytime stuff, okay? That’s not my thing. With anyone. I mean, you can all do what you want, it’s none of my business. I’ll just head out before then. I’m not trying to imply anything, it’s just, uh. . . I’m going to try to find a different conversational topic now, because this seems like it could get awkward pretty quickly. Um . . . Sleepover! Fun! What sorts of movies might there be?”

"What do you think a sleepover includes?" Irynya asked, unable to help herself. She wasn't sure what sexy time Mei might think was going to happen, but it had been so long since the Risian had any kind of partner that wasn't generated by the holodeck or herself that for a moment she had to actually rethink. "Is... is that something that normal happens during human sleep overs?"

“Oh, that sounded awful. I’m sorry. I’m not trying to make assumptions about Risians or anything.” Mei blushed and briefly covered her face with her hands. “Most human sleepovers probably don’t involve sex, but I only ever got invited to one at the Academy. And to be fair, there was more than a little alcohol and the other two girls were super interested in each other in general. I think they forgot I was there after a while, and they just sort of started . . . going at it. It was so awkward, and I left. I wasn’t at all interested in watching or participating, and they didn’t seem like they were going to stop. So there I was, just wandering the halls in my pajamas and bare feet until I found my own room. They never really talked to me again after that. I didn’t get my shoes back, either. And that’s my experience with sleepovers. Minimal, and awkward.”

She gave Iry a sheepish look. “I really didn’t intend to make assumptions or anything. I feel like I’m not very good at the whole ‘friendship’ thing, so sometimes– a lot of times– I have no idea what to say, and then something ill-thought-out will just pop out. I’m sorry.”

Irynya's expression softened and she reached out and squeezed the other woman's forearm for just a second. "Mei Ratthi," she said, deliberately using her full name, "Stop apologizing." She tilted her head slightly forward, giving Mei a pointed look. "You're a great friend. It would be weird if you weren't yourself, random thoughts and all, and also that sleepover sounds terrible. Like... genuinely terrible." She grimaced, wrinkling her nose as she did in distaste. "I was just kind of thinking like... everybody comes and watches movies and hangs out and maybe we play a game or maybe we just chat and depending on whether people want to or not everyone sleeps on the floor or in the bed or wherever there's space. Kind of like when we were camping except in a room with technology and temperature controls. I promise you, if anyone gets... umm... excitable... I'll discreetly encourage them to go somewhere private. So... with that said... you'll come?"

“Your kind of sleepover sounds like a lot more fun,” Mei said, her voice still a bit subdued. “I will definitely come. Just let me know if I should bring anything. I don’t think I have any movies, really, but I do know my snacks, and I am willing to inflict them on anyone who will give them a try. Sweet, salty, bitter. Whatever.” Her embarrassment was fading by the second as the conversation moved away from her conversational faux pas and, presumably, the memories that went with it, though her expression turned serious. “I appreciate the invitation. A lot. We moved around so much when I was growing up, so I never got a lot of invitations to things. Never had a lot of friends, either, which is why I’m not the best at making them. Funny thing, huh? The person who studies people is not very good at relating to other people. So thanks for inviting me to do things. It’s nice. And if you need someone to come over and chatter at you in your big, empty quarters, just let me know. I can put you to sleep with talk of anthropological field procedures.”

That drew a full throated bark of a laugh from Irynya. "I don't know. I think we all find interest in things that challenge us even though we maybe don't always admit it. And some of us make careers out of it. Flying a starship in the Delta Quadrant isn't exactly on the things Risians like to do bingo card." She glanced down at the control panel as an indicator lit up and flipped a switch, nudging their ship lower still. "Did I say that right? Bingo card? I feel like I've heard Noah and Sheldon both use it, but... I don't really know if I'm using it correctly."

“Bingo card. Bingo. Card.” Mei seemed to be rolling the words around in her head like she was looking at them from different angles, assessing. Then she shrugged. “Sounds right to me. If it’s not, I’m sure Sheldon or Noah will correct you. Or us, if I throw it out there wrong. At the sleepover.” Mei’s grin brightened anew at the thought, as though Irynya had invited her all over again.

"Also you're welcome. Both for the invitation and literally in the sense that you're my friend and you are welcome in my space any time. The holo overlay is... I mean it's a whole thing. Noah kept reminding me that these are the perks of getting promoted, but man it feels weird. If you don't have to get to something after this you're more than welcome to come take a look." She grinned then. "But I have to warn you that Debbie apparently decorates for a human holiday called Christmas... but all the time. It's... very red and green in the main room."

“I had a professor at the Academy who celebrated Christmas. It was fun. He’d throw a little party in December and give out silly gifts to all us students. He brought cookies and this really sweet drink. Apple cider, I think? He didn’t have anything red or green, though. That’ll be something new to experience. But in the meantime,” Mei looked Iry up and down, “How are you feeling now? Still unsettled? Or are you starting to get a little bit of distance between you and… all of that?”

Another indicator lit up on the control panel and Irynya automatically moved to address it. The drop ship lurched slightly and descended again, a bit more rapidly this time. "Sorry," Iry murmured, though her attention was focused on the controls, fingers flipping switches and adjusting dials until the machine leveled out again. The tree tops were visibly close now and, thanks to the rendering of the holodeck, appeared almost close enough to touch even though they were still several dozen feet below them.

As the ship settled back into the rhythmic thrum of autopilot Irynya turned back to Mei. "I'm feeling..." she paused, searching for the word, "Stable, but alert?" She phrased it like a question even though it was the best she could come up with in the moment to describe her feeling. "Like, I'm not jumping at every door that opens anymore. And there's nightmares, but they're not stopping me from sleeping outright. Her mind drifted to the night's sleep she'd had her first night in her room. She'd fully expected to lay awake wishing for the regular breathing of Sheldon in the bed next to her. Instead she'd drifted off mid-conversation with Noah and he'd stayed with her--a comforting presence at her back the whole night. She'd slept better that night, completely free of nightmares, than any other since the incident.

"Mostly," she continued, "I feel like I'm on alert. Waiting for something to happen as if I need to be on my guard or something. That feeling has lessened maybe, but it hasn't disappeared altogether. I wouldn't mind feeling like I can relax a bit. Dr. Qo says that will happen eventually, though." She shook her head and then, eyes scanning the horizon grinned.

"There," she said, pointing. "I think that's the ruins."

And indeed, at the edge of their field of view lay a crumbling city emerging from the forest: a step pyramid with foliage growing halfway up its slopes, a double row of columns leading away from it on an east/west axis, and as they drew closer, they could make depressions that indicated a network of roads around the pyramid. “That’s fantastic,” Mei said, her eyes fixed on the scene before them.

She drew in a breath, apparently about to say something else, then paused, sat back, and looked back at Iry. “My questions about holographic ruins can wait until we get there. For now: feeling like you’re on alert all the time. Honestly, I get that. I felt like that after we left Shaddam IVa. You can’t see a crewmate– Well. You can’t see a crewmate die like that and not feel a lot of things afterward. At least I couldn’t. It’s fading, bit by bit. I’ve been sleeping better lately, but sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and just stare up at the ceiling for an hour because my brain just keeps spinning. So I get it. And I think we’ll both be okay, eventually.”

Irynya turned her head to look at Mei, offering a warm smile of appreciation. "Yeah," she said. "I think you're right." She knew the situation on Shaddam IVa had been... bad... for the group Mei had been in. Heck, it had been bad for a lot of groups, but Mei's was the only one that had to watch a crewmate be eviscerated by a large cat-like creature. It didn't take much imagination for Irynya to sympathize with the other woman's experience and she was sure her sympathy was a pale shadow compared to the reality.

With a few more presses to buttons and flips of console switches Irynya brought her hands up to a manual steering control, grasping it firmly as she did. For a moment the ship dropped downward, making the bottom fall out of her stomach for the slightest of moments before it leveled out as manual steering took over. "We've talked way too much about me," Iry said, eyes no longer leaving the terrain ahead as she pointed the vessel toward the ruins. "Tell me about you. Tell me more about what your mind is spinning over when you're lying awake or... well anything that's on your mind lately."

“What’s on my mind? Oh, so much. It never really stops. Unless I’m asleep. And even then, it doesn’t always feel like my brain’s shut off for a bit because I wake up with all the thoughts,” Mei paused, her brow creasing with a moment’s consideration. “I mean, your brain never shuts off, even when you’re asleep so I suppose there should be thoughts going through your head all the time. But you know what I mean.” She laughed and ran a hand over her hair. “Anyway. The big thing that’s been on my mind lately is getting everything together to apply for my doctoral program. There’s so much paperwork. You’d think we’d have found a way to get rid of a lot of that, but no. There’s so much of it. And so much of it feels so pointless. It’s like they’re up there in their ivory tower going, ‘Here are some hoops. Jump through them’ because they think it’s funny or something. I don’t get it. So I’m super frustrated that I have to spend so much of my time doing all this paperwork, and also a little terrified that I’ll be accepted because a graduate program takes so much time. I’ve already been through one. I should know better.”

Irynya took this in, considering. The most immediate and pressing question flew to the forefront of her mind, but it was also the most selfish of them. She hoped that Mei would be able to complete her study while still aboard the Sojourner, but she also knew that wasn't a guarantee. Some programs required their students to be on site. Kennedy... She gave herself the internal version of a good shaking.

"Paperwork sounds like a nightmare," she agreed, easily able to empathize. Flight controllers didn't have nearly the paperwork to consider, as nearly any other department, but it was Iry's least favorite part of her job all the same. "What program are you applying for?"

“Oh, cultural anthropology. That’s where I’ve been all this time, and I don’t have a reason to change that,” Mei said. “What will I study for my thesis? That’s the question. For my Masters, I was studying cultures in isolation. That’s a big reason I went to Andoria. The Aenar might be more integrated into Andorian society than they used to be, but they generally still operate as a separate culture from their fellow Andorians.”

"I can't say I've ever met an Aenar," Irynya commented back. "But I've always thought the Andorian family structure was interesting. Will you expand your research there or are you thinking of something different?" She was genuinely curious, not just because she didn't want Mei to leave, but also because this was simply something she knew little about. That and she knew talking about her work gave Mei a unique sort of joy... one that Iry was never unhappy to foster.

“There are a couple of ideas I’ve been playing around with for my thesis: one, I could study a heterogenous society in isolation, which is, you know. Us. The Aenar are a relatively unified culture, but Sojo’s crew is from all over the place. How do we unite to respond to the isolation of being so far from our respective homes? Or, because the crew also functions as a micro-culture, I could study how that develops. But at the same time, it feels a little weird to be studying my crewmates.” Mei narrowed her eyes and gave Iry an intent look, thouogh her serious facade didn’t last long. She couldn’t hold back her smile as she said, “Irynya, how are you contributing to the development of culture here on Sojourner?

Without missing a beat Irynya offered Mei her most serious contemplative face. "Parties," she said with a seriousness that was incongruous next to the answer given. "I plan parties and then people mingle and then..." she sought around for the word, but failed to find it. "Then culture." Her serious expression cracked then and a broad amused grin lit her features. "Actually it would be kind of fun to talk about stuff like that. I mean... how we all work and live together IS interesting. Like... Noah and I were just talking about how small the dating pool is last night. That aspect alone is... well... I mean it's not the most important one... but I can imagine there's a lot of angles to look at."

“You wouldn’t believe how many angles to look at when it comes to dating or courtship customs. One of my classmates studied dating and marriage in one small city and they managed to write a 324-page thesis on it. One city, one fairly homogenous culture. Dating and marriage customs are some of the most complicated ones out there when you really dig into it. First contact is almost easier. Almost.” Mei looked harried at the thought of it all. “So maybe not onboard dating culture, but microcultures are super interesting, and a study of it would be helpful for future missions like ours. But it would still be a little weird to be watching everyone with the scientific eye. I have some time to think about it, though, so my options are open. Assuming they accept my application.”

"They will," Irynya said with the sort of unshakeable confidence that comes with knowing the brilliance of the person next to you. "They'd be stupid not to." She grinned at Mei and then flipped a series of switches shifting them to a lower engine output so they could come in for a landing. The ruins she had mentioned seem to loom before them, filling up the view screen with crumbling architecture and encroaching greenery. "I'm going to try to put us down over there," she commented pointing out one of the depressions near the edge of the city.

Mei’s face lit up, bright as a sun at the compliment and the confidence Irynya unthinkingly placed in her. The Risian missed the expression, though, when she looked away at the controls, and Mei’s smile soon faded and was replaced by a look on intense curiosity. Even a simulated civilization was interesting to her, as it spoke volumes about the people who created it. “Are we meant to just wander around, or are you interested in those anthropological field procedures I keep threatening you with?”

The Risian's laugh was warm and belly-deep. "This is your area of expertise," she said, still chuckling as she spoke. "Now's as good a time to make good on those threats as any."

=/\= A holodeck adventure by =/\=

Lieutenant Irynya
Chief Helmswoman

Ensign Mei Ratthi
Archaeologist / Anthropologist Extraordinaire