LtCmdr. Talos Dakora - Strange Visitations
Travis
((Docking Port 06 - Deep Space Nine))
Standing in line with Ensign Savel waiting to board the Nova Gamma Borealis tour group's next outbound flight, Talos turned to his Vulcan companion.
Dakora: I wonder if anyone else from the Artie is going to make it?
He’d posted an open invite in the Artemis’ ship channels, but to his knowledge, no one had officially RSVP’d.
Savel: I am unsure. I have not spoken to anyone about his particular trip. There could be any number of additional companions or we could be the only two to partake.
Talos cracked a crooked smile as they moved a few steps closer to the Bolian at the boarding kiosk ahead. Having worked with Savel on a handful of missions, he was starting to pick up on what almost seemed like an extremely dry sense of humor. That or he was mapping a sense of humor onto pure Vulcan logic by force.
Either way, he tended to enjoy it.
Savel: It is possible that others are nervous about joining the two of us in a shuttle given how our last flight together ended. An illogical fear, to be sure, but most of them are.
Talos shot a quick “Are you serious?” glare in the Security Officer’s direction as he responded through his teeth, almost under his breath.
Dakora: Savel, I don’t think now is the time to discuss that…
But he wasn’t quite done yet.
Savel: Very well, I will not bring that up here. Besides, it is safe to assume that we will not be chased and shot at by the Dominion. A tourist ship is not their normal target of choice.
Talos had just winced so hard that his eyes had closed when he heard the same whiny voice from earlier chime in in protest.
Child: Moooom! What is that man talking about? Are we really gonna get shooted at?
As the frightened youngster tried to snuggle himself tighter against his mother, Talos glanced over just in time to see the mother seemingly trying to murder Savel with as deadly a glare as she could muster.
If that’d been MacKenzie, it might’ve worked.
Mother: Of course not, Avhan. He doesn't know what he's talking about. I promise, we'll be totally fine. Like I said, you'll always be safe with me.
Donning a sheepish smile, Talos bent over a little to try and address little Avhan.
Dakora: Your mom is right kiddo. Besides ::He jabbed a thumb in Savel’s direction and whispered.:: He’s a little…
He twirled his index finger in a circle next to his head in the universal symbol for “he’s not all there.”
Whether the joking jab at Savel had helped raise the kid’s spirits, he couldn’t tell. The child positioned himself as far away from the scary Vulcan whilst still staying attached to his mother’s hip.
Savel: Commander, I would suggest that we not sit close to them when it is our turn to board. I believe the reasons are obvious.
Nodding as they moved into the penultimate position in line, Talos replied.
Dakora: Yeah, I think that’d be a good idea.
When they’d finally reached the tour attendant, Talos secured his, Savel’s and anyone else from the Artemis that may arrives tickets before stepping aboard the well-appointed transport.
A subtle whine of servos preceded the emulated voice of the next arrival.
Gnai: ::quietly, trying not to draw attention to the fact that it was breaking the social norm of 'not cutting in line':: Hello, Commander, Ensign. Apologies for the lateness. Thank you for the invitation.
Turning to see the mechanical shape of Ensign Gnai’s containment suit, Talos waved a greeting. He hadn’t yet had a chance to meet the Galadorian himself, but the reputation of it's mechanical mobility suit preceded it.
Dakora: Welcome aboard, Ensign Gnai! This should be-
His words fell away as he shifted his attention to some commotion behind the unique Science Officer.
Bolian Freighter Crewman: Sorry Miss, you’re holding up the li-
The tall, lanky, purple form Doctor Gila Sadar quite literally tumbled through the hatch and onto the deck plates of the tour transport.
For a moment, Talos could only stare in shock at the sprawled bundle of juniper green robes on the floor.
Sadar: ::groans:: S-Sorry…
Suddenly coming to, he rushed forward to offer a hand.
Dakora: Excellent. ::He grinned:: The first stumble of the trip is out of the way and they haven’t even started serving the in-flight refreshments yet.
Savel/Any: Response
The waves of embarrassment rising off of the Mizarian were strong enough that they were practically visible to the naked eye.
Sadar: R-R-Right, o-of course, sorry, that was- uhh… ::swallows:: I’ll be more careful.
With Gila back on her feet, Talos patted her on the shoulder gingerly.
Dakora: I’m just glad you’re ok. Welcome aboard!.
Savel/Any: Response
Bolian Freighter Crewman: You’re holding up the line.
This time the shout was hurled in their direction, which was fair, considering they’d been huddling the umbilical to the transport for far too long.
Gnai: ::to Talos and Savel:: An effort should be made to invite her to join this group, when on the freighter.
Moving down the umbilical and onto the impressive-looking ship, he turned to Gnai.
There was a moment of uncertainty where Talos wasn’t sure if he should stare at the face plate of the suit or the rough center of the amorphous blob that seemed to drift about freely inside.
He ultimately decided to split the difference as he nodded his agreement.
Dakora: Absolutely. ::To Gila.:: You will join us, won’t you?
Savel/Sadar/Any: Response
Bolian Freighter Crewman: ::frustrated:: Next!
As they stepped onto the deck of what had once been a standard transport craft, they found something entirely different. Many of the interior partitions had been removed to create several large seating areas in an almost auditorium style.
Large sections of the hull had been retrofitted with transparent panels, allowing for an unprecedented view of their surroundings.
He certainly wouldn’t have wanted to take the thing into battle, but Talos had always enjoyed a purpose-built ship.
Gnai: This is very exciting, wormholes are so rare! Especially ones as stable as this... There was this very interesting paper that was published recently, proposing that the reason that this wormhole is- ::pausing to look at some seats:: These are the best seats left for viewing the wormhole.
Talos motioned toward the seats it had chosen. They seemed like a good choice and were situated centrally along a large transparent section.
Dakora: Perfect. ::He checked the chrono on his wrist.:: We should be departing soon, so we’d better get settled in.
Savel: Response
As they dropped into their seats, he noticed Gila lagging behind a little. Maybe she was distracted by all of the interesting design choices, or maybe she was having second thoughts about spending so much up close and personal time with the likes of them– Either way, Gnai cranked up the volume on It’s little loudspeaker and called out her.
Gnai: Lieutenant Sadar! There is a seat here for you. ::patting a seat next to it::
Again, Talos grinned.
If this were a combat, diplomatic, or covert mission, this would likely be one of the oddest and most dysfunctional teams he could readily imagine. But they were just the team he needed for a science-focused team-building pleasure cruise into the Gamma quadrant.
Sadar/Savel/Any: Response
Pleased with the unexpected good turnout, Talos found himself grinning ear-to-ear as the Captain announced that boarding had been completed and the flight would soon commence.
Dakora: I just wanted to thank you all again for coming! I’ve never been to the Gamma Quadrant– or through a wormhole at all, now that I think about it.-- And I always find that most firsts are better with friends.
Sadar/Savel/Gnai: Response
Through the large transparent hull paneling, they could see DS9 sliding away from them as the vessel's attitude adjustment thrusters fired to bring them on an intercept trajectory with the wormhole.
Dakora: …And here we go.
Sadar/Savel/Gnai: Response
TAG/TBC
LtCmdr. Talos Dakora
First Officer
USS Artemis-A
O238811CD0