PNPC PO3 Xandeus Filistrien - Black Harmony
LT Gila Sadar
((USS Griffin - En Route to Kahines II))
The initial briefing for the away-team heading to Kahines II was completed, and Dr. Sadar - struggling as she was with acclimatizing to her position of leadership - seemed very eager indeed to leave the cockpit behind. Barely had she concluded her brief explanation of the team’s assignments before she started off towards the back end of the shuttle.
Lyara: So that means Pretty Officer won’t be doing any spy stuff like in the holonovels?
Presuming that ‘Pretty Officer’ referred to him - given the general resemblance to his proper rank and then also the joke about espionage - Xandeus turned his level gaze on the outgoing pilot. He knew very little of the many Ensigns who wandered the halls of the Artemis - working in Intelligence meant he rarely had reason to talk to those outside his division - but he’d acquainted himself with their working profiles on a surface-level at least. Though what ‘surface level’ meant to a black uniform was anyone’s guess...
Filistrien: Unfortunately, Sir, the work of Intelligence seldom lives up to the extraordinary expectations harbored by outsiders. ::patient smile:: I assure you, I shall attempt to make myself useful.
His calm response to her comment seemed to not be quite what she’d anticipated. He attempted to bridge her awkwardness with an encouraging expression, assuring her that her joking approach to conversation was not ill-received, when Ensign Bergmen rose from his seat.
Bergmen: I'm going to take a bite of something. Anyone to join?
Lyara: No.
Filistrien: No, thank you, Sir.
As Ensign Bergmen walked out of the cockpit, Xandeus felt Ensign Lyara’s eyes swivel back towards him, and he similarly returned his attention to her. The awkward moment seemed to have passed, no doubt thanks to the redheaded Bajoran’s attention moving to her harboring antipathy towards Ensign Bergmen, but Xandeus was pleased that the antipathy gave way to a smile once the Gideon Ensign was out of eyeshot.
Lyara: I’m sorry if my joke from earlier came off as mean spirited. I’m sure you are very useful.
As if to busy herself, Ensign Lyara took a sip of the beverage she’d brought aboard, and Xandeus shook his head in a friendly manner.
Filistrien: I assure you, Sir, I in no way took offense. ::clears throat:: I appreciated the jest.
He had often been told he had a severe deficit in the humour department. It was a work-in-progress, as so many things. His admission, however, seemed to re-ignite the Ensign’s humorous side as she took another stab at it.
Lyara: I’ll admit, it would be pretty cool if you were a super spy.
Xandeus didn’t join her in her chuckle, but he did allow a slightly wider-than-usual smile, an effort to show that the return to form was appreciated.
Filistrien: Ah, but the most competent of spies always look the most unassuming, don’t they? It would be poor form for a network of espionage specialists to readily identify their identities if they truly wanted to remain clandestine, no?
He gestured to the charcoal color of his uniform, separating him out from the trio of gold-colored Ensigns quite marvelously, with a mirthful glint in his eyes. It was a common discussion, even amongst Intelligence operatives, that it was counterintuitive for a division focused on espionage to stand out from the rest of the crew in such a flashy manner, so using it as a joke was pretty standard and unoriginal.
Xandeus had never been lauded for his witticisms... Ensign Lyara, graceful in her superior social competence, raised her hands in surrender.
Lyara: No, I get it, you can’t tell me the super secret spy stuff.
Xandeus nodded with a wry smile, pleased that his roundhanded attempt at levity had been well-received.
Filistrien: First rule of Intelligence.
This was when Ensign Bergmen returned with his choice of indulgence, along with a PADD filled with data.
Bergmen: I looked at the data now, when the shuttle is in full run, and that replacement of relay 11-7 looks like did not resolve the issue we were talking about with the deck chief.
Xandeus was unfamiliar with the issue to which they referred, and considering the two Ensigns he was currently manning the cockpit with, he presumed it was an Operations issue, so he turned back to his own console to attend to communications while they discussed.
Bergmen: It shouldn't cause any problems for us now. After we land, I plan to install the switchgear to that relay until we return to Artemis and throw it back at the deck crew again. What do you think?
Lyara: As long as it doesn’t take too long. We’ll have some colonists to interview so keep that in mind.
That seemed to be as far as that issue was discussed, for now, as Ensign Bergmen retook his seat by Xandeus’ right.
Bergmen: So, Mr. Filistrien, how long do you serve? Do you like it at Artemis?
Moving his gaze from the radio chatter from the Federation Colony on Mor Velho III, which was currently contending with an annoying sandstorm that was having a severe impact on their communications infrastructure, his response was immediate.
Filistrien: In half a galactic year, I will have served in Starfleet for six years. The Artemis is my third posting. As for how I ‘like’ it... ::considers:: I think it a fulfilling posting and have had many interesting assignments since I was first assigned here. My previous assignment was a testing vessel for various scientific experiments, so a regular patrol vessel is a... Change of pace.
There were elements to his previous assignments that Xandeus did miss. He missed the bustle of the Braveheart, the sensation of an entire bay worth of communications specialists all working as one to coordinate relief efforts across an entire planet. He missed the sense of discovery dominating the air on the JPJ, its crew seemingly always focused on the next discovery, the next experiment, the next innovation. He enjoyed being back on a service vessel - serving on a hospital vessel tended to make public servant of even the most resistant individual, in his experience - but the daily life definitely lacked a certain something.
Bergmen: Interesting… ::makes eye contact:: I did not see you much onboard. Are you staying late in that secret department of yours? Or do you go out sometimes?
Filistrien: I suppose the journey back and forth between my quarters and the Intel Hub counts for ‘out’? ::lopsided smile:: I’m sure, as an Operations officer, you are not unfamiliar with the amount of crew aboard the Artemis plagued with workaholism.
This was when Ensign Lyara stepped in, and Xandeus looked back at her.
Lyara: Alright love birds, if you’re up here you can help out with the navigation.
He blinked slowly at Ensign Lyara’s address. He hadn’t intended to impart the officer with an inaccurate assumption about his work ethic, and he sat a bit straighter in his seat.
Filistrien: Of course, Sir.
Bergmen: Response
Lyara: I don’t mind if you multitask at least, never said you can’t work and talk.
Xandeus was struggling to read this room of very opposing personalities and viewpoints, and briefly found himself concerned with how the on-site task was going to progress. Not for the first time since joining Starfleet, he found himself wondering just what the metrics were for Academy acceptance.
Filistrien: ::solemn nod:: Communications work rarely lends itself to multi-tasking, Ensign Lyara, but I’ll make an effort.
Lyara/Bergmen: Response
((Two Days Later - Wallace Colony, Kahines II))
As soon the Griffin touched down on Kahines II, Lieutenant Sadar and Ensign Imril had been fetched by the Colony Administrator - a middle-aged man with a very tired air about him - and gone to meet with the Klingon Research team. The Administator’s Aide, Mx. Fiell, had been tasked with assisting Ensign Lyara, Bergmen and Xandeus’ efforts, and the kind-looking Xindi-Primate with their long pastel braids and neutral working tunic looked far too at ease considering the tense air in the colony. Were they naturally calm, or were they putting on a front? And if they were, then for whose benefit? The colonists, who relied on their leaders to pave the way? Or the Starfleet officers, who’d come to enforce law and order?
Once they’d been told what the team’s task was, they clapped their hands together in jovial agreement.
Fiell: Ah, you’ll want to speak with Barto and Hazel then. They are the ones who first found the ruin. They’re on Silo duty today, if memory serves, so we should be able to fetch them in quick order.
Lyara/Bergmen: Response
Fiell: It’s no trouble. It can double as a bit of a guided tour for you all. The Klingons have been here a bit longer than you, so they know their way around already. We should get you up to speed.
As Mx. Fiell started leading them through the admittedly small colony - far smaller than any other place Xandeus had visited in his time in Starfleet, but still sizable enough to sustain the population of a few hundred people - Xandeus kept his eyes on a swivel to note the colony itself. It was well-cared for, clearly loved by its inhabitants, and the fields visible from the Griffin during their descent had been lush with grains in spite of the relatively cold climate planetside. It was in the middle of the day, and the streets were decently populated with open shops, children playing outside what had to be a school building and working people moving from place to place in quiet conversation.
Idyllic, for all intents and purposes.
Which, of course, meant that Xandeus didn’t trust it. Call it an occupational hazard.
Lyara/Bergmen: Response
Fiell: Not much, I’m afraid. They tend to stick to their Ship when they’re not at the digsite.
Filistrien: They haven’t accepted your kind offer of accommodations within the colony?
Xandeus watched the Xindi with an almost aloof attention, though his brain was working at high pressure, logging everything. The sooner he had a complete profile of their behaviour and response patterns, the sooner he’d be able to start parsing for the truth. Compared to the Colony Administrator, however, Mx. Fiell seemed far more social, and so let precious little slip through the cracks that Xandeus presumed they didn’t want their guests to see.
Fiell: We are a small colony, and their Ship serves their needs much better than the meager accommodations we can provide.
Lyara/Bergmen: Response
((OOC: Mx. Fiell, Barto and Hazel are considered general NPCs, and as such, everyone may freely write for them. Feel free to quiz Fiell a bit or progress us straight to the silo!))
TAGS/TBC
PO3 Xandeus Filistrien
Signals Analyst
USS Artemis-A
As simmed by
LT Gila Sadar
Medical Officer
USS Artemis-A
A240006GS1