Lieutenant JG Ollie Bergmen - Water is not only thing we all need (part 2)
CPT Arianus
(( Campsite – Inside the Cliffs – Callis I ))
They should build the campsite.
Build a place where they could rest, where they could feel safe.
A sanctuary amidst the wild.
A refuge.
A shelter resilient against the planet's ferocity, defying the elements and any threats that sought to wear them down, conquer their spirits, and force them into submission.
It sounded so easy on paper...
Bancroft: Ollie, I’ll handle assembling our tents. Will you work on inventorying the supplies and rations? ::brief pause:: Maybe see if there’s anything around here that looks like it might burn without killing us?
Bergmen: Aye…
Ollie sat on a rock and dropped his pack to the ground. He unzipped his tent and moved it closer to Bancroft, then opened it to unpack his supplies. Rations. Drinkable water. Items he thought would be useful and would serve him well, but now, as he examined them, a wave of doubt washed over him.
Bergmen: ::murmurs:: Nothing burnable with me, anything with you, Lieutenant?
He turned to the doctor and watched him for a moment, as they focused on building the shelter, realizing that Bancroft had probably not heard his question. Not that it really mattered. Bergmen stood up, moved the doctor's belongings closer, and began sorting their equipment just as he had sorted his own.
Bancroft: ::softly, not looking up:: You think we were the only ones who made it? Or do you think there are others out there somewhere?
The words that shattered the silence between them echoed the damp cave walls. The thoughts stirred by that voice were far from what Ollie wanted to dwell on at this moment, thoughts he desperately wished to avoid.
Memories of Imril’s soft face and the moment when he touched their fingers back in Elysium flooded his mind, and he couldn't shake the nagging uncertainty that gripped him—would he ever see them again? Did they survive the perilous planetfall, or was that awkward moment in Artemis' Ops Center and the subsequent promise that delayed the decision about their future the last moment they shared??
And even if Imril was alive, there was another haunting question: would they both muster the strength to endure in this unforgiving place long enough to find their way back home?
Bergmen: I don’t know. (beat) I hope. ::moment of silence:: The escape pods are built to survive even the harshest of possible planetfalls. But depends on where you land. Acid lakes or lava are the end of the way. (beat) And even if you land on a hard surface, you still need to drink, eat…and without any emergency equipment, anything hungry and big enough can kill you in a moment if you have nothing to defend. (beat) You and I, our species, we survived because we were smarter to evolve and invent tools and pointy sticks, not because our claws were bigger than those predators on our planet… (beat) So, I hope so. I hope they will land safely. I hope they found water and food. I hope they found sticks to sharpen. I hope… ::sighs:: Because what else can we do, right?
Bergmen let out a frustrated sigh that echoed through the cave. He tossed another tool onto a growing heap of discarded equipment, each one as ineffective as the last in his search of the right pieces he hoped would finally help him to spark a flame.
Bancroft: ::nodding:: I hope you’re right. ::a beat, gentler:: How you holding up, by the way? Not just the injuries – I know about those. ::tapping the side of his head:: How’s it going up here?
Bergmen: ::shrugs his shoulders:: I’m fine. Good. ::stand up and glance at Bancroft:: You?
Bancroft: Response
Ollie laughed, but the sound held no trace of genuine amusement. He shook his head dismissively, his face tense, as if he didn't believe either the doctor or himself, and walked to the pond beneath the waterfall to start collecting the moss gradually growing in the cracks of the rock.
Bergmen: That’s right, hm? That we're supposed to say - I’m fine, keep on moving. That’s what we all say. ::sighs:: So… truth now? I don’t know. So far, so good, I guess? We have shelter. We have water. We have food for a couple of weeks if we ration. Whatever is more distant than tomorrow, I’m trying not to think about. Anything after is a problem for future ourselves. (beat) That’s an honest truth.
Bancroft: Response
Bergmen: So, with the truth out there, we should feel better, right, doctor?
Bancroft: Response
Bergmen folded the rolled-up pile of moss onto the ground in front of the tents and glanced at Bancroft, saying nothing. He bit his lip, and the expression on his face reflected the thoughts swirling behind his eyes as he contemplated something that only he understood. And then, in a split second, he broke into an enthusiastic smile, though his expression hinted at some underlying shame.
Bergmen: Dînêo! Erê, divê ez li ser wê bifikirim!
Ollie shot a quick glance at Bancroft, and then, realizing that Bancroft likely didn’t grasp his words, he offered a thumbs-up.
Bergmen: Eeeeh… (beat) Chemlights! They are full of butyl lithium. Why didn’t I think that sooner? That thing reacts with water and creates flame. We know how to make flame, doctor!
Bancroft: Response
TAG/TBC
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Lieutenant JG Ollie Bergmen
Operations Officer
U.S.S. Artemis-A
A240009JC1