JP: Ensign Josh Herrick, Lt. TK Cabrillo, Ensign Lhandon Nilsen, Nurse Rox: Remnant of Chaos Pt. 7
Mark P
((On the beaten path, Planet Paradiso))
Rox had just about jumped out of her skin when Herrick had turned up beside her. It was not intentional of course, but she was still trying to get her heart rate back down. As Josh and Rox continued along the path to the building, he took the opportunity to try and de-escalate by changing gears.
Herrick: So, what made you decide to get into Medical?
Rox: ::turning to smile at Herrick:: I grew up poor on Turkana IV ::She chuckled to herself. Nothing like a good rhyme::I saw a lot of people get hurt, taken advantage of. ::remorsefully:: I even hurt someone myself. Nursing seemed like a way to give back. Balance my karma.
Josh let that final statement hang in the air for a moment. He wasn’t quite sure how to respond to that. Having been an officer from a career-oriented family, he hadn’t really thought about how other folks arrived at Starfleet. He usually lived in the moment, connections coming and going from a duty-led perspective. JOPA had been one of the more social aspects of Starfleet, to which he was still acclimating.
Karma had been an interesting concept to Josh; the idea of balancing out the
scales and doing more good than bad over time. It was a different take than the
religion that he’d followed; in his view of the afterlife, you’d be assessed by
multiple gods based on key domains to determine if you were worthy of moving
on.
Herrick: Medical seems like a good place to do that, and you seem like a good fit there.
Rox: I do what I can. We have a new head nurse so now it's like I have two bosses. What about you? Engineering for life?
Josh looked forward, like he was gazing into a future without a set fixed point. The scenery had changed somewhat as they got closer to the structures, with tall wild grass lining each side of the road that looked forgotten to time.
Herrick: Eventually, I think I want a command — it’s still a long way off but I think I have a good group of peers that will help me grow. ::playfully nudging Rox:: I’ve spent the most amount of time with you, the Chief and Doctor Kel. And, you all made the transition from Academy to crew less intense than I feared.
Rox: ::giving Herrick a decent shove:: It was good of you to light yourself on fire so we could all get to know each other.
Josh grinned at that. As they continued to walk forward, there was some rustling in the tall grass to the left of the two officers. Josh instinctively stopped and flipped open his tricorder. When the engineer stopped, Rox too came to a halt. As the engineer scanned the area she made a slow circuit looking around. She heard only the playful calls of birds and the rustle of grass in the wind.
Herrick: (quietly) Did you hear that?
Rox: No.
A lifeform registered on his tricorder; it was unhelpfully indicating that there wasn’t a match in any database, just that its size was relatively small at half a meter high.
Rox heard the familiar chime of the tricorder which meant that a life form of some kind had been detected. Rox had not seen anything when she looked around, but it could be hiding in the tall grass. She nodded toward a structure 50 meters ahead of them. They began to walk toward it in silence all the while looking around.
They stopped before the structure which seemed to be a kind of domestic dwelling. It sat back just off the road and was made of the same brown brick they had seen everywhere else. It was square and seemed to have a flat roof. The windows were open with ragged curtains flapping in the breeze. They stood before it.
Rox: ::tentatively:: Hello?
Several fist size avian creatures poured out of the window of the structure. Rox jumped back and ducked even though they were well above her and presented no real threat.
Herrick: ::looking at the birds overhead:: (cheekily) You know how to clear a room.
Rox: Let’s check inside.
Josh held up his tricorder in the direction they were walking; with the distance they were at, it was a useless gesture — more habit than anything else.
Herrick: It looks clear. ::he motioned for Rox to go ahead:: I’ll let you take the lead on this one.
Rox: ::walking toward the doorway:: Hello?
There was no response and Rox slowly pushed through the main doorway. The interior was a single room which, at the moment, was dimly lit. Everything was still, but orderly. The table was even set. Rox walked over to it and noted the thick layer of dust that covered the plates, cups and utensils.
Rox: I don’t think anyone’s been here for quite some time.
Herrick: I wonder where they are now. ::looking at the table:: It’s clear that they didn’t just pack up and leave. And, everything points to your standard bi-ped life-form.
Rox picked up one of the dull yellow plates and drew her thumb across it. Where her thumb brushed bright yellow appeared.
Rox: We’re also near a road and I haven’t seen any travelers or carts. The only sound outside is the wind and the birds.
Josh turned to a nearby window and wiped the grime off it; his hand turning almost pure black. He looked out at the view, grasslands and trees as far as the eye could see, with a small overgrown road cutting the parcel of land in two. His mind was still stuck on that past unknown tricorder reading — was it a lifeform that could give a clue to what happened here. Rox brought him back to reality.
Rox: Maybe if the Lady is fixed we can move toward the city center.
Herrick: If being the operative word.
He walked across to what resembled the cooking area and opened several compartments before finding cookware and cutlery. He spilled the cutlery into his bag, pausing for a moment at the thought of raiding a house but tried to shake it off since it was abandoned.
Herrick: ::looking at Rox with a guilty face:: We might be able to melt it down to re-form some of the connections that got shot when we… landed. Let’s see if there’s anything else that could help.
Rox made her way to the back of the hovel. She found herself looking out on a broad yard. The breeze was cooler now and the sun was slowly sinking. In the sky, multi-colored swirls were appearing. At certain points it was almost as if they were underwater, looking up at waves tumbling past above. Rox wondered what was going on in the wider system. She turned to Herrick.
Rox: We need to get back to the ship.
Herrick: ::looking up:: It almost seems like a storm is brewing.
He pulled up his tricorder, again stretching out his arm. This time, however, his tricorder wasn’t registering anything — not the storm, or the house, or Rox. Something was causing interference.
Herrick: ::closing the tricorder:: Let’s get out of here.
She hustled around the house but froze as a sound arose off in the distance. It could have been the eerie shriek of a person or an animal. Rox hoped it was the latter. She quickened her pace. Josh picked up right behind her.
Herrick: I don’t know what that was, but it didn’t sound friendly.
They were back on the path they’d taken from the ship when another shriek was heard. This one was closer. It sounded a mixture between someone in pain and an animal on a hunt; it sent chills through Josh’s bones.
Rox: Can you reach Cabrillo or Nilsen?
Herrick: ::tapping his communicator:: =/\= Herrick to Away Team, please respond =/\=
He waited a few moments, but silence was the only reply. He tried again. Rox looked around scanning the ground and the sky for whatever was making the noise they had heard.
Herrick: =/\= Herrick to Cabrillo or Nilsen… ::a loud piercing shriek caused Josh to pause for a moment:: If you’re there, come in =/\=
A few more moments of silence and finally a response; the line was filled with static, but they were able to make each other out.
---
Ensign Josh Herrick
Engineering Officer
USS ‘Oumuamua
O240005JH3
he/him/his (player/character)
&
Lieutenant jg TK Cabrillo
Engineering Officer
USS Oumuamua
T239901JK1
&
Rox
Nurse - Crewman 2nd class
USS Oumuamua NCC-81226
T239811VK2
He/Him (player)
She/Her (character)
&
Ensign Lhandon Joseph Nilsen
HCO
USS Oumuamua
O240007LN1
He/Him/His (Both player and character)