Roasting Marshmallows (Part 1)

Posted on Tue Mar 29, 2016 @ 7:12pm by Valkris of the House of Inagh & Civilian 'Key Holder' Dorian Gabriel & Commander Amia Telamon M.D. & Lieutenant Annora Tessaro & Lieutenant JG Zayna Malik & Lieutenant JG Noelle Bennett M.D. & Lieutenant Liam Reynolds & Qinee & Second Lieutenant Emily Ransom & Maekhav D'Aerrol & Civilian Melvyn Raddon & Civilian Hydel Turvan

1,320 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Pangaea (Wrap up)
Location: Pangaea/Northern continent
Timeline: MD13/1100/Planetside evening rolling in

ON:

"Ah ha!" Liam said triumphantly as he managed to get the pile of wood he had been working on to light. He flashed Amia, who had been watching his efforts amused for a while, a big thumbs up! With all the instruments randomly not working they couldn't just use a phaser. They had to do this the old fashioned way. And the old fashioned way took time. And it had been quite a while since Liam had camped out in the elements. The last time was the camping trip him and Jon had arranged to try get to know their half-brother before it became apparent Declan was mentally ill.

Out of the corner of his eye, while he gently blew his seriously worked for spark of flame to spread in the kindling, he saw several people shiver. The cold, be it the Fae punishing them or genuinely the elements, was getting worse. He didn't like the look of the dark clouds forming either. The feeling that that storm was coming in was still haunting him.

Krell moved in to offer his assistance. "Be sure not to smother it." The Vedek moved several pieces of wood. He smiled warmly.

Maekhav D'Aerrol moved closer as well. Not to help, but merely to watch and give orders should he see it being done wrong. "Will we be eating soon?" he asked.

"There's water and sandwiches that I brought down for a lunch over there. I am not sure how they have fared during everything that has occurred. Ladies," he addressed the two security guards, "would you mind handing some out?" At the Romulan's look of displeasure Liam merely informed him, "Failing that, Ambassador, it's go hunt something to put on this fire or ration bars. Your call."

D'Aerrol looked as though he were about to say something, but instead stalked off to find these so-called "sand witches."

Hydel took off his tunic jacket and began to gather larger pieces of wood and began to create the necessary pit for a fire closer to himself and his Glinn.

"Do try to be careful," Hydel said as he passed by the Bajoran Vedek. "I know how sensitive you Bajorans can be when it comes to heavy lifting and the like. I'd hate for your Federation friends to think that I was forcing a Bajoran to perform manual labor for Cardassia…again," he said with a smug grin.

Zayna looked at their limited food supplies and started to hand it out best she could. Rationing food was a bad idea, people needed to stay fed and hydrated in order to stay their sharpest. She did however wonder if these people where capable of working together at all.

While others set about getting fires built, Annora pulled a hatchet from her pack and began constructing a shelter. It wasn't part of her normal load-out, but considering they were exploring a relatively new planet, a small cutting tool other than a standard combat knife seemed a wise precaution. The shelter wouldn't hold everyone, but hopefully others would get the idea and pitch in.

Liam nodded happily at the sandwich suddenly being handed to him from Zayna, wiping the dirt and soot on his uniform sleeve with no other options, before accepting it and a bottle of water. "Thanks. Shame it’s not hot chocolate and marshmallows, eh."

"How are you doing?" he asked the new security guard. With everything happening so fast, bar a quick introduction, he had not had any chance to speak with her. "What’s your assessment of all this?" he asked, indicating all around them, ambassadorial delegations tucking into the sandwiches, the planet, and the little girl he knew to be there but not really there.

"I am doing quite well. We got a campfire, and once shelter is up plenty of people with tall tales until the morning light breaks, allowing us to asses our situation and get out of it," Zayna said before handing out some more and returning to Liam. "As for the other question, the same as always, too much arguing and political nonsense and not enough getting the job done. How about you? You dealing with this all alright?"

"I'm doing okay, thank you. Just not so much my uniform," Liam quipped, looking at the mud and moss he had managed to get on him from making up the fire. "They like to keep me and Mortimer busy, that’s all," he replied to her comments on political nonsense.

Amia had chipped in with collecting wood and added it to the pile that was being used to fuel the main fire in the center of their little group. "Should we construct shelters beneath these trees here around this clearing? Our fires have to be in the center to save catching the foliage alight, but we could put some of the covers from the shuttles out and attach what we can of whatever we can muster to the lower branches. It would only be makeshift, but then if it does rain we will at least have something to huddle under?" She approached Liam and Zayna to see what they thought. She, too, had seen the same clouds that Liam had noticed.

"We best be moving soon. We are to exposed to linger here to long with this weather," Zayna said with a warm a smile.

Ambassador D'Aerrol interrupted, "I'm not familiar with human food. Do we need utensils to eat these 'sand witches?' I couldn't find any in the container." In his hand he held the stainless steel cooler emblazoned with the Starfleet emblem. It was the container that held their rations.

Liam pretended to hold a sandwich and indicated raising it to one’s mouth and taking a bite. "Finger food, I am afraid, Ambassador," he stated.

D'Aerrol wasn't much for finger food, but knew it was no use to complain. He eyed the contents of the sandwich suspiciously before taking a small bite. It was actually not bad, he discovered.

The two Tholians, meanwhile, kept their distance from everyone else. They stood well away from the crowd, talking only to each other about what they had seen.

"Do you think she is okay?" Liam asked, sidling up to Noelle and Mortimer once he and the Bajoran ambassador were satisfied the fire was burning nicely now. He indicated the little girl who was still with them but being rather quiet. She was watching them. No one had managed to get much conversation out of her.

"I honestly don't know," Noelle replied. "Our best evidence says she's not exactly who she once was, but as I look at her, I still see a child. Granted, I didn't get the opportunity to speak to her before, but from the reports, I don't get the sense the Fae were interested in fundamentally changing who she is. Taking that into consideration, it's understandable she wouldn't know what to make of all of us." Bennett smiled. "She's a child trying to make sense of the utter squabbling of the adults around her."

She knew they were talking about her, but like the Queen had told her, grown-ups were really very silly. There was little joy in most of them.

Eviess giggled at something only she could hear and see. "Oh dear, it looks like rain," she said turning her face away from the fire.

OFF:

Lieutenant Liam Reynolds
Chief Diplomatic Officer
Deep Space 5

Lieutenant Commander Amia Telamon
Chief Medical Officer
Deep Space 5

Lieutenant(jg) Noelle Bennett, M.D.
Chief Counselor
Deep Space 5

Qinee
Ferengi Ambassador

Nazl
Ferengi Attaché

Sir Mortimer Praxis GCB, KBE, MVO, MA (Oxon)
Senior Diplomatic Advisor
NPC by Louise

Ambassador Toq Qua'lon
NPC by Louise

Valkris of the House of Inagh
NPC by Louise

Eviess
NPC by Louise

Maekhav D'Aerrol
Romulan Ambassador
NPC Bert

Voskene
Tholian Ambassador
NPC Bert

Lt Jg. Annora Tessaro
Assistant Chief Security Officer

 

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