Renewal comes....

Posted on Tue Oct 16, 2018 @ 5:22am by Civilian 'Arrival' Arlen Grey
Edited on on Wed Oct 17, 2018 @ 2:04am

1,294 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Victory Conditions
Location: DS5 docking
Timeline: MD30 1704

::ON::



"Ladies and gentlemen, this is the pilot, may I have your attention please,. We will be docking at Deep Space Five in approximately ten minutes, as soon as we have been cleared. Will all passengers please ensure all relevant documentation is completed. You are reminded to be aware and compliant with all relevant customs regulations. Thank you."

The tiny ship hung motionless in the deep firmament, patterns of light and shadow reflecting blindingly off the polished steel and glass, as the station rotated in and out of the sunlight.

In an aisle seat, a tall man craned his neck over to the viewport, one finger tracing the outline of the station, the other hand resting on a layout as he recited to himself:

"Main Ops, habitat ring, docking ports...damn what happened there.." he remarked as his keen eyes detected an asymmetry in the station's hull. The repair job was almost flawless..but he could tell where the damage had been.

Arlen wasnt an engineer, but decades of work with fine detail had given him an eye for irregularities. Whatever it was, it had been a big event.

"Computer" he spoke softly to the info unit at his belt " Details on the station, recap please"

**BEEP....working** and the display lit up with a scrolling text narrative.

"The Celestial class design is based on the Stardock II class. DS5 has 1250 decks with a current Starfleet personnel complement of 56,000. Design and construction aimed to a long term presence, see annotated details on life support plant, blueprints and history. Press x for menu."

Nodding to himself, Arlen grinned as he suddenly felt pressure on his chest, the gentle press of .04 g meant that they had received docking permission and the pilot was carefully syncing their rotation to the station. "She has an eye that one..not bad at all." he mused as the shuttle expertly slipped into the docking collar.

=^= "Cabin crew, arrival stations, confirm crosslock and pressures."

Two uniformed attendants immediately moved to the portal, one of them swiftly punching into a PADD..the lights went green.

He touched a switch.

=^= "Cabin secure, green board, crosslock positive. Pressures nominal, seals checked. Clear."

In answer the bolts on the door snapped open, the door swinging back to rest parallel to the hull.

The senior of the two attendants turned to face the seated passengers.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are now docked and have been advised we may now begin debarkation.." he stopped as a Starfleet crewman boarded, whispered to the attendant, then turned to stare at Arlen directly.

"Dr Grey, welcome to Deep Space Five, I am crewman 3/c Kelley, will you please come with me"

Arlen was both pleased..and annoyed.

Pleased because someone had seen fit to let them know he was coming..and more than a little annoyed because whoever it was hadnt waited to let him get off on his own, quietly, anonymously.

Everyone was looking at him. He reddened.

At one time he would have expected to be met as per protocol..now he was retired, and he had actually wanted to wander about on his own before the usual "How do you do" meeting.

Bleh.

He unbuckled his belt and stood, easing past his seatmate who looked at him with a rather indecipherable expression. As he debarked, the attendants shook his hand. The moment he and the crewman cleared the coaming, he heard the susurrus of movement as the rest of the debarkation got underway.

Good, no sense makIng others wait.

They cleared the door, stepped out into the station proper...drank in wonder as the force and joy and life of the station wrapped its arms around him in loud and delighted embrace.

The ceiling high and vaunted, voices, so many and so alive. echoed in his ears.

It was HUGE, the air full of flavours and scents, a small group of children charged past him laughing, to his right , a hint of lavender and ahead ...the intoxicating scent of fresh Heart of Targ...his face split in a huge smile and his mouth suddenly watered, fresh racht, Pythias claw, gagh......well well well..

His stomach said not today..but tomorrow, Rokeg Blood Pie..

He allowed himself to be guided, and half listened to the crewman who narrated the habitat ring businesses..(....no thank you, Ill find those out on my own......).

Going two decks down and right, the two stopped at a doorway marked with his name in small print. The door whisked open, and Arlen stepped inside.

The room was small but functional, a fresher area, bed, storage space, computer terminal. Arlen turned to thank the crewman and was surprised when the man came to attention, his face and voice almost robotic.

"Doctor Grey. As an assistant to station security and safety, I must ask you to please pay specific attention to the briefing you are about to receive, as you will be tested upon completion. Please note that should you fail to demonstrate a proper understanding of emergency procedures, you will be required to listen to the briefing again as it is your responsibility to be aware of them at all times"

For the next ten minutes, time almost stood still as the crewman, executing what was obviously a timeworn drill, walked him through the various possible dangers and emergencies that could occur on the station, advised him and then tested him on procedures until he was letter perfect.

The crewman, upon now being satisfied that Arlen had passed, took a deep breath and smiled. So he was human after all. For a moment he had wondered if this was some kind of android prototype.

"Thank you Dr Grey, please place your hand on this PADD to sign and confirm you have been properly briefed. Thank you." and he actually smiled.

Arlen shook his head "How often do you have to do this?"

The crewman opened the door "At least three times a week. As an apprentice in station security, I get the rote jobs for new arrivals."

"Im curious...why get you to do it and not a computer program?"

The crewman laughed

"Doctor, would you believe that thirty or forty years ago, we discovered that no one paid attention to automated briefings, and that psychologically, people DO listen when its another human being ..accident rates dropped by forty percent so here we are. In a year, I move to damage control operations"

"Welcome to Deep Space 5, Dr Grey"

He nodded in farewell, the door closed behind him and Arlen stretched..well that was one hell of a way to start things off.

Rummaging around in his carisak, he extracted three large PADD's, scanned each and nodded.

Three letters of introduction, addressed to the Vulcan Ambassador, the Station CO and one to the head of the Diplomatic Corps.

That can wait till later. Food first....all of a sudden he was starving.

**beep**

"Computer, show me the location of a place I saw on the way down...called what was it..oh yes...The Box of Delights?"

**WORKING**

On the small screen, a schematic flashed twice.

"Excellent. Transfer the location to my unit, give me a muted tracer beep enroute"

It took only a few minutes to change into fresh clothes, a cream shirt, a green vest , dun trousers and boots. Onto his belt went his info unit and a small carry pouch.

Pausing only to rotate and polish the small gold wedding band on his hand, Arlen left his quarters.A meal and then bed..tomorrow was going to be a busy day indeed.

::OFF::

Dr Arlen Grey
Archaeologist
Civilian Arrival, DS5.



Gentlebeings all, greetings and thank you to our esteemed and gracious CO.

 

RSS Feed