Tour Guide or Starfleet Officer?

Posted on Mon Oct 18th, 2010 @ 11:45am by Lieutenant JG Malia Jacy & Vice Admiral Iluvar

Mission: Episode 1.3 - "The Time of Trial"
Location: USS Pandora
Timeline: Mission Day 03, 1336 hours

ON: [[USS Pandora, Mission Day 03, 1336 hours]]

Malia glanced over to where Thomas (NPC) - Ensign Rolands, she corrected herself - was six minutes into 'finishing things up'. She'd bothered just about every other officer in the room, aside from the ones who looked as though they were not open to being distracted and she began to get antsy. Bouncing on the balls of her feet she finally just gave up and made her way over to where he was talking with another officer. She attempted to strain to hear the end of the conversation without looking like she was eavesdropping.

Ordinarily, Thomas would have submitted his report in person, but considering that Lieutenant Warrington (NPC) wasn't expecting it until the next morning, he had opted to have it delivered by another member of the engineering staff. It just meant that he would have to make sure that he stopped by later to clarify anything that needed more explanation.

"I take it you're ready to go," Thomas asked, turning around to face the woman waiting behind him. He'd noticed she had been standing a short distance away for the past four minutes, which was a pretty good indication that she was probably starting to get bored.

"Well, unless there is some magical sight of the Engineering department I haven't seen ... yes, I think that's a safe assumption." She allowed a jab at his observation to go unsaid; sometimes people mistook her peppiness for snottiness and she didn't enjoy it when that happened. "Please, keep your arms and legs inside at all times and whatever you do, don't touch the buttons! And we're walkin'..." Mali set out just a half a pace ahead of him, giving him time to match her stride. "Tell me Ensign Thomas, what is your favorite area of a starship?"

It didn't take much for Thomas to fall into step with his guide and within moments, they had left the cavernous engineering bay for the smaller ship's corridor outside. "As I think you've probably guessed, I spend a lot of my time in engineering," Thomas replied, thinking about her question, "but when I'm off duty...I guess it depends on my mood. Sometimes I like to have a chance to just stargaze, which I find is often best from the mess hall. Sometimes I like to try out a new holodeck program or just spend some time working on something in my quarters."

"Stargazing is something else entirely when you're among them, isn't it?" Mali herself had only had the opportunity to gaze skyward from a planet a few precious times in her life but they were memories she'd not readily forget. "And yes, I could have guessed you spent most of your waking hours in Engineering; I don't think anyone joins Starfleet for the excess amount of free time," she smiled softly. "What kind of holodeck programs do you run, if I may ask?" One of the things Mali had found so amusing after spending a few short visits on Earth was that for the vast majority of planet born officers, they spent a decent amount of time using holoprograms that were work related.

Thomas shrugged. “It depends on the day, I guess,” he replied, trying to remember a few of the programs he usually frequented, “Lieutenant Warrington used to be part of a program aboard the Frontier based on a book series from Earth’s twenty-first century called Harry Potter. The ship’s entire senior staff was involved in it, actually. I suppose it was a good way for them to spend some off-duty time together.”

"I think that's important," Mali informed him as they walked. "Don't you? It seems like the better we know each other outside of our respective departments the easier it is to communicate, which in turn leads to much better rapport between departments. I find it interesting how often the social aspect of keeping a ship running smoothly is overlooked when it's every bit as important as a properly working system."

Thomas quirked an eyebrow. Only moments ago, he had wondered if this woman might not be better suited to a position with Starfleet Intelligence. Now she was sounding more like a ship's counselor. It was both amusing and confusing at the same time. "You're probably right about that," he replied.

"Well," she hesitated, "you were talking about a tour of the ship. Where would you like to go first? We can see what we can dig up around here, or we can start at the top and work our way down, or we can start at the bottom and work our way up; anything particularly interesting that comes to mind?" Malia herself favored observation decks and the science offices. Though not a science officer by nature, she did love all of the gadgets and gizmos the department employed.

"Whichever you prefer," Thomas said with a small smile, "Afterall, you're the guide on this one. What do you think we should see?"

"I think we can safely skip the lowest deck, unless you're really interested in torpedoes," Mali winked at Thomas. "But the hydroponics bay is kind of neat; as is the arboretum. Care to see either of those?"

"I don't suppose photon torpedoes would be my first choice," Thomas replied with a chuckle. He considered the two options she had given him for a moment, but decided that it made little difference which one he chose. "We could probably start with the arboretum," he said. They hadn't had one of those aboard the Frontier.

"Excellent choice, Sir Engineer." Malia's naturally bouncy gait picked up a bit with a solid destination set. "So where do you hail from?" It wasn't so much that Malia enjoyed small talk since it could become awkward so easily, but she just really couldn't stand silence.

"Betazed," Thomas replied casually as he kept pace with the unusually energetic operations chief. It seemed like she was just making casual conversation, but he also felt like she was the kind of person who might fall asleep if they sat still for any period of time.

"Oh, I LOVE Betazoids!" Eying him with interest she tilted her head. "I'm quite surprised that you've chosen engineering for a field. I thought most Betazoids were more people people then machine people." Though the statement could have been taken as stereotyping, Malia meant no offense by it. It really had been her experience that most Betazoids chose medical fields or diplomatic careers - she didn't think she'd ever met a Betazoid engineer, though she'd never really considered it either way.

"I guess I just liked figuring out how things worked," Thomas answered with a shrug of his shoulders, "that's pretty much what motivates a physician or a counselor, isn't it?" He was used to people asking him that question and it didn't really bother him at all, so long as it was in genuine curiosity. People had every right to be curious, but no one had the right to be prejudice.

"I see." Mali led him into the lift and directed it to deck 18. "So, Mr. Thomas, may I ask what prompted you to take this little tour?" The Ops officer wasn't inclined to believe that it was a leisure activity - she'd yet to meet an engineering officer who knew what the term 'leisure' meant.

Thomas quirked an eyebrow. The question made absolute sense to him, but he hadn't realized that his sudden decision to seek her assistance in touring the Pandora might cause her to believe that he had ulterior motives for doing so. "I think it's important to know the ship one is serving aboard, both in the physical and technical aspects as well as in the social and cultural ones," he replied, "I hope you didn't think I had some other reason in mind..."

"Actually, that was pretty much what I figured. What kind of social culture do you hope to find in the Arboretum?" In Mali's experience the Arboretum was one place on a ship that didn't get nearly as much traffic as it should. Although, the Pandora's boasted a very nice Japanese rock garden.

"Arboretums are a rare gem aboard starships," Thomas said, "most of the smaller vessels simply don't have the room or the resources to support one and, to be quite honest, I don't really think a holodeck can compare."

"I'm inclined to agree. Not that I've gotten to spend a whole lot of time amongst any one planet's native flora, but even with as much as technology has given us in the way of holodecks, it lacks something when you know that no matter how real it feels or looks, it's just not." The lift opened and Mali pranced her way into the hall.

Thomas stepped out of the lift and followed the lieutenant down the corridor. "May I ask you a question, lieutenant," he inquired as they rounded a bend.

"Always." She tilted her head to the side curiously. Communication was only efficient if it was both sent and received; well, that and properly understood, anyway.

"What made you decide to pursue a career in operations," he asked, thinking back to moments ago when he hadn't quite been sure what field he'd expected to see her serving in.

"Oh that's easy," Malia grinned and continued to move, "The thought of having only one department's responsibilities to contend with." Let him take that how he may.

"But don't you..." Thomas began, but he realized that it may be pointless to try and argue the point with her, "Nevermind." He shook his head slightly and decided to just leave it alone. If Lorian had taught him anything, it was that there were some times when you couldn't understand something, no matter how hard you tried.

"Yes and no," Mali shrugged. "It's one department with a decent set of multi-tasking and a lot of opportunity to not have to do the same thing all that often. Or, maybe it's just different aspects of the same thing." She shrugged. "And here we are. After you?"

Thomas stepped across the threshold of the arboretum entrance and onto the gravel path that wove its way amongst the variety of foliage. The sound of running water could be heard in the distance and he could sense that there were at least two other individuals present in the room. It was certainly a different feeling than the ship's corridor outside.

Malia breathed in deeply. She'd always thought that the air smelled more ... well just more, in a ship's Arboretum. "Well, what do you think?" She set off at an easy pace along the gravel, enjoying the sound of it and the way it moved beneath her feet. Her fingertips trailed along the topside of the wide sloping leaves. This place moved her, arboretums had since she was a child. Her parents swore it would keep her in tune with nature - a connection with the past of her people. Mali herself didn't quite share that sentiment, as many of these plants weren't natural to Earth, but she understood the concept and appreciated the area for what it was.

"It's nice," Thomas replied, wincing at the thought of what Lorian might say if he heard Thomas giving such a primitive answer to what was clearly a much more profound question. The arboretum was full of vibrant colors, sounds, smells, and sensations that were extremely complex. If all he could come up with to describe it was that it was 'nice', maybe he really did need to get out of engineering more.

"Well, that's one word to describe it I guess." Mali heard nature's song in the whispered hushes of something trying not to attract attention and wondered for one crazy moment if plants could be bashful.

"Something wrong, lieutenant," Thomas asked, noticing the slight change in the woman's mood.

"No. To be honest, Thomas, this is one of the few places on a starship that ever really feels right." She smiled at him. "Shall we try to discover what they have in the way of Betazoid plant life?"

"I suppose we could have a look around," Thomas replied. It didn't really surprise him that such an energetic individual found solace amongst actual plant life over a holographic recreation. He couldn't really consider himself an expert on psychology, but he had been required to sit an introductory course at the Academy. Sometimes people just did better when they were around other living things.

Malia smiled openly at the man. "Do you have a favorite?"

Thomas thought about making something up, but it was possible that she would be able to tell and would call him out on it. In the end, it was probably best to tell the truth. "To be honest, I'm not really all that familiar with Betazoid flora," he told her somewhat sheepishly, "Most of what I do know comes from textbooks and hearsay."

That stopped Mali in her tracks. "How is that possible?" She'd grown up on starships but even so she had a decent grasp of Earth's plant life. It never occurred to her, before or then, that her parents had a large part to play in that.

"My family left Betazed when I was thirteen to be part of a new colony on Talaris IV," Thomas explained, hoping to make the conversation brief, "but our transport was ambushed by Cardassians en route."

"Oh no," Mali murmured, a slight crease appearing in her forehead as she frowned in sympathy. "That must have been terrible." Somehow, she knew she should wait to say too much until he had finished; there was obviously more to it. If not, he'd have given her some plant he remembered from his childhood. Unless Betazoids didn't remember anything before they were thirteen.

Letting out a short sigh, Thomas continued, "Everyone else was killed in the ambush...the crew, the colonists, my parents. I probably wouldn't be here today if it hadn't been for Lorian." It was still a little difficult for him to talk about these memories with people, which is why he usually tried to keep it brief. He didn't want his experiences to be a secret, but he wasn't going to parade them around for everyone to see. In this case, it seemed like a reasonable time to at least give the woman the ultra-short version.

Mali reached her hand out and placed it upon his arm. "I'm sorry I asked. I had no intention of bringing darkness into your day." While the man didn't seem like he was on the verge of a breakdown, people typically didn't enjoy talking about such things, especially with a near perfect stranger. If she'd been able to relate, Mali probably would have inquired further. Having both of her parents alive and well, however, left her only able to attempt to imagine how Thomas must feel.

"It's alright," Thomas replied, a smile coming to his face, "We're not going to change the past, so there's really no use in trying to run away from it."

"That's a very wise outlook to keep," Malia offered supportively. For a moment the Ops officer was silent. "Well, if we're not looking for anything in particular - would you like to see the Japanese rock garden? I find it to be very, well, soothing." Pearly teeth flashed again and she set off, anticipating his agreement.

OFF

A JP by:

Lieutenant JG Malia Jacy
Assistant Chief Operations Officer
USS Pandora

and

Ensign Thomas Rolands (PNPC)
Interim Assistant Chief Engineering Officer
USS Pandora
Played by: Capt Iluvar