The Grand Tour (Part 2 of 3)

Posted on 22 Mar 2013 @ 9:17pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Trija Natyal & Raifi Zaren & Justin Baker

4,500 words; about a 23 minute read

Mission: Episode 03 - Frontier
Location: USS Galileo - Various
Timeline: MD 03 - 1525 hrs

Previously, on The Grand Tour (Part 1)...

Jool's eyes shone as she turned to the Captain. "Yes! I love reduced gravity, it's so much fun!"

Lirha looked at the other members of the press team and raised her eyebrows, wondering if any of them also wanted to see the unique area.

Zaren looked at Trija longingly with puppy-like pleading.

Justin just remained stoic. At the end of the day he was here to film, he would have other times to enjoy himself with various activities but this was not one of those moments.

Trija waved her hand permissively. "Go ahead," she tilted her head wryly, knowing Zaren and Jool would have fun, if no one else. They were reporters. That was part of the job, sometimes. Personal experiences. The public enjoyed watching people have fun, as well. Knowing that Starfleet could be lighthearted was a good angle for their story.

"Very well," Lirha said, then turned on her heels and began to head out of main engineering. "Follow me."

And Now, the Continuation...

[ON]

It took a few minutes of turbolift and Jeffries tube travel but the captain and the press team finally arrived at their destination on Deck 5. Still on her hands and knees inside one of the service shafts, Lirha approached a maintenance hatch which was surrounded by several red signs. Warning: Unstable artificial gravity, they read. Tapping a release command into the hatch's keypad, the small door hissed and unlocked, then parted down the middle to give them entry into the ship's sweet spot.

Turning around to the guests behind her, Lirha gave them a quick set of instructions. "When we enter the room, keep your hands and feet in contact with the floor until everyone is inside. Once the hatch is closed, move to the middle of the floor, one by one, and gently push off with your arms, not your feet. Gently." she explained, then crawled inside the medium-sized room and waited for the others to join her.

With everyone safely inside and the hatch now closed, Lirha was the first one to push off of the ground. She slowly began to float several meters into the air, then continued upward as her body did a somersault and her feet finally made contact with the ceiling.

Raifi nudged off the ground and tucked in as he rose, easy and smooth and round as a hedgehog, touching the ceiling with his hands, then nudging off to a wall and twisting to right his feet to it. "There is little more gratifying than time spent without gravity. Reminds us where we are, the magnitude of the experience, not easy to forget exactly, but easy to put to the side of the mind. The re-invention of gravity by the sentience invented by the universe. It's a beautiful thing."

Jool watched the other two then, throwing some abandon to the wind she decided that there were things that were looked down upon on her planet. One of which was dancing. She threw her arms out and allowed herself to float upward as she spiraled, her hair floating out in a cloud around her, the rate of her spin controlled by the position of her arms. She reached the ceiling too quickly and rolled backward. It was an experience that she didn't have before. She'd done stints in zero grav and heavy grav, but this was...swimming and dancing and poetry - as Zaren said. She glanced back, making sure that Baker was doing his job and getting footage. This was definitely something she'll use in her reports. And most likely also in any highlight reels as well.

Trija watched them all begin pushing off and stood nearer to the corner, but she began floating up regardless. She pressed her lips together. Undignified. Trija was used to having her feet firmly on solid ground, but she sighed and pushed off with her arms, awkwardly coming to float up next to Zaren. She didn't appear to have the... flair of the others.

Lirha grinned while she watched the rest of the team float up to the ceiling. "This area of the ship is usually off-limits to junior personnel unless there is maintenance scheduled in this area, but occasionally I like to come here for a bit of solitude. I find it to be a helpful reminder of just how far our space travel has advanced over the last few hundred years...back in the 21st century, astronauts did not have the luxury of artificial gravity and had to complete their expeditions in complete weightlessness."

Justin had stuck by Trija's side. He'd been forced to follow everyone and noone seemed to give consideration to how hard it was to guide Remo through service shafts and never mind how the poor tri-vid remote holo-recorder was going to handle zero grav. But..as always, he had to work with what he was given.

"Did Orion space programs progress along the same line as Terrans?" Jool asked. "My people kept space travel theoretical until we found more environmentally stable fuels, then it was a very quick catch up."

Scooting over into the corner to make room for the rest of the team, Lirha leaned against the corner and sat down on the ceiling. Jool had asked another good question and the captain was happy to answer, especially about her homeworld. "The Orion Empire's space program originally developed in a similar fashion to that on Earth. They began with basic solid rocket and liquid fuel propulsion, then progressed to nuclear and ion propulsion, then finally warp travel. However, the Orion Empire's close proximity to the Klingon Empire and the Klingon's subsequent lack of a prime directive meant that Orions were exposed to other species well before they were warp-capable. In fact, they were once subjects of the Klingon Empire and gained a substantial amount of space-faring technology from them." she explained.

Jool nodded. She made a mental note regarding the possibility of an in-depth report sometime on Orion history, coupled with the idea that Klingon subjugation led to a culture built on slavery, piracy and criminality. However, she did have a few thoughts regarding an Orion captain and certain members of this crew.

"Do all ships have an area like this?" Jool asked. "If we were to go to the Venture would we find this area there as well?"

As he listened to what was happening around him, Justin made a move to grab Remo as the camera floated past his face, happily twittering away as it continued its live video feed. The motion only served to cause his body to do a flip but at least he now held Remo securely. It may only be a piece of equipment but the little bot had grown on him in recent years.

Managing to restabilise himself mid air, he flashed a charming smile to the people in the room. "Apologises ladies, Zaren, if you all don't mind, I think Ill meet you back in the tube. As photogenic as this experience is, the environment isn't conductive to being able to get any useable footage."

Nodding to Justin as he excused himself, Lirha watch his remote camera with much interest. It was a fun and unique piece of technology and she was curious to learn about its capabilities, but decided to inquire about it later. Turning her attention back to Jool, Lirha responded, "Most Federation vessels share the same artificial gravity technology, so yes, most of them have areas similar to this one."

Bouncing up from the floor again, adding a little arm to the twirl, Jool found herself floating slowly. "This should be the recruitment video! Set up a little area like this in most major population centers and Starfleet would always make their quota." She laughed, for the moment just enjoying the most unusual sensation and letting the 'job' she was here for go by.

Zaren bounded down from the ceiling, twisting out of the anti-gravity to kneel on the floor, staring up at the three of them, and snapped a few candids from his PADD. They wouldn't be the quality that Baker caught by any means, but they were good for memory. -Has there been a real dip in Starfleet interest? Do we have a percentage on that?- he wrote and sent the question to Trija.

Trija's PADD beeped and she looked down, entering in quickly. Yeah. The numbers are hovering somewhere at 9% of Federation-wide employment. Even with the Federation as big as it was, it was still an exceptionally low number in the wake of Romulus's destruction and the Dominion War, and most of the applicants were Terran. Captain Saalm is Orion. Capitalize on that. Starfleet is for *everyone*.

Lirha watched Jool as she enjoyed herself in the reverse gravity, and waited a few long moments before pushing off of the ceiling and floating back down to the deck. "If there are no further questions about this special area of the ship, I will be happy to continue the tour." she said, not sure if the press team wanted to spend more time in the ship's sweet spot or move on to other things.

Sighing, Jool brought herself down to the floor. "I suppose we should continue," she said, reluctantly.

Trija looked relieved at that assessment, trying not to look as unsettled as she felt, but she inched herself closer to the door and grabbed the frame before finding herself settling on the floor, tip-toes first. She pressed her feet downward and ducked out.

Sitting further back in the tube, Justin sat sideways as he braced his feet against the opposite bulkhead, moving Remo, he wiggled his fingers at his boss. "Smile for the camera boss."

Trija plastered on a semi-fake smile, and once the camera was off of her, that quickly turned into an eyeroll.

When the press team had finally exited the small room, Lirha was the last one out and made sure to reseal the maintenance door. Maneuvering herself delicately on all fours, she crawled her way through the Jefferies tube maze with her guests in tow, and several minutes later emerged from a hatch in the wall on Deck 4. The next stop on the tour were the science labs and sickbay facilities, after which Lirha would take them to the bridge to conclude the tour and answer any remaining questions.

Zaren crawled out behind her with an eyebrow waggle and an insouciant grin. "Best seat in the house," he winked at Baker through his lens.
Laughing at his friend's comment, Justin took up the rear position, not making much use of Remo as he crawled out due to the unflattering pictures he might capture. It wouldn't do at all to have a rear end picture of Jool...no matter how much nicer it might have been to other parts.

Almost twenty minutes passed during which Lirha gave the press a brief tour of Galileo's science and medical laboratories, as well as a quick visit to sickbay and the arboretum. When she had finished up there, she proceeded to lead the contingent up to Deck 2 for a quick walk through of the mess hall and galley, then to the bridge for the final stop.

"...And last but not least, this is the main bridge." Lirha said with an introductory wave of her green hand as they all stepped off the turbolift together onto Deck 1. "This is the ship's primary command center where a small team of junior and senior officers can effectively control all ship functions." she explained. "As you can see, there are numerous stations to accommodate a variety of personnel and departments. Being a Nova Class vessel, we have an entire alcove dedicated to scientific study, as well as an astrometrics multi-function display (MSD) to allow us to easily chart and plot celestial phenomenon."

"But this is a brand new, flagship incarnation of the Nova, isn't it?" Zaren inquired, tapping first impressions into his PADD. "What differentiates it from other Novas in the fleet?"

Trija followed Zaren out of the lift, gazing around, letting her eyes linger on the elements of technology, the viewscreen, the consoles. She'd served on a small ship during the Dominion war. Those had been old - what need did Betazed have for weapons? - and barely useable, nothing like this.

"Well," Lirha began to answer the Trill man, "we are currently Starfleet's newest Nova Class vessel, but there are three more slated to finish construction by the end of the year. I cannot go into the details of the technical differences, but Galileo has received several system upgrades which give her improved capabilities over many other Nova Classes."

Jeremy turned at the arrival of the Captain and the press corps. At their arrival he signalled for the backup tactical officer to arrive and take over the station so that he could leave the bridge.

Jool listened to Zaren and the captain while noticing the abrupt departure of the security chief. She was still unhappy about their previous encounter but that wasn't going to deter her from getting what she wanted.

"Why a nova class ship?" Jool asked. "The limited resources on a ship like Galileo make their effectiveness limited and less efficient than say - a sovereign class. This current assignment, for example, could benefit greatly from an extended survey of this system, if even half of what the system is supposed to contain. Additionally, as a science vessel, you wouldn't need the less efficient deployment of resources of a ship like the Venture for escort duty. You would be capable of defending yourself much easier. Additional facilities would allow for greater downtime, rest and relaxation of the crew which in turn heightens productivity. So why are the science vessels made to be so inefficient?"

The Orion captain frowned and turned to face Jool, staring into her eyes without a hint of amusement. She was not very pleased with the gold-skinned woman's sudden rash and uneducated judgement of her starship, and especially didn't like having her crew and ship referred to as 'inefficient'.

"I did not realize you had prior experience managing the resources of a Starfleet task group." Lirha dryly replied with obvious sarcasm in her voice. "Tell me, Miss Fenta, what exactly makes you think that one of Starfleet's most advanced scientific platforms is," she paused to punctuate the word, "inefficient?"

"No, Captain," she said, smiling, "You misunderstand. The size of the craft for the work expected is inefficient, not the ship itself. Let's see, based on a roster of about a hundred with available space, presuming the most favorable conditions and this ship requires a resupply about every 2.7 months, or roughly three months. Then we consider the lack of recreational facilities, with only two holodecks - no gymnasiums or other recreational facilities but an arboretum which is actually another science lab. Presuming an operational and most favorable status again, the holodecks provide 46 hours of operation per day, which means at an hour per crew, each crew may enjoy recreation for about two hours ever three days."

Jool checked her figures. "It is well known and established that scientific thought and advancement usually comes at a time when the researcher is not contemplating or actively engaged in their research. Archimedes and the displacement principle, Newton and the allegorical apple, Einstein and the theory of relativity, Brek'wsh and the Cosmological Constant. All examples of great discoveries made outside of the lab.

"Take this mission, for example. The press release indicates over 86 moons of just one super gas giant. This mission is scheduled for three weeks, fully a week of which is required travel time. Leaving a span of two weeks. Even assuming a life span for the duration of this ship's supply, there is no way this crew would be able to finish any form of detailed survey of this system. Which means another ship an crew will need to replace the Galileo before it departs Rojar or the Galileo leaves and returns after resupplying and wasting another two weeks. How long will it be before Starfleet no longer feels the need to pair this smaller ship with the Venture?

"Instead, the Venture, even taking into account its crew size, can stay 'in the field' for years, not just months. It has advanced and varied amenities and recreational areas for its crew, yet the Venture is not a specialized ship. That is what is meant as inefficient."

Zaren glanced between the two women. A battle of egos on the bridge of the ship wasn't going to help any of them. "Here's something I've always wondered: I understand there are bridge shifts... what do you all do up here? I mean, there's not always an encounter or discovery, right? Do you just talk, or..." he looked around. Everyone on the bridge seemed to be studiously avoiding his gaze by poking at their various stations. "Eight hours is a long time."

Justin couldn't believe his luck, Jool had seriously put his foot on it. Grateful for the fact that at least Zaren had a level head, he ensured to capture all of this through Remo, especially the reactions of the Galileo Captain in her face and body language.

Lirha turned away from Jool and focused her attention on the tattooed man, grateful that his question was much more tactful. "The bridge is where we control and monitor the ship's systems and functions. Despite the automated nature of most ship systems, human operators are still required to oversee them. For example, flight control systems are almost fully automated yet a flight control officer is required to be on duty at all times. Their job involves constant checks of the long-range sensors as well as monitoring any course corrections or adjustments. It might seem like idle work to the untrained eye, but I assure you, it is anything but."

"I wouldn't say 'idle' work, by any means; I've flown my fair share of shuttles and nothing about space travel is easy. That said - it's so quiet," he grinned. "I mean - anyone have a good joke? Or a riddle?" He grinned at Lirha, "Takes more muscles to look serious than it does to smile. I bet you've got a couple good ones up your sleeve."

"Oh yes, we have fun from time to time however the bridge is a very important area of operations, one which requires our undivided attention." the captain responded, casting a quick glance towards the camera. While she was being filmed, she wanted to present the most professional image of Starfleet and her ship, but behind closed doors she was usually a more jovial woman.

"I've got one. A riddle, if you'll indulge it."

Raising a curious eyebrow, Lirha stared at the Trill man. "Go ahead..."

"What is it that's broken when it's named?"

"A Klingon?" she half-guessed, half-joked.

Zaren smiled with a half-blink. "You can let it simmer. These things are meant to be considered from every angle." He looked around the bridge again. "Since we're here, maybe you can tell our - well," he grinned, "Jool's viewers," he bowed his head respectfully to the reporter, "what you hope to find in the system we're approaching."

The captain glanced back at the camera and gave her most professional smile. "We cannot be certain exactly what we will be finding once we arrive, however initial probe reconnaissance has revealed the presence of two Class M worlds and possible resource deposits on several of the system's satellites. It is my hope that this solar system will prove valuable to the Federation, and perhaps we can even begin the colonization process if we find a suitable planet."

Justin realised that the Captain seemed to like playing up to the camera in some senses. As she readjusted herself, he moved Remo for a better camera angle as he captured her obvious passion for her ship and their mission. He was equally biting back a retort, despite known that Zaren was trying to sooth Jool's ego, the audience they were address was equally that of the Betazoid's also, and if there was one thing Justin knew, he was editing the tapes and he would ensure Zaren was seen.

SILENCE! Jool had written on the face of her PADD, holding it up for Lirha to see. She did enjoy riddles, though they were seen by her people as a foolish waste of time.

Squinting and glancing at the PADD, Lirha quickly realized that the word was the answer to the riddle which Zaren had proposed just a few short minutes ago. She gave a slight nod to the gold-skinned woman, the only acknowledgement that she offered before stepping forward and walking down around the side of the bridge. "If there are no further questions here, we can head to my ready room for the final few minutes, where I will do a short Q and A if you like?" she asked.

Zaren almost sighed. Almost. The purpose of riddles was to make individuals think and arrive at a conclusion. Telling someone the answer without allowing them to find it for themselves was an insult to their intelligence and also denied them the pleasure of discovery. Children, he thought with a small nod to Lirha's question. He hoped that Jool would grow into her potential sooner rather than later. To use her skills to make things possible, not to continue forcing her opinions on the world around her.

None of the press team except Zaren bothered to acknowledge her or say a word, therefore the captain took their strange silence as a 'yes'. She was used to having her questions and orders be responded to, and thought that some of the press group could benefit from a healthy dose of Starfleet discipline. Fortunately, that was not part of Lirha's current responsibilities, and she instead walked down the side of the bridge and into her ready room where she took a seat at her desk.

Trija smiled wanly. "Certainly, Captain," she smoothed over as she glided across the bridge to follow Saalm into her ready room.

Sitting at her desk as the stars streaked by the large nearby window, the Orion captain leaned back in her seat and delicately folded her hands in her lap. "Shall we begin?" she asked the press team.

Justin allowed the others to move in before hesitating a few moments. Using Remo, he kept his distance from the departmental consoles, and just generally got film of the atmosphere of the bridge, the people going about their daily duties in such a small space. Finally happy, he moved in after the group and was suddenly glad at Remo's miniature size when he realised the space they would now need to deal with.

"That sounds great," Jool said as she took a seat opposite Lihra. She made sure Baker was set up with good lighting and angles. "To begin with, tell us a little something about yourself. No, not what's in the press release and service records. You're the captain of the flagship science vessel, I presume that's by choice and why?"

Lirha wouldn't openly admit it to anyone, especially the press, but she enjoyed being on camera. It wasn't often that she got the chance to have her ship and image broadcast throughout the entire Federation, and she relished the rare opportunity. Sitting up straight in her chair and pushing a stray lock of hair from her eyes, she began to answer. "On the contrary, it was quite a surprise when I was first offered command of Galileo. My background is in intelligence and communications so I never thought I would get an opportunity to transfer to command so early in my career." she thoughtfully reflected. "In truth, I would have been happy with any class of starship, but I was especially proud to take command of Starfleet's newest Nova Class. I ultimately believe that the fleet's primary mission is scientific exploration and discovery, and Galileo is the perfect platform to carry out those orders."

"Let's discuss that for a moment then," Jool said, "you just said that Starfleet's primary mission is scientific exploration, but yet Starfleet, from nearly it's inception with the NX Enterprise under Captain Archer has been less about exploration and more about confrontation - or so it would seem. Even the Galileo is equipped for confrontation in both armament and the interesting choice for Chief of Security. Why should anyone believe Starfleet is about exploration after the Dominion War, the Borg Wars, long drawn out confrontations and wars with the Klingons, Cardassians, Romulans, Breen, Xinthi, Maquis and many others?"

It was an interesting question, the captain had to admit, but one which Jool seemed slightly misinformed about. "Starfleet is the exploratory and military branch of the UFP. It performs both functions and our starships are equipped to handle both of those duties," she began, just to clear up that point so that there was no ambiguity. "It is the job of all commanding officers within Starfleet - and always has been - to look for peaceful solutions to all problems, and to use violence as a last resort. However, the unfortunate truth of the galaxy is that not all races and governments share those same sentiments, or have the same interests in peace. The Dominion, for example, were not interested in pursuing diplomatic relations with the UFP, nor any other government which valued their sovereignty. The Borg, by nature, are unilateral conquerors who cannot be negotiated or reasoned with. So I believe those examples are," she paused to recall an old Earth idiom, "comparing apples and oranges. And they are actually a prime example of why Starfleet vessels need to be armed in this day and age."

Not speaking, Justin had to wonder why Jool had missed a perfect opportunity to show the personal side of Starfleet. The Captain had self admitted that her background wasn't science but yet here she was commanding a science vessel. Even though facts of Starfleet were important, even he knew too much would drag down the average viewer who didn't understand and so there needed to be a balance. Jool had had opportunity to interview the woman about who she was and then lead into this but the opportunity was now gone...unless...Justin glanced across at Zaren.

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

CAPT Lirha Saalm
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo

Raifi Zaren
Journalist, FNN
USS Galileo
(pNPC Lilou Peers)

Trija Natyal
Assistant Producer, FNN
USS Galileo
(PNPC Liyar)

Justin Baker
Cameraman, FNN
USS Galileo
(PNPC Pola Ni Dhuinn)

Jool Fenta
Reporter, FNN
USS Galileo
(PNPC Jeremy Stone)

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