Arrival at Rigel (Part 2 of 2)

Posted on 28 Jan 2014 @ 5:22am by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Commander Luke Wyatt & Lieutenant JG Delainey Carlisle & Ensign Matthew Plumeri & Petty Officer 1st Class Siren Hex Saalm & Lieutenant Asahi Kita

2,063 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 05 - Solstice
Location: Rigel VII - Runabout Jermias
Timeline: MD 33 - 1242 hrs

Previously, on Arrival at Rigel (Part 1)...

"Hold on, we are entering the atmosphere," she informed the group, then pitched the runabout's nose down at an acceptable angle for entry. Outside of the cockpit window, bright and glowing red flames licked the forward shields as the atmospheric friction built up on the hull within tolerable levels. The craft's inertial dampers were online and provided a relatively smooth ride, but there were a few bumps and sways along the way.

And Now, the Conclusion...

[ON]

Even though the ride was bumpy, Matt couldn't help but want to stand near the cockpit, in the space behind the pilots. He took an empty chair next to Siren Hex and held on. "Whew!! Look at that!"

"A decent ride, huh?" Siren laughed as she looked across to him. "Who wants a boring old smooth cruise with no view, huh?"

Asahi flopped into one of the empty seats, happy that they managed to at least get to the planet without too much issue. He had his reservations about potential bumps that could have occurred, but that was merely an engineer's mildly paranoid fretting. He clenched his eyes shut as the bumps jarred him about. "... Oh goodie."

Delainey held onto the armrests of her chair not too loosely, but not too tightly either, as she was conscious of how white knuckling it would look to the group. She kept her eyes open, and hummed a tune in her head to distract herself from the bumpy ride.

Jermias broke through the upper atmosphere and continued to descend through the planet's cloud cover until the large city of Vajripam could be seen below. Skyscrapers dotted the downtown commercial district and were lined with residential neighborhoods all the way out to the city's suburbs where the primary agricultural and manufacturing facilities were located. Orbital traffic was relatively heavy at this time of day, and many different types of transports, shuttles, and freight craft could be seen taking off and landing at the city's main spaceport.

"It's bigger than I ever thought...look at that. Look at how tall the structures are. It's amazing to think...they did all of this on their own. This is not Federation building standards....I like the lights...the density....reminds me of holomages of old New York City....back when the cities on Earth were more." He chose his words carefully, "More...colorful?"

"I wouldn't know," Scarlet admitted with a half smile, shaking her head. She came from a broken planet. No cities, just rubble of what had been there once. So she had little to compare it too. "It's certainly an overwhelming sight though."

Matt whistled, "Whew! Now...*that* is a beachfront! There's more UV here right? You think I'll burn up without bathing in sunscreen?"

Asahi opened an eye, taking the view in with a small smile. "And pass up the chance of being a sore, red tomato?"

Matt turned and laughed with him, "Been there...done that man...it ain't too fun. And I have roommates who would definitely take advantage of my weakened condition." Matthew winked at him, "Let's see how this excursion compares to our little outing to the circus ay?" His eyebrows danced and he grinned mischievously at him.

"That's when you get them back when they're not looking by fiddling with the replicator." The engineer grinned. "Not that I'd have any experience with that at all."

Delainey looked over at Matt and Asahi. "I know I'm a workaholic, but I did not plan on treating the crew for any medical issues while we're here," she teased. "Trust me, skip the tomato experience or you'll be sorry later."

Matt nodded in her direction, "ZZZzzactly....that's what I'm sayin...take it from a professional...don't wanna be cooped up in sickbay..or the Orion equivalent of one."

Asahi merely chuckled, withholding his comment. "Yes'm."

"Can you find us a suitable parking space?" the commodore asked Wyatt as she attempted to visually identify a proper place for them to land their oversized shuttle which wouldn't be in the way of other craft on the large and crowded landing pad.

"Yes Ma'am" He said sliding his hand over the consoles and scanning the surface of Rigel. After a short moment the computer gave a short chirp "There's a large open area that looks to be like an overflow space port, with several other ships. We could drop down there, shall I put us on course?"

"Negative, I will take us in," Lirha answered. There was too much orbital traffic that any plotted course would no doubt have to be adjusted in a short period of time, and so Lirha decided to attempt an manual landing. "Everyone, please take your seat. We are about to touch down."

Starting in a high holding pattern, Lirha waited until it was their turn in line to being their approach, and delicately maneuvered the runabout towards the vacant spot which Wyatt had identified. The shuttle briefly wobbled from side to side while she compensated for the thruster drift, and finally she managed to bring it down into a hover just above the tarmac. Swinging the read-side of the shuttle around in order to fit it into the designated sparking space, Jermias softly touched down with a gentle jolt.

"Welcome to Rigel VII," Lirha mused over the comm channel to the passengers, then began the power-down sequence and deployed the runabout's side ramp.

Their current location was one of the main city ports which was bristling with activity, and the afternoon sun shone brightly overhead illuminating the pink-hued atmosphere. All around them, Orions hustled about darting from craft to craft while unloading and securing various crates and boxes for transport.

Glad to no longer be descending, Delainey felt the first twinges of excitement she'd felt since deciding to tag along. "Thank you for the ride," she offered to Lirha and Wyatt as Carlisle stood and grabbed her stuff.

As if the gloomy clouds had cleared, the engineer smiled bright, trotting to his space to grab his things. His butt wiggled in excitement, as he pulled out a pair of large, vintage sunglasses, slipping them onto the bridge of his nose. "Never thought I'd be excited to rush out of a shuttle before."

Matthew teased, "OOOwww!! Hot shades! SSSSsssss!!!"

Luke slung the straps of his bag over one shoulder "Trust an engineer to say something like that" he laughed "So what's the first stop?" He asked looking around the group.

Asahi glanced over, eying the admittedly taller man. "Maybe the Commodore's co-pilot should have taken it easy on some of that thrust during atmospheric re-entry." He wandered past Luke, toward the exit doors, smiling wide to show he only meant to jest. "I'll put that in my vacationer's review. 'Luke Wyatt is horrible co-pilot; not enough patience. 1/10, would not recommend.'"

Luke rolled his eye's "Oh please perhaps we can just leave you here, then you wont have to be subject to my thrust" He winked whilst pacing backwards before turning around.

At this point, Asahi seemed almost like he was withholding the best of all comments. But he was a good boy, and he kept it to himself, despite the fit of giggles that were welling up.

Delainey, despite her training in medicine and counseling in which all things intimate were discussed openly, felt herself blush. "Not going there," she muttered.

Matt grabbed his single duffle, also with a pair of dark sunglasses and looked out and then descended from the runabout. Setting foot on Rigel VII was...amazing. "Oh man! Oh MAN!! I never...NEVER...thought I'd actually get to be HERE! This is great!! OK, so where do we go first?"

"To the hotel," Lirha answered as she departed the shuttle with her bags slung over her left shoulder. She was pleased to finally set foot back on her homeworld for the first time in many years, and she took a deep breath of the fresh air while gazing around the space port. "There will be plenty of time to enjoy ourselves, but I would like to check in to our rooms and get our belongings put away first."

After walking with the group to the port's ground level facilities, Lirha stepped to the curb of a nearby street and waved her green hand to hail down a hovertaxi. A rather large and luxurious gold transport spotted them from above and descended through the traffic, then pulled up neatly alongside their group. A large light green-skinned Orion man hopped out of the passenger seat and addressed Lirha. "Mistress, may we help you?" he asked.

She nodded in reply and motioned towards the group. "My colleagues and I need to go to a hotel, the Vaj Shodar," she explained, then rummaged in the side pocket of her bag for a brief moment before pulling out several slips of gold-pressed latinum and handing them to the man. "Quickly, if you don't mind," she added, then watched the man look over their group and proceed to take their bags and load them into the trunk.

"Of course, mistress," he motioned for her to enter the spacious craft then waved all of the other crew members inside. "Come. I will take you to your hotel," he said to them in Federation Standard with a noticeable Yrevish accent similar but more pronounced than Lirha's.

Matthew dug out a bar of latinum, "Here you go." He offered it to the Commodore. "Do I address you as...???" He wasn't sure how to address her and so left the question hanging.

"You can call me Lirha. We are off duty, after all," she answered with a wink at Plumeri while also declining the offer of latinum. "Save it, you will need it for later." The commodore was generally very polite and formal while in uniform, but once she was relieved of her obligations and got the chance to relax, she tended to become very laid back and social.

Mathew smiled back at her, "Right ON! Lirha it is. Well...thanks for paying for the ride. Please, after you." He indicated with his open hand to an empty seat inside the cab.

Once everyone had stepped inside of the large transport and taken their seats, the doors closed and they sped off to their destination, Hotel Vaj Shodar. It was not a long trip, but the pilot had been gracious enough to take them the roundabout way after learning of their vacation in the city. The added time spent in transit allowed them the chance for a brief sightseeing tour, and thirty minutes later the gold craft descended and pulled up alongside their luxurious hotel. The doors opened and the group stepped out, and Lirha thanked their chauffeur one last time before giving him another slip of latinum and sending him on his way.

Instantly they were greeted by several doormen and bellboys who took care of their bags, and Lirha walked inside and spent a few moments checking all of them in at the front desk and procuring rooms. Once she had finished, she returned to the group in the lobby and handed out their security cards which would allow them entrance into their rooms. "I got each of us separate rooms, except Siren and myself. We are all on the eighteenth floor, rooms 1840 thru 1846. Our bags should be up there by now, so would you all like to spend a few minutes getting settled before we meet in the hotel bar in...say twenty minutes?" she asked the group.

Matt nodded, "Twenty-minutes. I'll be there!"

Asahi gave a similar nod, examining the security card for a moment. "No problem at all, ma'am."

"Sounds great, Lirha," Delainey offered with a smile. Referring to her former Captain that way felt weird, but Carlisle was determined to put work and that life aside for now.

[OFF]

--

CDRE Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

Ensign Matthew Plumeri
Science Officer/Historian
Guest from USS Nimitz

LT Asahi Kita
Ass. Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galielo

CPO Luke Wyatt
Security Officer
USS Galileo

Lt. Delainey Carlisle, M.D., Ph.D.
Counselor/Medical Officer
USS Galileo

PO2 Siren Hex
Intelligence Officer
USS Galileo
[PNPC - Blake]

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