[snip]

Wyatt stepped forward until the water lapped at his feet, the cool surf curling around his ankles as he stared out at the vast stretch of ocean. “No thanks, man—I’m good right here.”

It wasn’t fear that kept him from going any deeper. He wasn’t scared of the water, and he definitely knew how to swim—he’d learned young, long before most kids back home. Cold water didn’t bother him either. He’d spent plenty of time in freezing lakes, diving off old docks and cutting through water that would’ve sent most people running back to shore. That kind of cold, sharp and still, had always felt familiar.

But this… this was different.

The ocean wasn’t still. It moved, shifting endlessly, rising and falling with a steady rhythm that felt almost alive. Each wave rolled in with a quiet roar, breaking against the shore before pulling back again, only to repeat the motion over and over. It wasn’t just water—it was something bigger, something he couldn’t quite put into words.

He had never swum in the ocean before. Truth be told, he had never even seen it in person. The closest he’d gotten were holodeck simulations—perfect, controlled, predictable. This wasn’t that. This was real. Wild. Uncontained.

Wyatt let out a slow breath, his eyes tracing the line where the deep blue water met the sky. The salty air filled his lungs, sharp and unfamiliar, while the sound of the waves drowned out everything else. He could feel the warmth of the sun against his face, a stark contrast to the cool water at his feet, grounding him in the moment.

For a while, he didn’t move. He just stood there, letting it all wash over him—the sights, the sounds, the smell of salt in the air. There was no rush. No orders, no schedules, no responsibilities pressing in on him.

Just the ocean… and the quiet realization that some things were better taken in slowly.

Ensign Wyatt Blackford

Security Junior Officer U.S.S. Ark Angel

Spenn had stood quietly in observation as he observed the beach around him. A couple arguing while their child building sandcastles. A young man attempting to flirt with the lifeguard. Some unlucky beachgoer chasing after an astray beach umbrella flying in the wind. Another lifeguard frantically performing CPR on an unconscious Tellarite. It would be logical to attend to that, he thought to himself before he made his way over.

Lieutenant Spenn Chief Medical Officer

Ollie rode another wave in and smoothly hopped off his board. He shook some of the water out of his face and hair and stretched a little in the sun before stooping to pick up his board. He glanced around and spotted the others, his Betazoid senses picking up some of the feelings. Figuring it was time for a break anyway he waded over to where Wyatt was standing, waving to Izak along the way.

“Alright there Wyatt?” he gave a smile to the other officer, then nodded out to the water. “Kinda wild right?”

He turned himself so he was facing out and took in a few deep breaths of the salty air and relished in the feeling as the sun began to dry the water from his skin.

Lieutenant Commander Ezeami - COS

Wyatt jumped slightly when he heard Ezeami say his name, his shoulders tightening before he turned toward him, a bit startled. He hadn’t even noticed him walking up. The steady crash of the waves, the salty breeze, and the distant cries of seabirds had pulled him in so completely that the rest of the world had faded into the background.

For a moment, Wyatt just blinked, like he was being pulled out of a dream.

“Oh—sorry…” he said, rubbing the back of his neck, a faint flush of embarrassment creeping into his expression. “Yeah, I just… I’ve never been to the ocean before. Just… taking it all in.”

His eyes drifted back out toward the water again, almost unconsciously. The horizon stretched on forever, the surface shifting and rolling in a way that felt alive. It wasn’t like the lakes he grew up with—those were calm, familiar, contained. This… this felt endless, unpredictable. There was a rhythm to it, something steady but never still, and he found himself trying to understand it without really knowing how.

After a second, he caught himself staring and looked back at Ezeami, offering a small, slightly awkward smile.

“I grew up with lakes in Iowa,” he added. “Not many oceans nearby.”

The second the words left his mouth, he knew it was a bad joke. Really bad. The kind that didn’t quite land no matter how you said it. Wyatt let out a quiet breath through his nose, the corner of his mouth twitching just a little as if he was debating whether to acknowledge it or just move on.

“I’m… not great at this, my sister wanted me to be more…social” he admitted, gesturing vaguely between them, meaning conversation more than anything else.

It wasn’t something he had much experience with.

Most of the time, he kept to himself. It was easier that way—less to think about, less to get wrong. The only person he’d ever really talked to, joked with, or relaxed around was his sister, Areiana. With her, things had always just… worked. No second-guessing, no awkward pauses. Even his worst jokes usually got at least a real reaction out of her.

A faint spark of pride slipped into his expression as he thought of her.

“She actually got accepted onto the USS Chimera,” he said, glancing back out at the waves for a moment before looking at Ezeami again. “Chief Medical Officer.”

There was something softer in his voice when he said it—quiet pride mixed with something deeper, harder to pin down.

” Wyatt shifting his weight slightly in the sand. “Says I spend too much time in my own head. Or buried in work.”

He let out a small breath, almost a laugh, though it didn’t quite carry.

“I told her I’d try,” he added, looking back at Ezeami with a faint, self-aware smile. “So… this is me trying.”

He glanced back toward the ocean one more time, then returned his attention, a little more focused now, even if there was still a hint of uncertainty in his posture.

“Just… might take me a bit to get the hang of it,” he said quietly.

Ensign Wyatt Blackford Security Junior Officer U.S.S. Ark Angel

Ensign Sanks went mostly unnoticed down to the beach with the group. He was wearing a pair of shorts and a yellow t-shirt. He was holding a towel and a book inside a bag. Once on the beach, he found a spot in the sand where the group swimming area was, he placed his towel down, and laid down so that the waves from the water would brush up onto his feet, pulled out his book and started reading. The book was about this guy who lives in a forest and when he came of age, had to go through a trial to determine how he would help his village. Would he be like his mother, a historian, or his father, a swordsman, or was a completely different path forged for him? He was currently on chapter 12.

Ens. Sanks, Security Officer

As a bit of time passed, roughly an hour or so, the group it seems got joined by a group of hiking colonists from up in the hills. They seemed a bit surprised at the unfamiliar faces. “..Oh uh hello? Didn’t quite expect anyone else to be along this area of the coast at this time of day or month?” a man in a set of deep green jeans, and a mid-arm shirt with a swirling blue-silver color said. He seemed to be the hiking leader of the group of 16 others. They all were human except for a vulcan woman, and a half human-vulcan child of about 10-11 years perhaps.

GM CockRoach