Posted by Lieutenant Commander Bethany Kovra Gadi (Chief of Security) in Ticking Clocks (TAG Izei)

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Aasrel Izei (Chief Medical Officer) in Ticking Clocks (TAG Izei)

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Bethany Kovra Gadi (Chief of Security) in Ticking Clocks (TAG Izei)
Posted by… suppressed (7) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
Aasrel shook his head. “You’re not… keeping me from much. Actually, I’d rather the distraction.” He leaned against the wall with a little sigh. “I don’t think I’ll be sleeping much, either.” If he didn’t find other ways to waste time, maybe he’d sit on her and his own test results, start processing those once he had them all to compare.

~ Izei, CMO

She laughed, “I know the feeling. So how do you wish to be distracted? Shall I regale you with my uncles Appalachian folktales? Perhaps a game of some sort or a meal in the lounge? Or do you want to be utterly bored by the Tactical and security measures of this new fancy prison of ours?”

Gadi, CoS

Aasrel looked at her curiously. “Appalachian? Is that a region of Earth? Or a group of people?” He asked curiously. “Why don’t we get a meal in the lounge while we talk about Appalachian folktales?” He offered, combining two of her ideas.

~ Izei, CMO

Bethany turned toward the nearest lift and deck 6. “The Appalachian mountains run almost the entire length of the East coast of the North American continent. It spans a few geographical regions, but those that actually live in the mountains, no matter where, share a common core culture. The future arrives more slowly there, and life is much simpler.” She pressed the button for the lift. “It is both a region and a group of people.”

Gadi, CoS

Aasrel nodded. “Is that where you lived on Earth?” He asked as they walked towards the lift. “When I was on Earth for the Academy, I didn’t do much exploring or anything. I was too busy studying. And I went home in between years.”

~ Izei, CMO

“Valle Crusix, North Carolina, by the old world government reckonings. My grandfather’s family has lived there since the town was founded in 1842 and we still have just over 1000 permanent residents. Though it gets a lot of accidental tourism. People stumble on it by accident, and then come back every so often, word of mouth has done a lot too.” Stepping into the lift she paused, “Deck 6. I never visited home once I joined the Academy. I visited with my uncles before I left after graduation. They came, didn’t like all all the open space, but loved seeing the ocean and San Francisco Bay. I’ve been back once since then.”

Gadi, CoS

The lift began to move towards the deck. “Sounds interesting,” Aasrel commented. “They didn’t like the open space in San Francisco? What is it like in the mountains?” He asked. “San Francisco was very different than anything on Betazed, but I was raised in the city back home, so it wasn’t a major adjustment.”

~ Izei, CMO

“San Francisco reminded me of ho…of Betazed. From when I was child. The bay and open landscaping. I liked it there. The mountains are heavily forested, the land climbs up to the peaks or down into the valleys for miles. Valle Crusix is in a valley between three mountains, where three rivers intersect. The water is icy cold and moves fast as it comes down the mountains. There are trees everywhere and the town is spread out. Only a few buildings are close together because flat land to build on is small. You see more forest than you do open air. Despite being somewhat spread out it gives the feeling of closeness and security.”

Gadi, CoS

“Where did you live on Betazed?” Aasrel asked curiously. He listened interestedly to her description of her home on Earth. “It sounds pretty, but isolated.” He commented. “Are there a lot of people there?” The lift stopped on deck 6 and he stepped off, heading towards the lounge.

~ Izei, CMO

“We lived near Lake El’nar. Which is very wooded as well, but also has huge open areas. Of course there were large cities near there.” She shook her head. “It seems that way. Valle Crusix only has around 1000 people, but the valley’s on the other side of the mountains have huge cities. The valleys are bigger and grew more. And it’s only a 10 to 15 minutes travel to get to them. So people who live there are small in number, but there is still a lot of people.” She walked with him down the corridor. “Where did you grow up on Betazed?”

Gadi, CoS

“Melfi,” Aasrel replied. “Not Betazed’s biggest city, but it is a large city. My parents still live there. It’s wooded, but there’s no real bays or anything, just rivers.” He looked at her as they walked, “So Valle Crusix is small, but close to bigger areas. That makes sense.”

~ Izei, CMO

“It was more from topography than purpose, but over the years it has changed to be a way of life. I never visited Melfi. Well I don’t know if I did. I was young when we were there. I don’t remember much other than our house, the lake, and then the jungle during the occupation. I’ve never been back.”

Gadi, CoS

“I don’t blame you. Sounds like you’ve always identified more with your human side.” Aasrel shrugged, “Can’t say I wouldn’t do the same, in your shoes. Melfi is a beautiful city… Honestly, Betazed is just a beautiful planet. It’s fairly spread out, with a lot of nature left in the city. There’s a science institute there, does a lot of research. Attracts a lot of people to work there.” They reached the lounge and Aasrel entered and looked around for open seating. “Where do you want to sit?”

~ Izei, CMO

Bethany shrugged. “Not always. When I was younger I was very proud of my dual heritage. But after…” She shrugged, “There was no point. In my line of work I have had to spend a lot of time hiding my Betazoid heritage. People assume I know things because Betazoids are telepathic. It has made things…difficult at times. Usually I wear colored contacts when necessary.” She shrugged again. “I would have liked to go back, but my father was too ashamed.” She looked around. She usually sat furthest away in a corner. It protected her back, and let her watch everyone else. “Well it’s mostly empty, so anywhere.”

Gadi, CoS

Aasrel picked a spot near the edge of the room. He used like sitting in the middle, now he preferred to stay out of the way. “Would you still want to go back? Just to see it?” He asked, curiously. He had no plans on returning himself. Not without his telepathy… And suddenly he realized how that might seem to her. That he was as ashamed of himself as her father was of her. There was nothing wrong with her not having it. But he couldn’t help how he felt about himself, and then he felt bad, because there was nothing wrong with other people not having it.

~ Izei, CMO