Posted by Lieutenant Commander Serena Stone (Executive Officer) in Holosuite HIke

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Janna Kingston (Counsellor) in Holosuite HIke

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Serena Stone (Executive Officer) in Holosuite HIke
Posted by… suppressed (10) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)

The redhead nodded, and began leading her down the street. In a few minutes they were nearing the edge of town. They were passing what looked like a single story home, laid out along the street with a good sized front yard, . Hedges lined the front of the house, along with a mixture of colorful flowers growing knee to waist high. The lower half of the house was made from stacked brick and mortar, with the other half made out of wood, painted and sealed. A sloped shingled roof that ran into gutters made up the top. Behind the exterior weather door, the front entry door appeared to be a richly stained wood with large decorative glass inlays, with some of it frosted and others meant to see around or through. Easier to see who was visiting before allowing entry.

Janna took in the home, understanding immediately that it was Serena’s home. She had to admit that she was surprised to be taken to her friend’s home but she was also honoured to be shown the place.

Serena stepped up onto the small formed concrete porch. She opened the exterior weather door then thumbed the latch for the main entry door and stepped inside. “Come on in.” Making her way in, Serena doffed her jacket onto a three-seat couch to her left. The doorway entered into a corner-fed room seven to eight meters square with soft carpeting, high ceiling, warm recessed lighting. An old steel or iron desk was to the immediate left of the door. A couch along the left wall. To the right of the door was a reclining chair with a large table filled with odds and ends, knick-nacks and some tinkering and making tools. A small workstation stood in front of the chair. Farther to the right was a chest of drawers, along with some equipment on top. Along the right wall was more storage and another comfortable looking seat. The back walll had a small library of physical books, along with a large display, suggesting it’s entertainment purposes.

The back wall gave way to a small utility room and laundry, with a door into another room. Likely a small bathroom. There was another door in the right back corner of this common room, and a wide open doorway along the right wall front corner into a kitchen area, with another room beyond that down the way. Along the left back corner, a small wall partition stuck out where the library disappeared around the corner, which was the direction Serena headed.

The interior was cool but comfortable, and the air smelled of recently cooked food, a light and pleasant soap, and the faint dust accompanying a house that didn’t have an endlessly scrubbed and filtered air supply.

Going around the corner, Serena and Janna were in what amounted to be a two meter long two meter wide hallway. A two meter by two meter walk-in closet lay to the right. One side was lined with shelves, and the back wall was lined with coats, and other gear. The short … hall… essentially terminated in a dark stained wooden door that was a little over a meter wide. Pulling this open revealed another room three or four meters by about the same, and sunk down by about a meter, down some steps. The floor was carpeted, and quiet. To the far side were two small closets, and the right middle of the wall was a door. At the end of the stairs was another door to the left which Serena made her way to.

She absorbed all the details of the home and what they told her about the occupants, about what was important to them, and what they had access to. Janna couldn’t help but smile as the smells of food and washing up felt similar to her own childhood home.

Opening it up was the inside of a large single-vehicle garage. In it was a small shuttle-type craft. The doorway fed into the left corner of the garage. Shelves lined the left and right walls, the main door made up the far wall, and the front of the house in that section. The close wall was empty. On the left just past the door too was a cold storage container.

Without hesitation, Serena triggered the garaged door from a small control panel on the wall and made her way around the craft. “Get in.” She clambered in through a side door and into the pilot’s seat.

“Alright,” Janna said, hopping in without hesitation.

Once Janna was in, she reversed the craft out of the garage, triggered the door to shut from her station, and brought their ride straight up, rising above the trees. She took them down the street and in a moment they were past the outskirts of the colony, heading down the valley at a somewhat leisurely pace.

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

“When was the last time you did this? If you feel okay sharing,” Janna said.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

“Did what? Flying a simulated … basically civilian shuttle? Or …” she trailed off, looking down as though she could see through the decking for a moment. Under her touch the shuttle slewed slowly between trees. Sure she could take them higher, but where was the fun in that. In truth, they weren’t even moving, suspended by force fields with computer generated imagery all around them, but she did her best to put it out of her mind, trying to fall into the fantasy of being somewhere else. Part of her ached for home just then. She’d give anything for it to be real. Just for five or ten minutes.

“No, visited home, I mean,” Janna said.

Once they’d covered a few kilometers, she brought them around in a J-hook style turn and settled down into a clearing just big enough for maybe three vehicles like the one they were in to fit in a tight squeeze. Below the canopy the space opened up a few more meters in every direction but not much. Clambering out, she stretched, arms over her head.

Here the air was cooler with the shade. A soft breeze filtered through the trees, whispering and murmuring through the boughs. Conifers and deciduous style trees mingled and mixed. The air was thick with the scent of loamy earth, grasses and plant-life, pine trees and needles. It was slightly more humid as well, and as they listened, the babbling of water reached their ears.

Janna stepped out and soaked in the setting. It was different than her home, but not so unlike some of the places she’d been. There was a wildness that spoke to her in a very primitive way, even here on the holodeck. It was a feeling she kept very much under wraps at all times. Though… perhaps a little less so lately.

Crossing through the clearing was a foot path a meter or so wide, while not paved, it was well worn. Studying it’s length it descended the valley back the way they had come from, while continuing along the valley in the other direction with at least one visible side trail branching off into the underbrush.

“So this is where I had in mind to go. At least the start of it. It looks like it’s had a lot more use since I’ve been gone.”

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

She gave a wide grin. “I love it.” Kingston cocked her head in Serena’s direction. “How does this program work, exactly? Is it updated to reflect actual changes or something?”

~Janna Kingston, CNS

Bump

Serena chewed her bottom lip for a moment. “That’s a good question. We’re doing well, the colony that is. It’s not like we’re forging parts and tools by hand or wrangling cattle to clothe and feed ourselves.” Gesturing toward the path and then back at the settlement she smiled. “We keep good survey records and blueprints. We also get good scans now and again. My mom actually keeps up with some of that, so occasionally I get updates. It’s nice to still be in the loop in some ways.”

“It’s the closest I can be to home, I suppose, without actually going home. I haven’t been there since I left for the Academy.”

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

As they meandered down the foot path, Janna absorbed Serena’s words. “Would you go back for a visit today, if all the variables allowed for it?” She was long overdue for her own visit, which is why one of her mothers had made the extra detour on a work trip to come see her. Which she had appreciated, but had only raised more questions for her parents than answered.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

At Janna’s question, her expression fell, almost becoming a mask. The cop face. Each step seemed to carry her further inside herself, seeing less and less of the trail as her gaze turned inward. “It’s complicated.” The words came out in a mumble. Her chest tightened at the thought of going home and her throat wanted to close up.

“As many things can be,” Janna said softly. She was use to seemingly innocuous questions being potential powder kegs.

Her fingers flexed and tightened into fists at her sides, the cool air no longer filling her lungs as easily. “Part of me wants to,” she said after a long pause, voice low, almost fragile. “But I… I’m not sure I could handle it. Not yet. It’s like, if I go back… everything I’ve been holding together might just break loose.”

Her gaze remained distant, unfocused. “I miss them. I miss home. But I don’t want them to see me like this… wound so tight, barely hanging on. I’m not sure if they’d understand. Or if I would.”

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Janna stepped closer and reached up, placing a hand on Serena’s shoulder. “When the time is right, you’ll go,” she said with a strange certainty, as it it was already written in the stars and Janna could read them. It wasn’t intentional, just something within her that… knew. She blamed Orvos.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

The hand on her shoulder caught her slightly off guard, but in a welcoming way. Human contact was sparse in the line of duty, and then there was the doctor-patient boundary thing. But at the same time Janna felt more like a friend already than just another professional she had to work with. Otherwise, this would have been a very different hike. After a moment she put her arm around Janna’s back just drawing her in a little, conveying appreciation and more in that moment. “I hope so. I also worry that if I go home… I might never want to leave.” A wistful smile played across her features then. “But I’m sure that would fade after a month or two if my parents started hovering and bickering.”

Janna grinned a little, leaning into the half embrace Serena was giving her.

“Make no mistake, they have a loving relationship. But they will pick at each other and argue a lot. But it’s more intellectual. Mental and verbal sparring for fun. Matching wits, but at the end of the day, I think they’re still as in love as they were when they were young. You know the type.”

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

She nodded. “I do,” Janna said. “And it’s good to recognize that if you go, you’ll want to stay awhile. Know that ahead of time and plan accordingly. Sometimes we just need to be open to whatever experiences life is trying to give us. Ask me how I know,” she bemoaned with a shake of her head.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

Bump

Serena nodded absently. “At the same time, I’m worried they’ll be disappointed. Both of them hoped I’d follow in their footsteps. Doing something ‘meaningful.’” A soft sigh escaped her then as she paused, looking around the trail. “The thing is as much as I like building things, and exploring, what I do feels very meaningful to me. It’s rewarding. It fills me up, even if sometimes it keeps me up at night.”

“Over the years I’ve stopped bad people, helped a lot of good people. Saved lives. Making a difference and all that. And now I’m… not just running a department but running one of the best ships in the fleet, and not that far from a command of my own. These are uncertain times, and where would be better for me to be than right here?”

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Janna gave a soft smile. “I can’t think of one,” she said honestly. “There are always opportunities that could arise, but that’s in a future we have no knowledge about. As much as it’s useful to know what you might want in the future, it’s equally important to live in the now and be happy with where you are at. And sometimes our loved ones won’t always understand why we want to do what we do.”

She gazed at Serena. “And you are building things. Just not quite so obviously. Building a community on a ship and helping shape a team is very important. Maybe it’ not what your parents are familiar with, but I think there’s room for them to see that what you’re doing on the Athena isn’t so different than what you might do here,” she said, gesturing to the setting.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

Serena nodded. “Suppose you’re right.” With a sigh she continued along the trail, lapsing into thoughtful silence as a gentle breeze kicked up, cooling and caressing their skin. The smell of trees, especially evergreens, loamy earth, decaying leaves, and a hint of ice on the air from higher elevations. The XO’s shoulders rode high and she could feel the tension in them, but took a deep breath and let it go, relaxing and releasing layers of tension she’d been carrying.

Glancing over at Janna, she chewed her lower lip, contemplating. The gears in her head turned as she walked in silence, but then seemed to shift focus on the trail in front of them.

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Janna could read body language incredibly well, and had built that skill over her years as a therapist. That everything was now enhanced by the changes within her was more of a bonus than anything. She walked with Serena in silence for a little bit before smiled and said, “You don’t have to have everything figured out today. Not even tomorrow. And for what’s it’s worth, I’m glad you’re on the ship with us, Serena.”

Taking in the beautiful scenery, her own mind fell into series of thoughts that finally percolated to the surface after a few moments. “I have to keep reminding myself that I don’t have to have things figured out either. A harder proposition for a therapist whom others think she have their sh*t together, but alas, we’re often as messy as the rest of you,” she said with a teasing wink.

~Janna Kingston, CNS

“No, I know that.” She took a breath and sighed, flaring her nostrils. “It’s the nagging feeling of not doing ‘enough.’ It’s just a feeling and one I know isn’t true. I’ve got the workload of shepherding a thousand people on a long haul ship out in the Wild West where you have to live by your wits and your guns. So I know my plate is already pretty full. Taking care of my section on the Valkyrie was a full-time job too.”

“I can imagine it was,” Janna said seriously.

“And sure, y’all might not have everything together, but at least you’ve got a better toolset and understanding than most. Which is a leg up. But at the end of the day, we’re all stumbling around in the dark. We all have different skills to help navigate, and also to share with each other, or use to help one another.”

Lt. Cmdr. Stone, Executive Officer

Janna nodded. “Exactly. And why I’m happy to be here with you now, exploring this place that is important to you. We wanted to be more social and as a friend I can get to know you better here. Believe it or not, I don’t have a lot of true friends on this ship. I’m friendly with a lot of people, but only a few know the nitty gritty. Recent events in my life have reminded me that having so few people I let in that far could be a problem. But like you said, toolsets. In this case, I am aware of the need and I now have an opportunity to do something about my dilemma.”

~Janna Kingston, CNS