Preshan IX [FT/Semi-Open/IC]

[Strarus]

OOC: TG me or anyone else involved in the RP if you wish to join!

The Rashad Foundation was founded one a single principle, exploration. This concept has thrilled sentient species since time immemorial, but attempts to delve deeper and fly further are few. A few bold investors came together and built up the Rashad Foundation, a non profit group founded on the excitement of exploring uncharted space and the possibility of coming into contact with new civilizations. Many people flocked to Rashad from all walks of life, some of them being military, inventors, engineers, and so on, all seeking a chance at the next major discovery to change the galaxy forever. Over the years, the company has had several successful exploration missions, but some groups never came back at all, leading to a fear of the unknown, causing the company to take a massive hit for several years. Several of the company's investors backed out, causing the company to hit a time period where they sent very few groups out, let alone well equipped ships. Several years ago, a wealthy unknown investor brought up a large sum of money to fund a mission, but along several specific guidelines. These were that a new ship was to be constructed, it was to have a crew of several different species, and that they were to be sent to a specific planet of the investor's choice.

That was five years ago, and the ship is finally complete. Several probes have been sent to the system which the crew's mission is to occur in. The probes have shown nothing out of the ordinary, except for one thing. There is a signal emanating from the planet. Whenever a probe tries to get close to the source, it mysteriously shuts down and reappears several hours later in orbit of the planet, devoid of any recorded data. No scientist hired by the foundation could even take a guess at what had happened. With the discovery of the signal, the foundation has been eagerly waiting for the completion of the ship and the final gathering of the specialists that they are sending to lead the crew and the mission. The ship can support a maximum of 5 thousand crew members, each carefully chosen only a month ago, and the date for the maiden voyage of the RFS Grindlevale is nearing. Have you been selected for the mission? Well, you had better pack your bags and get ready to board the ship. Standard space is 4 footlockers of gear, and quarters vary based on how many roommates you can expect to have. Department heads and specialists have rooms to themselves while the rest of the crew has quarters with two bedrooms and a common area in their quarters.

The RFS Grindlevale is an engineering marvel, many of its systems come from engineers from various species, each of which has added their own touch to the ship. The department heads and the crew have been specially trained on all technology on the ship to ensure the crew can work at to the best of their ability during the voyage. The ship has 25 decks, most of which consist of crew quarters and recreational areas, with entertainment being provided for the crew as well. To ensure there is enough food, there are gardens on the ship as well as replicators to keep food waste a minimum on the mission. The ship has been stocked with five years worth of food supplies, as well as some of the best equipment in the known galaxy to assist with their mission. The ship has been primarily built with the ideas of stealth and speed in mind, better suited to flight rather than fight. She has weapons to repel boarders and pirates that they may encounter, but don't let that fool you; she isn't much in a fight. The Company has assigned Captain Sedak X. Marcleuni as the ship's captain and the crew have been notified of the appointment. All those who have been hired are expected to be on the ship no later than an hour before the ship leaves space dock for her mission.

Captain Sedak X. Marcleuni
Conference Room, RFS Grindlevale

tap, tap-tap, tap, BANG! Sedak had been sitting there for the past hour and a half; he was one of the first people onboard the ship. He visited the bridge, and then he came straight here to wait for the specialists to arrive. Sedak had given up a lot to be on the ship, and the ship was something he was going to protect along with the crew. There was some concerns he had with the mission, but that could wait until the rest of the important people board the ship. Several years ago he had been apart of the Strarus Military hoping to explore uncharted regions but, this soon became apparently he couldn't do what he wanted with the military. "Captain Marcleuni your presence is requested on the bridge," informed the voice over the intercom. He sighed as he got up from his chair and headed to a nearby lift to the bridge, once he got onto the lift there was a crew member.

"Oh, hi captain I'm one of the engineers on the ship. I didn't expect I would catch you on your way to the bridge," she stammered.

Sedak was caught off guard, "Don't worry Engineer, I'm a very approachable person don't be afraid to approach me if the time is appropriate," he chuckled as the lift stopped at the bridge and they both entered the bridge.

"Captain on the bridge!" Barked one of the helmsmen and several of the other crew gave him a strange look. "Captain, the reason we called you back here is cause we just got the intercom system online and to inform you that the last of the supplies have been loaded into the cargo hold. Now we are just waiting on the last of the personnel," he reported.

"Good, good inform all specialists and department heads to meet me in the conference room asap, I will be waiting for them there," ordered Sedak as he walked back into the lift and head back to the conference room. The corridors were bursting with activity from people equipment and belonging being moved to their rooms to people talking about work in the halls. Once he reached the room once again he sat down in the same chair as before and went back to tapping his fingers.

[Olimpiada]

---

Tianmou III, Tianmou
RFS Grindlevale

---

Theodosius Heraklion rubbed a hand against his eye as he stepped aboard the RFS Grindlevale, letting it trail down the side of his face to itch his red beard before falling to his side. He hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before on the berthings afforded him on the slowboat to the station he was leaving, and he was certainly feeling it. He hoped that the replicators on the ship could make the sort of coffee BlueSky had always had for him during his tenure as a mercenary for them. Blend 2401 always woke him right up in the morning, usually as a result of the bitter flavor rather than an amount of caffeine which would prove lethal to many xeno species with inferior digestive and pulmonary systems.

Speaking of which, there went one now. A bipedal bird, of all things. He supposed he was in Tezekian space, but it still felt odd to see one. Unlike most Olimpiadans, he didn’t want other sophonts dead, merely restrained, which ultimately amounted to the same thing. At least he could speak to the creatures without translator delay now. Rather than pay for a more comfortable flight, he had instead elected to spend his money on a translator implant. The effect was quite odd. He didn’t hear anything different, he merely knew what was said. Similar effects followed for reading, speaking, and writing, which were odd experiences to be sure. Realizing that he was speaking in English rather than his native Greek without even consciously making the choice was always uncomfortable, and sometimes lead to mid sentence language switches. It took some getting used to.

In sharp contrast to the BSI stations he had spent his previous career on, the Grindlevale was clearly built for comfort. BlueSky had always been aware of the imminence of possible attacks from rival corporations, and built stations with defense in mind. What looked like imposing bulk from the outside did not feel so grand inside, with most of that volume being heavy slabs of armor plating. Interiors were cramped and utilitarian, with exposed piping and wire conduits everywhere, right next to emergency space suits and hull patch kits.

The Grindlevale, on the other hand, was just short of being a cruise ship. Wide open hallways were filled with people, lush greenery sprouted from medians in the hallways, and a soft white light seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. However, actual ship parts could be spotted here and there. Small red warning signs marked the locations of fire extinguishers and other repair necessities, and there were small bumps in the wall where he knew hull breach countermeasures existed, sheets of metal waiting to burst forth on explosive bolts and seal off a hallway in the event of a hull breach, no matter who was in the way. He’d never seen it firsthand, but he always walked quickly around them anyway.

After a few minutes of wandering, he made his way to his quarters. As the head of security for away missions, he was granted the ability to have a room to himself. He dumped off his duffel bag with a sigh, before collapsing onto the bed for a moment. It was pleasantly soft, but not soft enough to keep him from getting up once he noticed the replicator station by the desk. He pulled out his phone, and used it to interface with the replicator. After a few seconds of fiddling and quiet cursing, the machine spat out an insulated plastic cup filled with a nearly black liquid that smelled not entirely unlike a chemical weapons strike. It was perfect.

After “enjoying” his drink, he changed clothes, shedding his civilian clothes for a crisp uniform. While not uncomfortable, it was a far sight from the uniform he had worn in the past. In the BSI’s military arm, one’s uniform was a Praetorian Mk. VI suit of power armor over a form fitting pressure suit which maintained a comfortable temperature for his body. While the latter was present, the former was instead replaced with a modern looking civilian uniform that, unlike the power armor, would not let him sprint through walls and shoot targets from several kilometers away. He’d probably be fine without it.

He stepped back out into the hallway and entered the elevator. Security was kept near the bridge, but also had a direct elevator down to engineering, to ensure both areas could be covered in the event of a boarding action. Security was markedly different from the rest of the ship. While everywhere else Theo had visited so far was bright and shiny, security focused on utility. A small lobby opened out into a room filled with lockers. Upon swinging one open, it revealed rows of pistols. A cursory inspection revealed a polymer bodied pistol chambered in .357 caseless rounds. Maybe the quartermaster really had gotten his requests right. Other lockers revealed automatic shotguns, submachine guns, and ammunition both rubber and lethal. He would have liked to have a few heavy rail rifles, but his boss had deemed them “dangerous” and “you’re going to blast the hull open, jackass”, which he didn’t agree with, but went along with anyway. No sense in starting an argument before the first day.

He locked everything back up the way it was found after strapping a pistol loaded with rubber rounds to his belt, and then headed down to the conference room. He still had some time, but he liked to be prompt. Getting to the conference room early would make a good impression, after all. The walk there was uneventful, though everyone seemed to give him a slightly wider berth this time. Apparently the security patch on his shoulder and the gun on his hip really did make a difference. He couldn’t say he liked it. Disregarding xenos, he was ultimately a people person, and had nothing against socializing.

Entering the conference room, he found Sedak sitting across the room at the end of the table. Years of experience caught hold, and he stiffened and stood at attention automatically, scarcely aware of the action and his shift toward formality. “Hello, captain. I am Theodosius Heraklion, former soldier for BlueSky Industries, and recently hired away team security specialist for the Grindlevale. I look forward to working with you for the duration of this mission.”

[Auman]

As soon as she sat down on her bed, the realization of what she had done hit her like a ton of bricks. Mary Unrau's eyes started to water and she brought a hand up to her trembling lips. She quickly unzipped her black duffel bag and shuffled through the extra sets of clothes she'd brought until she found what she had needed. A small framed photograph of a handsome man entering his middle age, and a little girl with the same golden blond hair and bright blue eyes as her. The tears came freely now and she sobbed while stroking the frame. "Oh god, what did I do?" she asked herself in a whisper. She curled up on the bed and held the portrait close to her chest and cried until an alarm went off on her mobile. She ignored it for a good long while before picking herself up, wiping away the dampness on her face with a pillow and shutting it off. Her uniform was hanging in the closet of her quarters, it fit like a glove... It fit a little too well, she thought modestly.

Mary walked through the halls of the ship, following a blue line that ran along the wall that promised to lead her the administration block where her first briefing was to take place and where she would meet the people that would be her colleagues, and hopefully friends, over the coming months. Despite tearing herself away from her family, which was the hardest thing she had ever done, she remained the upbeat person she had always been and tried to look towards the positive. The Rashad Foundation was the first civilian exploration mission of its kind to be launched, as far as she knew, ever. When she took the time to look around she could see people from every imaginable species and culture doing exactly as she was, bumbling around the vast halls of the RFS Grindlevale, which she had been assured was an engineering marvel of some sort. She wouldn't know much about the technical aspects of the ship, all she knew is that it looked and felt like a shopping mall. Engineering and mathematics were never her strong suit, her interests always lay in people... Or rather, the history of people. Anthropology was what she had studied in university and while she didn't ever feel like she was the master of anything, it did say she was one on her diploma. What made Mary Unrau unique in her field was her interest in xenoanthropology, a growing field of study of which she was at the forefront. Her peers, purists at heart, had never encouraged her to take up such a broad subject. She, however, disagreed. It was human nature, she argued, to learn as much as possible about her environment.

The red line ended at a double wide elevator absolutely stuffed with people. The doors just about slid shut in her face, but a quick thinking Tezekian stopped the door for her. She nodded appreciatively.

"Thank you very much." said Mary politely, her voice was small and unassuming.

"And you're very welcome," the Tezekian's golden eyes flicked over her credentials "Mary." the Tezekian had a low, scratchy voice. Mary found his accent to be splendid and exotic.

The elevator slowly emptied, not many people had business where she was going and her nerves began to get the best of her for no particular reason. She knew she shouldn't be feeling anxious. She had every right to be where she is, she was selected from a field of thousands of candidates, but despite the logic of her thoughts she couldn't escape the feeling of being unworthy of this assignment... And she was terrified that she would make it before the captain only to be found out. The scene played out in her head over and over again, changing in subtle ways until it became a nightmare where Captain Marcleuni would drag her kicking and screaming towards the nearest airlock. The elevator stopped, a chime chirped sharply and the doors opened to reveal a wide room adorned with a simple blue couch. This was the antechamber to the conference room and it was pleasant enough, but she felt like she was being lead to the execution of her professional career. She was met by a pleasant man named Shaun, according to his own credentials.

"Hello Dr. Unrau, I hope your transition to ship life has been going well. Is there anything we can do to help you get adjusted?" Shaun asked cheerfully.

"Oh, no, I'm doing just fine. I'm an old salt at this thing... Now." Mary laughed nervously and stiffened her spine.

'What in the heck am I doing here?!' she thought.

"If you'll just come this way, doctor." Shaun lead Mary into the conference room where Captain Marcleuni and another man were engaging in clipped conversation about things she had not the slightest clue about. They turned to face her like a pair of interested lions and she gulped.

[Telros]

'Alert: Penchak Station arrival in five minutes. Please gather your belongings to ease transit from the shuttle. Thank you for flying Perina, where the stars are only a touch away.'

Occak lifted her head from her stack of holopads, her green eyes blinking away, her red headfeathers twitching with wakefulness and reflecting the soft blue light from her lap. The rustling of the pads as they began to fall from her changed position caused her to squawk and scrabble to gather them. A few fell to the ground and his feathers rattled as embarrassment filled her being as people turned to stare at her. With lethargic determination, she stuffed them into her duffel bag at her feet and closed up the zipper, before taking a moment to take in her surroundings. Like many Perina transports, it was chock full to bursting with life, mostly Tezekian, but there were more and more other species these days. The Archon's opening of the borders and avid program of immigration was beginning to see dividends, even if most of that migration was still human. Her budget wasn't the best so roomy and air conditioned first class was beyond her budget and even regular scheduled shuttles had been too much after all her purchases. The discount shuttle was a service partially supported by government subsidies so Perina let things a little lax with uncomfortable seats, tight spaces and seemingly eternally grumpy pilots. At least the automatic voice announcer was still programmed to be pleasant and soothing.

Grabbing her things, she took a breath and prepared, noticing all the others doing the same. The shuttle finally came to a stop, with the announcers voice starting to declare their arrival but it was quickly overcome by the pilots voice.

“Here's yer stop. You got five minutes before I get the next load in.”

The scramble began, with veterans already out of their seats and getting to the door as soon as the acceleration stopped. It was a grindy mess, but this time Occak managed to get ahead of most people, just behind the veteran's at the front and got off quickly. Frustrated grunts and arguing could be heard with panicked noises from those who slept until the end trying to catch up. Gripping her bag, she marched forward, moving up to the queue for processing. Another long wait, while those with paid for passes or government visas strolled on through, with only the most mild of security checks. Sensors did a lot but they were much more scrutinizing in their line, with the refrain 'the galaxy is a dangerous place' being sounded at every turn. The attack by the pirates necessitated increased security but it seemed just another way for the higher and well off groups to keep the outliers in their place. She hated how when she stepped up, or any Tezekian, their spot was a little faster, checks a little less, than others. She worked hard to get to where she was and didn't need a favor because she was a part of the ruling race.

As she waved her holocard over the terminal of an autobus and settled in to be taken to her terminal, he gaze caught sight of the Grindvale. She admired the bleeding edge work put into her and the shiny new glare off her hull. She was new and untested, much like those who were coming aboard and joining the exploration mission.

Much like herself.

Shoving the thought away, she shoved her face back into her holopads, reviewing old notes from when she attended the university system of the Imperium, and what work she had managed to do since graduation. Material sciences, construction and deconstruction of alloys, polymers, like all Tezekians she wanted to know how things worked but her focus was on how things were made up. Xenoengineering is a mouthful of a word to for an acute interest in design and how it works. Many had pushed her to get involved in the production business, especially with the government handing out many scholarships to boost the workforce they already had, but she didn't want to simply serve the state and handle things she knew from the day she was hatched.

The unknown drew her in, gave her dreams of geometric cities and forgotten materials, all hidden away. This mission gave her a chance to see that finally. The bus came to a stop and she moved in, rushing as an alert appeared in her ocular implant, informing her she was late. A quick stop at the desk gave her a room number and location and she essentially hurled her stuff inside, grabbing holopads and other tools at random before flourishing on her coat again and just about sprinted to the conference room. She saw the doors closing behind the back of someone and rushed forward, panic shooting through her system at the thought they were closing the room for the meeting. A whirling form of white synthetic fabric, red feathers and distressed trilling came in after Mary and stood panting as the door closed behind her.

After a moment, Occak realized three pairs of eyes were gazing at her and she ran her hands over every problem spot she thought of before composing herself with a nod and spoke.

“Hi...Hello...Greetin-Yes, um, I'm Occak, materials engineer. I apologize for the lateness, shuttle traffic has been a problem the past few days.”

[Tannelorn]

Scientific Directorate Judicial hearing, Vigilance Sound 1007 AF

"Scientist Gary, how do you plead." a monotone voice boomed through the auditorium, cutting through the din of a thousand chattering members of the Scientific Directorate. Silence followed as all eyes were cast upon a lone figure, standing before the Judiciary committee plinths.

In the center of the well lit chamber, Scientist Gary stood defiantly on his four ambulatory tentacles. Gary wasn't his real name, his real name was unpronounceable to those with lips. Gary was the name he chose to use amongst mammals. He stood accused of deliberately destroying the biosphere of a world for no apparent reason then to gain profit. He had streamed video of the addition of more modern sea going predators to a world in an early Devonian stage to every media outlet in the alpha and gamma quadrants. The titles of the "scientific records" were given such colourful names as bull shark versus giant alien sea scorpion, or primitive alien shrimp creature versus Lendavian Frzz'lnack. In the space of seven months, the entire biosphere of NSR-A073 was destroyed due to the escalating addition of ever more invasive species. Eventually the entire native population was dead. The invasive species had all been predators, after the prey species were gone, they set upon themselves until the last of them starved.

The charges against him were willful destruction of an alien biosphere, profiting off of the destruction of an alien habitat and disrespect to the Directorate itself. He looked at the assembled crowd with an arrogant disdain, rearing up to his full height of five foot nine inches, resplendent in his white and red directorate uniform with its long cape and high collar. Sputtering clicks and squelching sounds escaped from his blow hole, and were immediately translated in to booming Tannelornian common.

"I stand by my research, scientific progress must be furthered no matter the sacrifice. The things we have learned here will further evolutionary research by a million years, maybe a hundred million. " he started to gesture convincingly with his grasping tentacles, taking the time to make eye contact with as many people as possible.

"I can understand the anger some of you might feel, it was a tragedy, but not one that could have been predicted. Who would have predicted that the Terran Bull shark would eat and attack absolutely everything, and that the giant carnivorous A073ian shrimp could only see three feet? How could anyone have known...and that is what is beautiful here my friends...we didn't know! now, through Science! We do." he stopped, raising his four grasping tentacles skyward and looking up with reverence.

"We have learned so much about invasive species, the whole galaxy has. This information has been forever uploaded to every majour media outlet in two quadrants. People across the galaxy can see first hand the dangers of invasive species, for a modest fee, which is purely to cover the costs of the equipment. This knowledge could be used to put together a unified task force to prevent tragedies such as this one from ever happening again." The crowd was fixated, the judiciary stunned by his brazen behaviour.

Three rows directly above Scientist Gary, a baby faced, swarthy young man in an Exploratory fleet uniform covered his face with his palm. "They are going to let him go." he whispered to himself. "They are going to fucking let him go..." he went to stand but a hand on his arm stayed him. "Relax Korde, they aren't going to give him another planet to wreck." a soft feminine voice whispered to him. "Lynetta, I lead the mission to capture him on that miserable rock, people died bringing him in." he lowered his head and sighed, then looked up, furrowing his brows." He had a..a..Lair?" he said almost questioning himself. He chuckled slightly "We weren't even there to bring him in at first, we just wanted to see how the research was going. The mans insane, he killed three people Lynette..one with a shark..." he stopped talking and just stared in to Lynettes eyes.

Lynette stared back in horror, slightly more worried for the continued mental health of her friend. "How do you kill someone with a shark in an above ground complex miles from the ocean and any water deeper then half a meter." His gaze intensified, as did Lynettes fear. "With a catapult...a fucking catapult Lynette..and they are going to let him go and give him an award!!!" Lynette was about to call for help when he sat back in his seat and simply put his face in his palm. Relieved she sat back down, glad that at least today, her only friend was not going to have a complete mental break down.

"Its ok Korde, he wont get away with it forever." Lynette said, timidly putting a hand on his shoulder. Korde just chuckled. He already has.

"I am against the thought of anyone else having to share this burden, this horrible title of Gary, destroyer of worlds. So I propose to be put in charge of further research in this field, after all we now see how fragile a biosphere, even our homes can be. It would be foolish not to pursue this research. I cannot in good conscience allow any other scientists the overwhelming burden of the guilt that I feel." he closed his eyes and thumped his mantle twice, managing to squeeze a small amount of liquid from his eyes. "In fact I know of several planets that I think may prove very enlightening in how their life cycles might work if we introduced several.." Gary was abruptly cut off by a loud burst of static.

"Scientist Gary, this is not the question that we asked. You were asked how you plead on the charges." The Judiciary Major bellowed angrily.

"I plead that I am a scientist and that I shall not stop asking the hard questions and finding the hard answers no matter how unpopular they are." he shouted back Defiantly. The auditorium broke out in an uproar. "You cannot decide science by popularity, only by facts. This judiciary wants to do just that."
Security had to be called to restore order fifteen minutes later as the Directorate members in the audience chamber started to battle amongst themselves.

Preshan IX, the Gryndlevale AF 1008

It took seven hours before they finally allowed Scientist Gary aboard the vessel. Arriving with a large number of questionable personal effects. He managed to argue his way on board the vessel, only having to give up the items that were giving off more then twenty millisieverts an hour in radiation. He made his way to the conference room with the most dignified scuttle he could muster. He reached the bulkhead leading to it and tested his translator. A voice suddenly called out behind him and Gary jumped, then flattened himself against the ground and started to change colour. "Hello, Gary...nice to see you again." Korde looked down at Gary's flattened form with thinly veiled contempt. Gary slowly reared back up to his full height and regained his composure. "Hows the demotion treating you, Korde, hope interfering with matters of science didn't hurt your career too bad." Gary tensed up and prepared to unleash his defensive spray. Korde simply smiled. "I'm right where I want to be, Gary, exploring the galaxy. " Garry narrowed his eyes at Korde "What about you, Gary, are you where you want to be?" Korde chuckled and walked past, opening the door to the conference room. Gary scuttled in past Explorator Korde.

Dave was sure to make a spectacle of himself, and with a fair bit of flourish announced his presence. "Greetings, I am Gary, foremost mind of the Nine stars Coalition Scientific Directorate." Gary looked back and gestured at Explorator Korde. "This is my aide, he is not important." Korde would have been angry had he not been used to the amoral Octonoids behaviour. He cut Gary off and spoke "Explorator Korde, my primary specialty is medicine, nice to meet you all." he took a moment to look over the others who had assembled before finding a seat.

[Alexzonya]

RFS Grindlevale

"That ought to do it..." mutters the woman, trying the fourth adapter she had fabricated today on the lead-in to the auxiliary climate controls. Fortunately for her sanity, it works, and the overlay on her retina display reports that system was connected. That was just about everything, then. Almost. As she turned towards the elevator banks to return to her room and find a uniform that wasn’t covered in grease and grime, It also informed her that she was going to be late for the staff meeting the captain had called, but it couldn’t be helped. With corporate types, she had figured out, it was better to show up 10 minutes late and pristine rather than on-time and looking like a tradesman.

Aubrey Baker had been on the ship for just over a week, actually, but hadn't really had a chance to meet much of anyone beyond her direct reports. She was sure she had irritated a number of the engineers and watch standers with her fluttering about, but she had a job to do. The Grindlevale was intended to be an engineering marvel, with the best technology of a dozen species integrated onboard. As it turns out, there's usually a reason why shipbuilders try to source all of their peripherals from the same designer. 3587 custom-fabricated line adapters of 176 types, 13 major system firmware updates and revisions, and eight 14+ hour days (for her and the unlucky crewmen she’d borrowed) later, and things were behaving... acceptably, anyway. There were still faults in some of the more peripheral functions, but that couldn't be helped. WIKI could sort them out herself from here, which meant it was time to boot her up. She inputted the command neutrally, and her display reported that the start-up sequence had begun. It looked like WIKI would be online by the time she arrived at the staff meeting, approximately. She steps into the elevator.

The original designs for the ship hadn't included an AI Core, probably due to the general (and sometimes well-founded) distrust of AI in much of the galaxy, but at the last minute, about two weeks ago, someone had lobbied hard for its inclusion. Apparently they had won that argument. The number of firms that could deliver on-demand an AI that can run a ship like the Grindlevale was slim to one. Dennis High Technologies, a GRA electronics consortium and military contractor, had a spare WIKI-24-C Class AI Core that had just finished standard conditioning but wasn't due to be installed on her intended ship, a new Fleet Carrier, for another few months, due to construction delays; enough time to fabricate a replacement. Aubrey didn't know how badly DHT had gouged the foundation for the just-in-time C-class AI; the CEO was a known philanthropist and proponent of exploration and scientific discovery, so maybe they hadn't. Maybe it was an (expensive) in-kind donation, intended to insure DHT got copies of whatever mission logs resulted from the ship's' endeavors. Whatever the case, it was above her pay grade.

Aubrey herself was a GRA citizen. In her mid-late-20’s, she was slightly taller than you’d expect from a human woman, somewhere around 5’9”. Her blue (permanently recolored) hair mostly resembled an overgrown crop cut; the result of letting one of several regulation military styles grow out without the need to trim it back into line. She had noticed with a roll of her eyes on first arrival that whoever had designed the human uniform jumpsuits for this mission liked the form-fitting look, so she had made sure to requisition them a size large. Until 4 months ago, she had been an AI Core Technician on the ARS Hammerfall, an Exploration and Patrol Corps. Infinity-class Patrol Capital Ship, but her term of service had finally run out, and she had been hired on as a Technical Integration and Cyber Engineering Consultant by Dennis High Technologies. Leave it to fate that 4 months later she’d be sitting on yet another oversized hull of an exploration ship, just this time without the weapons loadout or convenient fleet of escorts. But she was getting paid more than five times as much as she was in the fleet, so that was nice.

She hurriedly swaps uniforms once she recalls what locker the changes were in, and does her best attempt at making herself presentable. The lockers full of gear included fabricators of varies classes, a number of diagnostic computers and esoteric repair parts and tools, her uniforms and personal effects, and a Starfleet-issue away kit rebranded with the Dennis High Technologies corporate logo that had been thoughtlessly thrown in unmodified as a sort of CYA to ‘ensure readiness for the unforeseen in an exploratory environment’. She knew what was inside already, though she hadn’t thought to open it thus far: a hostile-environment respirator, a clasp-on emergency shielding apparatus that fit around an issue jumpsuit, and (buried in the bottom), an S-1 Personal Defense Weapon, the ultralight neutron beam small arm the military insisted on issuing to fleet personnel like her who hadn’t touched an infantry weapon since they had fired rifles for a few hours that one time in basic. There would be two extra magazines, a sling produced by the lowest bidder, a few emergency rations, water packets, an emergency communicator… all the sorts of things that no fleet officer ever used, because that’s what Marines are for. She had wondered, when she saw it, if the corporate requisitions deputy had even known it contained a weapon. Maybe this one didn’t. It didn’t matter. She was late; she’d worry about it later.

Fortunately, by the time she reaches the meeting room, she didn’t seem to be the most late by a particularly large margin. Actually, she had just caught the last two introductions; some sort of octopus who thought it was the foremost mind in some territorial division she had never heard of, and a frustrated-looking medical officer. The others throughout the room included another human woman, a few men, and a bipedal bird. A Tezekian, she reminds herself. Presumably, the man in the captain’s chair was, in fact, the captain. She salutes, quite informally though; she figured it was a good compromise, since she had never quite figured out what the culture on a civilian exploration ship ought to be in that regard.

“Captain Marcleuni? I’m Aubrey Baker, the consultant from DHT. I think the mission dossier also has me listed as the electronics warfare officer. My apologies for not reporting to you earlier; things have been pretty hectic, getting everything installed. I can report,” she says, slowing slightly and eyeing the others, “that the AI core integration should be just about complete, now that most of the major systems can talk to each other. Mostly. Regardless, our AI should be online in…”

Good timing on her part. She's cute off by a boot tone for a moment from a nearby speaker, and a holoprojector flickers to life, displaying a vague, humanoid, mostly feminine form. It was a purplish-red color; Wiki had picked that on her own. “Good morning, Dave,” intones the figure, with a small grin. Aubrey winces. She always hated when they did that. The voice is only vaguely electronic; just enough to comfortably identify the speaker as an AI; the frequency was about typical for a human female, and rather melodic.

The holographic figure pivots in place to survey the room, though it wasn’t strictly necessary; she already knew where everyone was positioned, but she knew from conditioning that humans (and sapients generally) didn’t like to be reminded that AI didn’t have the same limitations they did when interacting directly. “I am the WIKI-24-C class Artificial Intelligence installed onboard this vessel. You may call me ‘Wiki’. My role is to provide general mission support and emergency automated control of ship systems. If you have need of me during the course of your duties, my consciousness can be paged using any of the installed AI terminals.” She pivots to face the captain. “Captain Marcleuni, I am pleased to report that my integration with appropriate ship systems has been entirely successful. I am in the process of tweaking the responsiveness of some of the more stubborn firmware at this time, but primary processes can now be electively placed under my control. I can also report that my process-shielded VI subroutines have integrated with the combat and life support systems of the Grindlevale. If you, or any members of your crew, have any questions about my functions or capabilities, I would be happy to answer them.” She smiles.

[Red Talons]

Arethusa arrived on the Grindlevale earlier in the day, taking some time to settle her things into her quarters. Carefully removing a small figurine from her robes and placing it on the shelf beside her bed. Perched at the head of the bed an iridescent cobalt red Rapax watched the brown furred Icatan. Zheng chirped, and in a rustle of wings the reptile hopped to the shelf. Snatching the figure with a clawed forelimb before hopping carefully back to the bed and curling up on the pillow around the figurine, head resting on a leather hood tied around the tip of his tail. Arethusa chuckled, depositing two of her duffel bags into footlockers. Taking her time to familiarize herself with her quarters, and unpacking a bag of clothes and a bag of personal effects. The clothes were neatly folded and stowed in one of the two remaining footlockers. Her personal effects consisted of a breadbox sized chest and half a dozen scroll tubes. Opening one and removing a stacked roll of white posters, which she set about putting up around the cabin. One or two on every wall, giving each one a tap in the center before moving on to the next. In sequence, the square sheets flickered to life, showing scenes of a deep jungle.

Zheng gave an excited and happy trill as she checked the PDA on her lower left wrist, thumbing through a list before highlighting a single item which expanded into a holo display of a series of symbols arranged into an odd ring shape. Reading it over as her upper right hand withdrew a translucent crystal dagger with a plastic click from it's leg sheath. Dropping to one knee, she traced a small circle on the floor. Adding a second around it and chanting softly as sigils inscribed themselves between the rings. Finally joining both circles with three lines and placing the tip of the dagger in the center between all three. Her eyes shimmered with light for a moment, as did the dagger, as she twisted the tool the room lights seemed to flicker as soft grass spread from the blade tip across the floor, vines climbing the walls and bushes growing up to fill the room. In the distance, the sound of the wind rustled trees. As she stood, removing the tip from the floor, a single sprout uncurled like an arc between the daggers tip and the floor. Rising into a single brilliant flower a few inches above the mossy grass, blooming in unison with a good portion of the room. She smiled and looked up into a star filled canopy of green high above, with vines of flowers hanging just out of reach where the ceiling of the cabin had been a minute ago. She turned to Zheng, deftly returning the dagger to it's sheath with another audible click. "It might not be real, but it's much better than blank walls, wouldn't you say so Z?" Zheng gave another happy trill from the bed, which was now wreathed in ferns and seemed to be carved into a massive tree root. The shelves were large fungal growths on a tree who's trunk made up most of the wall, and the doorways were framed with thick intertwined branches with natural paths around the room. When the call came, she sighed.

"Well, shall we meet the crew?" She asked Zheng while straightening her white robe, taking care that the deep purple and crimson accents weren't hidden. The reptile chittered in reply, head raising to look at the Icatan. "Well, come on, and don't forget Cai."

Zheng chirped again, standing up and taking his time to stretch. Arethusa shook her head, checking her top left PDA once more for files on the other crew before turning to leave the room. As the door slid open she heard the beat of wings and a familiar weight rest on her shoulder. Zheng chirped happily as she took the figurine and slipped it into a pocket of her robe. The two set out across the ship towards the summons. Her brisk pace seemed unnaturally smooth in the artificial gravity of the ship, she noted and resisted an urge to engage her vac-suit's EVA system, instead moving just fast enough to not be ballistic in her trajectory down the halls. Taking the extra time to skim over the crew files once more. She didn't expect too many problems, but there were two individuals she was concerned about. A human from a culture noted to be xenophobic, and a scientist with some questionable practices. She could only wonder at the varied nature of life. Arriving just as smoothly as she had started, slowing to a slow walk up to the door. Once again making sure her robe was hanging properly before stepping inside. Zheng settled down, finally able to relax a bit and drape over her shoulders like a scaly shawl. Hazel eyes swept the room with a glaze as she took a seat at the table with the others. A few species she was unfamiliar with, and others she had only heard of. "I am Specialist Arethusa, I will be the ship's biological behavioral expert. You are welcome to call me Aret."

Zheng gave a chirp from her shoulder and nudged her cheek with his horned head, prompting Arethusa to add "This is Zheng, and despite his appearance he is quite safe, even friendly if you have shiny gifts." The reptile chirped and settled back down.