Exploration Fleet (Treasure and Appletree)

Treasure

Treasure

Void
Eamon stood at the gangplank of the ship. Well, gangplank brought to mind water and sailing ships and all sorts of nautical terms. This gangplank was actually just a short, glorified hallway leading to a decontamination chamber before the actual ship. You couldn't even see the ship from inside. The hallway was a gleaming silvery blue, carpeted with soft material, and actually really boring looking for a space station. He leaned against one of the slightly curved walls and glanced up and down the long, tubular hallway leading past the gangplank. The opposite wall held pictures instead of windows, evoking images of the actual terra firma several miles straight down below them. It was nice enough, though he still preferred the view of the stars even if it was just black and white. Still, he supposed it was nice the Zebek were trying to keep their fleet members calm and happy with images of greenery, blue water, and of course a few trees here and there.

A pair of Zebek females walked toward him. He felt a bit of hope spark until he realized they were not wearing the sleek black uniforms of the Exploration Fleet but the silver color of the sanitation crew that kept this spinning top of a space station sparkly clean. He huffed in annoyance and went back to leaning. No, the new crew were not late yet, but he was getting tired of waiting out here. He was supposed to greet the newcomers, welcome them, and lead them inside. And, he supposed, get the fact that they'd been stuck with the human on their assignment over with right from the start. No one wanted to share an assignment with the crude and violent human. As if to prove the very point he was thinking, the two sanitation workers crossed to walk as far on the opposite side of the hallway as they could to avoid him, their soft brown eyes judging him. Thy twittered softly together and hurried on. Eamon rolled his eyes and adjusted his sleeve. Let them mock. He'd worked harder than the rest of them to get here, and he was more than confident in his worth, despite the rumors that the only reason he managed to land an assignment at all was because his adopted father was on the council.

He looked down, feeling a slight fray on his very dark grey sleeve. Okay, the seamstress who had sewed it swore this was black, but it looked more grey to him. Not that it surprised him in the least. Black seemed to be the favorite color of the Zebek as a whole, and they had around twenty different names for as many shades. He'd never seen so much black in his entire life! And his parents had called him emo. Still, it was nice that the uniform was made up of three different shades of black instead of one solid color. Such a nice, wide variety. And yet, somehow, when stood against the pristine, prim, and proper Zebek, he always managed to seem scruffy no matter how well he brushed his black hair or tried to keep his suit neat. Of course, being an engineer didn't help that. There was always an oil spot on him somewhere. Oh well. It was a sign of hard work!

Board, he pulled out the manual for the ship's engines and started reading again. He supposed the two new crew would get here when they got here. They still had five minutes.
 
Kal walked down the long slightly curved hallway that ran all the way around this level of the space station, nodding absently to people he passed, more focused on the small numbers inscribed near each of the doors leading to the gangplanks of the docks. A few of the doors were open, but he let his gaze wander over them without registering what was behind them. He knew what those gangplanks looked like, they were all the same. Just as this hallway was exactly the same as the other two he had already walked through in his search for dock 1308. He was pretty sure the pictures on the walls were the same ones he had passed earlier too.

In all the years he had spent in this or similar stations, he had never gotten the knack of finding his way around consistently. It was embarrassing to say the least. The docks were even numbered and he was still unable to find the right one. They needed to install landmarks or maps somewhere. Heck, even a star chart would probably be useful. At least he had had the foresight to set out shortly after the station workers had come to collect his meagre belongings to be loaded. Plenty of time to get lost and still be punctual.

His heart did a little jump when he finally caught sight of 1300. It had to be close now. And he was still on time. He slowed a little and smoothed down the front of his already spotless uniform. In the only open door visible in this part of the hallway, a small figure seemed to be waiting. A fellow crew member? Perhaps even the captain? Kal strode forwards purposefully and came to attention by the door. A quick check told him it was indeed dock 1308. Finally.

"Kalukan, son of Tanang, ambassador and scout, reporting in." It was only then that he registered the extraordinary nature of the person standing across from him. Human. At least he believed so. Differentiating alien species was tough sometimes, but everyone knew of the human who had been taken into the fleet. Judging by this one's uniform, it had to be that infamous individual. This ship's engineer, by the insignias on the material.

Kals surprise showed in nothing more than a slow blink before he continued,
"You are our engineer, yes? Has the captain arrived yet? Was I told correctly that both they and you are new to the ship also?"
 
Eamon marked his page in the manual and looked up, craning his neck a little to see the top of the moving tree in front of him. "Ah, what do you know! The ambassador has arrived," he drawled, his words completely free of any accent. "Cutting it mighty fine, wouldn't you say?" He stuffed the manual into his back pocket and looked around the newly introduced Kalukan. "If the other one doesn't show, they'll be late." He huffed then finally got around to answering Kalukan's question. "Yes, I am your glorious engineer! Our illustrious captain is familiarizing himself with the ship's instruments and awaits our arrival."

With that warm waelcome, Eamon turned and waved Kalukan toward the gangplank. "Head in. I'm supposed to wait for both of you, and so far there's only one." He pulled the manual back out of his pocket, leaned against the wall, and started reading again.
 
"This was the time specified in our orders, or was I mistaken?" Kal was slightly puzzled by the humans tone, but refrained from commenting any more. Just like the engineer had, he half turned to look back the way he had come; if their other crew member had not arrived yet, surely they would be here any moment. But the hallway was empty.

At the humans gesture and clear words of dismissal, Kal mearly inclined his head and said, "I look forward to working with you." before doing as he was asked. He was well used to abrupt conversations, having more than one family member who lived rather close to the edge of propriety. Aparently nothing about that would change even though he was leaving his family and old life behind.

It was only when he was standing in the decontamination chamber, holding his breath as he was cleansed, that he realised that the human had not introduced himself. Ah well, he would find it out soon enough, some way or another. The quiet chime and the absense of the sterilising mist around him alerted him that he was free to procede. As he turned to face them, the doors to his new home slid smoothly open. One fleet brother behind him, and another sibling yet to meet; he set off into the bowels of the ship to find his captain.
 
Eamon stayed where he was, waiting patiently (sort of) for the other crew member to show up. He was itching to get his hands on the engine of this ship! But Frayne had told him to stay here and wait, so he did. While reading about the engine he couldn't see in person. Yet.

~~

The entrance to the ship lay at the far back under the "tail" portion. It dropped down to create a gangplank, though the way the decontamination chamber sealed around the actual entrance, that part was impossible to see. The hallway led straight up through the center of the ship. Soft grey foam dampened the sound of footsteps, and the ceiling glowed with a muted yellow light. The walls were white, and nearly invisible lines along the hallway indicated where doorways leading to other rooms, probably storage, lay nearly hidden.

The hallway opened smoothly into the gleaming white galley. The floors were still grey and the ceiling carried its yellow light throughout, but the counters and table rose up from the floor seamlessly from foam into gleaming stainless steel. Four chairs stowed neatly in one wall, and there was absolutely nothing on the kitchen counter or island, not even an open sink, but there was also no shortage of storage cupboards. Some of these hosted tiny digital pads to read the cook's and the Captain's fingerprints and likely held things such as knives, cleaning supplies, or rarer food items. While trust in the crew was strongly expected and implied, there was also no need to leave temptation laying about for either them or, more importantly, any strangers who might happen on board.

The galley narrowed into the hallway once more, outlines of six doors breaking up the monotony. The doorway closest to the bridge belonged to the captain, and three other rooms to the other crew members. One was likely the head. (Otherwise known as the restroom.) The hallway lead straight from there up to the bridge. The bridge door was open, slid back into the wall as if it did not exist, but when sealed shut, it was the strongest door in the ship.

Fayne stood with his back to the hallway, his spine straight, everything about him sleek and proper. Even the way he moved was graceful and elegant from his polished black shoes to his straight black hair the color of space. He studied the instruments before him in the half-moon shaped consol, his fingers gliding lightly over the controls. There were no chairs visible in the open space, and the front half of the sloped wall had been phased to be transparent, allowing them to look out into the pitch black of space and watch other ships arriving and departing from the station.
 
Kal studdied the ship as he padded lightfootedly along the hall. He had been in ships like this before, mainly for training purposes, but this one felt different. Perhaps because it was his ship now, his home among the vast expanse of stars they would soon be setting out into. It was in pristine condition, as would be expected, and in his eyes, absolutely beautiful.

He passed through the galley and paused for a moment in the hall with the doors to the private quarters. Should he find his room first? No, the captain would surely be expecting him, if they had sent the engineer to wait outside. Best to not keep them waiting. He moved passed the outlines of the doors and came to halt in the doorway to the bridge.

The Zebek standing at the helm already looked quite the part of a captain, even from behind. His great aunt, one of the highest ranking scout officers and a true stickler for a 'proper image', would have liked to have someone like this man for a nephew. She had always been on Kal's case for something. But even her sharp eyes would have found nothing on this person; no hair out of place, no loose thread or speck of dust to be seen, not the slightest hint of a slouch. Just the sight had Kal drawing himself up just a little more, something even his great aunts ramrod posture had never instilled in him.

He cleared his throat to make his presense known. "Captain."
 
Frayne looked up at the word and turned, putting his hands neatly behind his back and standing at parade rest. "Ah, you must be Kalukan son of Tanang," he said, his voice quiet despite his authoritative stance. He felt no need to raise his voice when people were listening. "It is good to greet you, Ambassador. Or would you prefer to be addressed as First Scout?"

He liked the looks of the scout/ambassador. He was two inches taller than Frayne and a touch lanky, but he had a good look in his eye. Settled, straight, and quiet. A good combination for an ambassador or a scout. Frayne was looking forward to traveling with this one. The medic, he'd heard, was a bit more non-traditional, so that might be a bit different, but he'd deal with that when he met her. He had been worried that with a human on board - the human on board - he'd be getting only rejects to fill his crew. If Kalukan was as steady as he seemed, then Frayne would count his blessings and not complain if the medic was a bit 'different.'
 
"Yes sir. I look forward to working with you."
Kal once again bowed his head in greeting, before straightening and meeting his captains eyes levely.
Unlike with the small human, the captains eyes were move on a level with his own, though it was hard to tell how close their heights were standing across from eachother like this. The air of command this Zebek already wore around himself like a second uniform could probably add several inches to his height should he choose to utilise it. Was this really his first posting as a captain? He looked so sure of himself, quite unlike the doubts and reservations Kal carried under his own poise.

"Ambassador is fine. It is the role I hope will be my primary one aboard this ship."
 
Frayne inclined his head to Kalukan. "And I look forward to working with you, Ambassador. I am Frayne, son of Xenos, Captain aboard this vessel. I am sure you met our engineer out before the door. We are awaiting our medic, then we shall take flight. You may go and chose one of the other quarters to make your own. There are three options as this vessel has an extra room. Mine is already marked, and the engineer chose the room closest to the engines. When the medic arrives and has settled in, I will as that you all report to the bridge for take off. Do you have any other questions?"

This was going to be an interesting trip. Highly exciting as this was his first command, but interesting. A human, a medic with attitude problems, and a scout who also worked as an ambassador. Frayne found he was rather looking forward to the challenge, though his excitement was tempered by the seriousness of the problems that surely lay ahead. There was always the threat of space madness where even the closest of crews could turn on each other for no reason, and to list all of the threats that lay out there amongst the stars would take him hours. Nonetheless, he could not imagine himself as going anywhere else or doing any other job.
 
Kal nodded as Frayne spoke, he had surmised as much from what the engineer had said. When the captain had finished, he ventured,
"Would you pemit me to take a look at the scout pod? I would like to familiarise myself with it as soon as possible, preferably before we depart."

There would be little reason for him to step into his role of scout while they were still in Zebek space, but it was always better to be prepared. It was one of the mantras chiseled into his very being by the scout training masters.
 
"Of course," Frayne said, dipping his head. "Unfortuneately, I, myself, have not yet made it down to view it. This is a new vessel, and as such, not a single protocol or passkey had been entered yet. Essentially, paperwork in digital form." He smiled dryly at Kal. "However, Eamon has been down there. I will radio him to join you in the galley and take you down, if that suits you?"

He had hoped for Eamon to greet both of the new crew, but with how late the medic was becoming, it was impractical. Eamon had work he wanted to finish before they left the station, as well, and Frayne did not want to keep him from it any longer than necessary.
 
So the engineer was named Eamon. Kal filled that information tidily away in his brain together with the captains name. It would not to go forgetting his crewmates.
"That would be welcome. I will mark a room as mine on the way to meet him."

Back in the corridor, Kal paused, weighing his options. He knew each of the rooms would be practically identical, so there was no point poking around in any of them. After a moment, he touched a finger to the hidden panel in the wall next to one of the doors nearest to the galley, prompting it to slide open to admit him. Barely glancing around, he placed his hand on the corresponding panel on the inside to let it register his signature, then left, not wanting to keep Eamon waiting.

In the galley he leaned against a counter and looked around. It would take a moment for Eamon to pass through the decontaminisation chamber. Kal wondered idly if the chamber would be confused by the humans physiology.
 
Eamon answered the quiet beeping on his tiny handheld radio. Frayne wanted him to go talk to the Ambassador fellow instead of standing here waiting? Sure, fine, whatever. Talking to that fellow was probably going to be better than standing out here while a bunch of random folks passed by and stared. He was pretty sure some of them had done laps to get a second and third look. Seriously, humans were not that different!

He sighed and headed for the decontamination chamber again. He hated these things. He wished these ones had the child setting. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and stepped in. The bells and whistles kicked off, and a lot of the spray and air or whatever went over his head, as usual, and the chamber beeped and flashed in error. He had no idea what was happening. He hadn't trusted going through these things with his eyes open even when it did register the right height. He stumbled his way through and stood panting for a minute. He still felt a little damp on his back, and his hair was now a massive tumbleweed, but he was out!

"Stupid tall alien folk," Eamon grumbled as he half stumbled toward the galley, well aware that in this world, he was the alien. Now, where was that scout? He tried to flatten his hair, shoving it into his eyes as he did so and bouncing lightly off the walls as he went.
 
Kal straightened at Eamons rather abrupt entrance. He looked a little worse for where, or rather even more uncempt than the first time Kal had seen him. What had he been doing? He supposed it wasn't his buisness to pry, but a small inquiry couldn't hurt.

"Are you all right?" he asked carefully, before moving on, giving the engineer the option of ignoring the question should he so choose. "I requested of the captain to see the scout pod. He recommended you accompany me, if its no trouble to you."
 
Eamon glared at the Zebek for a moment. "I really, really hate decontamination chambers," he snarled. "They are the worst invention ever. Or at least the most ill-advised." He huffed and tried to straighten himself out a little more. He managed to get the hair out of his eyes then gave up on the rest. What did it matter? This fellow and the other one, the medic person, would be seeing him a lot messier than this if they were all going to be stuck together on this craft for days on end.

He squinted at the Zebek. "You want what? To see the scouting pod? Oh, sure, yeah, it's back here in the tail." He started walking back the way he'd come, looking for the right door. Why did they all have to look the same?

"What was your name?" he asked idly.
 
Kal suppressed a smile. Somehow the human looked almost cute in this huffy state. He doubted telling him this would get a positive reaction though, so he merely nodded in agreement. His feelings towards the decontamination chambers were not nearly as pronounced, but he didn't much care for the process either, necessary as it may be.

"Kalukan. You are Eamon, correct?" Kal followed the human down the hall, hoping the pod wasn't at the very end of the ship. Practical as the placement may be for avoiding complications with the tether, it would be rather a nuisance to get back to the bridge should his other qualification as ambassador be needed. He supposed at least he would get some exercise in, walking back and forth.
 
"Yep, I'm Eamon," the human nodded. He stopped in the middle of the hallway and frowned as he looked back and forth between the doors on either side. "Was it port or starboard? I think..." He stepped to the left and opened the door. Boxes of bathroom supplies met his eyes. "Nope, that does not look like a pod." He closed the door and turned to the other side, opening the door to another tiny hallway that almost immediately opened into a small hanger-like area for the pod. "There it is! Come take your look."
 
Kal had to hide a smile again, this time due to the picture that formed in his mind of a pod made of and stuffed with toiletries. The thought of braving space or alien planets in something like that was not something he cared to contemplate much.

"Thank you." He stepped into the hangar that held the pod, a craft that looked much like its mother ship, though with a shorter tail and only large enough to fit two people, three perhaps if you squeezed. A thin walkway lead to the side where the whole front of the little ship could slide away to grant entrance. Right now however it was tightly sealed and didn't open when Kal approached it. Of course, it wouldn't, not recognising his signature.

Placing a hand on the gleaming hull, he tried to remember how to get the protocolls running.
 
Eamon watched Kal for a minute. "I tweaked the protocols," he finally said. "I asked Frayne, I mean the captain, to give me a hand and added in some extra security measures. The ones in place were standard and fine enough, but if you can get into one, you can get into the all, and if you can get into the pod, you can get into the pain ship. Didn't seem like a very safe system to me, so I changed them to be more unique to this ship."

He walked over to the small control panel that could be used for remote flight if the controls were jammed or the intruments fried on the pod itself. He keyed in a code, subtly blocking the view of the pad so Kal couldn't see it. Then he stepped back and gestured to Kal. "Come put your hand on the scanning pad then impute a code for your personal use."
 
"Ah I see." He could have been thinking and trying things out for a while then.

Attuned to even small changes in body language, he noticed Eamon moving just so to block his view of whatever he was doing at the panel and frowned. He had nothing against extra security, but this was essentially his pod and he didn't appreciate the secrecy locking him out. He had his own ideas for the little ship, ideas he had been fine tuning since he learned scouts had primary access to the pods and, with their captains permission and help from an engineer, the freedom to tweak them to their desired purposes. All within rather strict guidelines of course.
He hoped he would be admitted into the confidence rather sooner than later.

At the engineers say so, he joined him at the console and did as he was bid. As his hand was scanned, he asked carefully, "How would you feel about adjusting the pod a little more, when you have a spare moment?" At the green light and beeping notification, he punched a number of symbols in the proffered keypad to act as his code. A moment later, he heard the quiet hiss of the front of the pod openening in response to his newly registered signature. Exited again, he turned to watch it.
 
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