Popular Post Alieth Posted May 23, 2021 Popular Post Posted May 23, 2021 (edited) Not for the first time, Alieth requested that the computer erase the log she had been recording to that moment. The Vulcan's slanted brows furrowed slightly and there, in the secluded room of Research Facility 8 of Telstrus III, she allowed herself (even!) bit her lower lip. She knew that she had to send the report as soon as possible, before the planet's rotation took them out of range of the system's communication relay. It would be two weeks before she would be able to send a message again, and she was well aware that a second communications failure would only lead the Captain to send a team to investigate what had happened to them. And that, no doubt, would result in LOTS of paddwork. Just the thought made her shudder. Yet, she also knew that the content of what she was going to transmit would have... consequences. Certainly unpleasant consequences, but possibly less so than the alternative. In the long run, at least. In the short term, the consequences would undoubtedly be catastrophic. That was something she was 87.75959594% certain of. Once more, the Vulcan's expression distorted moderately in the minimal sketch of a pout. But at the end, she took two short steps towards the circular window that stretched across much of one of the labs' walls and take a look. On the outside, the wind kept blowing fiercely, stirring up wisps of snow from the slope of the ridge. Further out, almost imperceptible in the distance, loomed the dark shape of several winged creatures. As they had been doing for the last few days, from dawn until late at night. The petite Vulcan let out a minute sigh and then turned her back to the window, heading back, once again, to the computer alcove. She had always cherished wind, but after this mission, perhaps she should re-examine her inclinations. “Officer Alieth's Log, on mission on Telstrus 3. Security Clearance for Command Ranks only. Personal note: if anyone dares to divulge this to Geoff or Meidra, they will be in serious trouble. End of personal note. Start of Report number 47: It all started on the morning of the seventy-second day of the mission, when I woke up....” It all started when she woke up in a nest. That’s it. It wasn't the first time Alieth had woken up in unusual places, but it was certainly the first time he had woken up in a nest. She lifted her head fractionally, more confused than she wanted to admit even to herself, as she tried to understand how she had gone from researching the planet's atmospheric peculiarities with civil engineer Hersh to waking up in an animal-made bed. The second query that popped into her mind was, of course, with regard to her cantankerous colleague. Fortunately, this one was easily answered when she discovered the grizzled Tellarite snoring a few metres away, ostensibly happy and oblivious to his surroundings. Her third inner question concerned what kind of creature lighted eggs over three metres in height, like the ones that shared their “bed”. The fourth enquiry was a more iffy one, as it involved finding out who had determined that the planet itself wasn't inhabited by any larger animal of a dog. Not even a large dog, such as Cheesecake, but rather one of those dogs that tended to yap insistently and nap on the laps of their owners, which Alieth felt a strange mixture of fascination and animosity towards. Regardless, Alieth was going to send a particularly stern reprimand letter on the matter to that officer. (Computer note, letter attached as file VR A01-3456). Finally, she wondered if the creatures that were about to emerge from the shell might actually feed on Vulcans. She was sure that Hersh would soon be considered unfit for use as food, being, as he was, exceptionally sour. At least if he was awake when the creatures hatched and could open that obnoxious snout of his... Her concluding uncertainty became her main concern when she witnessed the top of one of the eggs cracking. With more speed than grace, she crawled on hands and knees to where the engineer lay and shook him awake. The Tellarite protested throughout the process and Alieth needed a good deal of her wit and mime coercive skills to coax the engineer to shut up, stay silent and glance around. As soon as he did, she could see the parade of questions that she herself had posed flashing through the face of her partner in misfortune. Albeit perhaps nuanced with how bland Vulcan were. And how that played against him. And so, after only a few minutes and without the giant creature having managed to hatch from the egg, the two of them started to work. A quick survey of the surroundings revealed that they were at one of the highest points of an unknown mountain range, that climbing upwards would only lead to a point where their blood would freeze in their veins and that the descent down the vertical walls that occupied three of the four sides of their location would probably involve a very long fall with extremely scenic views leading to a sudden and very likely excruciatingly painful slam against the ground. Soon they decided that none of them were too fond of such prospects, so they moved on to the next step of their plan. After some intense foraging, three extremely lengthy discussions on the virtues of organising and judging materials, and ten minutes of silence when the egg about to hatch tipped to one side revealing a reptilian eye surrounded by feathers, they finally established what they had to work with to get out of that place. Fourteen large feathers, varying in width from forty-five centimetres to one metre, with a minimum height of one and a half metres and a maximum height of five metres. About a hundred metres of fibres of various kinds that had been quickly braided together to create rope. Insufficient to reach the ground, but useful for other purposes. Virtually an endless supply of branches, wood and bark of diverse dimensions, as well as a worrying amount of bones, including the skull of what on most planets would be considered an apex predator, but which looked as if it had been a snack for the nest's owner. And snow. Plenty of snow. Mostly of the yellow or brown kind. It wasn't much to work with but in an example to be remembered for posterity of Starfleet's lessons in teamwork and the virtues of interspecies collaboration, they were quickly able to spend a good portion of their resources on building a hang glider. Primitive, sure, but sturdy enough to bear the weight of both of them and carry them safely to... well... Far away from there. Unfortunately, what the lightweight craft could not withstand was the weight of the large animal that landed on top of it. A creature of such size and weight should not be able to fly, and yet they both watched as the gargantuan feathered creature flapped hurricane-force wings and shrieked angrily at the presence of two creatures in its nest. All their detailed planning and meticulous analysis of their possibilities was flushed down the sink and both Hersh and Alieth scurried around the nest in the best rendition of "run for your life" that the planet had ever seen. It was all a blur for a few moments until a gust of wind told them their only way out. Jump. Alieth shouted to his companion and grabbed a feather, which the engineer followed shortly after. They both paused for a second at the edge of the chasm, grasping their feathers at both ends. They glanced at each other and, as a gale of wind stirred their clothes and.... they jumped….. “... While this settles the historical dispute about that Vulcans are undeniably more aerodynamic than Tellarites, engineer Hersh’s rescue from the native life form he now designates as "Mom" raises the problem of his recovery and return to Starfleet facilities. While I have made use of the feathers and have studied the thrust, flapping and wind force required to reach the nest again, I strongly suggest that the intervention of a starship transporter as the most advisable procedure. However, based on my observations, I can assure you that the engineer is well-fed and protected from the elements, so this is therefore a rescue of priority level two. Personal note: Add a ban on reading this file to Mister Greaves. Add to the prohibitions listed previously. Notify command of these exceptions to access. End of personal note. End log.” Edited May 23, 2021 by Alieth typo 5
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