A warm breeze and thunder on the Horizon.

Posted on Sun Sep 1st, 2024 @ 7:49am by Lieutenant Commander S'hib & Captain Gary Taylor & Lieutenant Commander Rin

Mission: Season 6: Episode 5: A church beyond heaven
Location: USS Elysium
Timeline: MD1: afternoon
2676 words - 5.4 OF Standard Post Measure

Rin had never understood people's dislike of dress uniforms. Hers fit almost precisely the same as her duty uniform. It was a tad stiffer, but only by a degree, and anyway, it was unlikely that the fabric would hamper anything expected of her today.

Nor did she mind the task at hand. Professionally, this was an easy means to start studying the culture of this station. Personally, she also hopes to pursue a separate set of questions, perhaps privately, which was ultimately why she volunteered for diplomatic duty.

Gary was in his quarters, in his dress uniform and looking himself over with a critical eye in the floor-length mirror for any issues with the uniform. The uniform hung perfectly off his frame. It was stiff but not overly so. He could move freely. he looked down at his boots, they had been shined to a high gloss.

He left the bedroom and walked into the living room, He had official ship business to tend to and thankfully he wouldn't be handling it alone. Rin would be along to help in the study of the station and its occupants. Her presence would be most welcome.

Rin was waiting for Gary as he approached the main airlock. "The delegation has not yet arrived. Shall we wait for them outside?"

Gary nodded at Rin's statement. "Yes. I think that would be best Rin." He answered as he tugged on the tunic out of habit. "Did I keep you waiting long?"

"Not at all," Rin assured him as she hit the button to open the airlock, stepping out onto the station for the first time. She nodded her head down the hallway. "I think that's them now."

"Good," Gary answered, "I thought I was running late." As Rin opened the airlock, he allowed her to step onto the station and joined her an instant later. He looked in the direction of her nod and a small delegation headed their way. "I think you are right Rin."

"Welcome aboard!" Shouted a fat and opulently dressed man, flanked on either side by others of his kin though far less extravagantly dressed.

As he plodded along his ornate robe dragged behind him some several feet and was being held by two young boys so as not to catch on anything.

The voice was loud, coming from a throat well versed in carrying itself purposefully even as it echoed around the vast docking ring.

"I am Father Orolius," He added while walking towards the two Starfleet officers, his arms wide open in invitation. "And it is my absolute honour to meet with children from another tree." He said before bowing as deeply as his vast gut would allow him, causing the two boys to pull tightly and dig their bare heels into the carpet to stop him from falling.

Gary shared a look with Rin at the sound of the voice as well as the sight of its owner. As the entourage drew closer and finally stopped a few feet from Rin and Gary, he spoke. "An honor I am sure Father. I'm Captain Taylor Executive Officer of the Federation starship Elysium and this is Lieutenant Commander Rin, our Chief Intelligence Officer." Gary said by way of introduction.

Father Orolius clasped his pudgy and pale hands together as he was dragged by the two boys back to his full yet wholly average height.

"The Elysium... what a most interesting name." He said, rubbing his hands together as numerous rings clinked together. "Oh, where are my manners." He said, snapping out of his prophetic trace.

"This is Brother Tyier," He said extending a hand to his right as the man bowed, his frame allowing him to do so without any help, unlike Father Orolius.

"And this is Sister Abanot," Orolius said, extending his hand to his left.

"They will stay with the both of you once I leave shortly, as regrettably, I have become rather busy today," Orolius said, his round white face wrinkling considerably as he smiled at the pair, besmirching the countless lines of text tattooed all over his bald head into obscurity.

As he smiled another man from the delegation leaned to whisper something to Orolius, there was a seriousness about him as he spoke, flicking his eyes towards the pair before forcing a smile onto his face.

"Yes... Yes, go on ahead, I won't be long," Orolius said, dismissing the man with a wave before turning back to Taylor and Rin.

Rin watched the man's mannerisms as he whispered to his boss, taking note of the differences between them both.

"We appreciate the warm welcome," Rin replied with a slight bow. "And look forward to an exchange of cultures. We are a long way from home, and your ship is almost literally a beacon in the dark for us."

"So I have heard!" Orolius said, training his eyes on Rin.

Or at least she thought so... it was difficult to tell with the A'janie, their inky black orbs lacked any perceivable iris, making it difficult to ascertain where their attention was.

"I must admit we are all rather excited to have you here," He said stepping forward to lay a hand on each of their shoulders.

"The possibility of spreading our message to another tree, your tree..." He said with a gentle squeeze of his hands. "Oh, It truly is a blessing from the universe."

"Now come," He continued abruptly, stepping back and clasping his hands together again. "I will show you to the inner halls and then I must depart."

And with that he turned, waiting as the two boys rushed his robe to one side before marching off, leaving Rin and Taylor in the company of Brother Tyier and Sister Abanot who gestured to follow.

Something about Father Orolius and his welcome didn't sit right with Gary but he kept his mouth shut, he would talk with Rin and get her opinion when they were back on the Elysium. As Orolius turned and walked away, he glanced at Rin, "I guess we follow."

Rin nodded with a smile. This was not quite how she expected the evening would go down, and she looked forward to see what the A'janie had in store.

Brother Tyier and Sister Abanot waited patiently as the two newcomers strode forward, falling in line behind and sandwiching them between the two young boys who tried to juggle their task of carrying the Father's robe while staring up at Captain Taylor and Commander Rin.

Their curious little eyes and agape mouths gave the impression that they had never seen an alien before, let alone two.

"Now this grand nave that encompasses the outermost hull," Father Orolius began, looking up and waving a hand about. "It is welcome to all, your crew can come and go at their leisure... only in the inner sanctum beyond the great halls must you be accompanied by one of our order."

As they walked, Rin noted Tyier and Abanot whispering to one another, quiet enough that she could not eavesdrop without being obvious, although she did make some attempt at reading their lips.

"I would very much like to see the inner sanctum at some point, with permission and escort, of course," Rin replied to Orolius. "And hear more about your faith in general. I used to be religious. For a variety of reasons I no longer am, but... it does feel sometimes like something is missing."

Gary also took note of Tyier and Abanot talking, and whispering but was unable to discern what they were saying. He heard Rin's comment about being religious but no longer. For himself he did not comment, deciding to keep his opinion on this matter to himself.

“Why of course!” Father Orolius bellowed, it was a throaty and gleeful sound that barely passed off for words. “My child that is our whole purpose for being here, to teach those that are willing, and you do not do so by withholding information!”

As he finished speaking two large doors ahead of the group opened up, their frosted-coloured glass panels shimmering as they parted inwards.

“Now as I said earlier,” Orolius said, turning before the door. “I have some pressing matters to attend to… but I leave you I'm very capable hands.”

He gestured to Tyier and Abanot, a trusting smile on his pudgy face as he looked back towards Rin.

“Until next time my child...” He said before nodding towards Gary and then departing.

The silence was brief as he walked away, interrupted by Sister Abanot as she walked around to stop in front of Gary and Rin.

“Please forgive Father Orolius, he was most excited to meet with you today but unfortunately we’ve been having some problems and-“ She stopped mid-sentence, her eyes flicking towards Tyier who still stood behind Gary and Rin.

“And… it was, just unfortunate timing.” She concluded, forcing a smile onto her face as Tyier strode around.

“I’m sure he will want to meet with you at a later date, now if you could follow us inside please.” Brother Tyier said as he turned and gestured between the doors while glaring at Abanot who was now burying her gaze into the carpet.

"We understand," Rin replied. "If there is anything we might assist with, please feel free to ask." She shifted her gaze between their two hosts, but it lingered a bit longer on Abanot, trying to discern why she might be so personally troubled while offering a silent helping hand.

Gary was content to remain quiet and let Rin engage the church representatives while he silently observed them and their interaction with her. Like Rin, he wondered why Sister Abanot looked so troubled. It bore further observation.

"It's nothing to concern yourselves with," Tyier said matter of factly, trying to shut off further discussion as he gestured once more.

"Let's head inside," Abanot said, trying to counter Tyiers cold indifference with a smile. "We can add your visit to our archives and discuss how best to help you and your ship."

Rin simply nodded appreciatively.

The air was warmer beyond the door, warm and thick with incense and smoke.

It was not an unpleasant smell, just very different from the strict filtration code aboard Starfleet vessels like the Elysium.

So too was the lighting, with Rin and Gary squinting in the darkness they found themselves in, trying to adjust to the small flames that licked at the stone walls.

Stone walls, carpets and thick wax drippings ran down the side of ornate pillars.

It was a strange sight, out of place and time with its surroundings. A sight that almost made you forget you were still aboard a starship, even if it was one as vast as this A'janie church.

"When we were still terrestrial, we had a rather bright star..." Abanot said, as she blinked, revealing the black orbs the crew had been so accustomed to, to be second eyelids. "We can wait here until you've adjusted."

She smiled, stepping in close and revealing her eyes to be almost human, though the colour was strange shimmering from blue to green.

Gary's eyes slowly adjusted to the dimmer light and as they did, he noticed Sister Abarnot's eyes as their color transformed from blue to green.

Rin took her time taking in the full experience of their surroundings. "The aesthetic has quite a few similarities to some of the religions on the Federation's capital world. The stonework and stained glass, the incense, the burning of candles in lieu of more advanced technology, the importance of the written word. I was raised in one of those faiths. I suspect I'm going to find any other similarities fascinating."

Gary remained silent as Rin gave voice to her thoughts and feelings. He wouldn't have used fascinating to describe what he was thinking. No, the word he had in mind was creepy. Still, he replied diplomatically hiding his true thoughts. "Most interesting Brother, Sister." He decided it was time to change the subject. "Sister Abanot, your eyes have a most unusual trait Do all members of your species possess that ability to change their eye color?"

She chuckled softly, shaking her head as she did. “It’s nothing that exciting, simply a pronounced tapetum which allows us to see in darker spaces.”

Gary nodded at Abanot's explanation. "I see a useful characteristic to have and please forgive my ignorance for asking such a question."

Abanot shook her head, smiling softly at Gary. "No, the only ignorance that is a sin is the willful sort, and you honour our creator with your curiosity."

Now it was Gary's turn to smile. "Thank you, Sister, for understanding. I appreciate it a great deal."

Abanot nodded softly before turning and offering a guiding hand down the corridor before walking down it herself. "Come, let's sign in your visit..."

She only made a few paces before a thought crept into her mind, a thought that as she glanced back, caused her to let out a barely audible chuckle.

"And don't worry, we won't use pen and paper."

Up ahead, at the end of the hallway, the corridor split off to either side, where they lead Gary and Rin could not say, but at the junction was clearly what the Sister had been on about, it's dim but still active screen a rare oddity of technology buried amongst the antique and chiselled masonry.

It was a pedestal of sorts, just above waist height with a blue digital screen slanted in their direction. Though as advanced as it was it wasn't free from the ceremony the rest of the room had been subjected to, with lengths of deep red cloth draped over the left and rightmost edges.

"Though unfortunately our ship's computer is a little old now, and slow... we don't really have a way to fix it but it gets the job done," Abanot remarked as she placed her palm on the screen, activating and unlocking it as the screen illuminated further and displayed a top-down view of The Wandering Child.

It was a simple map, highlighting the different sections, wings and other docked ships.

"But with this, we can link your vessel to our network and begin sharing our database." She turned, tapping on the outline of the Elysium, causing the screen to freeze and flicker slightly before a familiar-looking LCARS panel appeared.

"With your permission of course," Abanot said as she stepped back. "Oh and no, ships cannot communicate through our network to other ships, we get asked that a lot, unfortunately..."

Gary had remained quiet as he and Rin were led and talked to, their computer situation explained. Now he did speak up. "Before we do any link up between your computer network and the Elysium, I'll need to talk to Commodore Lalor first. Explain what is being done. I ask you to understand."

Sister Abanot became visibly confused as Gary spoke, her brow furling in disappointment at the news. “Perhaps there is a problem with the translation between our two peoples, I thought you were the Captain of the Elysium?”

“Sister, If I may…” Tyier said, speaking up from behind everyone else. “Perhaps it would be best if I accompanied him back to their ship while you show this one,” He said, gesturing to Rin. “To the Chapel Library.”

"I would be honored, thank you," Rin replied.

"Captain, this way please," Tyier said, gesturing back the way they had come. "I can explain more on our way back to your ship."

Gary looked at Rin. "I'll see you back aboard the Elysium, Rin." He said as he turned and walked back the way they had come with Tyler leading, walking with him as they headed for the Elysium.

Abanot watched Tyier and Gary leave, a soft sigh leaving her lips as she turned and shut off the terminal. "Come, I'm sure you have a lot of questions." She added with a sudden enthusiasm before leading Rin down one of the two corridors.