— USS Selene, Briefing Room 1 —

Every week the Academy staff on board sat in on the daily briefing between the Selene’s captain and its senior staff.  They talked about what they needed from the crew and got ideas about what was upcoming that would be learning opportunities for the Starfleet Cadets that were aboard. It was neither their nor the captain’s preferred way of starting a day, but it was proving to be helpful.

“We’ll be arriving tomorrow at a class m planet,” said Chief Science Officer Gabriella Miller, bringing up the long range scans of the planet on the monitor. As a science ship she often lead the conversation pointing out what it was that the science department needed to study and where they wanted to go. The other departments, particularly Security, would chime in if the location of the trip was not going to work for some reason.

Miller continued, “We’d like to orbit it, there’s a pre-warp civilization in the southern hemisphere that we want to study through blinds and long range observation.”

Captain Carrillo glanced around the table, waiting for objections. Likely Miller had already spoken with Security and cleared it, as so far out there they had not come across much in the way of hostile ships or anything threatening from a tactical standpoint. When no objections came she nodded, “Okay, how many days do you want?”

Miller answered, “Let’s start with three and go from there.”

Carrillo nodded, “Alright. Anything else?”
Travis McCleod, one of the two administrators from the Academy that were on the Selene, leaned forward, “Is the northern hemisphere occupied?”

Miller shook her head, “Not that we know of, and at their fastest I’d estimate that it would take our population six weeks to travel there. Plus there’s an ocean which they’re not seeming to cross. Why?”

McCleod looked to his right where his co-administrator Doctor Mueller was sitting. He gestured to the screen with his head, trying to send a message to Mueller. She nodded and said, “We’d like to give the students practice on planet. We’ve run holodeck lessons, but to actually get on a real planet would be great.”

The captain looked at her Chief Science Officer, “Could we do that?”

“We’ll use the runabout Zeus for our study, and leave the shuttles to the students,” Miller mused, “With supervision I’d have no problem with it.”

Carrillo nodded, looking back to the Academy staff, “We’ll send the students down in the eight type eight shuttles we have. Everyone send some junior officers down with them just to supervise. Take two from each department. Meanwhile science you do your science thing.”

— Planetside, Southern Hemisphere —

Lieutenant Óskar Erosarson activated the holographic camouflage causing the blind to blend into foliage. They’d chosen a place away from the main path and road where they’d not seen any evidence of people going so they would hopefully remained undisturbed. The anthologist next activated electronic viewing ports allowing them to see as if through a window, but in reality it was a screen similar to the large one on the bridge. With it they could zoom in, to get a better look at the lives being lived out in the village.

Lieutenant Eshita Elizabeth Das had been made the new Assistant Chief Science officer, which meant that she had to switch from being a specialist in Astrometrics to a generalist helping to lead a department.

“They’re settling in for the night,” he said, as the busy central market became much less busy. It was clearly a pre-electricity species, one where light had to come from flame as opposed to light bulbs. That however meant that there was not a lot to do until the morning when they’d have to get up to the locals’ activities. A few sentries were still patrolling on the outskirts of town, but their actions would be captured by the cameras that were hidden and pointed at the settlement.

“What kind of rations do you get on these deployments?” Das asked, setting up the perimeter alarm, so if they both fell asleep nobody could sneak up on them, at least nobody without a cloaking device.”

“Probably about what the students are going to get,” Erosarson answered, “We don’t get to bring a replicator unless we’re doing a weeks of months long study.”

Das knew why they did this, it was both to learn the specifics of a new race, one that may one day join them in space and it was also a way of learning about their own civilizations. You could not really go back to ancient Earth and observe the first humans nor could one do the same to the Vulcans, Andorians and so forth. However many aspects of early life seemed to be general. Seeing how one species developed gave you hints as to what your own past was.

Erosarson dug out a chicken in curry sauce, not sure an Indian woman would appreciate a curry that was likely packaged on a Starbase, weeks ago when she was used to the real thing. He personally found it easier to eat some Italian or even Vulcan rations than Skyr yogurt of another Icelandic dish. He offered it to Eshita, but she opted instead for a soup with Trill vegetables floating in a salt broth. The packages were constructed to heat their continents up when opened, thus you never needed a device to eat them, as they came properly reheated. They each opened their container and used the utensils that they’d brought down as part of the mobile blind setup kit.

“You still dating that guy in intelligence?” Erosarson asked making conversation. On long deployments rumours and scuttlebutt were the life blood of a ship’s social life. The tea flowed through the corridors of the Selene, one might say.

“It was the doctor,” Das said, trying to maneuver a pinkish root vegetable onto her spoon, “Doctor Elordi.”

“The Romulan?” Erosarson asked, thinking that he had always through of Eshita as someone who preferred to date men, but realizing that it was a conclusion he had no reason to jump to.

Das shook her head, “No, the guy, he was, probably still is, human.”

Erosarson made a note of that, he had been right even though his evidence for the conclusion had been too small of a sample size. He did not know the medical staff that well, having never been sick and only having dealt with nurses for minor issues. 

“What happened,” he asked.
Das finished her mouthful of soup and said, “Not everything has a big important reason, or a terrible story. We just didn’t click. Dated for about a month, but  never had that spark you know.”

Erosarson nodded and focused on his food thinking, finding that spark was important. It was hard to do, but finding someone to have fun with on an assignment even if they weren’t your ‘forever person’ was important too. Space could be isolating, it was one reason he enjoyed deployments planet side like this survey. You got to breath in non-recycled air, and see new stars from the ground.

“There’s nothing on the monitors, want to go for a walk, see the stars?” He asked.

“Don’t you see enough stars on the Selene?” Das asked.

“They look different through an atmosphere,” Erosarson said putting his bowl in the small sink, “Come on.”

They walked through the woods, away from the town and the population. Darkness kept them concealed from the locals. After a bit they knew that they could talk without the sound dampeners from the blind.

“You ever seen the Northern Lights on Earth?” Das asked.

“I’m from Iceland, of course,” Erosarson answered.

“I took a trip to the Yukon in second year at the Academy to see them, and as soon as I did, I knew what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to see the beauty of existence, and explain it,” Das said, “How could something exist and be so beautiful and perfect. Then you find out that it’s just the tip of an iceberg.”

Erosarson looked at her and said the cheesy line, “That’s exactly what I’m wondering right now.”

Das laughed, “What a line, you’re saying I’m beautiful and perfect?”

Erosarson nodded, “If I’m not overstepping ma’am.”

Das knew that she could shut this down at any time, but just like Erosarson she was young and assigned to the USS Selene to not only perform her duty, but also define herself and build a life. “It’s a really bad line,” she said, it was so bad that it was kind of endearing. 

She took his hand, “Come on we should go back to the blind.”

Erosarson nodded, feeling her more slender hand in his. He lead her back through the forest and into the hidden blind.