“Space is big.”  Peter Joura stared at the stars from the copilot’s seat of the shuttle as it sped back towards the USS Perseverance.  Captain Park was to his left.

She chuckled. “This is just the beginning.”  Watching his awe and wonder gave her pause.  Space had always been accessible to her.  She tried to remember the first time she had seen it.

He shook his head, his words soaked in shock.  “It just…goes and goes.  You said it was full of others.  How many others?”

Park frowned. “We were told you had achieved warp capacity within the last ten years.  I can’t understand why they would have limited access to the stars.”

Peter’s face fell, a look of loss weighing heavily in his eyes.  “As I told your Ensign Soojin and your Captain Walton…we were not worthy of it.  Our betters deemed most of the Astrid people unfit for the journey.  Our doctors performed tests that confirmed it.” His face flashed with fury before it retreated.  “Obviously, they were lying.  They were all lying.”

“I can’t speak for them or against them, Peter.  I can only speak to what is ahead of us at Astridina V.  And even then, there’s plenty we don’t know.”

“I’ve grown up believing in risk.  Didn’t make me many friends in school or at work.  I believe there’s a reason for me being here.  I’m ready.”  He glanced up and gasped as the Pathfinder-class starship came into view.  “That’s your ship?”

A broad smile filled Park’s lips.  “That is my starship.”

His eyes were wide as he took in the shape and lines.  “She’s beautiful, Captain.”

“I know.”

“Approaching Astridina V.”

Joura sat in the left-hand seat, his eyes wide.  His journey from the shuttle bay to the bridge had been ‌non-stop awe.  The incredible amount of technology on display overwhelmed him.

Captain Park sat in the center seat, watching him and the viewscreen.  The experiment was at hand.  Hazel Wallaker, at science, was keeping track of their distance as the impulse engines pushed the ship closer and closer to the line.  She said, “Approaching the previous marker.”  On Wallaker’s screen, the Perseverance’s icon neared the dashed line, reached it, and then slowly passed over it.  All eyes were on the main viewscreen.  The planet remained docile, white wispy clouds in quiet arcs.  “We’re clear, Captain.”

Park sat back in her chair, relieved.  “Standard orbit.  Let’s see what we can see.”

Wallaker stood in the alcove, running down the data they had collected. “We’ve sent down two additional probes at equidistant points on the planet.  The environment is breathable.  Samples taken from soil, plants, and air show no threats to humanoid health.  The unusual energy readings are coming from both the towers and deep within the planet.  Ground-penetrating scans suggest limited structures compared to the planet in the Thomar Expanse.”  She scrolled through her PADD.  “We’ve identified the most likely location for a doorway or entrance.”

Park asked, “Recommended course of action?”

Hazel caught the glances from her team.  There had been some vigorous discussion around that question.  “We initially considered transporters, but after examining the sensor reports from before we had Mr. Joura onboard, we reconsidered.  We’re recommending two shuttles – one with a transporter lock and the other to make the journey down to the planet.”  She added, “Both of our additional probes used their engines and thrusters in equal measure.  We’re convinced that the presence of Mr. Joura is the variable that’s changed the dynamic.”

Park glanced from screen to screen, her mind in motion.  This was the risk of the center chair.  Risk would always be at the edges of each decision.  Sometimes it would be in the center.  She turned to Wallaker, “Put it in motion.  Mr. Joura, come with me.”  She led the still awestruck man into the center of the command ring.  “We’re going to attempt a landing on the planet with our shuttle.  There is a significant risk with this, and we’re going to do everything we can to mitigate it.”

Peter stared at her, as if understanding and not understanding.  “I would like to accompany your team, Captain Park.  If this can answer questions about the Astrid people, I must insist on being a part of this mission – risks and all.”

“I’m open to it.  I’d like my chief medical officer to do a once-over with you before we make the final determination.”  He replied with a nod.  “Thank you, Mr. Joura.”

He smiled.  “Call me Peter.  If we’re going to risk our lives together, it should be as friends.”