by
Lord Thanatos
16/14/10
–
Scenes:
19.
A pile of the other white meat
SCENE
1: Third contact
Eisinga:
“Thank you for receiving me, Your Highness… It is very generous of you to
invite an envoy to your world… And to offer the rest of the crew the
enjoyment of your beautiful world as well…”
The
2 men are sitting at a picnic table in the large village square… All the
houses in the village are the same light earth color as the sand and dust on the
ground.
Ogavvi:
“Please, don’t be so formal with the Highness stuff… It could only serve
to keep a distance between 2 peoples…”
Eisinga
smiles…
Eisinga:
“It sounds like your people have experience dealing with first contact
situations…”
Ogavvi:
“The first time was over 600 years ago… And because it wasn’t a pleasant
experience, it was also the last…”
Ogavvi
smiles as well…
Eisinga:
“Really? Well, until now that is…”
Ogavvi:
“Indeed…”
Eisinga:
“All the more special to allow us on your planet…”
Ogavvi
smile too.
Ogavvi:
“I like to think I’m a good judge of character… Come to think of it, I do
think we had first contact a few weeks ago…”
Eisinga:
“You think you had?”
Ogavvi:
“Well, I’m pretty sure… But we never got to see their faces… It was
rather intimidating…”
Eisinga
is immediately alerted…
Eisinga:
“What did they say? Did they ask you to leave your planet?”
Ogavvi:
“Well, they didn’t exactly ask… But how did you know?”
Eisinga:
“If they are who I think they are, we’ve had the ‘pleasure’ ourselves…
They are the Inj and I sincerely hope for you they don’t come back… They
destroyed a complete Federation colony over 6 months ago, killing all 136 people
on the surface…”
Ogavvi:
“I’m sorry to hear that, commander… But what do they want? They told us to
leave this planet… What would they want with it?”
Eisinga:
“I don’t know… They also wanted Utis VIII for unclear reasons. All the
resources that can be found on Utis VIII can easily be found elsewhere…”
Ogavvi:
“I can’t possibly evacuate 5.8 million people…”
Eisinga:
“No, of course not…”
Ogavvi:
“They landed just beyond that hill over there…”
Eisinga:
“They landed?”
Ogavvi:
“Yes…”
Eisinga:
“They never landed on Utis VIII or on any other world we know they visited…
They only sent threats and weapons fire from orbit…”
Ogavvi:
“Maybe they landed to make repairs…”
Eisinga:
“Possible… Would you mind if we examined the landing site? For obvious
reasons we’d like to find the Inj… Any information we can gather on them
could be most useful…”
Ogavvi:
“Of course… If you share your findings with our science department…”
Eisinga:
“Gladly…”
A
little distance away Just Amato is accompanied by a male local, Nuseddim, in a
walk…
Amato:
“So that’s the leader of your world over there with the commander?”
Nuseddim:
“Yes…”
Amato:
“Just walking around like he’s just the guy next-door?”
Nuseddim:
“Actually, I live 2 houses over… That’s his house over there…”
He
points at a house, exactly like all other houses in the street…
Amato:
“That’s the house of your world leader?”
Nuseddim:
“Like he himself says: ‘You can’t be
a leader if you don’t know what life is about…’. You can’t see what
life is about if you’re hidden away in some huge palace given orders from a
golden chair…”
Amato’s
reaction tells his new friend there’s some logic to it…
SCENE
2: High praise
Grant:
“I don’t want you to break the prime directive captain, but as an additional
order you are to make friends wherever you can… You never know when you need a
good friend when you’re far from home…”
LT:
“For when the Inj decide to attack again…”
Grant:
“For instance…”
LT:
“Well, then you’ll be delighted to know making friends here on Rismap is not
going to be a problem…”
Grant:
“Good. Well, that’s all for now captain.”
LT:
“Hold on admiral, I have some more news from Rismap. Commander Eisinga just
informed me that the Inj have most likely been here.”
Grant:
“Really? Well, finally some result then… Very good.”
LT:
“It even seems they have landed on the planet. Eisinga is checking out the
landing site as we speak; we hope to find some interesting data.”
Grant:
“Keep me posted.”
LT:
“Of course sir.”
Grant:
“Grant out.”
SCENE
3: The shrubber
Eisinga
with his small team of science officers and Ogavvi with his small security
complement arrive at the landing site. The same light earth color adorns the
plain that lies between some hills… The plain is lined with the occasional
boulder and several different types of shrubbery…
Eisinga:
“So what did your people find here, Ogavvi?”
Ogavvi:
“Just some discarded hull plating, nuts and bolts… It’s all still
here…”
Eisinga
walks up to a piece of buckled hull plating of about 1 by 1.5 meters… He
crouches down next to it and moves his hand over it…
Eisinga:
“They indeed must have done some repairs here… How long were they here?”
Ogavvi:
“All reports indicate somewhere between 15 and 20 minutes…”
Eisinga:
“Hmmm, a quick pitstop then…”
Ogavvi:
“No one saw them here; they were only observed from a distance when they
landed and later took off again…”
Stilson
walks up to the commander.
Stilson:
“Sir, all these fragments are definitely Inj.”
Eisinga:
“I was afraid of that, crewman. Continue gathering any data you can.”
Stilson:
“Yes sir.”
Ogavvi:
“The last war we were involved in ended well over half a millennium ago. I
can’t say I’m too keen on being involved in another one.”
Eisinga:
“Was that war the result of your first first contact?”
Ogavvi:
“Indeed… We were actually near extinction, just 160.000 of us remained. But
we kicked their butts… We killed each and every one of them… We wouldn’t
have been able to fight off another armada of their ships, but not even a single
enemy ship was ever sighted again…”
Ogavvi
pauses shortly whilst continuing to stare into nothingness.
Ogavvi:
“But even if they came back today, the 5.8 million people on this planet today
couldn’t do much against an attack of the same magnitude our people faced 6
centuries ago…”
He
now turns his face to Eisinga.
Ogavvi:
“Before the war there were 4.1 billion of us…”
Eisinga:
“4.1 billion? And there were just 160.000 left after the attack?”
While
the 2 men converse some more, they are unaware of someone spying on them in the
shrubbery near the edge of the plain. The skin of the scout is considerably
paler than that of anyone else present. When he has seen enough, he discretely
disappears…Moments later, wearing nothing more than a loin cloth, he climbs up
on the side of a rocky hill and enters a hidden entrance to a cave system.
Several others, equally pale and similarly dressed, are waiting there.
Scout:
“I’ve seen them, Emat… The darkskins… I don’t know which is which, but
I’ve seen 2 different species of alien, sir. It’s worse than we
thought…”
Emat:
“Damn! I knew it. We’ve waited far too long… The Tiaz are still here,
apparently with some more alien friends… What can you say about their
numbers?”
Scout:
“Hard to tell… I’ve seen their village, there are about 500, 600 houses…
But there could be millions of them all over the planet…”
Emat:
“I doubt that… But anyway, let’s get down to the council pit… We need to
discuss what to do next with the entire council…”
The
paleskins disappear deeper into the dark caves…
SCENE
4: Run from the hills
Amato
and Nuseddim are now walking outside the village…
Nuseddim:
“We’re almost there…”
Amato
throws in a joke.
Amato:
“I’ve had grand tours on a few beautiful planets before, this better be
good…”
They
pass over the summit of a hill… A valley is revealed in front of them… A
stream cuts through the landscape… On the other side of the stream is the
highest hill in the area. The steep slope, with only rocks and boulders, reaches
from high in the sky all the way down to the stream. All kinds of plants and
small trees can be seen on both sides of the water, except for on the rocky
slope. Amato is just amazed…
Amato:
“Holy shit…”
Nuseddim:
“’Holy shit’? What does that
mean?”
Amato:
“Oh, ehm… On Earth that’s an expression of surprise; best forget it… But
what a stunning place…”
Nuseddim:
“I told you…”
Amato:
“Come on, let’s get down there… Is that water safe to drink?”
Amato
starts walking down towards the stream… Nuseddim semi-reluctantly follows…
Nuseddim:
“Well, yes it is… But we can’t stay too long; we should be getting back
soon…”
Amato:
“Sure, let’s just get a drink of water, look around for a second and we’ll
go back…”
Nuseddim:
“Well, ok then… Perhaps I could use a drink of water too…”
They
arrive at the stream… Amato looks around in wonder…
Amato:
“Absolutely beautiful…”
Amato
kneels at the waterline and uses his cupped hands to drink from the clear water
in the stream… Nuseddim also drinks some water and washes his face… In that
process he suddenly freezes, shortly later removes his hands from his face and
asks Amato something…
Nuseddim:
“Do you hear that?”
Amato:
“Hear what?”
Nuseddim:
“That rumble…”
Amato:
“I don’t hear…”
The
ensign is stopped in the middle of his reply when the rumble suddenly becomes
louder than his voice… Rocks cascade down the slope on the other side of the
stream... A dust cloud reaches them just a second after they both start running
away from the stream… Boulders the size of obese Klingons are flying around…
Visibility is near zero and they lose sight of each other. A short while later
the thunderous roar seizes and the dust starts to settle slowly… Amato wipes
the dirt from his face and spits out even more… He gets back on his feet…
With his hand above his squinting eyes he starts to look for Nuseddim.
Amato:
“Nuseddim!”
No
reply from the alien... He walks around at random trying to find him. The low
visibility doesn’t help Amato... Suddenly he remembers the ship in orbit. He
feels for his badge, but it’s not on his chest anymore…
Amato:
“Dammit…”
He
continues to call out his friend’s name and carefully navigates across the
freshly deposited rocks and boulders…
Amato:
“Nuseddim! Nuseddim!”
Still
nothing. Suddenly he sees a foot. The downside is it seems to be sticking out
from under a large boulder… Amato quickly makes his way to the boulder… He
discovers that the boulder is only covering Nuseddim’s leg…
Amato:
“Nuseddim, can you hear me?”
No
reply… Amato checks if he is still breathing, which is the case… He then
tries to roll the boulder from Nuseddim’s leg, but it’s way too heavy... It
becomes clear he cannot do anything for Nuseddim.
Amato:
“If you can somehow hear me, I’m going to get help. I’ll be back as soon
as I can…”
With
a worried look on his face he heads back to the village as quick as he can…
SCENE
5: Caveman assembly
The
council pit, located in a spacious natural chamber in the rock, has a large
table with 20 seats, all carved from the rock like all 3 staircases leading down
into the pit. All seats are occupied. One of them sits half a meter higher than
the rest. In front of that elevated chair, occupied by Emat, the leader of these
people, is a stone lectern, hewn out of the rock as part of the table.
Emat:
“We do not know how many of them there are…”
Council
member #1: “I say we attack… We can easily take that one village at least,
if we surprise them.”
Scout:
“I agree… I’ve seen them; we can take them. We have a formidable army;
they only have a few guards to defend a few hundred peasants. No match.”
Council
member #2: “Why such aggressive measures? Why not try a diplomatic solution
first?”
Council
member #1: “And lose the element of surprise? No!”
Council
member #3: “How can you speak of diplomacy when you know that these darkskins
invaded our planet?!”
Scout:
“The planet belongs to us; both the underground cities and the
surface…”
Council
member #1: “Especially the surface; they stole it from us…”
Council
member #2: “Why attack now? Can’t we wait a little longer to let it all sink
in first?”
Council
member #4: “Let’s not waste any more time. We need to attack!”
The
council members all start talking and yelling at the same time… After a few
seconds, the leader beats his cylindrical stone gavel on the lectern. The sound
it generates is loud and echoes through the council pit… And after a few hits
on the lectern it is the only sound heard.
Emat:
“I think it’s time to vote… All those in favor of attacking?”
16
out of 20 raise their hand.
Emat:
“All those opposed?”
The
remaining 3 raise their hand. Emat himself doesn’t appear to have a vote.
Emat:
“Ready the army; we attack tonight.”
SCENE
6: The eagle has landed
Eisinga
has joined the captain in his ready room. With his best imitation skills, LT
quotes the admiral…
LT:
“And then he said ‘Very good’. I
mean, is that meant as a compliment?”
Eisinga:
“Hard to say… The admiral isn’t the kind of guy to give compliments…”
LT:
“No, not really huh?... Well, let’s see what he has to say about it…”
The
man with the goatee hails the admiral whom appears on his screen moments later.
Grant:
“Captain.”
LT:
“Admiral, about the supposed Inj landing site… Commander Eisinga and his
team have confirmed it is indeed the Inj who landed on Rismap.”
Grant:
“Very good… Let astrometrics create a map of all known Inj sightings,
perhaps we can extrapolate a route or a pattern from it now.”
Eisinga:
“This is Commander Eisinga sir. Astrometrics is already on it.”
Grant:
“Good. Adjust your heading accordingly as soon as astrometrics is done
captain.”
LT:
“Understood sir.”
During
the captain’s reply, he admiral broke contact.
Eisinga:
“Hmmm… I hope he was in a hurry…”
LT:
“No, he’s just a thoroughly unpleasant man, but at least he’s always
brief.”
SCENE
7:
Amato
is panting like a dog when he dashes into the village… He finds the nearest
colleague and rips the badge from his uniform and taps it…
Colleague:
“Hey!”
Amato:
“Greate Pier, this is Ensign Amato. This is an emergency. Holcraft, can you
locate my badge? I lost it…”
Holcraft:
“Yes, ensign… I located it nearly a mile from your present location…”
Amato:
“Send a medical team to that location immediately. Also bring a portable
tractorbeam.”
Maresca:
“I’m on it…”
Holcraft:
“A portable tractorbeam?”
Amato:
“Yes, someone is stuck under a boulder… Just hurry…”
Amato
hands the badge back to his colleague whom has a puzzled look on his face…
Amato:
“Thanks.”
And
he runs off again, heading back towards the accident site.
A short while later Doctor Shelley and Nurse Halstead beam down to the
surface together with an engineer carrying a portable tractorbeam. The dust has
nearly completely settled by now so the team can quickly locate the victim. The
doctor kneels beside the victim and scans him with her medical tricorder.
Shelley:
“He’s stable; he hasn’t even lost much blood… But both will probably
change as soon as the boulder is lifted from his leg… Shelley to transporter
room 1. Prepare to beam us directly to sickbay on my command.”
Bynes:
“Understood doctor, standing by.”
Shelley:
“Please try to lift the boulder as gently as possible. Halstead, keep scanning
him.”
Shelley
hands the medical tricorder to the nurse.
Halstead:
“Yes doctor.”
Engineer:
“Please remember that the tractorbeam needs to be deactivated before we beam
up. The 2 systems might interfere with each other.”
The
engineer activates the tractorbeam and slowly starts to lift the boulder up…
Amato comes running down the hillside... As soon as he reaches the team he asks
the doctor a question with a worried look on his face still…
Amato:
“How is he, doctor?”
Shelley:
“I think he’ll live, ensign… But that’s as much as I can tell you right
now…”
The
engineer has lifted the boulder from the alien and now needs to get it out of
the way.
Engineer:
“Please stand aside, ensign. You don’t want to get crushed by this thing as
well…”
Amato
moves out of the away.
Amato:
“I’d deserve it… This is all my fault… If I didn’t insist on coming
here, the rock slide would never have hurt anyone…”
Shelley:
“Status?”
Halstead:
“He’s starting to bleed heavily doctor…”
The
engineer quickly dumps the boulder.
Shelley:
“Transporter room, now!”
All
present are beamed to sickbay. The doctor and the nurse start working on
repairing all the damage they can.
Amato:
“Is he going to be alright doctor? It’s all my fault…”
The
doctor is too busy to answer. The engineer meanwhile picks up the portable
tractorbeam and just before he walks out of sickbay he replies to Amato’s
worries.
Engineer:
“You didn’t create the rock slide, ensign. Don’t be too hard on
yourself.”
Amato:
“Well, the rock was hard on him…”
The
worried ensign walks up to the biobed.
Amato:
“Doctor?”
Shelley:
“He’s going to live, ensign; I’ve stopped the bleeding. But he’s going
to lose his leg…”
Amato:
“He’s going to lose his leg? Oh no, you can’t be serious… There must be
something you can do to save it…”
Shelley:
“Do you want to do something for me, ensign?”
Amato:
“Of course doctor, anything to help…”
Shelley:
“Get out. Report to Crewman Cole in the lounge. Let her take a look at your
cuts.”
Amato
sighs…
Amato:
“Do everything you can doctor… All off this is because…”
The
doctor doesn’t allow Just to complete his sentence.
Shelley:
“Out!”
He
complies.
SCENE
8: Run away
Night
has fallen over the village. Most of the few people still out on the streets are
guards. One of those guards is in the square, on the edge of the village. He
suddenly hears something. His eyes turn to the wooded area just outside the
village… He walks a bit closer and shines a flashlight in the direction of the
noise… He then sees the light of his torch reflect in a pair of eyes, which
immediately squint.
Guard
#1: “Who’s there? This is no time to be roaming outside the village…”
No
answer.
Guard
#1: “Come on… I won’t tell your mother, just come with me and I’ll bring
you home kid…”
More
eyes start reflecting the guard’s light. A few become many pretty quickly and
when the guard moves the beam of light to the left it lights up a few pale
creatures holding rocks and pointed sticks…
Guard
#1: “What the…?”
Then
a stone is thrown at the guard, more soon follow. But the guard isn’t going to
wait around for one to actually hit him… While he runs away, he taps a button
on his wristband.
Guard
#1: “Trouble at the north entrance! Activate the force fields and get
inside!”
Shortly
after an alarm is sounded and force fields are activated around all windows and
doors of all buildings in the town. An army of thousands of paleskins quickly
fills up the square and all the streets in town. They try to enter the homes of
the people, but when they reach for doors or windows, the force fields give off
a shock. The sound of the shocks is heard all over. The people inside are rudely
awoken and are terrified. Not able to use doors or windows, the invaders start
damaging walls with their spears. The guard reaches the guard station safely but
out of breath. There are 4 of his colleagues there… The sound of yelling and
spears jabbing into the walls is loud; the guards must speak up to make
themselves heard.
Guard
#1: “There must be thousands of them!”
Guard
#2: “Thousands? Who are they?”
Guard
#1: “I don’t know, I’ve never seen them before… They must be the Inj the
Greate Pier crew were talking about…”
Guard
#3 looks out of the window…
Guard
#3: “I thought those Inj creatures were black… These things are just about
white…”
Guard
#1: “Whatever they are, they’re angry…”
Guard
#2: “Yes, but there’s nothing we can do from in here… If we lower the
force fields and open the door we’ll get butchered…”
Guard
#3: “Well, we have to do something; the people depend on us… We’re
supposed to keep them safe!”
Guard
#1: “We couldn’t have seen this coming…”
Guard
#2: “No. But we do have to deal with it… I suggest we contact the
Greate Pier. Perhaps they’re willing to send some help down. We could let them
beam us and their security staff to a location outside the village… They might
have greater numbers, but they can’t win from our phasers.”
Guard
#1: “Alright, let’s do it…”
Guard
#2: “Great Pier, this is Guard Station 143. We have a slight situation on our
hands…”
A
while later the 5 guards are beamed to a woody location outside the village.
Shortly after several teams of armed Greate Pier crew beam down to the surface.
Reinard:
“Good morning, gentlemen. You needed some help?”
Guard
#2: “Well, a lot of help really… There are probably thousands of them.
They’ll tear the village apart if we don’t hurry…”
Reinard:
“We’ll see what we can do…”
More
and more armed crew beam down in groups of 5.
Reinard:
“How many men do you have?”
Guard
#2: “Well, just the 5 of us…”
Reinard:
“Just you 5?”
Guard
#2: “It’s a small village…”
Guard
#3: “With a big problem…”
Guard
#1: “We need to get moving, before it’s too late…”
The
last team appears on the surface. The guards are amazed by the great number of
Greate Pier crew.
Guard
#2: “How many people fit on that ship of yours?”
Reinard:
“5 times more than you see here… I thought 100 would be enough…”
The
commander increases the volume of his voice in order to reach all the people.
Reinard:
“Listen up people. You all know what to do; use those phasers! Let’s
go…”
The
105 man strong counterstrike team heads towards the village. Once they reach the
border, some paleskins spot them and attack. A few phaser hits take care of
them. The phaser fire draws the attention of a lot more of the pale skinned
undergrounders. The pressure is really on when hundreds of them start to attack
the good guys… Stones and spears rain down from the sky, but most of them
don’t reach. The phasers of the Rismapeans and the Greate Pier crew fire
continuously to keep the enemy at bay. And it seems to be working… The
projectiles seize to fly through the air. Reinard screams from the top of his
lungs.
Reinard:
“Seize fire! Seize fire!”
Shortly
thereafter no more shots are fired.
Reinard:
“Move in slowly, but fire your weapons only when necessary…”
The
whole team complies. They slowly move in with their weapons pointed at the
dissipating crowd of undergrounders. Wounded cavemen are carried or dragged with
them. While Reinard and his team slowly flush the invaders out it becomes
apparent there’s a lot of damage to the houses in the village. A few dead
bodies of undergrounders can be seen here and there. No further shots are
necessary to clear the village. When they reach the north entrance they halt and
make sure the attackers keep on running.
SCENE
9: Bring out your dead
Early
the next morning dozens of armed men and women are present in the square, both
Rismapeans and Greate Pier crew. 2 Rismapean men, carrying the dead body of an
undergrounder, approach Crewman Cole.
Rismapean
#1: “Where do you want the bodies, crewman?”
Cole:
“Over by the wall, please…”
She
points in the direction of the low wall surrounding the village, some 50 meters
away, near the northern entrance, where the attackers entered the village the
night before.
Rismapean
#2: “They sure are ugly…”
Rismapean
#1: “Definitely not from around here…”
And
they carry the body to the wall…
SCENE
10: The origin of species
Ogavvi:
“Sorry we had to call on our friendship already, commander… Thank you for
sending down security and medical staff to help out.”
Eisinga:
“No problem at all… Glad we could help…”
Ogavvi:
“And thank you also for taking care of Nuseddim after the accident
yesterday…”
Eisinga:
“I heard his leg regrettably could not be saved…”
Ogavvi:
“Quite unfortunate… But are you sure the attackers are not those Inj fellows
you were talking about?”
Eisinga:
“The difference in height is nearly a meter and the Inj are black, not
white… I’m very sure… Besides, the Inj may be relatively primitive
compared to you or me, but the creatures that attacked us last night where armed
with no more than sticks and stones… None the less they still are able to
break your bones when they come in those great numbers…”
Ogavvi:
“Indeed… 2 of our villagers were killed… The attackers managed to break
down the wall of a house and killed the man inside… Another man who was
outside when they came was also murdered. Next to that we have just a few
wounded…”
Eisinga:
“Serious enough anyway… And you are sure they are not the Tiaz, whom
attacked you 600 years ago?”
Ogavvi:
“Yes, I’m very sure as well… I’ve read many books detailing the attacks
on our world. Many of them accurately describe their physical features and some
even have sketches or photographs in them. The Tiaz have a much darker skin than
we have…”
Eisinga:
“It wouldn’t have made sense anyway… You don’t come to a planet in a
something as sophisticated as an interstellar spaceship and attack the
inhabitants with rocks… They’re probably from this planet or at least
have been here a long while…”
Ogavvi:
“I don’t know if that makes any more sense to be honest… If there was
another intelligent species on this planet, I think we would have known about
it…”
Eisinga:
“Hmmm, I can’t explain it either…”
SCENE
11: Doctor dilemma
Doctor
Shelley is outside the northern entrance of the village. Her medical tricorder
is flipped open and she’s apparently scanning the ground…
Shelley:
“A blood trail…”
She
looks ahead to where the trail is leading, but returns to the village… At that
very moment the captain beams down to the surface, in the middle of the square.
The doctor immediately spots him and calls out for him.
Shelley:
“Captain…”
The
2 start walking towards each other.
LT:
“What’s up doc?”
Shelley:
“I need permission to go and help the victims…”
LT:
“You don’t need permission for that, doctor… I was assuming you’d
already be on it…”
Shelley:
“All the Rismapeans have been treated already, sir… I need to help the…”
The
captain isn’t happy and interrupts the doctor…
LT:
“…the attackers? Absolutely not. Are you out of your mind? They’d kill you
on sight! Besides, they were using sticks and stones as weapons, they’re
obviously pre-warp…”
Shelley:
“Then you agree that if they still hurl rocks at their enemies they don’t
have osteogenic stimulators or dermal regenerators.”
LT:
“I agree… But the prime directive states…”
The
doctor now interrupts the captain.
Shelley:
“I don’t consider myself bound by the prime directive if it conflicts with
my Hippocratic Oath…”
LT:
“You are hereby under direct orders to adhere to the prime directive. Listen
doctor, I’d love to help them. But first of all, they’ll try to crack your
skull open with a rock and probably eat the contents. And second, we don’t
even know where they are…”
Shelley:
“I’m sure I can find them sir, I…”
LT
interrupts back.
LT:
“The answer is no, doctor…”
The
doctor sighs…
LT:
“Are we clear on that?”
Shelley:
“
LT:
“Now, let’s see if I can find Eisinga…”
The
captain walks off… Doctor Shelley walks in a different direction, towards
Cole, who is examining the dead bodies of the attackers.
Cole:
“Ah, doctor… I’ve established the cause of death in all of them… 2 of
them were trampled by their pale friends and all of the 22 others were killed
with phaser blasts.”
Shelley:
“Phaser blasts? I thought Reinard told his crew to set the phasers to heavy
stun…”
Cole:
“He apparently did… But the phasers of the Rismapean guards were not on
stun, so it seems…”
Shelley:
“I see…”
Cole:
“But I’ve found something else doctor… Something big…”
Shelley:
“Something big? Like what?”
Cole:
“Like they’re not alien… They’re the same race as the Rismapeans…
Their DNA is virtually the same…”
Shelley:
“Really? But they look so different… The skin, their eyes…”
Cole:
“I think it’s because they live underground, doctor… They suffer from
hypocalcaemia among other things… They have unusually low levels of vitamin D,
magnesium… And I’ve also seen some other things consistent with decreased
dietary intake and decreased sun exposure… Or non existent sun
exposure…”
Shelley
puts her thinking cap on and after a few seconds she softly utters some words…
Shelley:
“They’re the same species…”
She
then looks at Cole and her PADD…
Shelley:
“Is that the PADD with the DNA comparison?”
Cole:
“Yes…”
Shelley:
“Can I borrow that from you for a while?”
Cole:
“Of course…”
She
hands her superior the PADD. Shelley then grabs another PADD from her medical
bag and pushes as series of buttons…
Shelley:
“Give this to any superior who asks where I am…”
Shelley
hands Cole the PADD.
Cole:
“Doctor?”
Shelley:
“Can I trust you not to read it?”
Cole:
“Of course doctor… But where are you going?”
Shelley:
“I’m taking these medkits if you don’t mind…”
Cole:
“No problem, all my patients are dead… But where are you going?”
Shelley
doesn’t answer and leaves the village via the nearby northern entrance.
SCENE
12: Sick humor
Amato
is in sickbay visiting his friend.
Nuseddim:
“Don’t worry about it… I needed the rest anyway… I’ve been working way
too hard…”
Amato:
“I just had to go and see the stream, and now you’re suffering
the horrible consequences…”
Nuseddim:
“Don’t beat yourself up… It was an accident… Or at least I hope
so… If not, you could have just asked me to leave you alone if you didn’t
like me, hahaha…”
Amato
manages to show a smile…
Amato:
“Of course it was an accident…”
Nuseddim:
“Good, then we finally agree on that… Stop whining, it’s just a leg… I
have another one.”
Amato
keeps smiling but shakes his head slightly…
SCENE
13: Just add DNA
LT
has joined Eisinga and Ogavvi.
LT:
“Have you found out who they were?”
Eisinga:
“Not really…”
Ogavvi:
“We established they are not the Inj and not our old enemy, the Tiaz…”
LT:
“Our ship’s scanners haven’t picked up any species other than your own on
the entire surface… It seems to be a real mystery…”
Ogavvi:
“Maybe they did leave in space ships…”
Eisinga:
“Well, I still submit that people who have space ships don’t throw rocks at
their enemy…”
Ogavvi:
“How else do you explain their disappearance then? There were thousands of
them… They didn’t just disappear into thin air…”
LT:
“My crew would’ve known about any ships entering or leaving this system…
But didn’t they leave any footprints?”
Eisinga:
“The area to the north is rocky…”
LT:
“Well, there must be an explanation… And whatever that may be, we’ll find
it Ogavvi… I’m going to ask our doctor for DNA scans on the dead aliens and
enter that data into the computer together with their physical parameters; maybe
that’ll give us an idea who they are…”
Ogavvi:
“Any help you can give us is welcome, captain…”
LT:
“We’ll get to the bottom of this…”
SCENE
14: Blood trail
Shelley
is following the trail of blood she found earlier… She moved well into the
rocky area described by Eisinga earlier. She scans the ground with her medical
tricorder to find the next drops of blood… The tricorder suddenly points her
in the upward direction, up a steep rock wall… As soon as she looks up she
sees one of the undergrounders. She gasps, startled. She immediately ducks to
avoid a stone being hurled at her cranium. She then raises her hand.
Shelley:
“I’m here to help, I’m a doctor! I won’t hurt you… Would be nice if
you didn’t try to hurt me as well…”
The
doctor can just see the eyes of the hiding undergrounder behind a ledge. She
raises her other hand with the medkits.
Shelley:
“I’ve got medical supplies… I want to help you treat your wounded…”
The
undergrounder is joined by a few more…
Shelley:
“You can check my medical equipment if you like…”
She
puts down her medkits and backs up a few meters…
Shelley:
“And look, I’m not armed…”
She
shows the inside of her doctor’s coat and turns around...
The leader sends down 4 undergrounders.
One of them checks out the medkits and takes them up to the ledge and
disappears. The other 3 approach the doctor.
Scout:
“Come with us…”
She’s
pushed into the direction of the wall and is forced to climb up…
Shelley:
“No need to push…”
Scout:
“Just hurry…”
The
doctor climbs up on the ledge and sees a hole… An entrance to the cave system.
She disappears into the hole with her captors…
SCENE
15: Not very Shelley
The
captain approaches Crewman Cole.
LT:
“Crewman, where is Doctor Shelley? I have new orders for her…”
Cole:
“She isn’t here sir; I have no idea where she went… But she told me to
give you this…”
Yasmine
hands the captain the PADD.
LT:
“What’s this?”
Cole:
“I don’t know sir… I haven’t read it.”
The
captain reads the message on the PADD.
LT:
“Dammit!”
Cole:
“What is it sir?”
The
captain breathes a deep sigh…
LT:
“She’s helping the wounded…”
Cole:
“And that’s wrong, how?”
LT:
“LT to Greate Pier… Scan the surface for Doctor Shelley and beam her onboard
immediately…”
Holcraft:
“Just a second sir…”
Holcraft
scans the surface as requested. No prize.
Holcraft:
“She’s not on the surface captain.”
LT:
“Is she onboard then?”
Holcraft:
“No, internal sensors don’t pick her up… And there’s no transporter log
of her return either…”
LT:
“Keep scanning and inform me as soon as you find her…”
Holcraft:
“Understood…”
LT:
“And have Reinard assemble a fully armed search team to locate her.”
Holcraft:
“I’m on it sir…”
SCENE
16: Broken home
Amato
and Nuseddim, using crutches, are walking through the streets of the village…
They see the damage inflicted by the attackers.
Amato:
“What an unbelievable mess…”
Nuseddim:
“Indeed… It gives me little hope for my own house…”
Amato:
“Let’s hope for the best…”
The
2 men turn around the corner and Nuseddim’s house appears in sight. It seems
to have suffered the same fate as most other houses…
Nuseddim:
“It seems my house wasn’t spared either…”
Amato:
“Well, at least the damage is to the outside only. And don’t worry; I’ll
help you patch up your home… Even if I have to stay behind when the ship
leaves orbit. I can take up some leave.”
Nuseddim:
“Please Just, it’s really not necessary…”
Amato:
“You’re disabled now…”
Nuseddim:
“I’ll manage…”
Amato:
“You disabled and it’s because of me.”
The
alien smiles…
Nuseddim:
“You give yourself far too much credit…”
Amato:
“Helping to fix up your place is the least I can do…”
Nuseddim:
“Will it shut you up if I say I’ll think about it?”
Amato
laughs…
Amato:
“Maybe…”
SCENE
17: Goonies
Doctor
Shelley is tending to the wounded undergrounders. She set up a small light right
next to her patient to be able to see in the dark room… There are 2 guards
with spears closely monitoring her every move… There are at least 2 dozen
wounded in the room. Doctor Shelley stands up, picks up the light and tries to
move to the next patient. One of the guards is in her way…
Shelley:
“Do you mind?”
Reluctantly,
the guard moves out of the way. The leader of the undergrounders walks in. While
he approaches the doctor and the guards he can overhear the doctor’s
monologue.
Shelley:
“There’s more than enough room to host a horse race here; why do you need to
stand so close all the time? There’s only one entrance to this room, go stand
at the door if you think I’ll escape... Just get out of my way; I’m here to
help these people…”
Emat
is noticed by the 2 guards. He nods to signify to them to do as the doctor told.
Both the guards move to the door and
stand guard. The doctor continues to treat her patients.
Emat:
“Thank you for coming doctor… Your medical knowledge surpasses ours. Please
excuse the presence of the guards, but we didn’t know what to think of your
coming.”
Without
looking up at Emat she replies.
Shelley:
“I understand.”
Emat:
“Is there anything you need doctor?”
Shelley:
“Just keep the guards off my back. I’m here to help and I don’t need those
goons standing in the way… Other than that, I have everything I need so far.
Although, I could use some light in here…”
Emat:
“Our eyes are very sensitive to light, doctor… We’re used to being down
here…”
Shelley:
“Perhaps, but there’s one thing that puzzles me…”
Emat:
“And that is?”
Shelley:
“Why are you here? Why don’t you live on the surface with the others?”
Emat:
“The others? There aren’t any of our kind on the surface…”
Shelley:
“Yes, there are. And you attacked them!”
Emat:
“We attacked the darkskins! The Tiaz! They conquered our world… Our
world!”
Shelley:
“You attacked the Rismapeans…”
Emat:
“You’re nuts, lady… And if I hadn’t seen you perform your medical skills
I would have decided you weren’t mentally capable of doing it…”
Shelley:
“Flattery will get you nowhere. Stop being so quick to judge and just take a
look at this…”
Shelley
hands him a PADD with the DNA comparison as proof…
Emat:
“What’s this?”
Shelley:
“Proof.”
She
points out some things on the PADD…
Shelley:
“This is the DNA of your people… And here is the DNA of the people you’ve
attacked… Aside from some very minute differences, they’re a match. You are
the same species.”
She
continues with the understatement of the year.
Shelley:
“You just look a little paler than them because you’re never exposed to any
sunlight.”
Emat:
“I don’t know what any of this means…”
He
hands the PADD back; he’s not convinced at all…
Emat:
“You’re talking nonsense, woman…”
He
walks off into the direction of the guarded doorway.
Emat:
“If you do need anything, just ask one of… the goons…”
The
leader exits and the doctor continues her work.
SCENE
18: Do the math
Meanwhile,
LT is in his ready room. He’s standing in the middle of the room with his arms
crossed, staring out of the window high above his desk. The door chime is heard.
Without moving, the captain gives permission to enter.
LT:
“Come in…”
Commander
Eisinga steps in…
Eisinga:
“Ogavvi should be here within a few minutes.”
LT:
“Good, good… Gives me some time to ask you for your opinion…”
Eisinga:
“On what?”
LT
finally stops staring outside… The men both take their normal places… The
captain puts his feet up on the couch and the commander occupies the chair…
LT:
“On when you regard a people as a new race… What if a group of people
separates from society for some reason? They completely go their own way; they
live under different circumstances, they reproduce, they evolve in their own
way… When do you consider them a separate race, a different species…?”
Eisinga:
“Well, it’s hard to tell… Just take the example of the Romulans and the
Vulcans; they share a common ancestry… There are some slight physiological
differences, but that took hundreds and hundreds of years…”
LT:
“I have a little dilemma on my hands…”
Eisinga:
“Which is?”
LT:
“The doctor asked me if she could medically assist the attackers…”
Eisinga:
“What? She can’t be serious…”
LT:
“My thoughts exactly… So I made clear to her that because of their choice of
weapons we could assume they are pre-warp and therefore cannot not help them,
according to the prime directive.”
Eisinga:
“Let me guess; she went anyway?”
LT:
“After Crewman Cole discovered they are the same race…”
Eisinga:
“Who? The Rismapeans and the attackers?”
LT:
“Indeed…”
Eisinga:
“No way…”
LT:
“It’s true though… Which would mean that the cave dwellers are effectively
warp capable because the surface dwellers are… Unless they
should be considered to be a race of their own; that’s why I asked your
opinion.”
Eisinga:
“But it’s still hard to believe; they look totally different… Then
again, they might look different, but if you put an African, an Asian and
a European guy next to each other, they all look considerably different as well,
but they’re all regarded as human.”
LT:
“True. The attackers apparently evolved slightly different and all evidence
indicates they might be living in caves or something…”
Eisinga:
“Well, they came from the north… There are caves to the north…”
LT:
“Exactly…”
Eisinga:
“But… if they are the same race, why did they attack the village?”
LT:
“Neither people know they are the same race yet… That’s why I needed you
to invite Ogavvi…”
The
door chime is heard again…
Eisinga:
“Speak of the devil…”
LT:
“Come in…”
A
crew member shows Ogavvi in and leaves. LT takes his feet off the couch and
offers a seat to the Rismapean world leader.
LT:
“Please, sit down.”
Ogavvi:
“Thank you…”
LT:
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to come straight to the point.”
While
he parks himself on the hide, Ogavvi answers.
Ogavvi:
“Of course, please do…”
LT:
“We know who the attackers are…”
Ogavvi:
“Really? Who are they?”
LT:
“They are… Rismapean…”
Ogavvi:
“What?… What do you mean?”
LT:
“Your people and the attackers share the same DNA…”
The
captain picks up a PADD from the desk and hands it to Ogavvi… While the
captain continues his explanation, the Rismapean leader reads the PADD.
LT:
“According to Crewman Cole, the attackers show all the signs of a lack of
exposure to sunlight…”
Eisinga:
“Just north of your village is an extensive cave system. Is it possible they
live in there?”
Ogavvi:
“The caves? I don’t see how… They’ve been sealed since the war with the
Tiaz.”
LT:
“Why were they sealed?”
Ogavvi:
“When the Tiaz attacked, many people fled into the caves… The Tiaz found out
about it and blew up all entrances to the entire cave system…”
Eisinga:
“Isn’t it possible they survived somehow?”
Ogavvi:
“For 600 years? I don’t see how… The history books tell us that over
40.000 people went in hiding in those caves… Even if they resorted to
cannibalism they could never have sustained themselves for very long… With the
entrances sealed they had no fresh air, no light, no food and too little
water… After the war the caves became a war monument and were forbidden to
enter.”
Reinard:
“Search team to captain LT.”
LT:
“Yes Reinard, report.”
Reinard:
“We think we know where she might be sir; we found an entrance…”
Ogavvi:
“She? Who is she? An entrance to what?”
LT:
“Our chief medical officer decided on her own to offer medical assistance to
the attackers. I assume you found an entrance to a cave of some sort,
commander?”
Reinard:
“Correct sir… Can we proceed sir?”
LT:
“Apparently commander, those caves are regarded as a war monument.”
Ogavvi:
“If you promise not to go in with guns blazing, you may enter… I also want
your doctor returned safely, but with as little violence as possible…”
LT:
“Did you get that, Reinard?”
Reinard:
“Understood. Reinard out. Alright people… We’re moving in…”
As
soon as the last man, Lieutenant Kerr, is in the cave and the team moves forward
they immediately spot undergrounders further down the tunnel…
Reinard:
“Hold your positions… Let’s see if I can open up some negotiations.
Don’t point your weapons at them…”
All
men point their weapons to the floor. Reinard puts a few steps ahead… More and
more undergrounders gather in the tunnel ahead.
Reinard:
“I am Commander Reinard of the USS Greate Pier. We just want to negotiate for
the release of our doctor… There’s no need for further violence…”
A
few spears are thrown in the direction of the search party…
Kerr:
“I don’t think they agree sir…”
Reinard:
“A tactical retreat seems in order… Out!”
The
attackers march forward… By firing only a few warning shots the team keeps
them at bay long enough to exit the cave unharmed… Soon after, the
subterranean people pour out of the same small hole and give chase to
Reinard’s team. The attackers are not gaining on them, but they’re not
backing off either… While hastily making for the village Reinard decides to
request some much needed assistance.
Reinard:
“Reinard to Greate Pier. They might live in caves, but they don’t fear the
daylight… We’re under attack. They’re on our heels…”
Maresca:
“Do you need a beam out commander?”
Reinard:
“Negative. Inform the guard station and send down the troops from the ship
again… Arrange a welcoming party at the northern village wall…
Maresca:
“Understood.”
The
search party keeps running… A short while later the square in the village is
empty until a large number of guards storms around the corner towards the
wall… When they take up their positions the first armed crew beam down from
the ship and join the Rismapean guards. Meanwhile, the search team is still
working out…
Kerr:
“I can’t believe we’re running from them… We’re not cowards!”
Reinard:
“No, we’re not cowards… But we can do math… 6 versus a few 1,000
equals ‘run’!”
The
team reaches the village and joins the forces behind the wall. When the
undergrounders approach some warning shots are fired to the ground in front of
them… The paleskins back off a little… Their leader starts pacing back and
forth in front of his troops like a good army general, addressing them with
words the men and women in the village can’t make out.
Ogavvi, LT and Eisinga beam down to the
surface as well…
Ogavvi:
“Status?”
Reinard:
“They’re holding ground over there…”
Ogavvi
takes few steps beyond the wall and shouts at the enemy.
Ogavvi:
“We need to talk! Who represents you?”
No
reply. Emat ignores him.
Ogavvi:
“I am the leader of my people. I need to speak with your leader.”
No
answer from the undergrounders… Ogavvi walks back to behind the wall.
Eisinga:
“I think that might be the leader… The one addressing the army… Why
don’t we beam him to Ogavvi’s home so we can talk?”
LT:
“It’s risky… Without a leader they’re likely to do anything ranging from
fleeing to attacking…”
Ogavvi:
“If they flee it’s no problem. Then again, if they attack it’s no problem
either. These men and women chased them off before. With the added advantage
that the enemy already knows what our phasers can do.”
LT
nods…
LT:
“Alright…”
Emat
is still addressing his army…
Emat:
“They might have those guns of theirs, but there is no way they can kill us
all… They took the surface hundreds of years ago, but now they’ve set foot
in our caves as well… This is…”
During
his sentence, he dematerializes in front of his men. He appears again in
Ogavvi’s home. At the door there are 2 guards holding phaser rifles. LT,
Eisinga and Ogavvi are sitting around a table with a vacant chair pulled out.
The alien is startled at first, but soon realizes there is no escape…
Ogavvi:
“Please, don’t be frightened… We’re not going to hurt you; we just want
to talk. Are you the leader of the attacking forces?”
After
a short pause the paleskin answers…
Emat:
“Yes, I am… I am Emat.”
Ogavvi:
“Please, sit down Emat…”
He
clearly still is a little uncomfortable but does sit down.
Emat:
“How did you…?”
Eisinga
wants to get to the point quickly…
Eisinga:
“That’s a long story, but not important right now… First there’s another
matter that needs to be addressed…”
Emat:
“You’ve stolen our planet from us! Why should I even listen to you?”
LT:
“Because neither of us is Tiaz. Commander Eisinga here and I are human; Ogavvi
is the leader of the Rismapeans…”
Emat:
“Rismapeans? Oh please, how thick do you think I am? WE are the
Rismapeans…”
Ogavvi:
“You’re right; you are… As unlikely as it seems, you and I are the same
species…”
SCENE
19: A pile of the other white meat
Meanwhile,
the worst case scenario unfolds outside; the undergrounders attack. But as
predicted, the surface folk, aided by the Greate Pier crew, manage to keep them
at a distance. Rocks and spears mostly fall short of their target and more and
more stunned cave dwellers pile up on the ground.
SCENE
20: Something fishy
The
noise of the fighting outside can be continuously heard in Ogavvi’s house.
Emat:
“You’re the darkskins; the Tiaz! Look, this is ridiculous!”
Ogavvi:
“’Ridiculous’; that’s what I
thought at first… We don’t look alike very much. But our people hid in the
caves after the war with the Tiaz. All of us living on the surface today are
descendants of the 160.000 survivors that remained on the surface after the Tiaz
were defeated…”
Emat:
“Defeated?”
Ogavvi:
“Yes, believe it or not, but they were defeated... Your people, the
descendants of the original 40,000 people who hid in the caves, have adapted to
life in there. Your skin color is different because of a lack of sunlight, your
eyes adapted to dark conditions…”
Emat:
“40,000? 18,402 to be exact.”
LT:
“Clearly there are many things that need to be adjusted in the history
books… But let’s focus on the problem at hand… We can give you proof of
our claim that the surface and the cave people are one and the same race. We can
at least prove nobody is a threat to you… But your people are attacking the
village as we speak. Let’s at least stop the fighting while we talk.”
The
undergrounder thinks for a few seconds and then nods…
Emat:
“Alright…”
Ogavvi:
“As a sign of good faith, we’re going to let you go so you can order your
men to stop the attack. As a sign of good faith in return you could first of all
bring the doctor back to us and then return here yourself to continue our
talks…”
He
simply nods. Ogavvi then nods to the 2 guards who immediately stand aside. One
of them opens the door… All present exit the house and walk towards the
battleground. While holding up his hand, the underground leader walks out of the
village and approaches his army. The attack seizes immediately. The phasers stop
as well after a command from Ogavvi. Emat talks with his men in the distance and
soon thereafter the doctor appears from the pale crowd. Both the doctor and Emat
return to the village…
LT:
“Are you ok doctor?”
Shelley:
“Of course…”
LT:
“What were you thinking doctor? You could have…”
The
doctor rudely interrupts.
Shelley:
“Not now captain. You can nail me to the wall later… Right now I need to get
back to my patients… One is still in critical condition.”
LT
rolls his eyes and gestures the doctor to get out of here, which she does. The
commander protests, but keeps his voice down so Emat doesn’t hear it.
Eisinga:
“Sir, now they have every chance of using her as a hostage at any time if the
talks go sour…”
LT:
“Perhaps. But I don’t think I can convince Shelley to stay… Besides, from
the attacker’s point of view, we could hold the supreme caveman over there
hostage just as well… It seems balanced enough to me.”
Ogavvi:
“Shall we continue, gentlemen?”
The
four of them walk towards the picnic table where Eisinga and Ogavvi talked the
day before.
Ogavvi:
“You mentioned some 18,000 people went into hiding in the caves? How many of
you are there now?”
Emat:
“Just over 61,000… Most of them are trained soldiers… We might not have
those guns you have…”
Ogavvi
wants to change subjects to something a bit less negative…
Ogavvi:
“You’re most welcome of course, but why did you come out of the caves? And
why now?”
Emat:
“There have always been people who wanted to go back to the surface, despite
having been born in the caves themselves… Recently, the number of people who
wanted to return to the surface formed the majority… We decided to send scouts
first to see what the situation was like… We assumed that you were the Tiaz…
When our ancestors fled into the caves they brought very little else than the
bare necessities… We only have a few books and diaries from those days… They
did not have any photos in them, but some did have descriptions of the Tiaz.
According to those descriptions they had dark skin. And compared to our skin,
your skins are dark…”
LT:
“Your skepticism towards our story seems to have faded a bit…”
Emat:
“Well, let’s just say I still would like to see the evidence you claim to
have, but this is too elaborate a scheme for the Tiaz… They only know
violence… The Tiaz would not have sent a small search team to retrieve your
doctor, but they would have sent an army in to eradicate us all…”
Eisinga:
“How did so many people survive and apparently thrive down there?”
Emat:
“We’re lucky there’s fish in the underground river… It doesn’t just
carry water from the mountain, but also comes from a nearby lake that has fish
in it… It runs through the area, rather than under it… Other
sources of nutrition besides fish are fungi, spiders, bats, …”
Eisinga
expresses his revulsion.
Eisinga:
“Oh disgusting!”
Serrag
suddenly appears out of nowhere.
Serrag:
“I agree; I don’t like fish either…”
All
present look at the Vulcan as he walks off…
SCENE
21: A leg up
Amato
and Nuseddim are in the latter’s home.
Amato:
“The attack seems to have stopped…”
Nuseddim:
“Good… I need rest to heal up, hahaha…”
Amato:
“’Heal up’, right…”
Nuseddim:
“Well, it’ll take about a year…”
Amato:
“A year? What will take a year?”
Nuseddim:
“Well, for me to heal… I just told you, hahaha…”
Amato:
“I don’t think there’s much to heal, I’m afraid… I’m sure the doctor
took care of any infection you might have had…”
Nuseddim:
“That’s not what I meant… What I mean is that my leg needs about a year to
grow back…”
Amato
looks puzzled while he almost completely repeats the sentence…
Amato:
“It takes about a year… for your leg to grow back… Right, are you pulling mine
now?”
Nuseddim
looks puzzled now…
Nuseddim:
“Ehm… No? It will take about a year…”
Amato:
“So… what you’re saying is… your leg will grow back?”
Nuseddim:
“Of course it will…”
Amato
starts laughing loudly…
Amato:
“Hahahaha, your leg will grow back!”
Nuseddim:
“Doesn’t it work the same for your species then?”
Amato
just keeps on laughing but does find the time to answer somewhere…
Amato:
“No! Hahaha!”
Nuseddim:
“Holy shit!”
Nuseddim
joins in the laughter…
Amato:
“If you lose a leg, you lose a leg…”
Nuseddim:
“I understand now why you were so upset about it, hahaha…”
Amato
puts on a serious face again…
Amato:
“Our species might be biologically different in that respect, but I’m sure
the pain involved must have been comparable…”
Nuseddim:
“I don’t know, I was out cold, remember? Now shut up, before I knock you
out cold…”
Both
men laugh again…
LT:
“Captain’s log, stardate 63679.68… Time heals all wounds is what they
say… Luckily for Nuseddim, and also Amato, that seems to be the fortunate
truth… The surface and cave-dwelling Rismapeans both accepted they are one and
the same race, thus removing any doubt whether or not the prime directive was
broken. We agreed to stay in contact with the Rismapeans regarding the Inj…
They did ask us to stay and help them fight off the Inj if they return… We
can’t, unfortunately… We need to continue our mission; there are probably
dozens if not hundreds of races being threatened by the Inj. The Rismapeans,
well, at least those from the surface, are not a warlike race, but do have
formidable security forces; especially since the cave dwellers rejoined their
society… I’m sure they’ll break a leg…”