The Resilient

Dania strolled through the halls of the ship questioning her own thoughts. Perhaps she shouldn't bother April. Keith might have been sleeping or April could have needed the extra rest, but at the same time Dania needed answers. She was okay at navigation stuff herself but she would rather have a second opinion. While April might have been on maternity leave, when there was barely over 100 people left, they couldn't afford not to have people work in some ways, though she tried to keep it minimal.

Arriving at April's room, Dania knocked before letting herself in, only to see Simon already there. She walked over to the sink and started washing up first, knowing that April would murder her if she didn't. "Simon, April, good to see you." She chose to use first names since it was not technically a completely formal visit. Yes she was here about work, but she also wanted baby cuddles, and she was tired of acting so distant and just being the leader. "How is Keith doing?" She asked deciding to start with the easy small talk before bringing up what she had come here to talk about. She took a seat on a chair nearby and pulled out some maps.

"If you don't mind.... I would like you to look over some of these maps for me. I need a second opinion on how we might navigate through an area like this. I know it is going to be dangerous, but I think that Emma can handle it, and we might have a real shot of doing something that will prove of use." Dania explained before her eyes drifted over to Keith. "Um... May I?" She asked not really hiding that she really wanted to cuddle the baby.
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It was nearly an hour before John woke up. He was disoriented, understandably so. Last he remembered he had been waiting for Kathi, and... what happened? He looked across to where she was sitting, and struggled to sit slightly. His head spun as he sat up and he put his good hand to his head to try and calm it down. "What happened?" He asked her as he slowly realized where he was at least. There was some things he was starting to piece together himself, but he would rather hear the answer from someone else. John also noted that Simon was not in the room, he assumed that it was a good thing. If the doctor wasn't there then nothing could be too majorly wrong.

After a moment, while he still wasn't clear on what happened, John thought he should say something at least. "I'm sorry." He didn't really know what he was sorry for, but it felt like it was the right thing to say. He knew that he had gone to talk to Kathi, and somewhere in there he must have passed out. He might have freaked her out or hurt her or something in the area. He didn't want to have offended or hurt her in any way. She was a sort of hope for him. She meant that people did survive from the Everlasting. That there was still hope that not everyone he had ever known was dead. After all Kathi was sitting right there.

 

"Good to see you too, Admiral." Simon said despite not turning to face Dania when she entered the room. Instead, Simon moved closer to Keith as he placed the scanner back in his kit and whispered to the child, "Sorry about all the scans, kid. Don't worry, they're harmless." Of course, the small boy responded in kind with his total understanding of Simon's words by making that popping sound with his lips that April had mentioned earlier. "Attaboy." Simon smirked and slowly rose back to his feet and stretched his back before bending to pick up his case.

He took a quick glance over at April who, from what he could tell, seemed to take his words to heart. "Suppose it's time I get going." Simon turned to leave allowing the two women to discuss business, and cuddle a baby, by themselves. Simon began to head to the infirmary to drop off the medkit and as he did so he began to wonder where Emma was at the moment. Since he had crossed paths with Dania that meant that the meeting was over. Perhaps Emma was busy or she had already went to visit him, either way he wanted to make the most of his time off.

Once he neared the infirmary he stopped upon getting a direct message on the comm system from his father. "Find the time to get to the navigational sensors. We're to need to make sure whether or not the planet we're passing by has any life signs."

"What? Can't any engineer do that though?"

"The calibrations needed require medical expertise."

"Sure. I'll get onto it later. Shouldn't take me more than an hour or two." The sound of the transmission being cut came to his ears. "Uh...bye to you too." Simon rolled his eyes and shook his head as he entered the infirmary, nearly running headfirst into Kathi. Just beyond, sitting up, was John in one of the beds. From the looks of it he had just walked into some kind of serious conversation but that was not what concerned him.

"What happened here?" Simon spoke as he moved past Kathi to get a better look at John.

 

Dania nodded and patiently waited until Simon was done before scooping up Keith in her arms just as Simon was leaving. She held him, making faces at him and tickling his belly, trying to make him laugh. She was of course listening to April while she did this, but she had to take advantage of time with the baby as well. She didn't know when she would have time to pop by for cuddles again, and being one of the only babies on the ship it seemed that he was in high demand at times. It wasn't all about Keith though, April was a good friend of Dania's and Dania did enjoy the normal company. One could on't take so much talking to Garrett, he was a good enough guy and all but far too serious most of the time. There was only so much of that that Dania could take.

Taking in everything that was being said Dania looked down at the map as April spoke. "I know. I know it won't be easy. I am just.... we are desperate. We can't live on this ship forever, Keith can't live in this room forever. I want to do what is best for everyone. At this point I feel we are running out of places to go to. We get chased off most planets. Perhaps if we can make it there then we will finally be safe. I don't think there is much for life dwelling on that planet, but if it is possible, then we should take what we can get. We are fighters after all, the human race has survived this long without a home. I just hope I can be the one to end our wandering." She spoke sounding rather stressed about things. The spot that April pointed out to enter from would make the trip longer, but safer and Dania had to stop and consider it for a moment. "Safety is more important than speed to our location. As long as we can navigate to the planet or the ship then how long it takes doesn't matter, as long as we are safe, or as safe as we can be. I wish there was a better way...." She sighed.
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John ended up looking away from Kathi as she spoke to him. He tried to approach her to talk about the Everlasting and the past, but he was embarrassed about passing out and found it harder to face her. She suggested he got himself better before they went back to that conversation, and while that was understandable, it still made him a bit uncomfortable. She said not to apologize, but he couldn't help but feel bad for passing out, he went on this huge rant and then just passed out, it wasn't right but he couldn't change any of it now.

John say quiet for a long time and let Kathi finish saying everything that she had to say, which ended with his name. "Dressel." He echoed, like he was testing the name on the tip of his tongue. He sat there thinking about it for a moment. "Right... Dressel. It... It has been so long since I have spoken that name. We weren't allowed our names, not on slave ships, they didn't care." He said slowly, barely looking up at Kathi after she also spoke of her father, and just a moment before she had mentioned she was the only Rieson on the ship. "I am sorry for your loss by the way..." He said quietly seeming uncomfortable, like after he had been so eager to talk he was at a loss for words now. He hadn't known what to expect when facing Kathi again, but it was more difficult to do than he thought when he wasn't doing all the talking.

Before he could mess up more, Simon entered the room once more and John glanced over at him as he asked what had happened. John looked at Kathi for help, but spoke himself anyways trying to explain the best he could. "I- uh. Since you said it was okay to leave, I went to talk to Kathi. I guess I got worked up or something... I don't quite know, at one moment she was approaching me, then I woke up here." He explained basically all he could remember about it. There was not much else to share, not when there wasn't much else he could remember. Bits and pieces of the conversation, but it didn't matter, not in this context.

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Dania sighed as she studied the baby for a moment before looking back at her friend. "I understand your worry, I know you want to keep Keith safe and I won't ask you to leave this ship until we know it is safe the thing is..." Dania hesitated trying to figure out how to word things She didn't want to entirely push her thoughts onto April, but at the same time, it felt like a pretty universal feeling. "It is a risk, yes. It is a huge risk I know, but do you really want Kieth growing up like we had to? Growing up knowing the moment we could hold a tool, we were trained to work, knowing that all our lives were destined for work and that is it? I just... I want to see us have an actual home. Space to run, to live. I heard stories of times that children were able to run around and play all day. Times where there was little worry and where people weren't pushed to the point of trying to make child armies or do anything they could just to rise through the ranks and stop it. I want to see those days with my own eyes April. I want that for Keith and the rest of the human race. Yes I am desperate and taking risks, but at this point nothing short of that sort of risk will give us any hope of a better life." Dania argued before standing up and handing Keith back. "I am sorry, but I really must go. I need to meet with Emma, Garrett, and Cadmus as to make sure that things go as smoothly as possible." Dania informed giving April a weak smile. "Thanks for the advice. I will put it to good use."

When Dania left the room she sent out a quick page to the three that she needed to speak to before heading towards her office where she had instructed for them to meet her. It wasn't going to be a long meeting, she just needed to make sure everyone knew their places and knew the exact plan of action. She would need all hands on deck for this and she would need them all running on the same page. This little meeting was their best course of action to get to that point. After this they would all need to get whatever rest they could before the mission. ​

 

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Garrett was quick to arrive at Dania's office almost immediately after he was notified of the meeting, taking a seat to wait for the Admiral. ...And Garrett waited for the meeting to begin...while looking at his super cool robo arm. When Dania arrived he rose from his seat as a typical sign of respect shown when an officer of higher rank entered a room. "Good day, Admiral." He greeted simply.

Simon let out a quiet sigh and nodded. "Thanks for bringing him back. Looks like I was premature in the assessment of his readiness to leave." It was a small mistake but an embarrassing one nonetheless. At the very least John seemed to be fine and that was what the scan he began to take just now was showing. Nothing too out of the ordinary other than the obvious signs that John needed rest. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention this to anyone else, Kathi. Doctor patient confidentiality and all." Obviously this incident did not fall under that rule but it was merely a friendly request.

"There's not much I can do for now. Getting a few hours of shuteye is the best treatment I can prescribe for you right now." Simon spoke to John as he began to return the equipment back to their storage spaces and the medkit back in its usual spot by his desk. There was still the matter of the assignment his father had given him...and the subject of the mission he had yet to be filled in on. One way or another he had to make time to speak to Emma about it given that his father had not spared him any meaningful details.

"Think you get can to sleep on your own or would you want something to help you ease into sleep? I won't give you anything that will knock you out but there's a few natural relaxants we have laying around if you want one. Some of them make for a fine tea actually..."

 

Dania smiled and nodded at each person as they entered her office and took a seat in front of her desk. While still a formal meeting, Dania was getting tired of the formalities all the time and decided to let it slip for a bit. It felt like the last few days were all just meetings and missions and formalities and she hadn't had much of a chance to just be normal and talk to people the way many preferred, April being the exception to this. "Yes thank you all for coming." Dania said folding her hands in front of her for the time being. "I wanted to call this meeting so we could run over the details of the plan before the mission. After this meeting you will all have time to rest until the mission starts." Dania said as a way of greeting before getting down to the matter at hand.

"I consulted with April on how we should approach this. The best course of action seems to be entering here." Dania pointed to the part of the map that April had pointed out to her earlier. "Given the nature of the area, we don't know for certain all the positions of the asteroids, the best we can do is rely on educated estimates based on previous patterns of movement, meaning Emma, I expect you to be able to adjust the course as we go along according to what we see. This mission is not one in which the directions are black and white. I will be on the bridge with you. We will have a team of eight monitoring the surrounding areas and giving reports on where the best path is, as well as staying prepared for any emergency action that may need to be taken. Garrett, I would like you to set up and manage two teams. One to run the weapons and monitor for any hostiles, as well as be prepared to shoot at and break up asteroids on order if need be. The other team will be a landing team. That team can consist of people already working around the ship but make sure there are some prepared to disembark the moment we land to do some preliminary scanning. Cadmus, as for you. You will be in charge of shields and making sure that the ship remains running at all times. Keep your communicators on and on the same channels at all times. Communication here is key to the success of the mission and safety of our crew. Any questions?" Dania finished going over the basis of the mission with all the key leading players in hopes it would be enough information to aid in a successful mission.
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John sat quietly while he listened to what Kathi, then Simon had to say. He still felt a little bit guilty that he had passed out on Kathi, and even more guilty that Kathi sounded like she might have been judging the way Simon had handled things. How was simon to know that his body would react that way under stress when there was no indicating signs that it would? He didn't speak up however, not wanting to add any problems. John simply let Simon do another scan, only to come up empty handed, before relaxing back in the bed, glancing over at Kathi. "Thank you." He told her before continuing. "Perhaps I we can have a proper conversation when my body decides to cooperate better." He attempted to joke even if it wasn't really a good joke.

Turning back to Simon, John considered what he was offering. Sleep did not come easy to him anymore. He often worked himself to the point he dropped before actually sleeping. Whether it was because of the fear, the nightmares, or the pain, that he couldn't sleep, he didn't actually know, didn't care at this point. He didn't want to admit he needed the help to rest, but after a moment put his pride aside. It wasn't like he hadn't been humiliated worse in the past, this was really nothing compared to some of the stuff he had been through, but it was a new ship, new people, a new life. He wanted to be strong, but he supposed his body had to adjust first. "If you wouldn't mind, I could use some sort of sleep aid." He finally responded.

 

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"Understood, Admiral." Garrett spoke after Dania had finished giving them their orders. Considering everything seemed no more difficult to him than some of the most treacherous assignments he had been given in the past...especially given the more aggressive nature of the previous admiral. Garrett folded his arms and glanced over at Emma who, as always, maintained her enthusiasm regardless of what was going on. At least someone in this place could always be counted on to show up with a smile. It may not have been professional but it was a welcome change to the strict discipline he kept his security team following.

There did not seem to be any time for questions because almost as soon as Dania was finished explaining the mission she left. "You heard the Admiral, let's get moving." Obviously, this was directed towards Emma due to Cadmus holding a higher rank than himself. Garrett stood up and, without wasting another second, left the room without another word.

Simon, the great doctor that he was, agreed to drug the ever living daylights out of John...in a good way. The sleepy kind. It was just a relaxant to help the man sleep, nothing too serious. One pill was all it took and once the medicine was back under lock and key(nothing could be removed without his or another doctor's say), Simon dimmed the lighting. "Get some rest. I know you'll feel much better after some sleep and breakfast in the space-morning."


Finally, after having allowed John to get settled in Simon left the room after calling for his assistant to come in just to not leave the medical bay unstaffed. Once outside into the fresh open air one could only get from recycled oxygen in an airtight space vessel, Simon stretched out called for the computer to give him a location of Emma. The response he got was unsurprising. From what he could tell, she, his father, Cadmus, and Dania were in a briefing session. With nothing left to do, other than put off work his father had given him to the last possible second, he decided to wait outside the office for Emma to catch up with her once she was out.


And...almost as soon as he arrived Dania left the room, heading in the opposite direction he had just come from. Thankfully it just meant that he did not have to give a salute or...similar respectful gesture. Not long after, his father walked out. The two looked each other in the eyes for a short moment and Simon just awkwardly waved at Garrett. His father raised an eyebrow in response and left Simon to his own devices after saying, "She's inside."

 

As the next day rolled around Dania dragged herself from bed, slightly dreading the day. While in some ways there should be a lot of anticipation in it for what they might accomplish, there was also a lot of fear for the idea that they might fail. If they failed here, if something went wrong, it could mean the end of the human race, or another fifty years drifting while their numbers slowly decreased. Dania didn't give a damn if she was remembered for her work as admiral. The previous one always dreamed of the idea that he would one day be remembered, celebrated when they found a new home. Dania could care less if she was forgotten in fifty years, all she wanted was for there to be a home for them to settle. A place for the human race to thrive once more. After that, it didn't matter to her. If she died to achieve this, then she didn't care either.

Stepping from her chambers she barely bothered with breakfast, her stomach was doing enough flips that she was not convinced that she would be able to keep it down anyways. "Everyone report to stations at 0900 hours. Prepare for mission start." Dania announced over the communications system on her way towards her station. It was only about 7:30 but Damia couldn't rest anymore and needed to do something. If she could organize the crew to some extent then herself, it would help settle her, hopefully.

"Garrett can you send over the final assignments for the landing crew and weapons crew?" Dania asked through a private line of communications as she got to the bridge and took a seat at the main navigational station, looking over the plans and the maps again, mulling over every option. She wanted to make sure everything was right. Nothing felt right, nothing felt proper, every part of her screamed that this was too big of a risk, but it was too late to back down now. It was one of those moments that she wished that her father was still around. He had always been good at giving her a hug and supporting her through difficult times, and now... now he was gone, she was on her own and supposed to be that support block for others. The full weight of the decision she had made was now baring down on her and she didn't know what to do.

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