driftfleet | (no subject)

Who: Dr. Crusher
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: Marsiva
When: Now

[The first thing Beverly becomes aware of is how cold she is. Something must be wrong with the environmental controls. She rolls over on her side and opens her eyes. Time to call Geordi-

Suddenly she sits up in alarm. This is not her bed. These are not her quarters. And this is certainly not the Enterprise. A big picture window on the other side of the room, open to the familiar view of a star field flying past, tells her that this is a starship of some sort, at least, though the design is not like any she’s ever seen before.

Reflexively, she taps the place on her chest where her combadge would normally be located. Upon discovering its disappearance, she clutches at the empty space on her uniform. Take some deep breaths. One, two. Okay, what’s the last thing you remember? They were all in Will’s quarters, playing poker, and Deanna was triumphantly revealing a royal flush, then … nothing.

Standing up, she begins to search the area for anything that might give her a clue as to what’s happened. That’s when she finds the communicator, sitting on a small table near her bunk. Tentatively, she turns it on, ignoring for the moment the disconcerting fact that she knows exactly how this device works, despite its obvious differences from Starfleet communicators.]

Hello? If anybody is listening, this is Dr. Beverly Crusher of the U.S.S. Enterprise. I am trying to get in contact with my ship. Please respond.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[GOOD LUCK he does this for the reactions so he'll just be watching with some amount of amusement.]

If they even know you're gone.

[She finally decides he's just from... whatever part of the galaxy we're in right now.]

Considering I disappeared in the middle of a poker game, I'm pretty sure they'll notice.

[Just wait until she finds out he's from Earth.]

My son was brought here from the same point as myself, but arrived a couple weeks earlier. I highly doubt anybody's noticed you've gone.

Oh.

[Pause as she processes this.]

I suppose it's a relief in a way. At least they aren't going to be worrying too much.

[Yes. A relief. You tell yourself that, Bev.]

A relief in that they won't worry, but not so much in the fact that you're stranded here with the rest of us.

[He laughs a little. He's really a kind of an upbeat guy despite the face and the situation.]

That seems to be the general feeling going around. You're glad they aren't worried, but you'd really like a way to escape or get rescued.

[She smiles, just a little.]

Exactly.

At least I'm not completely alone.

[Because she's been there before and let's not repeat it.]

There you go, look on the bright side. And you'll be transferred off there and onto another ship soon enough, so you'll get the chance to meet some other people.

[He grins a little and then takes a moment to think.]

Oh, but I'm being rude. Cole Turner, I'm assigned to the Wonderduck as her communications officer. And I don't normally look like this.

Nice to meet you. And if I may ask, what do you normally look like?

It's nice to meet you as well. And I look like this. [And he shifts into his humans form without any fanfare.] I find that it's easier when people know exactly what they're dealing with so it doesn't become an issue in the future. Unless someone is already prejudiced against me, but there's not helping that.

[Admittedly, her eyes do widen a bit at that. She's only seen non-corporeal beings transform like that. He certainly seems corporeal enough and the way he's talking about it hints that this is something very different from what she's encountered before. But it's not her place to pry.]

Fortunately, where I come from, we've learned to be a little more... enlightened on such matters. Hopefully, we'll get to know each other a little better in the near future?

[There is some amusement on his face as he notices her eyes widen. Though if she asks, he would tell her. He has no shame in what he is.]

I am glad to hear that, at least. Oh, I'm sure we will. When you get transferred onto your more permanent ship, you're more than welcome to contact me at any time.

Thank you.

[She smiles.]

I'll be in touch.