driftfleet | the veil is thin . . .

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the veil is thin . . .

[ On the night of the 16th, the feeling of tension and horrid anticipation comes to a head. Everything stops when the sun goes down-- even the ever-present music in the hoppingest part of the city center. One by one, everyone turns their eyes to the skies. The young and old alike pour out of their houses, some in bare feet, and they point to the velvety blanket of stars.

It takes a second to find it, especially if one is unaccustomed to the starscape. But even a casual observer can see it.

A brightly-shining star, larger than the others, and growing larger.

An announcement cuts across all communication channels that encourages people to evacuate to the space station, but it’s clear that these are just people and they’ll need some help. Supplies, equipment, organization, there’s something for everyone to do.

Civilization is disrupted by a panicked stampede of people vying for limited seats aboard spacefaring craft. Within hours, there will be crushed glass, looting, and chaos.

The clock is ticking. Will you help? Or would you rather watch the dying gasps of a Singing Planet from a safe distance? ]

[OOC: Please see this post for plot details. Phase two has begun! Feel free to use this post as a reaction post, mingle, etc. or make your own!]

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[One of Felix's brows arches up. Laying it on a little thick there, Chekov. His head jerks up for one quick moment but then he returns to his task.]

I can't speak for your friends, but "hero" seems like too strong a descriptor.

[For him, though those specific words are unspoken. This isn't heroic, he's not a hero. Though he doesn't say those words either, because it's not like Chekov explicitly called him one anyway. Maybe he's interpreting wrong. But on the off chance he's not: still not a hero.]

[Chekov doesn't see Felix's reaction, engrossed as he is in the information in front of him. Also? These are perfectly standard levels of laying-on!]

Does it? We may have different working definitions of the word. Something to argue about when no worlds are ending, maybe.

[His tone is light and demeanor casual, but the act is becoming less convincing as the crisis continues. He's as tired and anxious as anyone.]

[Okay, that? That gets a tired huff of laughter from Felix. No matter how tightly wound he is right now, that sort of dry commentary is a lot of why he appreciates Chekov. For a couple seconds he lets himself hang onto that, to the humor.]

Sounds like a plan.

[For a while after that he dives back into the work in front of him. There's so much to be done, task after task after task. That's fine for Felix. If he doesn't have to stop and think about anything except supplies and trajectories until this is all over, that would be great.

But it's not like he doesn't notice the way that Chekov is slowly fraying at the edges. It's not unique to him, of course, but he seems like he's putting in effort not to appear that way. It's something Felix easily notices because he so often suppresses emotion that way. That still doesn't mean that Chekov is exactly like him. He might appreciate words where Felix would normally appreciate silence.

There's no real point where the workflow stops, but there are ebbs in the tide of demands. During one of these, Felix glances over at Chekov. His tone is conversational, but it sounds like he's actually interested in the answer.]

You're handling yourself really well. Not your first time in a crisis?

[He's pleased with himself for getting anything like a laugh in a situation like this. Pavel is of the opinion that humor can be the difference between maintaining some semblance of sanity and giving in to pressure in high-stress crises that stretch out over hours and days.

The work goes on and on and they continue to work in tandem. Chekov occasionally glances over at Felix in the beats between problems, trying to assess how concerned he should be about the other man. It's not his job to take care of him and there are infinitely many other things to be worried about, but an important part of working on the bridge of the Enterprise was being sensitive to the well-being of crewmates. A crew that takes care of its own is a strong one. (That said, Felix isn't the easiest person to read. Chekov goes for moderate concern, to be reassessed and possibly upgraded later.)

Pavel is reassessing his own state during the lull in the action when Felix speaks. It's a welcome distraction from the growing anxiety that none of this will be enough.

He stifles a yawn and smiles.] I have served on a starship under Captain James Kirk, famous for finding a new crisis every week, for five years. ...Of course, most of them are not quite to this scale.

That definitely sounds familiar. Although in our case, I don't think it had much to do with my commanding officer.

[More like it had to do with being on the run from genocidal robots but you know what, maybe Felix doesn't have to put that out there. This isn't supposed to be about him anyway.]

What's the normal scale?

[He's half curious, and half conscious that maybe not focusing on work for one moment but also not talking or thinking about the impending meteor impact might be a good thing. For both of them. The fact that Chekov smiles as he answers the question is another reason why Felix continues to engage this line of discussion.]

[Pavel looks very like someone who would like to ask for elaboration, but he has had a lot friends with tragic backstories who are uncomfortable revealing too much too quickly. Since now is not the time to push boundaries, he boxes up his curiosity and stores it for later. Probably a later when lives aren't in peril.

Anyway, he's happy to think about his work at home and not impending doom for a moment. He loves what he does. It's the dream he spent his childhood working for--the thing that he left his father and Russia and Earth for.]

Comparatively small. Mostly diplomatic incidences, contact with exotic forms of life... the occasional localized temporal anomaly or incursion of another universe into ours. There have been only four incidences on the scale of a planet. [quietly and with sudden solemnity:] We saved nearly everyone three of those times.

[Felix's immediate thought is "three isn't four", but it's not something he actively voices. He understands why Chekov mentioned it at all - or thinks he does - and in any event if Chekov is as similar to him as he thinks....he knows Chekov knows that three isn't four. Probably all too well.

He respects the moment by staying silent but nodding. After a few seconds, he raises an eyebrow though, returning to a lighter topic without really addressing the heavier one.]

Incursions of another universe? That's....different.

[Three isn't four at all! He doesn't usually allude to Vulcan, but that planet's destruction is at the forefront of his mind when there's an opportunity to think at all. It was worse than this: seven billion dead on his first mission, his commanding officer's mother dead because he wasn't fast enough or smart enough to save her.

Anyway, other universes are a lot more fun. Pavel's smile returns like it was never gone.]

It is. Strange things happen in uncharted space. [He frowns thoughtfully.] Of course, the Enterprise is also crewed by the most innovative and reckless officers in Starfleet. Now that I think on it, a number of our extremely different experiences were caused by us.

I guess it must take a real sense of adventure to serve there.

[His tone continues to be light, but he's not entirely joking. That sounds...like an environment that only certain people would enjoy and thrive in.

Although, maybe that's a redundant statement, considering what he knows of Enterprise's purpose. It's an exploratory vessel. Having a sense of adventure - to some extent - is probably why people signed up in the first place. But recklessness and a sense of adventure don't necessarily have to go hand in hand.]

I suppose so. [Not that Pavel thinks of himself as particularly adventurous. It's not that uncommon for a person to leave their home at fourteen and then their entire planet at seventeen, right?] It's exciting--the unknown, I mean. Every mission is a mystery, even the ones that we think we're prepared for.

[People sure don't join the crew of the Enterprise if they want routine, security, or even regular communication with loved ones. There's a reason they're a young crew. Fewer attachments, less fear of the danger inherent in exploring the unknown.]

[Chekov, pls. That is the definition of adventurous.

Felix hums, a short sound of consideration. His head tilts to the side a little.]

I'm not sure it sounds like my kind of thing. But I think I can understand.

[Maybe it really is something to do with youth (although, okay, Kirk can't be that much younger than Felix). Or.....maybe it's just the amount of uncertainty he lived with for the last four years of his life back home. Either/or. But then he did enlist in the fleet at a relatively young age (not as young as Chekov) and that impulse still....really didn't have to do with the ~unknown~ or anything like that.]

Do you? I don't always. [He smiles down at his current task and takes a moment to send off another set of flight plans.] I joined Starfleet for two reasons: first to navigate, and second to feel that I serve some small purpose in the universe. Sometimes I wonder if the excitement and the mystery are my kind of thing.

Were your motivations to join very different?

[Pavel is aware that many people who pursue a military career have different motivations than those who prefer exploration: patriotism, protectiveness, pride. Fear. But he doesn't think that those things motivated Felix. In a different reality where Earth is at war with the Klingons or the Romulans and Starfleet is a military operation, Chekov imagines that he still would have joined for the very same reasons.]

...No, not really. I mean. There wasn't much of chance to navigate until after the Cylons hit. But the service aspect...

[He'd just wanted to do something. Well, something in space, something on a Fleet ship. He didn't necessarily want his feet on the ground.

Maybe there was a spark of exploration and curiosity to him. Once.]

I wanted to help people. I guess. In a certain way.

[Joining the military isn't the most peaceful way to have accomplished that, but....they had. Helped people. There hadn't been a war when he signed up. He'd never expected one.]

A good motivation.

[Is there any other safe comment to make? This is not the time to ask about Cylons and whatever tragedy killed so many and presumably launched a war (that time will probably never happen honestly) or if Felix feels that he was able to accomplish that goal.]

In a way, we are fortunate to have an opportunity to use our knowledge to help people here... even if, ideally, no one would be in a position where this help is needed.

[It really isn't ever going to be the time to ask Felix if he feels like he accomplished that goal. Well. Never a good time.

He tips his head to the side slightly, and then nods. It's a tired acquiescence, but he knows that Chekov isn't wrong. The Atroma are not good people, for subjecting the Fleet to all this.

...But the fact that they're here is good for the native population. They can do good. That's still...important.]

That's true.

Still kind of hate it. But it's true.

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