Carpathia IV: Episode 68 - Unwelcome Guests
Space, NCCS Shadowdancer
Nobody was happy. Normally, orders were received without complaint and volunteers were rarely hard to find for other projects. This time, Aire's selection of the welcoming committee for the Saveas was met with a fair bit of grumbling from all except for Nalma. He unreservedly relished the prospect of simply being near Rhalma Savea, knowing his presence would be enough to irritate him. In addition to Aire and Nalma, the others chosen to accompany the Saveas on their tour were Teren, Minnie, Ryuu, and Teek.
The group awaited outside the shuttle bay for Rhalma and his group, occupying three shuttles which sailed into the cargo bay and plopped onto the deck one by one.
Aire: Close the bay door and pressurize.
Teren: Yes, Captain.
Teren tapped at the shuttle bay controls and the massive door slid down and sealed the shuttle bay. A few seconds later, the light over the doors turned green, signalling that it was now safe to enter. Aire turned and scanned his team briefly, all of whom took a deep breath.
Aire: According to Nalma, they'll try to insult us at every turn. Let's just get through this as best we can and we can all scream into our pillows later, alright?
Nobody said anything, simply nodding solemnly.
Aire: Let's go.
Aire opened the door to the bay with a single tap to the control pad next to it and each marched inside, doing their best to stand tall and dignified instead of trudging into what was sure to be several hours of drudgery.
Aire took point with his team behind him while they awaited opening of the shuttle doors. The two behind the lead shuttle opened first and several gruff, unpleasant tokki poured out of each, all heading straight for the lead shuttle. Arranging themselves in what must have been some sort of understood formation, each tokki holding his arm out with hands straight and fingers bent downward. Aire leaned close to Nalma and whispered.
Aire: Nalma, why does this make me feel uncomfortable?
Nalma: That's the Tokkastra First salute. The hands mimic the shape of what they consider the pure tokki ear shape.
It took considerable physical and mental effort for Aire to keep himself from rolling his eyes. Going forward, he decided it would be best to keep questions to a minimum, no matter how much his curiosity was piqued.
In the meantime, Rhalma emerged from his shuttle wearing what could only be described as the raiments of an emperor. Layers upon layers of silk robes accentuated with gold chains and gold buckles. With the cape on top of it all, Rhalma seemed to be attempting to exude the air of a mighty ruler, but came across more like cult leader.
After Rhalma finished grandstanding in front of his followers, he finally began to approach Aire and his team. However, Rhalma focused entirely on Nalma as he strode toward them with a mighty scowl on his face, punctuating the first word of his sentence as though it was an insult in itself.
Rhalma: What is he doing here?
Expecting Rhalma's irritation long before he ever set foot on the ship, Aire was ready with a quick response.
Aire: You wished for a tour of the Shadowdancer's engineering and tactical systems and Lieutenant Silaron is our chief tactical officer. He is in the best position to explain anything regarding our tactical systems you would like to know.
Rhalma's narrowed eyes told Aire that he did not like this response one bit and the conversation paused uncomfortably before Rhalma decided he did not wish to object.
Rhalma: And your... communications officer?
Another question Aire anticipated and had already prepared a response. That it was not completely a lie made it easier to deliver with sincerity.
Aire: Ensign Savea just completed a lengthy first contact assignment and is taking a few days off. I'm afraid he won't be joining us.
Rhalma, again, did not respond, though he winced at Kit's name stated as his rank and family name, clearly irritating Rhalma to Aire's satisfaction.
Aire: I understand you would like to visit our engineering and weapons systems. We have prepared a tour for you.
Rhalma: Acceptable. I would also like to send some of my associates to your kitchen to collect samples of your tokki cuisine. I want to ensure that our citizens are receiving proper nutrition.
Aire only now noticed that one of the tokki, a rough, burly sort, behind Rhalma carried a large cooler bag, big enough to fit enough food containers to feed several dozen tokki. Aire wondered if they meant to clear out the entire galley. This time, Aire took a moment to consider his response.
Aire: Well, yes, of course you can sample whatever you need to satisfy any doubts you may have. We employ tokki chefs to prepare both traditional tokki food and tokki-appropriate fare from other cultures.
Rhalma: I'm particularly interested in the other cultures. We will take what we need and examine it.
Rhalma held his hand up and snapped his fingers, prompting three of the tokki to step forward. Aire turned to Teren.
Aire: Teren, take Teek with you and go with them.
Teren: Understood, Captain.
Teren beckoned the three tokki to follow while nodding at Teek.
Teren: This way, please. Teek.
Teek: Yes, Commander.
The three tokki followed Teren out of the shuttle bay while Aire returned his attention to Rhalma.
Aire: This way. I figure we can start with engineering. I can introduce the others along the way.
With a flip of his cape, Rhalma started for the door with his entourage in tow.
Rhalma: Very well. Let's see what makes this bucket move.
Minnie leaned in close to Aire and whispered.
Minnie: Captain...
Aire had a pretty good sense that Minnie was already on a low boil and he held his hand up to stop her before she could go further.
Aire: I know, Chief. Let's just keep it together for the next couple of hours.
Commissioned art in this episode from:
AvareonArt
Zelbunnii
Thatwildmary
Colourbrand
