The Hermes dropship coasted into the hangar bay it had departed from, the bay doors closing behind it. Moments later, it touched down gently in the hangar, the landing struts hissing softly. Once the rear hatch opened, both Korsa and Kasumi darted down the ramp, heading for the nearest elevator. They went into a nearby doorway and disappeared down the corridor that lay beyond it.
"While our ships Doctor and Security Chief check on our prisoner, we will give you a basic tour of the ship," Alex said as he descended the ramp. At the bottom were several Sentries, standing by to collect Alex's wrecked suit. Once the rest of the crew had disembarked, they walked on in and carried the whole thing out. The crew watched them head to the armory as they made their way towards the bridge.
"This ship is... amazing!" Luminia stuttered, at a loss for words. She took in the clean corridors and technological displays with the level of wonder that a child would show. Her four eyes were wide as saucers when she was shown the hold where the human colonists were still hibernating.
"They are all... sleeping? How are they not dead?"
"It is not too unlike when you see someone freeze on Talemkha, but different," Natalya launched into a layman's explanation of how cryo-freezing worked. Luminia was almost disbelieving but took Nats at her word. From there, it didn't take them long to reach the Officer's Deck and through that, the bridge. Luminia was further entranced by what she was witnessing and yelled in surprise at the formation of Jaesa in her main holo emitter.
"Welcome aboard the Perseus, Luminia," the AI said warmly. Though she was startled by the swirling nimbus of pixels, Lumi quickly overcame her surprise.
"Hello Jaesa. This is the place you call your home?" the Artucian woman asked.
"One of the many aboard this ship. Where you stand is what we call the Bridge. This where the Captain gives his orders and those who serve aboard the Perseus, obey his commands," Jaesa explained as she smiled at the alien woman's sense of awe.
"So, this is where everything happens?"
"Not quite but close enough," the AI told her. "The orders of what needs to be done are given here, and everyone throughout the ship obeys those orders. It's not too unlike when a chief or chieftaness, gives orders of what must happen to his or her clan or tribe."
Luminia was awestruck at the technological marvels that lay about the bridge. There was so much to take in that Lumi wanted to learn it all! With so much raw power and knowledge at hand, the only real question was where to start. Seeing her in this state, it was easy to see that the alien woman was overwhelmed with everything. The captain then beckoned to Luminia, calling her up to the Captain's deck.
"I can see that this is all a little much for you to take in. I find that one thing that helps me relax and focus, is looking at the stars," he said gently, while gesturing to the viewport.
Lumi stepped next to the tall and brawny man and looked out the window. The sight of what she saw left her speechless. She could see Talemkha just below them, a bluish white sphere that turned before her very eyes. She saw other worlds that were also nearby, each one of them orbiting the yellow star that sat in the middle of it all.
"Wow!" she exclaimed quietly as she surveyed the system. She realized then she was the first Artucian to do so in hundreds of years, possibly thousands! Despite this, she felt a rush of calming energy wash over her and felt at peace. She didn't know how long she stood there for, but she knew that it was a bit. The rest of the women had come up to stand with them and gaze at the stars themselves, taking a moment.
"Now, as I understand it," Alex said, breaking the silence, "you should adjourn to the Medical Bay, so that the good doctor can clear you medically."
"To be cleared medically? Is that to be sure I'm not sick?" Lumi asked, confused.
"To ensure that you are not allergic to anything aboard the ship, but also to check that you are not carrying any pathogens or viruses that could potentially harm us," Natalya explained as she threaded her arm in Luminia's. She then led her off the bridge and towards the exit.
"Commander Sunara, Chief Patel, please accompany Chief Engineer Vostrikov to the Medical Bay," Alexander ordered the remaining women.
"Aye aye, sir!" both women said before saluting and taking off, catching the leaving ladies before they were out of sight.
"There is also the fact that Korsa would want to update the medical database with your species. That way, we can give any of your healers down on the surface, the knowledge they need to be more effective at what they do," Nats went on.
"The war goddess can do that?!" Lumi exclaimed, shocked that they possessed the means to do so. They had left the bridge and were winding their way down a large corridor until they walked into the monorail station.
"Absolutely! There is much that we can do here, thanks to both science and technology. Though there may be things that we don't know, we keep looking for answers until we do. That is the nature of both Humans and Khontarans, always seeking more knowledge, for the betterment of all," Inari interjected, finishing Nat's train of thought for her.
Lumi's eyes nearly bugged out her head at the concept of this! For centuries, her people had fought the elements and one another just as a means of survival. To seek knowledge to make the lives of your people better was a dream that her father had. Although he had died saving her, Lumi vowed to carry on his dream and to make it a reality. Now, here she was, on the verge of doing just that and she teared up a little at the thought.
"Hey, you ok?" Pree asked as she turned and noted Luminia crying gently.
"Yes, I'll be all right!" the Artucian woman nodded vigorously as she hurried aboard the monorail cart and took a seat with the rest of the women.
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