A Whisper Of What's To Come

Posted on Thu Feb 18th, 2021 @ 12:20pm by Captain Abigail Laurens & Lieutenant Commander Evelyn Rozia & Lieutenant Alanah Matashi & Lieutenant Commander William Gunnison & Lieutenant Commander William Rogers & Commander Ichiko Gail & Lieutenant Commander Calvin Morgan & Lieutenant Roxa Onaix

Mission: New Beginnings

Abigail stepped through the doors of Transporter Room One, casting a quick glance around at the assembly of her senior staff that were waiting on her. Straightening her tunic, she stepped through the gathering and onto the transporter pad, motioning for the rest of the group to join her before turning her attention back to the transporter operator. "Please notify Pathstone that we are ready to transport upon their acknowledgement," she said, the calmness of her voice at odds with the rush of adrenalin she was suddenly feeling.

Lieutenant Onaix entered the transporter room and gave a nod to her superior officer.

Sure she left the spot right next to Abigail empty for Ichiko, but Evelyn made sure that she was the one just off to Abigail's other side. This was going to be exciting, with alien tech that few, if any, Federation personnel had ever seen. She'd resisted bringing a tricorder and tool kit (thinking that neither would be beneficial for a visitor), but did bring a small mini-PADD that she had in a small holster on her belt.

Calvin stepped into the transporter room, wearing a uniform that would almost flawlessly pass inspection. It was the one uniform he rarely touched, knowing how good he was at mucking them up. He exchanged quiet pleasantries with those gathered, but nothing above a chit chat.

Rogers waited quietly. Diplomacy really wasn't his strong suite. Most of the others seemed pretty excited, and he was happy for them, he just hoped he wasn't going to put his foot in it.

Ichiko was the last to join, possibly negotiating the final arrangements for the visit to Pathstone. She gave a nod to the assembled crew, and then another nod towards Abigail. "Ready?" she asked. She imagined the answer would be 'yes', but in truth the rabbitess knew. This was something they briefly covered in the Academy, just so everyone knew to be on their best behavior when dealing with an alien race. Diplomacy was often the most underused tool in the Federation's arsenal.

Once everyone was gathered, the transporter tech gave a nod, "We have confirmation from Pathstone, standby to energize." and the tech slid the dial, and the crew was sent over. They arrived in a similar room from where they left, much more spacious, with larger circles on the floor to indicate where to stand. There was no transporter tech on duty, there wasn't even a transporter control panel to observe. The floor of the station had a gentle rumble to it, not unlike the feel of an active starship. What might have been confusing was that for the sheer scale of the station, the feeling was very similar to that little background rumble. The walls had a soft universal green hue to them, tinted and shaded in places, and all the walls and corners and doors had a smoothed edge to them. Curves instead of corners. Joining the crew in the reception room were three forms: The twin forms of the installation overseer, Sera Dega... and a drone.

The drone was a bipedal design, with a white ceramic-looking chassic covering and gold filigree. A single optic illuminated in its head, with a large frill of sorts coming from the back of its head. Perhaps to dissipate heat?

"Good welcome travelers." the overseer started. "It's so wonderful to welcome you aboard. This is Designate Theta 17." she motioned to the drone. "Theta 17, these are guests. They are to be..." and she stopped again. A swift and final end to the conversation.

Her twin picked up the moment exactly, as though she were the original speaker the whole time, "... treated as such. Coordinate with Tee Eee Sixty if you would." and the drone gave a nod, :: Certainly Overseer. The delegation from the Federation are always welcome. ::

The drone didn't sound unpleasant, for a synthetic voice. Downright charitable. Sera continued, "I took a guess at the menu for lunch, which mostly means a solid mix of meats and greens. If I missed anything, I won't say no to cheating a little with the fabricators." the pair giggled.

Buck turned his head this way and that, as a tourist would, taking in the size and architecture of, what he assumed to be, an entryway of sorts.

Despite the size and grandeur of the structure they had arrived in, Abigail found herself focusing on the drone that had addressed them. Finally, tearing her attention away from the drone, she looked across to the twin form of the Dalacari that had welcomed them. "Thank you for the kind invite," she said with a smile. "It all sounds wonderful."

"Now, I'm certain you have a million questions. We can discuss curiosity, and commerce, over lunch. Please, follow me?" and the pair led the contingent through the reception room's circular door, and out into a main hall. It was easy to forget how much larger this station was than a conventional, or even unconventional, Federation craft, but the hallways here felt wider. Felt taller. Walking along the hall were other Dalacari, who stopped to inspect the new guests and even wave hello. Such a cheerful people. Along with them were the real workforce of the station, the drones. Carrying boxes, managing cargo flatbeds, ensuring the facility was clean and sanitary... for every menial task there was a drone, and for every drone doing their part, that freed up a Dalacari to do their part.

"The Pathstone Project was the brainchild of a union of the Dalacari Advanced Sciences Divisions and the Ts'usugi Imaginary Science Group. Impossibly expensive, a massive undertaking requiring..."

"... dedication on both ends, and countless swarms of drone assemblers. I'd go so far as to say that Pathstone wouldn't exist without the friendship our people share." one of her forms looked over her shoulder to address the crew, while the other kept her eyes forward so they could navigate. Share minds, shared senses, shared sensation.

"I've been looking forward to this moment for a while." she admitted.

Abigail walked beside Sera, nodding slightly as she listened. "I've heard good things about the strong friendships between your people and the Ts'usugi and clearly the friendship has paid off. This, what you've accomplished," she used her hands to motion around them. "This is impressive."

"Thank you. This facility is the culmination of diplomacy, free exchange, and the shared brilliance of many many people. The Three Dawn Accord is one of the most influential and substantial moments ..."

"... in the history of Dalacar, and quite possibly among both our peoples." Sera Dega started. Ichiko made a mention in, "The Dalacari are among some of the most impressive peoples we've ever met, and I've ever had the privilege to know."

"Signing the accords two hundred years ago shaped both our histories. We just didn't realize it at the time." Sera concluded with a nod, before leading her 'tour group' to one of the larger simulation rooms. The doors irised open to show a grand table, decorated with covered dishes, colorful napkins and banners. The room, as it were, was actually a covered gazebo overlooking a rich grassy field, with a gentle breeze and a comfortable air. The room was a comfortable temperature, humidity, everything was carefully controlled and moderated. Everything was perfect, by design.

Joining them at the lunch outing were a trio of drones, all identical to the drone that was already escorting them. "Please, please have a seat. Theta 17, why don't you take everyone's drink requests, and get that started while we all settle down?" and the drone gave a nod. :: Of course. Will you be having your usual? ::

She smiled. "Theta 17, you know me so well. Please." and the drone nodded before turning to each of the Federation guests, :: And for each of you? Rest assured, anything that cannot be directly fabricated can be estimated or produced piece by piece. Apologies for any inconvenience that may cause. ::

Everything seemed to be going as planned. Alanah had stayed quiet in the back just observing as they made their way here and to the lunch room. Everyone seemed very friendly and not in a fake way. She never trusted drones so she always pay special attention to the them. "I will take a coffee, black please." Alanah offered her request up to Theta 17.

"Same please," Calvin piped up quickly after Alanah. He found himself a seat, admiring the pristine set up that had been made just for their arrival.

"Chai latte please?" Abigail asked hopefully. "If you can't do a chai latte then a Dalacari blended tea will be fine." She glanced back toward Sera. "I assume this is holographic technology?" she asked, referring to the field around them. "A field seems so out of place in the middle of a facility like this," she laughed softly.

"Glass of water for me. Thanks." Buck said.

"A Mocha Cappuchino if it's at all possible, if not... Surprise me with any sort of tea." Evelyn smiled at the done, "Thank you."

Will talked for a few moments with Theta 17 and finally settled on a variant of fruit juice.

Theta 17 took the orders and requests with a nod of its head, each order being fielded by one of the idle drones, who went over to a portion of the gazebo that housed the fabricator units. They seemed to resemble Federation replicator units in appearance and performance, but the end result would be the same: Food and drink that some people would swear they could tell the difference.

"This is one of the larger simulation rooms. A combination of holography, force projection, and fabrication to create a simulated environment. We use the smaller ones to stress test materials but..."

"... we use the larger ones for leisure. Pathstone has thirty six simulation rooms of a scale sufficient for relaxing, and even if we ran all of them at maximum simulation fidelity, we'd still hardly..."

"... make a dent in our power reserves." the pair looked around at the simulated environment. "There's a field, exactly like this, nearby where I grew up. I like coming here to relax, and I wanted to share..."

"... a moment of home with guests. All of us, so far from home." she mused.

Drink service came promptly. Some of the more universally recognized beverages were easy enough. Though, there were two small hitches. The system didn't know what a Chai was, and...

:: Apologies, but the Dalacari beverage known locally as coffee cannot be served black without additives. :: one of the drones serving up coffee offered as apology to Alanah, and through extension, Calvin. The mugs that were on the table smelled like coffee, exactly like coffee. It had the same effect on the mug when you swirled it, and it was warm like coffee... except it was blue.

Responding to the Drone, because he didn't see why not, Calvin replied, "An apology for a new experience is not needed. No harm, no foul."

Each of the forms of Sera Dega was provided a tall flute glass with a bubbly orangish-pink drink that smelled fruity, though not any familiar fruit that an earth nose ever smelled. Just the universal expectation of what a fruit would smell like.

Without making contact with the Astraea to ask computer to computer, the best the drone could provide for Abigail was a cup of tea, very similar to the cup being presented to Ichiko. A mug she was offered without asking.

They knew.

With the guests seated, the covered dishes were lifted. Underneath were an assortment of sandwiches, heavy on the meat side of filling. Spiced spreads off to the sides, with a few leafy greens off to the edges, more for show than consumption. The drones took the time to make sure that everyone got something on their plate that they wanted, full service. Drink refills, sandwiches, spreads. The drones were only too pleased to please.

"Now, let's get down to business." the overseer of the facility started. "I don't think the Federation has a currency that's traded in our market, so asking for Seventy Six, eBits, or even a fair..."

"... payment of koku for transit wouldn't be fair." she started. "So, let's start with that. If I were to ask for something in trade, what could be offered without offending treaties or governments?"

Buck turned his head and looked first to Abigail and then Ichiko, eyebrows raised slightly. Still no such thing as free lunch, huh? He thought to himself.

Evelyn had been paying close attention to well... Everything. Her knowledge of the tech the Dalacari had was far less than she'd hoped to have, but since she was the chief engineer on one of the most advanced ships in the Fleet, she did know a few things, "If I may make a suggestion, Captain," She deferred to Abigail, "I'm sure that there are some technical capabilities we have that we could trade for our passage, especially if I can discuss with our hosts where our comparative technologies differ?" She posed the question.

Abigail offered a slight nod to Evelyn before she turned back to Sera. "Perhaps you could give me some idea of what you would like to trade for?" she suggested gently. "I have a lot of leeway with what I can offer, unfortunately no idea where I would even start. I don't want to offer something of little enough consequence to inadvertently cause offence."

The Dalacari overseer thought for a moment. "That is... an excellent point. I don't know what I can ask for, and you don't know what we'd need. Hmmm, I know." she snapped her fingers in that Moment-Of-Eureka style. "Tee Eee Sixty."

There was a tone. Not unpleasant, but new. An acknowledgement. Theta 17 perked up, :: Ready.::

"Project this station's needs for one standard month, assuming no factors of the entire history of this installation's existence will change going forward." she requested. There was another tone.

:: Calculation in progress. ::

With that, Theta 17 returned to a more casual posture as it finished serving food and drink to the guests. Sera seemed satisfied, "Our central Thinking Engine. Handles our highest end opened ended calculations and controls the drones." a pause, "I don't know how much you've heard, but we're not encouraged to..."

"... research artificial intelligence, so we diverted our attentions to another branch of computing. Despite the name, the Thinking Engine doesn't actually, well, think." she shared a giggle. Her twin picked up the conversation effortlessly, "We'll have an idea soon, and then we can discuss. Until then, let's enjoy lunch."

Evelyn nodded in agreement, “We’ve had our own... Problems with artificial intelligence research and development, so we definitely can understand the reluctance in that area. We have a rather limited AI involved in ship functions on Astraea, but again just like your Thinking Engine, it’s incapable of conscious thought and innovating. Our own progress in that area is virtually isolated, pun intended.” A mischievous smile came with the last sentence.

"Fascinating." that caught Sera's interest. Then she shook her heads, "No no no, food first, then business, then we can exchange pleasantries and talk shop."

Calvin took a sip of his blue coffee. "Fascinating, I may just grow to enjoy this." He said setting down his mug and starting on his food.