Wild Flowers

Posted on Wed Aug 15th, 2018 @ 1:21am by Petty Officer 3rd Class Tox Chara & Commodore Jane Saulitis

Mission: A Majestic Affair
Location: Lower Arboretum
Timeline: MD 4, 0445 Hours
1236 words - 2.5 OF Standard Post Measure

Perspective on the time of day was something that shifted based on one's role and lifestyle. For the Bolian junior science officer, Tox Chara, it was early in her career which meant she was assigned to Gamma Shift and, as such, it was late in the day for her. Her shift was winding down and she'd be off in another hour or so to dinner and bed. The new schedule was taking some getting used to and she was feeling the fatigue after the first few days on Majestic.

Tox wiped the brow of her blue forehead with the back of her soil-stained gloved hands and glanced back across the work she'd accomplished in the last eight hours. The grasses were freshly trimmed and edged, a few bald patches had been repaired, and a small, tidy row of bushes had been planted. She sat cross-legged at the edge of the lawn and dug into the soil with a hand spade as she started on the last bush. Her mind wandered to the next phases of her projects, which had not entirely been determined given the lack of senior science staff aboard yet.

Rotating her left shoulder, Jane entered the arboretum for a morning stroll. She was barely awake after a night of tossing and turning. She hadn't even checked in with Hak yet, he was probably getting worried. Pushing that thought from her mind she took a few steps and nearly stumbled over someone siting on the edge of the grass. A few squeaks and a couple of gasps and she was still upright though the flailing hadn't done anything for her sore shoulder. "So sorry." She mumbled apologetically. "Shouldn't walk around before coffee."

The Bolian popped her feet, "Commander! I'm so sorry!" Her dirty gloves almost reaching for Jane to make sure she was steady, but then pulled back when she realized that would only end in a dirty uniform for the captain. "Are you alright? You seem distracted."

"Just a bit sleepy this morning." Jane replied. "I didn't mean to bowl you over. I thought a walk might wake me up a bit. Guess I should have planned for other people to be around, even this early. What are you working on?" Jane eyed the woman curiously.

Tox gave a brilliantly white smile. "In that case, good morning, sir," she said cheerfully and turned slightly to admire her own handiwork. She slipped her gloves off and tucked them into the waistband of her uniform slacks. "Well, these are very special. Rosa chamaeleonidae bred with hibiscus syriacus. It's going to take a few months before we see any blooms, but I'm hoping they'll be spectacular. Think of a chameloidal hybiscus." She looked across the rest of the arboretum, which had clearly been neglected during the ship's refit. "Don't worry, we'll have this place ship shape in no time!"

"It's an arboertum petty officer, I'm pretty sure the dirt is supposed to be there. Do you want some help? I've never minded getting my hands dirty." In fact Jane didn't really see the need for gloves. There was something very comforting about feeling her hands in the dirt, even though it got under her finger nails. "I'm no expert but I take guidance well."

"The dirt is not why people come here!" the young NCO looked agast. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the soil as much as much as any pedologist and I know it's one of the most important aspects of plant nutrition and even symbiotic bacterial habitation, but people come here to relax and smell the flowers and touch the plants and see all the beauty that we can't get anywhere else on a ship." She looked a little self-conscious as she realized her own worked-up state. "I just want people to come here and marvel at how nice it looks and feel a little better." She paused to take a breath and then added, "And of course I'd love your help! When I have a plan and some seedlings and sprouts."

"I'm sure they do, and will again." Jane held back a chuckle. "Well anytime you need an extra hand I wouldn't mind at all. Frees the mind in my opinion, especially after a day of looking at a screen." She didn't move away but she really wasn't sure what else to say to the woman. Small talk had never been one of her strong abilities.

It was a good thing the Bolian didn't even need a partner to make a conversation, afterall she'd been talking to plants all night long. Tox rested her hands on her hips and scruntched up her nose a bit. "Don't you have people who look at screens for you? I could never do that kind of job. It's too much red tape." She turned her attention back to the arboretum. "So what kind of plants do you like in here? I need to get something with some height to fill in the second level a bit and give some visual interest. There are these Red Risan Palms that I'm trying to get ahold of, but Risa doesn't normally allow exports of their flora so I'm not sure yet. I've got a cousin working in an Embassy there and he's trying to pull some strings for me."

"I've always wanted a Himalayan poppy though I understand they like the cold, was never able to grow one where I grew up. I mostly only know about Earth plants but I'd be happy with anything that had some color to it and bloomed occasionally. If you want more than that you'll have to educate me I guess."

"Oh, well they like a cold dormant season and a warm blooming season which we can replicate in zones here easily enough. I think you should give it a try. It would be something you could be proud of if it works out," she beamed again, rising up on her tippy toes as she stood there conversing. "My favorite blue flower is the azuranium muscupula from Andoria, but I understand we have small children aboard and I would hate for them to be eaten by accident. That's not really the vibe I'm going for in here."

Jane let out a laugh, "No, I should think not. If you get your hands on a Himalayan poppy, I'll do my best to keep it alive. After all this care I might put it in the escape pod before myself. Not that the particular scenario will ever come to fruition."

"I hope not. It's not like we're heading for the front line of a war zone, right?" Tox asked, looking for reassurance. "In any case, I'll look and see if I can find a source for your poppy," she added with a smile.

"No," Jane assured her, though she hadn't even discussed the mission with her senior staff yet. "Thank you, I'll let you get back to work and go down some coffee, but it was nice to meet you."

Tox laughed lightheartedly, "Oh, my work is about done for the day, but it was nice to meet you too! Don't be a stranger, captain."

"I won't" Jane promised her as she shook her head a little bit and walked out of the arboretum.

Lieutenant Commander Jane Saulitis
Commanding Officer
USS Majestic

Petty Officer 3rd Class Tox Chara
Science Officer/Botanist
USS Majestic

Comments (1)