CAIT SPACEDOCK — A thousand friendship blossoms bloom on shore leave to the Caitian homeworld.
After the crew of the USS Artemis (NCC-81287) battled Suliban infiltrators on their own turf, commanding officer Cmdr. Addison MacKenzie ordered the ship to Cait Spacedock for repairs and extended shore leave. Once there, the crew wasted no time in availing themselves of the spacedock’s amenities and the cultural peculiarities of the planet around which it orbits.
LtJG. Hiro Jones organised a night of stargazing on the holodeck, which a half dozen senior officers attended to discuss home, family, and how one hangs onto both despite the difficulties of Starfleet life. The crew undertook multiple excursions to the planet, with science officer Ens. Luxa Lorana serving as an unofficial cultural ambassador to several of her crew mates. During a tour of the Draivon District, Lorana and Jones got into a fracas with a local, leading to their arrest and detention. After a stern admonition from the captain, Jones and Lorana remained in jail until Cmdr. Genkos Adea bailed them out. MacKenzie expressed the seriousness of the situation, however Adea appeared unconcerned.
“We can always get another counsellor and science officers practically grow on trees,” Adea said.
Cait’s unique customs provided several other moments of cross-cultural misunderstanding. While on a tour of the Caitian Institute of Art, engineering officer Ens. Kuva unintentionally offended a docent, causing multiple facepalms and hasty smoothings-over. LtCmdr. Yogan Yalu visited an artisan market in the peripolar city of Woaim, getting accosted by a shopkeeper in the process. Meanwhile, on the ship, a friendship quadrangle formed between Jones, science officer LtJG. Jovenan, chief tactical officer Lt. Vitor Silveira, and medical officer Ens. Gila Sadar, with the four spending time together in various pairings and the term “siblings” coming up more than one.
Multiple personnel changes took place over shore leave, as well. Adea hung up the red uniform and returned to sickbay, resuming the chief medical officer post he held aboard the USS Resolution and USS Excalibur. Yalu replaced Adea as first officer, while chief intelligence officer LtCmdr. Talos Dakora took on the role of second officer. Chief security officer Lt. Gabriel Osuna was recalled back to Deep Space 224, while Jones switched from medical to counselling.
Written by Yogan Yalu
