Planet Hell - Journey to the Planet - Part III

Posted on Mon Aug 31st, 2026 @ 4:41pm by Captain Robert Burke & Commander Vincent 'Vin' Salvatore & Lieutenant Marques Hunt & Lieutenant Kyra sh'Herhrisst & Lieutenant Nelar & Lieutenant Ryssa Dari & Lieutenant JG Maël "Gideon" Beauregard
Edited on on Mon Aug 31st, 2026 @ 4:47pm

1,989 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Fabulae Explorationis
Location: Beta Omicron System
Timeline: MD01

::ON::

[And Now The Continuation ...]

"Whether you frame it as logic, exploration, or science, Humans have yet to reign in their reckless spirit at times when caution is best warranted. They are a young species. You are a young species. They have much to learn," she added. "I just hope this mission sees everyone back alive."

Vincent let out a sigh as he removed his hand from her shoulder. He looked down for a moment, as in deep thought, before looking back up to her. His face now serious as a firm tone followed. "Doctor, I know all about Vulcans and the argument about how humans are much too young to explore the galaxy, but it's been a long time since the first of your species came to Earth and placed that argument on the table. So, it's time to put that one to rest as Starfleet and the Federation with the help of your people have come a long way since then.

'They've earned a place in this large place called the Universe, as large and dangerous as it may be, Starfleet still insists on moving forward and exploring it. Dangers and all. You want to throw out Earth quotes? I have one for you. 'Never was anything great achieved without danger.' That was Machiavelli, but my favorite comes from John Augustus Shedd, who said: 'A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.' This shuttle came from a Starship which was built for exploring and part of our Starfleet training is to explore both the tame and risky. You are welcomed to stay aboard this shuttle, if you don't agree with the decision, but you would be keeping a highly trained Doctor out of reach from her crewmates who are going into a risky location who may need her expertise."

He stood there quietly before adding softly. "Yes, it is dangerous and risky, but Starfleet Command as asked us to take said risk in order to explore somewhere we have never been. It's our job to venture forth into the unknown and learn from it. If you never wanted to take that risk, you should have never accepted that uniform."

He turned away, about to walk away from her, before turning back to look at her again. "You're right about something else, Doctor. I am Iotian and my people are WAY out of their league in space. We're still riding around in fossil fueled cars and using projectile weapons. Hurting each other in that name of some kind of power that does nothing but put a target on your back for the next guy who was waiting in the winds behind you. My people are far too young to be out here, which is why to my knowledge, I am the only one in Starfleet. I didn't choose to be here, because I was taken by someone off my world and held captive until a Starfleet ship found me and the other aliens who were taken from their homes. By then, I was long away from home and had already seen far too much to be put back."

Vincent stood there, staring at her, a slight hint of sadness hitting him as he remembered his former life and felt a need to want to go back when talking about it. "I didn't ask to be taken away from my home, my family, but I accepted that I couldn't go back so I moved forward and took up the option to go into Starfleet and serve as an Officer. I hoped, one day, I would find my home and, at the very least, know what happened to everyone I used to know and love. It's a long shot, but hell, I am an Iotian who was known for taking risks."

He took a step forward to her and raised his voice just a bit of anger. "So, don't stand there and tell me, my people are too young to be out here, but I sure as shit am not going to argue that point. I am also going to do my job, which involves going out there-" He said as he pointed to the port hole showing the dangerous conditions. "-in an uncomfortable heavy suit and take another stupid ass risk, because that's what I signed up for. I'm not ordering you to go, Doctor, because you clearly have reservations. However, I am going to remind you we have a better chance at surviving those conditions and any crazy looking beast we come across if you are with us." He took a calming breath, taking a second to look around at everyone, before adding in more relaxed tone. "You decide what you are going to do next. As far as I am concerned, this conversation is over. We move forward as planned. Feel free to drop off your complaint at the Complaint Office when we get back."

Hunt looked over at the first officer. "Sounds like you had quite a bit to check off your chest."

"Indeed," Nelar stated in agreement, the lack of affect in her tone might have been interpreted as the Vulcan's silent judgement. It would not be an incorrect assessment.

While the others were talking and getting their suits on, Ryssa took the opportunity to scan the area, specifically to get readings on the flora and fauna in the area. She was curious about what would--or could--live around here.

The wind pushed against the shuttle's hull, creating a gentle shove that was felt by all.

Vangra stood near the shuttle's aft ramp, helmet tucked beneath one arm while the final equipment checks were being completed. Through the suit's speakers, Salvatore's exchange with Doctor Nelar had carried through very clearly.

She stepped closer to Lieutenant sh'Herhrisst, close enough that her words wouldn't carry beyond the two of them. She even muted her suit's own comm.

"Lieutenant." Her blue eyes were fixed on the wasteland through the aft window.

"Commander Salvatore and Doctor Nelar appear to have reached conclusions regarding acceptable operational risk. If this becomes a thing, just say the word and I'll stun both."

Kyra's antennae twitched once beneath the collar seal of her EV suit but she did not immediately respond. Instead, she continued studying the wasteland beyond the shuttle ramp through her visor. The toxic fog rolled across the broken terrain like something alive, obscuring and revealing jagged stone formations in slow, deliberate breaths.

Finally, she glanced sideways at Vangra. "Tempting."

The single word carried all the dry sarcasm Kyra could possibly convey. "Though if we start stunning senior officers every time they have a philosophical disagreement, we'll be out of power cells before lunch."

"I'm fairly certain that there are several lower deckers who might find that course of action acceptable," Hunt joked.

Vangra's blue eyes fell on Marques and she smirked as she set-to with donning her EV suit.

Sal-Kuiri felt the itch in the tips of his moustaches, the urge to go wandering. He knew it was a genetic disposition of Efrosian males, but he didn't care. Risk was his business, and setting himself against the elements was a challenge he relished. He turned to Dari, leaning in unnecessarily despite the comm that linked them all together. 'Are you telling me there's no breathable atmosphere out there?'

"Not outside," Ryssa replied. "There might be underground, but we'd have to find some caves and check." She would love to find a deep cave and check the atmosphere there if she could. Then again, she was curious to see if there was anywhere the could even be made habitable.

"Hence why I asked to settle down as close to those caves as we could." Vincent said firmly, as he came up behind Ryssa and Sal-Kuiri. He had taken his time away from the Vulcan Doctor to cool off and put on an EV Suit. Despite taking his time, trying to cool off, his attitude had clearly shifted. From calm and smiling, to stern and emotionless. The topic of his home and how he was taken from there was clearly a tough subject. Never the less, he was determine to get the job done.

He placed his helmet on and locked it in, allowing the seal to activate, before looking over to the other in the group. "Alright, people. All ashore that's going ashore."

As he tapped the shuttle door mechanism, a thrill of electricity travelled up his legs, leaving them feeling like jelly for a moment. Sa-Kuiri took a deep, steadying breath, and took point, making the short journey down the shuttle ramp and stepped foot on an alien world. As he glanced around the dun atmosphere he reckoned he might be the first lifeform to ever set foot on the surface of this world.

'Jump in guys, water's balmy,' he called over the comm as he brought his tricorder up to scan the immediate environs, hand on his phaser in its holster as he readied himself for the unexpected.

With a practiced motion, Kyra maneuvered her antennae and settled her helmet into place and engaged the environmental seal. The suit responded with a soft chirp as atmospheric integrity locked blue across her visor.

"All right," she announced over the team frequency. "Let's go see fun we can get into." Without waiting for a response, Lieutenant Kyra sh'Herhrisst stepped down the shuttle ramp.

The wind immediately struck her at her suit, carrying sheets of pale fog across the barren landscape that didn't have even a hint of blue. It was unfortunate, but not all planets could be her home world.

Stepping out of the shuttle, Marques felt a bit taken back as the gust of wind struck him as well. He was definitely going to burn quite a bit of calories on this trek. There was a healthy bit of fear of the unknown and excitement at the same time. "Any idea when it's going to get dark out here?"

Vangra remained just inside the shuttle near the top of the ramp, verifying her tricorder readings. To her immediate left was Nelar and just behind them stood Ryssa.

"Doctor," the Deltan said, staring at her tricorder display. "While I'm comfortable in the knowledge there aren't any hostile individuals here, just how safe is this environment? I'm detecting fluctuating levels of both theta radiation and irregular photonic particles."

She turned in her bulky EV suit to Ryssa to properly gauge the Betazoid science officer's reaction as well.

"I assure you, it is quite toxic," Nelar replied. "Try not to damage your EV suit, as it would be detrimental to your survival," she stated pointedly. "The air is caustic and would immediately damage your lungs, and radiation exposure would reach dangerous levels inside of two, possibly three hours at most. If we were able to deploy the emergency medical tent, and depressurize the toxic air from the unit, so that I may provide oxygen and emergency medical care, the rest of the crew would have approximately that amount of time to extract the crew member before the structural integrity of the structure is compromised risking exposure."

"Basically, what she said," Ryssa replied in soft, kind voice to soften what Nelar said. "We've got plenty of people here to help, but keep your EV suit intact and your eyes and ears alert."

"Yes, sirs."

To Be Continued ...]

::OFF::

Commander Vincent 'Vin' Salvatore
Executive Officer/Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Hecate

Lieutenant Kyra sh'Herhisst
Chief Security Officer
USS Hecate

Lieutenant Marques Hunt
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Hecate

Lieutenant Ryssa Dari
Chief Science Officer
USS Hecate

Lieutenant Nelar
Chief Medical Officer
USS Hecate

Ensign Vangra
Security Officer
USS Hecate
[NPC Lt JG Maël "Gideon" Beauregard]


Ensign Sa-Kuiri
Security Officer
USS Hecate
[NPC Captain Robert Burke]

 

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