Prime Waterfall Tour, Part 2

Posted on Sun Sep 22nd, 2024 @ 2:21am by Lieutenant JG T'lenn & Ensign Charlotte Dawes & Major Clay McEntyre III & Lieutenant Phaedrae Cyn & Lieutenant JG Xalanth & Lieutenant JG Jezra Siv MD & Lieutenant JG Jason Williams III

2,279 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Shore Leave & Ship Repairs
Location: Barisa Prime
Timeline: MD 2, After Part 1

After about an hour into the hike, the orange rock and dust started to show signs of more vegetation. Though scarce, the crew was occasionally blessed with the sight of a rugged bush which boasted succulent looking flowers. An occasional insect or bird would flutter by - another sign that water was near.

From the back the Donobulan Jex called out, "Not much longer now, we're getting closer. Does anyone need a break first? We have plenty of treats and water along," he offered cheerfully.

Phaedrae adjusted her cap to block the sun from her eyes as she looked over the vast landscape. "I'm okay to continue on," she said.

"Same," Charlotte said, her blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail. She stepped up next to Phaedrae. "The breeze up here is refreshing. I'm excited to get to the falls. Do you do this kind of thing often?"

Phaedrae considered the question momentarily. "I wouldn't say too often, but yes. I've enjoyed almost every hike I've gone on. Sitting on a beach and reading a book is good too, but that's easy enough to pretend to do on a holodeck. Holodecks can't recreate a setting like this." She spread her arms, motioning to all the surrounding nature at once. "How about you?" She looked at Charlotte, but they paused their conversation as the remainder of the group checked in with the guide.

Xalanth held up his own water bottle to indicate he already had some. Looking over at his disguised wife he smiled as she held up a pair of binoculars. In reality, she was scanning the area for a signal her team had been looking for for around a week.

T'lenn looked at Jason, "I assume you also wish to keep going," she verified.

Looking back at his love, Jason grinned and nodded. "I'm ready to continue."

"Typical Starfleet crew, fit as Roflarian Jeeterbees. Keep going we shall!" Jex called out from the rear. "It's unanimous, dear."

"Oh, I had a feeling. I just had to check," Lana responded. She pumped her arms a few times at her side before picking up the pace again. "You'll notice the air getting a bit thinner, but with the breeze and cooler temperatures, most people don't find it to affect them negatively at all," she said cheerfully as they continued.

Charlotte didn't hide the amusement on her face as she watched the exchange between the Denobulan couple before continuing her conversation with Phaedrae.

"I started hiking with my dad when I was pretty young. When there is some kind of water feature at the end like this one is supposed to have, those were always my favorites," she said.

"Do you swim?" Phaedrae asked.

"Love it," Charlotte responded. "Bit of a daredevil though. I picked this hike because I read that you can dive off of the cliff into it," she added her eyes sparkling. "We went on this very kid friendly cave diving tour when I was around twelve. You climb up, and then there are a series of short jumps down the mountain and swimming through caves. I don't know that my mom ever forgave my dad for that," Charlotte said laughing. "I kept looking for the next thrill for us.

"I agree with you about the holodeck for sure," Charlotte added. "What else do you plan to do while we're here?"

Phaedrae shrugged, "Mostly breathe in the plant-filtered air. You don't get the smells leaf litter and dirt in the air of a starship." She looked at the large, reptilian alien that followed nearby. "How about you? Are you ready for a swim?" she asked.

"I come from a desert world. I had to learn to swim at the academy. Still terrible at it. Makes me wonder why my daughters are all naturals in the water." Xalanth added a longing smile on his face. He clearly loved his kids.

"I can swim," Jason replied evenly, the memory of how T'lenn recently saw one of the worst moments in his life, during their mind meld, caused his smile to falter some.

Despite not being one for public displays of affection, T'lenn took Jason's hand at that moment. "Perhaps it is your musculature," T'lenn stated to Xalanth. "Vulcans also evolved on a desert world. And while we can learn to swim, our bone density, muscle mass ratio, and low percentage of water compared to many humanoid species make us considerably less buoyant than many other races."

Jason glanced at T'lenn, giving her a gentle look of love, while he gave her hand a squeeze.

"How strange." Xalanth replied. "My first T'para is half Vulcan and she's a champion swimmer and my first daughter, Yazar, takes after her mother. She's either going to be an Olympic swimmer or chief of federation medical," he replied, a warm smile on his face.

"Indeed. I took up swimming, diving in particular, to enrich my experiences as a scientist. Without being overly familiar with your species, there certainly could be advantages or disadvantages in your genetic makeup," T'lenn suggested. "Or for some - they just never get the hang of it." She said the human phrase awkwardly and somewhat stiffly.

Jezra had been lingering toward the back of the group, dressed in a light-colored tank top and grey pants. They heard of the tour and had quietly slipped in, deciding that they should enjoy the shore leave instead of spending all their time on board. As long as the group didn't get too close to the water, Jezra wouldn't have an issue with it, but she didn't really have anything to contribute to the discussion around swimming.

Jason looked back, surprised that he hadn't noticed the red-headed Trill who joined them. While T'lenn held his left hand, he extended his right to the other woman. "Sorry, I didn't see you earlier. My name's Jason, I'm the Starfighter Squadron Commander, up on Astrea. And you are?"

"It's alright, I snuck in at the last second," Jezra responded with a smile. The tour had just taken off when the Trill arrived, so they caught up and lingered next to the Denobulan guide at the back. They took his hand in their own for a handshake. "I'm Doctor Siv, the new CMO on the Astrea. But please, call me Jezra."

Jason grinned as he replied. "Well, welcome to the party, Jezra!"

Charlotte overheard the Trill introducing herself to Jason and slowed her step to match their pace. "New CMO? I hadn't heard, I'm Nurse Charlotte Dawes, nice to meet you."

Jezra turned to the new company and gave them a smile as well. "And yourself. I only arrived yesterday afternoon and haven't officially started yet."

"When Dr. Mack and the others get back, we're supposed to be planning an outing if you wanna come. I'm not sure where or what though," Charlotte shrugged. "I'm usually up for whatever so I don't get hung up on details."

"Sounds like a great chance to meet everyone," Jezra said with a smile.

"Great, it will be," Charlotte said with a smile.

~

As the group walked a bit longer, they could hear the sounds of the rushing water indicating they were close. Charlotte started grinning and picked up her pace until the ground leveled out and she could make out the waterfall and gentle stream of water about 80 meters ahead.

Charlotte turned around so she was facing the rest of her crewmates that she had met that day, as she walked backwards across the rock. "Isn't this great!" She exclaimed, before turning back around, walking slowly toward the stream, her eyes looking all around, taking in all the sights and sounds.

Lana stepped to the side and held out her arm for the others to walk past her. The Denobulan deliberately didn't speak much when their tours first arrived. She liked to watch them soak up the nature around them.

The sound of water admittedly made Jezra slightly tense as they stopped to take in the sight. From a distance, the waterfall and stream were nice, creating a gentle ambience. "That is something," Jezra said.

A set of gear laid beside the springs beneath the falls. Starfleet Marine Corps standard issued gear, the Starfleet Delta Globe and Anchor emblazoned upon it. From the spring itself, jetting up out of the water like an old shampoo commercial, hair flipping back as he emerged, the hulking Caitian Major, Clay McEntyre. He shook his body, water flying everywhere as he looks up to see the group. He was shirtless, but still in his PT shorts, having been hiking for most of the morning. His muscles flexed as he waved to the group.

“Fancy seeing yall here” He greets in his Texas accent, flashing a big kitty smile, tail flicking behind him.

"Morning, Major," Jason replied first, a polite smile on his face. Though he knew of the officer, he had yet to really talk to him.

"Fine morning it is," Clay replied, still standing in the water.

Charlotte was up next to the major within a few seconds. She dropped her pack next to the water. "Oh wow, how did you get up here?" She asked.

"Well, I got up about 0400, had Two Egg White Burritos with Black Beans on a green wrap, a protein shake and a cup of coffee. Beamed down about 0430, and did a 4 mile run. Decided I wasn't done and kept goin and got here about 30 or 40 minutes ago and did laps," Clay replied, rather casually.

Charlotte stifled a giggle, "Ambitious."

“That’s an average morning. I normally need about 10 to 12 thousand calories per day to maintain my body mass.” Clay smiles, pulling out what would seem to be a quite large protein bar that looks like a slim brick, munching on it happily before he turns to Charlotte holding out the bar, offering her some of it.

"Yeah, nah." Charlotte said shaking her head. "I'm good."

Once everyone appeared settled on the view, Jex brought up the rear and spoke up, "As I'm sure your friend here will tell you, the water from the fall is a bit cool, refreshing you might say. It's sourced from the snow caps and glacier melt. What makes this spot so special is that we're also blessed with warm springs nearby, the minerals from the rock beds are supposed to do wonders for sore muscles."

Charlotte took off toward the side of the cliff where it appeared that a path led up to a ledge near the waterfall's ledge. "Is this where we can climb? It's safe to jump right?"

Lana bustled over following Charlotte. "Perfectly safe, yes. Just remember to jump away from the rock ledge. But it does protrude out. It is beginner friendly."

"Who's coming?" Charlotte called out.

Jason spoke up. "I'm coming!" He removed his pack and set it down on a dry spot away from the water. He then removed his boots and socks, then his shirt, leaving him just in his shorts. "I didn't pack any trunks, so my shorts will have to do." He gave T'lenn a playful wink, then moved to the rockface. After looking it over with his artificial eyes, he found the perfect route up.

Climbing quickly, the young pilot reached a point roughly six meters above the surface of the water. Looking back down at the pool, he was able to see where the deep spot was. "Cowabunga!" He called out, as he backflipped away from the rockface, entering the water in a cannonball.

T'lenn had placed her bag next to Jason's and was waiting for him near the water's edge when he surfaced. "How was it?"

He smiled when he turned and looked at her. "It feels great! Why don't you come in?"

T'lenn walked back over to their packs and took off her hiking clothes to reveal a black and gray tankini style swimming suit. She looked at Jason in the water and pointed to the ledge he jumped from. "Shall I?" She asked raising an eyebrow. She turned to take the path that led to the overhang near the waterfall. When she reached the ledge, she looked out to the surface of the water to make sure no one was in her way before jumping off of the ledge and into a swan dive.

As soon as T'lenn revealed her swimsuit, Jason got quiet, not realizing how transfixed he looked as he watched the woman he loved move about. When she asked him the question, all he could do was nod wordlessly. His eyes stayed glued to her as she made her way up to the spot that he jumped from, then enjoyed the beautifully graceful way that she dove in. He swam over to where she would surface and smiled as she joined him. "You're amazing, T'lenn. Have I told you that yet?" It was clear by his tone, and the look on his face, that he was completely smitten with her.

"Yes, I believe you have mentioned that at least a few times since we have become acquainted," T'lenn responded seriously as she treaded water near Jason. "I am fond of you as well," She added before beginning an easy stroke toward the shore.

Jason followed T'lenn to shore, enjoying the view of both the scenery around them, and the goddess before him.

When T'lenn reached the shore she walked to her bag and pulled out a small towel and looked around briefly as she dried off. Charlotte could be heard screaming playfully in the background as she jumped off the cliff, and she noted that Jezra and Cyn had stayed out of the water thus far.

~tbc~

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