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Kari
| | Posted on Monday, May 19, 2003 - 08:23 pm: | |
The last pieces of specialized equipment had be transported off the shuttle, leaving Kariasa Ma`Aru alone on what was until recently their makeshift communications center.
The project had been a great success. Fleet Communication and Analysis proceeded with little interruption and at an efficiency nearly on par with the normal levels onboard Coronado. Outside of engineering there were very few areas of the ship which had maintained a working schedule close to that before the lose of main power. The biggest improvement, however, seemed to be in morale.
Kari could feel the problem whenever she went down the surface, there was just something plainly...inhuman about Xanadu. The continuous landscape overhead formed an oppressive setting and the notion that land should slop DOWN seemed to be inbred in most sentient species. Why anyone would go so far as to voluntarily venture deep into the fourth chamber was simply beyond her imagination.
The Admiral had suggested that all available personal make frequent trips to the surface for exploration and investigation, but Kari had discretely urged her staff to do otherwise. She made sure that everyone had frequent duty shifts onboard the shuttle to keep their mind focused on work, and she did everything she could to further the notion that they should be information analysts, not gatherers. In review, she was happy to see how well it had worked.
While her staff seemed fairly normal and in good spirits, the same could not be said for the rest of Coronado's crew. From her observations in the ship's lounge, they seemed to be farther out of control than ever before. Rampant alcoholism, violence, and a generally negative attitude seemed to be prevalent. She'd even the observed the Command Liaison pursuing some ridiculous feud the new XO. After only an hour she was eager to return to her new sanctum.
Yet there was another matter that diffused any notion of pride in her personnel management. Somewhere within a few hundred kilometers was ex-Major Craig Serrold.
He had either somehow learned that she was currently inside Xanadu or he simply guessed that she was still onboard Coronado; either way she was left with a decision she didn't want to face.
It had been easy the first two times. He had simply left, leaving her no choice in the matter. Now, she would soon be the one leaving as Coronado departed, and it would be well within her right to simply ignore his message and move forward with her life.
If this had occurred before last September the choice would have been easy. After his first departure she had forgotten the entire incident, writing it off as inexperience. During his surprise visit nine months ago, however, she had realized how deeply her feelings ran. His brash, roguish manner was the perfect compliment to her own nature, and in the months following his second departure she found herself often thinking of him.
It was too late now, in any case. She had procrastinated the opportunity away and now Coronado was due to depart in a matter of hours. Any meeting would be short, and she wasn't ready for that yet.
Firing up the impulse engines she aligned the bow of the shuttle with the Coro's bay doors. With a short burst, the craft was on its way home.
Perhaps next time should could arrange to surprise him. |
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