Star Trek: Starbase 777

With the further away from the sands, the deeper the ocean became. Here was the place for swimming (if you were brave, but don't worry, a lifeguard tower stood by,) surfing, hoverboarding, or even jetpacking if you felt the need to look at the water from above. Moving with the waves were the occasional jellyfish or fish, all brightly coloured, but they seemed to stay away from any larger creature enjoying the water. There were no sharks. Yet.

Silver had gotten out to sea at alarming speed, and as soon as he could no longer touch the bottom, he was adrift in his floatie. He kicked himself out a little further, only to recline in it, his swan floatie with the weird derpy face. He watched the party from his vantage point, happy to relax in the surf. It reminded him of home.

Sterling was certainly waterproof, and there was no reason to avoid the ocean when he had dressed for the occasion, so off he went. His metallic body made floating a slight challenge, but with certain adjustments to his air circulation and position, he was able to swim along with a decent front stroke. Meeting the eyes of the floating pool toy first, he moved to tread water. “Silver, it is a pleasure to encounter you again.”

Silver spotted him too, her fellow silver-themed android, and so she kicked her way over to him. She smiled, observing all the creatures underwater around them. “Sterling! It is a pleasure too! I love this program, it’s so realistic. Have you seen the fish around us?” And truly, they were all around, you could see them even in the waves when they kicked up.

“I have. They are quite detailed, down to the grouping patterns and scattering behaviour.” He brushed a hand against the water, looking down at a school of thin, metallic creatures swimming by, an estimated four feet below them. “Do you enjoy marine life?” He adjusted his glasses, mildly untrusting of the tape he had used to keep them on his head.

“They replicated them very well, yes. I used to observe them often, when I was home in Okinawa. I would go a ways offshore, sink to the bottom, and watch whatever came by. I startled a few divers that way.” She said nonchalantly, as if that was a completely normal thing to do. “I do! Do you see that, a bit far down below us! A giant manta ray!” She pointed to the water beneath them, where a shadow moved below. She promptly stuck her face into the water to watch it glide by, observing it as it gracefully made its way out further to sea.

“Mobula birostris, correct? It appears to be quite skilled in its swimming.” He joined her in sticking his face underwater, seeing the end of it, and the thin tail that trailed behind. Having a tail like that had always been intriguing— perhaps he would ask his fellow androids their thoughts on a later date.

She looked at him- she could see perfectly even underwater, after all, the saltwater didn’t sting her artificial eyes. She signed “yes” to him considering it was a little hard to hear things underwater with all the waves crashing above, before resurfacing. “They are very fascinating! People are scared of them sometimes because they think they sting, but they do not. Those are stingrays. But stingrays are wonderful creatures too. And I cannot be stung, so there’s no need to fear them anyway. It’s not like I would react to venom.” Silver was hard to fully kill in most fashions, but poison and venoms had to be the stupidest ways to try and take her out, considering she did not have living cells. “So, how is your work going? Do you have plans for shore leave?”

“Indeed. You are immune, therefore most qualified to enjoy them in their natural habitat. I imagine the rays also enjoy your company.” He stated, realizing that he truly did not spend enough time in bodies of water to know a sufficient amount, “And my work has been going smoothly. My shore leave will be spent visiting my daughter and excavating certain geological spots I have marked on a digital map.” He splashed on the spot for another few moments, staying afloat the way a heavy metal object typically would, before asking, “May I inquire about yours? Your work and your shore leave, that is.”

“They are very curious! Did you know they have the largest brain-to-body ratio of any fish, they are very intelligent! They can recognize themselves in a mirror.” She said with a little smile, as if she was proud of herself for knowing so many things. Which she was, she was proud of how much storage space she had for all of this nonsense. She was very well designed. “Oh, very good! Very productive use of your time!” She smiled, she really did value efficiency and that fact was clear considering how much she praised it in others. “My work is going very well! All my repairs have held up very well in the long term. I am less efficient for my shore leave though, because I am going home! I’m going to Okinawa, on Earth.”

“Fascinating. Thank you for sharing these factoids, I will commit them to memory.” He stated, “And I am glad to hear of your work being so successful. Have you been to Okinawa in the recent past?”

“Not since shore leave last year! I have not had much free time, not enough to have a vacation long enough to make the trip back to Earth worth my while. So, now I will go there on my shore leave. If you did not have plans, I would invite you too.. I need to ask all of my friends if they have anywhere to go, so I can take them with me.” After all, Silver’s father’s house had a guest room, and honestly, Silver would charge at a wall outlet and give another visitor her room if it meant getting to take more friends with her. Silver thrived on friendship and being around others, time alone was really not her thing. “You were not made there, if I recall correctly? At the Daystrom Institute?”

“That does sound very intriguing. Perhaps I may accompany you next shore leave, if the offer still stands.” He replied, “And I was not made at the Daystrom Institute. I was built aboard the USS Baldwin, to put it simply. I do not doubt our experiences with our original locations differ, but I am open to learning more about yours.”

“It will still stand next shore leave!” After all, Silver didn’t intend on stopping being Sterling’s friend anytime soon. Once you were friends with Silver, it was exceedingly hard to -stop- being friends with her. She could go a while without speaking much with someone and then pick up right where she left off with them when she saw them again. “The USS Baldwin.. I’ve not heard of it. I’d like to hear more about it. But.. Okinawa was nice. I was made before the ban.. most people there were kind to me even back then. Most of the people who made me are gone now. A lot of people were let go when the Institute had to stop most of its research. I wish things had gone differently, but there is no way to change that now, and no way I could have changed it then.”

“Ah, that is good to hear. I am glad.” He spread his arms out in the water, washing off digital seaweed that clung to his joints. “I find myself wishing the same. The synth ban was unjust and damaging, and I am sorrowful at the loss of so many roboticists and synthetic persons. But as you said, there was no way to change it. There is simply now, and us as artificial beings, who must do their best to continue on.”

“I find it unwise to dwell on something you had no hope of changing. Though, that may just be the logic in me.” Silver, despite wearing her heart directly on her sleeve, actually more resembled a follower of Surak when it came to her actual view on life. She didn’t do the emotional suppression as she had no need of it, the emotions that would be damaging for her were already dulled and so she did not need to tamp them down, but she shared some of the same ideas just because she thought they were sensible. Silver tended to pick and choose out of the philosophies that she knew about when it came time to form her own view on things. “There is now, and there is the future ahead of us. I hope that will be kinder.” As if on cue to break out of the darker topic, a pod of bottlenose dolphins could be seen leaping out of the water further out to sea, playing around. She could hear them quite well even if they were far out, since her senses were so highly tuned, especially to higher pitches. “Look! Bottlenose dolphins!”

Sterling found that there wasn’t a statement he agreed with more at the moment. There was now, and the future at their fingertips, which seemed… more hopeful than before. Perhaps another similar perspective was what he needed to hear. Sterling’s attention was pulled from his thoughts quickly at her exclamation, and his optical sensors were soon set on spotting the species they had pointed out. “They are quite far from us at the moment. It is an exciting occurrence nonetheless.”

“I have seen real bottlenose dolphins before, they are fascinating creatures. They will ride the bow waves of bigger ships. I love all animals, but they are some of my favorites. In my home city, Naha, there are a lot of tours that go out to sea so you can watch them, but I always preferred going out with my creator and his wife in their boat. I think I will do that again when I go home soon.” Silver’s voice never changed tone very much, but it was clear she was excited to go home and see the real ocean again. She loved the ocean, she had gone very little of her life without seeing it except for her stint on Cryo-IV. “You went to San Francisco for the Academy, I assume? Was the bay nice? I never got to go see it properly.”

“The bay was very nice, yes. It was, as I have heard, beautiful at the time of night when the sun was almost set.” He stated, as if reciting a fact he knew. It was a memory that evoked something akin to emotion, even if he never quite expressed it. Perhaps that was something they had in common. “Many students I had come to know would jump in on the final day of studies before the inter-semester break. It was an inefficient stress relief, as they were typically cold and soaking wet during their first minutes of freedom from class, but they seemed to enjoy the tradition.”

“I see a lot of beauty in a sunrise or sunset. For a long while, I lived on a planet where the sun would set once and never rise again for months on end.. and the same for once it rose. The rarity made it more valuable whenever I saw it. Though I am not there anymore, I still hold the sight in high regard.” Living in a polar hellscape made such things rare sights, after all. Okinawa had beautiful sunrises and sunsets, yet another thing about her home that she adored. “It does seem inefficient. Maybe the cold shocking their system actually makes them happier? It seems like it would trigger adrenaline to release, I know that is a thing that happens. I do not feel cold unless I choose to, so I cannot relate.” She theorized. It was times like these that really cemented how alien Silver was to organic-kind, she knew surprisingly little about how they actually functioned.

“I… imagine it would make the experience all the more valuable for you, yes. It is incredible how the sight of a planet’s rotation is such a lovely view.” He nodded along, letting out a simulated hum to himself. “Perhaps. Maybe, if I receive thermoreceptors, I will attempt it myself.” *He said, as an attempt at humour.”

“It has its own beauty, eternal night. There wasn’t ever a time that I didn’t have a perfectly clear view of the stars, unless the weather worsened. That was the benefit of living on a planet with only one small outpost.. it is probably the least light pollution you could ever have planetside.” It had been a shock going back to Naha, where city lights made it harder to see a full sky of stars every night. She had to go to more remote islands to do that. She was used to being able to see everything in all its beauty whenever she looked outside in winter. “You don’t have thermoreceptors? You should get them.. there is really nothing like coming into a warm room when it’s cold outside. Or the reverse.. but I like the heat.”

@Cy

“Perhaps I will look into them.” He mused, thinking back on his first design choices for his artificial senses when designing his ideal form, “You have a way of describing things that make them seem very beautiful, and it is quite intriguing. Are you are of this?”

, After nearly expending all his energy running from the cooking deck, dashing across the sands, he used what he had left to fight against the rising waters. Wesley was determined to swim for even a few minutes. He took a bite of the cob of corn that was locked in his mouth, finishing it off before he bit into it again with the intent of just floating and eating. With each step into the deeper water, he held his chin higher to avoid the corn becoming too salty.. but the poor man ran into a drop-off and soon he went under the waters as quickly as he had rushed in. Though Wesley resurfaced moments later with hair and water dripping down his face— the cobbed corn was gone! He wiped the salty water from his eyes and tried to find the corn. It was a tragedy akin to Romeo and Juliet, or Macbeth! The junior lieutenant let out a small, disappointed whine that he lost the rest of those deliciously golden kernels. "Rest in salt.. you will be truly missed.."

As someone who had grown up near the ocean Shane was naturally a fairly good swimmer, the water in the holodeck however was significantly warmer than the Irish sea, and mercifully devoid of jellyfish. Shane pretty quickly powered through the shallows into deeper water.

Arriving much later on the ocean than the other two, she had stopped by the sand to undo the bindings of her dress and leave it there. It was not like someone would just take it anyway. Her lean figure was finally free and she walked carefully in the water. Oh by all the old gods and goddesses and the prophets alike. It. Was. Cold. Cardassian physiology, it seemed, did not agree much with the waters of the terran sea. A 3/10. She would much rather lay on the sand under the sun next time, if there ever was a next time.

, Without dwelling on the loss much longer, he quietly swam towards the two crew members that he kind of newly befriended. Unlike Shane, Wesley was not the best swimmer. For this entire time, his chin barely remained above the water despite how much he paddled and waded. Though he swam happily with his pals and crewmates, little did Wesley know that his precious cob would not be for-shuck-ened for long. When the beach party is finally over, and the holographic sands fade and the waters evaporate.. his corn on the cob is going to be right there on the floor. Which probably wouldn't mean much, because he's going to have to throw it away anyway.

Seeing Wesley struggle a little bit and Meret clearly not being at ease in the water Shane turned into a bit of an ad hoc swimming instructor. Wesley would he fine if he could tread water. "Start kicking your legs under the water, get into a rhythm, and start making big circles with your arms. It'll help keep you above the water." Shane gave a demonstration as he explained how to tread to Wesley before swimming over to Meret. "Lovely and warm isn't it? Positively tropical." Shane said as he arrived alongside Meret. As he spoke he watched how she swam to guage how strong a swimmer she was. Obviously nothing bad would happen in the holodeck but he'd still look out for her.

Considering she and Sterling were Very far out, she took this moment to watch the newcomers make their way out, still reclining on her cursed swan floatie. Still observing them, she returned to her conversation with Sterling. “Thank you.. I have been told that I can get philosophical at times.. I don’t really know about that though. I haven’t made an effort to study it much. I just like sharing how I view the world. You are very pragmatic and efficient, and I like that about you.”

“Thank you, as well. I enjoy our conversations and the contrast between our ways of viewing the world.” He continued to tread water, adjusting his glasses on his face, “Being philosophical as you are is something many biological organisms strive for, perhaps it coming naturally is an advantage.”

So far she had not swam, only walked as it was the only alternative available. Her body was clearly rigid from the cold. "You humanzzz are... hot blooded. Like Bazzorans.... but this isss less than ideal for a Cardazzian." The colder she felt, the more evident and sibilant her accent got, it seemed.

Silver had watched everyone come out. That Cardassian wasn’t having a good time… oh well. That was the problem with flesh, it was sensitive to such things. “I enjoy speaking with you too. Your experience of things is valuable.” She laughed. “It should not be, is the thing. It is useless for my purpose. But yet.. it is a part of me anyhow, and I like it, as it is me.”

, "If you get it down to your neck really quick, you'll get used to it super fast!" The semi-drowning lad shouted out to her. Once he tried Shane's technique though, he went from half-his-chin in the water to only the tip of his chin grazing the water. It was quite the subtle improvement. "I've known rhythm since I was born! The only dance I can't do is the slow ballroom sways." He laughed, and then accidentally sucked in salty water that he QUICKLY sputtered back out. But you see, Wesley's rhythm for treading water was the samba on speed.. or more akin to a lively round of competitive tango. No wonder he was almost drowning. (edited)

Eiheu walked at an increased pace towards the ocean. She couldn't wait to jump in; she dressed up in this wetsuit specifically for this moment! From a distance, Eiheu heard somebody call the ocean "lovely and warm", so she immediately ran up and jumped in, hoping to soak in the promised loveliness and warmth. Bad idea. Bad idea. Bad idea. Bad idea. Bad idea. It was so. Damn. Cold. Eiheu's reflexes kicked in as she gasped for air and thrashed about in the water. She knew how to swim, of course, and she even considered herself quite good at it too, but surely nobody was a good swimmer when suddenly jumping straight into cold water, right-? Eiheu attempted to swim back to the shore, but her eyes were already closed tight, and she had almost no sense of direction at all. She swam forward as fast as she could, and ended up accidentally colliding with Sterling.

“That is an interesting way of thinking of it—“ Sterling, not the attentive observer he once was, had not noticed Eiheu until she slammed into him, sending the two of them beneath the surface for a moment. “Are you alright?” He questioned, moving back to his rhythm of treading water, “Are you drowning? Do you require assistance?”

The moment that Eiheu felt the presence of somebody else in the water, she, as somebody who had almost zero concept of personal space, immediately grabbed this mysterious person and held onto them for support, her eyes still closed, not wanting to open them in case the salty water got into them. "I am fine-! I am not drowning-! I-it's just a little cold-! And it surprised me just a little bit-!"

“If you continue moving with your body beneath the water, the shock will wear off. If you are able, you may let go of me.” He stated, taking in this very soggy newcomer, “I am Lieutenant Sterling. May I inquire as to who you are?”

Silver, having watched this go down, got off her swan floatie to tread water too. “Hello new person! You may have my floatie if you like!”

Eiheu slowly, and very reluctantly, let go of Sterling, and began to tread water too. She was a little unstable at first, since she was also trying to wipe the saltwater off her face, but she eventually found her footing. "I'm lagh Eiheu t'Llweii." She introduced herself, then looked over to the cursed swan floatie that Silver offered. "Wait, what the fuck is that-?!"

“It is a pleasure to meet you, laugh Eiheu t’Llweii.” He replied, staring blankly as he often did while she made her way over to the inflatable ocean object of an indiscernible species.

"So, if you're a Lieutenant then, uh..." Eiheu looked at Sterling again for a moment, trying to not to allow the cursed floatie to distract her. "You, uh... Shit, you totally outrank me, right-?" She asked, as she tried to remember what a Starfleet Lieutenant was equivalent to in the KDF. Once Eiheu got closer to the floatie, she wanted to get on it at first, but then she imagined what she would look like on it... And she imagined that it would look very silly indeed. "Actually, uh, you can keep this..." She told Silver.

“I am not concerned with ranks at an event like this, I encourage you to not worry about it. It is not an issue.” He tried to assure her, although Sterling was not known for his comforting skills, “It is intended to be fun, and I hope it can stay that way. Are you enjoying the event?”

Eiheu hesitated and looked at Sterling disbelievingly as he reassured her about rank. She didn't know any officer who wouldn't be concerned with ranks, even in informal events - especially in informal events. Luckily, Eiheu lightened up when Sterling asked about the event. "Oh, yeah! I was just playing a ball game over there, then I had a fight with someone from the enemy team afterwards!" Eiheu smiled, pointed in the general direction of the volleyball court. "I totally won, by the way!" She quickly and untruthfully added.

“I did hear shouting. The win is a great achievement though, I imagine you are proud of it.” He responded, with a tone that almost sounded like it would come with a smile on a normal face.