In reply to Relic GM (msg # 6):

Talja stands up, stretches and wanders over to speak to Argent. "Gut morgen Lieutenant. How are you doing this fine morning? I noticed you were a little ill-at-ease nast night at the O-Club."

In reply to Mac Anderson (msg # 9):

"Mac it is,but you might be surprised to know I do study cultures like yours as well as their languages
Benal Tonsaw tlgoS be'Hom,which means you fight like a girl in Klingon,or
She grins self deprecatingly :something like that.Spent a year and a half of my third tour working with a Klingon security officer.One of the few guys I could rarely beat in a fight"she grins at MacSo far anyway

She returns to her duties and then turns her chair when things are as she likes them
No family dinners.Never met my father although he did arrange for me to learn the Nerve pinch.
Naw no offense taken .Betazoid's are taught to be honest.

When you grow up in a telepathic culture there is little point in lying,speaking of which,May I Speak Freely Sir?"

He grinned.

"On my world, we had 300 years of lying. We lied to the Danteri, we lied to ourselves, we lied to each other - in case the other guy was a traitor. And of course lying is all about exiting fun stuff like honor duels - 'Of course I didn't say m'lady was a wallowing lirga with a less pleasant disposition, I have nothing but the utmost respect for m'lady and m'lady's clan'," he mocked. "The entire Danteri occupation was nothing but hundreds of years of lying to ourselves that we weren't beaten, until one day it came true."

"So... It depends. You going to try to bust my chops about something? If so, I'll pass. You want to tell me a dirty joke? Rant about a fellow crewmate? Talk me into drinks in your room? We'll consider... Well, probably not the last. Would make things complicated."

He paused a moment, before deflecting the conversation again.

"I've never served with any Klingons. Dated one a couple times, back in the Academy. Terrible idea of course, completely different expectations, lots of wrestling and biting. You'd think that would be more fun, but it's not."

His eyes twinkled.

"'Course I could be lying about that too. I've got a vivid imagination, Madam Telepath."

In reply to Mac Anderson (msg # 12):

"Naw if I'm gonna bust any chops it'll be in the sparring ring.

She pauses and give Mac a genuine grin I just think you bust your own chops a bit more than you deserve.
If you didn't have what it takes Starfleet wouldn't have given you a ship to command and a crew as INCREDIBLY FINE as this ship has"

And for the record I don't read minds without permission and never Starfleet personnel,
If I did I never would have survived 17 years in this man's navy!"

In reply to Gian Seingalt (msg # 7):

" None for me either, thank you," Rai replies to the offer." A bit heavy on the animal products. I'll have a fruit salad and non-dairy yogurt though, if the replicator is programmed for it."

In reply to Prashanthi Rai (msg # 14):

Gian resists the urge to roll his eyes. Vegetarians.

"I'll check when I'm back there; do you like any specific flavors in your yogurt, or do you just take it plain?" he asks as he turns to the Saurian. "What about you, Sosal? Feel like trying something new?"

Cassy makes another small adjustment, a probably unnecessary one but it gives her something to do while she's watching Gian speak to the others - and makes a mental note to Prashanthi.  She was clearly one of the quieter members of their crew and after last night's demonstration, one of the more... sensitive members.   "On second thought, Gian.  Could I have a Rooibos tea please.  With milk."  (Said rather gutturally, something like Roy-b-awe-s)

"Got it. Do you prefer it loose leaf in the cup, or no?" he calls out as he passes through the cabin threshold, giving the door an order to remain open.

In reply to Prashanthi Rai (msg # 14):

Sosal looks startled and says to Rai, "But there are no animal products in any of this. All replicated food is constructed of organic raw materials." To Gian, "250cc of mineral water, 4 degrees Celsius, please."

In reply to Relic GM (msg # 18):

 As soon as the Kitchissippi was well underway Shione turns her chair to be able to see the 2 Science Officers as well as Mac

"So tell me what do you Argent,Talja and Mac hope we get to do,or hope to discover during our time on the Sphere?
For my part I enjoy the unexplored wilderness.I quite often during my leave times from the 4 ships I've served on have had the chance to walk and climb through the more untamed areas of several world,but to find a completely unknown,to us anyway;terrain is very exciting for me"
She looks at the other three (while also paying attention to her own panel) a broad smile on her face."Don't everyone start at once" she cajoles in the face of silence to her question

Tag Argent,Mac and Talja

In reply to Relic GM (msg # 18):

Gian so very much wants to jump in on Sosal's answer, but he resists, reluctantly acknowledging the drink request. Stopping in front of the replicator, he inquires of the computer about the yogurt, and recites the others' orders.

Once those are delivered, he heads back to the storage locker and breaks out his portable cookstove, setting it up on one of the tables, and orders the necessary ingredients from the replicator.

He learned at the Academy that one could still cook real...ish meals, even just using a replicator. A raw egg was in its programming, as was all of the various spices he would need to make anything in his arsenal of recipes (which was considerable). It would be a waste of talent to just program the replicator with the finished meal -- there's no art in that, and no fun in living off a replimat.

So, he gets to work for the next hour, enjoying the process as much as he will enjoy the result...

OOC: Just testing the dice roller...
11:52, Today: Gian Seingalt rolled 11 using the Last Unicorn system with 3d6+3 (a dramatic success).  Art Exp (Cooking) AE (Testing the system).

In reply to Relic GM (msg # 18):

" That may be true, ensign," she says, launching into an explanation she's given innumerable times before. " That said, I choose to avoid eating meat and dairy all the same. It's my opinion that, if I would avoid an act in real life on moral principle, I ought to avoid it's simulated analog. It's for this same reason that I don't engage in violent holodeck programs, except for training purposes."

In reply to Prashanthi Rai (msg # 21):

Sosal is silent for a moment. "I'm afraid I do not understand. I must consider this further."

In reply to Relic GM (msg # 22):

"It means she doesn't like killing in any form, Sosal, humanoid or animal, even to eat," Gian calls out from the back.

Cassy is far from the gung-ho and can empathise with a portion of Rai's response though the young woman seems to have set herself with a rather non-standard world few when compared to many from Earth.  But then Cassy is not one to judge and so accepts her tea, appreciating the fine china cup, and thanking Gian.

While the Engineering is off cooking, she keeps an eye on the engineering systems and continues to make minor flight corrections while idly considering the various sensor reports.

In reply to Relic GM (msg # 22):

"But the organic raw materials have never been alive. They bare not even plant materials - they are completely synthetic. She seems to be saying that this matters not, that giving them the appearance of an egg is objectionable. Even if they are real, eggs which are eaten are not fertilised and thus no life is being taken. Is this a widespread Human custom?" Sosal looks completely nonplussed.

In reply to Ensign Sosal (msg # 25):

Sosal shrugs, a remarkably Human-like gesture, and bends to his console. After a moment's reflection, he begins tapping icons on the console and spends the next hour in rapt attention to the results, making quiet humming and chirping noises to himself. The readouts flash by at an amazing speed and his fingers blur on the console's icons.

The remainder of the flight continues pretty much in this vein, with everyone feeling each other out, discovering each others' quirks and foibles.

Meanwhile over on the Kitchissippi, things are much the same. Talja spends much of the time in quiet contemplation. She seems somewhat sad, and if pressed, admits that she misses her sister and wonders if she'll ever see her again. Mac and Shione continue their conversation and Argent is left pretty much to his own musings. Even after several years in Starfleet, he is still constantly bemused by Humans and their oddities. This extends to many other species who behave in many of the same ways. Commander M'Rel seemed to be very at ease with Humans and humanoids, though...

[OOC Edit - Oops, meant to say Talja. Greta is her missing sister.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:28, Thu 28 July 2016.

"I believe the expression is 'fit as a fiddle'," Argent replies to Talja, "though I don't quite understand the phrase. How can a fiddle be 'fit' if it never exercises? Or is it a reference to it 'fitting' into a carrying case?"


He'd arrived on time like the others... wondering not for the first time if they would have waited for him or not... and quickly settled in. Five days was going to be a long time... even for him studying the latest reports from Dyson.

Once the runabout had cleared space dock and was on its way, Shione turned to him and asked her question.

"My interest is always scientific, so I hope to make some new scientific breakthrough... at least for the Federation. For example, I believe we could construct a Dyson Sphere with the technology we currently have, but it would be such an incredible undertaking, require thousands of workers and probably a century or more to do so."

"The point of the sphere, supposedly, is to harness 100% of the star's energy. We not only do not need to do that, but we no longer call one planet home. We are out among the stars, across an entire quadrant of the galaxy. So what would be the point?"

"So I wonder what the reason is for the Builders to have done this. It seems highly unlikely that they could not have discovered star travel in the process of learning how to build the sphere, but if they didn't, why not?"

"As it is, I do not believe that the resources of a single entire star system would have been sufficient to construct the sphere... not unless they were able to alter matter at the molecular level."

"Your preference for wilderness exploration brings up an interest point. Did this terrain come from the worlds originally around this star? Did they, for example, lift an entire mountain range off of a world and transplant it here, before dismantling that world? Or is the terrain an artificial construction, much like we would make in an amusement park? For that matter, is some of the terrain from other worlds around other stars?"

"Are any of those true? Is there any way to tell?"

"To me, the sphere seems more and more like it was meant as some sort of zoo. I wonder, too, if this is how the Q Continuum started. Or maybe it was built by the Iconians."

He was unaware that he was talking too much. His head was always full of ideas, and sometimes they just spilled out without any control on his part.

In reply to Argent Merawdr (msg # 27):

Shione while keeping an eye on her station,listened with great interest to Argent's passionate explanation of his hopes for the Dyson mission.
The idea of borrowing terrain had not occurred to her,so she interjected at a moment when he stopped to draw breath

I like like the idea of transporting the terrain as a possible way to incorporate Flora and Fauna from another world.
 But from a purely efficient power usage perspective wouldn't have been easier to simply create what they desired from available matter that was already within the Sphere?"

OOC Not up on all relevant scientific terminology,so with regards to that I'll just wing it as Shione know more than I do;)

In reply to Argent Merawdr (msg # 27):

"Fit as a fiddle is an archaic expression. Fit also means 'appropriate for the task' and violins were obviously considered an appropriate instrument for certain music. but no, I meant 'ill at ease' as in 'socially uncomfortable'. At the party, I mean."

In reply to Shione (msg # 19):

Talja is silent for a few minutes, waiting for the others to precede her, as she is the junior officer present. "As an exobiology specialist, I am interested in meeting new alien species and figuring out what 'makes them tick' as they say in English." She brightens up somewhat, as if talking 'shop' seems to push away her underlying sadness.

"We've met so many new species, like H'Ranna, who are very much like the Sasquatch or Yeti of legend, with a culture much like the North American First Nations. Or Gurrrps, who you met last night. He is a true biological mystery and he doesn't give clear readings on a tricorder. I would love to know how he 'sees' without eyes... Commander M'Rel and the crew of the Thames met him at a curious station in the midst of an arctic waste. One of our first assignments, along with the Cuyahoga, will be to explore another, similar station in an ocean near (as distances go in the Sphere) Outpost Three. Then there are the Pongo, a simian semi-humanoid species who live in an arid zone. We have a Duck Blind surveilling them."

In reply to Relic GM (msg # 26):

[Sorry folks, I was away from the computer all day...]
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:06, Thu 28 July 2016.

"Ah, yes... ill at ease, yes, that is the expression," Argent replies to Talja. "Science is a party for me. I do not see how a party is different than normal interaction with people, which I do every day."

"I understand that a party is supposed to be different than that, but I don't understand how. So I was observing to see if I could find an insight."

"Do any of these species have a history of where they came from?"

In reply to Prashanthi Rai (msg # 21):

After a few hour of research, Sosal turns back to Rai. "Ah. I believe I now understand your position. After perusing Human customs, I believe you to be proceeding from a moral and ethical basis, perhaps even religious; rather than one of mundane logic. While I do not quite grasp the precepts of this philosophy, I respect it and will trouble you no further."

Raising his eyebrows at the high philosophies of science and inwardly shaking his head, Anderson decided on the better part of valor and started running warp bubble simulations on his console.

This is going to be a long trip.