Input from the Source

Posted on Wed Oct 30th, 2019 @ 8:10am by Lieutenant Cyrin Xanth & Chief Petty Officer "Chief" Alpha I CSH

Mission: Onboarding & Departure
Location: Deck 11, Holodeck 1...or Marseille, France
Timeline: Down time after "Welcome to the DQ"

The sun shone down over the Rhône, that much seemed to be right. It was bright, warm, Cyrin could feel the difference on his face as he turned his neck. There was the call of gulls from somewhere up above and away, mouettes in French, one of the words he recalled, or nuisance by the natives, but he could still hear the murmur of the city and the people too. Even the air seemed to feel humid, the promise of a hot Mediterranean day ahead. The latest holodecks, courtesy of the refit, certainly had improved over the ones he visited as a kid on Trill.

It had taken just about all the latinum he had to his name before they'd left the Alpha Quadrant, but purchasing this program - an incredible base with which to customise a range of entertainment experiences just like one could find in the ancient but cosmopolitan city - had been worth it. He'd run into a problem though, deciding on exactly what to focus on. With a sigh he opened his eyes and turned his attention back to the PADD in his hand.

He'd scrolled through the list of references to holography in the ship's systems for some time, hoped to find some sort of guide to help him make up his mind. That's when he saw it. Not a guide, but something way better. Totally stellar, as he and his surfing buddies would have called it back at the Academy.

"Computer, activate the Command & Support holographic program," Cyrin folded his arms over his chest, wiped the grin from his face, and waited.

A brief moment later, the CSH appeared out of thin air, wearing the standard uniform of a member in the medical division. Standing before the man that summoned him, the CSH dryly stated "Please state the nature of the medical emergency"

"No emergency, man," He read off the PADD, "Says here that you are capable of analyzing data and making decisions. Personality subroutines, ethical subroutines. Fine-tuned control too, wow. And to top it all of you're adaptable, capable of learning and coming up with new ideas. Does that sound about right?"


Realising that his initial joke was up, Chief slowly faded his Real coloured uniform into the standard Crimson he usually wore, also generating his rank for good measure "And I can be yours for the low price of a small moon" Chief said with a half smile "But yes, that about covers all the bells and whistles I come with, though there is plenty more that I can do which isn't covered on that PADD of yours. My program was designed to be able to support the crew in anyway needed, from medical emergencies, an extra security member or even taking command of the ship if needed." He continued with a small chuckle.

Exactly! Now Cyrin smiled, and his own grin, large and toothy, looked victorious, "In anyway needed, great! That's what I need right now." He gestured out across the river from the bridge they stood on, down towards the Old Port. It had been called that for hundreds of years already. "Let's put those decision making skills to use. A hypothetical: You are weary from long days of exploring and being a hero, you want a place to relax that reminds you of home. Where would you go out for a night with friends if you could pick a place in the city?"

"You say this is a hypothetical scenario? Sounds like a normal day for a Hologram like me" Chief said with a sly grin on his face, he then turned to look at the vista that Curing had just presented to him "Well, as a good and worthy explorer I'd imagine that we'd head to the nearest tavern to celebrate our glorious deeds, letting the townsfolk know of our feats"

Suddenly, the landscape around the pair transformed into a large, rustic looking tavern, filled with boisterous patrons that were drinking merrily and singing all kinds of songs out of tune. The room was dominated by a large open fire to one end, the middle was filled with long wooden tables at which the patrons sat, with food and beverages scattered around them. Along the back wall was a large bar, stocked with all kinds of drinks for every kind of person, it was manned with staff that were all too eager to take your drink but also the hard earned coin. Lastly, a large staircase ran up the shorter wall, opposite the fire, it lead to the lodgings of the tavern where the weary could rest their head or enjoy the company of a lady of the night. In the centre of it all, Chief smiled "Something like this would do, don't you think?" He said as he grabbed two tankards full of a strong ale, he handed one to Cyrin.

If he'd been curious about the hologram's capabilities, this display was definitely a delightful surprise. Cyrin laughed as he took the offered tankard, looked around at it all. "Okay, impressive. Yeah, a place to drink is always nice. And this is nice." Cyrin's eyes got distracted by a pair of those ladies for a moment as they walked by. Human women had this way of moving that was - "Anyways," the pilot spun around the CSH and dropped off the ale in the same move, "that's going to be everyone's first choice. Mine too! So let's take it a step further..."

The CSH was definitely impressive so far, he'd meant it. The personality subroutines seemed very well written, the speed of decision making on point. "Let's say you're the chief...intelligence officer. You and your department need some R&R, but everyone comes up with a bar as the first idea. You want your team to know they're important by doing something special for them, more unique. Now, where would you go?"

Dropping down his own tankard, Chief started thinking "Well, most intelligence members usually enjoy high adrenaline activities, even during their down time." Again the scene changed suddenly, the party atmosphere was replaced with a loud roaring noise and splashing water. The pair were now sitting in a two man kayak, heading down a fast flowing river, nearing the equally fast rapids. Chief turned back to face Cyrin, who was now wearing a form fitting wetsuit and lifejacket "You may want to start using that" he said as he nodded to the double ended ore that just appeared in the man's hand "That is unless you like the idea of crashing into the rocks ahead" Chief added with a shrug as he started paddling himself.

"Wait!" Cyrin was not ready for that! "Ooooh!" He thrust the paddle into the water to one side, then the other. The jerky movements were plain: he had no idea what he was doing. For a few seconds, he definitely started to panic. Especially as he saw the rapids ahead. "I meant in the city," he shouted over the growing rumble and thunder of the choppy river. "In the city!" Alright, maybe he should've been more specific with his parameters. If his voice cracked it all it was to start laughing though, at himself for having been afraid, at the ridiculous situation - and clothes, for that matter - definitely for the excitement. "Wooooooo!" That shout was as much for the kayak crashing headlong into the first wave as it was for the CSH. Being in Starfleet was stellar too.

Chief smiled as he helped push the boat through the rapids, he paddled harder and harder so that they'd gain speed as they shot through the rocks. After the rocks, the river dropped down to a large waterfall that dropped several feet and ended with a large formation of rocks at its base. Instead of slowing down or stopping Chief continued on, pushing the pair up to and then over the edge, water sprayed up from all around them and soaked every part of the kayak. If Chief had a stomach, he was sure that it would be feeling the pull of the freefall. The moment seemed to last an eternity but also rushed by in an instant, the rocks grew larger and larger as they fell.

Before the kayak came to its crashing end, the scene changed once again and the pair landed on something solid. Both were dry again but this time they were sat upon two large horses, dressed in medieval style armour that reflected the bright afternoon sun. Chief was at one end of a large runway, with Cyrin's horse on the opposite end and on the other side of a low fence that ran between them. Chief lifted up his harm, raising a large jousting lance that he was holding "How about we stick with the theme of the Tavern and partake in a fun activity of that past time" Suddenly, Chief slapped down his helmet visor and spurred his horse into action, he levelled the lance and tucked it into the crook of his arm, aiming it directly at Cyrin as he charged forward

"Computer end holodeck program!" Cyrin shouted. Okay, more like he shrieked it. He'd just been telling Yarinna how he didn't like horses, and now some monstrous metal man was about to spear him riding on the back of one?! He had no idea what that was all about, some insane thing from Earth history evidently, and it made him wonder about their overall sanity as a race. Not for the first time either. As the scene vanished, left the pair of them standing upon the polished floor that reflected geometric patterns from the emitters, Cyrin had his hands on his knees and head down for a moment to breathe.

"Okay, okay...experiment over." It took him a moment to gather himself again after that ordeal. Had he really been admiring holodeck advancements just a few minutes a go? "I see we're gonna have to talk," Cyrin said standing up straight and looking to the holographic man. "A talk about intentions as well as meanings. But that was...fun. So, last question: what would you like us to call you, if you have a preference?" He'd deal with the Marseilles program later, but right then he really felt like lying for a while in his quarters, in the dark, maybe with a nice cold cloth over his forehead. More than impressed by the CSH's performance, but even for him the dramatic shifts in perceived location, speed, and trajectory were a bit much.

Chief could easily read the distress on the young man's face, even without needing to access the internal sensors and monitoring your biosigns "Apologies if that was a little... intense. You were in no true danger, the safety precautions were always active, even I can't disable them." Offering a wan smile and a slight shrug "Besides, my programming is to help you, not to kill you after all. As for my name, I don't really have one, I have a designation and build number but those don't exactly roll off the tongue easily. Most people call me Chief for short" he pointed to the rank insignia on his neck for a bit of added emphasis

"Alright Chief, well done. I gotta say you are definitely a step up from some of the last generations of holographic personnel. Usually, I get some cantankerous know it all, or some logical buzzkill that insists, 'I do not understand the need for your request.' Not for this...exact situation." He waved a hand at the blank walls. "In any case, I got a pretty big and detailed program of Marseilles - I'm sure you're already referencing - and trust me when I say if we can find the right spots in the city to come to for some downtime it'll do wonders for crew morale. But let's stick to modern Marseilles, yeah? Better hygiene, and healthcare." And less horses.

"It sounds like you may have met one of my creators earlier programs, there were definitely a few... teethings issues so to speak. Originally, my personality subroutines were also designed by Lewis Zimmerman, but Starfleet ordered for them to be redeveloped by people with an actual personality" Chuckling at his own joke, Chief continued "Do you find it funny that I, a creation of the future and modern technology, select a more rustic and period setting? It's nice to have a break sometimes I suppose" he concluded with a thoughtful look on his face

Maybe because his own people hadn't the memories of things like the M-5 computer, or as many works of fiction about horrible machines that would take over the world, Cyrin had definitely pulled up whatever the latest holographic crewmen at some point or another that was available. "From the Mk I to the up the second to last. Or is it third now? Anyways, made a point to check out all the operational versions while at the Academy, and then on my last posting we had two while I was there. Haven't gotten to see the latest EMH, but then...I guess we have you."

Cyrin started to make his way towards the exit, but paused to pat Chief on the shoulder. That expression of thoughtfulness. How much was just programming, and was there anything more behind it? It would be fascinating to see. "And no, Chief, I don't find it funny." He over a friendly smile. "I think there's probably a better word for it. I'll get back to you on it." As he started to walk for the doors the pilot called out jokingly, "And I knew the safeties were on the whole time!"

Chief laughed and shook his head as he watched Cyrin leave the Holodeck, then he got an idea to have one last laugh. Before the Holodeck doors fully closed, Chief created another avatar of himself directly in front of the pilot "I don't need the safeties to be off to scare you my friend" he said with a wink

"Argh!" The shout was probably heard on both decks 10 and 12, was probably everything the mischievous program hoped for, the young man's face red, spots vivid, eyes bulged. What must organics seem like to beings like that? Yep, he was going to lay down, but only after having a stiff drink. With a look that both said he was going to get the hologram back for that, and a rueful smile, Cyrin called out, "Until next time, Chief."

"Until next time Lieutenant" Chief said with a smile, as he faded out from in front of Xanth and just before the holodeck doors fully closed, a faint neighing was heard somewhere in the distance.