SIM:Nicholotti A Bridge to a Lonely Island

((Marina, Echevar Island Resort))

::Having been 'forced' to provide her hand for biometric clearance for the boat, and endure some of the more amusing comments she had endured that year, Kali left the new officer-turned-sailor to finalize things as she went to check out their water based form of transport. Along the dock, various signs made special note of rules, regulations, and general information that all would be ocean-goers would need to know. It appeared that the Echevarans, at least those in charge of the marina, were not without a sense of humor; various signs used pictures to convey messages, while others, using some amazing form of technology, changed from the writing of the native people to Earth Standard as she walked by them, and they built up, through amusing phrases and images, to the 'ultimate' event of getting on a boat.::

::Get Your Towels Ready.::

::Kali couldn't help but smile at that one suddenly hoping that they had some on the boat. She had forgotten to bring her own, as swimming wasn't something she did outside of the holodeck usually.::

::Everybody Hit The Deck!::

::A short animation played where small, stick people with smiling faces scrambled from the stick person deck onto the stick person boats. It elicited another grin from the woman as she walked by.::

::But stay on your toes.::

::This one conveyed a message of safety as she got closer to the dock she was looking for. She nodded to herself thoughtfully; after all, there were no safeties in reality.::

::After passing a few more signs, one to the right lit up with a bright arrow followed by the words 'Let's Go!'. Turning her head, she looked over the ship. It was small, if you were comparing it to the 'ships' she was used to; the ships that sailed the stars. But for a boat, made to travel on water with, made for people to stand up and say 'Hey, look at me! I'm sailing on a boat' because there really was no real use for such craft in a day when transporters got you where you needed to go in seconds, and made for simple fun, it wasn't bad. It really wasn't bad at all.::

::Perhaps in her pause, the automated sign realized she hadn't moved and the screen flashed again.::

::Take a good, hard look.::

::Kali cocked her head to the side at this just as it changed again.::

::At The Boat. Your Boat!::

::Laughing, Kali stepped forward and glanced back to see if her partner for this definitely non-holographic oceanic experience was coming sometime that year. Noting that he was now headed down the dock, she turned back and walked past the sign, which flashed a final message towards her.::

::Enjoy flowing on a boat on the deep blue sea.::

::An image of gentle waves rocking the very boat in front of her gently appeared on the screen for a moment before fading. Kali closed the gap and made her way off the dock and onto the boat. As soon as both feet were in, and solid ground disappeared, she found herself grabbing for a nearby railing to avoid tumbling to the deck. Though gentle, the rocking of the waves had definitely caught her off guard. It took a moment to regain her balance, but once she did she saw that walking around wasn't difficult at all.::

::Finding her way to what appeared to be the bridge of the small craft, Kali looked down at the instruments as she heard Daniels approach from behind.::

Daniels: Don't worry, it's only a simulated sailboat, but its engines are completely silent... so you could pretend it is if you really wanted.

::Kali grinned still looking down at the instruments.::

Nicholotti: It looks like it's pretty calm. ::Looking up at him she moved over slightly.:: Five knot winds, it says. About enough to claim the wind was whipping your coat out if you were wearing one.

::She shrugged as he stepped behind the wheel knowing that there would be enough wind to make her hair obnoxious once they got going. It wouldn't be like the gentle breeze she felt just then when you added their own speed into the mix. As such, she quickly wrapped it up in a loose bun as the boat began to move.::

::He seemed to be concentrating on learning the controls, so Kali moved down to the front of the boat. A couple of chairs in sat on either side of a rather out of place looking box, of which her curiosity got the better of her. Opening it, she found a bottle with a strange label that looked like it said Ssand Tana Shamp and felt so crisp as if it had sat in the sun for days. Next to it was a card, which, had she been able to read it, said,::

::Bring your swim trunks and flippie floppies, To Kinko's birthday party. We'll flip burgers and see who can flip the most copies, And enjoy the view of the sea together.::

::Being that she wasn't able to read it, and thus decide it was a birthday invitation long forgotten on the boat, Kali simply marveled at the beauty of the writing and put it back. Closing the box, she turned as she heard his voice.::

Daniels: So I'm curious, are you going to add this to your service record?

::He paused for comic effect and as he recalled the name of the boat:: Riding on a prestigious ship like the "Dolphin" is a proud accolade!

::Kali grinned at the joke and pretended to actually entertain the idea.::

Nicholotti: As long as it's not splashing and getting me all wet, aka, sinking ::She looked sarcastically at him.:: then hey, why not? This is as real as it gets.

::It was a true statement. As long as the boat didn't try to sink with her on it, sailing that day would be one of the real world experiences she'd had that didn't have a safety net. Of course she made sure that she had one; her comm. badge was nestled securely in her pocket so that if anything did happen, she was prepared. Always be prepared. It was the first rule her grandfather ever impressed upon her.::

::Another pause ensued, during which Kali found her way up further on the front of the boat as it speed out into the blue of the sea. For a moment, Kali would later recall thinking to herself that it was pretty cool that she was actually on a boat, and, after a pause, something akin to 'whoa, we're going pretty fast'. It was the speed that made her smile. Though it couldn't compare to the speed of her Hornet, it was just one of the many things that she found to be similar.::

::It was also the reason that she moved towards the very tip of the front of the small craft, passing a rather interesting afghan with the words Pashmina and various nautical themed symbols on it, and finding her way to the front railing where the wind became strong enough to really exhilarate her. As it blew past her and as she really began to feel the intensity of the experience, a huge smile appeared on her face. She felt like the Queen of the world in that moment. It was more amazing than she could have imagined. Knowing that it was real, perhaps, was what made it so; not having the background knowledge that nothing around you was real just made it so much more than it probably was. She didn't care at that moment though. This time it was.real, and she was enjoying it.::

::A name popped into her mind and she smirked at the timing that memories had. Suddenly, for a short moment, she was back in school studying the pioneers of travel. That day it had been the boating innovator Leo T'pain - one of the first Vulcan Human hybrids who had a simple knack for things that floated. She recalled that he made the news once for stating, to a reporter, 'If you're on the shore, you sure aren't me.'. Sure, he was half Vulcan, but Kali laughed at it all the same. Perhaps that was an attempt at a joke? She didn't know.::

::Of course, as of that moment, amazed by the feeling she got leaning out towards the open water, two things happened. Kali gained a whole new respect for the boating innovator, and the speed through the water slowed and stopped.::

::Moments later, a voice from behind her once again drew her attention from the strange path her thoughts had taken her on.::

Daniels: So Commander, what brings a beau- ::He stopped in the middle of that word and tried again, visibly embarrassed at the slip-up:: what brings a woman like *you* to Starfleet?

::Kali had turned to look at him, and as the words came out, she laughed despite her attempts not to. She could see that he was embarrassed about his words betraying his thoughts, but it was something she had almost gotten used to after her time in the Marines. In fact, Marines were far worse and far cruder most of the time. They made no attempts to correct their words. As Colt finished the, revised, sentence, Kali managed to stop laughing and simply grin.::

Nicholotti: A woman like me huh?

::She turned her gaze away from him, still smirking, to look out at the now calm water. In the distance, she could see the water lapping against buoys, climbing them like they were climbing trees. Taking in a deep breath of ocean air, and in the absence of any engine noise - even the sound of the water rushing by - Kali leaned back against the rail and spread her arms out to her sides as if she were flying. The feeling was amazing and as close as she could have gotten to flying without having access to a plane.::

Nicholotti: Excitement. Something to do. ::She shrugged.:: Family tradition.

::It had been family tradition that had really brought her to Starfleet. It was a path that she started in the Marines before her near death experience. It continued as a doctor in the Fleet after that. Now, she was a command officer. Suddenly she felt as if the path had been much longer than she thought, yet it had all passed in the blink of an eye.::

Daniels: Oh, really? Your mother or your father? What specialization?

::Kali smiled and turned back towards him now.::

Nicholotti: Marines. And it was the man's tradition. Let me tell you, my father did not like it at all that his little girl signed up to join his Corps.

::The daytime sillouette of the moon appeared just above the horizon behind him and Kali found herself wondering what it would have been like to have been out there at night.::

oO I'll bet you it feels like you could fly this boat to the moon somehow. Oo

Daniels: Wow, I bet that would have been an interesting conversation to sit in on.

::She laughed at that.::

Nicholotti: Let's just say that it wasn't pretty. ::She paused.:: How about you?

Daniels: Well, you know, my parents were successful Terraformers... so naturally I didn't want to do ANYTHING like that. ::He laughed:: So I jumped a freighter and got out of dodge the first chance I got, ended up working security on a ROUGH ship, well I got unintentionally involved in some... questionable business practices. I left that ship as soon as I caught wind of it all and joined up with Starfleet to try and make up for some of the things that I unknowingly allowed to happen.

::It was an interesting story, though she could tell that maybe he wasn't giving her all the information. But that was fine. They had, after all, just met.::

Nicholotti: I think you made a good choice.

::She smiled.::

Daniels: Yes, I think so. I just figured I might be able to do some good, you know? I know it's naive to think that one guy could make a difference but I figured it wouldn't hurt to try... right?

::Nodding thoughtfully, she stood and walked back from the railing towards the main deck and the chairs. Finding a small cooler with drinks inside, she took one and sat in one of the chairs.::

Nicholotti: This is actually incredibly relaxing.

::And it was. Perhaps the best part about it was that she had forgotten how much she had loved the water when she had all but given it up for the air. Of course it could never trump her one true love, the love of her Hornet and screaming through the air in it, but it was a close second.::

Daniels: It really is. Can you imagine what it must have been like a few hundred years ago? No communicators, no positioning systems, only the stars and a compass to guide you...

Nicholotti: Heh. If you had asked me five years ago where I would be today, I'd never have thought I'd be on a boat.

::Looking out at the water, she took a sip of the drink, which turned out to be some kind of carbonated fruit juice that was native to Echevar. The water looked like a big, blue watery road that just kept going until it met the horizon. Everything was so fresh and clean, even the air itself seemed to add to the overall feeling. It would be kind of sad to have to leave.::

::Kali thought briefly of the station and the recent activity there. The death of Hunt and the pregnancy of her friend. They had spent very little time on the station, yet so much had happened there. She sighed. Her mind was always turning to work. Perhaps it was the plague of command.::

Daniels: I don't know where I thought I would be, but I'm glad I'm here. With you. ::He paused for a second as he realized she seemed distracted and likely hadn't heard what he had just said, he decided that it was probably for the best:: Are you okay, Commander? You seem like you've got a lot on your mind.

::He brought her back to reality; a real world where she wasn't at work, there were no grey walls surrounding her, and there were no pads on her desk all vying for her attention. She smelled the salt in the air and grinned again.::

Nicholotti: Just thinking. About work. ::She waved her hands around as if shooing a fly.:: Pesky work.

::Laughing, she looked back out into the water, unbroken by activity. She wondered if any life was out there.::

Nicholotti: I know they had those sonic barriers out here, but maybe we'll see something. Maybe, a mermaid.

::She winked at him and laughed before taking another sip of the drink. I was warm, calm, and beautiful out. It was the perfect day. And though she didn't know much about the person there with her, it was a good feeling to just get away from what your life had become. And it wasn't that she resented the dedication and commitment that she had devoted to Starfleet; it was just good to tear yourself away from such commitments for a short time so that you really could give them your all. Even if she felt like a lonely island at times, having given up on any relationship other than one with Starfleet, the company of good friends, and new friends such as Colt, helped build a bridge so that she wasn't quite so alone.::

Daniels: You feel like taking a dunk? I've got the anchor down, the boat isn't going anywhere. I know a veteran officer like yourself isn't afraid of little fishies...

::He shot her an evil grin and before she could respond he pulled his shirt off over his head and jumped over the railing into the water with a giant splash due to his size::

TAG/TBC

--
Commander Kalianna Nicholotti
First Officer
Starbase 118 / USS Victory

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