Denver

[Turkish]

Not stepping, but seemingly gliding he entered the bridge. He was taken aback by the smell at first, pungent and aggressive; the smell of comradery. There likely hadn’t been a personnel rotation since before the operation had begun. All that came to mind was ‘good’. He had the opportunity to observe them in much more raw form, much more of who they were. To see them rather than seeing their uniforms.


Speaking, barely raising his voice above the audible hum of the instruments the words escaped his mouth.

<Report?>

The acting XO looked up, fatigued and clearly having been caught off guard began to speak.

<All systems are nominal.>
<Inbound towards the planet at maximum speed. Arrival is estimated at seventeen minutes, sir.>

He stopped to think, taking every moment to breathe, and letting every second add to the awkward silence growing between the two men.

<Sub-light engines to half, silent approach vector.>

It was magnificent to behold the change. They acted so quickly, perfect harmony between both the machines and their living operators.

-------------------

The lights gave way to a soft, organic glow emanating from the consoles, the life of everything in the room bleeding through into the atmosphere.

He walked away slowly, making sure to touch every bulkhead as he went.

---

I have a fetish for all things Norse.