In Rememberance

Posted on Sat Aug 31st, 2024 @ 6:59pm by Captain Abigail Laurens & Lieutenant Commander Evelyn Rozia & Commander Ichiko Gail & Lieutenant Commander William Gunnison & Lieutenant Commander Calvin Morgan & Lieutenant Camille Lévesque PhD & Lieutenant Veznia MD PSyD

Mission: Lower Decks
Location: The Raging Deity

Will had worked with Ashe to set things up for a somewhat informal get-together for the Pennsylvania. There had been some connections between the two crews, especially when working together on the Odraiclite mission, along with the crew of the Wellington, so it as only appropriate that there be some sort of memorial for the "Penn" and her crew.

Everything was set up, and now Will waited for folks to arrive.

The doors swished open, and the first one through was the Executive Officer, the Ship Second... Ichiko. She carried a box in her hands, barely making eye contact as she went to spend a moment with the assembled memorial for the lost crew. She opened the box she brought with her, and set out a number of small items. Some kind of flat display stand, a bowl, and a few candles. Then the rest of the esoterica began to arrive.

On the flat stand she placed two clear resin globes, a little bigger than an Earth baseball, and put that in a position with the crew. Some form of Delta memorial, perhaps? The bowl was halfway full of white sand, and in that sand she put a small candle, the equivalent of a tea candle on Earth. Small, but it would burn for a while. Other conventional candles were placed where they wouldn't interfere with the viewing of the memorial, but instead were there to accent it.

Ichiko knew what she as doing. It was like she did this every... day...

A few soft words were spoken as each candle was lit, ending with the one in the bowl. A moment of silence, and then she stood to join Will and Ashe. "They would appreciate this." was the first thing she said, "And, you beat me to it, which I personally appreciate." a nod, as she got herself a glass of water. "Dalacari remains are mixed into resin. They don't bury their dead." she explained, looking over at the twin resin globes.

Looking more sorrowful than she had for some time, Veznia wandered into the room. She hadn't been particularly close with anyone aboard the Penn, but she felt the loss deeply. "This is rather beautiful." She said softly as she came to stop next to Ichiko.

Evelyn entered shortly after, holding a replica of the Pennsylvania about two feet long. It had taken her a few hours to make sure it was just right, but something like this required details. She felt guilty that she'd replicated the base form of the model, but had done most of the painting herself, with Chief Terrix and a couple other engineers pitching in. "One of the engineers over there was in my Academy class, a JG in her power section. Flora and I actually had a project together in our second year. Anywhere I can put this?"

"The Penn deserves double." Ichiko said softly to Veznia. "Their loss will echo through the Empire as well. The ship that served." she turned towards Evelyn and the replica. Such a simple thing, but it carried the weight of stars. "A crew needs their ship. Why not put it near the picture of the Captain?" she suggested.

Calvin walked into the room, still in his uniform from his shift. It wasn't clean and neat, but one wouldn't necessarily say it was disordered either. He stopped for a moment at the slowly growing memorial for the vessel. A moment with a bowed head, no words. He then walked over to the small group quietly. He had nothing to say, something that spoke loudly on his face. While he had no deep connections on the vessel, the feeling of loss was never a pleasant one.

Shaille paused outside the doors and glanced up at Koh, eyes wide for a second before she reached one hand up, trailing the length of his ear, her forehead resting against his for a moment. It was a solemn occasion. The crew of the USS Pennsylvania had stood side by side with them battling the Koldaran, that alone formed a kind of camaraderie that was had to define and even harder to leave behind. She gave Koh a weak smile before she closed her hand around his wrist, stepping closer to him as they entered the lounge together.

Koh looked good in white. He never wore it though. Never in uniform, never casual. He seemed to avoid the color. Today, he wore white, and there was a good reason for it. At Shaille's touch, he softly smiled, visibly relaxed. She was his strength, as time he was hers. A gentle touch, a moment together, sharing in each other's stability. They walked in together. Ichiko caught the pair, caught the attire, caught the posture. To the pair, she gave a soft nod. The memorial had already been set up.

It was shameful how late she was to the memorial. Camille Lévesque had arrived aboard just the day before, long enough to unpack, but the only people she knew were those she had met on the Odraiclite mission. She’d left the Penn crew a couple of weeks earlier and had spent the intervening time exploring forests and caves on Ketram, awaiting word when her transport back to AQ was ready to leave.

Survivors guilt was a powerful thing.

At the shrine that others had set up, she bowed her head and said a quiet prayer.

As late as Camille was, Callisi was behind her. Fur brushed, eyepatch... in place, an operational flight jacket over her uniform. A soldier, as well as an officer. She stood in silence, her one good eye going over the pictures of the crew, stopping once she saw the pair of globes on the shrine. "Jag ar ledsen." she said, softly, as she lingered for a moment longer to pay her farewells. This was the part Callisi hated the most. Saying goodbye.

It made her eye hurt.

(Tags)

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ONCE EVERYONE ARRIVES
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Ichiko took a position next to the shrine that had formed for the lost Pennsylvania, her crew, and her spirit. No pedestal, just a PaDD of the most up to date information on a communique the rabbitess had received.

"I want to thank you all for coming. The loss of a friend is a cut to the heart, the loss of so many, so close to be family, is a pain we may never fully recover from. We'll see them in every crowded street. We'll hear them in every distant murmur. We'll close our eyes and be right by their side again." she started, "In her absence we must endure, we must continue. Chart the stars they can't, see what they can't." she continued softly.

"I've spoken with the shipmaster of the Guardian's Burden, the Ts'usugi craft that arrived to repel the Koldaran, and Shipmaster Hodai Nisson expresses his unending sorrow at the loss of the Pennsylvania. Upon hearing that the craft was lost he and his crew entered into a request to the Imperial Navy to be transferred to Deep Subspace Recon. There, they will plumb the depths of Subspace, probing deeper than even the most advanced Ts'usugi vessels can tolerate. Their tour will last six months, and their mission is to listen. Listen for the sounds of the Koldaran. Listen to the hum of the cosmos, but none of that matters to Nisson. His personal goal is to stretch his ears across the universe, in hopes of hearing a distant cry from a war front ally. His goal is to listen for the Pennsylvania." a pause, her voice beginning to crack at the end. "Even if all he hears are ghosts."

"In the time to come, you will grieve in your own ways. Whether you find yourself alone in the comfort of the dark, or surrounded by others, all are invited to remember and recall. We fought together, we remember together, and while grief may erect walls to stop you from moving on..." sniffle, "... the only way out, is through."

"I will leave the carrier frequency that Shipmaster Nisson is using available to all who wish it. Either the means to contact his ship and inquire to his status, or a request to be tied into the feeds from the probes in the depths of Subspace. To hear the ebb and flow of the cosmos, and perhaps find peace in the ethereal tides that the Pennsylvania now sails."

Abigail entered quietly, hands clasped firmly behind her back, mostly to stop them from trembling as she took in the gathered crew. The solemness of the occasion hung in the air, something that seemed to make the wounds she already tried to hide ache even more. She nodded slightly to those that addressed her but for the most part remained silent, drifting across to the nearest view ports and leaning against the edge, staring blankly at the space beyond. She had put in an appearance, now all she wanted to do was to return to her quarters where she was free to grieve without hundreds of eyes watching her every move.

"If there is nothing further to add, take solace in your companions. Let them be your strength. To allow time, we will extend additional time off shift for all parties. Coordinate with your department head in these matters. That is all." and with that, Ichiko stepped away from the podium, to find her way to Abigail. To her superior, to her friend, to her shipmaster she said four simple words.

"I'll handle this. Go."

Abigail nodded quietly and exited the lounge. There was no need for her to be there, the crew didn't need her words tonight, they needed each other... and her mourning was better done alone, away from prying eyes.