<div dir="ltr"><span id="gmail-docs-internal-guid-3460aad5-7fff-942a-5450-9cdcca7c3a33"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Mission: Space was cool before it mattered</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Day: 2</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Stardate: 2446.04.26</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">(USS Exeter - Personal Quarters - MorOff Ens(sg) Ashlyn Williams - 0207)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">"Oh, how could I forget Mrs Fancy Shmancy Smarty pants." Trip said using humor to help get his mind back to normalish.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">“Asshat.” Ashlyn said gently. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">"It was just so damn surreal, and it felt so real. I was positive at one point the murderer was Ravok...no, I think...guilt. Survivors guilt."</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Knowing that he was about to open up, she didn’t say anything, just tapped up the lights a setting or two so they could see each other better, and after taking a sip of the water that she habitually left by her side of the bed, she sat up, listening to her husband.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">"I don't know how captain's deal with this, the crushing guilt. I remember all their names, Ash, everyone who died under my command. Even Ronnie 1.0. But this is the first time I've dreamt about them in this capacity. I even remember the first casualty. Petrova. She didn't die, but she was never the same. She was grounded due to the brain damage she endured. The first, but not the last. I put on a brave face. But....man, this dream was a gut punch. I'm usually not this....afflicted by my emotions."</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">“They deal with it, primarily, by being slightly older.” Ashlyn said after a breath, “If there’s one thing that separates a person of your age and one of more advanced age, it’s an ability in an older person to separate the act from the emotional response. Not that they don’t feel it, but somehow learn to separate. One from the other. That is something that only comes with age. Few people, of any race, have the ability to disseminate the two at your age.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">(Reply Trip)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">“Trip,” She sighed gently. “You are incandescent in your achievements, however you still need you learn many many lessons that those of lesser rank are figuring out. “You’re getting better, and I get that Alex isn’t Ailynn, but that’s the lesson, you have to lean hard on whoever is your FO, and by extension Command team. Let's say we get transferred to the USS Whatever tomorrow, are you going to let yourself be hamstrung as you don’t have your best team about you? Or are you going to wade in and get people to do half of your stuff. I don’t want to say this exactly, but if Ailynn has an edge on you its that she knows how to pass on lesser tasks so she can shoulder the big ones, probably her surgeon thing,”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"> </p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">(Reply Trip)</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:"Times New Roman";font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">(Posted by Mark)</span></p></span><br class="gmail-Apple-interchange-newline"></div>