Cross-Pollination

Posted on Thu Jan 30th, 2025 @ 2:37am by Lieutenant Commander Amaya Capac & Lieutenant Cyrus Jericho
Edited on on Thu Jan 30th, 2025 @ 5:33am

1,636 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Mission 8 - A Blast from the Past
Location: Lost in the Woods
Timeline: After "Stranded"

Amaya had all the food and medicine stored away and the cart, piled with blankets and the cleaned-off tarp, stashed in a corner. She tried not to pace as she waited for Cyrus, but he'd taken far longer than she expected and she was growing concerned.

When the sun was just above the treetops--or as best as she could tell with all the pollen in the air--she went back outside to look around. She wasn't going very far, but she was feeling too antsy to stay where she was. As a precaution, she made a scarf she could wear to protect her face from the worst of the pollen.

Maya was careful to mark her trail so that she could find her way back, but made sure it was not so obvious that someone could follow it back to their make-shift camp. Since she'd been to the shuttle that day, she decided to go in the opposite direction. The pollen was so thick now there was no longer a trail, just areas where the pollen was three or four inches deep. That made it all the more imperative to make reliable marks. For that, she used a combination of geometry and shorthand--or what little she remembered from her childhood.

The pollen had driven most of the forest creatures into hiding, making the woods eerily quiet. So quiet that when she heard a twig snap she almost jumped. She moved closer to a tree and listened. Was it Cyrus? If not, who would be out here?

Then she heard a single word that made her stomach knot. It was a Romulan swear word, spoken in a flawless Romulan accent. Or by a Romulan. She had to get closer. If that was a Romulan, then it would mean they were definitely on the planet and they were likely the ones that shot down the shuttle. For that reason, it was important that she get closer.

As she moved closer she discovered a few Romulans standing around. They seemed to be talking.

Before she could say or do anything, a hand covered her mouth and pulled her away behind a thick tree. It was Cyrus. He immediately placed his finger over his lips to signal for her to remain quiet before tilting his head slightly to the side to catch a view of the Romulans. They hadn't been alerted which was a good sign. He looked back to her and slowly eased his hand away from her mouth. "What part of 'wait for me' was unclear?"

"I did wait," she hissed, her voice barely a whisper.. "You neglected to say you were going to be gone all day. I was concerned, so decided to look around." she nodded her head toward the Romulans. "And I heard them. They didn't know I was here."

"I wasn't supposed to be gone as long as I was." Cyrus whispered back as he eased his hold on her. He leaned his head aside, making sure they weren't heard by the Romulans, before continuing on. "I went out to scout around and came across something. Before I could investigate it, I saw them. Debated on whether or not I should try to deal with them, one by one, but decided to follow to see where they were headed. When they started to get closer to you I was gonna lead them away." He looked back to Amaya and added softly. "Making sure you didn't get caught off guard took precedent."

She put a hand on his cheek. She wanted to kiss him but told herself this wasn't the time or place. "I appreciate that. But now you know that I will come looking for you if I think you might be in trouble." She nodded toward the Romulans. "I doubt they're alone on this planet. If you take them out, others will come to find out what happened. And from what we were told, the Romulans are friends of the bird people, so they won't appreciate us hurting their friends. But if we can find proof that they're the ones who shot us down, we can take that to the captain." She paused to listen. It sounded like the Romulans were moving away. "As much as I agree with you, I don't want to be out here when they find the shuttle."

"We have an option." Cyrus replied, placing his hand on hers for a moment, before taking it away. "We can blow the shuttle. I don't think the Captain will be happy, but it will keep any technology we have from falling into alien hands. Romulan or... well... Bird. Bad news, it will draw attention, but the explosion should be strong enough for the America to pick it up and, with any luck, possibly beam the remains onboard." He gave her a bit of a smirk. "I didn't tell you what I found, though. You're gonna love this."

"First, I think blowing up the shuttle is a great idea. I have enough supplies to keep us comfortable and fed for several days." Then, because she couldn't resist, she thanked him properly, with a kiss.

Cyrus felt her lips on his, an unexpected reaction to his idea, but he took it as it was. He pressed his lips to hers, getting lost in their kiss, as he placed is arms around him. He closed his eyes and, just as he felt himself being taken by it, he pulled himself away with a smile. "Uhh... Where was I?" Paris said as he tried to get back to his original point, holding onto Amaya's hands tightly. "Yeah... that's right. I found a building. I think it’s some kind of facility. It's active and, get this, it’s not active by the Birdies. Romulan guards patrol the outside."

"The captain will want to know that." She shook her head. "Hopefully, when we blow up the ship, whoever comes to look for us will find it." But with Romulans on the planet, why did they have to help repair the Avians' ship. Was it because the Romulans didn't want to be found, or because they were only here for what they could get?

Part of him wanted to split them up. Send her to the shuttle while he lured the Romulan's away, but he felt like they were better together. There was no way in knowing whether the Romulans, or the Avians for that matter, had found their shuttle already. He didn't want to send her to the shuttle if they were swarming it. As he turned to face the Romulans, still shielded by the trees, raised a brow. "We should head to the shuttle first. Priority is blowing the shuttle to get America's attention and keeping Starfleet tech out of their hands. Especially when it comes to the Romulans." He raised a brow and shrugged slightly, remembering one small detail. "That is, of course, your call Commander. You are the senior officer."

"Right now, we're a team," she said. "We'll go to the shuttle first, but if they're using that building, luring them away will only be a temporary fix. I think we should blow up the shuttle, then wait to see what they do." They would not only attract the attention of the America, but any Romulans in the area, not just the ones they saw. "We can let the Romulans think we died in the explosion." She put a hand on his arm. "Remember, the Romulans are not the enemy of the Avians, so we have to be careful."

Cyrus smirked a bit as he turned to face Amaya. He remembered a few times being chased by Security on his home planet with his brother. How the security would think they were chasing the brothers, but the brothers were really leading them along. His smirked soon shifted to a devilish one as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the tree. "I may have an idea. It's crazy, but it will definitely get us what we need." He raised a brow and held out his hand. "All it will cost you is a kiss for luck and your hand phaser."

"Oh, I'll gladly give you a kiss, but I'm not so sure about the phaser. What do you have in mind?" It wasn't that she had a problem luring them away. She didn't. But if there was a building nearby that was being used by the Romulans, it would only be a temporary measure. She would rather they think she and Cyrus died in the shuttle explosion rather than know they were still in the woods--at least until they knew help was on the way.

"I'll do my best to get the phaser back to you, but if you want to kill two birds, so to speak, with one stone I am going to need to take a risk. Something me and my brother used to do when we were being chased by Planet Security back in the day." Cyrus raised a brow slightly and smiled a bit. "Not exactly the same idea, but close enough where the same goal in intended." He looked back at her and added softly. "Trust me. It'll take care of a few things all at once, but the longer we stand around and debate it the more time we give them to find the shuttle intact."

She did trust him. It was just that ever since they crashed on the planet she'd been out of sorts. Edgy. Anxious? No. It wasn't anxious she was feeling. "Okay. I'll go back to our base and wait, but please, don't take long."

OFF

Lieutenant Commander Amaya Capak
Chief Operations Officer/XO
USS America

Lieutenant Cyrus Jericho
Chief Security/Tactical Officer
USS America

 

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