The setting Sun
09 Feb 2022Sylvie Wayfare
The bulkhead creaks softly from the pressure outside of The Southern Sun. The ship's temperature is fairly cool. Unsurprising given the environment. An unfamiliar environment for most ships, but not for this ship. Given how long Sylvie has worked for the company, she knew a little trick that an un-modified hull of a Saud Kruger ship is capable of, and is something she has made full use of to ether go into hiding, , spending a night or two in order to think of what to do next, or give some passengers a unique experience. Tonight, its the latter of the three. Sylvie sat in her pilot's char, reclined with her legs propped up on the dashboard. Seeing the multitude of signals around her made her a little nervous, even if she knew none of them were nearly large enough to cause The Southern Sun any problems. Most tour guides would be happy showing passengers a water world, and orbit it for a few hours. But not Sylvie.The Southern Sun had splashed down, then dived. It now cruises at a slow and steady speed as various curious life forms not seen anywhere in the galaxy swim past. A nice place to call it for the night until heading off to see a few more interesting sights in the morning.
"How many are still awake?" Sylvie asks, a yawn following her question.
"Three. Location - bar and grill -" The familiar, monotone voice of Susanne replies. "They appear to be ready to turn in soon once they are finished conversing."
"What about?"
The voice was silent for a moment before responding. "You never spoke of your experience during the base-camp meeting."
The older woman chuckles, always admiring her creation when it tries to change the subject. "It was interesting. I've heard plenty of pilots over the years talk about mass jumps. Never took part in one until now. I decided to be one of the last ones to jump, just so everyone on the observation deck could get a good view. Nice to see these kids going out and seeing the galaxy for what it has to offer."
"Is that was why you took manual control?"
"Of course Susanne. The auto pilot is lovely, but sometimes a delayed reaction is more... aesthetically pleasing." Sylvie opens her eyes to look out the wide view of her windscreen. A school of odd fish swim past, having multiple eye stocks that jotted out in every direction.
"Is this the philosophy of being -fashionably late-?" Susanne asks, obviously picking the term from a memory bank of various terminologies and ideas.
"Try not to think about it too hard hun. There is a time and a place to be late for something. Keep learning like you are, and you'll get the hang of it."
"Noted." The light hum of the ship's engine starts to slow. "Sylvie. All passengers are in their cabins. You may proceed with your tasks."
Sylvie sighs and gets up, sounding somewhat reluctant. "And here I thought I could enjoy your company for a bit longer. -I know, you'll still be around when I'm cleaning. But we both know you can't be you. Not outside of the cockpit at least." She cut off her digital companion before it could respond
The voice stayed quiet. It was aware, and always made sure it could show it's true colors only around Sylvie, and only when it was safe to do so. With the cockpit and pilot's cabin sound-proofed from the rest of The Southern Sun, both Sylvie and Susanne were confident enough to speak here for the time being.
Sylvie patted the door frame, as she does when leaving the cockpit to enter the main ship. Off to clean up after her guests for another night. Hearing the sound of water around the hull of the ship was something that kept her calm as she worked. Having done this many times while she still worked for Saud Kruger, it was almost always at a station. Hearing the opening and closing of shutters and ships taking off, landing, or getting stuck in the access corridor. It all gets very tiring and repetitive after a few years. And Sylvie has had more then a few years of that. Staying submerged in a water world was a nice way to get lost and relax. Both for her and her passengers. Even if it was less then ideal for receiving any Galnet News. But given most passengers, and Sylvie, like to get away from it all sometimes, it helps to be down here. It makes the cleanup work go by a bit faster, or at least that's what it felt like.
"Anything else?" Sylvie asks the open air, looking up at some strange creature swimming directly overhead. She sighs, remembering where she was. "Susanne. Anything else?"
"Nothing needs your attention at the moment Sylvie." Susanne replies.
"Alright. I'm heading to bed. Just give me a minute." She takes a seat to catch her breath by the pool, still looking up as the multi-limbed being continues to swim past. Admiring the sight of an alien fish she had never seen before, and may never see again when The Southern Sun eventually rises to continue it's journey on the expedition.