In Another Castle
Excited Goodbye! posted by jond, January 18th 3002.
INTERIOR: A clean, unused, small, dormitory. In front of the camera, taking up most of the frame, is a fresh-faced youngster with cropped hair and a Kirk vs Picard shirt. This is JONATHAN, and he is adjusting the camera. Eventually, he is satisfied, and sits back.
JONATHAN:
So. Uh. Sorry you guys had to find out this way, but holy crap the Lightseeker called me back! I got to meet Captain Meredith! I'm going to be working with Captain Meredith!
His voice squeaks.
JONATHAN:
But they were heading out literally today, so I had to rush and pack and paperwork and stuff, so that's why I couldn't say goodbye. Sorry, you guys.
A momentary frown, but it passes. Jonathan gets up, picking up the camera with him.
JONATHAN:
So yea, this is my room! My actual room on the Lightseeker! I've got a desk, and a wardrobe, and a bunk, and a bookshelf...
He points out the elements of the room as he names them. The furnishings are simple, and spartan. It's now obvious that the room is positively tiny - about three by three metres.
JONATHAN:
Laundry and toilets and showers are communal, which I guess makes sense; it's a starship, it doesn't have that much room for silly amenities!
He opens the door, and we can see... not much. Dark, as the camera tries to adjust exposure.
JONATHAN:
Let's see if we can't show you some spaceship!
But a clanging, clamouring siren rings, and Jonathan leaps back as if stung.
JONATHAN:
Oh - that's the lights out siren. Sorry, I'll have to show you some another time! See you! Wish me luck, and I'm so excited, you guys!
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One Month In posted by jond, February 20th 3002.
INTERIOR: JONATHAN'S ROOM. A lot more homely, now. The bed is unmade, and there are posters on the walls; a "SETI" advertising poster, with a hard, angular woman in a classic military uniform prominently featured, has pride of place. JONATHAN himself is in a crumpled white uniform, similar to the one in the poster. He is haggard, tired, with drooping eyes and a listless demeanour.
JONATHAN:
Jeez, has it really been a month already. Um.
He scratches the back of his head.
JONATHAN:
It's been a busy month. Learning the ropes around here - well, I've been doing that fulltime the past month and I'm not done! Everyone pitches in on deckwork, and there's all sorts of maintenance that has to be done on a fully equipped spaceship, and then for newbies like me there's the constant fieldwork training - and it is constant, like sixteen hours total every sleep cycle, of basecamp and groundsearch simulation. And I haven't even seen the majority of the work this ship does yet... eventually, everyone onboard does labwork as well; you know, that thing we do to actually get some useful results out of the samples we spend all that time and manpower scouring a planet for?
Just this recounting has exhausted him completely. He visibly shakes himself together.
JONATHAN:
But it's been good! I'm happy to do the gruntwork that keeps the ship running smoothly, and when we actually get to go out on field, it'll all have been worth it. And all this training will make sure I don't contaminate or destroy any life on the ground.
He straightens himself, eyes shining once more.
JONATHAN:
Captain Meredith said something to us new recruits, when we started, and it left an impression on me. She said to kill any romantic dreams we had of being the hero to find alien life right away. SETI is a large, important, and collaborative effort, and every one of us contributes in whatever ways we can. And when we eventually someday find intelligence in the stars? It's going to be all of our names enshrined in history.
He winks.
JONATHAN:
And yes, she is just that cool in person!
He grins, a genuine, carefree grin for the first time this video.
JONATHAN:
That video of the ship I've been promising you will have to wait, again! My legs feel like so much jelly - I spent the last six hours in fieldwork training, and my suit sprang a leak, and I had to bind my legs together to patch it up and just hold position until I could be picked up. To avoid contamination, you know. I think I'm just going to fall asleep right-
SFX: THUMP
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Planetfall! posted by jond, November 24th 3002.
INTERIOR: JONATHAN'S ROOM, presumably. It's dark; the lights are off, and the only light is from a small flashlight that JONATHAN is pointing to his face.
JONATHAN:
Okay, I can't talk too long, because it is absolutely after curfew, but here's the deal: we make planetfall on Gliese S814c tomorrow! And...
He freezes, ears pricked, deer-in-the-headlights expression. Ten seconds. Thirty.
JONATHAN:
(whispering)
As an apology to you guys for not even managing to show you the spaceship so far, I'm going to be sneaking my camera out onto planet tomorrow!
His expression is a complex mixture of ashamed, apprehensive, and excited.
JONATHAN:
(whispering)
It'll be great! You'll get to see what an alien world looks like, and hey, if I - we find intelligent life, then you'll have a front row seat!
Jonathan grins.
JONATHAN:
(whispering)
I know, I know I'm not strictly supposed to - but I have a good feeling about this one, you guys! Call it a hunch, or something...
He closes his eyes, and lets out a quiet yawn.
JONATHAN:
(whispering)
Next video I upload might just feature alien life! Good night!
630 views, 139 likes, 73 dislikes. [View 118 comments]
LEAKED! Cpt. Meredith Tells All About SETI PR posted by thewholestory, December 22nd 3002.
INTERIOR: Security camera footage of an office. JONATHAN, head down, not making eye contact, sits across a desk from the woman from the poster, with a piercing stare and an impeccably neat uniform. This is, of course, CAPTAIN MEREDITH. The camera is in the top, back corner, so we can see the back of Jonathan's head, and the Captain's scalpel-sharp eyes.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
Tell me, Mr. Drake. Why did you throw away your career like this?
Jonathan shrinks, if this is possible.
JONATHAN:
I don't know, Captain. I just wanted to show my friends some of the life I was living...
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
Mr. Drake! It would behoove you to not lie to me.
JONATHAN:
What? But I'm not-
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
(sighing)
Despite continually promising to, you never recorded video one step outside your door for the almost full year you have been on board. No, Mr. Drake. Regardless of what you may believe, that is not your real reason, and I would like your real answer.
Jonathan is silent. Captain Meredith does not take her stare off him. Finally,
JONATHAN:
I... um.
He takes a deep breath.
JONATHAN:
I suppose I was ... trying to show off. I was proud of my position, here on the Lightseeker, and I wanted to brag about what my job let me do.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
Proud enough to jeopardise it?
JONATHAN:
Uh.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
What, precisely, were you so proud of, Mr. Drake?
Jonathan's head whips up.
JONATHAN:
What was I- what's there to not be proud of!? We find aliens!
The proclamation rings out into silence.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
We do not find aliens, Mr. Drake. We seek aliens. And the preferred term is "extraterrestrial intelligence".
Jonathan shrinks again, head drooping once more.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
Tell me, Mr. Drake. Do you know why SETI prohibits the use of recording devices on the planets we explore?
Jonathan looks up.
JONATHAN:
N-no, Captain Meredith.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
SETI has a long institutional memory. We remember when we promised not just the moon, but the stars as well. And we remember how society reacts when that promise is not met, within a generation or two or, god forbid, ten.
She smiles, sardonically.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
So we are very careful to be different from our predecessors. The crew of the Lightseeker know that the job will be thankless. That they're not going to find what they're seeking, not in their lifetime, not in the next hundred lifetimes, perhaps. We know this, in our hearts and our minds, and yet we believe that this is worth doing.
She fixes Jonathan with that look again, but it is kinder, now.
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
But I suspect this was never made quite this clear to you, Mr. Drake. One who expects to scour even a hundred planets before he dies does not brag, and an organisation that expects to scour ten thousand in the next century does not release footage of each one. When we find aliens, we will brag, and not a moment sooner.
She smiles at Jonathan, genuinely.
JONATHAN:
I-I'm sorry, Captain Meredith. I- You're right, I didn't realise-
CAPTAIN MEREDITH:
The book says you are to be dismissed. I will, however, leave the decision up to you, Mr. Drake. Take a month's leave. If you truly wish to join SETI, we will be glad to have you.
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My Decision posted by jond, January 18th 3003.
INTERIOR: JONATHAN'S ROOM. Jonathan is in a freshly pressed uniform, grinning wide and carefree.
CUT.
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