Two Outcasts In An Empty Corridor

Posted on Sat Oct 15th, 2022 @ 5:40am by Lieutenant Iowa Riverside 'Grey Ghost' & Lieutenant JG Nozomi Kusuda 'Gemini'

962 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Operation Romulus Return
Location: USS Tokyo (NCC-91101), Deck 18
Timeline: Shortly after Nozomi's discharge from the Flight Deck Sickbay

“How you feelin’?”

“Like I’ve been hit on the head, resuscitated, shot, and then confined to a bio-bed for what felt like three weeks,” Nozomi grinned mischievously as Iowa led her out from the Flight Deck Sickbay. “Just an average day on the job, am I right?”

"Would you believe me if I said I'd seen worse?" Iowa remarked.

"Do tell," Nozomi entreated, an eyebrow perked in curiosity. "I do love myself some gossip."

"Well, you could always end up like me;" Iowa pointed to herself. "A cryogenically-preserved tourist attraction, much like my sister is now."

"Oh, that's right," Nozomi muttered, recalling their earlier conversation in the ship's mess hall. "You had, like, three-or-four sisters back in the day?"

"Three, honey;" Iowa clarified. "Though two of them are dead and the third one is still in cryo-stasis back in Camden."

"Ah, now it's coming back to me..." Nozomi muttered, suddenly realizing that while she had heard Iowa mention her sisters a couple of times, she knew very little- if anything at all- as to what kinds of people they even were.

"Say, if don't mind my being nosy," she began, considering her words carefully so as not to come off as too pressing. "I've been wondering... what was life like for you and your sisters back in the day?"

Iowa snickered. Kusuda just had to know everything about all her shipmates, and thus she was more than worthy of the "Nose-omi" nickname that Mika had coined for her.

"Sure thing, Gemini;" She said. "But, I warn you, the picture I'm about to paint you ain't a pretty one."

Nozomi perked a brow in curiosity. "Dare I ask why that is?"

"Well, for starters, all this tolerance and equality you enjoy today? Forget all about it." Iowa began. "Yep, back in the day, a white person such as myself wouldn't even dare to think about sitting next to someone of a darker skin pigment on the bus, and I'd hate to think what folks of that period would have done had Vulcans made first contact then. In fact, when my sisters and I were young, your ancestors were our enemy. I guess you could say old habits die hard, as I still let some slurs slip every now and then."

Nozomi shrugged- or, at least attempted to, given her restricted mobility. "That was all before my time- it's water under the bridge by this point," she dismissed with a wave of the hand.

"Well, there were also fascists over in Europe, but my sisters and I; we all fought the Jappi- sorry, the Japanese." Iowa corrected herself. "All I was doing was explaining the circumstances in which my sisters and I grew up. If the Federation ever sent someone back to 1940s Earth to observe what life was like before Humanity made first contact, they'd probably seriously wonder how we got to where we are today."

"I've found humanity has its fair share of... questionable moments," Nozomi chuckled. "But jokes aside, you wouldn't happen to be implying that you and your sisters were conditioned to fight the Japanese from birth? Because that's sorta the vibe I'm getting from your description."

"Well, I wouldn't call it so much fighting the Japanese as I would call it fighting Uncle Sam's wars for him." Iowa remarked. "Of course, we weren't aware when we were drafted that they were planning on preserving us for future conflicts, so you can probably imagine the shock when they showed us our freezers for the first time."

"Heavens..." Nozomi muttered. "Surely, you must've protested being stored away and forgotten about like Friday night leftovers!"

the two of them fell silent.

"...Um, if you'll excuse the comparison," Nozomi quickly apologized.

"No offense taken, honey;" Iowa responded. "Like I said, it was a different era, and if we'd questioned what the government had in store for us, we might have gotten thrown out of the Navy for it."

"What would've happened if you were?"

"Well, my sisters and I would all long be six feet under now, wouldn't we?" Iowa responded.

"But what if that meant you'd get to live a somewhat normal life after the fact?" Nozomi pointed out. "You'd get to go home to your loved ones, and not have to worry about the possibility of waking up to find out that everything you knew is... well, gone?"

"Hun, patriotism means different things to different people:" Iowa explained. "Yeah, I loved my family, mainly my sisters, but I loved my country more, and if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't do a thing differently, because you know why? I got to do what I loved, and that was defending my country and fellow countrymen from all threats, foreign and domestic. I know that sounds like lyrics to a cheesy patriotic song from the late 20th century, but it's true."

"I can admire that level of altruism," Nozomi complimented. "But now that the day's saved, what's say we take some well-earned shore-leave, and you can indulge yourself in some more... human pursuits?"

Iowa smiled.

"Now, ain't that the reason behind this whole shore leave thing to begin with?" She asked.

"You really do owe it to yourself," Nozomi replied. "Word on the ship was that some officers were planning on boarding a transport bound for Risa; perhaps if you're up to it, we could join them for a week or two?"

"Hell yeah, sister; I'd be down..." Iowa said.

Posting By

Lieutenant Iowa Riverside
Fighter Pilot

Ensign Nozomi Kusuda
Fighter Pilot

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