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Jasmine pressed her palm to the entry screen and looked at me with delight when the door whooshed open.
“Yes, I gave you access to all the fun places,” I said smugly.
As I neared her to pass through the doorway, Jasmine played her fingertips over my belt, provoking an involuntary gasp from me.
“Maybe not all the fun places…”
I felt myself blushing as I grabbed her hand and then scooted her into the empty, white sheen of the holodeck. My breath was caught, and I couldn’t even respond to her. I was glad she was facing away from me because it was fairly undignified that she was seeing me so off-guard with her overt innuendo.
Jasmine strode to a computer screen on the wall that was spinning the Prexis symbol. She flicked it to life, opening the home screen detailing all the adventures one could find in the holodeck.
I waited for her to choose our adventure, slightly amused that she wasn’t consulting me for preferences at all. She glanced back over her shoulder once, still with that devilish grin, and then plugged in the scope of the holodeck’s animation.
“Please stand on the proximity centers to be scanned and embedded in the Holo Rendering.” The holodeck’s voice was a pleasing woman that always reminded me of my mother. I could not really capture what my mom’s voice had been like. I had lost her when I was so young, but there was always a sense of warmth and comfort to it.
Perhaps it stemmed from my deep familiarity with the holodeck—the realm of limitless adventures with no real-world consequences. It was my sanctuary, a place where I could shed the weight of command and simply be myself. No pressure, no concerns about being a Commander. Just me.
Jasmine and I stood on the compression centers and waited as the purple glow of the scanners swept over our bodies.
It only took thirty seconds, and then the holodeck spun to life.
I looked down at my rendered attire and guffawed. I was bare-chested, in a loin cloth, with bare feet. There was a crossing of leather across my chest, and I reached behind me to pull a long spear from a loop.
“This is my only weapon?”
“Well, do you qualify your brains as a weapon of mass destruction?”
“Of course. I’m just saying,” I gestured to her hands. “You’ve got a bit of an advantage over me.”
She grinned, twirling her longswords and tapping the dull side against her armor shoulder plates.
“I figure we can leave those fancy blasters you Krafina have at home for a while. Get back to some true hand-to-hand.”
“What am I supposed to do with this spear?”
“Use it to let me get in closer to the opponents.”
I smiled at the thought that I was just an accessory to her adventure. “And who are these opponents?”
Even as we spoke, the holodeck had been building the environment around us. It swiveled out to show we were on a long, purple-grained plain. Rolling hills and icy mountains in the distance.
Sound came to life, and wounded animal calls echoed through the holodeck.
Then, springing toward us was a fierce feline creature with fangs bared, claws slashing at us, hoping to rip our threat and devour us for dinner.
I thrust the spear forward and warded it away as the feline dodged to the side. She crouched low, lips pulled back, snarling, as my spear offered cover to Jasmine as she started to pace closer to the wild beast.
“Against animals, huh?” I was familiar with this holodeck adventure. I generally used it for exploration and meditation. I hadn’t realized the animals could be programmed to be hostile. If you stumbled across them in the wilds, they might decide to fight you, but they might also let you be.
Circle of life and living together as all beings did.
Jasmine dodged in toward the feline, whipping her sword toward its chest, and the great spotted cat slashed at her sword, snarling as her paw was bloodied on Jasmine’s blade.
“Do you only find the thrill of the hunt when you are chasing more intelligent enemies?” She sidestepped, pursuing the feline back as it hedged toward the hills, distracted by its hurt paw. I kept the spear over her shoulder, ready for any attack.
“I am a Commander of a ship. I fight wars. Animals cause us no harm. We use them when needed, but there’s no reason to overtly battle them.”
“Hmm. Sounds like you are describing the way Krafina think of humans. They can be used when you need them, nothing but animals who can cause you no harm otherwise. Isn’t there a bit of arrogance there?”
