Chereads / The Evergreen Files; Banshee / Chapter 14 - Part 14

Chapter 14 - Part 14

The Evergreen began to vibrate as the engines drew more, and more power. The vibrations soon became body jolting shakes, Solomon still sat in his chair, smiling blissfully, feeling as if massaged by the motions. The command crew shouting out readings of temperatures, pressures, and speeds across the glowing bridge. Kyril raised his left hand high in the air with a smirk. "Okay ladies and gents, lets punch it." said the Captain as he brought down his hand with a fist, and The Evergreen began to accelerate upwards. Solomon could feel gravity intensify as The Evergreen brought itself up from the docking bay slowly and accurately. it took mere seconds for The Evergreen to separate itself from Base Superior and start to speed up its journey into the heavens. After five minutes The Evergreen was merely a darker blue dot from the ground, hanging beautifully in the skies. The warm blues of the sky and whites of the soft clouds soon began to disappear, and blackness started to consume the views of all the windows of the vessel. The gravity had lost much of its strength and the ship began to fire up its gravity generators, while they warmed up, Solomon could feel himself floating in his seat. Solomon heard the man in front of his seat swear, the junior helmsman was stretching out his arms, reaching for thin air, Solomon then let out a little chuckle as he noticed the Helmsman's glasses floating near him. "Grav coming online in Three-Two-One-Mark." said the Internal Operations Engineer. With the sudden loss of weightless to feeling the full force of gravity once more, The Junior Helmsman unbuckled himself blindly and searched frantically for his thick rimmed glasses. The lights flickered back to life, the light shined from the Junior Helmsman's bald head, almost blinding Solomon. "Woah Geof, you should wear a hat, or grow some hair or something..." joked Solomon and laugh at Geof's reply of "Oh, I'm sorry, your fancy pants ladyship"

Seconds from the lights turning back on, the entire bridge broke into life, as all the officers began quickly walking between each other, sharing readings and diagnostics. Twenty minutes later the Bridge Door hissed open and Eve welcomed Sandra onto the Bridge. Wearing her Olive uniform smartly and neatly, she walked fast paced to the side of Kyril's Chair, clicking her heels enthusiastically and saluting, "Sir, you wanted me to report, sir." said Sandra, failing to keep her excitement to a minimum, her eyes glinting, and her face beaming. Kyril eyed her disapprovingly, pulling back his sleeve, revealing a wristwatch with a rising timer. "It has taken you twenty three minutes to report to me... next time, I want it less than fifteen" he said playfully giving her a wink. "Lieutenant Commander. She's all yours, I have the Bridge." Solomon span on his chair turning to Sandra who was gazing around the bridge in awe at its full working potential.

Solomon and Sandra made their way to the library, two decks below them. Solomon automatically navigating his way through the steal corridors and hallways without a thought, Sandra still clutching her map, they walked past the medical room where Sandra had been kept whilst she recovered, and the auburn-haired nurse could be seen sat on the end of a bed reading a thick book, her eyes glancing up at the movement through the glass as Solomon and Sandra passed. She quickly jumped to her feet, making the doctor jolt, who had begun to doze, almost falling from his chair. "No, too many pies!" he squeaked. Lyra marched her way to Solomon and Sandra; she opened the exit door and stuck her pale freckled face through the threshold. "Sands, we still okay for tonight?" asked the Nurse, Sandra jumped from her map not expecting to be spoken to so suddenly. "Yes! Definitely Lyra. I want to take all their money!" she exclaimed enthusiastically. The Nurse gave a cunning smile and disappeared back into the medical bay to return to her book. Solomon was amazed, "Making friends already, are we? She's new... I think. I don't spend much time in the medbay myself, I haven't really been in since Luna. Who's that?" he asked. Sandra who blushed slightly as she began to explain, "She's the new Junior Nurse, this is her first trip on a spaceship, we got talking about things when I was in." Solomon suddenly realised how it must be difficult for someone who's new on the ship to create friends, as everybody already knows everybody and has tight knit groups. The new people certainly had his pity, they had to try and join an already solid family.

Solomon discussed Lyra, the Junior Nurse with Sandra for much of the walk to the library, "You'd like her" said Sandra positively, which made Solomon blush. He had never had much luck with the opposite sex. The words never seemed to get out, or he would start sweating heavily as he started walking up to them, or the best ones, the words would come, he would be smooth, suave, get a laugh and a smile, and then seconds later, be shaking hands with the husband or boyfriend.

Once entering the Library, the room - vast but crammed to bursting point with shelves full of books kept in position by a gravity seal, and tables filled with data consoles sat in the centre of the room. The floor, a rich mahogany wood matched the equally rich and detailed lighter walls and shelving. Solomon walked ahead, passed the tables and data consoles and to the middle isle of shelves, running his outstretched finger along the spines of the hard and paper backs that sat there, casting a smile in Sandra's direction, who had remained standing in the entrance area gazing around, taking in the beauty of the room. "I always did prefer a good proper book to be non-digital." happily eyeing the novels. "...and... this one will do, I think" said Solomon removing one of the paperbacks with a plain black cover marked with the title 'False Gods' "I do like a Scifi book. Keeps the fantasy alive." he said with a smile, Sandra returned the smile and stated, "Yes, but you live on a spaceship...fantasy no more"

Sandra glided over to the data console on the middle table and dropped her crinkled map onto the light wooden space that held the consoles as she began typing away with her long thin fingers. The blue glow of the screen reflecting in her eyes, making them look like blue orbs hanging in her carved face. Solomon checked out his book with the librarian on duty, an old, thin skeletal woman and left Sandra staring at her data console as he returned to the command bridge to complete his day.