A Late-Night Stroll

Posted on Mon Feb 8th, 2010 @ 9:21am by Commodore Samantha York & Colonel Damon Raine

1,440 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: A New Home
Location: Tiberius X
Timeline: During the Ice Planet Expedition

ON

Samantha woke with a start, her heart pounding in her chest. Something was outside her tentâ€¦ scratching and digging to get insideâ€¦

Was it a kâ€™naar? They were several kilometers from the cave, but she didnâ€™t know how far they traveled and how expansive the caves were. It was conceivable that a tunnel extended to the campâ€¦

Was it a nightmare? Thinking of those teeth still gave her the shakes. Not to mention their long, pointed claws. Perfect for digging through the caves. Or into tentsâ€¦

~Stop it!~ she told herself. It was useless sitting there worrying about what may or may not be outside. She needed to go outside and take a look.
Sam dressed quickly in the chill air of her tiny tent, bundling against the frigid temperatures. Phaser in hand, she slowly made her way outside and began to circle her tent, looking for tracks in the ice. There were several, all hers, by the looks of them. She had made quite a few tracks as she pitched her tent.

~There!~ she thought, giving herself a firm mental shake. No digging. No claw marks. Nothing but human tracks.

Still, she couldnâ€™t resign herself to climbing back inside, and she didnâ€™t want to go into the womenâ€™s tent or the shuttle. Instead, she decided to take a walk around the camp. Fortunately, she was on the outskirts of the camp and wouldnâ€™t bother anyone.

Damon sat patiently on a crate of weapons not far away from Samantha's tent. He was upset with himself for once again allowing her to go off without adequate protection, and like the first time it almost cost her life. He wasn't sure if he was just being paranoid, but he wanted to make sure that she slept safely tonight.

Unfortunately she chose to have her tent moved to the edge of camp where the sentry passed only once in a ten minute circuit. He didn't want to burden and of his Marines with an extra guard duty, so he stationed himself to keep an eye out for her.

So far the night had gone by uneventfully. Every once in a while he would hear sporadic gunfire from the Marines stationed at the caves entrance a few miles away. Apparently the little creatures hunted at all times of the day and it kept the Marines on their toes.

He was enjoying a crisp breeze blowing through the camp when he heard Samantha's tent being unzipped. As the sky was crystal clear, the moon's glow reflected off the ice making visibility very high. He watched as she stood up and walked around her tent. He was close enough that he could see the phaser she held in her hand. Concerned, Damon left the comfort of the crates and rushed after her as she walked away.

Sam was trying not to think about the day's events as she headed away from her tent. She needed to clear her head or she wouldn't get back to sleep. The sound of someone -- or something coming up behind her had her spinning around, phaser drawn. Even though he was dressed for the weather, she recognized him. "Damon," she breathed. "You scared me."

He looked down to the phaser in her hand as she lowered it. "Yeah, I think the feeling is mutual."

"What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?" she asked as she put the phaser away and walked towards him.

"...I'm helping out with the camp sentry tonight. Just wanted to be sure everyone slept safely." He didnâ€™t even believe his own words as he said them. He didn't want to tell her the truth that he was only out here out of concern for her safety. Saying it in his head made it sound even more like he was being too over protective. He shuffled his feet in the snow slightly, his nervous tension showing. He suddenly wished he was a much better liar.

She didn't believe him. His face clearly showed that he was lying. She didn't even have to use her telepathy. But she was touched by his concern. Except for her brothers she'd never had anyone care about her. With her brothers she felt stifled. With Damon she felt... protected. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. "Thank you. But you need to get some rest."

He looked down at the woman in his arms. "I'll be fine. What about you? You should be sleeping right now. Is everything okay?"

She leaned back to look at him and shrugged, "I had a nightmare. I came out here to clear my head." She didn't want to tell him that she'd been positive the rodents were trying to get into her tent and she wasn't sure she could sleep. She would rather allay his fears and make sure he got some rest.

"With a phaser in your hand?" He asked skeptically "Must have been some nightmare." He was sure there was enough light for her to see the expression of disbelief on his face.

Sam considered lying to him, but thought better of it. "I was sure the k'naar were trying to get into my tent," she said simply.

He nodded sympathetically. The day's events were clearly still taking a toll on her. "I'm sorry."

"Thank you," she replied quietly. "I'll be fine, it's just the first night..." There would probably be a lot of nights she slept with the lights on. "I'm worried about you, though. You need to get some sleep."

He shook his head. "You don't have to worry about me staying up, I really don't mind. Besides," He said looking over the vast icy surface of the frozen ocean as the planets moons cast an eerie glow over it "It's a beautiful night to be up."

Sam looked around. It was a beautiful night with the moon reflecting off the ice. "Yes, it is. Maybe I'll stay up for a while and go for a walk? I won't be going back to my tent any time soon." Although she had craved the solitude earlier, now she was leery of being alone in her tent. "And I know I don't have to worry about you, but I do anyway." Maybe that would distract him from thinking about her taking a walk in the night.

Damon wasn't easily bought by the words. He remembered why he was out here in the first place. At the same time, he recognised her need to be alone right now and didn't want to interfere. Once again he felt unsure of what the right move was. "Okay." he said simply with a smile on his face. "Try not to go too far off outside of the camp though." He squeesed her hand tightly before taking a step back.

"I won't. I promise." She squeezed his hand, wanting to invite him to join her and keep her company and wanting him to get some sleep. She paused to ask... then changed her mind. Sam wanted to be alone and she needed comfort. A quandary. She hesitated again, then bid Damon good night. The poor man had enough to deal with right now. He didn't need her to add to his troubles. She let go of his hand and turned to continue on her way.

Damon smiled weakly. "Good night Sam." He turned and walked away, snow crunching under every step he took.

After he weaved himself through the tents, he arrived at his destination. It was not his tent, rather, he made an indirect path to where the fireflies rested. Damon had no intention of falling asleep tonight, though he knew Samantha would disapprove if he told her otherwise. He had taken liberties with her safety in the past when he could have gone with her. It wasn't something he would do again, least of all tonight. He stepped up the ladder attached to the shuttle and climbed to its roof for a better vantage of the camp. With a heavy sigh he settled in with his back braced against a conduit cluster. He rested his rifle beside him and took out his binoculars. Within a few moments he spotted the form of Samantha. He let out a cloud of steam from his mouth and smiled as he lowered the binoculars. He might not be walking beside her, but tonight, he would keep watch. She was too important to him to lose.

OFF

1st Lieutenant Damon Raine
Marine CO
USS Orion

Lieutenant Commander Samantha York
Chief Science Officer
USS Orion

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