Post by Lieutenant Robin Star on Jun 3, 2017 2:57:47 GMT -8
Peleb.
It had been a year and a half since he had last stepped foot on this delightful planet. Where he had sought spiritual aid atop a canyon’s edge overlooking the mountains so tall they kissed the clouds. It’s where Hunter had stumbled upon his activity and the two shared personal insight into one another, and more than a few punches until they had been hurled over the cliff-side. Totally not Robin’s fault...
They had been saved by local Pelebian patrol in a ship as colorful as the world and their culture. They had a penchant for celebrating the joy of colour, painting anything and anyone, including themselves. It was a peaceful happy society and he was glad to see the same mentality and spirit had not been lost thanks to the war. If anything, it had been strengthened by it, even the planet seemed a little more vibrant than before, if that were even possible.
Robin had travelled back to the mountain top but failed to find the same sanctity of peace he tapped into last time. Although, the real clarity came from the Pelebian tradition at the falls. A ceremonial bath called the saiit that allowed you to see your sai, a projection of your Tekia, which was best described as you, and all of you. The very self. It was an experience beyonds words and one that had certainly stayed with him. The calm and serenity it had brought he had often failed to reproduce but the understanding, the importance of self, especially in the face of war and the recent alarm in splintering ideologies, was made even stronger.
Despite these elements, Robin could not find it in himself to brace the falls again. He knew in his heart, that the saiit would not lift the weight or fill the gap that had been left by the passing of a very dear soul. He needed something else, he needed to say goodbye which was precisely why he was here...
“Whoa…” Robin muttered as he stood on the edge of a wooden dock lit to the brim with spiral patterned poles sticking out of the water and on top of each was a large circular bulb that glowed gold. Tinier globes of light that looked more like big fireflies than anything else were somehow floating around the spheres, as if orbiting it without any clear mechanical connection. The effect was striking, the smaller light sources manipulating the shadows around them, wisps of shade and light ever-flowing that looked akin to water shadows dancing over the dock’s surface and the numerous boats that were harbored here.
The boats were their own amazing spectacle! Each one, big or small, was absolutely covered in what looked to be paint, either expectedly or messily brushed against the different hulls. The reason Robin could see this, other than the powerful lights around him, was that the paint itself had its own glowing properties, making every vessel shine within the darkness, and that wasn’t even counting the neon-rimmed glows on most of the ships.
It was simply beautiful, Robin had no other words for it.
He knew Peleb looked amazing in the sun but seeing this, all the colours of the rainbow illuminating the night, it felt like a fantasy, a magical land. Even some of the fish swimming around looked as if they had bioluminescent skin which just added to the fantastically stunning view of the ocean. He wished Sig could see this..
Robin’s eyes were drawn to the boat that was right in front of him, for an alien design it looked remarkably like a traditional Earth sailboat and like the other boats, the ‘paint job’ was chaotic. Even the wrapped up sails looked like they might reveal a masterpiece that would make Pollock proud.
Robin’s gaze flickered to a more coordinated section of colour on the side of the bow which showcased various intentional shapes. “Is that the ship name?” He asked the helpful Pelebian by his side, Abaw Candra, who had volunteered to guide this alien’s objective of a crash-course in a little sailing along the cerulean sea.
“Oh yes, it is almost tradition to change the name every time you board a vessel you have not sailed on before.” The extremely short-haired Pelebian said with a grin, spreading his green and red painted cheeks. “It makes the ship a little more them and them the ship!”
Robin smiled, it was an interesting tradition. He could imagine many other races would find it almost disrespectful to change the name of someone’s ship, even going so far as painting over the official physical title as if it were graffitti. But here, Pelebians loved to share experiences and this was just another such grand token of generosity and unity.
“What does the last name mean? I can’t read it.” Robin said, almost sheepishly. The universal translator was always a wonder of technology but that didn’t help with reading alien text.
“Werth.” Abaw said with a nod.
Robin frowned, okay, maybe the universal translator wasn’t great all the time!
“And uh… what does that mean, exactly?” Robin asked.
The Pelebian made a face, puffing his cheeks as he tried to think of an appropriate way to share the word’s meaning. Suddenly his eyes lit up and he swooped a finger into his mouth, popped it out and raised a wet finger to the air.
“It means that way,” Abaw explained after pointing a finger.
“Uh, a direction?” Robin queried with a frown before glancing over to the sun and back where the finger was pointing. He found it fascinating that the Pelebian was using the wet-finger trick, some things were simply just that universal.
“Northwest?” Robin guessed which caused a happy excited nod from the Abaw.
“That seems like it can get confusing for some headings.” Robin mused aloud, what was perhaps even more interesting was the fact that the Pelebians seemingly had names for each one third direction rather than combining two together for the diagonal heading.
Robin folded his arms and stared at the vessel, “I think I’ll call it the Northwestern.” He said with a grin.
“Would you like to paint it on? I have buckets.” The Pelebian asked as he lifted a bucket of paint, seemingly out of nowhere.
“Umm…” Robin glanced at the ship again, something told him that if he started painting he wasn’t going to stop. And also, he just wanted to hurry up and get out there!
“No thank you. It’s pretty much the same name right, just in my tongue.” He responded.
Abaw nodded but that didn’t stop his insistence on the subject, “What about your tongue, would you like it painted?” He asked, which had Robin frowning. Only now did he notice with Abaw sticking out his tongue that it looked incredibly orange.
“Um,” Robin blinked.
The idea of painting possessions and your skin seemed normal enough but your tongue?! The pilot glanced at the bucket, he had no desire to lick his tongue a different colour. Abaw noticed Robin’s look and laughed.
“Oh no, we have special edible powders for that.” He said, lowering the bucket and pulling out a small tube from within a leather pouch. He sprinkled a little of the powder onto his palm, showing an electric blue sample.
Robin made a face, “Looks like… sherbet?” He said questionably, not entirely sure that was the correct name.
“Sherbet?” Abaw asked softly, squinting in thought. “Sherbet, sherbet, sherbet…” He chanted softly before grinning ear to ear. “I like how that sounds!” He said cheerfully.
The pair continued to converse with Abaw eventually convincing Robin to try the powder who was now sporting a very blue tongue with a red strip running down the center. It was surprisingly yummy, at least on his tongue but unfortunately, he had been told not to swallow it otherwise the concoction wouldn’t be able to work it’s magic.
A part of him had wondered if this powder stuff was a popular dating accessory, fancy kissing with green tongues? It tastes minty! At least, that’s what Robin would associate with green but considering it was alien flavour, it would probably end up tasting like chicken.
He briefly considered if there was a ‘blood’ flavour, it would no doubt be popular with Klingons but then again, they didn’t need anything artificial, a blood source was typically right there in front of them! Robin unconsciously bit his lip at the thought of him and Kinin exchanging such tantalizing pleasantries.
It was a shame that she hadn’t been able to join them on this shore leave, damn reassignments. At the very least he knew someone was looking out for her considering the promotion which was a huge relief and made the idea of relaxing on Peleb a little more bearable.
“We better get started,” Robin said, picking up a barrel bag from between his legs, a precaution of any Pelebians walking by that might snag the bag for failing to be ‘under his possession’ enough. Especially with what the bag contained inside. The free-motive lifestyle and simply the frequency involved in using paints was why he wore a very light flowy cream coloured top and khaki shorts.
Before Robin could hop onto the boat, Abaw’s hand moved to stop him.
“One moment… here.” Abaw said as he reached into his own accompanying bag and pulled out a long thin stretch of fabric that could be confused as fire from a distance. It had a vibrant gradient ranging from a deep red through a bright orange and ending with a soft yellow that blended seamlessly together. The fabric flowed with ease with the gentle dock breeze to billow it out.
“Is that a scarf?” Robin asked, wondering if Abaw wanted him to wear it.
“A seoul. It is not necessary but it is an old but still commonly enjoyed tradition of those that travel on the waters… so you will always know which way the wind howls.” Abaw said with a smile.
Robin saw some of that logic but mostly, he was trying to think of a polite way of saying, ‘wouldn’t that just get in the way?’ but eventually he shrugged and bowed his head to accept the scarf being gently wrapped around his neck.
After standing straight Robin found himself surprised, he could barely feel it save for the gentle tug of the twin strands that flapped softly to his side. It wasn’t so bad. He could maybe get used to this…
--------
“I’m never getting used to this!” Robin muttered as he found himself falling over for the nth time in his pursuit of learning how to sail. He had very swiftly found himself missing inertial dampeners on a starship. He also learned that the collective weight of a sail, actually had some heft to it, especially when the lower half fell on you. He was even regretting his choice of clothing, wishing it had a tad more padding. The tail-end of the seoul had sometimes slapped him in the face or slipped into his mouth more than a few uncomfortable times.
In a weird sense of reflection, Robin was fairly confident that if Sig were watching, he would be rolling on the floor laughing at Robin’s attempt at learning the ropes… literally. The strings and ropes that one had to knot and tie down regularly had often escaped his grasp no matter how fast he was to leap forward and smash his body against the ship’s surface’s.
After what felt like hours, Robin had finally got the basic hang of it enough that Abaw had considered him ready to sail out by himself. Or at least, Robin hoped he wouldn’t be by himself when they redocked. He had sent an invite to select individuals some time ago, asking if they would want to join him on the waters to remember and celebrate Sig Ericson. He had thought long and hard about what he could to help service the experience, the memory of Sig and the idea of being out on the water felt right, he was an Alaskan man after all.
Eventually the Northwestern eased into the dock and was secured, Robin was allowed a moment of reprieve to massage a part of his arm that had taken the brunt of a few minor falls. Sailing was not something you just picked up and excelled at, no, it took hard work and a hell of a lot of experience to really work and take joy in the wonders of sailing. The realisation reminded him of the simple regret that he had never managed to sail with Sig. It had been something on his mind a few times but he never got around to asking.
Robin sighed softly, his gaze shifting upwards towards the dark-violet sky sprinkled with bright twinkling stars. He smiled at the idea that half of them were giving a new dawn's light to a thousand worlds, saying 'good morning' or 'good day'. Right now, the stars glowed with the silent hopeful promise of a 'good night'.
His smile faltered briefly, as if mourning could ever been seen as a good day or night... he shook his head, allowing the peace of moment to envelop him, he was determined to be positive, to keep afloat with smiles and warm memories rather than be anchored by regret, hurt and hate.
He wasn’t going to sink but… he feared for William, and a part of him wondered if he should have tried to request of staying at DS10 to hopefully keep an eye of him and offer a shoulder in the same way they had done before on their last visit here. Robin only wished that wherever he was or doing, he wasn’t sinking further into the abyss that had claimed so many others.
Tag: Semi-Closed
OOC: As I mentioned in the post Robin would have invited some peeps, I kept it vague as to who that was because I didn’t want to completely shut out everyone from wanting to join. That being said, I would prefer certain characters that have a certain affinity with Sig and/or Robin to really highlight the thread’s purpose. So if you’re interested in joining, please send me a PM and what character you’d like to bring in and we can consider their appropriateness together.
Shape of boat: www.chinayacht.org/uploadfile/2015/0225/20150225083557283.jpeg Think of it as a quarter of the size so it’s more okay for it to be handled by 1 person if need be. Even though I’m sure that’s not really how boats work but hey, it’s an alien boat, shh! I need that convenience.
Colour of boat: lifeinresort.com/ayianapalife/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2014/05/515.jpg Imagine this but a lot messier looking, maybe chalky looking.
* Tekia - I know Marian added a lot of information about what happened here last time to the Pelebian page but I highly recommend reading this first post for Alyssa’s previous visit regarding Tekia. It’s a great explanation/interpretation. usstalon.proboards.com/post/33097
* Sai / Saiit - Something I introduced in our first time on Peleb. Marian summed it up and added the relevant parts of the experience amongst my goofy long-windedness of a post. But if you have any questions regarding it or simply confused by anything then let me know and I’ll try to explain my madness further.
It had been a year and a half since he had last stepped foot on this delightful planet. Where he had sought spiritual aid atop a canyon’s edge overlooking the mountains so tall they kissed the clouds. It’s where Hunter had stumbled upon his activity and the two shared personal insight into one another, and more than a few punches until they had been hurled over the cliff-side. Totally not Robin’s fault...
They had been saved by local Pelebian patrol in a ship as colorful as the world and their culture. They had a penchant for celebrating the joy of colour, painting anything and anyone, including themselves. It was a peaceful happy society and he was glad to see the same mentality and spirit had not been lost thanks to the war. If anything, it had been strengthened by it, even the planet seemed a little more vibrant than before, if that were even possible.
Robin had travelled back to the mountain top but failed to find the same sanctity of peace he tapped into last time. Although, the real clarity came from the Pelebian tradition at the falls. A ceremonial bath called the saiit that allowed you to see your sai, a projection of your Tekia, which was best described as you, and all of you. The very self. It was an experience beyonds words and one that had certainly stayed with him. The calm and serenity it had brought he had often failed to reproduce but the understanding, the importance of self, especially in the face of war and the recent alarm in splintering ideologies, was made even stronger.
Despite these elements, Robin could not find it in himself to brace the falls again. He knew in his heart, that the saiit would not lift the weight or fill the gap that had been left by the passing of a very dear soul. He needed something else, he needed to say goodbye which was precisely why he was here...
“Whoa…” Robin muttered as he stood on the edge of a wooden dock lit to the brim with spiral patterned poles sticking out of the water and on top of each was a large circular bulb that glowed gold. Tinier globes of light that looked more like big fireflies than anything else were somehow floating around the spheres, as if orbiting it without any clear mechanical connection. The effect was striking, the smaller light sources manipulating the shadows around them, wisps of shade and light ever-flowing that looked akin to water shadows dancing over the dock’s surface and the numerous boats that were harbored here.
The boats were their own amazing spectacle! Each one, big or small, was absolutely covered in what looked to be paint, either expectedly or messily brushed against the different hulls. The reason Robin could see this, other than the powerful lights around him, was that the paint itself had its own glowing properties, making every vessel shine within the darkness, and that wasn’t even counting the neon-rimmed glows on most of the ships.
It was simply beautiful, Robin had no other words for it.
He knew Peleb looked amazing in the sun but seeing this, all the colours of the rainbow illuminating the night, it felt like a fantasy, a magical land. Even some of the fish swimming around looked as if they had bioluminescent skin which just added to the fantastically stunning view of the ocean. He wished Sig could see this..
Robin’s eyes were drawn to the boat that was right in front of him, for an alien design it looked remarkably like a traditional Earth sailboat and like the other boats, the ‘paint job’ was chaotic. Even the wrapped up sails looked like they might reveal a masterpiece that would make Pollock proud.
Robin’s gaze flickered to a more coordinated section of colour on the side of the bow which showcased various intentional shapes. “Is that the ship name?” He asked the helpful Pelebian by his side, Abaw Candra, who had volunteered to guide this alien’s objective of a crash-course in a little sailing along the cerulean sea.
“Oh yes, it is almost tradition to change the name every time you board a vessel you have not sailed on before.” The extremely short-haired Pelebian said with a grin, spreading his green and red painted cheeks. “It makes the ship a little more them and them the ship!”
Robin smiled, it was an interesting tradition. He could imagine many other races would find it almost disrespectful to change the name of someone’s ship, even going so far as painting over the official physical title as if it were graffitti. But here, Pelebians loved to share experiences and this was just another such grand token of generosity and unity.
“What does the last name mean? I can’t read it.” Robin said, almost sheepishly. The universal translator was always a wonder of technology but that didn’t help with reading alien text.
“Werth.” Abaw said with a nod.
Robin frowned, okay, maybe the universal translator wasn’t great all the time!
“And uh… what does that mean, exactly?” Robin asked.
The Pelebian made a face, puffing his cheeks as he tried to think of an appropriate way to share the word’s meaning. Suddenly his eyes lit up and he swooped a finger into his mouth, popped it out and raised a wet finger to the air.
“It means that way,” Abaw explained after pointing a finger.
“Uh, a direction?” Robin queried with a frown before glancing over to the sun and back where the finger was pointing. He found it fascinating that the Pelebian was using the wet-finger trick, some things were simply just that universal.
“Northwest?” Robin guessed which caused a happy excited nod from the Abaw.
“That seems like it can get confusing for some headings.” Robin mused aloud, what was perhaps even more interesting was the fact that the Pelebians seemingly had names for each one third direction rather than combining two together for the diagonal heading.
Robin folded his arms and stared at the vessel, “I think I’ll call it the Northwestern.” He said with a grin.
“Would you like to paint it on? I have buckets.” The Pelebian asked as he lifted a bucket of paint, seemingly out of nowhere.
“Umm…” Robin glanced at the ship again, something told him that if he started painting he wasn’t going to stop. And also, he just wanted to hurry up and get out there!
“No thank you. It’s pretty much the same name right, just in my tongue.” He responded.
Abaw nodded but that didn’t stop his insistence on the subject, “What about your tongue, would you like it painted?” He asked, which had Robin frowning. Only now did he notice with Abaw sticking out his tongue that it looked incredibly orange.
“Um,” Robin blinked.
The idea of painting possessions and your skin seemed normal enough but your tongue?! The pilot glanced at the bucket, he had no desire to lick his tongue a different colour. Abaw noticed Robin’s look and laughed.
“Oh no, we have special edible powders for that.” He said, lowering the bucket and pulling out a small tube from within a leather pouch. He sprinkled a little of the powder onto his palm, showing an electric blue sample.
Robin made a face, “Looks like… sherbet?” He said questionably, not entirely sure that was the correct name.
“Sherbet?” Abaw asked softly, squinting in thought. “Sherbet, sherbet, sherbet…” He chanted softly before grinning ear to ear. “I like how that sounds!” He said cheerfully.
The pair continued to converse with Abaw eventually convincing Robin to try the powder who was now sporting a very blue tongue with a red strip running down the center. It was surprisingly yummy, at least on his tongue but unfortunately, he had been told not to swallow it otherwise the concoction wouldn’t be able to work it’s magic.
A part of him had wondered if this powder stuff was a popular dating accessory, fancy kissing with green tongues? It tastes minty! At least, that’s what Robin would associate with green but considering it was alien flavour, it would probably end up tasting like chicken.
He briefly considered if there was a ‘blood’ flavour, it would no doubt be popular with Klingons but then again, they didn’t need anything artificial, a blood source was typically right there in front of them! Robin unconsciously bit his lip at the thought of him and Kinin exchanging such tantalizing pleasantries.
It was a shame that she hadn’t been able to join them on this shore leave, damn reassignments. At the very least he knew someone was looking out for her considering the promotion which was a huge relief and made the idea of relaxing on Peleb a little more bearable.
“We better get started,” Robin said, picking up a barrel bag from between his legs, a precaution of any Pelebians walking by that might snag the bag for failing to be ‘under his possession’ enough. Especially with what the bag contained inside. The free-motive lifestyle and simply the frequency involved in using paints was why he wore a very light flowy cream coloured top and khaki shorts.
Before Robin could hop onto the boat, Abaw’s hand moved to stop him.
“One moment… here.” Abaw said as he reached into his own accompanying bag and pulled out a long thin stretch of fabric that could be confused as fire from a distance. It had a vibrant gradient ranging from a deep red through a bright orange and ending with a soft yellow that blended seamlessly together. The fabric flowed with ease with the gentle dock breeze to billow it out.
“Is that a scarf?” Robin asked, wondering if Abaw wanted him to wear it.
“A seoul. It is not necessary but it is an old but still commonly enjoyed tradition of those that travel on the waters… so you will always know which way the wind howls.” Abaw said with a smile.
Robin saw some of that logic but mostly, he was trying to think of a polite way of saying, ‘wouldn’t that just get in the way?’ but eventually he shrugged and bowed his head to accept the scarf being gently wrapped around his neck.
After standing straight Robin found himself surprised, he could barely feel it save for the gentle tug of the twin strands that flapped softly to his side. It wasn’t so bad. He could maybe get used to this…
--------
“I’m never getting used to this!” Robin muttered as he found himself falling over for the nth time in his pursuit of learning how to sail. He had very swiftly found himself missing inertial dampeners on a starship. He also learned that the collective weight of a sail, actually had some heft to it, especially when the lower half fell on you. He was even regretting his choice of clothing, wishing it had a tad more padding. The tail-end of the seoul had sometimes slapped him in the face or slipped into his mouth more than a few uncomfortable times.
In a weird sense of reflection, Robin was fairly confident that if Sig were watching, he would be rolling on the floor laughing at Robin’s attempt at learning the ropes… literally. The strings and ropes that one had to knot and tie down regularly had often escaped his grasp no matter how fast he was to leap forward and smash his body against the ship’s surface’s.
After what felt like hours, Robin had finally got the basic hang of it enough that Abaw had considered him ready to sail out by himself. Or at least, Robin hoped he wouldn’t be by himself when they redocked. He had sent an invite to select individuals some time ago, asking if they would want to join him on the waters to remember and celebrate Sig Ericson. He had thought long and hard about what he could to help service the experience, the memory of Sig and the idea of being out on the water felt right, he was an Alaskan man after all.
Eventually the Northwestern eased into the dock and was secured, Robin was allowed a moment of reprieve to massage a part of his arm that had taken the brunt of a few minor falls. Sailing was not something you just picked up and excelled at, no, it took hard work and a hell of a lot of experience to really work and take joy in the wonders of sailing. The realisation reminded him of the simple regret that he had never managed to sail with Sig. It had been something on his mind a few times but he never got around to asking.
Robin sighed softly, his gaze shifting upwards towards the dark-violet sky sprinkled with bright twinkling stars. He smiled at the idea that half of them were giving a new dawn's light to a thousand worlds, saying 'good morning' or 'good day'. Right now, the stars glowed with the silent hopeful promise of a 'good night'.
His smile faltered briefly, as if mourning could ever been seen as a good day or night... he shook his head, allowing the peace of moment to envelop him, he was determined to be positive, to keep afloat with smiles and warm memories rather than be anchored by regret, hurt and hate.
He wasn’t going to sink but… he feared for William, and a part of him wondered if he should have tried to request of staying at DS10 to hopefully keep an eye of him and offer a shoulder in the same way they had done before on their last visit here. Robin only wished that wherever he was or doing, he wasn’t sinking further into the abyss that had claimed so many others.
Tag: Semi-Closed
OOC: As I mentioned in the post Robin would have invited some peeps, I kept it vague as to who that was because I didn’t want to completely shut out everyone from wanting to join. That being said, I would prefer certain characters that have a certain affinity with Sig and/or Robin to really highlight the thread’s purpose. So if you’re interested in joining, please send me a PM and what character you’d like to bring in and we can consider their appropriateness together.
Shape of boat: www.chinayacht.org/uploadfile/2015/0225/20150225083557283.jpeg Think of it as a quarter of the size so it’s more okay for it to be handled by 1 person if need be. Even though I’m sure that’s not really how boats work but hey, it’s an alien boat, shh! I need that convenience.
Colour of boat: lifeinresort.com/ayianapalife/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2014/05/515.jpg Imagine this but a lot messier looking, maybe chalky looking.
* Tekia - I know Marian added a lot of information about what happened here last time to the Pelebian page but I highly recommend reading this first post for Alyssa’s previous visit regarding Tekia. It’s a great explanation/interpretation. usstalon.proboards.com/post/33097
* Sai / Saiit - Something I introduced in our first time on Peleb. Marian summed it up and added the relevant parts of the experience amongst my goofy long-windedness of a post. But if you have any questions regarding it or simply confused by anything then let me know and I’ll try to explain my madness further.