Deck Eleven: Holodeck Two (Volga River, circa 1930s)

[fallaces_sunt]

This is not the smartest idea she's ever had. The library is open; she could be reading, reading just about anything she'd like. She could be in the gym working the edge off her tension. Hell, she could turn this holodeck into a gym that she's familiar with. Test out her ability to actually handle the fake reality with something safe and mundane.

That would be sensible.

Instead, Natasha is sitting on a low pier on the west bank of the Volga River, her slacks rolled up to her knees as she dangles her toes in the water and very carefully monitors her unease.

It's late spring, a vague point in the 1930s. The only people are those working on the occasional cargo ship as they travel up and down the broad expanse of the river, but there are plenty of birds. Location, just south enough from Volgograd that she can't see it.

This might not be the smartest idea she's ever had, but she knows better than to actually go to her hometown. And at least she's got a copy of the complete Sherlock Holmes stories to keep her company.

[OOC: As per normal Trek holodeck set-ups, anyone can walk in as long as they don't mind entering in mid-program.

Open until I say otherwise! :-) ]

Comments

[decideformyself]

The first thing Philip does when the quarantine is lifted is explore. Since he can't glean any information on the Enterprise from the Gaia Library, he needs some first-hand experience instead.

Rightfully he should be in the library looking up historical records or star charts, but somehow it's Holodeck Two that he happens to wander into first. And what a surprise it is to go from the hallway of a futuristic spaceship to a nice, quaint riverside. So this must be one of those holodecks he overheard being mentioned. And it's clearly in use by somebody else.

Not that that stops him from wandering around and taking in the sights. It's a nice change of pace, after all. When he spies Natasha sitting on a pier he approaches, heedless to the fact that she's reading a book. "Is this a place you know?"

[fallaces_sunt]

Reading a book, but not unaware of her surroundings. She's already lowering the book as he gets closer, and closes it around a finger.

"Yep. The Volga River, in Russia. Might as well test it out with something I know."

Her accent, for the record, is generic American.

[decideformyself]

Philip doesn't really have the context to place most English-speakers' accents anyway, so the statement doesn't strike him as odd. "It's quite picturesque. In addition, this projection is extremely lifelike. For a moment I was concerned that I had actually stepped off the ship, somehow."

[fallaces_sunt]

Her smile is faint, and a bit crooked.

"Seems to be the risk with this kind of thing. And you can add people. They'll act real, too."

[decideformyself]

A look of surprise crosses his face. He turns his head to follow a passing cargo ship, its crew milling about in a lifelike fashion as it sails down the river. "I would find that more unlikely if I had not met an android shortly after my arrival," he admits. "However, it's still surprising to hear. Have you interacted with a holographic person up close?"

[fallaces_sunt]

"I'm leaving that experiment for another day."

Read: never, if she can help it.

Then,

"Wait, an android?"

[decideformyself]

Which means Philip needs to try that experiment when he has a moment to himself in a holodeck. How interesting!

"Yes, apparently," he replies. "She claimed to have been programmed with a database of information reaching back to the dawn of humankind. The technology in this time period is simply amazing!"

[fallaces_sunt]

This smile is a bit lighter.

"I've read so many science-fiction books, and...it's incredible actually seeing some of those things as a reality."

Beat.

"Even if it's a fake kind of reality, like this place."

[decideformyself]

Philip grins at that, squatting down to touch the grass beneath his feet. It certainly feels real enough. "I never expected that I would live long enough to see the advances of the twenty-fourth century. You're right; it's amazing."

[therighttime]

Steph is jealous Natasha was able to find an actual book - unless she's procured a PADD. The captain herself just spent time with the large screens in the library.

Her intellectual search hasn't been exhausted yet, but with so much history to sift through, she needs time to process. She started with the most relevant for the situation: history of Starfleet. Actually onboard a ship led by the association, there's question of how honest the report is, but Steph's used to that.

SHIELD provided both public and internal records for her first leap into the future.

She's not trying to invade, and her first step into the room almost has her backing out. But there was no indication of the room being occupied, and once she's recognized the person at the river - as much as a hologram could be called a river - it would be rude to leave without acknowledgement.

[fallaces_sunt]

Replicators are amazing, amazing things as far as Natasha is concerned.

She hears the swish of the doors, and half turns her head to see who it is.

Ah.

Rogers. And the one who belongs to her alternate self, so she has no idea what Kolya has told her.

This could be slightly awkward.

"Afternoon, Cap."

[therighttime]

"Seems to be the consensus," Steph replies, perhaps cryptically, with a small smile. Her roommate had offered her a good afternoon, too, and followed it up with confusion. There isn't exactly a low afternoon sun to judge by.

She's not judging the surroundings, not yet. But that Natasha came here alone and chose a setting for herself gives Steph a very serious feeling of trespassing. She still has her body slightly turned to the side, ready to leave at first request. "I didn't mean to interrupt. If you came here to be alone..."

[fallaces_sunt]

Natasha thinks it over for a moment, and then shakes her head.

"In part, maybe. But mostly I was just testing this thing out.




So you can stick around, if you want."

[therighttime]

Steph hesitates but finds herself nodding all the same. She's not going to say anything, it wouldn't do to complain, but... this is the second time in a few short years that she's found herself somewhere alien and frightening and completely alone.

Steve Rogers.

At least Natasha is still Agent Romanoff.

Quietly, she steps down the bridge to join Natasha at the edge. In no particular mood for research or information sharing, she finds herself perfectly willing to quietly contemplate computerized water - if that's what Natasha wants.

"Thanks."

[fallaces_sunt]

She inclines her head in a silent no problem.

There are birds chirping, occasionally brawling and freewheeling through the air, but aside from that and the cargo ships making their way to and fro, it's quiet.

"Welcome to the Volga River," she says then. "At least, a mocked-up version of it."

[therighttime]

It's nice. Peaceful. If she didn't know there was a hallway and a big metal ship beyond the door, this would fool her completely.

Steph leans back, hands braced against the rough wood of the pier, relaxing. Quiet, when quiet was never a constant of her child or adult life, but it's something Steph can appreciate now. She frowns thoughtfully at the waves.

"It's huge, for a river," she comments. "Russia?"

[fallaces_sunt]

"Western Russia, to be exact. Longest river in Europe."

She smiles, the expression faint and wistful.

"I grew up not far from here. My hometown is about ten minutes upriver."

[stark_spangled]

When everyone started making jokes about how technologically impaired Steve was coming from the 1940s to the 2010s, he wishes he had the option of punting them to the 23rd century to see how easy it was for them. He's a keen guy, but things take time and practice to figure out, and when you're at the mercy of what is, essentially, a giant floating computer, it's better you start learning immediately.

It's a good thing the captain lifted the quarantine when he did, because Steve was getting ready to chew his own arm off. He's wandered the decks a little to get a feel for the layout, poked his head in a few rooms, but now he's standing outside the holodeck trying to make heads or tails of the panel.

"Um, Computer?" It's a shot in the dark, but if the turbolifts and replicators are voice-activated, it stands to reason the rest of the ship is. "How does this thing work?"

After a moment of back-and-forth, the doors slide open and Steve walks in. He blinks hard, hands dropping open-palmed at his sides. It seems -- real. Really real. He can even feel a slight breeze combing through his hair. The grass under his shoes is spongy and pliant. He can smell the river, hear the birds cawing overhead. His eyes water, but he can make out a shape on a pier a few yards in the distance.

He walked in on a program in-progress, that much he knows for sure, and he doesn't want to intrude.

[fallaces_sunt]

This program is quiet enough that she can hear the swoosh and click of the doors opening and closing. She doesn't startle, but she does twist her torso around to see who has arrived.

Ah.

This might be awkward, if he sees things and puts other things together. On the other hand, it's Steve.

Natasha gets to her feet, and waves.

"Hey, Rogers!"

[stark_spangled]

He's just turning to leave, wiping the moisture from his eyes with the heel of his palm. He stops abruptly and turns back. He's been made.

At least it's only Natasha.

"Hey!" he calls back, picking his way across the bank to get on level ground. The creak of wood as his boots thunk across the dock is incredible. He knows, rationally, that he's standing on the same kind of flooring that makes up the rest of the ship, but he completely believes he's walking over the water. "Over one-thousand people on this ship, and I keep running into you."

He shoots her a crooked smile, and sticks his hands in his pockets. "What is this place?"

[fallaces_sunt]

"I've been telling you, you just can't get rid of me," she retorts, but for all the tartness in her voice, she's watching him carefully.

"A holodeck program. Banks of the Volga River in Russia, near Volgograd. I...thought I'd test this thing with something I knew."

[stark_spangled]

"You know how the elderly like to keep in touch with their favorite caretakers," he snipes, smile growing even more lopsided.

He nods, lifting his head to take a good look around the room. He breathes in the air, looking up to see if he can catch the sun. "It's incredible. How'd they do on accuracy?"

[fallaces_sunt]

Natasha is silent for a moment, turning from him to look back over the broad expanse of the river.

"Pretty well," she says finally. "It created a realistic setting from various data points and conjecture. And I didn't exactly plug in exact co-ordinates.




But I grew up not far from where this spot would be. And I'd believe it."

[stark_spangled]

Steve takes in as much detail as he can manage, which, given his eyesight, is a lot. The workers on the cargo ships interest him. They're not 21st century. They could be turn of the century, late 1980s maybe, but he doesn't think so.

His attention snaps back to Natasha before he gets too carried away. "I'm interrupting a private moment," he guesses, wincing. "I can leave."

[fallaces_sunt]

She makes a quick face at him.

"Steve, if I wanted you to go, I would have told you to fuck off. Not greeted you. You can even sit down if you want."