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Saratoga Bridge
"Would you look at that," Kirk murmured.
The Hymer Gas Cloud, stretched before them in all of its vast blue-violet glory. The U.S.S. Hawking had discovered it during
a deep space survey and now the Saratoga would be spending the next week conducting sensor sweeps and in-depth studies
of it. They would also run several away-missions, including an extended one with the Waverider. Kirk was already planning
on being on one or more of those missions.
"It's beautiful," M'Ress purred softly.
"It is impressive," Thelin commented from his station. "Commander Falno has already requested extra time on the sensor
array."
"I'll bet," Kirk chuckled. During the reception he had met with Lieutenant Commander Victor Falno, head of Stellar Cartography
and Astrophysics. He was of British descent and born and raised on Tycho City. There was no one more dedicated to stellar
sciences and to hear him talk it was the only worthwhile science in existence. He could be pushy and his regular 'sparring matches'
with Thelin about personnel and use of equipment were somewhat legendary.
But there was one thing he'd said that had definitely make Kirk take notice. "Big ships come in, discover the place and move on.
We come in and take a closer look and in the process make a lot more discoveries."
His words echoed the sentiment of Senior Chief Petty Officer Laurence Tolliver, who even now was going over the settings
at Mission Operations.
"Delphis class ships conduct the analysis on an area after an explorer ship makes the initial discovery. We have the best sensors
in the fleet and many times we pick up details that larger ships miss. Details which might be trivial or which might mean the
difference between life and death. Our ships are not flashy, and their work is often unsung. But those who serve on them know
their worth."
And its time I did too, Kirk thought firmly.
"All right everyone. We've got a lot of work to do. The Hawking discovered this beauty. Let's get in there and take a closer look at it."