A/N: I used the stardate calculator at http:stardates.blaser to approximate the date here. It's a great tool for anyone like me whose mind is boggled by the conversions.
Lieutenant (junior grade) Rali Sazun knew that he wasn't the brightest mind Trill had ever produced, and far from the best pilot. He'd been disappointed when he didn't graduate in the top half of his class at the Academy. Having an older brother who was an accomplished poet and joined besides did not help his self image. However, he did know that he was, if not a standout pilot, a decent one. He had graduated certified to fly any Starfleet vessel. He was fairly certain that the computer could do his job without the slightest problem, because nothing ever happened that a brain would need to process. Rali wanted a little challenge to make his life interesting.
Personal log, Lieutenant Rali Sazun, Stardate 55719.03
"Almost got to enter a minor course correction today. We were going to intersect with a comet. Sadly, Captain Mercoeur let Fritz use it for target practice, so my chance at excitement passed.
Sanchez has taken up singing. Either she is under the impression that the walls are far more soundproof than they actually are, or she got the idea that she's good. I'm not sure which. It's fortunate that she's singing in Spanish, so I don't recognize the songs and then cringe at how much she's mangling them. Still, it can be hard to remember that she's next door and not here in my quarters. That's how loud she is."
End log.
Rali sighed and picked up a padd. He'd just gotten a copy of his favorite contemporary author's latest novel. Fritz, who also appreciated the work of Kuzi Sar, was jealous because the Federation Standard translation wouldn't be out for two more weeks. That gave Rali some satisfaction after the comet incident. Besides, Sar was much better when read in the original Trill. The translations never caught all the subtleties of his language and the slightly lyrical quality of his dialogue. However, they were much better than running the original through the computer's translation matrix, as Fritz had discovered last time Sar had a new novel.
"One of your ancient writers once said that he took care, when translating, not to translate every word. That's the problem," Rali had informed Fritz after a hearty laugh. The computer had truly destroyed the individual nuances of the novel; at least the published translations were able to capture most of Sar's intent.
Fritz was pretty sure it was Homer who said that, but he wasn't sure. Rali had no idea.
After reading the prologue, he went over to his small desk and activated the comm. system. "Computer, begin recording." Once he heard the obliging beep, he smiled. "Hi little sister. How are the kids doing?" Rali's sister taught young children in the Trill equivalent of kindergarten, a job which he was sure he could never do.
"I'll grant you one thing, your job never sounds boring. I still prefer mine, but sometimes I think that this assignment is so easy, any one of the kids in your class could do it. Nine months left until I'm up for a new assignment, and I hope to see a little excitement.
If you hear that terrible caterwauling, it's my neighbor. Her new hobby is singing, but she's horrible.
One good thing has come out of this assignment. Besides the extra pip, that is. I'm now an extremely qualified ping-pong player. Sonya and I won the shipwide tournament last night. I know what you're thinking, Ezri, and we're just friends. I think she might be interested in Fritz, actually.
The Charlemagne is a good ship. I really hope that I get a chance to see what she can do. I asked Captain Mercoeur if I could try a couple fancy moves, just for fun, but she said that we don't want the Klingons to interpret it the wrong way. I don't see how a couple of loops could be threatening, but she's the captain.
Take care of yourself, little sister." Standing up to look out the window, he sighed. "Computer, send message to Ezri Sazun."
A second passed while the computer processed his request and retrieved her comm. code. "Message sent."
Rali looked out at the stars for a long time before returning to his novel.
Up Next: The Doctor
