Chapter 4 – Many Meetings
"This, Daniel, is the Main Bridge," Hoffman said a while later as he took the linguist around, giving him the 'official' tour of the ship.
"What's her name?" Daniel asked.
"Whose?"
"Hers! The ship's!"
"Oh! I'm sorry! I can't believe I forgot to tell you that! We named her, jokingly, the SS Karma, because you are 'reborn' into this new dimension…Ironic, huh?
"Anyway, we are on our way to the Mess Hall. I take it that you haven't had much in the ways of eating since your arrival four days ago. So—"
"Four days ago? I was out for four days?"
"Well, yes. The muscle regeneration process here in The System takes, on average, ten days or so to accomplish. We were really astounded that you recovered so quickly—we think that it is even more proof that you really are our Preserver."
They walked a ways in silence. Daniel could feel his stomach churn and growl for the first time he had been awake and was surprised to find that he hadn't eaten anything for the longest time.
"We're going to the Mess Hall," Joseph said again, "to get you something to eat and also to meet the rest of the crew. There are a few others—six more, to be exact. They're all eager to get a chance to meet you. Come! Follow me!"
They entered though a giant doorway and walked into, what Daniel couldn't believe, a gigantic room with appliances everywhere. There were huge things that resembled stoves and various other cooking utensils all over the place. There were also small mechanical things that moved around, cooking things and tending what looked to be a huge reactor of some sort.
Daniel peeled his eyes from the marvels around him and focused on the metal table in the very center of all this commotion. There, sat five people, unlike Joseph had said. They all stared at him and stood up as they neared. Despite their stares, Daniel felt like he was welcome among them, and was glad that he had left Earth to come here.
"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Doctor Daniel Michael Matthewson, our ship's new linguist and scientist!" Everyone came forward to meet this new crewmember.
The first one to approach was a tall man with salt-and-pepper hair. His dark brown eyes and bushy dark brows stood out in his pale skin and he had an air about him that made Daniel think he had been in the army for all his life. He also looked to be very friendly, but Daniel knew he didn't want to be on the other side if they ever were in a fight.
Holding out his hand, the man said, "I'm Colonel John Clayton O'Brien. Welcome aboard. The General's been talking a lot about you these past few days." The man talked with a slight southern twang in his speech. It made him sound slightly ignorant, but Daniel could sense that he was really quite smart.
"Thanks. I hope nothing embarrassing surfaced."
John smiled. "Not yet. Is there something you want to tell us?"
Smiling back, Daniel shook his head in the negative and turned around to find himself in front of someone who wasn't entirely human.
The man, if he was a man, was four or so inches taller than Daniel with shoulder-length dark brown hair. He had brown skin with a sort of sickly orange tint to it and the biggest brown eyes the linguist had ever saw. But that wasn't what was bothering Daniel. In the middle of this man's forehead, there was a diamond design that was slightly raised from the skin—it was gold and didn't look like it was normal. But there was another thing—Daniel could only see parts of something metal gripping the top of the man's head and the sides of his cheeks. It definitely didn't look to be good.
"Ahoy matey! Me name's Dagón! I come from being marooned on me bit o' planet by those scurvy-dogged scallywags! We'll converse on this matter later, for avast ye! Ye've others to meet."
Bewildered, Daniel clasped the man's forearm, as the man had done to him, and was soon meeting the women of the ship.
"Hi. I'm Major Alexandra Caitlin Croft, but everyone here calls me Alex," a woman with shoulder-length orange-blonde hair said with a smile. She had pale skin, like almost everyone had on the ship, and brilliant dark green eyes. She was also short and a bit round, though she was quite pretty. She also had a likeable personality, Daniel could tell, though he could sense that she could be serious whenever the need arose. "Don't worry if you don't understand Dagón," she continued, keeping her voice somewhat hushed. "We're all still trying to figure out what he's saying, but he's getting better at speaking normal English."
"That's good," Daniel said in a stage whisper as he smiled. "Maybe I can help with the translations. I'm good at languages, but I think pirate jargon is a bit over my limits."
"You'll get used to it in no time. I had quite a shock my first day, too! I was uploaded to The System right after Colonel O'Brien recruited Dagón. It took some getting used to, though it will be second nature to you soon."
"Thanks," Daniel said and turned to a more formal-looking woman.
She was slightly shorter than Alex and skinnier, too, with longer black hair and brown, slightly pointed eyes, giving Daniel the idea that she was an Asian woman. She had a white lab coat on, as well, which contrasted heavily with the crew's fatigues and her darker skin. She seemed very nice and caring and probably loved what she did. She seemed to be the doctor, and greeted him with a smile.
"Dr. Matthewson, my name is Major Doctor Katherine Bethany Fields; however, you can call me Kate. I'm the medical doctor on this ship. Once you're done here, I'd like to run a full scan of you to see how your body is handling what it's been through. It makes things easier in adapting to this new environment."
"Of course," Daniel said.
"Great!" she said with another smile, and Daniel watched as another crewmember entered the Mess Hall.
"Whoa! It's Daniel! That's so totally rad, man! Didn't expect to see you here this soon! Oh! By the way, the name's Rick; Captain Rick Jonah Ellerton, but everyone just calls me Dude."
Looking the man up and down, Daniel liked the man instantly. Clearly a surfer from the west coast of the continent, Dude had longish dark blonde hair in the front, almost like Daniel's, that had bleached tips, while the back was just his regular dark blonde hair color and longer than the front. Dude had mysterious hazel eyes and a strong tan on his lighter skin.
He must've been even tanner before, Daniel thought as he smiled at the newcomer, but being on a ship like this for a long time eventually fades it away. Seeming slightly younger, the shorter and skinnier man regarded the linguist as a long-lost brother and made him feel welcome.
"Dude it is," Daniel said as he shook Rick's hand. "You like surfing?"
"Love it, man. But since coming to The System, there's hardly any water to do that. I'm, like, totally bummed right now, dude."
"Tell me about it," Daniel said with a smile and turned to General Hoffman. "Is that everyone? That was only five…"
"Sorry I'm late," a sneering voice called from the doorway. A man was standing there with an expression that made Daniel think the man didn't want to be there just to meet the new crewmember. "Couldn't get the elevator to hurry up. So. This is our new crewmember, huh? David, is it?"
"Daniel," the linguist corrected. "My name's Daniel."
"Of course it is," the man said sarcastically and started heading towards the new crewmember. He moved as if he owned the place, and that it was a gift from him that he let them on his ship.
Daniel studied this new man. He was a bit shorter than Daniel with jet-black hair and grey-blue eyes. He had a scrawny appearance and looked like the odd one out of the whole crew. He wore a grey, long-sleeved shirt with black pants and boots. He seemed like he didn't want to be here, but had to be.
"My name's Lieutenant Damian Woods. Welcome aboard." Damian didn't make a move to shake hands with Daniel, so the linguist didn't hold out his hand. Something about this man made him feel uneasy.
"All right," Hoffman said after a minute. "Let us all resume our regular routine. John, Daniel will shadow you for a while so he gets used to the Karma. He'll be able to help you with anything you need, though I want him to report to me at 19:00 hours for another debriefing and a schedule of tasks he needs to perform while here."
"Yes, sir," the Colonel said and they all began to eat the meal that had been prepared and served by a robotic serving drone.