StarGate Atlantis Aberrant: StarGate Atlantis - S1: E3: Net Worth

[Dylan Harvey]

Dylan looked up and pondered the question for a minute. "Tell them we may have craft and design knowledge to trade in return for goods. That is really the best way I could think to describe it. I can not really give specifics until I get a look at where they are in engineering technology."

[z-Olivia Jenings-Izumi]

Olivia hung back, getting missed in the introductions. She didn't really mind; she was already nervous and fading into the background was easier than speaking up. She'd never done anything like this before, and though she'd been given instruction on first contact, she was still nervous.

However, she was also paying attention, so when Dylan spoke, she added, "Their clothing is very rudimentary; it appears to be hand sewn. I don't see watches or any kind of mechanics on them; I think its safe to assume they are equivalent to a pre-Industrial society. Even if they have Ancient tech, they don't seem likely to understand it. Perhaps offering to let Dylan look at their machines and if they don't know what that means, offering knowledge of mechanical devices to make their lives easier.

[BlueNinja]

Tara looks around Goro, having completely forgotten about the 'surprise' civilian. She then nods, and turns back to their leader. "We have knowledge of other crafts, and machinery, that we are willing to teach to some of your people in exchange for food and other trade goods." She smiles, standing at ease and waiting for the local's response.

[Dawn OOC]

"Well, then, we shouldn't talk out here," Prollen said. "Come back to the lodge!" He waved for them to follow, turning and walking back the way he came. The path went around the large rock; as they passed it, the kid on the rock waved at them as they walked by and the kid who'd greeted them rejoined his friend.

"Do they always watch the gate?" Bates asked Prollen.

"Not always them, but the children do during the day. At night, we have warriors from the village watch."

"Why then?" Bates asked. "Do you have dangerous creatures in the night?"

"Yes, and the Wraith choose to come at night or so our legends have said," Prollen answered. "I know that many scoff at the Wraith, but we believe that the threat is real."

[BlueNinja]

Tara talks slowly as she walks along behind Prollen. "The Wraith are very real. Warriors from our tribe, including Bates and Yseult, have fought and killed them, and we have watched them capture a village."

She turns her head, enough to see Bates. "Sir, how much information are we able to give them about the Wraith? I've been in At," she cuts herself off before saying the city's name, "in my office, when the other teams have been fighting them."

[Sgt. Yseult Moreau]

Yseult followed Prollen and the other Matalians by walking alongside the path, swinging wide around the large rock to give herself space in case of any unforeseen surprises. She kept her eyes on both the forest and the Matalians, including the kids - they seemed straightforward enough, but she'd caught the word Wraith more then once in their speech.

"They sound familiar enough with the Wraith," Yseult muttered to Dylan around her smoke. "Keep an eye out, they may not be as primitive as they look if they can resist them."

[Dawn OOC]

Bates paused only a second. "To everyone: give them everything we know," he grunted in response to Tara's question. "We're all fighting these things together."

Bates was still glancing around as he walked, his eyes never stopping. "Tell them that they're hard to kill, that we've found them hard to damage and that they regenerate. They're stronger, faster and can create whispers in our mind to distract us with. We've put a lot of projectile weaponry into them and it's not done much. Ask if they have more information.”

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

Inoae took the order, even though she'd sidled over to the other side of her Yseult Moreau from Cap Tan Bates as soon as they'd all cleared the Stargate. She stepped forward to Prollen and recited in Lantean, "The Wraith are hard to kill. We have found them hard to damage and they regenerate. They are stronger, faster and create whispers in the mind to distract humans with. We have put a lot of projectile weaponry into the Wraith and it has not done much. I am to ask if you have more information."

She glanced back at the end of her dutiful speech, glancing between Cap Tan Bates and her Yseult Moreau to see if she had done correctly. Surprisingly, she had not lowered her eyes or head, or done any of the other subservient behaviour that everyone had mostly just gotten used to since rescuing the addled Lantean with Prollen. Somehow, he was different than everyone on Atlantis.

[BlueNinja]

Tara listens to Inoae's speech with a mouth still open - the waifish girl had beaten her to the punch, and done a fairly good job of it too.

Glancing sideways at Goro, she raises an inquisitive eyebrow. "That's a good sign, right?" she asks him, sotto voce, with a slight toss of the head towards the girl.

[Dawn OOC]

"Well, we haven't run into them yet," Prollen said, shrugging. "We don't really have anything to go on but legends. We've just had traders come through and tell us rumors about other locations getting hit. It has been nothing but secondhand stories thus far. You're the first to claim an actual encounter, and we accept the gift of the information."

The path had dropped them down a hill through some trees; now it widened to show a village hidden under a canopy of trees. These trees made redwoods look petite; though not as tall as redwoods, they were much thicker. The trees soared so high that they obscured the valley; from above, treeline was more or less level. Most of the buildings were made of wood - solid pieces from the trees. The massive planks were nailed together at the joints.

The 'castle' dominated the center. It was built inside one of the trunks; it looked to have been hollowed out. "Welcome to our home," Prollen said, looking eagerly at their reactions.

[Goro Kondo]

Originally Posted By: BlueNinja

"That's a good sign, right?" she asks him, sotto voce, with a slight toss of the head towards the girl.

"Wish I knew," the doctor replied, keeping his own voice low. "I haven't had occasion to talk to our adoptee. Nor am I well versed in psychiatry, though I could muddle through if pressed. It has not escaped my mind that her condition could be a ruse meant to allow her to infiltrated At-, the city." He considered the girl, "Though I am doubtful that is the case."

They arrived in the village and Goro stood in awe at the sight of the massive trees, "Astounding," he breathed.

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

Inoue kept pace with the others, pleased that she seemed to have done correctly. The village merited only a quick glance before she once again took up her subservient position to her Yseult Moreau. No wonder my old hive simply culled a world. This entire 'trading' experience is slow and inefficient. We are stronger than them. Why do we not simply take what we desire?

She silently berated herself as soon as the thoughts crossed her mind. The queen Dok Tor Weir had order this and her Yseult Moreau obeyed. What other way was there? Her thoughts were wrong, weak. She was weak, and her Yseult Moreau was fulfilling the will of the queen. Her Ysuelt Moreau did not have time to discipline Inoae for her weakness; her eyes focused on the forest floor, picking out a small sharp rock near where they were passing. She scooped it up quietly and pressed it into her palm until several small drops of red pattered onto to the leaves and sticks beneath them.

[Sgt. Yseult Moreau]

When Inoae turned back to look at her with a approval, Yse nodded approvingly, a faint grin breaking through at her initiative. The grin faded though, as Inoae dropped back to hover behind her subserviently. Any further dwelling on Inoae's flip-flopping emotional fortitude was curtailed by the sight of the village.

The trees were mighty impressive, and with the village nestled among them, the villagers would have as many places to hide as the Taliban in the Afghan Mountains. And those massive, solid trunks would make it dangerous for any aircraft trying to weave through them. On the other hand - they were just trees, firepower could level them easier than mountains.

Presumably.

Rapping at a trunk with a fist, scraping the bark with a nail to see if it felt appreciably different from the trees she knew, Yseult turned a tight smile on Prollen, hard, icy eyes hidden behind her shades.

"Am impressed," Yseult grunted her rudimentary Lantean. "Flam... Firing- Merde!" she swore, looking over the grounds again and the close placing of buildings before looking at Inoae and nodding at Prollen with her chin. "Ask them what they do in case of fire."

The brawny woman's face hardened as she noticed Inoae's fist clenched around something, her knuckles white with strain. Blood beaded on the bottom of her hand. "Inoae, what'd you have in your hand, you hurt yourself?"

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

Inoae held out her hand obediently and opened her fist, revealing a small sharp-edged stone and several punctures as well as one inch-long shallow gash on her hand. Freed from the pressure of the fist the blood flowed more freely; the young blonde kept her head down, eyes tracing each drop of blood as it fell to the ground. She avoided what she assumed was the angry face of her Ke- her Yseult Moreau and waited for her punishment.

"This one is weak," she explained quietly.

[Sgt. Yseult Moreau]

Yseult scowled, Inoae had seemed to be doing fine, even taking the initiative at times. Not this again. "Inoae, you're not..." Yseult began, biting back on her temper. She is weak, beaten into yielding. "... You're not weak. You still recovering from being told - for a long time - that you are."

Her hazel eyes on the dripping blood, Inoae saw Yseult's strong hand reach out for hers, turning it over and probing at the gash. Inoae held her breath, resisting the urge to gasp at the sharp pressure. Yseult wiped the blood away with a thumb, watching the ragged cut well up with crimson once more.

"It's not too bad, but go see the Doc to wrap it up. Different places have different diseases and you don't want it to get infected." Yseult turned her slight charge around by the shoulders, facing her in Kondo's direction.

"And don't go hurting yourself anymore. That is a weak way of dealing with shit. Don't go tearing yourself down, we want you to build yourself up, got it?" Yseult gave Inoae a little shove in the Doc's direction before turning her attention back on the villagers and the village.

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

The examination was endured without any sound from the Lantean, or even an instinctual flinch away from pain. Having been given an order, Inoae was more than pleased to obey, but wasn't quite sure who "the Dok" was. They didn't have anyone here by that name, but she had noticed that her Yseult Moreau often called people by their function which is far more proper, but even if she meant Dok Tors there were two of them with the small group. Dok Tor O Livia and Dok Tor Kon Do, but she had been told to call O Livia just O Livia, so her Yseult Moreau must mean Dok Tor Kon Do.

She made her way over to Dok Tor Kon Do, her flitting thoughts wondering what "diseases" and "infected" were. She wasn't sure how she wouldn't punish herself for failure if she was not allowed to harm herself when she was weak, but her Yseult Moreau did not usually give so many orders at one time, so Inoae would just have to do her best, even though she was stupid, and try to figure it out on her own. As she reached the Dok Tor, she tugged at the zipper of her jumpsuit with her undamaged hand, then stopped as she caught sight of Dok Tor Kon Do's small and human hand. She looked up at him with frightened confusion and hesitantly held out her bleeding palm to him.

[Goro Kondo]

Goro was still staring up at the trees when Tara's elbow jabbed him in the side. "Uhn, what was- OH!" She was pointing to Inoae, who was standing there, meek as can be with her hand outstretched, the palm up, and glistening wetly with crimson. "Oh my!"

Goro was crouched in seconds and pulling rubber gloves on before he spoke another word. Clad in his armor against disease he grabbed Inoae's hand and pressed a wad of gauze into her palm. "What happened? Who hurt you?" he asked, genuine compassion in his voice.

"This one did," she replied in a small voice. Goro frowned, trying to read her face, and finding no hint of guile or deceit. "My Yesult Moreau has already chastised me and forbade me from doing it again."

Goro nodded. He considered her for a moment as he waited for the wound to clot. He too a breath and decided to take a gambit. "Inoae, do you understand why she forbade you to hurt yourself again? Why she chastised you in the first place?" If he was to help this girl, really help her in the long term, he needed to better understand her condition, and if he couldn't get her into medbay this place was a good as any.

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

She watched him bandage the wound with a bewildered expression that turned to fear when the bandaging took on a blood color as he continued to wrap. It was white by the time he was done, but she could still feel the pain and she thought she was still bleeding. What good is a scrap of cloth? She tried to hold on to her terror as she realized, truly realized for the first time, that her new hive was human and wasn't capable of providing her with the Gift.

Goro could feel tremors run through the girl-woman's body as she blinked to try to hold back tears. She tried to speak, to answer the question she'd been asked, but it took several attempts before she managed a rough, "N-no, Dok Tor Kon Do. Th-this," she took a breath, tried to speak again but the tears finally fell, streaking down her face as she stared at the bandage on her hand. "This one is-s t-too st-stupid."

[Goro Kondo]

Does she really believe that? he wondered to himself as peered under the gauze, the wound was seeping now, and Goro pulled a bottle of peroxide out of his bag. "This is going to sting some, but I need to clean this up or you will get sick." He held her hand firmly and poured the peroxide over the wound. The young woman hissed and Goro said, "There, there, be brave. If you could do this to yourself you can stand the consequences. You're not stupid I don't think."

He dabbed the wound with a cleaning pad and inspected it. "You're lucky, no stitches will be needed. I think you've grown so used to being told you were stupid, or weak, or whatever else they told you that you have long since believed it to be true." He applied a salve, a section of gauze, and the began to wind closure tape around her palm. "This will stick to itself, but not to your skin, it shouldn't hurt to take off when we need to change the dressing. Now, if you have pain let me know and I can give you something to make it go away. Don't get the bandage wet, and don't fiddle, don't play with it." He clipped the tape and pressed the loose end down. "OK? You understand don't you? You don't always understand our words, and out idioms but you're not stupid, you just haven't be allowed to be human, have you?"

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

Inoae looked at the bandage, trying to understand it but mostly just taking in Dok Tor Kon Do's commands. "This one..." she glanced up at her Yseult Moreau and amended, "I...understand what you say."

She was still crying but her breath was more even; images and thoughts tumbled over each other in her mind, as usual, and one tugged at her. "I am not...I am not allowed. I am not human."

Click to reveal..

Roll for kinda not being nuts: Roll(6d10)+0: 7,4,5,3,1,8,+0

1 sux

[z-Olivia Jenings-Izumi]

Olivia remained silent. She was feeling more and more awkward as time passed; she wasn't sure what she good she was doing by being here. But she kept silent, watching both her team and the newcomers.

She'd already made some interesting observations about the former, views which were backed up by the further actions of her teammates. However, that wasn't her focus. She was trying to understand the newcomers. That was what she was here for, after all.

By the time that they had entered the awe-inspiring village, Olivia had a better feel for their hosts. There was some gender division, but not as bad as it could have been; a woman had come out with the others to greet them. She hadn't seen obvious signs of a second class, which didn't mean it wasn't there. But the fact that it hadn't come up already was good.

Or at least, it didn't come up until she asked Merrelle, the tall woman who had come with Prollen, about how they shaped those massive pieces of wood. Merrelle blinked at her, clearly startled that she'd spoken to her. Unsure that she'd gotten her Ancient right, Olivia tried again. "How can you shape such big wood pieces?"

Merrelle looked around at the members of Olivia's party and the anthropologist realized she was looking at the others' reactions to Olivia asking a question. "Well, its not so hard," the alien woman replied as Olivia came to her realization. "We soak the wood in water, then shape it. After we have it exactly as we want it, we harden the wood with boiled sap. It makes a shell."

"Interesting," Olivia said, but she was thinking about what she'd just seen. Why did Merrelle look surprised that I spoke up? It's... it could be a skin-color thing. So far, the only ones to speak directly to them are Tara and Inoae... but I don't think that's it. What the hell?

Click to reveal..

Int + Science (Anthropology) (1d10=1, 1d10=7, 1d10=8, 1d10=6, 1d10=10, 1d10=2, 1d10=9)= 5 sux

[Goro Kondo]

Originally Posted By: Inoae Amara

"I am not...I am not allowed. I am not human."

"Nonsense," Goro scoffed gently, "you are as human as Yseult, myself, or any of the others. Perhaps your genetics are a tad more advanced than our own, but you are surely human." Goro knew this wasn't entirely accurate, but trying to explain the difference would be more trouble than it was worth at this point. "You have hands like mine," he said putting his hand palm to palm with her undamaged one. "You have feet like ours, your insides are like ours, your outsides are like ours. You are human." He pronounced it as matter of factly as he would have told a patient that he had nothing to worry about, or while explaining to a child that hitting people was just wrong. The smile on his face was genuine, reassuring, kind, and honest, how could she possibly refute that.

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

Inose wanted to contradict him; she wanted to scream at him that she wasn't human, that she was...was...what? She wasn't human, but she wasn't Wraith. She wasn't anything. She was nothing and Dok Tor Kon Do was something, even if that something included being human. She hadn't seen much of him, but her Yseult Moreau had sent her to him, so he must be obeyed.

She pulled her bandaged hand to her chest, her eyes resolutely on the forest floor as she bobbed her head in deference. "I....understand." She just couldn't bring herself to actually say it, but now that she was not allowed to harm herself as punishment she didn't know what to do. So she just stood there, shaking and waiting for an order or a beating or anything that would put the world back together enough for her to be obedient and serve.

Forget. Remembering is selfish. All there is is the will of the Keeper.

[Goro Kondo]

"Hey," he said gently. Reaching out he cupped her chin in his hand and lifted her face. He saw she was crying, she was terrified, and Goro realized that the easy answer wasn't the right one in this case. "You poor girl, you've been damaged so much and I don't know how to help you." He smiled, trying to reassure her, "The Wraith hurt you didn't they? They abused you physically? Called you names? Insulted you? Degraded you?" He gently pulled her to him, "You're safe now. We won't hurt you, we want to help you. Help you get better." He gave her a comforting hug, or what he hoped would be taken as one, "You don't have anything to fear from us. We'll keep you safe from the Wraith."

[Sgt. Yseult Moreau]

Merrelle received a neutral reaction hidden behind dark sunglasses from Yseult. If the large woman had any issues with the dark-skinned scientist asking questions, she gave no hint of it. Her gaze ceaselessly roved about the village, on the alert for threats as she let the foreign words roll over her, picking up one in three at best, but she was improving.

She missed out on how they processed the wood, though 'shell' she had understood. Tougher and harder to burn, maybe... Yseult say the tilt to Olivia's head, the set of her shoulders, and though she didn't know what, she realized something had occurred to the gimp doctor.

But before she could ask her about it, something caused to her to looked around. Maybe it was spending the most time with their resident Crazy Lantean, unwanted though that time was, but whatever the reason, Yseult found her eyes settling on Inoae.

And Inoae seemed to be on the verge of a full-blown panic attack. Yse didn't know what the fuck the doctor had said to her, but the pansy hug wasn't helping. Fucked up as it was, so far as she had seen, Inoae didn't respond well to... gentle physicality. Then again, Inoae was use to abuse, expected even, gentleness was a strange concept to her. Coping with what was strenge to her wasn't one of Inoae strengths.

On the other hand, Yseult herself wasn't a touchy-feely woman either, unless it was with a fist.

Looking over Inoae's slender shoulder, Dr. Kondo found the brawny, dark-haired sergeant, gesturing sharp with her fingers across her throat, mouthing, "Stop it. Let her go."

[BlueNinja]

Tara listens to the conversation, and observes the woman's reaction. In English, she says, "I'm going to guess, from appearances, they don't use metal tools the way we do, and possibly neither do their training partners. Everything they use is probably shaped wood of some kind."

Switching back to Ancient, she adresses Merelle. "We use many different kinds of tools, but most of our work is done with metals and glass."

Turning to observe Goro and Inoae, she watches the Doctor, and the girl's reaction.

Click to reveal..

Per + Empathy -> 7d10 -> 6,9,2,4,10,3,2 -> 3 successes

I think the best advice to give would be that Goro needs to be less comforting and more firm, but I'll leave that up to Inoae to put words in my mouth.

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

Originally Posted By: Goro Kondo

He gently pulled her to him, "You're safe now. We won't hurt you, we want to help you. Help you get better." He gave her a comforting hug, or what he hoped would be taken as one, "You don't have anything to fear from us. We'll keep you safe from the Wraith."

Inoae didn't know what to do, other than that again she was somehow not doing what the hive wanted her to do. They kept talking about making her "better", so she knew she wasn't what was wanted yet, but she also knew that she'd always be less than the rest of the hive. She let Dok Tor Kon Do hold her, hooping that he might command her to do something she knew how to do. But her Yseult Moreau had forbidden her to do most of what she knew how to do, especially when it came to males of the hive. Her confusion finally stopped her tears and she finally just looked up at the Dok Tor, her body nearly limp from the loss of adrenaline and her expression blank and waiting.

Click to reveal..

I don't know how much Tara knows of psychology, but she could definitely watch Inoae's progression from panic and fear to a sort of empty waiting. She's being completely submissive to Goro now, almost like minimally responsive "catatonic" state. Something's obviously wrong with the girl, but unless Tara has more background on Inoae, she wouldn't be able to figure out much more specifically.

[Dawn OOC]

"Metals? We have few of those," Merelle replied to Tara. "Our world is poor in such things. We trade for many of them. I'm not familiar with 'glass' though."

"If we can find a use for it, we'll consider trading for it," Prollen replied, smiling at them.

[Sgt. Yseult Moreau]

Yseult watched Inoae deteriorate under Goro's honest embrace, the doctor at a loss witnessing the slight girl's reaction. It was understandable, he hadn't been exposed that much to the emotional flotsam that made up Inoae. Yseult sighed. She wouldn't be able to let Inoae stay under Goro's immediate care, and worse, she wasn't sure, but any action she could make would probably just reinforce Inoae's fucked-up, beaten-in beliefs.

Yseult scanned the area once more for threats or anything suspicious, then stalked over to Goro and Inoae, her jaw tight. Placing a strong hand on each of his arms, she firmly move his arms, releasing Inoae from his embrace.

"Let her go- Just... Trust me... let her go," Yseult muttered, giving Goro a steady look. It wasn't apologetic, but it wasn't hostile either, just, somehow, warning him how messed up Inoae was.

Yseult looked down at her, the girl staring up at her with yearning, hazel eyes. She forced her voice to stay soft, gentle. "Here, it's okay, you didn't do anything wrong. Goro was just... uh... trying to make you feel... safe. He bandaged your hand, good. Now, why don't you stay with me, maybe translate what the natives are saying for me, eh?"

Over Inoae's shoulder, Yseult gave Goro a shrug, as if to say: What are you going to do?

[BlueNinja]

Tara smiles broadly. "I think we might have found a niche," she says, mostly to herself. "Dylan, do you have a magnifying glass, or something like it, that I could show them and possibly trade? Or you, Doctor?"

Switching back to Ancient, she addresses Prollen again. "Glass is clear, and hard. You get it by heating and melting certain kinds of sand, and you can make different kinds of containers and lenses with it. If you don't have much metal, do you use pottery? Or do you form everything from wood?"

[Goro Kondo]

Goro released the young woman, she clearly had not taken any balm from the gesture. Frowning Goro stooped and disposed of his gloves and the bloody gauze in a plastic bag and packed up his kit. He was buttoning the old leather satchel up when Tara asked for a sample of glass. Goro nodded and opened one of the other cases he carried and withdrew a sample jar with a metal screw on top, "Here, this should do." He held the glass container out for Tara or their hosts to take.

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

It took a moment for the fazed Lantean to translate what her Yseult Moreau was saying to her, and as usual it didn't make much sense to her. Dok Tor Kon Do was trying to make her safe? She peered curiously at him from around Yseult, her expression a mix of confusion and curiosity. The doctor might not know it, but the fact that the curiosity was slowly winning out over confusion was a high mark of favor for him from her. She looked between her bandaged hand, which didn't sting as badly as it had at first now, and the doctor, trying to put it all together before Prollen started speaking again and she would fulfill her Yseult Moreau's command to translate the natives.

[Dylan Harvey]

At the mention of glass Dylan sighed and started punching in different commands on the computer. He had been hoping for more iron based technologies but he could work out a couple things with glass too. The main problem was glass was mostly used in scientific pursuits which he had not yet seen any proof of these people delving in to.

"Perhaps before we show them a bunch of things we should first make sure they have the means of producing their own glass. I would hate to get them excited about the material if their only means of getting it is through us, who also have no means of production at the moment."

[Dawn OOC]

"Good point," Bates said, nodding.

Prollen had been waiting for them to finish their internal talk; when they were done, he continued to lead them deeper into the village. The other people stared at them, most of them with friendly curiosity in their eyes. All of the adults were long robes; only children wore pants but no one seemed to be staring at them.

Their guides led them to the massive three that was more or less in the center of the village. It had been carved from a single tree. Banners of cloth hung from the carved windows; guards stood at the entrances in and out. Prollen stopped before the guards and spoke to them for a moment. Turning back to the visitors, he said, “The Vican will see you shortly. In the meantime, may I entertain you at my house?”

“Of course,” Tara replied in answer, after confirming the translation with Inoae. The group was led to one of the larger houses, though not as large as the guarded one. Inside, they were seated on cushions on the floor around a low table. As Prollen sat, Merelle joined them, crossing her legs easily. “So tell us more about your world,” Prollen said easily, his manner indicating that the ‘get to know you’ part of the session had started.

[Teagan Shae Ammer]

She'd never seen the inside of food's dwelling place. She'd been taken to planets on very rare occasions with one or another of the males, usually uninhabited planets with Darkness to collect plant samples or with Silence to negotiate with other hives over territory. This place was...strange. Not as...as finished as her new hive, but it smelled interesting and everyone admitted weakness by sitting on cushions. She wasn't quite sure what to make of that, but she hadn't been asked to so she didn't think too much on it.

Inoue stood deferentially behind Yseult until the burly soldier reached back and practically pulled her to the ground with an annoyed grunt; the sergeant was getting to the point where she could simply assume Inoue's behaviour and correct her without even having to turn around. The slight blonde rearranged herself on the floor behind her Yseult Moreau, translating softly to her as Prollen spoke and still stealing curious glances at the doctor and the home.

[Dylan Harvey]

Dylan sat down and maintained his focus on pulling up different files. He was quickly growing even more bored with this mission. There seemed to be no danger, these people had some different ideas it seemed on technology but they did not have anything remarkable. The next time one of these came up he might just send one of the engineers on his team along instead.

"Earth is quite a ways from here, it has its beauties, although our people did not realize until recently the importance of not sacrificing nature for progress. We did not incorporate our natural environment in to our culture as you have. We are trying to fix that mistake now."

[Goro Kondo]

Goro nodded through Dylan's words, "In all things, not just architecture, but also technology and medicine. We are finding new cures for old maladies more and more frequently by turning to nature. In addition to my classical medical training I am also holistically trained. I would be eager to learn about the medicinal plants your world has to offer. I would be happy to trade in services and knowledge." Goro smiled, people as in touch with their environment as these would likely have a veritable fount of herbal wisdom.

[Sgt. Yseult Moreau]

Yseult sat on her heels easily, the cushion beneath her knees, and Inoae at her shoulder, translating into her ear. At least she was sitting instead of standing deferentially at attention. Trying to follow the various questions and answers, the muscular woman kept her perceptions poised for any signs of danger... which she was pretty sure wasn't going to come from the rustic Matalians.

Inoae seemed to be adjusting to how Kondo was treating her, so that was at least one favourable result from this trip. As for the Doctor, she was glad to hear of his holistic training. Being special ops and inserted beyond enemy lines and chronically under-supplied, Yseult really appreciated someone who could gear up from the land. She gave him a nod, learning what they could of flora native to the Pegasus galaxy could be as valuable as the food they had come for.

Noting Harvey's restiveness, she gave him an sharp, icy look. "Remember we came for food, not tech," she muttered in a low voice. "Tech is just a bonus or a trade-good for now."

[Dawn OOC]

The natives looked a bit confused when Dylan pointed out their attunement with nature, and it occurred to him belatedly that the incorporation of nature may have been accidental. “Thank you,” Prollen said graciously, taking the statement as a compliment. “It honestly had not occurred to us to be so inclusive of nature. But it is good to hear that you appreciate it.”

“If you wish to talk medicine, then you should see our healer, Tycom,” Mirelle added, rising slightly. “If you’d like, I’d be happy to walk you over there.”

“Take someone with you,” Bates ordered when Inoae translated her offer.

“I don’t think these people are hostile,” Olivia added.

“I’m not betting the Doctor’s life on that,” Bates replied.

Mirelle waited calmly for the translations to cease, clearly familiar with the back and forth of multiple languages. She may not have known exactly what they were discussing, however.

[Dylan Harvey]

"I'll go." Dylan stood and stretched. "Seeing their medicines and how they make them may give me a better idea of what we can offer. And when I need the doc here can dumb things down so my simple engineering mind can understand it." The last was said with a grin. Dylan fully admitted that no matter how great the artificial had become there was still nothing as complicated as living organisms. He had a great respect for doctors and biologist.