Bring Me That Horizon

Posted on Sat Jul 6th, 2024 @ 1:32pm by Ensign Eden Drake & Lieutenant Magnus Volsung

2,302 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: A marathon not a sprint
Timeline: [Backpost to shoreleave]

ON:

Eden turned his face upwards, basking in the generous sun of Risa. They were taking a quick breather, and just as well...his black vest was already soaked with sweat and stuck to his skin, making it seem as figure hugging as the black stretch shorts he wore with it. He had no high tech equipment, just a decent pair of climbing shoes and sunglasses that had a band around the back to keep them secure. He didn't see the point in climbing if the equipment was doing most of the lifting. His small backpack had everything else he might need for being out in the sun.

Magnus was in a similar state, although he wore a light shirt that had plastered itself to him in patches where it had gotten sweat-stuck to his skin. He reached for the water, taking a sip of it as he looked at the other man from his position, balanced on a small ledge. "I am pretty sure the Captain would murder us if we got hurt," he said, grinning to the other man.

Eden took a glance down over the edge, taking in the considerable height they'd managed to climb up the reddish rockface. "I'm pretty sure we'd be already dead if it came to that..." he chuckled.

"And so, nothing to worry about," he said with a smile, looking at him for a long moment. "You're good at this. Rock climbing." And he had been fast too. Magnus had managed well next to him but it was clear Eden was the superior climber.

"I enjoy it," Eden admitted, and he even gave his boss a smile, having managed to relax a little in his company. "It's physically taxing...strategic...with a dash of luck. And one slip? It's all over. Nothing is as brutal."

Magnus gave him a nod of appreciation, studying him as he smiled. "And you're relying on yourself. Nothing else," he said as he looked around. "There's mountains where I am from. Beautiful tall mountains, overlooking the fjords, the ocean. The tundra is also a marvel to get across, but different than...climbing."

Eden watched him with a small smile of awe at what he described, letting out something close to a wistful sigh. "It sounds pretty amazing," he admitted.

"I'll take you there," Magnus said as he looked at him, with a quick smile before he motioned up. "Want to continue? We're making good progress, Eden."

"Let's do it," Eden said without hesitation, taking a moment to prep his hands before putting the sunglasses back in place. He had to admit...he also enjoyed the company. Usually, he'd be doing something like this on his own. Which he also enjoyed, but still, it felt like an easy companionship. He gripped the rock before pushing off, testing his muscles and body for a moment before starting to climb. "How are you holding up?"

"Still here," Magnus said almost playfully, climbing as well. He was a bit more measured, experience leading the way. He knew Eden was faster at this, clearly a more of a natural. It was good though, he liked that he was good at it. Showed an instinct in Eden. "I'll sleep well tonight."

Eden laughed warmly, looking upward as he judged his next grip, his fingers clasping confidently. "I love that feeling," he called back, ironically more relaxed in this position than normal. "When you stretch out in bed...aching, tired...it's so satisfying."

"One of the best feelings," Magnus agreed as he climbed. His eyes went to the next grip and he reached for it, only to have it crumble in his fingers. Fine. He saw the other and had to take a gamble, half swinging to get the grip...and it held. "Sore muscles and bruises."

Eden glanced downwards when he heard the crumbling rock, but it was clear to see Magnus had it under control. "Holodecks are modern day miracles, but it's never *quite* the same."

"It's not," Magnus agreed, taking a deeper breath as he moved upwards. "It's not the danger. I think that while a hologram can fool our senses...we still know it isn't real, on an instinctual level. Unless we want to believe, that is."

"Like synthahol," Eden grinned, laughing as he hadn't considered the comparison before...but it made sense.

"Just like that!" Magnus laughed as he climbed, taking a deeper breath. He liked the strain in his body as he climbed. And Eden didn't seem to feel it at all. He admired the ease the other man moved. "I have a bottle of mead in my room, we should enjoy it at a later day."

"Mead?" Eden asked with confusion...that wasn't something he'd heard of before. And he was no stranger to Federation alcohol.

"It's not that strong..." Magnus stopped for a moment, catching his breath. "It's fermented honey and water. We make it, where I am from. It's sweet and warming, good for any occasion."

Eden paused, able to sense he wasn't moving with him anymore. He held on to a gap in the rock with one hand, to give his other a rest for a few moments. "Sounds more like a drink to be enjoyed than to get wasted on," he chuckled as he peered down to make sure he was doing okay.

Magnus looked up at him with a smile, sweat showing on his skin. "That it is," he agreed before he started climbing again, the strain in his body a familiar thing he embraced.

Eden nodded, assured that Magnus was fine as he started to climb again, sighing almost contently with the ache in his muscles. A familiar sensation, that assured him he was still alive. "We've not far to go now!" he called down, the outcrop visible through his shades.

Magnus laughed, nodding as he continued. He didn't rush, even with the top close...after all, that was when you made mistakes. "You're good at this! I know who I'll have climbing up and down the ship if the turbolift goes out" he called out, the warmth clear in his voice.

Eden laughed softly at the words, more relaxed on the precarious rockface than he was on the ship. "More than willing!" he assured with a grin, testing the next grip before pushing up. "You should make me work for a living!"

"I am! Not my fault that we aren't sent on away teams where we have to climb high mountains, cross deep rivers and wrestle beasts," Magnus was grinning, climbing with focus now. He was a bit jealous of how easily Eden was doing this but reminded himself that Eden was fitter. And younger.

"I mean...I hear the buck stops with the Chief, so...." Eden laughed softly, finally reaching up over the ledge, his arm and shoulders straining with the angle before he carefully hauled himself up, groaning as he laid on the stone, catching his breath.

Magnus got to the top a few minutes later, rolling onto his back as he smiled. He was breathing hard, sweat making his clothes stick...and he was laughing breathlessly. "It does. My department, my responsibility..." he looked at him, eyes shining with it.

Eden laughed softly, watching the sky as he breathed hard, also covered in sweat under the Risan sun. "It's all our responsibility," he finally replied, seriously, even if a smile lingered on his features.

"It is," Magnus agreed as he looked at the sky, eyes narrowed against the brightness. "We took it on when we put on the uniform. To...make something out here that was good. To protect those who need it."

Eden nodded in agreement, just enjoying the feel of the slight breeze for a moment in silent. "And climb rockfaces for absolutely no reason what so ever," he added with a chuckle, slowly pushing himself up to sit so he could look at the few.

Magnus sat up a well, looking out over it. A small smile came to him before he looked down as his hands. "I don't like sitting still," he admitted, before looking out again. "I spend enough time being calm and collected, that energy needs to go somewhere."

Eden glanced to him with curiosity at that, catching his breath in the warm air. "I...assumed it came natural to you," he admitted quietly. "You have this calm air about you. I've never seen it in another Security Chief before."

"There is no point in always raging," Magnus said before he looked at him. "And I know how...Security draws people who are capable of things other people are not, to defend others. It is noble. But like anything, it must be wielded with care. Besides..." he chuckled and looked back at the view. "Someone has to keep an eye on the battlefield, or else when would we know to build a shield-wall."

Eden's gaze remained on him a little longer, watching him in a new light. He nodded all the same though, looking out over the beautiful view, trying to memorise it well for a murky day. "A tactician too. So you were born to lead."

Magnus chuckled at how he had put it. "I was...raised to have position in the village. When I went into Starfleet, I still had those core traits ingrained in me. I would never ask something of another that I was not prepared to do myself, although with that comes..." he stopped and smiled at what looked like a hunting bird flying past. "...a risk of losing what you have in the moment."

"Do you miss it?" Eden suddenly asked, but didn't look his way with the personal question, keeping his gaze on the breathtaking view instead.

"At times," Magnus admitted as he smiled, to himself. "But I remember how limited I felt. Knowing what was out there, knowing I was being kept away from it. From the real world. So now...I return when I can, on shoreleave on Earth..." he paused and looked at him. "Once a year there is a festival, where we let outsiders in. But I can bring a visitor whenever I want as long as you'd respect the traditions. No tech. I'd hide a combadge though for the universal translator...only a few speak Standard."

Eden suddenly looked to him with surprise at the words, taking off guard by it. "They don't? What do they speak?" he asked with confusion.

"Old Norse," Magnus said with a small smile, shaking his head. "A language that evolved and died out...over a thousand years ago. My people, my ancestors, founded the island in a way to reclaim something lost by war and technology. They revived the language, or a close approximation of how they imagined it was spoken."

"No way..." Eden was taken aback, but he chuckled softly, shaking his head. "All that effort to bring back a dead language?"

"A dead way of life as well," Magnus said with a smile, shaking his head. "Not tech, not even electricity. We fish and hunt, forage and farm. There is always a lot of...pushback, from the government, because obviously...there's an environmental impact of living like that."

"But...you joined Starfleet," he motioned to him, looking him up and down behind his sunglasses, trying to figure him out. "Pretty much the opposite..."

"I had the choice to stay, or learn about the outside world. And the universe. Once, my...ancestors were explorers. I like that," he said as he looked at him, smiling gently. "I have a restless soul on the quiet, Eden. It's what drove me to Starfleet."

"Sounds complicated," Eden decided, but gave a slight chuckle to him as he shook his head, looking out with acceptance all the same.

Magnus studied the other man's profile, a small coming to him. "Every person has more than one side to them, more than one dream. At times...it just takes us a while to recognise we can be more than one thing."

"Not me," Eden replied lightly, even shrugging with it, taking in the sight before them. "I really am as simple as I seem," he chuckled at the phrasing.

"I don't believe you," Magnus said quietly, having seen glimpses of more of the man since he had met him. "But that's okay. It's not for me to believe or disbelieve. Do what is right for you."

Eden chuckled weakly as he gave another lack lustre shrug. "I worked and fought hard to get where I am, but it's still sheer luck. Street runts don't usually amount to much where I'm from."

Magnus considered it words before he nodded. "You're a hard worker. And dedicated to your craft," he said, meaning it. "You...got out of there, and now you're here. To make life what you want it to be."

Eden fell silent at the words, holding his breath tight in his chest for a long, aching moment. But what if he didn't deserve it? What if he didn't make it worth it? What if he had no clue what it was he wanted it to be? "I envy you your fixed gaze on the horizon."

Magnus chuckled softly as he looked at the horizon, considering the words. "I envy your drive," he finally said before he grinned. "Question is...do we climb down, or get someone to beam us down?"

Eden looked to him with surprise for a moment before chuckling softly, glancing down and shaking his head at the bid to move. "Maybe....maybe we can just stay for a bit? Decide later?"

"That, my friend...sounds like an excellent idea," Magnus said, taking at deeper breath as he just enjoyed the moment and the company.

OFF:

Lieutenant Magnus Volsung
Assistant/Acting Chief of Security

&

Ensign Eden Drake
Security

 

RSS Feed