Lt. Commander Torin
Chief Engineer
USS Challenger

The halls of the USS Challenger are empty as Torin makes his way down the corridor. Next week the ship will undergo it's first test runs leading up to its official launch in a month. Torin had working late working on the Antimatter injection system that Starfleet felt wasn't up to regulations.

He Grunts as he approaches the holodeck and punches in a code to open the doors. He checks the arch panel and energizes the grid. He places an Isolinear chip into a waiting socked and commands "Computer, Transfer program Torin Delta-3 and activate program.

Its takes the computer less than a second to access the information. Suddenly the Yellow Grid morphs into the shape of a small shack sitting on a hill inside the forest. All around birds can be heard chirping. The early morning sun warming the cool day. To the East the grand vista of forested mountains rise and fall. The valleys filled with an early morning fog.

The shack is rather therad bare and made of wood. It's North and East sides are completely open to the air. Inside lie a couple tables holding various abandoned projects and several shaping tools. A stool sits in front of a pottery wheel. To each side of the stool there is a large Pit framed in wood and a large basin of water.

Torin breaths in the air and shrugs off his uniform jacket as he approaches the shack. He carefully folds his uniform and places it on the table. He then unhooks an apron from the wall and puts it on as he sits at the stool. He turns and leans over the pit, his elbows resting on the wooden frame,Then thrusts his hands into the clay halfway up his forearm. The wet slimy surface felt cold.

He closes his eyes and listens to the sound around him as he kneads the clay between his fingers. He sits there for several minutes doing nothing but kneading the clay. Finally he pulls a clump from the pit and carefully sets it on the of the wheel. He gives the wheel a couple of experimental spins as he examines the clay. Satisfied he begins to spin the wheel in earnest.

He closes his eyes once more letting his hands work the clay into shape only looking down every other minutes to check on its progress. He leans his head back to let the sun hit him more fully in the face as he works. Suddenly he stops and glowers at the vase. He lets out and exasperated sigh that sounds more like a snort as he examines the vase closely. He then sees what his fingers already told him was there; A Large piece of Grit near the base of the vase.

Glowering he reaches for one of his tools and begins to carefully extract the grit. He eventually works the grit loose but in the process the base was destroyed ruining his work. He stares at the misshapen vase for a few minutes then sets it on the table next to other misshapen and unfinished pieces of pottery.

He then begins his search again through the clay pit taking his time to find the perfect clump of clay. Satisfied with a patch he begins his work anew. Carefully molding the Vase. Applying more water to keep the surface smooth. He takes his time and enjoys the sun. No responsibilities. No one waiting to use the holodeck. Just him and his work.

No pieces of grit interrupt his work this time and he begins to carefully and delicately carve patterns in the Vase using one of his tools. Hours pass but Torin does not notice. All there is is him and his clay. Finally he finishes his work and leans back to admire it. He turns to look out at the mountains and at the Sun nearing its apex in the sky. He looks back at the vase and stands up. "Computer, save this project for replication. Save program and transfer all data to external storage. End Program."

The vista quickly vanishes and his uniform, once supported by the table falls to the ground. Torin looks at his hands for a while and flexes his fingers. The holographic mud has vanished but his skin still remembers the cool sensation.

He stoops down and retrieves his uniform as he heads for the exit. He pauses at the arch to power down the grid and retrieve his chip. He glances back at the Holodeck and taps the chip against the palm of his hand a few times before heading out and back to Utopia Planitia.