onemorebounty | Going the Distance [for Verity, Jim]

Verity would be perfectly happy to sit and watch the rainbows, listen to the music of this strange place. Really, that would be just fine with her. Except for two things: her fear of disappointing friends, and the fact her husband is an idiot who needs protecting. So a-running they shall go. The prospect of not being alone in getting chided to keep up is nice. Jim was nice and she won't mind more of his company.

"And if he's late, he'll have to catch up somehow?" The question comes with a quirked eyebrow. "And they say space is cold."

They won't have to wait terribly long. With the Enterprise still grounded for repairs and himself still in that wishy-washy 'light duty' part of recuperation, Jim often has little to keep himself occupied besides reading, and as much as he likes that, he's eager to get out of the house and do something with himself. His running clothes and shoes are well broken in, though they haven't seen much use in the past year, and he's looking forward to putting himself through his paces. And probably getting annoyed at himself for not being in peak condition, let's be fair.

His steps slow as he approaches the meeting point, distracted by the unusual features of the beach. "Wow. You weren't kidding about the scenery."

*Samus smirks at Verity's sally.*

Space will kill you in a heartbeat, out of pure hostility and indifference. I, on the other hand, will bring you just to the brink of death--so the road back to life is familiar the next time you're there alone.

*Isn't that just so much better? Jim gets a wave as he approaches.*

Do I strike you as a kidder, Kirk?

So, so much better. Even having known each other for years, these kinds of comments still make Verity pause and reassess some of her life choices. (Samus continues to win over the not-Samus options.) There's a flicker of some other, darker thoughts she's trying to avoid as well, hidden when she crouches to check her laces. Still snug. "How considerate."

Jim's arrival is a timely way to excuse herself from thinking about unpleasant things. She gives him a small smile of camaraderie and sympathy--he got roped into this too, poor lucky bastard. "'Morning. The scenery here is nothing to kid about, even when it's beautiful."

Jim waves back on reflex, and gives a wave to Verity too. "If it was supposed to teach someone a lesson, then yeah, I could see you pulling a fast one on me," he says to Samus. He has a smile on his face when he says it though. Her lessons may be brutal sometimes - or most of the time - but at least they're effective.

"Nice to see you again," he adds to Verity. And then, because he's curious now, "Is there scenery here that's not beautiful?"

*Samus was raised by birds. Birds push their children out of the nest when it's time to fly. It's a... special perspective on nurturing.*

Different standards of beauty and infinite possibility? There's going to be something that's not beautiful for everyone.

*Considering Jim's remark, she tilts her head in thought.*

What would the lesson be, in kidding about this?

*While he thinks on that, she gives Verity a quiet aside.*

Leave the weights off for the first leg today.

Verity is stay the fuck out of the philosophical questions. She knows where that path leads and she doesn't want to go back unless she's earned it. Sorry, Jim, you're on your own. She'll stick to safer territory. "There are colors here average human eyes can't even see. Who knows whether we'd think they're beautiful or not?"

The aside is answered with a slight nod, and the weights will stay in her bag unless needed. Although looking at Jim, she's not sure why he wouldn't be able to keep up.

Jim does a few stretches while he thinks about that, a little slower than is probably typical, whenever his motions involve his lower back. He's been doing quite a lot better, but it's become habit to be cautious anyway. Better to play it safe. "I don't know, I was just thinking in general. Making me challenge my assumptions and expectations, maybe?" he adds, after a few moment's consideration.

"Man, I've got a lot of exploring to do yet," he says, at the reminder that this place really does go on forever. "Maybe beautiful's not the right word... fascinating, maybe."

*Samus gives Verity a nod and "tsk"s Jim playfully.*

Still a little risk-shy, hmm? I'm always pushing you to challenge your assumptions and expectations.

*She prowls a few paces with a bounce in her step, ready to run.*

What's the difference between beautiful and fascinating? Oh, fair warning, you'll need to use your brain on this run, so don't leave it here to save on weight.

Jim's second idea gets a thoughtful humming from her. That's practically an endorsement. Probably better than the way she's watching him, like there's a puzzle waiting to be solved. He's young and he's fit, but he's moving so cautiously... she can guess what happened in the broad strokes: a humbling injury. But the details elude her.

Verity knows that move, the bouncing while she paces, and takes a last moment to stretch before she nods to Samus. She's ready to go. "'Beautiful' is a measure of aesthetic pleasure, while 'fascinating' is a measure of captivation." It sounds like a statement, but her gaze flicks between them like she's waiting for comment or challenge. Knowing Samus, challenge.

"Believe me, I've noticed," Jim answers Samus. But he hopes he can leave it there before she starts digging too deep, when they haven't even started the main event yet. And she looks ready to take off without him if he doesn't smarten up.

He finishes his stretches, not sure how happy his back is going to be with him by the time they're done, but there's no way to get back to fighting fit unless he starts pushing himself more. "That," he says with a nod, "and I'd say beautiful's a judgment of appreciation, and fascinating's more what makes you want to look deeper into it. They're not mutually exclusive but they're not synonymous."

*Samus has a feeling Jim responds better when there's some sort of challenge in the air. Being outpaced by Samus is a goad he could probably ignore--he has some idea of her skills already. Verity is a civilian, on the other hand, and Jim has no idea how long Samus has been running with her. She sets an easy pace (for her); she's tuning it to challenge Jim without leaving him so wrecked he can't speak.*

Can something be beautiful without being fascinating, though? Can something be fascinating without some element of beauty? Can something captivate without giving aesthetic pleasure?

*After all, if he can't speak, he might wriggle out of the mental exercise that goes hand in hand with the running.*

The pace makes Verity work without straining. No complaints. Having more energy to go home and play with her dog will be a nice change. Not that she's counting on this lasting.

"Yes and yes," she answers with a pause. Regulating her breathing for the run is more important than answering quickly. "It's like how people rubberneck accidents. They don't find the scene beautiful or pleasing, but they're too curious to look away."

Jim is more than content to let Verity respond first, even if it does take her a minute. It gives him a little more time to think, not to mention find a stride that isn't too jarring or uncomfortable. He's out of practice, but there's no time like the present to start fixing that. Especially since he suspects Samus might eventually decide to pick up the pace later, once they've gotten further into the run. Either way, he won't complain about having to push himself. He did volunteer for this, after all, and if he wanted a lazier pace towards getting back in shape, he should've asked somebody else for help.

Once he feels he's found the right rhythm, he joins in on the discussion again. "I've seen flowers I'd call beautiful, but I don't think they're interesting enough to want to study them. I'd say they're both subjective."

*She considers their replies and nods, satisfied--not only that they have answers, but that the answers reflect thought.*

Good answers, both. So which drives you to explore, Jim? The search for beauty, the desire for something captivating? Or is it some other impulse?

*As she speaks, still conversational, she pulls ahead by a pace and then sidesteps, turning and lunging at Verity in an attack.*

Jim's answer is in many ways the same as hers, and yet so different. It probably says things about them. Things about her that she doesn't like to think about. The sorts of things she'd focus on during the run if there weren't other topics demanding her attention.

Why oh why did she let herself think Samus was focusing on Jim? That brief interval is enough to let her attention drift somewhat into the territory she wants to avoid. Her reaction to Samus' attack is less than ideal: arms up defensively, she skids through the sand into range. But she's small and ducks, letting her momentum and Samus' carry Samus up and over her. Springing up again when Samus is off-balance and grabbing at one of her feet should get the chick on the ground. If it were anyone other than Samus...

Jim really shouldn't be surprised by the abrupt plot twist unfolding in front of him, given what he knows of Samus so far. He still falters, his stride interrupted, uncertain if he's supposed to just... keep going, or what.

Regardless, what he does know about Samus is that she's still waiting for his answer to her question, despite her apparent focus on Verity. "Uh. Mostly curiosity, I guess. We haven't even scratched the surface of what's out there and there's bound to be a lifetime of surprises out in the universe. Stuff that nobody on Earth has ever imagined."

Curiosity?

*Samus twists in Verity's grip, tucking and gathering momentum; Verity will have a split second to decide whether to let go and let Samus regain her feet, or hold on and spill them both on the sand. However it plays out, Samus is ready with a verbal prod for Jim.*

Is your curiosity worth the lives it'll cost?

Jim is welcome to help out if he'd like. He's also wiser if he stays out of it. Besides, he's got problems of his own...

Verity knows better than to try and hold onto this tiger's tail. She lets go of Samus again with a shove and kicks out where she expects Samus to be behind her. Really, if she can just once get an advantage like making Samus fall without also falling, Verity will feel so victorious.

She knows it'll never happen.

She has a prod of her own for Jim, a more literal thumping of his arm. "Keep running." And then she takes her own advice.

Ouch, going for the low blows right off the bat. Once again he's caught a little flat-footed, and takes Verity's advice while he tries to decide how to answer that, falling back into the interrupted rhythm of his stride.

"Starfleet's going out there with or without me," he says after several moments' worth of thought. "Aren't the same lives at risk whether or not I'm there? Except mine."

*Verity's kick strikes a hand placed to intercept it, a sign that her counter is noted and deemed acceptable. Against someone who hadn't been training Verity for literal years, it likely would have connected to something more significant. For the moment, Samus keeps pace behind them, sending words ahead to fence with Jim.*

That's an interesting perspective. Are you absolved of responsibility, then, because if it weren't you making the decisions that cost those lives, it would just be someone else doing the same thing? Are you that replaceable?

*She's still evaluating what Jim is capable of, so lucky Verity gets to bear the focus of her physical attention today--she catches up and makes a grab at Verity from behind, simulating a pursuing attacker.*

Being deemed acceptable is also a victory, or at least, as close to one as she really expects to get. Whatever disappointment she feels at not managing to do more is swept away when she realizes the line of reasoning Samus is going down. Poor Jim. Did he know what he was getting himself into? (Verity didn't. She didn't care at the time, and she's come to accept it now.)

She knows better than to try to come to Jim's defense. He probably wouldn't appreciate it right now, and Samus certainly wouldn't approve. Verity's better off focusing on minding her pace and not giving in to the urge to speed up and trying to get away. Not that there's long for her to worry about that. She feels Samus coming and twists at the last second, sending an elbow into Samus' solar plexus. Then her heel comes down on an instep. Then a boop to Samus' nose, and another to her hip. Verity knows the moves and knows she can't really hurt Samus, but she still can't bring herself to risk an accident.

It's a little unnerving, having Samus trail behind them. It feels less like a rear guard and more like being stalked by a predator, which he supposes is at least partly true. Jim keeps his head on a swivel, wary of her coming after him next. He hasn't done any high-energy exercise since he climbed his way into the Enterprise's warp core, and while he could probably take a few hits, he's probably not up to any kind of sustained fight.

Jim's been subjected to Samus' peculiar brand of psychiatry twice now, though only one time involved simultaneous violence, so he at least had a little warning what he's in for. Not that it's helped him prepare, exactly.

"I didn't mean it like that," he says, and this time he doesn't flinch when Samus makes her move to come after Verity again. "If those lives are going to be at risk anyway, why shouldn't I be out there? Curiosity's the drive, but not the destination. Like Nibiru... we went there out of curiosity, but like you said, they don't send us out there to find out if volcanoes kill people." He's aware that Verity probably won't have any idea what that's supposed to mean, but now doesn't seem like the optimal time to explain.

*The elbow is met with a quiet grunt, the Hunter twisting her foot just enough to turn the instep kick from a serious injury to a minor bruise. The boops in lieu of follow-up strikes are accepted with a chuckle; Verity gets away with it this time because she's demonstrated in the past the ability to actually use those strikes when appropriate. Samus reacts appropriately, dropping back a few paces before renewing the chase. Jim wins no such respite, however, as she seizes on one of his remarks for her next advance.*

That's an interesting assumption, that your crew's lives will be at risk by default. You should tell Verity about the volcano thing, by the way, it's not a bad story.

No rest for the wicked. But the chuckle is a decided victory. Ver smirks to herself when she's free to get back to the running. With her head tilted slightly toward Jim, it would be easy to assume she's listening. But really, she's plotting. She matches Jim's pace until Samus starts to advance again. "I like stories."

Then she plants one foot firmly in the sand and throws her weight into a roundhouse kick that sweeps through the space behind her Samus was occupying a moment ago. Will it connect? Probably not the way she was hoping.

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