COMPILE_TERMINAL_VIEW
USS Hades
compile summary 2021-12-01
compile summary -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Star-date: 2408.07.22 (USS-Hades-Sickbay-CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere-1025) (USS Hades, Science Lab One, Ensign- SciO Harry Doorman, 1415) (USS Hades, Holodeck three, ACOUNS Ripley, ACTAC/CSEC Trinin, Engineer Walker, SciO Doorman, aCEO Wright, Sec T'Sol- 1600) (USS Hades - Biophysics Lab - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1828) (USS Hades - Personal Quarters- CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere - 1830) (USS Hades - Personal Quarters - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1832) (USS Hades - Personal Quarters - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1833) (USS Hades - Personal Quarters - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1833) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere - 1839) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - SciO Ensign Harry Doorman, 1841) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1844) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - Ensign- SciO Harry Doorman, 1847) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1848) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - Ensign- SciO Harry Doorman, 1849) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1850) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - SciO, Ensign Harry Doorman, 1853) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1855) (USS Hades - Ten Forward - SciO, Ensign Harry Doorman, 1857) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- begin compile Star-date: 2408.07.22 (USS-Hades-Sickbay-CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere-1025) Angeni wiped the sweat from her brow as the last body was moved to the morgue. She had given a preliminary report to the doctors that protected the denzins of the Morgue: Death due to unknown causes. The 'baseballs' had left as well, all except for one that was sitting in her office. She went back inside, transfering the video and audio files from the autopsy to her computer. She went through, putting notations and captions in all of the files before she sat back trying to decide what to do. She let the Captain know that they had figured out the genders of the four bodies, two were in all sense of the word female, and two were male. The 'baseballs' were found in a female body, so one could assume that they were eggs. She could still smell the remnants of death circulating through the room, and she pulled out some incense; White Sage, to clear the room of the smell, and to ease her rather superstitious self. She picked up the smoldering stick, and she spun her chair so the high back hid her from the view of the entire sickbay. With small motions, she waved the smoldering end in front of her in specific gestures, mumbling a prayer to herself. She didn't know why she had pulled the prayer for the unknown dead from the recesses of her mind. She had learned it many moons prior from her mother; a prayer her ancestors had used when they came upon the body of an unknown deceadent. She had spoken a similar prayer; the prayer for a dead warrior, for those who had passed on the ship, but something about seeing the bodies, especially the eggs, really got her to think. She tapped out a quick note to Captain Sash, telling him what he was going to see, and to message her if he needed some clairification. She also told him about what she could only figure was some sort of egg. By the appearance of all the scans, it was dead. She walked out of her office, nodding to those around her. She had an overwhelming sense that someone or something was watching what she was doing. Chalking it up to purely superstition, she tossed her scrubs into the recycler and she returned to her office, asking the computer to play a set of drums and chanting she found that were specific to her ancestors. With that, she let the doors close behind her, and she continued to let the white sage burn as she continued with her paperwork. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades, Science Lab One, Ensign- SciO Harry Doorman, 1415) Harry stepped back after tweaking the equations again for the thirty third time. The more that he looked at the data results after each run, the more that he realized there had been several ships involved. There had not been enough initial data to map even a single vessel at the outset, but now, with Kase constantly collecting new data from the wreckage in the area, at least within sensor range, they had managed to put together a ghost-like fragmented shell of not one vessel but two. They were nearly identical, but there were enough gaps in the debris field data to make him not want to say that they were definitely the same type of template designed starship, or even that they belonged to the same species. The work that they had been doing here over the last several hours was like trying to put together a 100,000 piece jigsaw puzzle, only you had to search an area the size of the Terran Solar System to locate the pieces, and they you discovered that they were all the same size and had to put them together without benefit of a blueprint. Of course it wasn't that complex, but it wasn't far off. The searching aspect was handled by sensors and the trial and error reconstruction handled by complex mathematical formula. Harry stepped back from the console. He was convinced that the rest of the missing pieces were long gone, scattered or vaporized in the attack, and so they had done as much as they could with the data they had. He tapped his commbadge. "Doorman to McKenzie." he said. (reply McKenzie) "Well, sir. I think crewman Kase and I have managed to put together all the data we could find. We have reconstructed two fairly intact examples of the ships that were the debris fields origin point. Wanted to let you know where we stood on the project. We've come to a standstill." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades, Holodeck three, ACOUNS Ripley, ACTAC/CSEC Trinin, Engineer Walker, SciO Doorman, aCEO Wright, Sec T'Sol- 1600) Ana stood in front of the assembled group of officers and crew, none of which seemed to be particularly happy with their summons to the Holodeck. She had activated a program called 'Group Session 03- Alpha'. It was a pleasant area, a Japanese water and stone garden, situated on the Planet Shinwei III. The twin suns burned high in the sky and the slight sound of flute music was playing softly in the distance. She had created this construct specifically for situations just like this. The setting was found to be effective at making most species more comfortable and responsive to the group dynamics of the exercise. Her studies of the ship's crew had showed that the most divergent types of personalities on the ship seemed to belong to the five individuals sitting in the soft chairs arranged in a semi-circle in front of her. Baylon was the consummate duty-driven obsessive compulsive type with a high aggression index; Walker was the struggling manic depressant, who in the past had been drive to self-mutilation; T'Sol was the atypical Vulcan in that she was always struggling to maintain her calm outward appearance of emotional control- she had already been seeing Anna about issue since she had come aboard; Wright was the officer among them with serious insecurity and authority issues. Oh, she followed the authority of others well enough, but she tended to be heavy handed with her own. It seemed to Ana that Darla was struggling over an issue of self worth, that was deeper than simply feeling that she was in over her head. Then finally there was Doorman. Of the rest of the group, he was the most conflicted and complex. His spontaneous memory resurfacing was indicative of a severe past trauma. He had seen at least three different counselors in the last year and a half, including her. His diagnosis had been as complex as the rest of the entire group put together. He had even tried to commit suicide once during a mission. He was anti-social out side of his work environment for the most part, although recently that aspect was changing. There were so many classifiable mental illnesses running around in that complex personality and head of his that she could write a paper on him, assuming that she could figure him out at all. His various clinical issues should incapacitate him. He should be clinically vegetative, yet somehow he functioned well enough to maintain his duties without jeopardizing the ship or crew. That in itself was an undocumented condition on it's own. The five officers were sitting in their chairs and Ana observed them while they waited for her to get things started. Baylon and T'Sol were stock still, disciplined as they always preferred to appear- waiting patiently for the session to arrive. Walker and Wright looked distracted, constantly glancing around for something to catch their attention. This was an expected psychological response. The setting and the situation made them both uncomfortable, as would any sort of personalized scrutiny. Harry had a dreamy distant look in his eye as if he were contemplating some complex concept somewhere. ~Oh to be able to sift around in that head of his~ Ana thought before she moved forward and sat in her own chair in front of the group. "I know that you all are wondering why I've called you together here today?" She asked. Only Harry and Wright nodded; the others just looked at her. "I have initiated a new test program utilizing the Sympathetic social reinforcement model. And I've selected you five to be the first to participate in the program." she explained. "Group therapy?" Harry asked, "Nothing personal Counselor, but I thought that group therapy usually worked around common issues focus." ~He's a sharp one~ she thought as she nodded. "Indeed they do, Harry. I can call you Harry right?" "Sure." Harry said with a nod. "Well, Harry you're absolutely correct, the traditional SSRM works through what is called common therapy sessions, in so much as all the subjects in the SSRM sessions share a common condition or problem that is best handled through social interactions. In our case there is a common thread, and that is that you all have a different condition or mental state that could benefit from SSRM sessions. In other words while you may not share the same conditions or states, the very fact that you all share a social condition treatable by SSRM is your common factor." "Excuse me councilor, but I have a great deal of work to do," Baylon commented, "I'm currently overseeing two department on the ship and I really don't have time for this right now." He started to stand. "Sit down Lieutenant." Ana stated clearly. "Or I'll have you removed from the active duty list, am I understood?" Baylon's eyes flashed an angry glare as he considered the councilor's words. "Council I'm glad to participate only not right at this moment." he explained. "Sit down now lieutenant" she repeated. Baylon nodded, then returned to his seat. ~Okay now that the alpha boundaries have been established.~ Ana thought "How do we begin this session, councilor?" T'Sol asked in a flat Vulcan tone. Of all the subjects gathered here, she was the only one that Ana thought would cooperate fully. ~Gotta love Vulcan Psychology.~ "We begin," Ana replied, "By talking about our day. Darla, why don't you begin?" Darla looked startled for a moment before catching her stride and replying. "Well I spent the better part of the morning in Main Engineering handling the daily reports and when the debris was beamed aboard I headed for the cargo bay..." she started. "One Second, Darla. Let's expand on that a bit. Let's talk about your day, but leaving out the work related stuff. Did you joke around with any friends? See anyone that you'd not seen in a while? Do anything not related to work? What did you have for lunch, or better yet, where did you have lunch?" Ana asked. Darla's eyes shifted as she worked to fabricate her answers. It was a typical autonomic response that most humanoid species had when they were accessing their imaginations. "Umm, yeah sure... I uh.. Let's see. I spoke with Ensign Tamar this morning asked him how his son's studies were going at the academy. Then I uhh, let me see... I smiled a lot at Jack, but we were both on the job, so I didn't talk to him much." "What about lunch?" Ana asked. "Lunch? Well I ate in my office with the door closed." She replied honestly. "Very good, thank you for sharing Darla." "You're welcome." ~Lie~ "George, what about you? What did you do today?" "I went to the gym this morning." George answered simply. "Talk to anyone there?" Ana asked, "No it was 0230 hours, I was the only one there." he replied. "Do you always go so early?" Ana asked him. George nodded. "Yeah usually." "Why?" She asked him although she already knew the answer. "I don't know. I don't really like people much." he replied honestly. That surprised Ana. Of all of them T'Sol was the most likely to reply honestly in the first session, George was the least likely. "Computer freeze program." Suddenly everything froze, every sound stopped and even the subjects sitting in the chairs immediately stopped all movement. "Computer save SSRM Session Test Ripley One and discontinue program." [Program saved.] The image of the gardens were replaced by the empty yellow grid of the inactive Holodeck. "Looks like I need to double check George's profile construct." She muttered to herself as she headed back to her office. The rest of this program would have to wait until later. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (USS Hades - Biophysics Lab - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1828) Harry was a little frantic. He had gotten off from the labs a little later than he would have liked and with the imminent arrival of Angeni in just a couple of minutes, he had spun into a rushed and near frantic attempt to get ready for their dinner together tonight. He had just finished getting dressed after a quick sonic shower and was making his way across the floor to grab his shoes when he heard the door chime. He glanced up at the chronograph and noticed it read 1828. ~She's 2 minutes early~ he thought to himself, but decided that he should be happy that she was coming to see him at all. Not that there had been any problems between them, it was just still so new that he was almost worried that she would wake up at any moment, slap her forehead and head for the hill. The chime sounded a second time. Harry reached over and picked up his shoes and socks and called out, "Come in!" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (USS Hades - Personal Quarters- CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere - 1830) Angeni had nearly forgotten about their date. It had been one of those days that was filled with so much excitement that she had used up every last neuron in her brain focusing on the 'egg' that was sitting in her office. Time had passed so quickly, that when she realized she only had forty-five minutes to meet him, she flew from her office to her quarters. They had gotten over their first date jitters pretty quickly...seeing just how well they got to know each other that night, but yet, there was something so different about it. It seemed too good to be true. She looked at herself in the mirror one last time; the feather that adorned her tresses that she allowed to flow freely about her back was in stark contrast. With what looked like polished white against a deep onyx color, she tugged at it gently, making sure it was secure in its wrappings. She poked at her nose, sticking her tongue out. She took in her face, suprised at the rather genuine smile on her face. She never usually had a smile on her face; she was more likely to be picking apart all of her supposed flaws, and she never left her room happy with how she looked, but today, she just felt like it was okay to look the way she did. She stepped back, looking at her full picture; a long black dress, silver high-heels and a purse. She had thrown several padds in it of the 'egg'. She was sure as anything that they'd never come from her purse. She rummaged over her dresser, grabbing a bottle of lavendar oil, and she dabbed it on her wrist and neck before making her way to Harry's quarters. She glanced at her watch, realizing that she was early. She pressed the buzzer once, and when he didn't answer, she wondered if he was still hard at work in the labs. She didn't fault him for it one bit; she would've been doing the same thing if she didn't glance up at her post-it note. She pressed the buzzer again, and she heard him call her to come in. Walking in, she stood by the door, a smile on her face. "Have a busy day?" (Reply Harry) She walked over to him, dropping her purse on his couch before reaching him and pulling him into a deep embrace. "It's so good to see you..." She pulled away slightly, kissing him on the cheek, but she in no way disengaged his embrace. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (USS Hades - Personal Quarters - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1832) As the doors slid open, Harry was just standing upright again after fighting to get his left foot into his shoe without sitting down. A tricky task, when you were also trying to hop towards the door. He had selected a deep blue tunic shirt with a gold edged square collar and cuffs. He also wore black pleated slacks. And now that his shoes were on his feet, he was ready to go. The door to his quarters opened and he smiled when he saw her standing there in her gorgeous black dress, which seemed to show off all her curves. In her dark tresses she wore a single feather that was her custom. He allowed his eyes to take in the entirety of her form, starting at her smiling face and ending at the silver high heel shoes that graced her slender feet. "Have a busy day?" She asked him still smiling. He had of course, but now everything in the universe that had been hectic and complex seemed to fall away and be reduced to it's common denominator; Simplistic laws and precepts that guided everything. "I'd say." Harry replied, " Been working on mapping space junk all day, extrapolating drift so that we can find the source of the battle." She walked over to him, dropped her purse on his couch before reaching him and pulled him into a deep embrace. Harry wrapped his arms around her waist and met her lips eagerly with his own. The scent of Lavender wafted into his nostrils and he almost melted in her arms. "It's so good to see you..." She pulled away slightly, kissing him on the cheek, but she in no way disengaged his embrace. "I was about to say the same thing." he replied, "I'd bet your day has been interesting?" he inquired almost in a manner that suggested more of a statement than a question. He took a deep contented breath, absorbing more of the tantalizing scent of the lavender oil that she was wearing. (reply Angeni) "Why don't we talk about our day in Ten forward. I don't know about you, but I managed to forget to eat lunch today and I am absolutely famished." he offered, stepping to the side and offering her his arm. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Personal Quarters - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1833) "I'd bet your day has been interesting?" Harry had asked after their embrace. Angeni nodded quickly. "We were afforded the task of doing a post humous exam on some individuals that were found floating amongst the space junk, as it were. We found some very interesting things...maybe later I'll have you look at some padds. I think I may need your scientific expertise on this." "Why don't we talk about our day in Ten forward. I don't know about you, but I managed to forget to eat lunch today and I am absolutely famished." She took his offered arm and she smiled. "I think I'd like that idea..." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - SciO- Ens Harry Doorman - 1838) Harry had enjoyed the walk with Angeni to ten forward. He felt as if he were the king of the galaxy with such an amazing woman on his arm, and that nothing in the known universe could possibly shake his confidence or ability to handle anything that came at them as long as she was there with him. They entered Ten Forward, still arm in arm amid the sounds of soft piano music. There was a holographic pianist playing tonight, a variety of soft pieces designed to help relax people. Traq, a Bolian member of the lounge staff greeted them and took them to their seat; a small private little table nestled in the back out of the way portion of the room, which also happened to afford and excellent vantage through the portal out to the immensity of space beyond the 3.5 meters of Duranium hull. Harry pulled Angeni's chair out for her, then took his own seat. "I wanted to tell you how fabulous you look, but my vocabulary has seemed to fail me after breathtaking." he commented, trying to let her know how lovely she looked. "I'm an extremely fortunate man to be able to monopolize you time, you know?" He added. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere - 1839) "I wanted to tell you how fabulous you look, but my vocabulary has seemed to fail me after breathtaking." he commented, trying to let her know how lovely she looked. "I'm an extremely fortunate man to be able to monopolize you time, you know?" He added. Angeni blushed wildly, reaching across the table to hold his hand. It wasn't often that she was swept off her feet the way he did to her. She used to joke that she could have possibly heard a marriage proposal, or other indecent proposals, from a good number of people aboard the ship. The head dizzying effects of most pain killers could lower the inhibition of just about anyone, but even the most bizzare proposal couldn't set her face afire as a comment from him could. "Thank you, Harry. I feel the same about you...just in reverse, you know?" She smiled softly. "It's been a while since I've felt like I was back in junior high with the school girl crush...butterflies in the stomach type feeling." It was true, the butterfly feeling she had when someone mentioned his name was there, even in his presence. (Reply Harry) "The view is beautiful..." She looked out the window, gazing at the stars. She felt like all the stars had aligned to make this moment so perfectly wonderful. She gazed lovingly at him, having a tough decision to pull her eyes away from him when their waiter came over. "Evening Ma'am, Sir...what can I get for you?" Angeni paused for a moment, then she spoke. "May I have an Italian Cherry soda...How about you, love?" She glanced over at Harry. (Reply Harry) As the waiter walked away, she leaned back in, a mischevious smile on her face. "So, explain to me this drift extrapolation? It sounds pretty interesting to say the least. Is that where you take the location of an object, and take the speed and angle at which it is moving currently and basically drag it backwards through space over a period of time to see where it possibly originated from?" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (USS Hades - Ten Forward - SciO Ensign Harry Doorman, 1841) "Thank you, Harry. I feel the same about you...just in reverse, you know?" She smiled softly as a blush reddened her cheeks. "It's been a while since I've felt like I was back in junior high with the school girl crush...butterflies in the stomach type feeling." He smiled broadly at her, "You have no idea how happy that makes me feel, butterflies and all," he replied. "The view is beautiful..." She looked out the window, gazing at the stars. He turned to look out of the portal as well. "Yes, it certainly is," he added. "Evening Ma'am, Sir...what can I get for you?" a voice said. Harry's mind had to change gears and remember that he was in Ten Forward and that he was really, really hungry. Angeni paused for a moment, then she spoke. "May I have an Italian Cherry soda...How about you, love?" She glanced over at Harry. "How about an Arcturian Red Fizz, with a splash of blackberry syrup?" he asked. The waiter nodded and then turned to head for the bar. The Red Fizz was non-alcoholic, unlike it's more famous cousin. As the waiter walked away, she leaned back in, a mischievous smile on her face. "So, explain to me this drift extrapolation? It sounds pretty interesting to say the least. Is that where you take the location of an object, and take the speed and angle at which it is moving currently and basically drag it backwards through space over a period of time to see where it possibly originated from?" Harry smiled and nodded. "On the most basic level yes. But there's more to it than that in practice. You have to take into account factors such as natural gravimetric eddies, which shift the vectors and that means measuring the weight and gravimetric drag of the debris in question. And then you have the issue of dealing with possible collisions with other debris that could have shifted it's velocity or vector. that's a lot harder to measure." "In the end what you'll end up with is a series of data points in three-dimensional space, that will gather together in groups. The groups with the most data points are the most likely points of origin, with the next highest concentration being the second most likely and so forth. The real trick comes if more than one ship was destroyed. We have no way of knowing if an energy wave from say, a breached warp core could have propelled the materials at near light speed and that they had slowed down over a long period of time. So the extrapolation is really not much more than a series of well-founded educated postulations. There's really no way to gather perfect data, since we were unable to record every aspect of the debris field from creation until now, there are just too many variables. It's really an exercise in Occam's Razor." (reply Angeni room for more) "And what about you? I'm led to understand that we've recovered some corpses from the field? Anything exciting or new there?" he asked. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1844) Angeni listened intently, resting her chin on her hand. She smiled softly at him, more or less just listening to him because, while what he was saying was interesting, she just loved to listen to him talk about his job. It was refreshing to hear someone who just loved their job. "Occam's Razor? I don't mean to sound like a complete airhead, but last time I checked, space wasn't exactly growing a five o'clock shadow...but I understand what you mean. It's like going back to the twentieth century when you had ballistics. On the outside of a body, you can have two relatively linear entrance and exit wounds, but you had to go back and figure out what damage the bullet had done on the inside. The bullet would travel in a straight line going into the body, but unless you had a one in a million shot where it passed through and through without hitting bone or dense muscle tissue, the bullet would begin to wobble, striking muscle, organs, and bones. It could bounce around in someones' rib cage destroying everything before coming out of the body. What looks neat on the outside can look like a hunk of ground beef on the inside." She blushed gently, ducking her head. "I'm sorry. Ballistics and inner organs are not proper dinner talk..." (Reply Harry) "And what about you? I'm led to understand that we've recovered some corpses from the field? Anything exciting or new there?" he asked. "Why yes there was." She leaned forward a bit more, "On exam, they look to be easily 150 years old, if not older, or maybe even younger, I'm not sure. In one of the bodies, I did find what looked to be eggs, but once again, I'm not sure." (Reply Harry) She held her hands up, forming the approximate shape of a baseball. "They're about this big, hard as a rock to. I would've thought that it was debris from a ship, or a passing meteor, but I found a dozen of them, all the same shape, size, and weight. Preliminary tests show that the outside of the 'egg' as it were is the same material that the exo-skeleton of the body is made of. I can't make a definate determination of what they are without further study." Her eyes sparkled at the thought of further study, but she wasn't thinking about studying the eggs. It amazed her that her thoughts could be diverted so easily when she was in his presence. Suddenly, her face fell a bit, and she fidgeted with her napkin as their drinks were brought to them. She took a sip, then she tried her best to put on a smile. "We need to talk, Harry..." (Reply Harry) "No...no, it's nothing bad. We never really talked about where 'we' stand and all. I don't want to be thinking that we're one thing when we're something different, or vice versa. I'm not usually the one to do...that on a first date, and maybe it's the scientist in me who needs to put a label on anything and everything, but..." She hesitated for a moment, looking out the window, trying to gather her rushing and tumbling thoughts. "I just wanted to know where we stand. I'm not looking for a declaration of love or anything like that, but...you know....do you have any idea what I'm trying to say, because I sure as hell don't" ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - Ensign- SciO Harry Doorman, 1847) "Occam's Razor? I don't mean to sound like a complete airhead, but last time I checked, space wasn't exactly growing a five o'clock shadow...but I understand what you mean. It's like going back to the twentieth century when you had ballistics. On the outside of a body, you can have two relatively linear entrance and exit wounds, but you had to go back and figure out what damage the bullet had done on the inside. The bullet would travel in a straight line going into the body, but unless you had a one in a million shot where it passed through and through without hitting bone or dense muscle tissue, the bullet would begin to wobble, striking muscle, organs, and bones. It could bounce around in someone's' rib cage destroying everything before coming out of the body. What looks neat on the outside can look like a hunk of ground beef on the inside." She blushed gently, ducking her head. "I'm sorry. Ballistics and inner organs are not proper dinner talk..." Harry smiled at her. "It doesn't bother me. Occam's Razor is an empirical method of deduction. It basically states, that when all other answers to a question have been proven impossible, the one that remains no matter how improbably is the answer. In this case, we'll be able to extrapolate the data, not because we will have good data, but because we will be able to disqualify all the other answers. Process of Elimination basically." He shrugged, "but I can definitely see where it is a lot like ballistic studies through a medium." "And what about you? I'm led to understand that we've recovered some corpses from the field? Anything exciting or new there?" he asked. "Why yes there was." She leaned forward a bit more, "On exam, they look to be easily 150 years old, if not older, or maybe even younger, I'm not sure. In one of the bodies, I did find what looked to be eggs, but once again, I'm not sure." "Eggs?" he replied surprised, "How large were they and are they likely alive still?" She held her hands up, forming the approximate shape of a baseball. "They're about this big, hard as a rock to. I would've thought that it was debris from a ship, or a passing meteor, but I found a dozen of them, all the same shape, size, and weight. Preliminary tests show that the outside of the 'egg' as it were is the same material that the exo-skeleton of the body is made of. I can't make a definite determination of what they are without further study." "That's really interesting. What will you do if they turn out to be alive?" Suddenly, her face fell a bit, and she fidgeted with her napkin as their drinks were brought to them. She took a sip, then she put on a smile. ~Did I say something wrong?~ Harry wondered. "We need to talk, Harry..." "Okay." he said suddenly getting more serious. "Is there a problem?" ~Is she going to tell me that this relationship is a mistake?~ He wondered to himself. "No...no, it's nothing bad. We never really talked about where 'we' stand and all. I don't want to be thinking that we're one thing when we're something different, or vice versa. I'm not usually the one to do...that on a first date, and maybe it's the scientist in me who needs to put a label on anything and everything, but..." She hesitated for a moment, looking out the window. "I just wanted to know where we stand. I'm not looking for a declaration of love or anything like that, but...you know....do you have any idea what I'm trying to say, because I sure as hell don't." Harry looked at her for a moment. He could have tried to read her emotional state. or maybe try to gather the surface thoughts as she processed them through her mind, but he quickly decided against it. It was an unfair advantage and it wasn't really the right way to handle things. "I don't know." he answered honestly, with a little bit of a shrug "I suppose you're asking me if this relationship is purely physical or is there more to it?" he posed the question. (reply Angeni) "To be honest with you Angeni, what I know is that I enjoy every moment I spend with you. You make me feel alive and vibrant and like I belong. I think of you and it makes me smile, regardless of how my day has been. I feel that I can connect with you on an emotional as well as a physical level." "I know you don't want a declaration of love, which is good because I don't know yet if that's what I'm feeling. I can't tell you if what I'm feeling will blossom into love or if it's ancillary to lust or the joys of not being lonely. I just don't know." He paused and took a sip of his fizz. "I've never met anyone like you. You have ways of making me feel things I've never experienced before. I don't know what our future is going to be, but I know that the thought of losing you isn't a pleasant one. " "You have to understand something Ang, " he continued, "I don't know anything about myself with any certainty. "I don't know where I'm really from beyond the most basic. I don't know what I can do, where I've lived, who I've loved or even if I have loved anyone else before. I don't even know anything about myself beyond my most recent memories those I've gotten since joining the Nimitz a few years ago. What I'm saying is that in a lot of ways things I'm experiencing in my everyday life, especially where you are concerned are completely new to me. I can't tell you how I feel because I honestly don't know in its entirety." He took another sip of his water. "I hope that answers your question, and didn't come across sounding like so much worthless banter." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1848) "I don't know." he answered with a shrug "I suppose you're asking me if this relationship is purely physical or is there more to it?" Angeni nodded eagerly. It was one of the things she envied about the majority of scientists; they were so specifc, they could boil down an hour worth of rambling down to one sentance, and it made all the sense in the world. "Yes, Harry. That's what I want to know." "To be honest with you Angeni, what I know is that I enjoy every moment I spend with you. You make me feel alive and vibrant and like I belong. I think of you and it makes me smile, regardless of how my day has been. I feel that I can connect with you on an emotional as well as a physical level." "I know you don't want a declaration of love, which is good because I don't know yet if that's what I'm feeling. I can't tell you if what I'm feeling will blossom into love or if it's ancillary to lust or the joys of not being lonely. I just don't know." "Ancillary to lust. Yes, the endorphins and what not that are floating through our bodies right now can cause the brain to produce feelings of love and contentment..." "I've never met anyone like you. You have ways of making me feel things I've never experienced before. I don't know what our future is going to be, but I know that the thought of losing you isn't a pleasant one. " Angeni ducked her head slightly. She had never heard anyone say something like that to her. She knew deep down that he ment every word of it. It wasn't something he was just saying to get more out of her. In that moment, she wished to posess the same empathetic abilities that he had just so she could reach out and touch his feelings, to share in what he was feeling at that moment. All she could do was hold his hand a bit tighter, her eyes sparkling. As he went further, all she could do was sit there and nod, trying not to just jump across the table and do rather unspeakable acts in public. "Does that answer your question?" "It does. I have to remember that you are, in a way, relearning everything that to someone else your age would already know. For me, obviously, it's engraned. I can identify a set of feelings and sensations and know what they mean to me, but you are just starting to put that stuff together." She took another long, slow sip of her drink, then she set it back down, holding his hand in both of hers. "You make me happy, Harry. I enjoy being with you, enjoy spending time with you. As I said, the scientist in me has to identify and label everything out the door." Angeni sighed and leaned back in her chair. "In some ways, you're quite lucky. If I could forget a lot of the things that I experienced, I would in a heartbeat. I'd be willing to forget all the pain and hardship that the pursuit of love and happiness brought." Her voice took on a slight edge of bitterness, "I mean...if I wasn't horseback riding none of that would've happened..." (Reply Harry) "Nothing." She looked down in her drink for a long moment. The thought of her parents' death still haunted her. The memory played in her mind like a never ending movie...first smelling the blood, then seeing it... "My parents were killed as well..." She admitted quietly. She didn't know why she said it, but it seemed right. "Like you, I don't know why, or how, or anything like that..." She stopped, looking up at him. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "I just wish that I could erase that part of me. I'd rather just know than having to actually find them like that...But, enough of the sad stuff.." She put a smile on her face, sipping at her drink. "If they are alive, the eggs...I have no clue what to do with them. I haven't thought that far. My thought is, is that they're dead, long gone as it were, but at the same time, I remember the cicadias...they lived underground in eggs for like...8 years or something like that, and would come out and live for the summer, and that was it. Eight years living in the ground for 3 months of enjoyment. For all we know, these people had life spans of three or four hundred years. I'm flying by the seat of my pants at this point, but...as you said about Occams' Razor, they could either live under-ground for years, just to come out for a few months, or live under ground for a few months, and then live for hundreds of years..." (Reply Harry) "I'd really like your help on this one...and I'm not just asking because of the obvious. I don't want to go cutting into that thing without being completely sure that it isn't a lifeform that's still alive or containing some sort of virus that could kill the entire ship." She stood from her chair, moving her seat closer to him. She leaned in, resting her forehead against his shoulder before lifting her head, using just the tip of her index finger to guide his face to look at her. "Whatever happens Harry, I just want you to know that, I really appreciate the time we spend together. You make me happier than I can put into words...and I don't care if it's the random endorphins making me feel this way, I'm just happy that I can feel it at this point." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (USS Hades - Ten Forward - Ensign- SciO Harry Doorman, 1849) Angeni ducked her head slightly. She gripped his hand a bit tighter, hereyes were sparkling. She had a mischievous glare in her eyes. "Does that answer your question?" he asked her. "It does. I have to remember that you are, in a way, relearning everything that to someone else your age would already know. For me, obviously, it's engrained. I can identify a set of feelings and sensations and know what they mean to me, but you are just starting to put that stuff together." She took another long, slow sip of her drink, then she set it back down, holding his hand in both of hers. "You make me happy, Harry. I enjoy being with you, enjoy spending time with you. As I said, the scientist in me has to identify and label everything out the door." Angeni sighed and leaned back in her chair. "In some ways, you're quite lucky. If I could forget a lot of the things that I experienced, I would in a heartbeat. I'd be willing to forget all the pain and hardship that the pursuit of love and happiness brought." Her voice took on a slight edge of bitterness, "I mean...if I wasn't horseback riding none of that would've happened..." ~Horseback riding?~ Harry thought confused for a moment not immediately finding the relation between that and the prior conversation. "I'm sorry, but what about horseback riding?" he asked her a little confused. "Nothing." She looked down in her drink for a long moment. She forced a smile onto her face, while she was sipping on her drink. "My parents were killed as well..." She admitted quietly. "Like you, Idon't know why, or how, or anything like that..." She stopped, looking up at him. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "I just wish that I could erase that part of me. I'd rather just know than having to actually find them like that...But, enough of the sad stuff.." She put a smile on her face, sipping at her drink. Harry did not know the details behind her parents death, but apparently it somehow involved Angeni discovering their bodies, or at least he surmised from her words. He wondered if he should tell her that it was entirely possible to block out those terrible memories of her past. He even knew how to do it, but he wasn't certain that now was the right time for that conversation. It was something best kept for later. "If they are alive," she began and for a moment or two Harry was completely confused since she had just told him that her parents were dead. Her next words however made him realize that she had switched mental tracks on him."... the eggs...I have no clue what to do with them. I haven't thought that far. My thought is... is that they're dead, long gone as it were, but at the same time, I remember the cicadas...they lived underground in eggs for like...8 years or something like that, and would come out and live for the summer, and that was it. Eight years living in the ground for 3 months of enjoyment. For all we know, these people had life spans of three or four hundred years. I'm flying by the seat of my pants at this point, but...as you said about Occam's' Razor, they could either live underground for years, just to come out for a few months, or live underground for a few months, and then live for hundreds of years..." "That's entirely possible." Harry nodded. "I've heard that the Xindi insectoids had comparable life cycles to Terran African Army Ant in that they have a similarly structured developmental stage. And according to the Klingons the Hur'q, who were an insectoid species also had a very similar maturation process as well. That lends some credence to the theory that they evolve in Embryonic, larval, pupal and adult stages like all the other insectoid species that the Federation has logged. The evidence then through deduction would be that the Tch'kairn would be similar biologically speaking." "I'd really like your help on this one...and I'm not just asking because ofthe obvious. I don't want to go cutting into that thing without being completely sure that it isn't a life form that's still alive or containing some sort of virus that could kill the entire ship." Harry nodded again. "I don't blame you." he replied even as he thought about how they could structure a series of tests. "We could develop some basic non- intrusive experiments that would determine the presence of key life-developing amino protein chains. We could also screen for silicon structures that are common to silicoid life. In case they aren't true carbon-based Life forms. We could also look for key indicators in bio-enzymes and sustaining endo-proteins that are characteristic of stasiometabolic suspension. These are pretty non-invasive additionally, deep cellular electro engram scans over a long time could reveal transient energy or biochemical transfer which could indicate a continuation of deep hibernal sustenance. " "You realize I'm not a biologist right? I'm a mathematician and theoretical physicist by training. Granted I'm involved in so many cross-discipline projects all the time that I've picked up a lot of different aspects of a huge number of fields, but I wouldn't be able to interpret a lot of the data that we might uncover." Angeni's mind switched gears again. She stood from her chair and settled into position next to him. She leaned in, resting her forehead against his shoulder before lifting her head, using just the tip of her index finger to guide his face to look at her. "Whatever happens Harry, I just want you to know that, I really appreciatethe time we spend together. You make me happier than I can put into words...and I don't care if it's the random endorphins making me feel this way, I'm just happy that I can feel it at this point." He smiled at her then and instinctively he leaned forward and kissed her. The kiss lingered for a few moments longer than it probably should have, but Harry didn't care and from what he could discern it didn't seem that Angeni did either. He finally came up for air and replied, "So it seems that we've now labeled our relationship, as happy but temporally uncertain." There was a wide grin as he spoke those words. "now there's a description for the psychology books. You could list it under relationship classifications, although I would suspect that they'd have just as much difficulty defining it as we've had." "I'm not the most romantic man around, Angeni.. and for the life of me I still can't figure out what made you follow me to my quarters after the party." He shook his head. "But I'm very honestly happy beyond words that you did." It seems that the Waiter had been watching to determine when a good opportunity to take their order and had finally gotten up the nerve to do so. He approached the table with a determined look on his face and stopping just a few feet shy of their position said, "Have you decided what you'd like tonight?" Harry turned his attention away from Angeni for a moment and addressed the waiter. "I'd like a beef au jus sandwich on a hoagie bun and a cup of French onion soup please." "Very good sir. And for you miss?" (reply Angeni) "Excellent choice as well. Let me put that order in for you. I'll have it out as soon as it's ready." he replied, and then just like that he was gone-headed for the kitchen with a purpose. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1850) "Very good sir. And for you miss?" Angeni smiled at Harry. "That actually sounds quite good. I'd like to have a Greek Salad with extra Feta, and an order of Spaghetti with Marinara sauce, please and thank you." "Excellent choice as well. Let me put that order in for you. I'll have it out as soon as it's ready." he replied, and then just like that he was gone- headed for the kitchen with a purpose. Angeni smiled at Harry again. "I know I completely switched gears on you about three or four times. I get like that sometimes. My mother would always say that I could get distracted by shiny things. It's more of a product of being nervous than anything else, and I apologize for it." "As for why I followed you...a portion of it was to make sure you weren't off in a corner expelling your innards after that...meal you ate." She laughed gently, "But other than that, I just wanted to get to know you. I had met Harry the Scientist, but I just wanted to get to know you. I had fun working with you...or I guess it was more of you working and me oogling at all the things in the lab, but all in all, it was just sort of a...I dunno...I just did it because I felt bold enough to do it at the time..." (Reply Harry) Angeni nodded, then she smiled softly, "I'm switching gears on you again...yes, I know you're not a biologist, but I'm sure that, with one of your toys in the lab, that you would be able to figure out what it's made of, the density, the stuff that I have very little to no understanding about while I figure out if it was breathing at one point in time. I don't want to go hacking into it and have it turn out that it's some sort of incendiary device or something." She leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes for a moment. ~Pull it together, girl...come on now. This is not the time to have your mind on thirty different things at the same time. Focus on one or two things and go with the flow. You're sure not making any good impressions at the moment.~ "I'm so sorry, Harry..." Her face took on a bright red hue, "I can be such a scatter brains. I've been so focused on so many other things that now, when I have the opportunity to think about something much more enjoyable than work..." She gently squeezed his hand, "Every other thought comes rushing forward that I ment to think about today...if you understand at all what I'm talking about." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - SciO, Ensign Harry Doorman, 1853) Angeni smiled at Harry again. "I know I completely switched gears on you about three or four times. I get like that sometimes. My mother would always say that I could get distracted by shiny things. It's more of a product of being nervous than anything else, and I apologize for it." "As for why I followed you...a portion of it was to make sure you weren't off in a corner expelling your innards after that...meal you ate." She laughed gently, "But other than that, I just wanted to get to know you. I had met Harry the Scientist, but I just wanted to get to know you. I had fun working with you...or I guess it was more of you working and me ogling at all the things in the lab, but all in all, it was just sort of a...I dunno...I just did it because I felt bold enough to do it at the time..." ~I certainly did my fair share of ogling if I remember correctly.~ Harry reminded himself. "Well whatever your original motivations concerning those absolutely abysmal leeches, I'm glad that you followed me. Truth be told, I was feeling more than a bit overwhelmed at the party. Sometimes I just go into a sort of conniption mode pr something similar. I can't think straight at all, and it's especially difficult when there's such a pretty woman there also." he replied with a smile. Angeni nodded, then she smiled softly, "I'm switching gears on you again...yes, I know you're not a biologist, but I'm sure that, with one of your toys in the lab, that you would be able to figure out what it's made of, the density, the stuff that I have very little to no understanding about while I figure out if it was breathing at one point in time. I don't want to go hacking into it and have it turn out that it's some sort of incendiary device or something." "Oh yeah, if all you want is some sort of structural analysis and/or a chemical makeup, that's not a problem. I could run all sorts of ambient energy tests and chemical composition tests as well as determine density, structure and the like. They're all non-invasive, at the very least I can tell you what it's made of and how hard it is, how's it's built and if there's any signs of chemical or enzymic activity." Harry responded. She leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes for a moment. "I'm so sorry, Harry..." Her face took on a bright red hue, "I can be such a scatter brains. I've been so focused on so many other things that now, when I have the opportunity to think about something much more enjoyable than work..." She gently squeezed his hand, "Every other thought comes rushing forward that I meant to think about today...if you understand at all what I'm talking about." He nodded. "I understand entirely, I spend most of my life in such a state. I think I'm always working on projects and studies and problems. Being the only Advanced Theory Mathematician and theoretical Physicist on board ship means everybody in the science department demands a chunk of your time to help them model their experiments or to help find errors in their equations. Of course, it means I have about a thousand small notations in hundreds of Scientific texts for my contributions. It's just a pity that not a single one of those texts are solely mine." He shrugged. "It's an odd thing though." he continued. "When I'm with you I can actually turn off all the mathematical equations fighting for space in my head. I get some peace of mind so to speak and I get the opportunity to explore an existence from a personal point of view rather than an empirical one." "So if you feel compelled to share all your hundreds of thoughts that you missed throughout the day, feel free. I'll keep up." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - CMO Angeni O. Windsong-Trommashere, 1855) "When I'm with you I can actually turn off all the mathematical equations fighting for space in my head. I get some peace of mind so to speak and I get the opportunity to explore an existence from a personal point of view rather than an empirical one." "So if you feel compelled to share all your hundreds of thoughts that you missed throughout the day, feel free. I'll keep up." Angeni smiled gently at him. It wasn't often that she was given an offer like that. Harry didn't have to be the Cassanova of the 24th century, but to her, he was. The simple offer of someone just listening for a few moments was romantic in its own way. She would spend her days being the listener, which was fine for her, but there were some days she just wanted to be listened to. "Thank you for the offer, Harry, but I don't think we have enough time for that, even if we talked until we were 100 years old. You'd be suprised, I actually focus more on our time than anything else, but sometimes those random thoughts peak through and it's all down hill from there." She smiled as she saw their waiter bringing their food, and she sighed deeply. She didn't realize how hungry she really was until she stared longingly at the plate of salad before her. The aroma of Feta Cheese wrapped around her nose, and she sighed happily at the smell. "Mmm...I so love Feta..." She took several bites, relishing in the taste. "My mother introduced me to this stuff when I was around sixteen or seventeen. She would put it on everything, like it was regular cheese, but let me tell you, some of the stuff she put it on ended up being awesome." She looked at Harry, a smile on her face. "Tell me...tell me some of the stuff that you know you like. Food, Movies, so on and so forth..." (Reply Harry) Angeni nodded a bit, "I think my most interesting hobby would be Martial Arts...I used to practice when I was younger, and I still get in the holodeck every so often to work out, but as I said, I don't do it very often...you should join me." (Reply Harry) "Oh, switching subjects again. Why would something, that's been floating around in space for a very long time, only have debris marks on one side? Just from looking at the bodies, you can see...for lack of a better phrase, scuff marks on one side of the body, but the other side is relatively mark free..." If it were physically possible, Harry would have been able to see the hampster in the hampster wheel running as fast as his little legs could propel him. "As for you having little tiny notations in journals and papers...I'm pretty sure after the discovery of the Tch'carin Stone, you'll have more than just a side note somewhere." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (USS Hades - Ten Forward - SciO, Ensign Harry Doorman, 1857) "Thank you for the offer, Harry, but I don't think we have enough time for that, even if we talked until we were 100 years old. You'd be surprised, I actually focus more on our time than anything else, but sometimes those random thoughts peak through and it's all downhill from there." She smiled. A moment later the waiter brought out their food and Harry was relieved to see it was what he'd ordered rather than some delicacy made of leeches.The cup of French Onion soup was capped by a slice of gouda cheese, and smelled divine. The sandwich was moist and looked absolutely delicious. He picked up his sandwich, dipped the corner into the small bowl of Au Jus and took a bite, savoring the flavor. "Mmm...I so love Feta..." She took several bites of her salad. "My mother introduced me to this stuff when I was around sixteen or seventeen. She would put it on everything, like it was regular cheese, but let me tell you, some of the stuff she put it on ended up being awesome." She looked at Harry, a smile on her face. "Tell me...tell me some of the stuff that you know you like. Food, Movies,so on and so forth..." Harry looked at her for a moment and placed the sandwich on the plate in front of her. "Well you certainly ask the hard questions don't you?" he replied with a smile. I have a series of Pulp Fiction Holodeck programs that I've been participating in for the last year and a half now. There are 320 of them in the series and I'm only to number 26, 'The Unwilling Accomplice'. So that's probably my favorite movie entertainment type. Then there's painting; and of course the Trumpet." Harry shrugged, "as for Food....All I know is it's most assuredly not leeches." He chuckled, "Other than that, I don't know that I have a favorite. It's almost like every time I eat that there's a blank slate and I'm trying something for the first time. It's one of those things I can't seem to remember, as in if you asked me what I had for dinner in an hour, I wouldn't be able to tell you sort of thing. I can remember the stuff I dislike, but not the ones I like, oddly enough." "I've even considered keeping a log of things like that but I can't seem to bring myself to do it. It's a little embarrassing really." He concluded,"What about you?" Angeni nodded a bit, "I think my most interesting hobby would be Martial Arts...I used to practice when I was younger, and I still get in the Holodeck every so often to work out, but as I said, I don't do it very often...you should join me." Harry gave her a smile, "Okay, but I'm serious when I say I have no idea what I'd be doing." he replied. "Oh, switching subjects again. Why would something, that's been floating around in space for a very long time, only have debris marks on one side?Just from looking at the bodies, you can see...for lack of a better phrase, scuff marks on one side of the body, but the other side is relatively mark free..." "As for you having little tiny notations in journals and papers...I'm pretty sure after the discovery of the Tch'kairn Stone, you'll have more than just a side note somewhere." Harry screwed up his face at the question. It was a very good question truthfully. "The only possibility I can think of is that they were damaged as part of a close range to the explosion which would have scored the side closest to the blast, and if they managed to be lasted clear of the vessel without any further impacts maybe... But that seems unlikely, unless they were somehow..." Harry froze in mid-sentence. His eyes glazed over as his head suddenly started working out equations in his head. (reply Angeni) He nodded as he focused his eyes back on Angeni. "I think I have an answer to your question. We'd need to do some study but..." (reply Angeni) "If those particular Tch'kairn were say engineers working on their version of a drive system. One that utilized Fractal space say, as an example, and that drive lost containment, similar to the way a warp core does. Then it makes perfectly good sense." "Let me explain." "Fractal space is a sub layer of space, below the Phasic Space and subspace layers. That means entry into true fractal space takes you effectively out of normal space. For a drive or something like that it isn't likely that itis powerful enough to make an entire ship disappear without massive energy output, but it can reduce the normal space drag efficient. Warp drive works the same way but using subspace." "Stay with me." he said as he continued to postulate, his sandwich completely forgotten. "If there was a sudden breech, it would most likely take the form of an explosion, that would hurl debris, that's where your scoring took place. But when the faster moving fractal space wave hit them, they would effectively leave this space, although they would travel along the same vector. Kind of like a phase cloak they could pass right through the same space that other debris was occupying in normal space." "Eventually the energy that affected them weakens or fades away and they return back to normal space, where we find them and you ask me a question about the debris marks and you cause a mental chain reaction in my head that gets us to this completely hypothetical explanation." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- end compile