Tribbles in a Pond (Part 2 of 2)

Posted on 10 Jun 2014 @ 1:18pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Lieutenant JG Delainey Carlisle & Petty Officer 1st Class Siren Hex Saalm & Commander Norvi Stace & Nesh Saalm

1,624 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: Episode 06 - Legend of Souls
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 7, Arboretum
Timeline: MD -09 - 1810 hrs

[CONTINUED]

Letting out a light, airy laugh as the mental image of a drunk Carlisle permeated her thoughts, Lirha suddenly noticed that her own two tribbles had taken the adventurous route and were slowly wiggling their way over towards the duck pond several meters away. "Oh...look," she said, not sure if she should go retrieve them or let them continue to explore. Lirha cast an inquisitive glance at all of the other women present to see if any of them had any thoughts on the matter.

Stace raised an eyebrow and got up from her relaxed position. "Um... can they swim?" she asked genuinely.

"Pip likes being in the bathtub with me." Nesh smiled weakly. "But I don't think I've ever actually seen them swim swim. I know they can sorda float. Kind of. I think it's on their backs, but it's difficult to tell when they're all wet."

Almost on cue, the tribbles found an unobstructed path between the flowers and the pond, and were soon bathing in the clear and cool water. Half submerged and without appendages, they seemed to simply float around with a strange buoyancy, and occasionally would roll over and shake their fur while letting the flow of the water take them wherever it desired. The small family of mallards which was resting on the nearby grass soon took an interest, and the four of them waddled their way over to the pond before getting in and paddling over to the tribbles. An exchange of quacking and cooing ensued, and Lirha was pretty sure her two pets had found some new friends as she watched the younger ducklings kick and push the tribbles around with their webbed feet.

Delainey was so enjoying watching the tribbles interact with the ducklings (and enjoying the glass of wine she'd elected to have), she was surprised to see her own tribbles inching toward the water. "Oh look, we're a bit shy, but all we needed was a bit of encouragement, apparently. Do you suppose this is what it's like being a parent in a play group?" she asked with a grin.

Siren laughed softly, but she was watching with curiosity. They were interacting rather blatantly. Either one group was copying the other, or there was communication between them to encourage a move to the water. Either way, it was...well...interesting yet a little spooky. But in a fun way. And then there was the way the ducks were playing with them. Was it the cooing? "Do different animals always interact so well? With understanding?" it was a genuine question, she knew little of animals.

Delainey chuckled in return. "Humans have long been considered highly evolved animals, and I daresay our tribbles put many of them to shame in the understanding department. To be fair," Carlisle added, not wanting to seem flip when she could see Siren's question was genuine, "Social interactions between humans and those between other races are known to be quite complex. Interactions between animals, in comparison, from many perspectives, can seem far simpler." Carlisle shrugged. "Maybe those perspectives are simply limited, and therefore, incorrect."

Siren nodded slowly as she took it in, watching the pond with interest. "Well they certainly seem to have found a way to enchant those baby...ducks, right?...baby duck things..." she motioned with a hand, at the way the ducklings were nudging them.

"Mallards, I think," Lirha nodded. She couldn't remember exactly which species of duck it was, but the bright green head color of the nearby male adult was very striking and familiar. "I seem to recall seeing many of those in San Francisco during my time at the Academy."

The other adult duck, a brown-coated female, also took interest in the tribbles, and proceeded to walk over to one of them which was being prodded by its child. Reaching down with her yellow bill, she clasped the tribble by its wet fur then picked it up and began to waddle over to Lirha and the rest of the group. The duck lowered its head deposited the tribble gently on the ground in front of them and quacked several times.

Nesh scooted forward, eying the duck's peculiar behavior. Animals weren't her normal mode of study, but she knew this to be an odd reaction for most creatures. "I don't think the mallard likes the tribbles as much as her ducklings do."

"Protective instinct, perhaps?" Lirha had also noticed the strange behavior which in all reality might not actually be so strange for ducks. She wasn't a zoologist nor very well versed in the animal behavior field, but it appeared to be a maternal instinct of some sort.

"But that was pretty damn specific...bringing it right back to us instead of just dumping it anywhere," Siren replied with curiosity, shaking her head as she leant forward to scoop the soggy tribble up and using a napkin to try and dry it off a little.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say the mallard was possessed with one of those spirits we might investigate," Delainey offered with a grin.

Lirha raised an inquisitive eyebrow towards the counselor. "Spirits?" she repeated out loud. Did Carlisle know something she didn't?

Stace shared Lirha's question and shot a narrow gaze over to Carlisle in eager anticipation of her response.

Realizing her remark sparked more questions than amusement as intended, Delainey chuckled and blushed. "Sorry, that was my idea of a joke. We were talking about a mallard who seemed to be trying to communicate directly with us, and that got me thinking about this idea of ghosts. In some cultures, people come to believe the spirits of the dead return to the world of the living by taking on the form of something else, with animals being a common belief."

"From what I understand of Earth history," Lirha commented while recalling her Earth studies at Starfleet Academy, "every indigenous religion used to believe in such spirits. It was the reason why shamans were first created as a profession...to act as an intermediary between the the realm of reality and the realm of the spirits."

Delainey nodded. "I'm not an expert on religion, but the concept of reincarnation seems to most closely fit this notion in the modern world."

Siren was quiet as she thought on the subject. She glanced around, watching the reactions for a long moment. "So who were you in a past life?" she asked, but with a playful smile.

Delainey didn't expect the question, but found it to be very intriguing and a fun surprise. She thought for a moment and replied, "Nothing as exciting as a queen or a spy, I'm sure. I'd like to think I have a healer's soul, and was known as someone who always spoke her mind, even to her detriment. Maybe I was the first midwife ever to be hanged for advocating birth control," she added, with mock drama. "How about you both?"

"Nesh was probably a prima donna," Lirha teased with a playful grin at her younger sister, then took a long drink from her glass and handed it back to Siren for a refill. "And I, of course, was some sort of philosopher. Well, maybe a philosopher's apprentice."

"Why an apprentice?" Delainey asked, curious that a leader like Lirha didn't see herself in that kind of role.

"Because then she wouldn't be in the firing line when her Master inevitably got himself into trouble?" Siren suggested with a soft laugh, but gave a playful wink to Lirha.

"Exactly," the older Orion nodded with her own smirk. "I would not want to be put to death by drinking poison like your great Earth philosopher, Socrates, was."

"Pfff." Nesh rolled her eyes at the gaggle of older women. "The apprentices went with their masters too, sometimes. I was reading up on Earth pharohs and rulers who were buried with all of their servants, wives, and kids just because they wanted to take the whole lot to the underworld with them." She sat up, readjusting her hair. "If I was going to be anything in a past life, it'd be a great actress with many adoring fans."

"I can see that," Siren nodded, watching the younger Orion thoughtfully with a smile. "Still could be you know, if you wanted. But think of all the excitement you'd miss here...."

Nesh's eyes nearly lit up. "I could be a great writer some day, write about all the adventures I had on the Galileo. Maybe it'd inspire more Orions to join Starfleet!"

"The longest journeys begin with a single step," Delainey quoted. "Why not start writing now?"

Nesh pouted thoughtfully. "I guess I could do that. There's no way I'm gonna remember it all later."

"You are going to be a writer now? And an artist? And a scientist?" Lirha mused with another teasing smirk. "I do not think our mother will believe me when I tell her..." Of that, Lirha was 100-percent positive.

Stace smiled at the exchange. "I don't care what people claim the arts are in this universe," she quipped, "but science is in your blood. Anyone can rhyme a couple of sentences, but true investigation and that urge to advance knowledge is one of the highest callings I can think of." She smiled more widely now, allowing the others to detect her jest.

[OFF]

--

CDRE Lirha Saalm
Mission Advisor
USS Galileo

PO2 Siren Hex
Intelligence
USS Galileo
[PNPC - Blake]

Freshman Cadet Nesh Saalm
Scientist's Mate
USS Galileo
[PNPC - Kita]

Lieutenant Delainey Carlisle, M.D., Ph.D.
Counselor/Medical Officer
USSGalileo

Lieutenant Norvi Stace
Chief Science Officer
USSGalileo

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