The Denobulan

Posted on 28 Feb 2015 @ 8:47pm by Seleya Qellar Ph.D. & Lieutenant JG Tulkas Eido

1,112 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 07 - Sojourn
Location: Starbase 84, Biotechnology Lab Suite
Timeline: MD43: 1100hrs

[ ON ]

Dr. Seleya Qellar looked more like she was going out for a cocktail than sifting through the latest genetic data from Research Outpost Gamma Ceti V in her tight red dress and matching hat with a brim wider than her shoulders, but she was of the firm belief that one did not have to sacrifice personal standards of fashion and beauty to work in a lab. If the rest of them wanted to look like a bunch of dour old codgers, let them. She would set a different standard, and alone, if need be.

The multi-purpose lab was sparsely populated today, though she took note immediately of the Denobulan who seemed to live there. For days she'd pretended to ignore him, but finally her curiosity got the better of her. Whatever he was working on had to be fascinating in some respect to demand so much of a person's time, and she was nothing if not fascinated by the fascinating.

The clacking of heels came to an abrupt stop next to Lieutenant Eido as her shadow fell over him. When she spoke, she sounded quite pleasant and friendly, despite how diametrically opposed both traits were to her true personality. "I've seen you here for the past few days, lieutenant, and you've piqued my interest. May I inquire as to what you're working on?"

Tulkas half jumped, turning to look at the individual addressing him. His eyes refocused, changing from a light grey to vivid green as they did so. He'd been working in the labs for some time now, waiting for shore leave to end.

As it was, he'd barely absorbed the fact that other people occasionally worked in the lab around him. Holodeck time was hard to get hold of, and he'd been running between the two parts of the station frequently in order to run simulations. Luckily, without the need to sleep, he'd been able to work around the busier hours on the station.

He shook his head to clear his mind, pinching his nose briefly. "I'm working on a bioseeding simulation of a class L planet in the Andoria system."

"Delicate work," Seleya said, lifting an eyebrow that was unseen behind her heavy bangs. "Did you bioengineer the organisms yourself?"

Tulkas shook his head. "No, although I have some other simulations along those lines." He half turned back to his console and pressed a few buttons, bringing up a display of the projected outcome time stamped at 50 years after initialisation. A list of animals scrolled past on the side, showing several familiar creatures, including a Zabathu and Ice bore, both native animals to Andoria.

"This particular idea is to recreate Andoria on another planet. Andoria is a good template because it has a relatively simple ecosystem, but some planets are at the point where pollution or such is disrupting the ecosystem. The project is exploring the possibility of creating a backup."

"How very Federation of you," Seleya said, leaning back from the display with a private smile. It sounded ordinary enough on the face of it, but something about the underlying tone suggested it wasn't an entirely benign statement. "In the Empire we allowed worlds to reap what they sowed." She clasped her hands behind her back and stretched her neck slightly, as if to get a better look at the simulation again. "Do you not find there are too many environmental factors to control for with simply introducing species from one planet to another? You'll forgive me if it's a bit difficult for me to break out of my biotechnologist's mindset. We're very much accustomed to tailoring things to certain environments."

Tulkas blinked for a few moments, only just making the race connection. "Terraforming is usually required before the process starts, yes. This is just an offshoot of traditional terraforming where the planet isn't necessarily just for humanoid habitation and usage. It's not what I usually work on, but it's amusing me until I can get off base."

"So." He turned back to face her properly. "You say you're a biotechnologist?"

"Indeed. I specialize in agricultural biotechnology, so not completely dissimilar from your field of work, I believe," Seleya said by way of inquiring after his profession. For good measure, she gave him a friendly enough smile that it crinkled her eyes; the relatively few wrinkles springing up at the corners of her eyes made it clear it wasn't a regular occurrence.

The Denobulan smiled back, his first unsuppressed smile in weeks, it was extremely wide, but much like Seleya, it made bits of his face move that clearly weren't used often. "Absolutely, although this is only loosely related my day job for Starfleet. I'm an exobiologist. Tulkas Eido, by the way." He extended a hand.

She watched the hand a little too long before taking it. "Charmed. I'm Dr. Seleya Qellar, formerly of Romulus and presently with the civilian scientists program." From the look on her face, she didn't seem to put much into introductions and social niceties. She almost looked annoyed and in a hurry to get back to the academic discussion. "I'm afraid I don't follow. This technique is used in ecosystems on planets that aren't being considered for habitation? Why expend any resources there at all?"

Tulkas shrugged and looked genuinely confused. "This particular aspect, with the usage almost as an almost ark like planet was requested by a group of Andorian scientists after reading one of my papers. I don't personally understand it, extinction is an expected outcome of some biological organisms, and mass extinction events just another part of that."

He smiled slightly. "But the idea is theoretically possible, and it's something else I can mention in my thesis."

"Andorian scientists," Seleya repeated slowly, as if discovering a foreign set of words; she looked inordinately amused by the thought of such a thing. Would they even know which end of a Florence flask to hold, or would they just spend the entire time trying to stab each other with it? "I refuse to believe in 'expected' outcomes. Some may defer to the inevitability of the natural order of things, but I reject such notions. Nature is not inviolable. It must be harnessed, dominated, and forced to bend to our will." She sank into the chair at the station next to Tulkas and carefully adjusted her dress while she spoke. "And I wouldn't trust an Andorian to make the distinction between what should and should not be saved, but I suppose I cannot fault them for their preparation...."

[ TRUNCATED ]

Seleya Qellar, Ph.D.
Biotechnologist
USS Galileo
[ PNPC - Mott ]

Lieutenant (JG) Tulkas Eido
Exobiologist
USS Galileo

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