Trills and Tea (Part 1)

Posted on 13 Jan 2013 @ 4:22pm by Lieutenant Kiri Cho & Lieutenant Lilou Zaren

2,696 words; about a 13 minute read

Mission: Episode 02 - Resupply
Location: USS Galileo: Deck 2, Messhall
Timeline: MD15 - 1620 hrs

[ON]

Kiri was still rather tense having gone through testing with Liyar. She had done something amazing that broke the rules she knew of the universe. Being able to reach down inside herself and see her own mind, how could that even work? That there was something else that she might be good at, or at least had the chance to be good at. It was something she shouldn't squander and yet she wanted so much to pretend it wasn't part of her. She'd have to suffer through someone else being deep inside her, reading her mind and knowing her secrets. Then if she did that she might be able to stop anyone from every finding out her secrets.

Deep in this line of thought she had chosen for once to retire to the mess hall rather than her own quarters. She was still alone here at this time of day, sat near the window at the back. A small teapot steaming in front of her and a clay cup in her hands. What did she really want to do with this? If she wanted, did she want to become a Guardian, what did that mean?

Lilou stretched her arms out and back behind her as she entered the mess hall. The final installations were completed and she was through the first draft of her departure report for the Captain. Interestingly, writing that report from the floor of the office instead of sitting in Quinn's chair had left her with a general spread of lower back pain and the beginnings of a migraine. She needed light, real light, not the either glaring or dim lighting of Engineering and the tubes. And by the spirits that blessed this universe with sentience, she needed a bloody pot of tea. A great, heaping, steaming one.

"Good afternoon, Miss Peers. Nice to see you again."

Lilou looked distractedly from her PADD to the chef, "Yes, thank you, any fresh green tea? Not the replicated sort."

He smiled with a little amused shake of his head - she'd no idea why - and nipped off back into the kitchen. She became engrossed in editing her report until the tray with the tea pot, cup, a small bowl of chopped leaves, and a small plate of fruit and sweet gels rested in front of her. Tipping her PADD into an empty space on the tray, she stuck a slice of apple between her teeth, nodded to the chef, and wandered off towards the window. "Cho," she said as her gaze landed on the other Trill. "Any luck getting those sensor upgrades up to spec?"

"Good Afternoon," Kiri looked up a little surprised, she hadn't seen the other woman in quite a while, despite the work they had been doing. Had it been a week, had it been two? Kiri wasn't sure but it was nice to see the half Trill, even if she wasn't sure of the relationship between them, "Yes, everything is finished. Final testing went though this morning, there weren't any problems." A new power-grid was build, new advanced sensors, programs to run them all, backups encase there were problems. Everything had been covered over the last two weeks and Kiri had put in over a hundred hours.

"I'd like a copy of the testing results," Lilou said, dropping into the seat across from Kiri and tapping the green tea leaves into the pot of steaming water. "You tested them at full power against the average current of red alert power draw?"

"Unless set otherwise secondary sensors are powered down and the new power network converts over to backup mode at red alert. The range is still extended and more accurate but any non-essential functions are taken off-line." Warming her palms on her cup of tea Kiri took note of Peers', "It is nice to see you again." Kiri had thought them almost friends before, one of her first on the ship but that was a long time ago now.

Lilou looked up from her PADD where she'd been taking notes on what Kiri was telling her. Pleasantries were something she hadn't heard for a couple weeks. Maybe they'd happened around her, perhaps even to her, but she hadn't heard them. "I- yes. And you as well." Setting her PADD to the side, she folded her hands and waited for her tea to brew. "All well, aside from the sensors?"

"I would still like to update the main computer core but there aren't the facilities here," It wasn't even really anything to do with her but Kiri was a computer expert, "I'm not aware of anything else." Smelling her own tea mixed with lemon and maybe a hint of Lilou's Kiri managed a smile, "Before, did I ask you about Trill?" Kiri thought that she had but couldn't remember the answer, there were only three on board and she hadn't seen Dea and didn't know the third.

The tea was brewing, her mind was spinning, organizing datapoints, reorganizing how she wanted to present the repairs and upgrades. Lilou blinked twice at Kiri's question. "Trill? The... planet?"

"Yes, and the people," Maybe there would be a better person to ask but Kiri thought there might be an answer, should she explain what had happened a little while ago? It wouldn't hurt but first she wanted to make sure it was okay.

"The closest I've been was in a simulation. On this ship." Lilou studied the rim of her empty tea cup seriously in order to avoid thinking about who had taken her on that particular journey. "My father grew up there. What... did you want to talk about?" The entire subject was an uncomfortable one. Not because she didn't appreciate her heritage. She did. But her heritage apparently didn't appreciate her. She'd been denied the right to visit the planet, without explanation as to why, but she assumed it had something to do with why her father had never returned there. "Something on the colony sparked your interest?"

"No," Kiri shook her head. She should explain, "I did some testing with Lieutenant Liyar, he says I have the abilities of a P3 Projection Telepath. I was wondering what that meant for a Trill. He said Guardians had those sorts of powers, to communicate with symbionts. I was just wondering, what I should do." Kiri managed a weak smile, it was quite clear the matter was bothering her.

"A..." Lilou looked up from her tea cup. She wasn't sure what a projection telepath was, P3 or not. There were levels of that? She'd thought there were just... people who could read your mind and people who couldn't. She knew different species had different kinds of telepathy, based on their genetics. Betazoids, Vulcans... She knew there was a telepathic link between a joined Trill and their symbiont and that she wasn't allowed to know more than that because she wasn't allowed to talk to the commission about a joining in the first place. "What it means..." she trailed off quizzically. "And Lieutenant Liyar... that's our new diplomacy officer, yes? He went through all the laws surrounding when telepathy may or may not be used, in what scenarios, with what permissions, etc?"

"No," Kiri looked uncertain, she could remember studying them in her first year at the Academy. She wasn't going to be looking into other peoples minds, as far as she knew she couldn't actively do anything. Either way Liyar hadn't said anything to her about it, "I wouldn't," What was the word, "Pry into peoples thoughts." Kiri knew what it was to have secrets so wouldn't dare try to do that, even if she could. "I don't think I can anyway, I mean I don't know how to do any of it, but I could learn if I wanted he said." She knew what she was saying came out as a jumbled mess but she was in a muddle over it, "Is it something Trill expect, is it something bad?"

"Telepathy?" Lilou broke one of the apple slices in half and carefully pressed the pieces back together. "It's not bad, I don't think. It happens, from what I hear; probably wouldn't hurt in your application for a symbiont. Have you thought about that?"

"No," Kiri used the same worried reply as last time, it hadn't even occurred to her, "Is that something I could do?" She'd explained to Lilou before that she didn't have Trill parents and knew next to knowing about the planet or culture. Other than there being a complex and hard application process Kiri didn't know that much about it, or what having a symbiont meant.

"Yes," Lilou said on an exhale. "That is something you could do. They don't allow that many joinings, period; you have to qualify. Symbionts tend to go to Trills in Starfleet and local governance, but they can go wherever-" she noted the befuddled expression on Cho's face. "Do you understand what the symbionts mean to us, as a people? What they are?"

She was starting to feel like a child, "They let you have the memories of the past hosts," That was the total of everything she knew about the subject. The fact that they cut a hole in the hosts abdomen didn't really occur to her or any of the other range of changes.

"That's true," Lilou agreed, nibbling on the edge of an apple slice. "But what that means is... All right. The symbionts evolved on Trill, just as our ancestors did. According to my father, the spirits of our once-only-home brought our two races together to forge a bond for the common good and welfare of all. The first symbiont was transferred from one humanoid Trill host to another upon the death of the host. And each time the symbiont transferred from one host to the next, it took with it all memories of the previous Trill hosts. Upon joining, the new Trill host gained these memories. The reason that happened was because the symbionts bonded indelibly with their host. They knew every thought, feeling, moment of their hosts existence, and were able to bring with them every thought, memory, and feeling from every host they had lived within previously. Millennia of wisdom, patience, the brilliance of our forebears collected into these brothers of the planet and gifted, rarely, to those who find themselves considered deserving by the commission."

"Originally, the symbionts lived in the Caves of Mak'ala and were cared for by the Guardians. The Guardians communicated with each other via electrical impulses transmitted through the water in the caves. Having a telepathic ability would be exceedingly valuable to the Guardians or to Trill who are joined with the symbionts. That's how they communicate, the symbionts. You see?"

"Right," Kiri understood that much, it was an asset, she could use that to help counter being a complete outsider. That wasn't really a career she really like the idea of though, it wasn't in space and it wasn't looking at stars. The fact that she would have other peoples thoughts and feelings as well as their memories scared her though, "So, when you have a symbiont does that person live inside you?" That thought scared her even more.

"They're sentient vermiforms, but yes. They used to crawl in. Now they're surgically inserted. It's cleaner and safer. The best way to think of it is as a kind of organ transplant. They become a part of your physiology. And your psychology. And because of that, you are host to potentially hundreds of lives, experiences, and knowledge. It's a great honor, and one that only we as Trill are capable of having."

"Okay," Kiri swallowed at the thought, it didn't exactly appeal, "I meant the past hosts though, do they live inside you as well, or just their thoughts and feelings?" It was starting to sound like it was more than that, doing something like that would change lots of things about her. Would she still be Kiri if she had one of those inside her?

"As far as I understand, the hosts die and their memories and experiences continue on." Lilou tilted her head, "I'm not an expert on the subject."

"Sorry," Kiri looked slightly abashed, "I just have lots of questions," Taking a breath she tried to relax, smelling the tea again. "Thank you for answering some of them," Liyar might be able to tell her more, or Dea. Taking a sip now she changed topic with carefully picked words, "Sorry it is not sooner but, congratulations on your promotion." Now Lilou was a Commissioned Officer, but Kiri still out ranked her at least in rank. When it came to orders though being a Department Head counted for more.

"No need. Don't know when you would have said it before. And thanks. Thank you." Lilou rested her fingers against the side of a tea pot. "It's an honor; one I hope to be worthy of." She glanced up, "You could speak with my father. If you wanted to. He grew up on Trill and worked as a diplomat to Luna and Earth. Just... if you want. Think about it." She poured her tea into her little cup and breathed in the steam. "Congratulations on... being a telepath."

"Thank you," That prompted a smile, "Do you think it would be okay to ask him then?" He sounded like the perfect person to talk to. Lilou really was the right person to ask if that was the case.

"I don't see why not. I'll send you his communications code and let him know you'll be getting in touch. You can contact him whenever is convenient." Lilou smiled quickly, then ducked her head, sipping from her tea. "How's the new Chief Science officer?"

That night hadn't ended well, Kiri didn't know where she stood now, "She is very nice," Forget about the bad parts, "I don't think we could have a better department head."

Lilou tugged at her ear lobe, sipping her tea, "That was nice and vague."

Kiri's smile had well a truly dropped now, "Well," She mumbled, "What would you like to know?"

"Relative to our last CSO, how does she stack up? Is she easy to communicate with? Do we know anything about her more than her rank and position?" Lilou wrinkled her nose. "The subject doesn't appeal to you. I apologize."

"It's okay," Kiri just didn't feel right talking about someone behind their back. "She is from France and she likes paintings, music and books. Before coming to the ship she was a lecturer at the Academy," Kiri left out about Kiwosk having been her student. "I think I might be friends with her, I'm not sure," Not any more anyway.

None of that was very useful to Lilou, whose only concern at the moment was making sure she could actually handle working with the other department heads on board without them looking down their noses at her. Knowing the woman liked paintings didn't give her much to go on. She sipped her tea again, watching Kiri curiously. "Friends," she repeated quietly. Spirits, it was such a useless word. Lilou wasn't even entirely sure what it was supposed to mean. People weren't as solid as all that, in her experience. They were changeable, never in the same place emotionally or physically at any given time. "I don't think I understand."

When it came down to it, neither did Kiri. When she said friends about Maenad or anyone on the ship she didn't really know if she meant it. She said it because they said it about her, because they expected it of her. What a friend really meant to her she wasn't sure but she hadn't found it yet, not on the ship. There wasn't anyone she could trust to be herself around, not really, did Lilou? Everyone else seemed so sure of it, quietly Kiri replied, "I'm not sure I do either." If she was wrong about what they were talking about, it could be said about anything.

[TBC]

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Lieutenant (JG) Kiri Cho
Assistant Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo

ENS Lilou Peers
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Galileo

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