Lt JG Imril - The Penny Drops... Onto A Metaphorical Ton Of Bricks
Chris Taylor
(( Science Lab 3, Deck 9 - USS Artemis-A ))
(OOC: Imril’s views on the Boraxians whom the New Hope crew fled from are in-character only and not meant as derogatory towards the authors who are writing them)
Imril walked to Science Lab 3 with their eyes more-than-half focused on a padd. Finishing up their reading on the Boraxians. A relatively small amount of information which didn’t do much to clear up the questions which lingered on from their time on the Yurum ship.
Partway there, they turned a corner and found themself walking alongside Scientist Richards. They gave her a polite hello, but quickly focused back on finishing up the reading before they both reached their mutual destination.
Ensign Braga stood to one side of the Lab door, acting as guard. It was one of the few times Imril had seen the Security officer in uniform without Ensign T’Nil being somewhere nearby. They assumed the two Security officers to be patrol partners. Imril nodded to them as well, not losing their pace as they walked towards the door.
When the door opened, Doctor Morgan was waiting for them both on the other side.
Morgan: Good to see you both. I prepared a summation of where I think we are so far. ::handing them both PADDs as they got seated:: but I’d like for you to bring me up to speed. From the initial readings, it looks to me like the samples you recovered aren’t anything extraordinary –blood, tissue– but do you have reason to believe there were some kind of experiments or research happening?
Imril took the padd and started skimming it as the other two spoke. Taking in the data presented by the other teams tasked to render aid to the New Hope and its occupants.
Richards: Yes. There was certainly some kind of something going on. The labs were bare bones. Only these samples and not much more. Imril here had pointed out there were no “on paper” notes. No boards with information, no PADDS… There was nothing. Whatever was going on there, they had no way of keeping track of everything they discovered. Unless they took it with them.
As Imril read on, a cold chill settled into their spine. The new information did more than fill in some gaps exposed during their time on the New Hope. It painted an ugly picture. The Yurum weren't just being oppressed by the Boraxians on the city ship. They were being infantilized. Kept in ‘protective’ ignorance for the benefit of their keepers. Starved of the knowledge they needed to manage an effective escape. It was disgusting. Infuriating. And terribly, sickeningly familiar.
Sam moved around on the bench trying to get comfortable, or restrain her eagerness.
While Imril had gone very still. Their face became a mask of neutral, scientific detachment. They wouldn't be of any use to anybody -- asylum seekers or Artemisians - if they flew off the handle at this revelation. As the Imril from a year ago might have.
Morgan: And you found an interesting rock?
She grinned, her voice lit up talking about it. Morgan on the other hand, raised his eyebrow and looked at her.
Richards: Yes! Jovenan discovered a single rock. A small one with a trigonal crystalline lattice. I need to examine it more closely. It could be the key to some of our questions.
Her enthusiasm was a reminder to Imril that they couldn’t just sit there like a statue. There was work to be done. The scientific method was as good a set of guideposts to doing this job thoroughly and correctly for an engineer as it was a scientist.
Imril: ::To Morgan:: Lieutenant Bergman suggested we determine if any of the instruments or other supplies contain residues of what they were working with or on. I could start there, if you like. Is this the full team?
Morgan: I asked Valhjeahn to join us… He was one of the injured we treated, who is an aide or something to the leader of the Yurum. He wasn’t very forthcoming and pretty cryptic, but of the ones we’ve interacted with so far, I’m hoping he’ll be able to help us. Still, I think we should be cautious about exactly what information we give him access to. I still don’t trust their motives.
Sam nodded and looked down at her PADD, looking closely at the scans of the rock and its surrounding area.
Richards: The three that we encountered weren’t very open and honest either from what I could tell.
Imril motioned towards the padd that Morgan had supplied them.
Imril: Given what the collective teams have learned, I can’t pretend to be surprised, or offended, by their silence. I’ll say aloud now what I was quietly thinking on the ship. These people are fleeing ::selecting their next words very carefully:: others whom they perceive as oppressors. Looking at it from their perspective, I expect they couldn’t risk telling us everything up front because they had no idea how we’d respond. We hadn’t proven ourselves yet. Maybe we still haven’t, to their satisfaction.
Trust was a two-way street.
Morgan: Do we want to start with the samples and your observations, or try to figure out if the rock is something interesting or… just a rock?
The scientist looked rife to jump out of her chair and sing the virtues of petrology.
Richards: It’s never “just a rock”. Every rock has a story. A history. ::Gesturing towards Morgan:: Just like your patients. Every single one is more than just that. You two can work on the samples. I’ve got the rock.
Imril: :To Morgan:: And we’ve got plenty enough to keep us busy with the samples. If we run out of things to do with what we have, we could start looking into ways to counter the effects the ‘mood lights’ on the New Hope had on our fellow crewmates. In case someone has to go back there before this is all resolved. ::Pause:: Now that I think of it, if those lights are omnipresent on the ship, then their frequencies could have had an impact on the experiment we’re investigating. ::Regards Richards:: The lights in the medical facility were inactive when we were there, whether or not that’s of value.
The doors to the lab whooshed open, revealing a Boraxian. It was fairly easy to assume it was Valhjeahn that the Lieutenant referred to earlier. Sam gave them a simple head nod as they entered.
Imril wanted to do more. Wanted to congratulate them on coming so far before they'd been hounded down by the city ship and its fightercrfaft. But Imril, too, merely nodded. If they couldn't keep the discussion on a professional level, they shouldn't be there.
Morgan: Valhjeahn. Come in. I trust you had a chance to go over the information I shared
Imril had read several of Earth’s literary classics during their studies to apply for Starfleet Academy, and more still at the Academy as they worked to master Federation Standard. The coincidence that this runaway androgyne’s name was quite similar to that of the fictional fugitive Jean Valjean was not lost on the Bactrican.
How similar would the people running that city ship prove to be to one Inspector Javert?
VahlJean nodded and stepped forward then nodded to Imril and Sam.
VahlJean: I am ValhJean, a pleasure to meet you. ::Turning to Doctor Morgan:: I did, but I am a little at a loss with what I read. Perhaps you can help me understand?
Slowly and steadily, Sam stood from the bench with her hand on her lower back. Imril stood as well.
Richards: I’m Samantha Richards. Civilian Scientist. Nice to meet you, ValhJean. I’m sure between the three of us we can help you understand.
Imril: Lieutenant Imril, Engineering. If I may ask, what in particular are you having difficulty with? How can we help make things clearer?
Morgan: response.
The Boraxian smiled and sat down, prompting Sam and Imril both to sit back down.
ValhJean: We use some crystals to help. But we were never able to fully understand their effects, and what was our abilities and what was not.
Richards: ::Pointing to Lieutenant Morgan:: I told you it was more than “just a rock”.
Sam’s “I told you so” satisfaction melted into an embarrassed shrug.
Imril gave her an assuring smile. They’d said worse things around a superior officer, and still had their job.
Morgan: response
ValhJean: The Boraxians do not allow us to study these things. Most of the things we do are by instinct, occurring naturally. We were never give the chance to learn… Until we left…
Imril’s stomach clenched to hear the condemnation on the padd confirmed by a living voice. This was all so very, very familiar.
Richards: ValhJean, may I ask you a few things about the crystals you referred to? If you check that PADD there, it contains some images and scans. Is that the same type of crystal?
Imril said nothing, not wanting to interrupt the flow of information between her and the Yurum representative. Nor did they move to begin analyzing the materials from the New Hope. Unsure as to what Doctor Morgan intended to let Valhjean know about how much had been taken from their ship or from where. One or more persons from the New Hope appeared to be working at cross purposes to the rest. Who that was hadn't been determined yet. Finding that person or persons could make all the difference to the rest.
ValhJean/Morgan: response
The woman nodded slowly.
Richards: Can you tell me exactly what they do? Any information you have about it could be helpful to us. Even the small details, they might mean something.
ValhJean/Morgan: response
Imril listened intently to what the Yurum said.
Sam took down the information as quickly as she could.
Richards: Are these native to your world? Are they a plentiful resource? I’m sorry for so many questions. This is really important.
ValhJean/Morgan: response
From the answers heard, Imril developed questions worthy of asking. Questions which leaned into their engineering background.
Imril: Are you limited to crystals taken from your homeworld, or can they be produced elsewhere?
ValhJean/Morgan/Richards: Response
Imril: Do the crystals become less effective over time, or with extended use?
ValhJean/Morgan/Richards: Response
Imril: If you yourself don’t know what effect one of these crystals has on your abilities, then perhaps a demonstration of how you use the two together is in order? We could all learn something.
Such a test would be mutually beneficial. The Starfleet personnel could further their investigation, and extend their knowledge of the people who had come to them for asylum. Freely giving anything learned to Vahljean could help grow the Yurum’s trust in the Artemis crew. And information which had been denied to the Yurum about themselves would be in their hands and heads where it belonged.
ValhJean/Morgan/Richards: Response
TAGS/TBC
----------------------------------------------------
Lieutenant JG Imril
Engineering Officer
USS Artemis-A
A240110I12