Ensign Joan Basilone -- Cue The Clash

[Alice Zim]

(OOC: Though they were literally before my time and existence, I do consider The Clash one of those bands upon whom one can safely use the adjective 'iconic.' But that's just my humble opinion.)

((Guest quarters, Research facility, northern fringe of the equatorial zone, Deluvia IV))

Basilone: o O And send O o

::Just as soon as Joan sent her report, she wondered why she even bothered. Someone had probably spotted the patterns anyway. And she suspected the Gorkon's computer had a subroutine that safely shuffled unrequested reports from very junior officers to the 'recycling bin,' without bothering their superiors about their existence. The reports that is, not the very junior officers. Even superior officers had to concede the Descartesian argument for the existence of ensigns.::

::Still, the readings on the electromagnetic patterns emanating from the poisonous gas had been nagging at the back of Joan's mind for a while now. Lots of things about the whole encounter had nagged at Joan. The electromagnetic pattern, which she initially thought was fairly complex, was actually two overlapping simple algorithms. The algorithms were remarkably similar to those of the artificial intelligences governing early planetary probes used by humans and other spacefaring races. Those, in turn, had been designed to mirror the drives of more primitive life forms, specifically the need to survive, and the need to gather.::

::And then there was the biochemistry of the crabs themselves. Disregarding the fact that you had a corporeal lifeform that could survive in a vacuum, the internal makeup of the crabs was very similar to the poisonous gas itself.::

::Joan only wished she had access to all of the data gathered during the 'incident.' Heck, she wished she had access to the data on the tricorder she had been using. But she had had to cannibalize the tricorder at the end of the escape The Commander had made possible, and everything she had written in her observations was basically what she could remember or logically piece together.::

Basilone: o O Well, it probably got sent directly the proverbial 'recycle bin' anyway, O o

::Still, Joan had done her duty, and that was part of being a Starfleet officer, right?::

::Joan still wasn't sure she had what it took to be a Starfleet officer. There was no way that she could have gotten all four of them off the Njörðr like The Commander had. And Lieutenant Adea, even when he had been injured, had been the epitome of stoicism.::

Basilone: o O Well, sort of goofy stoicism. And I can never look him in the eye again. O o

::Joan knew that her attitude toward physical relationships was overly puritanical, and maybe it was something that she should talk to a Counselor about, like Aleksandra always suggested. But Joan had always been uncomfortable when she saw her friends 'connect,' like Aleksandra had with Lieutenant Adea.::

::Joan shook her head, as if that action itself could dislodge uncomfortable thoughts from her brain. Instead, she focused on what problems her present situation presented.::

::A chance meeting with an old professor had resulted in some of the best kiteboarding she had had in a long while. A large number of the individuals at The Point (as the island where the surfers had gathered was called) also worked at Dr. Bell's research facility, and Joan found herself bonding with them immediately. And what had started as a single day tour of Dr. Bell's facilities had become a three day stay. Joan was sure she could happily stay at Dr. Bell's facilities until the Gorkon departed Deluvia IV.::

Basilone: o O Maybe even after the Gorkon leaves .O o

Voice from outside her quarters: Supper time, Joan! Dr. Bell made Busa busa!

Basilone: Coming!

::Joan had been amused when, the first time she sat down at the research station's common dining hall, she discovered how many dishes Dr. Bell had imported from Lolagi IV. His versions were pretty good, too, Joan would admit, though not as good as the dishes her parents cooked.::

::Putting aside her worries of the future for the moment, Joan headed to dinner.::

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Ensign(?) Joan Basilone
Science Officer (or Civilian Research Scientist)
USS Gorkon (or Deluvian Research Facility)
G239603JB0