Lieutenant Serin Velis: Starting Point
Lael Rosek-Skyfire
((Conference Room, Deck 03, USS Ronin))
Serin stayed mostly quiet as the discussion unfolded, watching the room more than participating at first. It wasn’t that she didn’t have thoughts, quite the opposite. There were too many. The problem was that everyone seemed to be building conclusions on fragments, and that made her uneasy. Not afraid, not exactly, but unsettled in a way she couldn’t ignore. This was the kind of situation she had always been drawn to, something unknown, something no one fully understood yet. That spark of curiosity was still there, steady and insistent, but it was tempered now by the reality that they were moving toward it with far more questions than answers.
There was also a flicker of irritation she kept carefully tucked away. The way some of them spoke made it sound like she and Venn were one and the same, or that she was somehow tied to Starfleet Intelligence. She wasn’t, and the assumption bothered her more than she expected. She almost said something, felt the words rise more than once, but each time she let them go. It wasn’t the right moment, and she didn’t want to shift the focus away from the mission. There would be time to correct that later.
As the conversation turned to past encounters, her focus sharpened. She had read those reports, studied the outcomes, felt that familiar mix of awe and frustration at how little they had truly understood in those moments. That was what stayed with her now. Not just the danger, but the missed opportunities. Venn’s suggestion that destroying the creature might be necessary sat heavily with her. She understood the reasoning, but it didn’t feel right, not yet. Not when they hadn’t even begun to understand what it was. She hadn’t come all this way to be part of another story where curiosity was cut short out of fear.
By the time assignments were given, Serin had found her footing again. Being directed to work alongside Commander Kel felt right. It put her where she could actually do something with all of this uncertainty instead of just reacting to it. As she prepared to join the science team, there was a quiet resolve beneath her calm exterior. She wanted answers. She wanted to understand this thing, to see it clearly. And she wanted to do it the right way, carefully, thoughtfully, before anyone decided that destroying it was easier than learning from it.
Exhaling softly, she was already preparing to advocate for the information she’d need and the best way to acquire it. The man she’d been assigned to work with was superior in rank, but she’d been studying this creature for months. She knew better than anyone what pieces were missing and she’d be damned if she let those pieces remain elusive.
Kel: Lieutenant. I hope you'll forgive my outburst. I'm a medical doctor by training and I have a difficulty with the thought of harming such a unique life form doesn't sit well with me.
She turned, offering the man a soft, knowing smile.
Velis: Then, Commander, I’m in good company. I believe it defies the very edict of the Federation to destroy a lifeform just because we don’t understand it.
Kel: Let's get down to my lab on deck 9. See what kind of plan we can develop.
Velis: ::nods:: I have some thoughts on what information will be most helpful and some methods to acquire it, but would be open to any suggestions from your team. Lieutenant Venn wants to destroy this creature. We need to give the Captain reasons to reconsider.
Kel: =/\= Kel to Wells. We have a guest Rhodium. Can you meet us in the life science lab? =/\=
Wells: Response
((Science Lab 3, Deck 10, USS Ronin))
As they arrived at the lab, she found herself still unable to shake the strange sense of familiarity–like she knew the Commander even though until an hour or so ago, she’d never seen or talked to him in her life. It had been with her since the briefing, but she had had other priorities and hadn’t been able to place it. She still couldn’t understand it and she was beginning to get a little irritated by it. Mentally shaking the thought from her head, she refocused on the task at hand.
Kel: Response
Velis: Thank you, Yllom.
That was strange. Why had she called him that? She didn’t even know his first name. A flush of embarrassment filled her cheeks and she cleared her throat.
Velis: I beg your pardon, Commander. That was unprofessional and presumptuous of me.
Kel: Response
Velis: ::shrugs:: To be honest, I don’t know. I just…it just slipped out.
Kel: Response
((OOC: Happy to continue this as desired. ))
At that precise moment, Wells entered, interrupting their conversation. Her gaze lingered on the man for a moment or two more before slipping back into professional mode.
Velis: We’re missing a lot of data still. First and foremost, I would say we need to determine if the creature is sentient and, if so, how does it react to things in its environment that it doesn’t recognize? I’m sure we can use the limited reports from previous ships as a staring point.
Wells / Kel: Responses
Lieutenant Serin Velis
Mission Specialist (Astrobiologist)
USS Ronin, NCC-34523
I23811RH0