Lieutenant JG Renaie Shortrith - On Unknown Entities

[Renaie Shortrith]

((Xenobiology Lab, Sickbay Complex, Deck 10, USS Ronin))

Beck: Got it in one. There have been multiple attempts to gather data on the object - we're not entirely sure if it's actually alive - but so far, no one has really been able to get close enough to get a good reading.

Shortrith: I take it that's what one of the specialists are there for?

Beck: Yeah. From my understanding, one is an Astrobiologist who should be able to help us understand this thing once we get a better idea what we're dealing with. The other is from SFI. You can guess what their interest in it will be. ::rubbing his jaw:: But this thing is big.

It was that which made Renaie pause and do some mental calculations.

Shortrith: … Galaxy class size? Akira class size? Any idea how big we're talking?

Beck: 'Fraid not. That's part of the problem. I'll put it this way - it's so big that, even with our most high-powered sensors pointing at it, it's too blurry to make out any details.

Was the being malicious? Passive? Did the being have a motivation?

Those were answers nobody had.

Not even as the answers filtered through the ranks.

Shortrith: Do we have any information, or are we going in blind?

oO Most likely going in blind. But I'm asking for confirmation. Oo

Beck: Not entirely blind. We know how long it'll take to reach it. And we know they want us to get to it before the Lattice Alliance or Consortium. So… y'know, only mostly blind.

oO That's not particularly comforting. Oo

Renaie frowned, glancing out at the viewport.

As far as they were aware, the Ronin knew nothing of this being and were inbound for uncertain first contact in about three hours. oO Helpful. Oo

With no understanding of the creature… things could either go very well, or very badly. And they didn't want to give thought to which the odds were on.

Shortrith: Hold on- so the Ronin only has a blurry picture of the creature with no scale?

Beck: Yep. The image provided by our Intelligence officer, Lieutenant Alira Venn.

The Klingon paused.

Shortrith: What if a picture was taken of something at the same scale, specifically an entity that we know the scale of, and use it as a reference point there? That may give us an idea of how big this thing is, and maybe use it as a biological reference point.

Beck: I think that's a solid suggestion - the only caveat being, since we don't actually know the scale of the thing, it's difficult to make that reference. Still… probably worth mentioning to the others. Maybe it's passing close enough to a planet or nebula to give us an idea of the scale. Good idea.

A smile crossed their face as they gave an affirming nod.

Shortrith: Thank you, Doc.

Renaie noticed the Chief Medical Officer glance over at the door, before following him to a library console. They took a second to process the information that was on the screen, and look at the image.

Beck: This is what we've got to go on at the moment. It sort of vaguely resembles a whale, at least by my reckoning, but exponentially larger. Are you familiar with some of the other cosmozoan life that Starfleet has encountered before?

oO A big space whale, eh? Oo

Shortrith: Honestly? Not really. I've only read parts of reports, but I haven't had the time to read them all.

Beck: My first suggestion would be to become intimately familiar with the historical record, if only so we can rule any of those out. But we'll also want to touch base with Commander Kel - he's leading the research team alongside the specialist from Starfleet Command, and we'll be offering them our support.

Shortrith: Understood. Who's the specialist?

oO So it's not awkward in greeting. Oo

Beck: Velis. Serin Velis.

Without saying a word, Renaie nodded in understanding.

Beck: =/\= Beck to Kel. Just finished putting together my shortlist, and it's very short. Doctor Shortrith and I will be at your disposal. =/\=

Renaie suppressed a chuckle at the mention of three short-related words in ten secons.

Kel: =/\= Response =/\=

Beck: =/\= I intended to do some investigation and research here in the Xenobiology lab for the short term, but if you've got a better idea, I'm all ears. =/\=

Kel: =/\= Response =/\=

Shortrith: =/\= Anything we can do help from here? =/\=

Kel/Beck: =/\= Response =/\=

Shortrith: =/\= I'm not entirely sure. Has anything come through since the initial photo? =/\=

Kel/Beck: =/\= Response =/\=

Shortrith: =/\= Possibly? It depends on what the entity does next. =/\=

Kel/Beck: =/\= Response =/\=

[Tags/TBC]

==

Lieutenant JG Renaie Shortrith, MD

Counsellor/Medical Officer

USS Ronin - NCC-34523

They/Them (Player and character)

A240204RS3