Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Posted on Tue Apr 25th, 2023 @ 12:47am by Lieutenant JG Teh'dri Caix & Lieutenant Savar

1,123 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Episode 1: Runner
Location: Stellar Cartography
Timeline: After Diplomacy in Sickbay

Savar was wandering the ship. There was no reason for him to be on the bridge so he walked the ship. He saw the swimming pool, Verelan would like that, he thought to himself. As he walked, he came upon stellar cartography, this was where Caix another Vulcan worked according to Captain Rhodes. Entering he looked around. The room was neat and organized. and relatively dark. It took his eyes a moment to adjust to the reduced lighting. He stopped about halfway in. "Hello?" he called out as he saw no one.

“Over here. And please keep the lights low,” came a voice from near one of the viewports. Across the rooms, seated right up against the exterior of the rooms, sat the woman in blue. In her hand, she held a stylus and a tablet turned to its lowest setting. Her head turned from the stars outside, toward the ceiling, then back to the stars. It took a moment for it to become clear that there were in fact very faintly projected stars dotting the ceiling. The woman did not look up, but her voice was friendly. “May I help you?”

"I am Savar. Chief Diplomatic Officer and newly arrived on board. I came to introduce myself to a fellow crewmate and Vulcan a Lieutenant Caix." He raised his hand in the Vulcan salute even if the woman could not see it. "Peace and long life to you."

Teh'dri's eyes picked up the faint outline of the salute, and she responded in kind. "Greetings, Savar. I'm Lieutenant Caix. And you are at least half correct. My father was indeed Vulcan. My mother, however, was Trill. So I am...a bit in between." She made an overly broad gesture. "Please, feel free to join me. I am in the middle of some manual calculations. There is the slightest variance in one of the regions I'm monitoring. I'm trying to determine if it is gravitational lensing or just a glitch as a byproduct of a fairly unorthodox repair we made."

Savar moved closer to Caix. As he did he could see her telltale Trill spots. "My apologies Lieutenant. I meant no offense. A variance? How slight a variance? Which region are you monitoring?" He asked his eyes going to the stars outside the viewport.

"Oh, no offense taken. Just wanted to clarify before my Trill side deals a surprise to you. I practice Vulcan logical reasoning and do have some emotional control, but it is more superficial control than true internal. A very good 'poker face', if you will," Teh'dri replied, before pointing to the upper right. "The region in question is Segment 213, on the upper port side. We replaced a faulty EPS Flow Regulator servicing the cartographic instruments on that part of the ship. It has seemed largely unaffected since the repair, but this region seems just a bit off. I am trying to determine if the computer is wrong or my eyes. I would tend to think the latter, but I have a fairly good track record."

"We will have to play poker to see how good your face actually is." Savar replied. Looking to the region in question, he stared at for a few moments before replying. "Have you run a computer diagnostic on the EPS Flow Regulator? He inquired as he still looked at the region in question. "I see perhaps a slight variance in the area you are studying, Teh'dri, though I confess I may be mistaken. Have you determined how large the variance is? This could help determine if it is natural or a computer malfunction." Savar replied evenly.

"By the looks of it. It can't be more than a few degrees. I'll run a few diagnostics. It is possible my eyes are the ones with the variance, not the device. I just remain skeptical due to our repairs," she said, finally standing. "I apologize, I may have misheard you earlier. Did you say Diplomatic Officer?"

"It is always prudent to be skeptical however not to the point it becomes an obsession or blinds you to other possibilities." Savar took a step back as Caix stood. "Your hearing did not fail you. You heard correctly. I am the chief diplomatic officer. Do you have an issue with that?" He questioned her.

"No issue at all. I think we're going to need a Diplomat plenty out here. Especially with the trouble the pirates have already stirred up," Teh'dri replied as she turned the illumination to the room back up to a soft glow.

"I am pleased you have no issue with being here. As I do not wish to cause any. I share your belief in that a diplomat can mediate and solve problems before they break into open conflict." Savar replied as his eyes adjusted to the increased light in the lab.

"My goal meanwhile is simply to map our stars well and help us navigate by using them," Teh'dri added with a slight smirk. "I will admit it is nice to have some other Vulcans aboard. I only got to visit the old homeworld a handful of times prior to its destruction."

"I agree. It is agreeable to meet other Vulcans. There are so few of us left. We must stay united. Like you, I had been to the home world a few times. Now, I will never again be able to visit. The humans have a saying, when one door closes another opens. With the destruction of our homeworld we were forced to find another world to call home. We are now on a different path than we would be if Vulcan had survived. We must make the most of this opportunity." Savar noted.

"It presents a unique perspective on a great many things," Teh'dri said with raised eyebrows. The destruction of Vulcan had certainly given her a great deal to think about on a great many topics. "If you'll excuse me, I will run these reports to Engineering. Chief Engineer Brull has granted me only the briefest time to request repairs so I want to remain timely."

"Of course. I shall not keep you any longer. I would like if we could speak again." Savar said as he moved to the entrance of the lab to leave.

"Of course," Teh'dri said, as she packed up her work. "Myself and a few of our Vulcan crew have the occasional gathering in one of the lounges for group meditation. You may find that enjoyable."

"Thank you for the invitation. I may do. I will bring Verelan my wife with me. I feel she would enjoy this as well."

"I look forward to seeing you both there then," Teh'dri replied with a nod. "Farewell for now, Lt. Savar."

 

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