Space Oddities (part 2)

Posted on Fri Apr 8th, 2016 @ 2:19pm by Lieutenant JG Ronnie Wolfe & Lieutenant Commander Jennifer Tate & Lieutenant Illise Hale & Lieutenant JG Victoria Drani M.D. & Lieutenant Verdeath Newmark

1,079 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Point of View
Location: Various
Timeline: Current

[CONTINUED]

[OLD]

Illise nodded, impressed with the set up. "Good work. What have you found?"

"That we need an expert in stellar phenomenon." He smirked and handed her a PADD. Illise took it and looked through the data. It was raw sensor data, but she thought she recognized some of the energy signatures displayed.

"Alright, let's start digging." Illise stepped up to a computer and began the tedious task of deciphering the puzzle before her.

[NEW]


Ronnie walked into the lab and stopped when she saw that it was occupied. "Sorry, I didn't know anyone was in here."

Ilise looked up from the computer at the new arrival, then glanced around at the twenty or so other people buzzing about the lab. She recognized the woman from her personnel file to be Lieutenant JG Ronnie Jo Lancaster, the Assistant Chief Science Officer. With all that had been going on since Illise had been promoted, she hadn't actually met her yet - an oversight on her own part that had been gnawing at Illise for some time.

"Lieutenant Lancaster," Illise said, drawing the woman's attention, "Lieutenant Hale." Illise extended a hand. "It's nice to finally meet you. I apologize for not coming to find you sooner."


"I'm the one who should apologize," Ronnie assured her. "Since I got back, I've been so busy with Intel briefings and getting cleared for duty that I haven't taken the time to meet you. I'm looking forward to being back, if you don't mind."

"I'll be glad for the help." Illise smiled at Ronnie. "I hope that we can find the time to get to know each other better." She would of liked to have a real conversation with Ronnie but her computer beeped, indicating that is was finished running the analysis she had set up on the sensor data. "But I suppose that will have to wait. Sorry Lieutenant, one crisis at a time." She managed a smirk, then turned back to the computer and began going through the results.

"Don't worry about it. I've checked the outer labs and everything is secure. I'll leave you to your scans," Ronnie said with a nod to Illise and went to check on her bugs.

It was still frustrating, tedious work, even after the computer had cleaned it up. Illise rubbed her eyes and continued scrolling through the data. The sensors had picked up an intense gravitational field, which would normally indicate the presence of a quantum singularity, however the typical temporal distortions were not present. There was an unusual set of subspace frequencies though, which she immediately recognized.

It was a cosmic string. No wider than a proton, they were difficult, though not impossible to detect. Typically, highly accelerated interstellar gases would outline the string making it visible to standard sensors, but the gasses surrounding this one seemed to be lacking. Illise thanked Kahless that she was on the flagship of the fleet, equipped with state of the art sensors. If it wasn't for the gravitational field and the subspace frequencies generated by atomic particles as they decayed along its event horizon, this particular anomaly might continue to be invisible to all.

Illise tapped her com-badge, hopping the communications were working properly. "Hale to the Bridge."

"Bridge." Tate replied.

"Our analysis is still on-going, but preliminary data indicates that we collided with the edge of a cosmic string. That would account for the engine failure and damage to the ship." Illise reported. "It does not however, account for the computer's behavior."

"Do you have any theories as to what caused the computer to malfunction?" Tate replied.

"Unfortunately, no." Illise told her. "We did record an unusual energy signature at the moment of the collision. It is not something previously reported with this type of anomaly, and we are having trouble analyzing it without the main computer. I'll let you know if and when we find a match."

"Utilize whatever resources you require. I'd like you to work with Lieutenant Cross as well, perhaps she can assist you in your investigation and regain some computer control."

"Thank you Lieutenant Commander. "I will report back in 15 minutes with an update on our progress." Illise said over the comm to Tate.

Not sure that she could trust the computer to deliver a message to Engineering in tact, Illise turned back to her computer pulled all the data for the cosmic string. Once downloaded to a PADD she quickly added some notes on the effects that such a phenomenon could have on the ship. She then waved over one of the junior staff. "Take this to Engineering as quickly as you can." She told him.

Illise stepped out of the isolated lab and into the main lab. She glanced around, looking for something. One a console a about ten feet away was a small stack of PADDs. She quickly grabbed them and returned to her computer and opened up all the data on the unusual energy signature. After copying it to each of the PADDs and handed it out to the other scientists. "This is top priority," she told them, "I want to know what this is."

Illise gave the last copy to a crewman who had just entered the lab carrying equipment for one of the other staff. "Take this to Lieutenant Cross on the bridge." He nodded and dashed out into the corridor.

[Sickbay]

Drani entered followed by Arnon. She saw Dr. Newman attending a patient and Galen, the EMH at the far side of the sickbay. She wondered briefly if Dr. Newman had activated the EMH. "Doctor Newman, reoort," she said, making her way over to the doctor.

"Doctor Drani." Newmark looked up from the patient and nod to the nurse. "Finish wrapping that knee for me please." He said as he crossed over to her. "So far there is not a whole lot to report, we are getting a steady stream of minor injuries from the sudden stop, two plasma burns and I am considering using a cargo bay as with the reports of turbo lifts being out I think we need to get the medical facilities spread out closer to the patients." He said. "So far there are no trauma calls but it is still early."

(To be continued...)

Lieutenant Illise Hale
Chief Science Officer

Lieutenant JG Ronnie Lancaster
Assistant Chief Science Officer

Lieutenant Commander Jennifer Tate
Intel Officer

Lieutenant Victoria Drani
Chief Medical Officer

Lieutenant JG Verdeath Newmark
Assistant Chief Medical Officer

 

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