" Tracking A Shillian Is Something A Marine Will Do Only Once "
(Previous Post: " Hope Springs Eternal ")
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Stardate: 60300.1210
Setting: USS ANUBIS, Deck 14, Microbiology Lab
The Marine Second Lieutenant had been leaning against the wall for almost a full hour now, observing quietly the Shillian scientist as she worked at unravelling the secrets of the artefact Lieutenant Onison had given her the day before. It had taken Pravat a fair deal of effort and work to find the Chief Science Officer who had made her way through almost every science lab on board the USS ANUBIS, the Marine not having figured that he required the assistance of the computer to find the woman he had figured would be easily found. Little had he known that his tracking skills would be put to the test by the dainty alien woman.
After having completed his morning routine and workout, the Marine Second Lieutenant had thought it wise to seek out the Shillian scientist to see what progress she had made in her research, but most to see if she had actually slept the night before. The reputation of the Chief Science Officer as a dedicated and overzealous worker had already been well established and it had not been a stretch of the imagination to envision the scientist getting up in the middle of the night to pursue her work. Certain that she would be in one of the main multi-use laboratories, the Marine officer had ventured there first only to be told that the Shillian woman had gone to the Planetary Studies Lab one deck higher on Deck 12.
By the time Pravat had arrived at the second location, the Marine Second Lieutenant had been shocked to discover that the object of his search had been nowhere to be found. Within a few minutes he discovered that the Shillian scientist had come across something on the artefact that she had needed to look into with better equipment, so the Chief Science Officer had left to go down to Deck 14 and the Bio Chemistry lab.
The head of the Marine detachment of the USS ANUBIS found this chase amusing in a very unique way, which is why he actually continued on his quest to find the Shillian woman instead of calling it quits, something that he would look back on and wonder if maybe he should have reconsidered. By the time Pravat entered the Bio Chemistry lab, his amusement of the situation vanished as he found that the scientist had come and gone. Had the scientist left for another deck, the Marine Second Lieutenant would have very likely abandoned his journey, but since the lab technician he found in the room informed him that the Shillian had simply been across the corridor in the Microbiology Lab.
There Pravat finally found the person that he had been looking for, but even after all that he had gone through the Marine felt that he could not interrupt the work of the scientist who appeared to be completely enthralled by her work, so he leaned against the wall and waited.
What had first been only a passing curiosity gradually grew into a more intriguing interest as Pravat watched the Shillian scientist perform test after test on the small stone that never left her sight for more than a few seconds at a time. Although Pravat had attempted a few times to draw the attention of the scientist onto him, the Marine Second Lieutenant soon found that he had been no match for the engraved rock that rested on the research table with countless instruments points in its direction.
While trying to come up with a delicate way to make his presence known to the Shillian, the Chief Science Officer continued her research until one of the scanners pulled the scientist away with an audio signal that even the Marine knew did not sound like good news. Patience had always been a strong requirement for any military personnel, be them Army or Navy, but Pravat saw this as his opportunity to approach the scientist and announce his presence by offering what little assistance he could.
Pravat had drawn in a short breath to speak when the Shillian unexpectedly turned and darted for the door realising only too late that an obstacle had come to stand between her and the exit to the lab. The force of the impact had been powerful enough to send the Chief Science Officer back several steps while knocking the ever-so-precious item from her hand. Effortlessly the Marine Second Lieutenant snatched the artefact from the air before it collided with anything and presented it to the Shillian scientist as a sign of his regret for having been in the way.
The Shillian woman smiled and ever-so-carefully reached for the stone, all the while staying absolutely quiet, something that had been completely out of character for the Chief Science Officer. Visibly more interested in the condition of the item than whatever the impact might have done to him, the Marine brushed off the incident. "Sorry about that, but you really should look where you are going before you try to get there. You almost tripped over that stool a dozen time because you were not looking where you were going," Pravat said in a friendly manner, relinquishing the item back into the caring hands of the scientist.
"I did not want to waste any time and push the stool out of my way, and since I was not certain if I would need it or not at a later time I did not want to move it out of reach," the Shillian woman said before stopping dead in her verbal tracks and glaring at the Marine, her head slightly tilted to one said. "Wait a minute, how did you know that I almost tripped over that stool so many times? How long have you been here? I mean I know how long you had to be there is you saw me do that so many times, unless you only guessed that I had done it more times that you had seen based on your assumption that I am clumsy when I get overly involved in a specific project which I will point out is completely inaccurate. The only reason why I was having problems with that particular stool was because this is not my usual working environment, had we been in the Astrometrics or Stellar Cartography lab I would have been able to perform any and all tests with my eyes closed, the problem of course is that the instruments in those labs did not suit the kind of scan I needed to perform on the artefact."
Sorry that he had said anything the Marine Second Lieutenant raised both of his hands to show his unconditional and complete surrender hoping that this would spare him any further explanations. When the gesture produced the desired result, Pravat wasted no time and changed the subject to something he hoped would prove to be more pleasant. "I can see that you have been working at this for a while," The Marine said, "how about you take a short break and you and I go to the station for lunch?"
The Shillian scientist seemed torn by the decision that she had been asked to made: that of either decline the offer and continue with her research or leave the work in progress in order to partake in one of the essential requirements for the continued containment of life. Just as the Chief Science Officer had been ready to voice her decision, the voice of the Assistant Chief Medical Officer came over the Communicator affixed against the uniform of the Shillian woman.
=/\= Summers to Maya, please report to the Infirmary as soon as possible. Doctor Wallin and I need your expertise on the nanites that are in Lieutenant Dawson. =/\=
For a brief moment the Shillian scientist and the Enaran Marine exchanged a glance, each one wondering why the Chief Medical Officer of the NEW ALEXANDRIA had required such information and expertise, but the questions soon gave way to a simple acknowledgement, "Pravat and I will be there right away."
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Jessica Solarik { maya_992003@yahoo.com }
Lieutenant Maya
Chief Science Officer
USS ANUBIS
"To see the world in a grain of sand, 2005 post #067
and a heaven in a wild flower.
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
and eternity in an hour."
- William Blake (British, 1757-1827)
