Star Trek: Starbase 777

She took a station, set down the box with the knife and the hair and closed her eyes for a moment. Deep breaths. She was going to be fine. She was going to have time to meditate very soon now. Deep breaths. She opened her eyes again and focused on her work. It was quiet in the labs, which she was very grateful for. One more stressing factor and she’d feel completely over stimulated. She put on her lab coat and gloves, put her hair up and powered up a computer. With the utmost care, she took out Samantha’s knife and scraped some dried blood off the blade onto a tiny dish. She did this six times. Then, she started isolating the DNA of the samples. The dishes would have to sit for a while. Good, in this time she could direct her attention to the scans. Ensign Jessil had told her the time at which she’d encountered the Reman Captain. So, Ava put the recorded scans to that time stamp. She used Jessil’s DNA to locate her on the scan. Well, that location must be the bridge of the enemy vessel, then. Ava narrowed her eyes as she watched the screen. She might be able to see who else the scanner picked up on the bridge at that time… One of them had to be the Reman Captain. And who knew? Maybe the scanners had picked up some info on what kind of life form he was. Ava just couldn’t believe that he was a regular Reman. Not with the power that he possessed! Ava submerged herself in work and research on telepathic species to distract herself from the growing turmoil of emotions underneath her skin.

Ava would find in her research that there are some Remans that have those telepathic abilities. Though rare in their species it is not unheard of. Common for them to be recruited into shock trooper unites for the Star Empire considering the gift could be put to better use than mining Dilithium. (edited)

She stepped into the room, reading over her assignment as she did so, looking through it with interest. Mind control....that was an interesting subject. Definitely something Melaara wanted to research and dive into. You don't major into something if you don't like it. She looked up around at the lab around her, taking in every detail. It was only slightly different than the ones at her previous posting and the ones on the Starbase. She spotted the junior lieutenant and walked over. "Hi! Um, I'm Junior Lieutenant Melaara Zeatraan. I'm assigned to the Station but came here to help. We're dealing with a telepathic individual right?" Her eyes were wide with curiosity and excitement, while she had dealt and studied Vulcans and even a few Romulans to compare the neural differences, she had never studied a Reman, much less one that had mind manipulation abilities. She had always been interested in those...

Ava blinked slowly at the newcomer. “Hi, you’re… pretty,” she said impulsively. As she realised what she’d said, she quickly shook her head with a blush, “Geez, sorry, I’m not in my right mind right now. I’m sorry. Let’s try again.” She looked up at her. “I’m Ava Lopez. Yeah, we are actually dealing with a telepathic individual, or rather we were.” She sighed and rubbed her eyes. “It’s a Reman, however quite a gifted Reman.”

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"And by gifted you mean with a higher control of the paracortex right?" She doesn't miss a beat. "It's possible that a Reman can develop his telepathic abilities to a point where his projections are more persuasive than the usual telepath." She says confidently. "I've seen it been done before, not a Reman though."

Ava looked at her with interest. “Really? When?”

She paused. "That's, not really important right now...All I know is that it's possible." She puts down her padd and turns to look at the junior lieutenant. "So, what do you have so far?"

“I have blood samples of some Remans, I’m trying to get a decent scan on the Reman Captain who mind controlled the Commander, I have the knowledge that Remans can apparently perform mind control and that species with telepathic abilities are better at fighting it than others.” She sighed. “And I have a headache.”

Once more the doors hissed open, this time admitting a tall, lanky Kelpien officer with green eyes the color of the ocean. This man blinked once as he looked round the room. "Oh. Oh... pardon, am I intruding on something important~?"

Ava heard the hiss of the doors behind her and already felt the annoyance. Oh, God, no, not more people! However, when she turned around and saw Streelan, her mood lightened up a little. “Stree! No, you’re not, come in,” she smiled softly. Her brown eyes beneath the Vulcan eyebrows looked tired. “I was just talking to, um…” She turned. “Oh, God, I’m so sorry, could you repeat your name for me? My brain is just a mess right now.”

Surprise surprise, here comes Sam to get her knife back. "Hello people, quite a crowd."

Ava looked at her. “Oh, you’re here, too.” She sounded tired. “Here, have your knife back. Thanks a lot.”

"Junior Lieutenant Zeatraan." She nodded to the Lieutenant in acknowledgement.

Streelan glanced between both newcomers as he sat down next to Ava. "Lieutenant junior grade Streelan, pleasure to meet you both."

"Lieutenant Samantha Voxellus, pleased to meet you all." She said as she picked up the knife, twirled it around and put it back in the sheeth on the back of her hip. "You all doing ok? Need help?"

“We’re fine,” said Ava quickly. She didn’t sound all too fine, but she wanted some quiet. She’d be very grateful if the Lieutenant would just kindly leave. “Thank you again for your help.” She forced a smile.

She's already on the monitor, starting to research what they were working on. "What have you guys already found?" She asked curiously while scrolling through the reports about the Reman.

“Well, I’ve already told you about the mind control and that some Remans are capable of that. We know for sure that it was the Captain who possessed these powers. Look, here,” she went to show her the recorded scans. She set them to a specific time stamp. “This is the time when Ensign Emin encountered the Reman Captain. This here,” she pointed at a red spot and zoomed in, “Is Ensign Emin. (She gave me a DNA sample so I could locate her.) Which means that this is the bridge and one of the other life signs on the bridge at that time must be the Reman Captain. I’m trying to get a lock on him and scan him.” She sighed. “I don’t know what good it’ll do, but who knows? I’m pretty sure this isn’t the last time we’ll see him and I’d rather know some things about him.” She then looked at her as though she’d just remembered something. “Hold up! If you’re Melaara Zeatraan…. That means we’re roommates! Nice to meet you. I’m sorry I’m such a mess right now. I haven’t had enough time to meditate…”

"Oh! That's nice, you weren't there when I checked into the room. Then again, I didn't stay long. Had to get here ya know?" She turns back to the screen. "Telepaths don't... don't normally go to mind control and even if they do it would take years to develop."

“Exactly!” She nodded enthusiastically. “That’s what struck me as strange as well! Telepathic abilities are no anomaly. Hell, I’ve got telepathic abilities! But mind control? That’s rare. That’s… dangerous.” She sighed. “Stree, any input?” She looked at him.

Being an astrophysicist Streelan sadly wasn't much help in the actual scientific part of this spitballing of ideas. Nonetheless he lent his thoughts to the caucus: "Dangerous indeed." He laced his fingers together in a light steeple. "Perhaps a neurosuppressant would serve as a defense, no matter how temporary?"

“I’ll note it down. However, a neurosuppressant would also come with a lot of side effects. Still.” She typed it into her PADD.

"Agreed, maybe a device would work better. Since four lobed brains are wired differently which results in a quiet mind for most telepaths...maybe we can try to scramble the signal?"

“Yes, perhaps. In fact, the Commander was able to fight the telepathic attack due to her own telepathic abilities. Maybe we could strengthen the ability to resist through mental training. It is possible to build up mental walls.” She pondered. “I found that out during a mind meld once… Anyways,” she snapped out of her memory, “What was it you said you were specialised in, Mel? Can I call you Mel?”

"I'd prefer Laara but sure. I'm specialized in biological neurology. We'd probably have to team up with Engineering to get the device perfect."

"Did you look for genetic markers? Certain proteins? Anything in their blood that can indicate the power level of their telepathic abilities? I know it's genetically determined with Betazoids, so why not with Remans?" For a security officer she sure knew a lot about DNA.

"It could." She said thoughtfully. "Your right, of course we'd need a sample. Do we have that?" She asked curiously. "We'd be able to modify the devices to the Reman's neural pathways."

She pulled her blade out and offered it to Zeatraan. "Yes, we have a sample. Even more of we get my sword back."

She took the blade and brought it up to study it. "And you stabbed the Reman Captain with this. Did you stab/scratch anyone else with your weapon? Probably, right? It'll be harder to separate the DNA but it's possible."

“No, Lieutenant Voxellus didn’t injure the Reman Captain. She only cut some other Remans on the enemy ship. And we don’t know whether those had the ability to mind control. Probably not, or else they would have used it, but we never know of course. These samples,” she pointed at the dishes in which she’d put the dry blood. “Are from that blade. I don’t think we need more than six. I’ve already started the process of DNA isolation.” She slid one of the dishes across the table. “There you go, Laara. Have fun with it, I guess! It’s good to know we have a neurobiologist with us working on this.” She tried to look at the bright side of things even with her emotions causing her a tummy ache. (edited)

"That's good at least, though it would be better to have a blood sample of the Reman Captain." She frowned thoughtfully before it faded. "Either way, it'll help. I'll compare it to my Vulcan and Romulan research to see what I can find."

“Yeah, unfortunately we don’t have a blood sample of the Captain, which is why I’ve been trying to get a lock on what our scanners picked up when they scanned him.” She sounded a little frustrated. Then, she raised her head to look at Melaara. “Would you like some Vulcan hybrid samples as well?” It was more of a joke, really.

"I think I have a few but it doesn't hurt to collect more data!" She nods whilst looking at the samples and began to scan their content. "That would be great thanks."

“I… was kinda joking,” she said slowly, “But, um, sure.” She ripped out a single hair from her head and handed it to Melaara. “There you go.”

"Oh, thanks. Not gonna lie I was expecting a blood sample but thanks anyway." She collects the hair and walks over to a drawer to store it. "Isn't this project really cool? I've always loved the thought of neural manipulation... wouldn't use it. But my last assignment we were studying plants that had certain neural capabilities." She walks back over to the blood samples and continues the test.

Ava nodded. “It’s very cool, yeah. However, it also troubles me to think there’s really species out there capable of mind control. If you truly want a blood sample I can…” Her sentence got cut off as she suddenly winced. Her breathing was a little heavier than usual. She took a moment to steady herself, hands gripping onto her table. Dammit! Okay. Deep breaths. Oh, God, so many emotions… So many simulations, thoughts, worries… Come on, Ava, you’ve dealt with worse. Get it together!

She hears the sharp intake of breath and turns around, her brows furrowed together in concern. "You alright Lieutenant?"

“Yes, I’m…” She gritted her teeth and took a moment. Fear and anger and frustration. Okay, she could deal with that. It was always easy as soon as she knew what kind of emotion she was dealing with. Breathe out. Good. She straightened her spine and visibly relaxed. “Fine,” she finished. “It’s just this day has been stressful.” Finally, she gave Melaara a smile. “I’m glad you’re here and I don’t have to do all that work on my own.”

"Are you sure I shouldn't call sickbay? Looks a little serious..." She frowns but starts to return to her work.

Ava shook her head. She was stubborn about this work. “No, thank you. I’ll be fine and my shift isn’t too long anymore. Afterwards, I’ll hopefully be able to go to the quarters and catch up on my meditation. That’s all I need.” She focused on her work and looked at the scans again. She tried desperately to get a read on what the scanners had picked up about the Reman Captain. Once she got a lock and a read on him, she could see whether his scan results differed in any way from the ones of the other Remans aboard the ship.

After a while of searching through the scans there was a match for the Captain using the timestamps that Ava had previously isolated. Considering that this had been conducted from the ship's own scanners compared to being there physically with a tricorder it meant that the results weren't vastly detailed, but it was still something... And from that something it seemed that there was nothing different compared to that of the other Remans they had identified. He was just a Reman, plain and simple.

“Damn it!” Ava cursed under her breath. Then, she calmed down a little. “Well. At least I’ve found something…” She’d really thought she’d find more. How could a Reman’s telepathic abilities be this strong?! It was… scary.

She turned around at the exclamation curiously. "What is it? What did you find?"

“He’s… just a regular old Reman. Absolutely nothing special about him at all.” She sighed. “It seems like Remans are capable of telepathy and mind control far beyond our previous comprehension. Apparently they can achieve this skill somehow.” She rubbed her eyes tiredly. She’d done good work today and she knew it. However, she still felt like she’d been unsuccessful.

She smiled softly at Ava, still being here. "Well, at least we now know more about the people we face. Good work, lieutenant. I'm proud of you."

Ava smiled softly as he heard Voxellus’ words. “Thank you, Lieutenant.” She thought for a moment, then she said, “I think we all did a pretty good job today, didn’t we? That encounter with the mercs went horribly, but at least we got our people back now.”

She says quietly for a moment, thinking. When the Reman Captain had used his abilities...were they anything like...Jovitt's, no. Maybe... Vulcans and Remans shared a common history didn't they? If it was possible for Jovitt too, do the things that he had did... She snapped out of her thoughts. "They are distantly related to Vulcans are they not? The question is why are his abilities so powerful? If anything...all he needs is a genetic base for the neural capabilities. Then if he practiced enough or is using some sort of neural enhancer..."

Ava nodded tiredly. “I believe it has to do with talent and practice. Just like with mind melds, it’s a tricky thing, but I’ve heard one can practice and get better at it.” For a moment, her brain circled back to Styre’s dubious answer about mind melds. She really had to read through his record. However, she doubted it would answer her initial question. Hmm… Was Styre married? No. No way! She was too tired to be thinking about him anyways, she’d only mentally insult him. Not very productive. “Anyways,” she said to snap herself out of her thoughts, “Laara, you sound like there’s something on your mind. A theory?”

"I-no, not really. Just the device enhancement... actually, if he was using a device to enhance his capabilities...would we be able to see whether or not he was a normal Reman? Actually... scratch that, it would leave something, but maybe we just haven't found it yet. Or maybe it's just practice." She thought outloud, speaking her mind, trying to connect the dots in her brain. She knew that with enough practice and determination, it was possible. Even with the plant Jovitt had used, it only increased his capabilities by a few years. He had already been on the track to...

“Well, looks like there’s a train of thought there. Please, if you need to make use of the DNA I’ve isolated or check the notes I made about the scans, don’t hesitate,” said Ava and yawned, “My shift is over in five minutes.”

"Got it." She nods and grabs her padd to write her notes and thoughts down. "I guess I'll see you later then Lieutenant. I'll update you on what I find."

“I’d be grateful if you did. I look forward to decorating our quarters together once we’ve returned to the starbase.” She turned to the other people in the room as well. “Thank you for your help as well. I’ll see you around.” She picked up her PADD and made her way to the door. Finally! Relief washed over her at the thought of being able to meditate.

She nods to her as she leaves, not looking up from her screen. A thousand thoughts being taken from her head into her padd.

Styre had brought the algae sample from the Station onto the eventide. The container it was in was just one of metal and was not nearly as secure as the one housing his viruses. It was merely meant to just contain. He placed it on a table and got out his own microscope, wishing to examine the specimen some more. After doing some light configurations on the microscope, he pulled out part of the sample and laid 3mg of the sample onto the slide and then placed plastic over it. He adjusted the microscope and turned on the backlight, pressing his eye up to it and examining it further.

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Evoras was carrying a small box, it contained a highly reactive acid that did not react particularly well to being transported via transporter. In other words the transporters usually did not survive the process. The times she had been on the Eventide weren't partiularly numerous, so it took her a little longer than she would like to admitt to locate the labs. She entered the labs and scanned her surroundings for a view moments, before stepping further in. Even though she had spent many years serving on ships, the starbase's reseach ring had apparently spoiled her, because the labs here seemed impossibly small to her. Carefully placing the box on one of the desks, she eventually addressed the Commander: "Where exactly are the highly volatile substances kept?"

Styre, with his face indulged in the examining of whatever this was, failed to hear the door open to the labs. He was quite startled, physically jolting as he removed his eyes from the microscope. His red uniform pressed against his body, his three pips shining in the artificial light. He looked towards the commander and nodded, looking at whatever she had decided to bring in. "Those would go in the..." he thought for a moment. Serving aboard he should've known this. He looked around the lab before pointing to a location. "I believe they go there. You may wish to ask the computer for confirmation, though."

She walked over to the location he had pointed at. Instead of asking the computer she looked at the containers and concluded that, yes, this was the right place. Without saying anthing else she started to pick up a few things here and there, she would need to repakage the acid, since she had no intention of leaving it's current container on the ship. After a while she stopped mid motion and, holding a test tube in her hand, turned to look at him. "How sensetive to athmospherical changes are your samples?" The acid wouldn't normally cause any trouble... at least not with how carefully she was handeling it, but she would rather ask than figure out later that the slight shift of the the air makeup (that could still occure) had somehow messed up his work.

[D] Lilian was down in the labs, pouring over the latest photos and scans of potentially inhabitable planets.