Inside the Asteroid (part 4)

Posted on Fri Sep 22nd, 2017 @ 9:29pm by Sevena t'Dhvael & Lieutenant Commander Mira Jayde & Lieutenant Commander Velah & Lieutenant JG Élan Val & Lieutenant Tristan Balor & Lieutenant JG Miko Sato & Ensign Leslie Gallant III

2,373 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: The Genesis Legacy
Location: Asteroid

[CONTINUED]

[OLD]

Miko instantly set upon the bones with her medical tricorder, scanning and trying to fulfill her job as the team’s medical officer. “Well, whoever it was, they’ve been dead for decades. For some reason, the bones haven’t started decaying. In fact, there’s no decomposition in the calcium makeup at all. It’s as if they were just picked clean not too long ago, however the outer micro-organisms on the bones indicate that the skeleton has been here for quite some time,” she reported, taking a cautious step back.

[NEW]

"Fascinating." Jayde knelt by the bones and looked them over, then examined the area around them with her tricorder. "The ground around the skeleton shows no indication of what caused his death, or what fed on him. If he bled out, there is no sign." She nodded to the skeleton. "It does appear to have been male."

Liang knelt by the skeleton and looked closely at the bones. "It appears that several creatures fed on him."

“But there’s no sign of identifying what killed or ate him?” Élan asked as she instinctively looked around. Suddenly, it seemed that exploring the asteroid had lost some of promise of fun. Returning her gaze back to the executive officer, the Trill shuddered at a memory from Val. “Commander, I recommend that all away team members remain in a single group. It’ll be easier to defend a large group against any predators we may encounter.”

Jayde thought teams of four sufficient for fending off most creatures, but if Val felt more comfortable in ne group, Jayde was notgoing to argue. "If you wish. The others should be here shortly and we can continue our search."

"The bite marks on the skeleton are from a smaller creature,or creatures. I do not believe it capable of killing a humanoid, but it is more than capable of eating one," Liang said. "Especially if there were a number of these creatures."

"So we still don't know what caused the death," Jayde said, looking down at the skeleton again. "Take samples of the DNA and the ground underneath the skeleton. Laboratory analysis might give us more information when we get back to the ship."

Sevena was clearly shaken at the discovery, mostly due to the fact that this was a completely unknown facility and there were now dead Romulans involved. "Commander, I formally request permission to be allowed a weapon for self defense purposes," she said, not able to keep a slight tremor out of her voice as she spoke.

Jayde nodded and handed the Romulan her phaser. "I have another weapon. Please, shoot only in self-defense. We still have much to learn from this facility." She pulled a small rod off her belt and pushed the button to extend it to a full-sized staff.

Sevena tried to cover her surprised and near shock as the first officer actually handed her a Starfleet phaser. She accepted the weapon and studied it carefully for a moment. Starfleet phasers were completely different from the hand disruptors that Romulans used, and after several moments she gripped the weapon and hoped and prayed that she could figure out which button to press if something attacked her.

Liang quietly walked up to Sevena. "If I may?" She took the phaser and showed the Romulan how to use the phaser. "Please keep it on stun. Beyond that, you should be fine. If you miss your target, just sweep the beam over."

"Just hold this button and it fires a continuous beam?" Sevena asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. But generally you only need a short burst," Liang said. "You also have the option of a wide-beam stun."

"Hm, ok," Sevena said as she studied the phaser. Silently, she prayed not to end up shooting any of the Starfleet officers if something attacked them.

"When we get back to the ship, come see me. I will give you proper phaser training," Liang said. "Until then, just remember, if you cannot shoot it, you can beat them over the head with it."

"I think I'll stick to option one and try hiding behind the Starfleet uniforms first," Sevena said as she finished studying the phaser and nodded. "I think I can figure it out."

Liang bowed. "Let's hope it dow not come to that."

Jayde waited for the others in her group to catch up. "It has been suggested that we stick together for the rest of our time here. As we have effectively completed one circuit, I suggest we cut straight across and see what lies at the heart of this garden."

“We should maintain a high level of alertness, however,” Élan said, speaking up for the first time in several minutes. “If there are any dangerous predators, they may have their territories closer to the center, and since we haven’t really encountered much so far, it’s a fair assessment to say that if there are any, they’ll be towards the center. I’d really rather like to not end up being eaten today.”

"That is not on the agenda," Jayde admitted with a smile. "Liang and I will take point. Mr. Balor, you will take up the rear." With her staff in one hand and her tricorder in the other, Jayde headed into the brush.

"That's ill advised, by its clear my opinion bears no weight with this group." Tristan said before firmly.

Sevena made a point to remain close on the heels of the security officers. She had no intention of being eaten, alive or dead, but there was already one dead Romulan on the ground who had been eaten, which raised the stakes against her already and she wasn't about to take chances.

Something rustled in the underbrush ahead of them. Jayde paused to listen, her staff in front of her. There was more rustling and then a small, cat-like creature with large teeth ran towards them. But instead of taking them on, it veered off into the thicker brush and kept running. "That is odd," she said. The brush in front of them continued to rustle.

"That's not odd." Tristan said quickly. "That's natural. It clearly doesn't view us as a threat or a meal. However, it does bring up the question if the beast is running, who is it running from? Maybe someone bigger. Someone who will view us as a threat or a meal." He crossed his arms over his chest and stepped forward, gaining a serious and firm tone, trying to emphasize the seriousness of the situation. "Put aside how this area was formed, this is their territory. This is their world. Its all they have known and it has its own balance and food chain. We need to respect that and we should not interfere in their routine. To them, we are the invaders. They will size us up and decide what category we fall under. Predator or Prey. If this were a humanoid world, we would do the same. Just because we don't see them as intelligence, doesn't mean they aren't."

"You're assuming a great deal, commander," Jayde said. "We are not here to change anything, to assume anything. We are here to learn of this place and its inhabitants. I said nothing about intelligence of either plant or animal. I merely stated that it is odd the creature, which is clearly predatory by the size of its teeth, was scared off by something. Perhaps odd may not have been the most accurate word, but the behavior does clearly indicate that it was running from something." And Jayde had every intention of finding out what that something was.

As she felt that talking was not going to get them anywhere, Jayde turned and continued towards whatever was rustling ahead of them.

Tristan looked around and the group and clenched his fist, trying to control himself. None of these people were born in a settling like this. None of them communed with creatures such as these. Hunt and Track wasn't about eating and surviving. It was about respecting the animals around them for not only giving them the food for the night, but for doing their part to balance the world he lived in. He just shut his mouth and ventured forward, while his patience continued to get thinner.

The jungle-like vegetation grew taller and thicker as they moved deeper into the cavern. It made it much harder to see as the foliage blocked much of the green light. Liang touched Jayde's arm, stopping her.

Jayde raised an eyebrow in query.

Liang nodded to a tree with large, flat leaves. "Webs."

Several strands of what looked like spiderweb stretched between the leaves. An early warning device, or simply evidence of the spider's passing? "We will go around," Jayde announced. She had the safety of the others in her party to consider and that was the more logical choice. If it were just her and Liang, or even Tristan, she would see what the creature was.

There was a high-pitched squeak from deeper inside the webbed bushes.

At the sound of the squeak, Sevena literally jumped. She was already on edge over the Romulan skeleton that had been found, now she was encountering spiders and hearing noises for which there was no identification. Her nerves were already on edge and when she landed she was literally holding onto Liang. "*What was that*?!" she half shouted in Romulan.

"Best guess, the creator of the webs," Liang said, doing her best to calm the Romulan.

Tristan stayed behind the group, as he was instructed, and shook his head slightly with a bit of a sigh.

"Webs? Spiders? SPIDERS!?! Uh uh! I don't do spiders!" the Romulan shook her head and started backing away, looking in every direction possible.

Tristan gently placed his hand on Sevena's back and whispered calmly in his ear. "The thing you need to remember about spiders is they attack only when threatened. You have nothing to fear from them unless you provoke them. I won't let anything happen to you while I am here. Just take a deep, slow, breath."

"You've never seen what we call spiders on Romulus, Commander," Sevena hissed. "Three meters across with two meter legs and twelve inch fangs that they use to eat you with. No! I'm not calming down!"

"And you've never seen what I consider dangerous on my planet, Romulan. Spiders don't eat people, or any other creature for that matter. They wrapped them in their web, constricting them, forcing their blood to travel much quickly through the body. Your panic, is what causes your heart to pump faster, moving your blood much quicker through your veins. That blood, is that they drain, along with other small pieces that they can get passed through their mouth which isn't as large as you think. The fangs, you fear so much, only deliver the venom through your body that paralyzes you and breaks down internal organs. None of that will happen because we are here. Arachnids only attack one creature at a time. You, are at an advantage, because you are not alone. You have strength in numbers. Now you can continue to be afraid of a creature that will only attack you when it feels threatened or you can find the courage and trust those around you to keep you safe." Tristan replied firmly, in almost an insulted and angry tone, as he grew tired of the way these fools were walking around this place without a care for the creatures that surround them. Treating each of them like a threat, when all they were doing was continuing their natural cycle. They beasts that surround them were not a threat. The only threat here were the officers trampling around without any regards, or respect, for the multiple homes they now invaded.

Jayde stepped in to diffuse what was quickly escalating into an argument. Sevena was hysterical and unable to listen to reason. "Close your eyes and take three long, slow breaths," she told the Romulan. Then she tapped her combadge. "Away team to Gallant. Ms. t'Dhvael needs to return to the shuttle." She looked at Velah and raised an eyebrow. "Will you go with her, doctor?"

=^= Gallant here.=^= The voice of the Helmsman came over the channel with the distinct sounds of his setting the Transporter. =^= I am going for a Transporter Lock.=^=

Velah went over to t'Dhvael and put a comforting arm on her arm. "Trust me, I am not a fan of anything with more legs that I have so let's just get away from this?" She winked. "Mr. Gallant, Velah here could you bring us both up please."

=^= I have two lovely ladies locked on and ready to bring back. =^=

The two ladies shimmered away.

Tristan looked over to Jayde, giving her a un-pleased look, as he shook his head. Without a word, leaving his mouth, he returned to the back of the group, as he was instructed, and placed his arms behind his back. His eyes looked around them cautiously.

Élan had been content to hang back and study the reading from her tricorder, although she did have to admit silently that the Romulan liaison officer’s reaction to the spider webs was entertaining as well as accurate. Val had memories of a mere Romulan spider from a previous host, and the visual image of one of the things eating the legs off of a Starfleet officer were quite clearly burning through her link with the symbiont. For her part, Élan simply made sure that she didn’t go anywhere near the webs. Ignoring most of the others, the Trill simply focused on her tricorder and made sure she scanned everything she could.

Miko watched as Commander Velah was beamed away with the slightly hysterical Romulan, a sight she had to admit that she didn’t ever expect to see. With the chief medical officer gone, the Japanese woman realized that she was the team’s resident medical officer, which could be a bad thing if one of the asteroid’s residents decided to figure out if one of the Starfleet officers could be a tasty snack.

(To be continued...)

 

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