round 16 PNPC Lt JG Haylie Johnson -- Coffee and Math Are Fun

[+ Trellis Vondaryan]

((Science Lab 4, Deck 12 -- USS Za))

Johnson: You sure?
 
::Doctor man said he was fine but he sure didn't look it.::

Skyfire: Yeah. I just--

::He hesitated a bit too long. So she changed topic. If he didn't want to talk, he didn't want to talk.::
 
Johnson: Okay, so how do we prevent an outbreak here, eh?
 
DeVeau: Well, first thing, keep these things in containment. I would do double backups just in case.
 
::She nodded. Dangerous things needed containment. She didn't want to think about what might happen if these things got loose. The simulations they ran were quite enough.::
 
DeVeau: Next thing? I’d like to find a way to combat it, inoculate against it, something. We’ll need to study it further of course, but I want a way to deal with things should we run into this. If these people are now venturing out into space, they’re going to start interacting - after all, we’ve just met them. We’ll need to make sure this doesn’t become a problem.

Johnson: As I said before, cher, humanoid physiology is way too varied to create a complete cure. But maybe we can do something else. ::she tapped a finger on the console:: So what do you have?
 
DeVeau: I’ve only just started, so nothing yet, but with more brains added, I’m sure we’ll be able to figure something out between the two of us. Fortunately, these were caught by the transporter, so it’s not as if we have an issue on board at the moment.
 
Skyfire: No...but we may have a problem when the away team returns.

::Haylie narrowed her eyes. Trellis was on that away team. They would need a cure of some sort before then. She'd already lost too many family members to terrible accidents. And he was like family.::

DeVeau: Why?

Skyfire: They opted to take a shuttle down to the planet. Chances are that since we didn't get a chance to act with our guests while they were here, they couldn't provide us with any intel such as whether these things are a risk to our crew. To the best of my knowledge, nobody's given any concern to EVA suits either because we were still studying these things before we had a chance to recommend it.

DeVeau: :: groaning:: Please tell me you’re joking.

::She groaned. That didn't sound right.::

Johnson: I thought they beamed over, cher. But that's still at least four people, no?

Skyfire: Exactly.... The ones I know are on the away team include the captain, Vondaryan, Pandorn, and Blair. ::He paused and pinched the bridge of his nose.:: Computer, who of the Za's staff has ventured to the Pathfinder?

::The computer chirped its list of names. Haylie recognized almost all of the names, even the crewmen assigned to the engineering teams, though not that head of engineering himself. There were far too many people who might have been exposed. She let out a low whistle.

::Looking over at boss man doctor she was pretty sure he was still feeling a wee bit sick. She hoped he wouldn't be too laid up if it came to it.::

DeVeau: Computer, patch me through to the captain. =/\= DeVeau to Captain Rhani. =/\=
 
::There were many times she was glad she wasn't a senior officer. Having to deliver bad news like this was one of those times. So she mostly stayed quiet during the conversation, trying to run tests and analyze data as it came in.::

Rhani: =/\= Go ahead. =/\=

DeVeau: =/\= Please tell me you haven’t made it to the Pathfinder yet... =/\=

Rhani: =/\= Over an hour ago, Commander. =/\=
 
::Another low whistle as she listened. Had they been trying to figure out this cure for an hour already? Less than three days to get it all figured out.::
 
DeVeau: =/\=Captain, I need you to get out of there. The critter that was trapped in the buffers, it’s carrying a virus. I suspect that our new friends are immune to it, but if you exposed to it...let’s just say you won’t be around for much longer. =/\=
 
Vondaryan: =/\= I'm sorry, Commander, but we just can't do that. =/\=

Rhani: =/\= I doubt you’re exaggerating for effect, Commander, but how bad are we talking about? =/\=
 
DeVeau: =/\= It’s VERY bad. =/\=
 
::It seemed boss lady wasn't afraid to be blunt either. She knew there was a reason she and the lady got along so well.::

Skyfire: =/\= Eventually fatal if not reversed. =/\=
 
DeVeau: =/\= I recommend returning to the Za immediately. =/\=

::Now it was her to to be blunt. She knew how much Trellis needed information, so she gave it to him. No sugar coating needed.::

Johnson: =/\= Every test we've run says death occurs within 72 hours, cher. =/\=

Vondaryan: =/\= Then we've got almost 70 hours to continue our on mission. Thank you for the information. =/\=

Rhani: =/\= Commander Vondaryan’s blissful confidence notwithstanding, some sort of countermeasure would be a remarkably good thing for you to have by the time we get back. =/\=

::She knew her friend well enough to understand his optimism. He had a natural habit of seeing the best in people and things, despite everything he'd seen. She wasn't about to let him down now.::

Skyfire: =/\= Working on it, Captain. =/\=

Vondaryan: =/\= Well, call us when you have one then. =/\=

Johnson: =/\= Indeed, cher. You'll be the first to know. =/\=

::She was sure he could hear her smiling through the line. Like him she was wildly optimistic. Though many people liked to call it headstrong. She'd be damned if anything was going to stop her doing what she wanted to do. Consequences were for people who didn't know better.::

Rhani; =/\= Good hunting, people. And thanks for the warning. =/\=

DeVeau: =/\= But...=/\=

::Uh oh, boss lady was not happy. She sputtered. Boss doctor pinched his nose. He wasn't happy either. Leave it to her to be the only one to see the faith the senior staff had in them.::

DeVeau: I’m sorry, but I’m really irritated at them right now.

Skyfire: One of my simulations showed a beam-in with the critter becoming part of the crew's cellular structure. It may have a different effect dependent on physiology.

DeVeau: Well, yes, that’s a possibility, though usually that sort of thing happening is low on the list of possibilities.

Skyfire: Not at all, only simulation results and theory based on them. What I'm saying is that either Rhani or Vondaryan's physiology may react differently than a human's. An additional seven hours, perhaps. If we beam them in, we may not be able to filter out the creatures, because by that time it will likely have mutated into their cellular structure.

::That didn't sound good.::

DeVeau: We need to get to work. We have less than 72 hours to figure out how to beat this thing.

Johnson: Working on it already, cher. ::she noticed doctor boss man fidgeting.:: You have an idea already?

Skyfire: One idea only. Take the recipe for the Skyfire Cure and tailor it to reverse the virus' effects on the bug. It's not my greatest plan. The original formula is stored in the LCARS computer.

DeVeau: We can try it, but I’ll be honest, I don’t think it’s going to work.

::She pulled up the formula on her console to begin reading. Though she'd read it already it never hurt to brush up on the information. Her initial take was that it would take almost too much work to refine the cure.::
 
Skyfire: Your theory, Alora?

DeVeau: That virus is a totally different beast from this thing. Honestly, I think our time and energy would be better spent on tailoring whatever treatment we have to this particular virus.

Johnson: I agree, cher. There's too many differences I see already between the Skyfire cure and these little creatures here.

Skyfire: Right. It'll be a lot harder to create a serum from scratch, just so you're aware.

Johnson: We at least have the creatures to work with, no? And maybe the outline of the Skyfire cure as a guide. But everything always comes from scratch.
 
DeVeau: All right, let’s put our heads together…

::She turned back to her console, bringing up all the data they'd amassed so far.::
 
Johnson: This is everything we have, cher. Where you want to start?
 
DeVeau: What if we started by looking at the way it mutated?

Skyfire: It's a thought. How do you figure?

::A few commands later a long list of all the mutations between clones -- generations? -- was on the screen.::

DeVeau: I mean, if we were able to figure that out, then find a way to slow it down or stop it, it would give us more time, and possibly open the doors to an actual cure.

Johnson: It looks pretty random to me so far.

::She created an analysis algorithm to help crunch the numbers when she noticed boss doctor stood up, an isolinear chip in his hand.::
 
Johnson: This is just a cursory glance, though, no. ::she looked up at him:: Where you headed, cher?

Skyfire: Understood. I need some coffee if I'm going to be of any use...I've got the data. :: He holds up the chip. :: ...then heading to take it to sickbay to work. :: He glanced to Alora :: By your leave, of course.

DeVeau: All right.

Johnson: I could do with a cup of coffee myself. This is going to be a long night. ::Perhaps a few long nights.:: You want anything, cher?

::As doctor boss man left she went to one of the replicators to get the drinks. She inhaled the coffee, savoring its aroma before taking that first, beautiful sip. There was one thing she liked about her Vissian friend. They enjoyed the smell of food and drink much more so than their human counterparts. But she could never get him to enjoy the bliss that was coffee, despite its rich and gorgeous smell.::

DeVeau: A glass of chocolate milk, please. ::beat:: Never mind. Make that a chocolate milkshake. Extra chocolate.

Johnson: Should we pull in the whole science crew on this, cher? As you said, fresh eyes don't hurt nothing. ::smiling widely:: Though I think between you, me and doctor man we can get this done in time.

DeVeau: It would hurt, but...I hope so. Still, I don’t want to overlook anything, or miss the opportunity to find the answer faster. That might be worth calling in more people.

::Her console beeped. The algorithm had completed its cycle. She looked at it quizzically. Just in time for doctor boss man to come back in with his own steaming mug of deliciousness and a set of medical tools.::

Johnson: Oh, that's some good information, cher.

DeVeau: What is it?

Johnson: According to this, the mutations seem random at first glance. But the genes are actually mutating according to the golden ratio.

Skyfire: So that means...?

::She shook her head.::

Johnson: All I know is that these little critters have every 1.618th gene mutating each generation. Though they have a lot of genes, that might help explain some of the redundancies.

--
Lt JG Haylie Johnson
Xenobiology Specialist
Simmed by:

Lieutenant Commander Trellis Vondaryan
First Officer
USS Za
O239208TV0