Ranul Keru (ranul) wrote in star_trek, @ 2009-07-20 00:48:00 |
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Entry tags: | arboretum, lihana, ranul |
Who: Ranul Keru and Lihana Jall
Earth Date: April 5, 2382
Where: Arboretum
What: Trills Unite
Rating: PG
Status: Complete
When the senior staff meeting was over, Ranul made his way to the main science lab. He greeted the staff that was lingering about and told them they already had a job to do. After settling in his office, he ran a few checks on the sensor array then quickly decided he had no desire to start working so soon after setting foot on the vessel for the first time. He rubbed his hands together, looking over his desk thoughtfully, then grabbed a few PADDs — so he could say he was running diagnostics or something — and headed for the arboretum. Rhyst had mentioned that some of the plants he had cultivated were showcased and Ranul wanted to see them for himself. As it turned out, there were two arboretums on the ship, one on either side of the primary hull. He chose one at random and followed the corridors to the large, arched doorway. Like most things on the ship, the arboretum was even larger than he expected it to be. The room was tall enough to encompass full grown trees and the landscape reminded him of the gardens at Starfleet Academy. On the far side of the room were five enormous windows. Ranul whistled appreciatively, wandering a few tentative steps inside. Helping T'Vraeya go through all of the personnel files had been a tedious task, and Lihana was glad to see it done. The new CMO had invited her to the ship's bar for refreshments later, but Lihana needed to stretch her legs first, and the arboretum seemed like an excellent place to do just that. It was everthing she'd hoped it would be, bustling with life, full of color, and fragrant with the scents of the plants and flowers. The ponds reminded her of the gardens that Malor had, many years before, and she recognized an herb that Zelah had used in her holistic medicinal practices. She'd taken her time thoroughly exploring the vast garden, resisting her temptation to pick a few of the flowers for her room. Lihana planned on returning with a satchel of art supplies to paint the flowers instead, so others could enjoy their beauty. Her survey eventually lead her to the towering windows, where she pauesd to simply absorb the beauty of the stars. It never got old to her, and she knew that even if she spent the duration of her lifetime in space, the sight of the stars outside her window would still fill her with awe. Ranul heard footsteps somewhere behind some bushes and for a moment felt as though he was trespassing on someone's property. Wait a minute, he thought. I'm a senior officer; the third in command! I can go anywhere I damned well please! He puffed out his chest as if daring some invisible onlooker to object and started walking confidently down the winding path. The sound of approaching footsteps drew Lihana out of her silent musing, causing her to look down the path. Even though shehad become less of a naturally outgoing person since her joining with the placid Jall symbiont, Lihana still enjoyed meeting new people. Of course, on a ship this size, and in her medical position, it was inevitable that she'd eventually meet many fresh faces. Unexpectedly, the man that rounded the corner bore the distinct spots of a Trill. Not anyone she recognized immediately, but there was no telling when it came to who your previous hosts might've known, or who might've known them. Lihana smiled and turned to address him. "It's a nice day for visiting the arboretum," she said once he'd approached within earshot. "Day and night are relative on a starship," Ranul replied with a smirk. "I hope I'm not disturbing you," he said, undermining his earlier confidence. "But I'd say anytime is a good time for a visit. In fact..." Ranul glanced around to see if he recognized any of Rhyst's varieties. "A close friend of mine is a botanist who donated some plants..." he trailed off and shook his head. "And I forgot to introduce myself again. I'm Ranul. Ranul Keru." "Of course," Lihana said with a grin, concerning the relativity of time. That was true. She just figured it was still day, or at least early evening, considering she'd just left her shift. It was always dark outside, though. She was about to comment on Ranul's assertion that a friend of his donated to the garden, but then he introduced himself so she extended her hand instead. "It's nice to meet you Ranul, I'm Lihana--" Ranul smiled warmly and shook her hand. A jolt of recognition struck him as their flesh came into contact, filing a portion of his mind with a new awareness. A name. "Jall. You're hosting the Jall symbiont," He said and his grin widened. "Well now, you're just a baby!" Lihana couldn't help the look of surprise that crossed her face. "That's right," she said, "I'm Lihana Jall. How'd you know that?" Part of her took issue with being called a baby, but she knew that as far as symbionts went, Jall was rather young. Some grew to be thousands of years old, and three or four hundred years wasn't much in comparison. In fact, Ranul had encountered symbionts that were several hundreds of thousands of years old, and from what Ezri Dax had told him, there were some even older, living deep in the pools of Mak'ala. However, those symbionts were much too large to be joined with a host and most Trill were unaware of their existence. Ranul shook his head and chuckled. "I'm sorry. I forget how startling that can be. I was a Guardian for several years. We develop sensitivity to the bioelectric pulses that the symbionts use to communicate." Lihana's face lit up at that information. That made sense, then. Guardians were always quirky types, considering they spent years living in caves, tending to the symbionts. He seemed nice, though, and she was happy to meet another Trill so soon after arriving on the Odyssey. She could already tell that they would become fast friends. "That's quite all right," she said, "you just surprised me! I am glad to meet you, though." "I like to be unpredictable," Ranul replied with a mischevious twinkle in his eye. "And it's nice to meet you as well, although you should probably call me 'Commander' if anyone else is around. I don't have much zest for Starfleet regulations anymore, but we might get in trouble otherwise." "Of course," Lihana said again, this time with a knowing grin. She'd heard through the grapevine that the first officer was something of a stickler, which was generally a good thing, although it tended to be more amusing to her than anything else. Having lived over three lifetimes at this point, Lihana appreciated rules but knew that they could hurt and alienate people instead of help form cohesion when not applied correctly. "I'm the ship's head surgeon, by the way," she said, "so in case you ever find yourself in the infirmary, I'll be there to help treat you." "Well, no offense, but I hope that never happens. You understand, I'm sure." Ranul shifted his weight and glanced around the immediate area. "I think I'm going to keep searching for the plants I'm looking for, if you'd like to join me..." "None taken. Not that I don't enjoy my work, but I much prefer when there is no demand for my expertise." When Ranul invited her to tour the garden with him, Lihana smiled. "Certainly. I might've seen it already; I've been here for a little while. Everything in the garden is extremely beautiful. I'll probably visit the second arboretum tomorrow." "Did you happen to see any signs indicating cultivars by Rhyst Hawk?" Ranul asked, leading the way down one of the winding paths. "I suppose I could just ask the computer for the information," Ranul sighed, but the walk was really more enjoyable than talking to the ship. Lihana shook her head. "I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention to the signs. Do you know what the plant looked like? I would remember that part." "Hmm, no, I don't know which varieties he chose to donate," Ranul replied, sounding distracted as he took in the sights. "Actually, I don't have a catalogued memory of all the varieties he created. We might walk right past them if they're not labeled. I'm sure they will be, though. Rhyst is very respected and well known in his field." "I'm afraid I don't know much botany beyond Trill plants and their medicinal value," she admitted. "My previous host, Zelah, was a doctor well-versed in alternative forms of medicine. There are actually several Trill plants in the arboretum, so in case we run out of medicine in sickbay I'll know where to look." "I don't have much of a green thumb," Ranul confessed. "I can keep plants alive well enough, but I don't do much gardening. Not much grows inside the Mak'ala caves after all." As they spoke, Ranul continued to scan the area around them. "I don't see anything familiar," he said with a sigh. He gave Lihana a sidelong glance. "So, you... must have been joined shortly before the riots," he said after hesitating for a moment. A small nod was her initial reply, then an extended pause. "I was one of the last few," she said eventually. "I was fortunate. Both of my parents were on the planet at the time, but neither of them are joined so they weren't harmed. It's sad that things ended up the way they did. All of the lives that were lost... it was truly tragic." Lihana smiled sadly and met Ranul's eyes. "I'm sure it was a trying time for you, as a Guardian." "Yes, that's true." The image of the bodies of dead symbionts floating on the surface of the pools of Mak'ala was an image he would never forget. "Mak'ala came under direct attack. I was the only Guardian with any combat experience. Luckily the police force had already stationed outside. I wish we could have known they would use a neurogenic weapon. A friend of mine lost someone very close to her in that attack." Ranul wasn't sure why he had brought up this particular topic. Perhaps because the events had been so surreal that talking to another Trill about them confirmed that it had actually happened. "I'm sorry to hear that," Lihana said softly, genuinely sad for the loss. As a healer, she keenly felt the pain of others in a personal way. Zelah Jall had been much more of a bleeding heart than even she was, and that carried over as well. Those attacks had been so unnecessary and avoidable, and many people suffered so much because of them. Not to mention that the Trill people had subsequently been forced to abandon thousands of years of tradition to save face with the Federation... indeed, it was a sensitive topic, and one that Lihana was sure she wouldn't have been comfortable discussing with most people. She felt at ease with Ranul, though, despite having just met him. "There really is no way to console someone after a loss like that, but really, all there is to do now is learn from this and move on. I hope that Trill is able to foster a deeper understanding within the Federation concerning the nature of the symbionts. I hope that future generations of Trill will be able to experience the process of joining. I hate to think that I'll be the last host that Jall will ever have." "I'm sure they will some day," Ranul replied. "Maybe not within our lifetimes. The symbiont population is still so low. President Maz — I mean President Durghan put a halt to future joinings so the population could grow; and to keep symbionts from turning into some sort of black market commodity. I believe the intension was always to reinstate it some day in the future." Lihana certainly didn't want to see the symbionts turned into objects that could be purchased through unscrupulous means, rather than life partners earned through hard work and careful selection. Even if the government had been misguided in hiding the truth of the general population's ability to be joined, they were correct in enforcing the idea that joinings weren't to be handled lightly. It was a privilege, not a right. "Do you think you'll ever return to Trill to continue your work as a Guardian?" Ranul pursed his lips and thought for a moment. "That's a good question. I originally became a Guardian because I needed an ... escape, I suppose you could say. Maybe when I finally decide to retire from Starfleet I might return. But the time I spent there served it's purpose and it's time to move on." That was reasonable. One didn't have to spend their entire life in a single field or career. Lihana loved being a surgeon, but she knew she'd eventually retire and move on to new and varied experiences. "Well," she said, "for now, I'm glad that you're on board. I'm sure we'll be seeing a great deal of each other." Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a plaque at the base of one of the plants they were walking by and she paused to examine it. "Is this what you're looking for?" Ranul dropped to one knee to take a closer look at the plaque that Lihana had pointed out. This section donated by Rhyst Hawk of Bradbury City, Mars. "Good eye," he said to Lihana, grinning. He had forgotten to look for the plants once the topic of conversation had turned to more serious matters. Standing, he cocked his head to take in the scene. "They look a bit droopy to me," He said, making a moue of concentration. "I think it's the gravity. They were developed for Martian gravity." He jumped up and down slighty. "This is a lot more like Earth." "Maybe they could adjust the gravity in this area to meet the plants' needs?" she asked as she crouched down next to Ranul and looked at the plants. "They're lovely, though. It looks like a lot of care went into their creation." "True. I'll have to talk to... someone. Engineering, I guess." He shot Lihana an apprehensive look. "I'm not sure what's going on with them. Hopefully they get sorted out soon." It didn't occur to him that Lihana might not be aware of the difficulties that seemed to have arisen in the engineering department. "Sorted out? What happened?" Indeed, she hadn't heard any word of trouble, since the gossip mill wasn't up to full speed yet and she wasn't an avid participant in any case. "Is there something wrong with any of the equipment?" Ranul's eyes widened. Oops, he thought. "Um, no, nothing wrong with the equipment." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "The Chief Engineer was relieved of duty earlier today," he explained. "I'm not certain why thought. I haven't had a chance to get nosey." Lihana's eyebrows rose as she made an expression of understanding. That was rather unfortunate, and she said as much. "I wonder if it was a misunderstanding or something bigger going on," she added. It went without saying that she wanted to know if Ranul heard anything about it later on. "I'll let you know," Ranul replied with a smirk. He looked up at the ceiling mid-sentance. The lights were dimming and the holographic representation of sky was beginning to turn from day to night. "I guess we're out awfully late." "That it is." She stood and took another good look around the garden, enjoying the simulated sunset It wasn't as beautiful as the ones back home, but she made a note to come and see it as often as her schedule permitted. "I probably ought to be headed to my quarters, in that case." "Ah yes, me too," Ranul replied thoughtfully. "Morris is probably having a fit since I didn't have time to feed him before getting called to the bridge." "Morris?" If it was someone he had to feed, maybe it was a child? Or perhaps a pet? "The furry little beast I brought on board with me," Ranul explained. "Luckily for me 'having a fit' means he'll be hiding under the bed for a few hours." "Oh! I never had a pet. My first host, Priya, had several, but my parents never let me own any animals growing up." Mostly because Lihana had been such a spitfire and wouldn't have taken much care of any creature they might've procured for her. Luckily she'd mellowed since then, and the addition of Jall had rendered her quite mellow in the end, though some of her more outgoing tendencies remained. Walking with Ranul toward the main entrance, she figured they'd be parting ways shortly. The artificial sun was now completely set, and the stars shone brighter for it. "I am glad to have met you," she told him. "I wasn't sure how many other Trill I'd meet onboard." "Oh! I never had a pet. My first host, Priya, had several, but my parents never let me own any animals growing up." Mostly because Lihana had been such a spitfire and wouldn't have taken much care of any creature they might've procured for her. Luckily she'd mellowed since then, and the addition of Jall had rendered her quite mellow in the end, though some of her more outgoing tendencies remained. Walking with Ranul toward the main entrance, she figured they'd be parting ways shortly. The artificial sun was now completely set, and the stars shone brighter for it. "I am glad to have met you," she told him. "I wasn't sure how many other Trill I'd meet onboard." "I'd be willing to bet there are a few more around somewhere," Ranul replied with a friendly smile. "Which is interesting since there were hardly any of us in Starfleet only a few decades ago. Only a select few were even aware of the process of joining. Funny how things change so quickly." "I'm sure," she agreed. "It was just fortuitous circumstance that we met on the first day." The door leading to the rest of the ship opened and cast the hall's ambient light into the otherwise starlit arboretum. Out of the doorway, she politely nodded her head in acknowledgement of Ranul. "Well Commander," she said as a crewman passed, "it was certainly enjoyable to make your acquaintance. I'm sure we'll see each other again soon." |