Season 2 Episode 3: Monsoon Season

[Michael J. Tritter]

[Location: Command Deck]

Tritter had been stationed in the Center Chair, as the Captain had been recovering from their encounter with the drugs of their previous mission. Things had been a bit hectic since their previous mission. They had been focused on rooting out the criminal element that had been thriving on the Base. It was slow and methodical work, but they had gotten a good start and would keep at it. He wanted to make this a safer place for his family, and for the other families on-board the base. He had been reviewing the records from the arrests and reports for the criminal elements that had been targeted on the Station. For once, he had been relieved his family was off the Station, but he still missed them terribly.

He than shifted his focus back to work, the bridge Officers worked in a quick and efficient fashion at all their tasks, but there wasn't nothing of note... At least not yet and he appreciated that. He than heard a giggling and than a young girl started running towards him. He looked over towards his right and he noticed their young AI bounding towards him.  They had "bonded" over their last mission, and they had become an odd Father/Daughter pair, it was a bit of a unique situation. She pulled on the Executive Officer's pant leg and said "Mander Twitter! We had soo much fun, can we do that again?"

Tritter chuckled quietly at her, for her challenges, she made things a bit less hard on him, he than added "Perhaps in the future little one, some quiet is good", his heavily accented voice addressed her in a calm and relaxed fashion, although his accent added a unique quirk to his statement to her. She looked confused at the Executive Officer, but she started to prance around the Command Deck, as she liked all the colors and shiny screens, she was a typical curious and active four year old.

[Leanna Mazal]

[Puzzles - Dining Area]

If you looked hard enough you could spot the Bar's owner sat at one of the corner booths hidden from view and that's the way they had been designed to give the occupants some privacy away from the hustle and bustle of the main area. However if Leanna had her way she would still be in her office if it wasn't for Seamus being concerned about her and how he wouldn't take no for an answer until she reluctantly agreed to come out and eat something. He did however make a compromise and so this is where she had been for the last half an hour.

Maggie had brought her a selection of her favourite foods to eat along with a tall glass filled with an ice cold smoothie and Leanna didn't have to use her abilities to know that Seamus wasn't the only one who was concerned. She also knew that they would give her the space she needed so she had been left alone to eat and drink without any interruptions.

Leanna didn't like feeling this way but ever since her return from being undercover and reliving more of her past, she hadn't been her normal self and uncharacteristically quiet. Perhaps it was seeing the way Jenna had almost died from an overdose of Euphoria or finding Wolf in the state he was left in. Then again it could be a combination of those things if it wasn't for the dark cold evil voice that had plagued her especially when she let her defences down. It had haunted her ever since and of course it had reminded her of a certain someone but according to her sources he was still incarcerated without the chance of parole.

That should of been a reassurance but she knew she had to heal and move on otherwise she was going to end up on the dark road to despair and destruction something she had wanted to avoid after escaping from Matthias the first time. No she needed to keep her mind clear and regain more control over her abilities and not leave herself so open and vulnerable unless she was with someone she could trust. But for now she returned to her food then she would go back to dealing with the reports and inventory and was already looking forward to the quiet.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Docking Bay]

It was a captain's prerogative to inspect his base, and one that Adeyemi's predecessor hadn't exercised nearly enough, in his mind.

He stood by a cargo terminal, arms crossed over his sinewy chest, watching a crew of civilians unload crate after crate of something that required delicate handling. Food, probably, but there was only one way to know for sure.

"Drink, captain?" The grizzled old freighter captain wore a scarred pilot's jumpsuit, a mute testament to a life in space. He was carrying a slim bottle filled with a cloudy yellow liquid and two disposable glasses.

Ordinarily, Adeyemi was not one to drink alcohol on duty, but among civilians the regulations were more relaxed. This cargo captain had no oath to Starfleet to keep him in line; if he didn't like the attitude of the Station's CO he could take his cargo elsewhere. While Adeyemi didn't think he would, as the Columbus was the busiest port in the sector, he didn't want to be so cavalier. The Federation depended upon this kind of commerce.

The other captain was filled up the glasses. "From Forcus III. It's called a 'Sunset.' Let me know if its too sweet."

Too sweet was an understatement. Adeyemi was nearly gagging on the cloying flavor. He somehow drained the cup.

"What are you hauling?" He asked, to head off a refill.

"Fish, I think. Hey, Jimmy!" The captain yelled at one of his crew. "Bring that over here, crack it open for the captain."

A crewman deposited a crate in front of the two offers and unceremoniously opened it.

Adeyemi has expected something frozen, but what he saw was a collection of live, alien fish swimming about. He peered closer. They were ugly: huge jaws, two sets of eyes, and strange frills along their sides...

"Woah!" One of the animals had launched itself into the air, causing Adeyemi to fall down onto his butt on the deck. Nimbly, the freighter captain caught it, put it back in the crate, and laughingly waved away the crewman.

"Sorry, captain, couldn't help myself. That's the oldest trick in the book when you're running these things." The grizzled man was barely containing himself. "They're mean little suckers. Fighting fish. They're so aggressive that they'll fly through the air at anything nearby. That's why they're kept in the dark until fight time."

"I see," Adyemi mustered what dignity he had left and stood. "Carry on, captain."

"Oh come now, cap--" The man was saying in response to Adeyemi's tone.

"I hate to break this up, Captain Adeyemi," A junior officer in red said, approaching the group. "But Admiral Kirok's shuttle has just landed. He's requesting your presence."

"Duty calls, I guess." The freighter captain called out, much to the delight of his crew. "I'll be watching the fights on the Lower Promenade later today if you care to join me."

"Let's get out of here, ensign," Adeymei said to the officer. "Take me to the admiral."

[Kirok]

[Docking Bay]

It was a captain's prerogative to inspect his base, and one that Adeyemi's predecessor hadn't exercised nearly enough, in his mind.

He stood by a cargo terminal, arms crossed over his sinewy chest, watching a crew of civilians unload crate after crate of something that required delicate handling. Food, probably, but there was only one way to know for sure.

"Drink, captain?" The grizzled old freighter captain wore a scarred pilot's jumpsuit, a mute testament to a life in space. He was carrying a slim bottle filled with a cloudy yellow liquid and two disposable glasses.

Ordinarily, Adeyemi was not one to drink alcohol on duty, but among civilians the regulations were more relaxed. This cargo captain had no oath to Starfleet to keep him in line; if he didn't like the attitude of the Station's CO he could take his cargo elsewhere. While Adeyemi didn't think he would, as the Columbus was the busiest port in the sector, he didn't want to be so cavalier. The Federation depended upon this kind of commerce.

The other captain was filled up the glasses. "From Forcus III. It's called a 'Sunset.' Let me know if its too sweet."

Too sweet was an understatement. Adeyemi was nearly gagging on the cloying flavor. He somehow drained the cup.

"What are you hauling?" He asked, to head off a refill.

"Fish, I think. Hey, Jimmy!" The captain yelled at one of his crew. "Bring that over here, crack it open for the captain."

A crewman deposited a crate in front of the two offers and unceremoniously opened it.

Adeyemi has expected something frozen, but what he saw was a collection of live, alien fish swimming about. He peered closer. They were ugly: huge jaws, two sets of eyes, and strange frills along their sides...

"Woah!" One of the animals had launched itself into the air, causing Adeyemi to fall down onto his butt on the deck. Nimbly, the freighter captain caught it, put it back in the crate, and laughingly waved away the crewman.

"Sorry, captain, couldn't help myself. That's the oldest trick in the book when you're running these things." The grizzled man was barely containing himself. "They're mean little suckers. Fighting fish. They're so aggressive that they'll fly through the air at anything nearby. That's why they're kept in the dark until fight time."

"I see," Adyemi mustered what dignity he had left and stood. "Carry on, captain."

"Oh come now, cap--" The man was saying in response to Adeyemi's tone.

"I hate to break this up, Captain Adeyemi," A junior officer in red said, approaching the group. "But Admiral Kirok's shuttle has just landed. He's requesting your presence."

"Duty calls, I guess." The freighter captain called out, much to the delight of his crew. "I'll be watching the fights on the Lower Promenade later today if you care to join me."

"Let's get out of here, ensign," Adeymei said to the officer. "Take me to the admiral."

[Shuttle Bay]

Kirok had arrived in the shuttle bay just minutes before.  It was one of those special occasions that he had come to look forward to.  The promotion of someone who strongly deserved it.

Unlike the last time, he had made no secret about his coming.  But unlike the last time, a madman was not out to kill him.  So, there was that.

And even though most the Discovery's missions of late had turned into major battles, he had still somehow found a way to use diplomacy and find peaceful solutions.  And that a good in his eyes.  Beyond that, the fleet was stronger than ever.

Kiork asked the pilot to start shutting down the systems.  And waited till he saw Malcolm enter the room.  Then he asked that the door be opened.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Shuttle Bay]

Kirok had arrived in the shuttle bay just minutes before.  It was one of those special occasions that he had come to look forward to.  The promotion of someone who strongly deserved it.

Unlike the last time, he had made no secret about his coming.  But unlike the last time, a madman was not out to kill him.  So, there was that.

And even though most the Discovery's missions of late had turned into major battles, he had still somehow found a way to use diplomacy and find peaceful solutions.  And that a good in his eyes.  Beyond that, the fleet was stronger than ever.

Kiork asked the pilot to start shutting down the systems.  And waited till he saw Malcolm enter the room.  Then he asked that the door be opened.

[Shuttle]

The junior officer indicated the shuttle in question, and when the door opened left without a word.

Adeyemi entered the craft and made note of its occupant. He knew Admiral Kirok by reputation, not by sight. But there was no mistaking the pips or the almost human look of determination in the Vulcan's eyes. Kirok was formidable officer by any measure, and his presence here could not be taken lightly.

"Admiral, welcome to the Starbase Columbus." Adeyemi said. Though he spoke fluently in the tongue of his youth, the UT always had trouble rendering his accent correctly. It was a mixture of Ngerian and King's English and a touch of pidgin. It certainly didn't sound like the voice of a 50 year old man in the prime of his Starfleet career, a veteran of many engagements and diplomatic showdowns.

"What can I do for you, sir?" He asked bluntly, with all the grace of a charging warthog.

[Auzual Knox]

[Somewhere around the Station]

As per her daily schedule, at 0700 hours Knox was deep in thought during her run. Her hair was pulled back into a top knot, the black and black mesh running uniform tight against her frame though her uncovered arms free to move. The Station was officially her home now, and she knew it well. Earlier in the year it had been overwhelming, dealing with so many races and practices. Even with Sirzi's and Nazar's memories of their times as Ambassadors for Trill, it was still complicated to enforce Federation law in such a place where the majority of inhabitants were not ever Federation citizens. (As well as dealing conflicting diplomatic practices that each of her previous host preferred. She required more time in the spa to balance them within herself.)

"Commander."

Knox nodded to the Ensign as she passed by her.

That was something she was also having to get used to. For some reason, put a Knox in a position of power and it changes them. Knox had taken pride in the fact that when she was joined, unlike all of the other initiates, she knew who she was - it was as if she had always been Sirzi, Darzem, Jorzon, Izu and Nazar. However, since wearing the red uniform, something stronger within her was emerging and she could not quite place it. It was unearthing memories that she could not place and strange dreams that awoke her from sleep.

"Knoooooooooooooooooxxxx. There you are. Why haven't I seen you in my humble establishment of late?"

The Ferengi began to tweak his left lobe and smiled revealing rather pointed and disorganized teeth.

"Lem. We have gone over this before. Until you stop doing what you know and I know you are doing, I am not stepping one foot into your humble establishment. Gotta run!"

Underhanded dealings made Knox's mind go back to the aftermath of a rather messy top secret investigation on the Station. It was surprising to her that not a single Ferengi had been involved. Or at least no evidence had been found. And, StarFleet were happy that they got their man. A job well done. But at what cost? It was too high a price for Knox.

Hours after Klaws had been apprehended by Commander Tritter's excellent work, she found Ensign Reece on the floor of the Landing Strip. He had been made to take Euphoria against his will. Reece was good natured, though wound rather too tightly. The drug unwound him to his core. He was never the same again and subsequently had to resign his commission. The last Knox had heard he had relapsed.

[Kirok]

[Shuttle]

The junior officer indicated the shuttle in question, and when the door opened left without a word.

Adeyemi entered the craft and made note of its occupant. He knew Admiral Kirok by reputation, not by sight. But there was no mistaking the pips or the almost human look of determination in the Vulcan's eyes. Kirok was formidable officer by any measure, and his presence here could not be taken lightly.

"Admiral, welcome to the Starbase Columbus." Adeyemi said. Though he spoke fluently in the tongue of his youth, the UT always had trouble rendering his accent correctly. It was a mixture of Ngerian and King's English and a touch of pidgin. It certainly didn't sound like the voice of a 50 year old man in the prime of his Starfleet career, a veteran of many engagements and diplomatic showdowns.

"What can I do for you, sir?" He asked bluntly, with all the grace of a charging warthog.

[Shuttle]

Kirok offered the man a small bow as was his custom.  Adeyemi had not been at the station long.  But he had made an good impression.

"Please sit" Kirok said before he took the seat opposite the Captain.  "Your work here has been stellar and has caught the attention of Star Fleet.  I'm actually here to offer you a promotion and more responsibility" the half Vulcan said.

"I need someone to assist me with running Task Group Alpha.  It would entail supervision of the ships in the Task Group.   And we would be promoting you to Rear Admiral Lower Half" Kirok explained.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Shuttle]

Kirok offered the man a small bow as was his custom.  Adeyemi had not been at the station long.  But he had made an good impression.

"Please sit" Kirok said before he took the seat opposite the Captain.  "Your work here has been stellar and has caught the attention of Star Fleet.  I'm actually here to offer you a promotion and more responsibility" the half Vulcan said.

"I need someone to assist me with running Task Group Alpha.  It would entail supervision of the ships in the Task Group.   And we would be promoting you to Rear Admiral Lower Half" Kirok explained.

[Shuttle]

Adeyemi wasn't a sentimental man, but this took even him a moment to process. He'd been expecting such a call since the resignation of Admiral Lafayette, but to have it delivered personally...it was quite a thing.

"I accept, of course," He said. "Can I assume that this promotion comes with a mission assigned to it?"

He wasn't being snide. It was quite simply a fact: a flag officer would seldom appear simply to promote someone. There had to be more.

[Jenna McKinson]

[ Medical Bay - Exam Room 1]

Jenna sat patiently in the medical exam room awaiting the results of the many tests she came in for. He leg nervously moved as she waited. It was in this moment she wished Molly was there to be support. Molly and her had been working a lot more to help cover while she recouped from the chaos in the Landing Strip.

She could remember parts of it, but a lot turned out to be a blur for her. One thing that was consistant were the awful headaches. Normally she could easily push through any pain and move on, but these became crippling.  It was via her own gumption, and Molly's persistence, that she go see someone about it. She knew the toxins were out of her body, but beside the headaches, she worked through a lot of pain. She was ever so thankful to T'Prina who carried her to the medical bay and to Rixxy for stopping her and Molly from causing any more trouble. She had thanked Rixxy already, but was waiting on a gift to arrive to thank T'Prina properly.

She took deep breaths as she sat there. Though she liked the design of the Medical Bay itself, the headache that was pounding in her head and the seething pain in her eyes made her want to get out as quickly as possible. She was using her breathing techniques to calm herself down as she waited for the doctor. She needed to hold onto hope that maybe something was wrong with her so that it could be fixed. That or at least something given to her to soothe the pain.

[Daniel Howell]

Engineering - Chief Engineers office
Howell had fallen ill during the last mission and so had to withdraw from it, luckily without raising suspicion. He still felt under the weather, but frankly being in his quarters was driving him mad. He was face down on his desk, with a cup of coffee steaming away beside him on the left, and a stack of PADDS and a couple of engineering tools on the right. Surprisingly and rarely, there was actually very little for Engineering to do, so most officers were working on personal projects or conducting daily and weekly systems scans.

He had quite a lot of work to catch up, so lifting his head very slowly, he took a PADD and began to work through it.

[Michael J. Tritter]

[Location: Command Deck, Starbase Columbus and USS Gibson]

Tritter had been holding down the Command Deck when he noticed the Operations Officer turn and address him, "Sir, theres a communication incoming from Starfleet Admirality for you" He pondered for a moment and replied with "Put it through Lieutenant" He than shifted his focus onto the main screen. He saw a much older man looking back at him, they were a bit thin of face, with gray hair, somewhat dull blue eyes and a strong jawline. They were a much smaller man than the Executive Officer.

The Admiral's eyes shifted to focus on Tritter, the man than spoke "Good afternoon Commander." Tritter seemed a bit off put by it, he knew this wasn't a social call, but he replied with "Good afternoon Admiral" to the man. It would take a few moments before the Admiral replied with, "Commander, Starfleet has a new assignment for you and your crew" The screen than zoomed out, there was a hologram of a planet that appeared. The Admiral than pointed out the planet in relation to their current space. The Admiral than added "This is the planet Shotaka, there is a crisis headed their way involving an environmental catastophe, namely an acid rain event that will wipe them out. Get the Gibson and get on this Commander" Tritter pondered the request, it struck him as odd, weren't they not supposed to involve themselves in this. But he would than reply with "Aye sir" He than ended the Communication, rose to his feet, placing the highest ranking Officer, a Lieutenant Commander assigned to the Science Department in charge before he left.

He than proceeded to forward over orders for the required crew members to join him aboard the Gibson, he forwarded the orders directly to their PADDs. Tritter made a detour on the way for more... hardware, he didn't want to be left without, he had his trusty phaser pistol with him, but he proceeded to gather a phaser rifle to take with him. He also requested that they provide environmental suits capable of handling the acid rain, one per crew member if needed. Not long after, he would approach the Gibson. He was greeted by a Lieutenant from Flight Control who would be their pilot. He immediately recognized the female, Lieutenant Hikowa, she was one of his favorites, she had a no nonsense manner similar to his own and didn't get along with many, but she was all business, she knew her way around a ship and was one of hell of a pilot, she also was excellent with shipboard weaponry, not one to be messed with.

He than shifted his focus as he approached the Lieutenant, he than stated, "How are we are as far as preperations?" The Lieutenant than replied with, "Sir, we're locked and loaded, ready to fly at your command" Tritter appreciated her down to business nature and replied to her with, "Acknowledged, get on board, the rest of our crew should be here shortly" He would than follow her inside, he proceeded to duck to avoid hitting his head. This vessel was designed for midgets and was full of hazards for the seven foot tall man. He remained outside as the crew had started to filter over. Once they had arrived, Tritter looked them over and proceeded to give them the nuts and bolts of the mission. He addressed them with the following, "Our next mission is going to take us to a world that has not seen us before, called Shotaka, a planet that is soon facing an extinction level event of acid rain, and it is our job to save them. The orders have come down from Starfleet Admirality. Questions?" He looked around the crowd and gave them a few moments, there were no questions, either out of fear or something else, but either way, it was what it was. He than directed them to board the Gibson.

Tritter would be last and he was careful, to avoid hitting his head, this vessel was designed for midgets and it didn't suit him well. When he boarded and arrived in the Bridge, he had noticed that a full crew compliment had taken each of the stations. He proceeded to take the center chair, he than stated "Operations, go ahead and open the doors" He than turned to Lieutenant Hikowa, "Lieutenant Hikowa, get us out of here" was stated to the female in a heavy German accent, the female's thin and long fingers easily glided over the controls as she replied with "Aye Sir" as she proceeded to smoothly guide the Gibson out of the docking bay. Tritter had ordered the rest of the crew to get some R&R on the few day ride to the planet.

He on the other hand had spent a good bit of time in the center chair, but he had to be reminded that not sleeping would not be wise, so he did relinquish while sleeping and that was about it. Not long after he had returned to the Bridge and gotten situated, he than heard the navigation officer, an Ensign named Lovell address him, "Sir, we are approaching the planet, we should be ready to land in a few hours at current speeds" He than looked towards Lieutnenat Hikowa, he than stated, "Lieutenant, pull us out of warp as close to the planet as possible to not give us away", the Japanese female Lieutenant replied with "Aye Sir" Tritter than shifted his focus to Operations, "Ensign, go ahead and open a ship wide comm" The Ensign executed the directive while replying with "Aye Sir" to the Executive Officer.

A few moments later, the Executive Officer received confirmation that the comm was open "We are going to be on station to be planet-side in a few hours. Be ready, Tritter out" his heavily accented voice was deliberate, calm and focused as he delivered the message, he than directed the Operations Officer to close the comm. He than focused on the main windows of the ship, studying their surroundings, it was as if his mind got a bit lost in it, but each little noise pulled his mind back to the hear and now.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Passageway - USS Gibson]

Adeyemi had never served on a Nova class vessel before. It was a far cry from a starbase. The bulkheads pressed close. He had gone from commanding 50,000 people to a mere 80, in a ship that could fit into the smallest Columbus docking bay. Quite a change.

He passed a handful of enlisted men clustered by an open supply room, and heard raised voices. Adeyemi stopped walking and leaned against the bulkhead, out of sight, to listen.

"You're new to the Gibson. You pay your dues," A rough female voice was saying, coarsened by years of night shift work and hollering enlisted bullshit after hours in the barracks. "You don't come aboard and not clean the galley."

"You're in Starfleet. Have some respect." A man's voice said.

"But I didn't trash the galleyÁ¢â,¬""

The bulkheads echoed with the smack of flesh on flesh. A stifled cry of pain rang out almost simultaneously. A knifehand strike. Adeyemi knew a chop when he heard one, being a connoisseur of combat sports.

"You're new. You clean. Got it?"

"Got it."

The trio emerged: a brawny woman with a shaved head, a baby faced engineer and a young man who was nearly bubbling with a sob as he buttoned up his uniform over his chest. They'd stripped his top to deliver the maximum amount of pain.

"Admiral," The woman said respectfully, but her eyes were unrepentant and threatening.

"Morning, Chief." Adeyemi replied quietly. He couldn't openly approve, but knew such things happened, especially on a small ship like the Gibson. Nova crews had a lot of pride and their pecking order was old school, straight out of the early days of Starfleet. Adeyemi did pity any new crewman who had this as his first assignment.

"Orders, Admiral?" The chief asked.

"Carry on." Was all he said.

He found his way to to the Á¢â,¬Ëœlift, leaving the lower decks to be run how they should: by the men and women who crewed them.

[Bridge]

"Admiral on the bridge!" Called our the armed security officer by the turbolift.

" Adeyemi to all transferred Columbus crew. Take your stations here on the Gibson. "

"Good Work getting us underway, commander." Adeyemi told Tritter.

[Kirok]

[Shuttle]

Adeyemi wasn't a sentimental man, but this took even him a moment to process. He'd been expecting such a call since the resignation of Admiral Lafayette, but to have it delivered personally...it was quite a thing.

"I accept, of course," He said. "Can I assume that this promotion comes with a mission assigned to it?"

He wasn't being snide. It was quite simply a fact: a flag officer would seldom appear simply to promote someone. There had to be more.

[Shuttle]

"You get straight to the point.  Don't you" Kirok replied.  "I find that quite acceptable" he added with a slight tilt of his head.

"But yes, I do have a mission for you.  The planet Shotaka is in a nearby system.  The planet has a horrible pollution problem and is experiencing a rain storm never witnessed before.  We need someone to respond immediately and your base and ships are the logical solution given their proximity" he said.

[Leanna Mazal]

[USS Gibson - Main Lounge]

Leanna was currently knelt down underneath the counter refilling the cooler unit with more of the bottles of beer that most of the Gibson's crew seemed to prefer and she was all for keeping her customers happy whether it be in Puzzles or helping out on the ship. It still seemed a little surreal that she was here and not on the station but after a chance subspace call from her supplier of the rare liquor Mohaba had resulted in her calling in some favours with Starfleet especially after the undercover mission and was given passage on the Gibson.

So for the journey from Columbus she had spent most of her time organising the Lounge and making it more friendly for the crew and of course couldn't leave the station without bringing Rixxy along with her well had no choice really with how protective the Klingon was over her even more so after what had happened in the Landing Strip.

In a way she was glad that she was here and had to admit it felt good to be off the station for a few days knowing that her bar was in safe hands so one less thing to worry about. Glancing up at the chronometer decided to get a move on before the next shift change and continued refilling the cooler.

[Auzual Knox]

[Sickbay]

Just like so many times before, Knox made her way to Sickbay for the usual newest concoction of antibacterial, anti-insect, anti-fungal and anti-anything-on-the-planet that Knox could be allergic to or effected by. It was simply a way of life for a Trill. In order for the symbiont relationship to take, the host's secondary adaptive immune system had evolved to not target non-self antigens. On Trill there are very few microorganisms nor insects that pose a threat. As such, joining StarFleet meant many an inoculation for Knox.

She felt somewhat nervous, again as per usual. She missed Dr. Naira who had made her feel rather comfortable with the whole process, though Knox also missed her friend. They had spent the entire journey back from Xa'zii Prime together in the Gibson Sickbay. It had solidified their mutual admiration and respect for one another.

"Hello?"

Knox looked around the somewhat empty Sickbay. She then began speaking quietly to herself / the empty room.

"It's your resident Trill, Lt. Commander Knox reporting for the usual. Hmmmmmm, there are no large dog-like spiders on Shotaka are there? The inhabitants do not eat giant winged beetles do they? No new species of bacteria unknown to the Federation that shall make me turn into 5 men at once is there..?"

Knox turned around and smiled as she heard footsteps approaching her.