Gathering Clouds

Posted on Sat Apr 18th, 2020 @ 5:33am by Commander Areinnye t’Vraen

606 words; about a 3 minute read

Mission: Prologue: Before the Inferno
Location: I.R.W. Dominus
Timeline: Late December, 2386

T'Lan walked briskly into the Commander's office. He turned the report in his hand nervously a few times up the turbolift. The data he collected about the Caridia System proved promising.

Romulan and Gorn scientists found rich deposits of precious minerals on the surface of Caridia V. In fact, his Romulan science team spent much of their time on the surface of the planet checking the rich repository of existing data on the planet.

This made their job much easier, since they were checking the work of other scientists. They studied flora and fauna native to Caridia V. T'Lan was hoping that the results would please Commander t’Vraen.

"Good evening commander," he said, dryly. "I have prepared the report as you requested covering the Caridia System and the surrounding environs." He then handed her the report.

"The results are quite astounding. Some manipulation will be required to make Caridia V more comfortable for Romulan settlers. The surface temperature is only higher than the hottest summer days on Romulus. Perfect for Gorn settlers. I guess this is one of the reasons why they settled down on Caridia V."

"Fortunately, the Gorn had recorded a lot of data on the planet before our arrival. This made the job our job a little easier, although we did check their findings again to make sure they were accurate."

Areinnye arched a brow as she mulled over his words “And why, pray, is that something you find astounding?” She asked, scrolling through the data as she waited for his response.

"Well, with some modifications, it would be the perfect place for Romulan settle down on." he explained, "Telemetry from several scans of the surface found that there huge deposits of precious minerals down there."

That report is just the geological survey of Caridia V," he added, handing another PADD to the Commander.

"This is the astrometric report of the whole system. The Nebula has expanded by four kilometers since the Romulan Scout ship scanned this region of space two years ago. This is very rapid for nebulae of a similar size and density."

The Commander was nearly tempted to write the astronomical phenomenon off as unimportant, until something caught her eye. “T’lan, is there any known examples of a nebula expanding in just one area like this?” She asked. Gases nearly always expanded in the vacuum of space. But always in a general bloom, never in one area. And as this expansion grew larger, it also grew more dense. These two facts likely precluded natural events.

"No, there aren't any examples of nebulae expanding like this," he said excitedly. "I've been spending much of my free time studying the telemetry from the nebula."

Areinnye shifted in nervous frustration. This was a mystery she didn’t have time for. “Do you have any idea who or what could be making this occur?” She asked.

"Well, the readings did confirm that there is a considerable amount of exotic matter in the nebula, which could account for the nebula's rapid expansion," T'Lan said apprehensively. He saw Areinnye was growing agitated, so he chose his words carefully.

“Define exotic material” Areinnye asked flatly. Sensors were unreliable in most nebulae, a fact which vexed and occasionally aided the empire.

"Matter with unusual properties unexplainable given our current understanding of the universe," T'Lan stated. He had run out of conventional ways to explain the nebula's rapid expansion. He was hoping that the Commander would mark this nebula as a point of interest for further study. T'Lan was sure he was getting close to cracking the clue of the expanding nebula. He just needed more time.

RSS Feed