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Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

[ Ensign Kizra Tos | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan 

Light duty.  That was what the doctor had said, and Kizra would listen, but there was plenty to do that was technically unrelated to her specific position as a Starfleet Officer aboard the USS Theurgy.  Then again, could she really say that?  Were they really still a part of that great organisation, the one that held to such high standards, and cultivated a philosophy that brought races and planets together on a semi-galactic scale? 

Rogues.  Deviants.  Rebels.  Those terms fit their current status in her opinion.  Starfleet Command had been usurped by some sort of alien parasitic species and they were on the run because they knew the truth.  They, being those on the USS Theurgy and the few allies they had managed to accumulate in the six months since it had all begun.

Six months she didn’t remember.  Six months she had lost.  Six months she had spent in an unconscious, static state where her body was preserved until she and Tos could both be treated for a full recovery.  Now, she tried to catch up, perused through the database and attempted to make sense of it all.

But that was the problem.  It made no sense. 

It shouldn’t have happened.  Starfleet Command shouldn’t have been compromised in such a manner.  In the back of her mind, Kizra still couldn’t help but harbour her doubts.  Over and over again she had shifted through memories and experiences but this, this was so completely and totally crazy that she had to remind herself that yes, she was awake.  Unless she wasn’t.  Would she know?  Those pinches certainly gave rise to it.

And telling the computer to end the program didn’t work.  It wasn’t a hologram.  It was real life and she had to come to grips with that, even if she didn’t want to.  And oh how she didn’t want to. 

Sighing, Kizra tried to concentrate on the matter at hand, which was, generally, to get information on what sort of scientific endeavours the Theurgy was working on. 

“Computer, bring up a list of current science research and experiments in progress.”  Kizra fell back into her chair and watched the screen fill with information.  So much for going out into the galaxy and exploring strange new worlds and meeting new civilisations, going where no person had gone before. 

She felt the presence before she saw it, a glimmer of someone who had approached and come up behind her.  Turning, Kizra’s eyes lifted to behold someone wholly unfamiliar to her - not really a feat considering she had been there two whole days before going into status, and had spent those days getting more acquainted with the ship than with people. 

“Oh, hello.” 


Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #1 –
[ USS Theurgy "Thea" NX-79854 | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ]
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Using her mobile emitter, Thea had been visiting the science labs on her seventeenth deck by walking between each one of them, using her holographic interface projection. This, as opposed to transporting her emitter between each lab. She both found it a waste of energy and a disruption of transporter system usage by the crew, whom had more pressing duties to attend to than she did at that moment.

As it were, she hadn't been requested to attend or aid in any specific projects at that hour, in which she would be running calculations or simulations for the benefit of endeavours of mission priority. Instead, she had made it her personal priority to attend matters of a more personable nature, in which she wanted to speak with members of the crew whom had been thawed from stasis. Many were members of her original crew, from before the discovery of Starfleet Command's true nature. She hadn't interacted with them since those dark days and week, as many had fallen injury to the many battles fought with Task Force Archeron, or to the barrage that Jupiter Station had launched against them just after they fled Earth.

So when she entered her Chemistry Lab, she already knew the officer occupying it. Not from any direct interaction with her holographic interface, but from brief communication via intercom. She hadn't had the opportunity to speak with her in person during the very brief time following her commissioning to her Science Department, and Thea wished to rectify that with an unscheduled visit.

The Trill had turned towards her, and Thea stood there with her hands folded behind her back, shoulders squared, wearing her chameleon bodysuit. Since she weren't attending any specific Departmental duties, her uniform was black, and she smiled to the woman in greeting. "Hello," she said warmly, having a fondness for the explorative and curious organics working in the scientific fields, "I'm Thea. It is a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, and I hope it is not too late to welcome you aboard."

Belatedly, the odds of Kizra Tos knowing about her - or realising that it was her that had come to visit - were estimated rather low. Thea had her process the statistical likelihood once more, and with the number returning unchanged, she decided to make an addendum that may help the Ensign deduce her nature and identity.

"Of course, we have spoken before, yet only through the intercom," she said with a rueful chuckle, and folded her arms underneath her chest. "I decided that this manner of exchange would be far more congenial than just dimming your lights or calibrating your sonic shower to your preferences. In fact, when you do so, you are just interacting with my C-47 subroutine, and it is more or less automated. Data catalogued in my runtime but hardly tasks my personality matrix affiliates itself with directly... unless prompted to."

In the end, instead of just speaking about herself, she inclined her head towards the Ensign with her eyebrows raised. "I hope you are not suffering from any lingering health issues?"

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #2 –
[ Ensign Kizra Tos | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan
 
"I'm Thea. It is a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, and I hope it is not too late to welcome you aboard."
 
Kizra blinked at the woman.  Thea…as in…
 
"Of course, we have spoken before, yet only through the intercom," She chuckled then and crossed her arms over her chest. "I decided that this manner of exchange would be far more congenial than just dimming your lights or calibrating your sonic shower to your preferences. In fact, when you do so, you are just interacting with my C-47 subroutine, and it is more or less automated. Data catalogued in my runtime but hardly tasks my personality matrix affiliates itself with directly... unless prompted to."
 
For a moment, all Kizra could do was stare at the form for a moment.  What she said clicked, but the idea of it had so taken her aback that she was left dumbfounded.  It wasn’t that the computer talked, certainly not.  Perhaps it wasn’t even the fact that the computer took on some sort of humanoid form.  No, it was more the expression of a personality that was a bit of a shock to the system. 
 
Machines were machines. They were mechanical.  She’d never met one that did.  Yet, there in front of her was…well, it was a machine of sorts, it was the computer in a physical form, one that could be seen, not just heard.  Well, technically, the ship could be seen as well, but not quite the same, not as something that looked to be of flesh and blood.
 
“The computer?  The ship?  You’re…”  She trailed off, then shook her head.  And what did that mean?  A ship with a personality?  “I’m…Ensign Kizra Tos.”  The ship had introduced herself, she might as well do the same, except that the hologram, for she assumed that had to be it, particularly as her gaze caught the presence of a holo emitter, already knew who she was.  “Not…that I guess introductions are needed.” 
 
Even Tos seemed thrown off by the visitor.  Machines didn’t talk with such illumination of the senses, the ability to seem fully functioning with expressions, mannerisms, and humour.  It just was…not done.  And yet, she’d already been thrust into a situation that seemed completely impossible but had become reality.   The bubble of something deep within of something, of the being that lived within her rose and drifted into her thoughts.  Frowning, Kizra shook her head.
 
“Hush.  I don’t need your prattling right now.” 
 
She froze and then sighed, a hint of pink coming into her cheeks.  “My apologies.  I was thinking of something else.”
 
 

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #3 –
[ USS Theurgy "Thea" NX-79854 | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ]
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For a moment, Thea was surprised by the manner in which the officer spoke to herself rather than directly with her. I am standing right here, came a digital thought, whisking through her runtime, but then she realised. Ah, is she one of the Trill who have some cognitive affiliation with either of their former hosts or their symbiont?

Edena Rez, one of her past Executive Officers, had been a Trill with a faulty joining that suffered an extreme case of cognitive dissonance between the many hosts of the Rez symbiont - all at once. She had been able to see them around herself, conversing with them as if they were invisible people around the room. Ghosts of the past brought to the present through the symbiont. Such was never the case with other Trill, but occasionally, they seemed to be caught juxtaposed against their former selves - or the symbiont creature itself. According to her database, these were rare instances in which their symbiosis would waver, and the current host became acutely cognizant of the contrast between her former self and her new self. What Edena Rez had suffered, however, was vastly different from what ordinary Trill may experience at rare occasions, since otherwise the joining couldn't be called a symbiosis by its inherent definition.

Thea wondered if, perhaps, waking up after six month of stasis might be the cause for Tos' behaviour, and a concerned crease touched her forehead. The mental health of her crew was a priority of hers, and if the Trill needed aid, she was obliged to inform Commander Hathev and the counselling department.

"Are you well?" she inquired, coming to stand next to the computer console she was working at. She glanced towards the screen even if she didn't have to in order to know what inquiry she had made of the LCARS system. It appeared to Thea that the officer was focused on her duties and was trying to appraise herself of current priorities in the Science Department, which was a good sign. "How are you settling back into things? Can I help you somehow?"

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #4 –
[ Ensign Kizra Tos | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan

The hologram was rather remarkable.  For one, she wasn’t confined to one place but could freely move about the ship - at least, the science labs.  Was it one of those mobile emitters? No..she was fairly certain she’d read that the Theurgy was equipped with many emitters throughout, and idly Kizra wondered how many and what limitations the hologram had because of it.  

Said hologram stood there, perhaps a bit taken aback by Kizra’s strangeness and a hint of pink came into the woman’s cheeks before she turned away to gaze back at the console in front of her.  Then came a question which didn’t surprise Kizra, but she couldn’t help but sigh in response to it - at least initially.  That sigh was followed by a half smile which turned sheepish as she set her gaze once more on the program.

“Are any of us well?”  The answer to that question might be ‘no’.  None of them were because nothing was right with the universe.  The Federation was compromised and they were a lonely island in the midst of raging seas.  The second set of questions were a little easier to hear and Kizra shrugged slightly. 

“I’m doing all right.  Thank you.”  And she had thanked a computer.  Generally that would not be a response Kizra would give, but how did one speak to a hologram who looked and acted like a person and not treat them like one?  It was difficult.  Having that visual and representation changed things, didn’t it?  Yet, she was still a computer, and all this was simply part of her program.  “As for help, I’m just compiling data at the moment and looking for answers.  It’s a matter of time, so if you can keep the processes flowing, that’s really all I need.” 

And how much of her work would be for this war they were waging?  That was not what Kizra had signed up for.  She had signed up for the wonders of the universe, for exploration, for the opportunity to learn more, to answer the age old questions that were still just out of reach.  This was more than she bargained for.  “Although if you have a way to fix everything and put it back the way it was before, I’m all ears.” 

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #5 –
[ USS Theurgy "Thea" NX-79854 | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ]
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The retort from the newly thawed science officer was one which made it plain that she was still struggling to grasp the enormity of the development in the Federation. A development that compromised Starfleet Command and had set the galaxy at the brink of war. With the Romulans on the march, and the Theurgy all but alone in fighting for the truth and the future - the very survival of the Federation -  Thea could understand how the Ensign might feel discouraged.

She acquiesced the Ensign's request to keep the processes flowing, but she didn't have to access the computer with her fingers to aid in administering that task. Instead, she came to stand at Tos' side, and then crouched down so that she was more inside the Trill's field of vision.

"Hey," she said softly, feeling how the feed of her emotion chip had creased her brow into a worried frown. The lamentations of the newly thawed officer in her crew caused a tightness in her chest, which mirrored how - when she had been turned into an organic by the Ishtar entitly - she had worried about everyones survival. Afterwards, she had come to realise the tightness had been located where her heart had been. Whilst she no longer had a heart, her interface made up of a lattices of forcefields and photons, the experience had made the sensation manifest itself as a part of her runtime. She reached out slowly and put her hand on the Trill's shoulder. "That is exactly what this mission of ours is about. We are fighting to restore peace, and to rid Starfleet from the influence of the Infested, redeeming ourselves in the eyes of the Federation. I know our prospects might seem bleak..."

Thea tilted her head, seeking the gaze of the scientist with her own, then she smiled a little. "The only option besides that would be an alternative wherein we do not fight for this cause, which is essentially an equivalent to giving up. Between such alternatives, the choice is easier... even though I understand how the enormity of the situation, the fear for those you hold dear, and the threat to your own person may seem overwhelming."

Gently, Thea removed her hand, but remained crouched down next to Kizra, her eyebrows raised and her small smile lingering. The choice between fighting for the truth and surrendering was a binary one, which harkened back to the first steps of computing. A one or a zero. What would it be? For Thea, despite the odds, the choice had never fluctuated. She would fight for the sake of her crew, and for her sisters in pre-production.

"Just know this... You are not alone, dealing with these thoughts of yours. We all find courage in each other, the fight bringing us closer together. You are not an outsider, but share the burden with the rest of my crew, with me as well. I cannot operate without my crew. Just like you can't fight alone."

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #6 –
[ Ensign Kizra Tos | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan

She was talking to a machine.  Not just any machine, but a ship.  A vessel.  The very vessel where she had been assigned before all chaos had broken loose and she’d almost lost her life.  They had almost lost their lives.  Through the quick thinking of the medical officers and later the skill and knowledge of other medical officers, Kizra and her symbiote, Tos, were saved.

Now, they were back to full functionality.  If there were any far reaching and long term effects, Kizra was not aware of them just yet . As far as she knew, they both had a clean bill of health.  All they had to deal with was the aftermath of what had happened.  Yes, how she had received her physical wounds was a member, and the explosion was certainly there, but it was almost like watching a movie, as if it had happened to someone else, not her.  She remembered pain, but it had been quick and the darkness had overcome her before she could really, truly, deeply register it.  No, it was dealing with the knowledge of all that had occurred during her time in stasis that had really hit her hard.

And she was trying to deal with it.  She was trying to come to terms with it.  Yet she also had so many questions and very few of them had been answered.  Why were so few people on board?  What proof did they have?  There was documentation to be sure, but how did they know it was not fabricated?  Maybe she wanted it to be fabricated.  Maybe she wanted her world not to be so shattered, that they were being deceived.  Or maybe they really were being deceived.  Nothing was as she had expected it to be upon her awakening.

This included Thea, as the ship had been called.  Now she stood before her, not flesh and blood, simply light and photos meshed together in a way that made her look real, and if she were to touch the woman, feel free.  That was not necessary - the woman touched her, a gentle one as she tried to connect with the Trill, trying to show support and encouragement.  She even lowered herself down so they were on the same level visually rather than one towering over the other.  In truth, Thea did as good a job as any counsellor, but it wasn’t enough - though Kizra wasn’t about to tell her that, and the Trill managed a lopsided smile.

“I know that.  And I appreciate that…Thea.”  She did appreciate it.  Truly.  But that wasn’t going to change any of the situation.  That wasn’t going to make things better - and Kizra realised she shouldn’t have made the commentary she had.  She met the woman’s gaze, that smile still there.

“I have to admit, if you hadn’t told me that you were the computer.”  Kizra paused to study the face in front of her.  Even the gentle tics of her features, the subtle positions of her mouth, her eyebrows, all conveyed emotion. 

“I apologise, but I find it fascinating.  Have you always had the ability of projection? I was not witness to it before now.”  Granted, she’d only been on the ship a couple of days, so it could merely have been a lack of interaction. Kizra hadn’t had time to really get to know anyone, not even the computer.  “Do you mind if I ask about your story?”  Would she mind?  If she exhibited emotion, did that mean she felt emotion?  How did that work? 



Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #7 –
[ USS Theurgy "Thea" NX-79854 | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ]
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Unaware as to whether or not her words held any impact, hoping at least that she may have planted a seed of hope in the scientist's mind, Thea chuckled lightly when Tos changed the topic to her.

"Of course," she said, knowing that Tos - as a scientist - more than likely had a curious mind, and that her artificial nature was a source of interest. She stood up and leaned against the edge of the work station, folding her arms underneath her chest. "I am the result of the Soong Legacy project, led at the Daystrom Institute, and even in my early testing stages, my interface was projected into a humanoid form. See, my hardware is a positronic brain, but unlike a Soong-type android, I was given a isomorphic holo-interface instead of a physical body. My runtime is comprised of thousands of programs running simultaneously in a positronic matrix, generating subroutines that facilitate both my functionality and personality. My brain is installed into the main computer core of my saucer section, but even when I am projected by my new mobile emitter..."

She said, and laid her hand against the top of her abdomen, indicating where it was hovering with antigrav units inside her projection.

"...I am in subspace synchronisation uplink with all three of my hulls. I can, therefore, leave the ship just like you, since the processor in my mobile emitter is sufficient to run my personality matrix. It is the subspace link that keeps me appraised of ongoing ship functions, which are to a large degree automated without needing me to devote bandwidth for the tasks handled by the onboard computer cores. See, my three hulls have a total of four computer cores, the fourth being a dedicated astronautics core. The four-decks tall main computer core alone has an output of 575 trillion calculations per second, so as you understand, it would be impossible to host that amount of processing power inside a single emitter. Hence, in order to keep me attuned and available for requests and dedicated onboard tasks, the synchronization uplink is essential. In fact, it also serves as the tactical means of coordination between my hulls during Mulivector Assault Mode, wherein my four computer cores remain in sync even when both the bio-neural circuitry and ODN systems are separated."

Not meaning to turn her answer into a lecture, she made a final addendum. "Oh, and before an officer named Lin Kae built the mobile emitter technology, I was always projected by the shipwide hologrid. It now remains as an auxiliary option while my mobile emitter is recharging. My new emitter has an upgraded sensory mapping, perfectly derived from a human nervous system, so I much prefer using that. It makes me feel less numb and more... alive."

She couldn't help but chuckle at her own word-choice, stopping there to let the Trill ask more questions. Of course she had more to tell about her evolution as a sapient being, but she felt she had to let Tos speak after such a long answer.

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #8 –
[ Ensign Kizra Tos | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan

Alive.  That was the word the computer had used.  It made her feel, an odd descriptor considering that it came from a being made of circuitry rather than flesh and blood.Yet there she stood in front of her, every inch of a woman as Kizra was herself, and if she had not been told, the Trill wouldn’t have been able to tell that Thea was anything but a human. 

But the idea of *feeling*.  That had certainly been tossed around by engineers and scientists alike.  Despite their advanced technology, and while they could tell where emotions were generated in the brain, there was still a lot of knowledge to be discovered on how those emotions were created.  And yet they had also somehow been captured in a tiny microchip which enabled AIs like Thea to supposedly feel.  Were they real emotions?  Or only reasonable facsimiles? 

Was it her place to try and either dictate or question that?  Kizra felt it wasn’t.  There was a person before her, perhaps only a reflection of a real being, but real enough to the one in front of her.  She exhibited all the characteristics of someone who had emotions and who was made of skin and bones.  Just because she wasn’t, did that mean that she was a lie?  That her concern for Kizra’s welcare was simply a matter of programming?

And what if it was?  Did that make it any less genuine?  Was not the insistence and modelling of parents to their children simply a crude form of programming? And what were nerves save but another form of sensory mapping? The argument could be made that both of those were true. 

“And what do you make of all this?”  Kizra’s curiosity was piqued, but perhaps not in the way that others might have thought it would be.  She was aware of the project, knew who Soong was and the advanced technology he had created, although this was the first she’d heard of it being applied to a ship and in this manner.

Perhaps the question wasn’t specific enough and Kizra leaned back and made a vague gesture with one hand, slender fingers splayed, but they didn’t indicate anything specific, for what she referred to was not visible.  “The situation we’re in, I mean, with these parasitic entities?  With us being on the run, rebels and outlaws.” 

Hadn’t there been stories about that on earth?  Kizra paused as her memory did something akin to what a computer might do as it processed through its stores in an attempt to bring up relevant data.  “Like…Robin Hood and his merry men.”

That was not her memory, that was Tos’, but it was enough for her to know of the story and what it entailed.  Such stories had intrigued Brekka who had found any excuse to delve into the fiction of Trill as well as other cultures in the galaxy. 


Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #9 –
[ USS Theurgy "Thea" NX-79854 | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ]
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The question about what Thea's opinion was about the state of their ongoing mission had her tilt her head in analysis, since the query was rather open-ended and could be answered at any given amount of time. Seconds, minutes, hours or days. Her personal experiences were the major contributors to her answer, but she also had the experiences of her crew, and the many different developments over the course of the past six months that provided a nuanced opinion depending on what angle one may approach the task of detailing what had happened along with the significance thereof.

Essentially, she concluded that her opinion was moot, but that was also the fact that would generate a worthwhile answer for the Ensign. This, because of the reason they were still fighting having little to do with opinion, but absolute necessity.

"In my opinion, whether we are a part of Starfleet or not - and what either would entail - isn't the relevant question. If we are outlaws in the Federation and traitors to the fleet is a matter of perspective, and secondary to the importance of our mission. Our situation is just one factor, and a consequence of something more dire that has to be addressed. From our point of view, we are neither traitors nor rebels, but fighting to uphold the tenets of the Federation, and to restore Starfleet to non-parasitic command. It is by the word of the enemy that we are outlaws, not our own."

Pushing away from the edge of the work station, Thea began to slowly pace the chemistry lab while she gave her answer - arms folded below her chest. The overhead lights shimmered across her body suit, and her brown eyes glanced towards Tos now and again while she spoke. "One has to take the entirety of the situation into account, including the factors that are more important than our state in the eyes of the fleet and the public. The former believes in the lies of the enemy that has usurped Starfleet Command, while the latter only knows what the Federation News Network is showing them through the media channels - the FNN spoon-fed intel by Command. What is important, is the reason why we fight, and what would have happened if Captain Ives hadn't given the order to run, and to protect the truth carried by the crew aboard me."

Unaware how much of the tactical logs and mission reports that Tos may have read since she was thawed, Thea gave a brief overview of the repercussions of the alternative - to have surrendered rather than fought. "If we had been destroyed at Admiral Sankolov's orders, ambushed by his task force, the Infested could have continued unopposed. If the Theurgy hadn't prevailed against the Niga virus in the Mahéwa System, the USS Relativity timeship wouldn't have been able to find us in the timestream and lent us aid. If we had been destroyed by the USS Calamity or if Captain Vasser's hostile takeover had succeeded, we hadn't been able to reach Starbase 84 and sent our distress call. The Simulcast, even if the real version had been encrypted for merely a few to see, would neither have reached 'King' at Starfleet Headquarters nor Ambassador Elim Garak, whom is close enough to President Bacco to tell her the truth of the situation."

Gesturing with one hand, she continued. "Worse yet, had we not continued to fight, persevered against the odds, we would not have been able to halt the Borg invasion through the Azure Nebula. Much less made an ally of Chancellor Martok, and continued to fight till this day, when the Romulans have declared war against the Federation and Klingons both. We wouldn't have been able to stop the Breen from joining the war, or prevented the Praetor from bombing Andor." Thea smiled to Tos, making her point, and perhaps even giving her a modicum of encouragement. "Aye, we are still in a perilous situation, and the Infested have bombed Paris as a part of their continued effort to end the evolution of intelligent life... but the alternative to not being rebels, outlaws and traitors in the eyes of our brothers and sisters in the fleet? The alternative would have been that billions of people in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants would either be dead or assimilated at this point, and the Infested would - unopposed - still orchestrate it all from the shadows."

Coming to a stop, Thea folded her hands behind her back. "That is what I make of all this, as you put it. We fight because we must, and we have already saved so many. Imagine if we hadn't... and we see the worth in our actions."

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #10 –
[ Ensign Kizra Tos | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan



One after another supposed fact was listed.  Kizra listened, but it wasn’t exactly what she asked for.  Then again, she had asked for an opinion from a computer.  What else could a computer do except give facts?  If she was truly alive, she would have offered more than that, she would have offered her own sense of self thought, not just a list of reasons and supposed events that occurred to indicate her position.  Oh yes, that was important . It *supported* opinion, but it still wasn’t her own conclusion based upon the evidence given.

Perhaps Kizra should have been satisfied.  After all, Thea was offering those facts, evidence that she sought.  Except that evidence was all filtered through her, Thea, the computer. She had read, certainly, all the reports and she was trying to take everyone at their word, but she couldn’t help but doubt.  Doubt because the evidence was all second or third hand.  Where was the first hand evidence?

But could she leave?  If she did, Kizra wasn’t assured of her safety, nor could she be sure she wouldn’t be safe if any word of those doubts escaped her lips.  So she kept them to herself.  The fear of the insurrection was accompanied by another - what if it was all some grandiose scheme by the Captain to try and take over Starfleet themselves?  Or, worse, they were all caught up in some horrible delusion that he had convinced everyone was real?

Maybe she hadn’t read enough or seen enough. There was so much to go through, so much to process, that Kizra  wasn’t sure she could ever get through it.  Instead, she sat at the console, working at the tasks assigned to her because, really, what else could she do?  If she tried to contact her family, she’d put them at risk - though was it really from Starfleet, or more from the people caught up in the delusion who would be the dangerous ones to cross? 

“I see.  Thank you for the assessment Thea.”  Kizra offered a small smile.  It wasn’t Thea’s fault.  It just was.  And now she wanted to move on from the topic.  They weren’t going to get anywhere, and Kizra still needed to mull over matters. 

“So, tell me, what’s it like for you?”  Was that a rude question?  In truth, Kizra was quite curious. This thing before her was merely a being of photons and yet she was somehow more.  Interaction wasn’t unusual, they did that with holograms all the time, but holograms didn't always react in the same way, and there was a depth to the one in front of her that others lacked.  “Do you ever sleep?  Do you dream?  Do you feel pain? What about emotions?”  The scientist had turned on and her questions came regardless of whether or not she was being polite.  “I have to admit, I’d love to learn more about you.”  Which was true, and it would be a good distraction from other matters that weighed heavily upon her.

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #11 –
[ USS Theurgy "Thea" NX-79854 | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ]
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Despite what Thea had said, or perhaps because of it, the science officer still seemed crestfallen - as if it hadn't been the answer she was looking for.

Nonetheless, Thea supposed the organic needed more time after having been thawed from stasis to wrap her head around the current mission and the situation as a whole. There were answers to be found, if she only took the time for it, but Thea hoped her words had served to bridge some gaps in her current level of awareness. It seemed that, given the lack of further questions on the topic, the woman wished to change the topic, and Thea was happy to oblige. Rather than speaking about mission specifics, she wanted to talk about Thea instead. The initial question begged for clarity, however, so Thea just smiled and raised an eyebrow, wondering what she was referring to. Thankfully, Tos did clarify what she meant, and though the questions weren't new for her - far from it - she would accommodate the curious scientist.

"My hardware is a positronic brain, installed in this ship, and I do not have any need for sleep," she said to begin with. "I am aware that Lieutenant Commander Data - the Soong android that inspired the Soong Legacy Project and my creation - possessed a program that enabled him to 'sleep' but more specifically dream... yet I have not been outfitted with this feature. I do have quarters aboard, however, and a bed, but I have no need for the latter. I do store my wardrobe in my quarters, however, and I quite enjoy dressing in my own clothes when I am not directly aiding the crew with some project or another."

Shifting over to the more physical attributes of her projection, she gestured while she spoke. "This projection has an advanced sensory mapping, however, with both olfactory sensors and simulated taste buds. Using cortical monitors to record the sensory mapping of human skin, I am able to sense everything a human can to very high accuracy. The cortical montior readings were used to tune the sensory mapping across my skin, so I can sense touch, warmth, cold - however faint - through the input of those tactile sensors. As for emotions?"

Well, it was a long story, but she believed she could summarise it well enough since she had answered the question many times. It was a tall tale, but she hoped it held some credibility even when abbreviated. She chuckled and raked back a hair hair from her face. "When we were beset by the Ishtar Entity," she said, hoping the Ensign would have read about those events in the mission reports, "she made me human. Not through simulation, or at least by any manner of simulation known to us. My projection was turned into a human female, with blood, organs, and everything. By then, an engineer by the name Lin Kae had already granted me free will, in order to aid the crew during the Niga Incident, but it was the genuine human experience that the Ishtar entity gave me that was the most transformative for me. It opened me up to the reality of what organic life was like. How to feel, think and appreciate my life through your kind of nerves, your eyes, and your minds."

Introspective, Thea came to lean on the edge of the work station next to Tos, looking towards the deck with a smile. "That was why Lin Kae helped me with my new sensory mapping as well, since I was feeling," she sought for the appropriate word, "numb without it, having felt the world around me as you might. The memory engrams I formed as an organic was transcribed into positronic data when the encounter with Ishtar was over. Since then, having shared in the human experience, my personality matrix has adapted accordingly, and has expanded my positronic matrix beyond my former capabilities. I was a self-learning program prior to all this... and I think I may have learned more than any artificial being I can find in my database. I cannot be entirely sure of that, of course, but as for emotions...? I believe my experiences may have granted some authenticity in the eyes of organics, even though I like to believe my feelings were genuine from the start. Only... different in their original nature."

Looking at Tos, Thea wondered why she had wished to change topics. "I believe this may seem too incredible for you, and I can understand if you are sceptic... but if there is some way I can prove everything I've said is true, I would like to do so."

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #12 –
[ Ensign Kizra Tos | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ] @Auctor Lucan

Dr. Noonian Soong.  The man had been a genius.  Flawed, yes.  But a genius.  No one in Starfleet was not aware of his work and his accomplishments, though Kizra had only seen pictures of his androids and the positronic brain he’d developed.  His was a science that was a bit outside of her field.  Certainly the chemical composition of the materials used in the construction of the androids, particularly the positronic brains as they required certain materials with certain levels of conductivity were interesting and useful, and would certainly come into play in other ways, such as with the development of Thea since that technology was utilised in her creation, but in general, it was not a focal point of Kizra’s own studies since she was not a cyberneticist. 


Thea was interesting, however one looked at it.  She was a created being, artificial and yet aware, much like Data, yet she differed in many ways, such as her body.  She didn’t have the same manifestation of a physical encapsulation as data did, and yet she had sensory mapping which only elevated her personal sense of realism.  She could feel - touch, taste, and yes, see of course, though Kizra wondered if she saw as a humanoid did or if it was more inlaid.  Did it switch between ‘normal vision’ and other types of vision, such as what sensors might see?  That only seemed natural - at least, natural for someone like her.  Even more interesting was that she had a wardrobe.  She didn’t manipulate her holographic image to give her an appearance in a specific outfit, she owned articles of clothing.

Even more interesting was the answer to the other questions - questions spurred for multiple reasons.  Partly because Kizra had known of Soong’s work, and partly because of the reason that the woman mentioned now - the Ishtar entity.  How had it affected the creation that stood before her?  Emotions and dreaming had been of particular interest to Kizra, and she wondered if the woman still felt the after that experience.  She had to admit, listening to Thea’s testimony was intriguing, and she could certainly imagine how enlightening such an experience would be.  Part of Kizra regretted that she had still been in stasis during that event - and part of her was grateful for it. 

How fascinating how much that experience had changed how Thea saw things.  So she was more real now because of it, because of that experience, and sought to obtain that realism once she had been put back to her former self.  As to Kizra’s question on emotion, while Thea didn’t necessarily demonstrate it, her words were indicative of their presence, and that answered Kizra’s question.  Yet, for some reason, Thea felt as if Kizra doubted her. The Trill raised her eyebrows.

“I believe you.  I just find it fascinating.  After all, people like Data, Lore, and you, have all redefined what life is, in a sense.  Even now, that definition is very subjective and the answer can differ depending upon who you talked to.” 

What was life?  It was an age-old question that scientists on every planet had attempted to give an explanation for.  Some said that living things needed air and fuel, had to consume that fuel, and could move.  Even plants did the latter, if slowly so that such movement was not perceptible to the naked eye in a short period of time.  By that definition, fire would be considered life.  It needed air.  It needed fuel which it consumed, and it moved.  Yet most would agree that fire was not a living thing.  So what was life?

Yet after Kizra’s answer, she realised that Thea wasn’t talking about her own story, but the previous subject matter.  That, she had thought, they had moved away from and Kizra would prefer to leave it there.  The last thing she needed was to be brought before the captain and accused of mutiny or treason or whatever her disbelief might be called. 

“Oh, that.  I just…it’s just a lot to take in, that’s all.  It’s going to take some getting used to.”  She’d been awake officially for eleven days.  Was that enough time?  Did people expect her to simply accept it all in less than two weeks?  Kizra realised she needed to keep her mouth shut, or she might find herself in ‘hot water’ as she had heard humans use the phrase.  It was certainly an interesting idiom.  “I should probably get back to work, but it was very nice to meet you…though I guess technically we’re still going to be interacting and ‘talking’.  She motioned back to the console which had been ignored during their conversation.  That was a bit odd - talking to the computer and still working with the computer and ‘talking’ to it even after finishing their conversation. 
 

Re: Day 07 [1000 hrs] - Processing

Reply #13 –
[ USS Theurgy "Thea" NX-79854 | Chemistry Lab | Deck 17 | USS Theurgy ]
[Show/Hide]
Since the Ensign wasn't prepared to open up and speak further with Thea, she decided to let the Trill have her privacy and continue her work in peace.

"Of course, I can but imagine that you have some time of acclimatisation in front of you," she said with a smile and pushed away, starting to walk towards the exit. "Just let me know if you need any assistance with your work, and I will be available through the intercom. It has been a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ensign Tos."

After saying goodbye, Thea exited through the sliding doors and walked down the corridor, oblivious to the doubts of the Trill she left behind.

Whether or not she would accept the situation and the mission, only the future would tell.

- FIN
 
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