The Wire

Posted on 28 Feb 2013 @ 11:38am by Lieutenant Commander Evelyn Coleman

4,214 words; about a 21 minute read

Mission: Episode 03 - Frontier
Location: Deck 6, Multipurpose Lab
Timeline: MD3 0900

ON:

Evelyn leaned back in her chair, Holliday had approved her request a while ago and she's still amazed that she can be going...home.

Sharking her head and sitting up in her chair, she tapped her console, "Computer locate Lieutenant Liyar."

Lt. JG Liyar is located in the Multipurpose Lab.

Evelyn rose from her seat and walked out of her office and made her way to the nearest turbolift. Once the lift arrived at Deck 6, she walked out of the corridor and made her way to the lab.

Liyar had set up the meeting between Vincent and Kramer and himself to hammer out programming the probe devices the science department were developing in an attempt to increase the efficiency of the survey mission yesterday. Now, however, he was engrossed in a side project as his shift wound down. The fereikek reh device that followed him around wherever he seemed to go was dutifully floating in front of him, the holographic grid projected around him. He was drawing a line between several points on the network he was devising for Zaren. Names of doctors and hospital centers were on one side, and on the other were the resource allocations since 2387.

He barely looked up when Coleman entered, distracted as he was both by the calculations in front of him and the music playing in the background, something on strings. Attached to the back of his neck near his ear was the port device Lilou and Athlen had come up with. His eyebrows were drawn in concentration, almost guided by the waves of music and drawing out numbers in a pattern. Coleman entered his line of vision, but he didn't stop working, only blinked as her presence shattered through the otherwise empty room. He lowered the music and tilted his head toward her. "Commander," he greeted calmly, drawing his finger downward to complete the network in front of him.

Evelyn watched with amazement as Liyar completed the network. "I'm sorry for disturbing you, Liyar," she commented noticing the names and other events. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"MS1," the Vulcan answered, gazing at the swirling numbers and telemetry in front of him. "According to this data, they have more than sufficient means to re-stabilize their core. But they are not." He flipped the grid over and pulled out another section of data. Population statistics for a much smaller census group, and began overlaying the numbers with the ones from MS1. "This is the group I postulate as the control group. Food, water, shelter, medical attention. Almost identical statistics to various other refugee centers. Devolving into violence. Points," he drew up another set of numbers and idly added onto the last bit outlining the code he was working on to postulate a mathematical vector space of the linked Consciousness and the loss of perception he had experienced when Romulus was destroyed. He tapped a few links on the chain. "Unstable. Unstable. Unstable. There are gaps. Too many of them. Factor a population of 7 billion individuals. 15 million people... the droploss on a scale that intense is absolutely catastrophic. There is no question. I am certain of it." He blinked and darted his eyes back and forth. He switched the grid panels again. "Inflation of the t'chak is posted at 3,840,000,000,000,000,000%. This is wrong. It is closer to 89,700,000,000,000,000,000,000%. Aid percentage of GDP 2.4%, that is two-point-four," he broke away, looking a little clearer, shaking his head. Two point four. There was no sustainability. "Consumer price index 424.26%, exports at 17 billion t'chak - wrong -" he muttered and crossed that out. "GDP growth versus annual -6.5 annual %, per capita... 2,037.82 PPP. 0.22 technological achievement..." he frowned minutely and called the screen down, leaning over to regard Coleman. "Is there something I may assist you with?"

Evelyn blinked, "Why are you calculating the current condition of the Romulan Star Empire's economy? It's been in shambles since the destruction of Romulus." Eve asked surprised Liyar would even waste time on this subject.

"Yes. And no one cares," Liyar replied bluntly. He brought up the statistics again. "This number. This is incorrect. 3840 should be closer to 8970. These numbers are all individual people. Who is going to calculate it," he asked, all of a sudden breaking away from the screen to look at her. "All that I am seeing in these reports are Federation economists who prefer to believe that we live in a post-scarce society. Who will do it? It is information that people require to know. They need to see what is happening." He spoke in an even, emotionless enough voice. "Blindness is unacceptable."

"You really think the exact numerical value of the Star Empire's economic state will cause an up-swell of support for the plight of the Romulans? Their economy is gone. The Empire has all but collapsed. It's futile and illogical to waste time calculating this." Evelyn shook her head, she knew about the Romulans and what they were going through. She could even sympathize with them.

Liyar looked at her sideways. "Their economy has been obliterated and integrated into Federation assistance," he agreed. "And do you see that number? 2.4% of outside aid. That means that the economy that they rely upon, the outside economy that is meant to carry them through, is at two point four percent. Of one hundred. This is not about their empire. It is about MS1. The Federation funded colony. The Federation funded colony that is being ignored. You are suggesting that we ignore a situation that may well devolve into another Tarsus IV?" He arched an eyebrow at her. He knew that could potentially be taken as an argument on emotion rather than fact, but Tarsus IV still remained one of the more notable failed Federation colonies. And soon, people were going to start dying on MS1. "Logic tells us that one individual to feed is better than two. Does that mean you cast out the second? How is that logical? How is that the action of a group of people who are supposed to uphold ideals of empathy, compassion? What I think," he shook his head and shrugged, speaking quietly. "Does not matter. Apparently." He let out a breath and continued calculating. "An entire colony of people are dying. What do you suggest, Commander?"

Evelyn took a step closer to Liyar, looking directly into his eyes. "You want to help the Romulans? Why don't you ask your government why the Romulans are being ignored."

Liyar met her stare with one of his own. "The High Council does not care. They believe it is logical to stand aside. Why do you think Miran is the only province on Vulcan to have taken on Romulan refugees?"

"Have you ever asked them why they don't care?" Evelyn challenged.

"Yes. I do not know why you suppose I would have gotten an answer beyond logic," Liyar threw back, recalling his words to the chambers at the news of the VSA's announcement. "It is logical to sit idly by while billions of people are annihilated. So they say." His distaste for his own government was clear.

Evelyn looked at him, "There is more to it than just logic for why the High Council doesn't care," Eve rebuked cryptically. "I tried telling Zaren this when he mentioned his articles. Did you know the Romulans that are sent to MS1 were either members of or sympathetic to Spock's unification movement?"

Liyar brought up the grid pathway census data he'd been collecting. "Allegiances." He tapped the screen and a list of families and clans, fractured and broken as they were, began to flow down the screen. In one column was the clan, its descendents, survivors, often only one or two. In the other column was senate allegiance, house allegiance, individual allegiance, status of honor. Most of them were in the green zone, a negative indicator for Vulcanoids. "Most of them are considered to be of Lloann'mhrahel. The Federation. I had wondered why they were listed as such, I assumed that they were the remaining Romulans who saw it to be reasonable to relocate, that the Empire as fractured as it was, had cast them off as being of Lloann'na, and therefore hhihto mnhei'sahe. Disgraced."

"Tell me Liyar, how much do you know of the VSA's involvement with Spock's Unification effort?" Evelyn questioned looking at her friend, studying his features.

He glanced over the side of the grid again. "I was teaching there," he admitted with a nod. "But I avoided the faculty and board." They were only ever a thorn in his side, as he'd come to view them as. "I could not say their involvement. Although I would postulate that it was little, considering their response to the Hobus event." He regarded her curiously.

"Yes... their involvement with Hobus." She shrugged taking a step away from him. "So... I'm guessing Meanad didn't have much work for you to do if you have time for all of this?"

"No." He wouldn't be deterred that easily. "What do you mean, involvement with Hobus?" Liyar asked intently.

Evelyn looked at him, "I'm referring to their....response. That's the extent of their involvement in the entire incident correct?"

Liyar was still. "Why do you ask this? Yes, they had responded to the Hobus incident, they would not offer assistance," he spoke questioningly.

"I question because their response to the incident doesn't seem logical. An entire planet was destroyed because the Vulcans were tedious in granting their permission. One would conclude they'd be the first to offer aid and support."

Liyar arched an eyebrow. "You are telling me information I already am in possession of, Commander. I cannot answer to their logic. I have never answered to it." He cast his eyes down to the intersecting lines traveling through the floor. "They have used the face of logic to mask the true nature of their actions. Entropy. Indifference to suffering. That is what they claim our tenets to reflect, to be completely in tune with C'Thia. It is abhorrent." He brought up the psi-chart. "0.5% of Vulcans were affected telepathically by the destruction of Romulus. Vegetative states. Comas. Hallucinations, delusions, spontaneous p'pil'lay. Of that percentage only a few have regained stability. This. These links. Vulcans, Romulans, Rigelians, we share a link with one another. Diluted through time and distance, but billions of Romulans were killed at the same instant. The death cries would have been enormously complex, and resonant. I have a suspicion that as much as this has affected the Romulan people, it has likely affected us as well. I believe that may have influence over what is occurring on Vulcan now."

Evelyn sighed, and rubbed her forehead. "Why do you insist on finding the answer in trivial areas? The needle is in the hay-stack yet you're searching in the barn."

"From what I have gathered of our conversation, you are making veiled references to events I do not possess knowledge about. I cannot know something I have not been told. All of the information I am aware of points to an obvious change in the entire collective reasoning of the High Council and extended governments..." he continued speaking while his brain idly processed in the background and eventually trailed off. Little indicators buried in his brain. "You are suggesting that the extent of their involvement is beyond what we have been told." He shook his head, but he could feel it from Coleman. In the air. Things are not what they seem. He powered down the screen until there was nothing in their way. The more he spoke, the more he could feel that Coleman was broadcasting arrow-signs, closer - closer. "What are you suggesting."

Evelyn held her gaze for only a moment before breaking eye contact and making her way to a data station. "This image I'm about to show you was taken from the McKennedy Array." Her tapped at the controls and brought up an image onto the display. The image was of a yellow star with a small reddish blur hovering at the top. "This is the Hobus star two months before it went supernova." She commented gesturing to the star. "As for this blur," She tapped the console again and the imaged zoomed closer to the blur where the imaged sharpened to a distinct vessel. "The blur is a Vulcan Science ship."

Liyar crossed over to the station and leaned over, bracing himself against the desk and staring at the picture in front of him. Something cold and unsteady threatened to spill over in his mind. "Whatever it is you are thinking, you are incorrect. I assure you. It is impossible." He shook his head, but the connection had seeded itself firmly within him. He'd made it. He couldn't unmake it. Couldn't climb out of this bed and set it anew and wander away. Coleman was projecting, now. Projecting Truth. She was mistaken. She had to be. "It is - impossible. We would not. We could not. "

Evelyn looked at him, "I agree with you, however this image was taken by the array. It's only a matter of time before it becomes public." Evelyn took a step closer to him. "The fact is, there is a lot of unknowns about the Hobus star. And with every new piece of evidence, a new perspective is revealed. This image will be revealed to the public. Questions is, will Vulcan be the culprit or the victim?"

Liyar's eyes darted furtively from the screen to her face. "No. We could not have done it. Something of that magnitude would resonate. It would have resonated," he repeated almost unconsciously. "As it did resonate when the VSA declined Ambassador Spock. We do grieve, Commander. And it is grief." It was still in his mind, guilt-regret-uncertainty war-logic-numbers. Responsibility. Turn-away. Fear. Cowardice, he thought. Unkindness. Entropy. But not this. Not this purposeful intent he could feel. Culprit. His people. Responsible for this. He gripped the table under his hand tightly, as though it had sent a physical pain through him. "We would know. We would know."

Evelyn reached out to caress his shoulder, trying to reassure the Vulcan, "This is precisely why, I'm saying your efforts should be used elsewhere regarding this topic." She can sense his uneasiness and internal battle. "Hey... Liyar look at me." Focus, Liyar, please. she thought, knowing he could read her mind. Please, my friend..

Focus. Yes. Control. Squiggles and lines and perceptions, grids, vectors, rained down in his head, turning to mush. They swirled about and formed puddles under his feet. He exhaled and the whirlwind in his mind drifted away with his breath. The tension left and he rose his hand off the metal, straightening up. Clarity. "This information is what you would consider damning. Even though it is not evidence, it is clear what others will think. Vulcan did this." New numbers popped up inside. But this time, they were trajectories. Courses. The Federation. Romulus. MS1. Vulcan. War. "Beyond the fact that it is simply not true," he wasn't able to even consider the alternative. It hurt to think of, and so his brain had shed it, shed every stressful thought until he focused onward like a laser beam toward the more important issue. Failsafe. "This would cause chaos. The ramifications of this information were it to become public would be catastrophic. For all of us. Who else knows of this?"

"It would be a lie if I said just me. Several admirals higher up know about it, and they are just as fearful as we are. I want it to be clear, I do not believe the Vulcans are responsible for Romulus's destruction however we cannot overlook the fact that people in absence of all the facts will come to that conclusion. Personally I believe Vulcans are being framed but I have no proof nor would I know of anyone who'd benefit." Eve replied sighing, rubbing Liyar's back, "I won't lie to you, Lieutenant, the future frightens me. I can see all the different...." her voice trailed as she closed her eyes. "I don't know what to do."

Liyar frowned, although this went unnoticed while he had his back to her. He could feel strands of thought and feeling through her fingertips, but either he didn't notice, or he didn't care. It blended all into his own perceptions, tapping into the cosmic awareness, it strengthened the numbers into tangible items he could grasp with mental fingers. "You recall what happened when the Federation took Vulcan to trial. It was dismissed. The High Council apologized. The matter was largely dropped on a political level, but it did not rest. It still does not rest. This will be ammunition. What do you think the Andorians will do if they discover this information?" he shook his head. "The Tellarites? It would not even be a matter of sympathy. The idea that Vulcans could and would do this, that they possess the capability and capacity, would on its own be grounds for hostility." For anyone who knew anything of Vulcan history, it was a terrifying prospect. That they'd somehow reverted back to a state of mind that could sanction killing billions of people. "It could destabilize the core worlds of the Federation. We must determine what has happened. A science vessel just happens to be in the vicinity of the Hobus star, two months before it goes supernova. It cannot be a coincidence. But neither can it be what we are being lead to presume. Who would want to cause such a disturbance?" His brain tracked while he spoke. His first thought was the Klingons. They benefited from Romulus's destruction now. They had no peace with the Vulcans. They would reap the benefits further of a Federation civil collapse.

"I have a theory..." she said pulling her hand away, "however I don't enjoy thinking about it." Eve confessed taking a step away.

There were so many different variables. The cosmic whole left with her touch, jarring and strange. El-Aurian abilities as ever remained mysterious to him. Condensed still, it was vast. His brain tried to play catch-up, but he caught only meaningless strands. Romulans. Federation. Vulcans. It looped in his head. You're missing something. "What theory do you propose?" he asked, after a long moment of stumbling around in his head with only half-answers. He knew he was intelligent, he knew he could make connections inworld, but being around Coleman made him feel like a child again. Meaningless equations, no comprehension.

"If this is revealed without the facts. It will plunge the Federation into a civil war. The Klingon Empire is on verge of collapse on it's own weight. Its recent expansion in Gorn territory is only postponing the inevitable. Cardassia is still limping along, there is an economic collapse occurring on Ferenginar because of the Progressive changes. Tholians are fortifying their borders... Everything that has happened in the last few years reminds me of when the Dominion sent Changelings to the major powers. A single power is behind all of this, one that wants conquer not just Vulcan or Earth, but the entire Alpha and Beta Quadrants." Evelyn shivered, "of course, when you take into account the shift in political winds in the final months on Romulus... how pro-peace the Senate became...Shinzon's coup was the result of pro-war Romulans, the Tal Shiar." Eve froze and then turned to Liyar, "The victims are the culprit."

Liyar moved, calling up the fereikek reh grid again and switching it to the medical screens. "Do you know how much destabilization this has caused within the remaining Romulan population? What my research is beginning to indicate? The psionic backlash of killing billions of Romulans at the same instant has nearly crippled the surviving population. The bonding impulse is starting to collapse what little stability is left. It has built over the past two years and culminated in riots, violence, psychosis, and eventually death." He keyed up the medical data he'd shown Zaren. "You recall Krifal. On Rigel V." He tapped up the display unit to showcase a landslide which slowly engulfed a city, played on news networks across the Federation. "The global tests that had to be run on Rigelians. The experience of feeling that many people die within the Consciousness is detrimental in the extreme to any telepathically facile race, no matter how limited in ability they may be." The Rigelians barely even practiced psionic arts, but it didn't matter. "They are not like Terrans, who would only need to deal with the emotional fallout. Romulans are, like Vulcans, very rooted to their homeland. Their bonds. Their families. Their Consciousness. This severance is devastating the remaining population. If they survive this in tact and whole without drastic intervention, it would be as you would call it, a miracle. How did you come to that conclusion? They would be condemning themselves."

"I didn't come to any conclusion, however it's a possibility I'm not over looking." Eve stated running her fingers through her hair. "The Tal Shiar is known to be cruel to their own people, I can see them being capable of this."

"To what end?" Coleman had his full attention, now. "To blame Vulcan? To destabilize the Alpha quadrant?" He crossed over to where Coleman had moved and flexed his fingers by his side. "Are you all right," Liyar asked quietly.

"No I'm not." She replied growing frustrated. "I can't shake this feeling another war is coming and it's very unnerving not knowing who and what will cause it." Eve groaned and leaned against the wall. "And with all of that, with the possibility of war, with the mystery of Hobus needing to be solved; I scheduled time to depart the ship to visit my dead world!"

Peace. Liyar rose a hand and laid it on her shoulder. "I will help you to figure this out. There is no other option but to do so. I would welcome working with you." In fact, he had a funny suspicion that working with Coleman might be the only way they really would solve but, but he knew that he could at least make a little headway on his own. "But if you need to go to El-Auria - and I am getting the impression that it is very much a need - the research shall still be here when you return."

"What you mean is, working with you." Evelyn eyed him, "One of the reasons why I chose the Galileo over other vessels was because I knew you were going to be assigned here."

Liyar tilted his head. Vulcans, of course, were not known for their humility. Liyar, no exception. But he was genuinely surprised. He blinked and shook his head. "Me." He was used to being overlooked, to being considered a pawn or a quack. He had faith in his own abilities, but it seemed, that not many others did. It was why he would listen, when people spoke. Why he listened now.

"Yes you." She smirked. "You are still young even in Vulcan standards, and you have so much potential in you, Liyar. I see it. There will come a time, when people will no longer overlook you, but look up to you." Eve smiled looking into her Vulcan's friends eyes, watching as his life unfolded in front of her. She broke eye contact and stood up straight. "You just need to learn how and when to use your skills."

Liyar's eyebrows arched, ears drawn back a little, but he nodded. "I am accustomed to directing myself. The environment on Vulcan is unconducive to my methodology. While there have been progresses, they are hard earned."

"You don't understand..." she shook her head, and looked up at him, in time you will, she thought.

Liyar tilted his head. "You are correct," he agreed. "I do not understand." He felt her thought, directed at him. In time?

Evelyn casually rubbed Liyar's shoulder. "I have to prepare for my day trip home." She commented with no reason, "I'll send you all the information I have currently regarding Hobus we'll work on it more when I return."

Liyar felt his brain power up at her renewed touch, strands and colors and numbers in his eyes. This time, he just let them come. He couldn't understand. Maybe he would. Eventually. "I would appreciate it," he said with a nod. "And I wish you well on your journey."

"Thanks," Eve chuckled softly, "I'm going to need it."

OFF:

Lieutenant Commander Evelyn Coleman
Chief Intelligence Officer, SFI
USS Galileo

Lieutenant (JG) Liyar
Diplomatic Officer, VDF/SDD
USS Galileo

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