T'Pol
T'Pol looked at her wrist monitor, trying to make sense of the blurry numbers. The wavy lines finally coalesced into something that she could read. Except it didn't make sense. She made an effort to refocus her eyes, willing the numbers into meaning. When they stubbornly refused to oblige, she started to work through the calculations of what they meant, wondering at the same time why she had to calculate. She never had to before.
The answer was clear. Lieutenant Reed should have already arrived. He should already be at her side, bringing the needed oxygen.
But he was not.
She looked harder at the numbers. There must be an issue with the wrist monitor. According to the display, Lieutenant Reed should be there. But he was not there. Lieutenant Reed was always punctual. The monitor must be wrong. She frowned a little at the passing thought that there was an issue in the logical progression. But she could not find it.
She carefully laid out the arguments in her mind.
If the monitor was right, Lieutenant Reed should be at her side.
But he was not.
Therefore the monitor was not right.
She did not see any flaw in the logic. She had to wait for Lieutenant Reed. She blinked, wondering when she would start feeling the pernicious effects of the Eylordene air. She made mental notes of what she would report to Dr. Phlox.
1. A fatigue so great she did not have the strength to take notes.
2. No breathing difficulties, at least none that were apparent. Coming back to her seat had been challenging, her lungs hard pressed to function in the extreme humidity. But once seated she had found that she could take rapid shallow breaths. That at least allowed her body to extract the needed oxygen from the atmosphere.
3. Her skin tone had darkened somewhat but not sensibly.
4. No other seeming difference in her functioning. Perhaps the effects of the toxic elements in the Eylordene's atmosphere were more insidious. There was no way to tell.
She settled back in her seat to wait for Lieutenant Reed. The monitor was malfunctioning and she had lost her internal sense of time. The thought crossed her mind that she should add it to the list of mental notes for Dr. Phlox. She would do it at the next opportunity, she was too exhausted at present.
Besides her, the diminutive Eylordene guide was keeping a running commentary on the procession, letting her know what the many figurants were doing. The constant noise was an irritant but she did not show it. Seeming to pay intense attention to the scene afforded her the benefit of not having to move. Motion increased air consumption. Even though she did not see any adverse effects, she believed Dr. Phlox's statement that the air was poisonous. She had to limit its intake.
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