Twelve
Stardate 59435.1, USS Aegis, In orbit of Romulan Moon Lleiset
The transport effect faded around Theus as the warm air of the moon was replaced by the artificially controlled temperature of his ship. He stepped out of the alcove and headed for the hallway after giving the transporter chief a quick nod, having no time for pleasantries. Ensign Contreras may have been a bit eager in his desire to impress his superior officers, but Theus knew he was of sound judgement when discriminating between what information needed immediate attention and what didn't.
"Sir." zhNon said while catching up to Theus as soon as he exited the transporter room.
"Commander." He said back curtly, not breaking his pace. "I take it Contreras requested your attendance as well?"
"He did sir." She said.
Theus noticed zhNon looking at him while they walked. Her look was almost expecting.
"Bullock informed me of the information you discovered." He finally said.
"I see…and how do you plan we proceed?"
He thought for a second. The friction that had been growing between him and his first officer was coming to a head. His response may well accelerate that confrontation and Theus wasn't looking forward to it. Not because he wanted to avoid it, but because he really didn't want to complicate their mission more by having to relieve her.
"For right now, we won't do anything."
"Sir?" She said, the confusion clear in her voice.
"Keln is currently on a mission for me, one that will keep him preoccupied for at least the next couple of hours. When he returns, we will all be able to address the matter."
"Do you think it's wise to wait that long?" She asked.
Theus did not like actively deceiving his crew, but there was truth in his statement when he said, "If he's planning something, then it will look a lot less suspicious on our parts when we call him in to report after he's completed his assignment."
That seemed to satisfy zhNon. They were almost to the lab when she asked another question.
"And what is his current assignment sir?"
Theus sighed. "He is currently meeting with a Wing dissident to gather more detailed information on the internal political and social situation here."
"By himself?"
"Yes." Theus saw the objection in her eye and held up a hand. He stopped walking and faced her. "I need you to trust me on this zhNon. Later I will fully brief you; the entire senior staff actually, but right now my order stands."
If she was going to say more, it took a noticeable amount of effort for her to drop the subject. Theus noticed in the way that her antennae stiffened and from the deep breath she took that she was not happy about the decision. Still this small level of support was better than nothing.
They continued walking until they finally reached the small lab. Contreras and the Doctor were waiting, but Theus was a bit surprised to see his security chief Goritan also with them. After some quick greetings, he turned to Contreras.
"Report, Ensign."
"Actually sir, I think it's better that Doctor Utan goes first." He said.
Theus turned to his CMO. "Well?"
She walked over to the wall mounted screen and input some commands into a control panel to bring up a medical analysis.
"Meet our formerly living guest." She said. "Romulan male, approximately 45 years old. Time of death, approximately 34 hours ago."
"34 hours?" zhNon asked. "The corpse looks like is been exposed to the elements for months now."
"More than that." Goritan said.
"Cause of death?" Theus asked.
"That's the interesting part." The Doctor said. "Computer, highlight and enhance section 457-B on the screen."
The computer chimed as it zoomed in on the section.
"When you first sent this body up, I didn't know where to start. All of the lacerations and puncture wounds from the plant he was in made it hard to determine the fatal blow, but the state of desiccation also confused me. I started with a multi-cellular scan to look for toxins, but got an even more surprising revelation. He didn't just die 34 hours ago, all cellular activity stopped around the same time."
Theus shook his head in confusion.
"Doctor, are you saying that the plant didn't kill him? The fact that it has such dangerous barbs and that he was found inside suggests it's carnivorous."
"It would also be a good place to hide a body." Goritan said. "Disruptors leave easily traceable burn patterns and energy signatures. If someone use a blunt, stabbing object and then disposed of the body in the plant, then that would be a pretty good way to cover their tracks."
"I was operating under the same assumption when I started Lieutenant." She said. "But his death was caused by acute and total dehydration."
"Dehydration?" zhNon asked. "Doctor, the area that the settlement is located in is pretty temperate. The captain and his team found him in a glade next to a spring. While the safety of the water could be questioned, it doesn't explain the level of dehydration we're seeing."
"It didn't make sense to me either," Contreras said, "The Doctor came to me not long ago and asked for my help in analyzing and identifying certain atmospheric components. This is what I found."
He input a few commands and the data on the screen changed.
"Great Bird of the Galaxy!" Theus said in hushed tone. "Is this confirmed?"
"Ensign Contreras and I independently verified it twice on our own terminals." Utan said.
"Where…how much…?"
"Everywhere, Captain." Contreras answered.
"I'm sorry," Goritan said, "but for those of us without a science background, could you all explain?"
"You beat me to it." zhNon said. "Are you blue shirts gonna let us in on the secret so we can shake in our boots too?"
Theus tapped his commbadge and said, "Eridos to away teams, Chief Bloss, Corporal V'Riss please respond."
"Here, sir" V'Riss answered.
"Go ahead, not like I'm busy trying to save a society or anything." Bloss grumbled.
"I need you two up here asap. Site to site transport directly to the medical lab." Theus said, and closed the channel before they could say more. "Ensign, holo-display."
Contreras tapped twice, and a rotating holographic image exploded from the screen for all to see. At the same time, the lab filled with a bright light as the chief and MACO materialized. Bloss looked his usual grumpy self, however V'Riss looked positively miserable.
"Corporal?" Theus asked while trying to hide a smile. "Are you okay?"
"It's the air down there sir."
"What about your helmet?"
"You didn't say I could put it back on." He said.
Theus chided himself. He knew that MACO's were strict when it came to orders. He had only wanted the Corporal to have his helmet off for a few minutes to test a theory. His lapse in memory to tell the young Caitian to put his helmet back on resulted in him being covered in an ashy film. It covered his fur and clung to his whiskers.
"Apologies Corporal." Theus said. "Doctor, if you would?"
Utan took scans of V'Riss and also physical samples. She looked over her the data and said, "That makes 3 confirmations sir."
"Confirmations of what?" Goritan asked while pointing at the image.
"No!" Bloss said loudly. "Captain we need to get our people off the planet!"
"What is going on?!" zhNon shouted.
Theus held up his hand. He gestured for everyone to move and they formed a circle around the image.
"This is mineral Zeta 236-X." Theus said. "Also known as sodatium-chlorinite or super salt"
"I've never heard of that compound." Goritan said.
"That's not surprising, sir." Contreras said. "It's extremely rare to find in nature, and when you do, it's normally not on hospitable planets or anywhere close to being this pure."
"Bring everyone up to speed, Doctor." Theus said.
"Super salt is a mineral found on worlds where the primordial soup that enabled life to form had a surprisingly high pH level. However, when the acids and bases combined, none of the hydrogen in the acid was replace by a cation or other metal."
"Does that make it valuable?" zhNon asked.
"Not in the classical sense of something like latinum or dilithium." Contreras said. "The Federation first discovered it when we met the Bolians. They have small banks of it near their volcanic regions, but once it became clear how interested we were in it, they enacted preservation laws that limited collection."
"Why? It's just salt." Goritan said.
"More than that." Theus answered him. "Anyone who lives near an ocean can attest to the curative properties of salt. Almost all species have used it as a preservative and to clean because of its natural ability to repel and destroy germs. The small samples we got were originally used as catalysts to create multiple groundbreaking new drugs and medicines."
"I am enjoying you being a trained chemist more and more Captain." Utan chuckled. "But that's why Bolians have a naturally high resistance to high pH levels. They can practically ingest acid."
"Sir, this is fascinating and all, but what exactly does this have to do with our mission? For that matter, why was this information so important that it required all of us here?" zhNon asked.
"Because it's it makes up the moon, Commander." Contreras said.
"And?"
Theus pointed back to the comm screen with the moon's atmospheric data. "What he's saying, is that this moon, every plant, animal, hell every life form developed in conjunction with this super salt. There are no other known life forms that can do that."
"That's why the water Keln drank from the pond was salty." V'Riss said.
Theus quirked his head. "How did you know about that?"
"…I left a camera sir. Leaving you alone with him was not an option."
"Remind me to speak to your Major about that."
"It was on her order, sir." V'Riss shrugged.
Theus was about to ask more but Bloss interrupted.
"Sir, about our people?"
"I was just about to ask your concern." zhNon said.
Theus nodded and the chief continued, "If you think that ice moon you grew up on wreaked havoc on your buildings and equipment, you haven't seen what salt that's at a minimum 10 times stronger than normal can do. Not just to equipment, but to organic matter."
"And there in lies the danger." Utan picked up. "During my autopsy, I found particulates consistent with an outdoor water supply in his stomach. Dirt, debris, and so on. My best guess is that he drank so much of the water, that he dehydrated himself."
"But why?" V'Riss asked. "Who would willingly drink water that isn't fresh?"
"He may not have had a choice." Theus said. "The scans I did of that plant revealed that it lets off an odorless scent. I sent the samples to the Doctor, but I saw the chemical compound and recognize a narcotic when I see one. It's probably used to attract mammals and insects for pollination, drawing them in to a readily available supply of water and it's fruit or seeds. When they die, the decomposing body provides nutrients or the plant catches them outright. The poor bastard probably took a sip and couldn't stop drinking."
"That's why Keln said he felt thirsty suddenly." V'Riss nodded.
"A plausible theory but doubtful." Utan said. "Again, the plant isn't carnivorous. The sample you sent would've shown some form of gastric juices or enzymes necessary to breakdown animal proteins. None were present. If I had to guess, he was placed in the bulb after he was already dead. The plant naturally would've drawn out all moisture from him, as a way to add to what little fresh water is available on this moon."
"Do the plants and animals of this planet need fresh water?" Bloss asked.
Theus said, "I would think so. Organic life filters out impurities and excess minerals like salt, but they still need a neutral medium to do it. Their system may be more advance, and can handle more, but they still require it."
"Sir, forgive me for saying, but I think you're scientific curiosity is getting us off topic." zhNon said. "We've discovered a valuable mineral on this moon, and what looks like a murder utilizing the natural environment to cover it up. I still don't see how this is important-"
"Everyone on this planet is dying." Theus said. "Right, Doctor?"
She nodded.
"Before the destruction of Romulus, they were able to protect themselves with shields and a steady rotation schedule. Now, with little access to replacement parts, the are completely exposed to the elements."
"…Is there anything we can do?" Goritan asked.
"Without a constant supply of shield generators, power-cells, and replacement parts, no. And this issue with them fighting themselves makes it impossible for me to supply either side, as it would give one a tactical advantage. If I give them to both, then they could create more for their war efforts."
"But the people-"
"Are living in a salt ocean that makes Earth's Dead Sea look like a spring well." Utan said. "They breathe in the air that is highly saturated with moisture, that carries the salt to all their organs. Even if they protect from dehydration, the micro-structure of the crystals alone is doing irreparable harm."
"Maybe we can call in some terra-formers from the Corps of Engineers." Bloss said.
"No." Theus said. "This isn't like Risa where we can just control the weather or Mars where we introduced green-house gases to restore the atmosphere. The entire biosphere of this planet has naturally evolved to thrive in concert with the super salt table. If we change it in anyway, we are looking at a total ecological collapse. That's Genesis level technology and there's a reason it's banned."
"So, what do we do sir?" zhNon asked.
Theus let out a deep breath. "It's safe to assume that everyone on the planet already knows what's going on. We saw the coughing of one citizen, and everyone was eager for more industrial technology."
"They're still asking for it." Bloss said.
"Chief, I want you to continue with the supply delivery. Now that they Doctor is free, she can assist and give out more refined medicine."
"Yes sir."
"Commander, I need you to get in contact with the Empire again, as well as update Starfleet of our findings. I'm not sure what they were expecting us to find, but this complicates and simplifies our mission."
"Captain?"
"We can't give them anything beyond medical supplies, that's no longer an option. They can accept the supplies and tell us to be on our way, or we can arrange for all of them to be evacuated. Either way, put the ship on Yellow Alert. I don't think either representative will react calmly once they realize we don't intend to give them what they want."
"Understood, sir."
"Ensign, excellent work. Continue to try and locate those weapon launch locations."
"Yes sir."
"Corporal, get cleaned up and meet me in transporter room one in fifteen minutes."
"I'm good to go now, sir!" He said.
"Not surprising." He tapped his commbadge. "Eridos to Bullock, Major, V'Riss and I will be joining you shortly. Put together your best squad, something tells me that Centurion Keln will need our help very soon."