Digging Up Data

Posted on Sun May 17th, 2020 @ 6:38am by Lieutenant Commander Amber Quinn & Lieutenant JG Paris Deville

1,319 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Caverns of the mind
Location: Research Facility

ON

Once the rest of the team left and Amber put her gear away, she began to do a deep dive into the computer files. This time, she was looking for anything and everything that would explain what happened. While she began to collate data in the computer, she looked for baseline transporter dat so that medical could use it to track the changes in the scientists. That was fairly easy as the scientists hadn't transported much. She sent the information to the Aurora and began to read through logs and scientific reports.

Paris sat down in a chair, making sure to clean it off, before leaning back and putting his feet up on the table. He looked around just before locking his gaze onto Amber. "So... we're finally alone and this is what you want to do? I would have, at least, tried to make things romantic. Bottle of wine. Food in a basket. Music." He chuckled slightly before adding. "I hope they don't all go like this?"

She looked up and grinned. "Neither do I. At the same time, I don't want someone coming back early to find us having a romantic interlude. But maybe when everyone is back and settled in, we can do something. If not, I'll make it up to you when we get back to the ship. In the meantime, you can help me go through files, if you want. Or see what else you can learn about this place."

"So, you admit, you've considered us having a romantic interlude while here?" Paris replied with a smile. "I'd like to hear more about your fantasies about me... if you don't mind."

"Not while I'm working," she said primly, although the pink tinge on her cheeks was evidence that she had done just that.

"Alright... I'll give you my analysis of this facility." Paris replied, smirking slightly, as he stood up and continued. "It's messy. It's dirty and, its overall condition, is unsettling. If I were to place it on a list regarding locations to visit? It's slightly above Rura Penta. The tropical setting seems fun, but realistically, its more of a danger then a curiosity." He walked over to where Amber was and concluded. "I finished my task. How is your's coming along?" He said as he leaned over her shoulder and looked at the screen.

Amber leaned back against him. "Slowly. I don't know why they decided to put in a permanent research facility. Their initial reason for coming here was to see if the planet would be good for colonizing. Then they built the facility, and began to explore. Then they found signs of habitation.. I believe that's when they found the cave-dwellers."

"Why would they decide on colonizing a planet before finding out if it wasn't inhabited?" Paris asked curiously, as he placed his hands gently on her shoulders, and continued. "You would think they would have done their due diligence and made sure before making that decision. Maybe they saw a value on this planet that they aren't telling or the cave-dwellers are so well hidden they had no idea. Might explain why those caves are so hard to scan on the outside. Something naturally developed made scanning difficult."

"The initial survey showed the planet to be uninhabited," she said. "Like you said, the caves are hard to scan. There are a number of minerals that cause that. I've found no reason why they wanted a permanent research facility here. I wonder if there's something nearby in the system they want to go to next?"

"It make sense if you look at it from a certain point of view." Paris said as he slowly began to rub Amber's shoulders. "This planet, while it may not be valuable to a certain extend, there may be something close by that holds a greater value. By placing a facility here, you are in a sense, making your territory and establishing an investment in that material. It also gives you a better way to protect it if someone comes snooping around." He raised a brow and smirked slightly. "I'll give Starfleet some credit. Sometimes they hide their intentions behind something as innocent as research and science."

"I'll look through the records and see if I can find anything." She looked up at him, "You're welcome to help. You might notice something I don't."

Paris leaned down as he replied softly. "I'll sure to keep that compliment between us." He winked slightly before kissing her on top of her forehead, before looking back to the screen. "I'll see what I can do, but I make no promises. A lot of this science stuff goes over my head, so I may not understand what I'm reading."

She smiled at him for a moment before responding. "I understand the science. I'll sift through that and look for what they were looking for and what they found. You can look for anything that seems out of place. Maybe we can have something to report when the team returns."

"I was with you up until you said the team was coming back." Paris replied, keeping to his smirk, as he nodded his head. "Yeah. I get it. Let everyone in. More heads and all, but if I find something, make sure to rub it in their faces. Especially the Security Chief."

She leaned forward and kissed him. "No rubbing it in their faces, but you will definitely get credit for anything you find."

Paris kissed her back before pulling slightly away and whispering. "You drive a very hard bargain. I see, future negotiations, will be quite challenging."

"I look forward to those negotiations," she replied softly before kissing him again.

"So do I." Paris whispered before kissing her gently, pressing his lips to hers, as his hands slipped down from her shoulders to her biceps. He slowly eased back, opening his eyes, as he added. "I am sure, the results, will be satisfying for the both of us."

"Yes." Amber sighed. "Let's get back to work. They'll be back before dark and I would like to be finished so we can take a moonlight shuttle ride around the planet."

"Moonlight shuttle ride, eh?" Paris replied as he returned to his seat. "I don't know about your past dates, but you'll have to do more then that to impress me." He finally sat down and gave her a stern, but playful, stare. "I'm not a cheap date, you know."

"I'll add a bottle of wine and a basket of bread," she teased, sitting back down to look through more files.

Paris narrowed his eyes and replied, keeping to his playful tone, as he motioned to her. "I see what you did there. Use my words against me. The same words I said to you earlier when this whole conversation started. That's slick, but ineffective. You can't use my moves against me. You'll have to sweeten the pot to win my affections. I can't be easily bought with wine and bread. I'm not French."

Amber chuckled. "I'll see if I can come up with something...sweet...while I read. Who knows? Maybe the reports will suggest something." She flashed him a grin before looking back at the PADD.

"I think you should leave the romantic stuff to me. Benefits of being El Aurian is the experience." Paris replied, returning her wink, before laughing slightly.

She looked at him again and smiled. "That works. I'll do the science, and you do the romance." There had been very little romance in her last relationship. Daniel was far more concerned about appearance and what was proper. By contrast, Paris made her feel lighthearted and happy when they were alone together.

____
OFF

Lieutenant JG Paris Deville
Chief Flight Control Officer
USS Aurora

Lieutenant Commander Amber Quinn
Executive Officer
USS Aurora

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