A Little Piece of History
Posted on Tue Feb 18th, 2025 @ 4:05pm by Lieutenant Siadra Molaur & Lt JG Andrea Arendsøn
Edited on on Sun Feb 23rd, 2025 @ 8:30pm
1,150 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Episode 2 - The Sins of History
Location: Science Lab 1 - Deck 12 - USS Artemis
Timeline: MD011 0800 hrs
Siadra pulled on a pair of gloves which reached up to her elbows, wanting to take a look inside the crate she had been examining before. The crate that she had almost met her death due to a venomous insect that had been in there. Inside the crate was an item wrapped in cloth, and Siadra moved it out of the crate and unwrapped it revealing a box made from teak wood, with iron hinges. The box was the size of a medium sized shoe box, with ornately carved, bamboo plants near an oriental style home, and a curved bridge crossing a river. Gently Siadra caressed the box, admiring its beauty.
This though was a puzzle box, Siadra had figured out how to open parts of it but there was the indication of another part that she couldn't open as of yet. She had taken several scans of the box, Siadra knew there was something there, She wasn't about to use a transporter to try to find out what there was. That would take the fun out of solving this puzzle. Taking the box from out of the storage area to the main part of the science lab, she placed it on the counter to get a better view.
"Okay I have tried all the magic words to find that hidden part. Maybe I need someone else to take a look." Siadra said, speaking to the box.
Andrea looked over from the workstation on the other side of the room where she was researching a project of her own and asked inquisitively. “Oh? What’ve you got? What culture and era?”
"1905 from Japan." Siadra turning around to see who the new voice was. "Oh hello, I'm Lieutenant Molaur. Do you know anything about puzzle boxes? I've had this box for quite some time. Handed from one host to the next. I am the latest one."
Andrea looked over Siadra and chuckled. “Joined Trill? Fascinating brain and nervous system structures….” She paused, catching herself. “Forgive me; my background is originally in neurosciences but I came to the Artemis for a change of pace from Starfleet Medical. You wouldn’t believe the amount of neurosurgery I was doing there on the daily!” She chuckled again and looked to the puzzle box that Siadra had, examining it closely. “Have any of your previous hosts ever solved it?”
"We ended up solving most of the levels but there is one that seems to escape us. I was hoping that there will be a solution found that will open up the last secret compartment. I didn't want to use the method of using a transporter to bring out what is hidden. I just felt that it would be cheating if I did it that way." Siadra had a gaze of curiosity, as she looked at the woman in the science lab. "What is your name? You know my name now but I do not know yours." giving a warm and friendly chuckle.
Andrea chuckled, looking over the puzzle box as she listened. "I'm Lieutenant Arendsøn; is this the whole box? I am used to seeing pieces like this with a top ornament..." she leaned over to take a closer look, searching for the small depressions that were common for the ornamentation to slide and snugly fit into. "Typically the ornamentation is fashioned from Jade and matches the decoration of the box in some way."
"I do not recall having a jade ornamentation upon it, unless it got misplaced somewhere in my belongings. That might be the reason why I wasn't able to open the last part of the puzzle. Perhaps it is inside one of my crates, maybe forgotten and somewhat lost." She went quiet for a moment conferring with Aadru.
"Aadru, the second host, he said he thinks there was a piece with it, but there is just some vague memories attached, as if he were in a fog, with that memory." Siadra frowning, unconsciously giving a shiver. As if a cold hand reached out and touched her shoulder.
Andrea watched her confer with her symbiotes former hosts and then when Siadra shivered she reached over and touched her wrist gently. “If you don’t know the location of the piece we may be able to replicate a replacement… wouldn’t be the first time I’ve done similar; though usually when I do its to prepare pieces for Starfleet Science to display somewhere.”
"This piece, there has been an feeling of urgency of keeping it hidden. I have no idea as to why, but maybe the answer is inside the area that can't be opened yet. I will trust your instinct to figure out what would belong on this to open it up." Siadra giving a nod to Andrea.
“Urgency to keep it hidden? That almost sounds like your previous hosts don’t wish to have the area opened. Are you sure you want me to analyze it?” She looked to Siadra with some concern, watching her face carefully.
"I feel that it is time to have it open now, and would be lovely to find out what is hidden inside." Her eyes alight with anticipation. "Perhaps it might provide some sort of history as to why its being protected. Such endless possibilities could be imagined, as to what is hidden there." Siadra exclaimed quietly.
Andrea chuckled, looking the box over carefully. "It's going to take me a couple of hours to figure out the correct placement and weight for the piece; it has to fit and if its too heavy or too light it won't trigger the pressure plates within the box."
"Oh that would be absolutely marvelous and, two hours would be sufficient. Let me know when that is ready." Siadra's eyes sparkled with excitement. "In the meantime I need to go take care of something, and I will leave this treasure in your capable hands."
Andrea grinned at the praise and nodded her head toward the box. “It’s my pleasure, truly. This is the sort of thing that originally drew me to Archaeology.”
"Well here is to things going our way for this puzzle to be solved. Thank you." Siadra giving an a smile of approval, to Andrea. "I will see you later then." taking off her smock and heading for the door. She gave a wave towards Andrea before leaving the lab.
Andrea turned back to work, taking precise measurements of the puzzle box and recording notes on a PaDD that she could reference later.
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Siadra Molaur
Chief Forensic Science Officer, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
Lieutenant Junior Grade Andrea Arendsen
Forensic Archaeologist/Medical Officer, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
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