SD 241709.04 POV Log - Delta Quadrant, the Dedestris Homeworld.

~~~~ Delta Quadrant – Dedestris  (Planet in the Delta Quadrant)~~~~~~

 

The main square of the provincial little village was normally bustling with cheerful voices, laughter and the constant hum of bartering. If one listened intently enough you could hear the smith's beating of metal, the whirring of a potter's wheel and the faint strokes of brush on canvass. The central square sprang to life in the dying light of the sun and the serenity of a rising moon. Daylight meant work and heat; moonlight offered a reprieve where one could exhibit his or her own works of art and not suffocate in the heat. You could smell delicacies from all 4 quadrants of known space and people from all walks of life, of space, mingled about. Security on Dedestris was quietly, resolutely a deterrent from hot tempers and fisticuffs –and all but unnoticed until such tempers flared.  Tonight was no different . . .life was moving along as it was usual for this quaint little square –but then, the music stopped, the potter's hand slipped and the barely formed cup collapsed, the cerulean blue paint meant to be a faint wisp turned into a dollop of paint marring an otherwise serene landscape – the howl of anguish was so painful that everyone stopped...the guards ran toward the disturbance and found the elderly man on his knees in the midst of the garden. The garden should have had row upon row of delicately blooming Dedestriai, the plant from which much of the wealth of Dedestris was derived. The delicate flower could not withstand the heat of day and bloomed only in the pale light of the moon. Harvesting season would soon be upon them; the sight they all beheld though, was one of stunned disbelief and horror. The elderly man's anguish was clear. Scattered at his feet were wilting blooms – unopened blooms and weary looking plants that lacked their usual vibrant greenness.

 

Murmurs of "how...." and "what happened..." and "Who would do such a thing..." began to rise like a tidal wave of panic in the gathering crowd. The elder on his knees seemed incapable of telling them anything. "Excuse me....let me through...." said the young man as he pushed his way through the dense crowd. "Let me through" he said through clenched teeth and growing irritation. Eventually the crowd made way and he made his way to the elderly man's side. He motioned another who'd followed close behind. "Take Mekeal to his room. A physician is waiting there." The other inclined his head and with such delicacy, lifted the old man in his arms and disappeared in the throng.  The young man turned and looked at the crowd that had come to see. . .what? He looked around and saw the weeping flowers, dropping their blooms in the pale moonlight rather than majestically raising them in homage. The normally sweet perfume the filled the night air and drifted on the breeze smelled sickly sweet instead, wrinkling the nose as if it had been befouled.  He cleared his throat. "There's nothing to see here, now. Mekeal is an old man."

 

"What happened here?" came a voice from the crowd.

 

The young man shook his head. "I don't know. We won't know until we investigate further. I suggest you go home or go back to whatever it was you were doing."

 

"This is the 2^nd or 3^rd garden we have seen this . . ." came yet another voice from the murmuring crowd.  "You say you don't know? Is it a disease?  It must be a disease. . ." and as panic is want to do, the crowd's voices grew more intense until at last the young man in the center made a gesture which brought in the guards which heretofore had been all but invisible. The security officers began to move the crowd about, forcefully dispersing them before they could go grow out of hand. The concern that showed on their faces mirrored his own.  As if on cue, his forensic team moved in and began collecting the fallen flowers. He wasn't sure he needed their information and he had a feeling he was going to learn the same thing that he'd learned on the previous 2 occasions such as this. . . no disease, no chemical. The only thing out of the ordinary was a slightly higher than normal temperature a 1.5 degrees warmer than normal for this time of year. If the plants had been in the greenhouses, he could see how that would be an issue – but these plants were in the public  gardens. As yet, the major fields of production had seen no such losses. Still, if he and his team couldn't get to the bottom of things, the economics on Dedestris could easily be imperiled...could they survive if this loss began to spill over into the larger farm fields? He didn't know. He knew that the powers that be to whom he answered wanted answers yesterday, answers to what he did not know. He wasn't even sure he knew what the question was. All he knew was that this was the third public garden in the last 2 weeks that had been tampered with. It was his job to get to the bottom of it.   If this continued, the entire planet would be at risk. The plant that lay dying around his feet were the bread and butter of economic stability for the planet.  If the plants started dying before they bloomed or before the blooms could be harvested, it wouldn't be only the plants that would die. Hunger could  kill the weak and the vulnerable . . .he didn't even want to think of what the impact of these dead flowers. It was too horrific to even contemplate as possible. He shook his head and looked at his team. "Finish collecting everything you can. Leave nothing to chance. If it looks suspicious, take it. If it doesn't look suspicious, take it too. I don't have to stress to you how important it is to forestall panic and find answers." His sergeant shook her head. "I'll keep an eye on things here and we'll station a round the clock surveillance." The young man nodded. "Good. Be ready to debrief at 0900 hours tomorrow."  The sergeant nodded. "Yes, sir." The young man watched for a moment and then strode over to the waiting vehicle, scooted inside and called to the driver "Take me to station." The engine purred to life in silence and moments later deposited him in front of the forensics' lab. He climbed up the steps, swiped himself in and disappeared behind the frosted glass doors.