LJ Idol 7, Topic 18: "Jetsam"
Author's Note: You can read the first section of this story here: First World Problem should you desire, although it isn't necessary to do so.
~~~~~~
In her dreams Shaleah was weightless, floating down a lazy river of darkness, alone and unafraid. She felt nothing - no sensation, no need to breathe or even worry about mundane matters such as the absence or appearance of oxygen in her lungs. If she listened very hard she could barely discern her distant heartbeat, a slow and steady thrum deep in the background. Her subconscious world was calm, orderly, and soothing - just the way it ought to be.
* * *
Shaleah loved the inky black sky of Morado, shyly speckled with pale yellow points of far-off light. Despite the extra moons that perpetually hovered just above the horizon, Morado was beautiful at night. It was during the overly-bright daylight hours that Shaleah fully realized how different and exotic her surroundings were, as very few plants back home were as deeply purple and as wildly thorned as those found here. As a child, she’d had recurrent dreams of soaring through alien skies such as that found on the planet she now helped colonize. Shaleah always thought of it in those exact terms - soaring, not flying, not in the way most popular superheroes flew, running and leaping away from earth's gravity, physically launching themselves up, up, and away into the clear blue sky. No, what she imagined herself doing was soaring effortlessly via brain power alone. If she merely thought UP she'd be airborne just that smoothly.
Telekinetic flight, the reference books called it. If only it were that easy!
Kicking off her worn boots, Shaleah was glad her long day of work as an assistant Med Tech was finally over. She let down her red hair from its tight bun and massaged her neck, trying to work out a few kinks. She was so tired of the haughty attitudes of the doctors she worked with - they barely deigned to acknowledged anyone else's contributions, especially the multitude of laboratory tasks which she and her cohorts were required to perform on a daily basis. In fact, Shaleah was certain she had been picked for this posting specifically because of her knowledge of molecular cytogenetics and her familiarity with fluorescent in situ hybridization, known more simply as the FISH technique, which she used to detect and localize the presence or absence of specific DNA sequences on chromosomes - a very handy skill set to have on an alien world. In fact, FISH could also be used when comparing the genomes of two biological species, to deduce evolutionary relationships.
Truly, when one bothered to think about it, she was one of the handiest people on her team. If only her bosses and co-workers would acknowledge her usefulness, Shaleah would be a happy camper.
"It’s nice to be noticed, isn’t it Odysseus?"
The black khat purred his agreement from where he lay next to her on the bed, gently kneading her thigh with one delicate forepaw.
* * *
"What’s she in for?" Tech Ulysses inquired, tapping gently on the glass.
"Criminally negligent manslaughter," his supervisor replied after punching a few inquiries into her data pad.
"How much time does she have left on her sentence?"
"Four more years, but unfortunately she won’t get them," Chief Katz admitted, entering a code to manually override the cryonic cell's function. She pushed the big red button to confirm her choice to deactivate the system. "The Protectorate has better uses for the cell space right now, rather than bothering to rehabilitate someone of Dr. Leah Shaw's status."
Three beeps sounded as the cryo fluids swirled down the drain and the life support function was summarily discontinued. "Such a pity, though, don’t you think?" Ulysses inquired, watching the woman die before his eyes.
"We aren’t paid to think, Tech. Do please remember that in future," Katz replied stiffly, watching Ulysses dump the body unceremoniously out of the tank and onto the gurney for disposal.
"Yes ma’am," Ulysses replied. He slunk out, tail between his legs, desperately wishing for a new posting as he slowly guided Shaw’s remains to the nearest incinerator.
"Rest in peace," he whispered, and shoved her corpse down the chute.
~~~~~~
In her dreams Shaleah was weightless, floating down a lazy river of darkness, alone and unafraid. She felt nothing - no sensation, no need to breathe or even worry about mundane matters such as the absence or appearance of oxygen in her lungs. If she listened very hard she could barely discern her distant heartbeat, a slow and steady thrum deep in the background. Her subconscious world was calm, orderly, and soothing - just the way it ought to be.
* * *
Shaleah loved the inky black sky of Morado, shyly speckled with pale yellow points of far-off light. Despite the extra moons that perpetually hovered just above the horizon, Morado was beautiful at night. It was during the overly-bright daylight hours that Shaleah fully realized how different and exotic her surroundings were, as very few plants back home were as deeply purple and as wildly thorned as those found here. As a child, she’d had recurrent dreams of soaring through alien skies such as that found on the planet she now helped colonize. Shaleah always thought of it in those exact terms - soaring, not flying, not in the way most popular superheroes flew, running and leaping away from earth's gravity, physically launching themselves up, up, and away into the clear blue sky. No, what she imagined herself doing was soaring effortlessly via brain power alone. If she merely thought UP she'd be airborne just that smoothly.
Telekinetic flight, the reference books called it. If only it were that easy!
Kicking off her worn boots, Shaleah was glad her long day of work as an assistant Med Tech was finally over. She let down her red hair from its tight bun and massaged her neck, trying to work out a few kinks. She was so tired of the haughty attitudes of the doctors she worked with - they barely deigned to acknowledged anyone else's contributions, especially the multitude of laboratory tasks which she and her cohorts were required to perform on a daily basis. In fact, Shaleah was certain she had been picked for this posting specifically because of her knowledge of molecular cytogenetics and her familiarity with fluorescent in situ hybridization, known more simply as the FISH technique, which she used to detect and localize the presence or absence of specific DNA sequences on chromosomes - a very handy skill set to have on an alien world. In fact, FISH could also be used when comparing the genomes of two biological species, to deduce evolutionary relationships.
Truly, when one bothered to think about it, she was one of the handiest people on her team. If only her bosses and co-workers would acknowledge her usefulness, Shaleah would be a happy camper.
"It’s nice to be noticed, isn’t it Odysseus?"
The black khat purred his agreement from where he lay next to her on the bed, gently kneading her thigh with one delicate forepaw.
* * *
"What’s she in for?" Tech Ulysses inquired, tapping gently on the glass.
"Criminally negligent manslaughter," his supervisor replied after punching a few inquiries into her data pad.
"How much time does she have left on her sentence?"
"Four more years, but unfortunately she won’t get them," Chief Katz admitted, entering a code to manually override the cryonic cell's function. She pushed the big red button to confirm her choice to deactivate the system. "The Protectorate has better uses for the cell space right now, rather than bothering to rehabilitate someone of Dr. Leah Shaw's status."
Three beeps sounded as the cryo fluids swirled down the drain and the life support function was summarily discontinued. "Such a pity, though, don’t you think?" Ulysses inquired, watching the woman die before his eyes.
"We aren’t paid to think, Tech. Do please remember that in future," Katz replied stiffly, watching Ulysses dump the body unceremoniously out of the tank and onto the gurney for disposal.
"Yes ma’am," Ulysses replied. He slunk out, tail between his legs, desperately wishing for a new posting as he slowly guided Shaw’s remains to the nearest incinerator.
"Rest in peace," he whispered, and shoved her corpse down the chute.