Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade V’alura Belmont (Chief Science Officer) in Departmental Head check in

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Ella Lokaa (Scientist) in Departmental Head check in

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade V’alura Belmont (Chief Science Officer) in Departmental Head check in
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It seemed V’alura’s words had a profound effect upon Ella. The young woman’s speechlessness certainly wasn’t lost to her. V’alura couldn’t help but feel a sense of profound sadness on the woman’s behalf. However she was treated before. . . that’ll change with her and her department. “I know you will,” V’alura assured. Some scientists on staff affectionately refer to V’alura as Science Mom and it doesn’t seem like that nickname will go away any time soon. “Let me know if there’s anything we can do to help you feel comfortable and welcome.”

Ella slowly coming out of her unusual response smiled, “Thank you I’ll be sure to remember that.” Her mother would be distraught to see how her daughter was handling the situation but Ella cherished her more human side especially when it made her feel more free and accepted.

V’alura gave Ella a moment to answer and to gather her thoughts before speaking again, “Why don’t you tell me more about your education? And what made you choose your chosen field?”

Lt JG V’alura Belmont, CSO

“Well…” Ella started pausing to think, “I very much enjoy the science behind artificial intelligence and how it can both improve and hinder our ability to do our jobs with that comes computer science so it was only natural that I would study formal science as a whole. Once I started studying I found I also loved looking for patterns and analysing data and statistics.” She chuckled, “My people are not very scientific and every part of me wanted to conform and become a security officer as my initial assessments suggested but I wanted to do something different. Like leaving Elas was different and so why cant someone from a barbaric warrior race become a scientist. I guess in short I’m trying to push the boundaries of the preconceptions people have of Elasians.”

• Lt JG Ella Lokaa, Science Officer

“Absolutely!” V’alura said, leaning forward now that they were on her favorite topic in the world. “And you’ll be in good company on this ship. Artificial Intelligence is my specialty too, and I’m looking forward to working with you. Together we’ll cook up some fantastic ideas.” Okay, girl, let’s pull this back a bit. V’alura loved computers and technology and had a tendency of letting herself get carried away. Which, can you blame her? Surely she’s allowed to be a little dramatic from time to time. “Okay. . . what was that next question. . . ah, that’s it. What made you choose Starfleet? Elasians may be a warrior race but surely there was some kind of academia?”

Lt JG V’alura Belmont, CSO

“Some” She nodded, “After our first contact we went from fighting with fists to phaser’s so I guess there’s that but in terms of Acadamia.” Ella paused, “The Andorians have an embassy in the Capital, they are a similar warrior race to us and were the only federation representatives our elders would allow on the planet full time. They provided a lot towards our technological advancements and to our academic system. Often they held lectures and lessons that the young could attend, older Elasians didn’t care for it.” She explained.

• Lt JG Ella Lokaa, Science Officer

“Interesting,” V’alura almost wondered what life could have been like for the Elasians without first contact. A thought that could lead to no end of speculation between her Ella, perhaps a conversation for another day. “Was it the presence of the andorians that inspired you to join Starfleet? Or was it some other factor?” V’alura wanted to know what drew Ella to Starfleet. What influence or inspiration could make someone seek a career among the stars?

Lt JG V’alura Belmont, CSO

“Both” she started, “The andorians showed us younger elasians there was more to what we already knew, we’d been at war for so long either aginst our neighbours, with each other and the Andoians despite their oddities showed us that we could be better.” She smiled as if remembering a fond memory, “There was a young Andorian who helped guide me towards where I am today, he was son of the lead scientist at their outpost and together we caused a lot of mischief” Again Ella chuckled, “A little unknown fact to most is that Andorians, Vulcans and maybe Romulans are almost immune to our biochemical charm and so, with A’loran it felt like a real connection, what I learned felt real and he encouraged me to join.”

• Lt JG Ella Lokka

“That is a lovely memory,” V’alura answered with a soft smile. Ella seemed like a bright and highly motivated young lady. V’alura was pleased as punch to have her on the team. V’alura stood and motioned for Ella to follow her, “Why don’t we finish up with a tour of the labs? Get you familiar with the layout and all that and maybe introduce you to a few faces.”

Lt JG V’alura Belmont, CSO

The Elasian stood after a short delay and smiled, “Of course, I’d love to.” She had hoped that the meeting would include a tour. While most labs were the same it was always a little disorientating at first figuring out where to take certain samples and of course experiments. This way she got to meet the team and get and idea of where people worked and where everything was.

• Lt JG Ella Lokaa, Science Officer