| PHD #374: Earth and Water |
| Summary: | Rose and Lunair meet in the sekrit-secure hydro closet aboard Cerberus. Talk is had. |
| Date: | 07 Feb 2042 AE |
| Related Logs: | Past hydro stuff? |
| Players: |
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| Storage Closet 8-014 - Deck 8 - Battlestar Cerberus |
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| This small storage closet has been transformed through months of effort into a modest floating garden. An assortment of plants hang in trays, water running through their roots; misters go off periodically, giving the room a damp, clean feel. The lights are ample, but not blinding — and they're faintly warm, too, when the misters don't pipe up. The plants are in various stages of growth and blossom, but only a few currently dare to extend hopeful tendrils. There also exist a few rows of pots for those plants that don't handle hydroponics particularly well, though these are not nearly as numerous by any stretch and seem to be limited to a couple of rows on the left wall. |
| Two whiteboards on the port and starboard walls detail the various projects currently being undertaken, while the rest of the walls are home to cupboards and shelves bearing impromptu plant-growing supplies: notes for cuttings, mist bottles, inventory of seed and cutting stock, and the like. |
| Post-Holocaust Day: #374 |
Condition Two doesn't often allow for civilians to freely travel between Cerberus and Elpis, but Rose happens to have two exceptions: her security clearance to allow her access to Cerberus' sophisticated biochemistry facility, and her spearheading of the civilian hydroponics effort. Often, though, she is not aboard to monitor or tweak the heavily-secured military hydroponics effort spearheaded by Lieutenant Lunair, but here she is. Wool overcoat removed and folded on a nearby railing, Rose is busy looking through the varied machinery and plants, taking notes on a clipboard. Her security credentials hang down from around her neck, clear for anyone to see.
Lunair doesn't seem to mind additional input, or even more bodies here. People seem to love the place now and then. It's peaceful, green - and well, guarded. Ahem. Lunair raps upon the door. "Incoming," She announces politely and pokes her head in. She smiles, looking around. Hey wait. That's not her husband's coat… She pauses and spots Rose. "Hello there," She greets the other woman. "I'm not contrary, but my garden does grow." Beam.
Rose peers from around the framework of pipes and shelving, lowering her thick black-framed glasses to see who's come in. Upon seeing who it is, she practically beams, herself. "Miss Lunair!" She greets - a way of greeting that hasn't faded into the past despite Raine's marriage being months old, now. Stepping out from behind the twisting metal and plastic and burbling tanks of plants, she quickly crosses the way, extending her arms for a hug. "I hope it's okay if I greet you like this, it's been forever."
A smile at that. Lunair doesn't seem to mind and Rose isn't the only one. It's just her name as far as most of the boat is concerned. She chuckles softly, closing the door behind her and accepts the hug. A little squeze. "Ah, I don't mind. It has been far too long," She agrees with a wry smile. "It's good to see you. I hope things are going well?" She tilts her head. "And this is our little leftover garden."
"As well as they can, considering the circumstances," she says, pulling back to a respectful distance. Rose casts a glance back over her shoulder at what Lunair dubs 'the leftovers'. "Well, to be perfectly fair, it's your effort that got everything moving forward. We just refined it and made it near factory-efficient on the Elpis." They, meaning, she, of course. "I wouldn't dream of taking away this from you, Raine. This is your creation."
A nod. Lunair seems to agree. She smiles faintly. "I had more help than I can ever list off the top of my head," She admits. "But I don't suspect it matters where a seed comes from Just where it goes," She notes quietly. "So now it belongs to everyone really. Though - we tend to keep this under lock and key. A few trays of poppies could spell a good time in the berthings or something," She considers, with some bemusement. "But it's good to see you." Nod. She looks to be at a loss for a moment.
Rose nods emphatically. "Oh, I agree. Everything medicinal needs to stay here. Elpis just doesn't have the security to handle guarding morpha production and the like," she says. "I was wondering, though, there has to be a slightly larger room somewhere else on board. Don't you think? It would allow for us to reorganize and set things up standardized like we have on the Elpis. Design an efficient facility, based on both of our combined notes." A pause, and a hopeful smile. "What do you think? Would your superiors go for that? It might help folks keep their minds off the constant attacks. Give them something to work on, as volunteers."
Lunair offers, "Are you thirsty or anything? And ah, yes. We were looking to expand before I met you and the civilian project took off," Lunair admits. "For now, this is it. It's small, but… a lot of people take solace," She remarks. "I don't mind that if it's something that looks like a good idea," She smiles. "I doubt they'd object. There might be an MP or two around the medicinal stuff still, but." She shrugs and accepts this. "Like - I had a pilot come in the other day with tobacco seeds he wanted to grow. I figured I'd ask if it was okay if I gave him a tray or some dirt."
Rose blinks twice. "Tobacco? Raine, don't you think that's a waste of resources?" She asks. "I mean, I understand, military folk smoke. It's an outlet. I wouldn't dream of trying to take that away from them. But… well, with every cubic meter needed to grow a recreational substance, it could be used for foodstuffs, or medicine, even."
"Yes and no," Lunair admits. "I can see both sides. He kept the seeds from home and it seemed important to him," One eye closes. "Maybe I'm getting a bit soft and foolish," She smiles weakly. "I think I'll see how much space we have here. I'm … sure we can squeeze a little in for him. I couldn't bear to stop Tisiphone's project, even after her death," She sighs.
Rose shakes her head. "I didn't know Lieutenant Apostolos, but you're right. It would be wrong to just throw away what she was doing." She looks briefly sad - empathetic Rose is empathetic. She reaches out a hand to take Lunair's. "Remember what I said about this being your shop? You do what you need to. I'm just an opinionated scientist who's got too many numbers on the brain."
Lunair does offer, "She was from Sagittaron. Knew a lot about herbal and traditional medicine, so … she was our Chamalla expert, among other things. And a good person. Just difficult sometimes. But I think Sagittarians are that way," She smiles wryly. Ironic from someone from Canceron! Crab vs. Scorpion! She curls her fingers a bit and smiles. "But. I would be a fool to throw away good advice. I just wanted to hear your take on it at the least. I would not, in good conscience, undermine your authority."
"My authority?" Rose laughs nervously. "Raine, I've got no authority here. I'm a civilian. I'm essentially a… contractor!… working for the military. I've no authority." She's repeating herself, shaking her head. "I mean, it's not like I have a staff or anything." She does; a small one, on the Elpis. But she doesn't consider them that way - just fellow survivors working to feed a fleet.
Lunair quirks her brows. "You're… in charge of much of this. You've worked hard on it," She shakes her head. "I guess technically in a way that's true, but it seems rude." She looks over to a pot. "So I don't mind if you'd like to try new things or organize this a bit better. We did it as we went along," She eyes a mister. "So I'll give Galen a little space and we can try to shuffle it a bit. I'm … organizing isn't my strong point all the time."
Rose sighs quietly. She's not going to argue with Lunair, but it's clear from her words, and now her body language, that she doesn't like being put in charge of anything. "If it would help, if you can give me a figure for square footage for a new facility, I can… draft up some numbers? Make a proposal that you can pass along to Major Cavanaugh or whoever else needs to see it?" She smiles weakly. "Anything I can do to make your life easier."
"Okay… I mean … more that your words carry weight," Lunair tries to explain. "I'd have to look honestly," She admits. "With everyone moving around and all these swarms, it's been a bit tough figuring out what's being used and what isn't. I'll take a look and see what rooms are available, then we can have our pick," She nods. "And go from there." She smiles. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. But you are welcome and important here."
Rose nods quickly, smiling again. "Okay," is her simple reply, apparently reassured by Lunair's words. Showing her the clipboard she was writing on, she reveals a variety of notes - statistics of water flow, nutrients, quantities and types of plants grown, and a list of equipment. "I think my security clearance covers all of this, right? I was just taking notes, so I can work on this on my own. And once you get me a guestimate -" Scientific word, there. "- as to what sort of space we can get, I can very quickly give you proposals for room configuration and proposed turn-around on mature plants, from seedlings to harvest."
Lunair leaves it at that and peers over at the notes. "That really is something," She seems to think so. She bobs her head "Of course. I'll bring pictures of the rooms too, just in case I'm totally uninspired," Or to make sure nothing prevents the room from being reusable. "We can probably keep Tisiphone's project here and likely Galen's tobacco," Nice and out of the way. "As an aside for the more efficient projects. Chamalla doesn't seem like it wants to be rushed."
Rose wrinkles her nose at that. "Chamalla is a stinky plant, but it's necessary for oracles and some priests to do their job. I don't particularly care for the smell." She nods slightly. "Don't rush it. At the very least, the slower it grows, the fewer times I'll have to smell it." She winks.
Lunair laughs. "Glad I'm not the only one. But I don't mind it too much. I think being a Marine has made my sense of smell tolerate a lot more than it used to," She admits. "We can likely keep the stinky ones back here. Since it has more limited applications than say, Morpha and such." Likely some humble antibiotic or what have you. She sniffs. "Hmmm." Now that's something to ponder. "I can show you what we have so far."
Smiling, Rose holds up her clipboard. "Anything you can show me, any information you can give me, will help streamline the process. At least, on paper."
"Well, we're trying to get garlic going. It has a lot of good and tasty properties," Mmm, garlic! "I'd like to see what else we could get that kills germs, so nothing is untreatable. I leave that to you guys," She admits. "My degree is in military history." Lunair smiles wryly. "Though, most of this stuff is kinda stinky I guess…" Ponder. Either way, she shows Rose some of the hopeful garlic pots. The poppies should be sprouting quite nicely by now - at least two months have passed since that journey from Sagittaron, surely. "I like the poppies. But they're not as majestic as those fields," A sigh at the memories.
Rose leans over to examine both the garlic pots and the poppies. "Well," she begins, poking around a bit. "You've got a mix and match of soil and clay-rooted hydro. I would recommend we let these finish, and I can show you how to transfer to the plastic beads we're using on the Elpis. They're easily reproducable and don't wear down like the clay ones. Also, if all of our crops are on the same system, tracking their progress will be easier, and there will be standardized training across the board…" She jots down a few notes on her clipboard.
Lunair watches quietly as Rose examines the plants. The chamalla is in a mix too. "Sounds fair enough. I mostly keep the soil and pots for folks who don't really believe in science as much." There's a distant smile. "Some people just like feeling the dirt again. Funny how that is huh? You spend life away from dirt, cleaning… then this and now it's a wonderful thing." She shakes her head. "But if it's easier, any traditional growth can be kept as a novelty or memoria."
Rose snorts lightly as she writes. "Don't believe in science," she repeats. "I'm as traditional and follow the Lords as much as the next person, but you can't deny science." Science!! With a capital-S. "Anyone who claims that science is evil or they shun away from it doesn't really understand that the Lords gave reason to us so that we can better understand the universe They made for us." Scribble, scribble.
Lunair shrugs and smiles. "I don't know that I believe the same, but I do believe there is a place for all of us in this immense universe," She nods. "Or … I think that's what all this is proving to me." She looks thoughtful. "I suspect it's a good stress reliever too." She seems not to think too much on it. "We can clear it to an out of the way place, so it's not impeding main projects."
"I'll leave that one up to you, then? I'm not about to waste resources," Rose says, without malice or hatred, but definitely with a hint of displeasure. "Even on a world with plenty of arable land, I'd still use hydro. It's just… cleaner. More efficient. More science-y." Is science-y a word?
"I know," Lunair shies back a little. "Just …" She shakes her head. "Sometimes the irrational makes itself known," She smiles faintly, shyly. "I'm sorry. It must seem strange and stupid. But … people like to come in here and relax, or think. Or just dig a bit. Is that odd?"
Rose shakes her head. "No, and I can see the value in theraputic gardening," she says, finally looking up from her clipboard. "But at the same time, I suppose, I consider it a very valuable science project. Something that's benefitting everyone. I don't see the value in selfishness when the greater good has to be considered."
"Each side has a point," Lunair just considers. "Let me see what space we can wrangle up," She nods. "We can at least streamline the majority of it," She smiles. "I bet there's even a room with some pipes already in," She looks thoughtful. "And if anyone is fussy about your clearance, I can try to get it to here at least," She holds up a hand. "So you can come and go freely at least."
Rose grins impishly, holding up her clearance badge. "I've access to… the biochem lab, when it's not being used; here; the library - although that's really not a secure place; and I am entitled to an MP escort to and from the hangar deck when going to secure areas. How neat is that?" She asks with a grin, giving a little shimmy to her hips. "I don't think it'll be a problem, but thank you." She glances down at her clipboard. "Um, I think I have everything."
Lunair smiles at that impish grin. "Well, good!" Lunair seems pleased and giggles at the little shimmy. "that is very neat," She nods. "I'm glad we at least have things starting to take shape. I'm more of a grow and go gal," Gardening - COMMANDO STYLE! "But most of all, it is good to see you. I got to visit and see the Hydroponics on Elpis with my husband. Most impressive." Beam.
Rose nods, excited. "Yes, please do! Let me know when you're coming, and maybe we can do dinner and drinks at Pete's, or something. Once this condition two stuff ends. If it ends." She grimaces slightly, but then it's quickly replaced by a smile. "Thank you for meeting with me… Lieutenant." She winks. "Give my love to Marko?"
"Of course," Lunair smiles. Pleased and excited as well! "That would be lovely. I was worried for awhile that my husband is turning into a unicorn. I never see him," She shakes her head. "But that's selfish. This business is hard on our pilots," She just seems sad for a moment. She shakes it off and looks over. "JiG is another term for my rank, but that makes me sound like a dance." She smiles at the wink. "And always." The two are both fond of Rose.