Paranoia Paranormal
Posted on February 28th, 2013 by T'Kirr

The quiet atmosphere of Ian and T’Kirr’s quarters was welcoming, conducive to meditation when she was alone and, in this instance, deep thought. After checking on the science lab for progress concerning the nature of the Vrissk, she had decided to return to their quarters for a shower. Even though T’Kirr had been wearing an EV suit the entire time she was on the planet, it felt as if its dust of desiccation had permeated her being. This was illogical of course, but reasoning this to herself didn’t make the idea go away, and she thought perhaps a shower would.

Quickly shedding her uniform, T’Kirr stepped into the chamber and closed her eyes. The soothing hum began, reverberating through the air and bombarding her body with sonic waves. She opened her eyes again, but of course there was nothing to see. The sounds were invisible, yet she knew they were there by their cleaning effect. At her present state of mind, however, this only heightened her anxiety, so she asked the computer to drop the lighting to twenty percent and closed her eyes again.

It wasn’t that she didn’t believe in the existence of the soul. On the contrary, T’Kirr was raised and taught that the Vulcan katra was very real. One’s body could be dead and the person’s essence still exist, even be transferred to a living person and communicate with others. A host of a katra had even been known to claim seeing the spirit in one’s mind while asleep or in a trance, but never as a physical manifestation. A katra didn’t just float around, it was always within someone or something.

When T’Kirr had first glimpsed one of the Vrissk, she had thought she had somehow been forced into some sort of trance. The entire Away Team had seen them, though, so that was clearly not the case. At first, she had thought it possible they simply lived in a state of existence much different from her own, but there was so much evidence against such an idea.

She didn’t believe in ghosts, yet here they were.

They had all seen them, two crew members even being injured by them. Sensor data verified their existence, now. They carried on intelligent conversations with them, the topic of which centered around the fact that they were alive once and now were very much dead. The Vrissk were a whole planet of spirits, souls without substance, left to wander purposelessly unless the crew of Atlantis could help them.

The new concept frightened her just a little, because it made her redefine what she knew of existence, pushing past the boundaries of fact, what she knew to be true and stabilizing in her life. Were the Vrissk unique in this state of unrest, or could the same thing happen on other worlds? Could it happen on Vulcan? Were the stories of madmen true?

Could any of her ancestors be roaming like the Vrissk, restless and unable to be seen, calling out for help when no one is looking?

Their research would bring answers. Now that they had the Vrissk cooperating and not trying to kill them, they could study their exact properties. Surely Atlantis wouldn’t leave until they found a solution. Their findings wouldn’t just benefit the Vrissk, but possibly be useful in other applications as well.

With a new sense of determination, T’Kirr stepped out of the sonic shower and retrieved a fresh uniform. She dressed quickly, checked her appearance in the mirror, and left her quarters, heading for the science lab.