Stardate: 70905:1100
Title: A Hunger For Knowledge Or Just A Hunger?
Author: CMO Ted Matthews
Time: Current
Scene: USS Horizon / Rennas


As the CMO, Captain Deadilus usually gave Dr Matthews the choice of what medical personnel went on away missions and who stayed behind. Given their knowledge that this race may become an enemy in the future both Ted and Gabriel were to accompany the away team down to the planet for the evening celebrations and Ted had been impressed with Gabriel's level of preparedness.

At some point the medical department would take part in an exchange of information and, even though Scott would never ask, Ted knew that they may gain vital intelligence on their opponent's physical weaknesses at this early stage before they became the ‘enemy'. 

Straightening his dress uniform he gestured to Gabriel as he entered the transporter room.

"So what is our role in this evening's event, Sir?" The Ensign asked.

"Captain Deadilus has been told tonight is mainly social, but we shall sit with a few of the Rennas who are authorities on their physiology."

Scott entered the room and addressed the gathered away team. There was no doubt that with the future knowledge they had they needed to take every advantage they could to learn as much as they could about this unknown race. Ted was surprised when Lily walked in and he wondered how she would cope with seeing the race she hated with such a passion.

They transported down in the second group and followed their host to the banquet room. 

*At least they have the face of an enemy, certainly not lovable.* Ted silently chided his own thoughts as he took up a seat next to Plunk'Sel, one of the leading physicians of the Rennas.

As the meal progressed, general chitchat started to turn towards medical matters.

"Plunk'Sel, your feast is truly delicious, but it does seems to be biased towards meat products. Is such a high protein intake a requirement for healthy nutrition amongst your people?" Plunk'Sel paused from taking a large mouthful of food.

"The more you eat, the stronger you become. Rennas' body and mind is fuelled by the food it eats."

Ted was slightly puzzled by that answer as human physiology had long ago established that too much of anything eventually harmed you and variety was the key to healthy nutrition. Maybe it was less of a physical well-being thing and more of a cultural thing. Perhaps Ted was too fixated on their insectoid biology and confusing it with his own knowledge of insects back home that mainly ate vegetation and small amounts of meat. 

Whatever it was, it bothered him.

"Plunk'Sel can you tell me what are the main conditions you have to treat as a physician?" Ted was glad Gabriel had taken over the questioning as it gave him time to think.

"Rennas people are very healthy, only illness that I have to treat is malnutrition." Again it was back to food and looking around at the room the vast amounts of food that had been here earlier seemed to have greatly diminished. He hadn't seen anyone take the food away and he was sure the Horizon away team would have done little to deplete the piles; if they had he would be handing out indigestion tablets by the bucket-load later.

Plunk'Sel, having finished his food, started questioning them. Again the CMO was puzzled - he had been at many exchanges of medical information and the general disease, repopulation and common ailments' questions was not what this Rennas physician was interested in. Instead, Plunk'Sel wanted to know about the Federation's food, what the different species ate, if food shortages were a problem, and whether or not all people in the Federation were quite as ‘skin and bones' as the away team.

Gabriel gave Ted a look that said he thought the questioning was strange; this was something they would definitely have to report to the Captain.


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Ted Matthews 
CMO
USS Horizon
NCC-72400
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