Work Text:
Dr. Dimitri Komorov enjoyed watching Dr Ryland Grace work through whatever experiment or roadblock had appeared that day. The man had an insane comprehension of almost any scientific theory he came across. And an uncanny ability to break those concepts down into easy to understand pieces for everyone else. Watching the hoops and side steps that every problem went through before pulling a useful, repeatable end result out of seemingly nowhere was almost as fascinating as Dimitri’s Spin Drives.
And Dimitri should know. They were HIS Spin Drives.
Even still, the latest batch of notes and folders from Dr. Grace were a bit…..different than normal. (If you considered any part of the notes in the margins of his official reports to be ‘normal’. Dimitri always found some part humorous, even if it was a distracted doodle of some kind. The one he’d made of the French Minister of whatever department was annoying Director Stratt that week was now taped up next to the coffee machine, saved as the background of Ivan’s laptop, and was making the rounds as a message reaction. …They were Engineers, pettiness was expected.)
Even lacking unflattering pictures of Government officials aside, the latest stack of papers Ryland had brought him were something else.
The American was almost vibrating next to him as he waited for Dimitri to flip through them. His weight shifted constantly from foot to foot, shoulders rolling as his arms shifted from being crossed over his chest to stuffing one hand in his pocket and flipping a pen over and over in the other. His eyes flicked from the papers to Dimitri’s face and back so quickly they seemed to be attempting to shake out of his head.
Dimitri glanced over Ryland’s shoulder, hoping to see Carl standing in his friend’s shadow and coming up empty. A different man was on duty at the moment. (Not surprising, it was nearly 2AM.)
”Ryland, my friend! Come to show latest breakthrough? Something to cause explosions, I hope.” Dimitri’s grin settled firmly across his face, as it always did with this American. If there was one thing about Ryland Grace, he was impossible to not like. He warmed his way under your skin and seemed to stay there. His pension in bringing Dimitri’s team new and interesting ways to create explosions had won his department over the moment Stratt had brought him to view the initial Spin Drive.
Dimitri even heard the funny American school teacher referred to as Engineering’s “Little Brother” and immediately directed the two discussing it to spread it around the ship as quickly as they could. Ryland Grace was too important to the project as a whole to not receive whatever extra protections he could from the unspoken risk of Dimitri’s Engineers proclaiming him to be off limits.
Now though, Engineering’s Little Brother seemed to be having some type of reaction. Too much sugar? It was entirely possible, considering how much candy Carl plied him with.
Not enough sleep? Also possible. The crazy American seemed as allergic to his bed as his glasses were to staying on his face correctly.
Whatever the case was, Dimitri led Ryland over to a nearby table and started spreading the papers out to get a better look at whatever the crazy genius had brought him this time.
”Dimitri! I was talking to Carl earlier about astrophage when I was running a new experiment and ended up recharging a car battery by accident. I was trying to see what effect the ions and metals of the dead battery would do when exposed to the Petrova frequency and ended up with a fully charged battery! It got me thinking, what if we used it to help power and recharge most of our electronics? Well, maybe not anything smaller than a car battery. What would the human brain or extremities do in response to the waves astrophage put off? Hmmm, maybe something to think about later…” Ryland trailed off with a soft mumble, pulling an almost depleted stack of sticky notes and a pen with the click chewed up from his labcoat and scribbling down an illegible note on it. (Dimitri added his own notes to the corner of one of the papers sitting between them. Just in case.)
”Oh, what did you think of?” Dimitri prompted the other to continue when it seemed like he had gotten lost in thought.
”Right!” Ryland jumped slightly, almost hopping from foot to foot in excitement. “I think I have a design for an astrophage charged greenhouse!”
Dimitri froze.
What?
Astrophage charged….
”Ryland, repeat please.” The Russian was keeping his voice as level as possible to keep his excitement contained. He focused more of his attention to the schematics spread out before him. And yup, these were….
”A greenhouse! With an almost entirely self contained watering system, based off terrariums and water cycles in a jar experiments.”
The man in front of Dimitri was a genius. Currently looking a bit rundown and manic, but a genius anyway.
”Ryland…this is genius! Have you built a model yet?” Dimitri felt himself imitating Grace’s excitement, grinning at his friend enthusiastically.
”…Well, no. But I’m not an Engineer or a Botanist or anything. To build this, I would need a team, and I don’t know if anyone currently on board has time. Besides…” Dimitri was already making a list of possible contacts to pull into this when he noticed a cup being held out to the man in front of him by one of the Biology lab assistants currently working with one of the other engineers. The assistant seemed to be making the rounds and passing out coffee if the paper cup by Dimitri’s elbow was anything to go by. Only….
”I’ll start working list of contacts, my Friend. You go rest. If eye bags get darker, someone think you get punched.” Usually the joke would result in Grace giving him a slightly ‘miffed’ (as the American’s say) look. Now, Grace looked at him in silence for a moment, eyes blinking lazily before snapping open and reaching for the cup being offered to him.
Dimitri took the cup before Ryland could.
Ryland pouted.
”Hey, that was for me.” The slow blink and slightly manic look intensified the apparent inability to stand still that Grace was experiencing.
”How many you have today?” Dimitri leaned back in his chair to fully take in his friend's appearance. “And how long since last break?”
”I don’t know. James from the lab keeps getting them for me. And I took a break….” The blond’s head tilted to the side, racking his brain for an acceptable answer.
”If you can’t say automatically, been too long, my Friend. Go to bed. I'll start picking out a few Engineers.” With that reassurance, the Russian patted Ryland’s shoulder and looked over at the guard on duty. The man stepped forward.
”Dr. Grace, I’ll walk you back to your quarters. It’s almost time for shift change.” He held the door open for Grace and waved quickly as the Petrova Task Forces’ Head Scientist started down the hall towards what Dimitri sincerely hoped was a bed.
He turned back to the assistant who had been attempting to give Grace coffee and pushed the cup back towards him.
”How many cups have you gotten for him today?”
The assistant looked a bit disgruntled by the exaspiration in Dimitri’s voice and straightened his spine, trying to be more collected than he was.
“I’m not sure. James told me to bring him a new one whenever he ran out or I was making rounds for another team while he was there. I think he’s had..” the young man tilted his head to the side for a moment, thinking back, “six today. This was going to be number seven.”
Dimitri’s eyes widened and he jumped for his phone. He hit speed dial 3 and kept his eye on the assistant (who’s name he wasn’t going to bother asking, the man was as good as fired by this point. Because seriously? Six coffees? Who did that?).
”Carl.” The tired voice on the other end was half slurred with sleep, and Dimitri would feel bad about disrupting the man, but they really couldn’t afford a wired, exhausted Dr. Grace right now.
”Carl, Sorry for late call. Ryland had 6 coffees today. Assistant just tried to give seventh when Ryland was showing me new possible project. I sent him off with Steve.” The swearing on the other line was almost comical. In any other situation, he would be laughing. Ryland on too much caffeine was hysterical until he became your problem. Then it was like watching a mad scientist with a doomsday plan (complete with a passible attempt at villain cackle) and watching some futuristic invention that somehow surpassed anything currently available, with limited duplication success. He was brilliant, but also, if they couldn’t duplicate the invention, it didn’t do them much good.
”I’ll handle Grace, you handle the assistant. Make sure he knows he’s lucky we’re not making him ask Lamai for a sedative for Grace. Again.”
”Will do, my Friend. Take care of Little Brother.” Dimitri hung up the phone and leveled his best ‘unimpressed teacher’ face at the now flustered assistant. (If Dimitri was attempting to copy the face his friend often had when calming unruly scientists or annoying Government officials, no one could really blame him. The face worked.)
”But….Dr. Komorov…. I was doing as instructed…James…James said.” The young biologist was stuttering along, eyes flicking around for an escape he would not find. The entire night crew of Engineers had heard and were watching the man squirm with morbid interest.
”I don’t care what James told. When you join Biology department, what was Coffee Rule 1?” Dimitri’s voice somehow was still calm. Though the assistant clearly didn’t think so as he’d started shaking slightly.
”Um…Coffee Rules?….Dr. Komorov?” The confusion had started to spread on the other man’s face. “Isn’t that for the Director and First Officer?….Sir?”
The Russian Engineer was not taken in by the attempt at politeness that was hastily tacked on at the end.
”Yes, Coffee Rule is for Director Stratt and First Officer. What Rule 1?”
The man shifted a bit more before stammering.
”Rul…rule 1 is ‘Don’t give the First Officer more than 3 cups of coffee a day’.” The man looked so confused Dimitri wanted to shake his head and then smack the numbskull (Ryland’s terms were rubbing off on him somewhat….maybe Dimitri will use waste of carbon one day) around the head, seeing as he clearly had no braincells to worry about losing or damaging. Especially when the man continued speaking. “But what does that have to do with Dr. Grace?”
The snickers and muttered conversations (bets) the other Engineers were having turned into a stoney silence. Two bills changed hands to Dimitri’s right and one man crossed himself and started reciting some prayer under his breath. (Dimitri was not religious himself, but he could understand praying for other worldly protection if Director Stratt had heard the way this man sneered Dr. Graces name.)
”Dr. Grace is First Officer.” The entire Engineering department that was currently present and watching this trainwreck would later debate (loudly and slightly drunk on contraband vodka) whether the color in the biologist's face drained into the floor or disappeared like someone flipped a switch and turned it off.
”…What?” The squeak was almost too high pitched for anyone to hear.
Dimitri stood from his stool, settled a hand onto the idiot’s shoulder to ‘lead’ him from the Engineering lab (and keep him from running away. Dimitri was just trying to save the other man the trouble of tripping over his own feet. You never knew when a stray ankle or elbow would throw off your balance) and walk him to the Director’s office.
”Come. We have talk now. And explain issue to the Director and Dr. Lamai.” The color would not be returning to the other’s face anytime soon. It most likely had a new post code by now. “And on way, you will listen to Class 103: Falling on Wrong side of Medical, why Dr. Lamai scarier than Death in Space. Also known; Why wishing for Death in Space is better than Director Stratt when mess with Dr. Grace.”
The door to the lab swung shut and another man hurried over to the table Dimitri had left Ryland’s papers on, organizing them so the Head Engineer could review them later. As he worked, the schematic caught his attention.
The American really did come up with the most ingenious ideas while half out of his mind with caffeine and exhaustion. This project would change the lives of those waiting for the Hail Mary crew to return their findings.
And Simon intended to volunteer for this particular build. This greenhouse would change the world.
Rule 2: We listen, and we don’t judge. Unless you give Dr. Ryland Grace too much coffee. Then we listen as Medical skin you alive and uses you as a Coma Bot test subject.