| abstract
| - Quasi-energy microbes are microscopic lifeforms which exist as both matter and energy simultaneously. They naturally inhabit the distortion field caused by a stream of plasma running between two stars of a binary system. They are also known to infect humanoid hosts, causing some parts of the host's body to pain and glow occasionally. The microbe's physical appearance seems to be reminiscent of a brown leech-like organism with a wide mouth. Quasi-energy microbes were discovered by the Federation for the first time in 2369 by the starship Yosemite, which was sent to study the plasma streamer phenomenon, occurring in a binary star system in the Igo Sector. The Yosemite crew decided to transporter a plasma sample on board, unknowingly bringing the microbes too. The microbes responded by rupturing the plasma container and infecting some crew members. The crew attempted to use the transporter's biofilter to eliminate the microbes, but it seemingly didn't recognize them due to their quasi-energy nature. Both crew and microbes ended up trapped inside the transporter's pattern buffer, a device used to temporarily store the matter stream during the transportation. Later, when the USS Enterprise-D arrived to investigate the fate of the Yosemite, Reginald Barclay saw oversized versions of the microbes while he was being beamed down. He got infected by the microbes and the Enterprise crew decided to use a similar technique, but making modifications in the biofilter so that it would remove the microbes successfully. It also turned out that the giant microbes Barclay had seen while in the matter stream were actually the Yosemite crewmembers, which were appearing as the microbes for some unclear reason. The quasi-energy microbes were finally removed from their hosts and returned to the plasma streamer where they had been found.
- They were first encountered in 2369 by the Federation science vessel USS Yosemite, sent to study the plasma streamer. The crew accidentally transported the microbes aboard along with a sample of plasma. When they subjected the plasma to a resonance frequency scan, the microbes responded by rupturing the container and a number of them infected the Yosemite crew. Lieutenant Joshua Kelly attempted to remove the microbes using the transporter's biofilter, but he was unsuccessful and the crew members became trapped in the pattern buffer. Later, when the USS Enterprise-D arrived to investigate the fate of the Yosemite, Lieutenant Reginald Barclay became infected by the microbes while he was beaming from the Yosemite back to the Enterprise. Barclay also saw large versions of the microbes in the matter stream. Afterward, he began experiencing pain and blue flashes over his body, and examination revealed that he had somehow been exposed to the same high-energy plasma as Kelly. Once the microbes were discovered, the Enterprise crew found a way to remove them by keeping Barclay suspended in mid-transport until his molecular structure began to degrade. At that point, the nucleonic particle emissions enabled the biofilter to isolate the microbes. During this process, Barclay recognized the microbes he saw in the matter stream as the missing Yosemite crew members, enabling their rescue. The microbes were subsequently returned to the streamer. (TNG: "Realm of Fear" ) The models of these lifeforms were designed and puppeteered by Dan Curry and built by model maker Carey Howe.
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![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)