PART I
====== 1st TF CO office, reception area, SB 234:
UNITY ====
Pakosii looked up from his desk on the two man approaching
him. He knew the Science advisor well enough to guess who
the other man was. It was Commander Rodgers, ex-CEO on the
Chimera and ex-CEO of the UNITY. He knew that the Commodore
was expecting the couple and said politely: "Commanders,
please take a seat for a moment, I check up with the
Commodore immediately"
Rick looked over at Bren, then down at one of the chairs.
Before he could take a seat, the lieutenant spoke.
"The Commodore is expecting you, sirs, but before you go,
I must ask you to confirm your identity by a retinal
scan". The group of six marines watching over the room
pierced both man with their stares. One would say that they
longed to trigger the gun.
Rick had met with Shane a few times when he was transferred
over to Unity. Of course, that was a few months ago. Still,
he felt that the security precautions were a bit odd.
"We not going a bit overboard, are we, lieutenant?" Rick
asked.
"I am sorry for the inconvience, Commander" Pakosii
said, "but both of you were out of the UNITY for longer
then 4 hours. This is a new security measurement following
the death of Commander Harbright. Afterall, you could be
Changelings, Metamorphs … or even tax collectors … I
mean chirurgical altered Romulan assassins. Please proceed
to the retinal scan or security will escort you to
infirmary"
"Very well," Rick sighed as he leaned his head toward the
device.
Bren did the same, thinking it simply as a sign of the times
Things were probably going to get worse before they get
better. "How long is the scan valid for, Lieutenant?"
"One hour. This measure is active for one hour, Sir"
"Only one hour?" Bren responded, surprised. "We'll all be
blind by the end of the week if we have to keep doing this
every hour," he muttered under his breath.
====== Shane's office ====
"Commanders, welcome back, please take seats" Shane said
seeing Bren and Rick entering the room. "Anything to
drink?"
"Just water for me, please," Rick said as he took a seat.
"I'll have some coffee, thank you, Commodore," Bren said.
"Black, no sugar, please."
Handing over two cups, Shane returned to his own seat and
said: "Quite interesting reports from both of you … and
well done. The shipyard is here and even a new ship. I take
it that the Detector is in shape to be usable for duty
…"
"There is still section of hull that needs to be complete,"
Rick said. "Once shipyard is operational, should only take a
couple days to finish. Other upgrades, like weapons systems
should only take a couple of weeks. Though in current state,
she be much more valuable as a scout vessel."
Shane nodded and asked: "Pakosii told me that you wanted
to speak with me urgently. Is there anything that isn't
written in the reports?"
Rick looked at Bren before looking back at Shane.
"Two things, sir," Rick said. "First, a device that was
discovered on Detector. It a very powerful technology
inhibitor, capable of affecting an entire star system. At
least in theory. Though it never properly tested. Still, I
believe it has considerable potential."
Rick handed Shane a PADD with everything he had been able to
research on the device.
Shane took the PADD and gave it a brief look. He was no
Engineer, but his knowledge from old good tactician times
helped him to get at least a vague idea of the device's
potential. "Damn" he said, "this doesn't look good.
What's the origin of the device?" he asked.
"The man who created the inhibitor, along with various other
projects and technological enhancements during span of 40
years, is a civilian engineer/scientist named Trevor
Wright," Rick said.
"His work is well known inside R&D," Bren commented. "He is
somewhat of a legend, in a way."
Shane shrugged his shoulders: "I have never heard about
him" he said.
"He kept a pretty low profile," Rick said. "Its believed he
died 20 years ago, but he still alive and was living under
guise of Jameson commanding officer."
"What?" Shane asked. "Under guise? Where is he now?
How could this happen?"
"He currently under house arrest and being detained in his
.. Captain Richard's quarters on Jameson," Rick said.
"I wasn't aware of any of this until Commander Rodgers
mentioned it to me when they returned to the station," Bren
said, taking a sip from his cup. "I have to say, putting
aside Wright's identity, theft he could be a very valuable
asset to us, especially at this time."
Shane remained silent for a while. He considered the
situation and cursed his rank. {Why it's me who has to
deal with things like that?} He knew the answer. It was him
who wanted a higher position … a position of power. But
power takes a great deal of responsibility with itself and
like love and marriage … you cannot have one without the
other.
"I need to speak to this Mr. Wright.". Shane pressed a
button on his console and contacted his aide. "Lieutenant,
please ask the CO of USS Jameson to report to me
immediately. The Captain will need an escort … please take
care of it"
+TAPS+ of course, Sir. +
====== End of part I ======
Cmdr. Bren Ohmsford
Science & Act. Engineering Advisor
1st Task Force, SSF Command
&
Cmdr. Rick Rodgers
AEO
SB 234: UNITY
&
Commo. Shane Guzman
CO, 1st TF, SSF Command
CO, SB 234: UNITY
