Crossover - Michael Jan Friedman [13]
About a meter in height, the unit consisted of two circular sections, a larger one on the bottom and a smaller one on top. No power was being fed to the unit at the moment, but Scotty knew that when it was working the lower cylinder would glow with energy.
Scotty tapped the nearby intercom pad and said, “Computer, is this the original Romulan cloaking device retrieved by the U.S.S. Enterprise on stardate five-oh-two-seven-point-three?”
“Yes,” the computer responded. “Thank you for your interest and enjoy your starship adventure on the U.S.S. Yorktown.”
The electronic voice was the same one that Scotty remembered from the Enterprise, but the personality was different. More friendly, less mechanical—a lot like the voice that had welcomed him to the starbase.
The change annoyed him. After all, the computer was a machine.
“Is the unit operational?” he asked. “Has it been modified in any way?”
“The Romulan cloaking device is fully functional and has been restored to its original specifications. Thank you for your inquiry and enjoy your starship adventure on the U.S.S. Yorktown.”
Well, that’s it then, Scotty thought.
Suddenly, he realized he wasn’t alone in front of the exhibit. Turning, he saw the now familiar face of the youngster with all the questions.
“A ship like this stole that cloak from the Romulans,” the lad informed him.
“Really,” Scott said noncommittally.
“Yeah. It was a hundred years ago,” the boy added enthusiastically.
“Is that so?” Scotty replied.
“Yeah. The starship got chased by three Romulan battle cruisers when they tried to get away with the cloaking device. Man, that must have been something,” the youngster remarked with a flourish.
“It was,” Scotty replied, too low for the lad to hear.
A moment later, Ensign Hammond called the group to the shuttlebay exit and led them out into the corridor. Their first stops were the cargo and recreational areas on the lower decks.
Scotty tried to remain as inconspicuous as possible and maintain a polite distance from the boy, who was now lecturing a young couple on the Earth-Romulan war.
Walking the corridors, Scotty could feel a vibration through the deck. The warp engines were on-line, though operating at minimal power.
That was good. It would make the execution of his scheme much easier. That is, the scheme that was still developing in his head—becoming firmer and firmer by the minute.
Scotty’s breath caught in his throat as he followed the group onto the engineering deck. Again, he felt the desire to lose himself in the wonder of his surroundings, but he kept his mind on his task.
While the others were marveling at the engine core, Scotty discreetly headed for auxiliary control. On the way, he passed Ensign Hammond trying to coax the same lad down from a Jeffries tube.
“But you said we couldn’t hurt the ship,” the boy protested in a high-pitched voice.
In auxiliary control, Scotty seated himself behind the console and tested all of the engineering lockouts, using the shipyard presets he remembered from the Enterprise. The curators had completed their restoration down to the use of the factory codes—so they all worked, giving him access to most of the ship’s engineering functions.
His first task was to change the codes, giving him sole access. Then he used that access to begin a minor overload to the warp engine systems.
Scotty had time for a few more adjustments, after which he was ready to try the prefix code. The curators— bless them—had restored that one as well.
He summoned the numbers from memory. Just another moment and he’d–
“Even if the entire bridge was destroyed,” a recognizable boy’s voice said behind him, “they could control the whole ship from here, even fire the weapons.”
Scotty sighed with his whole body.
“What are you doing?” the lad asked.
“Just trying out the antiques,” Scotty told him, keeping his voice even with great effort.
Ensign Hammond appeared