Metamorphosis - Jean Lorrah [60]
Data excused himself, and went to the shuttle bay.
Only Sdan was there now. He looked up from the program he was working on with a wicked grin.
“Data, that kid you assigned to us is great. Bright, disciplined as a young Vulcan, with imagination and intuition to boot. Look at the shortcut he came up withfor figuring geodesics.”
Data examined Wesley’s work, and found it both sound and innovative. The boy had obviously figured out how the startube Data had given him worked, for he had applied its technology to the navigation program. “I shall congratulate him on his efforts. I think you can see now why we are challenging Wesley to channel his abilities in positive directions. Before Captain Picard put him on the bridge, his curiosity and talent frequently caused mischief, even when he did not intend it.”
Sdan nodded. “I hope Startleet doesn’t stifle him. Only thing I see wrong with him is that he’s too damned polite. Yes sir, no sir, if you please sir.” He shuddered. “Makes me feel like his grandfather, or his instructor at the Academy. Maybe workin’ with us’ll get him to relax a little” “I do not think so,” said Data.
“Wesley’s life is geared toward Starfleet.”
He took up the programming when he reached the point to which the debugging was complete-only to find Sdan growing impatient with his slowness. While Sdan claimed to have an unlikely mix of Federation and even nonFederation races in his ancestry, his appearance and intelligence were Vulcan. As an android, Data had been able to compute faster than any organic species. As a human, he was easily outclassed by any of the Vulcanoid races. “Data, it’s obviously four pi to the twenty-third! What’s the matter with you?” Sdan demanded.
Data looked up at him, and answered deadpan.
“I am only human. was Instead of provoking the laugh he had intended, the words brought a stricken look to Sdan’s face. “Hell, I’m sorry!
Course you are, and I wouldn’t treat Poet that way. I was just used to the speed you calculated at before. You’re still faster’n keyboarding in the equations.”
The end was in sight by the time Data had to leave for his appointment with Dare on the holodeck.
“I miss this technology,” Dare admitted as he looked around the bare room. “As active as we are, we can get rusty practicing only with one another-and wealthy as we are we’ll never afford a ship capable of supporting a holodeck.”
“Starfleet has not closed the option for you to return if you wish it,” Data reminded him.
“Oh, no,” the mercenary replied. “I couldn’t live with such regimentation any longer. I enjoy my independence too much.” He grinned self-deprecatingly and added, “I also enjoy command.
Few Starfleet security chiefs ever move up to captain.”
“Few live long enough,” Data said-and was immediately sorry. He had been thinking of Tasha Yar, of course, and forgotten for the moment that Dare was not only the man responsible for setting Tasha on that career path but also the man who had loved and planned to marry her. But Dare only said, “Too true,” veiling his eyes as he turned away. Then he took off his jacket, and began to do warmup exercises. They were familiar moves to Data, who had often seen Tasha do them. However, this was the first time he had had reason to try them himself.
Data found at first that he suffered twinges of pain left over from yesterday, but as he bent and stretched in imitation of Dare’s moves they became less noticeable. He was clumsy, but Dare pointed out proper positions and after a time he began to understand what was meant by “getting a feel” for an activity.
“You can bend further,” Dare told him as Data touched his fingertips to the floor.
“I am doing what you did,” Data replied.
“Yes, but you are years younger than I am and have never had your back broken. No-don’t bounce!”
Dare warned as Data tried to force his human body to do what his android body would have done easily.
“Never force-that