Mosaic - Jeri Taylor [69]
Now, sitting on the bridge of the starship Icarus, with Admiral Paris in command, setting off on an expedition into deep space in order to study massive compact halo objects, she thought she could know no greater happiness. She was actually the junior science officer on this mission, tapped by the admiral for his recently sanctioned Arias expedition just one year after she'd completed a doctoral degree in quantum cosmology. It was heady stuff for one so young to be chosen for such an important mission. She sensed a presence near her station and realized Admiral Paris had moved closer to her, still staring at the viewscreen, where Earth was now a small dot, blue turning to white. "That's the last you'll see of home for at least a year, Ensign," he said. "I hope you won't be getting homesick on me."
She looked up at him, unsure whether he was kidding or not. She had learned that he had a wonderful, wry sense of humor, and enjoyed tweaking those he liked. But his style was so dry it often blurred the line between joke and truth.
"I'm not the homesick type, sir," she replied, preferring to play it safe by taking him seriously. But she wasn't surprised when his eyes twinkled and he grinned at her.
"Actually, Ensign, you're the last person I'd suspect of that particular malady."
He didn't explain himself further, and Kathryn found herself wondering if the admiral thought a lack of susceptibility to homesickness was a good thing or a bad one. And then she wondered why it mattered so much what he thought.
"I'd like to meet with the science team at eleven hundred hours," continued the admiral. "I don't think you've met everyone yet."
"No, sir. I'm looking forward to it." Actually, she was fitfully anxious about that encounter. She was bound to be the youngest and least experienced of the group, a fact of which she was sure they were all aware. Would they accept her? Would they respect her? Did they resent the admiral bringing a raw ensign on such a far-ranging and scientifically significant expedition?
She would have to prove herself to them.
But as it happened, there was only one person with whom that would prove to be necessary. When they convened in the wardroom later that morning, Kathryn sensed nothing but friendship and receptivity from most of the people in the room as Admiral Paris introduced them. "May I present Commander T'Por, whose expertise in astrophysics is legendary." Kathryn looked into the solemn eyes of an elegant Vulcan woman of whom she'd already heard a great deal. "Lieutenant Darren Ditillo, a seasoned space traveler with proficiency in astrometric analysis." A small, wiry man in his late thirties with thinning hair and a ready smile shook her hand enthusiastically. "Ensign Sally Rhodes, only a few years out of the Academy but already well respected in the field of condensed matter physics." The young woman was only a few years older than she, and Kathryn was comforted to know there was a friendly peer among the group. They all seemed welcoming, and Kathryn began to relax. But there was one other person in the group.
"And this is Lieutenant Justin Tighe, our engineering liaison." Kathryn shook the hand of a lean, muscular man of about thirty with dark, tousled hair, whose grip was confident and whose eyes-deep, blue eyes-were challenging.
"Welcome aboard,