Ring Around the Sky - Allyn Gibson [23]
“You look tired, Gomez,” said Gold.
They walked together through the da Vinci’s corridors toward the bridge, their morning ritual.
Gomez smiled wanly. “Late night, sir.”
“Work or pleasure?”
She made a pffft sound and shook her head. “Work. Strictly work.” They reached the turbolift, stepped inside, and took up positions on opposite sides.
“I heard you approved some sightseeing trips to the surface,” Gomez said.
Gold nodded. “I’ve thought of going down myself. The Ring is impressive enough from orbit, and I’m told it’s spectacular from the surface.”
Gomez gestured, her hand cutting an arc through the air in front of her. “You should see how the sunlight catches the Ring.”
“With luck, I’ll have the chance before we leave.”
Gomez nodded. “How long will a planetary evacuation take, do you think?”
Gold exhaled loudly and frowned. “Six months, for a population this size. The real problem is whether or not the Federation has the resources for an evacuation.” He paused. “I don’t know that they do.”
“The Dominion War,” said Gomez.
Gold nodded. “The rebuilding is part of it, certainly. There’s also the question of political expediency.”
“How so?”
“Tellar is a Federation member world, but Kharzh’ulla isn’t. As a political entity, it’s aligned with the Federation, hence their offer to allow Starfleet to use the Ring as a staging area for the fleet during the war. But their acquiescence to the request was grudging, and Starfleet, which would be the one to handle any evacuation, is likely to remember that.”
“Even with lives at stake?”
“It would depend, I think, on the urgency of the situation. How close is the elevator to collapse? How long can the Kharzh’ullans’ temporary solution hold the elevator in place? How many people can the Kharzh’ullans evacuate themselves? Starfleet would take those three questions into account, and if in their opinion the elevator can remain stable for three or five years, any evacuation might not happen until a few years down the road.” He paused. “There are planets who contributed more to the war effort and who suffered more than Kharzh’ulla.”
The turbolift doors opened onto the bridge. Gold and Gomez had arrived early for their shift—gamma shift hadn’t yet gone off duty, and alpha shift hadn’t yet arrived.
Tev turned in the command seat to the turbolift doors and stood as Gold and Gomez stepped onto the bridge. “Good morning, Captain,” he said.
“How was the mission to the surface?” asked Gold as he took his seat in the command chair.
Tev shrugged. “The Kharzh’ullans have their choice now—abandon their world, or collapse the elevator to save the Ring.”
“And it’s up to them to decide which path to take,” said Gomez.
“Which way do you think Eevraith will go, Commander Tev?”
“Eevraith will do what is best for Eevraith. Saving Kharzh’ulla saves his career.”
Gold nodded. He turned to Gomez. “If the Kharzh’ullans accept Tev’s plan, how long would it take to implement it?”
Gomez looked to Tev. “A day. Maybe less.” She paused. “We’d have to evacuate some of the Ring and the elevator base, and then place detonators near the base of the elevator.”
Gold leaned back in his chair and sighed. “Now begins the waiting.” He turned to Tev. “You’re dismissed, Commander. Get some rest.”
“With all due respect, sir, I would prefer to remain on the bridge.”
Gold nodded. “As you wish.”
Alpha shift came on duty—Haznedl at ops, Wong at conn, Shabalala at tactical. Gomez and Tev reviewed reports, but there was little to be done unless or until the Kharzh’ullans accepted the idea of collapsing the elevator.
“Sir,” said Shabalala, “we’re being hailed. First Minister Grevesh.”
Gold nodded. “On screen.”
The viewscreen changed from Kharzh’ulla and the Ring to the interior of Grevesh’s ministerial office.
“First Minister,” said Gold as he rose from his command chair and approached the viewscreen, “this is an unexpected surprise.”
“Captain Gold,” said Grevesh, “I bid you a happy morning. Is your Commander Gomez there?”
Gold nodded, turned, and gestured to Gomez. “She is, yes.”
Grevesh nodded.