Survivors - Jean Lorrah [101]
Data and Tasha beamed down with Rikan to his castle, where he accepted the congratulations of his people before the waiting media. He did not speak long, but ended by saying, “I could not have held out against Nalavia alone. Treva owes its freedom not only to Starfleet, but to the man known as the Silver Paladin. He will be remembered and honored always on our planet.”
Data heard Tasha’s soft gasp, saw her stiffen and fight back tears. He also saw Adin’s people watching them from one side of the courtyard, silently accusing. When the interview was over, Rikan tried to lead Data and Tasha over to them, but the seven turned their backs as one, and walked away.
“Let them go,” said Tasha. “I don’t expect them to forgive me. I can’t forgive myself.”
“I have always thought Adrian incapable of the charges laid against him.” Rikan said.
“I’m sure of it,” Tasha replied. “But there is no way to prove it, no way at all.”
“Not even with the help of your very clever and talented friends?” asked Rikan, looking at Data.
Data started to protest, but thought better of it. It was better to say nothing, as there was nothing he could do for Darryl Adin.
The strange thing was, despite all logic that said Adin had been proved guilty beyond any doubt, reasonable or unreasonable, he also had what he could only describe as a … feeling … that the man was innocent.
On that uncomfortable note, they bade farewell to Rikan, and beamed back to the Enterprise.
Data went back to the bridge, but all during his shift, with nothing to do but routine checks, his primary consciousness kept focusing on the two prisoners in the Enterprise brig. They were now headed to Starbase 68, where both Nalavia and Darryl Adin would be handed over into Starfleet custody.
Nalavia would probably be confined in comfort if not luxury for a time, until the Orions arranged some kind of exchange-probably for Federation citizens taken on a slaving expedition. Of course he had no way of knowing what punishment might await the woman among her own people, since she had failed at her mission. He hoped it was severe.
Data was startled at the thought. Vindictiveness? So soon after jealousy? What was happening to him? In his wish to be human, he had never considered such emotions. Unlike anger, which he had often observed to give people strength to change their lives, these feelings had only negative value. He decided to delete them from his programming.
But … he could not.
They were entwined with too many other bits of memory; he could not delete his jealousy over Tasha’s feelings for Darryl Adin without also removing parts of his respect and friendship for her, as well as numerous concrete facts about their mission to Treva. It was the same with his antipathy toward Nalavia.
He had no choice but to do what humans did with negative feelings: contain them, refuse to dwell on them, and most important, refuse to act on them.
Or … refuse to let them prevent him from acting.
Suddenly Data realized that he had been repressing one area of his programming ever since Rikan had suggested he might do something to prove Darryl Adin innocent. He didn’t know if it could be done … but once he had acknowledged even the remote possibility, he knew he had to try.
Data didn’t know why he thought such evidence existed. He had been over those records; there were no time/entry discrepancies. But then … an expert with such, a computer would know how to avoid those. He would.
He was an android; he was not capable of intuition, or what Captain Picard called a “hunch.” Yet despite all evidence to the contrary he was certain Adin could not have committed the crimes he was convicted of.
He accessed information about intuition and hunches. They were explained as the organic mind determining a pattern from various disconnected facts, some of which might not be consciously remembered.
But Data remembered everything; he