The Sky's the Limit - Marco Palmieri [30]
La Forge laughed and adjusted his VISOR. “No, not really, Doc. It’s true I was pretty hot when I found you in the transporter room, but I’ve been thinking your exercise has some potential.” He leaned forward in his chair. “So, how did you go about choosing your response team?”
“First thing, I called for volunteers. An emergency medical response team isn’t a place for someone who’s not gung-ho enough to volunteer. After that, I went through their files, trying to find people with a wide variety of experiences and interests besides being a medical technician. We’re going to be putting them in high-stress situations where there may not be time to get further instructions. They have to be able to think on their feet and have the courage to act on their instincts.”
“I see, so you were looking for energetic, independent thinkers, coolheaded, yet with a passion to get right to the heart of the matter without being distracted.”
“By George, I think he’s got it.”
Geordi grinned at her. “I’ve been trying to think of a way to get my damage control teams into position faster, and I think you may have hit upon something. Your demonstration today gave me some ideas, even if it didn’t go as well as it could have.”
“Oh, really, Lieutenant? Do tell.”
Geordi shook his head. “Uh-uh. Nope. I’ve got a germ of an idea, but I want a chance to test it first. I’ve played poker with Commander Riker enough to know not to show my cards too early.”
“I can’t say I’ve ever had the privilege.”
“They’re still getting used to you. If we hadn’t taken our trip to Victorian London a few weeks ago, I’d still be trying to figure you out too. You’re a hard lady to get to know.”
Pulaski blinked, shocked at his outlandish notion, when the communicator chirped again. Geordi reached over and tapped it. “La Forge here.”
Captain Picard’s voice came over the system. “Lieutenant La Forge, is Doctor Pulaski still there with you?”
“Yes she is, Captain.”
“Excellent. I need the two of you to come up to the bridge.”
“Right away, sir. La Forge out.” He looked over at Pulaski. “Let’s not keep the man waiting.”
Pulaski nodded. “No, I think being punctual might be a pleasant change.”
Pulaski and La Forge stepped onto the bridge just as Data was finishing his report. “We cannot be sure of the craft’s exact location because of the sensor anomalies. All we can state with certainty is that it appears to be matching our speed and running a course parallel to ours.”
Riker gave Pulaski a dour look as he phrased his next question. “Would the sensor anomalies have anything to do with the power fluctuations we had earlier today?”
“Possibly, but unlikely, Commander. It appears the craft has a means of disguising itself from our sensors.”
Pulaski moved forward to get a better look at the viewscreen. The ship, if you could call it that, seemed archaic compared to the sweeping lines of the EnterpriseD. Whoever’s out there is either very brave or very stupid.
She turned to face the android occupying the helm. “So, Data, do you have any ideas on how that machine out there flies?” Out of habit, she mispronounced his name, shortening the first a.
The android didn’t let it slip by, either. “Data.”
“Excuse me?”
“My name. It is Data.”
“Oh, yes, my mistake. Well, do you have an answer?”
“Not at this time. There are a number of possible propulsion systems that might explain how they are able to maneuver through space. However, most of those are more advanced systems, some even beyond Federation technology.” He pointed to the screen. “They appear to be several generations behind our current technological level.”
She sighed before continuing. “Data, if you’re not sure, you can say so.”
“I thought I just did, Doctor.”
The Enterprise’s tactical officer broke in. “I agree with Commander Data, Doctor. The sensors are not the source of the problem. We have been attempting to hail the craft ever since we began visual observations. There has been no response.”
Picard turned in his seat and faced the large Klingon warrior standing behind him. “How would you rate the level of the threat