Tooth and Claw - Doranna Durgin [25]
“I think it is,” Worf replied.
“No, he’s right, Worf,” La Forge said, earning a glare from Worf. “There are a lot of things to think about. We can’t just send the Collins in—whatever damaged the Rahjoh might just leave you as stranded as the commander.”
“And the ReynTa,” Kugen said pointedly. “And what do you think happened to the shuttle? If the machines are so vulnerable, I’m surprised you would risk the ReynTa’s life with one.”
“They’re not vulnerable, not under normal circumstances,” La Forge said, letting the Tsoran’s attitude wash over him, hiding his fierce regret at the lack of opportunity to scope out the shuttle operating parameters himself. Anyway, Kugen wasn’t nearly as bad as Akarr, and La Forge had more important things on his mind. “One of the things I’ve been asked to look into is a random surge effect in the shield output, one of which the preserve experienced shortly after the Rahjah entered. If that surge somehow interfered with the shuttle’s systems, made it more vulnerable to the technology dampers … well, it could cause a cascade of failing systems.”
“If we cannot send the Collins, then what about the Legacy scooter pods Those are reliable within the shielding, are they not?” Worf glared around the table as if daring anyone to disagree.
“They are,” Zefan said with complete certainty. Of all the Fandreans, he was the fittest, the most outwardly assured; if he’d had to go into the preserve, La Forge would have preferred his company to all six of Akarr’s city guards. “But they carry only two people each—in this case, one to pilot the scooter pod out to the crash, plus a passenger on the way back. It would require eight of them to effect a rescue—and we do not have eight of
them available at this time. They are being used by our rangers, at work within the preserve.”
“Furthermore,” Chafar added, not meeting Worf’s gaze or looking anywhere near it, “the scooter pods are slow compared to your shuttle. Even if the shuttle made it only halfway to the intended landing, it would take several days to get there and back.”
“That’s one of the reasons the ReynTa wanted the use of the shuttle,” La Forge said. “It allowed him to start his kaphoora more deeply in the preserve than any Tsoran before now.”
“We cannot allow this to take that long,” Worf said. “They may be injured.”
Zefan showed a little tooth. “It is irrelevant, since the scooter pods will not be available for a matter of days. We must wait for the rangers to return on their normal schedules—there is no way to contact them.”
“That’s why I’m here in the first place,” La Forge said, more or less under his breath. And a good thing he was, too, given the way things had turned out. He found nun self surprised at the Fandreans’ apparent unfamiliarity with the shuttle systems despite their work with Admiral Gromek’s people, and more than a little annoyed. No one had been of any help at all when he’d tried to discuss his theory that the force field surges might cause trouble.
Worf shifted impatiently; his knees knocked the low table, shifting it as well. “We cannot use the scooter pods The shuttle is not safe within the force field and technology dampers. There is no other option—we must shut down the technology damper so the Collins can function within the force field even if it experiences another surge.” He kept his own teeth well covered, but his regard for the twitchy field—or lack thereof—came through clearly in his voice.
The city manager, Elen—up until now a quiet observer —spoke up quite sharply. “That is not possible.”
“You might say otherwise if it were your ReynTa lost in the preserve,” Kugen snapped, staring directly at Elen.
“None of our ruling family would choose to enter the preserve in such a manner, with such a purpose.” Although his words lacked the habitual edge of a Tsoran challenge, Elen easily met Kugen’s challenging gaze. “It is not our way. And we will not risk the entire city of Legacy for one being who did make that choice.”
“What do you mean?” Worf said, frowning.