Tooth and Claw - Doranna Durgin [5]
“You are in error,” Akarr said, trying to hide his sudden panic as he realized just what Riker had said. “My pilot will be Captain Picard. It is arranged.”
Riker glanced at the captain, but it didn’t seem to be in supplication, or to garner permission for any words or behavior. “There must be a misunderstanding,” he said. “I’ll have the honor of piloting your shuttle. The captain has obligations to the ReynKa and the Federation.”
Speechless, Akarr looked at Picard, his fur ruffling up and his nostrils flaring in distress he knew these humans —hoped these humans—would not recognize. The flagship captain, not his pilot? Unacceptable! But… should he negotiate, play their game until he could gain enough sense of the human daleura to turn it to his advantage? Or startle them with a full daleura display here and now, demanding that which had been promised him?
But Riker watched him with wise eyes—blue human eyes—and no alarm. As though he knew the decision that Akarr weighed, and had no concern about dealing with it either way. And … very few Tsorans ever fully recovered from a failed preemptive daleura display.
So even though there were no other Tsorans in the room—his escort waited outside the conference-room door, blocking, as he’d been given to understand, the bridge privacy facilities—Akarr chose the safer way.
No matter. He’d make up for it on Fandre.
Chapter Two
“here’s the thing,” Geordi said, avoiding the temptation to raise his voice against the backdrop of the thrumming warp core, though it was the reason he’d chosen this spot to chat with Reg Barclay and Lieutenant Duffy. “This isn’t exactly official. Not yet.”
“You don’t mean … that is, the captain doesn’t—” Barclay stopped, took a breath, and said, “We’re not-launching the probes behind the captain’s back?”
Startled, Geordi said, “Of course not!” and glanced around the engine room to see just who might have overheard Barclay’s unfortunate phrase as Duffy gave Barclay a pointed jab with his elbow. “What I mean is that this is an option I’d like to have ready in case we need it. But until we get the go-ahead, no one else needs to know about it. Is that clearer?”
To judge from Barclay’s expression, not terribly.
“You want to prepare to launch the probes behind the captain’s back,” he said, his voice much lowered.
“I—” Geordi started, and then raised his hands in a gesture of defeat. “Yes, Reg, something like that. And I won’t be here to handle it. Which is why I want you and Duffy to go ahead and modify and program the probes. Basic class-five medium-range reconnaissance probes.”
Duffy gave him a doubtful look. “That’s a pretty complicated program, sir. I mean, we can do it, but I’m not sure if we can pull it together before you get back—”
“I’ve taken care of that.” Geordi handed Barclay a padd. “I’ve been thinking about this possibility ever since I heard the Federation was having trouble getting the charts. All you need to do is prepare the probes themselves, and then—if the orders come down—send them out and run the program. Do it from cartography-their input feeds are designed to work with this probe. But find a quiet corner for it, okay?”
Duffy brightened considerably, some of his normal cockiness returning. A good balance, these two—Barclay’s innate caution versus Duffy’s occasional attack of youthful enthusiasm. “That, we can do. Prepare the probes, keep it quiet. No problem.”
“It shouldn’t be,” La Forge said. “Just keep in mind-it’s not the captain you have to worry about if this becomes general knowledge, it’ll be Admiral Gromek. This evac is her baby, and if the Tsorans somehow get wind of this, you can bet they won’t be understanding about it. Our goal here is to avoid using these probes, and to hope that no one other than the three of us ever knows we were