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Everywhere Jacqueline Sisko went, now, people reacted differently to her. It too her a good long while to figure out why; to herself; her spell in the "deep freeze" had been no time at all, but to everyone else she'd been gone a month and that's the way they greeted her.
Once she knew, it didn't bother her; from then on, getting back into ship's routine was easy.
First chance she had, when J.M. Colt came off watch and Ben relieved her, Jacqueline tailed the 2nd officer to the galley and managed to join him over a snack. The problem then was, what did Jacqueline want to say? Well, to start: "I haven't thanked you for saving my ass, there."
The man's grin was wide. "Frankly, I wasn't sure I was acting properly; by ship's regs. But there didn't seem to be any choice. Anyway, Jacqueline, I'm glad it all worked out so well."
You're not the only one, Jacqueline chewed and swallowed. "Ben says you were a big help later, too."
"Was I?" Did Colt look a little on the wary side?
"Yup. When that marshal pulled his gun and all."
"Oh, that. Well," vehemently, "it had to be done."
"And you're the one that did it. I like that." Jacqueline paused, finishing the last of her sandwich. "So does Ben."
One eyebrow tilted, Colt said, "Are you trying to pump me?"
"Not very subtle, am I?"
The man laughed. "Nope." He leaned forward. "I'd tell you anyway. Yes, I think your dad and I just might be working up to something vital together, and yes, I hope that it happens that way. Would it bother you if we do?"
Jacqueline thought she'd made up her mind on that question, now she found herself hesitating. Then she saw the unspoken plea in J.M.'s expression and his barriers melted. "Well, it's like I told Ben. I don't want to be underfoot. Give me a little warning, okay? So I can get myself a quarters assignment.
For a moment J.M. Colt stared but she didn't ask any personal questions. "You get right to it, don't you? That's a good way to be. Well, don't worry about quarters, if I were to move into yours, say, mine are permanently in my name. Would you suit you?
Would they? Officer's quarters all to herself? But, "You sure the others, Captain Archer, would go for that?"
Colt smiled. "Well, why not? Anyway, it's my say-so, not anybody else's. Except yours, of course. So?"
"You've got yourself a deal, J.M. If it all works out. Finished eating, Jacqueline stood. "I hope it does; he's been----well, never mind." Alone, she meant. "And thank you again. See ya!"
Back in her own and Ben's digs she thought on how to tell her dad about that talk. After a while she decided it could wait, until something actually happened, why bug him with it?532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUjitsM3sKE
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It was Paul Stamets the drive specialist, not Beverly Crusher the chief instrument technician, who first detected the dust cloud and reported it to Ben Sisko who had the watch. The thing was too tenuous to show on Arrowprize's sensors; it evinced its presence only by the increased fuel consumption needed to hold velocity against the friction of greater particle density. "Not very much so far," Paul said, "but it could get worse."
Frightened, Ben asked for precise figures. Stargazer, he knew, had run into trouble this way. Its fuel was fed at a fixed rate, any excess being automatically jettisoned. But slowed by friction, the ship experienced a lesser time ratio; input came slower by ship's time, and fuel tank levels dropped.
Worse yet: accelerating from that disadvantages, trying to regain normal time ration and fuel supply, for a time the ship used more fuel than was gained in the process. Stargazer came near to running dry, to killing its Warp Drive. And restarting that device in space---from scratch, exciters and whatnot----with 2 years of C-Gate lag added to each and every passage of information or materials between ship and home base, could have delayed the mission by decades, Earth time.
Some very creative juggling of parameters saved Stargazer's ass. Ben didn't know all the details and was fairly certain his own training wasn't up to reinventing them. The realization didn't scare him; it did impel him to call for a think-tank conference, effective 1 hour after his watch trick ended.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6BU9bkyaIl
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Jacqueline wasn't sure what it was all about, but if Ben was worried, so was she. Half-perched on an end table in the lounge. Kynon Nakada sought to reassure everyone. "It's not the same system, Ben. After Stargazer's problem the whole approach was changed. They operated from a constant feed, and when the tanks overflowed the excess was vented offship. So it wasn't there when they needed it later."
"What's different?" Ben looked stubborn. "And how?"
"Back then," J.M. Colt said, "nobody had noticed the feedback effect---that a C-Gate won't accept anything there's no room for at the far end. Just as it won 't transmit unless an Ass will be on line to receive when the lag time expires."
"How does that help? Ben wasn't convinced, not yet.
"Simply," Nakada put in, "that the feed is always at high pressure. If usage is up at this end, the flow increases at point of origin. And vice versa."
"So there's no danger......" Ben began.
Excited, Jacqueline jumped up. "You mean on Earth, they can detect what's happening here two years later? I mean, more than just whatever an Ass is ready to take?"
"In a sense," said Hikaru Sulu. "But there's no real use for the phenomenon; that would mean faster-than-light communication, which is impossible by definition."
In Sisko's expression, realization followed amazement. "Or just maybe not!" And then: "How come nobody's ever followed up on this before?"
Her patience obviously strained Nakada said, "If anyone tried, I'm sure they found it a blind alley. The effect, it's really irrelevant, like phase velocity or atmospheric potential. We all know it. How could anyone make use of it?"
Not quite able to conceal his excitement, J.M. Colt stood up. "Why don't we take a stab at finding out? Ben?
"I'm with you on that." And: "Kynon, even if you think we're loose in the lobes on this, how 'bout sitting in? You're the one, knows fuel feed equipment. And so far that's all we've got, that we can tinker at." Her disapproval showed, he added. "On paper, I mean. We won't really mess with anything."
Yes. He didn't say it, but Jacqueline could tell.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrsJqBY63KH
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Even without the 2 inexplicable deliveries he hadn't ordered, Arthur's normal stock of dope ran well above the level set by law as the outside limit for "personal use" and a misdemeanor plea. The bundles of packets that came in from Butcher and Jackhammer, less than 1 hour apart on the evening of the midnight bust, put Vinson far past any chance for an exception under the court's unofficial and discretionary tolerance policy. He was up for major dealing and that was that.
And paying for those commodities had cleaned him totally out of cash on hand. He knew better than to stall, arguing with the delivery people employed by his suppliers was guaranteed hazardous to your health. Luckily the family's mossback law firm persuaded the somewhat notorious defense lawyer of Arthur's choice that the Vinson credit line was solid.
His trail happened soon and fast. Going less on the tagged evidence (apparently) than the relative behavior of Vinson towards his 2 co-defendants and theirs towards him, the judge more or less pegged Arthur as small potatoes; her instructions to the jury resulted in letting him off with 4-to-7.
Draven and Bellasario caught 25 each, and in high security at that.
In a way the judge's leniency did Arthur a bad turn. Among the inmates in his cell block an alarming number had a great yen for fat bunkies. For the time being, his wary alertness kept him a jump ahead of their attentions. But in a light-security environment there were all too many chances.
Arthur dreaded the prospect with a fear that owed nothing to ignorance; he'd had more than enough of that kind of thing one summer when he was still prepubertal and his two older cousins weren't. In recall, the humiliation still ate at him.
His 4th day in the block he recorded a postcard; it read: "Now you'll get what's coming to you!" No signature, but he recognized Dolores's printing, and knew that somehow she'd done this to him.
It wasn't fair! Friggin' hell! he hadn't intended to hurt the kid---just initiate her a little bit. She was big enough, the signs starting to show and all. After a time or two she'd have gotten to like it; a lot of reluctant ones did, he'd heard, once you got 'em going.
For right now, though, Arthur sweated and shivered. He'd had a right to; he was still partly in withdrawal.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZmiHucJCj6
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In practice the science of hydraulics is something less than exact, and if smooth laminar flow is distributed enough to give way to turbulence, all normal rules fly out the window. With obviously labored patience, nursing a beer in J.M. Colt's quarters, Kynon Nagada explained those matters.
Frowning, Ben nodded. "So any flow rate detector has to be physically unobtrusive. Are there any like that?"
Well, yes---but nothing sensitive enough to detect the minute variations any feasible maneuvering of Arrowprize's drives might yield. "Those are big pipes, Sisko; the rate is no gallop."
Quiet for a moment, then he snapped his fingers. "Benati!"
"Ben--what?" said Colt.
He was, he thought, still on her first beer. "No, no---I mean the Benati cylinder. You know; pinch down the size of the pipe for a short stretch, and through that part the flow has to move a lot faster."
So? So any variations would be magnified as well. Well, yes. So you hang this muscled-up flowmeter, this little thingie, out in the middle of the pipe on skinny streamlined fins so as not to badger the flow and risk turbulence. Then you....
Then you what?!
Sisko blinked. "Well, how much dipsydoodle would it take with the drive, and for how long, to give a reading back home that would say we did it deliberately?"
Kynon Nagada cleared her throat. "And supporting we did, and some kind of rudimentary code could be agreed o n, God only knows how we manage that---then how long would it take to say anything worth saying? With Earth, don't forget, reading it slowed down by 25 to one."
"Who knows?" J.M. " 'Till we try."532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh4KYWCDy4V
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It wasn't that easy. Everything look good on paper; there wasn't any need, Ben saw, to get into fiddling with the ship's speed to affect time ratio, since one simple increase of decrease in thrust could probably vary the flow rate detectably. In fact, to avoid messing up velocity and scheduled distance over any given time, signal elements should produce no overall change. Subspace wave cycles seemed like a good choice, longer and shorter cycles, differing in both length and amplitude, could make a fair approximation of Morse code. So far, so good.
But not good at all was what communications specialists call keying speed and computer geeks refer to as byte rate. Warp drive didn't rev up and power down like a sports car engine. Due to limitations built into the drive control circuitry for safety reasons, increased thrust built slowly, and easing off gave an equally slow decrease. Either way, the change in fuel consumption would be gradual.
"The best we could do," said Nagada, seeming every bit as disappointed as if she'd favored the investigation all along, "is something like a 10-minute rise time. To make a clearly detectable difference, that is. And that's just 1/4 of the cycle; 40 minutes all told. That's your dot: the dash should be at least 50% longer. So the letter 'n' in Morse takes on a 100 minutes to send."
And on Earth, Sisko thought glumly, nearly 42 hours to receive. And that wasn't counting the needed pauses between letters.
He stood up. "It was a good try, at least. And at least we can be satisfied that we're not overlooking something easy."
Nagada blinked. "Er, I beg to differ." To a bevy of uniformly blank expressions she said, "There's a limited use here, maybe more. Just supposing someone back on Earth want's to k now..." And she went on to explain.
Her idea, Ben thought, had potential. And anyway, the dust cloud was now behind them, having caused no real problems at all (knock on wood!).532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNT8ky2rgFT
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It'd been too long. What with Jacqueline's return---and thank God for that!---and then all the ado about possible subspace communication, Ben hadn't been to Jacqueline's quarters in some time. When she let him in they kissed briefly but hugged a lot longer. Until she said, "We got chairs, too, mister, but they come extra," and he joined her in laughter.
They didn't talk much beforehand. Sat and smiled and sipped chilled wine from little glasses until one said "Now?" and the other nodded.
In bed things got a little loud. Afterward Ben was glad he hadn't thought about the quality of bulkhead soundproofing until later; it might have inhibited him.
Nobody got scratched, though; it hadn't been that long.
Not exactly dressed, afterward, yet covered with enough to answer the door in case of need, Jacqueline and Ben sat very close together on the big sofa, each with only one arm free to deal with their refilled glasses. "She said, did I tell you?----she said she'd go take other quarters, if we----but oh jeez I don't know...."
She smiled at him. "You don't have to. We talked, she and I. If I move in with you, she gets these quarters."
Ben stared. "She talked you into that?"
"No. I made the offer and she likes the idea."
He finished his wine without giving it due respect. "You know something? I thought I was ready to go home in a little bit. But I'm not."
She laughed. "Here's to fringe benefits!"532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwJGp7KBw71
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A few days short of her 12th birthday by biological time. Jacqueline found blood on the sheet when she got up. She wasn't surprised; at school they'd learned all that stuff the year before, and for some months Dolores had fretted about its taking Jacqueline so long. As if starting later than average was some kind of deficiency.
Well, Ben wouldn't worry either way. He might be embarrassed, some men seemed to be, about these things. In any case he wasn't here right now. Jacqueline showered and then began to search for what she needed. Rummaging in some of the boxes Ben had provided, that she'd had no occasion to open yet.
And found nothing of the kind. Ben had thought of all kinds of possible needs, but on this one he'd drawn a blank.
Oh well. Who's perfect? Improvising a pad was no problem; fastening it into her underbriefs was iffier. How long it would stay put was anybody's guess.
What Jacqueline wanted was the kind of thing Dolores used. Inside. There'd be some in Supplies, so Jacqueline went looking for Odessa Vangelos, and found her in the rec room playing pool on the anisotropic table.
Waiting until the game was over---Odessa beat Hikaru Sulu by just a few points----Jacqueline made her request. "Well, sure." Vangelos gave her an appraising look. "I think there's some Honeys back there someplace. Everything else is."
There were, and a good thing, too. The pad didn't hold position all that well; Jacqueline was happy to be rid of it.
She didn't actually tell Ben at all; the day she didn't need the device any longer she left the container out on the bathroom counter. After seeing it, all he said was, "You've started, I guess. All well?"
"Well as it'll ever be. No cramps or anything like that."
"Awesome." He yawned; just off watch, he was nearing his bedtime. "Give us a hug?"
Sure thing.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7yfWHEcyyP
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When Arthur found blood on his shorts it had nothing to do with any natural function, periodic or otherwise. Nor did it betoken the loss of his virginity.
Dustin Sweet was just too goddamned mean to grease up. In retrospect, cousins Glen and Juan, who'd never hurt him more than their aims required, started to look better all the time.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2D4xBaozPL
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As Jacqueline entered the rec room, Odessa waved her to come over. "Think I've found something for you." More tampons? Hardly a big thrill. "But: "Come one, I'll show you," sounded better, so she followed Vaneglos to Crew Supplies. In the clothing area, the older women opened a small carton. "Shoes, ship issue. Vecro and smooth, both of them. And could be your size, or close to it."
"How...?" Squatting down, Jacqueline began sorting through the variety at hand. Sure enough, these were smaller than average; of the three sizes represented, one fig snugly and another a bit looser. Selecting two pairs each of inship and outship models in the snug version, she s aid, "When did these come in." There was no point in asking if Odessa had any idea why.
Looking at the attached shipping manifest, Vangelos said, "It arrive right after those people---that woman----well, you know..."
"You mean, my mom?"
Vangelos shrugged. "You don't look like her---except maybe the small feet. Then: "Your mother, though; I shouldn't say...."
"It's all right, Odessa. I've said a few things myself. Why do you think I hid from her, anyway?" Belatedly, Jacqueline felt a pang. So many years, she and mama had loved each other. Until---how had it all gone so bad?
As Odessa answered, "Hey, I don't know."
"Well....No. Nothing against Odessa Vangelos, but this wasn't anyone else's business. "We had some differences."
"Yup. Happens in any family." And that made it all right?
Standing, Jacqueline shifted her stance from one foot to the other, enjoying the new feel of lightweight footwear. "Thanks, Odessa. I'm sure glad you spotted those on the manifest."
Vangelos waved a hand. "Me too. Glad I could help."532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGpXCStAkKh
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"You got me too, Jackie. I got no idea." Ben shrugged; how the shoes could have been ordered out was a true mystery. Just in case, he switched his terminal on and called up the Outgate listings from Earth on the ship's day marked by the advent of Delores and Company. The one immediately following was all hardware and mostly spare parts, but the next: "Paydirt!"
"Did you find something?" Jacqueline definitely looked interested.
"Sure did. For one thing, this popped in less than 1 hour after your sainted mother my not-so-recent wife and her pet dragon the legal extortionist, not to mention Whatsisbadge."
"Wow!"
Jacqueline seemed to like the patter but Ben had run fresh out; he said, "Second item: I think this was supposed to be a marginal note but somebody got literal-minded and copied it onto the official manifest."
"Copied what?"
"What it says is: expedite, no delays, authority R.K.B."
Jacqueline cocked an eyebrow. Or tried to; the way it came out, Ben thought, couldn't be what she intended. She said, "Does that mean something I should understand?"
"Rick Berman," Sisko said. "His middle name's Keith."
And just on a guess he'd done that. What a guy!532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc3jzF4e2za
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Suddenly the Time Thing slapped Ben hard. By his own reckoning, only sixty days ago he'd shaken hands with Berman. Maybe less; he put his watch log onscreen, to check. Okay, call it 59. On Earth that came to----what? 4 years and 2 weeks, give or take a long lunch break. Plus the two years C-Gating. Right now, Berman was more than 6 years older than he'd been, only 2 of Sisko's months ago. And if Ben sent Rick a note today, thanking him for the shoes, he'd get it---let's see now---only about 90 days short of 6 years after he'd had them sent. And likely wouldn't even remember doing so.
Ben shook his head. Maybe the only way to make sense was to think in ship's time and forget the rest of it.
Trouble was, ship's officers had no such option.
Sisko's mood was rapidly becoming a total write-off and no insurance, when a new thought yanked him out of it.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJf3S1F0xuF
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Why, Jacqueline wondered, did Rick Berman's middle name make Ben look so woebegone? As he sighed and shook his head, she tried to think of something to jerk him out of it. Then, looking up again, he grinned. "You know something? I just figured it out. The days on here, minus what you spent in Cochrane's Icebox---happy birthday, honey! Those shoes from Rick Berman are your first present."
Recovering from the hug Ben gave her, Jacqueline realized he meant days actually lived, adding up to her 12 years. Or close enough, at least. And how long by Earth time, since her birth? About 1 month short of 18 was her best guess.
As Ben put it, no point reminding the captain of her time-experienced age. So instead of any "public" celebration, she and Ben had Marlena over for a private party in quarters. Marlena bought a silk scarf Jacqueline liked a lot, and Ben issued her a regulation-model technician's chronometric calculator.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwAguQS5IWs
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As Marlena Moreau saw it, she and Ben had definitely agreed to cohabit. But day followed day and nothing happened; he hadn't mentioned the subject again and she felt hesitant about bringing it up, in case---well, she didn't want to look pushy.
On the other hand, maybe Sisko was waiting for her to make the next move. As she showered and dressed, she wondered what it should be. How about the formality of notifying Jonathan Archer of the switch in quarters, so he'd know where to call her in the future? Especially when it came to leaving messages.
Yes, that should do it. Marlena checked schedules. Archer was off watch and so was Kynon Nagada; they might be together and likely they were. But Nagada was up for duty within the hour and Jonathan the Correct would never send her off still warmed by the flames of passion (the phrase, from a holonovel Ben and Marlena had viewed recently, provoked a chuckle).
So it was safe to call now. Kynon's rooms, of course. Marlena did. "Like to talk with you, captain.....in person, yes....no, it's nothing serious...all right, see you in a few minutes."
About four minutes, really, and maybe Marlena had misjudged Jonathan Archer; Kynon did show residual signs of arousal. Or maybe not---for one thing, brushed or mussed her hair looked much the same.
After hellos Marlena said, "I just wanted to let you know I'll be sharing quarters with 1st Officer Sisko. Jacqueline says she doesn't want to be underfoot, so I'm giving her mine."
Archer nodded, but Nagada says, "Now just a minute! We've got 16 adults aboard---officers, section heads, the lot. Some doubling up and some not. And this kid, who's not even on the roster, gets one of the four best spaces on the ship?"
She was overlooking the VIP suite but Marlena didn't quibble. Frowning: "Don't you like Jacqueline?"
"Of course I do. What does that...?"
Marlena wasn't done yet. "You're drive chief; the difference between your place and mine isn't all that much." She didn't let Nagada interrupt. "If you want to upgrade quarters, what's stopping you and the captain from sharing his?"
Jonathan couldn't get a word in edgewise, not that he was trying. "We don't choose to." Kynon snapped up.
"But you'd take mine?"
"Not me; I just..."
"Then who did you have in mind? What's your----"
"Shut! Up!" Red-faced, Johnathan Archer shouted, "Moreau, I think I see Kynon's point. Let's hear yours."
"Why----why only that doubled or not, all crewmembers still keep title---so to speak---to their own assigned quarters. Which means, or should, they can use them however they want. What I want his for Jacqueline Sisko to feel good about her dad and me living together. And...." She nodded. "That's my point. All of it."
"This is your own idea," Archer sounded wary.
"Yes." She told how it had come about. "Jacqueline did wonder if it would be all right. I told her it would; please don't make a liar out of me."
Rising, Kynon made a show of checking her wrist chrono. "I'd better hurry. I'll be late. Look, Marlena. I don't know why this hit me wrong, but it did. I'm sorry. All right?"
"Well, sure. And..."
"No," said Archer. His voice was tight; he looked like a man facing punishment. "It's my fault, Kynon, we'll move your things into captain's digs as soon as you come off watch. Or after you've rested, whichever you prefer."
Nagada stared. "Are you sure about this?"
"Absolutely. We're overdue for it."
"I'm glad you agree." She stepped over and kissed him. "And now I do have to go."
Whatever Jonathan Archer had on his mind, and there looked to be plenty, Marlene wanted no part of it. Not just now, and preferably never. "Me too. Thanks, captain. Once I'm moved, I'll change the entry on the intercom screen."
Quickly she followed Nagada out, the door closed.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXf5Aq5FOH8
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Side by side and keeping step; hup-hoo-hee-ho! but not out loud. "Is this a monkey wrench I see before me, its handle towards my hand? Didn't I toss it into none of my business, Kynon?"
Laughter, quickly repressed in a strangled snort. "With MacBeth it was a dagger. But no, you tossed it just right. Thanks, in fact."
Uh-huh is usually safe; turning from the cross corridor towards Marlena's own quarters and the transfer ring doors, Moreau put all her faith into it.
But Nagada said, "Jonathan's always seemed to need his own place all to himself. We never meet there; all's kept just so and I might mess it up. And here you go, turning a kid loose in yours!"
She tugged at Marlena's elbow. "You see what I mean? Why it began to curdle on me?"
Well, sometimes uh-huh isn't enough. A hug can be a big help.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2dajFOMPh3
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All at once it seemed everybody was changing quarters. After she and Ben helped moved Marlena's things and Moreau returned the favor, Jacqueline wanted to get fully unpacked for the first time, in this the biggest space she'd ever had to herself.
But then, at Marlena's suggestion for which she gave no reason, the three of them pitched in to get all of Kynon Nagada's possessions into captain's quarters. Just as well, thought Jacqueline, for Archer wasn't much help. He did carry things, but mostly he seemed to stand around telling people where not to put them. Until Ben and Jacqueline and Marlena took to setting their loads in the middle of the central living room and letting it go at that, scuttling back out before Archer could organize his thinking enough to tell them any different.
Eventually that job, too, was completed. Ben had already left, to relieve Elyse Cawthorn from watch; Archer and Nagada were politely not-quite-bickering over what should go where. Jacqueline was glad to follow Marlena out and to the galley for some lunch.
Finally, then, she was free to delve through cartons she'd barely glanced at, and spread things out a little in her new home. Free for the next four hours, anyway, until she was due to report to Supplies and help Odessa for half a shift. All right.....
This was truly fascinating. Ben had sent clothing not just for now but for some years to come. Holding up one of the older-size dresses she was pleased to see he was betting she'd slim out again in a year or two.
Jacqueline purely hoped her dad was right.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfAIjSIH1EE
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Ben took to sharing digs like a seal to herring. Living full time with Jacqueline he realized how much he missed the closeness of marriage. He almost asked her to take that step with him before remembering that by way of the mandatory group wedding ceremony, they already had!
So instead, one evening when Marlena joined them for a dinner they fixed together, then took her leave to catch up on some studying. Ben pulled in a deep breath and said, "Marlena? When we reach destination and set up a normal society more or less, how about you and I just marry each other and nobody else?"
Below her level gaze, the corners of her mouth worked at holding back a smile. "De jure, the man wants. We'll see. Right now, what do you say to a little de facto?"532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwT5f65CrlY
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A few days later, half an hour before he was due to relieve Cawthorn on watch, Ben found himself at loose ends. So he called control, thinking to ask if she'd like to get off early.
No answer. How very odd. Maybe a new batch of visitors had blown in, and everybody was down the corridor at Earthass. Or maybe, this time, a different C-Gate. Ooh-kay; in no hurry he assembled what he needed for the shift and rode the transfer ring. But in the control room he found Elyse, along with Nyota Uhura and Bruno Eustice, sprawled in their duty seats and out like so many snuffed lights.
"What the hell....?" One and then another, he shook them; no responses. More checking: they were warm and had pulses, slow but steady. Their breathing carried no smell of booze or dope. None that he could recognize, at least.
This one was for Hikaru. Summoned, the man arrived quickly and had a look. He shrugged. "Sedated, Ben, that's all I can determine. What or how, I don't know. Nothing lying around, nothing that I can see; no pill bottles, no nothing."
Nyota began to stir, muttering, she scratched at the side of her neck. Moving her hand away, Ben saw a small red dot, like a puncture wound or bug bite. He turned to Sulu. "You think.....?"
"Let's check. Cawthorn and Eustace were still out flat; carefully the two men looked, disarranging clothing as little as possible.
Elyse had a mark on her upper arm, just below the shoulder. Bruno was too hairy; though inspection simply wasn't possible.
Two out of three was close enough. "I'd better call the captain," said Ben.
Then Nicolas Leger rushed in. "Hey, come quick! I was just down by the back corridor. Rachel's lying right around the corner there, out cold."
Rachel Briers was no worse off than the others. The little red mark just below her right cheekbone made it three out of four. But finding her in that specific location, between control and the offship C-Gates, put a new slant on the enigma.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSEHe4PIkwp
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Archer arrived just a few minutes before Kynon Nagada and Alfred Nightgazer reported to Ben's watch; what with the captain being past his first questions and the other two just starting, Sisko got irritated. "Let's get in phase here, okay?"
Nyota came awake now---not quite chipper, but cognizant. Rachel seemed to be pretty well aboard again, though not saying much as yet. Elyse and Bruno still looked groggy; Hikaru fussed over them as Archer questioned Nyota Uhura. "How long after I called you, about your DM maintenance log, did this this happen?"
"You called me? I don't remember that."
When it turned out that Eustace and Cawthorn also lacked memory of the incident, a matter of perhaps 30--40 minutes past, the mystery developed a deeper grade of shit. Archer wanted a total search of the ship, for saboteurs. Unfortunately, Marshal Gammon had taken his tiny microcams back to Earth; point-to-point checkup would require more people and new tactics.
Frustrated, the captain settled for conferring, low-voiced with his drive and roomie. Kynon didn't say much.
Ben's call had found Archer in the lounge; the man's abrupt departure roused curiosity. It wasn't long before everyone awake on the Arrowprize converged on the Bridge. Jacqueline, Sisko noted, wasn't one of them. Knowing how she hated to miss anything, he resigned himself to telling her the whole story when she did show up.
J.M. Colt was one of the last to arrive. Unlike most, he asked brief questions and listened to the answers. After a few moments he pulled at Ben's arm. "Did anyone check for intruder traces before this herd trampled the place up?"
Baffled, he shrugged. "No--it all just got away from us, J.M."
"Sure; I can see how it would. Well, let's think then."532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5EzoGX2qMc
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But their joint thinking, and then that of the overall group, came down to a very few unsatisfactory conclusions:
1. Somebody we don't know got on the ship. 532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn1ecqNfawg
2. They may still be here or may not.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0RX2pvIXYI
3. We don't know where they came from or where they went.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9PXfbZij7G
4. Or what the hell they were after, and still might be.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO8QgCuXDQh
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"If they're aboard this ship, their ass belongs to me!" said Captain Jonathan Archer, but wasn't alone in wanting a slice or two. And now the search, which had been so hard when performed by Dolores and her party, became much simpler; each member of Arrowprize's crew had a personal stake in the matter.
First, lock all of Cochrane's Mouths out of Transmit mode. Then seal each level from the next except for one guarded access. Not all at once: start from the residential belt and work inward; the only interface that needs guarding is one between secured and unsecured country.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbunQS735vd
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"What do you mean, overdue?" The call from Bolt Park caught Senator Berman dozing at the midafternoon rest his doctor recommended; waking up wasn't as sudden as it used to be.
"I know they don't return all at once," the director said, "because we don't send the Away Teams that way. But it's a nearly two weeks past the normal four years, since Byron York and Team 2-A C-Gated off to Stargazer, and not a single member of 1-A has shown up yet. Frankly, senator...."
"I'm getting worried," Berman mouthed quietly.
".....I'm getting worried."
"Let's see." Berman called up director, subdirectory, and file. "1-A; that's Ariana Rodrigues, Diana Marteen, Maren Wright, Marcel leBouche, Roger Bonny, Catriona Bonnet, Alison Jensen,Jack Oliveira, Emile Stains, and Jamie Taylor. No personal problems reported out of that gang. Nothing like the launch crew." Two dead, one serving 20-to-life for the killings....
"Don't remind me. Anyway, my question is, what do I do about it?"
At for years' round-trip answer time? "You know as well as I do. Send a message---or an investigator---and wait."
"Come on now, Rick. You know what I mean. What do I tell the bloody press?"
In Rick Berman's reactions, exasperations slowly gave way to mischievous satisfaction. "It pleases me a whole lot, Mark, to remind you you're the one who gets paid to decide that."
But savoring the barb didn't keep him from worrying. Sometimes it seemed that Stargazer had a jinx on it; the killings, then hitting some kind of immaterial obstacle in space and barely regaining drive power....Now this!"
The senator didn't have all that long to fret: Taylor and Emile Stains arrived, belatedly, at Bolt Park, along with a report from Byron York who'd gone out with 2-A as executive officer but now seemed to be captain. The lump sum of data read: Alison Jenson and Jack Oliveira had fled the ship via the Yamato C-Gate. Why? The following were missing without explanation: from 1-A, Petula and Maricich ; from 1-B, just halfway through its tour of duty when this message originated. Captain Macie Schan and her pairmate Antione Passer. And from 2-A which would have been beginning its year abroad, a young couple Berman must've met before they left but couldn't really remember.
Frustrated, the senator muttered a few choice obscenities.
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Leaving Nightgazer on which alone with the door locked from the inside and an improvised code knock necessary for admission. Ben and Kynon each headed up a search team. first order of business was securing the residential belt, with a perfunctory check of the PhysFit compartment, just in case.
Approaching his own digs, Sisko's group met Jacqueline coming out. "Anybody else in there?"
"Of course not. Why would there be?"
"Come with us; I'll fill you in as we go."
But it wasn't that simple; Ben hadn't really expected it would. But with the belt secured and the transfer ring immobilized though not by a shoe this time, he called a chow break. Maybe eating would slow her down a little bit.532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyEomkCsLdh
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"......unconscious?....nobody saw anything...still on the ship, maybe.......have to search all of it again?----can't imagine who---what they'd want---" And then the jackpot question: "What if they're armed?" Watching her father, Jacqueline waited for answers.
Looking worried, Ben shook his head. "I don't know, Jacqueline, we don't know anything, really, except what I've told you. One thing, though." He explained the concept and mechanics of secured vs. unsecured areas. "So until this is settled, I'd rather you don't go into unsecured country alone. Just with me, or someone I clear to look after you. All right?"
It made sense. "Sure, I don't want to get laid out."532Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2PhRJoUzed
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Securing the belt had been a breeze; now the hard part began. Hard and long; when it was finally finished, Ben had lost track of time. But they knew, the officers and the few others gathered on the bridge, that no unknown person was at large on the ship.
"So are they on Earth?" Nagada said, ".....or on one of the other ships?"
"They're not on Yamato," said J.M. "I checked the Transmit counters on all three C-Gates, and that one's unchanged from my last log entries yesterday. Unfortunately...."
He glared at the group in general and the captain in particular. "Unfortunately, some people can't be bothered to log their transmissions. There's at least one to Stargazer and two to Earth that were undocumented." His brows raised. "Anyone?"
J.M. got his confessions. The only problem was that on one the timing was incorrect, and the others were too indefinite. Stargazer was unlikely but Earth was a distinct possibility. "They log outGatings there," said the captain. "Why don't we request a transcript? We don't have to say why we want it. And we just might learn something."
"Two months from now we might. Four years Earth time." Ben's frustration and disgust showed in his voice.
Archer tilted his head back and stated coldly, "In that case there will be no word of the incident from this ship to anyone else whatsoever. It is our problem. And that's an order!"
Ah, shit! Sisko felt chagrin. He looked to the back-to-back C-Gates at the rear bulkhead and said, half to himself. "Y'know, about 29 days from the time this bullshit commenced, it might be a good idea if somebody was on hand here."
Ben's grin felt tight on him. " With a stickball bat, of course."
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