"Verteron Stupidity, SD9803.12"

[Webmaster 20]

Subject: "Verteron Stupidity, SD9803.12"

Date: Fri, Mar 13, 1998 1:35 AM

From: LtjJonCohn

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{{A joint log between Lcmd Marak and myself.}}

*****

Junior Lieutenant Jon Cohn had a lot on his mind.  First, there was finding a long-term solution to the outpost's deflector problem.  Because the mass of the base and its asteroid was so much greater then that of nearby asteroids, they were drawn toward it after the base's shields failed.  This meant that the replacement deflector had to be stronger than its predecessor.

 

In all probability, the solution will involve a combination of Pizz's suggestion, using anti-magneton pulses to disburse the asteroids, and Jon's, using small space-time driver coils such as found in impulse engines to lower the outpost's inertial mass, making it less attractive to other asteroids.  However, having a general idea was a long way from having a complete package.

 

Second, he had to figure out how to keep the Republic's shields up while managing to supply sufficient power to keep a transporter lock on the Nova and to enable sensors to see in this blinding field of verteron particles.  It took the skinny human long enough to figure out that the drain was coming from within the ship.  Doing something about it was another story entirely.

 

Cohn had other problems, too, but they weren't job-related.

 

At this moment, Lieutenant Commander Marak walked into Main Engineering.  Cohn was hunched over the master systems display, i.e., the pool table, making adjustments to the EPS network.  Cohn threw down a PADD in frustration and turned to face the body that just entered his work space, saying, "It isn't power generation at all!  It's distribution."

 

"Pardon me?" asked the Vulcan.

 

Cohn spread his hands as if he was showing the size of the problem.  "All the systems they're trying to power right now," Cohn announced, "Are fed through these two EPS junctions." He pointed to a wall-display that highlighted the critical junctions.  "If I try to give them everything they need, it'll blow the junctions to kingdom-come!  Then where will we be?"  Jon pointed his finger in the air as if he had made his point, and looked at the

stranger in the blue uniform as if he expected an answer.

 

"I would be back on the bridge," Marak said thoughtfully, "And you would be in the jeffries tube replacing the junction."

 

"Right!" replied Jon in triumph.  Cohn then realized that he was lecturing a complete stranger, one who outranked him.  "And you would be," Cohn said as he considered the two and one-half pips, blue uniform, greenish skin, and pointed ears, "The Chief Science Officer, Lieutenant Commander Marak?"

 

"Correct.  Commander Blurox wants a solution to our verteron problem." Marak said.

 

"Uh huh," Cohn said, giving a blank look to Marak.  Cohn wondered if somebody had been buttering his new ship's bread, because Cohn, respectable engineer that he was, had no idea what to do about a verteron field.  He could even remember off hand what verterons were, and if the command staff on the ship figured out that something was fishy, Cohn could kiss his Spacefleet career and the safety of a Galaxy-class explorer good-bye.  However, Cohn knew

enough from his dealings with enlisted personnel that if he kept asking questions, the *right* questions, he could avoid looking completely stupid.  "So," Cohn began, "What's the source of these particles, Commander?"

 

"Unknown. Verteron radiation also impairs sensor functions."

 

Cohn thought for a minute.  "We need to look at this logically," he said in an attempt to buy time.  Realizing who he said it to, he added, "I mean, analytically." Marak nodded for him to continue, so Jon asked, "What possible sources of verteron particles are there?"

 

"Verteron emissions are frequently an indication of a wormhole," said Marak.

 

"A wormhole in an asteroid field?  That sounds unlikely."

 

"In a field of this type," calculated the Vulcan, "The odds of a wormhole escaping detection are approximately seven hundred and ninety-four thousand two hundred and five to one."

 

"Okay, *very* unlikely.  So, ruling out a wormhole, are there any other sources of verterons?  Like," said Jon, struggling to hide his ignorance, "Some sort of alien technology that emits verterons, whether intentionally or as by-products?"

 

"Hekaran and Ferengi power cores produce considerable verteron radiation, and Romulan singularity drives produce it in trace amounts."

 

"They do?  I mean, of course they do," said Cohn as he turned back to the pool table and called up data on Ferengi and Hekaran ships.  It turned out that, unlike the Federation and most other matter/antimatter using cultures, they used alpha (Helium nuclii) and anti-alpha particles for fuel instead of deuterium (heavy Hydrogen nuclii) and anti-deuterium.  The alpha/anti-alpha particle reaction produced considerable verteron radiation.  As Cohn was

looking at this data, he asked, "Were any other starships detected in this region?"

 

"Yes," said Marak simply, "Before the verteron field was detected, an energy signature that might belong to a starship was noticed.  The Nova was sent to investigate."

 

"Really?" said Cohn, "I'm just going to *have* to install a Bridge Monitor for down here."

 

"What, exactly, is a 'Bridge Monitor'?"

 

"It's a little program I developed when I worked security on the Reliant a couple years ago," explained Jon, adding, "It would display text updating me on recent events on the bridge.  Things like personnel entering or leaving, course changes, the presence of ship to ship communications.  That sort of thing."

 

"And would it allow you to spy on classified mission activity?" asked Marak suspiciously.

 

"Not at all," explained Jon, "It would only list those things that were generally accessible, but that you'd otherwise have to go to or contact the Bridge to find out.  It's a real time-saver."

 

"I see," said Marak flatly.

 

"I suppose," said Cohn, returning to the subject, "We can assume then that our verterons are coming from a nearby starship."

 

"Agreed."

 

"Well," said Cohn, "We can rule out the Hekarans as suspects.  Hekara is over 400 parsecs away."

 

"One-thousand, two-hundred, thirty-nine point eight-two-two light years, to be exact."

 

"Right, and they don't have any interests in this region of space." Cohn rose and began pacing as he spoke. "That leaves the Ferengi.  Let's suppose there's a Ferengi vessel out there that's producing this verteron field.  I have a problem with that."

 

"And that is...?"

 

"Ferengi power cores don't produce verteron emissions of this magnitude," said Cohn, "Not unless they've learned how to direct verteron particles."

 

"Are you suggesting that a Ferengi ship is deliberately bombarding the asteroid field with verteron radiation to escape detection?" Marak was intrigued at the possibility.

 

"Me?" asked Jon, "I'm just an engineer.  The only thing I'm interested in knowing is, 'What could we do  about it?'"

 

Marak thought about this and said, "If this were empty space I could send out networked probes to form an immense sensor grid, but the asteroids would make short work of them here. In this milieu we'd need something much smaller."

 

"Like nano-probes?"  Jon's attempt at humor was met with a blank response.  Clearly, it was time to go back to playing 20 Questions.  Jon asked, "You said that wormholes produced verteron radiation, yet I recall this episode..." Cohn stopped himself, "I mean, I recall that a comm-link was established through the Bajoran wormhole when Captain Sisko towed this three-pieced asteroid or comet or something through the wormhole using his runabout to cast

its shields around the thing so it wouldn't collapse the wormhole."

 

"Yes," explained Marak, "It was a meteor.  Trace amounts of silithium leaked through the runabout's shields, and the silithium acted as a subspace waveguide, connecting the relay in the gamma quadrant with Deep Space Nine.  You're suggesting that we use silithium to turn the verteron field to our advantage.  Very ingenious, Lieutenant."

 

"I am? I mean, I am," said Cohn, calling up data on silithium-verteron interactions, now that he knew what the stuff was called.  He then added, "Let's say we isolate an asteroid laden with silithium, which isn't all that rare, and detonate it with a quantum torpedo.  It will act as an enormous medium for our sensor signals amplified by the verteron particles.  It would also alleviate the power problems since the transporter lock and the sensors

would no longer be such a drain!"  Cohn smiled for the first time all day.

 

"May I point out that if we explode a silithium-laden meteor in the middle of this asteroid field, it'll collapse the asteroid field and probably crush us and the station?"

 

"Okay," said Cohn, "Let's not panic.  It says on the display that the gravitational effects of such an interaction are short-range, but the waveguide effects have a much bigger range.  Suppose we tow the asteroid say, one light-second away from the field before we explode it?"

 

Marak thought about it a moment before he pronounced judgment, "That would work."  He then added, "Well done. T'kai himself couldn't have done better."

 

"I'll begin modifying a torpedo," said Cohn.

 

"And I'll find a suitable asteroid," answered Marak.

 

As Marak turned to leave, Cohn called out, "By the way, we haven't officially met yet.  I'm Jon Cohn."  Cohn then made traditional sign with his right hand and said, "Live long and prosper, Commander Marak."

 

Marak turned, returned the gesture, and said, "Peace and long life, Lieutenant Cohn."  Marak then turned and left Main Engineering.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Jonathan A. Cohn, Assistant Engineer USS Republic