Misfit Coupling

[Torre Ze'Rea 0]

Misfit Coupling

 

note, this log comes before the log, Home again, home again.

 

 

Ze'Rea stood at the engineering console. She was checking the status of the warp core. She rubbed her forehead scales as she waited for the results.

 

Archie was looking over the diagnostics on the antimatter couplings, trying to figure out what went wrong. He looked at Torre. “According to the diagnostics, the other couplings are operating at 100%.”

 

Ze'Rea looked up at Archie. "It is most strange. It could have been something on the individual coupling that affected the power flow..."

 

“That is what I am trying to determine. I'm running a Level 1 Diagnostic to be certain. It's going to take some time. We could probably risk warp travel now, at reduced power of course, if we really needed it. I would say it's better to remain at impulse speed, though. There is no telling if this problem will repeat with one of the other couplings.”

 

"You are right. Once I am finished tracing it to the root of the problem and fix it we should know."

 

He nodded. “We must wait for the computer.” He looked at Torre. “You seemed to be quite ... bothered by all of this previously.”

 

Ze'Rea looked up at him again. "Um, bothered with what precisely?

 

“Well ... Lieutenant Black's orders, for one thing. The two of you did not see eye to eye on the proper response to the problem.”

 

Ze'Rea bit her lip. "It wasn't that. I was annoyed because my procedure was... poorly done. I should have alerted helm first but I was to nervous."

 

“It is an understandable mistake. You do not have a lot of experience with shipboard crises. And ... of course ... you were not, technically, supposed to be in charge down here at the time.” He looked back at his screen, clearing his throat.

 

Ze'Rea smoothed her hair back as she looked back at her screen. "It was confusing when I noticed that. Thank you for coming down here. I do not have much experience with command."

 

Archie looked sheepishly back at her. "Actually, I was the one who was supposed to be in charge. My own command experience is lacking as well, and I have been rather absorbed in a personal project lately."

 

Ze'Rea looked up. "Oh, well, um, I'm sure the chief won't be angry... and nothing blew up... yet," she murmured.

 

"The old chief, Lieutenant Sema'J had to remind me frequently to notify someone if I left engineering. It's a habit I've not been able to break." He grinned slightly. "I am not sure how Jor--Lieutenant Black would feel about it.”

 

Ze'Rea smiled a little. "I remember, my old chief reminded me about that too. I just automatically remembered, a nice photographic memory."

 

Archie raised an eyebrow at her. "That should be a good trait to have in engineering."

 

"Good, it makes up for my hand-eye coordination," she said with a smile, her guard lowering slightly as she got more comfortable talking.

 

He smiled back at her. "With Lieutenant Black becoming chief, I was not sure if I would have any more colleagues to talk to. Perhaps you are my answer to my problem."

 

Ze'Rea smiled again. "I hope so, once I convince my silly sub-conscious no one here will throw me off the ship I get a little more talkative."

 

He gave her a curious look. "No, they do not treat Ensigns that badly here. Trust me. I was one at first."

 

Ze'Rea scanned the scans, looking for any clues to the computer problem. "That's encouraging. I, uh, don't expect that to happen," she said, biting her lip again. “Sorry, sometimes I say things without thinking."

 

"No, I know of the rumors you refer to, of the mistreatment of Ensigns ... oh ... you were joking, weren't you?" He grinned. "Yes, that is the kind of things that the Humans joke about, isn't it? I normally do not expect it from the other races, though."

 

Ze'Rea smiled. "Er, joking, yes. Actually Cardassians do joke quite a bit, more sarcastic though."

 

"Is that the name of your people? I have heard that name before, but I do not know very much."

 

"Ah, it is, we don't have the... best reputation," she said with a cough. "With the dominion war and all..."

 

He nodded understandingly. "Ah, yes, the war. I remember it at the Academy History course ... though I did not pay very much attention in that one. Only enough to pass the exams." He smiled. "That is in the past now, though."

 

Ze'Rea smiled even wider. "Oh, you don't know how nice it is to hear someone say that."

 

He gave her a confused look. "What do you mean? I would imagine that to be the general sentiment in the Federation."

 

"Umm, well, some people... don't have that general feeling towards the cardassians..."

 

"What do you mean? There is no reason for people to resent your presence, is there? Yours personally, I mean."

 

"Well, most cardassians don't really act like I do, and that attitude has turned into a stereotype for most cardassians that some people pick up on. Most cardassians do have the same personality traits anyways."

 

He blinked and hesitated a moment. "You mean that most Cardassians ... are worthy of the stereotypes?"

 

"Well, most of them fit it, but not everyone."

 

“Ah. That is a feeling I understand. I do not fit in very well with my people either... They would not stereotype you as a Cardassian. They would stereotype you as a non-Renazian ... of which they generally have a low opinion of, regardless of race or planet of origin. It has never been a sentiment I've shared."

 

Ze'Rea smiled at him. "Thank you."

 

"It is nice to be thanked for something that my people consider an aberrant mutation." He grinned back at her.

 

"What do you mean, what do they count as a mutation?"

 

"Oh ... most of the things about me really. My acceptance of outsiders being just the start."

 

"But ... I really should not speak too much of them.” He looked back at his console.

 

"Oh, alright. Well, I must say it is very nice to talk to you. You are very interesting."

 

He looked back up and grinned hopefully at her. "...Do you really think that I am?"

 

"Indeed," she said with another smile. "You are very interesting."

 

"Thank you." He smiled and turned back to his console, wondering if he should introduce himself as an 'aberrant mutation' when he finally worked up to the courage to speak to Samantha. “Ah ... the diagnostic has caught something."

 

"Really?" Ze'Rea said with interest as she walked over to take a peak. "What is it?”

 

"It would appear that the gravitational field for the antimatter containment is ... out of flux in that particular coupling." He tapped at the controls. "However ... the field generator ... is not showing any problems."

 

"Hmmm, that is, intriguing." She went back over to her console and began to scan it again.

 

With the containment field in disarray, we are lucky that the antimatter did not make contact with the coupling itself. We would not be having this conversation if it did. ...but if the generator itself is not malfunctioning, why is the field out of flux?" He tapped the controls, trying to retune the magnetic field in the coupling to the standard setting.

 

"Well, I am just glad nothing snapped," she said as she began to monitor the coupling status.

 

"I have made a manual adjustment to the field harmonics. What does you status indicator show? Is the coupling still showing as faulty?"

 

"It's coming back up to full power," she said with a grin. "That was almost too easy," she said. "I am making another scan."

 

He frowned. "It was. The adjustment I made now has the field generator running at a non-standard frequency. It is the field it is generating which is faulty." He tapped his commbadge. "Lieutenant Black. We have the antimatter coupling functioning once again. We are still trying to determine what caused its malfunction, but we should be safe for warp travel now."

 

"It looks like the field is slowly returning to normal."

 

"The adjustments I made were intended to establish a standard field, after whatever is causing the adjustment. We will still have to determine what that is..."

 

"Indeed. It seems the field has temporarily been readjusted, but I am going to scan with a higher frequency to see if we can rip it out by the roots."

 

"It would be better to scan on site, to avoid any sensor interference. "Bring up a schematic of the area of the ship around that coupling. I'll send a team of crewmen to make preliminary scans. Meanwhile, we'll need to monitor the coupling in case the field harmonics are thrown off again."

 

"I am monitoring it. The schematics should be on your console."

 

He glanced at the warp core as it was brought back online from the Bridge, and then looked at the schematics. "Good. Maybe a closer look at this thing will reveal the culprit."

 

"I sure hope it will."

Edited September 23, 2008 by Torre Ze'Rea