Something Better Left Unknown

[Tachyon 0]

“Something Better Left Unknown”

A Joint Log by Capt. Ah-Windu Corizon and Cdr. Tandaris Admiran

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Everything felt smaller, more cramped and restricted than before. There was something unsettling about the way the turbolift encapsulated him so completely, its polished cylindrical surface implacable and unyielding. Even his uniform, at which he now tugged nervously, was too tight, too itchy, too much. His physical examination had come back clean; there was nothing wrong with him. Yet Admiran was more uncomfortable than he had ever been in his lifetimes, a dull sort of discomfort that throbbed in the background, occasionally punching its way through his concentration to steal centre stage. If he focused, he could ignore it. So that's what he did as the turbolift doors opened onto the Excalibur's bridge.

 

Only a graveyard shift manned the stations while the senior staff caught a few more hours of shore leave or supervised the final mission preparations. Tandaris was glad for this; it meant fewer stops along the way to Corizon's ready room, a mere one or two perfunctory nods in response to the greetings uttered by the bored-looking ensign at conn and his partner at ops. This duty discharged, Tandaris pressed the chime next to the ready room door.

 

Corizon took a very deep breath. The last he'd heard, his chief engineer was in a coma unable to even put together a sentence, now he was asking to report back to duty—with doctor's clearance. It was unsettling to say the least. No questions, just wam-bam-thankyoumam. The chime stirred him from thought and he instinctively looked towards the door. "Enter."

 

"I come in peace this time," said Tandaris. "I have not kidnapped any liquor in the last twenty-four hours—nor, come to think of it, have I imbibed any. For some reason doctors don't let you drink while undergoing a physical."

 

That was a positive sign. Corizon smiled lightly and motioned to a chair. He was glad to be back on the Excalibur and have a spacious ready-room once again. "Please, have a seat. How ... how are you?"

 

"How do you think? The last thing I remember, we were trying to abort the nanites we had crawling through the systems of that wreck ... then I wake up in Camelot's medical centre. I hate comas, even more so than hangovers, break-ups, and the awkward silences that precede those break-ups after you discover you and your best friend have been dating the same person...." Tandaris paused. "Forgive me for being so verbose, but I've got a week of words to use up."

 

The Dameon actually ... smiled? "It's okay. Understandable even. So I haven't got to read the full medical report, but I understand you've been cleared for limited duty?"

 

"Right. I can't operate warp-powered machinery and I'm supposed to avoid being caught in any sort of explosion for several more weeks." Tandaris decided to take the high road and refrain from mentioning how difficult the latter accomplishment would be with Corizon in command. "Considering I didn't get any shore leave, however, I'm fine with taking off some shifts. I'm sure tr'Lorin has everything under control."

 

"Yes. I am glad to have you back though," Corizon said and leaned back into his chair with a sigh. "Losing my XO and shipping out without my proper chief engineer had me a little worried."

 

Tandaris knew the captain did not like to confess doubts to just anyone. He said, "Hey, now before you go suspecting a conspiracy, let me insist that I didn't sign off on any of this." Conspiracy or no, he understood what Corizon was going through, what effect the capriciousness of Starfleet's bureaucratic brass was having on the organized Excalibur microcosm. "I'm surprised they let you have me back, especially after what happened to the Scorpiad ship. When I first woke up in that unfamiliar infirmary, I half-wondered if I'd been quarantined in that obscure research facility on Pluto I'm not supposed to know we have."

 

"They likely know that I have claws and I am not afraid to use them," Corizon said slyly. "At least our first mission will be easy."

 

"I'll believe it when I see it. Any word on a new XO?"

 

"They're letting me pick someone. I have a list they sent me of outside candidates," he said and motioned towards a PADD. "I also have the option of promoting from within, though that would mean a further shake-up of the roster."

 

The Dameon captain let another sigh escape him as the thoughts of picking an XO swirled around his head and started causing pressure on his temples. To be entirely honest, he'd rather retire than deal with these sorts of problems.

 

Tandaris recognized Corizon's restlessness for what it was, and it occurred to him that maybe an "easy" mission wasn't what Corizon needed. "I'd like to say I'm sure it'll all work out for the best, but I'm old enough to know better. So ... don't screw up."

 

"Thanks," he said with a scowl. "I think."

 

Standing up, Tandaris said, "If there's nothing else, then I think I'll take my leave. I've got other rounds to make...."

 

Corizon nodded. "And perhaps now that you're back the dress code will ... improve."

 

"Um ... right," said Tandaris. Unaware of how else to take the comment, he wondered if Corizon considered him a snappy dresser—no one had yet had the pleasure of telling him of his unfortunate flight from sickbay last week.

 

At the door, Tandaris hesitated. "One more thing.... You may want to get Camelot ops to scan the station for anomalous neutrino surges. You'll find that the Scorpiads have been using micro-wormholes to spy on other parts of the station." He said this not with triumph or condemnation, just with confidence.

 

Corizon blinked, repeatedly. "Huh?"

 

Perplexed, Tandaris replied, "I—don't ask how I know that. But it's true. The embassy. It tunnels micro-wormholes through the station to eavesdrop on conversations and surveil station activity. Virtually undetectable, unless you're specifically looking for micro-wormholes, and who would be?" Tandaris shrugged. "Rather ingenious, in a simplistic way. Easy enough to block once you catch on to it. The station crew will figure it out."

 

The Dameon was rarely, if ever, speechless, especially about being spied on. This was possibly a first. "Tandaris, I can't help but ask how you know that. Especially if it pans out."

 

Another shrug. "It seems kind of obvious in retrospect, doesn't it? The Scorpiads have such a torrid love affair going on with subspace manipulation." Tandaris shook his head and searched for the right words, the right way to explain the only certainty he had left since awakening. "I don't know, Captain. I've lost a week, we've lost an XO, and we're about to embark on our first mission in a long time that doesn't have a high probability of getting us killed." He smiled, perhaps a bit ruefully. "It's going to be different from now on—we're all going to be different. It's a brave new world."