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Cadet Cruise
Part 1
by: Marcus Windweaver
Chapter 1
Stardate 37506.1
The 21-year-old Andorian male stepped confidently
out of the shuttlecraft, and surveyed his surroundings. The hanger
bay where the shuttle had landed was fairly cramped, but then Verionius
was used to the almost unlimited size of the shuttle hanger at the Academy.
He continued to stand and gape, unaware of the older human male that was
fast approaching. Verionius caught the man's movements out of the
corner of eye, and tried to move aside. The man, startled by Verionius'
sudden movement, tripped over Verionius' outstretched foot, and landed
face down on the metal floor.
"You should be more careful." Verionius
said pointedly to the man, as he stepped back.
The man looked up at him with surprise at
the abruptness of his voice. "Excuse me?"
"You should pay better attention to where
you walk." Verionius turned his head away.
"Captain! Are you all right?"
came an excited yell from across the landing bay. Two human males
came racing over. The man on the floor, pushed himself up to his
knees, and stared directly at Verionius. Verionius immediately noted
the 4 gold pips on the man's collar, and groaned as he recognized the rank
of a starship captain.
"Captain, I apologize. I did not...."
he stammered.
The man regarded him for a moment, then chuckled.
"That's alright son. We're all human."
Verionius was taken back by this, and a snarl
formed on his lip as he took an immediatly aggressive stance. "Captain,
I do not mean to offend, but I am not human."
One of the two men who had run over muttered
to the other one. "Sounds like an arrogant little cadet here."
The Captain grinned, ignoring Verionius' attitude.
"You're not human? Really? I thought you were, and just decided
to dress up like an Andorian."
Before Verionius could speak, the Captain
added. "I know my races son. I was using a figure of speech to make
light of the moment."
Verionius nodded. "I understand sir.
I ..."
The Captain raised a hand. "Now before
we get all wrapped up in a long story, I do have other duties. What
is your name, cadet?"
Verionius straightened up. "Cadet Verionius
R'Ashiera, sir."
"What department are you assigned to Cadet
R'Ashiera?"
"Security, sir. Perhaps Tactical as
well."
The Captain laughed. "Oh, Security and
Tactical, eh? Are those the only departments you want?"
Verionius stared at him, and spoke seriously.
"Are there any other?"
The Captain regarded Verionius for a long
moment, then laughed. "Welcome aboard the Gettysburg son. As
long as you don't continue to trip the Captain, you should do alright."
The Captain and one of the men walked away. The other stared at Verionius
for a few moments.
"Cadet R'Ashiera, I am Lt. Commander Derrick
Trianth, Chief of Security. You will be assigned to me for the next
12 months. Of course, it will be much less than that if I feel that
there are any problems." He frowned at the young man. "Cadet,
today was a classic example of not being observant, and of not being careful.
In the future, if you have one in Starfleet, such moments where you aren't
paying attention could cost you, your Captain, or a member of your team
their life. Do you understand me Cadet?"
Verionius took the man's measure, and nodded.
His Andorian blood raging to pummel the man. "Lt. Commander, with
all due respect, had you been paying attention and given Captain Blanton
ample warning, perhaps he would not have fallen over me. I would
say that we both need to improve our observation skills."
Trianth looked at Verionius with shock.
He suddenly went red in the face. "Okay Cadet. You are right.
I should have been paying more attention to who was getting off of the
shuttle, etc. Now we both have learned a lesson here. And Cadet,
watch the attitude. It will earn you many enemies, and could cost
you your career in Starfleet."
Trianth pointed toward the exit doors from
the hanger. "Take your bags and line up on the yellow line by those
doors. I need to gather the rest of the new cadets, and escort you
all down to the briefing area."
Verionius took his two bags and stood by the
yellow line as requested. As he stood there, he looked around the
shuttle bay, taking in this first room on his new home.
Chapter 2
Stardate 38203.7
Eight long months passed at a gruelling pace.
Verionius realized that all of the intensive training at the academy had
not truly prepared him for actual ship board duty. There were almost
as many new things to learn as there had been during his four years in
school.
"Cadet R'Ashiera, front and center."
Trianth stood with his arms folded.
Verionius moved forward, and stood before
his commanding officer. "Yes sir."
"Is it true that you submitted this," he held
forth a PADD, and shook it vigorously in Verionius' face, "to Captain Blanton?"
Verionius took the PADD, and reviewed the
information on it. It was his proposal to improve the ship's internal
security. He handed it back to Trianth.
"Yes sir, this is my work."
"Cadet, are you not aware that all proposals
must go through your department head first for review? Then the department
will carry it to the Captain, if deemed necessary. I believe they
teach that many times over in the Academy." Trianth was angry, judging
from the expression on his face as well as the way he held himself.
Verionius took this in stride. "Sir,
permission to speak freely?"
"Granted."
"I have submitted this proposal to you no
less than 7 times in the last month. Each time it has been returned
to me with no explanation as to why it was refused. I therefore decided
to submit it to the Captain."
"Cadet, are you suggesting that I, a Lt. Commander
and your department head, must justify myself and my decisions to you,
a cadet?"
"No sir. I am suggesting that I will
never learn anything if I am not properly given reasons for decisions."
The other cadets laughed at this off hand
remark. Trianth showed all signs of exploding with rage.
"I do not have to justify my actions to you!
Cadet R'Ashiera, if you do not like my style of management, then perhaps
you should consider transferring to another ship in Starfleet. Or
better yet, perhaps you should return to your own planet if Starfleet is
to tough for you!" Trianth hurled the PADD to the floor, where it
skidded several feet.
"Lt. Commander Trianth, is there a problem?"
The calm voice of Captain Blanton filled the room.
"No sir, Captain. I am merely trying
to explain to Cadet R'Ashiera the proper chain of command." Trianth
began calming down.
Blanton regarded him for a moment. "I
see. Cadet R'Ashiera, will you please retrieve the PADD, and come
with me."
"Yes sir." Verionius walked over and
picked up the PADD.
"Captain, I can handle this situation."
Trianth began trying to explain.
"I know you can, Lt. Commander. I would
like to have few moments to address the Cadet first though."
Verionius stepped over to the Captain,
and followed him out of the training room. After walking for several
feet without speaking, the Captain turned to Verionius.
"So, Cadet R Ashiera what is on that PADD
that has Mr. Trianth in such an uproar?"
"It has a proposal that I wished to
submit to you for approval. I have done surveys of all of the ship's internal
security sensors and have found several inconsistancies in the program
matrix. I believe that some minor changes could remove several loopholes
in the system, and eliminate many of the dead zones. Particularly
the ones in the critical areas." Verionius spoke somewhat matter
of factly.
The Captain looked stunned. "Dead zones
in critical areas? Where specifically?"
Verionius looked up at the corridor
ceiling. "Perhaps we should not speak here, Captain."
"Take me to a dead zone Cadet."
The Captain seemed flustered.
Verionius nodded and began walking with confidence
down the hall. He stopped outside of the ship's armory. The
two guards at the door snapped to attention upon seeing the Captain.
"Continue on Cadet." Captain Blanton
nodded at the armory guards. "Just checking to see if the lad knows
where things are men, carry on."
Verionius and the Captain continued
walking. Once out of earshot, the Captain tugged at Verionius' arm
and led him into one of the classrooms.
"Computer, deactivate all scanning
of this room, visual and audio. Lockout all crew on this room.
Authorization Blanton Omega Tango Three."
*Acknowledged*
Blanton held out his hand. Verionius handed
the PADD over, and the Captain quickly reviewed it. Many times, an
alarmed look crossed his face. He then nodded, as if a great many
questions were finally answered.
"Cadet, some odd things have been happening
aboard this ship from time to time. I have had many supiscions that
I have been uncertain of. Now some of those suspicions are being
answered. Follow me to my ready room." The Captain made his
way to the exit.
"Computer, disengage my prior
lockout command. Resume audio and visual tracking of this room, and
delete log of my commands. Authorization Blanton Omega Tango Three."
After arriving in the Captain's ready room,
Verionius was startled when the Captain engaged the same lock out protocal.
He then indicated that Verionius should sit at his terminal.
"Cadet, how did you discover this?"
Blanton asked.
"Lt. Commander Trianth assigned
me to the task of running a manual, and computer linked check of all internal
sensors. He then asked me to physically check all locations, and
to file a report with him on the status of them. He did this as a
form of 'discipline' after I questioned his orders in a training drill.
I do not think he expected me to be this thorough".
Blanton nodded. "Well Cadet, I have
an assignment for you as well. Only this is not for punishment.
I want you to review the following logs and reports that I am going to
pull up, and see how many matches up with one of these dead zones, or when
a sensor was malfunctioning. Take as much time as you need, and I
will be on the bridge." The Captain typed a few commands into the
terminal and nodded when the reports starting appearing on the screen.
Blanton then exited the ready room.
Three hours later, Verionius leaned back from
the chair and stretched. It had been an exhaustive search, but he
had the results read for the Captain. He tapped the comm button.
*I will be right in.* Blanton responded.
A few minutes later he entered the room, and
walked over to the desk. Verionius rose from the chair, and stepped
respectfully off to one side. Blanton moved behind the desk, and
began reading. A grim look crossed his face, and he nodded slowly.
He turned to regard Verionius.
"Son, you have done good work here.
This is something that has plagued me for months, and has had me on the
verge of a mental breakdown. But unfortunately, it is not enough
to really help me prove my case. I need more".
He stood and faced Verionius. "Son,
you and I did not get off to a good start. In addition, your attitude
and behavior has rubbed many people the wrong way on this ship, and I have
considered having you transferred off. But now, there is a chance
here to show what you are capable of. I need you to do something
for me. It is between you and I, and no one else should know of it.
And I need you to be able to do some acting. It will be semi-dangerous,
and I understand if you would rather not do it. But, since you found
this, and reported it I wanted to offer the chance to you."
Verionius swallowed this information, and nodded.
"Tell you what you want me to do Captain.
I am more than capable of handling it."
Two hours later, after Blanton had sent Verionius
back to his duties, Lt. Commander Trianth stepped into Blanton's ready
room. Blanton looked up from his desk and smiled.
"Ah, Derrick thank you for coming so
soon. I have spoken with Cadet R'Ashiera and he understands the chain
of command now. I think your problem there is over. As for
the other, perhaps in the future you should give his proposals a second
chance instead of just ignoring them."
Trianth nodded. "I did, sir.
I just felt he was borderline insubordinate in his approach. Much
as he has been for his entire stay on this ship."
Blanton smiled. "Well, Andorians tend
to be rather direct sometimes. However, once they are told the proper
procedure they typically toe the line as it were."
Trianth nodded knowingly. "Very well
sir. However, if there are any further problems, I will recommend
to you that he be removed from the security department, and possibly even
Starfleet."
Blanton looked at Trianth for a moment, before
rising and walking to the replicator.
"Computer, cafe au latte." Blanton lifted
the cup carefully a moment later, before walking back to his desk.
"Mr. Trianth, there are obviously some qualities
about this young man that are considered top of the line from Starfleet
Academy's prespective. He scored very high on his finals, and graduated
with high honors. Third in his entire class in fact." Blanton
sipped the steaming coffee. "I ask you to consider that before making
your recommendations to me. Dismissed."
Trianth exited, his irritation evident.
Blanton considered this, as he continued to peruse the information on his
monitor. Some strange orders had been transmitted from Starfleet
Command lately, and Blanton was starting to grow very concerned indeed.
Chapter 3
Stardate 38431.4
Verionius sat quietly in his quarters, preparing
himself for the part he was to play. His observations for the past
three months had finally showed him what he needed to know in order to
carry out the Captain's plan.
The door chimed, right on cue. Verionius
stood.
"Come in."
The door opened and Ensign Rivers stepped
in slowly. He grinned a fierce grin as he approached Verionius.
"Okay Cadet. I got the message that
you had to talk to me."
Verionius nodded his head, and began speaking
the well rehearsed lines he had prepared.
"May I speak off the record, sir?"
Rivers nodded enthusiastically. "Hey,
I'm off duty and so are you. Call me Tom."
"Tom. I joined Starfleet looking for
a way off my world, away from my parents, and a way to make a little money
to settle down after a few years. I look around, and find out that
money is not something that Starfleet handles. I do not look forward
to the next 40 years or more of my life being wasted, so I can retire to
some Federation colony and live comfortably. But I have also noticed
that some of you have a little more to spend when we go on shoreleave.
You are my best friend on this ship, and I was hoping you could fill me
on the action."
Rivers looked uncomfortable. "Oh, listen
Verionius, you tapped the wrong guy pal. I don't know what you are
talking about." He moved toward the door.
Verionius nodded sadly. "Well, I know
you would not lie to me. So I guess I better go with plan B."
Rivers stopped and turned back around.
"Plan B?"
Verionius nodded. "Next port we come
to, I jump ship. Get on with one of the 'Free Trade' merchant ships."
Rivers grinned again. "You mean pirates?"
Verionius looked at him with a serious expression.
"Yes. You don't understand where I am coming from I guess, but I
can not return to Fesaon empty handed, except for my Starfleet retirement
papers. I need a profit."
Rivers considered this. "Verionius.
I have come to know you pretty well. You don't want to be a pirate."
He exhaled slowly. "Look, this goes out anywhere, and I will know
who it came from, understand?"
Verionius nodded.
"You were right. A couple of us have
a good thing going. I could talk to them, talk to our head guy.
With luck, we could cut you in and you could stay in Starfleet."
Rivers looked at Verionius for a moment and
nodded. "I have seen you in the drills, and in the holodeck training.
You do pretty damn good for a cadet. I think you would be a big benefit
to our group."
Rivers headed for the door. "I'll be
in touch with you soon." The door slid shut behind him, and Verionius
realized that the first big step had been taken.
The next day, Ensign Rivers approached Verionius
outside the ship's armory, and leaned against the wall next to him.
"Meet me at holodeck 1 as soon as your off
duty." He said softly. "Got a new program for you check out."
"I think I may have to bow out." Verionius
replied.
"You'll like this though. It's called
'Space Pirates'." Rivers looked at him knowingly.
Verionius caught the cue, and nodded.
"Sounds interesting enough. I'll meet you there at 2300 hours."
Rivers nodded and walked away grinning.
Verionius considered the significance of this.
Either he was going to be accepted into the ring operating on this ship,
or the safety protocals in the holodeck would "fail" and he would be another
unfortunate accident on a Starfleet vessel. He braced himself, and
concentrating on his job at the armory.
At 2300, Verionius approached holodeck 1, and
looked around for Ensign Rivers. No one was around, but Verionius
noticed the wall console blinking, indicating a program in progress.
he stepped closer, and read the title. "Space Pirates".
"Computer, allow access please."
*Cadet Verionius R'Ashiera.....access granted.
Enter when ready.*
He stepped forward as the heavy doors slid
open, and moved through them and into the holodeck. As the doors
slid shut, Verionius studied the appearance of the holodeck. He was
standing in a corridor, of an obviously old ship. The deck plates
vibrated unsteadily, and a large quantity of dust, rust, and darkened panels
were abundant. Verionius moved down the corridor, and began searching
for the heart of the program.
Suddenly, a door slid open behind him.
He turned and saw Ensign Rivers step out, clad in a grease covered uniform.
He grinned at Verionius as he approached.
"Welcome, 'matey'. Welcome aboard the
pirate ship 'Devil's Spawn'".
"Thank you, Tom. So what is the nature
of this program?" Verionius stepped forward.
"Why to show you the style of life you plan
on living, also to talk unmonitered." Rivers grew serious as he took
Verionius by the arm. "Come on, let's go meet the man."
Rivers stepped through a doorway, beckoning
Verionius to follow. They moved down a passageway, darkened and filled
with a heavy smell. Finally they arrived at another door, which Rivers
tapped on twice in sequence.
The door slid open, and the two men stepped
through. The room they entered appeared to be this holographic ship's
bridge. Several men, either holograms or real, were sitting at the
various stations. One chair was elevated above the others, obviously
the leader of this group. He suddenly spun the chair around as Verionius
and Rivers entered. Verionius tried to hide his surprise at the sight
of Lt. Commander Derrick Trianth. Derrick grinned an almost evil
grin as he regarded the young cadet.
"So. Cadet R'Ashiera, you are the young
potential recruit that I was told about. That is interesting indeed."
Trianth stepped down from his throne and stood before the andorian.
"With your behavior on this ship, it almost
seems too convienient that you are wanting to be involved. Too convienient
indeed." He moved his hand down to his hip, where a nasty looking
weapon hung in a dirty black holster.
Verionius observed this, and nodded arogantly.
"So I am to be disposed of then? Fine, do as you will."
Trianth laughed. "Oh I will young cadet.
I will. I think it may be best for us to cut our losses now, after
all why take any chances? I have invested too many years in this
for you or anyone else to come along and ruin things." He drew the
weapon, and took a bead on Verionius' head. "Goodbye Cadet."
Verionius drew in his breath. "That is not
a very honorable way to kill someone."
Trianth paused for a moment. "What?"
"I said that was not an honorable way to kill someone.
In my culture, we fight with equally to show an honorable, and fair victory."
Verionius bared his teeth in an almost Klingon way.
Trianth laughed. "Who said that I had honor,
Cadet?"
*Bridge to Lt. Commander Trianth.* The voice
of Captain Blanton interupted from over the comm system.
Trianth tapped his comm badge, still pointing the
weapon at Verionius' head. "Go ahead, Captain."
*Report to the bridge.*
Trianth frowned. "On my way, sir." He
holstered the weapon. "It appears that fate has spared you, Cadet.
Perhaps this is a sign that we should give you a chance." He started
to walk out.
"Rivers, brief him on our next business venture,
then report to me on the bridge." Trianth said as he exited.
Verionius turned to regard Ensign Rivers curiously.
Rivers grinned ear to ear.
"You're in buddy. I told you that you'd make
it." The two men headed for the exit, with Verionius wondering what
would happen next.
On
to Part 2
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