Star Trek: Tesseract
- Thread starter kes7
- Start date
It's so fun to see who you all come up with for these characters!
Thandi Newton is an interesting choice for Adele. She's a little too frail looking compared to how I imagine her, and definitely much shorter (she's 5'3", and in my head, Adele is tall and athletic), but she does have that regal carriage Diogenes mentioned, which can sort of make up for that. You can imagine her however you like, though!
As for Jensen Ackles - I've never heard of him before or seen him in anything, but a quick Google search reveals he's definitely got the right look. He's three inches too short, though. If you could somehow stretch him out to 6'4", you'd have J.Q. as I had originally imagined him, it's downright eerie! In some of the art I made for this story over on Ad Astra, I used Alexander Skarsgard from Generation Kill, though. He's the right height, has the blond hair, lanky build, all that. But now I kind of wish I'd seen Jensen first!
(In actual storywriting news, I've got most of the next chapter written. Should be up this weekend. Hopefully, maybe, possibly tonight.)
Thandi Newton is an interesting choice for Adele. She's a little too frail looking compared to how I imagine her, and definitely much shorter (she's 5'3", and in my head, Adele is tall and athletic), but she does have that regal carriage Diogenes mentioned, which can sort of make up for that. You can imagine her however you like, though!
As for Jensen Ackles - I've never heard of him before or seen him in anything, but a quick Google search reveals he's definitely got the right look. He's three inches too short, though. If you could somehow stretch him out to 6'4", you'd have J.Q. as I had originally imagined him, it's downright eerie! In some of the art I made for this story over on Ad Astra, I used Alexander Skarsgard from Generation Kill, though. He's the right height, has the blond hair, lanky build, all that. But now I kind of wish I'd seen Jensen first!
(In actual storywriting news, I've got most of the next chapter written. Should be up this weekend. Hopefully, maybe, possibly tonight.)
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Re. J.Q.: Alright, so Jensen Ackles is a bit short as JQ for your tastes, Lady Kes. Well, how about Justin Hartley? Hit the google machine again. (Coincidentally, before landing his role in the TV show "Supernatural," Ackles had a recurring role for one season in Smallville, on which Hartley currently plays Green Arrow. It is too often an inanely written show, but I can't resist watching Tom Welling and Justin Hartley together and allowing my mind to wander and wonder... ahem!)
Back to Adele: Okay, ixnay on the AndyTay EwtonNay. I have another suggestion. I dont know why I am less than intrepid about making it (though---and there's another coincidence here---not as daunted as I am at the prospect of my suggestion to Joel of an actor for the role of Ba'el Sarine). Alright, here goes... drum roll... : Demi Moore! Is she a witch? She looks like she's in her 30s, but she is 47. And hey, isn't 47 about the right age for Adele? And Demi is tall and athletic. AND imagine her with those Betaziod eyes. And the voice, all raspy and take-charge.
Oooh, and then there is THE Admiral. (Why does he delight and entertain me so?) Two suggestions.
First: Steven Lang, currently in Avatar. He. Is. A. Creepy. Dude.
Second: Mr. Frank Langela. (In Trek land, he played the coniving, machiavellian Jaro Essa in DS9.) Langela is also uber creepy, with a great intimidating, sepulchral voice and a style that manages to be aloof and aggressive at the same time.
As Mirror Universe Spock is wont to say, "I would have your thoughts."
Diogenes, I'm not familiar with either of the potential J.Q. actors, but going on photos alone, I think I like Jensen Ackles better than Justin Hartley for J.Q., despite the height differential. Hartley looks almost like he was manufactured in a laboratory trying to develop the ultimate pretty-boy teen idol or something. 
Ackles manages to be adorably hot without looking like he had fake bake, hair bleach and styling gel applied on an assembly line.
As far as Adele, the problem with Demi is that she's white, and Adele is black. But if Adele were white, it might work! But she's not, so it doesn't. Don't hate me!
Admiral Beckley is Sam Neill. Or Sam Neill is Admiral Beckley. Whichever you prefer.
Re: Icheb -- I'm fresh out of airlocks, so I won't toss you out of one.
I could see Goode as Icheb, actually, but I know Intiraymi is still around and acting, so if I was somehow transported to an alternate universe where this isn't just a fanfic story and I'm actually getting to cast people to play these roles, I'd be inclined to stick with the original.
Ackles manages to be adorably hot without looking like he had fake bake, hair bleach and styling gel applied on an assembly line. As far as Adele, the problem with Demi is that she's white, and Adele is black. But if Adele were white, it might work! But she's not, so it doesn't. Don't hate me!
Admiral Beckley is Sam Neill. Or Sam Neill is Admiral Beckley. Whichever you prefer.
Re: Icheb -- I'm fresh out of airlocks, so I won't toss you out of one.
I could see Goode as Icheb, actually, but I know Intiraymi is still around and acting, so if I was somehow transported to an alternate universe where this isn't just a fanfic story and I'm actually getting to cast people to play these roles, I'd be inclined to stick with the original.
Amy Adams is really, really close, but she's a little too old (36 playing 26 is probably a stretch) and way too nicely built. But if you could rewind Adams ten years, dye her hair blonde and stick her head on someone scrawnier, you'd probably have a very good approximation of Maren.
Diogenes, I'm not familiar with either of the potential J.Q. actors, but going on photos alone, I think I like Jensen Ackles better than Justin Hartley for J.Q., despite the height differential. Hartley looks almost like he was manufactured in a laboratory trying to develop the ultimate pretty-boy teen idol or something.
As far as Adele, the problem with Demi is that she's white, and Adele is black. But if Adele were white, it might work! But she's not, so it doesn't. Don't hate me!
Admiral Beckley is Sam Neill. Or Sam Neill is Admiral Beckley. Whichever you prefer.
Re: Icheb -- I'm fresh out of airlocks, so I won't toss you out of one.
Darn it! I forgot about Adele being black. This is, indeed, difficult. If only Angela Basset were taller. She's got major gravitas, tough as nails. She is certainly athletic, but I imagine that Adele seems a little slimmer, more like a long distance runner than a wrestler. Yes? No?
I absolutely see what you mean about Hartley, which is why Ackles is my druther. But I was looking for the height. Yeah, Hartley does look like he come out of a Ken doll factory. But I wouldn't kick him outta bed.
You are incontravertably correct: Sam Neill would be awesome. He does cold, analytical, and politely draconian better than most. And the look feel right to me too.
I promise you if I could do that to anyone I'd not expend that effort on anyone else but me! The ten pound thing sounds great! I did actually think Amy Adams was a little sturdier than I pictured Maren!
Ooooh! Sam Neil as Beckley. I really do like that!
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Diogenes, Bassett is another good pick, but I had no idea she was that short! What's with all these kick-ass black actresses being so tiny? I had mentioned Karen LeBlanc as one possible pick, thinking she was tall, but it turns out she's only 5'5". I suppose everyone looks taller on screen.
OldstRedShrtEvr, I, too, would gladly reshape myself using this method, were it available to me.
It would save me a lot of time at the gym. (Oh, to have the speedy metabolism of the hyperactive, oft-malnourished, nervous wreck who is the Tesseract's chief engineer! I mean, without having to be a hyperactive, nervous wreck who forgets to eat, that is. I would like the gain without the pain, please. Or is that the loss without the pain?)
Wow, I have got to stop having this conversation and get on with finishing the next chapter while my kids are outside in the snow! But this is kind of fun. Thanks for the distraction, both of you!
OldstRedShrtEvr, I, too, would gladly reshape myself using this method, were it available to me.
It would save me a lot of time at the gym. (Oh, to have the speedy metabolism of the hyperactive, oft-malnourished, nervous wreck who is the Tesseract's chief engineer! I mean, without having to be a hyperactive, nervous wreck who forgets to eat, that is. I would like the gain without the pain, please. Or is that the loss without the pain?)Wow, I have got to stop having this conversation and get on with finishing the next chapter while my kids are outside in the snow! But this is kind of fun.
Thanks for the distraction, both of you!
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
It had been a morning full of unpleasant surprises, Adele noted, as she walked to the deck eight conference room directly from sickbay, where her panicked chief engineer had just given her some disturbing news about Icheb. She realized it was a good thing she was too busy to really ponder the implications of everything Maren had said. It had prevented her from reacting to the revelation that both Maren and Icheb, with the rather surprising assistance of Voyager’s Emergency Medical Hologram, had been lying to Starfleet Medical for the last four years. Instead, she had to focus on the fact that her executive officer was missing, and they had very limited time in which to act if they wanted to get him back.
At first, she had thought it was the combination of emotional compromise and heavy sedation that had the young woman reacting as badly as she was to the news of Icheb’s abduction, but she soon realized it was a lot more serious than that. Maren knew something Starfleet Medical did not -- namely, that Icheb’s Borg implants were failing, and without regeneration, the likelihood of his survival was slim. Julian Bashir had all but confirmed her story, admitting he had suspected as much, and he had also reminded her that without his weekly hypospray to suppress it, the pathogen Icheb had been genetically engineered to produce would reassert itself, killing him. Julian estimated he had six days until that happened. Maren estimated he had far less time, if he couldn’t regenerate. If they wanted the first officer back alive, it appeared they would have to act now and think later. All Adele wanted to do was meet with what was left of her senior staff and come up with a plan, but first, she had to meet with the mission advisory board.
As Adele entered the deck eight conference room, she looked at each of the five members of the advisory board seated around the large table and took a quick read of their emotions. Admiral Beckley sat looking at her expectantly, as emotionally blank as ever. Retired Captains Almen Drare and Mario Alvarez both appeared quietly concerned. The Betazoid counselor, Taran Madar, was very obviously focused on not violating protocol and reading Adele’s mind. Attorney Eleanor Gentry looked like she was about to explode, but Adele was starting to realize that the lawyer’s abrasiveness had to be some sort of massively overdeveloped defense mechanism, because she knew that Eleanor was more scared than anything else.
The captain eyed Taran Madar warily. Despite her own lack of the usual Betazoid telepathic training as a teen, she had learned a few things as an adult in four months on Betazed during the rebuilding, both about how to tell when her thoughts were being scanned by another Betazoid, and how to block it out. On Betazed, that was considered rude, but this was not Betazed. She was out of practice, but she tried to focus, putting a wall up around her own insecurities and racing thoughts as she prepared to address the board. She knew that if Taran’s curiosity got the better of her, she would notice she was being blocked out, but it was better than the alternative. Besides, she reasoned, the counselor couldn’t really call her on it without admitting she had tried to read her mind.
“Good afternoon,” she addressed the board in a strong, clear voice. “I trust you’ve all had time to examine the reports on the events of this morning. The information is all in the PADDs you were given, but to summarize: This morning at around 1100 hours, we encountered the Borg Collective in the form of a single active cube. During the ensuing confrontation, four drones beamed into main engineering. One was killed by the assistant chief engineer, one was seriously injured by the same officer, and two were temporarily neutralized by the chief engineer using a Kedion pulse.”
Eleanor raised her hand. “Excuse me,” she called out. Adele looked at her, surprised by the uncharacteristic politeness, and nodded. “I heard the chief engineer was attacked by one of the drones. I haven’t had time to read every single report yet, so I apologize if this has already been addressed, but what is her condition? I overheard someone saying she was assimilated, is that true?”
Adele raised her eyebrows, wondering how exactly it was that rumors traveled so quickly through a crew of well over a thousand people. She wondered what else people were saying. “No, that’s not true,” she responded firmly. “Lieutenant O’Connor was injured. She’s on medical leave until further notice. She was not assimilated.” Eleanor nodded, and Adele quickly continued the briefing before anyone could ask any further questions about Maren. At that moment, the last person she wanted to think about in the presence of a telepath was the chief engineer.
“The confrontation with the Borg was cut short by an unknown alien in what appears to have been a cloaked ship,” Adele told them. “Both our shields and the Borg’s were neutralized by an unknown energy field, then the Borg cube was disabled by a weapon similar to whatever caused the subspace damage in the Aris and Tyndoran systems, but much smaller. Commander Icheb was transported directly off the bridge and is now being held hostage by this alien, whose vessel our sensors were not able to detect.”
Mario Alvarez spoke up from across the table. “I understand from the reports that no specific demands were made? The alien simply abducted Commander Icheb and asked you to travel, either alone or with your ship, to discuss the terms of his release?”
Adele nodded. “That’s correct. The alien used our own comm. array to communicate with us and transmit a set of coordinates to which he wishes us to travel, ostensibly to negotiate for the commander’s release. We are not yet certain what we will find at those coordinates. We do know that they are about 4,000 light years into the Delta Quadrant. We have altered course to bring us closer, but we will drop out of slipstream well before that point to see if we can get a better view of what we’re heading for.”
“It might be a trap,” Almen Drare pointed out.
“Believe me, my chief tactical officer has repeatedly made the same suggestion,” Adele replied. “I’m well aware of the possibility. That’s why I’ve made no decision yet on how we are going to proceed. I want more information first. Now, since our communications array has obviously been compromised, I have ordered subspace comm. silence until further notice. I sent a single brief encrypted transmission to Command to tell them the basics of what happened and to notify them we’ll be out of touch for a while. That means that for the present moment, we’re on our own.”
She paused a moment to let that sink in, and once again reinforced the wall inside her mind before she continued, “I was able to speak to Lieutenant O’Connor briefly. She and Commander Icheb had been working on decrypting a Borg data chip we obtained on New Tyndora. They were able to decrypt the information, and it contained more than one hundred teraquads of data, including schematics of several unknown vessels, which she believes have cloaking technology. Unfortunately, all of the data are in Borg, and require translation. Doctor Bashir has given Lieutenant O’Connor clearance to work on that single project from sickbay while she recovers. I’m hoping we’ll be able to find some clues to exactly what happened this morning and who has Commander Icheb.”
“What makes you think the data chip and this alien have anything to do with one another?” asked Eleanor.
“It makes sense,” Mario interjected before Adele could reply. “We just left the Tyndoran system, the alien’s weaponry is similar to what we encountered in the Tyndoran system, and the data chip came from the Tyndorans. Am I right?” he asked Adele.
She nodded. “Additionally, the fact that the information on the chip appears to be Borg in origin seems relevant. Last night, one of my officers reported having possibly seen a drone on the planet.”
“Last night?” Almen Drare asked. “We left the Tyndoran system a day and a half ago.”
“He’s been disciplined for his delay in notifying a superior,” Adele assured him. “He won’t make that mistake again.”
“Why did he wait so long?” asked Eleanor.
“That’s irrelevant,” Adele replied, in a tone that left no room for argument, even from the habitually combative attorney. “We need to get back on topic. Right now, my first officer is being held hostage. I intend to get him back. We also know now that the Borg are still active, and closer to the Alpha Quadrant than they were eight years ago. And we have three live drones on board the Tesseract.”
She turned to Admiral Beckley and nodded. “The admiral had a brief opportunity to question two of the drones in the brig late this morning. I’d like to turn the floor over to him for a moment and allow him to report on his findings. Sir?” she prompted him.
Admiral Beckley glanced around the table at the others. “Unfortunately, I can’t say that they’ve been cooperative,” he informed them. “I believe I was threatened with assimilation -- excuse me, offered the opportunity for assimilation,” he corrected himself with a wry-looking half-smile, “no less than a dozen times between the two of them.” The two retired captains and Taran Madar all smiled at this, and even Adele had to admit it was darkly humorous, despite the emotionless delivery. Everyone in Starfleet knew the Borg thought they were providing a service to the galaxy by assimilating everything in their path. Eleanor Gentry’s face was the only blank, indicating she didn’t get the joke.
“I expect they will become more cooperative with a little bit of time,” the admiral said. “The experience of previous crews who have taken drones as prisoners is that after the initial shock of separation from the Collective wears off, they adapt and begin to communicate. However, I do wonder if there is an easier way to do this.”
“Admiral?” Adele asked.
“Your chief engineer seems to be fairly proficient with Borg technology. I have no doubt she can find a way to download information from their cortical implants. Additionally, there is a memory node on the dead drone that can be downloaded and translated. Its removal will result in the self-destruction of the drone’s body, so it will have to wait for a thorough autopsy, I’m sure, but I would think Lieutenant O’Connor would be quite capable of obtaining the necessary information.”
“But the Federation ruled -- ”
“That ruling covered ex-drones,” Admiral Beckley cut Adele off, anticipating what she was going to say. “These drones are still part of the Collective.”
Adele stopped short. It was a valid point. She looked to the legal expert. “Ms. Gentry, your thoughts?”
Eleanor seemed to take a moment to consider the point. “I believe the admiral is right,” she finally said. “The courts did rule in favor of an individual’s right to maintain possession and control over his or her own thoughts and memories, even in the form of data files stored in cybernetic implants. But Annika Hansen and Commander Icheb were already legally individuals before the ruling was made. If these drones are still part of the Collective, then they’re not individuals, they’re part of a collective consciousness which is technically at war with the Federation. The ruling wouldn’t necessarily apply. But as prisoners of war, they would have certain rights, as well. It’s an interesting question. I’d have to do a little more research to be able to advise you on your legal options. I can have a report on your desk by the end of Beta shift.”
“I would appreciate that,” Adele said sincerely. “Thank you. I’ll postpone further questioning of the drones until I see your report. Now, as to the situation with the commander, I’ll keep you updated as my staff gets more information. It will be about thirty-six hours before we’re close enough to tell what’s at the coordinates we were given.”
The board members nodded, and Adele wrapped up the meeting. She was eager to meet with her own staff and see if they had come up with any more information, plus they needed to come up with a plan. “Let us know if there’s anything we can do,” Mario told her as he and Almen walked out the door. She smiled and nodded.
“I will,” she replied. As the advisory board members departed, she checked the chronometer on the small display panel embedded in the conference table. As she went to activate the comm. and summon her staff, Taran Madar stopped beside her and touched her arm. Adele looked at her in surprise.
“You’re holding back,” Taran said, in the soothing voice of a trained counselor. “I don’t blame you. I would, too, in your position.” The full Betazoid’s inky black eyes, so similar to the ones Adele saw in the mirror each day, seemed to look straight into her soul. “Is there anything you’d like to talk about off the record? Like why you’re as put off by Admiral Beckley as I am? Or why you put up a mental wall whenever anyone mentions Lieutenant O’Connor? That’s a neat trick, by the way,” she added. “I haven’t met many hybrids who can do it that well.”
Adele was surprised that the counselor had all but admitted she had tried to read her mind. “Starfleet protocol is quite clear on the use of telepathy to read minds without permission,” she pointed out coolly.
“I didn’t read your mind,” Taran replied. “You wouldn’t let me. But I wasn’t trying to read your thoughts. I was reading your emotions, the same as you were doing to everyone in the room. I only noticed the mental block when you paused to make sure it was still there and I realized what you were doing.”
Adele sighed. “I simply prefer to keep my thoughts my own. I learned to do the mental block when I was living on Betazed and the telepathic noise was driving me crazy. I grew up on Earth; I couldn’t hear anyone’s thoughts. But being surrounded by Betazoids was different, and it felt like a complete invasion of privacy. I know it’s just your way, but I wasn’t used to it. I’m still not.”
“I believe you,” said Taran. “But I still think there’s something you’re not telling us -- something you don’t want the board to know. Is it because of Admiral Beckley that you’re afraid to share it? The fact that he’s unreadable is fascinating to me, and more than a little scary. He’s human, right? So we should be able to sense something, but we can’t. Don’t you find that odd?”
(cont. below)
It had been a morning full of unpleasant surprises, Adele noted, as she walked to the deck eight conference room directly from sickbay, where her panicked chief engineer had just given her some disturbing news about Icheb. She realized it was a good thing she was too busy to really ponder the implications of everything Maren had said. It had prevented her from reacting to the revelation that both Maren and Icheb, with the rather surprising assistance of Voyager’s Emergency Medical Hologram, had been lying to Starfleet Medical for the last four years. Instead, she had to focus on the fact that her executive officer was missing, and they had very limited time in which to act if they wanted to get him back.
At first, she had thought it was the combination of emotional compromise and heavy sedation that had the young woman reacting as badly as she was to the news of Icheb’s abduction, but she soon realized it was a lot more serious than that. Maren knew something Starfleet Medical did not -- namely, that Icheb’s Borg implants were failing, and without regeneration, the likelihood of his survival was slim. Julian Bashir had all but confirmed her story, admitting he had suspected as much, and he had also reminded her that without his weekly hypospray to suppress it, the pathogen Icheb had been genetically engineered to produce would reassert itself, killing him. Julian estimated he had six days until that happened. Maren estimated he had far less time, if he couldn’t regenerate. If they wanted the first officer back alive, it appeared they would have to act now and think later. All Adele wanted to do was meet with what was left of her senior staff and come up with a plan, but first, she had to meet with the mission advisory board.
As Adele entered the deck eight conference room, she looked at each of the five members of the advisory board seated around the large table and took a quick read of their emotions. Admiral Beckley sat looking at her expectantly, as emotionally blank as ever. Retired Captains Almen Drare and Mario Alvarez both appeared quietly concerned. The Betazoid counselor, Taran Madar, was very obviously focused on not violating protocol and reading Adele’s mind. Attorney Eleanor Gentry looked like she was about to explode, but Adele was starting to realize that the lawyer’s abrasiveness had to be some sort of massively overdeveloped defense mechanism, because she knew that Eleanor was more scared than anything else.
The captain eyed Taran Madar warily. Despite her own lack of the usual Betazoid telepathic training as a teen, she had learned a few things as an adult in four months on Betazed during the rebuilding, both about how to tell when her thoughts were being scanned by another Betazoid, and how to block it out. On Betazed, that was considered rude, but this was not Betazed. She was out of practice, but she tried to focus, putting a wall up around her own insecurities and racing thoughts as she prepared to address the board. She knew that if Taran’s curiosity got the better of her, she would notice she was being blocked out, but it was better than the alternative. Besides, she reasoned, the counselor couldn’t really call her on it without admitting she had tried to read her mind.
“Good afternoon,” she addressed the board in a strong, clear voice. “I trust you’ve all had time to examine the reports on the events of this morning. The information is all in the PADDs you were given, but to summarize: This morning at around 1100 hours, we encountered the Borg Collective in the form of a single active cube. During the ensuing confrontation, four drones beamed into main engineering. One was killed by the assistant chief engineer, one was seriously injured by the same officer, and two were temporarily neutralized by the chief engineer using a Kedion pulse.”
Eleanor raised her hand. “Excuse me,” she called out. Adele looked at her, surprised by the uncharacteristic politeness, and nodded. “I heard the chief engineer was attacked by one of the drones. I haven’t had time to read every single report yet, so I apologize if this has already been addressed, but what is her condition? I overheard someone saying she was assimilated, is that true?”
Adele raised her eyebrows, wondering how exactly it was that rumors traveled so quickly through a crew of well over a thousand people. She wondered what else people were saying. “No, that’s not true,” she responded firmly. “Lieutenant O’Connor was injured. She’s on medical leave until further notice. She was not assimilated.” Eleanor nodded, and Adele quickly continued the briefing before anyone could ask any further questions about Maren. At that moment, the last person she wanted to think about in the presence of a telepath was the chief engineer.
“The confrontation with the Borg was cut short by an unknown alien in what appears to have been a cloaked ship,” Adele told them. “Both our shields and the Borg’s were neutralized by an unknown energy field, then the Borg cube was disabled by a weapon similar to whatever caused the subspace damage in the Aris and Tyndoran systems, but much smaller. Commander Icheb was transported directly off the bridge and is now being held hostage by this alien, whose vessel our sensors were not able to detect.”
Mario Alvarez spoke up from across the table. “I understand from the reports that no specific demands were made? The alien simply abducted Commander Icheb and asked you to travel, either alone or with your ship, to discuss the terms of his release?”
Adele nodded. “That’s correct. The alien used our own comm. array to communicate with us and transmit a set of coordinates to which he wishes us to travel, ostensibly to negotiate for the commander’s release. We are not yet certain what we will find at those coordinates. We do know that they are about 4,000 light years into the Delta Quadrant. We have altered course to bring us closer, but we will drop out of slipstream well before that point to see if we can get a better view of what we’re heading for.”
“It might be a trap,” Almen Drare pointed out.
“Believe me, my chief tactical officer has repeatedly made the same suggestion,” Adele replied. “I’m well aware of the possibility. That’s why I’ve made no decision yet on how we are going to proceed. I want more information first. Now, since our communications array has obviously been compromised, I have ordered subspace comm. silence until further notice. I sent a single brief encrypted transmission to Command to tell them the basics of what happened and to notify them we’ll be out of touch for a while. That means that for the present moment, we’re on our own.”
She paused a moment to let that sink in, and once again reinforced the wall inside her mind before she continued, “I was able to speak to Lieutenant O’Connor briefly. She and Commander Icheb had been working on decrypting a Borg data chip we obtained on New Tyndora. They were able to decrypt the information, and it contained more than one hundred teraquads of data, including schematics of several unknown vessels, which she believes have cloaking technology. Unfortunately, all of the data are in Borg, and require translation. Doctor Bashir has given Lieutenant O’Connor clearance to work on that single project from sickbay while she recovers. I’m hoping we’ll be able to find some clues to exactly what happened this morning and who has Commander Icheb.”
“What makes you think the data chip and this alien have anything to do with one another?” asked Eleanor.
“It makes sense,” Mario interjected before Adele could reply. “We just left the Tyndoran system, the alien’s weaponry is similar to what we encountered in the Tyndoran system, and the data chip came from the Tyndorans. Am I right?” he asked Adele.
She nodded. “Additionally, the fact that the information on the chip appears to be Borg in origin seems relevant. Last night, one of my officers reported having possibly seen a drone on the planet.”
“Last night?” Almen Drare asked. “We left the Tyndoran system a day and a half ago.”
“He’s been disciplined for his delay in notifying a superior,” Adele assured him. “He won’t make that mistake again.”
“Why did he wait so long?” asked Eleanor.
“That’s irrelevant,” Adele replied, in a tone that left no room for argument, even from the habitually combative attorney. “We need to get back on topic. Right now, my first officer is being held hostage. I intend to get him back. We also know now that the Borg are still active, and closer to the Alpha Quadrant than they were eight years ago. And we have three live drones on board the Tesseract.”
She turned to Admiral Beckley and nodded. “The admiral had a brief opportunity to question two of the drones in the brig late this morning. I’d like to turn the floor over to him for a moment and allow him to report on his findings. Sir?” she prompted him.
Admiral Beckley glanced around the table at the others. “Unfortunately, I can’t say that they’ve been cooperative,” he informed them. “I believe I was threatened with assimilation -- excuse me, offered the opportunity for assimilation,” he corrected himself with a wry-looking half-smile, “no less than a dozen times between the two of them.” The two retired captains and Taran Madar all smiled at this, and even Adele had to admit it was darkly humorous, despite the emotionless delivery. Everyone in Starfleet knew the Borg thought they were providing a service to the galaxy by assimilating everything in their path. Eleanor Gentry’s face was the only blank, indicating she didn’t get the joke.
“I expect they will become more cooperative with a little bit of time,” the admiral said. “The experience of previous crews who have taken drones as prisoners is that after the initial shock of separation from the Collective wears off, they adapt and begin to communicate. However, I do wonder if there is an easier way to do this.”
“Admiral?” Adele asked.
“Your chief engineer seems to be fairly proficient with Borg technology. I have no doubt she can find a way to download information from their cortical implants. Additionally, there is a memory node on the dead drone that can be downloaded and translated. Its removal will result in the self-destruction of the drone’s body, so it will have to wait for a thorough autopsy, I’m sure, but I would think Lieutenant O’Connor would be quite capable of obtaining the necessary information.”
“But the Federation ruled -- ”
“That ruling covered ex-drones,” Admiral Beckley cut Adele off, anticipating what she was going to say. “These drones are still part of the Collective.”
Adele stopped short. It was a valid point. She looked to the legal expert. “Ms. Gentry, your thoughts?”
Eleanor seemed to take a moment to consider the point. “I believe the admiral is right,” she finally said. “The courts did rule in favor of an individual’s right to maintain possession and control over his or her own thoughts and memories, even in the form of data files stored in cybernetic implants. But Annika Hansen and Commander Icheb were already legally individuals before the ruling was made. If these drones are still part of the Collective, then they’re not individuals, they’re part of a collective consciousness which is technically at war with the Federation. The ruling wouldn’t necessarily apply. But as prisoners of war, they would have certain rights, as well. It’s an interesting question. I’d have to do a little more research to be able to advise you on your legal options. I can have a report on your desk by the end of Beta shift.”
“I would appreciate that,” Adele said sincerely. “Thank you. I’ll postpone further questioning of the drones until I see your report. Now, as to the situation with the commander, I’ll keep you updated as my staff gets more information. It will be about thirty-six hours before we’re close enough to tell what’s at the coordinates we were given.”
The board members nodded, and Adele wrapped up the meeting. She was eager to meet with her own staff and see if they had come up with any more information, plus they needed to come up with a plan. “Let us know if there’s anything we can do,” Mario told her as he and Almen walked out the door. She smiled and nodded.
“I will,” she replied. As the advisory board members departed, she checked the chronometer on the small display panel embedded in the conference table. As she went to activate the comm. and summon her staff, Taran Madar stopped beside her and touched her arm. Adele looked at her in surprise.
“You’re holding back,” Taran said, in the soothing voice of a trained counselor. “I don’t blame you. I would, too, in your position.” The full Betazoid’s inky black eyes, so similar to the ones Adele saw in the mirror each day, seemed to look straight into her soul. “Is there anything you’d like to talk about off the record? Like why you’re as put off by Admiral Beckley as I am? Or why you put up a mental wall whenever anyone mentions Lieutenant O’Connor? That’s a neat trick, by the way,” she added. “I haven’t met many hybrids who can do it that well.”
Adele was surprised that the counselor had all but admitted she had tried to read her mind. “Starfleet protocol is quite clear on the use of telepathy to read minds without permission,” she pointed out coolly.
“I didn’t read your mind,” Taran replied. “You wouldn’t let me. But I wasn’t trying to read your thoughts. I was reading your emotions, the same as you were doing to everyone in the room. I only noticed the mental block when you paused to make sure it was still there and I realized what you were doing.”
Adele sighed. “I simply prefer to keep my thoughts my own. I learned to do the mental block when I was living on Betazed and the telepathic noise was driving me crazy. I grew up on Earth; I couldn’t hear anyone’s thoughts. But being surrounded by Betazoids was different, and it felt like a complete invasion of privacy. I know it’s just your way, but I wasn’t used to it. I’m still not.”
“I believe you,” said Taran. “But I still think there’s something you’re not telling us -- something you don’t want the board to know. Is it because of Admiral Beckley that you’re afraid to share it? The fact that he’s unreadable is fascinating to me, and more than a little scary. He’s human, right? So we should be able to sense something, but we can’t. Don’t you find that odd?”
(cont. below)
(cont. from above)
Adele reluctantly nodded. “Yes, I do find it strange, and it does bother me. But I’m dealing with it, and if I’m hiding anything, I can assure you it’s not relevant to the purpose of the advisory board. There are some personal issues at play with Miss O’Connor, and I feel it’s my responsibility to make sure they stay personal.” It was just enough of the truth that Adele thought it would placate Taran. She was relieved when the counselor chose, at least for the moment, to drop the issue.
“Fine, that’s fair. But just so you know, I’m here if you decide you need to talk,” she said, placing her hand comfortingly on Adele’s arm before picking up her PADD and walking out of the room. Adele looked after her for a moment, lost in her own thoughts, then summoned her staff for their briefing.
She looked around at what remained of her senior staff as they entered the large conference room. As Lieutenant Commander Borux, the acting first officer, took the chair that would have been Icheb’s, he gave her one of his too-wide, encouraging Denobulan smiles. She smiled back, grateful for his steady presence.
Iden Nix came in next, juggling several PADDs as she walked, looking very focused on each of them as she flipped from one to the next, her azure brow furrowed in confusion, concentration, or a little bit of both. T’Pring came in calmly behind her, carrying a single PADD. She sat down next to Iden, placed her PADD on the table in front of her, and folded her hands in her lap, looking unwaveringly serene as she waited patiently for the meeting to begin.
In Maren’s absence, Telek had been pulled from engineering to represent his department as acting chief engineer. He looked every bit as stressed as Adele could sense he felt, and it was no wonder. From what John Quigley had told her in sickbay, he had been the real hero in engineering that morning, killing one drone and damaging another, saving Maren’s life and carrying out her orders after she had been injured. Of course, he had done it all by disobeying a direct order from his commanding officer. Adele realized she was racking up quite the list of officers to discipline later -- Icheb for his dishonesty, Maren for her incredibly poor judgment, John for once again letting his relationships get in the way of his duty, and now Telek for insubordination. The day was getting longer by the minute.
Once her staff was assembled -- minus one executive officer, one chief engineer, and the CMO, who was otherwise occupied -- Adele didn’t waste any time getting down to business. “Most of you were on the bridge this morning when Commander Icheb was abducted. I don’t need to retell you what happened. There is an alien out there in possession of incredibly sophisticated technology, apparent control of our communications array, and our executive officer. I intend to find him.”
She used the keypad at the head of the table to activate the wall display, which lit up with the schematics Maren and Icheb had decrypted that morning before the Borg had shown up. “During the away mission to New Tyndora, I was given a data chip by the first officer of the ship that led us there. The contents were heavily encrypted, but Lieutenant O’Connor and Commander Icheb were able to break through the encryption and found a tremendous amount of data, including schematics of these ships.” She paused and let everyone take a look at the screen.
“As you can see, the information is all in Borg. Some of it, the computer was able to translate, the rest, Lieutenant O’Connor is translating while she’s confined to sickbay.”
“She can read Borg?” Borux asked in surprise.
“It’s kind of a combination of a computer programming language and an actual language,” Iden Nix pointed out. “It makes sense that she would know how to read it, especially since so much of this ship is based on Borg technology.” Borux nodded in acknowledgment.
“All right, let’s hold questions for the moment,” Adele said. “What I want you all to do is compare this information with all of the sensor data we collected this morning. See if there’s any kind of match, any indication that the ship that took Commander Icheb might be one of these. Additionally, I want a solution to that energy field that knocked out our shields. Figure out what it was, and how to compensate. Use these schematics, our own sensor readings, your own imaginations -- whatever it takes. I also want to know exactly how we were pulled out of the slipstream this morning.” The assembled senior staff all nodded and made notes in their PADDs.
“Ryzal, I need a plan from you, as well. I need full tactical analyses of these vessels, plus further analysis of our sensor data on that weapon the aliens used this morning. Have someone work out a few boarding and rescue strategies using these ship schematics just in case we get lucky.”
“Yes, sir,” the Saurian replied.
“Beyond that, this is a waiting game. As soon as we’re close enough, I want every sensor array we have got pointed at those coordinates we were given. Either we find this alien and retrieve our first officer, or we find out exactly where it is they want us to go and why. Once we know more, we can make a decision on how to proceed. Now, are there any questions?”
Adele’s eyes widened as the entire senior staff started talking at once. “One at a time,” she shouted over them. “One at a time,” she repeated more quietly, when they stopped trying to compete with each other. Over the next ten minutes, she watched with relief as her senior staff began to throw ideas around and tap one another for their expertise, rallying around one of their own and trying to work out a way to find him.
Nothing like a crisis to bring a team together, she mused to herself. Too bad this particular crisis may mean losing two of the team completely. She was not looking forward to the conversation she was going to have with Maren O’Connor later that day. She had never had to fire a staff officer before. She hoped whatever explanation Maren had for herself would be good enough to prevent her from having to do it this time.
Adele reluctantly nodded. “Yes, I do find it strange, and it does bother me. But I’m dealing with it, and if I’m hiding anything, I can assure you it’s not relevant to the purpose of the advisory board. There are some personal issues at play with Miss O’Connor, and I feel it’s my responsibility to make sure they stay personal.” It was just enough of the truth that Adele thought it would placate Taran. She was relieved when the counselor chose, at least for the moment, to drop the issue.
“Fine, that’s fair. But just so you know, I’m here if you decide you need to talk,” she said, placing her hand comfortingly on Adele’s arm before picking up her PADD and walking out of the room. Adele looked after her for a moment, lost in her own thoughts, then summoned her staff for their briefing.
She looked around at what remained of her senior staff as they entered the large conference room. As Lieutenant Commander Borux, the acting first officer, took the chair that would have been Icheb’s, he gave her one of his too-wide, encouraging Denobulan smiles. She smiled back, grateful for his steady presence.
Iden Nix came in next, juggling several PADDs as she walked, looking very focused on each of them as she flipped from one to the next, her azure brow furrowed in confusion, concentration, or a little bit of both. T’Pring came in calmly behind her, carrying a single PADD. She sat down next to Iden, placed her PADD on the table in front of her, and folded her hands in her lap, looking unwaveringly serene as she waited patiently for the meeting to begin.
In Maren’s absence, Telek had been pulled from engineering to represent his department as acting chief engineer. He looked every bit as stressed as Adele could sense he felt, and it was no wonder. From what John Quigley had told her in sickbay, he had been the real hero in engineering that morning, killing one drone and damaging another, saving Maren’s life and carrying out her orders after she had been injured. Of course, he had done it all by disobeying a direct order from his commanding officer. Adele realized she was racking up quite the list of officers to discipline later -- Icheb for his dishonesty, Maren for her incredibly poor judgment, John for once again letting his relationships get in the way of his duty, and now Telek for insubordination. The day was getting longer by the minute.
Once her staff was assembled -- minus one executive officer, one chief engineer, and the CMO, who was otherwise occupied -- Adele didn’t waste any time getting down to business. “Most of you were on the bridge this morning when Commander Icheb was abducted. I don’t need to retell you what happened. There is an alien out there in possession of incredibly sophisticated technology, apparent control of our communications array, and our executive officer. I intend to find him.”
She used the keypad at the head of the table to activate the wall display, which lit up with the schematics Maren and Icheb had decrypted that morning before the Borg had shown up. “During the away mission to New Tyndora, I was given a data chip by the first officer of the ship that led us there. The contents were heavily encrypted, but Lieutenant O’Connor and Commander Icheb were able to break through the encryption and found a tremendous amount of data, including schematics of these ships.” She paused and let everyone take a look at the screen.
“As you can see, the information is all in Borg. Some of it, the computer was able to translate, the rest, Lieutenant O’Connor is translating while she’s confined to sickbay.”
“She can read Borg?” Borux asked in surprise.
“It’s kind of a combination of a computer programming language and an actual language,” Iden Nix pointed out. “It makes sense that she would know how to read it, especially since so much of this ship is based on Borg technology.” Borux nodded in acknowledgment.
“All right, let’s hold questions for the moment,” Adele said. “What I want you all to do is compare this information with all of the sensor data we collected this morning. See if there’s any kind of match, any indication that the ship that took Commander Icheb might be one of these. Additionally, I want a solution to that energy field that knocked out our shields. Figure out what it was, and how to compensate. Use these schematics, our own sensor readings, your own imaginations -- whatever it takes. I also want to know exactly how we were pulled out of the slipstream this morning.” The assembled senior staff all nodded and made notes in their PADDs.
“Ryzal, I need a plan from you, as well. I need full tactical analyses of these vessels, plus further analysis of our sensor data on that weapon the aliens used this morning. Have someone work out a few boarding and rescue strategies using these ship schematics just in case we get lucky.”
“Yes, sir,” the Saurian replied.
“Beyond that, this is a waiting game. As soon as we’re close enough, I want every sensor array we have got pointed at those coordinates we were given. Either we find this alien and retrieve our first officer, or we find out exactly where it is they want us to go and why. Once we know more, we can make a decision on how to proceed. Now, are there any questions?”
Adele’s eyes widened as the entire senior staff started talking at once. “One at a time,” she shouted over them. “One at a time,” she repeated more quietly, when they stopped trying to compete with each other. Over the next ten minutes, she watched with relief as her senior staff began to throw ideas around and tap one another for their expertise, rallying around one of their own and trying to work out a way to find him.
Nothing like a crisis to bring a team together, she mused to herself. Too bad this particular crisis may mean losing two of the team completely. She was not looking forward to the conversation she was going to have with Maren O’Connor later that day. She had never had to fire a staff officer before. She hoped whatever explanation Maren had for herself would be good enough to prevent her from having to do it this time.
So the full-Betazoid cannot read Beckley either? Verry interesting! I read somewhere Betazoids cannot read Cardassians. Or was that Breen? Interesting too, that Taran believes she is more rattled by that than Adele. Perhaps because she expects to be able to read him.
Poor Adele - she must feel like she's drowning. EVERYONE has their own agenda - she must feel like they think she's only there to facilitate!
Thank you for the wonderful Sunday afternoon surprise! I'm, going to go back to my plasma conduit scrubbing and chew on this latest tasty treat!
Poor Adele - she must feel like she's drowning. EVERYONE has their own agenda - she must feel like they think she's only there to facilitate!
Thank you for the wonderful Sunday afternoon surprise! I'm, going to go back to my plasma conduit scrubbing and chew on this latest tasty treat!
casting thoughts for Adele:
- Beverly Johnson - not BA enough?
- Halle Berry - too short
- Vanessa Williams - she'd have to wear contacts - her eyes are so piercing blue it's spooky in a beautiful almost unsettling way
- Iman - too spindly ?
- Grace Jones - gets my vote - beautiful and intimidating - maybe not warm enough though . . .
- Beverly Johnson - not BA enough?
- Halle Berry - too short
- Vanessa Williams - she'd have to wear contacts - her eyes are so piercing blue it's spooky in a beautiful almost unsettling way
- Iman - too spindly ?
- Grace Jones - gets my vote - beautiful and intimidating - maybe not warm enough though . . .
Grace Jones as Adele? Now that would be interesting - not what I'm picturing at all -but interesting nonetheless.
A nice installment, Kes, a nice pause before the storm that will inevitably ensue and it's nice to see that pretty much everyone is creeped out by Admiral Beckley. And why can't a FULL Betazoid read him - can't wait to find out!
A nice installment, Kes, a nice pause before the storm that will inevitably ensue and it's nice to see that pretty much everyone is creeped out by Admiral Beckley. And why can't a FULL Betazoid read him - can't wait to find out!
A complex and increasingly dire situation becomes even more problematic as Adele has to go before the advisory board and try to keep them updated with only some of the pertinent facts. Here the mission is barely underway and the captain is already having to withhold information from the advisory board to cover the potentially questionable decision-making of some of her senior staff.
Not a position any commanding officer wants to be in.
And now the revelation that both her XO and Chief Engineer have been keeping important truths about Icheb’s medical condition a secret.
Yeah… headaches like this Adele does not need.
Not a position any commanding officer wants to be in.
And now the revelation that both her XO and Chief Engineer have been keeping important truths about Icheb’s medical condition a secret.
Yeah… headaches like this Adele does not need.
As reviewed on Ad Astra:
Gosh Taran's invasion of her privacy is a little blatant albeit explaining herself. Still, just like Ms Gentry, it is one way to make Adele be put off and mistrustful. However, I like that Taran picks up on just how fascinating and scary the Admiral is. His humour is dark but still I didn't think he was for knock knock jokes.
Adele rocks as I've said to you already. This is because of the way she aprroaches a combustive situation and handles different people - her staff and the Advisory Board. She is very adept at navigating the potential minefield of the various factions and motivations - from the Admiral to the terrible trio and their little love affair. She handles these things with such poise and a calm demeanour. She is truly impressive holding it together and managing the situation given the large number of unknowns.
Still she is facing in to some tough decisions. How to rescue Icheb and what to make of it all when she meets Malik. However, she has some tough decisions to make closer to home. What is she to make of Maren and Icheb's deceit? What is she to make of Maren's actions in engineering? What is she going to do in terms of the captured Borg drones? Continually impressive and intriguing situations here. Well done.
Gosh Taran's invasion of her privacy is a little blatant albeit explaining herself. Still, just like Ms Gentry, it is one way to make Adele be put off and mistrustful. However, I like that Taran picks up on just how fascinating and scary the Admiral is. His humour is dark but still I didn't think he was for knock knock jokes.
Adele rocks as I've said to you already. This is because of the way she aprroaches a combustive situation and handles different people - her staff and the Advisory Board. She is very adept at navigating the potential minefield of the various factions and motivations - from the Admiral to the terrible trio and their little love affair. She handles these things with such poise and a calm demeanour. She is truly impressive holding it together and managing the situation given the large number of unknowns.
Still she is facing in to some tough decisions. How to rescue Icheb and what to make of it all when she meets Malik. However, she has some tough decisions to make closer to home. What is she to make of Maren and Icheb's deceit? What is she to make of Maren's actions in engineering? What is she going to do in terms of the captured Borg drones? Continually impressive and intriguing situations here. Well done.
Another great chapter here, Kes! I hadn't realised how much I had missed the advisory board until I read this. They're all such interesting, intriguing characters, all with their own apparent agendas and yet willing to help Adele in their own ways (apart from Eleanor and the Admiral, obviously!)
I thought Adele handled herself really well in both situations, managing to pull together these disparate groups without losing it despite the stress she must be under. To have all of these secrets flying around must be really difficult (I'm a good one to talk!) and I like how Adele is dealing with all of that.
As for the Admiral - so even a real Betazoid can't read him? That can't be good!
Lovin' it, can't wait for more!
I thought Adele handled herself really well in both situations, managing to pull together these disparate groups without losing it despite the stress she must be under. To have all of these secrets flying around must be really difficult (I'm a good one to talk!) and I like how Adele is dealing with all of that.
As for the Admiral - so even a real Betazoid can't read him? That can't be good!
Lovin' it, can't wait for more!
Thanks, everyone, for the reviews and comments. Since you all said essentially the same thing ... yes, you're all correct, the full Betazoid can't read Beckley, either. Weird, huh? 
Adele's handling things as best she can, but yes, there are a lot of secrets and questions and lies suddenly flying around. Many of them thanks to her own senior staff ... well, two in particular. Maren's got a lot to answer for, and she'll probably have to answer for both herself and Icheb, because he's not around to speak for himself at the moment. Not a good day for anyone on the Tesseract. (Well, apart from the Admiral. He seems fairly okay with all of this. But as you've all noticed, he's weird.)
Thanks again for all the comments. Sorry I'm not responding individually this time! I'm a little pressed for time today. Anyway, I love the feedback! So, thank you very much!
(And OldstRedShrtEvr, Grace Jones?! No, probably not. If we're looking for that intimidating/bitchy edge, though, how about Naomi Campbell, the model? Tall, attractive, feminine looking, but will beat you about the head with a Blackberry if she feels it's absolutely necessary?
In all seriousness, I'm not sure there's anyone who is just right for Adele, but I still kind of like Karen LeBlanc, even though she's short.)
Adele's handling things as best she can, but yes, there are a lot of secrets and questions and lies suddenly flying around. Many of them thanks to her own senior staff ... well, two in particular. Maren's got a lot to answer for, and she'll probably have to answer for both herself and Icheb, because he's not around to speak for himself at the moment. Not a good day for anyone on the Tesseract. (Well, apart from the Admiral. He seems fairly okay with all of this. But as you've all noticed, he's weird.)
Thanks again for all the comments. Sorry I'm not responding individually this time! I'm a little pressed for time today. Anyway, I love the feedback! So, thank you very much!
(And OldstRedShrtEvr, Grace Jones?! No, probably not. If we're looking for that intimidating/bitchy edge, though, how about Naomi Campbell, the model? Tall, attractive, feminine looking, but will beat you about the head with a Blackberry if she feels it's absolutely necessary?
In all seriousness, I'm not sure there's anyone who is just right for Adele, but I still kind of like Karen LeBlanc, even though she's short.)
