Requiem for a Kidnapping
Posted on Monday 15 October 2018 @ 15:07 by Lieutenant Colonel Kachiko Bayushi & Captain John "Apollo" Barstow, M.D.
Mission:
The New Collective
Location: Ready Room
Timeline: 26 hours after "Figuring Out the Borg", 3 hours after "You Must Be Mental"
1323 words - 2.6 OF Standard Post Measure
Stephanie stepped off the Turbolift, then walked across and rang the chime for the Ready Room, a PADD in hand. She stood, rocking on her heels as she waited for the answer.
Kachiko had been requested to attend the discussion with Lieutenant O'Hara and had arrived several minutes early and was sitting on the couch across the ready room when the chime sounded. She drew herself up to his feet and stepped over to the hatch, opening it and looking up, "Lieutenant, come in. The Captain and I are looking forward to your report."
Stephanie walked into the Ready Room and nodded to the CO and XO. She stood easy, feet apart, hands behind her back. "Captain. Commanda..." She leaned down and put the PADD on the desk. "Repair report," She said by way of explanation. "We're jus' wrappin' up th' repairs on th' port nacelle," Began. "We should be back to a hundred percent in a little more 'n an hour."
Barstow raised an eyebrow as the Commander granted access to his ready room and shook his head before looking back, "good, I want maximum warp as soon as we can get it," he replied.
"Beyond that, I've a little somethin' I'd like t' run th' flagpole an' see if anyone salutes," O'Hara said. "Saren, Miles an' I have come up with a plan t' learn more information about th' Borg on this planet... But.... There's a catch. We need a live drone."
John nodded, "that's the plan, any ideas how we'll actually do that?" he asked in a conversational voice and sat back in his chair.
"That's th' part I'm a wee bit sketchy on," Stephanie admitted. "I've been studyin' th' attack on Wolf 359 an' how Lieutenant Commmanda Data piggybacked on the signals Th' Collective was sendin' t' Locutus. I think I can replicate th' process wit' this..." She tilted her head to one side and moved the hair away from her data port. "... An' a device we're buildin' down in Engineerin' t' buffer my grey matter. So th' only way I see t' make this work out is t' heavily sedate one an put him in a stasis field. If we can beam one up directly t' sickbay, knock it out an' plug inta it's cortical node before his buddies know he's missin'. I'm na sure that'll work, but it's th' best plan we got for it... Pendin' yer approval, of course, sir."
Barstow nodded, "tell me more about that device you're building?" the CO asked and sat back in his chair.
The Engineer drew herself up and took in a deep breath. "It's basically a positronic buffer," She began. "'Twas built on th' principle of somethin' called a Virtual Private Network. Th' only person t' ever try somethin' like this was Lieutenant Commanda Data aboard th' Enterprise-D. I believe his personality wasn' overwhelmed because th' nature o' his positronic brain was able t' compartmentalize it. Th' device we're buildin', of course is nowhere as sophisticated as th' work o' Docta Soong, but I'm confident it'll do th' job. So th' plan is t' erect a subspace dampenin' field around sickbay, sedate th' ever-lovin' piss outta 'im an' hook us both in." She shook the hair away from her data port and pointed. "When we drop th' field, I should have access t' th' Collective's command pathways, an' th' data will look like it's comin' from our new bestie. I'll have access t' everything he does."
John looked at Bayushi then back to O'Hara, "I'm not sured I'm comfortable with you going into the Matrix with a Borg," Barstow replied and sat forward, "what did Ki say about this?" he asked, a look of concern on his face.
"I've na actually discussed it wit' th' good Doctor as o' yet," Stephanie admitted sheepishly.
Kachiko wasn't entirely up to date with computer technology, beyond the many ways to break them or hack into them. The petite Marine arched an ice-white eyebrow, "Would cutting you off at the sign of danger be possible without harming you? I can monitor your telepathically and direct the doctor to disconnect you should you find yourself in trouble?"
Stephanie shrugged at Kachiko. "Honestly, I don' know. These are pretty much uncharted waters. F'r all we know, th' attempt will fail spectacularly anI'll be walkin' about th' ship f'r th' next several months threatenin' t' assimilate th' crew. An' if you're linked t' my mind, you may as well." She gave a helpless sort of look to the XO, realizing her plan was about to be shot down because she hadn't thought it all the way through. "It's been said on many occasions, Comanda, that only fools are certain. I'm a lot o' things, but I'd like t' foolish is na among them."
Stephanie smiled weakly at Kachiko. Truth be told, she was rather developing a fondness for the first officer. She locked eyes with the shorter woman and said: "I think this is th' bet t' get th' information we need, an I'm th' only crew member who's equipped t' do it... An' it was my idea. I'll na ask ya t' take that risk. I take it o' my own free will because I belive that th' gains are greater than th' losses. I'll risk myself because I'm th' only one on th' crew who can, but that's where th' line is. I'll na risk anyone else, especially the Executive Officer." Still holding the XO locked with her gaze she said flatly "I'm more expendable."
Barstow shook his head, "no-one on this ship is expendable," he replied firmly, "I can't sign off this, I won't risk either one of you getting lost in there. Have you considered routing it through the holodeck and interacting with any Borg we capture through your device there?" the CO asked and sat forward, resting his arms on the desktop.
Kachiko sighed, "I'm able to remain detached enough to not be drawn in. It'd be more like watching a holovid than participating in a holonovel."
"Sir," Stephanie began, addressing herself to Barstow. As she continued, her voice got softer, quieter, and went up half an octave. It could most aptly be described as 'childlike wonder'. "I have th' chance t' be th' first human ever t' hack th' Borg in real time. I'd 'ave m' leg off for a chance like that, an' fate has dropped it in m' lap. Y' can' ask me t' jus' pass it up. Okay, yes... 'Tis a wee bit risky, but everythin' worth havin' is." Her eyes went wide and she locked herself into to looking him in the eye, trying to convey with her expression how important this was to her.
John looked between the two officers and tapped his finger on the desk while he mulled over what both had said, "If,," he started and held up a finger, "Doctor Ki signs off on it and you three can show me the danger isn't as high as it sounds I'll give you the okay. But, I want him to sign off on you both, otherwise, you'll need to consider something else, deal?" he asked and looked between Bayushi and O'Hara, "rushing headlong into something was a mistake I made that nearly cost us the ship, I won't do that here and lose two of my best officers," he added.
"Of course, Captain," Kachiko remarked. If anyone understood the need for advanced preparation, it was the diminutive Special Operations officer. She glanced over at O'Hara, "Shall we go have a talk with the good doctor?"
"Yes, Ma'am," The Engineer responded.
Captain John "Apollo" Barstow
Commanding Officer
USS Merlin
Task Group Commanding Officer
Task Group 47-A
LTjg Stephanie O'Hara
Chief Engineer
USS Merlin
Commander Bayushi Kachiko
First Officer, USS Merlin
