Chapter Twenty
Kurak snarled at her data padd, then pushed it aside and leaned back in her flimsy office chair.
The android had returned nearly an hour ago with an anti-grav sled loaded with materials. She could see him hard at work through her office's long, rectangular window, crouched half-in / half-out of the primary console with his blinking, buzzing tools.
Kurak pinched her lips together and closed her eyes, rubbing her ridged forehead with her hand.
The whole situation still seemed surreal. Just the idea that Commander Data, Starfleet's celebrated sentient android - the officer who had unmasked the Romulans aiding the traitorous Duras during the Klingon civil war - that he was out there repairing her lab…
She and the android had barely interacted during Kurak's time aboard the Enterprise-D, and seeing him again the clinic, comforting that sick little human boy… If the robot, Howard, hadn't told her, she never would have recognized the man she had overheard sharing memories of his daughter as the same unsettlingly lifelike machine she'd seen on the Enterprise bridge.
She wanted to learn more about him. He had saved her daughter…just as Melinda had been trying to do when those honorless raiders vaporized her in cold blood, denying her the chance to defend herself, to so much as see the face of her killer…
Kurak clenched her jaw, trying to picture her friend sitting at the desk across from hers, her dark curls like tightly wound electric coils…
But, it was difficult. Waking up from a coma to find her best friend gone - to learn she had been murdered trying to protect Kahlestra while she, Kurak, had been unconscious, unable to defend her friend, her daughter, her lab…
Why?
Why had the raiders come that day, at that time? They had kept their work so secret, published only their most basic findings. How had the raiders known...
Kurak knew how much Melinda had been looking forward to meeting Commander Data and Captain Picard. To meeting all four Enterprise officers. It had been Melinda's idea to host them at the compound, to show them around the ruins.
But, given the timing, Kurak had to wonder… Could Melinda have suspected their discovery of that ancient energy source had already made their compound a target for attack? Could she have hoped the presence of Starfleet officers might serve as a deterrent? And if so, why hadn't Melinda told the rest of them? Why hadn't she told her?
Kurak shook her head. It was no use pondering the motives of the dead.
And yet...
If that had been her purpose, her dear friend had saved Kahlestra twice. She owed Melinda a great debt of honor…a debt which, according to tradition, she now owed to Data, since he had - however unknowingly - taken up the banner of her fallen friend, completing Melinda's mission by bringing Kahlestra safely home.
But, how could she risk cultivating any sort of friendly relationship with a machine? If the Klingon courts should hear of it - or worse, her ex-husband… The story could be twisted so easily against her. How many tawdry jokes had she heard among her ex-husband's coarse-minded friends about Federation scientists too awkward to find a mate creating robots for their own perverse ends? Any whiff of impropriety…of behavior considered 'deviant' by the more conservative factions…and she could lose more than custody. She could be stripped of her honor, her reputation, any chance of being hired within the Empire…
No. Best to keep her distance. Kahlestra was probably still young enough to get away with a little hero worship, but Kurak could not allow herself to drop her guard. Not for the android officer or any Fed.
No matter how impressive…
...or how deeply indebted she felt toward him for what he had done for her family…
Kurak swore through clenched teeth and rubbed her tired eyes. Kahlestra was right. Leaving her ex-husband's House had not set her free. As long as he remained a threat to Kahlestra's own freedom and ambitions, he held them both trapped, stunted, bound to him with chains of fear. And it would only get worse as Kahlestra grew older, more independent…
Kurak fisted her hands and pressed them to her stomach, the blinding-hot fury roiling inside of her nearly unbearable.
A knock on the doorframe made her lift her head, her eyes narrowing when she saw the android standing there with that small, nervous smile.
"What do you want?" she snapped, and the android blinked as if he'd been slapped. Kurak's jaw tightened, but she didn't soften her angry glare. She couldn't allow herself to weaken…
"Apologies if I interrupted your work," he said, and she scoffed.
"Hardly," she said. "I've been trying to trace the energy flow through the Stairway structure in the moments before and after that wall opened. Where did it come from, where did it concentrate? What was the effect on the dampening field?"
Data tilted his head curiously, stepping closer to peer at the padd on her desk.
"Can I presume from your frustrated tone that your endeavor has been unsuccessful so far?"
"It's these damn padds," she snarled, snatching her work out of his view. "It's like trying to plot five dimensional coordinates using a child's graphing calculator. How much longer will you be with the repairs?"
"That is what I came to tell you," Data said. "I believe I have completed repairs to the primary console. If you would restore main power to the lab, I will check for surges and run a diagnostic test to ensure the core is once again fully functional. Then, you can check whether your friend's files have survived this ordeal unscathed, as it were."
He smiled, but the expression faded when she didn't smile back.
"Kurak…" he said.
"What?"
He regarded her for a long moment, then sighed and closed his amber eyes.
"Never mind. If you would please accompany me…?"
Following quaint human custom, the android stepped aside to let her precede him out the door, then followed her into the main lab. While she headed to the generator controls, the soot-smudged commander sank back to his knees and reached under the console.
"Until I repair the rest of the lab, there is the strong possibility of a power surge," he called to her through the machinery. "It would be immensely frustrating to have done all this work just to watch the core fry all over again. The replicator cannot provide the type of shielding required, and I am unwilling to...procure..the needed materials from the runabout until I am certain they will not be required to help sustain Mikey's adjustable stasis field. It shouldn't be a problem, though. From here, I can ensure no harm comes to the console when you restore full power."
Kurak wrinkled her nose.
"How?" she said. "By using your own body?"
"Much of my body framework is made up of tri-polymers - a non-conductive material," he said. "But, don't worry. I have absorbed far more energy than this dome's generator is capable of producing, and lived to tell about it."
He looked up from under the console just long enough to flash her a smile before saying, "All right: now!"
Kurak hesitated just a moment, then did as he had ordered.
The restored console came to life with a slow, smooth hum.
"It looks brand new," she said, moving across the room to examine his repairs more closely.
"Yes," Data said, still under the console. "I— Ow! Shit!"
He jumped to his feet, hopping awkwardly as he shook his left hand as if trying to dislodge a desert spider.
"Ow, shit, dammit, ow!"
Kurak couldn't help herself. She laughed out loud at the android's comical little dance.
"Not so invulnerable as you thought, Commander?" she taunted.
"It would seem not," he agreed, chuckling self-consciously as he eyed his hand, and the console, for signs of damage. Not finding any, he shook his throbbing fingers again. "I'm afraid I'm still getting used to this new skin."
"Could you not feel pain before?" she asked.
"Not as such," he admitted. "Certain…unpleasant sensations…were always part of my diagnostic program, but they were nothing like as overwhelming."
Kurak regarded him, her heavy brow furrowed over her nose.
"Then, why change?"
"Why indeed," Data said and laughed again, then winced, flexing his fingers. "I think the pain is starting to fade."
"May I see?" she asked, and he willingly held out his hand.
Kurak took it, frowning at the deep red marks she saw on his fingertips. The marks felt warmer than the rest of his hand, just as she'd expect if she or Kahlestra had experienced a minor burn - bad enough to hurt but not to blister. Which seemed strange since, according to the console's diagnostic display, the shock he'd absorbed would have been more than enough to stun a human into unconsciousness...
"Is this…organic skin?" she asked uncomfortably.
"No," he answered, his eyes fixed on his hand in hers. "It is artificial. Like me."
She blew on his fingers, as she would a child's, but to her surprise he shuddered and quickly pulled away.
"I…I'm sorry," he stammered, his pale features reddening with embarrassment. "I'm still…"
He took in a long breath and slowly let it out.
"The first time I experienced…pain…" he told her. "I was being held captive by the Borg. I am still learning to…to disassociate what they did to me from…"
"You don't have to explain," Kurak said. "I have known many warriors. All have suffered trauma of one kind or another."
"I am not a warrior," Data said.
Kurak barked a scoffing laugh.
"This from the starship commander who smoked out the Romulans and cut short a war that could have devastated the Klingon-Federation Alliance?"
He blinked at her, and she smirked at the startled look on his face.
"Call yourself what you will, Starfleet Officer," she said. "I do know who you are. I know much of what you have done. And...Data…"
She hesitated just a moment, just long enough for the memory of Kahlestra's voice fill her head, for her child's burning anger to fill her soul…
...Damn my father and damn the courts! Let them all rot within the cursed gates of Gre'thor!...
It was a sentiment Kurak strongly shared, for more reasons than even Kahlestra knew. Swallowing back her doubts, her fears, the Klingon woman took a breath…and made her choice.
"…I acknowledge the debt of honor I owe to you."
She raised her head, just slightly, her eyes fixed firmly on his as she admitted, "I never did properly thank you for rescuing my daughter. For that, I apologize."
"I assure you," he said, "she has returned the favor."
"I'd like to hear about that," Kurak said. "Kahlestra has told me very little of her…adventures."
"I would be pleased to tell you of your daughter's bravery," he said politely, and took a slow step forward, still watching her.
"Kurak," he said, "about this morning…"
"What of it?"
The android's eyes seemed to flicker, and he took in a bracing breath, reaching out to pluck something from his pile of materials - something she couldn't quite manage to glimpse before he tucked it behind his back.
"I… That is… When you…" he started, then grimaced and tried again.
"I have been told that if a relationship…any relationship…is to succeed, it must be based on strong foundations," he said. "And...um... Regarding our…interaction this morning…"
"Interaction…?" she queried, wondering if he could be referring to their disagreement regarding his unwelcome interference with Kahlestra's study schedule.
"You must admit, it was rather...unexpected," he babbled awkwardly, "and - while I am not at all adverse to the overture - your somewhat…combative…approach, coupled with your previous, rather dismissive attitude toward me..." He stopped himself, then tried again. "I feel... That is, if you genuinely wish to…"
He stopped again, then held out the hand he'd been concealing, offering her what looked like a long-stemmed flower.
Kurak had lost the thread of his confusing, rapid-fire patter, not really caring how he felt about her reprimand. Her daughter's education was her responsibility - a responsibility she had no intention of 'sharing' with anyone. But, she took the flower and turned it curiously in her hands, realizing it was not organic but made of metal that had been intricately folded and twisted into this delicate shape…
She only half-listened as he went on.
"Please know that while you may…perhaps…have already 'conquered' me, as it were…" the android prattled, his pale face beginning to turn red again, "I believe that...if this is to progress... It would be beneficial to learn more about each other. To that end, I wish to propose - that is - suggest…"
He fidgeted his feet, then straightened his shoulders and regarded her directly.
"Kurak, would you care to accompany me on a trail ride this evening? It would give us a chance to talk with each other."
Kurak raised her eyes from the gift and regarded him closely…his smooth, human features, the openness of his expression…so different from Klingon men… His amber eyes were so earnest…and the flower…
Was all this talk the Federation man's attempt to be friendly after a perceived conflict? Or was there something more…?
"Did you make this?" she asked, gesturing to the flower.
"Yes," he said. "If you do not like it—"
"No," she said. "No, it's… It's really quite…unique."
Kahless… she swore to herself.
What would Melinda advise? As intriguing as she found the android - that is, the android's invitation... Could she really risk…
What, though? What would she truly be risking? The android was an official visitor, a tourist, here on leave to see the ruins. And, if her suspicions about Melinda's reasons for wanting him and his fellow Starfleet officers to stay at their compound were correct, going for this trail ride would give her a chance to probe deeper into what they knew, and why they had come.
"Very well," she said. "I accept your invitation. After all that's happened, I could do with some fresh air, a chance to clear my head…"
Data's mouth dropped open, and his entire being seemed to light up from within.
"You…accept?" He beamed so happily, she couldn't suppress a small smile of her own. "Excellent. Wonderful! Thank you. I—"
"Data," she said.
"Yes, Kurak?"
She gestured to the console he'd repaired.
"The diagnostic…?"
"Hm?" He blinked, then laughed. "Oh, yes, of course. Back to work. There is much to do…"
"I will find a suitable place for this," Kurak said, taking her metal flower to her office.
As she walked away, she heard the android begin to whistle. She wasn't familiar with the lively tune, and his whistling wasn't exactly…on key…but it made her smile to herself just the same.
"Strange man…" she commented to Melinda's desk. "I think you would have liked him."
For Data's part, he felt as though his joy had inflated his chest like a balloon. If the computer diagnostic work hadn't been there to ground him, he imagined he might just float away. For the first time in his life, he found himself 'walking on air,' 'dancing in the clouds,' and he never, ever wanted the feeling to end, happily mixing song lyrics in his head as he attempted to whistle a very old tune:
Just to register emotion - jealousy, devotion
And really feel the part
Just because I'm presumin'
That I could be kinda human
If I only had a heart…
To Be Continued...
References Include: TNG: The Schizoid Man, The Naked Now, Brothers, Encounter at Farpoint, Legacy, In Theory, Descent, Disaster, Redemption II; the movie First Contact; "If I Only Had A Heart" from The Wizard of Oz, lyrics by E.Y. Harburg.
Stay tuned for more, coming soon. Please let me know what you think, and thanks so much for your awesome reviews! :D