Chapter 6 – first volley

          "I can tell you this much Alana, right now this has to have been one of the easiest missions that we've been on lately.  Everything that has gone on seems to suggest that all we are going to have to do is restart several schedules for repairs.  And even most of those are fairly minor.  Now there are a lot of medical needs to be addressed, but that is something that all we are required to do is see what we can set up in the way of interim care and then forward it on to Medical."  Geordi chuckled a little as he spoke to the animate woman smiling at him on the subspace terminal.

          "What's so funny?"

          "Well I just realized that the first real mission that we have after losing Dr. Crusher is going to end up at least involving her in some way.  I thought it somewhat ironic."

          "You're right, there is a bit of humor in that.  At least you have it pretty easy at the moment.  I wish that I could say the same.  Granted, nobody wants to kill anyone but…" she sighed before continuing, "I have never in my life dealt with people so stubborn.  Even Commander Worf and Captain Picard seem extremely malleable in comparison.  Someone once said, 'when religion enters the picture, brains fly out the window.'  Whoever coined that phrase must have had Bajoran Vedeks in mind."

          "At least you have a handle on the situation.  You said it yourself, no one is trying to kill anyone.  These people might be stubborn, but they came to this conference wanting to find a way to fix this.  The will yell and scream trying to get their way but in the end, you will be able to get them to compromise.  Which brings me to a question.  How's Worf dealing with them?"

          "Kicking and screaming.  He has even less tolerance for religious zeal than I do, and he is a very religious man himself.  Personally I think he wants to lop everyone's head off with his bat'leth and go home.  But for all the anger he has, I am fairly sure that I am the only one that notices it."  She snickered at the memory of Worf from earlier.  She could tell without looking at him that he was furious with the petty squabbles of the Vedek Assembly representatives, but on the outside he held an expression that would have been much more at home on the Captain's face than his.  Not that it was a fake looking expression, it actually seemed to come quite naturally to him.  No, it was just so different from what he normally had that the juxtaposition of the mood and the face had been comical.

          "That's our Worf.  I have watched him negotiate before.  He really is good.  And I can see the emotional war almost as well as am empathy feels it, especially among friends."

          "You are right.  He really has helped me already.  Thanks for talking to the Captain."

          For the first time in the conversation Geordi LaForge felt a little uneasy.  Amazingly he had not felt awkward talking to a female that he didn't know real well.  Even duding his somewhat relationship he had with Leah Brahms over the years had never passed that point.  Now he was having a little trouble in the nerves department.  He had asked the captain not to say anything to her about it.  "How did you know?"

          "Geordi, I'm an empathy remember.  I have to be trying to block out everything otherwise I get the surface emotions of everyone around me.  Not to mention, I'm a psychologist.  I've gotten pretty good at reading people.  Besides he never said anything directly about you, but he did say he wanted to make sure that I knew how serious he was about me being the one to lead this mission.  I put two and two together and came up with a certain chief engineer that I happen to think is my friend."

          He relaxed a bit after hearing the teasing tone of her voice.  She had found it sweet that he had thought to even mention it, and even sweeter that the Captain had listened.  "Caught me.  Truthfully I did not go to him just to say anything of you being nervous.  I wanted the company of someone that had been here for a while.  Worf and I have never been real close and he and the Captain are the only ones left that have been here the whole time.  I guess I was missing poker night."

          "Well I'm not one for spreading ridge gossip, but I think I can safely say the captain does too, and that he found a forth for the table."

          "Oh, I haven't heard about this yet."

          "Well I don't think he is thinking too far ahead at the moment.  Yesterday after Commander Madden said something to him he finally called him Number One.  Then he asked if he played poker?"

          "So what brought this on?"

          "Well the captain got a letter from Dr. Crusher that apparently changed the way he looks at things, and he admitted as much."

          "From what you are dancing around I am to gather that the letter was more than a hi how ya doin'?"

          "I didn't see it, but if his reactions to Marty's teasing were to judge I would definitely say that the two of them have finally decided to get together."

          "Well I'll be.  I had given up on the two of them.  So what did Commander Madden say about the idea of poker?"

          "He said that he had heard of the game."

          "I can say that things are definitely looking up around here.  So what about you, I can almost guarantee we can get the game going if you joined in?"

          "I don't know.  Wouldn't someone think that I am cheating?"

          "Not in the least.  Except for Marty, the rest of us played with Deanna for years."

          "In that case I would love to. I haven't played in years.  Most everyone at the Academy wouldn't play against a telepath."

          "I can understand the feeling.  I had problems because of the visor.  It was actually Will Riker that managed to get me past the worry of what others felt and remind me that if I wanted I could filter out anything that I wanted to."

          Geordi watched as her expression changed.  He could see the proverbial light bulb go off.  "What is it?"

          Alana appeared to be so deep in her thought she was started.  She had forgotten he was there for a moment.  "Sorry.  I think you just gave me an idea."

          "What did I say?"

          "Filtering.  I think I have just figured out how to get these hard noses to play ball my way.  It will take some rewriting of history for some but I think if I can find some of my old research I can make the idea work."

          "Glad I could be of service, although I am still not sure I did anything."

          "You, my dear heart, have been my muse.  Thanks.  But I have got to get to work on this if I have any hope of getting anywhere.  I'll be up most of the night, but I'll make up for it the next time I have ay shore leave.  I'll talk to you tomorrow.  Buckley out."

          With that she was gone, leaving in her wake a very perplexed chief engineer.  "Well glad I could help," he muttered to the air.  From under his chair something curled around his leg.  He had almost forgotten that Worf had brought Spot over to be taken care of while he was on DS9.  Absently he picked her up, scratching her.  His mind drifted happily back to the conversation with a cute strawberry blond Betazoid.  He never gave thought to the idea that this was the first time the recalitant animal had ever solicited attention from him.