Deep Blue Blackmail

Chapter 8

By Kiddo

In Loving Memory of Jonathan Brandis

"Don't fix a broken heart. Who really wants to forget?" (Joseph Fiennes)

"I always will remember you by real good moments." ("Real Good Moments" by Christian Wunderlich)

Disclaimer: I don't have any rights to the TV show "seaQuest DSV," and I am not making any money with this fanfiction. Mike Erikson is my own creation.

A big "Thank You" goes to my beta reader Jackie and everybody who reviewed.

Reviews and feedback are always welcome.

About 15 minutes later, Bridger knocked on Lucas's cabin door. He had the yellow Vocorder in his hand. When he didn't receive an answer, he opened the door. As quietly as possible, he stepped into the cabin. His gaze was immediately drawn to the bed.

The computer genius had curled up under his covers and was sleeping. The captain saw that Dr. Westphalen already brought a second blanket and a hot-water bottle as well.

Bridger set the Vocorder down on the table and smiled. In the aqua tube by the boy's bed was Darwin. It looked like he was guarding the sleeping boy.

Nathan stayed in the cabin for a few more minutes, just watching over the teenager. Then, he turned and left, closing the door quietly behind him.

A few minutes later, Captain Bridger was back in his cabin, looking at the Vidphone. The admiral's secretary had just put him through to Noyce.

"Hello, Nathan. Your commander told me to expect your call."

The captain nodded. "Hello, Bill. How much did Ford already tell you?"

"Not much. He said that you would probably want to give me the details yourself. He did say that you had huge problems with the computer system but that you managed to sort it all out." Noyce looked through some of the papers that were lying in front of him. "It's very strange. Erikson checked your system when he made the updates." Bridger raised his eyebrows; it seemed that Ford hadn't gone into any detail at all. Maybe that was for the best.

Noyce became suspicious. "Didn't you get along with Erikson? Why have you had this odd look on your face since I mentioned his name?"

"Because he was the reason for our computer problems!"

"I can't believe that. He's been working for us for years. There have never been any complaints," said the admiral.

The captain shook is head. This was really hard to believe. "Your great computer expert sabotaged us. Erikson put a very crafty virus into our system. If it hadn't been for Lucas, we would still be lying dead in the water!"

"Are you really sure that it was Erikson?"

"Would I lie to you?"

Bill shook his head. "No, of course not. But isn't it possible that the virus came from somewhere else?"

The captain shook his head. "Impossible! Lucas did a thorough search, and if he says that the virus came from Erikson, then that's what happened. I would put my hand in the fire for that boy!"

Noyce nodded. He also knew that the teenager was unbelievable when it came to computers. "I'll have a serious talk with Erikson immediately." His glance fell on the paper with today's roll call, and more specifically, on the list of those who were out with illnesses. "Wait a minute. It looks like he called in sick this morning."

"That really doesn't surprise me," said Bridger.

"I'll put a team together and send them to his home. How bad was the virus exactly?"

"Really bad! We would have been lost without Lucas. None of the others would have been able to do anything about it," Nathan explained. "I'll send you a report about everything that was affected as soon as possible."

"That would be helpful. Could I also talk with Lucas about this? I would like to hear a bit more about this virus."

"I'm afraid that will have to wait for some time."

"What do you mean?" the admiral asked, wrinkles creasing his forehead. "Is something wrong with Lucas?" Noyce liked the boy. He would feel terrible if something happened to Dr. Wolenczak's son.

"Before this whole thing happened, Lucas was already ill. And when the virus shut all of our doors, he was at the Moon Pool with Darwin." Bridger looked down. "I contacted him by Pal and asked him to hack into the seaQuest's system, but since there was no computer around, it was impossible. A short time later, Lucas suddenly appeared on the bridge. He had jumped into the Moon Pool, and Darwin had pulled him to the bridge. He sat there for hours in wet clothes while he took care of the virus." Nathan sighed. "The state of his health is declining rapidly. Dr. Westphalen fears that he might catch pneumonia as a result of this."

Bill looked at his old friend sympathetically. He could see how deeply this affected Bridger. "I'm really sorry, Nathan. Tell him that I hope he feels better soon."

The captain nodded. "Since we are already talking about Lucas, I want to let you know that I've decided not to let any other 'computer experts' on board in the future. Updates to the systems or any new programs that need to be installed will only be done by Lucas."

The admiral was speechless. When he recovered, he said "Nathan, you can't be serious. You can't put responsibility for the top UEO submarine's computer system in the hands of a 16-year old!"

"I'm absolutely serious about this. Lucas is a part of my crew, and I will treat him as such. And besides, he's probably better than all your computer experts put together." He paused to let this sink in. "In addition to that, I'd like to remind you that you were the one who allowed Dr. Wolenczak to put his son on the seaQuest in the first place. If your conscience was able to handle that, then I'm sure you can handle this as well."

Bill shook his head. "Nathan, that was something completely different…"

The captain also shook his head. "The computer system is much too important to let just anybody go messing with it. I only can only let somebody make updates and changes like that if I trust that person 100 , and the only person I trust that much is Lucas. Either every future change goes through Lucas, or you can start looking for a new captain."

For a moment, the admiral just sat there. "That's blackmail! You can't seriously think that I will agree to this."

Bridger shrugged. "You can call it what you want, but my mind is made up." His hand moved towards his uniform badge; he wouldn't hesitate to rip it off just to get his point across to Noyce.

The admiral sighed. "Okay, you win. I can't afford it to lose you. I will make sure that everything concerning the computer system will be taken care of by Lucas."

Captain Bridger smiled with satisfaction. "Great. I'm also going to let Lucas design a new anti-virus program for the seaQuest."

"Do what you want." Noyce ran a hand over his grey hair. "I'll handle the problem of Mike Erikson now."

Bridger nodded. "Do that, and call me when you find out more."

To Be Continued…

Written 2005 / Translated Spring 2006