Data walked into his lab deep in thought, and as he spot Doctor Maddox looking at the schematics of his neural net on one of the console monitors, he had to fight off a wave of fear. His hand tightened into a fist, and he steeled himself for the procedure he was determined to go along with. Maybe he should have brought Geordi along, he thought but then reprimanded himself for being selfish again. It would hurt Geordi to watch this! No, he had to do this alone!
Maddox turned to him hearing the sound of the closing door and greeted him with a welcoming smile "Data, please come in."
"Doctor." he nodded in greeting and stepped up to where Maddox was standing at the blinking consoles. His eyes wandered to the screen that Maddox had been studying. It showed his neural net around his emotion-chip - and there were marks where to sever the connections leading to it. Seeing that, Data felt a sensation he could only describe as his heart sinking. If he had to determine its current location, he felt it was around the level of his toes now...
Maddox could see his silent distress and decided to come forward with his earlier offer once again. "You know that we do not have to do this." he told the android on a hushed voice "I can postpone the procedure. It would give you more time to think about my offer... Alternatively, you could even accept my helping hand."
Data turned to him, and Maddox was surprised to see him so determined. But before Data could reply, the door opened, and Geordi walked in with an expectant expression on his face.
"Good evening, gentlemen!" he called from the door "I'm sorry, I'm a bit late, but the point is that I'm here, right?" he asked with a humour he did not feel as he walked up to where they were standing.
"Geordi. I do not recall ever calling you to attend this procedure." Data remarked eyeing his friend suspiciously.
Geordi snorted "Well, you didn't." he agreed dryly "Despite my offer that I'd come, you didn't." he shrugged and walked over to the console, ignoring Maddox' suddenly irritated gaze. He pretended to study what he saw on screen and went on on a seemingly carefree voice "Lucky, that your best friend is the Chief Engineer, and he has the access right to program the computer to let him know, if you and Doctor Maddox are in the same room alone. Right?" he turned back to his friend with a challenging look.
Data felt cornered, and had no wish to argue about this any further. If Geordi wanted to stay, he could stay. He looked at Maddox "We may commence, Doctor."
To Geordi's surprise, Maddox became agitated at this, almost as if he was in panic "Data! Haven't you heard what I just told you?! I could postpone this! If you agreed to my offer, I could... I could help you! Haven't you thought about it?!"
"Yes, I did think about it, Doctor. And decided against accepting it." Data told him on a silent voice.
"What is going on here?" Geordi stepped next to his friend frowning "What kind of an offer is he talking about, Data?" he asked but knew he wouldn't like whatever reply he'd get for the question.
Maddox glared at him with blazing eyes "None of your concerns!" then looked at Data pleading "We could mutually help each other! I could make up an excuse why the chip cannot be removed, and I COULD give you my official scientific opinion clearly stating that your emotion-chip DOES NOT effect your performance as a Starfleet officer! As it would be coming from the foremost authority of the Daystrom Institute Cybernetics Division, any court martial officer would have to accept it!"
Geordi gaped stunned then frowned irritated "If you can do this, just why DON'T you do it?!" he demanded.
Data answered instead of Maddox "Because it would be a lie." he gazed only into the cyberneticist's panic stricken eyes "It would involve a huge risk for him to lose his prestige as a scientist. Doctor Maddox is willing to take that risk only if he could gain something in return... Lore, to be specific." he explained on a colourless tone, almost as if the procedure had already deprived him of emotions.
Geordi couldn't utter a word at that, while Maddox went on on an imploring voice "Data! What would it take you to give a murderer psychopath to me in exchange for your emotions?! Lore would not be thinking twice in your place! And I promised you! I wouldn't do anything that could damage it in any fashion. I just need a guide in my research!"
"That is blackmail!" Geordi exclaimed upset "Data is not giving up his brother EXACTLY because he is NOT his brother! How can you make him choose between family and his own emotions?! And you're trying to make us believe that you've changed since you last wanted to dissect Data?!"
"That android is NOT Data's brother! That's ridiculous even to utter! That's only the result of an experiment of Doctor Soong, gone wrong! Lore is not sentient! Not even alive! Using that android body for my research would be no bigger a blasphemy than to use the body of a dead organic being as an organ donor!" his voice rose with his growing desperation.
"Lore is only deactivated, not dead!" Geordi shouted back "Would you be so unscrupulous to use a coma patient as an organ donor?!"
That hit too close home for Data "That is ENOUGH! STOP IT! Both of you!" he shouted, and the two men looked at him shocked not having heard him raising his voice ever in their lives. His eyes seemed desperate but spoke of an unbreakable resolve "This is my life! My decision! And the sentience or the present condition of Lore has nothing to do with it! I want to go along with this procedure because it is RIGHT! Because I endanger the people who are going on a mission with me, if my processing capacity is halved by having emotions! And I do not wish to live with the guilt of letting people get injured because of THAT! The court-martial made the decision to deprive me of my emotion-chip during missions, BECAUSE I achieved my rank and the responsibility coming with it WITHOUT emotions! And I had to pay a bitter price to realize just how RIGHT that ruling was! The woman who means the most to me is suffering because of it." he slouched letting out a painful breath "I cannot make it right for her... but if I can help it, no one else would suffer the same way ever again." he looked into the eyes of a Maddox standing there clearly devastated "So please, Doctor. Just do whatever you need to do. And stop... tormenting me with such an offer..." he asked finally on a silent voice.
It took Maddox a long moment to concede to his defeat. Once he could swallow his rage and disappointment, he could at least try to cover his emotions. He tapped the panels in silence for a good few moments seemingly without any aim before he finally started to explain the procedure on a hollow voice.
"Alright, Data... Let us see... One of the most important aspects was to enable you to both remove and reinstate the chip quickly and at the same time, safely. I figured that the most convenient place would be near the spot, where Doctor Soong originally designed it, but a little closer to your main processor: at the back of your neck. You could reach it easily, and also anyone who would help you in any kind of maintenance task could access it just as freely. I wouldn't use a classic service door for it, instead, I'd use a small holographic device that could project a portion of the bioplast sheathing above the service opening. This holographic door would disappear only if the fingerprint of certain individuals touched it. Yourself of course and anyone whom you choose to be qualified enough to do maintenance on you... Commander La Forge would be one of them I suppose." that was the first time he looked at Data, and the android nodded.
"And yourself, Doctor." he added.
Maddox nodded and Geordi had the creepiest feeling that he was not at all grateful for Data's implicit trust. Just because he didn't go along with your blackmail? You son-of-a... he growled silently before trying to pay attention to Maddox again.
"Inside the opening, apart from the chip itself, there will be a button. Pressing it, it would terminate all processes and services of the chip and also seal all incoming and outgoing connections to it. In addition, it would stop the monitoring of the chip. Afterwards, it will be safe to remove it."
Geordi viewed the schematics with a thoughtful frown "So once the monitoring is stopped, Data wouldn't - in lack of a better term - sense whether the chip is still inside or not? That's rather weird."
"Basically, yes. After that, only his tactile input will help him determine that: he can touch it with his fingers. This process works much the same way as the disconnection process of any other limb or body part does, when it gets removed. I used Doctor Soong's original designs as a point to start from, there's nothing weird in any of this... Besides, using the button is a convenient way to turn the chip off without removing it - the way you originally implemented it."
Geordi nodded bemused crossing his arms "Yeah, but the switch that I used, did not hung up the chip's monitoring."
"Yes. But that feature was necessary due to the fact that the court martial ruling is not met by simply turning the chip off. It needs to be removed completely. And as such, all connections, including monitoring has to be terminated." Maddox explained. His voice was now professional. No sign of any grudge or desperation. Only his field of science.
Geordi unfolded his arms "What about reinstating it? Does he have to push a button then too?"
"No. Sinking the chip back to its slot automatically activates all relating services and starts all the processes needed for its operation. I estimate it'll take around half a second for the reinstating algorithms to run. Not more than that."
Geordi nodded and tried not to look very appreciatively. This man knew his field - if only he wasn't the psychopath he was...
Maddox finally looked at Data "If you're satisfied with the design, we may proceed."
Data only nodded silently in response and sat down on a chair to be hooked up to the computer.
In two hours time, the three men were travelling in a turbolift to go to their respective quarters. There was an uncomfortable silence. With the concentration to the procedure over, Maddox again seemed to become very upset. He refused to look at either of them, and Geordi didn't feel like small-talking nor making any kind of meaningful conversation with Data with that butcher of a cyberneticist around. Finally, the doctor's stop was coming up, so Maddox curtly nodded to them and left without as much as a 'good night'. Geordi just grimaced at it bemused - he even dared be disappointed! For what it was worth, he should have been glad, Data didn't report about his offer to the Captain or the Daystrom Institute!
Their stop came up, and they started to walk the corridor in silence. Geordi tried to think of something to talk about as he glanced over to Data who seemed really depressed. He was frighteningly silent throughout the procedure and before that, in Engineering too, and Geordi knew that with Data, silence was never a good sign. But now... all the events of the last two days were written all over his face. Geordi had to admit, he started to feel awfully worried about his best friend.
"You know..." he started thoughtfully "Whatever just took place, you know I don't agree with any part of it, but.."
Data sighed almost as if he had the ability to get tired "I know, Geordi."
Geordi stopped and looked into his eyes "Nevertheless, it was the bravest thing I've ever seen anyone to go along with." Data then frowned cocking his head confused as he went on "It must have been unimaginably hard to give up something you wanted all your life! Even if only partially. I couldn't even picture how I'd feel, if I was told not to use my eye-implants just because they are different than human eyes... You're brave to face all this, my friend! You have to know that despite my misgivings about this... I'm proud of you and... I suppose when Emma... hears about this, she'll be proud of you too!"
A small smile ran over Data's face turning into bitterness "She'll be... - to use a vernacular - breathing fire once she hears about this." Geordi couldn't help but chuckled, and Data allowed himself to join him for a second too. He then looked at his friend with a serious expression "She was very upset about the ruling, and because of the fact that she felt, I did not stand up for myself." Data turned his gaze away for a moment before going on "In all honesty, I'm not brave, Geordi! I did it exactly because I'm a coward." he consciously pulled his shoulders up a little "Giving up the emotion-chip partially is not half as frightening as giving up my life on the Enterprise - or giving up the possibility of a future together with Emma here." he shook his head almost ashamed "I simply chose the option less terrifying."
Geordi sighed and patted his friend on the shoulder "And who could blame you for that?" they locked gazes again "The less terrifying option here would creep out even the Captain or Commander Riker... And I suppose Emma knows that too, it's only that it hurts her to see you hurt."
Data nodded "I know..." he breathed on a soft voice.
They stopped at the aft turbolift "Are you going to her now?" Geordi asked emphatically.
Data shook his head "I cannot visit her. Doctor Crusher doesn't let anybody near her as long as her husband is on board." he replied forlornly.
"I see..." Geordi studied his friend's face and finally came forward with the thought that he had on his mind ever since they left the lab "Data... now that you have the ability. Wouldn't you want to... turn the chip off for a little while? I-I mean... humans have the possibility to sleep even in the most distressed of times. We can rest our souls then at least for a few hours. You do not have that possibility... Now, that you have that button that Maddox gave you, maybe you could..."
"No, Geordi!" Data shook his head firmly "I will keep to what the court martial ruled, but I will NOT use a legal decision as a means to escape. I will not run from the pain or the remorse or... the craving for her..." his voice broke, but no tears formed in his eyes, and on a background processing thread, he wondered how his voice simulation could be affected by his emotions in this very human fashion. He locked his now desperate gaze with Geordi's concerned one "It wouldn't be right." he whispered.
Geordi sighed heavily, and he spread his arms "So then we'll have to deal with all this the way we had in the last two years, right?" he looked at his friend with a small smile "What do you say to a drink at Ten Forward? The night is almost over anyways, there would be no point for me to go to sleep now."
Data felt grateful for his friend's care. Yes, there were long nights they'd talked through when all his emotions were so new and overwhelming, and he had no idea how to deal with them. Geordi would then help him through those difficult periods. He nodded with a tiny smile "That would be most comforting. I accept your offer, Geordi."
The Chief Engineer nodded with a smile, and they stepped into the turbolift.
