The Star Beagle Adventures
Episode 1: Eye of the Beholder
Scene 17: Paint
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Paint
Only five people were left in the large conference room and they had not moved from where they had been for the general meeting with all the scientists. Project Director Pel was completely dwarfed by the conference table even though his chair had been adjusted to full height, leaving the minuscule ferengi's legs dangling some distance from the floor.
Captain Yui Song of the U.S.S. Mako and Lt. Cmdr. Vranran zh'Kathar, the second officer and acting captain of the U.S.S. Escort sat next to each other. Captain Skip Howard and the U.S.S. Beagle's corporate officer, Sakura Nakamura Holland, were nearly on opposite sides of the table from each other.
"Daimon Ubok is getting restless, and I'm starting to get unfriendly questions from my superiors in the F.C.A.," Pel said. "They see a lot of sitting and talking and not a lot of doing something about those trills. Can't you use a long range weapon to destroy that ship?"
"That is one of many options," Sakura Nakamura Holland replied. "But we need to evaluate what the repercussions might be of such an attempt. We don't want to give this life form more weapons than it already has…"
"We're nowhere near there, yet," Captain Howard interrupted from across the table. "This is still a rescue mission."
"Do you seriously think you can rescue those trills after what happened on my ship?" Lt. Cmdr. zh'Kathar asked. Her voice was sharp and aggressive. Her antennae were standing straight up and almost vibrating. "We need to kill that thing before it breaks loose…"
Captain Yui Song interrupted. "Nobody is killing anything until I give the order." The authority in her voice was enough to silence everyone in the room. She turned toward the Beagle's captain. "Skip, this thing rode in on a subspace carrier wave. That constitutes superluminal travel. And you seem to think it is intelligent. Doesn't this seem to you like a first contact situation?"
Howard shook his head, brushed back his long, reddish hair. "This is a superluminal parasite. It is not intelligent on its own. I think we can reliably infer that from those starving trills. The creature did not know what to do with them until it took over another mind. It was able to make better use of Lieutenant Commander Straiv because it was sated. It gobbled up those trill minds in a hurry, and in the process failed to learn what it needed to learn to be able to effectively use their bodies."
"I will want more opinions on that question," Captain Yui responded. "Poll your scientists and let me know. If you still believe this is a rescue mission, I will want to see a plan. Consider how to respond if the consensus is that this is a first contact. And I want a plan around threat elimination. I want options to choose among and arguments in favor of each course of action. I will make the final determination. Dismissed."
"Captain Howard," said Pel as everyone, with the exception of Sakura Nakamura Holland, was rising to leave, "That andorian has a point. What makes you think there's anything more left of those trills to rescue than quivering piles of trill meat?"
Howard strolled over to join the diminutive ferengi. He was a small, slender man, but Pel was much smaller. He smiled, put his hand on Pel's shoulder and said very softly, "Because they're trills. Now, if you will excuse me, Project Director, I believe Sakura wants a word with me."
.
Nakamura Holland had maintained a slight smile and was outwardly calm, but it was clear to anyone paying attention that the lovely Japanese woman was not happy. She was the only person who had remained seated.
"You put your foot down pretty hard, Skip. You don't want to forget who this ship belongs to."
"Who could possibly forget, Sakura?" Howard said lightly, with a smile. He patted her shoulder as he strolled by and said, very quietly, "The Beagle is Star Fleet's dog. It's painted right out there on the hull for everyone to see." He made good his exit before Nakamura Holland had a chance to stand up. She stood and whirled in time to see the conference room door closing behind him.
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