By Hazelyn Patterson
Boldly going where angles fear to tread
Episode II Part 3
The next three days passed
slowly for Daniel Gregg. He didn’t see much of anyone except McCoy, M’Benga,
Chapel and a few of the other nurses. None of the medical personnel seemed
anxious to engage him in conversation other than to say that Carolyn improved
steadily. Her pallor passed away and the
normal rosy color of her complexion returned. McCoy gradually decreased the
sedation until she was off the medication. Carolyn could wake up now, whenever
her body was ready and McCoy promised to summon him to her side the moment she
did.
He grew tired of whipping
the
There was little to do save
wait, visit and wait again here in the pale blue stateroom with its spectacular
view of the passing stars.
The door chimed and brought
him away for his star streaked reverie.
“Come in,” Gregg said and
the portal opened to reveal McCoy looking pensive and grave.
“I came to tell you she’s
awake,” McCoy said solemnly. “That’s the good news.”
“And the bad?” Gregg
queried, preparing himself for the worst.
“Her memory,” McCoy explained,
his eyebrow cocked like Spock’s. “Its… not right. She doesn’t know who she is
right now.”
Captain Gregg nodded and
folded his arms across his chest. “I see,” he said, unable to remember what it
was like to exist without Carolyn knowing who he was. The idea that she might
look at him and see only a stranger suddenly hurt more than looking upon her
ill and unconscious. It was selfish he thought, to think that way, he should
just be glad she had pulled through.
“I want you to take it slow
with her, be patient,” the doctor chided gently. “I suspect with time and
healing, she’ll improve. So give it time.”
“I think I understand you
doctor,” Gregg said quietly. “You really don’t think she’ll remember who I am?”
McCoy nodded slowly. “I’m
sorry Captain. I wish I could be more positive.”
“Well I know who she is!”
Gregg said. “And I certainly want to see her. I have a small picture of her
children in my pocket. Is it all right to show it to her.”
“I suppose so,” McCoy
replied. “It may jog her memory. But don’t stay with her for more than ten
minutes, ok?”
Gregg nodded and McCoy
motioned for him to follow him to sickbay.
.
==
“Carolyn?” Gregg said gently
as he leaned over her bed. The green eyes blinked and the fine brows drew
together gently, with a firmly puzzled expression.
“I know your face,” she
whispered. “But I can’t…”
“Its alright my dear, it
will come back to you in time. I won’t stay long but I wanted to give you
this.” He pulled the tiny photograph of Candy and Jonathan from the pocket of his
coat and placed it in her trembling hand.
“Oh,” Carolyn murmured. “I ,
I can’t, I must….” Tear welled up in her sea green eyes and spilled down cheeks
like a tempest. “It’s there, just beyond my reach, a name a…”
“A memory?” the Captain finished
for her.
Carolyn nodded slowly and
closed her eyes as she pressed the photo to her heart. “They’re mine. I know
they’re mine and they need me.”
She looked up at him again
and saw the pained concerned, the hurt and fear held in careful check behind
the blue eyes. He loves me she thought and reached out her hand to touch
his. Immediately she felt a connection, an energy of bonding and intimacy.
“Are you my husband?” she
asked.
“Not yet my darling,” he
whispered as he squeezed her hand. “Not just yet.”
=
"Captain."
Lieutenant Uhura said. "I have an incoming message from Prime Minister
Melpomene of Eriphi Prime."
"Put her on visual
lieutenant." Kirk said, as he turned in his seat from the communication’s
officer towards the view screen.
"Aye sir." the
communications officer replied and touched the keys on her console.
The image of the Eriphi Prime
Minister appeared on the forward view screen. She looked more rested, but her
famous smile was not to be seen.
"Captain Kirk I decided
that we should meet without delay," Melpomene explained as she picked up
an E pad from her desk. “I am on my way
to meet the
“I see,” Kirk replied
thoughtfully. “May I take it that your planetary crisis has something to do
with that young entity, we spoke of?”
Melpomene nodded gravely. “I
will explain more when we meet Captain, Melpomene out.”
==
“Can we talk about something else besides chess,”
the Captain asked wearily.
The computer’s voice was
curt, churlish, and practically rude. “Specify”
“Well what else do you
know?” Captain Gregg demanded, growing impatient with the surly female voice.
“This system contains over
750 trillion data entries.”
“Well tell me about, oh,
about 19th century triple masted schooners,” he suggested.
“Unable to comply,” came the
computer’s blunt reply. “Access denied.”
This was too much for a man
more use to giving orders than taking them and the Captain fairly exploded, not
that the computer even noticed his outrage. “Blasted woman you are
insubordinate!” Gregg complained. “Why?”
“This is a security level
one lock out. Access to all information except the chess database has been
denied to this station by command authority. “
Gregg was stunned. Who would
want to prevent him from a enjoying a bit a simple reading? “On whose
authority?” he asked the brusque voice.
“By first officer Spock,”
the computer droned in her unflinching monotone.
“Blast! Why?”
“That information is not
available.”
Gregg stood and began to
pace the cabin. It made no sense, or did it? Why would Spock prevent him from
reading about the ship, or history or anything? What could be wrong with a bit a
simple and very natural curiosity? After all, he had once commanded a ship
named
“Computer,” Gregg addressed
the machine in his most honeyed tones, as he spread his hands across the
tabletop and leaned close to the audio pickup. “Can you get around this lock
out?”
The computer maintained its
composure in the face of Captain Gregg’s considerable charm.
“That requires command level
authorization,” it replied.
Gregg smiled and stroked his
beard. The blasted machine needed a lesson in politesse. “Do it on my blasted
authorization then.”
“State your name, rank and
authorization code.”
Captain Daniel Gregg felt
himself snap uncontrollably to attention as barked out the requested
information. “Daniel Gregg, Captain USS Enterprise, serial number 23047-D
Saying those words, words
ingrained into the mind of every military officer for ages, left him with the
oddest feeling, like he was in command of a ship of the line again. The
computer made buzzing and clicking noises.
Gregg waited silently; he didn’t really expect the ship to know who he
was, or even for it to matter. He had just answered automatically, because it
had asked. The buzzing noise stopped.
The mechanical voice seemed a bit more… deferential.
“Authorization recognized.
Security lockout removed. State your request, captain.”
Gregg was stunned, but he
didn’t hesitate this time. His eyes narrowed as he sat down at the computer
console.
“Show me the schematics of
this ship.”
And the computer complied…
For the next eight days
Daniel Gregg diverted himself by reading the specification manuals on the
She was an interesting
contraption, this Constitution class ship, with a very impressive armament. She
moved, not unlike a sailing ship, only in three dimensions, (now that he knew
what that meant.) and was the speediest ship in her fleet. Her victories in
battle did honor to the legacy of her name and her crew compliment was most…
eclectic.
But more importantly, he’d
figured out how to track Carolyn’s condition thru the computer. (It seemed that
he had “command level privileges”, so no item of information was denied to him save
personal medical records, personal logs and mail.)
Since he didn’t need sleep,
and there was more than enough strong drink to keep his energy up, he sped read
his way though the basics of the ship’s operations, mission statement and some
battle simulations. Gregg had always been and avid reader, devouring anything
he could get his hands on and finishing the novels and biographies Mrs. Muir
would bring from the
What, he
wondered, is wrong with Lenard McCoy?
========
Mr. Scott,” Kirk said.
“Please beam the Prime Minister and her aide aboard.”
The engineer’s hand slid
across his console to the familiar whine of the transporter beam signal.
Fluttering specks of light coalesced on the transporter platform to form two
humanoid shapes. Scott made a final adjustment to the energy field and the two
forms came into focus, drew breath into their lungs and moved slightly.
One, a characteristically
lean Eriphian male, had striking lime green eyes that were framed by arched eye
ridges and an abundant thatch of long white hair. Like most Eriphi, he was tall
and olive skinned, but his dress was more elaborate and effected than the
typical native. His soft red leather boots, brown mantle and the heavy gold
chain set with a bright green stone that hung around his neck, gave him the
appearance of a character from a fairy tale.
The other visitor,
Melpomene, the Eriphian Prime Minister, was also tall and slender but more fair
and ruddy than her companion. Her eyes were gold, dusted with blue flecks at
the irises and the ridges above them delicately arched giving her and almost
Vulcan appearance. A cascade of metallic reddish brown hair hung to her waste.
A simple beige linen frock covered her from shoulders to ankles and a pair of
lace up white sandals adorned her feet, the typical Spartan attire of the
Eriphi.
Kirk noted the stark
contrast between the two. He found the Eriphian Minister’s elegant simplicity
both enigmatic and attractive, but she gave no ground to his flirtation. At their last meeting she had deftly rebuffed
him with bland and aloof amusement.
“Madame Prime minister,”
Kirk addressed the tall humanoid woman with his broadest grin. “Welcome to the
“Greetings Captain Kirk,”
Melpomene replied, and then acknowledged the other men in turn. “My aide, Dr.
Valdor Lon an expert in temporal physics and xeno medicine. I believe he may be
able to help the people who where time displaced by Trelane.
“Yes, I certainly hope so.
Trelane…” Kirk shifted his weight and uncontrollably clenched his teeth
together. “I imagine we have our work cut out. Shall we inform his parents and
tell them to come and get him?”
Melpomene chuckled in
response to Kirk’s reaction. “Captain you are not the first person Trelane has
bedeviled, and unfortunately, you will probably not be the last. I would rather
that his parents not be involved in his apprehension until the last moment.”
“Why the secrecy.” Kirk
enquired. “They seem to be able to get a hand on him, so to speak, at least the
last time...”
“Trelane’s parents are
irresponsible creatures,” she interjected. “Entities that should not be loosen
on your world in the past or even the present and hopefully not in the near
future. Trust me on this. To even speak of them is to invite everlasting
aggravation. I have arranged for my
agents to apprehend Trelane.”
“In the past?” Spock asked.
“On Earth?”
Her eyes closed slowly in a
signal that such questions could not be answered, even though the answered
might be obvious.
“Dr. Lon needs to take some
readings on your passengers,” Melpomene replied. “And I am curious to see them
as well. Perhaps we could speak further
while that is taking place.”
Kirk looked side long at
Spock but acquiesced to the unspoken request to drop the matter.
“Yes please Madame if you
will follow me.” Kirk nodded for Spock to tag along and led the way to the
turbo lift and sickbay.
“If you don’t want to talk
about Trelane specifically,” Spock prompted. “Perhaps you could elucidate what
you did not wish to say over a secure subspace channel.”
“The situation is rather
complex gentlemen.” Melpomene explained as they stepped on to the lift.
“Trelane stole a time travel device from a museum on Eriphi Prime. It must be
returned to us. The device is an ancient artifact called the Loc Knar, and I
would prefer it not to fall in to the wrong hands. For Trelane it is…” she
paused silently seeking the right word to describe Trelane’s fascination.
“A toy,” Spock offered.
The lift stopped, the four
exited and Kirk led the way down the short, pale blue hall
“Yes,” Melpomene agreed.
“For Trelane it is a toy. For others it could be a potent weapon.”
“Others?” Kirk queried. “You
mean the Klingons? They are very active in this sector of space. I am still
wondering how Eriphi obtained a non aggression Pac with the Empire.”
“Your valor against the
Klingons is legend Captain Kirk.” Melpomene said as the doors swooshed open to
the Sickbay ward. “But the Eriphi are more subtle.”
Before Kirk could recover
from the well turned out verbal feint, McCoy was upon them and another round of
introductions were being made. Kirk could only sullenly stare at Spock’s
whimsically arched up eyebrow and tiny smirking grin and feel bested by a blast
he had never seen coming.
McCoy led them to Carolyn’s
bedside. She was sleeping, but a look of strain on her face that made her
appear years older than she was. Valdor Lon took a scanner from his pocket and
began to take readings, mumbling to himself occasionally in Eriphian as he
adjusted the device, or noted the data.
The doctor quickly became
impatient and glowered at the attending yeoman.
“Don’t you have something to
do?” the good doctor said grumpily. “Have all the vaccine inventories been
completed?”
The maligned yeoman hurried
from the room, while the Captain and First officer looked on the physician’s
unusual display of temper with dismay. That McCoy’s patience ran short was well
accepted, but he rarely took it out on the staff.
“Bones…” Kirk chided gently,
but the doctor only huffed.
“Can you help her or not?”
McCoy brusquely demanded, his general lack of diplomacy more evident than ever.
Lon bowed slightly to McCoy then addressed
himself to his Prime Minister in a hushed and deferential tone.
“Melpo mene,” Lon, his face stiff with unfathomable unease, inflected her name with
grave significance “I believe I can cure this woman. Her physiology is… not too
different from our own.”
“Indeed,” said Melpomene as
if deriving some great import from Lon’s statement. “Precede then, with Dr,
McCoy’s permission.”
“Go right ahead,” McCoy
agreed readily. “So long as you do no harm…”
The Sickbay doors swooshed
open and Captain Gregg, tailed by his security detachment, strode into the
room. His face immediately registered his anxiety at finding so many people at
Carolyn’s bedside.
“Is something wrong,” Gregg
inquired, his usually silky baritone quivering slightly with concern.
“No Captain,” McCoy
reassured him. “Everything is fine.”
“Madame Prime Minister,”
Kirk said as he stepped forward to make the formal introductions. “Allow me to
introduce Captain Daniel Gregg, Captain Gregg, Melpomeme, Prime Minister of
Eriphi prime.”
“Madame” Gregg said politely
and bowed slightly. “I am honored”
Melpomeme did not move. She
stared, transfixed at Daniel Gregg as all color drained from her face.
“Gregg?” Melpomeme rasped as
her golden eyes seemed to rake over every inch of the Captain. “Yes of course.
And magnificent you truly are; a masterwork worthy of the name. So blue…such
eyes…are seldom seen.”
“Oh brother…” McCoy muttered
and rolled his own baby blues towards the ceiling.
Captain Gregg blushed
slightly and pulled at his left ear. A huge smile spread across his face and
his eyes twinkled with flattered merriment.
Kirk, Spock and McCoy exchanged glances but were considerably less amused.
“Why thank you Madame, I am
flattered. And I think your taste in men, excellent, of course.”
“You are a non corporeal
form of Gregg, are you not?” Melpomene inquired bluntly.
“If by this you mean I am a
ghost, then yes?”
“Astonishing.” Melpomene
said and glanced at Carolyn, who slept on the sickbay bunk... “But your
companion is?”
“All too human I fear.”
Gregg said tenderly as he looked down on Carolyn’s sleeping form.
“I see,” the Prime Minister
frowned and gave Captain Gregg a sidelong gaze of assessment. “Do you reside on
earth? What is your operating number?”
It was the Captain’s turn to
frown, and rub the bottom of his chin. “Do you mean my serial number?”
Melpomene shot Kirk a fully
annoyed glare that matched the sickbay lights. “Kirk! Why did you not inform me
that a non corporeal entity was one of the time travelers?”
“I didn’t know…” Kirk voice trailed off as a sense of déjà vu
struck him. “It mattered...”
“It changes everything.”
McCoy shot Kirk a where have
we heard this before look and Spock’s eyebrow climbed almost to his hair line.
“Pardon me,” Captain Gregg
said. “But may I ask what these people are doing here? Around Mrs. Muir’s
bedside.”
“Dr. Lon has some medical
information on temporal travel sickness.” McCoy interjected. “That’s what Carolyn
seems to be suffering from, according to him. I think we’ll be able to devise a
treatment and have back on her feet soon.”
“I can also send her home
when she well enough to travel.” Lon said. “And I think we can prevent a
relapse.”
“Well that’s great news.”
Kirk rejoined enthusiastically, and then gestured to Gregg. “Now what about
him?”
Lon cast a sheepish glance
at Melpomene. “Non corporeals are different. And very rare.” He turned around
and began to take more reading on Carolyn.
Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Gregg
looked at the Prime Minister.
“I will have to get expert
assistance.” she said flatly.
“I thought Dr. Lon was an
expert,” Spock probed, aware that there were sub currents and under tows
flowing in the dialogue between Lon and Melpomene but not at all certain as to
their meaning. He did know where the discussion of operating numbers pointed
too, however, and found it revealing in the context of the Eriphian Prime
Minister.
“Non corporeal physiology,
if you can call it that, is not my specialty,” Lon covered quickly. “That makes
matters far more complex. Dr. McCoy now has the treatment protocol for this
female in his computers Melpo mene.”
“Then let use return to our
ship Valdor,” she turned to Kirk and levelly met the inquiry in his hazel eyed
gaze. “I’ll be in touch.”
“Of course.” Kirk replied
formally. “This way please.” He ushered them from Sickbay, leaving behind a
befuddled Captain Gregg, an alarmed doctor McCoy and a greatly bemused Vulcan
science officer.
“I’ll be in touch?” McCoy
repeated after the trio had left them and the Sickbay swooshed closed. “Where
have we heard that before?”
“Where indeed doctor,” Spock
agreed as he slowly nodded in the affirmative. “Where indeed?”
====
Ensign Pavel Chekov had several
lowly, thankless tasks on his duty roster. Personally reviewing the computer
logs was probably the most boring. It was a particular torture that Mr. Spock
dreamt up just for him, ‘to improve ship’s security’. Every week Chekov
reviewed file usage and access integrity and everyday the results where much
the same.
In addition to the duty
rosters and reports every officer generated or read as part of their
departmental responsibilities, each also had their own particular personal
reading niche. That past week had been a typical one. Mr. Scott, addicted to
his technical journals , spent his off
duty hours reviewing them at an alarming rate. Lieutenant Uhura, a distant
second in the nerdy engineer department, divided her free time between
communication journals, music composition articles and fashion magazines. Sulu
spent the past week boning up on fencing techniques and the latest uploads for
aspiring captains from HQ.
Spock favorites, as always,
were The Journal of the Daystrom Institute, Nature, and daily publications from
Subspace Physics Today.
Dr. McCoy read the New
England Journal of Medicine and Proceedings of the
Captain Kirk read duty
rosters, fuel reports, security reports, a variety of captain’s eyes only
documents form Star Fleet HQ and of course, Brandy Connoisseur.
Captain Gregg had finished
the Star Fleet Weapons Operations Training Manual, the Warp Engine Control
Manual, the Directional Navigation Manual, Scott’s Guide to Subspace Field Integrity
and he’d beaten the ship’s computer at chess thirty seven times.
Uh-oh.
Someone
had some explaining to do.
===
“How
do you explain this Mr. Spock?”
Standing at attention in the
pastel blue conference room, the tall, normally impassive Vulcan blanched
before his captain’s furious indignation. His usual greenish hue paled to
sallow yellow.
“I… don’t know sir,” Spock
replied, for once at a true loss for a plausible explanation.
“I don’t know sir,” Kirk
muttered. “I don’t know sir. That’s not good enough Mr. Spock. You are
responsible for ship’s security, specifically computer security. I want a
logical answer.”
“I can not yet explain it
Captain,” was all that Spock could offer. He was about to say more but the
pacing Kirk interrupted him before he could.
“I thought you were going to
restrict his access to food, beverage and some, and if I may quote you,
‘harmless games’. “ Kirk’s steely hazel stared bored into his Vulcan friend.
“So please, how did this ghost, beat your own computer program at chess? I want
to know how he hacked his way into the main computer and proceeded to ace the
tactical simulator up to level three. I’m waiting Mr. Spock, I’m waiting. So
make it good, better than I don’t know sir!”
Spock’s graceful eyebrow
arched, he forced normality to his racing pulse and squared his jaw.
“One can only assume that
either Captain Gregg inadvertently circumvented our security lock out or that a
serious flaw exists in the computer sub routines. Or perhaps both…”
Kirk stopped pacing abruptly
and locked aggrieved and disbelieving eyes on his first officer. Spock almost
shrugged.
“Mr. Scott is conducting a full diagnostic of
the computer system,” Spock said. “Clearly there is some fatal flaw in the
system. I suggest a complete overall and full reboot of all computer systems as
soon as possible.”
“Spock you’d better do more
than-“ Kirk began but was interrupted when Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott
burst into the conference room.
“I think I found the’
problem capt’n, at a least part of it anyway,” Scotty told them his deep accent
breathless with excitement. “And you will not like it sir.”
“I’m listing Mister Scott,”
Kirk said cutting Spock a glance. “I’m glad somebody has some answers.”
“Aye,” Scott dithered a bit
uncomfortably and pulled at the bottom
of his red velour uniform. He and Spock were both in trouble as it was,
and what he was about to tell Kirk would not improve the man’s mood. “Well sir,
er, do you know what a back door is?”
“In a computer system or
program?” Kirk asked. “I think so. That’s when a programmer leaves himself away
into a system around all the security lock outs, right?”
Scotty nodded in
affirmation. “Aye captain, and I’m afraid that’s what happened here. Dr. Daystrom-“
“Dr. Daystrom?!” Kirk
roared. “What the devil does he have to do with this?”
“Begging the Captain’s
pardon, Dr. Daystrom designed the
“Scotty what does this have
to do with Captain Gregg circumventing Spock’s lock out protocols?” Kirk
demanded.
“That’s just it sir,” Scotty
replied. “Captain Gregg is Dr. Daystrom’s back door.”
“Mr. Scott I am not following
you,” Kirk said testily, hating it when his chief engineer determinedly beat
around the bush. He looked over at Spock who nodded thoughtfully, and seemed to
have a better grasp at what Scotty was getting at.
“If I recall,” Spock
interjected, his eyebrow riding high on his forehead. “Dr. Daystrom was a quite
a history buff.”
“Aye Mr. Spock, he must ‘ave
been because he choose as his over ride code the name, rank and serial number
of,” Scott paused and took a deep breath. “Of one’of the most distinguished
commanders a ship named
Kirk looked from his
engineer to his first officer and back again. Scott looked sheepish and
unhappy, Spock’s lips were compressed and puckered.
“So take it out Scotty,
Spock. This override protocol- it’s a glitch, a dangerous glitch which no one
outside this room must ever know about. Just get rid of it!”
“Captain…” Scotty began and
looked to Spock for help. “It can not be done. The whore computer core would…
crash.”
Kirk looked back at Spock.
The Vulcan was almost smiling.
====
Spock touched the key pad on
the computer console in his cabin and watched as the device responded to his
instructions. Sometimes he preferred hand coded commands; it was pleasant to
not have to speak with anyone, even the very logical computer. He busied
himself with his research, although it was not the research that captain Kirk
desired or required of him. It was a pertinent, though personal pursuit.
“Working,” said the
computer. After a moment the instrument chirped. “There are six hundred
eighty-three meanings of the phrase Melpomene on record. Would you like to
narrow the inquiry?”
“Confine search to
terminology used on Earth and Eriphi Prime,” Spock commanded.
“Earth definitions:
Melpomene- literally a bad poem. Mal- bad or ill and pome an archaic form of
the word poem. Melpomene was the Greek Muse of tragic poetry. Also colloquially
used to refer to an event or poem which occurs with or has bad timing. Eriphian
definitions: Melpo mene- literally Keeper of Time. A designation given to a
spiritual leader and / or titular head of the government. Colloquially used as:
Time Keeper, the immortal entity
charged with the maintenance of temporal continuity in the world. According to
Erphian legend the Melpo Mene strummed the harmonic strings of the universe and
enchanted in verse to maintain the proper ebb and flow of time.”
Spock nodded slowly as
understanding slowly organized its self in his brain. ”Computer, what is the
Erphian meaning of the earth sir name Gregg?”
“Gregg- literal Eriphian
translation: one who is magnificent, made to resemble the creators’ masterwork;
one who is of that bloodline.”
Spock’s eyebrow climbed up
his forehead. “Fascinating,” he intoned.
“Fascinating indeed.”
End of part 3
Go to part 4 soon..
==