Diplomatic Implausibility by Keith R. A. DeCandido Page B

security lockout kicked in about fifteen seconds after Lieutenant Toq identified them as Kreel.”
    Worf nodded. Drex or Rodek had probably changed the security codes. “This is far from Kreel territory.”
    “They may have come here in order to raid the hulks left over from the war. There were a lot of conflicts near here.”
    “True. Still, it warrants investigating. Compose a report to Starfleet Intelligence on the Kreel’s new acquisitions, and then see if there are any reports of Kreel activity in this sector over the last six months.”
    Making notes on his padd, Wu said, “Very good, sir.”

    “What did you do?”
    Vall looked up from his station in engineering. The harsh-voiced questioner was Commander Kurak. She stood with one hand gripping the wrist of her other arm, which usually meant she was angry.
    She does that,
Vall thought,
far too often.
His stomachs felt like they were trying to meld into one, and he struggled to keep down the
racht
he’d been snacking on.
    “Ah—what did I do when?”
    “The shields.
What did you do?”
    “The shot from the Kreel blew out half the inverters, but the systems were still operational—it was merely physical damage to the inverters. So I rerouted the systems through the backup matter/anti-matter injectors.”
    “The injectors can’t handle that much raw power!” Kurak screamed. “You could have—”
    Vall tried not to sink lower into his chair. “I—I modified the injectors with a conduit I designed a couple of years ago. It acts as a dampener while the energy goes through the injectors. It restored the shields to their former glory, and it would
not
have blown up the ship.”
    Kurak advanced on Vall. Vall tried to back his chair farther away from her, but he was already up against the console.
    “I will not tolerate this behavior any longer, Lieutenant. For a month, you have pestered me with ‘suggestions’ and ‘modifications.’ Your job as assistant chief engineer is to carry out my orders, and my orders are to keep ship’s systems operating
within specified parame
ters
—nothing more! Is that understood?”
    “B-but, Commander—”
    “Is that understood?”
    Vall fidgeted in his chair. “Yes, Commander.”
    “If you perform another modification like that without permission, I will kill you. Slowly. And painfully.”
    Before Vall could reply, Kurak stomped out of engineering.
    The other engineers went about their business, ignoring Vall. Technically, of course, Vall was their superior, though none of them treated him that way. Not that he minded. As long as they left him alone, he was happy, and they did that as long as Vall made them look good.
    Heading to his quarters at shift’s end, he bumped into Toq in the hallway.
    “Hello, Toq.”
    “What do you want?”
    “I—I am merely heading to my cabin.”
    Toq laughed. “Then don’t let me get in your way.”
    Vall continued to walk, then Toq called out his name.
    “Yes?” Vall asked.
    Toq turned and closed the distance between them. “Was it you who got the shields back up to full so quickly?”
    Flattered at having his work recognized, Vall nodded.
    “That was impressive work. Commander Kurak chose well when she made you her assistant.”
    Vall shifted uncomfortably. “She didn’t. The original chief engineer died honorably in a duel. The commander was assigned after that, but the staff was already in place.” Quickly he added, “Not that she didn’t deserve it. She was the one who designed the previous flagship, the
Negh’Var,
before she joined the Defense Force. She was one of the greatest warp field specialists in the empire!”
    “Commander Kurak’s life doesn’t really interest me,” Toq said dryly. “But you may want to share that information with Leskit, given the way he talked at dinner yesterday.”
    “Perhaps that would be good for her,” Vall muttered. “Toq, I don’t know what to do. There are so many ways I could improve thi—”
    “Vall, why are you