[ CW03 Sierra's Office ]
There was a lot of work to get done. The most recent message from the
Andropov was promising; they believed with almost certainty that they'd
located the rogue Romulans' last location - they were less than a few
days behind now. This meant that the Koragh was screaming at Oberic to
meet with them so they could get their asses into gear and catch up with
their quarry. After putting his pack together, and dressing in his
favorite black ops uniform, Oberic called for Savant.
"I could use some help here, Savant...hope you're not too busy."
He knew she wasn't - but it was polite to ask.
"Are you leaving, sir?" she asked pleasantly over the room's speakers,
not bothering to summon an avatar when none was yet needed. "I would
like to prepare a situation report for your destination if you are. It's
never a good idea to enter into an unknown situation without proper
briefing."
Oberic looked around, and not seeing Savant, simply answered into the
air, "Yes, I am leaving soon. I am sure it will delight the Captain to
have me away for a while. This is a bit premature, but I am eager to be
proactive. But we're looking at a window of about 96 hours. I would
prefer not to discuss this over an open comm channel, though. Can
you...sort of - appear in my quarters so we may speak without being
overheard?"
Savant appeared without further invitation, a brief hum and gleam of
light accompanying her. She appeared as proper as ever, uniform crisp
and starched, hair and complexion perfect, and ever so slightly off from
the deck. She was smiling. "I have secured the observational equipment
of this room and those surrounding, Sir. We now comply with Class III
Communication Security."
He smiled - almost too much. Something about the way Savant carried
herself amused him. "Quite adequate, Mister Savant. Well done.
Now...please access my most recent personal log. You'll see that the
Andropov is hot on the tail of the Zum Viig. The Koragh is on her way
toward the Charon, to meet with me in a suitably distant location. Has
that runabout arrived yet?"
"It is stationkeeping four light minutes behind Charon, Sir. Shall I
have it approach for boarding?"
He was impressed. Not only had she delivered, she kept the vessel at a
distance. Someone certainly knew her protocol. "Not yet. I need to
inform the Captain that I will be departing. Not that I need permission
- but might make her day to hear that I'll be taking off for a while.
Go ahead and contact the Koragh computer, and give them coordinates to
meet with me; I would say make it someplace where the runabout can get
there within 12 hours. Then program the runabout with the same
coordinates. I do not like having to go alone, but I doubt the Captain
would let me commandeer you."
Savant nodded agreeably, doing as he asked while he asked it. She
selected a system which she quite admired - it was a system with a
single mid-series star. A supermassive gas giant was in close orbit,
which had brought with it such massive tidal forces that other planets
int he system had been unable to form. It was an asteroid belt, but save
for the pocket near the gas giant itself. No one went to the system, as
navigating the fierce belt was treacherous save for at low sublight.
However, approaching form high upon the plane of the ecliptic made the
task much easier. Radiation from the planet would be sufficient to mask
the presence from interlopers as well - an excellent little system for
quiet arrangements.
"Yes, Sir." she replied as she relayed the information to the distant
ship. "I am capable of generating an independent process if you would
like me to accompany you, Sir. It's nothing at all out of the ordinary."
He stepped forward and looked at Savant intently. "You're going to have
to explain that to me. What do you mean by an 'independent process'?
Are you saying that you can create like...a clone of yourself - to come
along with me?"
The hologram smiled sympathetically; this was always the hardest concept
to explain. "You can consider it something like me making a copy of
myself and then linking the new instance to the old with relational
links. The copy is as much me as the original, with shared experiences
between." Not quite right, but it was close enough for her purposes at
the moment.
"Ok..." Oberic wasn't quite sure how this was going to work, but Savant
seemed confident. "Is this...other instance - going to look and speak
like you?"
"I have been constructing a remote agent, Sir, as I thought this
situation might come up. It is recognizably similar, but not the same."
Savant paused thoughtfully a moment. "I thought it best to blend in a
little better."
He was getting more confused, despite his questions. But he couldn't
help himself, "Will this other you look less like a holographic image,
then? I mean - no floating a few feet off the deck and all that? Not
that it matters to me at all, but I would rather not have to explain too
much to the Koragh's captains."
"Oh, no, Sir; I've built an android. It should be able to pass cursory
medical inspection."
Ok now he was both confused and intrigued. "Woah wait...I thought that
android replicant technology was - spotty at best? You've managed a
stable and totally functional unit? What does he look like? When can I
meet him??"
Savant smiled wider - building the android body wasn't the hard part, it
was the intelligence that directed it that was vexing engineers. Savant
had that bit cornered. She shrugged modestly, "I've got a little
practice at it. I've currently got it in storage, but it's ready for use
at any point."
This is something he had to see for himself. But first - one more
question, "Is the appearance set or can we alter it? I have an idea
about how to prevent people from being suspicious at all. If we can
make the android Vulcan in appearance, it would make sense for him not
to speak much, and any lack of emotion would be overlooked." Another
idea came to him suddenly, "If changing appearance is possible...can we
make it female, as well?" He hoped he wouldn't have to explain the
overly misogynistic reasons for asking that last question.
"I tend to make female avatars," Savant replied helpfully, "based on
sociology studies. As for the overall appearance, I opted for vulcanoid.
I've also embedded microfibers and chromatophores in the skin layer to
allow a few minor changes if needs be."
The entire idea was almost too perfect. Oberic nodded, "Very good,
Savant. I would love to see your creation. Please lead the way."
Savant turned to look at the door; he looked in that direction as well.
The doorchime rang. Savant smiled and disappeared.
And Savant walked in from the corridor. Though, it wasn't Savant - not
exactly. Her expression as still mild and confident; she was just as
tall and shaped almost the same - more muscular, more athletic, but
otherwise the same. She did not wear that Mona Lisa smile, however, and
the arch of her brows was far too severe. She was a Vulcan - or at least
a very clever facsimile of one. Her command-red uniform fitted well.
Oberic took a long look at the creation before him. He thought to
himself hot utterly convincing this Vulcan was - and that coming from
someone who had spent a century or so among Vulcans. "Impressive.
Quite nice. What are her defensive capabilities?"
She spoke in a similar voice to the Savant which Oberic had already met,
still rich with inflection and intention as ever. The tone was somewhat
more dispassionate, but it was still quite recognizable. "Colloquially,
Sir, it is constructed around a foamed carbon-corundumoid skeletal
framework and equipped with a full suite of sensing equipment. I have
focused primarily on speed and sensitivity in this instance, with a
range similar to that of modern intelligence scanning systems. Benchmark
tests indicate a dead lift capacity of 560 kilograms, reaction time of
25.2 nanoseconds, and manual acuity of 12 millipascals. I've also
hardcoded it for Ponn-ifla, Kareel-ifla, and appropriate skill in the
Lirpa as well as modern firearms. I've also included the Bat'leth, for
fun."
He walked around Savant's creation, trying to scrutinize every detail;
the way another Intel Operator would upon first meeting her. He could
see nothing that gave her away - and that was good. "For fun, you say.
On a ship like the Koragh, such skills may actually be handier than you
may have suspected. That would certainly be one way to earn the trust
of our Klingon allies; a wonderful display of limb-removal via
bat'leth. All right, this seems damn near perfect. What do we call her?"
The simulacrum arched its eyebrow in an utterly archetypal fashion.
There was mirth, but it was obviously a Vulcan sort of amusement -
easily deniable. "I am still Savant, Sir - as much so as any hologram.
Perhaps a cover name of T'Kau would be reasonable." It was close to a
direct translation of her English name, as well as being a not-uncommon
name in the Vulcan names registry. It would suit her purposes.
"That would be fine. Best not to call this...your other self by the
same name as some aboard the Koragh already know you. Might get
awkward. All right, I think this will work out rather well. In order
to avoid questions, it may be best for you, T'Kau, to accompany me to my
quarters until we depart. The fewer people who see you right now, the
better. Is that amenable?"
In the best deadpan a Vulcan could deliver, Savant replied, "Are you
propositioning me, Sir?"
Sweet Galileo, that was a joke. "Two things. First - I wouldn't. Second
- no jokes; Klingons don't like them, and Vulcans aren't known for their
sense of humor. Well played though...well played indeed. Shall we?" He
stretched out his arm and headed for the door.
She took his arm, exiting the quarters with him, though still wearing
the slightly confused, arch expression. "That was a joke?"
Oberic chuckled to himself, in spite of his desire to remain
professional. "Indeed it was. And a very nice one, at that. I will do
you the favor of answering the question, though. I can promise that if I
were propositioning you, there would be no reason to ask if I were. Even
you would know it. I'm not one to be coy."
He led her out and they walked together to his quarters, where Oberic
contacted the Koragh one last time. He now had but one thing left to
do...talk to the Captain and let her know he'd be - well, gone - for a
while. Hmm...should he do this face-to-face or just send her a little
note? Both. No no, give her the option. Yeah, that would work.
CW3 Oberic Sierra
and
Savant
