Section 31 Shadow (VOY) by Dean Wesley Smith & Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Author:Dean Wesley Smith & Kristine Kathryn Rusch [Smith, Dean Wesley & Rusch, Kristine Kathryn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General, Fiction, Science Fiction, Space Opera, Adventure, Star Trek fiction, Media Tie-In
ISBN: 9780671774783
Publisher: Pocket Books
Published: 2001-05-20T23:00:00+00:00

Voyager's main computer core spanned three decks of the Intrepid-class starship. Virtually every system on board intersected within the massive artificial intelligence that kept the steady stream of automated functions and spontaneous human commands flowing to and from every part of the ship.

Autonomous self-maintenance meant it was only lightly staffed at any given time, barring a major malfunction or damage that required hands-on servicing by the crew. Tuvok passed only two crewmen as he entered the core and descended the gangway that led to the master records interface.

The computer had redundant records of its own operations, self-tracked by the nanosecond. Once he accessed those backups, he might gain more information, perhaps even detect a discrepancy that would explain what was really going on.

Tuvok stood in front of the interface console and realized his mistake half a second before it exploded. The blast lifted him up and away, throwing him across the room.

His last thought before blackness overtook him was that he should have first informed the captain of his suspicions.

14 hours, 8 minutes

Janeway stood, studying the viewscreen. The EVA team seemed small against the massive hull of the alien ship. They worked with almost Borg-like precision. Janeway smiled to herself. Seven's presence made itself known in very small, but very important ways.

Torres had just contacted Voyager to let it know that the push points were nearly installed. Within the next half hour, the EVA team would be back on board the ship.

Tom Paris had seemed relieved by the news, although he hadn't said as much.

"Captain," said Ensign Gilbert, who had taken Harry's position, "I'm registering an explosion in the computer core, at the master records interface."

Janeway turned toward her. "Another explosion? Is anyone hurt?"

"I don't know," Gilbert said. "My console isn't responding anymore."

Janeway returned to her chair. She tapped her own computer screen and got nothing. "I'm locked out."

"We all are," Paris said. "I can't get anything to respond."

"This doesn't make sense," Chakotay said. "The records interface isn't anywhere near the key control systems. Even if the whole room had been taken out, it wouldn't explain our consoles all crashing at the same time."

"Captain," Ensign Gilbert said, "our phasers are charging."

What the hell-? "Computer," Janeway said. "This is Janeway Alpha Bravo One-Six-Eight-Five. Deactivate phasers. Repeat, deactivate phasers."

There was no response from the computer.

"Captain," Paris said, his hands flying over his console. "I think we've got trouble here."

Chakotay got out of his chair and hurried to Kim's station, pushing Ensign Gilbert aside. He worked furiously, but couldn't seem to do anything.

Janeway continued repeating her codes, but there was no response from the computer.

"Captain!" Paris pulled his hands off his console, holding them up like a little boy, to prove he had nothing to do with what was about to happen.

Phaser fire slashed across the viewscreen in front of her, smashing the alien ship right where the EVA team was.

"Chakotay," Janeway snapped. "Report."

But there was no report to be had. The computer had locked them all out. There was no way to get information.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.