The Light Fantastic by Jeffrey Lang

Author:Jeffrey Lang
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gallery Books
Published: 2014-06-24T00:00:00+00:00

12

Aboard the Archeus

La Forge awoke to find a steaming mug of coffee set beside his head, an inverted saucer covering the top to keep in the heat. Sitting up, he gently rubbed the orbits around his artificial eyes. He wondered how he looked, certain that his face was puffy from mingled exhaustion and restless sleep. There were vague recollections of a dream involving Leah and a flooded house. La Forge knew his own psychology well enough to know he dreamed of flooded houses only when he was struggling with recent decisions. He frowned ruefully: no deep psychoanalysis here. Uncertainty was more or less his base state the past few days. “Except this coffee,” he murmured after lifting the saucer lid and sipping from the mug. Looking up at the ceiling, he said clearly, “My compliments to the chef, Shakti. Excellent coffee.”

“Thank you, Geordi,” Shakti answered. “The secret is to bring the water to the correct temperature before pouring it onto the beans. And always use the proper amount of beans. And use good beans. Okay . . . that’s three secrets.”

“I’m sure Data makes sure he has the best beans.”

“Of course.”

“Where is he?” La Forge asked. He was alone in the cabin.

“Data is in the pilot’s cabin. Starfleet regulations require a pilot be at the controls in case automated systems should fail during docking procedure.”

“Docking? We’ve arrived? How long was I asleep?”

“Seven hours and a little,” Shakti said, her voice tinged with amusement. “You were so tired.”

“And we reached Bajoran space? How fast were we going?”

“Well, you know, I don’t like to brag, Geordi, but fast. Very, very fast. If the Enterprise is an orca, then Archeus is a barracuda.”

La Forge chuckled and sipped more coffee. “We should put that to the test someday. I think the old girl has a little more in her than you might imagine.”

“Care to put a little side wager on that, Commander La Forge?” Shakti teased.

Slightly embarrassed about getting into a bragging contest with a disembodied voice, La Forge rose and padded to the front of the cabin. He could barely make out a seam in the black bulkhead where the door met the frame, but sensors registered his presence. The door hissed into the bulkhead.

“Oh,” La Forge said, awed by the sight in the main viewscreen. “That’s right. It’s new, isn’t it?”

“Good morning, Geordi,” Data said from the pilot’s couch. La Forge was pleased to see that Archeus ’s seats were modeled on the old Enterprise -D ergonomic chairs, the kind that reclined so the helmsman and navigator could sit for long periods of time without getting back cramps. He had always wondered why Starfleet had seen fit to remove them from the design except, of course, that they just weren’t sufficiently . . . dignified. “Yes, new,” he said. “What do you think?”

The newly commissioned Deep Space 9 hove into view, a marvel of Federation engineering techniques. “Big,” La Forge said. “And shiny. Not like the old one.”

“I liked the old one,” Data said.

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