Part 13 (1/2)

”No, no,” Picard replied a bit too urgently, then flattened his lips into a mirthless smile. ”I have no desire to be alone with Mr.

Undrun. And you may be of some help.”

Moments later the door slid aside and Undrun strutted in, not bothering to sit down. ”You had no right to make a unilateral decision,” he said. ”And which unilateral decision is this?”

”To threaten to leave Thiopa without delivering those relief supplies. You and your crew have bungled and interfered with my mercy mission almost from the minute we left Starbase.”

”You are not on a personal crusade,” Picard thundered, reaching the limit of his patience. He wondered for the tiniest instant if Riker had gone into hiding simply to avoid having to deal with this pint-sized tyrant. ”We are on a Federation-Starffeet mission, and I take strong exception to your suggestion that my crew has performed in anything less than exemplary fas.h.i.+on so far as their dealings with you are concerned. My decision, unilateral or not, is consistent with my powers as captain of this vessel.”

Undrun hammered his fist on the table. ”Powers I can override.”

”Not when this mission imperils my crew and the Enterprise. I am becoming more and more convinced we should never have undertaken this mission, and com1 plan to say exactly that in my report to both Startleet and your Aid and a.s.sistance Ministry. And that, for the moment, is all I have to say on this matter.” Picard rose to his feet and marched out of the room. He went directly to the aft turbolift without a word to his bridge crew, all of whom knew enough not to divert an angry captain from his chosen course. Undrun slumped into one of the high-backed chairs in the conference lounge, carefully facing away from the observation windows. Data remained seated, but silent.

It was the Noxoran envoy who spoke first. ”You seem to be the only person aboard this s.h.i.+p who hasn't condemned me as a useless slime toad, Commander Data.”

”Perhaps if I knew what a slime toad was .

. .” the android replied earnestly.

Undrun did a double take, then realized Data was not attempting to be glib or cruel. And that Undrun found funny enough to warrant a sad chuckle. ”I meant you haven't judged me as a bad person, just because I'm trying to do my job the only way I know how.”

”It is not part of my cognitive programming judge other beings-unless I am requested to perform that a.n.a.lytical function.”

”Well, then, I'm requesting it. Judge me.

Give me an android's objective appraisal.”

Data thought for a few moments. ”Your behavior patterns seem to have a common factor.”

”Which is ...?”

”You seem excessively bound by established guidelines and precedents.”

Undrun's shoulders heaved in a helpless shrug.

”I can't work any other way. I need those guidelines. They function almost like a funnel. I know that whatever I pour into that funnel will come out the other end in a narrow, compact stream.”

”Such methods do have a directness to them. But I have noticed that humans-particularly members of the Enterprise crew-do not always approach problems in what I would determine to be the most direct way. Their capacity for unpredictability and irrationality is quite limitless. And yet, although I may find their strategies bafliing, they achieve the desired results.” A touch of wi/lness tinged Data's expression. ”In spite of considerable study, I cannot quite grasp or replicate this whimsical human creativity.” ”You've got an excuse,” said Undrun, leaning across the table and resting his head on folded arms. ”You're restricted by your programming. But I'm a flesh-and-blood humanoid. And creativity eludes me, too.”

”Biological life forms can also be limited by programming. Perhaps something in your past..

”You're right.”

”Please elucidate.”

”I'd rather not.” The diplomat shook his head with regret. ”It all seemed so simple. If this mission fails, my life is as good as over.”

Data's yellow eyes crinkled in sudden concern.

”Is there something Dr. Pulaski can do?”

”What?”

”You said your life is in danger.”

”I meant my professional life, Commander Data. To me, that is my life. There's an expression: we are what we eat. Well, some of us are what we do. How could such a simple mission turn into such a disaster?” ”If I may differ, this mission was not quite so simple as it appeared. We knew about the Nuaran involvement, the Ferengi threat, a certain level of societal instability on Thiopa itself. Even excluding other factors that we did not know about until our arrival, how could you have considered the known complications and still judged this mission to be simple?”

”Fact is, I didn't consider all that. All I saw was a cargo convoy delivering emergency relief supplies for which the Thiopans had virtually begged. Bringing people what they want should not be a complicated mission.” ”That is true-except that humanoid beings are often reticent about accurately expressing their wants and needs. This is another element of humanoid behavior I do not yet understand. Whether it is the result of dishonesty or fear, such reticence invariably causes complications-was ”Fear ... Can I tell you my fear?”

Data answered with an accommodating nod.

”My superiors will see how badly I managed this mission-they thought it was a simple a.s.signment, too-and they'll decide I'm incompetent.

I've alienated Captain Picard, caused Commander Riker to be kidnapped-was Data was staring in wonder now. ”Most intriguing.

Is this what humans call self-pity?”

Undrun stopped abruptly. ”Yes ... I guess it is.”

JeanLuc Picard liked his crew to view him as a bit of an ascetic. Not that there was any pretense in it. He wasn't an especially demonstrative man, a characteristic that arose naturally from having spent most of his adult life as a commanding officer and the bulk of that time as captain of the deep-s.p.a.ce explorer Stargazer: The two-decade duration of Stargazer's voyage of discovery had encouraged camaraderie, but he hadn't viewed it as a captain's option to form any deeper relations.h.i.+ps with those serving under him.

So far he'd applied that policy to the Enterprise as well. Employed judiciously, it imparted an aloof mystique that elicited an extra measure of respecta commodity that tended to facilitate the exercise of authority.

Even his physical presence contributed to Picard's aura of leaders.h.i.+p. Not a conventionally handsome man, he had an aristocratic profile and a stern jaw. A fringe of silvered hair served to highlight the clear, piercing eyes. He wasn't a big man, yet he could dominate without effort, thanks in part to regal bearing. But his voice-alternately tempered with unadorned compa.s.sion or ringing with the resonance of confidence and power-was the key attribute with which he commanded.

All of that aside, however, the few who knew this stars.h.i.+p captain best were well aware of his Gallic appreciation for the proverbial pleasures of wine, women, and song. And, if anything, those tastes had been honed by the relative deprivation of his years aboard the Stargazer.- Still, that vaguely hedonistic aspect of his personality was something he preferred to keep private, which meant he kept his visits to the Enterprise's Ten-Forward lounge to a minimum. He went there only for an irresistible party in progress or when he had an undeniable need to unwind.

Without question, dealing with Envoy Frid Undrun fell into the latter category. Which explained Picard's unaccustomed appearance at the end of Guinan's pastel-lit bar. She greeted him with a friendly nod. ”Captain.”

”Guinan.”

”What can I get you? A bit of Wesburri fizz might give you a lift.”

”Just some sparkling spring water with a twist of lemon, please.”

A moment later she placed a tapered gla.s.s before him. ”There you are.”

”Thank you.” He sipped. She stood, patient as always, an almost-smile playing at the corners of her mouth. Picard had noted her knack for matching her mood to that of her clients, then elevating theirs by changing her own so subtly as to escape notice.

For the moment, however, she was still measuring his.

”Sometimes, I just like to watch the bubbles rising,”

Guinan said. He lowered his eyes to the gla.s.s.

”Mmm. Buoyancy. Not always easy to attain for the uncarbonated human.”

”You've had better days ...?”