Part 7 (1/2)
Ro kept her face impa.s.sive, but Riker knew he had annoyed her by intentionally surprising her with the a.s.signment. He couldn't deny that he had enjoyed catching her momentarily off guard, but his reasoning was much more practical-right now, he needed her on her toes.
”Permission to make preliminary recommendations now, sir,” the ensign asked.
”Granted.”
Ro's face took on a serious cast that was almost a scowl ”I recommend that we immediately abandon the search for Captain Picard and proceed to the Gorn summit. Frankly, the odds against finding the captain alive, in the time allotted to us, are astronomical. Our time and resources would be better spent formulating a contingency plan for the negotiations.” She paused. ”Your loyalty to the captain is admirable, sir. But in this case, the summit must be the overriding concern. We cannot afford to let it fail.”
Riker's response was clipped and forceful. ”I'm a.s.sessing the risk differently, Ensign. Our chances of success with the Gorn are considerably higher with Captain Picard, because of his experience, and because he is a known and respected quant.i.ty among them. In addition, I have a hunch that we will be able to find him. A hunch is a command tool, and playing it is a command prerogative.”
He knew that in her place, he would be raising the same questions. But he also knew that he had already decided on his immediate course of action.
Ro maintained her composure, though Riker could see that it was taking some effort. ”I recognize the value of intuition in command situations,” she said. ”But even a course of action based on a hunch must have a reasonable chance of success. I see no such chance here.”
”I see it differently, Ensign,” Riker said, letting a note of finality creep into his voice. It was time to get back to the search, and- ”You've never lost anyone, have you?” Ro asked.
Riker glared.
”Wait a second,” she said, eyeing him closely. ”You have, haven't you? Who was it? A parent, a sibling?”
”None of your d.a.m.n business,” he replied.
”You're right,” she conceded. ”But it doesn't matter. Because losing one person doesn't tell you what it's like to lose everyone. Do you know what that means, to lose everyone? We Bajorans almost lost our whole world. And you know what that teaches you? It teaches you that some losses are inevitable. You've got to accept them and move on. Because if you can't save everything, you can at least save something.”
”Please, Ensign,” Riker said sarcastically, ”Don't hold back.”
”Frankly, sir, I don't think I can afford to. The stakes of the summit are too high.” Ro paused for a moment, in which she seemed to be consciously reining herself in. When she spoke again, her voice had softened.
”Sir, when I was sixteen, I was part of a perimeter guard at a hidden weapons factory. In my squad was a fifteen-year-old boy who began following me around. He was small for his age, slow in drills, and scared most of the time. But he kept up his end. Because he was persistent and because in the end I had no choice, we became friends. One night, our squad was. .h.i.t and we scattered. I saw him go down.
”Instead of leading the defense, I wasted precious seconds going back for him. Well, I got there in time to watch him die-and then returned to my squad just in time to catch the last few moments of a ma.s.sacre. I went back for one person, and because of that we lost an entire squad, Bajorans team young to cut their losses. I did.”
It was Riker's turn to be caught off guard. He had served with Ro for almost two years, and she had never spoken about her past to him. Certainly, she had never revealed anything so personal. He was tempted to respond, but decided not to make the situation any more difficult for her.
And in any case, his mind was made up for now.
”Thank you for your counsel, Ensign. While we continue the search, I will be counting on you to research the Gorn as thoroughly as you can-check rumors, tall stories, anything you can find-and formulate a contingency plan for the negotiations. Dismissed.” Then he shot her a look that made it clear the discussion was closed.
Ensign Ro acknowledged his command with a nod, turned, and left. When the door shut, Riker watched it carefully. It would only be a moment.
The chime came right on schedule. ”Come,” Riker intoned, watching the door. Deanna walked into the room, wearing the blue uniform that she now wore during duty hours. Too bad, he thought. He liked the green dress better.
”Counselor,” he nodded.
”A challenge?” Troi said without preamble.
”No more than what I expected.”
”How do you feel about it, though?”
Riker shrugged. ”It's her job now to raise questions about important command decisions. And to recommend options,” he said evenly.
”And how do you feel about the questions she has raised?” Troi probed.
”You mean how do I feel about my decision to search for the captain?” Deanna responded with a nod, and Riker thought about it, carefully. In many ways everything that Ro had said was absolutely true. The logical thing to do would be to abandon the search and commit all of his resources to the summit. To do anything else would be bucking pretty strong odds. And all he had was a hunch that he was doing the right thing.
The exec looked inside himself for that pit of certainty that had been so easy to find several hours ago. He could still find it, he was pleased to learn.
Looking up at Troi, he knew that the counselor had finished the job that Ro had started. For now, he was sure.
When Picard opened his eyes again, the room came into focus with surprising speed and clarity. He had expected the pain that he still remembered vividly from his last conscious moment, but now he felt fit and lucid.
The captain kept his head still as he looked up at the ceiling and scanned the room with his eyes. He immediately recognized the modular, prefabricated construction. He had seen it before on older bases and some Starfleet sponsored colonies of different sorts.
Then a face obscured his vision. It was human, a female. Judging by the faint lines around the vibrant, green eyes and the mouth, and the short, dark hair peppered with gray, Picard guessed that she was about his age, and-he noted almost as an afterthought-she was quite attractive. She looked him over with a professional eye that he had seen Beverly use before. A doctor, then.
Her features softened a bit as she spoke. ”You're human, you know.”
For a moment, the captain could think of no response. ”Am I?”
She nodded. ”Yes, I have scanned you and everything checks out. You're human, all right.”
”To be perfectly honest, Doctor,” Picard ventured, ”I'm surprised there was any doubt.”
”Not doubt as much as speculation,” she said, her eyes twinkling. ”You see, we don't get many unannounced visitors here.” She ran a small scanner of a type the captain didn't recognize over him. Then, after studying a readout above his head, she returned her attention to him.
”Would you mind telling me where 'here' is?” Picard asked.
”You are in my infirmary,” the doctor said evenly.
”And where is that?”
For a moment, she looked at him askance. ”Are you suggesting that you don't know what planet you are on?”
The captain shook his head. ”I am suggesting nothing. I am saying it plainly. Where am I?”
To Picard's surprise, she smiled broadly. ”You really expect me to believe you came all the way out here and don't know where 'here' is?”
”Yes,” he said. ”Please, indulge me. I can tell you with certainty that I did not come here willingly.”
She regained her professional demeanor. ”All right, I'll a.s.sume for the sake of argument that you are telling the truth.”
”That's very gracious of you,” the captain replied.
”Not at all,” she told him. ”It will simply make our conversation easier on both of us if I a.s.sume what you tell me is the truth. That frees you from having to be convincing and it frees me from having to be on my guard. Besides, if you're lying, it'll come out soon enough. For now, I prefer to see the best in you. You have what my father used to call a kind face.”
He grunted. ”In that case, would you please tell me where I am?”
She thought for a bit, then shook her head. ”Sorry. That sounds like the commodore's area. You'll have to wait for the commodore to discuss it with you.”
”Really?”