[END ACT II] Lieutenant JG Ollie Bergmen - Not my fault, my responsible adult left me unsupervised (and ship caught a tummy bug)
CPT Arianus
(( Tertiary Conference Room - Operations Center, Deck 5, USS Artemis-A ))
Bergmen: Understood, sir. TLDL. Ok, shorter version. Our team took decoding from the wrong end. The data are stored in a single frequency variant; other data are independent. They are like… keyholes? As - once separated, I was able to identify as emergency frequencies - Federation, Nascaik, the list goes on, basically everyone around except Da’al - and when I tried in the sandbox vault to contact that data using the Starfleet emergency frequency key, they answered. It’s a prerecorded message by Havun, and I think we should look and listen…
The look on Commander K'Wara's face spoke volumes, revealing just how skeptical Ollie's boss was of Bergmen's assertion that he would deliver the shorter version.
But he tried, really tried, to make it as much informally dense as was possible without losing understanding of the issue and the item in question. This was the shorter version. He left out Ra’Grey’s integral! Inversion nonhomogeneous matrix qualifiers! He didn’t even mentioned Shortest Vector Problem and all things around the Zimmermann Algorithm!
In short words - Ollie's claim had fallen with K’Wara flat.
Yet, despite the challenges they faced along the way, the commander appeared content with the outcome, nodding to Bergmen to finally start playing the recording.
The holograms on the table disappeared, replaced instead by a video of a middle-aged Da’al man. His tangled, wispy lavender hair and black eyes, which appeared dull and devoid of life, were telling. Betraying the nation definitely took its toll.
Havun: =/\= To friends of the Da’al. We owe you a great debt. The Afalqi was impossible with you. =/\=
K’Wara: This sounds promising.
To Ollie, it sounded weird. There was something he didn't like about the tone, a mimic of Havun’s face as Da'al spoke, and he couldn't simply name. Da’al was too calm, composed, lacking everything Ollie Bergmen had expected from her, regarding Havun's state of mind.
Jaran: And not very isolationist at all. He's been working overtime.
Imril: Sounds to me like there's a ‘But…’ on the way.
It was the same when Bergmen first saw the message, and he still couldn't pinpoint what had evoked the feelings he felt while watching Havun's speech.
Havun: =/\= But you made a miscalculation. The particles released by the Great Impact had an effect you didn’t anticipate, and in failing to recognize that, you set these events in motion. =/\=
Jaran: The Great Impact? Particles?
Imril: An asteroid impact on Merengue IV. Artemis helped with the emergency response. It was before I came aboard. I don't know what he means by particles, though.
Bergmen: Ok, still, that does not say much about the meaning of those words from Havun. What did he mean?
And neither shed light the message ending…
Havun: =/\= We owe you a debt we can never repay, and so, it pains me that I must do this. But I cannot allow you to interfere. =/\=
The message ended, answering almost nothing. Havun's face disappeared.
oO What was Havun trying to tell them? Oo
Unfortunately, Ollie didn’t have to wait long for an answer…
Engineer: =/\= LtCmdr K’Wara, that cache we were just sent - it’s finished decrypting, but none of the information makes any sense- =/\=
Tactical Officer: =/\= Who deleted the Afalqi’s targeting profile? Our phasers can’t establish a targeting lock- =/\=
Security Officer: =/\= Photon torpedoes aren’t much better, and the computer’s resisting all attempts at a new profile- =/\=
HCO Officer: =/\= Commander, the sensors are still picking up the Afalqi, but it’s like the computer’s trying to erase the information out from under us! =/\=
K’Wara: Crud.
Ollie had quite a different word in mind, but "crud" could express his first thought, too, yes.
Jaran: This probably isn't good, right? Any other systems affected?
Imril: Assume the answer is yes. Everybody, disable your padds. That should at least slow the virus eating what’s on them. Maybe actually save something.
Bergmen: Not my fault!
Ollie quickly changed the hologram to display the ship and diagnostics of the affected systems.
Bergmen: Save the database!
But Imril already started working.
Imril: I’m not trying to save the database. I’m making sure the virus doesn't start messing with anything else. Like life support or the power grid or the self-destruct charges. We need to keep the Artemis from being turned against us like the hangar was.
Imril did something, and it looked like at least somehow stabilized the situation. For now, anyway.
Imril: I think we’re good. The ship is safe. Internally, at least.
Ollie smiled innocently at Commander K'Wara.
It wasn't his fault! Really!
He checked everything, and it seemed right!
But it probably didn't matter, not now, not in the future when his next one-on-one comes around.
oO Holy Koala, help me live this though… Oo
NO TAG/END for Ollie Kimmi Bergmen, Lieutenant JG, Operations
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Lieutenant JG Ollie Bergmen
Operations Officer
U.S.S. Artemis-A
A240009JC1