The Search - Part 2

Posted on 28 Mar 2013 @ 8:29am by Commodore Da`nal of the House of Varal

1,454 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: M9: Rest, Recovery, and Reflection
Location: Cammy's Quarters

Cammy rubbed her chin considered her options before diving headfirst into the assignment. Intel knew better than anyone that knowledge was power, and she wanted as much of it as she could get on any given assignment. The idea was simple. If she could find a PADD via the electric signal emitted by its power source, she'd be much closer to getting the right one. Since it wasn't tied in to the main computer, all she'd have to do is find the signature a PADD would emit, use internal sensors to find every PADDs "footprint", then have the computer cross-reference the sources of those signatures with PADDS tethered to the computer. The one that the computer didn't recognize would more than likely be the one she wanted. That was assuming the computer gods were smiling on her right now.

"Computer, privacy mode." She paced slowly, . "Computer, do PADDs emit a unique electronic signature and would internal sensors be able to determine if such a signal was from a PADD?"

"Negative, the electonic signature emitted by Personal Access Data Devices are identical to other devices that inteface with the main computer. Internal sensors can identify, activate, or deactivate any devise that is interfaced or indexed by the main computer."

Cammy frowned disappointingly, but she wasn't surprise. Like the Ferengi Rules of Acquisition, Infiltration Specialist had the Rules of Special Operations. ~RSO #1: Never expect anything to go right.~ The device wasn't linked to the computer, and internal sensors wouldn't help in pinpointing it. She'd have to do this the old fashioned way and make use of the patented SWAG method. The most likely places were his quarters or his office. It went without saying she wouldn't want internal sensors picking up someone in either place. She could do something about that herself, but it would be better if she just timed her break-ins during a maintenance cycle where they were temporarily offline. "Computer, when is the next scheduled sensor recalibration?"

"Specify the sensor system for which you are requesting information."

"I'd like the recalibration schedule for internal sensors, specifically biometrics and commbadge tracking." As she asked, she tried to imagine where a Klingon would hide something they didn't want found. It didn't help much, as she kept telling herself that Klingons didn't keep secrets. Everything was out in the open with them, which was an awkward concept for someone who literally made their living sneaking around. ~Where would someone hide something if they have nothing to hide?~

"Internal sensor will be taken off-line at 0900 hours tomorrow. Approximate calibration time, 3.7 minutes."

~Hmm...~ It wasn't much time, but it was better than nothing. She figured it would be best to check his quarters first. Seemed to be the more likely to the two choices. "Thank you computer. Disengage privacy mode." It was time for her to get to work.

[Corridor Outside Admiral Da'nal's Quarters, 0850 hours]

Cammy walked down a corridor leading to the Admiral's quarters, being wary of her time. Upon arriving at the door, she noticed a security officer standing outside. Her initial plan of going through the Jeffrey's Tubes would have avoided them, but then she'd have to explain what she was doing crawling around the guts of a ship without a gold uniform. Starfleet could be criticized for several things, but keeping track of who was supposed to be where and when was something it refined to an art. Besides, she had a few tricks up her sleeve.

As she passed in front of the door, she stopped and tilted her head. She tilted it the other way, listening intently. "Hmm..." The Yellowjacket wore what Cammy called a "guard who hates guarding" face. She had seen it more than once in her short career, as it was often reserved for people like her: individuals who were too comfortable being in places they weren't supposed to be. It was a face that said "You being here irritates me and the only thing keeping me from doing the fun part of my job is the boring paperwork I'd have to fill out afterwards, but you just might be worth it anyway if you so much as breath the wrong way."

His mouth asked "Is there a problem, Ensign?" His tone asked "Why are you here?"

"Sorry, it's just that I hear something odd."

They both listened for a moment. "Then it must be you. I don't hear anything."

"Well I do hear it, and I don't like it."

"Then go somewhere you don't hear it."

"Sounds like it's coming from the Admiral's quarters."

"You don't say. And I'll bet you want me to let you in to take a look, huh?"

"Look, I'm just wanting to make sure there aren't any surprises waiting for him when he comes back. That's not a crime, is it?"

"No, but unauthorized entrance to his quarters IS. Unless you've got solid evidence something's wrong, this door stays shut."

Now it was time to be obnoxious and argue from authority. "Pull up my records. You'll see I'm a certified EOD. You're telling me someone trained in bomb disposal doesn't know what a possible explosive sounds like?"

"Well..."

"Are YOU an EOD technician?"

"Well, no..."

"That's what I thought. Now if I had a bomb disposal person telling me something's not right, and I was responsible for the life of the Admiral, I'd rather be safe than sorry," She said before shrugging. "But what do I know?"

He bit his lip, considering the options. "Alright, let's run a scan. If the computer picks something up, you can take a look."

"Didn't you read the last maintenance schedule posted?" feigning bewilderment at his incompetence. "What IS Security coming to these days? Internal sensors will be down for a few minutes for recalibration."

"Then I'll check the tricorder." he said, reaching for his scanner.

"What good would a planted bomb be if anyone with a tricorder could find it?"

He was starting to recover from her verbal blitzkrieg, "Well, considering NO ONE has come through that door without clear authorization..."

"That's right. No one has come through THAT DOOR. This ship has Jeffrey's Tubes doesn't it?"

That staggered him again. "Well, yeah..."

She sighed. "In the time it took for use to argue, I could have checked it out already. I just need a few minutes to make sure everything's okay. Or, we can let the Admiral find it himself when it goes off."

"Fine. I'll grant you temporary access. I'M coming with you, though."

"No, you're not. Procedure clearly states that non EOD personnel are to maintain a safe distance from any areas suspected of being rigged with explosives. YOU wait here if you have to. And don't tell anybody about this. I don't want a panic because rumors of a bomb on the ship spread. If I find something, THEN we'll report it."

He opened the door and Cammy stepped inside. She had an idea of what to expect from Klingon's as to their personal space, and wasn't too surprised. Checking her time, she saw the recalibration started thirty seconds ago. Cammy headed to the office in the quarters first and started looking over PADDS. One after another, she scanned the contents without paying much attention to the details. There was something specific on the PADD she needed and she could tell at a glance what did and didn't fit the description. After a non-prolific search through the office, she made her way to the common area to look at a few PADDS she noticed on a table. On her way past, her uniform caught on the edge of a bat'leth, pulling it off its display rack. Not paying much attention to how it was set, she put it back the way she thought it went and started looking over the few PADDS on the table.

She checked her chronometer. ~only about forty seconds...~ A quick check of the last few PADDs she saw revealed nothing. She didn't like having to leave empty handed, but she couldn't hang around much longer either. ~Looks like I'll be paying his office a visit some time soon~

She stepped out, making an effort not to look rushed. "I didn't find anything. You can certainly run a scan when the calibration is done to double check, but nothing looks un-kosher in there."

"Great." the guard said. "Now that we've got that settled, isn't there somewhere you're supposed to be right now?"

Cammy figured she had pushed her luck far enough with the Security officer, and accepted his subtle proposition to "get lost" with a nod. "Now that you mention it, I believe there is."

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Ensign Cammy Valentine
Infiltration Specialist
USS Achilles

Computer played by Da`nal

 

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