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"Code of Honor"
Rating: PG-13 Seven “Bloody convenient,” Malcolm said aloud to no one in particular. Oneko raised her head from the bed and meowed a question. He glanced at her and added, “Sorry, Oneko. It’s just that they’re making it too easy. I keep trying to dig deeper into their motives, but either they’re very good at hiding them, or I’m just too paranoid, even for me.” Oneko meowed something that sounded pleasantly insulting. Malcolm raised his eyebrow as if daring her to explain. She twitched her whiskers and her tail corkscrewed into a credible impression of a question mark. “Good point. I know I should delegate, but—“ She blinked at him, raised her right paw and scratched the air with her claws extended. He chuckled and raised his hands, one of them still holding the PADD. “Very well, Lady Oneko. I shall take your sage advice and try not to scatter my resources.” He heard a sharp rap on his door and called out, “Enter!” as he swung his feet onto the floor. Sergeant Trudy Vairnes came in with her ever-trusty PADD under her arm. The information tech saluted smartly, then snapped to attention. “Report, Sergeant,” he said. “Sir. You wanted to know when there was a reply from Enterprise. We’ve received a packet of messages for Your Eyes Only, from Captain Archer and Lieutenant Sato.” She unzipped the breast pocket of her uniform and took out a datadisk. This she handed to Malcolm with a minimum of flourish. “Lieutenant Dumond reports that the investigative team has been settled into quarters and asks when the first briefing shall be.” “Tonight, after dinner,” Malcolm reassured her. “We’ll go over the security protocols of the Diamant Blanc and of the Aldeberan Consortium.” “Very good, Commandant. Is there anything else?” He shook his head and replied, “That will be all. Thank you.” She nodded, turned on her heel and marched out, shutting the door behind her. Oneko rumbled under her breath and leaped silently to the floor. She glanced behind her; Malcolm went over and opened the door again, allowing her to slip into the corridor. He shrugged and closed the door after her. Oneko went on these “jaunts” around the ship; he didn’t question them. Perhaps she wanted to familiarize herself with Diamant Blanc’s layout and watch out for trouble. Malcolm activated his PADD and slid the disc into it. After negotiating through a myriad of security checks and passwords, the first message came up, from Captain Archer: Malcolm, we’ve been issued a formal invitation by Lady Asagawa of Vega. Admiral Forrest has confirmed this, and he wants us there for security reasons. The date of the first round of talks will be four days from now, and will only involve Starfleet. The second round will be with the Boomers, the third with the Consortiums, the fourth with selected reps of all four groups. Hoshi has attached a schedule and list of topics...it’s pretty extensive. Talk to Travis and see what he thinks of this. T’Pol has made contact with the Vulcan Trading Commission. They’re sending their own reps to this conference. The Lady V’Lar has agreed to head their delegation. Expect her to contact you within the next 36 hours. Malcolm raised his eyebrow. V’Lar had been an ambassador and one of T’Pol’s role models. If the Vulcans had requested V’Lar to come out of retirement for this, then it showed how important Minister T’Pau considered the conference to be. Hoshi had included an audio message. Malcolm closed his eyes and listened to her smooth voice. I miss you, love, and I hope you are safe. “Malcolm, we’ve been fielding all kinds of requests from the Boomers and the Consortiums. All of a sudden, they’ve been pretty cordial and wants us involved in every step of the way. For the most part, they want Captain Archer there as the main representative of Starfleet. Never mind that Admiral Forrest has designated Travis as the main representative. “I’ve also taken a look at the information Paul had in his room. Whatever Boomer code he used is pretty extensive...it’s been a while since I’ve seen one this complex. I hadn’t thought Paul was a cryptologist, but he might have been so confident in his code that he felt he could leave the hard copies out in the open. I’m close to cracking it, but it will still be a while before—“ His communications speaker went off. “Mayweather to Reed.” He hit the pause button with his thumb, then reached over and activated his link. “Reed here.” “Malcolm, we’re coming close to Aldeberan...and we’re getting a transmission from Nandjani Corporation, but it’s not from their leader. The message is marked ‘S. Reed’.” He literally exploded out of his relaxed posture. “I’m on my way to the Bridge.” Five minutes later, Malcolm was on the Diamant Blanc’s bridge, looking over Nya Laverne’s shoulder. The Diamant’s comm officer glanced at him with a look of sympathy. “It’s text only, Commandant Reed, but all the codes check out.” He nodded absently. The message itself was short and to the point, very much like Stuart. “In negotiation with Nandjani. Paul at Draylax, Philippe at Vega. Comte Emil providing security at Asagawa for Philippe. Security Code Phoenix. STUART.” “Malcolm?” Travis asked quietly. “Do you think this is genuine?” He didn’t answer immediately, but after a long moment, replied, “It sounds genuine.” “But—“ “Code Phoenix is Royal Navy armament speak for ‘offensive weapons at full capacity’.” Travis’s eyes widened. “Uh-oh.” “Indeed.” “Is your dad on Aldeberan?” Malcolm scowled and answered, “If he is...it isn’t out of his free will. He signed the message by name. He would never do that if he knew I was on board. We may have settled some disagreements, but he has never been that informal with me.” “Just your mother?” His mouth went up in a smirk. “For the longest time, even she referred to him as ‘sir’.” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rhianna’s tight-lipped expression at his reply. He wondered just how much Travis had told her about his repressive childhood, for her eyes clearly mirrored her dumbfounded astonishment. The Mayweathers were so close; hearing about the Reeds’ way of life must have been a shock for her. “They do know you’re on board, Malcolm,” Rhianna said, her voice as soft as Travis’s, “so Nandjani would expect you to contact him. In that case, either Stuart is being held there or someone has leaked information from Alpha Centauri.” Travis glanced over his shoulder from the helm station. “Mom, didn’t you say Thea Brunswicke was supposed to be in talks with Ravi Nandjani?” “‘Supposed to be, but I haven’t heard from her at all.” Rhianna’s scowl deepened. “I don’t like this at all, Malcolm. It’s a set-up.” He chuckled and said, “Perhaps we should draft you into the CSF, Mrs. Mayweather.” She gave him a tug on his ear, a gesture that he’d seen her do on both Paul and Travis. “Mothers are naturally suspicious, Malcolm. We don’t need to be trained Security officers.” Chuckles erupted over the Bridge and Travis grinned widely. Malcolm let it go on a moment longer, then sobered. “I suggest we don’t wait for Ravi Nandjani to make the first move. He already knows we’re here, and if Admiral Reed is there, we’ll find out.” Rhianna nodded and glanced at Nya. “Hail Nandjani Corporation on Aldeberan’s Alpha Channel. Let’s be cordial, at least at first.” Three minutes later, a dark-skinned, merry-eyed man appeared on the screen. He wore a light cotton kurta, without a collar and embroidered at the neck and wrists. His curly black hair glistened under the lights and his handsome, clean-shaven face glowed with health. He hardly seemed old enough to run a Consortium: he looked even younger and Philippe. “Master Mayweather! What a surprise to see you again!” he greeted. He pressed his hands together and bowed from the waist. “And Madame Mayweather as well!” “Master Nandjani,” Rhianna replied. “Yes, it’s been a few months, hasn’t it.” He nodded and glanced at Malcolm, “Ah, Commandant Reed. You look like your esteemed father. It is an honor to meet the son at last.” Malcolm inclined his head. “The honor is mine, sir.” “Commandant Allemande told me that he has installed you within the Centauri Security Force. My warmest congratulations. Does that mean that you no longer represent Starfleet in the Colonies?” Interesting question, Malcolm thought. He inclined his head towards the Mayweathers. “Both of the Mayweathers are the official representatives, sir. I’m here for their security and welfare.” “Ah, good.” Ravi Nandjani nodded and smiled. “May I offer you my hospitality? I would like to talk with all of you, and my colleagues would like to meet you as well. One in particular is quite eager to see you, Commandant Reed.” Malcolm glanced over at Travis, who nodded. “We can stop for a short visit, Master Nandjani.” “Excellent. We will forward our information to you in half an hour, Master Mayweather. Nandjani, out.” He bowed again and his image disappeared from the screen. “That was...interesting,” Travis commented. He glanced at Malcolm. “Sounds like Nandjani really wants to talk to you, Malcolm.” He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “And I would like to talk to him, as well.” |
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