Fatal Containment

Fatal Containment - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Engineering Chief Lieutenant Trevor Hanson, a young officer with a charming smile and a quick wit, decided to pay a visit to the female scientists. He was curious about their work, but more importantly, he was curious about them. He had heard rumors about the aloof Candice Picoult and the friendly Sandy Dovell, and he wanted to see for himself if they would succumb to the Trevor magic.

He found them in one of the ship's break areas, engrossed in a conversation. Candice, with her sharp eyes and sharper tongue, was leaning back in her chair, a smirk playing on her lips. Sandy, on the other hand, was leaning forward, her eyes alight with keen interest in whatever they were discussing, and a warm smile on her pouty lips.

"Good evening, ladies," Trevor greeted, approaching them with his charming smile. "Mind if I join you?"

Candice glanced at him, her smirk widening. "Only if you can tell me what the future has in store for us, Lieutenant," she said, her tone teasing.

Trevor chuckled, playing along. "I'm afraid my fortune-telling skills are a bit rusty, Ms. Picoult. I'm more of a 'navigate by my wit' kind of guy."

Candice's smirk turned into a full-blown grin. "Then I'm afraid you're of no use to me, Lieutenant. I prefer my men to be a bit more... mystical."

Trevor laughed, not at all put off by her rebuff. "I'll keep that in mind, Ms. Picoult."

Turning his attention to Sandy, he found her watching him with a curious expression. "And what about you, Ms. Dovell? Do you prefer your men to be mystical as well?"

Sandy laughed, a warm, genuine sound that made Trevor's heart skip a beat. "Not particularly, Lieutenant. I'm more interested in the here and now."

"Then you're in luck," Trevor said, grinning at her. "I happen to be an expert in the here and now, especially when it comes to keeping this ship in peak performance. I'm nearly indispensable around here."

Sandy's eyes lit up with interest. "Really? I'd love to know more about this fabulous warship we are on. I hear it has impressive weaponry."

And just like that, Trevor found himself engaged in a light conversation with Sandy about the engineering workings of the Dominion, all thoughts of aloof fortune-tellers forgotten as Candice rolled her eyes and returned to her workstation.

* * *

As Trevor and Sandy continued their conversation, the hatch to the common area slid open with a soft hiss. Maxim van Helm, the lead scientist of the team, strode in with an air of self-importance that was impossible to ignore.

"Ah, Lieutenant Hanson," Maxim greeted the younger man, his head tilted, and his voice tinged with condescension. "I see you're fraternizing with my team."

Trevor turned to face him, his smile never wavering. "Just getting to know them, Dr. van Helm. After all, we're all on this ship together."

Maxim snorted, crossing his arms over his chest. "Yes, well, just remember who's in charge of this project and its importance to the emperor himself."

"Of course, Dr. van Helm," Trevor said, his tone respectful. "In fact, we were just talking about the communication system you're building."

Maxim's eyes lit up at the mention of his work. "Ah, yes, the communication system. Such a trite way to describe such a monumental body of work. A marvel of theoretical science, if I do say so myself. And I do."

Sandy continued to smile at the young lieutenant as he began fanning the older man's ego. "I'm told the mathematics alone would be enough to make my academy professors blush," Trevor said, surreptitiously winking at Sandy.

Maxim puffed up, clearly used to being the center of attention. "Well, for starters, it's based on my own substantial research into subspace reality packets. It's faster, more efficient, and more reliable than anything discovered in the last two centuries. It's truly a work of genius."

Trevor worked hard to keep smiling and prevent a roll of his eyes at Maxim's arrogance, but he kept his tone polite. "But, sir, don't we already have quantum computing? I mean, isn't this just an extension of that entanglement technology?"

"Nothing could be further from the truth," Maxim snorted. "I'm talking about sending messages from one point in the universe to another, even to dimensions we have yet to discover. Imagine, if you will, a creature in a dimension, curled to less than 10^-23 centimeters, understanding who we are and having a first-contact conversation. Ha! Can your mere quantum computer do that?"

"That sounds impressive, Dr. van Helm. We're all looking forward to seeing it in action."

Maxim gave a smug nod, clearly satisfied with the response. "Yes, well, I'm sure you are."

Deciding to steer the conversation away from Maxim and his egregious contribution to all known science, Trevor turned back to Sandy. "Speaking of impressive technology, have you ever seen the astronomy department on a starship?"

Sandy shook her head, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. "No, I haven't."

Trevor offered her a warm smile. "Would you like to? I could give you a personal tour."

Sandy's smile matched his own. "I'd love that, Lieutenant."

As Trevor and Sandy made plans for their date, Maxim huffed in the background, clearly unused to being ignored. But neither Trevor nor Sandy paid him any mind. They were too busy gazing at each other.