Chapter 12
Connor arrived on the bridge for the start of his shift and checked in with the captain. So far, everything had been rather quiet, which was a pleasant change. The captain purposely failed to comment on the shiner the XO was sporting on his right eye.
After the events of the previous evening, which were not discussed by anyone who had any sense, Connor decided that the ship was finally getting back to normal.
Cheryl had seen to locking up Tyrel Sanders and even went to the extra length to have his cabin searched. He had to admire her dedication and drive. She found the missing hand weapon and was having it checked to see if it had been fired recently. Connor was sure that it had, seeing that it was the only weapon missing from the armory, making this an open and shut case. All the better so they could get back to normal fleet business.
Still, something twisted around inside the back of his mind. Even though he was told to let this go, he was struggling to do so. How had a scientist managed to get past security personnel, into a secured compartment to gain access to a hand weapon without being recorded? And who were these mysterious Kantians willing to make a purchase for the emperor's technology.
The captain stretched and then turned the bridge over to Connor. Connor kept wrestling with something that was bothering him about this whole situation.
Connor knew that Kantians were an odd group of colonies to begin with. Out at the rim of colonized space, they were eager enough to seek trade, but primarily wanted to be left alone. All gestures by the empire to allow military ships to provide pirate protection were rebuffed. Instead of joining the empire willingly, they opted instead to build their own defense ships. Since they were so far away, the emperor had his hands full with other matters. But they continued to grow bolder and at some point, they would need to be brought to heel. If they were behind these attacks, the emperor might decide their time had come. Connor would have found this interesting if not for the fact that we was, by birth, a Kantian.
Growing up, Connor had faced his share of prejudice and discrimination due to his home world being conquered by the empire some hundred standard years earlier. But Connor hid his discomfort as he found solace in his love for astronomy and had always dreamed of joining the fleet in spite of the fact that he was a second-class citizen. Determined to prove himself, he worked tirelessly to excel academically and showed aptitude for leadership, even enduring extra hazing and hardship in the prestigious fleet academy.
When Connor joined the crew of the Dominion, he hoped to leave behind the prejudice he had faced throughout his life. However, as an outsider, he found it difficult to get the captain to treat him with the respect earned by his rank. Cantrell was Terran and believed the empire subjected weaker races, thus treating Connor with nearly open contempt as a weaker race.
Connor's dedication to duty and strong work ethic earned him the respect of the crew, but his difficulty in forging any meaningful connection with the captain made him feel isolated. He longed to be accepted as part of the leadership team, but his outsider status meant that he would never achieve a starship command of his own and Owen reminded Connor of this at every opportunity.
Connor poured himself a cup of coffee as he strode over to the sensor station. He knew Larson was working with the Combat Information Center to help identify the ship class that was following them, but it seemed to know exactly what the limit of their scan range was and carefully danced right at its limits.
Larson let her fingers dance over the controls as she worked to enhance the faint sensor image.
"Any luck, Chief?" Connor asked, his voice steady despite the tension.
Toler didn't look up from her console as she responded. "I'm getting something new, sir. It's weak, but it's definitely a communication signal."
Just then, the doors to the bridge slid open and Lieutenant Cheryl Kinson stepped onto the bridge. She immediately walked over to where Connor was watching Larson work.
Connor acknowledging her without turning. "Lieutenant."
"Commander, Chief," she greeted, her gaze shifting between the two. "What's this about a comm signal?"
Connor gestured to Toler's console. "It's faint, but it keeps repeating at regular intervals."
Cheryl's eyebrows rose slightly.
Toler straightened, a triumphant look on her face. "Got it, sir. It took a few passes to get the entire thing, but I've run it through cryptography to see who it might be. They cracked it in less than twenty seconds."
Toler's triumphant look faded, replaced by a frown. "It's a message for Tyrell Sanders. The ship is asking for a meet. They're offering to buy the communication technology the science team has discovered."
Cheryl's frown mirrored Connor's. " We can't let that technology fall into the wrong hands. We're out here, alone. If they have friends nearby..."
Toler nodded, her gaze returning to her console. "I'll keep working with CIC to see if we can determine who they are."
Connor nodded, his mind already working on their next move. "Good. Keep me updated, Chief."
As Larson returned to her work, Cheryl turned to Connor, her expression serious. "This changes things. We need to let Beauchêne interrogate Tyrell and see what he knows."
Connor agreed, his gaze returning to the viewscreen, the faint blip of the shadow ship a constant reminder of the danger they were in. They had to protect the technology, and Tyrell, at all costs.