They do what now?
Posted on Mon Apr 16th, 2018 @ 9:54pm by Lieutenant Commander Vaebn tr'Hwersuil
Edited on on Thu May 31st, 2018 @ 9:29pm
1,147 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Episode 2 - The Enemy Within
Location: Engineering bay
Timeline: MD001 1730 hrs
Tags: SD 71370.1730
Vaebn stood in the engineering bay staring at the class VII sensor pod in front of him. A small stack of PADDs lay on a nearby workbench beside an array of tools and disassembled parts and scrap. His ever-present mug of coffee stood next to the PADDs, and Vaebn hummed lightly to himself as his eyes wandered over the probe. The programming for the probe wouldn't be hard, but making the physical modifications, that was a bit beyond his expertise. He tapped his comm badge, "Lt Thalk, would you mind joining me in engineering bay 2?"
Tightening the strings on his apron, and tossing a handful of tools- some standard, see less so- into the pouch in front, Thalk tapped his comm in response. "Seconds behind you, Lieutenant." Sure enough, the door pinged and opened moments later. The chief engineer saw the science officer, staring at sensor pod and a pile of..... something. "I'm happy to assist in whatever way I can. How can I help with"- he paused, surveying the project- "whatever it is you're doing?"
Vaebn followed the engineers eyes to the workbench, "Ah yes, the scrap was not from this project, however the PADDs contain some of the telemetry and coding that will need to be input into the navigation computer, after we install one." Vaebn looked back to the Klingon, "I believe a class VII probe should be sufficient for our needs, but you would have better knowledge of its structural and physical capabilities, so I defer to you on that." He walked to the bench and retrieved the topmost PADD, "I came up with some specifications that we may need if these whiskers are going to work, but its really only for the base guidance, telemetry and navigational systems. The rest I'm afraid, is more to your abilities and expertise."
Thalk felt, briefly, as though he were having half of a conversation. Then, the peices fell into place. "We're building drones, of a sort. The class VII is perfectly up to the task, if-" He paused for a moment, and tapped his comm badge "Thalk to Engineering. Pull up the replicator program for Small Thruster Retrofit 2A. Respec to compensate for more prolonged use. Check your figures, then forward it to my workstation." He turned back to the science officer- "What sort of conditions are these to be used in?" It was good, at last, to have a puzzle to solve.
Vaebn began pacing the room, "The shielding will need to be strong enough to withstand the plasma storms of the Badlands, and some sort of armor plating may be advisable as the power source on the probes is not very strong. Unless we can retrofit the power source........ If the power plant has a higher output, it may be possible to adapted transphasic shields into the probe which would negate much of the damaging radiation and plasma from the Badlands, but wouldn't provide as much physical protection. However, I'm not entirely certain which option would be more efficient for the task at hand. Perhaps something in the middle would be adequate."
"The IKF used a rotating array of transphasic shields. They draw less power than a single static shield, and can be incorporated into the plating. The smaller, rotating shields cover the whole of the drone, while drawing significantly less power. A secondary analog power supply will make up for the extra mechanical energy required to move the emitters." Thalk knew it would work, but also knew that mechanical engineering was considered obsolete by many science officers. He hoped the Lieutenant would approve.
"Drawing less power would be greatly advantageous to this endeavour, as we can use the extra power for propulsion. Unless we plan on searching the badlands on maneuvering thrusters, which I doubt Lt Storm is keen to do. You sound like you are quite familiar with the more physical side of the system as opposed to letting the programming do the work."
The idea of an analog engineer probably sounded quaint. The Klingon elected not to play into stereotypes, and reserved his reflexive defense. "Frankly, I was never the best with code. I can program a replicator with the best of them, but I'd prefer to fabricate the old fashioned way. Hell, I own a functioning inert gas welder." He was incredibly proud of that fact.
Vaebn allowed the surprise of that statement wash over him with the slightest of reactions. "I doubt I would even know where to start with something like that. Navigation, charting, and the movement of the astral bodies and phenomenon I can do, but I'm at a loss regarding most kinds of Engineering. Perhaps we can slave the navigation controls to the helm of Pioneer."
"Easy enough to do." Thank allowed his Klingon side to seep into the conversation. "I must ask, given the hazards of our mission, have you considered weapon systems or deterrents of some kind?" He knew they were research tools, but at the same time, the potential of being able to successfully flank an enemy ship without aid from another vessel was too much to ignore.
"Hmmm....." he placed a hand to his chin in thought, "I'm sure it would be possible to add some sort of small phaser array to the probe, akin to a point defense system. They might need to be enlarged, and a larger power source utilized, but I see no reason why that wouldn't be possible." The idea of arming the whiskers had not occurred to him. Leave it to a Klingon to find a way to make anything a weapon, but he had to admit, he found the proposition to be intriguing. "Perhaps a few pulse phaser emitters in a large grid giving multiple firing angles, but without the need to pull constant power. It could be highly useful as a point defense grid to intercept inbound projectiles or small craft."
Thalk nodded "Small pulse phasers should work well. We just need something to hold enemies off until the Pioneer can make it over there." The concept of a point defense grid didn't even occur to Thalk. "Precisely... With the mess that the Badlands have made of the sensors. Having a defense grid, or net would buy us some extra time in the event of incoming attacks." Thalk replied as he tapped in the new specs to the design.
Thalk looked across the work table at the Romulan Science Chief. If only she could see me now he thought. The two officers set about their tasks in relative silence for now. Both men intent on the work ahead.
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Vaebn tr'Hwersuil
Chief Science Officer, USS Pioneer
Lieutenant Thalk
Chief Engineering Officer, USS Pioneer
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