Through Time, Darkly

[Pryce]

[color=#FFFF00]Main Hangar

Angela shallowed, perhaps a bit nervously.


Samantha Ross glanced at Angela and spoke;

"Yes, you've brought back the data from the suits? I think it's time we saw it for ourselves."


Angela visibly flushed, her eyes glancing quickly about the hangar, as if searching for an excuse to change the subject. Finding none, she was forced to reply;


"Professor Ross, I went back to my quarters, to get the data like you asked, but when I got there.....I, uh, couldn't find it."

Ross frowned. "I see." She went on; "Where do you suppose it is?"

Angela replied; " I, I don't know. I went to Ms. Ellis, bu...but her data chip was missing too."


That sentence got attention.


The other scientists traded glances at each other as Ross leaned back abit, then rose from the chair. She walked over to Angela and looked at her carefully, without speaking.


The steady gaze unnerved Angela and she began to speak a little faster than before. "I don't know where they are but I'll go back up and keep looking, maybe I.."


Ross cut her off. "You will do nothing of the sort. " She turned to Doctor Owens, standing near the table. "Doctor, please go and locate Mrs. Ellis, and have her come back down here; and Mr. Keller, if you would kindly assist the Doctor. Keller and Owens nodded and headed out of the hangar. "Doctor Graham, please go and inform Captain Wells that we have equipment that is missing." Graham twitched slightly, wishing the more junior staff would be tasked with such a low level errand. He nodded and followed after the others.


Ross returned to Angela. "As for you; later we are going to have a talk regarding proper data handling procedures. We are in such a field were an event may be observed once and then never again. Every bit of data is precious to us and must be preserved." She continued, even when Angela had gotten the point;


"I will not tolorate substandard work on this project. I cannot imagine how any work at all has been done on this vessel , but it will cease to be done in such a slipshod manner. No university, mostly certainly not a research university, will accept a student who can't follow simple rules you apparently didn't learn in primary school. You will do things properly from now on, or I shall see that you not receive sponsorship from any member of the Institute. Which means you will never have a career in academia."


"Y...yes, Professor." Angel nodded , almost on the verge of tears. She wanted to run away, to hide. But there was nowhere she could go. Her shoulders were hunched slightly, and her eyes wandered along the deck, avoiding the stern eyes in front of her.


"Now. Go and help Doctor Hart with the scanning equipment. We are going to proceed with duplicating the original scans if we are able. Prepare the data storage, so we have a proper record of the scan."

Ross addressed Donovan; "With me please, Doctor." Addressing Hart and Wight, she added; "I am off to report to Professor Morris before the ships seperate. I shall be back in a short while. Prepare the equipment so we can proceed." She nodded at Doyle; "Lieutenant." Ross and Donovan left toward the exit hatch.

"Yes Prof'essor." Angela answered. Her voice cracked halfway through the reply. She realized Doctor Hart and Doyle had been watching the exchange, and she wiped her eyes. "Um. Doctor Hart, I'll get the power cells loaded into the scanners. Okay?" She wiped her eyes again.


"Sure, Angela, thats fine. Lets get the carts pointed along here." Hart said, indicating parts of the deck plate. She seemed about to say something else, but frowned instead.


Hart glanced about the confines of the hangar, standing next to Doyle as Angela went to work on rolling the carts into place, adding a Institute spec power cell into each. Hart spoke, watching Angela as she moved about. "Ahhh. A little more space without all the crowd. Maybe we can get some work done before they get back and slow us down." She glanced at Angela again and frowned. She picked a case from the deck, set it on the table, and proceeded to open it and remove the instruments inside.

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