Redshirts

survival and didn’t like the result. Dahl smiled at the ensign as he sat down; the ensign looked away.
    Several minutes later, with Kerensky at the controls, the shuttle was out of its bay and headed toward the Nantes .
    “Some of you are late additions to this party,” Captain Abernathy said, nodding to Finn and Dahl, “so let me review the situation and our plan of attack. The Nantes has been out of communication since just before it attacked the pontifex’s ship. We think the Calendrian rebel spy was somehow able to take over some systems, cut off communications and fire on the pontifex, but afterward the crew must have been able to get back some control of the ship, otherwise the Nantes would have blown the pontifex out of the sky by now. Our job is to get onto the Nantes, ascertain the situation and if necessary assist in the capture of the rebel.”
    “Do we have any information on who this rebel might be, sir?” Dahl heard himself ask, surprised to hear the sound of his own voice. Oh, shit, he thought.
    “An excellent question, Ensign Dahl,” Q’eeng said. “Just before we left the Intrepid I requested a crew manifest for the Nantes . The crew of the ship has been stable for months, but there was a recent addition to its crew, a Crewman Jer Weston. He’s a primary person of interest.”
    “Wait,” Finn said, interrupting the commander. “Did you say Jer Weston?”
    “Yes,” Q’eeng said, irritated at being interrupted.
    “Previously stationed on the Springfield ?” Finn asked.
    “That was his posting prior to the Nantes, yes,” Q’eeng said. “Why?”
    “I know this guy,” Finn said. “I knew him on the Springfield .”
    “My God, man,” Abernathy said, leaning forward to Finn. “Tell us about him.”
    “There’s not much to say,” Finn said, looking at the captain and then Q’eeng. “He and I worked in the cargo hold together.”
    “He was your friend?” Q’eeng asked.
    “Friend might be a little much, sir,” Finn said. “Jer is a dick. ‘Friend’ isn’t part of his vocabulary. But I worked with him for more than a year. I spent time with him. He never seemed like a traitor.”
    “If spies seemed like traitors they wouldn’t be good spies,” Q’eeng said.
    “Finn, we need to know everything you know about Weston,” Abernathy said, intensely. “Anything we can use. Anything that can help us take back control of the Nantes before more Calendrian rebel ships converge on this sector. Because if they arrive before the Nantes is back in action, the Intrepid won’t be enough to keep the pontifex safe. And then it won’t just be the Calendrians fighting themselves. The whole galaxy will be at war.”
    There was a long, tense second of silence.
    “Uh, okay, sir,” Finn said, eventually.
    “Great, thanks,” Abernathy said. His demeanor was suddenly more relaxed. “Wow. A last-minute replacement for this away team, and you just happen to know the crewman we think is the spy. That’s amazing. What are the odds of that?”
    “Pretty big odds,” Finn said.
    “I’ll say,” Abernathy said.
    “Captain, before Crewman Finn briefs us on Weston, I want to discuss the layout of the Nantes with you,” Q’eeng said. He and Abernathy fell into a discussion.
    Dahl turned to Finn. “You okay?” he asked.
    “I’m fine,” Finn said.
    “You’re sure,” Dahl said.
    “Andy, quit it,” Finn said. “It’s a coincidence, is all it is. I’m going to get through this. You are going to get through this. We’re going to get back to the Intrepid, we’re going to get a drink, and then I’m going to go to Medical when Maia wakes up and kicks my ass. That’s my prediction. I’ll put money on it if you want.”
    Dahl smiled. “Okay,” he said, and sat back. He looked over at Abernathy and Q’eeng, still in their conversation. Then he looked over to the other ensign. He was looking at Finn with an expression that Dahl couldn’t quite read.
    After a moment, it came to him. The other ensign looked relieved.
    And he looked guilty about it.

CHAPTER TWELVE
    The Nantes bay was empty except for several automated cargo carts rolling about. “Finn and Dahl, you’re with me,” Captain Abernathy said, and then pointed at the remaining ensign. “Grover, you’re with Kerensky and Q’eeng.”
    “Yes, sir,” Ensign Grover said, and then was flung backward against the shuttle as a pulse beam hit him, fired from one of the automated carts. As he fell, Dahl caught a