The Complication

Keep A Cool Head

Author's Note: Thank you for the likes, kudos, comments, and messages on Twitter! 

Apologies in advance, Data and Tasha have their first truly knockdown fight. But they both emerge better for it. I hope it's clear the reasons behind the argument stem for the deep, mutual affection for one another. 

There's a video game Easter Egg in this chapter (but I don't want to give it away in the notes).

"Spaghettification" is the real term used by astrophysicists to describe the difference in strength of gravity from one end of the body to the other caused by the singularity.

The Calypso is only considered a shuttlecraft per canon. However, in this story I made it a 'Dart.' The Dart is an AU class of ship I created for my companion piece "The Competition" and is supposed to be a smaller, faster Nebula class ship.

Fun fact about Data's little statistics game – these statistics are on the "whole" exaggerated. I need to justify his line about "statistically likely." 

As always, if you like my works or want to stay up to date with my art, comics, or just like chatting about the fandom you can join me @TheTartanTart on Twitter.

----------

Worf was sitting quietly, monitoring their sensors. They were powerless to stop their slow drift toward the event horizon, but it gave Worf a sense of comfort to feel like he was doing something.

Commander Riker, Wesley, and Miles were in the back of the shuttle playing cards.

Riker felt he had a duty to keep everyone's spirits up.

They were all wearing a brave face, but inside they were terrified.

Geordi La Forge sat at the helm of the shuttle. He was resting his head against the side wall. As he watched the light circle and disappear into the event horizon, Geordi thought there was something strangely beautiful about the manner in which this destructive force consumed the matter around it.

It was an unsettling thought.

In the very least, Geordi was grateful there were no class M planets in the vicinity.

Although it had been only an hour since Data had left, Geordi calculated that it had been much longer for Data given the effects of the time dilation field.

"Lieutenant La Forge? Lieutenant Worf? Would you care to join us?" Riker called out.

He shuffled the cards and looked up at the two Lieutenants.

"We can deal you in," Riker offered.

"I would prefer to remain at my post, sir," Worf replied.

Riker nodded in acknowledgement. He understood it was key to keep everyone level-headed and comfortable in a situation like this. If tempers got testy it could spell disaster.

"You know I was nearly stranded once," Riker said. "A rescue mission on Nervala IV."

He began to deal the cards to Miles and Wesley.

"It was while I was serving on the Potemkin. I led an away team to rescue a group of researchers that had been stranded at an outpost on the planet," Riker recalled.

There had been significant atmospheric distortions created by the unusual weather patterns present on the planet. The interference had almost dissipated his transporter pattern. The unique meteorological makeup of Nervala IV's atmosphere meant it created a distortion field that made transporters and shuttles were blocked from accessing the surface.