| The Unwitting Deckhand |
| Summary: | Cora gives Bannik a job to do, and involves him in the IIG without actually mentioning that she's doing so. |
| Date: | 30 September 2041 AE |
| Related Logs: | Everything to do with sabotage in CIC, and the IIG. |
| Players: |
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| TACCO's Office |
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| It's an office. It's got a TACCO in it. It does not have tacos in it. |
| Post-Holocaust Day: #216 |
The TACCO's office is spartan, Cora apparently not having spent much time or effort on decoration since moving in. It is adorned primarily by stacks of files and papers, a laptop in the center of the desk, an ashtray with a cigarette still burning in it, and the captain herself, seated behind said desk. When Bannik arrives, she gestures to the chair opposite her and greets him, "Specialist. Shut the door behind you, please, and have a seat."
Bannik does just that. He enters the TACCO's office and closes the hatch behind him. "Yes, sir," says the Specialist, moving to take a seat in front of Cora's desk. He's clutching a pad and paper for dear life, as if hanging onto that will protect him from the TACCO's wrath. "You wanted to see me, sir?"
"I did," Cora replies with a nod, settling back in her seat. She observes Bannik for a moment, clutching his pad, and abruptly smiles. "Relax, specialist. I have another job for you. Remember that work you did for me with those cameras?"
"Uh. Yeah! Sure. In the space junk. Of course." Bannik nods his head a few times. It seems like something of a weight is off his shoulders; whatever he thought he might have been here for, he isn't. "What can I do for you, sir?"
"Yes, in the space junk," Cora nods. She closes the file folder on her desk and adds it to a pile then sits back again, hands folding absently in her lap. "How comfortable are you working with that sort of technology?" she asks, "I know your specialty on the deck is avionics, but I understand you have some facility with electronics and computers in general?"
"I do. I mean, you have to learn to tinker a bit when you're a farmboy. Besides, I took the common electronics class as part of A-School. It's all part of the lead up to your avionics qual." Bannik is talking Deck-y talk now, and that's easier for him. "What do you need done?"
Cora listens, nodding as Bannik explains, seemingly not put off by the Deck jargon. "I need the electronics in CIC gone over again," she tells him, "Not from an intensive engineering stand-point, but…geographically. I need to know where the various points of access to that network are on the ship, outside of CIC itself. Where do those wires go? Where could someone get to them? Things like that."
Bannik takes a deep breath and then lets it out. "Well, I've done a little bit of work on the electronics in CIC. But really, a snipe would know best. I mean, heck, you can just check the wiring diagrams. Do you want me to do it from the records?" Despite his protestations, he's starting to take notes. "Or do you want me to actually yank out bulkheads?"
"From the records, first," Cora replies, not commenting on why he might or might not be the appropriate person for this job, "And then double-check what you find in person. I'd like to know precisely how difficult it is to yank out a bulkhead and mess with wiring without anyone noticing, so some hands-on work will need to be involved. Put together a list of the most likely places someone might gain access to the system, and then we'll talk about the next step. Also, while you're doing this, keep an eye out for anything unusual. Signs of tampering, or damage, in particular, and just anything that seems off, in general."
"Okay. Well. CIC has 24/7 watchstanders, so it'd be harder to tamper there. But then again, if your infiltrator is a snipe or someone who should be up there working, no one would necessarily know." Bannik is just speculating out loud now. "One could also try it outside of the CIC, to one of the lead-in points, you know? It could be a lot of spots. But I can start looking." A pause. "Can I bring someone in on this? Or you want it to be just me?"
"It should be more difficult, yes," Cora replies, "And yes, for that reason I'm particularly interested in the lead-in points outside CIC, as well. Basically, Mister Bannik, I'd like you to test your luck a bit, on this. See how much you can get away with doing in CIC without explaining yourself. And then see what you can find outside of CIC. I want to know not only what you find in terms of locations and the status of the equipment there but also how much scrutiny you get." As for bringing someone in, she considers a moment, gaze keen, faintly narrowed. "Did you have someone in particular in mind?" she asks.
"Sofia Wolfe." Bannik offers it up without hesitation. "She's in Engineering and has some more hands-on experience with this sort of thing. I bet she'd be a big help to the project." A pause. "But if you want it to be just me, well. I can do that, too."
Cora is silent after that suggestion and explanation. "No," she says finally, "Let's keep it just you for the moment. Let me know how things are looking, and if it's proving to be a larger project than anticipated, perhaps Miss Wolfe can be brought in. Also please bear in mind, Mister Bannik, that this project is to be considered highly classified. You tell no one about it, and if anyone asks what you're doing when you're taking apart bulkheads and the like, you are to lie."
Bannik pauses for a long moment. "And if the MP's bring me in, sir, I'll have them contact you?" He has to plan ahead here.
Cora pauses for a moment herself and then replies, "I'll have a word with the marine CO and see that she's made aware that I'm to be contacted if you're brought in. Given that different MPs have different clearance levels, I'd prefer that you not mention my involvement yourself."
Bannik takes a deep breath. "All right. Thank you, sir." He gets to his feet, tucking his pad under his arm. "I'll let you know what I'm able to find out."
"Thank you, Specialist," Cora replies with a nod as Bannik rises, "Keep me posted on your progress, please. In person," she adds, "I don't want any written reports or records on this, so any notes you need to take for your own use should be kept as vague as possible and carefully secured."
Bannik isn't much of a Secret Agent Man. Indeed, Bannik is Mr. Record and Verify and Inventory. But he nods again, visibly pushing down his hesitance with a swallow. "Yes, sir. Will do, sir."
"Very good, Mr. Bannik. I look forward to hearing your findings," Cora says. She doesn't salute, but she does nod in the fashion of an official dismissal.