He wasn't quite sure how it'd happened. He arranged for a clandestine meeting with Eva to discuss some upcoming business. Naturally, he selected a little out of the way compartment to dodge security.

His memory was normally impeccable, but now he couldn't even be sure if any words had been exchanged between the two of them before she had him pressed up into the bulkhead and held in a rather furious lip-lock.

Never much of a social butterfly, Jeff had as little contact with other people as he could manage, to say nothing of the opposite sex. That would technically make this his first kiss, which some people seemed to think was a big deal.

In all honesty, he wasn't entirely sure if he liked it or not. He generally shied away from human contact and this was about the most invasive anyone had been with him ever since the day of his arrest all those years ago.

It might sound silly to the casual observer, but he was trying his damnedest to work through the situation rationally, to process the confusing flood of strange stimuli. He wasn't having much luck.

And as if things weren't difficult enough, a most unwelcome intruder felt the need to butt in.

Jeff sighed, or rather he would have if his mouth wasn't otherwise occupied.

She had a point. Jeff knew he was digging a hole for himself, but he had zero interest in putting a stop to it. It was all so confusing. N's interference certainly wasn't helping any.

Then, out of the blue, N had to throw him off even more.

It was especially true for N and to a lesser degree for Jeff as well that 32 seconds was no trivial amount of time. He used that time to take charge of his faculties, to overpower all the alien sensations that had been washing over him and to start plotting out what needed to be done.

So it was. Jeff moved his hands between himself and Eva and started to gently push her away. She was so wrapped up in what she was doing that it took her a second for it to register.

Finally breaking off the kiss, she asked him, "What's wrong?"

Unfazed by the revelation, Eva only shrugged.

Jeff adjusted his visor again.

Eva just stared at him blankly like a deer caught in headlights. Jeff snapped his fingers to bring her back around.

Jeff was genuinely impressed. He was worried about bringing in another outsider, but it looked like Eva could handle herself.

Holding her chin, Eva replied teasingly, "The jury's still out on my end."

Eva wouldn't be able to see him rolling his eyes behind his visor.

Jeff honestly hadn't paid it much thought.

She started kissing him again, this time with even more passion. Jeff thought he might have to come up with an excuse to see her again sooner rather than later.

She said 'sirs' because Commodore Frazier was also there, leaning against the bulkhead all casual-like.

Going to the position of at ease, Eva replied, "Well enough, sir. All things considered, that is."

It was exactly as Jeff had said, not that she was surprised. Still, she had to act like she was hearing this for the first time.

Admiral Mfume was tapping on his screen, looking at something. When he was done, he looked back to Eva, folded his hands and said, "The late Captain Huang was a rather confounding individual to work with, but you know that better than perhaps anyone else."

She let slip a little more honesty than was prudent, but neither of the two flag officers seemed to bat an eye. After all, it was no stretch to imagine the little tyrant was as big of a pain in the ass for them as he was for her.

The Admiral continued, "You conducted yourself admirably during our escape from the Sheolites. Without you, we would all be dead or in captivity by now."

Eva could feel herself blushing a bit.

Boy, was he ever, but Eva didn't say that. Somehow, she managed to come up with something far more diplomatic.

It almost sounded plausible when she said it. She thought lies were supposed to get more difficult the further you went down the road, but it actually seemed to be getting easier. No doubt it was due to Jeff's bad influence, she thought to herself with a barely suppressed chuckle.

Again, Eva could feel herself blushing. She really wasn't used to being the center of attention like this.

Eva cursed herself for stammering, but couldn't afford to get hung up on it. It was a fine line that divided nervous trip-ups that were natural and those that were incriminating. The more she worried about it, the quicker she'd cross that line.

Seemingly oblivious to her internal battle, Admiral Mfume said, "You hold two advanced degrees. In fact, you have held them since before your enlistment."

That was God's honest truth and the more she stuck to it, the easier it'd be to drown out the lies. Or did the truth make the lies stand out more?

Satisfied with her answer, Admiral Mfume said, "Fair enough." He then tapped on his screen some more. "You worked in avionics for ten years before cross-rating to Electrician's Mate. Why?"

Eva made a little sweeping gesture with her hand, saying, "This is the reason, sir, this ship." Realizing she'd broken the position of at ease, she quickly drew her hand back behind her back before continuing. "The Tico is on the cutting edge and I wanted to be here when she launched. There weren't any openings for my rating, so I cross-rated and petitioned to go to the promotion board so I could get the LCPO billet in E Division."

Now she was getting into hot water. Again she opted to hide her lies in a veil of truth.

Now came the tricky part.

Eva bit her lip. She was slipping up. She had to get it together.

And here again Eva had to act like this was news to her.

This was the moment of truth. Jeff had set her up for this moment, but she still had an out if she wanted to take it. No one was going to force her to take over for Captain Huang, or at least she didn't think so.

Yes, she was drawn to the technology, but it would mean she would be inexorably trapped in Jeff's web of lies. If he went down, she'd most likely go down with him. And if she was found out, he probably wouldn't get away unscathed.

She also had to worry about being made into a nice big target. She could easily wind up like Captain Huang if the men in black made another go at taking the Ticonderoga. Still, somebody needed to take the job and if she didn't do it, who would?

Ultimately, her passion and her sense of responsibility were on the same page, which was enough to overcome her fears.

Feeling the confidence swell in her, Eva replied more resolutely, "Yes, sir. I'll do it. I'll do my best."

Eva had replied almost entirely by reflex. She was going to be commander? She was going from a division-level chief to a department head just like that? And she was going to be charged with what was perhaps one of the most critical pieces of top secret technology in the whole Union. It was enough to make her knees go wobbly.

She managed to stay on her feet as the Admiral then said, "You will report to Commander Sharif tomorrow at 0900 for a security interview. If you pass, you will be granted an interim security clearance upgrade."

What could be higher than top secret? She could've sworn top secret was as high as you got. Sure, she'd heard rumors that there was a higher level, but apparently the very existence of that level of clearance was itself classified information.

She recalled how thorough her TS investigation was and wondered precisely how they intended to dig any deeper. Then she realized just what tomorrow's appointment meant. She was going to be grilled by professionals whose sole purpose in life was to protect military secrets. They wouldn't be the type to shrug off her every stammer and stray glance like it was nothing. What was she going to do?

Of course, a security investigation is unnerving even for people with a clean record and a clear conscience, so her being visibly shaken was taken as nothing out of the ordinary by the two officers in the room. Commodore Frazier in particular was more interested in comforting her than casting a critical eye her way.

Eva managed a weak chuckle and said, "Well, sir, I suppose you can call me that once I get pinned."

The Admiral nodded and said, "Very well then. Dismissed."

Eva promptly did and about-face and walked out of the office. Trying to maintain her professional bearing as much as possible, she made a beeline for the nearest head and locked herself in the first open stall she could find. Then the full force of her panic swept over her.

She proceeded to puke her guts out, retching and dry heaving for several minutes after she'd thoroughly emptied the contents of her stomach. It brought her little relief, though. Her stomach continued to seize and convulse even after she was done.

She fell backward into the stall door, curled up in a ball, rocking back and forth and holding the sides of her head. It felt like her hands were the only thing holding her skull together.

She was about two seconds away from total brain lock when she somehow found the presence of mind to close her eyes and focus on her breathing. Steadily her racing heart slowed down to something close to normal. Now that she was calmed down, she was able to think clearly again.

Nothing had changed. She committed herself to this path when she first agreed to help Jeff. It wasn't just about her. The ship needed someone to run the Kasfeys and maybe someone else could be trained to do it, but she'd already figured out so much about how they worked. Everybody benefited here. It was going to be okay. She just had to stick to the story and everything would be just fine.

Everything would be just fine.