Part 21 (1/2)
Sousa didn't say anything in return. He didn't have the strength. But at least he wasn't glaring at him. Maybe later he'd remember what happened and hate him like crazy. But for now, it was all right.
Kane found that he had a lump in his throat-a big one. He closed his eyes, not wanting to show the emotion there. If only they would get on with the d.a.m.ned transport already, he told himself. If only ...
And then he realized that the winds had stopped bowling. Opening his eyes, he saw that they were standing on a transporter platform. As a squad of medical personnel rushed up to take Sousa off their hands, the ensign spotted Captain Picard at the far end of the room, next to Chief O'Brien.
Once he was certain that the away team had arrived in one piece, the captain tapped his communicator. ”Picard to the bridge.”
”Aye, sir?” came the reply. It sounded like Commander Data.
”We've got them,” the captain said. ”Let Geordi know we're on our way.”
Kane turned to a haggard, hollow-eyed Riker. ”Will that be all, sir?” he rasped.
The first officer clapped him on the shoulder. ”Yes, Ensign. That'll be all.”
”Thank you, sir,” said Kane. After all, he hadn't wanted to lose consciousness while he was still on duty. But since he was on his own time now, he fainted dead away.
”Commander La Forge?”
Geordi looked down at his communications panel. He knew that voice.
”What is it, Data?”
”I have been asked to tell you We have recovered Commander Riker's team. We are on our way to the entrance now.”
The engineer let out a breath. ”That's good, Data. Another minute and-”
Suddenly, one of the panels in the Ops center exploded, bathing both Geordi and Scott in a rain of white-hot sparks. Before the younger man knew it, Scott was rus.h.i.+ng over to check the damage.
”d.a.m.n!” he cried. ”The plasma intercooler's gone. She's overheatin'!”
Working at his console to contain the problem, Geordi muttered a curse of his own. ”I've lost helm control!”
”Geordi? Are you all right?” the android asked.
Geordi shook his head, forgetting that there was no way Data could see him. ”I've been better!” he cried.
A second panel blew out, and then a third. Both of them burst into flame. They were losing the battle-and on the verge of losing the war.
”We've reached our limit,” said Scott, ”and pa.s.sed it. There's no way we're going to get the s.h.i.+p out of here now! Tell 'em!”
Geordi pounded on his useless control console. His partner was right. No matter what, they were stuck here-until the hatch destroyed their s.h.i.+elds and crushed them like a walnut.
”Mr. La Forge!” It was the captain he heard now. ”What is your status?”
”Lousy,” he cried. ”We won't be able to move the Jenolen out of the way when you arrive.”
”What are you saying?” asked Picard. His voice was breaking up now; even the communications system was going to pieces.
Gagging on the smoke that was filling the Ops center at an alarming rate, Geordi barked ”What I'm saying is this ... you're going to have to destroy the Jenolen in order to get out of there!”
Absorbing La Forge's bleak message, Picard turned to his second officer. ”Mr. Data ... how long will it take us to reach them?”
”With our impulse engines operating at sixty percent power,” said the android, ”it will take one minute forty seconds to reach the entrance.”
Captain Scott's voice came over the communications link, strident with urgen cy. ”I cannae hold her together any longer, sir. Ye've got maybe two minutes before the engines go critical-tops!”
Picard spoke to the intercom grid. He'd sent Riker down to engineering, to expedite things if he could. ”This is the captain. I need more speed, Commander.”
”Aye, sir,” came the answer. ”We're on it, sir!”
Picard felt his fists clenching. Despite Riker's optimistic response, there was only so much he could do down there. It was going to be close-too close.
”Bridge to Transporter Room Three,” he said. ”Stand by to beam two from the Jenolen as soon as we're in range.”
”Aye, Captain,” replied O'Brien. ”Standing by!”
On the viewscreen, the starfield faded ... turned blue, with a hint of green. Abruptly, the Enterprise was plummeting through the atmosphere, heading for the distant escape hatch.
Once again, their diminished s.h.i.+eld capacity left them open to rising temperatures from the friction of ”reentry”-but not so much as when they had no s.h.i.+elds at all. Besides ... what other choice did they have?
Picard glanced at Worf. ”Load photon torpedoes,” he commanded.
”Photon torpedoes loaded and locked on target,” the Klingon barked.
On the Jenolen, everything was falling apart. The s.h.i.+p was shaking badly. Consoles were sparking and exploding. The lighting was flickering and the engine noise was a shriek of overworked metal.
Scott had been called a miracle worker in his day. But he'd just run out of miracles. Turning to La Forge, he shouted over the din.
”She's coming apart, lad! I cannae do anything more for her!”
The younger man looked at him, sweat streaming down both sides of his face. He managed a smile, even now. ”I know, Scotty. I know.”
What else could he say? They'd fought the good fight. They'd done their best. They'd even come close.
But in the end, Scott reflected bitterly, they'd lost.
Chapter Sixteen.
PICARD SAW DATA TURN to glance over his shoulder at him. ”We are within transporter range, sir.”
The captain felt as if he had been waiting for that cue forever. Without a moment's hesitation, he said ”Bridge to transporter room! Energize!” And then to Worf, almost in the same breath ”Fire torpedoes, Lieutenant!”
”Aye, sir!” called the Klingon, executing as quickly as he possibly could. After all, there was no margin for error. If he got his barrage off even a split second too late, they'd hit the Jenolen and go up in the biggest conflagration this strange world had ever known.
Picard watched the forward viewscreen as the transport s.h.i.+p-still caught in the hatchway of the Dyson Sphere-loomed larger and larger, bathed in bright splashes of phaser fire. But even then, the plucky Jenolen refused to succ.u.mb, refused to yield to the atom-shredding blasts.