Captain's Table 02_ Dujonian's Hoard - Michael Jan Friedman [24]
We were on their tail. At least, all my instruments indicated as much. But I wouldn’t be satisfied until I saw the back of the Cardassian loom up on the screen in front of me.
Another few seconds, I told myself. Just hold on. Another few seconds and we would know if our effort had paid off.
Abruptly, I saw what I was so desperately looking for. The Cardassian warship fell into view, filling our screen with its nearness, its nacelles spilling streams of photons on either side of us.
We were so close to the enemy, we could almost see the seams in her hull. For the first time in our encounter, we had the upper hand. Immediately, I leveled us off.
Nor was our captain slow to recognize her advantage. “Fire!” cried Red Abby, her eyes alight.
Our phasers stabbed at the Cardassians. And this time, at considerably closer quarters, they had more of an effect. The enemy’s shields began to buckle under our barrage.
“Keep firing!” Red Abby snarled.
The Cardassians fled, executing some evasive maneuvers of their own. But I maneuvered right along with them, keeping them in our sights so Worf could worry their hindquarters.
The Daring’s weapons batteries were hardly up to Starfleet standards, but the lieutenant didn’t seem perturbed in the least. His aim was unerring, his timing impeccable. In a matter of seconds, he had knocked out one of the warship’s shield generators and was going after the other one.
Then the tide turned.
The Cardassians’ shields jumped to full strength again, no doubt drawing on energies from less crucial systems. Once again, our beams spattered harmlessly before they could do any damage.
I engaged the port thrusters, knowing what was coming next. But, despite my best efforts, I was too late.
The Cardassians’ weapons banks erupted at us with renewed fury. The Daring shivered and jerked sideways under the force of the attack. A console exploded, sending out a shower of sparks. Smoke filled the bridge.
I felt a hand clutch my shoulder. “Get us out of here,” Red Abby demanded of me.
Then the Cardassians struck again. I was flung out of my seat. The next thing I knew, I was dragging myself off the deck, a ringing in my ears and the taste of blood in my mouth.
My comrades had been tossed about, as well. One by one, they began to stir, to show signs of consciousness. All except Sheel, whose head lay at a fatally awkward angle at the base of a blackened console.
Red Abby, who was only a few feet away from Sheel, crawled over and checked the woman’s neck for a pulse. Apparently, there wasn’t any. The captain cursed and looked to Worf.
By then, he had regained his post.
“Report,” she rasped, her blue eyes glittering as they reflected a sudden burst of sparks.
“Shields are down,” the lieutenant told her, blinking away the smoke that wafted around him. “Weapons are disabled. And the engines are off-line impulse as well as warp drive.”
“What about life supports?” asked Red Abby.
Worf consulted his monitors. “They still function,” he concluded. Then he added, “For now.”
I looked at the viewscreen. The Cardassian warship wasn’t firing on us any longer. But then, it didn’t have to.
We were dead in the water.
Madigoor
“BUT WHY DID they attack you in the first place?” asked Hompaq.
“I wondered that myself,” said Dravvin.
“Did they suspect you of aiding the Maquis?” asked Bo’tex.
Flenarrh grunted. “Perhaps they were asserting a right to territory beyond the borders established by treaty.”
Robinson nodded. “Perhaps.”
“Unfortunately,” said Picard, “I was destined to wait some time before I received an answer. At the moment, my comrades and I were more concerned with the Cardassians’ intentions than their motivations. And since they weren’t making a move to destroy us …”
The Captain of the Kalliope shook his head. “They had decided to board you,” he concluded.
Picard smiled. “That was our guess as well.”
The Tale
RED ABBY TOOK in everyone