Dark Mirror - Diane Duane [128]
Picard smiled a very, very small smile and went back to his reading.
“A vessel is showing on sensors,” Data said, working over his panel for a moment, then looking up at the viewscreen. “Closing at warp seven.”
The center of the screen showed a tiny, dark silver shape. Riker looked at it and breathed out.
“Captain,” he said, “the other Enterprise is closing. Go to warp eight,” he said to Ensign Redpath.
“Warp eight, aye,” Redpath said. The captain came out of the ready room, looking at the screen. As he did, Troi came in from the turbolift, wearing her normal uniform with an expression of considerable relief, and sat down in her seat.
“So it begins,” Picard said. “Mr. Redpath, have you been looking at the new evasive routines Commander Riker and the tactical team have prepared?”
“Yes, Captain. They’re fairly straightforward.”
Picard sat down in the center seat, hiding a smile. “I will hope not, Ensign. If they are, the other ship will have no problem duplicating them.”
“Sorry, sir. I meant—”
“Thank you, Mr. Redpath. Just keep us well away from them for the time being. Picard to engineering!”
“La Forge here, Captain.”
“Progress report.” From the background came a brief explosion of angry Delphine chatter. “We’re having to do some retooling, sir. The inclusion resonator array is out of—”
“How long, Mr. La Forge?” Picard said as gently as he could with the sight of that slowly growing shape on the viewscreen staring him in the face.
“Ten minutes, Captain.”
“I’m sorry about this, Mr. La Forge, but it’s going to have to be five. Does that estimate include testing the apparatus?”
This time the Delphine in the background was even more untranslatable.
“Do you eat with that mouth?” someone could be heard shouting in the background; and someone else’s reply, “Don’t encourage him, he’s on his third bucket.” There was a pause, and Picard opened his mouth to say something cutting, but suddenly a ragged cheer could be heard. “It’s up,” Hwiii shouted, “it’s up!”
“We’ve got power to the apparatus, Captain,” Geordi shouted over the increasing thunder of the warpdrive as they accelerated. “Pulling eight hundred terawatts. Total warpdrive output holding steady at fifteen thousand terawatts, one hundred fifteen percent.”
“How long will she hold it, Commander?” Picard said.
“Hard to say, Captain. The power is feeding to the inclusion apparatus, but it’s not operating as yet. When we activate, there’ll be a substantial drain, and warp speed is going to drop off.”
“Accelerate to warp eight point five,” Picard said, standing up and pulling his uniform tunic down, and it pulled down, and he smiled for sheer joy. “All spare power to the shields, Mr. Worf. Mr. Redpath, start first-level evasive. Nothing showy.”
“Aye, sir.” The starfield flowing past them as seen on the main viewer began to pitch and roll.
“Some strain to the structural field,” Data said. “Power drains are becoming apparent shipwide.”
“Engines running at one hundred seventeen percent,” La Forge’s voice said. “I give you about five minutes of this, Captain. We’re running the inclusion device through test cycle now.”
“Do you have any idea what you’re looking for?” Riker said.
“The files from the other ship are quite clear, Commander,” Hwiii said. “In fact, they appear to have been written almost for technical illiterates. Which is fortunate for us, since the instructions assume they can take nothing for granted. Test cycle looks for altered-hyperstring frequency baseline and variation and checks frequencies against residual strings still attached to the vessel. When they match, we can go.”
Picard sighed, watching that shape in the viewscreen following them through the corkscrewing course they were running. “The sooner the better, Commander.” He glanced over at Troi. “How are you, Counselor?”
“Much better, Captain, thank you.”
“Crew status?”
“They are much improved,” she said, and sighed. Picard raised an eyebrow at her. Troi caught herself and said, “Concerned, Captain, but ready for the best … or the worst.”
“They are closing, Captain,