Death of a Neutron Star - Eric Kotani [43]
"Yes, Captain," he said.
Janeway saw more of the Qavok's yellowed, broken teeth than she ever wanted to see.
"Just wanted to let you know," Janeway said, smiling, keeping her posture relaxed, "that we are keeping an eye on your Qborne forces."
Captain Qados's mouth opened, again showing the teeth; then he snapped it closed. Clearly she had rattled him.
Janeway sat forward. "Be warned that any attack against the Xorm vessel Gravity will be considered an attack against this ship."
If a reptile could sneer, that's what Captain Qados did at that moment. "You seem to have a fondness for protecting the weak," he said.
"You seem to have a fondness of picking on those who can't defend themselves," Janeway said, smiling. "But Voyager can defend itself, as you've seen."
"We shall see," Captain Qados said.
"Is that a threat?" Janeway asked.
"Take it as you like, Captain," Qados said.
"Maybe I should just blow you out of space now and be done with it." Janeway stood, her hand on her comm panel.
Again Captain Qados's mouth opened, then snapped shut.
Janeway added casually, "I guess I'll have to give that idea some thought. Sure would make it easier on us all." She punched the connection off.
Tom broke into applause, while Harry and Chakotay laughed.
"I'm sure that shook him up," Chakotay said.
"Two hours and fifty minutes remaining," the computer said.
Janeway wanted to slap the computer, she was so frustrated. She glanced at Chakotay.
"Don't look at me," he said, smiling. "You're the one who ordered the countdown."
"Remind me never to do that again."
"Oh, I will," Chakotay said. "You can be sure of that."
LIEUTENANT TYLA WATCHED AS CHIEF ENGINEER B'Elanna Torres briefed her captain. Beyond the two women, the Qavok yacht sat, its lines smooth and rounded against the straight, functional lines of the Voyager shuttlebay. Beside the yacht, the shuttle looked more powerful. More forceful. More like it could handle any situation. Tyla knew that her hatred of the Qavok was coloring her observation, but she didn't care. The Voyager shuttle was just a better-looking craft as far as she was concerned.
"Linking the shuttle and the yacht together solves a number of problems," Torres said to Janeway, pointing at the screen on the panel in front of her. "We can use the shuttle's shields, the shuttle's engines, and the shuttle's navigation system. In essence, the yacht simply becomes cargo attached to the outside."
"And you can get both warp cores to breach at the same instant?" Janeway asked.
"We probably won't have to," Torres said. "When the tidal forces start tearing apart the containment of one, it will do the same to the other. When one blows, the other will do so almost instantly, just adding to the power of the explosion. But, just in case, we are attaching a timing device to both and to the gravitational wave container."
"So how long until you're ready?" Janeway said, studying the screen in front of her.
Tyla couldn't see exactly what the captain was looking at, since she was standing out of the way. The moment B'Elanna had come back from the meeting with the idea of hooking the two ships together, there had been little for Tyla to do but stay out of the way. She had, somehow, managed to do just that.
"We can have both ships ready in fifteen minutes," B'Elanna said. "If the math works out, which I think it might, and when you give the go, we'll launch the shuttle, then use a tractor beam to pull the yacht out of the bay and attach it. That process will take less than three minutes."
"Five to be safe?" Janeway asked. "We've got to consider the conditions outside at the moment."
"Five," B'Elanna nodded.
"Good work," Janeway said to B'Elanna. Then she looked at Tyla. "Both of you."
"Thank you, Captain," Tyla said.
B'Elanna nodded, undoubtedly already thinking about the next problem. Over the last hour or so, Tyla had come