Ghost of a Chance - Mark Garland [3]
"We still can't break free. We're holding position, but we can't keep that up for long," Paris informed the captain, paying frantic attention to his console.
"Captain." It was Torres in Engineering again. "I have a suggestion."
Janeway's eyes went wide, then narrowed as her mind came around to what was very likely the same idea. "Emergency flight rules," she said.
"Yes," B'Elanna answered. "We can add a minute amount of antimatter to the impulse reaction chamber. That might give us the extra power we need."
"If it doesn't blow us all up," Chakotay added.
Janeway looked at him, one eyebrow going up.
He shrugged, guileless. "Don't let that stop you," he said.
"Do it!" Janeway commanded.
For a long moment the howl of the engines and the bone-jarring tremors that swept the ship continued unchanged, then B'Elanna spoke again, "Transferring antimatter... now."
Voyager surged like a boat swept up on a passing wave.
"Hull stress climbing beyond maximum design levels," Tuvok reported calmly.
Janeway looked at him only briefly. "Keep it coming, Mr. Paris."
"Aye, Captain."
"We're pulling away!" Kim shouted, just as Janeway felt it happen, felt the ship abruptly move much farther than before as their momentum shifted decidedly away from the darkened star.
"We've lost the warp engines," Paris announced. Even as he spoke, entire panels on the bridge erupted in a series of bright flashes followed by curling smoke and a flicker of flames. The smell of burned circuits filled the stagnant air. The fire-suppression systems quickly detected and snuffed out the flames while the bridge crew scrambled to the extinguishers, then held them at ready until it was clear they would not be needed.
"The impulse engines have dropped back to within normal levels, and are still on-line," Paris informed the captain, then added, "For the moment."
"Proceed in-system at half impulse," Janeway ordered. "Let me know if the engines get any worse."
"Transferring power back to life-support systems," Kim said, working swiftly. As life-support came back on-line, the computer automatically began to rid the room of the smoke and fumes. Full lighting was restored to the bridge.
Janeway sat back in her chair and asked for damage reports as Voyager finally began to settle down. Judging by the bridge, she expected the worst. As it turned out, she was not surprised.
"Almost everything is off-line," B'Elanna reported from Engineering, confirming the bad news Tuvok had already begun relating. "The main computer detected stresses high enough to trigger an automatic warp core shutdown. Warp drive, phasers, transporters, anything that uses a lot of power, is gone for the moment. I'm using everything we've got to keep the main computer up and the impulse engines and life-support running. I won't know how bad it is until we can run complete level four diagnostics."
The captain frowned. A long strand of thick dark blond hair had been pulled free from the top of her head; it hung in her face now, as if intent on adding annoyance to catastrophe. She brushed it straight back, only to have it fall again. "At least we're not dead in the water."
"No, Captain," B'Elanna said, "but go easy on the impulse engines.
After that last jolt, I don't know what shape they're in."
"Helm?"
"Sluggish but responding, Captain," Paris came back.
"Understood." She turned slightly to her right. "Mr. Neelix, I'd like another word with you."
The alien appeared to be quite shaken, as he stood straightening his colorful tunic, his narrow fingers shaking noticeably.
"Captain," he said, "I must go to Medical and see that Kes is all right."
"Of course, but first I'd like to know anything you can tell me about that brown dwarf. Anything at all."
"Which would be nothing, Captain, as I said. It's as much a surprise to me as it is to you. Had I only known--" "Understood." The Talaxian