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CHAPTER

9

The absolute last thing Geordi wanted to do was get anywhere near this ship’s core. Not with hundreds of thousands of humanoid bodies floating in it. Yet, he was working with the S.C.E. on an insertion team, and doing the hard jobs was what the S.C.E. did. Clearly, investigating this was going to be one of those hard jobs.

Gomez led them into the lift, and Geordi took a deep breath, trying to prepare himself. Clearly, Vale was as shaken as he was with the idea. The two Bynars even seemed agitated, talking in soft computer clicks between themselves.

“Deck fifty-five,” Gomez said.

The lift door closed as Geordi glanced at her. “Thought you said we needed to take a look?”

“We do,” she said. “But I’m not sure what I’d be looking at, to tell you the truth. I want Dr. Lense with us.”

“She’s going to thank you later,” Vale said.

“If she doesn’t kill you first,” Geordi said.

Gomez only nodded as the door slid open. She motioned for Vale to hold the door in position and tapped her combadge. “ Da Vinci , come in.”

“Go ahead, Commander,” Gold’s voice came back.

“Are you still in communications contact with team two?”

“No,” Gold said. “They’re on deck ninety, as best our scans can tell.”

“Understood,” Gomez said.

Geordi watched her. Obviously she had wanted a bigger team to tackle what they were heading into, but it seemed that wasn’t really possible. At least not with her top people. And Geordi doubted that she wanted to spend the time to stop on deck ninety and find them.

“Have Dr. Lense beam down to join us,” she said.

“She is right here on the bridge,” Gold said. “She’s ready and heading for the transporter room. Give her one minute.”

“Understood,” Gomez said. “Out.”

They all stood there in silence, clearly thinking of what they were about to see. By the time Dr. Lense appeared, ten paces from the lift, Geordi had all kinds of things imagined in that core. His biggest worry was that nothing he imagined would be as bad as it was really going to be.

“Problem?” Lense asked, moving to join them in the lift.

“A big one,” Gomez said, motioning for Vale to clear the door and let it close. “Deck one hundred and four.”

“Deck one hundred and three is the last deck above the ship’s core area,” the computer said. “The lift does not extend down into the core.”

“Lucky it,” Vale said.

Dr. Lense gave her a sharp look, then turned back to Gomez, but the commander said nothing.

“Deck one hundred and three, then,” Geordi said.

Twelve of the longest seconds Geordi had ever lived passed as they waited in silence for the lift to take them down into the belly of the Beast. Dr. Lense clearly wanted to know why she had been brought along, but Gomez seemed unwilling to tell her at the moment. More than likely Gomez wanted Dr. Lense to get the readings for herself, to double-check what they had discovered.

The doors opened.

Vale, phaser drawn, checked both ways, then said, “Clear.”

“Someone want to explain to me what I’m walking into here?” Lense said.

“Bodies,” Gomez said. “If we can find a way into the core area of this ship.”

“The passengers—”

“—and crew—”

“—are there.”

“Dead.”

“But this ship could hold thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of humanoids,” Lense said, staring at the Bynars after glancing at Geordi.

“Yes—”

“—we know.”

All Geordi could do was nod at Dr. Lense as the reality started to dawn on her. She quickly pulled out her tricorder and scanned around them, something Geordi had been unwilling to do yet.

“Oh, my . . .” she said, her voice breaking as the tricorder gave her the readings.

“There’s an observation port ahead,” Gomez said, her voice firm. “Everyone, brace yourselves for this.”

She moved ahead, getting to the clear viewport a few steps ahead of Geordi. She staggered slightly as she got in front, as if punched in the stomach, then stopped, took a deep breath, and turned and stared.

Geordi knew his fears had been right the instant he was at the viewport. It was