Kobayashi Maru - Michael A. Martin [181]
He pulled the trigger, shooting the Romulan down before he could finish getting up. His unarmed foe slumped facedown on the deck, dead. Despite his repeated efforts to convince himself that this was necessary, Trip felt ill.
Time to go, he thought as his fingers entered the final commands into the override system. Stepping over the bodies on the deck, he neared the hatchway and ladder that led to the secondary levelthe turbolift, or its Romulan equivalent, was downand opened it.
Before he made his descent, he moved quickly over to Sopeks body, kneeling beside it to feel for a pulse. The mans respiration was shallow, but Trip could tell that he was still alive, if only barely. Of all the people on this ship, he might be useful to keep around, Trip thought, though he knew what he was doing was dangerous in the extreme.
Grabbing Sopeks collar, he dragged the mans limp body over to the hatch, then clambered down the ladder to the secondary deck below. Reaching up, he pulled the Romulan down the hatch, awkwardly catching the heavy man against his upper torso as the body toppled onto him like an extremely heavy rag doll.
Panting from his exertions, Trip suddenly heard noises coming from somewhere. The bridge deck, or this deck? he wondered as an adrenaline rush of fight-or-flight intensity sharpened his senses until he felt certain he was really alone in the narrow companionwayand quickly oriented himself. Noting that the escape pods were located near the back of the corridor, he began dragging Sopek toward one of them.
“Halt!
The order came from a Romulan man who had appeared around a corner from the other direction in the corridor. Trip couldnt tell whether or not the man was armed.
“Go to hell, Trip said, firing his disruptor at the man. The bolt hit the bulkhead near his would-be assailant, and as the Romulan ducked out of the way, Trip let loose three more disruptor blasts as quickly as he could.
Working quickly, Trip yanked Sopek the rest of the way in a few steps, pulling him into one of the cramped escape pods with him. He smiled as he noted that the pods launch controls worked independently of the main ships systems, which stood to reason for something that was used only during times of shipboard emergency. Slamming his hand down on a control, he sealed the pods hatch, as well as the pod bay hatch beyond the escape pods hull. As the hatches closed, he thought he saw the Romulan man approaching from the end of the corridor. Trip didnt even flinch, knowing that the man was too late to stop them now.
Working quickly, Trip entered the commands he thought would activate the pods ejection system, and saw, to his relief, that his assumptionsbolstered by the knowledge hed gained about Romulan spaceship technology over the last few monthshad proved to be correct.
All the onboard systems lit up as Trip felt the thrusters firing, the sudden acceleration shoving him against the wall of the pod as the little escape vehicle moved quickly away from the crippled bird-of-prey. Trip considered his options now. One pistol, one hostage, minimal impulse thrusters, and no powered hull-plating. He knew it was a meager list of assets, but it was better than what lay behind him.
Almost a minute passed before Trip felt a concussive wave bash into the hull of the pod, and the reinforced transparent aluminum viewport filled with a light so brilliant that he had to shield his eyes with his arm. The bird-of-prey had just self-destructed, right on schedule, instantly consigning everyone hed left aboard her to the Romulan equivalent of hell.
Trip turned and rummaged around in a small supply box until he found some cables, which he used to bind Sopek. Using a trick Malcolm had taught him, he bound the mans hands to his neck rather than behind his back; if Sopek