Kobayashi Maru - Michael A. Martin [38]
Archer was the first to disturb the extended silence. “Im afraid I cant lend you any money, Captain Vance.
Vance now looked utterly defeated. “Then please dont neglect to scuttle us before you get under way for your next assignment, he said very quietly.
“But since the regs require me to render aid to all vessels in distress, Archer continued, “Ill lend you something more valuable than money: my chief engineer and his staff.
“Sir? Burch said, obviously as surprised as Mayweather was. Reed, Vance, Stiles, and Searles all looked poleaxed as well, and even the two usually impassive MACOs exchanged quiet sidelong glances.
“How much time do you need to get the Kobayashi Maru back under way? Archer asked the engineer.
Burch answered without hesitation. “Forty-eight hours, max.
“Then get busy, Lieutenant. Give TPol a list of whatever personnel and matériel you think youre going to need.
“Yes, sir, Burch said, grinning as he contemplated the no doubt unusual challenges that awaited him. Mayweather hoped for his sake that his repair-time estimates would prove as reliable as those his predecessor used to make. After all, as good as Burch had so far proved himself to be, he wasnt Commander Tucker.
Nobody is at the moment, Mayweather thought with a profound sense of sadness.
After directing Lieutenant Reed and the MACOs to remain aboard to keep an eye on things, Archer moved toward the lounges raised hatchway. “Lets head back to Enterprise, Travis. I want to get this job expedited so we can get back to chasing real pirates just as soon as humanly possible.
“Can never get enough of that, Captain, Mayweather said, grinning as he followed Archer into the corridor that led back to the section of the Kobayashi Maru to which Shuttlepod One was docked. As they walked, he contemplated still more endless hours of patrolling, watching, and waiting. And the interval that would precede the resumption of those monotonous tasks.
Forty-eight hours. Two days.
Plenty of time to dash off a few handwritten letters home before the Maru resumed her voyage toward Gamma Hydra, and a rendezvous with the Horizon .
SEVEN
Day Thirty, Month of KriBrax Dartha City, Romulus
T HE LIGHTS SUDDENLY WENT OUT , throwing the entire lab into stygian darkness. Trip knew that the facility had its own emergency backup power systemswhich should have kicked in on their own the minute the main power circuits were interruptedso he was immediately suspicious. His pupils struggled to cope with the nights abrupt intrusion.
Though he was still effectively blinded, his artificially pointed ears nevertheless identified the nearby sound of metal clicking against metal.
A disruptor pistols safety catch.
“Ehrehin, get down! Trip shouted.
In the same breath, he tackled the elderly scientist, hoping that the more-than-human strength inherent to Vulcans and their genetic offshoots would keep the old man from suffering a bad fracture when he hit the floor.
Breaking a hip is still a lot better than taking a disruptor blast, he thought as both mens bodies slammed against the unyielding tile floor behind one of the labs massive bookcases. The transitory brilliance of an energy blast singed the hairs on Trips neck in the split second before hed moved out of the immediate line of fire.
That was way too close, he thought amid the acrid stench of ozone and fear. He struggled to catch his breath and get his bearings.
“Cunaehr! The old man could barely wheeze Trips Romulan cover name, his lungs just having been forcibly and suddenly emptied. But at least he had eluded the assassins disruptor beam.
For the moment, at least.
“Stay down, Doctor, Trip whispered. “And keep quiet. He hauled himself up onto his elbows, cautiously surveying what little he could see of the labs work area in an attempt to pinpoint the would-be killers location.
Then he heard the gentle rustle of something moving beyond the sturdy desk behind which he and the old man had taken refuge. The sound seemed to have come from somewhere