Requiem - Michael Jan Friedman [23]
He’d have to ask for volunteers. He wouldn’t order anyone to sign up.
“Sir?”
Geordi snapped out of his reverie and saw that he and Barclay were alone in the turbolift. Geordi had a vague memory of watching Beverly and Troi get off a moment ago.
“Yes, Reg?”
“I’d like to volunteer, sir,” Barclay said, looking his superior square in the eye. “For the team that will be boarding the station, I mean.”
“Volunteer?” Geordi repeated uncomprehendingly.
“Yes, sir. The captain lost several seconds getting me out of the access tunnel. And he only missed the airlock door by a second or two. If I hadn’t—”
The engineering chief shook his head. “Reg, you can’t do that to yourself. What happened to Captain Picard was nobody’s fault.”
“Maybe,” Barclay answered. But Geordi could see that the man didn’t believe him for a second. “Still, I would like to help if I can.”
The commander gave a mental sigh. “To be perfectly frank, Reg, I don’t know if I can take the chance. It may get rough out there.”
“I know that,” said Barclay, “And I’m ready, sir. I’d really like to help … and I’d like to show you … well, I’d like to show you what I’m made of, sir.”
Geordi watched Barclay’s expression turn deadly serious, and saw something he’d never seen before in the man: resolve.
That made two times that Lieutenant Barclay had surprised him today.
“Commander Riker,” came Worf’s voice from behind the first officer. “Priority-one message from Starfleet Command, for Captain Picard.”
“I’ll take it in the captain’s ready room,” Riker responded, already on his feet.
It took the commander only a few long strides to reach the ready room door and then the captain’s desk. Once before, when Picard had disappeared, Riker had been extremely uncomfortable at that desk. Since then, he’d adjusted to command in the captain’s place—though he still hated the circumstances.
Sitting down, the exec touched the control and the Federation seal popped onto the small viewscreen. A moment later, Admiral Kowalski’s stern, weathered features replaced the seal. In less than an instant, the admiral recognized Riker. His scowl deepened.
“Where is your captain, Commander?”
“Missing, sir. I’m preparing my report now.”
Kowalski frowned. “We’ve got a tense situation over here, Commander. Give me the highlights.”
Riker quickly reviewed the discovery of the alien station, Picard’s disappearance, and their plan for a rescue. The admiral listened carefully, with no change in expression.
“I assume,” Kowalski said, “that Captain Picard briefed you on his plans for the summit.”
“No, sir. There wasn’t time.”
“Damn,” the admiral exclaimed.
Riker leaned forward. “Sir, I think we still have a good chance of finding the captain and continuing the mission as planned. We still have six days—”
“Yes,” Kowalski interrupted. “But no more. The Federation regards the summit as critical. To date, we have had little contact with the Gorn. The fact is, we really don’t know what’s going on there, but we have been getting reports of internal tension within their homeworld’s governing body. If that tension reaches a crisis point, it could mean a number of things for the Federation—and none of them good. At best, we will have lost the hope of progress Picard’s breakthrough gave us twenty-five years ago. And at worst … well, I don’t intend to see the worst happen.”
Riker saw from the look on Kowalski’s face that the admiral was not exaggerating. The situation and possible consequences worried him greatly. “What can I do, sir?”
“You can get me Picard,” Kowalski replied. “He’s the closest thing we have to an expert on the Gorn. I want both him and the Enterprise at the Gorn homeworld in five days—at the outside.”
Riker grunted. Now it was five days. “We could use some help in our search, sir. Are there any Starfleet vessels close enough to assist?”
Kowalski shook his head. “Not so much as a scout ship, commander. I’m afraid you’re on your own.” For a moment, the admiral allowed his expression to soften. “I’m sorry about your captain, Commander. But in the event you are not able to recover