Survivors - Jean Lorrah [42]
But the immediate losses were not the worst of it. Once assured that Dare would not regain consciousness for hours yet, although he would survive unimpaired, Yar set out to discover the condition of the ship. The few people moving about had been conscious to the end-and their reports were grim indeed.
The Orions had left most of the medical personnel unharmed, but it was a brutal kindness. They had removed not only the dilithium crystals from the cargo, but those from the Starbound’s own warp engines-and then methodically wrecked the impulse engines, the single shuttlecraft, and the life capsules. They had also removed irreplaceable components from the subspace radio, so the ship could not call for help. Finally, they had gone through the severely stunned victims of their attack and shot all the officers in the head-except for the chief medical officer and two experienced nurses.
When the pirates had gone, the medics worked their hearts out to save as many lives as they possibly could … only to learn that they had doomed them to a lingering death. With neither the warp engines nor the impulse engines operational, battery-operated life support would fail in six days-and by the time Starfleet began to wonder why Starbound was late for her next planetfall, everyone on board would be many days dead.
Yar roamed the corridors, anguishedly searching for someone-anyone- with an idea to save them. But the trainees were too stunned to think, and there were no experienced officers left to guide them.
Except Dare.
How had he survived? All Yar could remember was his being struck in the back. He had fallen forward over some others of the bridge crew. Perhaps the Orions had not turned him over to see his face or insignia. However it had happened, Yar breathed a prayer of thanks to any god who might have had a hand in saving him. Even if only so that she and he could die together.
But Darryl Adin was not a man to accept death without a fight. Over and over Dare had drilled into the trainees, “Learn to be survivors. Your job is to protect other people-how much protection is a dead security guard?”
Yar was sitting by his bed when he finally came to-and despite the warnings of Dr. Trent that he needed rest he soon had out of them the condition in which the Orions had left the Starbound.
“Who’s in command?” he demanded at once.
“I suppose you are,” Dr. Trent told him.
“But who has the con?”
“Nobody, really,” said Yar. “Karin Orlov and Brian Hayakawa are on the bridge trying to rig some sort of radio transmitter, but without subspace the chance of a signal reaching another ship before-“
“Any chance is better than none!” Dare said. “Who else is taking action?”
“Uh … what else is there-?”
Dare sat up and swung his legs over the side of the couch.
“You’re in no condition to get up!” protested Dr. Trent as Dare winced sharply.
Dare opened his eyes and pinned the medic with his dark gaze. “If I don’t, who will? You’re needed here, and the trainees don’t have the experience. Who survived from Engineering?”
“T’Irnya, Zkun, Donal, and Bosinney, but-“
“Where’s Bosinney?”
“Mr. Adin,” said Dr. Trent, “Ensign Bosinney is injured. He won’t be able to work on the engines, if that’s what you have in mind.”
“Why not? Is he unconscious?”
“No, but I had to tranquilize him. When the Orions broke into Engineering and the crew ran out of phaser power, they used their tools as weapons. Bosinney had a welder, one of the Orions tried to shoot it out of his hand-and destroyed Bosinney’s right hand.”
“Oh, God,” Dare said, looking down at his own hands in his lap for a moment. But then he lifted his head. “If he can’t do the work-he can still direct it. There’s nothing wrong with his brain, I take it?”
“He is in severe shock,” Trent said angrily.
“Well the best thing to bring him out of it,” said Dare, “is getting back to work. Can he move about?”
“Mr. Adin!” the doctor objected.
Dare stood, wobbly but determined. “If there is a chance in hell of restoring impulse power, George Bosinney is the only one who can do it. I’m sorry if