The Battle of Betazed - Charlotte Douglas [64]
Riker pondered the implications of O’Brien’s news. Scientists didn’t usually experiment on the front lines. What was Moset researching among the Betazoids that was so damned important?
“Any luck with the computer?” Riker asked.
O’Brien shook his head. “The lab’s computer is coded differently from the others on the station. We can’t break into it in the four—make that three minutes we have left. We need the access code.”
Time and Riker’s options were running out. If Moset was unwilling to abandon his work on the doomed space station, the Cardassian scientist’s experiments had to be something Starfleet needed to know about.
Riker didn’t stop to think further. “Cover me.”
He rose to his feet and aimed his phaser at the arguing pair who had yet to notice him. Taking advantage of their distraction, he moved closer. When the Vorta spotted him, her violet eyes widened with obvious distress.
“Don’t move,” Riker ordered.
Moset froze. The Vorta shoved the Cardassian in front of her and dashed for the escape pod.
Riker fired his phaser, but missed. The Vorta rolled through the open hatch and slammed it shut behind her. Riker let her go. Moset, the commander’s primary objective, was trapped, weaponless and clearly terrified.
Behind him, Riker heard the pounding of Cardassian reinforcements on the doors of the lab his team had closed and locked behind them. He tapped his combadge and spoke to his team. “Fall back. Close ranks around me.”
“Three minutes,” O’Brien reminded him.
Riker kept his phaser trained on Moset. “You have ten seconds to give my engineer your computer access code—”
“I won’t give you anything,” Moset sneered.
“—or I’ll leave you and your precious research to blow up with the station—and your patients.”
Moset licked his bottom lip. His gaze took in the blinking lights that indicated the Vorta had already launched her escape pod.
O’Brien advanced on Moset and grabbed the scientist’s padd. The Cardassian squealed in protest while O’Brien scanned it briefly, then shot Riker a can’t-make-heads-or-tails-of-it look.
Riker thought of the Betazoids he was leaving behind to certain death and prodded the Cardassian. “You can stay here and die with your patients, or you can give us computer access and become a Federation prisoner.” Riker shrugged as if the Cardassian’s decision meant little to him. “Which is it going to be?”
Moset’s internal struggle was obvious. He glanced anxiously from his padd clutched in O’Brien’s meaty fist to his chronometer, ticking down the self-destruct sequence. “Very well, I’ll cooperate.”
Riker contained his sigh of relief and followed Moset from the office to the computer in the adjoining room. The away team moved with him.
Moset approached his computer console and uttered his access code.
“Two minutes to detonation,” La Forge said.
O’Brien punched commands into the computer console.
“I suppose you want the other Betazoids, too,” Moset said with a resigned sigh.
Riker snapped his head up in surprise. “What other Betazoids?”
“The ones in the freighter at Docking Pylon One.” Moset shook his head in regret. “Those would have been my best subjects yet.”
“How many?” Riker demanded.
Moset shrugged. “No more than a few dozen.”
Riker tapped his combadge. “Riker to Picard.”
“We’re ready for you, Number One,” Picard’s steady voice came through from the Enterprise ‘s bridge loud and clear.
Riker spoke quickly. “Have the Enterprise scan for Betazoid life signs in the Cardassian freighter at Docking Pylon One and beam them aboard. They may need medical treatment.”
“Understood,” Picard replied.
“And prepare to receive several thousand Betazoids coming from the cargo bays. They definitely need medical teams. We’ll transport them to the shuttlebay from here,” Riker added, hoping O’Brien and La Forge could make the unfamiliar system work.
“Dropping shields,” Picard told him. “Initiating transport.