The Farther Shore - Christie Golden [84]
He nodded, not looking at her, and she closed her eyes and sank into the world of the machine, trying once more to outsmart the android.
They made it to the turbolift and slumped against the walls as it lurched into movement.
“You’re doing wonderfully, Data,” Janeway said.
“Thank you, Admiral.” Data’s voice issued from her comm badge. “It is not without its challenges.”
She exchanged wry looks with her crew. They were all sweating and breathing hard, grateful for even a brief break from the close fighting.
[251] “We’ve been very lucky,” Chakotay said. “I thought we’d all be dead by now.”
“I share Commander Chakotay’s opinion,” said Seven. “We have been fortunate indeed to—”
The turbolift shuddered, and went still. Everything went dark.
There was a moment of silence, then Paris’s voice said in the darkness, “Now see what you’ve done?”
Janeway sighed. “Activate lights,” she said, grateful that she’d suggested they wear them. “Commander Data, please come in.”
There was a burst of static, then Data’s voice. “Admiral, I regret to inform you that the queen has taken control of the turbolift.”
“We’ve figured that one out on our own. What else is going on?” As she spoke, Janeway heard the small, reassuring pings of Seven’s tricorder.
“You are very close to your destination. You are currently between the fifteenth and sixteenth level. I can give you directions, but I should warn you that you need to move quickly. The Borg are being directed to your present location.”
Tuvok and Montgomery were already working on loosening the emergency escape panel in the ceiling. Chakotay crouched beside them, phaser at the ready.
“I have pinpointed our location on the tricorder,” Seven said. “If we emerge on the sixteenth level, there is a catwalk six meters from here that should take us directly to Covington’s office.”
The panel came loose, clanging. With the instincts of those who had survived many battles, everyone pressed back against the turbolift walls. Phaser fire came [252] through the open space. Chakotay, expecting just such an attack, fired blindly. There was a sudden silence.
They needed to take advantage of it. “Let’s go, Janeway ordered. Chakotay lifted her in his strong arms and she braced herself on either side of the opening, swinging herself up lightly and getting to her feet. They were indeed between floors and she moved cautiously to the partly open door.
Chakotay’s blind shooting had done well. Two drones lay, unconscious, on the floor. Janeway peered down the corridor first one way, then the other.
“All clear,” she called, standing guard while the rest of her team climbed out of the stalled turbolift. Seven was out and assisting Paris when Janeway heard the sound of running feet. She signaled to Seven, who helped Paris out the rest of the way and took up position alongside her former captain.
Janeway waited, straining to hear, as the footsteps came closer. She nodded to Seven and they moved as one, Janeway firing down the corridor to the left, Seven to the right. By the time they stopped firing, twelve unconscious bodies lay in piles in the corridor.
Looking at the drones, Paris said, “You should leave some for others to play with, you know.”
“I’m sure there are plenty more where these came from,” Janeway said.
“We’re all out,” said Montgomery. “Let’s find that catwalk.”
They stepped over bodies as they made their way down the corridor. Seven kept her eyes on the tricorder and yet managed to thread her way without stumbling.
Abruptly, she stopped and looked up at the ceiling. [253] “Here,” she said, pointing. Chakotay, Montgomery, and Tuvok loosened the panel, and soon they were all once again crawling through holes in the ceiling. As the smallest person, Janeway had the least difficulty, but she heard Montgomery and Chakotay muttering about the close quarters as they made their slow way.
Seven took the lead, stopping now and then to check her tricorder. As much as possible, they proceeded in silence. Janeway didn’t even attempt to contact Data. They would be easy