The Sky's the Limit - Marco Palmieri [39]
“Lieutenant Duffy. Look, Doc, they’re going to need help to get that fire out. Especially if most of the on-duty engineers are unconscious.”
Pulaski looked at the young man’s earnest face and nodded. “Make that a transport for two, Chief.”
Miles looked up at the ceiling as if hoping for divine assistance and then released a deep sigh. “Aye, ma’am. Adjusting transport for two additional personnel.”
As the familiar whine of the transporter faded, Pulaski unclenched her teeth and glanced down to ensure she was still in one piece. Convinced she’d beaten the cosmic craps table yet again, she assessed the damage in engineering. The plasma fire cast strange shadows as the flames jetted from one of the bulkheads. She hadn’t spent much time in engineering when it was intact, but clearly it had seen better days.
The EMR team split up into two groups. Technician Johannson led her team toward the collapsed bulkhead with the arriving security personnel. They began triage and helped extricate the wounded from the debris. Technician Peters took the remaining members and began searching for any injured away from the blast. Pulaski spotted Geordi coming down a ladder to the main floor and went over to join him.
“Well, you certainly know how to throw a party here, Lieutenant.”
Geordi gave her a quick grin before turning serious. “We’ve got to get this fire under control. We’re losing power to the warp core.”
Lieutenant Duffy stepped forward. “Just point me in the right direction and I’ll take care of it for you.”
“Kieran, good to see you. Grab the first people you find and stabilize that power. You’ve got to give me time to get that fire under control.”
“You’ve got it, boss. Drinks are on you in Ten-Forward tonight.”
“You’ve got it, Duffy. Now get moving.”
As Lieutenant Duffy sprinted toward a bank of controls, Geordi moved toward the jet of purplish flame that gouted into the room. Pulaski tapped her communicator and linked into the main sickbay.
“Sickbay, this is Pulaski. We’ll begin moving the injured into auxiliary sickbay in a few minutes. I need medical team 5 to join us there. We’ll keep main sickbay as a reserve for now. There may be more casualties than we know about, so stand by.”
“Understood, Doctor. Dispatching team 5.”
Pulaski gave silent thanks to the Starfleet personnel officer who ensured the Enterprise had an outstanding medical staff. She hurried toward Technician Johannson’s team to lend a hand when she saw Mister Worf and other security personnel enter and begin securing the invaders. She smiled, knowing how disappointed Worf was going to be with all his foes unconscious.
A piece of debris shifted on the other side of the fire. Pulaski peered through the flames and saw movement behind the collapsed bulkhead. Shading her eyes, she barely made out the shape of four people trapped there.
Tapping her combadge, she contacted the transporter room. “Chief O’Brien, this is Pulaski.”
“What can I do for you, Doctor?”
“We’ve got four people trapped under debris behind the plasma jet. Can you get a lock on them and get them out of there?”
A few tense seconds went by before O’Brien’s voice returned. “Negative, Doctor. Too much interference. Can’t get a good fix on them.”
She paused. “All right, Chief. Can you get a reading on me?”
“Aye. It’s faint, but I have you.”
“Good. I need you to transport me about eleven meters from my current location due aft. There’s a gap between the collapsed bulkhead and the far wall. I’ll be able to reach them from there.”
“Are you crazy, Doctor? I’m having enough trouble holding your signal. If I try to move you farther into the interference, I could materialize you inside the bulkhead.”
“Chief, that was not a request, that was an order.”
Will Riker’s voice broke in, surprising her. She hadn’t realized the bridge was still monitoring her transmissions. “Doctor Pulaski, I have to side with the chief on this one. It’s too risky.”
“With all due respect, Commander, you’re not the doctor here. Energize as soon as you’re ready, Chief O’Brien.”
She waited with held breath,