Unworthy - Kirsten Beyer [101]
The holograms nodded in unison and left him to his patient. He quickly confirmed their initial assessment and then injected him with a hypospray.
Reg’s eyes opened wide and immediately found the Doctor’s.
“Where is she?” were Reg’s first, disquieting words.
“Where is who?” the Doctor replied gently.
Barclay immediately pushed himself up on his elbows but was thwarted by a wave of nausea and pain. He winced, bringing his hand to his forehead as he murmured, “Ouch.”
“I’ve provided you with an analgesic that should ease your discomfort, but you need to rest,” the Doctor advised him.
“There’s no time,” Barclay replied, steeling himself to endure the throbbing in his head as he pulled himself into a seated position and then lowered his feet to the floor. He stumbled a little, obviously dizzy.
“Reg, I really must insist that you—”
“Doctor, I’d like you to route your program through your mobile emitter and come with me.”
“You’re not going anywhere.”
“We have to find Meegan,” Reg insisted. “She’s been compromised by the Indign. The consciousness never left her. It’s still in control.”
“How do you know that?” the Doctor demanded.
“I’ll explain later.”
“Reg, really,” the Doctor said in his most soothing voice. “Why don’t you lie down again, and—”
“No,” Barclay said, holding his head between both hands as he shook it. “I know what to look for. You have to come with me. In case she tries to stop me again.”
“Reg, I have another patient to attend to.”
Reg saw Seven’s still form.
“Did Meegan do this too?” he asked with obvious concern.
“Of course not,” the Doctor replied. “Seven’s injuries were sustained on an away mission.”
Reg immediately went to the nearest control console and activated a holographic nurse to attend to Seven.
“Once the Doctor and I have departed, you are to seal the sickbay and under no circumstances are you to open those doors to anyone without the Doctor’s order or mine,” Reg instructed.
“Yes, sir,” the EMH responded, unperturbed.
He then hurried to the Doctor’s office and retrieved his mobile emitter, affixing it unceremoniously to the Doctor’s sleeve.
“Let’s go.”
“Reg, I don’t understand.”
“I know,” Reg replied. “But I promise, I’ll explain when all this is done.”
Despite his odd behavior, the Doctor had no reason to mistrust his friend or the urgency of his intentions. Satisfied that Seven would be well cared for in his absence, he followed Barclay from sickbay.
276 KIRSTEN BEYER
“Captain, the Galen has dropped out of warp.”
“Stay with them, Ensign,” Eden ordered Gwyn. “Where are we, Lieutenant Lasren?”
“We have traveled more than four light-years from the Indign system,” Lasren reported.
“Are there any nearby star systems or inhabited planets?” Eden asked evenly.
“No, Captain,” Lasren said. “This area was previously charted by Hawking . It contains a high concentration of subspace instabilities. It is likely that dozens of transwarp tunnels once intersected this sector.”
Paris shot a knowing glance at Eden who only nodded stoically.
“Hail the Galen,” Eden requested. Commander Glenn’s face filled the viewscreen. Her sea green eyes were stormy, but filled with resolve.
“What’s your status?” Eden inquired.
“We appear to have arrived,” Glenn noted, “but we’re still locked out of helm controls.”
“I could transport Conlon and one of her teams over to provide assistance,” Eden offered. Both women knew that Galen’s engineering staff was the least experienced in the fleet. The Galen and Demeter hadn’t been intended for deployment in combat areas.
Circumstances change, Eden thought grimly.
“I’d appreciate that,” Glenn replied.
“Expect them momentarily,” Eden confirmed.
“Chakotay is in custody as ordered,” Glenn added.
“Acknowledged,” Eden replied, then nodded to Lasren to close the channel.
“Bridge to Conlon.”
“Go ahead, Captain,” Nancy’s voice replied. The trepidation it held was impossible to miss.
“Assemble a team for transport to Galen. They are still locked out of their helm controls.”
After a brief pause, Conlon replied, “I’m sorry, Captain,