Hearts and Minds

by Dayton Ward

  Tapping strings of controls, La Forge said, “We’ve reconfigured the deflector shield emitters to fire a feedback pulse on the same frequency as the EMP generators. When they hit us, we’ll hit back, and the feedback should overload the weapons. There’s a hitch, though.”

  “Of course there is.”

  La Forge ignored the remark, keeping his attention on his instruments, before saying, “Because of the reconfiguration, our shield emitters won’t be able to provide us with the same level of protection. If we’re dealing with a handful of satellites at the same time—say a half dozen—it’ll get a little bumpy, but if they decide to really gang up on us, we could be in trouble.”

  Recalling the previous encounter with the weapons, Worf asked, “Can’t we outrun them?”

  “To a point, but if we have to retreat out of transporter range, then retrieving Captain Picard and the others becomes a problem again, and after we try this, they’ll be onto us.”

  Worf turned his attention to the main viewscreen and the image of Sralanya it displayed. The Enterprise was still maintaining a safe distance from the planet, giving it time and maneuvering room in the event any of the Eizand military craft attempted to make a move toward them. So far, the patrol vessels seemed content to avoid doing anything that might escalate the current situation, but Worf knew that would change the moment he ordered the starship back to the planet.

  “Commander Worf,” said Lieutenant Šmrhová from the tactical station just behind the captain’s chair. “I’m picking up an incoming burst transmission from the surface, on an encoded Starfleet frequency.” Then she turned from her console to look at Worf and La Forge. “Sir, it’s an emergency data transfer from a tricorder. The only thing it contains is a topographical scan of the planet’s surface and a set of coordinates.”

  Every Starfleet officer was familiar with a standard tricorder’s various methods of transferring information to another data collection point, whether another tricorder or a starship’s main computer. Designed as a failsafe feature in the event of unexpected calamities in which the transfer of important data was critical to a mission’s success, the emergency burst transmission feature was intended for use when it became apparent that the tricorder would soon lose power or otherwise become inoperative or even seized by a hostile party. Enabling this last-ditch measure would quickly exhaust the unit’s power supply, so officers were instructed not to use it except as an extreme last resort.

  “The away team,” said La Forge. “They must not have their combadges, and they’re sending up a flare.”

  Nodding in agreement, Worf gestured to Šmrhová. “Scan those coordinates.”

  “Aye, sir.” A moment later, she reported, “I’ve got a low-power transmission. It’s weak, but I can compensate.” A few more commands entered to her console resulted in the bridge’s intercom system erupting with the voice of Lieutenant T’Ryssa Chen.

  “—en to Enterprise. If you can read this, we could sure use a hand down here!”

  Worf moved to the command chair. “Conn, set a course back to the planet. Full impulse. Stand by all weapons.” He glanced over his shoulder to La Forge. “Are your modifications ready?”

  “They will be,” replied the engineer, already turning back to his console. “I hope.”

  As he settled into the captain’s seat, Worf fixed his attention on the image of Sralanya. The planet was growing larger on the viewscreen with every passing moment.

  In front of him at the flight controller station, Lieutenant Faur called out, “I’m showing two ships along our present course, sir.”

  “Sensors show they’re Eizand security vessels,” added Šmrhová. “They’re moving to intercept, but we’ll get to the planet first.”

  “We will deal with them as necessary,” said Worf. It was not the patrol ships that worried him. His primary concern was the satellites and the barrier they represented between him and the away team. Would the scheme hatched by La Forge and Taurik work, or was he placing the Enterprise in even greater danger?

  There was only one way to find out.

  Sralanya

  Picard did not see the soldier until it was almost too late.

  “Get down!” he shouted, pushing aside Dina Elfiki and leveling the Eizand pistol at the first figure to step into view.

  The Coalition soldier and his companion were rounding a bend just as Picard fired, catching him in the chest. Falling backward off his feet, the soldier dropped to the tunnel’s rock floor even as the other Eizand reacted. Picard, weighed down by the equipment pack he carried on his back, stumbled and fell against the tunnel wall as a burst of energy from the soldier’s weapon chewed into the rock behind him. Bits and flecks of heated stone peppered his back, and he flinched as one piece of shrapnel landed on his left hand. Even as he shook off the momentary pain he fired his pistol, forcing the soldier to retreat around the bend in the tunnel.

  “Captain, are you all right?” asked Elfiki, who crouched on the other side of the passage, pressing herself against the wall. Like Picard, she carried a pack laden with some of the computer equipment she had salvaged from the work area and held an Eizand sidearm in her hand.

  Holding up his free hand to indicate silence, Picard pushed himself to his feet. He advanced up the corridor, the muzzle of the pistol leading the way as he maneuvered forward. The sound of something rubbing against the tunnel wall was coming from just around the bend, and before he could think about it he lunged ahead. Around the corner was the Eizand soldier, trying to backpedal in response to the unexpected new threat. The barrel of his weapon was coming up as Picard fired his pistol. Falling against the rock wall, the soldier crumpled and slid unconscious to the ground.

  “We have to keep moving,” he said, studying the fallen Eizand. This far into the subterranean passages, he and Elfiki were still somewhat isolated from the assault force that was now storming the dissenters’ hideaway. The raid itself was a surprise, but reacting to such an occurrence had been part of the rebels’ plans. An early warning from lookout patrols had provided sufficient time to mobilize the dissenters and prepare to repel the attack, and also allowed Picard to send T’Ryssa Chen and Ravel Dygan to the surface in search of help from the Enterprise.

  Janotra, prior to leaving them in the work area, had given them instructions on how to reach the surface through a smaller tunnel that was away from the caverns and the paths connecting them. The passage had been cut through the rock with explosives years ago, intended as one of several emergency evacuation routes in the event of cave collapses or an attack like the one they now were experiencing. These contingency tunnels were not referenced on any maps of the underground area, just in case such documents were captured, but at least two Coalition soldiers had found their way here. That they were alone was wishful thinking at its finest. The only choice for Picard and Elfiki was to seize the computer equipment and invaluable secrets it held, and make a run for the surface in the hopes that the Enterprise would be waiting to beam them to safety. All Picard had to do was not get lost in this underground labyrinth, but protecting the computer and its data was of the utmost importance.

  A map would certainly be useful now.

  Following Janotra’s designated path took them on a gradual incline as the tunnel began angling toward the surface. Picard could hear the sounds of fighting, with yelling voices interlaced with weapons fire and other noises he could not identify, growing louder as they progressed. He paused when part of the wall on the passage’s right side opened up to give him a bird’s-eye view of one of the larger caverns.

  Below, all was chaos.

  “Damn,” said Elfiki, peering around the edge of the stone wall to take in the scene. There were dozens of Eizand rebels and even more Coalition soldiers scattered across the chamber, chasing or fighting one another. Numerous bodies from both sides littered the ground, and while some weapons fire still echoed through the cavern, much of the skirmish had devolved to hand-to-hand combat. Picard saw that the Coalition troop
s had a definite advantage. From what he could see, the attack on the underground sanctuary was turning into a rout.

  “We can’t stay here,” he said. “The Coalition will have control of this place before too long.”

  Elfiki shifted her pack to a more comfortable position on her shoulders. “How much farther do we have to go?”

  Gesturing up the gently sloping tunnel, Picard replied, “Perhaps two hundred meters, assuming we don’t run into anyone else.” What would they find on the surface? Had Chen and Dygan made successful contact with the Enterprise? Or would a squad of Coalition soldiers be there, ready to take them back into custody? Picard had no intention of being arrested again.

  That will be the day.

  An energy burst from behind him slammed into the rock over his head, and Picard spun around while dropping to one knee. Shielding his head with his left arm, he raised his weapon and searched for a target just as the whine of a second shot howled in the tunnel. Another bolt of red-white energy was almost blinding in the passage’s dim illumination, and Picard had the presence of mind to drop to the ground as the shot passed over him. To his right, Elfiki returned fire, not truly aiming but instead attempting to force their attackers to seek cover by sending shot after shot back down the tunnel.

  “I guess they found the secret passageway,” she remarked.

  Scrambling to his feet and trying to ignore the protests of his back under the weight of the pack, Picard pulled at the science officer’s arm. “Let’s go.”

  More weapons fire screamed from somewhere behind him, obliterating chunks of the tunnel walls. This time, Picard did not stop to return fire but instead fired to his rear as he pushed Elfiki ahead of him. The suppressing fire worked, but only for a moment before he heard warning shouts followed by more shots. Leading the way, Elfiki found another turn in the passage but stopped, releasing a cry of surprise. Picard whirled in that direction, searching for threats, but saw only Janotra.

  The Eizand dissenter was worse for wear. Blue-gray blood caked the left side of his head. His left eye was swollen shut, and his clothing was dirty and torn in several places. Walking with a limp, he rested the barrel of his rifle atop his left forearm while aiming with the weapon down the tunnel, past Elfiki and Picard. Without saying anything, Janotra fired, holding the rifle steady as multiple shots screamed down the passageway.

  “Keep moving,” he ordered, and Picard and Elfiki moved behind him, proceeding down the tunnel. Seconds later, Picard heard him hobbling after them.

  Elfiki dropped back to help him. “Are you all right?”

  Janotra sagged as he used his left hand to steady himself against the wall while continuing to walk. With a cough, he replied, “I . . . am injured. The Coalition is moving quickly. I must get you to . . . safety.”

  “Are you sure you can walk?” asked Picard. The Eizand’s condition seemed serious. How far could he travel with such injuries?

  “That . . . is not important now. Getting you to safety is . . . the priority.”

  With Elfiki assisting as best she could to keep Janotra moving, Picard took the lead, increasing his pace as they continued their ascent. Was it his imagination, or was the uphill slope getting more pronounced? The passage itself seemed to be narrowing, and for a moment he feared they had taken the wrong route to safety and would instead become stuck here.

  Then he rounded another bend, his shoulders rubbing against rock in the tightening passage, and in the distance he saw a small circle of bright light.

  Picard smiled.

  Almost there.

  26

  U.S.S. Enterprise

  Alarms wailed across the bridge. Alert indicators flashed at every station, amplified in the weak glow of emergency illumination. The deck shifted and trembled beneath his feet, and even with the benefit of artificial gravity and inertial damping systems, Worf still felt his stomach heave as the Enterprise withstood the full force of yet another assault. Despite himself, Worf realized he was gripping the arms of the command chair with such strength that he might very well rip them from their mountings.

  From where he still stood at the aft engineering station, Geordi La Forge shouted to be heard over the din. “Initiating feedback pulse!”

  Seconds later, the lights dimmed even further as power was drawn from across the ship and fed to the deflector shield emitters. On the screen, Worf saw the combination of energies as the electromagnetic resonance bursts collided against the Enterprise’s shields, and the deflector emitters struggled to handle the assault even as La Forge channeled vital power to the feedback pulse. The risky maneuver was already having an effect on the ship as energy from the EMP weapons began bleeding through the compromised shields and attacked the Enterprise itself.

  “We got three of them that time,” said La Forge. “Three are partially incapacitated, but still in it.” Worf heard the engineer curse before adding, “I’m not sure how many more of these we can do before we have to pull back.”

  “Power drains across the ship,” reported Ensign Jill Rosado, who was manning the ops station in the absence of Glinn Ravel Dygan. “It’s not critical, but it’ll be a problem the longer we stay here.”

  Worf grunted, unhappy with the report, but for now there was nothing to be done. “Acknowledged. Conn, continue evasive maneuvers.”

  “Aye, sir,” replied Lieutenant Faur, her voice sounding harried. The senior flight controller had her hands full guiding the Enterprise back to the planet and now was attempting to keep the massive starship from falling victim to too many of the Eizand satellites. Despite her best efforts, it was impossible to avoid them now that whatever controlled the devices seemed to have figured out the strategy devised by La Forge and Taurik.

  “I think they’re onto us,” said the chief engineer, confirming Worf’s thoughts. After a successful first attempt had seen three of the unmanned satellites rendered inoperative thanks to the feedback pulse, a second bout against six of the devices only managed to disable four, forcing Worf to order the ship’s phasers brought to bear. It was an option he was willing to undertake for any of the satellites without living crews, but now even those, which were far fewer in number and yet just as dangerous, were beginning to converge on the Enterprise’s position. The remaining two drones were destroyed, but the chink in the starship’s proverbial armor was exposed along with the potentially fatal flaw in this entire scheme.

  “We’re starting to lose the power battle,” said Ensign Rosado. “It’s taking more energy each time we repeat the process, and the shield generators are taking the brunt of the abuse, and they can’t recharge fast enough. At this rate, another couple of rounds and the generators will fail.”

  “Engineering to bridge,” said the voice of Commander Taurik. “Be advised that we are experiencing fluctuations in the antimatter containment system.”

  Stepping away from his station, La Forge called out, “How bad is it, Taurik?”

  “The fluctuations are minor,” replied the Vulcan without hesitation, “but given the fluidity of our present situation, caution is advised.”

  Worf pushed himself out of the command chair. “Bridge to transporter room. Do you have a lock on the away team?”

  Over the intraship, the transporter officer on duty, Lieutenant Statham, replied, “I’ve got four non-Eizand life signs at the designated coordinates, Commander.”

  “How much time do you need to complete transport?”

  “Fifteen seconds should do it, sir.”

  “Stand by.” Moving so that he stood just behind Faur, Worf said, “Lieutenant, can you guide us clear of all satellites for that long?”

  The flight controller looked up from her console. “Scans show twenty-one more of those things in position to intercept us within the next three minutes, sir. About half of them are close enough that they could be on us in less than a minute if we slow our speed to get a decent transporter lock.”

  “It is a risk we will have to take. Initiate the necessary course adjustments.”
Turning from the conn and ops stations, Worf looked to Aneta Šmrhová at the tactical console. “Lieutenant, attempt to hail Lieutenant Chen again.”

  The security chief nodded. “Aye, sir. We may have better luck now that we’re closer.” She entered the necessary commands to her console before reporting, “Channel open, Commander.”

  “Lieutenant Chen,” said Worf. He returned his gaze to the main viewscreen, which now showed the planet Sralanya all but filling the image. “Stand by for transport.”

  Instead of Chen, everyone on the bridge was surprised to hear the voice of Captain Picard. “Number One, I need you to beam Lieutenant Chen, Glinn Dygan, and one Eizand male back to the Enterprise. Notify Doctor Crusher to be ready for an incoming emergency. Then, you’ll transport myself and Lieutenany Elfiki directly to Presider Hilonu’s office.”

  Taken aback by the unusual request, Worf nevertheless set aside his surprise and instead replied, “Captain, our situation here is deteriorating. To this point, we have managed to avoid firing on any manned ships or satellites, but if we remain in orbit much longer, we may be left with no choice.”

  “I want to avoid any casualties if at all possible. Once you’ve completed transport, withdraw to a safe distance until you hear from me.”

  Before Worf could respond, he heard what could only be the sounds of energy weapons fire ringing through the open channel.

  • • •

  Still gripping the clunky, primitive radio transceiver with his free hand, Picard dropped behind a rock jutting from the side of the gentle mountain slope, raising his Eizand weapon and returning fire. His shot went wide, but he saw one of the remaining soldiers sticking his head up and around the boulders that were providing the assault troops their cover and concealment. He fired again, sending the soldier scurrying back out of sight. Lying unconscious on the hillside were a half dozen troops, all incapacitated thanks to the weapons carried by the four Enterprise officers.