In the middle of the fighting, Worf's eyes landed on his phaser, and he wondered for a second, how he had found himself in this mess of a situation.
He'd been on Deep Space Nine for two years now. Had only returned to the Enterprise last week for a short visit: see his friends, let Alexander say hello to his old classmates. Everyone was a bit older, a bit less familiar. But they welcomed him back with open arms.
Then came the distress signal; the hastily assembled away team. He volunteered himself as a matter of course rather than after any form of careful deliberation. Then the meeting with city officials, where a fight broke out.
Factions splitting off.
Phasers out.
Team split up.
And all of that led to this moment, in which he found himself teamed up with Data, with the rest of their crew on the other side of the complex. God knows why, but he and Data found themselves outside during the scuffle. Now they were hiding behind snow-covered boulders to avoid the blasts from whatever group of attackers their assailants were.
The wind picked up, and Worf was suddenly glad to have tied his hair tied up so that it wouldn't be in the way. But this left his neck exposed to the frosty air, and if Russia had taught him anything it was that the elements were not to be trifled with. Russia had also taught him that snow had a smell; and today's snowfall seemed less than a mile away. If he didn't get somewhere with decent, warm clothing, he'd risk frostbite.
Frostbite was not honorable.
"Commander!" He called out to Data, finding it difficult to make his voice louder than the storm and the siege of ricocheting bullets and spears. "We must get back inside the building!"
On the other side of the large arc they were stationed on either side of, Data nodded. Or, at least, Worf thought he saw him nod. The wind whipping at his eyes made it difficult to see anything that far away.
"Lieutenant," Data replied. "I will move forward, if you-"
Data's voice was suddenly cut off. Worf's ears perked up, but he could hear nothing more. Squinting, he tried to see across the space between himself and his comrade. But the snow was starting to fall, and the flurries were making it more and more difficult to see.
"Commander!" He shouted, then quieted himself. If the attackers had caught up with them; somehow snuck around via a secret passageway, then…
"Yeeaaah!" a voice cried out, directly behind Worf.
He managed to spin around in time; fired his phaser in what he hoped was the correct direction. The attacker, weilding a sword of some sort, fell to the hard ground. Unconscious.
Okay. Today was full of surprises.
Worf breathed, then stood and looked around. More of them would be coming. And one had probably already attacked Data, which would explain why he was cut off earlier. Through the flurries, Worf just barely made out a shadow approaching from his left. Another spin, another phaser shot, and the attacker was on the ground before him.
Worf tapped his comm badge, eyes scanning the field around him.
"Worf to Enterprise...Enterprise, this is Lieutenant Worf; please respond!"
No answer. Worf didn't have time to figure out what was wrong, whether it be an environmental factor or something the uprising group had done to the communications systems. He had to find the rest of his crew. He had to get out of the storm.
Carefully, he peeked around the boulder he'd been crouched behind for the past ten minutes. He couldn't see anyone on the other side of it, in the complex or anywhere else. Of course, he couldn't see very much of anything out in this growing blizzard. So he grit his teeth and made a dash for it; twenty yards across open space, to the other side of the archway.
"Commander!" Worf called again, scanning the path he'd just created for any followers. All was quiet, except the wind in his ears. He turned back and kicked at the dusting of snow in his way as he stepped around the boulder.
There, he saw him.
"Data," Worf said under his breath. "ghuy'cha'".
Data was on his back, staring up at the sky. He seemed even paler than usual, wide eyes glistening a bright shade of yellow against his pale skin. But that wasn't the distressing part: no, that would be the weapon embedded in the android's torso. Some kind of large knife, lodged below his ribs.
One of Data's hands was clamped where it met his bioplast, carefully avoiding the object itself.
"One of the attackers 'snuck up' behind me," he explained in a soft, stuttering voice. "I did not have time to react."
Worf hesitated for a moment in indecision, and then crashed to his knees. He gripped his phaser a little tighter than before. Growled, angry; no, furious. "This group has no honor," he ranted. "Brave men do not engage in sneak attacks; they look their enemy in the eye as they attack."
If he were honest with himself, he was falling back on the old adages because he was terrified. Here he was, out in a storm, surrounded by people who had a feud with Starfleet he knew nothing about, with an injured android laying in front of him.
"Lieutenant," Data said with a shaky voice. He swallowed hard. "The weapon pierced one of my major fluid storage compartments." He looked up at Worf with the big eyes of a frightened child.
Worf's eyebrows shot up his high forehead. He had no idea what a 'major fluid storage compartment' was, but it sounded like something that shouldn't be stabbed. And he really wasn't used to Data's new emotions, having only seen him once since the integration of the emotion chip.
At the moment, Worf couldn't remember the last time he'd had a day as bad as this.
"Commander…" he started confidently, then cleared his throat. Dropped his voice to a softer tone. "I will keep you safe. And we will get back to the Enterprise. But first, we must return to the complex. It is dangerous to be out in a storm like this without protective gear."
Data nodded, and seemed to calm slightly. Good. Maybe, Worf wondered, he had done something right.
"You may leave me here, Lieutenant; if you must," Data said suddenly.
Worf jumped at the suggestion. Shook his head with a kind smile. "Not a chance."
They met eyes, and Worf tried to convey how serious he was. They'd been through it all in the past nine years or so. Days that were glorious, and days they would rather forget. Worf was not going to leave his friend and crewmate out here for anything; especially not just to save his own skin. Surely Data knew that.
"I will carry you." Worf shifted, so that he was in a better position to lift the heavy android. "I will try not to move you more than I have to."
"I can feel no physical pain," Data assured. "However, it is prudent not to allow the sword to move lest I, in human terms…'bleed out'."
Worf ignored that last statement; his hands were numb and shaky enough as it was. After one more glance around, confirming that they were alone out here, Worf set one hand under Data's knees and one behind his back. He stood slowly, trying to keep Data's body still. But the sword still jarred slightly, and Worf could now see and smell the golden oil seeping around the wound. It ran down Data's hand, as he continued to apply pressure around the point of impact. Some of it trickled down to his wrist, seeping into the fabric of his uniform.
"Lieutenant?" Data said softly, calling Worf back into focus.
He didn't respond; didn't need to. He needed to get them inside. So that's what he worked on.
All the while, as Worf hung close to the rocks and crept through the archway, he was merely praying that none of their enemies would show up. He didn't actually have a plan prepared if that were to happen, which was probably a mistake. But he didn't have the time or energy for thinking of strategies. And, anyway, they seemed to be the only ones braving this horrible storm. For once, the blizzard appeared to be a mercy.
"Data, do you have your phaser?" he whispered, as they hid beside a bush next to the door to the complex.
"Yes. However, I am unsure if my aim is functional at the moment."
Worf decided that was good enough; it had to be. His legs were starting to go numb, and if he didn't get warm soon, he wouldn't have the strength to keep carrying Data. With a surge of bold courage, Worf tore through the door and into the safety of the building.
Thank God, it was quiet. Everyone seemed to have disappeared to another part of the enormous complex; one of the benefits of fighting in such a disgustingly luxurious building. But still, Worf wasn't about to test their luck. He shifted along the wall, keeping in the shadows, and set Data on the most inconspicuous bench he could find.
"How are you doing?" Worf asked gently, settling next to Data on the bench.
"I was previously unaware of the emotional pain that accompanied physical injury." Data's hand clamped tighter around his injury. Even if they weren't already, his knuckles would be white as a sheet.
Worf found a tricorder attached to Data's belt, and snatched it up just to give himself something to do. He scanned Data from head to toe. Listened to it beep furiously. But none of it was legible to him.
"Data? What do these readings mean?"
Data's face fell as soon as he read the numbers. Jaw set, he swallowed. But when he spoke, it was as crisp and clear as ever. "At the current rate I am losing fluid, my coolant will likely reach dangerously low levels in one hour and forty-eight minutes. However, my temperature will begin to rise before then."
"When do you need to be back on the Enterprise?"
"In one hour and five minutes, my temperature will be high enough to cause damage to minor systems."
Worf nodded, frowning. He didn't even know how to get back in contact with the Enterprise, let alone get them transported back up. And where was the rest of the away team? Did they also require medical attention?
Worf took a deep breath. He had trained for situations like these: back home in Russia, and in his training on Kronos. And, of course, at Starfleet. But that training was feeling more and more useless. The real thing was a lot worse; a lot scarier. A lot more personal, and a lot more real.
He set down the tricorder and placed a hand on Data's shoulder.
"We will get you to sickbay in time." He didn't base his statement on any sort of fact; just hoped that he was right. "I promise."
Suddenly, one of the doors in the room slammed open. Worf ducked low, splaying himself around Data as a protective shield. As he pulled out his phaser, he listened closely.
Voices. Not the voices of his friends; the voices of those angry men that had attacked them earlier. One of them was approaching. Too close.
Worf's head shot up. He barely aimed in time, but he hit the guy in the chest.
Out like a light. But the commotion called the attention of the others; three of them.
Worf easily stunned the first, as he jumped up and maneuvered around the pillars and walls of the corridor. But as he fired, the second attacker hit him on the side with a stick of some kind. It did no permanent damage, but distracted him for a moment too long. By the time Worf had taken care of the one with the stick, the third was standing over Data.
"Why are you still alive?" the man sneered. He grabbed Data by the collar, pulled him up off the bench and onto his knees.
Worf spun back around and burst into action, firing at the man before he had a chance to do anything else. But already, the damage was done.
Data's wound was bleeding a steady stream of golden oil, covering both of his pale hands. His jaw dropped slightly, as if in shock.
Worf took hold of his shoulders before he could collapse, and eased him onto the floor. Cradled his head as it reached the stony ground; squeezed his arms to try and get his attention.
"Data?" he said softly. Worf pressed both of his own hands on top of Data's, both to connect with him and add to the pressure on the wound. "Commander."
Data's eyes turned blearily toward Worf. They were shining, bright yellow. And a moment later, Worf found out why. A tear trickled down Data's face, dripping onto the stone below.
"Lieutenant," Data gasped.
"Worf."
"Worf…I am losing coolant at a faster rate than I was previously."
"Yes, I know," Worf grunted. Did he have to state the obvious when Worf was already panicking?
"My thermoregulation will likely be compromised. We may have to go outside again. However, outside we cannot contact the Enterprise. And you cannot stay with me in the storm." Data's teeth began chattering, eyes leaking a constant stream of tears. "Worf, I...I am afraid."
Worf had never heard Data sound like that before. That shaky; that unsure and frightened. He'd never felt this helpless for one of his crewmates. Worf was the strong one; always able to carry them to safety. Always able to fight off the enemy. But the enemy here was time, and communications, and transporters. And Worf could do nothing about that.
"It is alright to be afraid," he said. "But do not lose hope. We do not know the future."
Data's breath suddenly became more rapid. At first, Worf thought maybe it was just his response to panic. But then he remembered what Data had said about thermoregulation.
Worf carefully pried one of his hands off of Data's injury and placed the back of his wrist on Data's forehead. Warmer than usual. A lot warmer; like the android was running a fever.
Worf returned his hand to the leaking wound and glanced around. Looking for help; looking for a sign; looking for-
"Worf?" Commander Riker's voice suddenly called out from the doorway on the other side of the room.
"Over here!"
Two pairs of feet came rushing over. Will appeared first, letting out a sharp gasp when he saw Data lying on the ground. Then Deanna, wearing a similar expression of shock and worry. She clipped her tricorder onto her belt and knelt on the other side of Data, as Will dropped to his knees beside Worf.
"Data?" asked Deanna, wiping away one of his trickling tears. As soon as her fingers made contact with his bioplast skin, her head whipped up. "He's burning up."
"He said it is a reaction to losing coolant," Worf explained, pressing ever harder on the injury. Willing it to stop bleeding. He looked back at Data and found his eyes closed, breath hitching slightly. Worf growled under his breath; at the attacker, at the sword, at the injury, anything that could take the blame.
"Will, go get some snow from outside," said Deanna. Her eyes were locked on Data's face, her hand trailing up and down his arm.
"On it."
"Data," Deanna tried again, stroking his face. "Data, it's going to be alright."
His eyes opened halfway, unfocused. He smiled slightly as he gazed up. A sad smile.
"Counselor." His eyes fluttered shut again, a new tear falling down his cheek.
Deanna smoothed his hair back with her thumb as she explained, "We managed to get through to the Enterprise. They'll be in transporter range in about five minutes."
"How did you get in contact with them?" Worf asked.
"There was better reception in one of the rooms on the other side of the complex. They'll be able to lock onto our comm badge signals when they get closer."
Data gasped suddenly, making them both jump. He regained his breath soon after, but his eyes remained shockingly out of focus.
"They better hurry," Worf growled.
Deanna only frowned in reply.
At that moment, Will returned carrying two armfuls of snow. He wobbled over to the others and laid it on the stone. With much gentility, he touched his cool fingers to Data's head, spreading the icy water up his neck, across his forehead, through his hair. He and Deanna continued the process on his hands, pulling them gently away from his torso. Then his legs, rolling his pants up to his knees.
All the while, Worf kept his hands pressed firmly into the injury.
"How does that feel, Data?" Will asked with a soft smile.
"Refreshing."
All three of the others smiled at that, and breathed a sigh of relief. At least something had actually gone to plan today, even if it was too little, too late.
Suddenly, their comm badges chirped. "Enterprise here, ready to transport," said the transporter
Will practically shouted his response. "Four to beam directly to sickbay!"
Worf only had time to find the soft smile curling Data's lip before the transport beam faded him into a world of white.