The EMH looked on curiously. "Is this how things normally work around here?" the tall, thin, curly-haired hologram asked inquisitively.
Dorrin grunted impatiently, "I dunno." He motioned to the equipment locked to his left. "Find me a large, glass container."
The EMH walked over to the locker. "How large a container do you want?"
Dorrin rolled his eyes. "The largest one you can find with an airtight lid!" He began plugging tubes into the synthesizer from the ceiling. "Toss me a dispenser tube, too... with a two millimeter needle on the end."
The EMH pulled down an envelope from the top shelf and tossed it to Rass. "You could at least say 'please'."
What nerve, Dorrin thought. He was already mad at 'Hal' because he had obviously been cheating at the prior chess game. While treating a minor burn injury, one of the maintenance crew had nicknamed the EMH 'Hal'. It was some reference to an old Earth transmission Dorrin had never seen. The reference was completely lost on him. If the EMH understood the reference, he wasn't admitting it. "How about you find me the container I asked for?" he snipped.
After several more seconds of poking around, Hal found something in the back that might work. "How about a two liter beaker?"
Doctor Rass had hooked up the output tube and was ready. "Perfect. Is there a rubber stopper with a center hole for the top?"
After a little more digging, Hal found the filling stopper. "Yep... right here."
Rass motioned with his hands. "Here... hand it over quickly... and get me a hazmask."
The EMH handed over the beaker and lid, then searched around for a mask. "Bark, bark, bark... that's all you do to me. I AM a fully trained and accreditted physician, you know." He found the mask and handed it over.
After putting a tube in the middle hole and poking the needle through the rubber, he shot the EMH a narrowed glance. Dorrin snatched the mask from the EMH. "Look... once I'm dead you can play doctor." He said sarcastically while putting on the mask. "Until then... you're Nurse Hal. Got it?" With the press of a final button, the beaker began slowly filling with a pale green gas. Hal rolled his eyes.
The doctor's comm badge popped. "Kirk to Doctor Rass... how's my knockout grenade coming?" the voice sounded mildly stressed and impatient.
Rass pressed his badge. "It's filling now. It should be done in just a few seconds. What do you want me to do with it?"
"Just put it on the floor next to you, Doc." Kirk's voice replied. "I'll have the transporter chief site-to-site it into the engine room of the romulan ship." There was a pause. "Will this knock out an engine room full of remans?"
In the background, Doctor Rass could hear Tony's voice ask, "You pick NOW to ask that question?"
The question took Dorrin a bit off guard. "Well... there's enough pure anesthezine in here to pretty much knock out this entire ship, if it got into the vents. Since remans breathe oxygen like the rest of us, it'll affect them. The question will be how long."
"I only need it for a couple of minutes, while we disable their auto destruct, Doc."
"This should do the trick, then. Oh!" Dorrin snapped his fingers at the EMH to get his attention. "You're going to need masks. How many people are in your team?"
The EMH understood, though he didn't appreciate the finger snap. He turned back to the locker to get masks.
"Just three of us, Doc. Good thinking."
The doctor's eyes bulged while the EMH retrieved the masks. "Just three of you?" He gulped.
"We go in, stop the auto destruct, we leave. I'm waiting at the transporter, Doc. Is it done?"
Rass looked at the beaker. The last of the regular air was escaping out the top. He pressed a button to stop the gas flow, pushed a piece of putty against the evacuation tube, then removed the needle. He placed the large beaker on the floor next to him. "Hal, put the masks on the floor. Commander, it's ready."
"Thanks, Doc." the commander's voice replied. Kirk's voice continued talking. "Wilson, transport the beaker in the middle of the engineering section of the romulan vessel, two and a half meters above the ground. Beam the masks here."
"Aye, Sir," another disembodied voice replied. Within moments, the beaker and the masks were shrouded in silvery white lights. With a flash, they were gone.
"Commander," Dorrin started, "you should give the gas thirty to forty seconds to permeate the room before heading over."
"I'm not sure I have that much time, but thanks for everything. Kirk out."
Doctor Rass continued staring at the floor where the beaker was. He hoped this plan of Stephen's would work.