"Hurry, now! Find a way to bypass the block on our weapons." Khan shouted, frantic and desperate. Fear was an emotion he would never admit to feeling, not even to himself, so it came out sideways, looking more like rage to the outside observer. However, being stuck motionless and defensive less was enough to make anyone feel like a trapped animal.
"I need voice authorization from the captain, there's no way around it."
"There is always a way around an obstacle, with enough ingenuity and determination, which I was lead to believe you had in droves." Time was the factor working against them. Khan had the greatest minds on his side, who could learn any computer system and bend it to their will with enough patience, but in the heat of battle no one could afford to be patient.
Another hit from Enterprise's phasers rocked the ship. "Shields at twenty-five percent, and the vibrations caused further hull damage."
"I don't have time for this!" Khan shouted, giving a fierce look to the augment who worked desperately to bring the weapons back online. "Get Albrecht back here, let's hope she isn't so heavy sedated that she can't follow simple directions."
"Bridge to sickbay."
"Go ahead." Doctor T'Ralia replied as she monitored Captain Albrecht. The antitoxin had prevented further damage to her nervous system, but recovery would be a long, hard road.
"Albrecht is needed on the bridge again."
"The captain has experienced an extreme adverse reaction to the sedative. She is in an unstable condition and cannot safely be moved from sickbay." Some people thought Vulcans were incapable of lying, but this was one of those rare, extreme situations where concealing the truth was the most logical course of action.
"We'll take our chances. Bring her now."
"I'm afraid I cannot compromise my patient's safety. End transmission."
Defying a direct order, they would realize that something was wrong and that T'Ralia was no longer under the influence of the Ceti eel. She moved to secure the area, entering commands into the computer to lock the doors from the inside.
"Captain, the Portland's shields are down to twenty five percent, and they've suffered further hull deterioration from the previous hit."
"Keep firing phasers, we're almost there." Finally, a glimmer of hope could be heard in Captain LeFevre's voice.
"Captain," Kirk spoke up. "Photon torpedoes would be more effective." Since they had returned to the bridge, Kirk had been inching closer to LeFevre and by how was practically breathing down his neck.
"Not at at this range, and with their shields already so low." LeFevre insisted, defending his choice. "If we break through too soon with a photon torpedo, the resulting explosion could damage our own ship and pose a greater risk to the Portland's crew."
Kirk was silent for a moment before he responded, quiet and frustrated. "Very well, Captain." He conceded reluctantly.
"Not to worry Admiral. They've got no weapons, no engines, and soon no shields. No need to rush.
If you weren't on the bridge this hardly seemed like a battle at all; it was more like shooting at a stationary target. McCoy was hardly needed in sickbay, so he was able to steal a few minutes to speak with the prisoner again.
This time she seemed in better spirits, lounging on the cot instead of lying on the floor in a crumpled mess. She sat up when she saw him, and McCoy simply stood holding his hands behind his back. No need to lower the forcefield. While he might have a bit more trust for the young augment, there was no need to throw caution to the wind,
"How's the shoulder?" That wasn't why he was here, but it seemed impolite to dive right into the topic on his mind.
"Better than I could have hoped. I had almost forgotten how it feels to have the full use of both my arms."
"Glad to hear it. I thought you might like to know the compromise we reached regarding our ethical dilemma." McCoy tried to sound easy and approachable. He knew he could come off harsh but wanted to show a bit more discretion with this delicate topic.
"That's surprising. No one seemed to value my opinion." She was prickly and rough, trying to push the doctor away.
"We're going ahead and creating the virus, but with a few stipulations. It's not lethal, just enough to weaken the augments and level the playing field." A pause. McCoy felt like he was speaking with more confidence than maybe he had the right to. "Theoretically, at least. There's more uncertainty than I like, as to whether it's effective enough, or too affective, and there's no way to test it."
"Doctor." Maya stood and walked closer, standing only inches from the forcefield. "You do have a way to test it."
"Absolutely not!" McCoy shouted. He pieced together what she was suggesting, and was determined to chase away whatever impulse popped in her head. "I didn't come down here to try to convince you be a Guinea pig."
"I don't need convincing, I volunteer."
"As a doctor I vowed to do no harm, I don't care if you're willing, what you're suggesting is out of the question." He took a breath to calm himself. "Besides, we still don't have a plan as to how to get the virus onto the Portland and into the bodies of the augments."
"Again, I volunteer." She was firm and forceful, more than he had her be before. "When we spoke last you said I need to stop viewing favors as transactions, and now when I want to do something selfless, you deny me?"
"Look, even if I agreed with your idea. It's not that simple. The transporter has bio filters that weed out any pathogens. Captain LeFevre seems sure that there's some kind of work around, but I'm not convinced."
"Fine. Come back and talk to me again when you realize you don't have any better ideas."