Heart of the Warrior by John Gregory Betancourt

Author:John Gregory Betancourt [Betancourt, John Gregory]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Published: 2012-07-13T17:38:33+00:00

"Fortunately," Worf said, voice stronger now,

sounding more like his old self, "the effects do not

appear long lasting on Klingons."

"Then I'll leave you to watch him and rest," Kira

said. "I want to look down some of the tunnels. If

we're going to be trapped here for a while, we're going

to need to know the layout of the ship."

Worf nodded, wincing a little.

"I'll be back soon," she promised.

Rising, she turned and walked quickly back to the

large tunnel that led to the storage closet. It amazed

her how long and high they were. The access corridors

seemed to run through the whole ship.

She explored, mentally mapping the place in her

mind. Several times she came to ventilation ducts,

and each time she peeked through. Once she saw

several Jem'Hadar lying on rows of hard-looking

bunks. Other times she saw empty rooms, or store-

rooms filled with crates.

She kept going and eventually came to the ship's

gailey. Through the ventilation holes, she could see

long metal tables and benches. They seemed to be in

the middle of a meal shift now; the benches were

crowded with every species but Jem'Hadar, all eating

what looked like nearly raw meat and some kind of

vegetable stew. The Jem'Hadar didn't eat, she re-

minded herself, so there would be plenty of real food

available. Perhaps they'd be able to sneak in during an

off-shift; fresh supplies would make a good supple-

ment to their protein bars, which they should hold for

emergencies.

She checked the time. She'd been gone nearly an

hour--time to get back to Worf. She didn't want to

leave him too long in his weakened state in case any

more of those savage little aliens showed up. He'd

lived through one bite, but she didn't want to risk any

more.

Retracing her steps, she neared to the corridor

where she'd left Worf. Then from ahead she heard

low voices. That could only mean trouble, she

thought, drawing her phaser. If the Jem'Hadar had

found Worf... she didn't want to think what it

would mean. They weren't exactly known for their

mercy or their compassion.

She crept forward cautiously, placing each foot

carefully. As silent as Death, she peeked around the

corrler.

It was Worf talking to the little alien, she saw. Woff

had untied their captive, and now the two of them sat

facing each other. She relaxed and felt the tension

drain from her shoulders. It seemed the alien was

sentient after all.

"Major," Worf said, "I want you to meet Snoct

Sneyd. He'd an Iffalian. Snoct, this is Major Kira."

"Hello," she said cautiously.

"Hello, Major Kira," Snoct said back, head cocked

to one side in what might have been an almost

comical manner in different circumstances.

"It seems I scared him when he stumbled upon us,"

Worf said. "He was part of a cleaning crew the last

time this ship was serviced--"

"Six long months ago!" Snoct said.

"--and he fell asleep in our closet after a long shift.

When he woke up, they were already in space."

"The Jem'Hadar have been trying to catch me ever

since," Snoct said, "only I escaped."

"What do you mean, trying to catch you?" Kira

asked. That didn't make much sense to her. "How

could you elude the Jem'Hadar aboard their own

ship?"

"I think it is a game to them," Snoct said. "They

hold hunts for me, using primitive weapons like nets

and spears.

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