Doctor?" North asked.
132 "I'm taking the first one into surgery right now," the Doctor
answered. "With a little luck they'll make it in good shape. Give me a
couple of hours of no bouncing around, will you?"
133 "I'll try," North agreed. "If that thing out there will cooperate!
I've got a slight injury up here I'm sending down; some scorched hands.
I'll check with you again in a couple of hours."
134 North punched in the auxiliary command deck. "Number Two, this is
Command," he said, "our communication's console is out. See if you can
get through to Fleet. Take over from down there. I'm going to
engineering to check on some damage. I'll let you know when I'm back on
deck."
135 North switched off and went to rise. His right foot and leg came
out from under the protective shields that had come out of the side of
the command chair easily, but when he went to move his left leg,
something held it. He removed his safety harness and leaned down to
look.
There was a piece of metal about two inches wide and three inches long,
sticking out of his leg just below the knee! He reached down and felt
behind it. It had gone clean through his leg, and driven deep into the
command chair! There was very little blood, and he hadn't even felt it
until he tried to move his leg.
136 "Damn!" he cursed, half to himself. Out of the corner of his eye
North saw the Firing Control Officer undoing his safety harness.
"Stay at your post, Firing Control!" he snapped, "We don't want our
friend out there sneaking up on us again!" Very calmly North called
sickbay. "Send a Medic to the command deck," he ordered, "we need
assistance!"
137 For the first time North noticed several scratches in the wall and
ceiling, and other jagged bits of metal laying here and there on the
floor. He wondered why no one else had been hit.