"Uungh. where am I?" said
Kira as he moved his hand to rub his severely aching head.
"Doctor, he's awake," said a voice off to Kira's right.
"What?" responded another voice.
Slowly Kira opened his eyes and waited for the world around him to come into focus. He was met by the sight of the ceiling of the medical bay on Deep Space 11. He tried to sit up, but instead found that his equilibrium wasn't quite what it should be as he temporarily lost his balance and almost fell off the biobed.
Fortunately, someone was watching him, and they managed to catch him before he fell from the bed. Kira tried to focus his vision on this person, and was greeted by the smiling face of Tyran Nige.
"Take it easy, Kira." Said Nige as he steadied Kira's frame on the bed.
"Commander, do you know where you are?" asked the second voice. Kira concentrated on the voice's location and found the form of his ships doctor, Jodana Jin.
"Yes, Doctor, I'm in the medical bay on Deep Space 11. What I'm not quite clear on is how I got here." Said Kira in a weakened voice.
"You were aboard the Ronin, and were fighting our duplicates' ship. The two ships collided while you were still on board. You managed to erect a force field around yourself that protected you from the majority of the blast, but you still sustained some heavy injuries, especially to your lungs." Said Jin.
"Now I remember. What happened to the duplicates?" said Kira.
"Escaped." Said Nige. "You've been unconscious for nearly five days."
"I feel drained." Said Kira.
"Not surprising since you deflected the energy of two Defiant class ships exploding around you." Said Nige.
"That would be why, then wouldn't it?" said Kira as he tried to laugh. Instead he began to cough rather violently a few times, prompting the good doctor to grab a nearby hypospray and inject its contents into Kira's neck. Shortly thereafter his coughing subsided.
"Be careful, Sir, your lungs are still not quite repaired." Said Jin.
"Rapid collapse of pulmonary tissue secondary to a vacuum will do that, won' t it?" said Kira.
"Sorry, Sir, I keep forgetting about your medical background. Approximately fifty-five percent of your lung tissue collapsed while you were adrift in space. We were able to re-inflate the lungs on your arrival here, however a number of the smaller pulmonary vessels had broken in response to the pressure gradient; coupled with the resulting pulmonary edema and other injuries, it's a miracle that you survived at all. I've managed to repair the majority of the damage, but your lungs need another week or two to fully recover."
"So, I have to take it easy for at least two weeks, eh?" said Kira.
"What will you do with yourself?" said Nige in a joking tone.
"Well, hiking is out of the question." Said Kira.
"If you will excuse me, Sir, I have to check on some of the other patients." Said Jodana.
"Of course, Jin. Thank you." Said Kira.
As Jodana walked away from the two officers, Nige turned his attention back to Kira and said in a slightly hushed tone, "It's a good thing that you woke up, Kira. You won't guess who is on his way here."
"I'm too tired for guessing games, Nige. Who?"
"Admiral Pike." Said Nige.
"Busted." Said Kira.
"Actually, no. I already briefed him on the events of the past couple of days. He sounded rather positive, considering the circumstances."
"I hope it goes well." Said Kira.
"He should be arriving shortly. Do you want me to have him come see you?" said Nige.
"That would be nice. I'd also like to see Dinara, if she's up to it."
"I'll tell both of them that you're finally awake. They'll be glad to hear it. I've got to run, but I'll be back to check on you later on in the evening, OK?" said Nige.
"Thanks Nige." Said Kira.
"Just get back to normal, old friend. We're going to need your help in tracking down those duplicates." Said Nige.
"I'll do my best." Said
Kira as he closed his eyes and drifted off to a restful sleep.