NOTE : I would say this story reads more as a script, there are no detailed description or character development, you have to "see" the crew of TNG in action. I most probably took some poetic licence notably concerning the physics and science of ST but all in the interest of the story. Nearly all characters are name references to actual real-life or ST characters with very simple anagrams or close names so it should be easy to detect which is which. And what is the point of writing fanfiction if you can't include yourself in the story ? So I put myself as a secondary character..

If you read it and have, let's say, 10% fun as I did writing it, you should like it.

I shall endeavour to complete the story in the next weeks or months.

Chapter 1

Shake me up before you go-go

Picard: Captain's log, stardate 46632.4, we are en route to the Ornot system after we received what Starfleet Command were able to interpret as a distress call.

Bridge

Captain Jean-Luc Picard is sitting in his chair on the main bridge. As usual, his First Officer Commander Riker is at his right and Counsellor Deanna Troi on his left. Lieutenant Commander Data is at Ops, Ensign Grégoire Limansky is at the helm and Lieutenant Worf is at tactical.

Picard: What's our ETA, Mister Limansky?

Ensign Limansky: At our present speed of warp 9, 4 hours and 25 minutes, Sir.

Riker: Well, I'm certainly curious to meet these people. The last contact with the Ornotians was almost 40 years ago when they signed a treaty with the Federation. Captain Kirk and Ambassador Spock indicated in their logs that they were quite an interesting race. However, the message they sent seems to be very alarming.

Troi: Yes, the message was quite garbled. For two days for the engineers at Starfleet headquarters tried to reassemble the message but they managed to retrieve the message only partially.

Data (turns to face the Captain): Yes, Sir. What they were able to retrieve, came as "all around us, impossible to tr….., toob..…, help". Which could indicate some kind of attack, climatic disaster or disease; 'tr' could mean 'travel' or 'treat', 'toob' could be the attackers or maybe some kind of disease or the name of a storm. And I tend to agree with Commander Riker, they seem to be an interesting race, for example, the Hourias Festival is a commemoration of one of their ancient leaders, Hourias, who tried to establish a colony on Tajsar, which is a moon of the Labato planet. And there was a violent storm that destroyed all the buildings and nearly wiped out all the colonists. Dances and songs remember this tragedy. The main song goes like that: "harayaaaaaaaaa…"

Picard: (interrupting) Thank you, Mister Data, maybe later…

Data: (stops the sound) Yes, Sir. Sorry, Sir.

Troi (chuckling): The message clearly means that something wrong is happening and they surely must need our help.

Picard: Let's hope we arrive there in time to help these people, Number One. If we arrive too late, there maybe no one to meet th…..

Suddenly, the Enterprise begins to shake violently.

Riker: What the hell…? (He taps on is combadge) Geordi, what is happening?

Lieutenant Geordi LaForge in Engineering: I don't know, Sir. … The stabilizers seem to be working correctly; I don't understand why they can't level the ship. I recommend we drop out of warp, maybe it'll stop or lessen the shaking, the ship can't hold much longer like that! I'm trying to compensate with the inertial dampeners … it's not working, Sir!

Picard: Data, anything conclusive from your scans?

Data: No, Sir. But it appears to be a subspace distortion of some kind.

Picard: Can we predict how big is the region affected by it?

Data: No, Sir. It is not possible to predict its size right now.

Picard: Do you agree with Geordi's recommendation?

Data: The other option would be to continue and try to get out of the region but since we are unsure how big is the region and how much time the Enterprise can hold like that, it would be advisable to follow his recommendation.

Worf: Captain! We are receiving damage reports from the secondary hull. There is danger of hull breaches.

Picard: Number One?

Riker: I don't see we have much of a choice.

Picard: Agreed. Mister Limansky, prepare to drop out of warp and then continue on full impulse. On my command!

Ensign Limansky: Aye, Sir.

Picard (sighs): Let's hope it will work. Now!

Ensign Limansky: We are dropping out of warp… Done. Full impulse, Sir.

The shaking stops completely.

Picard: That's better. Let's stop and check this out. Full stop, Mister Limansky.

Ensign Limansky: Aye, Sir. Registering full stop.

Picard: Mister Worf damage report. (Taps on his combadge) Doctor Crusher, casualties report. Mister Data, I want you to go to Engineering and check out with Geordi what happened and try to find out a solution. I want a preliminary report in 15 minutes!

Data: Yes Sir. (Heads to the turbolift and is replaced at his station by Ensign Martinez).

Worf: No hull breaches, Sir. But we have a few cracks in the secondary hull. I'll signal Engineering to get repair teams on it now.

Doctor Beverly Crusher attending an injured man in sickbay: Captain, we have 28 injured, only minor bruises and concussions. No serious injury.

Picard: Thank you, Beverly. Ensign Martinez, any sign of nearby ships?

Ensign Martinez: No, Sir. We are alone.

Picard: Sensing anything, Counsellor?

Troi: No, Sir. I sense no intelligent force at work here.

Riker: I recommend we go to yellow alert, just in case.

Picard: Agreed, yellow alert, Mister Worf. Number One, join Geordi and Data and contact me when you have the preliminary report. In the meantime, I'll be in my ready room. Mister Worf, you have the bridge. (heads to his ready room while Commander Riker heads to the turbolift)

Worf: Aye, Sir. (Ensign Murdock replaces him at tactical).

Engineering

Geordi and Data are at the main engineering console. Riker is standing behind them.

Geordi: Whatever this was, it's surely nothing like we've encountered before, the stabilizers should have done their job.

Riker: There are no planets nearby so it couldn't be caused by a planet's attraction. Could this be some kind of cloaked phenomena? And if it is, how to modify the sensors to detect it?

Geordi: Data, the scans show signs of deuterium flamenzide in the vicinity. Maybe that's what is blocking our sensors?

Data: It is possible, Geordi. (Works on the console) Reconfiguring the sensors to filter the deuterium flamenzide… (Looks puzzled) picking up something…there seems to be some kind of vortex. Very faint readings, trying to boost the sensors output… Yes, it is definitely a vortex. It was probably attracting the ship towards it and that caused the shaking.

Riker: But why isn't it attracting us now?

Geordi (checking the sensors log): It seems to be dormant. Our warp engines must have revived it.

Riker: So we'll have to go on impulse to get away from it. But the problem is how far we have to get from it before we initiate our warp drive?

Data: Unknown, Sir. We'll have to do some calculations.

Geordi: Data, you used a contraction!

Data (puzzled): I did? It is not I; it is the writer who obviously has other things on his mind…

Riker: How much time for these calculations?

Data: Approximately 10 minutes, Sir.

Riker: (tapping his combadge): Riker to Picard.

Picard: Yes, Number One?

Riker: We seem to have found the problem. There is a vortex that apparently is dormant but we woke it up with our warp engines. We are currently trying to determine if we can get away from it using the impulse engines. We'll have an answer in 10 minutes.

Picard: All right. Meeting of the senior staff in the observation lounge in 10 minutes.

10 minutes later in the observation lounge

Picard is at the head of the table with around him Riker, Data, Geordi, Worf, Troi and Doctor Crusher.

Data: …. And our calculations indicate we need to get 1,000,000 kilometres from the vortex to avoid its attraction when we initiate the warp drive.

Picard: How much time will it take us at full impulse?

Data: 2 hours, Sir.

Geordi: There is one other thing Captain. Deuterium flamenzide should not exist in space so far from any planet or stellar object.

Picard: Could it come from some kind of leak from the vortex?

Data: Undetermined, Sir.

Worf: So it isn't a natural phenomenon, the vortex must have been placed here! We should also suppose that there are other vortexes in the vicinity, putting this vortex alone makes no sense.

Data: Yes, long-range sensors have detected more vortexes on and around our route to the Ornot system.

Troi: maybe some adversary of the Ornotians planted it here? Maybe that's why they sent the distress signal. They may have the same problem we have and be incapable of detecting the vortexes.

Picard: Since there are more vortexes around, we can't go at impulse speed each time we encounter a vortex! It is important we get to the Ornot system as soon as possible. Can't we avoid the vortex attraction when we go to warp?

Geordi: We could use a warp bubble to contain the warp field and prevent it from interacting with the vortex.

Doctor Crusher: The last time we used a warp bubble, I was seconds away from going to oblivion!

Geordi: I can modify the warp engines to prevent the problems from happening again.

Riker: How much time will it take to do the necessary adjustments?

Geordi: I'd say… 2 hours, Sir.

Picard: Geordi, you have 1 hour.

Geordi: But, Sir…

Picard: We can't delay our arrival much longer. The Ornotians may urgently need our help. Data will join you as soon as we're finished here. Make it so!

Geordi (getting up): Aye, Sir.

Picard: Counsellor, you studied thoroughly Starfleet's reports and Kirk's logs on the Ornotians. Was there any reference to potential foes?

Troi: The report emphasized more on the historical people and places of the Ornotians. There was no indication of any war in their history. However, not all the information could be gathered and maybe there were problems with another race that we are unaware of.

Worf: It could be that someone is trying to conquer their world!

Riker: But why? Why now?

Worf: Maybe another alien race discovered there was something precious to them in the Ornot system.

Picard: The presence of the vortexes could indicate that it's some kind of siege. The vortexes could have been placed to prevent the Ornotians from leaving their system.

Riker: Or prevent anyone from reaching them.

Worf: Such devious tactics, it's surely the Romulans!

Riker: We are very far from Romulan space. What would have got them here?

Picard: Whoever it is, they must be near or have an advanced base in a nearby system. Data, are there any inhabited systems in the vicinity of the Ornot system?

Data: None that we know of, Sir.

Picard: Data, when you finish helping Geordi, I want you to scan the nearby systems for any M-class planets, which could be used by these aggressors as an advanced base. And I want a detailed report on those vortexes.

Data: Yes, Sir.

Worf: It may also be that there is some kind of revolution going in the Ornot system and one of the parties may want to prevent the other parties from escaping or receiving any outside help.

Picard: If it is so, it's an internal matter and the Prime Directive would prevent us from interfering. Let's not lose ourselves in these suppositions. We'll appraise the situation when we arrive there. Doctor, we may be required to help the Ornotians medicals.

Doctor Crusher (nodding): I have already started assigning medical teams.

Bridge, 1 hour later

Geordi (from engineering): Captain, we are ready down here.

Picard: Acknowledged, Geordi. Mister Limansky, resume course to the Ornot system, warp 9.

Ensign Limansky: Aye, Sir. Resuming course to the Ornot system. Heading 326 mark 83, warp 9.

Picard: Engage!

The enterprise goes to warp smoothly this time.

Geordi: It is working, Sir. The warp bubble is holding well.

Picard: Well done, Geordi. Till we reach our destination, I want you all to study again Starfleet's report on the Ornotians. Understanding them better may be crucial to helping them without delay. Mister Martinez, continue scanning for vortexes in and around our route to the Ornot system. (Gets up and heads to his ready room) Number One, you have the bridge. Signal me before we arrive in the Ornot system.

Riker: Aye, Sir.