Praetor Tal'aura watched the odd being carefully. It called itself a "Dalek" and claimed to be an emissary here to propose an alliance. Proconsul Tomalak kept a hand on his disruptor, warily eyeing the machine-like creature.
"Our alliance would be bountiful!" it screeched in that horrible manner.
"Yet, you have not proposed terms," she replied calmly, although her nerves were fraying quickly.
"You will assist us in destroying the world known as Earth and exterminating the human filth from the galaxy!" it retorted loudly.
"Why do you wish to destroy Earth?" Tal'aura asked, eagerly awaiting its answer.
"Because we can! The Doctor would not interfere!"
"Who is this 'Doctor'?"
"The Predator! Our greatest enemy! He covets the humans! All his companions have been human!" it replied.
Tal'aura smiled thinly, "I will have to discuss this with the Hundred."
The Dalek rocked on its base a bit, "Very well. You have four days!"
"Thank you," she replied as it exited the Senate chamber. She then turned to Tomalak.
"I want everything we have on the Doctor, soon. It would be wise to know our newest enemy, " she ordered.
"Yes, Praetor," he said before disappearing, leaving her alone with her thoughts.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Will Riker leaned against the bar, watching the Ferengi barkeep barter with a customer. Ro Laren stood next to him, sipping a glass of Romulan ale.
"So," he started, "How are things here?"
"Going well," she replied, "The new crew people you brought are settling in well."
"Good."
"Laren, you look lovely tonight!" Quark said. Ro just looked at him.
He shuffled his feet a bit, "I've got news. The Romulan Praetor is currently negotiating a deal with something called the Daleks."
Commander Christine Vale spat her whiskey out when she heard that, "Excuse me?! Quark, did you just say the DALEKS!?"
She said that loud enough to hush the entire bar. A dark-skinned human woman hugged the man next to her. Someone in the back started praying loudly to the Prophets.
"Yes, I did," Quark replied uneasily, "Why?"
The dark-skinned woman answered, "Because they'll wipe us all out!" I was there, working for UNIT, on the day that they stole the Earth! They wiped out 3 million people in a matter of minutes! We can't do anything!"
"Yes, we can!" Christine replied, more than a touch of determination in her voice, "We need a Time-Lord."
"A what?" Quark asked.
The other woman nodded weakly, "The Doctor."
"But where do we find him?" Ro asked.
The woman looked around, "Has anyone seen a Melody Pond or a River Song?"
A few people nodded as the praying in the back grew louder. One spoke up,
"Yeah, Doctor Jones, I have. I was on Andoria dropping off some cargo a couple months back. There was this woman, a Doctor Song. She was looking for this Doctor fellow. Think she went to New Vulcan after that," a cargo captain said from a few tables away.
Jones nodded, seeming to regain her courage, "Thank you, Mister Darvo. That's actually helpful. Come on, Mickey. We've got to find the Doctor, and fast!"
With that, Jones and Mickey ran out, leaving the rest of the patrons confused.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
"Jack! Hurry! In here!"
Jean-Luc Picard followed the voice, which called out for the man behind him. Jack Harkness sprinted after him as they barreled into the main control room for Torchwood One. Ianto Jones frantically pointed at the screen.
It showed a security feed from Romulus. Tal'aura was featured, meeting with what looked very much like a Dalek. Jack swore and pulled Ianto into a fierce hug.
"I'm sorry. Again," he said.
"That's bad," Lieutenant T'Ryssa Chen said, "That's really bad. Like the Borg, but far worse. Well, it was really nice knowing you, universe."
"Pessimist," Geordi LaForge retorted, "We have a chance."
There was a derisive snort from the blonde at the monitoring station.
"Yeah," Kat Mueller said sharply, "A piss poor one. Give it up, LaForge. Chen's right, they're bad. We have about as much of a chance of defeating them as Hell does of freezing over."
Commander Worf looked thoughtful, "We need to contact Alpha-Three. She may be able to sneak onto Romulus and confirm the truth."
Jack laughed, "She's gone so far underground, I can't even find her."
"I can!" Doctor Maya T'Jul interjected from a corner, "She's an old friend of mine. Try Artaleirh or the Watraii home world."
Captain Saavik raised an eyebrow, "No Federation personnel are on either world."
"She's Romulan," Jack said, "She just works for Torchwood."
"I see."
Someone at communications yawned loudly, causing some of the others to snicker.
"Tobias!" Jack called out, "Hit the racks! You look dead on your feet!"
"I feel dead," Lieutenant Tania Tobias replied as she shuffled off to the bunk room a few corridors away.
"And Burgy!" Jack continued, "Off the ceiling. I'm not cleaning you up off the floor when you fall."
"S/he won't fall!" another voice retorted, "S/he's too stubborn to die!"
A Vulcan dangled from a rafter by Burgoyne 172. She was going between paying attention and blowing her hair out of her face.
"Yes, thank you for your opinion, Soleta. I'll let you know when I need it," Burgy replied sarcastically.
"Why wait for you to let me know when there is silence that needs to be filled?" Commander Soleta retorted.
"Because silence is a blessed thing that needs to be preserved," Worf said.
"You don't work on a ship that's meant to hold a busy crew of forty people but only has a crew of two."
"And you have an excellent point," Picard said, ending what was going to become a heated argument.
Worf and Soleta glared at him, but didn't say anything further.
"Sir! We've got a special visitor!" Jason Matthews reported from the external systems station.
"Who?" Jack asked before answering his own question, "Oh God. President Bacco."
"Yup. Should I roll out the red carpet?" Matthews asked.
"Please God no," Bacco replied from behind Jack, "I've had enough of that from Esperanza without any of that here. What's the situation report, Captain? And don't give me any of that bull about nothing going on. The amount of message traffic and sensor traffic going in and out of here right now has lit up several red lights at Starfleet Command."
Nanietta Bacco looked rather regal with her white hair and straight posture. Jack smiled.
"Alright, you've got me there, Madam President. We just intercepted security cam footage from the Hall of State in Ki Baratan on Romulus. Praetor Tal'aura met with a Dalek representative about twenty hours ago. The message traffic is sensor readings and reports from stations and agents in the field. The sensor traffic is us using our long-range sensors to search for Dalek fleets within range. Two found so far. Neither is very friendly," Jack reported.
"And what are the Daleks capable of?"
"Destroying the entire Federation and the surrounding powers in less than a year and we couldn't stop them, not with the tech we have currently. I have an all-points search out for the Doctor and his TARDIS, if you could let Starfleet know. Also, we've got UNIT developing some new tech to fight them off. However, the Daleks will most likely come specifically for Earth. So, Earth would fall in…" he said.
"6.21 days," Soleta said from the ceiling. Bacco looked up for a split second before looking back to Jack.
"What can we do for now?" she asked.
"Start evacuation protocols and retask any available Starfleet ship to protect the convoys headed out of here. Make sure that people who want to remain are armed and ready for guerilla warfare. Let's make this place a warzone and make the Daleks regret ever coming to fuck with the Federation and her allies. Martok!" he yelled.
The Klingon Chancellor replied calmly from Qo'nos via a secure comm link, "I hear you, Captain Harkness. My people are ready to fight for our honorable allies. I would pretend that my people are not eager for battle, but we have known each other too long for me to get away with lying to you. Are the others ready?"
Jack shrugged, "The Cardassians are, but I can't get a hold of any of the Romulans we've got. They've all gone silent. Hell, the only one I CAN find is Soleta and she's in the rafters right now."
Bacco spoke up, "Chancellor Martok, I wasn't aware that you had any connection to Torchwood."
Martok laughed, "Madam President, I was the person who started Torchwood Two. Even now, I still stand by that decision."
An alert from the communications station sounded.
"Sir!" a tech said, "Someone's listening. It's a Cardassian signal!"
"Go ahead, Garak," Jack said, amused. Bacco raised an eyebrow.
"Why, Captain Harkness, it is very joyful to hear your voice again. I simply wanted to say hello," Ambassador Elim Garak said from his side of the channel.
"Well, you've got information that's due about now, so spit it out. Earth doesn't have time for pleasantries," Jack said, "Unless you want to take it up with President Bacco."
"Please do, Ambassador Garak," Bacco said, "I've had quite enough pleasantries for one day."
"My most sincere apologies, Madam President. I do have information, Captain. A Dalek scout fleet was just destroyed. There were Cardassian bombs involved, yet none of my people had anything to do with that," Garak said.
"So you gave someone the bombs and let them loose," Jack said thoughtfully, "Well, considering the fact that Three recruited you, you probably gave her the bombs and sent her on her happy way. I distinctly recall telling you once that giving her explosive items wasn't the best of ideas. Especially with the current hostilities in Romulan space."
Martok interrupted, "Come now, Harkness. The scout fleet is gone and we have more time. I do believe that she has done us a favor."
"I agree," Bacco said. Various people around the room echoed the sentiment.
"Fine, fine. Garak, you need to find her again. Lure her in with bombs or something equally destructive. I need her help to find the Doctor and possibly smash some dimensional walls down."
"Of course, Captain. In fact, last I heard, she was on Artaleirh, along with the rest of the main Torchwood Three personnel."
Garak ended the communication right there, followed shortly afterwards by Martok.
"Sir, there's still an active signal," the comm tech warned him.
Jack sighed, "Block it."
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
"Block it."
Major Syrath heard the distinctive "white noise" that told him that the link had indeed been blocked.
"Well, we now know that Alpha did some destructive deeds," he mused. Being the Beta of Torchwood Three, it was his job to make sure that the other agents stayed in check. Now, their own Alpha was running loose, letting her anger out by destroying things.
"Sir," a new recruit asked, "How will we find her?"
"We won't, Uhlan. Just let her find us," Syrath replied evenly before turning to look outside the shaded window. The small hut they were in could barely hold the equipment, let alone the people. The entire village was populated by Torchwood personnel. Artaleirh was truly the safest place they could be right now.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Ambassador Spock watched carefully as D'Tan swept the room for any bugs. Kerit walked around the edges, making sure that no spy eyes were embedded in the walls. Amarik started to set up bedrolls for the night.
This was their last stop before they returned to Ki Baratan. A cloaked vessel already waited in orbit for them. Kerit and Amarik were going to Vulcan with Spock, pretending to be his research assistants.
D'Tan finished his sweep and looked over at Spock, "Ambassador, I did find something in the floor. It's a message capsule, sealed and accessible by your voice signature."
Spock accepted the capsule and noticed that it asked for his old Starfleet ID number, which he quietly gave. The capsule opened and a data chip slid out into his palm.
Taking out his data tablet, he inserted the chip into the slot and quickly scanned the message.
It was brief, but told him enough. Surface to space transport was to be jammed in two days. Which meant that they couldn't stop tonight for any reason, not even so that Kerit could rest.
"I apologize, Kerit, but we cannot stop tonight if we hope to leave Romulus soon," he said.
Amarik scowled and helped his rather pregnant wife sit down, "Why not?"
"All surface to space transportation is to be jammed in two days time. It would take us that long to reach the rendezvous point if we stopped tonight. Even without stopping, I calculate a 64.77% chance that we will reach the RV point on time," he explained.
Kerit reached up to grab Amarik's hand, "It's alright. We need to get this information to Vulcan if we want to have a chance of winning. We can keep going."
"The extra time will permit us to take a slightly slower pace," D'Tan supplied.
"Fine," Amarik said with a scowl. He remained silent for the rest of the trip, even during the three attempts to assault them made by the desperate citizens of Ki Baratan.
When they reached the RV point, D'Tan stopped.
"I can't go any further, not if you want me to buy time for you. I'm sorry, Ambassador, but this is where I stop for now. Good luck!" he said. Spock nodded.
Even as the transporter beams took them, he could see D'Tan turning to face the armed men that had followed them all the way to the RV point from Ki Baratan.
When they dematerialized, the first thing Spock saw was the scowling form of Eliza Devourine.
"Hello, Ambassador," she said, "I think that someone might want to find a nice set of quarters. You look dead on your feet, Missus Kerit."
"Thanks," Kerit replied.
"Meanwhile, Ambassador, the Captain wants to talk to you. She's not happy. Neither is our Starfleet passenger."
Even as the meaning sank in, the door to the transporter room swished open and in walked Captain Saavik of the USS Alliance.
Devourine was right, she did not look happy at all. A few steps behind her was the captain of the cargo ship Levine, Captain Liviana. She looked as pleased as Saavik did.
"Hello," Liviana said, "I sure hope you know what you're doing. Are you trying to get my crew killed?"
Saavik raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment on the tone that their daughter was using.
"I apologize for the inconvenience, but time was of the essence. Perhaps now would be a good time to activate the cloaking device?" he said calmly.
"I'm not even going to ask how you know that," Liviana replied as she nodded to her first officer.
"You have a message from Earth," Saavik said coolly, "It is from President Bacco. She requests that you return to Earth immediately to speak with the Council."
"I will not be able to at this time. I have information that I believe Ruanek should see. It is imperative that I not be delayed."
"I will do what I can. But even I am bound by rules and regulations to obey any orders I am given, although with some delay," Saavik replied evenly.
"Thank you," Spock said before following Liviana to her conference room.
"It is surprising to see that a cargo ship has a conference room?" he said.
"You know as well as I do why it's here," she replied tersely, "What news do you have?"
"Disturbing news. The Praetor has allied herself with a dangerous enemy of the Federation. I do believe that you already know this," he answered.
"Well then, you tell me: who sent you the message that warned you about the impending jam of subspace transportation?"
"I cannot reveal that at this time."
"The hell you can't. It was either Mother or this elusive Alpha-Three."
"You do not refer to Saavik as your mother," Spock stated.
"Of course I don't. I only found out that you were my parents two years ago. It's going to take a bit more than that to convince me that what you did was absolutely necessary."
"Very well. It was your adoptive mother. I was unaware that she was still alive until the message capsule asked for my old Starfleet ID number. Even I do not know how to contact Alpha-Three."
"Very well," Liviana said before standing and leaving briskly. Spock was suddenly alone with his thoughts.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Elizabeth Shelby was in a rather murderous mood. She felt like she was a pawn in a damn chess tournament. Oh, did she hate that game.
She had been recalled to Earth for no apparent reason. Command had told her that she was supposed to be teaching at the Academy briefly, but that was not a good enough reason for her.
So, she marched straight up to Admiral Jellico's office to give him a what-for.
Only to find that Jellico was in the middle of a meeting with Admiral Akaar, Captain Picard, Captain Riker, and their respective first officers.
They all turned to stare at her.
"Can I help you, Admiral Shelby?" Jellico asked.
"Never mind. I see you're busy. I'll just come back later," she said quickly, cursing mentally at that little voice in her head that told her that she was a damned fool. It sounded suspiciously like Mac.
"Please, Admiral. Feel free to speak up," Akaar said, "In fact, have a seat."
"So this is why you recalled me to Earth," she said, "To trap me in endless meetings and pure hell."
Jellico scowled, "I think Calhoun has rubbed off on you."
"You just now figured this out?" she replied.
Akaar interrupted, "That's quite enough. You are correct, Admiral Shelby. What do you know about the current state of affairs on Romulus?"
She snorted, "What don't I know? I think you've forgotten that I personally know a Tal Shiar officer and a rogue commander with a ship that can damned well hide itself."
"Good. So you know about Tal'aura's deal with the Daleks," he said.
"Yes," she replied, "I do. What the hell was she thinking? I've heard of them before, but never thought that anyone would be stupid enough to summon them like the Devil himself."
"Yea, that's what we're all wondering, too," Christine Vale piped up. Will Riker smirked a bit at that.
"Well, what are we going to do about it?" Jean-Luc Picard asked.
"We're going to cooperate fully with Torchwood. You'll each be assigned a specific division you'll be cooperating. Bravo Station has something special to do. Your people are going to track down some ships and people for Torchwood. In fact, here's Captain Harkness now," Jellico said snidely.
Jack Harkness walked in and instantly winked at Shelby, who glared at him in return.
"So, when did they start making Admirals pretty?" he asked nonchalantly.
"Hands off, Harkness," Jellico warned, "Find somewhere else to play this game."
"Oh, if you insist," Harkness said with a heavy sigh, "Well, Garak just gave me an update on the situation with the scout fleet. Another one has been taken down, but the bombs were of Tholian manufacture and design. I think that every local power is on our side. I want permission to start sending out agents to speak with leaders of our neighbors and seeing if they'll help."
"Have you asked President Bacco?" Akaar asked.
"Yes, sir, I have. She gave her approval and requested that a Starfleet ship be diverted specifically to make the rounds. The more the merrier, she said."
"Well then," Jellico said, "I suppose we could pull the Aventine from patrol duty along the Neutral Zone."
"The Excalibur and the Trident aren't really doing me much use parked at Bravo Station. I also have a few civilian ships that have permits to enter Tholian and Tzenkethi territory," Shelby put in.
"Good," Akaar said, "We'll send the Enterprise and the Titan along with. That gives us five Starfleet ships and how many civilian ships?"
"Three. A cargo ship, a personnel transport for the Xenexians, and a Thallonian diplomatic transport," she replied.
"So that makes eight ships. I'll post some agents to the civilian ships and activate the agents on the Starfleet ships," Harkness said, "Christine, spread the word to the 'Fleet ships that are going. All of you are activated and to be ready for any circumstance."
"Yes, sir," Commander Vale said crisply, drawing a confused glance from Riker.
"Anything you want to tell me, Chris?" he asked quietly.
"I've been an agent of Torchwood since I was on the Monitor," she said, "I couldn't say anything before now because of the need-to-know basis on agent identities."
"Fine. Then you can gather all the agents in the Titan's holo-conference lounge in two hours. Dismissed," Riker ordered.
"Yes sir," Vale said before leaving.
"Shelby, let Calhoun and Mueller know that they'll be needed back here in an hour. I know that they accompanied you here. I'll assign the civilian ships their missions after you leave. Dismissed," Akaar ordered.
"Yes sir," Shelby, Riker, Picard, Harkness, and Worf replied in unison before leaving Jellico and Akaar to their muted conversation.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Beverly Crusher heard Doctor Selar before she saw the Vulcan CMO of the Excalibur. She was discussing something with Commander Burgoyne 172, who was protesting whatever it was.
She waited until they were quite done before moving forward.
"Hello, Doctor Selar. I just wanted to let you know that there's a meeting for ship CMOs aboard the Aventine in an hour," she said.
"Thank you for informing me, Doctor Crusher," Selar replied, "I will be there. Now, if you will excuse me, I must complete this diagnostic exam."
"I could do that!" Burgoyne protested, garnering hir a glare from Selar.
"I am quite capable of doing it myself, thank you, Commander. If you will excuse me," she said briskly before she walked off.
Burgy scowled, "She could really use some time off."
Beverly smiled, "That's what I keep telling Jean-Luc, but does he ever listen?"
"Good point," Burgoyne said softly. Beverly left hir to hir own thoughts and went off to find Ezri Dax.
As she walked through the corridors of the Excalibur on her way to the transporter room, she noticed that the crew was in the same state of mind as the Enterprise crew: tense.
A few crewmembers were blowing off steam by playing a game of laser tag in the hallways. Someone had started a random jam session in a turbolift that spilled music out on whatever deck it stopped, drawing crowds to the turbolifts. Yet more people had started random poker or other card games all over the place, sitting outside of quarters to surprise the people who lived inside.
As she entered the transporter room, she noticed the table in the corner. Patience Halliwell had set up a station for people coming and leaving to grab a quick snack and a drink. Everything was meticulously labeled with funny names like "jungle-juice" and "migraine inducer".
"Want something, Doctor Crusher?" Halliwell said from the transporter station.
"Maybe later, Patience. I've got to run to Aventine right now," Beverly replied, "Oh, and do you have any ideas for recommended recreation for my patients in Sickbay right now?"
Chief Halliwell smiled, "Move their beds closer together and play poker. The prizes can be things like holodeck time or small candies."
"Good idea. Thanks Chief!" she said before she was whisked away to the Aventine.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Will Riker stared at the crowd in the holo-conference lounge. Almost fifty people had shown up, all with varying ranks, positions, and departments. It was a sea of colors and pips.
"How many people are in here?" he asked Tuvok.
"Approximately forty people. I cannot be certain," the tactical officer replied easily.
"That's too damned many," Riker grumbled. He was still rather irritated with Christine for not telling him that she was a member of Torchwood.
A bouncy Vulcan lieutenant appeared next to him.
"Hi! I'm Lieutenant T'Ryssa Chen. Captain Picard wants to talk to you, sir," she said.
He nodded and followed her off to find Jean-Luc.
The older captain was standing near a viewport and watching the crowd. Riker was surprised to pick out a couple of Romulans in the large group and…
"Is that Worf?" he asked Picard.
Picard nodded, "Yes it is. Apparently Martok recruited him at the end of the Dominion War, when he became an ambassador."
Ezri Dax made her way over to them, followed by Mackenzie Calhoun.
"Where's Mueller?" Picard asked.
"Torchwood," he muttered. A laugh came from behind him.
"Really, Calhoun, who else do you think could possibly keep an eye on you for us?" Commander Soleta asked.
He groaned, "Not you too. Since when?"
"Since I defected to the Empire. My cousin was most eager to have my expertise in time travel and extraordinary things used for Torchwood," she said, "Besides, someone had to keep an eye on me."
"So," Riker began awkwardly, "I heard about that lovely little deal with the alternate universe ship."
"Oh, Calhoun, Lucius still doesn't forgive you for the 'torture' you put him through," Soleta said with a small smirk.
"You're a lot less fun to be around," Calhoun said sourly.
"Blame your wife," she said before walking off to find someone else to annoy.
"I might kill her one of these days," Calhoun said conversationally.
Ezri smiled, "I used to say that about Garak. We actually get along now."
"Well, he's just a Cardassian, not a Vulcan/Romulan half-breed with a bad attitude," Riker chipped in.
"What's so bad about her, anyway? I don't believe I've had the chance to meet her before," Picard asked.
Calhoun and Riker stared at him.
"You're crazy, right? He's crazy," Riker told Calhoun.
Calhoun nodded, "I'm inclined to agree with you, but you've not seen crazy until you're trapped in a mental state with an alternate universe version and a female alternate universe version of yourself."
"Damn," Riker said, "Okay, you win. Personally, I would have paid good money to see what that female version of you was like."
"From what the Torchwood files say, she's deadly and a captain. That's it," Calhoun replied.
Riker and Picard looked at each other than heard someone clearing their throat behind them.
Melora Pazlar smiled nervously, "Hello Captains."
"Hello Melora. Please tell me that you aren't Torchwood," Riker said.
"No. I'm not," she said.
"Oh thank God," Picard murmured.
"I'm in UNIT," she continued.
Riker swore softly.
"What's UNIT?" Picard asked.
Melora smiled, "I think you'd like it. We deal with the scientific side of things. For example, many Starfleet medical officers are reserve UNIT agents that help with disease cures and helping others. I'm a stellar cartographer. We work on compiling a map of the galaxy and the universe with whatever we can find."
"Do you have any archaeologists?" Picard asked.
"Yes, actually," she said, "Their job is generally to examine extragalactic objects to find out where they're from."
"So what does Torchwood do, exactly?" Riker asked, "I've heard that they contain threats, but by rather brutal means."
Melora nodded, "Captain Harkness reformed Torchwood years ago so that violence would only be used if necessary. Mostly, Torchwood just tries to protect people by attempting negotiations with other races. If the negotiations don't work, then they send in covert agents to disrupt infrastructure and collect information to defend us against the hostile species."
"Sounds harsh," Calhoun commented.
"It is. But it's necessary. Not everything can be peaceful. I was sent with a negotiation team once to talk to the Founders before the war started. Only four out of the ten of us survived," she said, "And war followed shortly after. See what I mean?"
"I'm sorry," Picard said, "I didn't realize that you were on that team."
"It's alright," she said, "So, when is the meeting going to start?"
"Now," Riker said, watching Christine step up to the front of the room onto a small stage that contained a podium."
"Hello, fellow agents, be you of Torchwood or UNIT. I'll apologize in advance, as I'm an awful speech maker," she started, "I'm sure that all of you are wondering why you've been called here. Well, we have a situation. Now, don't laugh, but I prepared a presentation to go along with my poor speech, because my focus needs more caffeine before it can work properly."
Several people laughed and earned a mock-glare from Christine.
"Anyway, to start off, two days ago, Torchwood received a coded report from a T-three agent that included a snippet of video. Here it is."
The security cam footage of Tal'aura's meeting with the Dalek played on the screen behind her and a few people started murmuring quietly.
"Next, reports of Dalek fleets and scout fleets were reported by numerous sources throughout the Alpha, Beta, and Gamma quadrants. Two of the scout fleets have since been destroyed by an unknown source that used Cardassian and Tholian explosives. In retaliation, six Starfleet ships, four Klingon warbirds, eleven Cardassian ships, sixteen Tholian ships, and fourteen civilian cargo ships have gone missing, making a total of fifty-one ships missing throughout the Alpha and Beta quadrants. Gamma Quadrant counts haven't been transmitted yet."
Someone sniffled in the back, a young ensign who barely looked old enough to drink, let alone be an officer.
"So, we're here because we've been assigned to meet with the foreign leaders and ask for their help in taking down the Daleks and making sure they don't come back. These five ships and our three civilian counterparts are the Federation representatives to our neighbors, so I don't think I need to remind you to be on your best behavior at all times."
Snickers rippled around the room.
"Finally, as far as we know, we're to be joined by two Klingon warbirds, a Cardassian ship, and another ship that we don't know about yet. So, make sure your armor, weapons, and manners are polished. Good luck and godspeed," Christine finished.
The gathered Torchwood and UNIT agents applauded. One in the back stood up on a chair and whistled loudly. Christine flushed bright red and hurried off the stage.
Calhoun whistled loudly to get everyone's attention as the applause was dying down.
"Dismissed!" he called out.
As the crowd dispersed back to whatever they had been doing, only the five captains and their first officers were left.
Ezri Dax bounced from foot to foot and Samaritan Bowers stood stock still. Katerina Mueller carried on a conversation with Desma, her Andorian first officer and Calhoun stared at the space wizzing by outside the viewport. Burgoyne 172, Christine, Riker, Picard, and Worf all stood and looked around.
"Well this is awkward," Dax said calmly.
Mueller snorted, "Obviously. All of the Torchwood and UNIT agents just had to disobey our standing orders to maintain our secrecy."
"I'm pretty sure that's not what she meant," Desma said.
"Then enlighten us," Calhoun invited.
"Well, I think she meant that we were all standing around and ignoring each other like we were suddenly uncomfortable around each other," Desma explained quickly.
Ezri smiled, "Desma, I think you missed your calling as a counselor. Rule Number One: find the simplest explanation first."
Riker cleared his throat, "I think we should head back to our own ships now. Let you Torchwood folk talk amongst yourselves in your free time."
They called it a night and headed back, but not before Ezri challenged Worf to a bat'leth match to be dealt with at a later date.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Kathryn Janeway was in a rather foul mood. The Voyager was stuck in McKinley Station while other ships busied themselves in preparation for the oncoming storm.
Chakotay leaned against the table beside her and looked across the lovely beach resort they were in. Tom Paris and Harry Kim had lost a bet and were playing servers, which seemed to amuse the hell out of B'Elanna Torres.
"Why did we create this holodeck program again?" the holographic Doctor asked. He was rather flighty now that he had a mobile emitter, courtesy of some 29th century people.
"Because the crew needed an escape from the Delta Quadrant every once in a while," Tom said, wandering over.
"Drink?" he said gallantly, bowing and holding a tray of drinks before Janeway and Chakotay.
"You are enjoying this far too much," Harry accused, "Did you purposely lose the bet?"
"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't," the sandy-haired pilot replied before wandering away again.
Janeway sighed, "Sometimes, I wonder that too, Harry. However, I really think I should get back to the bridge. I need coffee and a distraction."
"The coffee," Chakotay said, "Can be provided here. The distraction is already here. Stop worrying, Kathryn. The crew can smell worry as well as a wolf can smell fear."
Kathryn sighed, "Alright, I'll stay, but only for another hour. I have to get back to the bridge at some point."
"No you don't," B'Elanna said, "You're going to hold Miral for me, Admiral."
And with that, the half-Klingon woman handed little Miral Paris to Kathryn before disappearing into the crowd of crewmembers looking for a distraction.
"I suppose I'll have to stay a bit longer," Kathryn said as Miral started playing with her uniform pips.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
A human woman with curly blonde hair and blue eyes watched Janeway play with the Paris child. She knew that someone wanted little Miral dead, but that was a matter for a different time.
"Lieutenant Owen!" somebody said, startling her slightly.
"Yes, Commander?" she said, turning away from the security cam feeds to face Commander Yuris Sinder, a Polish man with a thick accent.
"Have you seen a Cadet Naomi Wildman around?" he asked, "The Academy reports that she never returned from her weekend liberty."
"I'll check now, sir," she replied. As she scanned the cam feeds for Cadet Wildman, she mused over her cover identity. Lieutenant Ellen Owen was one of the many covers that Torchwood provided for its field agents. This particular fake ID was an unassuming young officer with few ambitions and a simple personality that few people would remember later, with some help from her hallucinogenic lipstick.
As she finished scanning, she noticed Wildman on the feed. She was walking briskly through a crowded marketplace in Rome, which was half-way across the world from the Academy. She appeared to be tracking a man with thick dark hair and pointed ears. He didn't even betray the least bit of emotion on his face.
As long as he kept his cover, Wildman would be fine and she could continue here as Ellen Owen.
"No sir. She's not on any Earth security feeds. Perhaps she's gone off-world because of family issues?" Lieutenant Owen suggested.
Commander Sinder nodded, "Very well. Thank you, Lieutenant. Have a good day."
"You too, sir," she replied. As he walked out, she mused over her rather excellent skills at erasing computer memories.
Leaning back in her seat, she sent out a coded transmission to a relay in the Orias sector, telling it to relay her last message she had sent.
It was a simple message, saying that Wildman was on task and so was Myras. As she received the confirmation, the unassuming blonde woman leaned forward again and pulled a sonic screwdriver out of her uniform jacket and used it to wipe the system memory of any outgoing communications sent by her.
With that out of the way, she leaned back again and waited for someone to retrieve her and replace her with another agent. In two hours, Ellen Owen would disappear from Starfleet systems once and for all, her profile discarded as an expired cover.
AN- So who wants to guess who Ellen Owen really is? Virtual brownies for whoever guesses correct. I don't own Yuris Sinder; the name is actually based off of a roleplay account on Instagram. Anyway, this is officially my longest chapter to date. The next one will hopefully be longer. Please, review and give me ideas and con-crit, as this is my first fic that has Doctor Who and Torchwood as an integral part of the story. Well, Allons-y and Geronimo!
Plus, when my computer wanted me to correct the spelling of "Allons" in Allons-y, one of the suggestions was "Alonso". Coincidence? I think not! Microsoft Word is a secret Whovian!