MISSING TIME

by: Dan Bivens

Chapter 1

CAPTAIN'S LOG, STARDATE: 1733.7. It has been weeks since our combative encounter with the first Romulan Bird of Prey attack/scout vessel in a century. Weeks since the USS ENTERPRISE had successfully pushed them back towards the Romulan Neutral Zone, only to have the Romulan Commander initiate a self-destruct rather than surrender. Weeks since we held memorial services for the men and women who died on the pulverized asteroid posts situated along the Federation's side of the Zone. Weeks since I had to break the news to Angela Martine that her fiancée, whom she was to marry before that emergency situation took place, had died in the line of duty. After a short, but very necessary, stopover at Starbase 15 for repairs and a much needed few days of R-and-R, we, once again, moved out into deep space at a steady Warp Factor 4 on a much less taxing medical supply run to some of the colony planets situated in the outermost Sectors of the United Federation of Planets. We anticipated nothing unexpected or dangerous, however, I'd learned early on, as a starship commander, to expect the unexpected.

"Lt. Uhura, contact Colony Delta 8 and let them know we expect to reach their binary system in roughly eighteen hours," said Captain James T. Kirk calmly from the center seat as the viewscreen displayed the illusory image of steadily streaking stars while the ENTERPRISE maintained a warp field capable of allowing the illustrious starship to travel at a relative velocity equivalent to some 69 billion kilometers per hour.

Which, as fast as that sounded, was nothing in comparison to the hundreds of trillions of kilometers involved in traveling from one star system to the next…or to the furthest.

"Captain, the governor of Colony Delta 8 wishes to speak directly with you," Lt. Nyota Uhura said while half-swiveling toward Kirk, then, after listening more intently via her communications earpiece, fully turned toward her handsome commanding officer. "She requests a private link, Captain. Code Two."

Those last two words, said with a solemnity Uhura seldom expressed, would cause everyone on the bridge, even the always logical Commander Spock, to turn intense stares toward the only centralized figure on the circular deck at the top of the starship's saucer section.

As for the subject of those gaping gazes, Kirk took on the air of someone about to confront the cruelest of fates face-to-face as he stood and strode up short steps to end up inside a turbolift while ordering, "Mr. Spock, you have the Conn."

"Affirmative, Captain," Spock said with the intonation and affectation of a truly unemotional half-Human/half-Vulcan while stepping down onto the lower tier in order to officially assume the duties of a first officer and occupy said center seat.

"State name, rank, and serial number in order to receive Code Two communiqué," the synthesized voice of the ENTERPRISE's ship-wide computer system requested just after thumbed activation by Captain Kirk via his cabin's desktop unit.

With a directness born of extreme sobriety, Kirk said, "Kirk, James Tiberius, Captain, SC937-0176 CEC."

Barely a half-second later, which seemed like half an eternity to an anxious and apprehensive Captain Kirk, the computer's voice said, "Confirmed. Scrambled subspace link established."

The crystal clear, digitally perfect face of the gubernatorial leader of Colony Delta 8, Governor Deirdre Augustine, a handsome woman in her early-sixties, swiftly manifested itself as her equally crystal clear, via unseen speakers, voice further edified Kirk as to just how desperate this situation must be.

"Captain Kirk," greeted the nervously smiling Governor Augustine via Kirk's computer terminal as he sat tensely at his cabin's desk, leaning forward with both scowling face and forearms heavily pressed against his desk's smooth top. "I apologize for meeting you under such circumstances."

"What 'circumstances', Governor Augustine?" pressed Kirk with no patience for pleasantries.

Deirdre Augustine, governing head of an entire colony planet of mostly Humans, by the tens of millions, took an audibly deep breath before reporting…

"Captain, as of 0900 hours yesterday, an event took place on this planet the likes of which no one…not scientists, not theorists, not experienced Starfleet personnel…had ever experienced before. One which has a peculiar link to you and your top officers."

Puzzled and impatient, Kirk snappishly said, "You're not making sense, Governor. What 'event'? And why use Code Two to report it to a starship commander?"

"Allow me to switch over to a live view of the individuals of which I speak," Governor Augustine said surreptitiously just before tapping the proper control button before her to accomplish her stated action. "Then, Captain Kirk, I believe you'll understand the true gravity of the predicament."

As the digitally-perfect display on Kirk's small computer screen took all of a millisecond to switch to the flesh-and-blood topic of Governor Augustine's angst…

"Oh…my God."

"All right, Jim," snarled Dr. Leonard H. McCoy as he, along with Spock and Lieutenant-Commander Montgomery Scott, seated himself about the oddly shaped conference table in the main briefing room on Deck 6. "We're all here…now what's the big mystery that you couldn't tell us over the intercom?"

"The mystery, Bones, is coming on the tri-screens of the conference computer even now," Kirk said with both strained expression and tense tone as his forefinger pressed one of several multi-function buttons which activated the trio of small computer-access screens in the middle of the oddly-shaped table's smooth top.

"Jesus…"

"Saints preserve us…"

"Fascinating."

"How can that be real, Captain?" Scotty said with a disbelieving scowl as his Scottish burr made even a straightforward query sound almost musical.

"According to Governor Deirdre Augustine," said Kirk by way of a fumbling explanation, "they simply 'appeared' yesterday morning with absolutely no comprehension of why although they did know where they had been seconds before. They were on…this planet."

Tapping yet another tabletop control button, Kirk caused the baffling footage to promptly be replaced by the high-orbital view of an apparently lifeless world devoid of any visible source of water or much in the way of cloud cover. Comparable, in fact, to Mars in Earth's Sol system long before Humans colonized its arid, reddish surface.

"Now where the hell is that?" McCoy harrumphed even as his troubled glower deepened along with the Southern twang to his tone.

"As far as Starfleet Command and the Federation are concerned," sighed Kirk, his face a mask of tense puzzlement, "it has no name because it had never before been so much as surveyed let alone explored. The only reference made by those who mysteriously materialized yesterday morning on Colony Delta 8 was the term…Guardian of Forever."

With that, the four fell silent as they stared hard at the digitally-perfect images on the tri-screen displays. Watching what amounted to unconditionally familiar individuals, no matter how exceptionally impossible it all seemed.

Watching…

Another Captain James T. Kirk, another Dr. Leonard H. McCoy, another Lieutenant-Commander Montgomery Scott, and another Commander Spock. All currently cooling their proverbial heels in a well-guarded, by Security, VIP guest cabin.

Until the truth could inevitably be told…

END OF CHAPTER 1