"Starfleet Command : The War Chronicles"
Written By: Jason Hicks
Based Upon "Star Trek" Created by Gene Roddenberry
Chapter One - "Silence Is Virtue"
The sun rose on a brand new day in the historic Earth city of Paris. This time of day would usually be a happy time, filled with Starfleet Command personell waiting to begin their days by stopping at the millions of Coffee Shops and Donut joints that lined the Champs-Elysees. But not today...The new president the night before had issued a standing Red Alert and General Quarters for all Earth cities. The first such order ever given. Paris was still, silent, almost too silent. It was eerie. The newly-elected Vice President, an andorian by the name of Darvin Sett was walking all alone down the dank, lonely streets of Paris when his communicator buzzed. "Sett here, I copy.. go ahead". The voice that responded was not chipper at all, it was the new Tholian envoy that had recently been posted to Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco. Tholians were not known for their niceness, that's for damn sure. "LaSinf here Mr.Vice President... I require more sulfuric dioxide in my chambers". Sett was already aware that LaSinf did not actually require the gas, but was rather addicted to it, as were most Tholians. But he obliged. "I'll have the quartermaster come into your chambers and remedy at once. Sett Out". "Damn It!" Sett said to himself as he tripped over a rock, this is not going to be a good day. As he got up to brush the parisian mud off of his uniform, before him stood a withering old man, looking closer he found it to be Col.West, the new Secretary of Defense. West helped Sett all the way up and said in a rather sarcastic tone "I'd never think i'd see the day when a Andorian was Vice President". Sett was neither upset or even curious about the remark- it had been known for a very long time that Col.West was suffering from Senility, even with most of the major drugs, his mind was still a victim to it's age. Sett shrugged it off and said "See you in the chambers". And walked off, in a hurried pace. Running through the empty streets of Paris is not a bright idea for a non-earthling, because of the crooked cobblestone elements the city has, and Sett was tripping left and right cursing everything from weak impulse drive units to the Andorian Prime Minister. Finally, he reached the shuttle depot. The usual shuttle schedules were non-fuctional because of the standing red alert, and only top military or Starfleet brass could use them. Sett took out his identifaction badge and swiped it through the card reader. The shuttle door swung open and a computer voice responded with "Destination Input Please". Sett sat down and said "Plot a course for Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco". The computer retorted with "Please enter valid security access clearance code" Sett cursed underneath his breath. He had forgotten the very complex code given to him by the new President at the last meeting. He turned his hand, and written very small on the back of his neon-blue colored hand were the words "Babylon, Charlie, Gomez, Gomez, Sixteen, Omega, Nine". The code! Sett said to himself. He repeated the words out loud to the computer and it beeped and said "Password Comfirmed, Good Morning Vice President Sett". It paused and then beeped twice more and said "Course plotted and layed in for Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco, Earth." Sett smiled. He knew that in a matter of seconds upon delivering the order to engage that the skyline of Paris would disappear over the horizon, and that the skyline of San Francisco would soon be out the main window. "Engage, Maximum Impulse". The engines fired, and the shuttle took off. Within seconds the shuttle had reached the Golden Gate Bridge. The usual frenzy of shuttles going in and out of the bridge into the main docking port of Starfleet Headquarters was down to only a few workpods and maintainence shuttles. Sett hit the communications panel "Sett to Golden Gate Docking Control". A stolid woman awnsered the hail. "Golden Gate Docking Contol, Go Ahead". Sett understood the coldness in the woman's voice. "This is Vice President Sett requesting Docking Clearance". The woman responded "Acknowledged, we have you, Docking Control Out". The channel beeped and closed, and soon as that happened, a blue light encapsulated the shuttlecraft. It was the tractor beams coming from the bridge. The beams took the shuttle down to what was once "road level" on the bridge, and a series of tractor emitters on the bridge then propelled the shuttle very slowly to the main rotunda of Starfleet Commands' Headquarters. Sett had arrived. The shuttle door hissed and opened and Sett stepped out. Sett was greeted by Piotr Valstok, the new Intelligence director. He had a strong russian accent, and said "Welcome to Starfleet Command Headquarters, Mr.Vice President". Sett paused, he had just remembered that he was, in fact, Vice-President of Starfleet Command. He let it sink in for a second and then said "Mr.Valstok, isn't it?". He shook his head affirmative, and said "I have been ordered by the President to retrieve you from the rotunda to join the Top Staff in the confrence room at once". Sett motioned towards the turbolift, and said "shall we?". The two went in and Sett said "Executive Confrence Room". The turbolift began to speed upwards, towards the very uppermost part of the Headquarters building. The view was phenomenol outside the plexiglass windows of the turbolift- you could see clear to Oxnard on a day like this. The turbolift stopped at the top floor, and Sett and Valstok disembarked. Only one set of doors were on this floor, emblazoned with the Starfleet logo and the words "Executive Staff Only". The two men swiped their access cards through the reader, and entered the room. The room was filled with species of all shapes and sizes, and of course, the Executive staff of Starfleet Command. And it seemed that every one in the room was at odds with each other- nobody was saying a single word. Silence is a virtue he thought to himself. But if this is how reasonable the council was at the start of a war. How would it be by the end of it? He sat himself down in the chair next to the President, and the meeting began. There was a hint of worry in the air.
Chapter Two - "Decisions, Decisions"
The new President of Starfleet Command was sitting at the head of the table. He opened the meeting with the words "To Boldly go where no one has gone before". Everyone recognized that as the Starfleet Charter. He stood up and then addressed the council. He paused and then looked around the room. A very scantily-clad Romulan woman got up from her seat and came up close to the President. "I'm the Romulan Envoy T'Lek" . As the flabbergasted President gained his composure, he said "I'm the Starfleet President, Jonas T. Stalk. Please be seated Ms.T'Lek". She blew the President a kiss and sat back down in her chair. Sett was amused by the whole exchange and fought hard to hold back the extreme amount of laughter about to flow from his lips. "Well, then" said a deep voice from the far end of the table "We are at war". It was the new Secretary of War. A Klingon, with a very Human name. 4-Star General Christofer Henry. He was typically Klingon. A good warrior, and tactician. And he had basically summed the entire jist of the meeting up in about six words. "Yes" said the President. "Battle Readiness Report, Please". The General stood up and said "All of our troops are fully prepared to engage the Chodak Military Alliance, sir." Stalk stood a second to reflect on the past few years in history, that the Chodak, an underprivledged offshoot of the Romulan Star Empire had somehow overthrown their entire goverment, and with their ships, that looked all the world like brains had somehow managed to overthrow the governments of 12 species. Including, the Tholians, who broke the pact that they had signed with Starfleet, making them allies just a year before. Stalk paused. He knew this battle would be hopeless. So far, in the inital scurmishes, Starfleets' most advanced warship, the Jefferson-Class USS Trieste had been hopelessly beat, leaving a burning hulk in space. Sett broke the contemplative silence with a query. "Do we have sufficent firepower to begin fighting the Chodak threat?". The room turned it's attention to Henry. He stood up and with a look of grim solaceness on his face admitted to the council "No, honestly, we are outgunned, outnumbered, and in the wrong". Sett asked another question. "How many ships, in theory would it take to destroy one of their Destroyer-Type war vessels?". Henry cogitated. "Our military appraisial is that even with full power to it's quantam phaser and torpedo banks, and with all of it's omega missiles activated, it would take four Jefferson-Class warships to destroy just one of their Destroyer-type vessels. The room feel silent. It seemed a death sentence had just been handed down. The intercom buzzed. "Sturek is here from Vulcan to see you, Mr. President". Said the female voice from the other end of the intercom. "Very Well, have him wait in my chamber in Paris, I will be with him shortly". The meeting continued for another hour and a half, and Sett was sure someone was torturing him. He never did like conferences. He'd rather still be sixteen again, and planet-hopping through the cosmos with his pals aboard Orion Pirate Frigates. He missed those days. Finally, Stalk proclaimed the meeting closed, and the members of the council filed out of the meeting room. Sett was alone in the room with Stalk. He approached the President. "Permission to speak freely, sir". The stern-faced Stalk turned to his new Vice-President. "Granted, Mr.Sett". The andorian did not want to upset Stalk, he knew that a very large mantle of decision was placed upon him. "Sir, I believe we need to solicit the help of other cultures". Stalk turned around to face Sett. His face turned quizzical. "What culture did you have in mind, exactly, Mr.Sett?". Sett knew he had hit a nerve. He stuttered and then said "I believe the Orion Pirates could be of some assistance". Stalk knew Sett had once been a convict, as a Captain of an Orion Pirate vessel, and knew that he still carried some weight in their culture, and it could be of some advantage, so after mulling it over in his mind for awhile, he said "Very Well, Mr.Sett. Contact whoever you think could be of assitance". Sett seemed overjoyed, and left the room for his office on one of the lower levels. Sturek, no doubt would still be waiting for Stalk in his chambers in Paris. He realised he had been keeping him waiting for over an hour and a half, so without thinking twice, Stalk got in the personal transporter, and with the proper access clearance, was transported directly to his office in Paris on the turn of a dime. Upon arriving, he saw Sturek, and another Vulcan who looked very familiar.
Chapter Three - "Crossroads"
Stalk got out of the transporter, and moved toward the two vulcans, who seemed at odds with each other. A strange thing to see, since most vulcans appealed to each others' brotherhood in inner logic. Then he noticed that one of the Vulcans was laughing. Most unusual. But he decided that maybe this was a Romulan. He had mistaken the two species before, because their traits were very similar. He sat down at his large marble desk and offered both a drink of Saurian Brandy. Both refused. "Greetings, Sir. My Name is Sturek, Son of Stoon". Said the one Vulcan, dressed in ceremonial robes. "And I am C.Thomas Palanin". said the other one. Stalk's face lit up with excitement. "Palanin? Can it really be you after all these years?" Stalk remembered playing with a Vulcan kid on his parent's starship, the Enterprise-H when he was a kid. He had given up the teachings of logic, opting for a human approach. Later on, in his career, perhaps ten years later, as a cadet at Starfleet Academy, it was Palanins' testimony before a High Tribunal that Stalk was not guilty of the death of a fellow classmate. The bond between the two was inseperable. "Yes, Sir. It is the same...I am Sturek's personal attache". Stalk got up from his leather-bound executive chair and went to the very large window looking out over the Parisian skyline. He stood awhile in thought and then turned to face the two men. "Sturek, I am looking for a Starfleet Commander. Your job would be to have command over all of the Admirals in the Alpha Quadrant, and maintain security of all Federation installations, interested?" The vulcan's eyebrow went up, and he said the usual thing about the post not being logical but then reconsidered and said "I suppose I could be of some use. My ambassadorial duties have bored me in recent years. I would be honored to be your Starfleet Commander." Stalk smiled, and handed Sturek a pass card. He explained to Sturek that his offices were located in the city of New San Francisco, atop the orbiting Space Dock Facility. Sturek took the pass card, and exited the office. Palanin and Stalk talked for hours after Sturek's departure, talking about old times. Palanin then got a look of sterness on his face when asked about his parents. "I'd rather not discuss that, sir." Stalk saw the terror in his eyes. He prodded until Palanin let loose. "It was three months ago. We were all serving aboard the USS Crossroads, a medical envoy vessel. Oberth Class. We had no weapons of any sort- outlawed by the Venus Convention of 2678. Four chodak destroyer type vessels invaded, and killed my parents, in front of my very eyes. They thought I was Romulan, and wanted to teach me a lesson." His face got more sour as he looked at Stalk. "Damn You for making me remember that!" he shouted at the guffawed President. Stalk got a stiff lip and said "Would you like a posting in my staff? I need a Secretary of Internal Affairs, I need someone good to talk to the people of Earth, and the Federation. Someone who commands dignity and respect. Can I count on you?" Palanin had just stopped crying. He looked at Stalk and said "Gimmie the post, let's fry these bastards!".
Chapter Four - "Thankless Child"
The day was winding down to a close, that was for sure. But in the offices of the Vice President of Starfleet Command, all was indeed not well. Mounds of military proposals were scattered in piles all over the office, and Sett was constantly on the hyperspace channel chatting to several Captains who owed him favors in the Orion Pirate Society. The door chimed. He knew it was someone with food. He could smell Chinese cuisine. He beckoned for them to come in. Standing before him was a child, no more than six years of age, holding a scrumptous egg roll. Sett was puzzled by this, and looked all around to see if this child belonged to any of the staff members. After searching Starfleet Command Headquarters top to bottom, Sett started getting worried. He took the child to Starfleet Childrens Services in Los Angeles, and had the doctors there run a bio-sweep on him. One of the doctors, an attractive lady by the name of Kimberly Hardin was a blast from Sett's past. Literally. They had once been married. But he wasn't going to let an ex get in the way of an offical investigation. The neural scanner starting beeping. Sett rushed over to it. "Interesting" proclaimed Hardin. "It seems as if he has a bionic implant in his cerebral cortex, which is being fed data, and transmitting data all at once." Sett was now concerned. "Sending data where is the question". Can we analyze the beam? One of the scientists on duty hopped to a science station and said "Scanning now". After a few seconds the scientist got up from her seat. "The signature trace is Chodak". Sett ran to the nearest communicator station. The chipper woman responded "Starfleet Command Switchboard Services, How may I direct your transmission?". Sett grimaced and then said with conviction "Get me a secure line...I've got to speak to the President". Minutes later, Sett was face-to-face with the President in the offices of Dr.Hardin at Starfleet Childrens Services. Stalk looked very tired, it was after all the time when Stalk was usually asleep. He looked around the room "I got a transmission. What is the problem?" Sett took a deep breath. He loathed giving bad news probably as much as Stalk loathed recieving it. "You name it, we got it. There is a neural bionic implant in this young man's cerebral cortex. An amazing amalgam of medical and cybernetic engineering. The trace has been confirmed as Chodak in origin." Stalks face got stone cold. He knew this was a direct attack on the Federation, and it's people. But he also knew the information wasn't over. "There is more?" he said in an increasingly worried tone. "Yes, sir. The Egg roll he was carrying with him contained enough Orientine Acid to eat thru ten human beings. There is no mistake sir, this was an assisination attempt." Stalk said to one of his aides standing nearby "We've got no choice. Begin Military Strike. And quarantine this child." Sett knew that was the right decision, but he also felt the wind of lingering death start to roll in as the sunrise showed it's light over the Los Angeles skyline.
Chapter Five - "Military Strike"
Sitting in the war room was Starfleet's top Military personell, Henry, and West. They were discussing possible strategic ways of getting the Chodak into a trap, when the very slinky Romulan Envoy, T'Lek entered the room. "Military Clearance only, Ma'am" said Col.West. "For what it's worth. My people have been trying to trap and kill the Chodak for three years now. They tap into the minds of the crew that they are fighting. They can detect your next action before you even think about it. It has made our fight a difficult one, and yours and even harder one." She slammed her fists down on the table before the two men and said "My planet, Romulus is occupied by these Chodak scum, they have killed our people, raped our women, and left our planet in ruin!" She was furious, there was no denying that. "You must capture a vessel, before you can destroy these people. They are too strong to mount an extended campaign on at this moment in time". She began to cool down. West was again going senile, and he cursed twice in Romulan and then left the war room. Henry knew she hated him, as most Romulans do. He was after all, A Klingon, and even though the two cultures were now allied, it didn't stop the bloodlust of generations past. Henry then broke the uneasy silence. "What do you propose?" T'Lek looked at him "There is a Chodak Fleet in Sector 20901 near the Cardassian Border. These are simple scout-class vessels. They have very minimal weaponry. But they still have the basic brain-scanning tactical devices. You must destroy the fleet, and capture one of their ships. That is what I suggest you do." T'Lek then proceeded to get up, and in a very flamboyant manner left the war room. Henry was left in silence. He sat back down and opened a channel to Sturek. Sturek awnsered the hail a few seconds later. The grey-haired Vulcan looked very distingushed for a man of 86. But rarely did that age matter to Vulcans. Their life span sometimes went up to 300 years or more. Sturek said "Starfleet Commander Sturek, Proceed General". Henry asked what starships were near Sector 20901. Sturek looked at his fleet map for a second and then said "Not too many, Federation vessels are spread very thin around that region of space. There is the Legion-Class USS Iowa, The Maine-Class USS Jordan, The Sydney-Class USS Vico, and the Oberth-Class Medical Cruiser USS Keller. "Great" Henry thought to himself. The Legion Class vessel was about fourty years old, those ships were not designed for combat, but rather for exploration, but as were most Federation ships, outfitted for battle when the Chodak threat first became prevalent. The Maine Class cruiser was a bit better, but lacks the agility of the higher class warships. The Sydney class was a hopeless loss however you fix it, because it was designed mainly as a refueling ship. It didn't even have warp-drive. It was basically a floating refueling depot for smaller-class warships. Finally, a medical ship. No weapons at all. "Just Great" said Henry to himself again, but knew what had to be done. "Sturek, It is my order to take all of those warships to report to Sector 20901 at once, and engage the Chodak at those co-ordinates. Leave the medical ship behind. They may need to care for the wounded on the other vessels later." Henry closed the channel, and for a second enjoyed the calmness of the quiet room. But he knew that quiet, for all members of Starfleet would not last much longer. War was indeed brewing.
Chapter Six - "A Lesson Learned"
The scene was grim. Stalk was sitting at his desk, as several scientists from Starfleet briefed him on where the Chodak signals were coming from that were being both recieved and trasmitted from the young boy, now in a Los Angeles Childrens Clinic. "The transmission monitor has localized it to Floor 77, Section Beta, Starfleet Headquartes". Stalk paused to think of the only office in that section that was occupied. It was the elusive and xenophobic LaSinf, The Tholian Envoy to Earth. He must be a spy, or a covert operative, Stalk thought to himself. But Stalk also had one of the best spies at his disposal. He beckoned on his communicator for Valstok to join him in him chambers at once. Seconds later, Valstok walked into his chambers. "I understand LaSinf is under suspicion of being a spy for the Chodak Military Alliance." Stalk nodded his head affirmative. "Is there anything you can tell me, I know you keep an eye on everyone, that is why I created the UFP Outreach Program. What have you found out?" Valstok sighed and Stalk knew that bad news was coming. "LaSinf is a xenophobe. He never has left his office. We have monitored his communications, and aside from a daily subspace communication to his family on Tholia, there is nothing to report." Stalk knew that those communication could be more than met the eye, so he asked Valstok "Can your run a subspace echogram, and determine if there is any other frequencies being used?" Valstok began to run the test on his tricoder, when he found something so amazing he had to interrupt Stalk from his chat with the scientists. "Sir! Frequencies in the lower Theta band are being used. There is another transmission going out." Stalk paused. "To where?" his voice began to take on a worried tone. "By our calculations, sir, the destination of the transmission is Chodak Prime, sir. Romulus". Stalk was sure of his next move. He dismissed the scientists, and hit the comm panel. "This is the President. Get me Sturek". Sturek's voice then said "Sturek Here, Sir. Proceed." Stalk sighed. "I'm issuing a warrant for the arrest of LaSinf, Tholian Envoy. I'd like him taken into custody at once." He didn't even give time for the Vulcan to respond. He closed the channel, and motioned for Valstok to join him. They both stepped into the personal transporter and were at Starfleet Headquarters the next second. Walking through the halls of Starfleet Command, Stalk ran into Sett, who was outside his office. "I got your transmission" he said while they were walking. "What are we going to do?" Stalk paused as they reached LaSinf's office door. "Get rid of Chodak Operatives" he said. Sett proceeded to hit the door chime, with no response. "Maybe it is in it's recharge cycle". "No, Not Likely. It knows we're onto it" said Stalk. Arriving just then were ten Security men. Stalk said "Battering Ram. Get that door down". The men got the plasma ram, and in one shot broke the door clear off. All that was in the office was a pile of crystal dust on the desk. Sett rushed to it, and scanned it with a medical tricoder. "Where did it go?" said the bewildered Stalk. "It went nowhere, sir. This is it. It is dead." A wave of nausea came over Stalk, he knew that the first rule in a covert operation was killing either the assasin, or killing the person who sent the assasin. He left the room in haste. "Get me the Children's Center In L.A. RIGHT NOW!" he barked at one of the men. The comm channel beeped. "Urgent Call for President Stalk from Starfleet Command Children's Services Center, Los Angeles." Stalk confirmed his identity to the computer, then read the message on the screen. His face turned ghastly white. Sett went up to him "What is it sir? What's wrong?" Stalk said "The child just died. A Sensory overload was just established in his Cerebral Cortex. We're back at square one." As he began to cry Sett stated the keenly ovbious "Now we're back to square one". Valstok mused for a second and then said to Stalk "Sir, If it is a lesson that needs to be learned, we should try accessing their systems through the implant, if it can be surgically removed from the child's brain." Stalk got up, gained his composure, and said "Permission Granted, I'll kill those Chodak Bastards anyway I can."
With that, Stalk and Valstok got back in the transporter and went back to Paris. Sett knew the war had now become personal to the president, and that this fight would be a very long one.
Chapter Seven - "The Mind's Eye"
The President arrived back in Paris with a sad grimace on his face, he was feeling as if he was losing a downhill battle. Valstok asked for permission to be on the team that would remove the implant from the brain of the young boy. Stalk obliged, and Valstok went back into the transporter, and was instantly whisked away to Los Angeles, where the procedure would soon be underway. The doctors were all huddled around the table in the closed-off section of the hospital. Valstok entered the room, and the tension began to rise. The Chief Surgeon walked in and said "all non-essential personnell please leave the room" Valstok said "I have been requested here by the President". The surgeon looked up and said "all right". For hours, the doctors and nurses worked on phaser-scalpeling the implant out of the boy's cerebrum. Finally, as the sun began to rise, the implant's hooks and wires leading into the very core of the boy's brain were removed. The impant, which looked like a potato with a corkscrew sticking out of it was laying on the table next to the surgeon. Valstok picked it up, and with fervor, took a swift tricorder scan of it. The doctors were dumbfounded, they did not speak. The readings that Valstok was recieving were erratic, and of a totally alien nature. Valstok wrapped the device in a felt cloth he had with him and ran to the nearest shuttle dock outside the hospital. He climbed into the small, cramped shuttlepod, a short-range shuttle not even warp-enabled, and set the shuttle's coordinates for Oxnard, California and the Strawberry Vineyards, a top secret Federation Installation with the most advanced lab equipment in the alpha quadrant. On approach, he signaled the secret code, and an entire acre of what appared to be Strawberry Vineyards opened up to reveal a huge docking bay. The logo of the UFP Outreach Program was emblazoned on the floor. Valstok stepped out of the shuttlepod as it touched down and docked. He ran to the nearest shock-absorption room and placed the device dead center. Just as the readings began to show their most erratic signals, the device simply vanished in a trace of yellow and blue lights. Valstok began reviewing sensor logs, he was frantic to find out just what happened, when Sturek and Sett arrived. Sett looked at Valstok and in the room. "The president wants a report" he said with a blank glare. Valstok was noticeably shaken he quivered "It...It's gone". He muttered. Sett sighed and said "how?" with a hint of disbelief. Valstok showed Sett and Sturek the logs from the Shock Absorption Room, and how the device simply vanished. Sturek's eyebrow lifted. Sett looked at him "any ideas?" Sturek sat a moment in thought and then said "It looked like a simple transporter beam". Valstok instantly put that idea down "We did a full transporter trace analysis, there was no transporter technology used". Sturek's eyebrow went up again- a typical Vulcan move for when an idea was being formulated. "Perhaps" said Sturek "They did not use Transporters in the sense of the word" Valstok, puzzled said "How do you mean?" Sturek sighed and began to explain "for the last few years the Gorn and the Kzinti have been holding an uneasy alliance. The Gorn have the technology to beam objects thru a zone of space called Exospace. Theoretically, the beam would look like a standard transporter, but all detection devices could not detect the trace pattern because typical and subspace boundaries were not used." Valstok paused "How do we scan for Exospace?" Sturek then plainly said "the region is not detectable, but it is highly static, it flexes, it does not remain stable. There must be a control sattelite in orbit above Earth to control the flow of Exospace beaming". Valstok slammed his fist down on the control console "Or..." he said with conviction "A cloaked vessel". Sett knew what was next. He got on the comm panel and said "Spacedock". A few seconds later a voice came over "Spacedock, Control Central". Sett said in a businesslike manner "I need a ship for a scientific investigation, what have you got?" The dockmaster paused and then said "We have 1 ship currently docked without a crew, but it is very poorly armed." Sett paused, he knew he was going to have to fight if it was a ship, but he had been in situations like that in the pirates before, so he gave the order. Perhaps twenty minutes later, Sett, Valstok, and Sturek were on the bridge of the Oberth-Class USS Bonaventure, starfleet registry NCC-87662. Sett took the command chair, and Sturek took the conn. Valstok ran down to occupy the tactical/navigation station. A few hours later, Valstok said "I guess I was wrong, this has been the nineteeth orbit of earth, no sattelites, no ships, no nothing". Just as he said that, the sensors began to detect a radiation surge 600 meters off the starboard bow. "Sir! Chodak Warship, bearing 909 mark 212, she's cloaked!" Sett had a surprised look. His face was pure annoyance "Hailing Frequencies". Sturek said "Open" as he hit the button that performed that task. "This is Vice-President Sett of Starfleet Command, Your presence here is an act of war". No response. That didn't much surprise Sett, nor anyone else. Sturek said "Perhaps if you used a bit more force, sir" Sett reasoned with the diplomacy of the situation, and decided not to pursue it. "Close the channel, Sturek". Sturek obliged. "Red Alert Valstok!" he said with a touch of agression "Arm phasers, aim for the cloaking controls" Valstok got the coordinates and said "Primary Batteries trained on target, sir". "Fire" said Sett with an almost bone-chilling calm to his voice. As the ship began to decloak, something seemed off, there was no defensive action. But there was a large eye on the side of the Chodak Warship. Sturek scanned it "Sir, that eye is a detection sattelite, they have us under survellience!" Sett then proceeded to take care of the spy sattelite, by draining it's memory banks of all it's data, and then destroying it.
Chapter Eight - The Battle
The deck lights blazed their darkest blood-red color, as the USS Iowa began to engage the Chodak fleet. The other vessels in the fleet fell behind, victims of the unique devices on the Chodak Vessels. The Captain of the Iowa is a middle-aged man, on his third mission as Captain. His experience is minimal in combat, as he was a member of the diplomatic corps for a very long time. "Sir!" the helmsman barked "Shields down to 77%, continuing to drain". The Captain looked very unsure of himself "Suggestions" he said. The first-officer, a veteran of the military for six years, prompted with a suggestion: "Suggest Anti-Matter Spread, Omega Dispersal Pattern". The Captain paused, as if to think, and then said "Arm the anti-matter warheads, and fire in Omega Dispersal Pattern". The anti-matter spread left the starship in a trace of bright white lights that fizzled and reminded the Captain of the Fourth of July celebrations on Earth. The Chodak Warships began to move closer together in an attack posture. The science officer touted "Sir, the Chodak ships have taken up a position relative to ours, and have increased torpedo warhead yield by 500%!" The Captain, unprepared for the action, hesitated and ordered all power to the defensive systems. The ship was then rocked back and forth like a canoe on a very heavy rapid. "Damn!" screamed the Captain as he went head over heels. The Science Officer ran over to him, approaching his area, he saw the Captain was impaled on the sensor scope. "The Captain is dead" he said with a touch of sadness. "Withdraw, Mr. Beltene...set a course for Starbase 220, Warp 8, engage when ready". With that, the ship left the battle area, wounded, and nearly destroyed. Upon approach to Starbase 220, none of the standard hailing frequencies were in use. The science officer thought this to be a bit odd. "Ms. Harlem, is there any subspace transmissions from the base?" he asked the communications officer. "No, sir...and i'm not reading any lifeforms on the planet, either". "What?" said the science officer in a bout of disbelief. "Impossible! There were over 4,000 people on that starbase". "Confirmed sir" said Ms. Harlem. "We're beaming down, hand phasers and standard issue handknives...we may be going into a hand-to-hand combant scenario".
Chapter Nine - Starbase Disaster
The men beamed down to Starbase 220, expecting to see, at the bear minimum, an enemy soldier. Instead what they found was appaling, all 4,000 people at the starbase, including scholars from several independent planets had all been murdered. "Are you sure it was murder?" said the Science Officer, looking a bit distressed "Yes, sir. Each death fits the bill of a totally different kind of murder...lynching, simple stabbing, decapitation...these are too diverse of forms of death to be either self-inflicted or massive". "Sir, the communications terminals are still functioning...perhaps we can contact Starfleet". said one of the mission specialists. "Go ahead, see if there is a direct line". Just as the officer hit the panel, each of the crew members were killed by electrical shock, built into the panel as part of a booby trap. The Chodak officers, who were hiding in the vents above the terminal came down, grabbed the emergency transport button and beamed back to the ship. The Iowa and her crew were now MIA to Starfleet. Things were not looking up. Nobody knew that better than Stalk. He was sitting in his chair, overlooking Paris, when Valstok and Henry came in with disturbing news. "Sir, you may want to cancel all your appointments for this". Stalk sighed heavily and spun around in his chair "What is it?" Henry handed Stalk a PADD that showed the fleet deployment "Sir, The Iowa is Missing, The other starships were captured, or destroyed. We are looking at a loss of epidemic size and scope". Stalk began to get hot under the collar "What kind of loss are we talking about here, Gentlemen?" Valstok sighed and said the bad news "Our fleet is now 11 warships, 9 beyond repair, 2 in repair". Stalk said with a hint of disbelief "Are you telling me that we have no functioning warships?" Valstok paused "Yes, sir that is exactly what we are saying". Stalk began to get flustered "What do we have?" he said with certain anger in his voice. Henry looked around the room and said "Sir, we have four and only four Excelsior-Class starships that are spaceworthy". Stalk sighed for a second and queried about the fate of the USS Boneventure. "That vessel was stripped for sheet metal in manufacturing a sub-colbalt bomb" said Valstok. Stalk paused "Dismissed, Gentlemen" he said in an emotionless tone, as the men left, the president, who had been up for close to 80 hours without sleep swiveled around in his chair and looked out on the Paris skyline. He knew there was no hope for the Federation now, and it would only be a matter of time before history looked upon him as the President that failed in repulsing an enemy attack, and leading the Federation into oblivion. As the sun began to set, Stalk started to cry.
Chapter Ten - Out Of Time
Sett was playing Tennis in a court on a Holodeck at Starfleet Command in San Francisco when the communicator interrupted his game "Damn It!" he screamed as the tennis ball flew into his head. "Sorry to interrupt your game sir, but Dr. Smith from Starfleet Medical wishes to see you regarding the president's health" Sett paused to think. He knew the name sounded familiar, but he couldn't place what kind of doctor Smith was. "Alright, have him meet me in my office in twenty minutes". Sett ended the program and took the turbolift back to his office. Ten minutes later, Dr. Smith walked in. "Sett, Allow me to introduce myself, I am Dr. Ezekiel Smith". The andorian vice president got up from his chair to greet the doctor "Nice to meet you, Doctor...what can I do for you today?" The doctor sat down, there was certain trouble in his voice "The President has been sedated". "What?!" screamed Sett. "Why?" he said in a tone of both disbelief and excitement. "He has been suffering the position lately, he requested that he see me, and when I began to talk about our situation, he cracked like an egg, demanding to see his mommy". Sett couldn't believe what he was hearing. "We sent him to the Penal Institute on Frocus Six this morning about the Vulcan transport ship Debeatra." Sett was stunned "I am here to swear you in as President of Starfleet Command" said the doctor. Sett was still standing there when the whole of the press corps broke through the door. Sett screamed for everyone to leave, but they would not obey. He took the oath and sat down, awnsered some banal questions, and then after they all had left, he sat down with a handful of military proposals on his desk. He picked up one. It was drafted by Valstok and Henry the mission said "OPERATION : OUT OF TIME". He began to page through the proposal which stated that a timepod could be constructed and sent back in time to secure warships for the current cause. Sett was dismayed at this proposal and threw it in the trash can. "Out of time, indeed!" he muttered under his breath. The communicator buzzed "Sir, Mr.Valstok here to see you". Sett hit the button "Send him in". Valstok walked in "Sir, We must withdraw at once from Gamma Quadrant" Sett paused "Excuse Me?" he said "We don't have any ships in space at the moment, let alone any way out in Gamma Quadrant". Valstok sat down next to Sett "That is not quite true sir, I think there is something you should know...."
Chapter Eleven - The Jem'Hadar Alliance
Valstok talked to Sett for hours about the UFP Outreach Program and it's primary goals, but then began talking about something that nobody by Valstok knew about. "For the last four months, I have been in contact with a rogue group of Jem'Hadar soliders, they call themselves "The Triangle". They have vast firepower, 500 spaceworthy battleships and a following of over 10,000 men." Sett paused, dumbfounded "The Jem'Hadar? Would they even be our friends? I've been in some tight places before with the Jem'Hadar, and they aren't exactly friendly" Valstok shook his head "Not these Jem'Hadar. I have bribed them with payment. They were ready to go to battle for us..." Sett cut him off "But?" he said in a knowing tone. Valstok sighed "But, sir...with our losses to the Chodak fleet, even the support from the Triangle has waned, they want 50,000 more bars of gold-pressed latinum". Sett looked a bit confused "Where did they get the first part of the bribe money?" Valstok's face turned red "Uh...we got that from...a secure source". Sett slammed his fists on the table "Don't hand me that Intelligence bullshit, Mister...I was an Orion Pirate for a very long time, and I know when someone is not telling me the whole truth...where did the money come from?" Valstok knew he was dead, he hesitated and said "I secured it from Fort Knox, sir. The Galactic Treasury." Sett sat down in his chair he looked up at Valstok, trembling in his boots before him "Mr. Valstok, you have commited robbery...there is no excuse for this, weather by orders or not, you know the risks you take full well, and as Intelligence Director, you have full responsibility for your actions". Sett paused and reflected on a few things. He hit the comm panel "Security to my office, on the double!" he said. The men were there in under ten seconds. "Sir?" they both said. Sett took the handcuffs off of one of the guards and put them on Valstok. "As per Interstellar Law, Article 101, Subheading Beta, Paragraph 2, I am placing you under arrest. The charge is Embezzlement, and Bribing other species without Starfleet Permission to do so. Seeing as how this would gain unwanted attention towards me, I am therefore withholding your fate from the press. Send him to the main jailing center in Sydney." The men took Valstok away....Sett walked back to his desk and stared out the window at the Golden Gate Bridge. He moved back towards his desk and picked up the information Valstok had left regarding the Jem'Hadar alliance. He began to consider it thinking that this was the only hope they had left to them. There was a frequency listed on the back for a Jem'Hadar solider who Valstok did the dealings with, Ta'Hek'Wal. He took the paper with him. He was on his way to meet with Henry, and a possible solution to the war.
Chapter Twelve - The Deal
Sett walked into Henry's very sloppy office on Telegraph Hill in San Francisco. "Henry? You Here?" said Sett. "Right Here!" said Henry. "Where would here be?" said Sett, a little confused. "Underneath Proposal Number 294". There was a big sheet of paper, among many scattered around the room that said "PROPOSAL 294" on it, Sett lifted it to find Henry underneath sipping a coffee and reading a book on tactics by George Patton. "You should read this book, sir" said Henry. "Nevermind that, we have some pressing business to attend to" said Sett, eyes wide with excitement. Over the course of the next few minutes Sett described what Valstok told him. And how it seemed to him to be quite illegal and against Starfleet Policy. "Quite true, it is not an honorable agreement, but perhaps we could arrange a barter of some kind" said Henry. Sett's ears perked up "Yes! Quid-Pro-Quo, an excellent idea!" Sett and Henry were then hunched over a monitor as they inputted the information of who they wanted to contact. In under a minute the face of a battle-weary Jem'Hadar soldier appeared before them. "This is Vice President Sett of Starfleet Command, to whom do I have the honor of speaking?" The soldier was sizing up Sett, which in of itself, made Sett uncomfortable. "I am Ta'Hek'Wal" he said" in an throughly un-emotional voice. "I am willing to barter for your military assistance" said Sett. "Barter?" said the solider, with just a hint of sarcasm "We do not barter, we profit". Sett paused "I don't think that's true, how about some tetracel white?" The drug, which the Jem'Hadar were addicted to, was well known to be rare in this day in age, and Sett knew that the drug itself would be payment enough. "Yes. Tetracel White. We will barter, as you people call it". Sett smiled "How much and where?" The solider, with a deadpan look said "Meet me in two days on the planet Fistria. We will exchange there. And the deal is, that you come, alone, personally to deliver the articles...or you don't get the support, and you also die." Sett swallowed hard. He accepted the deal, and asked the amount of the drug that they wanted. "We would like 68,000 Liters of it". Sett slapped his forehead. No way could he find that much in 48 hours. He knew something had to be done. He just didn't know what. He agreed to the deal, turned off the computer and spun around to face Henry. "Now what?" said Henry. "Now, we find Sturek, and dabble in the Black Market".
Chapter Thirteen - Black Market Days
Sturek was standing atop the Eiffel Tower looking out over Paris, when Sett and Henry walked up to him. "We need your help" said Sett. The Vulcan's Eyebrow went up in typical Vulcan fashion "With what, may I ask?" Sett handed him the report regarding Valstok, the alliance, and what had just happened in Henry's office. Sturek said "Most Illogical" and paused "What do you require of me?" Sett grinned "Well, we need to deal with the Black Market for the drug. We have the money secured from my personal trust account for this. We can do the exchange, but with a person with as high a profile as me, that'd be difficult. And they'd trust a Vulcan. We need you to secure the deal". Sturek's face was as emotionless as ever "My position is also high profile, surely they'd know me". Sett sighed and said "Well, they wouldn't. The Black Marketeers we will be dealing with know only of the President and I, they are not privy to internal postings of high regard in Starfleet, so we have an upper hand in this". Sturek's eyebrow went up again "I accept. Though this is highly illogical". Sett laughed "It is indeed, Mr.Sturek, It is indeed". Minutes later, the three men were on a shuttle bound for New Berlin on Earth's Moon, the site of the black marketeers base. When they got there, they dropped off Sturek 500 yards from the warehouse and jetted off to a more distant location. For many hours, Henry and Sett waited in the shuttle for word from Sturek. Finally, the comm system beeped and Sturek's voice came over the comm "We have secured 68,000 Liters of the Narcotic Tetracel White in exchange for 300 bars of gold-pressed latinum from your personal account". Sett smiled "Good Job, Sturek". The coordinates of the narcotic were recieved, beamed aboard the shuttle, and after the narcotic, Sturek beamed aboard. The three men then set course back to Earth, and to what lies ahead.
Chapter Fourteen - Fistria
Fistria was a desolate world, ravaged by Nuclear bombardment, two super powers on the planet had both driven themselves into a prolonged nuclear conflict about 2,000 years ago, and the world was nothing more than grey skies, and craters. A perfect place for a deal with a dark strand to go down. As agreed by the deal earlier, Sett was alone upon arrival in a Starfleet Type J Frieght Shuttlecraft, it landed mere feet from the Jem'Hadar soliders who were waiting with military contract in hand. Sett stepped out of the shuttle, and began walking toward the men. "I am Da'Hek'Val, personal assistant to Ta'Hek'Wal. I am here to secure the drugs, and to sign the contract, if it meets with the required stipulations of the deal made earlier". Sett was fidgety, this situation would make anyone feel so. Sett remembered a time when he made a similar deal with the Jem'Hadar. The drugs he was selling them turned out to be nothing more than chalk water, and he was nearly killed for it. He hoped that the drugs would be to their liking. He had no weapon, so he was even more nervous than usual. "Hmm" said on of the soldiers. "This batch is 80% quality". Sett's heart dropped, but then loosened as Ta'Hek'Wal said "This is homemade Tetracel White, low quality is the name of the game, as long as it dosen't dip below 70% quality, we still have a deal". He leered over at Sett, who was about to have an accident in his pants. Minutes later, the final batch was scanned, and the quality was 71%. "Just barely" he thought as Ta'Hek'Wal walked towards him. Ta'Hek'Wal handed Sett a military contract, and they both signed it. The deal was that the Jem'Hadar would help Starfleet combat the Chodak and it's allies, but the strategy was up to the Triangle, and Starfleet itself had to put up 10 ships in the offer. Sett paused as he read the part about the ten ships "We don't have ten spaceworthy ships. What is to be done?" Ta'Hek'Wal smiled and said "We know of your four Excelsior class ships that are spaceworthy, we are willing to give you six captured Starfleet Vessels we have for an additional price". Sett's eyes widened "What kind of price?" he said with a certain tone of disbelief. "Starfleet Protection. After this war, we would like to be a Starfleer Protectorate." Sett sighed a sigh of relief. "Very Well. It shall be done. You have my word on it. When the war is over, The Triangle will be recognized as an independent government, upon which time, you will become a Starfleet Protectorate". The Jem'Hadar men walked back over to their ship and took off, and Sett stared up at the cold, grey sky. "Now....You'll burn in space, you Chodak scum!"
Chapter Fifteen - Six Starships
Sett was welcomed home a day later, and as his shuttle landed, news of the deal was all over the free press. A ticker-tape parade was even staged for his arrival in New York City, where his shuttle landed. The war had reached a turning point, but, there was still much work to be done. Sett walked into the Starfleet Council meeting room in the old United Nations building in Manhattan. His top brass was all there, Henry, T'Lek, West, Sturek, Palanin, and a woman whom he had never seen before. He sat down at the table and began talking about the starships that were acquired. Henry said that the ships were decent enough, but the Jem'Hadar had not taken very good care of them and that all the ships needed to be refitted. Sett paused after hearing this and said "More bad news?...what's the timetable?" Henry paused and said "all six ships will be spaceworthy in 72 hours, sir". Sett smiled "Excellent. You're better at this than you think Henry". Henry wryly smirked and said "It was not me who accomplished the speedy refit timetable, sir". Sett was intrigued. "Who then did this excellent peice of work?" Henry pointed towards the unknown woman at the far side of the table. "May I present Dr.Tabetha L. Meyer of Starfleet Engineering Corps." Sett got up and went over to her and shook her hand "Dr.Meyer, Thank you...you have my gratitude". Dr. Meyer's face got a bit red, but not out of the ordinary, she was a woman from Sett's past, and he did not recognize her at all. After the meeting she stayed behind and they began to talk. "Darvin...I cannot believe you do not remember me". Sett's eyes lit up "Do I know you, Tabetha?" he said with confusion in his voice. "Yes, think back about ten years ago." Sett tried to recall...ten years was a long time, especially when you are an Orion Pirate, crews pledging their alliances to you, then stabbing you in the back for more profitable journies. Sett stammered "I....I'm sorry, I can't recall..." The doctor walked in front of Sett, put her arms around his neck, and gave him a passionate kiss. "Now do you remember?" Sett could barely recall her now, just a glimmer of who she was. She looked annoyed but let loose of the information anyhow "About ten years ago on the pirate vessel Sandtrap. I was your first officer". Sett now recalled that a lovely woman came aboard as his first officer, and that they had relations, and eventually she left to get her doctorate in Engineering instead of going away and getting married to him. He said, with a longing in his voice "Yes, Now I recall...you left on what was supposed to be our wedding day". The doctor's face went sullen "I do not intend to get married to a pirate, Mr.Sett..." she paused "But, a President...of Starfleet...that" again, a pause "...could be arranged". Sett gave her a kiss then, and for a brief instance, the war, and the unremitting hostility in space seemed so far away. Only a red alert would make him move from where he was. A minute later, the alarms sounded. The battles had begun.
Chapter Sixteen - Burning In Space
Ten days had passed since the Starfleet ships Pheonix, Crazy Horse, Tokyo, Nagano, Atlantis, Pompeii, Berlin, Indianpolis, Pyrite, and Repulse had been refitted, manned, and sent out with the Triangle vessels to begin the latest series of attacks against The Chodak Alliance. The victories were overwhelming. They came in floods. Sett was cheering the latest victory in his San Francisco office when Henry and Meyer came in. "A toast, perhaps?" said the vice president, noticably happy about the most recent victory. Henry declined the champagne, as did Meyer and they both sat down, with sad, dejected looks on their faces. "Sir...there is something you should know..." said Henry with a certain degree of stutter in his voice. Sett knew this was not good news, and he sat down "What is it? A loss?" Henry began to cry "No, sir...The USS Atlantis was chartered to sector 19220 to pick up Stalk from the penal colony there...he had regained his composure..." Sett's face began to feel what was coming, his lip began to jitter wildly with a nervous reaction "What happened?" Henry said "The Chodak frigate Tratei engaged the vessel near Starbase 113, the ship was ill-equipped to handle the intense weapons. They had no time to raise their shields, the Chodak ship fired two shots, we just got word from Starbase 113 about ten minutes ago...the ship and it's crew are burning in space". Sett's eyes filled with tears. "The president?" he stammered "Tried to escape in a pod. It was targeted about 300 yards from the wreckage and blown to bits" said Meyer. Sett fell back in his chair. "Then..." he paused cradling a tennis ball in his right hand "if what we feel is right, and what we are doing here is of any good...then this war has taken on a new air....I no longer simply intend to kill off the Chodak threat, I want their leader, In my office, as I take this tennis ball, and shove it down his throat....until he chokes to death!" Sett's voice had a tint of emotionalism to it, as would anyone in this situation, but he meant his threat. And slammed the ball down on the table. "Damn this war, anyway..." he muttered as he left his office, leaving Henry and Meyer behind. The sun was setting, and tomorrow brought the invasion of the Chodak home world, formerly Romulus. Victory was at hand.
Chapter Seventeen - Victory Cries
As the sun rose on Earth, the sun was setting on Chodak Prime, formerly Romulus. The citizens of the First City were all but asleep, and those who weren't were eating their evening meals. The dictator Skali was himself, winding down in his offices in the Chancellory Building, overlooking the Senate Court and the Sea of Tal. The world was not expecting what was going to happen in mere hours. In the dark of night, they came. 515 starships, everything Starfleet had, plus the Jem'Hadar warships. They began attacking late in the night, when security was at it's lowest in the First City. Orbital bombardment commenced just before Midnight on Chodak Prime, as the people all over Earth, and allied planets watched the teleplay from the observation deck of the USS Indianapolis. "Remarkable" said Sett, in awe of the immense power being hurled toward the planet "I thought i'd never see this day". Sett looked tired. He was suffering from exhaustion. He had been awake now for 110 hours without let-up, finishing up military proposals, approving leave for soldiers, and writing letters of condolences to families who had been torn apart by the war. His eyes were nearly red, and the bags were very dark and defined shade of purple on his blue-ish flesh. "Maybe you should get some rest, sir" said Henry. "No, I want to see these bastards fry" said Sett with conviction. Meyer came up from behind Sett "Darvin, Sturek and Palanin want to see you at once in your office". Sett turned around and hastily walked away from the huge monitor screen atop the Transamerica Pyramid. As he was walking at a faster pace he was asking questions "Did they say what it was for?" Meyer said that it was simply something that had to do with the war. He ran to the turbolift and at the top, near his office Meyer gave him another kiss "Be careful in there. Whatever it is, Just be careful". Sett smiled "I will. Don't worry" Sett looked over at his secretary watching the teleplay and pointed to the monitor and looked at Meyer "Let me know how it turns out". He turned and walked into his office.
Chapter Eighteen - Surrender
As Sett pushed open the doors, Palanin and Sturek greeted him in typical Vulcan fashion with the Live Long and Prosper salute. Sett gave it back, and sat in his chair. "So, why have you called me?" he questioned them. Palanin spoke up "Sir, There is someone who wants to speak with you waiting in your back room". Sturek looked over at Sett "Take it easy, sir. Do not let excessive emotionalism cloud your judgment". Sett was wondering who this could be. He hesitantly walked over to the back room's door and opened it. There, standing, nearly nothing more than burned flesh and some stray cloth was Skali, dictator of the Chodak Alliance. Sett picked up a phaser on the end table and pointed it at him. "Sure, kill me...you have killed all my people" cried Skali. Sett threw the phaser aside "You are right, Mr.Skali...you are very right, If I kill you, who will sign the surrender papers?" Skali beamed. Sett knew this was going to be something other than simple. For 22 more hours, Sett and Skali sat in a room working out the peace treaty, until finally, an agreement was reached. Skali signed the paper, on the top line, authorizing the surrender of all forces, and disarmament, and dissolution of all Chodak Alliances with other races, and began to put the pen towards the bottom line, which included territorial disputes, and plans for restorations. Sett knew Starfleet would be losing millions of parsecs to the newly formed Chodak/Romulan Envoy, and he could not allow that. So, he took the only course of action available to him. He picked up the tennis ball in his pocket, distracted Skali for a second, made him look upward, hit him square in the chest, and crammed the tennis ball down his throat. As Sett watched the man die, he felt an urge of power come over him. He walked out of the room and motioned for Palanin to come over towards him "The Dictator is dead. He tried to swallow a tennis ball...tragic." said Sett in a sort of half-deranged comedic overtone. Palanin's eyebrow went up "Sir?" Sett chuckled and said "He thought the damn thing was a pastry, before I could stop him, he choked to death on it...but he did sign the treaty...the top half anyways" Sett winked at Palanin "Ah, Yes, sir..." said Palanin with a hint of understanding in his voice. Sett stepped out of his office and walked over to where the press stand and took Henry away from a conference with one of them and pointed towards the dead dictator, being carried out of Sett's office by Sturek and Palanin "I think It's time we took the trash out, don't you think?" The press began to cheer. The war was over now. The enemy had surrendered. And Sett went back to his bed, inside his office, and turned out the light. Rest at last. Rest at last.
Chapter Nineteen - Til Death Do Us Part
The sky was cobalt blue on a sunny day in the chapel in Rome. The birds were singing and there was a ceremony in progress inside. "In keeping with the tradition of all Starfleet Papal States since the year 2121, I come before you all today in good faith" said the Pope. "...to bring together Darvin Sett and Tabetha L. Meyer in the bonds of holy matrimony" The proud couple, decked out in full Starfleet dress were beaming at each other. The do you's were next, and they both awnsered them in turn. The Pope now blessed them both and said "Then, by the power vested in me by Starfleet Command and the Church of the Planet Earth, I hereby wed you. Til death do you part". Sett smiled and looked at his new wife "Til death do us part" he spoke softly in her ear. They kissed. The congregation followed them outside. "Congratulations, Sir" said a voice from the crowd. Seconds later he found the voice belonged to none other than Sturek, who had with him a very aged Henry. "Yes, sir, best of luck" he said in a scratchy tone. The couple exited into their shuttle, and began to zoom off, away from the church. Inside, the driver, a boy of no more than sixteen looked back in awe at the two of them. "Never seen a happier couple, eh?" said Sett, thinking that his look was because they were so happy with each other. "No, Mr. Sett, not at all. I just can't believe i'm in the same shuttle as a legend". Sett paused and thought "oh no, not another fan". "So....what is it you like about me?" he said with a tone of annoyance. The shuttle pilot put the controls on automatic and turned around. There was something about his face, something familiar. Sett couldn't pin it down. "I just think what you did, the odds you were up against, and the 15 re-elections as President that followed....you are truly an excellent President, and you are just a bit of an idol of mine, and i'd like to thank you". Sett was a bit confused "Thank me? For what?" The boy began to tear up as he walked over and sat down next to Sett. "My name is Timothy Stalk. I'm the son of Jonas. I was just a baby when the war ended, but i'd like to thank you for taking over for Dad and doing so much good in the galaxy". Sett gave the kid a hug "That's my job, mister" he said with sterness. The shuttle went over the hills, towards London, where the honeymoon was to commence. All was right with the galaxy, and as they rode off into the sunset a peace that had never existed within Sett began to form. "Til Death do us part" he said to his wife, she beamed back, and gave him a kiss.
THE END
Written By: Jason Hicks
Based Upon "Star Trek" Created by Gene Roddenberry
Chapter One - "Silence Is Virtue"
The sun rose on a brand new day in the historic Earth city of Paris. This time of day would usually be a happy time, filled with Starfleet Command personell waiting to begin their days by stopping at the millions of Coffee Shops and Donut joints that lined the Champs-Elysees. But not today...The new president the night before had issued a standing Red Alert and General Quarters for all Earth cities. The first such order ever given. Paris was still, silent, almost too silent. It was eerie. The newly-elected Vice President, an andorian by the name of Darvin Sett was walking all alone down the dank, lonely streets of Paris when his communicator buzzed. "Sett here, I copy.. go ahead". The voice that responded was not chipper at all, it was the new Tholian envoy that had recently been posted to Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco. Tholians were not known for their niceness, that's for damn sure. "LaSinf here Mr.Vice President... I require more sulfuric dioxide in my chambers". Sett was already aware that LaSinf did not actually require the gas, but was rather addicted to it, as were most Tholians. But he obliged. "I'll have the quartermaster come into your chambers and remedy at once. Sett Out". "Damn It!" Sett said to himself as he tripped over a rock, this is not going to be a good day. As he got up to brush the parisian mud off of his uniform, before him stood a withering old man, looking closer he found it to be Col.West, the new Secretary of Defense. West helped Sett all the way up and said in a rather sarcastic tone "I'd never think i'd see the day when a Andorian was Vice President". Sett was neither upset or even curious about the remark- it had been known for a very long time that Col.West was suffering from Senility, even with most of the major drugs, his mind was still a victim to it's age. Sett shrugged it off and said "See you in the chambers". And walked off, in a hurried pace. Running through the empty streets of Paris is not a bright idea for a non-earthling, because of the crooked cobblestone elements the city has, and Sett was tripping left and right cursing everything from weak impulse drive units to the Andorian Prime Minister. Finally, he reached the shuttle depot. The usual shuttle schedules were non-fuctional because of the standing red alert, and only top military or Starfleet brass could use them. Sett took out his identifaction badge and swiped it through the card reader. The shuttle door swung open and a computer voice responded with "Destination Input Please". Sett sat down and said "Plot a course for Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco". The computer retorted with "Please enter valid security access clearance code" Sett cursed underneath his breath. He had forgotten the very complex code given to him by the new President at the last meeting. He turned his hand, and written very small on the back of his neon-blue colored hand were the words "Babylon, Charlie, Gomez, Gomez, Sixteen, Omega, Nine". The code! Sett said to himself. He repeated the words out loud to the computer and it beeped and said "Password Comfirmed, Good Morning Vice President Sett". It paused and then beeped twice more and said "Course plotted and layed in for Starfleet Headquarters, San Francisco, Earth." Sett smiled. He knew that in a matter of seconds upon delivering the order to engage that the skyline of Paris would disappear over the horizon, and that the skyline of San Francisco would soon be out the main window. "Engage, Maximum Impulse". The engines fired, and the shuttle took off. Within seconds the shuttle had reached the Golden Gate Bridge. The usual frenzy of shuttles going in and out of the bridge into the main docking port of Starfleet Headquarters was down to only a few workpods and maintainence shuttles. Sett hit the communications panel "Sett to Golden Gate Docking Control". A stolid woman awnsered the hail. "Golden Gate Docking Contol, Go Ahead". Sett understood the coldness in the woman's voice. "This is Vice President Sett requesting Docking Clearance". The woman responded "Acknowledged, we have you, Docking Control Out". The channel beeped and closed, and soon as that happened, a blue light encapsulated the shuttlecraft. It was the tractor beams coming from the bridge. The beams took the shuttle down to what was once "road level" on the bridge, and a series of tractor emitters on the bridge then propelled the shuttle very slowly to the main rotunda of Starfleet Commands' Headquarters. Sett had arrived. The shuttle door hissed and opened and Sett stepped out. Sett was greeted by Piotr Valstok, the new Intelligence director. He had a strong russian accent, and said "Welcome to Starfleet Command Headquarters, Mr.Vice President". Sett paused, he had just remembered that he was, in fact, Vice-President of Starfleet Command. He let it sink in for a second and then said "Mr.Valstok, isn't it?". He shook his head affirmative, and said "I have been ordered by the President to retrieve you from the rotunda to join the Top Staff in the confrence room at once". Sett motioned towards the turbolift, and said "shall we?". The two went in and Sett said "Executive Confrence Room". The turbolift began to speed upwards, towards the very uppermost part of the Headquarters building. The view was phenomenol outside the plexiglass windows of the turbolift- you could see clear to Oxnard on a day like this. The turbolift stopped at the top floor, and Sett and Valstok disembarked. Only one set of doors were on this floor, emblazoned with the Starfleet logo and the words "Executive Staff Only". The two men swiped their access cards through the reader, and entered the room. The room was filled with species of all shapes and sizes, and of course, the Executive staff of Starfleet Command. And it seemed that every one in the room was at odds with each other- nobody was saying a single word. Silence is a virtue he thought to himself. But if this is how reasonable the council was at the start of a war. How would it be by the end of it? He sat himself down in the chair next to the President, and the meeting began. There was a hint of worry in the air.
Chapter Two - "Decisions, Decisions"
The new President of Starfleet Command was sitting at the head of the table. He opened the meeting with the words "To Boldly go where no one has gone before". Everyone recognized that as the Starfleet Charter. He stood up and then addressed the council. He paused and then looked around the room. A very scantily-clad Romulan woman got up from her seat and came up close to the President. "I'm the Romulan Envoy T'Lek" . As the flabbergasted President gained his composure, he said "I'm the Starfleet President, Jonas T. Stalk. Please be seated Ms.T'Lek". She blew the President a kiss and sat back down in her chair. Sett was amused by the whole exchange and fought hard to hold back the extreme amount of laughter about to flow from his lips. "Well, then" said a deep voice from the far end of the table "We are at war". It was the new Secretary of War. A Klingon, with a very Human name. 4-Star General Christofer Henry. He was typically Klingon. A good warrior, and tactician. And he had basically summed the entire jist of the meeting up in about six words. "Yes" said the President. "Battle Readiness Report, Please". The General stood up and said "All of our troops are fully prepared to engage the Chodak Military Alliance, sir." Stalk stood a second to reflect on the past few years in history, that the Chodak, an underprivledged offshoot of the Romulan Star Empire had somehow overthrown their entire goverment, and with their ships, that looked all the world like brains had somehow managed to overthrow the governments of 12 species. Including, the Tholians, who broke the pact that they had signed with Starfleet, making them allies just a year before. Stalk paused. He knew this battle would be hopeless. So far, in the inital scurmishes, Starfleets' most advanced warship, the Jefferson-Class USS Trieste had been hopelessly beat, leaving a burning hulk in space. Sett broke the contemplative silence with a query. "Do we have sufficent firepower to begin fighting the Chodak threat?". The room turned it's attention to Henry. He stood up and with a look of grim solaceness on his face admitted to the council "No, honestly, we are outgunned, outnumbered, and in the wrong". Sett asked another question. "How many ships, in theory would it take to destroy one of their Destroyer-Type war vessels?". Henry cogitated. "Our military appraisial is that even with full power to it's quantam phaser and torpedo banks, and with all of it's omega missiles activated, it would take four Jefferson-Class warships to destroy just one of their Destroyer-type vessels. The room feel silent. It seemed a death sentence had just been handed down. The intercom buzzed. "Sturek is here from Vulcan to see you, Mr. President". Said the female voice from the other end of the intercom. "Very Well, have him wait in my chamber in Paris, I will be with him shortly". The meeting continued for another hour and a half, and Sett was sure someone was torturing him. He never did like conferences. He'd rather still be sixteen again, and planet-hopping through the cosmos with his pals aboard Orion Pirate Frigates. He missed those days. Finally, Stalk proclaimed the meeting closed, and the members of the council filed out of the meeting room. Sett was alone in the room with Stalk. He approached the President. "Permission to speak freely, sir". The stern-faced Stalk turned to his new Vice-President. "Granted, Mr.Sett". The andorian did not want to upset Stalk, he knew that a very large mantle of decision was placed upon him. "Sir, I believe we need to solicit the help of other cultures". Stalk turned around to face Sett. His face turned quizzical. "What culture did you have in mind, exactly, Mr.Sett?". Sett knew he had hit a nerve. He stuttered and then said "I believe the Orion Pirates could be of some assistance". Stalk knew Sett had once been a convict, as a Captain of an Orion Pirate vessel, and knew that he still carried some weight in their culture, and it could be of some advantage, so after mulling it over in his mind for awhile, he said "Very Well, Mr.Sett. Contact whoever you think could be of assitance". Sett seemed overjoyed, and left the room for his office on one of the lower levels. Sturek, no doubt would still be waiting for Stalk in his chambers in Paris. He realised he had been keeping him waiting for over an hour and a half, so without thinking twice, Stalk got in the personal transporter, and with the proper access clearance, was transported directly to his office in Paris on the turn of a dime. Upon arriving, he saw Sturek, and another Vulcan who looked very familiar.
Chapter Three - "Crossroads"
Stalk got out of the transporter, and moved toward the two vulcans, who seemed at odds with each other. A strange thing to see, since most vulcans appealed to each others' brotherhood in inner logic. Then he noticed that one of the Vulcans was laughing. Most unusual. But he decided that maybe this was a Romulan. He had mistaken the two species before, because their traits were very similar. He sat down at his large marble desk and offered both a drink of Saurian Brandy. Both refused. "Greetings, Sir. My Name is Sturek, Son of Stoon". Said the one Vulcan, dressed in ceremonial robes. "And I am C.Thomas Palanin". said the other one. Stalk's face lit up with excitement. "Palanin? Can it really be you after all these years?" Stalk remembered playing with a Vulcan kid on his parent's starship, the Enterprise-H when he was a kid. He had given up the teachings of logic, opting for a human approach. Later on, in his career, perhaps ten years later, as a cadet at Starfleet Academy, it was Palanins' testimony before a High Tribunal that Stalk was not guilty of the death of a fellow classmate. The bond between the two was inseperable. "Yes, Sir. It is the same...I am Sturek's personal attache". Stalk got up from his leather-bound executive chair and went to the very large window looking out over the Parisian skyline. He stood awhile in thought and then turned to face the two men. "Sturek, I am looking for a Starfleet Commander. Your job would be to have command over all of the Admirals in the Alpha Quadrant, and maintain security of all Federation installations, interested?" The vulcan's eyebrow went up, and he said the usual thing about the post not being logical but then reconsidered and said "I suppose I could be of some use. My ambassadorial duties have bored me in recent years. I would be honored to be your Starfleet Commander." Stalk smiled, and handed Sturek a pass card. He explained to Sturek that his offices were located in the city of New San Francisco, atop the orbiting Space Dock Facility. Sturek took the pass card, and exited the office. Palanin and Stalk talked for hours after Sturek's departure, talking about old times. Palanin then got a look of sterness on his face when asked about his parents. "I'd rather not discuss that, sir." Stalk saw the terror in his eyes. He prodded until Palanin let loose. "It was three months ago. We were all serving aboard the USS Crossroads, a medical envoy vessel. Oberth Class. We had no weapons of any sort- outlawed by the Venus Convention of 2678. Four chodak destroyer type vessels invaded, and killed my parents, in front of my very eyes. They thought I was Romulan, and wanted to teach me a lesson." His face got more sour as he looked at Stalk. "Damn You for making me remember that!" he shouted at the guffawed President. Stalk got a stiff lip and said "Would you like a posting in my staff? I need a Secretary of Internal Affairs, I need someone good to talk to the people of Earth, and the Federation. Someone who commands dignity and respect. Can I count on you?" Palanin had just stopped crying. He looked at Stalk and said "Gimmie the post, let's fry these bastards!".
Chapter Four - "Thankless Child"
The day was winding down to a close, that was for sure. But in the offices of the Vice President of Starfleet Command, all was indeed not well. Mounds of military proposals were scattered in piles all over the office, and Sett was constantly on the hyperspace channel chatting to several Captains who owed him favors in the Orion Pirate Society. The door chimed. He knew it was someone with food. He could smell Chinese cuisine. He beckoned for them to come in. Standing before him was a child, no more than six years of age, holding a scrumptous egg roll. Sett was puzzled by this, and looked all around to see if this child belonged to any of the staff members. After searching Starfleet Command Headquarters top to bottom, Sett started getting worried. He took the child to Starfleet Childrens Services in Los Angeles, and had the doctors there run a bio-sweep on him. One of the doctors, an attractive lady by the name of Kimberly Hardin was a blast from Sett's past. Literally. They had once been married. But he wasn't going to let an ex get in the way of an offical investigation. The neural scanner starting beeping. Sett rushed over to it. "Interesting" proclaimed Hardin. "It seems as if he has a bionic implant in his cerebral cortex, which is being fed data, and transmitting data all at once." Sett was now concerned. "Sending data where is the question". Can we analyze the beam? One of the scientists on duty hopped to a science station and said "Scanning now". After a few seconds the scientist got up from her seat. "The signature trace is Chodak". Sett ran to the nearest communicator station. The chipper woman responded "Starfleet Command Switchboard Services, How may I direct your transmission?". Sett grimaced and then said with conviction "Get me a secure line...I've got to speak to the President". Minutes later, Sett was face-to-face with the President in the offices of Dr.Hardin at Starfleet Childrens Services. Stalk looked very tired, it was after all the time when Stalk was usually asleep. He looked around the room "I got a transmission. What is the problem?" Sett took a deep breath. He loathed giving bad news probably as much as Stalk loathed recieving it. "You name it, we got it. There is a neural bionic implant in this young man's cerebral cortex. An amazing amalgam of medical and cybernetic engineering. The trace has been confirmed as Chodak in origin." Stalks face got stone cold. He knew this was a direct attack on the Federation, and it's people. But he also knew the information wasn't over. "There is more?" he said in an increasingly worried tone. "Yes, sir. The Egg roll he was carrying with him contained enough Orientine Acid to eat thru ten human beings. There is no mistake sir, this was an assisination attempt." Stalk said to one of his aides standing nearby "We've got no choice. Begin Military Strike. And quarantine this child." Sett knew that was the right decision, but he also felt the wind of lingering death start to roll in as the sunrise showed it's light over the Los Angeles skyline.
Chapter Five - "Military Strike"
Sitting in the war room was Starfleet's top Military personell, Henry, and West. They were discussing possible strategic ways of getting the Chodak into a trap, when the very slinky Romulan Envoy, T'Lek entered the room. "Military Clearance only, Ma'am" said Col.West. "For what it's worth. My people have been trying to trap and kill the Chodak for three years now. They tap into the minds of the crew that they are fighting. They can detect your next action before you even think about it. It has made our fight a difficult one, and yours and even harder one." She slammed her fists down on the table before the two men and said "My planet, Romulus is occupied by these Chodak scum, they have killed our people, raped our women, and left our planet in ruin!" She was furious, there was no denying that. "You must capture a vessel, before you can destroy these people. They are too strong to mount an extended campaign on at this moment in time". She began to cool down. West was again going senile, and he cursed twice in Romulan and then left the war room. Henry knew she hated him, as most Romulans do. He was after all, A Klingon, and even though the two cultures were now allied, it didn't stop the bloodlust of generations past. Henry then broke the uneasy silence. "What do you propose?" T'Lek looked at him "There is a Chodak Fleet in Sector 20901 near the Cardassian Border. These are simple scout-class vessels. They have very minimal weaponry. But they still have the basic brain-scanning tactical devices. You must destroy the fleet, and capture one of their ships. That is what I suggest you do." T'Lek then proceeded to get up, and in a very flamboyant manner left the war room. Henry was left in silence. He sat back down and opened a channel to Sturek. Sturek awnsered the hail a few seconds later. The grey-haired Vulcan looked very distingushed for a man of 86. But rarely did that age matter to Vulcans. Their life span sometimes went up to 300 years or more. Sturek said "Starfleet Commander Sturek, Proceed General". Henry asked what starships were near Sector 20901. Sturek looked at his fleet map for a second and then said "Not too many, Federation vessels are spread very thin around that region of space. There is the Legion-Class USS Iowa, The Maine-Class USS Jordan, The Sydney-Class USS Vico, and the Oberth-Class Medical Cruiser USS Keller. "Great" Henry thought to himself. The Legion Class vessel was about fourty years old, those ships were not designed for combat, but rather for exploration, but as were most Federation ships, outfitted for battle when the Chodak threat first became prevalent. The Maine Class cruiser was a bit better, but lacks the agility of the higher class warships. The Sydney class was a hopeless loss however you fix it, because it was designed mainly as a refueling ship. It didn't even have warp-drive. It was basically a floating refueling depot for smaller-class warships. Finally, a medical ship. No weapons at all. "Just Great" said Henry to himself again, but knew what had to be done. "Sturek, It is my order to take all of those warships to report to Sector 20901 at once, and engage the Chodak at those co-ordinates. Leave the medical ship behind. They may need to care for the wounded on the other vessels later." Henry closed the channel, and for a second enjoyed the calmness of the quiet room. But he knew that quiet, for all members of Starfleet would not last much longer. War was indeed brewing.
Chapter Six - "A Lesson Learned"
The scene was grim. Stalk was sitting at his desk, as several scientists from Starfleet briefed him on where the Chodak signals were coming from that were being both recieved and trasmitted from the young boy, now in a Los Angeles Childrens Clinic. "The transmission monitor has localized it to Floor 77, Section Beta, Starfleet Headquartes". Stalk paused to think of the only office in that section that was occupied. It was the elusive and xenophobic LaSinf, The Tholian Envoy to Earth. He must be a spy, or a covert operative, Stalk thought to himself. But Stalk also had one of the best spies at his disposal. He beckoned on his communicator for Valstok to join him in him chambers at once. Seconds later, Valstok walked into his chambers. "I understand LaSinf is under suspicion of being a spy for the Chodak Military Alliance." Stalk nodded his head affirmative. "Is there anything you can tell me, I know you keep an eye on everyone, that is why I created the UFP Outreach Program. What have you found out?" Valstok sighed and Stalk knew that bad news was coming. "LaSinf is a xenophobe. He never has left his office. We have monitored his communications, and aside from a daily subspace communication to his family on Tholia, there is nothing to report." Stalk knew that those communication could be more than met the eye, so he asked Valstok "Can your run a subspace echogram, and determine if there is any other frequencies being used?" Valstok began to run the test on his tricoder, when he found something so amazing he had to interrupt Stalk from his chat with the scientists. "Sir! Frequencies in the lower Theta band are being used. There is another transmission going out." Stalk paused. "To where?" his voice began to take on a worried tone. "By our calculations, sir, the destination of the transmission is Chodak Prime, sir. Romulus". Stalk was sure of his next move. He dismissed the scientists, and hit the comm panel. "This is the President. Get me Sturek". Sturek's voice then said "Sturek Here, Sir. Proceed." Stalk sighed. "I'm issuing a warrant for the arrest of LaSinf, Tholian Envoy. I'd like him taken into custody at once." He didn't even give time for the Vulcan to respond. He closed the channel, and motioned for Valstok to join him. They both stepped into the personal transporter and were at Starfleet Headquarters the next second. Walking through the halls of Starfleet Command, Stalk ran into Sett, who was outside his office. "I got your transmission" he said while they were walking. "What are we going to do?" Stalk paused as they reached LaSinf's office door. "Get rid of Chodak Operatives" he said. Sett proceeded to hit the door chime, with no response. "Maybe it is in it's recharge cycle". "No, Not Likely. It knows we're onto it" said Stalk. Arriving just then were ten Security men. Stalk said "Battering Ram. Get that door down". The men got the plasma ram, and in one shot broke the door clear off. All that was in the office was a pile of crystal dust on the desk. Sett rushed to it, and scanned it with a medical tricoder. "Where did it go?" said the bewildered Stalk. "It went nowhere, sir. This is it. It is dead." A wave of nausea came over Stalk, he knew that the first rule in a covert operation was killing either the assasin, or killing the person who sent the assasin. He left the room in haste. "Get me the Children's Center In L.A. RIGHT NOW!" he barked at one of the men. The comm channel beeped. "Urgent Call for President Stalk from Starfleet Command Children's Services Center, Los Angeles." Stalk confirmed his identity to the computer, then read the message on the screen. His face turned ghastly white. Sett went up to him "What is it sir? What's wrong?" Stalk said "The child just died. A Sensory overload was just established in his Cerebral Cortex. We're back at square one." As he began to cry Sett stated the keenly ovbious "Now we're back to square one". Valstok mused for a second and then said to Stalk "Sir, If it is a lesson that needs to be learned, we should try accessing their systems through the implant, if it can be surgically removed from the child's brain." Stalk got up, gained his composure, and said "Permission Granted, I'll kill those Chodak Bastards anyway I can."
With that, Stalk and Valstok got back in the transporter and went back to Paris. Sett knew the war had now become personal to the president, and that this fight would be a very long one.
Chapter Seven - "The Mind's Eye"
The President arrived back in Paris with a sad grimace on his face, he was feeling as if he was losing a downhill battle. Valstok asked for permission to be on the team that would remove the implant from the brain of the young boy. Stalk obliged, and Valstok went back into the transporter, and was instantly whisked away to Los Angeles, where the procedure would soon be underway. The doctors were all huddled around the table in the closed-off section of the hospital. Valstok entered the room, and the tension began to rise. The Chief Surgeon walked in and said "all non-essential personnell please leave the room" Valstok said "I have been requested here by the President". The surgeon looked up and said "all right". For hours, the doctors and nurses worked on phaser-scalpeling the implant out of the boy's cerebrum. Finally, as the sun began to rise, the implant's hooks and wires leading into the very core of the boy's brain were removed. The impant, which looked like a potato with a corkscrew sticking out of it was laying on the table next to the surgeon. Valstok picked it up, and with fervor, took a swift tricorder scan of it. The doctors were dumbfounded, they did not speak. The readings that Valstok was recieving were erratic, and of a totally alien nature. Valstok wrapped the device in a felt cloth he had with him and ran to the nearest shuttle dock outside the hospital. He climbed into the small, cramped shuttlepod, a short-range shuttle not even warp-enabled, and set the shuttle's coordinates for Oxnard, California and the Strawberry Vineyards, a top secret Federation Installation with the most advanced lab equipment in the alpha quadrant. On approach, he signaled the secret code, and an entire acre of what appared to be Strawberry Vineyards opened up to reveal a huge docking bay. The logo of the UFP Outreach Program was emblazoned on the floor. Valstok stepped out of the shuttlepod as it touched down and docked. He ran to the nearest shock-absorption room and placed the device dead center. Just as the readings began to show their most erratic signals, the device simply vanished in a trace of yellow and blue lights. Valstok began reviewing sensor logs, he was frantic to find out just what happened, when Sturek and Sett arrived. Sett looked at Valstok and in the room. "The president wants a report" he said with a blank glare. Valstok was noticeably shaken he quivered "It...It's gone". He muttered. Sett sighed and said "how?" with a hint of disbelief. Valstok showed Sett and Sturek the logs from the Shock Absorption Room, and how the device simply vanished. Sturek's eyebrow lifted. Sett looked at him "any ideas?" Sturek sat a moment in thought and then said "It looked like a simple transporter beam". Valstok instantly put that idea down "We did a full transporter trace analysis, there was no transporter technology used". Sturek's eyebrow went up again- a typical Vulcan move for when an idea was being formulated. "Perhaps" said Sturek "They did not use Transporters in the sense of the word" Valstok, puzzled said "How do you mean?" Sturek sighed and began to explain "for the last few years the Gorn and the Kzinti have been holding an uneasy alliance. The Gorn have the technology to beam objects thru a zone of space called Exospace. Theoretically, the beam would look like a standard transporter, but all detection devices could not detect the trace pattern because typical and subspace boundaries were not used." Valstok paused "How do we scan for Exospace?" Sturek then plainly said "the region is not detectable, but it is highly static, it flexes, it does not remain stable. There must be a control sattelite in orbit above Earth to control the flow of Exospace beaming". Valstok slammed his fist down on the control console "Or..." he said with conviction "A cloaked vessel". Sett knew what was next. He got on the comm panel and said "Spacedock". A few seconds later a voice came over "Spacedock, Control Central". Sett said in a businesslike manner "I need a ship for a scientific investigation, what have you got?" The dockmaster paused and then said "We have 1 ship currently docked without a crew, but it is very poorly armed." Sett paused, he knew he was going to have to fight if it was a ship, but he had been in situations like that in the pirates before, so he gave the order. Perhaps twenty minutes later, Sett, Valstok, and Sturek were on the bridge of the Oberth-Class USS Bonaventure, starfleet registry NCC-87662. Sett took the command chair, and Sturek took the conn. Valstok ran down to occupy the tactical/navigation station. A few hours later, Valstok said "I guess I was wrong, this has been the nineteeth orbit of earth, no sattelites, no ships, no nothing". Just as he said that, the sensors began to detect a radiation surge 600 meters off the starboard bow. "Sir! Chodak Warship, bearing 909 mark 212, she's cloaked!" Sett had a surprised look. His face was pure annoyance "Hailing Frequencies". Sturek said "Open" as he hit the button that performed that task. "This is Vice-President Sett of Starfleet Command, Your presence here is an act of war". No response. That didn't much surprise Sett, nor anyone else. Sturek said "Perhaps if you used a bit more force, sir" Sett reasoned with the diplomacy of the situation, and decided not to pursue it. "Close the channel, Sturek". Sturek obliged. "Red Alert Valstok!" he said with a touch of agression "Arm phasers, aim for the cloaking controls" Valstok got the coordinates and said "Primary Batteries trained on target, sir". "Fire" said Sett with an almost bone-chilling calm to his voice. As the ship began to decloak, something seemed off, there was no defensive action. But there was a large eye on the side of the Chodak Warship. Sturek scanned it "Sir, that eye is a detection sattelite, they have us under survellience!" Sett then proceeded to take care of the spy sattelite, by draining it's memory banks of all it's data, and then destroying it.
Chapter Eight - The Battle
The deck lights blazed their darkest blood-red color, as the USS Iowa began to engage the Chodak fleet. The other vessels in the fleet fell behind, victims of the unique devices on the Chodak Vessels. The Captain of the Iowa is a middle-aged man, on his third mission as Captain. His experience is minimal in combat, as he was a member of the diplomatic corps for a very long time. "Sir!" the helmsman barked "Shields down to 77%, continuing to drain". The Captain looked very unsure of himself "Suggestions" he said. The first-officer, a veteran of the military for six years, prompted with a suggestion: "Suggest Anti-Matter Spread, Omega Dispersal Pattern". The Captain paused, as if to think, and then said "Arm the anti-matter warheads, and fire in Omega Dispersal Pattern". The anti-matter spread left the starship in a trace of bright white lights that fizzled and reminded the Captain of the Fourth of July celebrations on Earth. The Chodak Warships began to move closer together in an attack posture. The science officer touted "Sir, the Chodak ships have taken up a position relative to ours, and have increased torpedo warhead yield by 500%!" The Captain, unprepared for the action, hesitated and ordered all power to the defensive systems. The ship was then rocked back and forth like a canoe on a very heavy rapid. "Damn!" screamed the Captain as he went head over heels. The Science Officer ran over to him, approaching his area, he saw the Captain was impaled on the sensor scope. "The Captain is dead" he said with a touch of sadness. "Withdraw, Mr. Beltene...set a course for Starbase 220, Warp 8, engage when ready". With that, the ship left the battle area, wounded, and nearly destroyed. Upon approach to Starbase 220, none of the standard hailing frequencies were in use. The science officer thought this to be a bit odd. "Ms. Harlem, is there any subspace transmissions from the base?" he asked the communications officer. "No, sir...and i'm not reading any lifeforms on the planet, either". "What?" said the science officer in a bout of disbelief. "Impossible! There were over 4,000 people on that starbase". "Confirmed sir" said Ms. Harlem. "We're beaming down, hand phasers and standard issue handknives...we may be going into a hand-to-hand combant scenario".
Chapter Nine - Starbase Disaster
The men beamed down to Starbase 220, expecting to see, at the bear minimum, an enemy soldier. Instead what they found was appaling, all 4,000 people at the starbase, including scholars from several independent planets had all been murdered. "Are you sure it was murder?" said the Science Officer, looking a bit distressed "Yes, sir. Each death fits the bill of a totally different kind of murder...lynching, simple stabbing, decapitation...these are too diverse of forms of death to be either self-inflicted or massive". "Sir, the communications terminals are still functioning...perhaps we can contact Starfleet". said one of the mission specialists. "Go ahead, see if there is a direct line". Just as the officer hit the panel, each of the crew members were killed by electrical shock, built into the panel as part of a booby trap. The Chodak officers, who were hiding in the vents above the terminal came down, grabbed the emergency transport button and beamed back to the ship. The Iowa and her crew were now MIA to Starfleet. Things were not looking up. Nobody knew that better than Stalk. He was sitting in his chair, overlooking Paris, when Valstok and Henry came in with disturbing news. "Sir, you may want to cancel all your appointments for this". Stalk sighed heavily and spun around in his chair "What is it?" Henry handed Stalk a PADD that showed the fleet deployment "Sir, The Iowa is Missing, The other starships were captured, or destroyed. We are looking at a loss of epidemic size and scope". Stalk began to get hot under the collar "What kind of loss are we talking about here, Gentlemen?" Valstok sighed and said the bad news "Our fleet is now 11 warships, 9 beyond repair, 2 in repair". Stalk said with a hint of disbelief "Are you telling me that we have no functioning warships?" Valstok paused "Yes, sir that is exactly what we are saying". Stalk began to get flustered "What do we have?" he said with certain anger in his voice. Henry looked around the room and said "Sir, we have four and only four Excelsior-Class starships that are spaceworthy". Stalk sighed for a second and queried about the fate of the USS Boneventure. "That vessel was stripped for sheet metal in manufacturing a sub-colbalt bomb" said Valstok. Stalk paused "Dismissed, Gentlemen" he said in an emotionless tone, as the men left, the president, who had been up for close to 80 hours without sleep swiveled around in his chair and looked out on the Paris skyline. He knew there was no hope for the Federation now, and it would only be a matter of time before history looked upon him as the President that failed in repulsing an enemy attack, and leading the Federation into oblivion. As the sun began to set, Stalk started to cry.
Chapter Ten - Out Of Time
Sett was playing Tennis in a court on a Holodeck at Starfleet Command in San Francisco when the communicator interrupted his game "Damn It!" he screamed as the tennis ball flew into his head. "Sorry to interrupt your game sir, but Dr. Smith from Starfleet Medical wishes to see you regarding the president's health" Sett paused to think. He knew the name sounded familiar, but he couldn't place what kind of doctor Smith was. "Alright, have him meet me in my office in twenty minutes". Sett ended the program and took the turbolift back to his office. Ten minutes later, Dr. Smith walked in. "Sett, Allow me to introduce myself, I am Dr. Ezekiel Smith". The andorian vice president got up from his chair to greet the doctor "Nice to meet you, Doctor...what can I do for you today?" The doctor sat down, there was certain trouble in his voice "The President has been sedated". "What?!" screamed Sett. "Why?" he said in a tone of both disbelief and excitement. "He has been suffering the position lately, he requested that he see me, and when I began to talk about our situation, he cracked like an egg, demanding to see his mommy". Sett couldn't believe what he was hearing. "We sent him to the Penal Institute on Frocus Six this morning about the Vulcan transport ship Debeatra." Sett was stunned "I am here to swear you in as President of Starfleet Command" said the doctor. Sett was still standing there when the whole of the press corps broke through the door. Sett screamed for everyone to leave, but they would not obey. He took the oath and sat down, awnsered some banal questions, and then after they all had left, he sat down with a handful of military proposals on his desk. He picked up one. It was drafted by Valstok and Henry the mission said "OPERATION : OUT OF TIME". He began to page through the proposal which stated that a timepod could be constructed and sent back in time to secure warships for the current cause. Sett was dismayed at this proposal and threw it in the trash can. "Out of time, indeed!" he muttered under his breath. The communicator buzzed "Sir, Mr.Valstok here to see you". Sett hit the button "Send him in". Valstok walked in "Sir, We must withdraw at once from Gamma Quadrant" Sett paused "Excuse Me?" he said "We don't have any ships in space at the moment, let alone any way out in Gamma Quadrant". Valstok sat down next to Sett "That is not quite true sir, I think there is something you should know...."
Chapter Eleven - The Jem'Hadar Alliance
Valstok talked to Sett for hours about the UFP Outreach Program and it's primary goals, but then began talking about something that nobody by Valstok knew about. "For the last four months, I have been in contact with a rogue group of Jem'Hadar soliders, they call themselves "The Triangle". They have vast firepower, 500 spaceworthy battleships and a following of over 10,000 men." Sett paused, dumbfounded "The Jem'Hadar? Would they even be our friends? I've been in some tight places before with the Jem'Hadar, and they aren't exactly friendly" Valstok shook his head "Not these Jem'Hadar. I have bribed them with payment. They were ready to go to battle for us..." Sett cut him off "But?" he said in a knowing tone. Valstok sighed "But, sir...with our losses to the Chodak fleet, even the support from the Triangle has waned, they want 50,000 more bars of gold-pressed latinum". Sett looked a bit confused "Where did they get the first part of the bribe money?" Valstok's face turned red "Uh...we got that from...a secure source". Sett slammed his fists on the table "Don't hand me that Intelligence bullshit, Mister...I was an Orion Pirate for a very long time, and I know when someone is not telling me the whole truth...where did the money come from?" Valstok knew he was dead, he hesitated and said "I secured it from Fort Knox, sir. The Galactic Treasury." Sett sat down in his chair he looked up at Valstok, trembling in his boots before him "Mr. Valstok, you have commited robbery...there is no excuse for this, weather by orders or not, you know the risks you take full well, and as Intelligence Director, you have full responsibility for your actions". Sett paused and reflected on a few things. He hit the comm panel "Security to my office, on the double!" he said. The men were there in under ten seconds. "Sir?" they both said. Sett took the handcuffs off of one of the guards and put them on Valstok. "As per Interstellar Law, Article 101, Subheading Beta, Paragraph 2, I am placing you under arrest. The charge is Embezzlement, and Bribing other species without Starfleet Permission to do so. Seeing as how this would gain unwanted attention towards me, I am therefore withholding your fate from the press. Send him to the main jailing center in Sydney." The men took Valstok away....Sett walked back to his desk and stared out the window at the Golden Gate Bridge. He moved back towards his desk and picked up the information Valstok had left regarding the Jem'Hadar alliance. He began to consider it thinking that this was the only hope they had left to them. There was a frequency listed on the back for a Jem'Hadar solider who Valstok did the dealings with, Ta'Hek'Wal. He took the paper with him. He was on his way to meet with Henry, and a possible solution to the war.
Chapter Twelve - The Deal
Sett walked into Henry's very sloppy office on Telegraph Hill in San Francisco. "Henry? You Here?" said Sett. "Right Here!" said Henry. "Where would here be?" said Sett, a little confused. "Underneath Proposal Number 294". There was a big sheet of paper, among many scattered around the room that said "PROPOSAL 294" on it, Sett lifted it to find Henry underneath sipping a coffee and reading a book on tactics by George Patton. "You should read this book, sir" said Henry. "Nevermind that, we have some pressing business to attend to" said Sett, eyes wide with excitement. Over the course of the next few minutes Sett described what Valstok told him. And how it seemed to him to be quite illegal and against Starfleet Policy. "Quite true, it is not an honorable agreement, but perhaps we could arrange a barter of some kind" said Henry. Sett's ears perked up "Yes! Quid-Pro-Quo, an excellent idea!" Sett and Henry were then hunched over a monitor as they inputted the information of who they wanted to contact. In under a minute the face of a battle-weary Jem'Hadar soldier appeared before them. "This is Vice President Sett of Starfleet Command, to whom do I have the honor of speaking?" The soldier was sizing up Sett, which in of itself, made Sett uncomfortable. "I am Ta'Hek'Wal" he said" in an throughly un-emotional voice. "I am willing to barter for your military assistance" said Sett. "Barter?" said the solider, with just a hint of sarcasm "We do not barter, we profit". Sett paused "I don't think that's true, how about some tetracel white?" The drug, which the Jem'Hadar were addicted to, was well known to be rare in this day in age, and Sett knew that the drug itself would be payment enough. "Yes. Tetracel White. We will barter, as you people call it". Sett smiled "How much and where?" The solider, with a deadpan look said "Meet me in two days on the planet Fistria. We will exchange there. And the deal is, that you come, alone, personally to deliver the articles...or you don't get the support, and you also die." Sett swallowed hard. He accepted the deal, and asked the amount of the drug that they wanted. "We would like 68,000 Liters of it". Sett slapped his forehead. No way could he find that much in 48 hours. He knew something had to be done. He just didn't know what. He agreed to the deal, turned off the computer and spun around to face Henry. "Now what?" said Henry. "Now, we find Sturek, and dabble in the Black Market".
Chapter Thirteen - Black Market Days
Sturek was standing atop the Eiffel Tower looking out over Paris, when Sett and Henry walked up to him. "We need your help" said Sett. The Vulcan's Eyebrow went up in typical Vulcan fashion "With what, may I ask?" Sett handed him the report regarding Valstok, the alliance, and what had just happened in Henry's office. Sturek said "Most Illogical" and paused "What do you require of me?" Sett grinned "Well, we need to deal with the Black Market for the drug. We have the money secured from my personal trust account for this. We can do the exchange, but with a person with as high a profile as me, that'd be difficult. And they'd trust a Vulcan. We need you to secure the deal". Sturek's face was as emotionless as ever "My position is also high profile, surely they'd know me". Sett sighed and said "Well, they wouldn't. The Black Marketeers we will be dealing with know only of the President and I, they are not privy to internal postings of high regard in Starfleet, so we have an upper hand in this". Sturek's eyebrow went up again "I accept. Though this is highly illogical". Sett laughed "It is indeed, Mr.Sturek, It is indeed". Minutes later, the three men were on a shuttle bound for New Berlin on Earth's Moon, the site of the black marketeers base. When they got there, they dropped off Sturek 500 yards from the warehouse and jetted off to a more distant location. For many hours, Henry and Sett waited in the shuttle for word from Sturek. Finally, the comm system beeped and Sturek's voice came over the comm "We have secured 68,000 Liters of the Narcotic Tetracel White in exchange for 300 bars of gold-pressed latinum from your personal account". Sett smiled "Good Job, Sturek". The coordinates of the narcotic were recieved, beamed aboard the shuttle, and after the narcotic, Sturek beamed aboard. The three men then set course back to Earth, and to what lies ahead.
Chapter Fourteen - Fistria
Fistria was a desolate world, ravaged by Nuclear bombardment, two super powers on the planet had both driven themselves into a prolonged nuclear conflict about 2,000 years ago, and the world was nothing more than grey skies, and craters. A perfect place for a deal with a dark strand to go down. As agreed by the deal earlier, Sett was alone upon arrival in a Starfleet Type J Frieght Shuttlecraft, it landed mere feet from the Jem'Hadar soliders who were waiting with military contract in hand. Sett stepped out of the shuttle, and began walking toward the men. "I am Da'Hek'Val, personal assistant to Ta'Hek'Wal. I am here to secure the drugs, and to sign the contract, if it meets with the required stipulations of the deal made earlier". Sett was fidgety, this situation would make anyone feel so. Sett remembered a time when he made a similar deal with the Jem'Hadar. The drugs he was selling them turned out to be nothing more than chalk water, and he was nearly killed for it. He hoped that the drugs would be to their liking. He had no weapon, so he was even more nervous than usual. "Hmm" said on of the soldiers. "This batch is 80% quality". Sett's heart dropped, but then loosened as Ta'Hek'Wal said "This is homemade Tetracel White, low quality is the name of the game, as long as it dosen't dip below 70% quality, we still have a deal". He leered over at Sett, who was about to have an accident in his pants. Minutes later, the final batch was scanned, and the quality was 71%. "Just barely" he thought as Ta'Hek'Wal walked towards him. Ta'Hek'Wal handed Sett a military contract, and they both signed it. The deal was that the Jem'Hadar would help Starfleet combat the Chodak and it's allies, but the strategy was up to the Triangle, and Starfleet itself had to put up 10 ships in the offer. Sett paused as he read the part about the ten ships "We don't have ten spaceworthy ships. What is to be done?" Ta'Hek'Wal smiled and said "We know of your four Excelsior class ships that are spaceworthy, we are willing to give you six captured Starfleet Vessels we have for an additional price". Sett's eyes widened "What kind of price?" he said with a certain tone of disbelief. "Starfleet Protection. After this war, we would like to be a Starfleer Protectorate." Sett sighed a sigh of relief. "Very Well. It shall be done. You have my word on it. When the war is over, The Triangle will be recognized as an independent government, upon which time, you will become a Starfleet Protectorate". The Jem'Hadar men walked back over to their ship and took off, and Sett stared up at the cold, grey sky. "Now....You'll burn in space, you Chodak scum!"
Chapter Fifteen - Six Starships
Sett was welcomed home a day later, and as his shuttle landed, news of the deal was all over the free press. A ticker-tape parade was even staged for his arrival in New York City, where his shuttle landed. The war had reached a turning point, but, there was still much work to be done. Sett walked into the Starfleet Council meeting room in the old United Nations building in Manhattan. His top brass was all there, Henry, T'Lek, West, Sturek, Palanin, and a woman whom he had never seen before. He sat down at the table and began talking about the starships that were acquired. Henry said that the ships were decent enough, but the Jem'Hadar had not taken very good care of them and that all the ships needed to be refitted. Sett paused after hearing this and said "More bad news?...what's the timetable?" Henry paused and said "all six ships will be spaceworthy in 72 hours, sir". Sett smiled "Excellent. You're better at this than you think Henry". Henry wryly smirked and said "It was not me who accomplished the speedy refit timetable, sir". Sett was intrigued. "Who then did this excellent peice of work?" Henry pointed towards the unknown woman at the far side of the table. "May I present Dr.Tabetha L. Meyer of Starfleet Engineering Corps." Sett got up and went over to her and shook her hand "Dr.Meyer, Thank you...you have my gratitude". Dr. Meyer's face got a bit red, but not out of the ordinary, she was a woman from Sett's past, and he did not recognize her at all. After the meeting she stayed behind and they began to talk. "Darvin...I cannot believe you do not remember me". Sett's eyes lit up "Do I know you, Tabetha?" he said with confusion in his voice. "Yes, think back about ten years ago." Sett tried to recall...ten years was a long time, especially when you are an Orion Pirate, crews pledging their alliances to you, then stabbing you in the back for more profitable journies. Sett stammered "I....I'm sorry, I can't recall..." The doctor walked in front of Sett, put her arms around his neck, and gave him a passionate kiss. "Now do you remember?" Sett could barely recall her now, just a glimmer of who she was. She looked annoyed but let loose of the information anyhow "About ten years ago on the pirate vessel Sandtrap. I was your first officer". Sett now recalled that a lovely woman came aboard as his first officer, and that they had relations, and eventually she left to get her doctorate in Engineering instead of going away and getting married to him. He said, with a longing in his voice "Yes, Now I recall...you left on what was supposed to be our wedding day". The doctor's face went sullen "I do not intend to get married to a pirate, Mr.Sett..." she paused "But, a President...of Starfleet...that" again, a pause "...could be arranged". Sett gave her a kiss then, and for a brief instance, the war, and the unremitting hostility in space seemed so far away. Only a red alert would make him move from where he was. A minute later, the alarms sounded. The battles had begun.
Chapter Sixteen - Burning In Space
Ten days had passed since the Starfleet ships Pheonix, Crazy Horse, Tokyo, Nagano, Atlantis, Pompeii, Berlin, Indianpolis, Pyrite, and Repulse had been refitted, manned, and sent out with the Triangle vessels to begin the latest series of attacks against The Chodak Alliance. The victories were overwhelming. They came in floods. Sett was cheering the latest victory in his San Francisco office when Henry and Meyer came in. "A toast, perhaps?" said the vice president, noticably happy about the most recent victory. Henry declined the champagne, as did Meyer and they both sat down, with sad, dejected looks on their faces. "Sir...there is something you should know..." said Henry with a certain degree of stutter in his voice. Sett knew this was not good news, and he sat down "What is it? A loss?" Henry began to cry "No, sir...The USS Atlantis was chartered to sector 19220 to pick up Stalk from the penal colony there...he had regained his composure..." Sett's face began to feel what was coming, his lip began to jitter wildly with a nervous reaction "What happened?" Henry said "The Chodak frigate Tratei engaged the vessel near Starbase 113, the ship was ill-equipped to handle the intense weapons. They had no time to raise their shields, the Chodak ship fired two shots, we just got word from Starbase 113 about ten minutes ago...the ship and it's crew are burning in space". Sett's eyes filled with tears. "The president?" he stammered "Tried to escape in a pod. It was targeted about 300 yards from the wreckage and blown to bits" said Meyer. Sett fell back in his chair. "Then..." he paused cradling a tennis ball in his right hand "if what we feel is right, and what we are doing here is of any good...then this war has taken on a new air....I no longer simply intend to kill off the Chodak threat, I want their leader, In my office, as I take this tennis ball, and shove it down his throat....until he chokes to death!" Sett's voice had a tint of emotionalism to it, as would anyone in this situation, but he meant his threat. And slammed the ball down on the table. "Damn this war, anyway..." he muttered as he left his office, leaving Henry and Meyer behind. The sun was setting, and tomorrow brought the invasion of the Chodak home world, formerly Romulus. Victory was at hand.
Chapter Seventeen - Victory Cries
As the sun rose on Earth, the sun was setting on Chodak Prime, formerly Romulus. The citizens of the First City were all but asleep, and those who weren't were eating their evening meals. The dictator Skali was himself, winding down in his offices in the Chancellory Building, overlooking the Senate Court and the Sea of Tal. The world was not expecting what was going to happen in mere hours. In the dark of night, they came. 515 starships, everything Starfleet had, plus the Jem'Hadar warships. They began attacking late in the night, when security was at it's lowest in the First City. Orbital bombardment commenced just before Midnight on Chodak Prime, as the people all over Earth, and allied planets watched the teleplay from the observation deck of the USS Indianapolis. "Remarkable" said Sett, in awe of the immense power being hurled toward the planet "I thought i'd never see this day". Sett looked tired. He was suffering from exhaustion. He had been awake now for 110 hours without let-up, finishing up military proposals, approving leave for soldiers, and writing letters of condolences to families who had been torn apart by the war. His eyes were nearly red, and the bags were very dark and defined shade of purple on his blue-ish flesh. "Maybe you should get some rest, sir" said Henry. "No, I want to see these bastards fry" said Sett with conviction. Meyer came up from behind Sett "Darvin, Sturek and Palanin want to see you at once in your office". Sett turned around and hastily walked away from the huge monitor screen atop the Transamerica Pyramid. As he was walking at a faster pace he was asking questions "Did they say what it was for?" Meyer said that it was simply something that had to do with the war. He ran to the turbolift and at the top, near his office Meyer gave him another kiss "Be careful in there. Whatever it is, Just be careful". Sett smiled "I will. Don't worry" Sett looked over at his secretary watching the teleplay and pointed to the monitor and looked at Meyer "Let me know how it turns out". He turned and walked into his office.
Chapter Eighteen - Surrender
As Sett pushed open the doors, Palanin and Sturek greeted him in typical Vulcan fashion with the Live Long and Prosper salute. Sett gave it back, and sat in his chair. "So, why have you called me?" he questioned them. Palanin spoke up "Sir, There is someone who wants to speak with you waiting in your back room". Sturek looked over at Sett "Take it easy, sir. Do not let excessive emotionalism cloud your judgment". Sett was wondering who this could be. He hesitantly walked over to the back room's door and opened it. There, standing, nearly nothing more than burned flesh and some stray cloth was Skali, dictator of the Chodak Alliance. Sett picked up a phaser on the end table and pointed it at him. "Sure, kill me...you have killed all my people" cried Skali. Sett threw the phaser aside "You are right, Mr.Skali...you are very right, If I kill you, who will sign the surrender papers?" Skali beamed. Sett knew this was going to be something other than simple. For 22 more hours, Sett and Skali sat in a room working out the peace treaty, until finally, an agreement was reached. Skali signed the paper, on the top line, authorizing the surrender of all forces, and disarmament, and dissolution of all Chodak Alliances with other races, and began to put the pen towards the bottom line, which included territorial disputes, and plans for restorations. Sett knew Starfleet would be losing millions of parsecs to the newly formed Chodak/Romulan Envoy, and he could not allow that. So, he took the only course of action available to him. He picked up the tennis ball in his pocket, distracted Skali for a second, made him look upward, hit him square in the chest, and crammed the tennis ball down his throat. As Sett watched the man die, he felt an urge of power come over him. He walked out of the room and motioned for Palanin to come over towards him "The Dictator is dead. He tried to swallow a tennis ball...tragic." said Sett in a sort of half-deranged comedic overtone. Palanin's eyebrow went up "Sir?" Sett chuckled and said "He thought the damn thing was a pastry, before I could stop him, he choked to death on it...but he did sign the treaty...the top half anyways" Sett winked at Palanin "Ah, Yes, sir..." said Palanin with a hint of understanding in his voice. Sett stepped out of his office and walked over to where the press stand and took Henry away from a conference with one of them and pointed towards the dead dictator, being carried out of Sett's office by Sturek and Palanin "I think It's time we took the trash out, don't you think?" The press began to cheer. The war was over now. The enemy had surrendered. And Sett went back to his bed, inside his office, and turned out the light. Rest at last. Rest at last.
Chapter Nineteen - Til Death Do Us Part
The sky was cobalt blue on a sunny day in the chapel in Rome. The birds were singing and there was a ceremony in progress inside. "In keeping with the tradition of all Starfleet Papal States since the year 2121, I come before you all today in good faith" said the Pope. "...to bring together Darvin Sett and Tabetha L. Meyer in the bonds of holy matrimony" The proud couple, decked out in full Starfleet dress were beaming at each other. The do you's were next, and they both awnsered them in turn. The Pope now blessed them both and said "Then, by the power vested in me by Starfleet Command and the Church of the Planet Earth, I hereby wed you. Til death do you part". Sett smiled and looked at his new wife "Til death do us part" he spoke softly in her ear. They kissed. The congregation followed them outside. "Congratulations, Sir" said a voice from the crowd. Seconds later he found the voice belonged to none other than Sturek, who had with him a very aged Henry. "Yes, sir, best of luck" he said in a scratchy tone. The couple exited into their shuttle, and began to zoom off, away from the church. Inside, the driver, a boy of no more than sixteen looked back in awe at the two of them. "Never seen a happier couple, eh?" said Sett, thinking that his look was because they were so happy with each other. "No, Mr. Sett, not at all. I just can't believe i'm in the same shuttle as a legend". Sett paused and thought "oh no, not another fan". "So....what is it you like about me?" he said with a tone of annoyance. The shuttle pilot put the controls on automatic and turned around. There was something about his face, something familiar. Sett couldn't pin it down. "I just think what you did, the odds you were up against, and the 15 re-elections as President that followed....you are truly an excellent President, and you are just a bit of an idol of mine, and i'd like to thank you". Sett was a bit confused "Thank me? For what?" The boy began to tear up as he walked over and sat down next to Sett. "My name is Timothy Stalk. I'm the son of Jonas. I was just a baby when the war ended, but i'd like to thank you for taking over for Dad and doing so much good in the galaxy". Sett gave the kid a hug "That's my job, mister" he said with sterness. The shuttle went over the hills, towards London, where the honeymoon was to commence. All was right with the galaxy, and as they rode off into the sunset a peace that had never existed within Sett began to form. "Til Death do us part" he said to his wife, she beamed back, and gave him a kiss.
THE END