Chapter 1
Encounters
No one knew what had happened to the NCC 1701 – D USS Enterprise since it had gone down on the planet, Veridian Three approximately one year ago. The event would have been monumental on that fateful, sunny day ending in the destruction a legendary ship. By now the United Federation of Planets had written the ship off as a complete loss marking it down as destroyed. The saucer section was badly damaged but for the most part still intact. The crew that served upon its bridge and other parts gave it one last look as if thanking the ship for bringing them safely to the ground. It was a bittersweet farewell.
Since the time the Enterprise was considered a loss, there seemed to be little to no activity picked up within the region of space that it had gone down. Nearly undetectable by any sensor, two pods were careening towards that sector of space carrying one occupant in each pod. They were white and circular with just a colored glass for them to see through. This was no race that the Federation had ever seen nor heard of. As the pods broke through the atmosphere, they crashed land down in the valley near the saucer section of the Enterprise leaving a couple craters of their own.
When the pods had rested on the ground for about ten seconds, the pods opened. One of the Saiyans was dressed in blue and white with candle flame styled hair. He was rather short but stoutly built. The other was a little taller than the first person with hair spiked out to either side. It was a good bet that no one around this area or even in the Federation space knew they were now scrounging around parts of the old Enterprise. The shorter one, took note of the size of the craft and seemed to indicate that he was planning a way to lift it from the surface of the planet.
Over the right eye was a glass attached to a white earpiece that covered the ear. With a single tap on the earpiece, he was an instant communication with even more from his race. Solid black eyes surveyed the area trying to determine the best course of action to achieve this process. As many calculations ran through his mind he finally nodded, coming up with such a plan and summoned more to come to aid. The person with the candle flame hair however was more important than any of the others that had gathered.
As other pods crashed down around them, this race commenced upon the saucer. Instead of going over it though, they surrounded it using ki blasts to blast the ship free of any tethers that may have grown upon the saucer to keep it earthbound. Once it was completed, the group worked as one as slowly but surely, they hoisted the saucer section into the air, making it airborne under their own power. Once it was off the ground the hard part was to come, getting it back into space.
It did not take them long however, building what looked like a mesh underneath the saucer with energies. Once they had it secured in the mesh they lifted it through the atmosphere into space where it became nearly weightless. What may have been a foreboding task to any other race seemed much like child's play to this one. Now it was time to get under way. With a bit of shielding, they moved the saucer section without any effort at all. Before anyone was the wiser, or tracked their movements, they had already slipped back into the uncharted part of the Typhon Expanse.
Once the saucer was near their planet, they slowed its decent so no further damage was done to the hull and other interior structures. This kept the others busy long enough and in the meantime, this particular Saiyan had other things that he needed to do. "I want it assessed for interior damage on the main structure and also start replicating the computer systems inside. I want a report of the condition given to Kakarrot by end of tomorrow."
Having given his commands this person walked from the large section and began to dig up information of the ships that had been used in Starfleet. Once he had obtained the schematics from the ship's own computers, he quickly determined what the star ship was to look like. It was an impressive size, and rebuilding was going to take some effort, but he was confident that it could be done with minimal time allotted for the craft. Once he had it in the hands of his Engineers, they set to the task of the rebuilding.
"King Vegeta, why do you want this to be repaired? Its not even from our race nor our area of space." Another asked him, and not without undue consideration to what the actual plans were. They had not been told why they were to hunt for this craft and to bring it to their world to repair it when they got around just as easily in their pods with little risk of detection from the other ships that crisscrossed the space near the Expanse.
The King looked back at the person and simply gave a touch of a grin. "You do not know the service of this craft do you? To say the least it was honorable. When it dropped from service about a year ago, I knew something had to have happened to it and it seems the Humans that left it there did not have the means nor the time to repair this ship."
The other nodded once. "This ship did come into a part of our space before didn't it? If I'm not mistaken, it was caught in a time loop and by the end of that mission had gotten out another Federation ship as well. After that I don't think any other has dared try to come here."
"And with good reason." Vegeta stated looking out at the massive craft, now in safe hands that began to repair the Galaxy Class starship to its former glory. "Their ships are often too large to navigate through this sector without some issues of some sort or another. Our pods are much more maneuverable and they don't require half the technology that is needed for the Enterprise."
There was a moment the two just stared out at the ship and then Vegeta nodded. "I have to go to the United Federation of Planets to see what they're up to now. They may be building the Enterprise E for all we know. This will also be a first contact mission since they may not think that we even exist. Tell Kakarrot that he is in charge until I return. Work on the ship will commence and they should report the findings to him." With that, he quickly turned on heel and summoned for a pod.
Vegeta removed the scouter, having a feeling that he may not need it for this mission. He set the coordinates and sat back, letting the pod fly itself. There was little more to do than sleep until he reached the system where the ships were built or more to the point to the Space Station that housed the crew that had once flown the Enterprise upon its many missions. Leaning into sleep the warrior would rest for now.
Back on the planet, the other Saiyans would find the ship in some parts severely damaged, in other parts, barely touched. When they started to secure the more damaged sections, they began the process of rebuilding, taking the needed materials to make it stronger, faster, and much more durable to the elements. Most crafts would not yet have that technology to build its strength up to what the Saiyans had already accomplished long ago.
As the Saiyan King slipped through space, the warrior woke after about eight hours sleep and sat with his arms crossed for now as he watched the stars slip past his craft. It took three weeks for the small pod to be detected by another vessel and still they had no idea how to handle this lone occupant nor its small pod. It did not look like the Cardassians, the Romulans, nor the Klingons. It also certainly was not a Ferengi nor other ship that they had spotted before. All they knew was that this small vehicle also did not have any outward method of propulsion. It was an interesting craft that left the majority of the people upon the vessel scratching their heads, trying to figure it out.
The USS Farragut tried to figure out this small conundrum in their space. It did not seem to have shields, not even weapons on board. How it moved was still much of a mystery to them and the Saiyan seemed to relish in the fact scan after scan of the pod had yet to reveal its secrets to the ship that was now tailing him. Captain John T. Carter had his ship follow the small pod that was now nearing the star base near Earth One. That was when the pod finally came to slow down and even hover. This caught their attention and held it for some time.
"Sir, someone is hailing us through voice transmission only." The Security officer would say to the Captain.
John stood up as if looking for a face to appear as well but had trained his gaze on the small ship that they had followed. "Open channels."
Once the hailing frequency was open, the Captain spoke in a diplomatic yet very concerned tone. "This is Captain John Carter of the NCC - 60597 USS Farragut. You have entered into the United Federation space. Please identify yourself and your reason for being here."
There seemed to be a lingering silence for now as both ships came to a stop a mere one hundred kilometers from the space station. Finally the transmission would come through. "I am King Vegeta of the Planet Vegeta. This is a Saiyan Pod from the area you know as the Typhon Expanse. I request permission to come aboard your Space Station to speak of a First Contact opportunity. Don't worry about secrets, I have a feeling I won't be needing them. I also understand that you will need time to contact the appropriately ranked personnel. I have stopped my pod until further word is given to proceed to the star base."
How could someone they have never heard of, from a race they had never seen, have the ability to know that they had to go through a chain of command to get clearance for such things? It seemed mind boggling as the Captain looked out at the smaller craft. It would seem almost too easy to destroy the craft if push came to shove. When the transmissions cut out, the Captain began talking through the Chain of Command at Starfleet Central Command. It seemed to take an hour before John could begin to transmit back to the small pod in front of them. "This is Captain Carter, and you have permission to land upon the star base. You will be docking in bay three. We'll meet you when you land."
Once Vegeta had his landing area, he propelled the pod closer then prepared it for landing gently instead of the usual crashing to the ground. Once he was within docking bay three, he took a moment to make sure that all the systems were off, the computer growing dark as the pod door opened in a downward fashion with two hydraulics guiding a smooth decent to the floor.
Stepping out on to the smooth floor, the warrior looked about quietly at first to those that had gathered to witness this moment in time. Then Vegeta heard a report coming in over his scouter. Tapping the earpiece of the device, he replied. "Proceed with the repairs, and take caution not to rush the process. It will be considered a delicate operation. Also, make sure that we have several pods going to each border of the Empire to ensure unwelcome intruders are kept at bay. Also send about ten more empty pods as well. Are my orders clear?" The Saiyan stated almost as if barking a command versus asking a question.
"Yes my lord, it will be carried out accordingly." The other voice said before tapping off the scouter and Vegeta did the same before pulling off the communications device. It was then that a couple Captains and an Admiral all came together to shake hands with the unknown person upon deck. Vegeta looked over at Captain John Carter, then to Captain Jean-Luc Picard, and then to the Admiral and nodded once.
"I am Captain Jean-Luc Picard. I used to command the NCC 1701-D USS Enterprise. I'm now waiting my new ship to be built. It is a pleasure to make First Contact with you. We have tried to go into the Typhon Expanse and it has been deemed by Starfleet too dangerous to enter due to the numerous anomalies that occur in that sector of space." He stated with little hesitation and offered an extended hand in greeting.
Vegeta looked at the hand extended and after getting a feel of their energies, decided they were not a threat at this moment. Only then did the Saiyan King reach his hand out and took the Captain's own in the desired greeting that was common to the human race. "We know of the anomalies of the Expanse and of your ships skirting around it now for some time. We also know of the time that you were caught in a time-loop and ended up pulling the USS Bozeman from that region."
The three officers would raise a brow lightly at the knowledge of this lone person. The King gave a light sigh as he shook his head. "To put it bluntly, there is not much at all that happens there without our knowledge. It is after all the Saiyan Empire. We patrol the borders on a regular basis and therefore we know that your ships are often too large to come into our Empire that easily. Shall we go somewhere to sit down and have something to eat or drink? After a long ride here, I would say I'm quite thirsty."
"Of course, lets go to the galley and find something to eat and drink." Jean-Luc replied and when the other Captain and the Admiral excused themselves, the older gentleman had to ask. "I've never heard of a Saiyan. What kind of race is it?" He asked with eager anticipation on the tip of his tongue. After meeting several species, Picard could hardly pass up meeting another, and a new race which had been unknown to the Federation for as long as they had been around. Here in front of him now was an opportunity to do just that, a First Contact meeting.
The warrior turned and looked at the cafeteria for now and nodding to the bartender to order a tall glass of water. When he had it in hand, Vegeta sat down across from the Human in front of him and stared at it for a moment before his own gaze lowered just a bit to sip on the water and quench his thirst. "My people are a warrior race, ready to take up arms at any moment against Universal threats."
"Universal threats…" Captain Picard stated, his words trailing off as if trying to figure out what that meant.
Vegeta looked into his water for a moment. "These threats can and will destroy not just planets, but also galaxies if not stopped. Some could even threaten the Universe itself. Those are what we go after. Interracial spats and scuffles are well avoided and do not concern us unless it graduates to a Universal issue." It was not that difficult to fathom for himself, but the others he knew, may struggle with the idea. At that time, the pods would land as directed in the docking bay as well.
Picard nodded as he sipped on his own drink at the moment. "Such threats seem unlikely with the Federation, the Klingons, and other areas around space. There is a neutral zone for the Cardassians and the Romulans that was agreed upon in our treaties. Surely they are not such an issue."
Vegeta glanced upward to meet Picard's own gaze as he again sipped on his water. The Captain's were a stone blue color. It was at this time, Picard finally got a good look at the warrior sitting across from him. Where most races had irises of some color, this person did not have any. They were black and more, they seemed to draw a person into the dark depths of the mysterious gaze. The figure before him was well built, as if not one ounce of fat touched any part of the chiseled frame.
The deep, gruff voice sounded more proud than accented, but Picard could tell that it was definitely an accent when the Saiyan finally replied. "Those races would hardly pose threat to us. No the ones we tend to deal with have enough raw energy to bat your mighty ships about with a mere flick of a finger. Those are the ones we go after."
Vegeta took another sip as the other sat back, trying to wrap his mind around what was just stated. The warrior then set his glass down as he seemed to go into deep thought. It was then the scouter beeped and Vegeta put it on once more, tapping a button. "This is Vegeta." It seemed he did not have to say more than that as the warrior's brow knit.
"Sire, we have a few ships bordering our Empire. They claim to be Cardassian ships. Should we take them out?" The other voice stated with a touch of irritance in his voice.
Standing up, Vegeta looked over toward his home, his Empire and dipped his head lightly, the brow knitting. Captain Picard watched standing as well. "Report?" Jean-Luc uttered before he realized that old habits died hard from his time on the Enterprise. Seeing the sudden change in the warrior was a bit unsettling. What could have made the warrior suddenly take on such a demeanor in the middle of a conversation?
Giving a light growl, Vegeta tapped on the scouter again. "Hold them off for now. Try hailing them and if they don't respond, fire a shot across the bow. If that doesn't work take out their shields and weapons. No ship is to be destroyed until I get there." The burning rage within the Saiyan's gaze glanced in the Captain's direction.
Picard tapped on his comm badge. "Riker, Data, La Forge, and Worf, get a crew together, I have a feeling we're about to go on a mission. Meet us at docking bay three." Once it was said the two were already well underway as the Saiyan maintained a quick pace a couple steps ahead until the Captain jogged up to him and matched his pace. "What's happening Vegeta?"
The warrior did not even glance over at Picard as he walked briskly toward the docking bay. "The Cardassians are at our border, and it seems they have amassed an army to try to enter our Empire with force. They don't know that we could take every one of them out and not break a sweat. If they think they can enter to try to take over the Saiyans, they have another thing coming. We Saiyans had been under the rule of a tyrant before, and while I'm King, its not going to happen again."
With that, the two broke into a bit of a jog and when they came across the others. Nodding to the team joining up, they jogged with the Warrior King in the lead. This was no time for him to mosey about and Vegeta began tapping on a pad to activate his pod with it already hovering in the air within the bay. Once they reached the pods, Vegeta turned to those that had gathered and seemed to take each one into memory. "Use the pods before you. They are set to follow my craft, and should be pretty easy to program. They may be in Federation space and if I know your treaties, that means that they have broken your's as well. We'll hold them off but if they cross into my Empire borders, I will have no choice but to defend my home and the many races there."
Data looked at the pods. "They do not appear to have shields or weapons. It is unlikely in a confrontation that we would be able to defend ourselves."
"Worry about that later. You're going to the Saiyan Empire, and these pods are the best for the Typhon Expanse where it's located. They're a lot more durable than you realize. I also thought you were open to observations but with your Prime Directive of non-interference. We Saiyans will keep you well shielded. Now are you coming or not? I don't have the time to waste." Vegeta's irritance grew as his expression became almost intimidatingly evil as the Warrior King stepped into the pod and punched in a couple buttons on the computer panel.
Picard watched as the other pods opened upon their touch and soon he got in the pod as well, next followed by Riker. Worf only smiled lightly. "I will gladly come into battle. Its been too long since I have seen combat as a warrior." It was then that he would get into his own, followed by Doctor Crusher, Deanna Troi, Data, and Geordi La Forge, and three others.
Once they were all inside the pods, Vegeta's and their doors closed as they began to hover and with little more to do, Vegeta leaned forward and the pods accelerated into hyperspace in faster time than the larger ships. In each pod was a scouter, which Picard put on, tapping the button as he had seen Vegeta do and then listened to the conversation ensuing between the King and his people.
There was another accented voice upon the scouter, a bit higher pitched than Vegeta's. "Sire, they have responded to our hails, but have ordered our unconditional surrender."
"To hell we'll surrender. Hail them back, tell them they can go to hell if they think they can take over our Empire." Vegeta growled back and soon he and the others were crossing the vast expanses about as fast as any of the Federation starships.
Back at the Empire, the Cardassians hailed the Saiyans again. "Surrender or have your pods destroyed. You have no shielding, no weapons, you can't fight us off, and we are much larger than you." The Cardassian leader stated nonchalantly.
Vegeta tapped on the scouter. "This is King Vegeta of the Planet Vegeta, ruler of the Saiyan Empire. You are breaching on sovereign territory and we will defend it at all costs. As for you destroying us, you can go to hell. Leave our space and return home, or face the consequences of your actions."
With a wave of the hand, the Cardassians launched a first wave attack with lasers, thinking it an easy defeat, when the lasers hit something and diffused. "We have far superior weapons. Surrender at once."
"Hold your ground. I'm just about there, and then we'll see who has 'far superior weapons'. Strengthen the shields and remain in defensive position." Vegeta countered, having no doubt who his people would listen to. "If any Cardassians are listening, this is your second warning. Leave our territory or suffer the consequences."
The shield now started to glow as they poured in more energy. Each pod had connected their energies, making it a formidable wall for as far as the eye could see in either direction. The leader of the Cardassians stepped back as the shield now shown itself. Each ship was reporting in on the daunting span of the barrier in front of them. "Fire the photon torpedoes. Lets see how strong this barrier is."
In just that moment, Vegeta and the others arrived at the barrier and after tapping a couple buttons, Vegeta came out onto the door and with his hands thrust forward destroying the torpedoes in one wave of energy. Then his attention turned to the Cardassians, tapping on his scouter, the Saiyan King again made his stand. "This is your third and final warning. Leave this area."
There seemed a bit of silence and Captain Picard noticed the strength of this one Saiyan, more, he was standing out in space, with no suit nor air supply. They seemed capable to stand and face off with the enemy that was many times their size and with several ships to their credit. The warrior however, was not fazed by the enormous ships that seemed to dwarf him and his comrades. Picard had no inkling of how they could even defend themselves, but now that they were here, this was going to be something of a showdown. However if that energy wave destroying the photon torpedoes were something to go by, the Cardassians may have bitten off more than they could chew with this leader.
Vegeta growled at the ship in front of him, his head tipping, his hand lifting as it twisted just a bit sideways. A burst of light flashed before the energy ball would form in his hand. There was a tense moment right before the leader of the Cardassians gave a laugh, heard by everyone that had a scouter on. "We have given you more than enough warning. Now, face the might of the Saiyan Empire." Vegeta stated, his voice cold, calculated, and not one shred of fear touched the voice nor composure. It was the calm before the storm.
Commander Riker heard the King's voice, cold with disdain and dangerously low. What made it frightening was that he did not yell. He only mentioned it in a tone that spoke infinitely of the danger that the Saiyan King posed against even an army of Cardassians. He leaned forward with interest, spellbound by the intense silence that seemed to fall upon both sides.
Worf watched intensely, understanding the silence between the Saiyans and the Cardassians. The next move the Cardassians made could either start a battle, or walk away intact. The Klingon warrior knew one thing for certain. However this battle panned out, the victor may be able to either claim this sector of space, or hold on to it, but an immense struggle was about to take place. This was a classic stare down. The smaller facing off against the larger.
A whisper was given by the Cardassian leader. "Fire all weapons, kill them all. That's what they get for standing in the way of the Cardassians."
With a release of breath, Vegeta glanced to the others. Gazing to the left toward the pods that contained the members of the crew that had piloted the Enterprise and then nodded only once. It was then that a few pods gathered about them and a shield enveloped them in a strong bubble of energy. With them now protected, Vegeta looked to his right and soon the barrier of energy was lowered.
The formidable shield was dropped, and though the Captain, Commander, and the others thought it a suicide move, Vegeta allowed the energy ball in his hand to remain. Once the weapons were starting to be fired, the King nearly laughed. "Fire a shot across the bow of the ships in a warning shot. Then disable their shields and weapons. Lets see if that gets their attention. Their ships' aim is so far off course, they don't even know how to hit a standing target."
With no other word, the ships strafed the area with their weapons, some bouncing off the shield around the crew. Deanna got an empathic feel over the Saiyan King. "Captain, he's as calm and confident as though he were facing a young child. He's in a dangerous mood."
"Yes, he is, and he does not even seem fazed by the amount of energy passing mere inches from him. We are here to observe though and he's upholding his word. We are shielded from the attack." Picard stated to his Counselor. There was not one crew member that was not astonished by the amount of energy this race held.
"Now." Vegeta stated and in that moment, one Saiyan per ship lifted above the ships and gave off a powerful energy wave. As each wave impacted the shields surrounding the Cardassian ships, they began to flicker and fade. Next, with scalpel precision, they took out the weapons with seeming ease.
On board the Cardassian ships, the Captains of each reported the shield failures, then the disarmament of their weapons. Some even began to retreat from the sector as Vegeta held off the warriors wanting to go after them. "No, let them go. They are light years behind our strength and we have not even begun to show what we're capable of. They did us no harm, and they're hardly a universal threat, just a mere pest that needed to be shown that we will not be pushed so easily."
It was not long before the other ships finally departed and Vegeta returned to the comfort of the pod. If not for the Saiyan pods still here, the crew could have thought the battle to never have even taken place. Vegeta only turned back. "Return home, and continue with the previous work. When we bring these people to our planet, I want the surprise waiting for them. What is the estimated time for it's completion?"
"It should be ready in another couple weeks my lord. Progress on it has been relatively easy with only minor setbacks." One replied back.
"Setbacks?" Vegeta asked as they seemed to converse to each other.
"Yes Sire, but nothing that could not be fixed easily. We're right on schedule for the completion date." The other Saiyan stated and with that, they stated their farewells and when the crew went one way with King Vegeta, the others went in the opposite direction.