Chapter 1: Command Decisions
Captain Christopher Innes strode unto the bridge of his ship the U.S.S Tornado an old Lakota class Battle cruiser. First put into service to start replacing the old constitution class ships, this ship was one of the few still in service and being refitted. The excelsior class, as they were commonly known, saw a brief re insurgence during the conflicts with the Dominion over four years ago. They stripped all unnecessary equipment such as shields, sensor packages, probes and other scientific or miscellaneous systems and were then refitted with enhanced weapon and defensive systems. They were also equipped with Quantum torpedoes which only a few ships then carried. The armaments have been put on almost all new ships able to support them but all ships have the old photon torpedoes still installed. The quantum launchers have been replaced with cobalt and even Tri-Cobalt armaments that inflict even more serious damage. Since the end of the dominion war the Alpha and Beta quadrant powers have been able to come to a neutral cease fire while everybody sits back and lick's their wounds. Of all the space empires involved in the war, the Cardassian, Klingon and Breen were hit the hardest and calculations project it would be more than twenty years before either empire were economically, socially and militarily as stable as they were before. Out of all the problems, chaos, depression and death to come out of the war there were a lot of changes made. For one, the wormhole was now off limits to any race unless it was a scientific mission. This mission though had to be recorded and all the data recorded were to be given to each government for review. The Bajorans had finally been accepted into Starfleet and the Cardassians had also made a petition to join. With the destruction of millions of Cardassians during the last Dominion battle there are only about three hundred million left and their territory and planets in ashes. The Cardassians, though being a very arrogant and proud species, seemed to have learned their lesson about trusting outsiders and what ambition and greed can end up doing to you as a person and civilization. The UFP sent as many supply convoys and transports as they could space but the rebuilding process was developing slowly. Due to the rest and healing of the galaxy, the UFP have begun again trying to make warp ten and above possible. That was the purpose of now Christopher, to observe the test flights in the Bonneville flats in Federation space near the Romulan border where unfortunately the Tomed incident occurred one hundred years ago.
"Captain Innes we are receiving a communication from Captain Riker on the U.S.S Titan, shall I patch it through here sir?" Ensign Carry asked from his communication station. The young ensign was just assigned to the Tornado and having gone over his reports and information about his time at the academy, Christopher knew he was bright with a promising career.
"Put it on screen ensign, science, prepare sensor probe data retrieval and bring the sensor grid online as well." Christopher commanded to his bridge officers. They both acknowledged their orders and a few seconds after the image of Commander Riker appeared on his view screen.
"Commander the U.S.S Tornado is in position and ready to receive warp tests data." Christopher said as he walked in front of his command chair and placing his hands behind his back.
"Very good, the launch will commence within five minutes. Begin the countdown; I'll notify the other ships in the area and the U.S.S Universe Riker out." With that the transmission ended and the view screen was replaced again by the stars in the system. The launch clock was activated and it showed just less than five minutes to launch.
There were six other ships in the area all monitoring or retrieving the data and warp efficiency of the Universe class warp ten ship. Three nova class ships, one refitted Miranda class ship with more sensor pods and two Nebula class ships for patrol and guard duty in case the Romulans or any hostile species try to sabotage the test flight. There was no reason to expect any attack but since the Dominion war and Tomed Incident it was best to be cautious and having the test flight near the Romulan, Klingon border provided a chance for them to be involved in any test flight but could also cause paranoia and confusion with hostilities starting again. The Cardassians, who are in the process of joining Starfleet, were able to save the Galor and ship designs and Starfleet was in the process of building these ships with Starfleet standard systems and utilities. These new ships in Starfleet were now being refitted and with these new additions, Starfleet finally decided to decommission almost ninety percent of all remaining out dated ships such as Miranda's', Excelsior's', Ambassadors' and even some Nebula class ships.
"Sir ten seconds to warp test flight." Came the voice of another young crew member from a science console. Christopher turned to view the screen and saw the sleek universe class ship power its warp core and engage its warp engines. Christopher switched the screen back to the trajectory the ship would be taking.
"Sir the Universe has achieved warp 2…2.5…3…3.5…warp 5!" The young ensign was not only excited by talking fast but was showing too much emotion. While this would be a momentous occasion if it worked properly, there would be plenty of time to celebrate after.
"Keep your voice under control ensign, we need accurate readings." Christopher didn't at all mean to sound harsh and he hoped he wasn't developing a habit of it however critical situations sometimes call for drastic actions and words.
"The Universe is approaching the one quarter mark…all warp fields are stable and probes are not detecting any flux in the quantum singularity." The ops officer called out from his station. Christopher acknowledged the information and sat down in his command chair.
It was true; the Federation ship was using a quantum singularity or a scaled version of a small black hole powering its warp drive. The Romulans were able to upgrade their drives for more stability and power and so Starfleet traded them for a dozen of their old counterparts.
Christopher remained seating in his chair. While he was excited about being able to achieving warp 10 and then being able to equip starships with the new power to explore the rest of the galaxy, he was still bored having nothing to really do other than watch over the progress and hope for the best.
"Sir the Universe is approaching the one third mark, all probes and sensors are reading normal warp fields, they will be in our visual range in two minutes fifteen seconds."
Christopher acknowledged the comment and remained staring at the screen with all the visual readouts and data projected. It was very quiet on the bridge that when an alert alarm starting flashing it nearly made Christopher jump from his chair. He immediately got up and went over to the ops station located to his left. The ensign there was bringing up all the data and information about the warning.
"What's the problem?" Christopher asked mildly.
"Sir there appears to be a problem with the quantum singularity, it's becoming unstable quickly and a build up in temperature is imminent!" The ensign said quickly turning to look at Christopher.
"What is the cause of this sudden effect on the warp drive, like was this something that was overlooked?" Christopher quickly asked.
"No sir! All tests and reports came up perfectly fine, the only result of this is a large gravitational distortion such as a black hole or another strange anomaly or the fact that these quantum singularities are very old and unpredictable. Either way I don't think they can compensate for it, we must do something!" The ensign replied in almost a pleading way.
It was hard for Christopher and possibly even the rest of the crew that months of hard work and resources to be able to perfect a warp 10 vessel and that it was this close to being completed would end up in disaster.
"Signal the Universe, maybe they know of the problem, let's se if we can correct it, and transmit the data to Captain Riker, he may be able to do something." Christopher ordered, he walked back to the view screen waiting for the captain of the Universe to appear.
About a second after the view screen showing the data of the Universe ship and flight was replaced by an image of a female officer in the standard Starfleet uniform. Her brown hair was tied in a bun and she had brown eyes. She had a look of confusion and determination but she was also very frightened and nervous.
"Commander Christopher, our warp field is becoming unstable and the quantum singularity is building up energy which it will discharge in approximately under two minutes. If we don't stop it a massive explosion is going to occur destroying this system and possibly your ships," She said in a remarkably calm voice, so much so it kind of surprised Christopher and made him blink for a few seconds.
"Have you tried shutting down the power to the warp core?" Christopher asked, although most experienced captains, like the one he was talking to, always tried to do a cold shutdown. He almost couldn't believe someone not doing it and he figured it hadn't worked because it never ever did.
"Unfortunately the warp core is not responding to any of our commands or overrides but we are attempting to break free. It has damaged a lot of our relays and our helm is not responding and our shields have been activated. I'm beginning to evacuate the ship of all non-essential personnel. Other than a handful of engineers and myself the rest are evacuating." The Universe commander replied
"All right here's the best course of action," Christopher said clearly. "Continue working on the problem for as long as you can, if you can't fix it then make sure to get into an escape pod. This seems to be the best solution."
"What will you guys be doing?" She asked again a little bit afraid this time but still remaining determined, he figured she wanted to make that Starfleet hadn't given them new orders to abandon the project like what happened again during the Tomed Incident that wreaked havoc for all of the major star empires at that time.
"We'll be coming after you." He replied and signaled his commander to end the transmission. He went and sat in his chair and straightened out his hair to make sure it still looked presentable.
"All hands; red alert, it's going to get bumpy!" He commanded and immediately saying that, the bridge was arrayed in red pulsating lights and the computer warning that signaled a condition red began wailing over the speakers.
"Helm plot us a parallel course to match the Universe ship and engage maximum warp when ready." Christopher ordered and immediately the helms officer complied by pushing the buttons on the console and ship lurched forward as the stars began to streak forward faster and faster flying endlessly through space and time. Christopher hoped he would be able to assist the crew left on the Universe. If worst came to worst he would have to do one of two things, one; destroy the prototype ship with the remaining crew, or two, discontinue the rescue and allow the crew to be killed, either choice would be difficult to proceed with but regulations dictate that a Starfleet captain cannot let feelings or personal regrets get in the way of making valuable and costly command decisions and Christopher would not start doubting that.
"Sir the Universe ship will be approaching us in twenty seconds!" The ops officer stated.
"Reroute all available power to the warp engines, helm what's our speed now?" Christopher inquired to the helm officer seated in front of him and looking at the visual screen ahead.
"Our speed is warp 9.5 sir!" She responded back.
"Can we push for warp 9.7 or above?" Christopher asked again.
"We can but not for too long as the stress and pressure will start to decrease our structural integrity, and I'm sure you know the consequences of that sir!" She replied and while that was not to be taken as an offensive statement, it did raise eyebrow on Christopher's face.
"Push for warp 9.7 then…I do know of the consequences." Christopher replied back again.
"Sir the Universe is coming alongside us!" The ops officer sounded. Christopher turned to the communication station and signaled ensign Molek to patch him through to the Universe captain.
"Captain what is your situation as of this second?" Christopher bluntly asked. He needed to know, he needed to save, that was all there was to it, no matter what happened after, no matter what the circumstances, cause or effect Christopher would blame himself.
"Captain we have been able to effectively stop the unstable element in our warp core and we are flying at warp 10 smoothly, however our shields are still up and the braking system has frozen up and we are unable to stop or maneuver and we are currently drifting of course." She replied quickly. This was something totally different to Christopher now.
"Mr. Syer can we effectively lock on to the ship with a tractor beam and pull them out of warp with us?" Christopher asked his chief tactical officer located to the right and behind of where Christopher was standing.
"No the stress of the two ships in warp and then suddenly stopping would pull both ships apart and could destroy either or both of us. Tractor beams are not effective in high warp or high maneuver situations." He responded disappointingly. Christopher didn't think the plan would work either but a few minutes ago he thought that nothing could go wrong in this test flight and now it has.
"If they continue on their present course and speed where will the ship head into?" Christopher asked the bridge personal. He wasn't sure which station could provide the answer but he didn't care just as long as he received an accurate answer.
"They will continue past our borders heading deep into Romulan territory, and if they survive that sir, they will end up past the Romulans into Gorn territory and from there our star charts are fragmented so they could continue on until they hit a gravitational body like a moon or star, or if they are shot down." Came the reply from ensign Molek at the helm station. Her crisp response and cool manner to the tense situation seemed to calm Christopher's nerves a bit but his anxiety was still there. He started to rub his temples trying to get rid of the headache developing and from the stress to impair his decisions and thinking. The only other option left that would save the crew of the U.S.S Universe was something Christopher dare not try but if they didn't get the ship out of warp or the people to safety then a lot of experienced and young officers were going to get killed and Christopher didn't know if he could live the rest of his life with that on his conscience.
"Sir the Universe vessel is beginning to pass us; shall I increase speed to compensate?" Ensign Molek asked in a professional manner.
"Not yet." Came the reply, and then thinking quickly, "How long before the ship enters the Romulan neutral zone?"
"Approximately thirty minutes, and then another fifteen minutes until they cross the Romulan border, and from there unknown." Came the quick response from somewhere on the bridge. Christopher was too distracted by what he had to do that he didn't really care who said it.
"Signal the two Nebula class ships and tell them of our current situation, problem and then send them data gathered by us and the probes for our test flight. And tell them to contact any Romulan ship or station and tell them of the situation. I only pray the Romulans understand." Christopher ordered although his last sentence was mostly a rhetorical statement. It still didn't help the situation whether the Romulans did understand or not. The ship would keep flying through space at such a high warp that any impact with a sun could cause a major explosion and tear in subspace and the consequences of that would be astronomical. They couldn't wait any longer, whether Starfleet approved or not Christopher was now in command of the situation and this situation needed drastic action and it was time Christopher stepped up to it.
"Lieutenant Syer!" Christopher called out turning to face him. This time Christopher put on a determined look and spoke with authority that it scared himself a little. But this was his decision and he, a Starfleet officer and captain of a space going vessel, needed to make sure that he stuck with his decision good or bad. Unfortunately what was to come out of his mouth was one of the hardest things he could say let alone order a Starfleet officer to do. He could very easily get court-martialed and expelled and that was if he succeeded, if he failed the consequences tremendous not only for his ship, crew, Starfleet or the Federation but for the rest of the Alpha Quadrant.
"Lock weapons onto the Universe and shoot to disable their warp drive." He said aloud. The rest of the bridge crew all turned around from what they were doing and looked up at him with expressions of shock and confusion. All except Molek still flying the ship and looking ahead. She seemed to be minding her own business or going about her task almost as if she expected Christopher to do what he did.
"Aye sir!?" Came the reply of his tactical officer who responded to the question with disbelief. But turned around and began a lock on the ship. The rest of the bridge crew turned back around and continued their ship monitoring and systems. This is it now thought Christopher, no turning back from this point.
"Target locked sir, awaiting your command to fire." Came the reply again and Christopher knew his tactical officer did this to make sure Christopher really thought about what he was doing. While Christopher valued what he was trying to do, he realized that this was his decision now and he would stick with it.
He was just about to give the command to fire when an alert siren went off at the tactical station. It wasn't a red alert wail or even yellow alert siren that usually went off but it was another signal that chirped a quick beep. This signal was different in that it was a warning that some type of ship or ships had entered their long-range sensors. Fortunately it was a distraction Christopher didn't mind having.
"What's the problem Mr. Syer?" Christopher asked politely.
"Sir I don't understand but three Klingon Birds of Prey have just uncloaked directly in front of us and are arming their forward torpedo launchers…Sir they're firing at us!" Came the quick and frightened reply. Before Christopher could comprehend what was just said and before he could even give another command the bridge was rocked violently and everybody was thrown off their chairs and knocked to the ground. Sparks and explosions rippled throughout the ship and some computer consoles exploded sending debris and glass onto the floor. Most of the bridge crew tried to cover their heads with their hands to protect them from all the debris.
"Ensign Molek, go to evasive maneuvers but keep us on a parallel course with the
Universe, don't lose them!" Christopher quickly said as he was staggering back up. When no reply of confirmation came, Christopher first noticed the fact that the helm controls were all burnt and smoke was billowing out from it. Where Ensign Allison Molek was supposed to be sitting, the chair was knocked over and her body lay sprawled out over the floor with visible burnt marks and gashes along her body and face. Her eyes were closed and some blood was trickling down the side of her face and nose. Her uniform was torn and smeared with black soot. Christopher didn't need a medic to know she was already dead. Christopher motioned to a bridge officer to alert the medical teams to retrieve the body; he also motioned to another officer to replace the dead helmsmen. The other officer picked up the chair and began trying to rework at the controls.
"Sir our shields are down to eighty percent!" Came the reply of Mr. Syer at the tactical station.
"Hail the Klingons immediately!" Christopher said angrily. He had to get to this bottom of this. The Klingons had attacked without provocation and without reason. The Federation and Klingon Empire were at peace with each other and there were no hostilities being shown, nor any threats, so why the sudden attack?
"No response from our hails, it looks like their ignoring us," Came a quick reply.
"Sir our warp core is fluctuating, if we don't drop out of warp we risk destroying our ship!" An engineering officer said at a computer panel behind Christopher. That was the last thing Chris needed to hear at this point. If they dropped out of warp then the U.S.S Universe would continue to travel through hostile space with no way of shutting down their engines and no way of contacting them. This was not a hard decision for Christopher to make mentally or logically, as the needs of the many out weight the needs of the few, but it was the most distressing one for his conscience.
"Drop out of warp and reinforce our shields." Christopher commanded. Immediately he could feel the hum of the warp engines die down and on the view screen, the once flying stars and colours dimmed down to just white specs spread across a black canvas.
"Sir, the Klingons are decloaking again, bearing 457.4!" Came a response from tactical.
"Fire phasers, full rotational axis, and maximum power!" Christopher ordered. He heard a few buttons being pressed and the ships phaser emitters releasing their beamed light energy. Christopher recorded about six shots fired and looking out of the visual display as he saw the three enemy vessels swoop past in a perfect 'V' formation.
"Keep hitting them, target their engines!" Christopher said again. The enemy ships began turning around again to swoop by, but the phaser fire from the Tornado kept them veering around until their warp nacelles emitted a bright flash and the three ships sped off into the distance.
"Sir they've just warped out of the system, heading back into Klingon territory." The ops officer announced. Christopher again looked out at the visual display and pursed his lips. The Klingons never ran away or retreated from a battle, even if they were going to lose, their whole culture and way of life was based on honor and courage. Retreating from any battle was almost sacrilegious and worse it would bring shame on them and their family house for a very long time.
"Sir another ship has just entered our sensor range, it's the U.S.S Titan; they're hailing," Said the communications officer looking up from his display panel. Christopher acknowledged his statement and went to the visual display, again, and waited for the image of William Riker to appear.
"Captain Christopher, what is your ships condition?" Captain Riker asked in a commanding tone that showed a bit of annoyance. Christopher looked around the bridge before adding:
"Our shields are holding and are warp core is stable for now. We took a heavy hit in the attack that crippled us more than it should due do us warping faster than safety protocols allowed. We have one dead and a few more wounded sir." Christopher replied back in the same commanding tone.
"Alright, the U.S.S Titan and Tornado are to head back to Earth immediately, the other three Nova class ships are to finish with the test data and stay in this sector, and the two Nebula ships will remain on guard duty. We've been ordered back to base to assess the situation and come up with a rescue strategy." Riker said again. He wasn't talking in any conversational tone and Christopher knew he meant business.
"Aye sir, the Tornado will be following you back. Our warp core has sustained some damage. We estimate anything over warp 6 is dangerous." Christopher replied back stating the situation to his commanding officer.
"All right we'll go to warp 4 just to be safe, that means we'll get back to Earth in two hours, this is the U.S.S Titan out." Came the reply again from Captain Riker. He then ended the transmission and the screen was cut off showing the star field again.
"Helmsmen set a course for home warp 4." Christopher ordered. He again could hear the hum of the warp field and the ship jumped in to faster than light speed. Christopher breathed a sigh of relief but still felt guilty about what had transpired here at the Bonneville Flats testing ground.
"Mr. Syer we can stand down from red alert now. I'll be in my quarters if you need me, please send all damage reports, casualty lists and repair team assignments to my room's computer. You have the bridge." With that Christopher walked over to the turbo lift shaft located behind the bridge. He then entered and voiced his destination to the computer and the doors closed propelling the starship captain to his destination as ordered.
Joseph Syer complied with his Captains wishes and stood up from his station and walked over to the command chair. It was going to be a very boring flight home.
As the ships warped away, the cloaked ship, again, hiding in the neutral zone with its captain, was fortunate it was not detected. The Captain again was most pleased with her crew's effort. She ordered the data from the probes and other ships in the area to be hacked in to and downloaded to their ships memory banks. She then ordered her crew to disembark from their current location and to plot a course to where the U.S.S Universe would end up. If her extrapolations were correct and with the galaxy at stake, she needed to make sure she was ahead by at least one step. Quietly the ship turned around and entered back into warp flying again through time and space.