Chapter 2

The Border

The Enterprise was at warp, on her way to the Neutral Zone to deflect any possible Romulan incursions. Captain Jean-Luc Picard was in his chair, he was nervous, but made no large effort to hide it. The only thing that calmed him was to watch the stars fly by on the viewscreen.

Commander William T. Riker sat on Picard's right. Picard's first officer was calm, but in his gut he knew that something was going to happen with the Romulans today, and there was nothing that could be done to prevent it. Although he was confident that this Enterprise would be more than exceptional against the Romulans.

Counselor Deanna Troi sat on Picard's left. Being the ship's counselor she was responsible for the emotional well-being of the crew. She has had several appointments with various members of the crew today. Each of them talking about their difficulty coping with the current situation with the Romulans. Sometimes she found it difficult to cope with it herself, which made her job a little more challenging. She could feel the fear and discomfort of everyone on board the ship. Sometimes it was strenuous to take it all in. But she managed.

Lieutenant Commander Alec Wilson was at the tactical station. Having been the chief of security for several months now he was used to tense situations, but being used to tense situations doesn't always make them easier. Alec didn't like Romulans, not that many people did. And he was certainly not surprised when they broke off relations. He always knew they couldn't be trusted.

Second officer Lieutenant Commander Data was sitting the operations station. Now that Data possessed emotion, he was able to say that he didn't like the Romulans. They were deceitful, devious, and dishonorable. Those were qualities that Data vowed never to possess.

Lieutenant James Moore sat at the helm. He was probably the most nervous of those on the bridge. Maybe it had to do with his being the youngest of the senior officers. Sometimes being the chief helm officer had its drawbacks. In a serious situation he was always the one at the helm. He enjoyed being on the Enterprise, but he didn't enjoy hostile situations.

"We are approaching the Neutral Zone Captain." said Data.

"Thank you Mr. Data." said Picard. "Take us out of warp Lieutenant."

"Aye sir." said Moore.

"Where are the Prometheus and the Thunderchild?" asked Riker.

"The Prometheus is patrolling the Neutral Zone 5 light-years to port bearing 270 mark 012," said Data. "and the Thunderchild is patrolling 6 light-years to starboard bearing 090 mark 032"

"Captain." said Alec. "We're receiving subspace messages from the Prometheus and the Thunderchild."

"What do they say?"

"Both warn us of a Romulan Warbird that's been hanging on the edge of the Neutral Zone for an hour."

"Where's the Warbird now?"

"They're inside the Neutral Zone now." said Alec. "And they're traveling at warp 6. By my estimates they'll be here in less than a minute."

"Could they be after Lorna Prime sir?" asked Riker.

"It's possible." replied Picard. "They tried to annex it before the Treaty of Algeron."

"I don't know why. It's uninhabited and Starfleet hasn't found anything of value on it."

"Maybe something happened recently that's interested the Romulans." said Alec. "Captain, the Warbird just cloaked."

"Alec, can you penetrate the cloak with an anti-proton scan?" An anti-proton scan was one of the only ways to detect a cloaked ship. The Dominion started using anti-proton beams to penetrate cloaks seven years ago when they first encountered the U.S.S. Defiant. If there were more ships with the Enterprise they could establish a tachyon network to detect the Warbird. But they were a solitary ship, they would have to find another way.

"Sorry Will," said Alec. "The Romulans corrected that problem when the Dominion started using anti-proton scans. But I did notice something."

"I thought you might have." said Riker.

"Their heading does match the coordinates for Lorna Prime."

"I don't think it's a coincidence." said Picard.

"Neither do I sir." said Riker. "From what I've seen, Romulans and coincidences don't go hand-in-hand. Mr. Data, how long to the Lorna system?"

"At warp 7, two minutes, twenty-seven seconds."

"Lieutenant Moore, set course for the Lorna system, warp 7."

"Course laid in Captain."

"Engage."

The ship went into warp. Alec always loved the sound of the warp core powering up before the warp pulse was initiated. He was so relieved when the war with the Dominion ended, his wife Rene was able to come back aboard the Enterprise instead of staying on Luna. But the relief was short-lived because of the Romulans. Rene was currently on board the Enterprise. Although hostilities had resumed with the Romulans, war had not broken out. Alec wanted her off the ship and somewhere safe but she said she 'has spent enough time away from him.' No war was pleasant, but if the officers had to choose, they would rather be at war with the Romulans than the Dominion. These hostilities were even worse because of the aftermath of the previous war. Nobody expected the Romulans to go astray so soon after the treaty was signed. Nobody, except for the Klingons. The Klingons' reaction was predictable. They expected as much from 'treacherous cowards.'

"Scan Lorna Prime for anything out of the ordinary." said Picard.

"Aye Captain, initiating scan." said Data. "Sir, the ionizing radiation in the system is interfering with our sensors. I will have to wait until we are in orbit of the planet."

"Understood Commander." said Picard. "Any ideas on how we can detect the Warbird?"

"I think the ionizing radiation is our best bet." said Alec.

"Excellent idea Commander." said Data.

"Can somebody please fill me in?" asked Riker.

"Ionizing radiation causes havoc with cloaking systems. So unless the Romulans have improved it, they'll already be working hard to keep it running. We can use that to our advantage."

"How?"

"The effect of a combined quantum and photon torpedo detonation would temporarily increase the ionizing effect which in turn would overload their cloaking device."

"How close would they have to be Alec?"

"The resulting explosion would affect the surrounding space in a radius of about a million kilometers. And any excess radiation would be absorbed by the planet's ozone layer. So as long as the Romulans are in standard orbit it should work."

"How long would they lose the ability to cloak?" asked Picard.

"According to my calculations their cloaking systems would be shorted out for at least an hour."

"Alec, how long would it take to combine the warheads?" asked Riker.

"It should only take a few minutes."

"Make it so." said Picard. "Commander Wilson, begin the modifications of the torpedo immediately."

"Aye sir." Alec stepped onto a turbolift and left the bridge. The replacement officer soon moved into his position at the tactical station.

"One minute, twenty-seven seconds to Lorna system." said Moore.

The time to the system passed quickly. Soon they were traveling at impulse, heading towards Lorna Prime. Although Lorna Prime is a Class-M planet, it is lifeless. There must be something of interest to the Romulans for them to want it, and hopefully they would soon find out "Standard orbit Lieutenant. Mr. Data conduct another scan of the planet."

"Yes Captain." said Data. "Sensor readings are still unclear, however I am detecting something on the surface. I cannot be certain but it appears to have a biological signature." "Maybe there's more going on here than we thought." said Riker.

"Commander Wilson to bridge."

"Picard here. Go ahead Commander."

"I've finished combining the warheads. You now have a quoton torpedo."

Riker was the first to laugh. Several officers soon followed. Picard was tempted to laugh but he resisted, only a smile broke through. Data joined in the laughter as well. He still found human emotional states fascinating, even though he possessed them himself. Normally order must be maintained on the bridge of a starship, but times like this welcomed the break in tension.

"Good work Commander. Report back the bridge."

"On my way sir."

"Next time crew evaluations come along we should make Alec comedy officer."

"I think not Number One." said Picard. "Mr. Data, at warp six, how much longer would it take the Warbird to reach our position?"

"One minute, ten seconds."

"Diplomacy first." said Picard. "Open a channel."

"Channel open sir." said the tactical officer.

"Romulan vessel, we know you are en route to Lorna Prime. Your crossing of the Neutral Zone is an act of war. A war that neither of our peoples is ready to undertake. I advise you to stop now and return to Romulan territory."

All of the officers on the bridge had heard Picard's firm and clear tone before, they knew he meant business whenever he used it. Picard looked at the tactical officer to see if there was any response, the officer shook his head no. The bridge soon quieted as the cloaked Romulan ship came closer. Alec stepped back onto the bridge and relieved the replacement officer. He quickly accessed the controls for the modified torpedo.

"The torpedo's ready sir." said Alec. "It's programmed to detonate after five hundred kilometers of travel."

"Prepare to fire at my command."

"Time, Mr. Data." said Riker.

"Five seconds sir."

"Any response to our hails Commander?"

"Negative Captain."

"Then I think it's time we invited our guests out to talk." said Picard. "Commander Wilson, fire the torpedo and put it on screen."

The viewscreen activated and displayed the fast moving torpedo. The torpedo itself was quite impressive. The center was the glowing cyan of a quantum torpedo, covered by the swirling red prominences of a photon torpedo. Within seconds of launching the torpedo detonated and the resulting explosion was unlike anything any of them had ever seen. Just as soon as the explosion started to expand it seemed to compress into nothing, with the surrounding space visually distorted by the quantum filaments contained inside the torpedo. The filaments themselves were visible as a shiny shimmer in the radiation field.

"It worked Captain." said Alec. "I'm detecting a neutron surge. The Warbird's decloaking."

"You do good work Alec. Where are they?"

"They're right behind us!"

"Shields up!" exclaimed Picard.

"Jim," said Riker. "bring us about. I want to be face-to-face."

The stars on the viewscreen seemed to move to starboard as the ship rotated, the planet soon left the viewscreen and in seconds it displayed the massive green form of a Romulan Warbird. To Alec, it was one of the most impressive starship designs in the galaxy. Since the D'deridex-Class Romulan Warbird was first sighted and word made it back to Federation citizens, it has struck fear to whoever encountered them. The large beak-shaped bow curved downward, set to tear at the tritanium flesh of its opponents. And the dual layer wings spread out, ready to reach out and pull its enemy in for the kill. If they did engage in battle, this would be the first time a Romulan Warbird fought a Sovereign-Class starship. It was believed that Sovereign-Class starship possessed greater firepower than a Warbird but they weren't aware of the Romulans current tactical capability. Romulans have never exactly been forward with their technology.

"That's a Warbird alright." said Alec. "D'deridex-Class."

"Hail them."

"Hailing frequencies open sir."

"Romulan vessel. This is Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Federation starship Enterprise. You are in violation of the Neutral Zone. Explain your presence here or we will be forced to take action."

"Again no response Captain."

"They're probably thinking whether or not they stand a chance against a Sovereign-Class starship." said Riker.

"Let's give them something else to think about." exhaled Picard as he stood up and straightened his uniform. "Mr. Wilson, lock phasers on the Warbird's bow."

"Aye sir. Phasers locked." Alec's console began to beep. He looked at it and smiled, it was communications. Obviously the Romulans had finished thinking. "Captain, the Romulans are hailing us."

"I thought they might. Stand down phasers. On screen." The dark bridge of the Romulan ship appeared on the viewscreen. There was one Romulan male sitting in the center with another male sitting on his right. They looked so cold, so unfeeling. Typical Romulans. As Picard stepped towards the viewscreen he recognized the center Romulan. They had encountered each other several times before. It was Tomalak. An officer of the Romulan Guard. Picard wasn't particularly looking forward to this encounter. Tomalak demonstrated several times in the past that he his a bad liar, and very easily aggravated. Because of the current situation with the Romulans, the next few minutes could go very badly.

"Captain Picard." said Tomalak. "So we meet again. Different ship. My apologies for not responding to your earlier hails, but our communications system was malfunctioning until now." The contempt in Tomalak's voice was very easily heard. He was caught where he didn't belong, and he wasn't very happy about it. It wasn't the first time that Tomalak crossed the Neutral Zone without permission. And it probably wouldn't be the last. Although Tomalak was hostile in the numerous occasions where he was confronted, they never engaged in battle. And it was obvious that Tomalak wanted to fight them at every juncture.

"Why have you crossed the Neutral Zone Tomalak?"

"For good reason Captain. We are simply conducting research on a planet of the Romulan Empire."

"Lorna Prime is in Federation territory Tomalak. You have no claim here."

"I'm afraid you are mistaken Captain." said Tomalak. "This planet has belonged to the Romulan Empire for over sixty years. And we are prepared to fight for our property."

"Now Tomalak, I find it hard to believe that you would be conducting research under cloak."

"Are you calling us liars Captain?"

Picard turned towards Alec and moved his hand across his throat, signaling him to close the channel. He understood and pressed his console. "Mute."

"What the hell is on that planet?"

"Whatever it is, it's enough for them to risk going to war over." said Riker.

"Counselor?"

"He is very determined Captain." said Troi. "He won't give up easily."

"Neither will we. Commander, reopen the channel." said Picard. "Nobody's calling you a liar Tomalak. I'm just wondering if this is your planet why would you be orbiting it under cloak?"

"We are becoming insulted by your continuing accusations Captain." said Tomalak.

"Tomalak, if you do not leave Federation space I am entitled to use whatever means necessary to remove you."

"So be it Captain." said Tomalak. "I've been looking forward to this for a very long time." The Romulan bridge disappeared and again the viewscreen displayed the intimidating form of the Warbird.

"That could've gone better." said Moore. "So much for the non-violent day I had planned."

"Captain," said Alec. "All of the Warbird's defense systems just went on-line."

"Red alert!" said Picard.

"Arm phasers, load torpedo bays." said Riker. "I've wanted to wipe that smug look off his face since the day we met him at Galorndon Cor."

The only sound on the bridge was the shrill siren of the red alert klaxon. It was similar to the call of an owl echoing through dark woods, piercing the air. It gave several of the bridge officers goosebumps.

"The Warbird's locking plasma torpedoes. They're firing."

A green torpedo flew towards the Enterprise. It seemed to take forever to reach them. When it finally hit, the ship shuddered slightly as the torpedo was absorbed by the shields. "Shields are holding."

"Commander," said Picard. "Lock phasers and return fire."

"Aye sir, firing phasers." The phaser beam seemed to come out of nowhere on the viewscreen as it went towards the Warbird. The beam was stopped by the now visible shields of the Romulan ship. The beam seemed to disperse across the usually invisible barrier, it was an almost beautiful sight. "They've sustained minor damage to their forward shields. They are firing again." The ship rocked more strongly this time. The Romulan vessel fired its disruptors along with torpedoes at the Enterprise. Troi was right, the Romulans weren't going to give up easily.

"Alec," said Riker. "Prepare a spread of quantum torpedoes, firing pattern omega."

"Pattern locked in Will."

"Fire."

Three torpedoes emerged from the main torpedo launcher underneath the saucer section. The lead torpedo struck the Warbird's shields just forward of the bow, the other two struck the shields protecting the warp nacelles on both sides of the ship.

"Their shields are down to 65." said Alec. "They're firing again." The ship shuddered again. Picard was becoming increasingly agitated.

"This is getting tedious." said Moore.

"Captain, I have a plan." said Alec. "Request permission to execute it."

"Permission granted."

"James, set course heading 110 mark 0, full impulse. Engage."

"What are you doing Alec?"

"Testing something Will." said Alec. "It's working."

"What's working?" asked Picard.

"The Romulans, they're following us. James, standby for all stop. Ready- now!" The Enterprise quickly came to a stop. Still at full impulse the Warbird flew over the Enterprise in seconds. "James, full impulse." The Enterprise sped forward at high speed and in seconds was directly behind the Warbird. Plasma torpedoes shot out from the aft launcher of the Warbird, but the Enterprise countered. Several phaser beams shot out from the saucer section followed by two quantum torpedo salvos. The Warbird's shields collapsed and explosions began to burst over the hull leaving several scars behind. "Shields at 90."

"Target their warp core." said Picard.

"Aye sir."

"Captain," said Data. "They are powering up their warp engines."

The Warbird sped out of existence on the viewscreen, disappearing in a flash of light.

"What's their course?" asked Picard.

"Judging from their trajectory," said Data. "I believe they are heading back to Romulus."

"Good work Commander." said Picard. "You too Lieutenant."

"Thank you sir." said Alec and Moore at the same time.

"Stand down from red alert." said Riker. "Alec, how did you know they'd follow us?"

"Well, Tomalak seemed like your typical Romulan," said Alec. "Which means he'd jump at the chance to gun down a supposedly helpless enemy."

"Very good piece of reasoning Commander." said Picard.

"Thank you Captain."

"What about you sir?" asked Riker. "Were you really going to give the order to fire at their warp core?"

"No." said Picard.

"Then why did you give the order to lock on?"

"May I answer that question sir?" asked Alec.

"By all means Commander."

"Tomalak's shields were down, so he was at our mercy. When he saw that we were targeting his warp core, he had no intention of being destroyed so he retreated."

"What he said." said Picard. "You're not the only one that can reason Commander."

"Apparently not sir." said Alec. "Captain, we're receiving a message from Starfleet Command."

"What is it?"

"They're ordering us- to report to Deep Space Nine."

"Deep Space Nine?" asked Riker. "Why?"

"They don't say. But they do say that they are sending the U.S.S. Venture and the U.S.S. Magellan to patrol in our place."

"What do we do now?" asked Riker.

"Looks like we're going to Deep Space Nine." replied Picard. "Commander Wilson, send subspace messages to the Prometheus and the Thunderchild. Tell them about our incident with the Warbird and their interest in the planet."

"Aye sir."

"Lieutenant Moore, lay in a course for the Bajoran system."

"Course laid in sir."

"Engage."

With his eyes on the viewscreen Picard watched as the stars steadily seemed to sped towards them and then there was a rainbow of colors before the screen flashed to show the stars streaking past.