Part 3: New Friends and Rude Neighbors
Ten seconds after Geordi had informed the senior staff that two unfamiliar ships had just appeared off the Enterprise's port, they were all manning their bridge stations.
"Mr. Data," Picard began, "can we get a visual?"
"We cannot, Captain. Local sensors are still non-functional."
The captain tapped his combadge, "Mr. LaForge, I need to know what we're up against."
Geordi's voice came back across through the tiny insignia on the captain's chest. "We're working on it, captain. Give me about five minutes."
"You have two."
One thing that Starfleet engineers had to get used to was that no matter how long they told their captain something was going to take the captain would always demand it faster. It was one of the fundamental laws of physics, right up there with gravity or the uncertainty principle.
The legendary engineer Montgomery Scott had once given LaForge some advice that, he regretted to say, he had found it necessary to utilize on multiple occasions. If the captain always cut your timetable in half you had to start making it twice as long. Still, two minutes was cutting it rather close.
While the chief engineer was trying to finish his repairs the bridge crew was desperately trying to do something with their crippled ship.
"Mr. Worf," Picard said, "can you hail the ships?"
"Opening hailing frequencies." Worf confirmed. Then, few seconds later, "No response."
Data turned his chair to face his captain again. "Captain, if this truly is an alternate quantum reality there is no way to be sure that they even have communications technology compatible with our own."
Once again Data had opened himself up for the universe to stick it to him. "Captain," Worf interrupted from the tactical console, "I believe we are being hailed."
"You believe?" Riker asked.
"It is on an┘ unusual radio frequency, sir." Worf responded. "I will attempt to match frequencies."
"Very well," Picard said. "Onscreen." The captain would be happy to finally have something on the viewscreen. The blank screen dominating the front of the bridge was somewhat unsettling, but it was not to be.
"Audio only, sir." Worf informed the captain. Then he patched the signal through.
The voice that came through the bridge speakers was deep and throaty but had the definite ring of authority behind it. "Unidentified vessel," the voice said, "you will state your intentions or be fired upon."
Not much for small talk is he? Picard thought. That was fine. The captain wasn't in the mood for small talk either. Standing up, more out of habit than necessity, as his image was not being transmitted to the strangers, Picard responded. "This is Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Federation starship Enterprise. We are explorers on a peaceful mission. We do not wish to fight. However, we will defend ourselves."
The captain had considered telling the new arrival that his ship had been damaged and they were in need of assistance, to show that the Enterprise was not a threat to them, but if the strangers were hostile there was no reason to tell them that his ship was completely defenseless. If they couldn't tell that the Enterprise couldn't defend itself, Picard was not going to tell them.
"Federation?" The voice asked, less threatening now.
Picard glanced at Riker. It wasn't the response he had expected. Riker shrugged. It seemed like a reasonable question under the circumstances. "The United Federation of Planets." Picard explained. "It's a multi-planetary alliance composed of hundreds of different planets and species."
The gruff voice now sounded more curious than aggressive. "Species?" It asked in a tone that almost seemed like amazement. "What different species are represented on your ship?" The question gave the impression of being the first of a million that the voice from the other ship had in mind. For the moment Picard was willing to answer them, in the hopes that it would buy enough time to get some of his ship's systems back online, also in the interest of making new allies in what might be a completely new reality.
"Well," Picard responded, beginning a short liturgy of races, "there Humans, Vulcans, Klingons." At that point he motioned towards Worf, again out of habit. The person on the other end of the line couldn't see. Before he could go on down the list the voice interrupted again.
"Human?" It asked.
Picard was taken aback again. The question had startled him. "Well, yes. As a matter of fact, I am human." He said. A million different ideas started to occur to him. Was it possible that in this reality humans were hated and despised or even enslaved, like in the mirror universe which he'd read about in reports but never encountered himself? The voice that he was speaking to could be any race with any number of prejudices that he couldn't even imagine. Perhaps, he thought, allowing the conversation to take this particular direction had been a mistake.
"What planet are you from, Captain?" The voice asked, a sense of urgency now creeping into it.
"Earth." Picard replied. He'd come this far. They were going to have to push onward and deal with the consequences.
"Earth." The voice repeated. It was hard to tell what exactly the word meant to the owner of the mysterious voice, but it had obviously made an impact. After a moment it began again. "Captain, I think we need to speak face to face. Does your ship have a landing bay that I could take a ship into?"
Picard was surprised at the turn things had taken, but he was more than open to finding a new ally. "Of course." He replied. "But if you would like to come aboard, we have an easier way. If you're willing to trust us give us a few minutes and we will transport you to our ship." Fortunately the transporters were not one of the systems that had been knocked out, but if LaForge didn't get the sensors online they had no way to target the trasporter.
"Transport?" The voice said warily, but he'd made his decision already. "Fine." It said. "I'm standing by."
"Oh," Picard said, "if we're going to be speaking in person I think it would be useful for me to have your name as well."
"Of course." The voice replied. "This is Admiral William Adama, of the Colonial Battlestar Galactica."
Unlike the senior staff onboard the Enterprise, the men and women on Galactica's command deck hadn't been privy to both sides of the conversation. They had however heard enough that they could take a good guess at how the conversation had gone. Lieutenant Karl Agathon, call sign, "Helo" approached the admiral.
Nearly two months had passed since Galactica, Pegasus and the remainder of the sparsely crewed colonial fleet had been forced to jump from orbit of New Caprica to avoid destruction at the hands of the Cylon fleet. 19 ships had managed to jump away before the Cylon fleet had a chance to open fire.
All 19 ships were running with skeleton crews, including the two Battlestars. In a move that struck Admiral Adama as eerily similar to the actions of his predecessor Admiral Cain, Adama had been forced to encourage people from the 17 civilian ships into service aboard to two Battlestars to fill out the crew compliments.
For two weeks the fleet of 19 ships, most of which were completely defenseless, had run again, staying just one step ahead of a small force of Cylons that pursued them, while the majority stayed in orbit around New Caprica. Finally Admiral Adama and his son, Commander Lee Adama, commander of the Pegasus had engaged the Cylons briefly allowing the civilian ships to escape and hide in a place they hoped would be safe while the Cylons pursued the two capital ships. It had been a risky move, but it seemed to work. There was no indication that the Cylons had taken any notice of the unarmed civilian ships.
So for almost a month and a half the two Battlestars had used hit and run tactics to strike back at their Cylon pursuers, always staying just out of reach. The two ships had just completed a marginally successful strike at the Cylon force and jumped away when they encountered something new. A ship hanging in space the likes of which no one had ever seen. It was only about 650 meters long, half the size of one of the Battlestars, but the power reading coming off of the ship belied its small stature. In truth, the admiral was relieved that they wouldn't be putting these strangers to the test. He wasn't completely sure what the result would be.
However, the revelation that this strange ship was somehow related to Earth and crewed by some of his brethren from that fabled 13th colony seemed too good to be true. And alien species as well, he hadn't even begun to consider the ramifications that that might have. It was all just too much at the moment.
"Don't go, sir." Helo said. Since Adama had insisted that his second in command, Commander Saul Tigh go down to New Caprica, Agathon had become his XO. Adama trusted him and his instincts.
"Excuse me, Lieutenant?"
"Don't go, sir. It could be a Cylon trap."
In the two months that they had undergone this trial by fire Adama and Helo had become pretty close. So when the admiral spoke he leaned in closely and spoke to him like a friend. "Listen, Karl, if the Cylons knew where we were going to jump to they would have a couple of Basestars waiting here to blow us out of the sky. That ship," he pointed to the silhouette on their DRADIS radar system, "is unlike anything we've ever seen. It's definitely nothing that the Cylons have. You know it, and so do I."
"But, sir,"
Adama didn't let him finish. "Besides, imagine if what they're saying is true. This could be what we've been searching for since we left the twelve colonies, a link to Earth. More importantly, they could be a powerful new ally against the Cylons. We have to try." Helo's expression showed that he knew the admiral was right. He still wasn't completely comfortable with the idea of the admiral going alone into a completely unknown situation. "At least let me go with you, Admiral."
Adama wasn't sure that it was a good idea to leave Galactica without its commanding officer or its XO, especially considering that the Cylons would almost certainly be coming after them in short order. However the ship was already short by quite a few bodies. Two more wasn't going to make a whole lot of difference. Lee could command things from the Pegasus without any trouble. Besides, he knew that Helo wasn't going to let up until he agreed. "Fine." He said finally.
Lee Adama, call sign "Apollo," had doubtless been monitoring the situation, but Adama made sure that orders were conveyed to his son, apprising him on exactly what was going to be happening. Just in case this was some sort of Cylon trick the admiral wanted Lee to be prepared.
"Admiral" Adama heard a small voice. He picked up the receiver and put it to his ear.
"Yes, I'm here, Captain."
"We're ready to transport you, Admiral. Are you prepared."
"I am." He said, but then quickly added, "I'd like to bring my executive officer with me."
"That's fine, Admiral. Is he standing near you?"
"Yes, he's right next to me."
"Ok, that's fine. We have you both. Prepare for transport."
Adama nodded to Agathon who shifted nervously and rested his hand reassuringly on his sidearm. The rest of the people on the command deck of the Battlestar looked on, unsure of what to expect. Suddenly jaws dropped around the room as a blue glow enveloped the two officers. A moment later they were gone.
LaForge had managed to get the sensors repaired just in time. When Picard, Riker, and Data arrived in the transporter room everything was ready. Now that the sensors were working Picard was very interested in the capabilities of the two ships that the Enterprise was now floating in the vicinity of, but that would have to wait. "Energize," the captain told Data, who was operating the transporter console once he'd made the final confirmation with Admiral Adama.
The telltale whine preceded columns of blue light appearing on two of the transporter pads, but they paused before resolving themselves completely. "Captain," Data said, "I am detecting a weapon in the beam.
Picard wasn't surprised. He wouldn't want to beam into a potentially dangerous situation without some sort of defense either. He could not, however, allow two strangers to walk around his ship armed. "Can you deactivate it, Mr. Data?"
"I believe so, sir."
"Then do it, but make sure that you can reactivate it when they leave. We wouldn't want our potential new allies thinking we've tried to sabotage their equipment."
"Yes, captain." Data tapped a few controls on the console. Then when he seemed satisfied that the weapon was no longer a threat he continued. "Completing transport." The two columns of light resolved themselves into the shape of two human beings.
Picard evaluated the men who appeared before him. The admiral looked to be in his late 50s or early 60s by Picard's reckoning. He wore a large moustache on a face worn with time and lined with the cares and concerns of his command. He wore glasses which struck Picard at first. The captain was not accustomed to seeing people wearing glasses. In the Federation the need for corrective lenses had been almost completely eliminated. Behind the small pieces of glass Picard saw eyes that were intelligent and authoritative, yet there seemed to be an immense sadness there as well. The admiral had obviously seen quite a bit in his career.
The admiral's executive officer, on the other hand, was something else entirely, young, energetic, and muscular. His thoroughly military look was one that Picard would associate with a Starfleet marine. He also seemed rather nervous, which could be expected, given the circumstances. His hand was resting on his sidearm, which Picard would let him keep now that it was not a threat to his crew. It would probably give the admiral and his XO a feeling of safety while onboard.
"Admiral," Picard greeted Galactica's commander cordially, extending his hand in friendship.
"Captain," Adama acknowledged, taking the captain's proffered hand and shaking it warmly. "This is my second in command, Lieutenant Agathon." He said, indicating the other man.
"Lieutenant," Picard extended his hand to the younger officer as well, then motioned to his two officers. "This is my first officer, Commander Riker." He motioned to the bearded man standing beside him and Riker greeted both of the arrivals. "And this is Lieutenant Commander Data." Data had come around from behind the transporter console to greet their guests.
Data also shook hands with both of the officers from the Battlestar, but the experience was a bit different. Adama and Agathon were initially a bit uncertain as they extended their hands towards Data. The android's unnaturally pale skin and gold eyes were rather off-putting for someone who had never encountered an alien species. Picard had intentionally done this, thinking that Data would be a good first step into the new universe that he was exposing his guests to. As unusual as Data might seem to the newcomers, it was much easier to adapt to his appearance as a first exposure than to that of, say, Worf. Given the reaction that the officers had to Data, they were probably not quite ready to meet their first Klingon.
With the introductions done Picard motioned towards the door, "Shall we move this to the conference room?"
The suggestion seemed to be accepted by the two guests. So Riker took the initiative and led the way through the door and toward the nearest turbolift. The other four trailed behind, an awkward silence falling over the group. After a moment the admiral tried to break the awkward moment and satisfy his curiosity at the same time, "So, Lieutenant Commander, Data," he began. "I take it you are from one of the other races that make up this Federation that the captain mentioned."
"In a way, Admiral. I am an android."
"Android?" Adama was not familiar with the term.
"An artificial life form designed to appear humanoid."
This stopped the two Galactica officers in their tracks. Helo's hand once again instinctively went to his sidearm. Picard and Riker turned with some concern while Data observed their actions with some curiosity.
After only a moment Admiral Adama regained his composure and gave Helo a look forcing him to do the same, with considerably more effort. "I apologize, Captain." The admiral said sincerely. "We've had some┘ trouble with artificial life forms. I'm sure that you will understand once we've had a chance to discuss what has brought us both here."
Picard seemed less than sure, but he accepted Adama's apology and moved to continue toward the turbolift door. "I'm sure, Admiral. This way, please." The procession continued.
But Helo couldn't let it go. "So how many 'androids' are there serving on this ship?" He asked, managing, impressively to keep his tone of voice curious and free of any disdain.
"I am the only one." Data replied. "I am the only one of my kind in existence as far as we know."
This seemed incredibly comforting to the two visiting officers, which might have offended Data had he chosen to activate his emotion chip.
Picard's communicator suddenly gave a little chirp. "LaForge to Picard." The two men from Galactica looked around quickly, but couldn't detect the source of the voice they'd heard.
Riker couldn't suppress a small grin at their confusion as Picard tapped his combadge to respond. "Go ahead, commander." At first Helo thought that the captain was addressing Riker, but what was happening became obvious a moment later when the same voice could be heard again, speaking to the captain.
"Captain, the engines just came back online."
"Good work, commander." Picard responded.
"It wasn't us, sir. They just came back on their own, but now that we don't have to reroute power around the engines to other vital systems I should have weapons and shields back for you in an hour."
Picard glanced at the admiral who seemed to take the information in without a reaction. The cat was out of the bag now. The captain was less than comfortable with major systems that seemed to go on and offline of their own volition, but what he really needed now was to get his ship back in working order again. He decided not to look a gift horse or warp core in the mouth just yet. "Acknowledged, Commander, as soon as you can. Picard out." The rest of the trip was completed by the five men in silence.
When the party entered the conference room an attractive woman with a mane of raven hair and eyes that seemed almost inhumanly dark was already there waiting for them. Picard made the final introduction as they all took their seats. "This is Deanna Troi, our ship's counselor."
Adama reached out his hand and gave the woman a warm smile, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Counselor Troi, is it?" Troi gave the admiral a small nod of confirmation and a large smile of greeting as she shook his hand. "I am Admiral Adama, and this is my XO Lieutenant Agathon." Agathon wasn't quite as taken with the counselor as his commander was, but he greeted her with a friendly smile and a handshake as well.
"Ok, Captain," Adama said, turning to Picard, "shall we get down to business here?"
Over the next half hour the representatives of the two ships exchanged stories. Picard began by explaining how the Enterprise had ended up in that sector of space and what they suspected had happened to them. He asked the admiral if he would allow Data to scan him. The admiral seemed a little put off at first. Picard wasn't sure if it was because of the request or the fact that Data would be the one doing it, but after less than a moment of hesitation the admiral agreed.
Data produced a small device. He explained that it was called a tricorder and told them exactly what its function was before opening it and beginning to point it in the admiral's direction.
"Wait!" Helo said. "Use it on me instead." The Enterprise crew was surprised by the outburst, but the plea was understandable and showed a lot of dedication and loyalty to his commanding officer.
Adama gave his XO a reassuring look. "If Captain Picard's crew wanted to hurt us, they could have done it a long time ago, Helo. I'll be fine." Then he turned to Data, "Go ahead, Commander."
A few flashes of light and a couple of beeping noises came across the table from the small device. It was over in just a few seconds. Picard looked at his second officer expectantly. "These readings confirm my suspicions, captain." The android said. "The admiral has a different quantum resonance frequency. We are not from the same universe."
The seriousness of the pronouncement could be seen on every face of the Enterprise crew. To their surprise even Admiral Adama seemed disappointed. "This means," he began, "that you're not from the Earth that we're searching for."
"We are not." Data confirmed matter-of-factly. "However, there is a high probability that the Earth that you are searching for occupies the same spatial coordinates as its counterpart in our universe. If that is the case, we may be able to provide you with the exact location."
The two visitors seemed to perk up at the prospect. Adama's eyes showed a glimmer of hope which as quickly as it had come turned back to sadness. "I've got something else I'd like to ask of you, Captain."
Then Adama began his story. He explained about the Cylons and how they had attacked the 12 colonies. He told Picard and his officers how Galactica had managed to survive the destruction of the colonies and gone on to protect what was left of the human population while they searched for the legendary 13th colony, Earth. He told them about the new president, leaving out certain unpleasant details, and the discovery of the planet that would become New Caprica. He explained about the arrival of the cylon fleet and the escape of Galactica, Pegasus and the rest of the colonial fleet that was still spaceworthy. Then he explained about what he and his crew had been doing for the last two months and what they were doing when they came across the Enterprise. The listeners sat, riveted by his tail of heroism and woe.
When he was done he turned and addressed Picard directly. "Captain, the Cylons are coming. I know your weapons systems are down." Picard couldn't deny it. LaForge still didn't have the phasers and torpedoes back online. Noting that the captain didn't choose to dispute the statement, Adama continued, "Normally Galactica and Pegasus would jump away before they had a chance to attack, but we will wait here and protect you from them for as long as we can."
Picard sensed a condition behind the admiral's seemingly magnanimous pledge. "What is it that you want in return for this protection, Admiral Adama?"
"We want your help, Captain. Our readings show how powerful your ship is. The Enterprise could be what we need to free our people trapped on New Caprica from the Cylons."
Riker chimed in at this point. "So what you want is for the Enterprise to go in and help you attack an entire fleet of enemy ships positioned around this planet?"
"They're trying to exterminate our entire race, commander. That means you as well, if they get the opportunity."
Picard was unsure of what to do. The admiral's story had certainly made him sympathetic, and, if it was true, he could believe that the Cylons would readily lump him and his crew in with the rest of humanity in this universe. Could he really allow his own species, however separated by some quirks of fate from the species that he recognized, to be annihilated by this apparently genocidal race of robots? On the other hand, could he, in good conscience, involve the Enterprise in a war that had nothing to do with him and his crew?
"Admiral," the captain said, "do you mind if my first officer and I discuss your offer?"
"Of course not, Captain, but don't take too long. The Cylons will almost certainly arrive any time now."
Picard rose from his seat and motioned for Riker to follow him. They walked out of the conference room and onto the bridge, leaving Troi and Data to keep their visitors company.
"What do you think, Number One?"
"It's a tough call, Captain, especially considering that if we accept the Admiral's offer we have no idea what we'll be up against."
Picard had a thought. "Well, let's find out." He walked over to the Worf manning the tactical console. The viewscreen in front of them now displayed the two Battlestars, looming in space, twice the size of Picard's ship. "Tactical analysis, Mr. Worf." Then he turned to Riker. "If the Admiral thinks that he can defend the Enterprise successfully than it's reasonable to assume that he has fire power at his disposal similar to that which he anticipates facing."
Riker couldn't find fault with that logic. So he waited for the report from Worf. "No discernible shield generators, Captain. The ships seem to be defended by heavily armored hull plating, but that would not be a match for the Enterprise's phasers. Weapons systems composed of projectile cannons and missiles. I am also detecting several bays filled with what appear to be fighters of some sort, also armed with projectile weapons, and" Worf did a double take at the console.
"And what, Commander?" Riker prompted.
"Nuclear ordinance, sir."
"They're still using nuclear weapons." Riker said, somewhat let down.
"It would appear so, Number One."
"Then the Enterprise might really be able to win their war, sir."
"The thought had occurred to me." Picard seemed even more concerned by this than if they were facing superior fire power, but the safety of his ship and crew was still his first concern. "If the Cylons are similarly equipped we'll be an easy target without our shields."
"Captain," Riker said, confidence in his voice now that he knew what they were potentially facing, "these people need our help." Picard knew that too. "And I know no one wants to face this right now, but there is a distinct chance that we could be stuck in this universe for a long time. If that is the case, shouldn't we make friends with our new neighbors?"
"These Cylons don't sound like the good neighbor type."
"Exactly, sir. That only leaves us one option for new allies."
Picard had to acknowledge that Riker made a convincing point. If they couldn't find a way home it would be nice to have allies in this universe, but he still wasn't sure. Something about the situation still seemed wrong to him. Suddenly his time ran out.
"Captain!" Worf called out. Then a flash and a ship even larger than the Battlestars appeared on the viewscreen. The ship's enormous body was composed of two primary hulls, connected together at the middle, each tapering into three large spikes. Curiously it looked to Picard like some demented pinwheel. "It just appeared, sir." Worf proclaimed. "One moment there was empty space, then an energy build up, and suddenly that enormous craft was there." Apparently faster than light technology in this universe was somewhat different from what the Enterprise crew was used to.
"Do you think it's the Cylons, sir?" Riker asked.
"I'd say that's a good bet, Number One." Then to Worf, "red alert!" Worf tapped the control and the red alert klaxons began to blare and the red emergency lights flashed on. Picard tapped his combadge. "Picard to LaForge, I need shields, commander."
LaForge's voice came back, "It's still going to be a few minutes, Captain, but we have warp speed if you need it."
Adama appeared on the bridge, enticed by the alert status suddenly gripping the starship. Then he saw the ship on the screen. Ignoring the fact that Picard still had both he and his first officer onboard his ship (Adama could tell that Picard wouldn't hold them against their will), he confronted the captain. "Time's up, Captain. That's a Cylon Basestar. You can't negotiate with them. You can only kill them or be killed by them. So, do we fight as allies or do we run as strangers?"
There were Picard's choices, laid out before him, a new ally and a war not of his making or run and hope for the best.
Adama was glad that for once it wasn't him who had to make the tough decision.
Written by Data laughing
Tech advising: oberon227 and Drums888
Some editting done by Drums888 and oberon227
Thanks for reading Part 3. If you have any feedback positive or negative email it to or post it in my journal on RvB.