The wailing crescendo of the alarm filled the bridge. The Doctor stood next to Borzt's station, surveying the crew. Every brow, every human brow that is, was covered by a sheet of sweat. He could feel the tension, the fear radiating from their bodies. Counselor Reela rubbed her hand up and down her leg. Lieutenant Acosta constantly flexed her jaw. Commander Leroth slid closer to the edge of his seat.
All eyes fixed on the view screen, to the six approaching Dalek cubes.
The corners of the Doctor's mouth curled. He glanced to Rose next to him. His stomach collapsed.
I should have dropped her off at home.
One Dalek cube destroyed a quarter of the combined fleet. He didn't see what chance the rest of it stood against six.
He grasped Rose's shoulder. She turned to him with worried eyes, trying unsuccessfully to force a smile.
The Doctor snorted. His hearts beat faster, fueled by anger. He'd be damned if he'd see Rose, or anyone else, killed. Or worse, turned into a Dalek.
He thought back to the meeting with Picard and the senior staff. A plan began to form.
"Two Dalek cubes, four hundred thousand kilometers and closing," announced Lieutenant Acosta. "The other cubes are holding position. Two in orbit above Amarione Nine, two more on the edge of the solar system."
"What could they be waiting for?" Worf's steely eyes narrowed at the view screen.
"Cannon fodder."
Picard spun around to face the Doctor. "Excuse me?"
"The first two cubes are for sacrifice, like pawns in chess. The other four are hanging back, hoping you hit those first two with everything you have. Then they can adapt to your attacks, come in and finish you."
Picard's shoulders rose with a slow breath. The Doctor stared into the man's intense eyes. He could see his mind racing, trying to adjust tactics in a matter of seconds.
"Lieutenant Acosta. Hail the Ra'tarr and the Chekov."
"Aye, Captain."
Seconds later the view screen split, showing two faces; one a gruff-looking Klingon with streaks of gray through his black beard and hair, the other a snake-like Selay. Picard explained the Doctor's theory to them before laying out his plan.
"General Tagoth. Take the Klingon and Cardassian fleets and engage the cubes in orbit above Amarione Nine. Captain Ssetah. Take Squadrons Three and Four and engage the cubes at the edge of this system."
"I don't consider it wise to divide the fleet," growled Tagoth. "It took almost every ship we had to destroy a single Dalek cube."
"I share your concerns, General. But it will do us no good to destroy two cubes and give the other four the ability to overcome our defenses."
Tagoth grunted in response.
"Don't engage them in a stand-up fight. Use hit-and-run tactics. Make them chase you around the system. Keep every cube separated from the others as much as possible."
"It shall be done, Captain." Ssetah gave him a slight bow.
The Doctor watched on the view screen as the fleet split up. The comm channel filled with a never-ending cacophony of voices updating their positions. He tried to think of something, anything, to help give them an edge over the Daleks.
Nothing came to mind. Certainly nothing in the brute force category.
No, he only had one idea. It made him shove his hands in his jacket pockets to keep them from shaking.
The constant chatter from the various ships was interrupted by a grating voice.
"WE ARE THE DALEKS!! RESISTANCE IS FUTILE!! SURRENDER AND BE ASSIMILATED!! RESIST AND YOU WILL BE EXTERMINATED!!"
Leroth shook his head. "That is really getting annoying."
"Mister Thonhaya." Picard looked to the tactical officer. "Inject anti-matter stream into the phaser banks. Ready quantum torpedoes. Neurolytic warheads."
"Aye, Captain."
The Dalek cubes streaked past Amarione Seven's twin moons.
"Picard to fleet. All ships, fire at will."
An array of white beams converged on the two cubes. The screen flared brilliant white. A giant invisible fist punched Enterprise. The Doctor, Rose and Borzt stumbled back into the row of consoles jutting from the wall.
Rose fell to the ground, grimacing and holding her back.
"Rose!" The Doctor dropped to his knees. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine. Did we get them?"
"I can't see how they could survive a barrage like that." Borzt picked himself up. "See." He pointed to the view screen. "Destroyed."
The Doctor helped Rose to her feet. He looked at the view screen and clenched his teeth.
Both cubes had been reduced to huge chunks of debris floating lifelessly in space.
"That was easier than expected." Leroth stood and moved next to Picard. "Recommend we move out and support our other two task forces."
"Not yet." Picard raised a cautious hand. "Not until we've destroyed the larger pieces of debris."
Leroth drew his head back. "But, Captain. What can they do . . ."
Green rays shot from the chunks. Enterprise rocked back and forth, nearly throwing everyone to the floor.
"We just lost the Udaloy!" Thonhaya clung to his console. "Heavy damage to warbird Tahak!"
Enterprise shook again. The Doctor and Rose nearly pitched over the railing separating the two tiers of the bridge.
"Quantum torpedoes!" Picard hollered. "Fire!"
The torpedoes flashed across the screen, striking three of the chunks. As before a ghostly white wave washed over them.
Acosta's jaw dropped as she stared at her console. "Neurolytic warheads ineffective. I think they've adapted."
Another quake went through the ship. Sparks flew from some of the consoles.
"Shields down to seventy percent," Thonhaya stated.
Picard's head whipped to his science officer. "Commander Si'lee! Reprogram the neurolytic pathogen!"
"Aye, Captain." Si'lee's talons flew across her console.
Another hammer blow shook Enterprise.
"Shields down to sixty percent! Hull breaches on Decks Twenty-Six, Twenty-Seven and Twenty-Eight!"
The Doctor coughed as the smell of electric-tinged smoke filled the bridge. It stung his eyes, which remained fixed on the view screen. He clenched his fists as he saw the chunks, still firing on Starfleet and Romulan ships, moving closer together.
"Picard! Destroy that debris! They're trying to reconnect themselves, like a jigsaw puzzle."
The Enterprise shuddered again.
"That's what we're trying to do, Doctor! Now unless you have something more useful to offer, be quiet!"
The Doctor's face tightened.
The ship took another hit. He and Rose clung to the console.
"Kirishima's gone!" The strain became evident in Thonhaya's voice. "Cochrane and Viraat report heavy damage!"
Another hit. More sparks shot from consoles. A haze of smoke settled over the bridge. Crewmembers coughed non-stop.
"Shields down to fifty percent! Hull breeches reported across the saucer section!"
The Doctor's eyes lit up. He bolted past Rose and Borzt and shoved Thonhaya away from the tactical console.
"What the hell?"
The Doctor ignored the man and started tapping furiously on the console.
"Doctor! What are you doing?" Picard demanded.
Again the Doctor focused totally on his task.
"Mister Borzt."
The Andorian grabbed the Doctor by the arms and pulled him away from the console.
"No wait! You need to concentrate your shields to the front of the ship, then extend it out at the debris!"
Picard held up his hand. Borzt halted. The Doctor heaved with desperate breaths, staring at Enterprise's captain.
"Explain," Picard finally said.
"I can reprogram the shields. Have it act as a battering ram by sending one focused burst at the debris. Knock the larger chunks away before they can merge."
Picard's face tightened. He glanced over his shoulder at the screen.
The chunks were almost together.
"Do it."
Borzt released the Doctor, who leaped at the console and quickly pressed buttons. He glanced at the small display screen to his left. The 3-D animated image of the Enterprise showed all remaining shield power focused on the bow of the ship.
"And . . ." His finger hovered over the console. "Rack 'em up!"
The Doctor stabbed at the button.
The narrow-band shield shot out from Enterprise. It smashed through the center of the merging Dalek debris. Each chunk spun off in a different direction.
"Neurolytic warheads reprogrammed, Captain," Si'lee called out.
"Fire."
Quantum torpedoes streaked away from Enterprise. White flashes washed over each chunk.
"Sensors indicate major disruptions in the debris." The relief was evident in Acosta's voice.
Within seconds phasers and quantum torpedoes from the remaining ships bombarded the chunks. Huge explosions blossomed across the screen.
Picard's shoulders dropped in relief. "Thank you, Doctor."
"You're welcome, but this fight's far from over."
"Indeed. Commander Si'lee. Any sign that the neurolytic pathogen has infected the other Dalek cubes?"
"Scanning . . ." The Cactian's body froze for a moment. She took a quick breath to recompose herself. "Negative. The other cubes cut their links before it could spread."
"We're being hailed by the Ra'tarr," Acosta stated. "It's General Tagoth."
"On screen."
The screen blinked. Tagoth's face appeared. Behind him were the fiery, smoky remains of his battlecruiser's bridge.
"Captain. I've lost over half my fleet, and the Daleks have boarded the Ra'tarr."
"We're on our way to assist you."
Tagoth shook his head. "Don't bother. You'll never reach us in time. I've already programmed our warp core to overload. We shall not be turned into Daleks."
The Klingon general's face moved closer to the screen. "Today is a good day to die."
Tagoth's face vanished, replaced by the image of the burning Ra'tarr.
The Doctor noticed Worf standing straighter than ever, his eyes locked on the screen.
Seconds later the Ra'tarr vanished in a blinding white flash.
"Single Dalek cube one million kilometers and closing," announced Acosta.
"Captain." Si'lee twisted around to face Picard. "The new sequences for the neurolytic warheads have been transmitted to all remaining ships."
Picard nodded and looked to the ceiling. "Picard to fleet. Prepare full-scale torpedo barrage on approaching Dalek cube. Neurolytic warheads."
Numerous voices sang out their acknowledgement.
The Doctor gripped the console, watching the cube speed toward them. Closer . . . closer . . .
"All ships . . . fire!"
Dozens of quantum torpedoes flashed through space. The cube vanished in a sheet of white explosions. The Doctor drew a deep breath. Tension pressed down on his shoulders.
The explosions subsided. The cube remained . . . and continued toward them.
"The pathogen's had no effect." Acosta's voice cracked.
Si'lee growled. "I can't believe they've adapted already."
The starships and warbirds lashed out with phaser and disrupter fire. Most of the ships had their anti-matter stream regulators damaged in the last attack and reverted to randomly changing phaser modulations.
The beams failed to penetrate the cube's shields.
The Doctor tried his focused shield burst again, aided by several other ships. Huge sections of the cube caved in.
Still it kept coming.
"Now what?" Rose's eyes grew wide with fear.
"Individual Daleks launching!" Leroth pointed to the screen, which showed hundreds of Daleks emerging from the cube.
"Starships Ushaan and Erebus have been boarded." Thonhaya coughed and waved some smoke from his face. "Warbird Harbinger also reports boarders."
"Doctor?" Rose's blond hair whipped across her face as she turned to the doctor. She stared at him with desperate eyes.
The Doctor rolled his shoulders and forced a smile. "No need to worry. I have a brilliant plan to get us out of this . . . or I will soon enough."
Phasers and disrupters sliced across space. The Doctor saw brief flickers of explosions where a beam connected with an individual Dalek.
In less than a minute the explosions grew less frequent as the Daleks adapted.
"All contact with the Scharnhorst lost," announced Acosta.
Something beeped on Borzt's console. "Daleks have beamed through our shields. Boarders reported on Decks Seventeen and Twenty-One. Wait . . . Daleks have beamed into engineering. Dispatching Security Teams Five through Seven there."
The Doctor felt his face sag. He dared not look at Rose. She'd no doubt ask him what was wrong.
He couldn't bear answering that question.
Slowly, the Doctor backed up toward the turbolift. When he got close enough, the door automatically slid open. He scanned the smoky bridge. No one had seen him. Not even Rose.
Part of him didn't want to say anything. But after all they'd been through . . .
"Rose."
She spun around. A quizzical look fell over her face when she noticed him inside the turbolift.
"Don't come after me."
She took a step toward him.
The doors slid closed.
An ill feeling spread through the Doctor. He hated doing this to her.
But he had no choice.
The turbolift stopped.
"Doctor, this is Picard." The captain's voice filled the small space. "I demand you tell me what you're up to."
"Doctor." His lips tightened at the sound of Rose's voice. "Doctor, what are you doing? Where are you going?"
He didn't respond. He just took out his sonic screwdriver, readjusted the lift controls and resumed his descent.
Picard and Rose still called for him. After a half-minute of listening to the captain's demands and his friend's pleas, the Doctor used his sonic screwdriver to sever the turbolift's comm link.
The lift jerked to a halt when it reached engineering. The doors opened.
Acrid smoke filled his nostrils. Phaser fire sizzled through the air. Sparks burst from consoles and conduits and fluttered to the floor. Crew members dashed through the fire and smoke, many yelling frantically.
And over their shouts was a grating cry.
"ASSIMILATE!! ASSIMILATE!!"
The Doctor watched yellow beams shoot out from two Daleks. Two crewmen were struck, and subsequently vanished.
So that's how they do it.
The Doctor stepped out of the lift and into a small crowd of retreating engineers.
"Go! Go! Go!" LaForge waved his people to hurry, firing a hand phaser at the Daleks. Their shields blocked every beam.
"Doctor, come on!" The Chief Engineer grabbed his arm. "We gotta go."
"You go!" The Doctor pushed him away. He then marched toward the Daleks. He raised his arms as three of the monsters approached.
"ASSIMILATE!! ASSIMILATE!!"
"Hello." He said with a smile. "It's me. You're old friend the Doctor."
The Daleks paused. The lead one swung its eyestalk around to the two behind it. A couple seconds passed before the stalk swung back in his direction.
"DOCTOR! THE DOCTOR IS THE GREATEST ENEMY OF THE DALEKS!" It paused. "WE MUST EXECUTE STANDING ORDER NUMBER FOUR IN THE EVENT OF AN ENCOUNTER WITH THE DOCTOR!"
The Doctor didn't blink as the Dalek fired.
TO BE CONTINUED
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thanks need to go out to Village-Mystic for pointing out the need for more sensory information in my story. All of you who have submitted reviews, put me in your favs and on your alerts -- and also those who haven't -- glad your enjoying this.