Retaliation
Sparks flew through the little bay as Wright used an old-fashioned plasma torch to weld the first of the new warheads into the torpedo casing. He had a mask over his face, blocking his eyes from the intense, bright flare of the torch in front of him. They had developed enough warheads for six, maybe seven shots. It wasn't a lot, but it would be enough. Provided, of course, that Karn's theory was correct. And provided, of course, that the Shining Ones let them live long enough to pose a threat at all. There were innumerable variables, and Wright didn't like the fact that their last ditch effort was going to be such an uncertain one.
"Almost done?" Karn called, from behind the Chief Engineer.
"Don't rush art," Wright snapped, "Assuming this even works, we're going to need to be sure that there isn't even the slightest flaw in these tachyon emitters. Otherwise, God knows where this torpedo, or our ship, might end up. We could fly through a temporal vortex and wake up next week in the 29th century."
"At which point we'd be a little late to do anything about the Shining Ones at all," Karn sighed.
"Just by about five hundred years," Wright groaned. Once the weld on the first warhead was secure, he nodded and turned to Karn. "There," he barked, "Load this one."
Karn adjusted the torpedo controls, and fed it from the loading area where it was positioned into the firing mechanism. As quickly as it had disappeared, it was replaced by a second torpedo. Wright hastily tore open the casing with his spengler wrench, and set to work with the plasma torch, welding a second warhead right into the torpedo itself.
The warhead itself, the one they'd designed, was about a foot wide, a foot and a half long, and half a foot tall. It was a boxy, helter-skelter piece of equipment, with a detonator, a small tachyon generator, and a series of emitters mounted at various angles. It wasn't the most aesthetically pleasing thing that anyone had ever come up with, but with a little luck, it would be just what the doctor ordered. Or what the android ordered, as the case might be.
After a few minutes, Wright had the second torpedo ready to go. Karn, again, fed it into the firing mechanism. The door behind them whooshed open, and the silhouettes of Data and Armus stepped from the corridor into the dark room.
"Status report, gentlemen?" Data inquired.
"I just got through telling the bald wonder," Wright snapped, "Don't rush art."
Armus glanced at the group of warheads piled up on the far side of the room, near where Wright was crouched, and scoffed as he started work on a third torpedo.
"Art?" she sneered, "It looks like you cobbled it together with paper clips and rubber bands."
"Ah," Data mused, "A twentieth-century stationary implement. Ill-suited to this particular task. Might I suggest, Mister Wright, that if in search of a twentieth-century implement that might be of better use, you refer to your discussion of some days ago regarding 'duct tape'..."
"You think this is funny?" Armus snapped, glaring at the android.
"I am merely making an observation," Data remarked. He watched as Wright finished the third torpedo, and loaded it. "Gentlemen, we have only another ten minutes to spare."
"We won't be ready by then," Wright growled, "We'll have four, maybe five torpedoes ready. And we'll have to leave the room when the firing mechanisms start to kick in."
"Agreed," Data noted, "Once you have completed work on the fourth, Mister Wright, proceed to Engineering. Mister Karn, you will proceed to the Main Bridge. We will engage the Shining Ones as soon as you are in position."
Karn and Wright glanced at each other, nodded, and glanced back at their commanding officer.
"Aye, sir," they responded, setting back to work.
Data stepped out of the room, closely followed by Armus. The corridor was empty - the weapons pod was one of the few areas on the ship with strictly limited access. They walked along in the silence, moving towards the turbolift that would bring them back to the main bridge. As they moved along, Armus' eyes started to shift from black to a soft, light blue. Tasha stopped in the middle of the corridor, and Data turned to face her, recognizing from her eyes, instantly, that Tasha had returned, if only for a short while.
"Data?" she asked, swallowing nervously, "Can we talk? For just a minute?"
Data paused, cocked his head, and nodded. "Of course, Lieutenant Yar," he acknowledged, "What would you like to talk about - ?"
"We've known each other a long time," she sighed, "And you still call me that?"
"What would you prefer I call you?" Data inquired.
"Just Tasha," she answered. She shifted slightly, uncomfortably, and glanced at him with a half-smile on her face, trying to reconcile right now the way that she felt. "Look, Data...it's hard for me to...to depend on somebody else. To rely on somebody else. Or to admit that...that I needed somebody else. But...I guess the fact is that I was in a very long, very ugly sleep. You woke me up from it. And...I think you woke Armus up from a bit of an ugly sleep, too. Armus is...different, now."
Data arched an eyebrow, intrigued, but at the same time still not quite certain what Tasha was getting at.
"Different?" he asked, "In what fashion?"
"Just different," Tasha sighed, "Data...I don't know how all of this is going to turn out. There's a good chance that when today's done, we're just going to be stray particles, floating from space."
"A likely outcome," Data remarked, "Probability of such an occurence is 58.4%, based on the conclusions drawn from - "
"Data," Tasha interrupted, "I just...for what it's worth, I want to thank you. Thank you for everything."
The two of them watched each other for a long while, each not sure what to say or what to do next. Finally, after several seconds, the two of them moved closer, leaning forward so that their lips were just nearly touching...
...the sound of a lewd whistle behind them startled Tasha, and she whirled around to see an amused Lieutenant Wright leaning against one of the bulkheads.
"Well, that's one mystery finally solved," Wright chuckled, mischievously, stepping near them to where the turbolift would open any second now. "You frisky little android, you, Captain," he smiled at Data, who arched an eyebrow curiously at the term, "Don't mind me, I'm just waiting for the lift."
Her face reddening, and her eyes shifting back to a deep, dark black, Armus crossed her arms and glared furiously at Wright.
"If I hadn't developed some restraint...and some respect, for you fleshbags over this journey," she growled, "I would turn into a Carnellian dragon-beast and bite your crunchy little head off."
Wright chuckled, crossing his own arms as the lift opened. He stepped forward, into the lift.
"Going down?" he asked.
Armus growled, and joined him. Data also stepped forward, about to enter the turbolift. Karn stepped into their stretch of the corridor as well, his eyes shifting back and forth between the three other officers.
"Did I miss something?" he asked, nervously.
"Shut up and get in," Armus snapped, impatiently.
* * *
Lissa Cohl paced impatiently, feeling trapped in Sickbay while the whole rest of the ship was preparing, again, to go into battle. This time, without any real hope of survival or success. It was frustrating, being stuck here and not being able to do anything about it. Usually, she had Karn to talk to at times like this. Good old Karn. But...at the moment, she was on her own.
Except for Bruce, of course. Comatose Bruce. Unconscious Bruce. She approached the motionless, hardly breathing body of her captain, pulled up a stool, and sat next to his bio-bed, watching his readings for what seemed like the millionth time that day.
She put her elbows on her knees, and her hands beneath her chin, resting her head as she watched him. He was sleeping...peaceful...content. He'd die in a slumber, not knowing the sort of terror or chaos that was running through the ship like a plague right now.
"Well...I guess that's all she wrote," Cohl sighed, "You're just going to lie there...aren't you? Just going to have a snooze, while the rest of us run around with our hair on fire." The Orion took a deep breath, and started to look on Bruce in the light of a silent confessor, right now. "I don't want to die," she spoke, softly, "I don't want it to end like this. I wanted to go home. I want to tell people I love them one last time. I want to leave something behind."
She leaned back, slightly, still watching Bruce's unconscious form. "I mean, look at you," she continued. "You're Captain Bruce Maddox. You've invented things and perfected things that have saved thousands of lives. Granted, with a little more time, you could have done a lot more...but what have I managed to do?" She sighed, stood, and started to pace, still watching his unconscious form.
"Bruce Maddox, you are a bundle of nerves. You stammer, and you get excited too easily, and you're the last person, in my opinion, who ever should have been given command of a starship. Except for maybe that blasted android, who's only managed to blow us apart a chunk at a time since he took command. But...you've always been able to find that silver lining, that way out. You've held us together. You made this ship...better. Just by being alive." She sighed, crossing her arms, watching his form hoping that he'd wake, but knowing that it was a fool's hope. "I really wish you were here to help us out right now."
Bruce Maddox said nothing. He continued to breathe. Whether he would ever wake up, really, was anyone's guess.
* * *
"Acting Captain's Log, Stardate 48313.1," Data spoke, tapping the log entry controls on his chair, in full hearing range of the bridge crew. Tatiyana, Gallant, Karn, and Armus all turned to face him as he spoke. "This may be the final log entry of the USS Rorschach and her sister ship, the USS Sutherland. We have armed the prototype chroniton torpedoes developed by Ensign Karn, who is to be commended, post-humously if necessary, for his original thinking. We are now on a direct intercept course for creatures that, if left to their own devices, intend to destroy Earth in order to further purify themselves. While the destruction of such beings is a severe loss to the diverse fabric of this universe, they have no regard for other life forms, and pose a serious threat to the Federation and her allies. It is our duty to pursue them and stop them by whatever means necessary. This is our intent."
He paused, taking a moment to glance over each and every member of his bridge crew. They had become close to him, dear to him. In the few days they'd spent together, they'd learned to function as a unit. From balalayka playing in the lounge with Tatiyana, to his long conversations with Bruce Maddox, to his bickering with Wright, Data had become accustomed and comfortable with this group, and was most proud to have served with him. He would always remember the crew of the USS Rorschach...and, if all else failed, he intended to make certain that the Federation would not forget them, either.
"This crew has served well. Beyond well. They are the like of officer that should be the aspiration of every Starfleet cadet, and the pride of every Starfleet admiral. As acting captain...I am proud and pleased to have served with them. Though we soar headlong into a most impossible situation...I do not believe that our deaths will have been in vain. If nothing else, our actions will buy time for an evacuation from Earth. If this should be our last entry, I hope that our stand will be one worthy of historical texts."
He tapped the switch at the side of his chair, ending the transmission. He glanced over to Tatiyana, who was manning her post at Tactical, her face in a flattered, but slightly sad, smile.
"Thank you, keptin," she whispered.
"Lieutenant Chekov," he ordered, "Eject a log buoy. In the event that we are destroyed, our record of these events will survive."
Tatiyana nodded, and hit a switch on her console. The aft torpedo launcher ejected a probe, one containing each Captain's Log recorded since the start of the journey. She wiped a few stray tears away from her eyes, and glanced back over at Data, smiling.
"The buoy is away, keptin," she croaked.
"Oh, stop," Armus groaned, rolling her eyes. "We're not dead yet. Don't put your funeral clothes on."
Gallant chuckled, dryly. Karn watched the seven lights of the Shining Ones at the Ops station, observing them as they moved closer and closer to Earth.
"We're running out of time," Karn moaned.
"Agreed," Data noted, standing from the command chair, and approaching Gallant at flight control. "Accelerate to attack speed. Plot intercept course and engage."
"Aye, sir," Gallant answered, pushing his hands into the glowing innards of the console, "Engaging."
"Lieutenant Chekov," Data ordered, "Target the focal point, as close to the center of the seven contacts as possible. Prepare to fire two of the modified torpedoes in burst."
Tatiyana nodded, grimly, locking the Shining Ones into her station as targets.
"Ready, keptin," she responded.
"Mister Karn," Data snapped, "Continue monitoring activity from the Shining Ones. Your observations may buy us more time."
"Aye, captain," Karn responded.
Armus simply shrugged, and crossed her arms in frustration.
"And I guess I'll just stand here and look pretty," she grumbled.
"You may remain on the bridge," Data noted, "You have a vested interest in this conflict. I thought you would want to see how these events resolve themselves."
"Right," she sighed, a little restlessly, "I just hoped I'd be a more active part of it."
"You have been," Data noted, "But...at the moment, there is nothing more you can do. We must make an attempt to use the torpedoes that Mister Wright and Mister Karn have modified for us."
"Mmm," Armus sighed, nonchalantly. "I suppose."
"Closing on the target, sir," Gallant reported, from the front of the room, "We are within firing range."
Data glanced back and forth, one last time, at each of the crew, as if this were the last glance he was going to have at any of them. The seven red lights on their sensors were moving closer, and closer. They would have to fire soon for the torpedoes to have the proper trajectory, and to detonate at the right moment. Data turned to Tatiyana, his face tight and determined.
"Prepare to fire, and manually detonate on my mark," Data barked.
"Aye, keptin," Tatiyana confirmed.
There were a few seconds of silence, and Data watched the sensor readouts on the main viewer, waiting until the Shining Ones were in just the right position. He stood, and the entire collective bridge crew held their breaths.
"Fire."
Tatiyana hit the switch promptly, and the two experimental torpedoes, glowing a deep, cerulean blue, spat forth from the weapons pod, careening across space towards the location of the seven red orbs. Each second brought them nearer and nearer to their targets, each second passing as an eternity for the bridge crew, who watched the two blazing blue lights approaching the dark red ones. Finally, the blue lights reached just the right point, and Data raised his hand, pointing towards the screen, his eyes wide and almost wild.
"Mark!" he shouted, turning towards Tatiyana, "Detonate the torpedoes!"
Tatiyana hit a second switch. On the main viewscreen, the torpedoes erupted not into a mere explosion, but into a small maelstrom. Tachyon and chroniton particles burst from the projectiles into a small storm, striking turbulently against the seven objects in space. Immediately, Armus doubled over, clutching at her forehead. Data turned to her, worriedly, but she waved him back.
"I'm alright," she snapped, "It's working...it's working!"
The maelstrom doubled, and then tripled in intensity, the blue storm smashing hard against each of the seven contacts, ultimately engulfing them. The seven contacts disappeared, replaced only by the maelstrom on sensors.
"We've lost readings on them," Karn reported, "Too many chroniton particles to tell anything else."
The crew watched the maelstrom in awe for a few moments longer, until it faded away. It took their eyes, and the sensors, to adjust to the decrease of the chroniton particles and the change in the lighting. For a moment, it appeared to them as if the seven lights had been extinguished. When the maelstrom died out, three lights remained, one of them the largest of the seven original lights. They were now growing a bright, violent orange-red. Their intensity increased rapidly, and Karn turned to Data with a look of terror on his face.
"Captain!" he cried, "I'm reading a massive buildup of energy readings from the three remaining contacts! I believe they're preparing to launch a counter-attack!"
No sooner had Karn finished the words then, from the largest red light, a bright white shockwave, a vicious, rapidly approaching destructive and expanding disk, ripped its way across open space right towards them.
Armus' eyes widened, and she knew that this was the end. Tatiyana watched the wave approach, staring what would surely be death straight in the face. Karn watched his console, counting down the seconds to its impact.
"Eight seconds!" he called out, "Seven! Six!"
"This is Commander Data! All hands!" Data barked, "Brace for impact!"
"Four! Three!" Karn called.
The wave grew larger and brighter as it approached, its intensity seeming to grow exponentially with distance. Gallant just stared at it, his expression akin to that of a creature caught in the headlights of an oncoming shuttle. He spoke the only words that came to mind right now.
"Oh, shit!"
Data, from the command chair, swallowed nervously.
"My thoughts exactly, Ensign."
"Impact!" Karn called out, terror thick in his voice, as the leading edge of the wave reached the saucer, colliding with them violently.
Everything went white.