Chapter 36
Masters of Boskone
Unknown Location - Planet Eddore
Older than old, before the Q, Precursors, or Arisians.
From a Universe long collapsed, before any others had formed, the Eddorians grew, fought, and lived. Alone for eons unend, they felt only one impulse, then and now. Power. Absolute and forever. War without end consumed their planet, not for a year, or a decade, but all time. Each Eddorian a metaphysical substance, able to bend, shape, and manipulate its body for any necessary task. Life spans of such beings were measured in thousands of centuries, after which the mind and body split into two. Retaining all the memories of its former self, the two continued in their quest for power until one was killed or divided hundreds of thousands of years later.
After endless years, when no Eddorian could slay another, an armistice formed. Immediately, a democratic style of governance was ruled out, the concept of checks and balances seemed like a waste of resources and deemed inefficient by the survivors. Dictatorship offered the only reasonable choice, and so a slightly more powerful, and marginally more ruthless Eddorian became the All-Highest. Surrounded by his Inner Circle, they sought new life to control beyond their own Universe. With mind and machine, they traveled through dimension until they reached one where life would soon grow. The Arisians, who were already present, detected their entry from another plethora of reality and promptly set to task their two billion year covert war. Able to see the future, the Arisians realized if the Eddorians were to become aware of their presence, the war would not end in a stalemate. The Arisians saw their own demise, and so they snatched the knowledge of their existence from the Eddorian minds before a proper defense could be raised. Blissfully unaware of the Arisian threat, the Eddorians sat supreme at the top of the galaxies, blind to their real enemy.
Superior in mind, but not machine, the Arisians decided to create the Galactic Patrol to be their method of influence. Lensman who were products of the Patrol helped bring order throughout space. For only the power of mind could kill the Eddorians. Like the Arisians, physically destroying them brought no benefit.
But even Lensman and Arisians were not enough to break through the atomic thought-screens raised by Eddore. And so, isolated on their world and discovering the real threat too late to mount a counter, the Eddorians watched the painful erosion of their influence come to pass. Faced with the prospect of complete defeat, the Eddorians saw an opportunity to rebuild. With their forces smashed, a tear in space-time rippled throughout known reality. They had already captured Kimball Kinnison in a trap. Inside the hyperspace tube, the tiny pod pushed the second stage Lensman to the boundaries of reality; only to be wrenched into a new Universe by a detonating Dalek Time Destroyer. Taking advantage of the situation, the Eddorians moved their planet into the hyperspace tube which erupted into the Milky Way's Beta Quadrant a year ago. Intercepted by Borg cubes and Imperial probes, the Eddorians effortlessly destroyed both parties before moving their planet onward.
Without interference from the Arisians, and able to fully digest the situation, they set to work on creating a new ruling Empire. They knew the temporal winds would eventually pass, allowing Arisian minds to follow them through what only mechanics could.
Here is a brief interpretation of the planetary fusion of minds weeks after setting foot into this reality.
"Attention all Eddorians, join us in the Inner Circle. As you now know, we have moved into a new Universe, where the Arisians and their pesky Galactic Patrol have no influence. We believe that in two years the temporal winds will subside and allow our greatest enemy passage. As before, we must build a network, layer upon layer with absolute authority delegated. This ensures growth and influence at the maximum possible rate. There is no limit. All layers must be accountable to the higher, able to be focused at a moments notice by whatever means the operators have set up. Each Eddorian will be assigned a strategic goal, those who succeed will advance, those who fail will die."
"We have sought to learn who dwells in this new realm."
"We must be careful not to expose ourselves past the screens, the Arisians may not know precisely where we exited hyperspace. The more we travel beyond Eddore, the greater chance they detect us."
"We concur."
"What of the Lensman?"
"Immaterial. He is stranded here. Alone and without the Arisians for guidance. He will perish of old age."
And so it went for months until an operator came across the Alpha Quadrant, where other space disturbances had occurred. One exceptional operator reported the possibility of the very creature that designed the temporal blast. The name of the operator.
Captain James T. Kirk.
Located in his home universe by a high-level Boskone commander by way of Federation records, the entire 'mirror' Federation fell to Boskone almost overnight. But the higher-ups took to Evil-Kirk immediately, giving him the power of the black lens and to task him with fulfilling the complex Eddorian plan. No one knew the entirety of the master plan save those on Eddore, but pieces moved and shifted as designed. The Daleks rightfully suspected more intelligent races must run the Boskone group, but they did not know, and still do not know the full extent.
Eddorians discovered the full plan of the Dalek by plundering all that they could from its fleshy mind early on. This represented the one and only time their consciousness drifted past their screens. So powerful are the minds of the Eddorians, they can travel Universes and read and rewrite the thoughts of any sentient being save that of a Q.
Regarding the Q, the Inner Circle learned of them through the Dalek, and a directive had been given. To protect the Dalek until the superweapon could be built, the final piece, created on Eddore and away from the prying eyes of the Q beings. Eddore ensured the Dalek's did not realize the error in their construction, and would deliver the missing mechanism to them just before usage. As it stood, the weapon still worked, but fine-tuning of principal components was necessary for full effect. If successful, the superweapon could be duplicated and used against the Arisians. Their ultimate enemy.
But one aspect of the plan did not at first sit well with them.
The Old Ones.
Like the Q, the Eddorians found it preposterous that such things could exist, in places unseen and unknown. Far beyond, where no hyperspace tube could reach, before time started and after it stopped. And yet as they debated and learned, past errors caused them to consider it possible. Seeded deep into every Eddorian mind was the concept of learning from mistakes, necessary for the strongest to survive from billions of years of war. The Daleks planned to release the Old Ones into the Q Continuum, and so the plans were drawn to address this circumstance.
The All-Highest felt the Flood to be nothing more than a pest, with his senior commanders assigning only a fraction of resources to combat it. No cure could be found, but that did not concern the Eddorians. At the appropriate time, the plague would be dealt with harshly and severely.
Presently and endlessly, the Inner Circle debated the situation,
"It spreads to more than half the Milky Way Galaxy. Our best estimates put the viral fleet at half a million ships. Their method of infection allows for only a single spore to land in a populated area, and within a day the planet is consumed. Our low level commanders are fighting it nonstop, keeping it busy. Coruscant, a planet far from here is the latest example. Our General-operators say it is important, and that we almost lost it."
"No single planet is important. No single galaxy is important." Countered the All-Highest, "...only our master plan. Xyit Compound 823 will be complete in days, the Dalek's must be protected. We still do not know the true motives of the virus. Obviously intelligent, we cannot risk probing its mind so close to the destruction of the Q. Beyond the shield we are susceptible to attack."
"Do you believe the Q can harm us mind to mind?"
"Perhaps, perhaps not…" this unknown question nipped at the arrogant nature of the Eddorian psyche, but too much was at stake to risk even the smallest slip-up.
"An Earth captain has communicated with a Gravemind, perhaps an alliance of sorts? Maybe we have been discovered?"
The All-Highest scoffed at the thought,
"Fool! We are far far beyond the reach of their slipstream. The Dalek base at the center of the Milky Way is vulnerable however. We of Eddore will personally manage and carry out my plan if such a time comes to pass. The Dalek weapon must activate."
"Ideological change continues at rapid pace, I project our echelons of control to continue exponentially."
"When we leave to destroy the Arisians, the changes we have started will continue organically. What has started cannot be undone. The local galactic cluster will become a dictatorship within ten million years."
"We concur. In less than fifty-million years, if we do not return by then, many hundreds of galaxies will fall to our sway."
"So reads the data."
"The moment approaches. Inform all commands to stand ready. All resources are to be utilized if the Dalek's are attacked."
Milky Way - Center of Galaxy
The Supreme Dalek carefully dialed the controls of his sensor grid, adjusting and priming the necessary variables to obtain the desired result. On screen, a layout of Commander Data's positronic brain. Easily overcome during his time connected to the Federation mainframe, his subsystems had been rewritten to serve the Dalek purpose. Not susceptible to mind-scans as were biological slaves, the Dalek's knew they were in the clear. Commander Sloan had been obliterated by design, the phaser fire from Evil-Kirk's Enterprise targeting his building specifically. No loose ends existed now, with the base on Cherno 44 vaporized, no path lead to Data or the Daleks.
Satisfied, the Supreme floated down the corridor to the ghastly room containing the clump of heads and to gateways beyond. The flesh still hung silently on chains, waking and sleeping randomly. Extensive scans revealed nothing beyond the flesh, and yet nothing was more important than what came from the speaking heads. Communication with the Old Ones.
"You have been active!" Shouted the Supreme Dalek accusingly. Stealth probes detected the strange occurrences on the Sulferion moon weeks ago, where Luke and 'John' had fought a desperate battle.
The chains twisted and clanked, heads and jaws moved and pulsated, the glob woke from a deep slumber.
The final gate must open
"How do you plan on accomplishing this?! Your puppet is dead!" Shrieked the Dalek. "Our plan lays in tatters. Our weapon will only force them back to their dimension."
We will come, we can see it
"Only after our weapon activates, if the timing is off, the Q will kill both of us!"
After a minute of waiting in silence, the verbal barrage continued.
"Do not try and D-E-C-E-I-V-E us. We have modified the planting spell, you will be locked in the Continuum. Obey and more will be allowed." The Dalek's had experimented nonstop for almost a year, carefully adjusting and mastering the spells which were needed to guide the entry of the Old Ones. This in conjunction with the final spell would allow them passage. "Who is to voice the final spell? It cannot be us!"
The final words will be spoken
Angry at the vagueness of the Old Ones, the Supreme Dalek moved off into another section of the station. Dozens of Dalek's supervised and programmed the production efforts of super-advanced weapon systems soon to come online. Not entirely trusting the Boskone agency to protect them, the Battle Computer recommended they prepare point defense systems in case of attack by the virus or other alien entities.
Resembling a giant soup ladle, the dredge bucket skimmed along the surface of the accretion disk orbiting the event horizon of the super black hole. These elemental particles were then used to create new and expanded molecules which in turn created material. The Dalek's advanced knowledge of weapons and all things war brought complete lethality to the defensive battle stations being assembled at the center of the galaxy. Great care had been taken in the study of the Star roads rampaging about, exotic weapons being no stranger to the Dalek hoard. The Time War waged against the Time Lords stretched through time and dimension. Entering realms scarcely believed at all, and into times long forgotten or so far into the future they barely registered as a dream.
Conflict was their purpose. Total extermination their goal.
The Dalek's also held onto another plan. One fulfilled only after the death of the Q. Once the burden of their destruction lifted, sights would turn to the mortals of the Universe. Boskone, the Flood, all would be targeted for extermination in their grand vision.
"Once our weapon discharges against the Q, turn it towards the virus infection and Boskone!"
Milky Way - Gamma Quadrant - Deathstar
"So we have a deal then Q?" Asked the Emperor, seated alone in his throne room overlooking the blue whirling of hyperspace. "You said you wanted to teach humanity a lesson, there is no greater lesson than total defeat. I destroy Earth, and you snap your fingers and all resets to how it was. After all, a good tool is one that works and must be taken care of..." his thin lips pulling back to show his rotten yellow teeth. He closed his eyes in anticipation of an answer, only a week from Earth, he could feel his victory in hand.
"Deal."