TRTSS7: The Hidden Trek Voyage! – By DS Wynne
Disclaimer: R1/2, SM, ST and other genres belong to their respective owners.
Note: This is a multi-genre story.
Part 50
Meanwhile, Usagi sits in her cell, trying to collect her thoughts on her mental experience. It was weird to know how her life would change from this point on. Heck, she never really saw herself as a starship captain, since she, up until that moment of time, saw herself going for a career in medical research.
"Excuse me, are you comfortable?" said a familiar voice.
Usagi looks up to see T'Yan standing there, with a tray of food in her hand.
"I'm fine…I guess," Usagi replied, as she rested her head on her knee, as her holding cell was deactivated.
"Good," T'Yan smiles, as she deactivates the force field that had contained. She then goes over to a shelf to place the tray there.
"You will need your strength, for what is to come-" T'Yan said, as she was suddenly grabbed from behind.
"Ulp-"
"Now, I apologize for this," Usagi said, as she grabs T'Yan behind. "But I got to stop Nero from going through with his plan."
"I know," T'Yan said, as she suddenly broke free of Usagi's grip, surprising Usagi in the process. T'Yan then tackles Usagi on the floor, and straddles Usagi.
THUMP!
"Hey!" Usagi said.
"Humph," T'Yan said, as she smiles at Usagi. "I can't believe how week I am."
"Huh?"
The appearance of "T'Yan" changes…
"HUH?"
Alt-Usagi smiled at her younger counterpart.
"Surprised, huh?" Alt-Usagi said.
"What the heck is going on, here?" Usagi demanded.
"I don't know," Alt-Usagi said, as she licked her lips. "You should pay for jumping me like THAT."
"…"
"What?" Alt-Usagi asked.
"Oh, I was just thinking how wonderful it is to be 'assaulted' by some evil doppelganger," Usagi said drolly. "Been there, done THAT."
"Hey, I'm not evil," Alt-Usagi said, obviously offended by her younger counterpart's remark.
"Oh, yeah…I guess I misunderstood you when you began straddling me."
"Usagi, you shouldn't be so uptight about such things," Alt-Usagi said, as she stands up. She then offers her hand.
Hesitantly, Usagi accepts it.
"So when did I go all 'ecchi' all of a sudden?" Usagi asked.
"I can't tell you exactly what happens to you, since…well, to be honest, I barely remember things myself."
"…"
"But, it's important for you to seize the day…and all that junk, because within the next one hundred years or so, you and Ranma will be a part of certain events that will test your respective characters to the max. This situation with son-in-law is an example of it."
"Wait, so I DID have a kid that married that jerk?" Usagi asked incredulously.
"Yep. The sad thing is that Oren…was a good man once, before getting all crazy."
"And I still can't believe you have slightly pointy ears now."
"'Cuz it's cool?"
"…"
"Look, sometime in the future, I had an extended stay on Romulus. It was there that I married the Romulan emperor Shiarkiek. But to fit in, I underwent a transformation to be more vulcanoid, as a way of better fitting into Romulan society."
"So, I became consort, the dowager and regent."
"Correct."
"How does Ranma fit in all this?"
"He didn't. I'm not going to say anything more, out of fear messing up the timeline, but…my decision to do what I did was out of necessity for peace in the Alpha Quadrant."
"The Romulans probably would want to keep you, since they HATE Ranma, and doing that would bug him," Usagi said.
"Precisely."
"Oh."
Silence.
"Wait, I may not be too sharp on the temporal mechanics thing, but our interaction should have created a paradox," Usagi said.
"Normally, yes, but because I have a different body in my time than in yours, no paradox need apply," Alt-Usagi replied.
"Does it have to do with you being able to change forms?"
"Yes…among other things. Any other questions before I leave you alone?"
"Yes, I do. How did you get here? From my 'time seeking', you disappeared into the wormhole."
"Well, I arrived after to this timeline shortly after a friend did."
"You're talking about YOUR Spock."
"Correct. I shadowed the Narada long enough to board it during the fight between the Federation task force and the Narada, and replaced one of the crewmembers on board by taking over her body."
"Wait, you were here during all that, and you didn't do ANYTHING to stop Nero from destroying Vulcan?" Usagi asked.
"Usagi, MY main goal is to stop Nero, and had your Enterprise not have arrived, I would have. But more to the point, when I saw that you, Ranma, Captain Pike, James Kirk, and your Spock and company were on board, I knew that I had to allow YOU GUYS to stop Nero. Me getting directly involved could have made the changes to the timeline that Nero had already made much worse. I had to trust the fact that the mythic crew of the starship Enterprise would be there to save the day, and become the heroes you all are meant to be."
"But…T'Pol, our friend, died! She could have had a long life!"
"Actually, she would have died twenty years from now from a meaningless death," Alt-Usagi said sadly. "T'Pol may had died earlier, but she died a hero, saving Vulcan."
"Humph."
"Look, I got to go," Alt-Usagi said, as she returned to her appearance as 'T'Yan'. "Just sit tight. Allow yourself to be rescued when the time comes. Do that, and the damage to the timeline will not be as severe…okay?"
"Yeah, yeah…"
Meanwhile…
"Oh, so you FINALLY decided to visit me, eh?" said Engineer Lt. Montgomery Scott, as he takes off his cap. "I get sent here because of a failed, long range transporter experiment on Admiral Archer's beagle, and you don't have the decency to at least help a condemned man out with a visit?"
"Hey, I thought you would like the solitude," Ranma said, as he thumbs in the direction of Kirk. "And besides, I've been busy working with cadets like this guy, Scotty."
"And you are?" Scotty asked, as he faces Cadet Kirk.
"Um, James Kirk," Kirk said, as he looks around the workshop before he sees a small alien, the same one who allowed Ranma and company to enter the outpost on Delta Vega 40 Eridani, sitting on top of inoperable space shuttle.
"Get DOWN from there!" Scotty exclaimed. "Sheesh. I don't why you always like sitting on top of high places…"
Scotty then turns towards Old Spock.
"Look, even if I do believe that you are from the future, how can I help you? I got a busted space shuttle."
"But are the transporters working?" Spock said.
"Yes…"
"I have a means to help you with your 'dog problem', but only if you assist Ranma and Jim on their mission," Spock said.
"Well, with all this, how can I turn you down?" Scotty said sarcastically. "Show me what you got…"
Inside the shuttle, Spock shows Scotty a trans-warp transporter method that would allow anyone to beam unto a starship that is moving at warp speed.
"Wow," Scotty said, as he reads the calculations on the monitors. "You know, I thought it was next to impossible to pull this off, since my theory meant the equivalent of shooting a bullet while both in motion, but I didn't think to see space as a movable platform."
"The future you thought solved this problem, after witnessing Ranma's 'Instant Transmission Technique'," Spock said.
"Whoa," Ranma said. "Really?"
"Really."
"You mean, you knew how to do this already?" Kirk asked.
"Well, instinctively, yes. But I never saw any practical use for it on a mass scale."
"Montgomery Scott did, and was able to translate it for mass use," Spock said.
"Well, a deal is a deal," said Scotty, as he gets up. "When do we start?"
"Right now, in fact," Old Spock said, as programs the shuttle's transporters. "Gentlemen…"
When Ranma, Scotty and Kirk got on the transporter pads, Kirk turns towards Old Spock.
"You're not coming?" Kirk asked.
"No, this is not my fight, this is yours," Old Spock said. He then turns towards Ranma.
"And get Usako back."
"I will," Ranma said. "You know, you're not so bad after all."
"Humph," Old Spock said, as he raises his hand in a Vulcan salute. "To all, live long and prosper."
And with that, Old Spock activates the transporter…
BRRRIIIIINNNNNNGGGGGGGG-!
And with that, the trio was gone.
Old Spock then turns towards the small alien, whose name was "Keenser".
"Care for a game of 3-D chess?" Old Spock asked.
"?" Keenser replied.
BRRRRRRRIIIIIINNNNNGGGG…
"We made it!" Kirk said, as he notices that he and Ranma were in Engineering.
"But…where is Scotty?" Ranma asked, before he heard banging sound in one of the water treatment containers.
BANG-BANG!
Then, there was a flushing sound, and-
FWOOSH!
"Scotty!" Ranma yells, as he sees Scotty been flowed through clear pipes. "Wait up, buddy-!"
With that, Ranma takes off after Scotty.
"Wait for me-!" Kirk yelled, as HE took off after Ranma…
A short time later, Scotty was coughing up water while being comforted by Gaila. Gaila was an Orion (green) female who was Ranma's great-granddaughter…as evident by being the only few Orion females that have red hair. In fact, having red hair was a sign that the Orion was a descendent of Ranma…
"Are you okay?" Gaila asked.
"I'm okay, lass," Scotty said. He then notices Gaila's beauty and clothes.
"Say, you're in Engineering," Scotty said.
"Yep, Acting Chief Engineer Gaila. And you are…?"
"Engineer Lt. Montgomery Scott," Scotty said. "But you can call me Scotty."
"Oh! You're my great-grandfather's friend."
"Who-?"
"Scotty, we got to go," Ranma said, as he finished consulting with his security teams. As the Chief of Security, Ranma is also in charge of emergency preparedness measures, ranging from emergency medicine to hazard suppression management to auxiliary maintenance (i.e. repair crews that assist Engineering).
"And, Gaila, thanks for spotting Scotty before he got mulched," Ranma said.
"You're welcome, great-grandpapa," Gaila said, causing Scotty's eyes to wide.
Ranma sees this.
"Yeah, I'm older than dirt, but I can STILL kick YOUR arse."
"Humph," Scotty said.
With everyone back, a plan of action against Nero and the Narada commences…
"I have good news, and bad news," Cadet Chekov began to say. "Based upon my calculations, we will be at our destination shortly."
"And what's the bad news, kid?" Kirk asked.
"By the time we arrive, the Narada will not only know that we have arrived, but the Earth will have reached the terminal phase of its existence."
Everyone else blinks his or her eyes in silence.
"…"
"Honest!"
"Just how old are you anyway?" Dr. McCoy asked.
"Seventeen."
"Ah, seventeen," McCoy said, as he shook his head. He then turns towards Spock.
"Are we going to trust our lives to this kid?"
Before Spock could respond-
"Cadet Chekov would not have had a spot on the Enterprise, if he was not qualified for his position," said Number One, as her younger sister escorted the First Officer to the Bridge.
"Commander," Spock replied.
"Spock," Number One replied, as she sits down at the Center Seat. "What is our status?"
"We might not be able to mount an adequate defense, if we are spotted by Nero," Kirk said.
"Spock?"
"What he says is true, Commander," Spock replied.
"Unless we use the magnetic poles of a planet to hide our signature," Ranma said.
"Of course!" Chekov exclaimed, as he immediately goes to a glass "board". He then picks up a light pen to perform his calculations.
"Sulu, does these calculations work?" Chekov said, as he transfers the data to Sulu's station.
"Just a minute," Sulu replied, as he looks navigation calculations.
BLIP!
"The engines need to be reconfigured, but it should work."
"Leave that to me," Scotty said.
"Okay," Number One began to say. "We have to both stop the alien vessel and rescue our people."
"Then let me lead a team to board the Narada," Ranma said.
"No, I want Spock to lead it, since he is more familiar with the Vulcanoid mind than you are," Number One said. "And take Cadet Kirk with you."
"Ma'am?" Kirk asked.
"Well, you are the top of your class in combat arms, correct?"
"Begging your pardon, ma'am, but Cadet Kirk should not be on board period."
"I know about the disciplinary action thing, but we'll need a wild card for this, and Lt. Saotome can keep Kirk in line."
"Very well," Spock said.
"Good," said Number One, as she sits back in her chair. "Cadet Uhura? Sound the alarm for battle."
"Aye, ma'am," Uhura said, as she turns to give the general alarm. "All hands: battle stations! I repeat: battle stations-!"
Ten minutes later…
FWOOSH!
The Enterprise warps into the cloud of gas that covered the planet Saturn. Slowly, it emerges from the gas like a phoenix.
"We have achieved our objective," Chekov said. "We are within the planet Saturn's blind spot."
"Gentlemen, you're on," Number One said tiredly, as she spoke through her intercom unit. "And remember, no heroics."
"Yes, ma'am," Spock said, as he, Ranma and Kirk step unto the transporter pads in the transporter room.
"Well, this is my first real 'away team' mission," Kirk said.
"You're nervous?" Ranma asked, as he checked his phaser rifle.
"Me? Nervous? Nah…"
"Good, because you're on your own if you get separated."
"Huh."
"Ready, gentlemen," Scotty said, as he sat at the transporter control panel.
"Ready," Spock said. "Ener-"
"Wait!" Uhura said, as she runs into the transporter room.
"Huh?" Kirk said.
"I just want you to be careful," Uhura said, as she hugged and kissed Spock.
"I will, Nyota," Spock replied.
'Nyota?' Kirk thought.
Uhura break the hug and then proceeds to hug Ranma.
"Make sure that you keep Spock safe, Ranma," Uhura said.
"I will, cupcake," Ranma said, as he and Uhura hugged each other.
"Good, James," Uhura said, as she waves her good-bye, before stepping off the transporter pad.
"Hey, don't I get a hug or something?" Kirk complained.
Uhura looks at Kirk for a moment, before she began to chuckle.
"Heh, you're funny…"
"She wounds me," Kirk laments.
"Mr. Scott, Energize," said Spock.
"Energizing," Scotty said.
BRRRRRIIIIIINNNNGGGGGG…
"And away they go."
When the trio materialized, they found themselves in the middle of a Romulan operations center, located somewhere on the Narada. Unfortunately, it was occupied.
"Halt!" said one of the Romulans, as he gets up to draw his weapon.
"Run!" Kirk said.
"Damn it," Ranma said, as he began to return weapons fire.
"When we get back, if we survive this moment, we need to have a talk about command and control policies," Spock said, as he exchanged weapons fire with their assailants…
After a while, the trio came upon T'Yan.
"Freeze!" Kirk said, as he points his weapon at the Romulan female.
"Hey, unharmed!" T'Yan said, as she raised her hands.
"Where is Captain Pike and Lt. Tsukino?" Spock demanded.
"I'll tell you everything, and more, for a kiss…from HIM," T'Yan said, as she points to Ranma.
"Huh?" Ranma replied.
"Aw, why is it I'm the only one not getting lucky?" Kirk whines.
"We do not have time to indulge in your proclivities-" Spock began to say before being interrupted.
"No, no, we can do this," Ranma said. "But just a kiss."
"Very well, be quick with it."
In spite of the grim that smeared on T'Yan's face, there was a glow about her…
Ranma took the Romulan girl into her strong arms, and planted a kiss.
SMOOCH!
"Well, what do you think?" Ranma said.
"Just like I remembered," T'Yan said.
"What?"
"What?" T'Yan said, as she straightens herself. "Okay, you did you thing, now I'll tell you what you need to know…
T'Yan mentions the Jellyfish that contained "red matter", the substance that was response for the near-destruction of Vulcan. However, only Vulcans could pilot the craft. Once Spock knew what he needed to do, in order to stop the drilling of the planet Earth, Spock stole the craft and left the Narada…the hard way.
BOOM!
"What?" Nero yells. "SPOCK?"
"I believe that this ship is stolen property, and that it will be confiscated," Spock said with a smirk, as he embarked upon the destruction of the drill, which hovered over the San Francisco Bay Area, where Starfleet Academy was located.
Meanwhile, Ranma and Kirk separate, with Ranma going after Usagi, while Kirk goes after Pike.
At the same time, T'Yan contacts an old friend, as she stares off into space…
"{Sailor Pluto, can you hear me}?" T'Yan thought telepathically.
"{It's about time you made contact}," Sailor Pluto replied likewise. "{Where are you}?"
"{I guess I am in an alternate timeline or something}," T'Yan said. "{I need for you to perform a mass temporal recall, so that these people can be brought to justice}-"
SPLURCH!
T'Yan felt herself be stabbed in the back, as she drops to her knees. She looks up to see Nero standing down on her.
"I don't know why you betrayed me, but this is the least I can do, before I destroy the Earth," Nero said, as T'Yan falls down, seemingly dead.
"Now, to finish the job," Nero said, as he pulls out the staff before walking away…
Nevertheless, after some quick thinking on the part of the crew, the Narada was now in a grip of a wormhole caused when Spock lured the Narada away from Earth, before ramming the Jellyfish into the Narada itself. It was thanks to the Enterprise appearing on the scene at the last minute that allow Spock to perform his kamikaze attack…
Once Pike, Spock, Ranma, Kirk and Usagi were back on the Enterprise, Number One addressed Nero, as his ship broke apart around him from the stress caused by the wormhole.
"Captain Nero, we are prepared to render assistance, if you care to surrender," Number One said.
"I rather die than accept help from the Federation!" Nero raged. "Your kind has already betrayed me on that score."
"Very well," Number One said, as she turns towards Ranma. "Fire all weapons. Let's conclude this matter."
"Firing away, ma'am," Ranma said, as he let loose a barrage of discharged weapons fire at the Narada…
As the ship began to break apart, Nero closes his eyes, only to be returned to his proper timeline….
FLASH!
When Nero and his crew reappear, 140 years later, he appears in front of Admiral Ranma Saotome with armed guards, as well as representatives of the Klingon Empire. Ranma did not look happy.
"Captain Oren Nero, you are under arrest for the murder of Fleet Captain Usagi Tsukino, Federation Ambassador Spock, and scores of Starfleeters and Klingons," Ranma said. "How do you plead?"
"I plead nothing!" Nero said. "I did it all for what was lost to me-"
SHOOP!
In walks the Romulan Empress T'suki, with her young son in hand, Praetor Sela and their entourage.
"T'Suki?" Nero said in astonishment. "You're alive? But…how?"
"I am my mother's daughter, husband," T'Suki said. "I found a way to save our people, in spite of the treachery by the proconsul."
"I don't understand."
"The proconsul wanted to start a new Romulan Star Empire, by killing those who wanted peace with the Federation," Sela said. "So he lied to the Federation about when Romulus' star was set to go supernova, thereby killing off the competition while using you to seek revenge."
"You should have trusted the Federation, husband!" T'Suki said, as a tear fell from her eye. "But you didn't. And now, my mother may be dead because of you!"
Nero looks at T'Suki, and then at his son, who clutched his mother.
"I'm not monster!" Nero said, as he reaches for his son, only to have him pull away. "Please…"
"You brought this on yourself, Nero," Ranma said. "YOU brought this one…YOURSELF."
"No…NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-!"
With that, Nero crumples to the ground in despair, while everyone looks on.
Meanwhile, back in the past…
"…And for bravery above and beyond the call of duty, I rewards the command crew of he USS Enterprise the Medal of Valor, with special citation of honor going to Cadet James Tiberius Kirk," said the commandant with a smile. "Congratulations."
The audience cheer, as everyone stood tall.
"Well, cadet, it looks like you won't be kicked out of the academy after all," Ranma said.
"Yeah, I guess not," replied Kirk. He then notices his parent and older brother coming down from the audience area.
"Excuse me, I think I see my folks and George over there…"
And with that, Kirk runs to his family.
"Well, I think alls well that ends well, eh?" Usagi said, as she goes up to her husband.
"Yeah, I guess. Say, did you ever get the feeling that something strange was going on during that entire conflict?"
"Come to think of it, I met a future me," Usagi said. "She disguised herself as one of the Nerada's crewmates, and told me some interesting things about the future."
"Wait, was her name…T'Yan?"
"Yes, that's it. You ran into her?"
"Well…in a manner of speaking?"
"Wait, did she kiss you or something?" Usagi asked.
"Well…in a manner of speaking."
"Okay, hot shot," Usagi said, as she wrapped her arms around her husband. "Did she kiss you…like this?"
Usagi and Ranma proceed to "liplock".
"Well?" Usagi said, after breaking the hug.
"Actually, she used a lot of tongue."
"Huh. But, I'm curious as to what happened to her."
"Actually, I wondered what happened to Old Spock," Ranma said.
"Oh?"
Above in the balcony area, a couple watches down.
"They look so good together," T'Yan said, as she looks down. After cleaning up, she now looks like a typical Vulcan woman.
"Indeed," said Old Spock. "And thanks to their influence, the future is bright indeed."
Pause.
"I am surprised that you chose to remain behind with me, Usako," Old Spock said.
"Spock, Ranma, MY Ranma, will be taken care of while I am gone," T'Yan said. "But, for now, I do not want you to be lonely in THIS timeline. No, my place is here by your side."
T'Yan offers her index and middle to Spock, signifying her offer of companionship.
Old Spock, in turn touches T'Yan's offered fingers, signifying that he has accepted T'Yan's offer. Whether or not the two will get married is beside the point, now that two old friends have rekindled their relationship.
Four years later…
"So, we get a new Captain?" Ensign Chekov (Navigator) said, as he and everyone stood around. "I'm surprised that Number One turned the assignment down."
"It's one of the personal things," said Lt/Commander Usagi Tsukino (Second Officer and Bridge Operations Manager).
"My sister, well, she's in love with Captain Pike," said Nurse Lt (sg) Christine Chapel (HRN and Head of Life Sciences).
"Personally, I can't believe that got HIM to be the new commander," Lt. Sulu (sg) said.
"Neither can I," Lt. (sg) Uhura interjects.
"Considering the impressive record our new commander developed, I CAN believe it," said Lt/Commander Ranma Saotome.
"THAT is because he was one of your students, Commander," Commander Spock (First Officer and Chief Science Officer).
"I'm surprised that you did not get picked to command the Enterprise, Mr. Spock," said Lt (jg) Janice Rand (Ship's Yeoman).
"As far as Starfleet Command was concerned, they wanted Captain Pike's replacement as ship's commander to have a stellar record, since the Enterprise IS the flagship of the fleet. So, logically, I agree with their assessment and decision."
"But does it have to be HIM?" asked Dr. Leonard McCoy (CMO). "I mean, I like the guy and all, but he takes too many damn chances."
SHOOP!
"That's because I don't believe in losing," said Captain James T. Kirk, as he strolls onto the Bridge. "Especially on a job like this."
"It's good to see you again, Captain," Ranma said.
"Likewise."
Pause.
"I hope…that you will serve my command as well as the previous one," Kirk said, as he looks around the Bridge.
"Just don't cause too much trouble during your FIRST five-year mission," McCoy said. "Okay?"
"Aw, lighten up, Bones," Kirk said, as he jabs McCoy's shoulder.
"Ow!"
Kirk then takes his seat.
"Okay, people, let's go to our new 'way station'," Kirk said, as he punches a button on his armrest. "Mr. Scott, how are our engines?"
"We're looking good," Lt/Commander Montgomery Scott said, as he nods his head towards Assistant Chief Engineer Lt (sg) Gaila Saotome. "The engines are at nominal-"
Scotty sees Engineer Keenser sitting on yet another high place.
"Get…get down from there-!"
"Copy that," Kirk said, as he tried not to laugh. "Mr. Sulu: plot a course to the Epsilon Eridani System…best speed."
"Aye, sir."
"Wow," Usagi said, as she looked at the place where the Enterprise will use as a primary port of call during their extensive deep space assignment for the next five years. "Hey, Ranma?"
"What?" Ranma said, as he goes over the drill assignments of the day.
"Did you know that the Babylon 5 station was the fifth one built, after the first three were destroyed, due to sabotage, while the fourth mysteriously disappeared?"
"The only thing I care about is whether or not they have good food," Ranma said. "It's suppose to be a neutral site for non-aligned governments, particularly for the Minbari, Juraians, the Vorlons, the Centauri, the Narn, the Romulans, the Klingons and the Cardassians?"
Pause.
"With so many different species present, the food is going to suck."
"Well, I, for one, can't WAIT to see what adventures we'll find!"
"Oh, thank you 'Dora the Explorer'!"
"Huh?"
"Engage," Kirk said with a smile.
And, with that, the Enterprise begins the next grand adventure…
Space…the final frontier.
It's mission: to explore strange, new worlds.
To seek out new life, and new civilizations…
To boldly go…where no one has gone…BEFORE!
Fin.
Author's Note: I'll keep this story open-ended, just in case I get a new idea…for now. Later!
