FINAL CONFLICT: A STARS ABLAZE STORY
Xxx
Six Months After the Battle of Naboo
Milky Way Galaxy
Beta Quadrant
Qo'Nos
IKS Klothos
Captain's Quarters
Dahar Master Kor of the Klingon Defense Force smiled as he stepped onto the bridge of his ship, the IKS Klothos. It was a D-7 class battlecruiser and old by today's standards but like its Starfleet counterpart, the Constitution class, it had undergone a massive refit in order to keep up with Starfleet. Despite the new K't'inga class battlecruiser entering service Kor argued in light of recent events it was wise to keep the D-7s around a little longer and refit them to the same specification to match Starfleet's own approach, upgrading their power systems, weapons and engines. Unlike most Klingons, Kor was an admirer of Starfleet and recognized many similarities between Klingons and Humans.
Not enough to prevent him from carrying out his duty in battle against them but enough to know that their ways, while different from the Klingons was an effective way for expansion and right now he was in the midst of attempting something that could potentially help the Klingon Empire expand.
"This is the personal log of General Kor of the Klingon Empire. Klingon Intelligence has reported that the Federation has discovered a new galaxy with a stabilized path leading to it. This naturally has the High Council…concerned as it presents an opportunity for the Federation to expand into an entirely new galaxy unchallenged. Some of argued for war, despite Organian Peace Treaty and that it would compromise the honor of the Empire to uphold the treaty and the Chancellor understands that. Rather than make war in a long, drawn out and foolish bid to secure passage to this new galaxy the Chancellor seeks alternatives.
One method has been to send several battlecruisers out into deep space with the crew placed in cryo sleep. The ships would travel at minimum warp with all essential systems powered down, including life support, with the exception of the engines to conserve essential power. These ships would travel n directions away from the Federation and would be sent to planetary systems that would take a long time to reach with conventional warp, conquer these systems and then report back to the High Council. An ambitious plan, to be able to expand our borders in every other direction slowly without the knowledge of the Federation or the Romulans until it is too late." Kor grinned before continuing. "However I chose a quicker, more dangerous method that is suitable to a Klingon. Our intelligence has discovered that the Federation gained entry to this new galaxy through the creation of wormhole, caused by a matter/anti-matter imbalance in the engines. They had not only gained entry but also gained an access to a limitless knowledge by the synthetic intelligence known as V'Ger. The High Council has been troubled by this knowledge and fears the Federation will only grow much stronger than the Empire and perhaps lead them to becoming the most powerful force in the quadrant.
Again, some on the High Council believes it best to take the knowledge, hidden in a machine granted asylum by the Federation as they begin negotiations with the nearest planet in the new galaxy. Unfortunately it is onboard the Enterprise at the moment which has made use of its new faster than light travel, conquering or rather exploring far beyond our reach. Fortunately for us Starfleet has decided that for the time being the Enterprise will be the only ship to have this new engine for one foolish reason or another and…possibly unfortunately for us help has come in a supposed ally to show us how to properly recreate the incident that allowed the Enterprise to create a wormhole into this new galaxy. A renegade Vulcan scientist who has agreed to aid us in return our assistance in the Lantaru Sector." Kor frowned at this. "She is as treacherous as a Romulan but she came forward and offered her assistance. Still, she is untrustworthy so I have only allowed Klingons of…dubious honor to be assigned to assist her in the Lantaru Sector. In return she has shown the formula to replicate the incident without destroying my ship. Kirk has made history for the Federation with this mistake, so now I will either do the same or today will be a good day to die. Either way, it will be glorious."
Once his log was complete Kor exited his quarters and stepped onto the bridge. "Status."
His senior officer Kaz stood up tall and saluted. "Engines fully powered and ready, General. The modifications have been made."
"Good." Kor sat in the command chair. "Take us away from Qo'Nos at warp point five. We will match the movements of Kirk upon leaving his system."
"Heading?" Crewman officer Kali who was also the wife of Kor asked from her station.
Kor grinned as he considered the course. "Take us…of the Earth system. The entity known as V'Ger engaged three of our ships in the direction of Earth. We will match its course."
"And if we pass into Federation space?" Kaz questioned.
"We'll begin our test long before we reach their space." Kor replied, his grin remaining. "And if they happen to see us we can simply claim it was the result of engine and navigational error."
It was known to most of the crew that Kor was an adventurer, someone who was not afraid of risking his own life in whatever mission he was given and that was especially true for missions where he could be given the chance to compete with the Federation, it was especially true for the chance to compete against Kirk. The Klingon General considered Kirk not an enemy, but THE enemy, a rival who was born a human but Kor could see how much of his heart that was Klingon.
A warrior disguising himself as a diplomat.
Someone to challenge the Empire, expose its weaknesses and flaws so that they may be corrected and to force growth and evolution.
"Thrusters ahead." Kor gave the order and it was obeyed.
The Klothos broke from orbit from Qo'Nos, leaving at warp point five. Kor watched the view screen as it showed his ship passing by planets quickly, clearing away any obstacles that would have been in the way.
"Are we ready to begin?" Kor asked.
"Ready, General." Kali answered.
"Then begin. Maximum warp." Kor grinned, exposing his teeth as he readied himself for what could be the beginning of the Empire's next evolution…or a glorious death.
Kali inputted the commands into her console and a second later the Klothos' warp engines were online, propelling the ship through space. "Maximum warp."
Kor leaned forward, watching the view screen for a second…and watched as the wormhole was formed. "Qapla!"
The ship began to shake with the voices of the crew becoming distorted as they spoke and the light around the crew themselves started growing distorted as well.
"Wormhole established." Kali reported. "Engines stable but detecting one minute increase of stress on the hull growing. Diverting power to structural integrity field to compensate."
Kor watched in eager anticipation as the ship continued deeper into the wormhole. "Full scanners. I want to know everything that we see here."
The wormhole tunnel showed stars and planets passing them by as strange, elongated shapes.
"Navigational deflectors inoperative. Directional controls inoperative." Kali reported.
"Main power systems overloaded!" Kaz reported.
The Klothos shook even harder now, the inertial dampeners being overloaded by the wormhole effect.
"Is there anything else appearing?" Kor asked, his voice becoming even slower and more distorted.
"Negative…Wait, sensor ghost paralleling us…Up ahead." Kali said.
Kor looked at the view screen, seeing a shadow passing them. It appeared to be a ship of some kind, unlike any he had seen before.
"Full scan! Now!"
"Unable to get an accurate reading, General!" Kali replied. "Only our optical sensors can see them!"
This was it.
This was what they had been looking for with this entire assignment.
A way to use the Federation's own achievement for the benefit of the Empire!
"We must get that ship!" Kor shouted. "Charge disruptors!"
"Sir, we are in a wormhole-" Kaz started.
"We are Klingons!" Kor barked. "We must capture it!"
"Sir, we can only see it by optical sensors. It remains cut off from us." Kali reported. "Unless…"
"Unless what?" Kor demanded.
"We do what we did before to escape that pocket dimension." Kali answered. "We attempt to tie their navigation and warp field to our own. "
Kor remembered this move.
In 2269, Kor again faced his enemy Captain Kirk in battle, when the Klothos engaged the USS Enterprise in the Delta Triangle region. During the battle, the two starships became entangled in a 'time trap,' a phenomenon unique to that region, pulling the ships into an alternate universe known as Elysia. Kor attempted to escape, but the Klothos was unable to break free from the region, partly due to its unusual properties, including draining dilithium crystals of their energy. Through cooperation, the crews of the Enterprise and Klothos were able to formulate a strategy by combining their warp power in an effort to overcome both ships' individual power deficiencies.
Prior to their attempt, however, Kor had one of his officers, Kali, plant a bomb-like device in the computer room of the Enterprise, set to explode once the starship cleared the phenomenon and reached warp eight. Both ships were able to escape the region, and the destruction of the Enterprise was averted moments before the ship reached warp eight. Nevertheless, Kor claimed responsibility for formulating their combined escape and returned to Klingon space none the worse for wear.
"It'll force open another tunnel the wormhole." Kali finished.
"Do it!" Kor shouted.
The Klothos moved alongside the shadow of the ship and immediately Kali attempted to synchronize the warp field of their ship with the shadow. This caused the wormhole tunnel to shake even harder, along with the ship. A tear seemed to be forming in the 'wall' of the tunnel between the Klothos and the ship shadow.
"Report!" Kor shouted.
"Our warp field has created some sort of subspace distortion! It's latching onto something! I think it's the ship!" Kali replied.
"Yes!" Kor pumped a fist in celebration.
"General, we have to break off! The engines are overloading!" Kaz shouted from his station.
"No! We're so close!" Kor shouted back.
It seemed that a second 'tunnel' was opening and was dragging the ship out, pulling it towards the Klothos. The 'wall' tore open and the ship came through, pulled right in next to the Klothos. And just in time as there was an explosion from the other side of the 'wall' that rocked both ships and sent them spiraling down the tunnel. The Klingon ship was rocked heavily as the crew struggled to stay in their seats, consoles overloading and exploding.
"Warp core is overloading, General! Emergency shut down initiated!" Kaz shouted.
The wormhole tunnel was started to collapse in a blast of blinding light that sent Klothos and the ship it had brought over into its 'tunnel' with the explosion reaching for them. Then finally the ship returned to sub light speed, breaking out of the wormhole before the explosion reached them. However both ships were literally thrown in opposite directions of each other. The Klothos had suffered heavy damage with plasma leaking from its right nacelle with main power offline and emergency power was barely operating.
And what happened to the other ship?
It too had been thrown out, further than the Klothos and was seemingly dead in space and just as damaged as the Klothos.
Xxx
Another Universe
Milky Way
Earth
Orbit
Taelon Mothership
"Why is it staying open?" The leader of the Talon Synod, a pale skinned humanoid in a blue jumpsuit named Zo'or asked impatiently. "I was assured this would be a temporary phenomenon."
"Obviously not temporary enough." From behind came the voice Zo'or's fellow Taelon and parent, a similar being in a darker suit named Da'an which annoyed him.
Nearby, Captain Lili Marquette was at the main console, seeing something appear on the scanners. "We're getting sensor readings that indicate a large mass has entered the wormhole from the other end."
"How large?" Zo'or asked.
It was Da'an who answered. "I would say it is the mass of a Jaridian Sokhara cruiser." Da'an turned to see a hint of fear in Zo'or's eyes. "In your rush to destroy the Jaridians you have opened a gateway for them to come here."
"Notify all Taelons to return to the ship. Prepare to leave the system." Zo'or said immediately, driven more to save himself than his fellow Taelons.
Liam Kincaid looked over his shoulder at Zo'or. "You're just running?"
"We cannot allow the ship to fall into Jaridian hands." Zo'or defended.
"At least let the world know what's coming. Give them a chance to fight." Liam argued.
Zo'or closed his eyes, seemingly contemplating Liam's…suggestion. "This…was Da'an's project. Perhaps he would like to make that address. He is better with the pleasing phrase than I."
Leave it to Zo'or to divert blame away for his own mess.
Da'an had other ideas. "I believe something more substantive is required. Prepare my shuttle."
Liam immediately followed after the Taelon he was assigned to protect. "Where are we going?"
"To make a futile heroic gesture." Da'an said, stopping for a second. "It is appropriate that I will pilot the shuttle myself. The cannon is my responsibility."
"And your protection is mine." Liam said, following Da'an to the shuttle bay.
Xxx
Shuttlebay
Liam and Da'an entered the shuttle but Liam sat in the pilot seat.
"It would be wise to hurry." Da'an said, sitting behind his protector.
Liam activated the cockpit shield, followed by the engines. The shuttle lifted up and flew out of the mothership.
Xxx
"So what is it we're going to be facing?" Liam said, angling the shuttle down to the entrance of the wormhlole.
"A Sokhara cruiser is a planet destroyer." Da'an answered, having seen what these warships were capable of.
"Not if we destroy it first." Liam replied.
"That I'm afraid is most unlikely." Da'an said with resignation in his voice.
"Well, we don't actually need to destroy it to win. We only need to make it pause long enough to allow the wormhole to close naturally." Liam suggested as he angled the shuttle into the wormhole. "We're like Horatio at the bridge."
"Horatio?" Da'an asked.
"A Roman hero. An enemy army was attacking so he stood on a bridge and he forced the enemy to fight him one at a time. That way he saved the city." Liam explained.
Da'an had a small wistful smile now. "We also have that legend. Qu'ne between the cliffs."
"So you're beginning to think we actually have a chance." Liam commented.
"I know their weaknesses; you are a skilled pilot, Liam. We are well armed but no. No chance at all." Da'an answered, closing his eyes for a second. "However it will make a good story and if told often enough and believed enough a good story is a powerful weapon of war."
The shuttle glided down the wormhole tunnel, shaking slightly.
"It's getting rough." Liam noticed.
"The Jaridian's mass is affecting the wormhole's stability." Da'an informed.
Liam looked ahead and could see the massive ship. "There! There it is!"
The Jaridian Sokhara cruiser was indeed large and intimidating. It had green crystalline hull with two long wings extending out from the main hull with two more vertically attached behind, resembling the legs of a deadly creature with a secondary hull attached to the bottom that resembled a tail with a claw at the end.
Perhaps it was meant to resemble a deadly predator from Taelon or Jaridian mythology.
It certainly did.
"Guess there's no problem hitting it." Liam said, already having to take evasive actions as the Jaridian ship opened fire.
"It's most vulnerable along the trailing edges of the engine ports." Da'an advised.
"Targeting them now." Liam said, bringing the shuttle closer.
A single red bolt hit the shuttle's forward shields.
"I need more power for thrusters." Liam said, dodging more blasts.
"I'm afraid that is not possible." Da'an answered.
Liam realized that they needed to try something else. "We if we can't stop this cruiser we'll have to shut the tunnel down ourselves. A large enough shock should break the tunnel's supersymmetry."
"In theory." Da'an stated.
"So we've got no other choice. I'm ejecting the fusion matrix." Liam said, inputting the commands.
"In which case we will not be able to return to Earth." Da'an said. "But then, we never thought we would did we?"
Liam only glanced at Da'an for a second before focusing back on dodging the incoming blasts and ejecting the fusion core of the shuttle. "Power up the weapons."
"Without the matrix there is insufficient energy to fire." Da'an said, not understanding Liam's plan.
"I don't need them to fire I just need the Jaridians to think I am about to." Liam stated.
"That might be possible." Da'an affirmed.
Just as they jettisoned the shuttle's fusion matrix, something strange, surprising and dangerous happened. The 'wall' of the wormhole tunnel began to split open, revealing a more reddish tunnel with another ship in it.
"What is that?" Liam asked, feeling the shuttle shaking harder.
"It appears…to be another wormhole forming inside this one." Da'an answered, surprised by what he was seeing. "Some sort of energy field as latched around the Jaridians."
The Jaridian ship lurched as it was pulled into the new tunnel away from the fusion matrix as it floated down the tunnel.
"This is not good." Liam said, trying to keep the shuttle stable. "The Jaridians are being pulled away into that new wormhole. If they make it inside they'll be safe from the explosion."
"The instability of the wormhole may cause the fusion matrix to detonate shortly." Da'an suggested, detecting arcs of quantum energy lashing out between the tunnels.
The shuttle shot back down the tunnel as an arc of energy collided with the fusion matrix and caused it to detonate. The explosion filled the entire tunnel of the wormhole but by that time the Jaridian cruiser had already been pulled into the second wormhole with the 'wall' being torn more open.
"You are using the edge of the explosion to propel us forward." Da'an commented, understanding Liam's plan.
The shuttle reached the end of the wormhole tunnel, shooting out into normal space just before the wormhole collapsed.
"Liam, is that you?" Lili Marquette called over the comm. channel.
"We're here, Lili." Liam answered. "We made it out...Though there's a few things I think the Synod and the President will want to know."
If the Jaridians hadn't been destroyed when the wormhole collapsed they might still be close to Earth.
Xxx
Milky Way Galaxy
Beta Quadrant
Sector L-14
IKS Klothos
Kor groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. He had a dull ache in his head but luckily Klingon skulls were thicker than a Human's. He looked around to see the bridge had become a complete and utter mess. Smoke hung in the air as the result of consoles burning, the main lights were out which left the emergency lights on. Despite the damage he could see most of the crew had survived.
"Damage report." He called out once he was back on his feet.
"Warp and impulse engines are down. Limited maneuvering thrusters still operational. We have a plasma leak on the starboard nacelle. There are reports of fires all over the ship but the fire suppression systems are down." Kali reported from the ops station, waving the smoke away. "Sick bay responding. No hull damage."
"And the other vessel?"
"Located…two thousand kellicams from us." Kali answered. "They seem to be damaged as well."
"Good…They cannot attack while we are down." Kor muttered. "Weapons?"
"Offline and insufficient power."
"Communications?"
"Possibly the only thing still functional." Kali answered with a cough.
"Put it a distress call to all Klingon ships closest to us. Tell them we are near a ship that must be taken with minimal damage at all costs. We must take it back to the home world." Kor ordered.
"Yes, sir."
This was it.
They had managed to do the impossible.
But now they had to hold this position and wait for reinforcements.